Slowing Down the Swing: One Massage Therapist’s Experience Working with the Mentally-Ill 

How to Get the Most from Your Massage
by Susan and David Luce

 

Don't think you have to carry on a conversation. This is a time to feel, breathe, and visualize healing.

Here are some guidelines that we have available for our massage clients. We have included answers to some questions that first-time massage receivers may wonder about. The guidelines present general information about what happens during a massage, along with some tips to help you get the most from your massage. Other massage therapists we know feel the same way.

Communicate

Tell your massage therapist if there is something to be careful of. Speak up if you are too cool or too warm. Tell us if there is something special you want. Also let us know if there is something you don't like or something you especially like. We are adaptable, and this massage is for you. You are in charge.

Taking it off versus leaving it on

You will be covered with a sheet during your massage. Your back will be uncovered as it is worked on, as will one arm or leg at a time. In undressing to prepare for a massage, do what feels most comfortable to you. Understand that it is difficult to massage around a bra, so if you want a decent back massage, it needs to come off. Similarly, massage on lower back, low abdomen and hips can be done through underwear, though not as well. About half of our clients leave their underwear on, and about half remove it. Either way works for us. It's most important that you feel comfortable; otherwise, how could you relax?

What about my modesty?

A reputable massage therapist will always respect your modesty. Proper draping techniques include the covering of genitalia. We cover women's' breasts when we massage the abdomen. If you have concerns, please ask. If you need treatment on or near a sensitive area, we can discuss it without embarrassment and find a way to treat you so that you are comfortable.

Express your feelings

Go ahead and make noises. Sigh, grunt or moan. Cry if you feel like it. It helps to release the tensions you've been holding in your body. But remember that a lot of unnecessary talk distracts from feeling. Don't think you have to carry on a conversation. This is a time to feel, breathe, and visualize healing. Being aware of your emotions as well as your physical feelings as you receive bodywork is part of the healing process. You may recall something from your past as an old injury is being worked. It could be something you've been holding in your body for years that you're now ready to let go of. Just notice it. Visualize letting it go, if you're ready to let it go. You can talk about it, or not.

Concentrate

You may not have noticed that something was sore until it was touched. When you focus your attention on the part of your body that your therapist is touching, you give your subconscious instructions for self-healing.

Breathe

Slow deep inhales and exhales actually send a chemical message that triggers muscular as well as emotional relaxation. Breathe consciously during your massage and in your everyday life.

Relax

Receiving a massage is an act of surrender. Get over the idea that it's good to give but bad to receive. When on the massage table, don't help. Don't lift up your head so that your neck can be worked. Refrain from holding your arm up in the air so that it can be massaged. If your massage therapist is holding your hand up in the air and swinging your arm to relax your shoulder, don't take over. Helping doesn't help.

Pretend you're a rag doll and be totally limp. Let yourself be moved. Practice makes perfect. The more massages you get, the better you get at relaxation; this carries over into your daily life. You will become better at functioning under stress.

One more thing: in order to relax, you'll have to turn your cell phone off and leave the baby at home with a sitter. Let everything else go and focus on YOU for an hour and a half. See how luxurious loving yourself can be.

When you're on your own

Don't let your massage last only for the time you're receiving it. Let it be practice for feeling good every moment. Take responsibility for your own healing. Come back often. By treating yourself to regular massages, you will be helping yourself to function at optimum level.

We have a prepaid punchcard that allows our clients to buy 5 massages and get 1 free. This makes it easy for you to get regular treatment. Ask your massage therapist if s/he has a special quantity deal.

As always, drink lots of water. Eat a good diet. Get regular exercise. We recommend yoga, partly because it's designed to exercise every part of your body, mind and spirit. Yoga helps you become strong, flexible, balanced and at ease. The body is remarkable in self-healing abilities. It wants those parts that you care about to be healthy. It also gets the message that you're not interested in the parts that you neglect.

You can't hire someone else to heal you, only to assist you in healing yourself. It's the same with your emotional and spiritual bodies. Your health is your responsibility. Too many people rely on (or blame) others for the way their life is going by believing what others tell them to do or to believe. We all create our own reality. Some of us do it consciously, others unconsciously. Experiment. See what works for you. Consciously create what you want to have in your life in this new millennium.

Susan and David Luce are massage therapists at their own Raven Bear Studio in midtown Anchorage. They can be reached at 561-9609.

Sensitive Massage:
Healing Benefits for Children with Disabilities
by Marybetts Sinclair, L.M.T.

 

"When I volunteered to bring massage to Muscular Dystrophy Camp in St. Louis, Missouri, I was overwhelmed by the youngsters' responses. They all wanted to get on the table; the response was incredible. When we couldn't get them up on the table, I worked on them in their wheelchairs. I let them tell me where they wanted me to work. Every one of them had a different ache or pain and some had numb places where they wanted to feel again. These kids desperately wanted to be touched." --massage therapist Terrie Yardley-Nohr

Sensitive massage is a unique type of therapy that can speak directly to many of the greatest needs of children with disabilities. It is both stimulating and relaxing; it nurtures children emotionally, and it feels terrific. Sensitive massage can help children release tension, become more aware of their bodies, and form a body image that is both positive and strong. Recent research on massage for hospitalized newborns, autistic children, child psychiatric patients, children with asthma and other special groups have documented many of these benefits.

For example, hospitalized newborns who are receiving gentle daily massages gain more weight on the same amount of formula and have decreased levels of stress hormones than those newborns who do not receive massage. They are also ahead of non-massaged babies in their motor and neurological development. During childhood, when there are periods of rapid brain growth and the child's self image is being formed, massage can be especially significant.

Most disabled children are under constant stress. This can take a toll both physically and emotionally. Massage is a lovely nurturing way for these children to release their stress and tension. As a massage therapist working with children with disabilities, I have seen this first-hand.

Children who are emotionally shut down from stress become much happier and emotionally relaxed when they begin to receive massage regularly. Because they are more likely to be socially isolated and touched less than other children are, massage can be especially important in satisfying their need for touch. Children with limited mobility, such as those in wheelchairs, may be deprived of a tremendous amount of normal sensory stimulation. Massage can help meet this need. It can be readily adapted to the specific needs of children with a variety of disabilities, including developmental disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy and Down's syndrome; physical problems such as spinal cord injuries, juvenile arthritis and spina bifida; and illnesses such as AIDS and cancer.

Here are some basic guidelines to follow when massaging your child:

	Check with your child's managing physician and physical therapist before doing massage. Physical and occupational therapists can give you valuable advice in many areas. Comfort with being handled and range of motion are usually much greater following massage, so this is a great time to incorporate any exercises prescribed by a physical therapist.
	Never force massage on your child. Begin with just a little at first, and make it a fun experience. Observe your child to determine what he or she likes best.
	Just as with the rest of us, cold hands over a sensitive area, deep pressure over a sore spot, or excessive tickling are unpleasant.
	Never cause pain by using heavy pressure over a sensitive area. Take care to be especially gentle over areas that are sensitive.
	If your child is non-verbal, look for changes in breathing, facial expression, and muscle tension to tell you if he or she is enjoying being massaged. It may take some time and patience, but gradually your child will learn to tolerate and then appreciate massage.

Besides exercises, other forms of sensory stimulation can be easily incorporated into massage. For example, you might cover your child's back with a thin cloth and slowly roll a small ball up and down the back for a minute or two. Or you may choose to brush the back gently with a soft brush at the end of a massage. Try massaging your child in a warm bath, using soap instead of oil. You might add variety by using a hot pack on a tight area before massage, or gently washing lotion off after massage with a warm wet washcloth. All of these sensory stimulation forms can be enjoyed by your child, and can help him or her be more comfortable being handled.

Not only can massage be fun, but it is a wonderful time to help your child as well. For example, a child whose hands are hypersensitive could be treated in a fun way by letting her first play with bathtub toys in a pan of warm water, then in a pan of cold water, and then having her hands massaged in the water with soap or even a gritty substance such as salt while she is distracted. Gradually, as she learns to tolerate more stimulation, her hands can be massaged out of the water. This was done daily by a mother of a girl with Behr's Syndrome in one of my massage classes. After two weeks, the little girl's occupational therapist reported she was finally able to tolerate holding a spoon. Now she could begin to learn to feed herself!

I believe sensitive, loving touch is part of our birthright as human beings. There are so many benefits of massage, and so many ways to massage children. Parents can have great confidence knowing that they are helping their children, and the children can have fun, while they both enjoy this powerful form of healing together.

Marybetts Sinclair has been a massage therapist for 25 years. She is the author of Massage for Healthier Children and has taught massage for children with disabilities in the United States, Mexico and Ecuador.

Touch-Starvation: Severe Cost; Simple Cure
by Daniel N. Russell

 

Sharing touch will enhance not only our own health, but also that of our relationships – and even that of our country's foreign relations.

Would you believe that many people in our society suffer from severe touch deprivation? In The Power of Touch, author Phyllis Davis reports on her observations in that U.S. friends in cafés touch each other twice per hour, while French friends touch 110 times per hour and Puerto Ricans touch 180 times per hour. Davis notes that contrary to their innate need, children living in the United States are, in actuality, socialized not to want touch. In Touching: The Human Significance of Skin, anthropologist Ashley Montagu concluded that touch is a basic behavioral need and that when it remains unsatisfied, abnormal behavior results.

The consequences of touch-deprivation are quite severe, as established by the following research. The Touch Research Institute (TRI) at the University of Miami, School of Medicine, reported that premature babies who receive massage gain weight 47% faster and leave hospital 6 days quicker than those who are denied massage. TRI studies also proved that a hand resting on a patient’s shoulder or around the waist can decrease heart rate and blood pressure. Coma patients whose hands were held experience strengthened heart function.

Neuroscientist Mary Carlson observed in Ceausescu's Romanian orphanages that children severely retarded in growth and mental development rocked and grasped each other just like experimental psychologist’s Harlow's touch-starved monkeys, and grew up unable to form permanent attachments. Amazingly, her chemical analysis showed abnormal cortisol profiles, which indicates a severe problem with stress response.

In The Power of Touch, author Phyllis Davis notes, "We aren't giving our children enough loving touch for them to distinguish between loving touch and sexual touch." Hugging is now prohibited in many schools between students and teachers. Davis argues that since teens have their touching needs unfulfilled by parents, friends or teachers, they focus on dating partners and are having sex and getting pregnant in order to have their need for touch satisfied, and this practice continues on into adulthood.

Behavioral scientists, Andersen and Lusting report development of self-esteem to be at least partly based on the amount of loving touch received. Finally, based on conclusive experimental evidence, Harlow teaches us that violent behavior and loss of nurturing capacity, especially towards one's own children, are life-long results of touch-starvation.

Is it just a coincidence that our schools and streets are so violent? Perhaps the barbaric violence and preemptive aggression that our government has demonstrated towards other sovereign nations is, also, not just coincidence. Since the consequences are so severe, it seems to me that we should recognize the deliberate withholding of touch as a form of abuse, and that this should be reflected in our laws.

It is quite obvious that verbal communication is just not enough for us human beings. We need to show our love for each other, especially our children, with a comforting hand resting on the shoulder or around the waist, and we need to hug – often. Another thing we can do is learn and share massage as a family. Book someone you love an appointment for a massage. Sign up for an infant massage class. The International Association of Infant Massage estimates that 10,000 anxious new parents took infant massage training last year.

Massage therapy is a fun and healthy solution. It also relieves pain, flushes the body of toxins, prevents disease, and can produce euphoria by releasing endorphins in the brain. Interestingly, certain of these endorphins have been discovered by Candace Pert to be messengers between the brain and immune system. So, it is not just about feeling great. A most effective modality for endorphin release is Esalen in which hot oil is applied, and long sweeping strokes are performed from toe to head. Massage should not be rushed. At least two hours should be set aside, and the room should be quiet without interruptions and talking.

Massage should begin with very light pressure strokes, generally directed toward the heart. One type of massage called Lymphatic Drainage flushes the body of toxins that have accumulated in the lymph fluid, especially in the legs and breasts, where lymphatic return is commonly inhibited by tight clothing like bras and socks. Since toxins trigger cancer formation, Lymphatic Drainage massage serves as preventative health care.

Gradually deeper pressure, such as in Swedish petrissage, can be applied to flush the muscles of wastes and pump in fresh nutrients. Even deeper pressure (in another modality called Deep Myofascial Release) may be used to loosen adhesions in the fascia and release muscle knots, which increases range of motion.

Shiatsu is yet another modality in which certain points called Tsubos are activated to relieve pain, prevent disease, center one’s energy and help the client take in Universal Life Energy (Chi) to enable healing and rejuvenation.

Whatever forms of loving touch we choose to use everyday, we help to cure the illness of touch-deprivation that is so pervasive in our society. Sharing touch will enhance not only our own health, but also that of our relationships – and even that of our country's foreign relations. Let us not simply recite that we love each other; let us demonstrate it genuinely for all the world to notice.

Daniel N. Russell is a biophysicist and an NCTMB certified, licensed massage therapist and instructor in private practice and may be contacted at (907) 770-1744.

Chair Massage: Great Relief for Workplace & Traveler's Fatigue
by Anna Remick

 

Even 15 minutes of massage to the neck, back, arms and hands can increase circulation, restore energy levels and help keep the body injury-free…

Have you ever walked through an airport, seen someone getting a chair massage and thought, Oh, that would feel sooo good! Perhaps you have a stiff neck, sore back, headache, eyestrain, or aching wrists and shoulders that feel as if someone had folded them up tightly. Anyone who has ever sat behind a desk all day or flown on a cramped airplane will recognize these telltale symptoms of workplace or traveler's fatigue.

Most of these physical symptoms can be attributed to loss of circulation. Tight muscles caused by stress and sitting all day, especially at a work station or in a cramped airline seat that is not ergonomically designed, can impede blood and lymph flow through the body. The result is mental fogginess, decreased energy and susceptibility to repetitive stress injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome and chronic low back pain. The cure is easy and painless, for simply enhancing circulation will enable the body's self-healing mechanisms to do their work naturally.

Chair massage counters the circulatory problems inherent with these situations and can provide a much-needed break for employees and travelers. Sitting in a massage chair opens up the back muscles, relieves strain on the neck and provides a gentle respite for the eyes. Even 15 minutes of massage to the neck, back, arms and hands can increase circulation, restore energy levels and help keep the body injury-free by providing a sense of comfort, release and ease. When chair massage is used preventively, it allows you to maintain a homeostatic balance that prevents all those little problems from getting worse.

So, where else besides an airport can you find a qualified chair massage therapists?  Many work sites hire a corporate chair massage group to provide services on a regularly-scheduled basis in their offices. Some massage therapy groups also offer walk-in chair massage at their facilities. (The Oriental Healing Arts Center provides both services, with walk-in appointments available during lunch hours and right after work, and a corporate chair massage staff that is on call.   Check the yellow pages for other facilities that provide chair massage.)

If you need a massage but don't have a full hour to spare, chair massage is a great option. It’s less expensive and less time consuming than a regular full body massage, making it perfect for people on the go. Don't wait any longer; treat your body to a soothing, relaxing chair massage today!

 

 

Anna Remick, LMT, OMT, is the Public Relations/Media Director of The Oriental Healing Arts Center at 2636 Spenard Road in Anchorage . Call 279-0135 for more information.