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Therapeutic Massage & Fast Food for the Soul
The
most common complaints reported by clients seeking massage therapy are physical:
strained back, spasms of shoulders and scapulas, headaches and body aches. As a
Massage-Therapist (MT), my job is to ease this pain. However, if a client calls
me, impatient and nervous, presents with stressful body language and is
evidently in agony and asks me to treat his back alone, I often refer him to a
physiotherapist.
Physiotherapists are specialists; they thoroughly understand the anatomy,
pathology and physiology of the body, and probably know the Latin names much
better then an MT. Physiotherapist could tell you where the muscle begins and
ends, and will gladly relax it and enable movement.
Unlike physiotherapy, holistic MT will treat the client's toes with the same
dedication he or she will treat the patient’s neck, ideally for at least 8
weekly sessions. In this article I will try to introduce Massage-Therapy as a
therapeutic process of re-educating rather than a localised intervention.
When I began my therapeutic practice, I had one type of patient, which kept
frustrating me to an incredible extent - the ‘ideal patient’. The ideal
patient is a person who is showing real physical symptomology, and benefits
enormously from the treatment. The initial session is extremely successful: the
chemistry is brilliant and the client’s body reacts well to touch-therapy.
Usually we found that what we call deep processes - such as regression, crying
and other abreactions, occurred. He is thereafter continuously praising the
treatment, yet fails to attend for additional sessions. He keeps referring
others to therapy, even calling to schedule a session, only to cancel it later.
I kept asking myself why? It is obvious that this is a good starting point, that
therapy can begin here, so what’s wrong? The answer is simple - nothing is
wrong. The need to commit oneself for a change and the real chance of getting
better are more intimidating then one can imagine.
Many of the non-medical therapies aim at regulating habitual systems. In our
modern world many people experience high stress levels. Almost everybody is
addicted to something (work, food, TV, cigarettes, alcohol) and most of us have
personal habits or other undesirable behaviours which we would dearly like to
change. Leaving aside the purely psychological aspects for a moment, client's
experiencing physical strain often report a feeling of inadequacy or an
inability to control their own destinies. They often report that they don’t
behave as they would like to and feel that they are not the person that they
would ideally wish to be.
There are plenty of therapeutic techniques and schools, each has its own
advantages and disadvantages and each is suitable for a different range of
client, at different stages in their lives. The therapeutic process usually
begins with a change of a habitual system (sometimes the change could be the
mere decision to get help and begin a course of therapy or treatment), and
thereafter the establishment of positive feedback loops to enhance the use of
adequate psychological mechanisms. There are techniques, within which the
therapist is closely associated with the process such as long-term
psychotherapy. The degree of involvement varies between schools and therapists.
There are therapies where most of the process takes place on an unconscious
level (maybe even in the core of the habitual system itself), such as is the
case with Hypnotherapy.
Why Touch?
Touch therapy, as opposed to talk-therapy, is directly linked to our defence mechanisms as well as tapping into our infantile resources. I believe that our body (and body image) is the origin of our most basic conflicts. Touch is the primary communicating channel between an infant and his mother.
Everybody needs to be touched and generally speaking lack of tactile nourishment is a common problem for a lot of people. Most people suffer from lack of physical warmth, be it evident and conscious or hidden and unconscious. Touch-therapy, when carries out by a professional MT, is a very powerful tool and can help client's to access their deepest mental places and strongest emotions. The therapy is often done in several levels simultaneously: unconscious working, internalisation of warmth and love, renewing energy resources; conscious inducing of body relaxation - followed by mind relaxation and auto-work; and, needless to say - body-work.
MT
reaches, almost immediately, deep psychological layers that talk-therapy often
requires plenty of time, energy and experimentation to touch. More than
everything, massage enables the person to use his or her own healing resources.
It is also great fun.
How can massage be a therapeutic process?
Our mind and body are inexorably linked. Our mental and psychological state is reflected in our physical well being and vice-versa. When the body is relaxed, the mind relaxes as well, that’s easy to do. The harder part is to retain the relaxation, and this is where the process of therapy begins. During the treatment, we teach the body (and guide the mind as well) to relax. Together we learn what it feel like to be at ease, and believe me - this is quite an uncommon feeling. MT can be looked upon as the ultimate in biofeedback technology.
The
mind-body equation implies wholly unknown and genuine feelings, which we learn
to identify and appreciate as the session's progress. Guidance is gradually
given toward greater sensitivity to our body and we learn to notice when we lose
this state of relaxation. We begin to recognise the warning signs - when our
body becomes stiff or stressed again. Then, once the problem is recognised, it
is easier to avoid those situations causing the stress, or to deal with them in
a better way. The therapeutic process is one of learning to listen to ourselves,
through the messages we receive directly from our body, and to utilise this
information for self-improvement.
What problems could be treated by massage?
MT can help with a large spectrum of problems. However, as with any other therapy, this is not a panacea or magic pill, and shouldn't be treated as such. MT can be useful for treating acute or chronic physical pains (the most common of which are back, shoulder and neck pain). Many clients suffering physical illnesses and diseases (mainly stress related) such as MS, migraines, IBS, asthma etc. benefit greatly from MT. Clients experiencing a wide range of psychological problems such as eating disorders, inadequate self-image, lack of confidence, physical, sexual and emotional abuse victims and many more have reported benefiting from Massage Therapy.
Hypnotherapy and Massage
Combining
hypnotherapy and hypnosis techniques within the practice of MT can prove to be a
powerful tool for enhancing and speeding the healing process. Techniques such as
active or passive relaxation, guided imagery or pain control can help to
accelerate therapeutic processes through facilitating unconscious mechanisms, as
well as constituting an additional tool for
self-development.
How to find a Massage-Therapist
Once you’ve decided to try MT, it is important to find a qualified, suitable therapist. Many of the professional MT associations operate a referral system. Word of mouth sometimes proves to be the best way. You should check whether it is a therapeutic massage (rather than mere bodywork session or worse - disguised sexual services). Question the therapist about his/her qualifications and experience (note that a good massage course rarely takes less then a year). You should also find out whether the therapist studied western-medicine (anatomy, pathology, and physiology). You can always ask to see references or, if you are not sure, ask to speak to a referee (it is sometimes possible). If you have a specific problem, make sure that the MT has experience in this area.
An
initial session is, of-course, the ultimate way of knowing whether the therapist
is good for you.
REMEMBER - your best indicator to go on with therapy or try another MT is
yourself - If you felt uneasy, uncomfortable or suspicious, this MT is not for
you.
Asaf
Rolef Ben-Shahar
Integrative Massage therapy
Hypnotherapy & Psychotherapy
Potters Bar
http://www.IMT.co.il
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