I’m currently in training to be a massage therapist (or at least to qualify as one - I don’t know for sure that I would actually become a masseur long term). In doing some research on an essay for the course, I’ve become curious to hear about what experiences people have had with massage - both giving and recieving.
So, this thread is just for sharing such experiences. Why did you have it, what was it like? Do you have massage regularily, or was it just the once? What types have you tried? etc.
For all those skeptics out there just itching to provide me with cites as to why massage therapy is bogus, be warned in advance that I already mostly agree with you. I feel the medical benefits of massage are vastly overrated, although I’m sure it has some. Regardless though, it’s a nice relaxing experience, and were I to go into practice myself I’d probably not claim any sort of therapeutic benefit other than helping with sore muscles.
(Oh, and if you massage your kidneys anticlockwise 12 times then it cures all ills. )
I’ve gone once each to two different massage places.
The first place had an all-Asian staff. The masseuse did not speak English well. I stripped completely, with my lower body covered by a sheet. The massage was very sensuous and mildly therapeutic. It was back, shoulders, and I think buttocks and thighs.
The second place is a bit more New Age-y, and I’m going back on Monday. The staff are all English speakers, and the guy who did the massage seemed very well-versed in anatomy/physiology. The massage was basically from the waist up, included the upper neck/base of the skull. It was generally a bit more painful than the other massage, but I felt tons better going out.
I believe that $1.00/minute is the going rate in Philadelphia.
I have had lots of massages and had mostly good experiences. However, something you mentioned has bugged me, which is for the massage therapist to talk too much about the benefits of massage. I want to relax and enjoy myself, not have to listen to what seems like an advertisement to me. And I don’t go back to places that push too hard about scheduling a routine massage, try to sell me products, etc.
A long-term ex-boyfriend of mine was a professional massage therapist with almost 20 years of experience, and he knew what the hell he was doing in that department (if I could convince him to actually work on me all too rarely, but that’s another story). He got his initial training in Russia as part of his education in the equivalent of what would be medical assisting here. In Russia massage is much more accepted as medical treatment than it is here, so he got some very intense training in anatomy, physiology, etc. But he’s always taking seminars to learn new techniques, etc., and in fact many cities continuing ed is now required in order to maintain your license. It’s a profession that’s now in the process of professionalizing; years ago, you could get a license in Chicago if you basically showed a negative syphillis teest and wrote a check for $25, but now you have to show that you’ve completed an accredited training program.
When my ex used to work on me, he could pretty much fix any minor aches and pains and generally make me feel really, really good and relaxed. About a year ago, I had my first-ever (and as yet, only) massage from someone I wasn’t romantically involved with at the tme, and it was kind of weird. For one thing, he wasn’t nearly as good as my ex - whatever he did was something a person with any sense of intuition about the human body could have done, and I’d be very surprised to find out he had any significant training or experience. For another thing, he kept whatever parts of me he wasn’t working on covered with a sheet, but I really felt he left a lot more of me exposed than was strictly necessary. And the weirdest part was that at the point that I was finally starting to relax and veg iout, I swear he told me he loved me. I was very creeped out after that. And the massage was part of a girlie-bondong “spa day” thing my cousin organized the day before her wedding, and all the others who had massages reported similarly creepy experiences. I know there are lots of real pros out there, but it kind of turned me off the whole professional massage idea.
As for myself? Well, I’ve always gotten rave reviews. The ex did probably teach me a few things, but I think 80% of massage is knowing how to pay attention to the physical cues your massage-ee is giving you.
1.) Moscow, Russia - 1 hour. Very intensive massage, full body. I believe this would be classified as deep tissue. It hurt. It hurt the next day. It hurt the day after that. Then I felt great.
2.) Columbus, Ohio - 50 min. Recommendation of a friend from the neighborhood. Very hippy new-age massage. The massage consisted of her using her feet quite extensively. There were also stones or some such nonesense I do not really buy into and chakra alignment, blah, blah. The massage was relaxing but I was constantly taken out of the moment by the hippy-speak stuff. Just not my thing.
3.) Antalya, Turkey - 50 min. Honeymoon resort massage after having a Turkish Bath. It was fantastic, lots of oils and ben-gay type substance to really loosen me up and leave me felling like but-tah!
4.) Columbus, Ohio - 50 min. Russian woman and it was probably a “swedish massage” technique. Very relaxing, no where near as deep as # 1 above. Very good.
I’ve never experienced the chatty masseuse (except the hippy in # 2), or the “Happy ending, Doug?”, or any other bad experience.
My husband and I took our baby to in infant massage class. It was a really nice experience. The instructor did talk a lot about massage, but then part of the class was getting people into the idea that this is something to continue doing at home even after the class was over.
There were nine babies, all pre-crawling age. The babies loved it. We got them naked, broke out the safflower oil, and learned different techniques for massaging. Lasted for six weeks. It was really nice for my husband, who before becoming a father had not handled infants before. By the time we took the class he was an old pro at many things (like diaper changing) but the massage gave him a new level of intimacy and confidence with the little nipper.
Our instructor once talked about her geriatric clients. It really struck me. She said many of them don’t get a lot of touch, and a therapuetic massage for them gives them an hour of caring contact, and can be a real emotional boost. She also mentioned that she massages her son. He was a teenager, with the typical surly attitude, not generally very cuddly. But some evenings, he’d request a massage and she found it really bridged a lot of gaps to have that contact. Thought-provoking, I found.
I had a pregnancy massage two weeks before I was due. The masseuse (a woman) focused on my back, neck, head and arms. The thing I liked about it was that she briefly spoke to me while I was still dressed and told me what was going to happen. Then she left the room while I got undressed and situated on the table. At this point, the lights were very dim, there was some cool music playing, candles lit, etc. After a few minutes, she came in, did her thing for awhile, then left so that I could get dressed. She didn’t speak to me at all from the point she came in the room to the time she left. I’m the type of person who likes to just veg out when getting stuff like that done (haircut, nails done, etc.) so it was just perfect for me. I really got to relax.
Although I enjoyed the massage, I don’t think I’ll do it again. I’m a very modest person and not super into having strangers touch me. The masseuse was extremely discreet and I wasn’t at all UNcomfortable, but I think maybe it just wasn’t my thing.
Other than that, the only massage I’ve gotten (besides romantic stuff) is from my husband, who is a physical therapist. If my back is sore or I have any other sort of aches & pains, he’ll work on it for a bit. He does the type of massage that feels better after it’s over, though.
One of the people who runs my tae kwon do school is a shiatsu practicioner – that’s Japanese accupressure massage. She’s worked me over twice, once for general relaxation and once (this past weekend) for a specific issue with injured muscles.
She works with fully clothed clients, with low lighting and relaxation music playing on the CD. It’s so relaxing, that the first time she worked on me, I fell asleep during the session. I felt a lot better after both sessions, and I had a lot more motion in my injured shoulder the day after this weekend’s session.
Whether or not the massage improved my shoulder, the session did improve my attitude, which does help speed healing.
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