Massage And Getting Back to Normal

For the most part, the first week back to providing massage has been normal for the client, bar a few changes.  Those changes don't affect the quality of care. The patient has to wear a mask while face up and can remove it when face down.  Casual conversation is supposed to be non-existent, but I have not stopped people from talking.  Talking actually helps take my mind off the fact that I also have to wear a mask. 

The room may be bare and I may have a bit more work with having to cart supplies back and forth to work all the time, but the patient/client care is the same.  So don't fear going to see your therapist, he/she will do his/her best to make sure you are as comfortable as possible.  We all are trying to keep it normal for you.

I hope that Memorial Day weekend was a much needed return to a somewhat normal summer beginning for most of you. I helped with yard work, so it was pretty much normal for me.

Stay healthy and safe.

Massage Resumes Monday May 18, 2020

A new week begins; a new routine ensues. The Covid-19 Pandemic has created a new era of existence where everyone is taking extra precautions to avoid the spread of illness.  I am no exception, change has occurred in the way I prepare for a day at work. Due to these changes I can not accept "day of appointments".  In other words, don't call the office and expect to get an appointment the same day.

My new way of preparing for a day of massage includes:

1. Looking at the schedule to check how many clients are coming for massage.
2. Preparing disposable containers with massage lubricant for each client.
3. Preparing the appropriate linens for each client and packaging them individually, they will no longer be stored in bulk in the office.
4. Packing enough scrub shirts to change between clients.
5. Packing enough sanitizer wipers to wipe down the office between clients. 
6. Packing enough hand sanitizer and masks for the day.

Because I am not keeping linens at the office any longer I will not have enough supplies at the office to accept walk ins or same day appointments.  I apologize for the inconvenience but this has become my  new normal.

Stay Healthy and embrace YOUR new normal.

Massage experience should remain very close to normal...

As I start seeing clients again, the experience of the massage you receive should be very close to normal.  The main differences you will notice throughout the session will be the use of a mask, no thermal packs, and very little tool usage.  Bolsters will be used but there won't be as many available due to needing wipeable surfaces.  Pillows will not be able to be used until the protocols loosen back up and allow for permeable surface items again.

A new standard of cleanliness will be applied. I have always cleaned before and after a client, but I will be cleaning more of the room than normal after each session and a thorough cleaning at the end of each day.  I want to assure you that I hold your health in the highest regard.

As for me, your therapist, you will see a few changes. The most important change being, I will be mumbling through a mask.  I will be sorely in need of a hair cut and style.  The worst change you will encounter will be the 10 extra quarantine pounds I put on over the last couple months. 

I want to ensure you that you will still receive the same quality of care that you have become accustomed to receiving. 

Call or text for your appointment.  I am already booked for my first week back to work, week of May 18th. There will be no massage appointments available on Memorial day. 

Stay Healthy and see you soon.

Ohio Re-Opens the Massage Industry

Today the Governor announced and the Medical Board confirmed that massage locations can reopen on May 15th.  Of course, there will be protocols to follow to keep therapist and client safe before, during and after the massage session.

Protocols:

Therapist will perform a daily symptom assessment, should therapist have symptoms your massage will be cancelled.
Therapist will follow CDC guidelines for handwashing and cleaning the treatment room (no change here, we always did this).
Therapist will change clothes after each client (new expense, need to buy MORE scrubs).
Therapist may wear gloves if applicable.
Therapist will use a previously readied paper towel to open door after massage.
Therapist will wipe down all contact surfaces in the treatment room after client leaves.
Therapist will maintain accurate appointment and walk-in records including date and time of service, name of client, and contact information to assist in contact tracing.

Client will have a doorway screening; will be asked about symptoms and temperature taken.
Client/Patient will wear a face mask, when in the face down position there will be appropriate face cradle covering to catch aerosols so the client can remove mask in the face down position.
Avoid shaking hands with clients.
Only the client shall be in the room with the therapist, unless the client needs to be accompanied by a caregiver.
Client needs to wash their hands before entering the massage treatment room.

There are more protocols, I have a three page document, but I listed the ones you need to be most concerned with in order to understand that we are taking your health very seriously.  I personally ask that you take my health very seriously in return.  Please cancel your appointment if you are sick!

I look forward to continuing a long career as a massage therapist in service to those that need massage therapy; therefore I am going to repeat my last request...Please cancel your appointment if you are sick.

Thank you and I hope to see you (my clients) all very soon.

Have a Blessed day!

Discontinuing several services...

During these uncertain times, protocols for the massage profession are very strict.  In light of all the new rules and regulations I must follow to protect my clients I have deemed it necessary to stop offering some massage modalities until further notice.  The modalities include, but not limited to, Gua Sha, Cupping, Bamboo Massage, fascial massages of all kinds and use of thermal heat packs.

You will also notice during your session, when I am allowed to reopen, blankets and pillows will no longer be offered in the room.  I will use flannel linens for warmth and comfort.  I need to limit the amount of linens used in the room.  All non-essential items will be removed from the room. 

I will do my best to keep your session a positive experience. 

Closing in on an opening date...

As we trek through the month of May we will start to see a lot more businesses reopening in Ohio. 

On May 15th we will see salons and day spas, among other personal services opening their doors for business. This will make many people very happy.  I cringe to think about how stylists will have to fix the self-cut bangs.  But they will smile and say, "No problem, I can fix this, I got your back."

Also to reopen on May 15th will be outdoor dining at restaurants that have this service, with the indoor dining resuming on May 21st.  We will see retail businesses that were once looking like ghost towns reopening their doors.  I can only imagine the number of folks that will stampede to the doors looking for that coveted shopping experience they miss so much.

What is not among the businesses to resume? Day cares, gyms, Massage offices, movie theaters, swimming pools, etc.   The government is still working with health officials to set safety protocols for operation of the remaining closed businesses.  They are hopeful the next wave of openings will include the businesses of higher risk to patrons.

My colleagues and I, in the massage profession, look forward to returning to our offices to resume therapy for those in need.  It has been a long couple months and there will be many clients calling to try to get those coveted first appointment spots in the first days of reopening.  Be patient, we are well aware of your needs and will do everything humanly possible to make sure you all receive the care you deserve.

We are hopeful for an opening date within the next few weeks. Please remember that because we are a profession that cannot adhere to social distancing we will be given strict protocols to follow. Be prepared to wear masks during sessions and possibly be denied some services in the beginning, such as facial massage.  I personally will not offer hot stone, bamboo, gua sha or any service that requires the use of tools, with the exception of instrument assisted adhesion release,  for at least the first month of reopening.

Stay Healthy and continue social distancing.

Massage: Your Safety is My Concern

As we start to re-open the state of Ohio, new protocols have been put in place for massage therapists to abide by to keep you safe during your session. (See Covid-19 and Resuming Massage blog post for full details.) I want to assure you that most of these protocols are not new.  I have always cleaned the table, chair and shelf where clients store their personal belongings before and after every client.  I always use fresh laundered linens.   If a client has shown signs of illness; coughing, sneezing, sniffling or complaints of sinus pressure or headache, I also include wiping down door handles and anything they may have touched.  I always wash massage tools with hot soapy water after every use. I just want to assure you that cleanliness has always been a priority in the massage studio/room.

So what has changed? For one, masks have become mandatory for both therapist and client.  Gloves for the therapist if client requests no skin to skin contact; this has always been in place as a protocol. We must take the clients temperature before beginning massage; if they have a temperature we cannot proceed with the session.  When the client is face down, if they are not comfortable with the mask then a pillow case needs to cover the face cradle and be pushed down to create a tunnel to catch aerosols from the client.  One of the most daunting changes is the requirement that casual conversation be stopped.  I do understand this but I have clients that like to visit because they don't have much contact with other people at home. But being the rule follower that I am, I will limit the casual conversation. 

I am hopeful that these protocols will ease up throughout the rest of the year and we can go back to our normal comfortable massage sessions. 

Keep our country and its leaders in your thoughts and prayers in the hopes that someone can end this mess and get us back to our freedoms.

Bamboo Massage

What is Bamboo Massage?

Bamboo massage is a form of deep tissue massage using bamboo sticks as tools.  This type of massage was developed by Nathalie Cecilia as a way to save her hands from the fatigue of numerous daily deep tissue massage sessions. When she first began using bamboo poles as tools, her clients expressed their love of the deep pressure and techniques; this led her to create Bamboo-Fusion Massage.

Bamboo Fusion Massage is now used by many massage therapists across the country, not only to offer a new service but to also save their own hands from the fatigue of a long day performing deep tissue massage.

What to Expect When Receiving a Bamboo Massage

You will receive a full body massage using bamboo tools that are warmed to a comfortable temperature.  A light pressure effleurage with oil will first be applied to the body area being treated, followed by a deeper pressure massage using a warmed tool.  Trigger points can also be alleviated, if found, using one of the tools to create an ischemic pressure over the point to release it. 

Bamboo-Fusion Tools

Bamboo Massage will be offered in my office soon...

I will be offering bamboo massage in my office as soon as we are released from the strict protocols that are affecting the massage industry during this Covid-19 pandemic.  Sanitation products are in short supply.  I personally haven't been able to find the solutions I need for cleaning my tools.  Therefore, I have unfortunately had to suspend use of any and all tools until I can obtain sanitizer.

As soon as I am able to obtain the proper solutions I need I will post the availability of the service.

#StayHealthy

Massage during this Covid-19 Pandemic: Benefit or Risk?

The massage industry is another business that has been deeply impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.  We sit back and wait with the rest of small business America to find out when we can start practicing.  Clients call us in pain wanting to know when they can resume their treatments and we have to tell them we don't know. 

I have been following the Presidential and Governor briefings, waiting for any pertinent information to pass on to the clients who prefer not to watch the news.  I can respect that decision because listening to the bickering of the media is quite stressful.  As new information on a possible opening date trickles through the mass of information I do my best to pass it along to my colleagues and clients. 

After finding out the massage industry is not part of the phase one or two opening, I decided to change directions a bit and start communicating with our licensing board and malpractice insurance providers to learn what new protocols will be implemented for our profession.  The numerous protocols that we are to follow upon reopening are a collaborative effort of the state health director, medical board and insurance board.

The protocols we are to follow when we reopen are meant to keep the client and the therapist safe and slow the spread of any virus.  I say slow the spread because stopping the spread in close quarters of a massage session is impossible! This brings up the question of whether or not massage is of benefit to a client or a risk, during this pandemic. After diligently searching through the many articles that have been written over the past few months by the respected members of the massage community it is my personal opinion that massage is more of a risk rather than a benefit. 

In an article written by Ruth Werner, an instructor and author of numerous pathology text books, she writes that no massage is medically necessary, not even medical massage.  I agree to this statement.  Due to the close proximity of the client and therapist, they are both at risk.  I understand that someone with pain due to an issue such as frozen shoulder can benefit from manual adhesion release, but at what cost?  There are other ways to relieve the pain until safety protocols can be put in place to ensure the safety of both individuals.

As a medical massage therapist, I am putting myself at risk by performing my duties.  Those of us that work in hospitals and doctor's offices are now returning to work as those offices reopen ahead of the rest of the massage industry.  It is expected that some offices may not open in light of a shortage of PPE.  Our office has the needed PPE and sanitizers and reopened on April 24th.  Manual therapy in our office will resume on May 18th.  This date puts us in the middle of phase 2 and very close to phase 3, at which time the Governor will decide whether phase 3 will begin or if pandemic numbers rise to high then will not move to the next phase, in which case we all will need to figure out what comes next.

I wish to convey my thanks to all the essential workers across America.  These people put their life and the lives of their families at risk just by performing their jobs.  They need to be recognized, thanked and rewarded.  I hope when this is over they are given lengthy paid vacations to unwind and destress.


#StaySafeOhio

COVID-19 and Resuming Massage

As most of you already know, the Director of Health and the Governor of Ohio issued a Cease Work Order in March of 2020. Massage locations all over the state and private home offices had to cease providing massage.

It is thought, that due to the close nature of our work, massage is a great health risk for both the therapist and the client. The risks of exposure to the coronavirus outweighs the benefits of receiving massage.

As the Governor reopens our state for business he will direct which businesses to open in each phase. Massage is being directed to stay closed during phase 1 and phase 2.

During the time we wait for phase 3 to begin, many massage professional and health officials are coming up with new protocols for reopening massage businesses. They have presented us with some of those protocols and told us more may follow.

Current protocols:

• If therapist has a fever...no massage to be given to patrons
• If client has a fever...no massage to be given, reschedule.
• No massage for Pregnant women, infants or toddlers.
• No massage for immunodeficient people.
• No massage for type one diabetics who are having complications.
• No massage for anyone with COPD.
• No massage for people with Cancer or undergoing chemo.
• Basically no massage if you have an illness that puts you at risk!!!!
• If client has or has had any recent respiratory or flu symptoms, sore throat, shortness of breath, coughing, reschedule massage.
• If client or therapist has been in contact with anyone in last 14 days with coronavirus symptoms: no massage, reschedule in a few weeks.
• All tables/stands/shelves are to be cleared of treat bowls, Knick Knacks, pamphlets, samples and all other items.  
• Chair provided for sitting while undressing/dressing should be a hard chair with no cushions so it can be cleaned after each client.
• Mask must be worn by both the therapist and the client. 
• Don't use communal pillows for bolstering.
• When the client is in the face down position, if the mask is uncomfortable a pillow case can be draped over the face cradle and a canal formed through the center to make a mask for the face cradle to catch all aerosols from the clients nose and mouth.
• The room will be thoroughly disinfected after each client, including chair, shelves, tables, door handles, massage table. 

There are others that only concern the therapist that I will not list here.  I listed the last one in the bulleted list so you are aware of the precautions we are taking to keep the risk of spreading this virus low. You must also keep in mind that no matter what we do in our practice protocols, nothing is 100% effective. 

If you are concerned please don't schedule until you feel safe doing so.