Thai Massage questions...

[Rein]

I recently just got back from Thailand where I took a level I course with ITM in Chiang Mai. I'm hooked on Thai Massage and am considering taking more courses and offering it in addition to my "table" pratice, here in southern Ontario, Canada.

My questions to experienced, licensed or registered therapists in the U.S. and Canada who offer Thai massage are:

1) How much of your pratice is more traditional "table" practice vs. traditional, floor Thai massage? Are you finding you are doing more Thai massage over time? Do you want to do more Thai massage over time?

2) Where do you work from? A spa? Clinic? Home? Do you think Thai massage lends itself to working from home. I eventually want to work from home (I work in a clinic right now with a chiro and physiotherapist).

Looking mainly for feedback from experienced therapists. If you have any other advice you think is valuable please offer it. Thank you in advance for your responses.

Dave

 

[rachel c]

Thai massage is the BEST! I have taken two multi-day courses from Zen Thai and I am going to go to Thailand in October for more study...I'm ecstatic about it. As soon as I got back from my first workshop I started offering Thai massage to current clients (at the time I worked in a salon, but now I work from a home studio). After the second workshop I started doing more and more Thai massage (and talking it up, because I love it so much) and I have gotten to the point that I am doing Thai almost 50 percent of the time now. I can't wait to see what happens after I get back from Thailand!

Yes, I think it's something you can do out of your home, and I also think it's a good modality for outcalls, if that's something you're considering. No oil, no set-up, just put out your Thai massage mat and go. Now whenever I'm doing a Swedish massage or even talking to someone who has a particular issue, I can't help thinking "There's a great Thai move for that," and often I convince them to try a Thai session.

Good luck to you and I'd love to hear more about your trip!

 

[Ms.A.]

oops, forgot to mention...I started out learning Thai moves on the table back in massage school, but since taking the class with Zen Thai I only do it on the floor mat now. I find that I (and my clients) feel much more secure on the mat, and I can get better leverage for the stretches.

 

[foryourconsideration]

Great feedback peace!

Thanks peace....this is VERY helpful. Overall your feedback is very positive.

What if any, negative aspects of Thai massage have you found? For instance - one of my regular "table" clients yesterday said he tried Thai massage a couple of years ago with his previous therapist. He mentioned he tried 2-3 times and overall found it too "intimate", he preferred table. Have you found this with any of your patients?

Also, how well does Thai massage lend itself to clinical results? Meaning, can you really help people with specific issues with Thai massage just as well (or even better) then table/swedish? Why might they pick a table treatment over a Thai treatment (do you go alternate with some patients)?

Last question, what is it that you "sell" your patients on to try it in the first place? - besides the obvious point that if done correctly, Thai massage is easier on our (therapists) body.

As for my trip -- it was amazing. It was equal one thirds Honeymoon/Adventure Trip/Learning trip. I only had a week for learning so I crammed a level I Thai Massage course + Thai chair massage course in the evenings (while my wife did a 4 day meditation retreat with the monks at Doi Suthep). My wife and I spent only a week down south (Phuket, Ko Phi Phi) and 2 weeks in the Chiang Mai area (had more fun there). My two recommendations are a) research your options for learning Thai Massage, ITM is not the only answer though I was pleased with what I learned and b) Go check out the Elephant Conservation Park just north of Chiang Mai, it was one of the highlights of our trip and though its more expensive then other "day" trips in/around Chiang Mai all the money goes to a good cause -- BOOK AHEAD, check out their site at http://www.elephantnaturepark.org .

 

[Jade ? MJ]

I can say that there are not too many negatives to Thai massage that I can think of. Too intimate? I don't think so, personally. The client is wearing (per my suggestion) a tee shirt and either sweat pants or yoga pants (something flexible). That alone helps people feel comfortable. I think maybe your friend's client felt that it was intimate perhaps because the therapist is using his/her body leverage to put the clients into great stretches. But, I think whether or not the client feels it is too intimate depends entirely on the intent of the treatment, don't you? When I do Thai massage, it is to bring the client into health/balance/homeostasis.

Absolutely there are clinical results. Anyone who is involved in sports (there are a lot of skiiers here in NH, for instance) find great relief from tight muscles with Thai massage. Also, people with low back pain find Thai massage very helpful. I am about to start treatment on someone with fibromyalgia, who cannot tolerate Swedish massage, so I'll have to let you know how that goes. But, yes, I think there is tremendous measurable results from Thai massage.

I never try to convince my clients to try Thai because it's better for me! (Though I think it is, and maybe they are convinced to try it because I'm SO enthusiastic about it!). Rather, I talk to them about their specific issues and how Thai massage might help them. I have a feeling that when I return from my Thailand trip I will be even more committed to this treatment. Many of my clients go back and forth between Thai and Swedish. They seem to like both, and don't want to give up the Swedish, even though they love Thai, too, and that's fine with me. But a few of my clients have gone to Thai exclusively.

I am really fortunate to be going to Thailand with my Thai instuctor Martin Misenhimer and his wife Beth and a group of other students. (http://www.zenthai.com) They have been to Thailand many times (in fact lived there for years), studied for many years, and have this whole trip down pat! I feel I am in good hands, and cannot say enough about Martin's instruction. Part of our trip is going to an elephant sanctuary...can't wait! I will check out the site you linked...thanks!

 

[Fingertoes]

I am a massage therapist and a Thai Massage recipient. I do not perform Thai Massage, nor do I have any training in it.

I have felt during one treatment that it was too "intimate" for me. The practitioner was a yoga teacher and trained thoroughly. She is very precise and is also an Ayurvedic Practitioner. There was one move where she sat down on my leg (I forget which part of my leg, but starting near the hip) and I could feel heat from her groin area. It felt like she was sitting on me with her genitals.

Let me add that I am in no way a prude therapist. I went to a massage school where we were all reguarly nude with each other (not necessarily on the massage table, and NOT in a sexual way), and I had no problem with that. I have no problem with nudity and when a therapist has accidentally exposed me (usually a student) I feel no embarassment.

But this was different. I felt she was using her butt/groin as a tool to apply a pressure point. This was apparently what she had been taught. Nothing else she did was inappropriate and she seems to be at least modest, and respectful of modesty.

This was a trade. She doesn't practice this modality very much. So I just let it be. It was only a few moments and I greatly respect her and enjoyed the treatment immensely.

But if this move was performed on someone "uninitiated" i could see how they might shy away from the modailty as a whole.

 

[~luvs 4ever!~]

But, I think whether or not the client feels it is too intimate depends entirely on the intent of the treatment, don't you?

Not necessarily.

As a survivor of childhood abuse, I know that Thai massage feels infinitely more intimate to me, even though it is a fully-clothed modality. The positions that the practitioner takes at times can cause me to have flash-backs or panic attacks if I do not take care to remain fully grounded and centered. I often have to remind myself of where I am, who I am with, and that I can say "no" now because I'm a grown-up. Thus, I would not be able to go to just anyone for a Thai massage. And though I thoroughly enjoy the work and feel its benefits, it is not a relaxing modality for me. Highly therapeutic, yes. Relaxing, no.

And I KNOW that my massage therapist of over 2 years has only healing intent in his sessions.

Hope I didn't share too much here. I just think it's very important for massage therapists to understand the kinds of baggage a client can bring to his or her session with you.

Emily

 

[Collette J]

Emily, you did not share too much, AT ALL. In fact, thank you for sharing what you did.

That is a very important point that didn't even cross my mind.

But you made an excellent point that I tried to make, but sort of failed:

No matter how much healing intent the therapist has, the client can take what happens in whatever way they want, in whatever way their past dictates.

In thai massage the therapist manipulates your entire body, usually on the floor, moving it around at their whim. I can totally see how that would harken back to abuse situations. This is good for all thai therapists to have in mind while touching a client.

 

[ubermeisters]

Yes, Kemilyna and Shivashiva, I can totally see your points. In Thai massage (like all massage, I suppose, to a certain level), there needs to be a high degree of trust between the therapist and client in order for the client to relax, and if there are abuse issues in the client's past, it would be all the more difficult. There is a particular move in Thai where the therapist puts the client's foot in the therapist's hip joint and leans in to get a very effective stretch. I am not familiar with the move of sitting on the client, Shivashiva, but I don't pretend to know all the things that are done in different types of Thai massage.

I think it's a great point that was raised here about being aware of how a therapy or treatment can be perceived by the client. I am finding in my clients that the more often they have Thai massage, the better they like it and the more effective the stretches can become, as they are more relaxed and knowing what moves are to come. In a way, that is one of the best things about the Thai sessions. Because it's a prescribed, ordered set of movements, the client who has tried it before knows exactly what move follows each one, and then can relax into the treatment.

That being said, I appreciate hearing your concerns. I think it is all the more reason to tell clients ahead of time what to expect.

 

[J L]

Great feedback peace!

Thanks peace....this is VERY helpful. Overall your feedback is very positive.

What if any, negative aspects of Thai massage have you found? For instance - one of my regular "table" clients yesterday said he tried Thai massage a couple of years ago with his previous therapist. He mentioned he tried 2-3 times and overall found it too "intimate", he preferred table. Have you found this with any of your patients?

Also, how well does Thai massage lend itself to clinical results? Meaning, can you really help people with specific issues with Thai massage just as well (or even better) then table/swedish? Why might they pick a table treatment over a Thai treatment (do you go alternate with some patients)?

Last question, what is it that you "sell" your patients on to try it in the first place? - besides the obvious point that if done correctly, Thai massage is easier on our (therapists) body.

I feel compelled to address this post because I am sensing something within some of these posts akin to "conflict" regarding some aspects of Thai Massage.

I have 247 hours of thai massage training and have been practicing for almost 7 years. Americans' perceptions of the efficacy of the technique have come a long way in those years, at least here in Chicago.

What I find conflicting here are the concepts of intimacy, comfort level with the therapist, and "prescribed oder." Ok, yes, we learn katas, prescribed sequences, but let me point out that once you have practiced enough, you learn to follow your intuition in your flow, which often retains some elements of those initial katas, but becomes unquestionably unique for each individual you work with.

And I see no reason for "comfort level" with the therapist to make any more difference in a thai session than a swedish. Same rules - if you work mindfully, respectfully, and with confidence and proper education, either/both will be perceived by the client as appropriate. When a client says something like "that felt too intimate", it is more often than not a glimpse of their inner selves, and has little to no bearing on the technique itself.

My regulars love both Thai and Swedish. They have the experience now of what works best for them in which circumstances, so I just ask them to let me know when they would prefer one over the other. Most clients tend to know what they need, on some level, so a little exploratory dialogue can go a long way. No need to "sell", just "suggest" if that is what your intuition tells you.

I have a great dislike for table thai. I've done it once in a very particular circumstance where the client was only able to book a 30 minute session, had received full thai sessions before, knew that it was what her body needed, and so we agreed upon a very specific treatment plan. It seemed to work well for her that day. Otherwise, I mostly find the table too confining to feel a real sense of flow in the session and to fully express the movements with the client. Working on the floor is tons better for the practitioner's body mechanics as well as more effective therapy for the client.

Regarding treating specific conditions: I have found that there are many thai moves that are much more effective for certain musculoskeletal issues than swedish/deep tissue. I took a class last year at Thai Bodywork School in Evanston, IL called Clinical Thai Bodywork in which we integrated trigger point therapy with thai, and I have seen fantastic results. I am also aware of a course in Thailand at the Sunshine School called Western Therapeutics which addresses common issues such as rotator cuff injury, etc. So my answer is that Thai lends itself very well to positive "clinical results."

The only negative results of Thai massage that I can relate, as both a practitioner and a receiver, is when the practitioner works with an agenda, works lacking mindfulness, works too aggressively, works as an attack instead of a dance. In those instances, someone ends up getting hurt or just not feeling safe or good, and that is usually the receiver.

As anyone continues on the journey of exploration of thai massage, my experiential advice is to use your own experience as your guide, to try what you are drawn to, practice, come to your own conclusions about what works best for both you and your clients, and discard anything that doesn't feel right. Thai massage provides a beautiful opportunity to connect with other people that is so lacking in our society today, so I say, embrace that connection and allow yourself to be taken into the flow.

 

[maca]

Thai Massage

I have had both table and floor based thai. Greatly prefer the floor. And I have had it with therapists ive trusted and ones I did not yet know. I have to say trust building is very important for overall satisfaction of the session. Perhaps even moreso than traditional massage.