Massage & Bodywork

MARCH | APRIL 2019

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MIND OF AN MT Proceed at Your Own Peril 13 Terrible Tips for MTs By Ruth Werner Did any of you choose a life in massage therapy because it looked like the path of least resistance? I didn't think so. How many of you had to sacrifice, take risks, and invest more of your heart and soul into this job than you ever thought possible? And lastly, how many of you have strong feelings when you see others treat—both inside and outside our field—your job and your profession like it isn't valuable? Good. Because here's a problem: when one massage therapist behaves like this profession isn't important or has no value, it affects every one of us. Maybe not a lot, maybe not directly, but individual impressions aggregate and lead to larger attitudes. And those attitudes are spread to people outside the profession as well. When people see someone with the title of massage therapist behaving like their work doesn't matter, it is much harder to make the argument that massage therapy is a respectable profession or that it is a useful option for health care and wellness. So, I feel compelled to encourage every massage therapist to take your profession seriously. Which is a little different from taking yourself seriously, which I don't suggest—and I hope this distinction is very clear. Yo u r M & B i s w o r t h 2 C E s ! G o t o w w w. a b m p . c o m / c e t o l e a r n m o r e . 15 So, in the fierce spirit of love for our profession, in appreciation of the importance of excellent self-care, and in the spirit of taking massage therapy—but not ourselves—seriously, I'd like to offer this not-exhaustive list of Terrible Advice for Massage Therapists. 1. TREAT EVERY CLIENT LIKE A PIECE OF MEAT ON THE TABLE Remember, that person is the least important and least interesting thing in the room. Instead of paying attention to them, use your time to mentally compile your grocery list, or, better yet, to strategize your next career move. I have to tell you, I recently got a massage at a very high-end spa in another state. It was by far the most expensive session I have ever paid for, and I was really interested to see how it would go.

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