Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/720675
C h e c k o u t A B M P 's l a t e s t n e w s a n d b l o g p o s t s . Av a i l a b l e a t w w w. a b m p . c o m . 95 1. Repeat mantras aloud to identify emotions and create compassion: • Breathing in, "I am aware I feel angry." Breathing out, "I meet myself with compassion." • "Right now there are other people just like me, in pain and feeling fear. I send compassion to myself and everyone in pain who feels fear." 2. Explore imagery, naming a painful sensation and thinking of it like a cloud in the sky. 3. Download guided relaxation, meditation, or mindfulness apps, and set aside 10 minutes once or twice a day for internal reflection. BUILDING A THERAPEUTIC PRESENCE Self-care starts with us. We can be mentors for our clients, sharing our experiences as well as the experiences of other clients who have successfully found ways to lead full lives with pain. Develop and commit to your own self-care routines. Suzanne Scurlock- Durana, CMT, explains that being more grounded and present creates the safety and permission necessary for clients to be able to achieve deep relaxation and healing. In addition, "Learning to embody a steady, strong therapeutic presence significantly increases your ability to feel what's going on with your clients." 24 Practitioner skills are needed to teach and facilitate client body awareness. With skillful assessment, the practitioner can learn to distinguish the client's presence from a lack of presence. We can feel a change in muscle tone, or vitality of the tissues, and we can feel when the person's overall demeanor moves inward. At the same time, we can feel the shift in focus and vitality when the client "leaves." 25 This requires us to remain present during the session, both to feel and respond to the client's presence during the session and to support a practice of presence between sessions. There are simple techniques for staying present during sessions. First and foremost, we resist the temptation to think about ourselves, our life challenges, and our to-do lists, or the need to chat and entertain during the session. Instead, we can briefly respond to the light chatter that accompanies the transition from the outside world to the relaxing, healing environment of the massage room, then invite an inner dialogue. Reflective questions such as "How does this feel?" and "What do you notice here?" and statements such as "Breathe into the space between my hands," can invite presence. Match the client's breathing, notice connections in other parts of the body, and feel for subtle shifts to maintain your own presence. W H Y C H O O S E S I G H T U N E S M O N T H LY M U S I C F O R M Ts? REASON #3 Priced right! $9.99 regular price per month $5.99 per month for ABMP Certifi eds What You Get: • 10 hours music/month • NO ads ever • Affordable www.sightunes.com 914-312-1686 TM Subscribe today! Get fi rst 14 days for only 99 cents