Forums » Smalltalk » AMA: Licensed massage therapist

Hey everyone, I graduated from massage school in 2015 and worked from 2015-2019 with all sorts of people; mostly injury rehabilitation and sports therapy.

Touch is a very important for humans. I've found people can be hesitant about getting massages or going to see a therapist, what to expect, or what makes a good therapist. Ask me anything!

Massage therapy seems very physically demanding. Did you find that to be true, and if so, how did you tend to your own physical needs?

How has the pandemic affected your practice?

It is. I work barefoot when I'm doing Swedish if I can; but it also helps cut down on noise from walking, too. I eat well and stay in shape; 15-30 minutes of exercise almost every day helps. One of the reasons I moved into working with injuries and athletes was because it is less physically demanding, oddly enough.

I stopped working last August when I got hired on full-time doing field work. My friends who are still practicing get tested weekly, but cleaning methods are more strict, and fewer clients ofc. Some are not working though.

Someone's asked already about it being physically demanding, but isn't it emotionally demanding as well? If you're treating people with injuries and stuff, how do you approach that? Do you have a particular sort of mindset?

It can def be emotionally taxing, moreso than physically I think. People hold a lot of emotion and trauma in their bodies, so helping someone work through things can have a profound effect. Like you're drawing their pain and trauma out, or rearranging it. One of my clients was in a really traumatic car wreck and cried through our first three sessions because it was the first time they felt noticed. Touch has a dramatic effect on a person after they've been through any major life event, especially when it helps you physically heal, and I feel rewarded when I can help someone out with their pain. But I def have a pretty solid self-care routine; I had a weekly house keeper who helped keep my apartment in order, made sure I cooked every night, took bubble baths, and had my own therapist. I do miss it a lot, I really want to get back to it.