Earth Hour 2009

25 Random things about me that you don't know.

I...
1. have been a swimmer my whole life.
2. swam competitively till I was 25.
3. there are currently 4 generations in my family.
5. led trips through Maine.
6. am not from Maine,
7. have a pile of books that I am reading all at the same time.
8. love animation artwork.
9. I worked as a physical education teacher.
10. gave Joan Baez a massage.
11. know that there is a professional golfer that wants to pay me to massage them everyday.
12. my favorite drink of late is Fresca, vodka and cranberry juice.
13. have never eaten at the White Barn Inn, even though I work there.
14. am in a book group...
15. took a post-graduate year at Hebron Academy.
16.love the City of Boston
17. have a crush on Daniel Craig.
18. I don't run.
19.I have a love/hate relationship with the Concept II rowing machine.
20. rowed for one summer with Community Boating in Boston
21. saw Steven Tyler at a craft show at the World Trade Center in Boston
22. watched Andre Agassi play tennis before he won.
23. met Andrew Wyeth and his sons Jamie and Nicky.
24. my favorite movie is Love Actually.
25. want to meet Alan Rickman

In all my years as a Massage Therapist I have met so many wonderful people. Performers, athletes, regular folks. I love my job. I get to be in a private space with people that they don't share with very many people. Everyone wants the same thing, to be treated kindly and cared for in the time that we have together. I take that responsibility very seriously.

Can you fix this?

What a week this has been. Nearly everyone that came to my office this week was in some kind of pain. Monday client bent over and tweaked the back, Tuesday client on vacation and the need to relax and unwind the neck, then another client with LB pain that was preventing the pre-season soccer play. Wednesday was another client with neck issues. Thursday repeat client with LB pain. Friday I had really no idea what what the day would hold. Repeat of the client on Monday, by the end of the day I had also worked with four more clients one of whom needed the work. Saturday morning I had no idea what was to be in the docket. First client arrived in pain, second client arrived in pain. Both different situations, still in pain.

That is what I love about my job. Sometimes I know what is coming and I can plan strategies to help, other times things just arrive and I have to fall back on experience to let me know what to do. I don't have an assistant to talk to a client before I see them. They just arrive.

Massaging athletes

I have had this picture hanging around for over a year now and have done nothing with it. Time to add it here. I got to meet Bonnie Blair at the George Bush Cape Arundel Classic to benefit Gary's House golf event last year and it was really nice to talk with her and to have a short conversation. I even got a chance to give her a short massage.

Words and phrases that drive me crazy!!!

Words and phrases that drive me crazy.

"What ever"
"What not"
"Just"
"Honestly speaking" Have you been lying to me the whole time.

I am sure that today I will find some others and I will add to the post.

The State of the Industry of Massage Therapy

Hi there-

I have been watching a group on yahoo discuss the state of the massage industry. Here is my reaction to what is going on.

Just because someone graduates from a massage program does not mean that they are going to be awesome. Nor does taking lots and lots of classes make one a good massage therapist.

We have to remember that massage schools are in business for one thing. Profit! Now there are good teachers that are trying to help people become good therapists. It still doesn't matter because at the end of the day the schools have to evaluate the bottom line. If they need more money they go out and market the program to bring in more students. Some students that they bring in are good and others are not. It is that way in every industry.

In my area massage schools are cropping up all over the place because they see a need to fill up the spas. Do they do anything to make sure that the former students get trained so they don't get injured? Not here. They get them through the program in 500 hours. Only have to do about 100 hours of hands on work and then they are off to work in spas all up and down the coast. Some first year therapists even end up in high end spas. How would you like to be paying around $150 for a deep tissue massage when the person has only just done about four massages before they touched you. Or if they did those four massages, right before you walked in the door and are now so exhausted that they can't even see straight to give another massage.

Such is the state of our industry.

Very Interesting website

I ran across this nicely written article about things to help you feel better in your life. Aha! One of the listings was to get massage. More and more articles are being written about massage lately. It is nearly every day I get a Google alert about a new press release or website about massage. That feels pretty good. We as Massage Therapists are finally getting some good press. Of course there is still a lot of bad press about massage. I prefer to read about the good stuff.

Have a good weekend! Come on Spring, please hurry up and get here.

MLB Contracts?

How does that relate to the massage therapy profession? Read this article about contracts in the MLB and you will begin to understand.

Red Sox player Dice K. Gets massage as part of his contract as well as some other perks. Pretty cool that when you get paid to play you get other things as well. You should read some of the perks that the players get, golf club memberships.

I am happy that they want massages. I am glad that they want those over other things that players could want. I hope that other people will read that they want massages and maybe consider having one or two themselves. Of course there will be another group of people that will think that because they have them massage is too expensive. Massage is not expensive when you compare it to how good your body feels after.

So just cause professional athletes get massage does not mean that you should not. I personally can not live with out.

They only talk about this!

I am really getting sick of hearing about the Massage Therapist that was scheduled to give Heath Legdger a massage not being licensed. Ok, I get the deal about not having the skills to provide CPR and all of that. I also get the fact that she may not have the proper qualifications to massage clients in the eyes of the State of New York. However have we forgotten here that someone died.

Heath died because of something that HE did not what the Massage Therapist did not do. Who knows he might have already been dead by the time that she walked into the room.

Do I agree that Massage Therapists should be licensed? Yes. I had to do it, why shouldn't everyone else have to do it. Do I believe that other people can give as good a massage as I even though they are not licensed? Yes. There are tons and tons of people that are not licensed to give massages and they are good at what they do. Maybe that is why Heath hired this person. Also there are tons of people that are licensed and give terrible massages and leave the profession after only a short time working in the field.

There are lots of discussions going on about this issue and there always will be. My thought though is that government should keep their hands off when things are going well and let the good keep going. Don't write laws that may put the small business owner out of business. Don't require Massage Therapists to only work at places like gyms and other health facilities. This only makes them go underground and do more things illegally. Get my drift?

Get licensed in your state if required. Practice legally and do unto others as you would have done to you.

I am getting it SLOWLY.

Ok, so I asked for help. Yes, I need some guidance. I don't need major surgery. I just need a bit of help or even the direction. Here is what happened after I asked for some help. I looked around a bit and low and behold I found a little bit of help. Silly me I did not even look at the tool bar listed at the top of this screen. Just while I was looking around tonight I figured out how to get the short link to work. Hey, I did it myself. I guess I deserve a bit of a pat on the back. I am not usually one that does that. However I feel pretty good about it.

I also wanted to write a little bit about what happened to me today. I got a very interesting comment about my hands. Now I will clarify what that means. I use my hands for my work and well sometimes it is nice when someone notices how our hands feel. Client noted today that my hands felt very smooth. That is quite a compliment. When giving a massage I try very hard to make my hands connect to the part of the body that I am working on. I try not to let them feel rough or ticklish. That does not feel very good to the client so I work hard at connecting to the client.

Every Massage Therapist has a different touch and that is what makes them so different. I would really like to know what my hands feel like. When I massage myself it just doesn't feel the same. I don't know how to explain it it just is different. Maybe someday with the assistance of virtual reality I might get that chance. One day :).

Give a look to my Squidoo lens while you are looking around. I would appreciate it.

I need your help!

Since I am new to writing my blog. Yes, ok I am not new really to this. However I have not posted as often as I really should. I would like to get better at this thing called blogging. So here is my question. I need a source for some basic HTML so that I can make this blog look a bit better than it does already. Google makes it really easy to write and post and add pictures.

I just want to get better at it.

I am looking for things like how to add links so that the entire address is not in the document. I want to have a nice blue link to click on. I am sure that it is here right on this page. I am just not seeing it. Kind of one of those things once someone points it out. I will never miss it again.

If you can help me with this I would appreciate it. Thanks in advance.
Heather

Can Massage Help You After Surgery?

As a matter of fact I do believe that massage can help after surgery. This short blurb says that people who got massage after surgery had a reduction in their pain. These folks had four 20 min massages. They say that the people that got a massage that had a faster reduction in pain. That is pretty big. I think that someone to have less pain the faster they can get to the rehab part or the healing part.

I have had this experience twice in the last year. Here is my example. I have had two direct referrals from a client of patients that both had hip replacement surgery.

First client, young man, went to Boston to have his surgery at a orthopedic hospital. My first session was just one week post op. He noticed more movement and was much more relaxed after our first session. I saw this client for nearly one month while he was at home. After each session he felt better and was moving around the house much better. He seemed to have a better frame of mind and was able to unplug during our sessions. So how did I handle all the contraindications? I made sure that the Dr. and his visiting Nurse knew what was going on. His Dr. was all for it. He did not even question what I was planning on doing. Mind you this was all new to me and I was nervous at the start. However, I proceeded and I feel that I began to trust my hands again.

Second client, another direct referral from a client. Client was a female. She was two weeks post op and was also very familiar with massage as she got regular massage before her surgery. I wanted to clear this with her Dr. as she was with another group in the Greater Portland area that I was not familiar with. So I asked her to clear it with her Dr. His request was please send my PA a note saying what I was planning on doing. So I write the note. Client reports at the session that the PA said "it is clear that Heather knows what she is doing" that felt really good. So I give client two massages and things seem to free up for her after the first session. She gave up on the walker and even made it upstairs to have a shower. That is progress. She said that she felt great. I went back for the second session and that session went well and she felt the bed rest tension go away.

Neither client have had massage from me since their last session. I hope that they still consider massage for the rest of their lives. I hope that my short interlude in their life helped.

Do I believe the study? I do 100%. I have direct proof. I would love to have a discussion about this. Please tell me your experiences with massage. Tell me if you believe the study has legs.

In Health

Interested in contests?

There is a nicely written blog that I ran across. They are having a little contest. Here is the link to the site so you can take a look and see what the contest is.

Thanks for reading my blog.
Heather

http://lookthroughoureyes.blogspot.com/

Are you one of these?

Are you one of these? A Massage Therapist that is listed in the telephone book, listed on the web and listed in some form of locator service? Do you have your cards or brochures in places where potential clients might take your card?

If you are one of those. Do you return calls from potential clients? Do you return them within 24 hours? Or do you just bag the call and never return calls?

My questions above are kind of harsh. However I wrote them mostly for myself. It forces me to re-evaluate my priorities. I am listed in the phone book. I have my cards on desks of Chiropractors and other medical professionals. I return calls to potential clients when they ask, if they leave a voice mail saying when they are going to be in. I also return calls in between clients and always before I close my office for the day.

I will be the first one to admit that I get some very strange calls There have been times when I was not really ready to take a call and I did and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I made that week.

What am I saying here, mostly that our clients and other businesses expect return calls. If they don't hear from us, they will call the next practitioner in line. I have been witness to this practice, and I do it myself.

My examples are this, one time I was really in need of a massage. I called just about everyone that I could find in my network of files. I waited nearly 24 hours between calls and out of the six calls that I made only one called to tell me that she did not have any appointments for nearly three weeks after my call. The other example is a local inn that I work with. I was not able to get to the phone or answer the call till one hour after they called. The called the next therapist in line and she got the job. I lost out on two hundred dollars. Plus the ability to help a guest feel better.

So if you find yourself as one of these people it might be time to re-evaluate how you handle your business methods.

I reached a milestone this year

This year I technically ended a decade and have started a new decade. I think that feels like a milestone to me. What does that mean? I have no idea. Just that I am now older than I ever imagined that I might ever be. Growing up I always wondered if I might get to be that age. Guess what, I did get there. I will also get there and things will be just fine.

I also reached another year in my business. I have now been practicing my work, will have once we turn to 2008, for fourteen years. I used to think that I would never get to this place. I thought that I might do this for a while and then go on to something else. I never imagined that I would be defining my life with my work. However that has what has happened. I am a Muscular Therapist and that is who I am and what I am.

One of my goals for 2008 is to really write this more than once every six months or so.

I want to be a Massage Therapist?

You have no idea how many times people ask me that question. Here's some examples. A client sitting in my office says "I want to be a Massage Therapist", A tenant in my building says "my girlfriend wants to be a Massage Therapist", or a complete stranger finds out that I am a Massage Therapist and says "wow, I have always wanted to do that for a job".

I am always very supportive of the individuals in the first two examples. I'm a result of the first cited, once being a client who chose to pursue massage after being exposed to the difference that well done massage can make in ones life. The second example gives me the opportunity to support a person who is considering their options, possibly helping them to make a decision. I'm not all that excited when a stranger mentions it, as I can't tell if they only want to make conversation or that they are hinting they want a masssage without knowing how to ask for one. Silly people!! Just ask to book an appointment.

In my case, I was a fledgling college student who was exhausted, stressed, and working too many hours. I had received massage in the past and was looking for a source for body work that I could afford. I was fortunate to discover the Muscular Therapy Institute in Cambridge MA. I can't say that the massage was the best one I had ever experienced up to that point. It was, however, very different than any massage I had before. I wondered why there coud be such a difference in massages, going back a couple more times to see if I could discover the secret.

I really began to understand the the differnece lay in the work and the depth of massage. One day, I ended up at one of the introductory workshops; the next thing that I new, the following fall I was enrolled in the school. I didn't plan on becoming at student at the school, only to get affordable massage from students, and relief from the stresses of school and work. I'm not sure what happend. I haven't tried to figure it out or wonder if there was any divine intervention or anything. It just happened. Well, thirteen years have passed since then. I'm still going!

Regarding the tenant who asked me about his girlfriend wanting to be a massage therapist, his desire is to offer encouragment and support to her. That's part of the fun! I got to answer his questions and, for the most part, just listen to what he was saying. I offered a few suggestions about what to do if she really is interested and also offered to meet with her if she wants to talk further. I encouraged her plans and hope that she get's in touch with me.

Well, that's it for now. I will expand on the qualities and education that I think one needs to become a good Massage Therapist over the next few posts. Otherwise this post will be too long for anyone to read. Plus I need a few more topics to keep the blog going.

What a day! Salt Lake City 2006

What an amazing day we had at convention today. I can't begin to describe all the things that we did. However some of the highlights were noted in the pictures on the blog today.

Bev (Mom) and I got going quite early today. We had lots and lots of things to finish up today. So off we went caught the shuttle at just the right time. We caught up with Dr Ladd McNamara and asked a few questions. We also got to talk to the folks at the Healthy for Life booth as well. I also met some great people and we all were bouncing ideas off each other. What a pleasure to talk to like minded folks.

The general session this afternoon was so very very nice. Many fun speakers and the car contest winners. Usana gave away 6 cars this year. I did not get the BMW though so I guess I have to work a bit harder at it for next year.

The best part of the day was Bev performing a few duties. She drew the names for the convention survey raffle and then she danced the Two a Day dance with the Usana staff in the store. She also got a chance to see and talk to the keynote speaker Li from the Houston Ballet. What a day for all of us here in Salt Lake City. I hope that you all will come with us next year for more fun and frolic.

Usana International Convention 2007 August 22-25, 2007. See you there.!

Salt Lake City again!

I am off again to Salt Lake City Utah. This is my fifth trip there and each time I go I explore a bit farther away from the hotel and the conference center. This year I am actually going to get a massage. This massage is not going to be in my room at the hotel nor is it at a spa. It is at a professional massage therapist's office. I actually have to get a cab and go there. I am quite proud of myself and excited that I am doing something outside of the convention. I am happy to also meet some locals. Not just locals that are working at the event itself.

I am staying at the Little America Hotel. This hotel is a jewel. We found this hotel (last year) through AAA here in Maine and of course we were not sure that we wanted to stay there however the rate was far too good to pass up. What a surprise to find that the hotel was so nice. You can look at it here. http://www.littleamerica.com/slc/

We were a bit late making our reservations this year so we were happy to get a room from someone that had to cancel their trip. I am sorry that this group will not be coming to the convention this year however I am happy that I was able to get a room. I like this hotel so much better than the other large hotels near the Salt Palace and the Delta Center that I don't even mind the walk. The UTrax is just outside and that is a great ride.

So if you are looking for me this week (Sept 12-17, 2006) I will be in Utah. See you all when I return. I might even get a chance to post some pictures while I am away.

Have a great week!

Time to update

I guess it is time to update my blog. I must admit I have been meaning to do this for a few months and I just got out of the habit. So tonight I decided to update the blog and also add a few things that another massage therapist and I are going to work on over the next few months.

What are we going to work on: Getting out and trying some different places around Portland Maine and also try to fit in some travel. We came up with this brainstorm on our way back from Philadelphia in January. We had a really successful trip to see BodyWorld2 at the Franklin Institute for Science. So the list of places that we are going to go will be listed below, we will add to the list as we go along and we will also include a little critque of the place.

Here is the list:
Isis on Penhallow - Portsmouth New Hampshire
Ocean Pizza I have been here many times...I need to take more people here.
Siam In Portland
Portsmouth Gas Light
Pepper Club
The Front Room
Cape Arundel Inn

Cities and Countries to visit:
Washington DC
London
Spain
Boston
New Zealand again and again and again
Australia

So we are off on our next adventure...does this have anything to do with massage...no...however I am going to keep at this. I am also going to add some pictures of our trip to Philly here.

See you next time!