Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/108504
Let's Hear It From the Guys massage] is a powerful deterrent for men. Some aren't comfortable getting massage from a man because they're afraid 'it will move,' and some simply won't get massages at all for the same reason."1 I have also talked with men in social settings, outside of the massage office, who have admitted that they avoid getting massages because they are worried about having an erection. Lorine Dolby Hoffer, a massage therapist who splits time between the Washington, D.C., area and Park City, Utah, says, "I think it's a really important subject, and I think both men and women are highly uncomfortable with it. It keeps people from actually seeking massage." Historically Speaking To break loose from our societal taboos, let's take a few steps back and examine the cultural history of the penis. In his book A Mind of Its Own: A Cultural History of the Penis, David Friedman writes that one specific moment in history when the sexual male form was celebrated was in Greece around 500 BCE. Most Athenians displayed their admiration of masculine power with statues, called hermae, outside their front doors. According to Friedman, hermae were "stone or wood columns topped by the head of the god Hermes and marked at the midpoint by an erection."2 Friedman also writes about the widespread prevalence of sexual male imagery in ancient times: "Like Athens, depictions of erections were everywhere in Rome—on paving stones, at the public baths, on the walls of private homes— promoting good luck or warding off bad."3 According to Friedman, the Greeks and Romans did not attach our modern associations of shame or guilt to the naked male form and erections. "For the Greeks and Romans, an erection was like a change in heartbeat; involuntary, and not susceptible to blame or praise," he writes.4 But in the fifth century, there emerged We asked a small sample of male massage clients about getting an erection during a therapeutic session. Here are their anonymous responses. If I got an erection during a massage, I wouldn't want the massage therapist to address it at all. That would make the problem much worse and make for an uncomfortable experience the rest of the session. Best for both parties to just ignore it. There's a reason why I wear underwear when I get a massage. That means that's a no-massage zone. I don't want to risk it happening. I like a proactive approach. If it is the therapist's first time with me as a client, I think addressing the issue beforehand by saying something like "massaging muscle tissue can sometimes cause sexual arousal and in such situations there's no need to be embarrassed. I am a professional massage therapist and I only want you to be relaxed and at ease." That's it; no more talking. I would never get any massage beyond a chair massage ever again if I got an erection during a table massage. I would have to say something. I couldn't just ignore the elephant in the room and wonder if she was thinking that I had ill intentions. I would probably apologize to the MT to let her know that it wasn't done on purpose and hopefully she wouldn't feel uncomfortable or threatened. I think I would want the MT to approach it with a sense of humor. Better to make a (tasteful) joke than for us both to be holding our embarrassment for the rest of the session. If it turned into an awkward situation, I'd probably be less inclined to rebook.