Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1509769
A B M P m e m b e r s ea r n F R E E C E h o u r s by rea d i n g t h i s i s s u e ! 15 to attend and serve clients before weddings, in labor, when hospitalized, or in rehab. I have served the disabilities community, from quadra- and paraplegic clients to those with head trauma, cerebral palsy, and polio, and on the autism spectrum. I even have clients that bring in their cats and dogs or ask me to work on their horse. Truly, massage has been a key part in enriching the quality of each life. However, in my experience, the most sacred calling of a massage therapist is to serve my clients in their final days and even hours. What a privilege it is to give these precious people some relief and comfort from being bed bound or from pain from their illness. Sometimes, it is the reassurance of massage that calms the fears and softens the looming reality of their limited time on this earth. Recently, while attending my client in her final hospice days, she was restless, and her comfort meds weren't calming her. So, I asked if she would like her back massaged, and her eyes lit up as if to say, "Oh, would you?" So, while the familiar massage music played, we spent our last hour together, just as we had for so many years. When I had finished, she had drifted off to sleep, so I tucked her in with her favorite blanket. I knew that would be our last massage. Finishing touches are touches of completion and often the very most important. Massage is the most beautiful finishing touch one can give another life even in death. cancer and other breast-related surgeries. This offered validation to these women, knowing they found a place to receive help. In recent years, I've observed more therapists being trained in these techniques that can support breast-related concerns; massage therapy and lymphatic drainage offer a valuable service in their physical and emotional healing. After 23 years serving hundreds of women for these reasons, what has touched my heart is the stories of those who have found healing by using massage therapy and lymphatic drainage as a self- care modality. Today, as an integrative life and health coach and CLT, CMT, I support women in redefining their lives as they navigate health changes/post-op recovery. My vision is that massage therapy and various manual lymph drainage techniques therapies will continue to be seen as an effective modality in breast health wellness and may offer a preventive approach to breast diseases. LASTING TOUCH: END-OF-LIFE CARE By Esther White I have been a bodyworker/massage therapist for 30 years, and I am blessed to still be serving my very first client! Many of my clients have been with me for 20 years; together we have weathered illnesses, surgeries, and accidents. I have been invited AT THE HEART: MASSAGE FOR BREAST HEALTH By Jennifer Telford In my 20s, I began to educate women on a holistic approach to breast health using self-massage and self-lymphatic drainage techniques as a certified massage therapist. A feature by Karrie (Mowen) Osborn in the June/July 2001 issue of Massage & Bodywork magazine called "Breast Massage: Afloat in a New Era of Thinking" spotlighted professionals advocating for massage therapy and lymphatic drainage as an effective tool to support breast health. It was wonderful validation of the work I was passionate about. Later, I would study breast massage indications/techniques, lymphatic breast care, and post-op care for breast surgeries or breast cancer recovery with some of the leading experts, including Debra Curties, Cheryl Chapman, and Bruno Chikly, and in 2018 I became a Certified Lymphedema Therapist through the Vodder School in British Columbia, Canada. By teaching laypeople and health professionals the theory and practice of these modalities in the support of breast wellness, I then started attracting women who were recovering from breast cancer. They were thrilled there was a service addressing their symptoms, including pain, discomfort, and swelling as a result of breast 2023 AWARD WINNERS