Why you shouldn't judge a book by its cover

It is safe to say that I, too, have been in this same boat.  Ha!  No pun intended, but honestly, I really do not care about how froofy a massage therapy establishment looks either on the outside or the inside.  When you get a massage, your eyes are closed, you are trying to morph your brain into some serious alpha waves, and all you need to care about is how effective the session will be to address what you came in for in the first place.  As long as the treatment room is clean, tidy, warm, stocked with the necessary supplies, and occupied by a competent practitioner, what else is there?  Take a look at this blog post; you won't judge a book by its cover again.

http://www.thrivingmassagebiz.com/2012/11/all-that-glitters-at-the-spa-is-not-gold/

Can't sleep? Then CHILL OUT!

(This guy knows what's up.)

Last night for dinner, I decided to use a coupon very close to its expiry date for an Ethiopian restaurant nearby.  In order to use up the entire value, we figured it would be a good idea to order a few beers and some homemade honey wine. Dinner seemed to take a little longer than usual to come out of the kitchen.  Not a problem, so we enjoyed the ambience and imbibed on the delicious spirits available.  Eventually, we began our feast and subsequently filled up sufficiently on quite a few different kinds of awesome vegetarian and meat dishes, but just as quickly, our mild alcohol buzz soon advanced into substantial tipsy-ness.  My dinner partner then decided it'd be a great idea to order a little post-dinner pot of classic Ethiopian coffee--you know, the kind that comes in those cute little cups.


Well, the amount of coffee we ingested didn't seem that bountiful at the time, but we soon realized just how much caffeine the dark and tasty liquid contained.  After just a tiny cup or two, we began to bounce off the walls, and soon realized the time was getting close to 10pm!  We made it home on public transportation, thankfully, but wow, a nighttime caffeine buzz really can intimidate any sluggishness alcohol produces rather hastily.


Later at home, figuring I'd be awake for quite a while, I decided to make a dent in my goal of reading the entire Walking Dead comic book series.  While flipping through the pages wide-eyed in the dark, I remembered something I read about a natural remedy for insomnia a few months back, as I knew I wouldn't be catching any z's for a while.  While it is my fault for inducing this bout of temporary sleeplessness with a powerful stimulant, I didn't want to counter it with an artificial and equally-powerful sleep aid.  


So I Googled what I recall from the study about cooling your head to get to sleep and found the following:


"Scientists from the University of Pittsburgh presented research at this [June of 2011] month's Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, or SLEEP, conference showing that a non-pharmaceutical sleeping cap that cools down the brain was able to get insomniacs to sleep as quickly as, and as long as, healthy sleepers."  


Read more HERE.  Or, another version HERE.




Researchers have found that insomnia sufferers fell asleep quickly and enjoyed a restful night after being fitted with a special cap containing cold water.  They believe that lowering the temperature of the brain slows its activity and so aids rest.  


Now obviously adding caffeine to the mix would sort of add a variable to the study that might distort the findings of researchers, but either way, I added a bag of ice to my forehead, and within the hour, I finally made it to slumberland--synthetic sleep-aid free.


So really, for better health, it seems like everyone just needs to CHILL OUT!

Study works out kinks in understanding of massage

Scientists identify the mechanism behind the therapy’s benefits, comparing biopsies to show that the interaction with muscle proteins reduces inflammation and helps cells recover.

(Or, more justification for the elimination of ibuprofen, etc.)

Read this exciting story HERE.

How massage is being used in health care

Here's a great article that sums up how I feel about massage.  I have never worked in a spa because I believe massage therapy is health care and not just a luxury.  Click the picture to read...

Sometimes, I seem to find the comments section of an article more informative and interesting than the article itself.  See for yourself; here's a great piece on fibromyalgia:


Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Mystery Pain Explained


When I began reading this, it had already garnered 502 comments, so obviously people have something to say about this condition. (Or would you call it a disease?)

When will it be curtains for airport scanners here?

I don't normally go off on tangential rants of the political variety on the record, but this topic has kept my blood simmering ever since I started thinking about the different variety of comedy and tragedy acts currently on tour in America's security theatre after reading about the ban of airport x-ray scanners across Europe last month. (EU Bans Airport X-Ray ScannersOver Health Concerns)

I still can't believe these machines are in use at our airports. When I see news stories like this, it just adds fuel to the fire in the argument that new technologies or advances in human convenience occur only because there are dollar signs involved.  The safety, welfare, and communal benefit of everyday people once again takes a backseat to a big wig profiteering somehow over a concept that had a big enough advertising budget to scare people into sacrificing their precious DNA in the name of security.  Or maybe the whole shoving of the body scanners down our throats (or should we say, pants) was and still is, nothing more than a power trip the top percent use to essentially communicate to everyone just how much money can and will talk.

As you may recall, in 2005, Michael Chertoff, as head of Homeland Security, ordered the first batch of porno scanners from a company called Rapiscan Systems. After his departure, Chertoff gave dozens of interviews using his government credentials to promote the device. What he didn’t tell people was that Rapiscan was one of the clients of his consulting company, The Chertoff group.   So the government gave Chertoff’s business clients a $350 million contract to rush the machines into U.S. airports.  What's good for the USA is just fine to be imposed on the rest of the world, right?  We like to think we know everything.

Well, at least in Europe, not anymore bub.  Just as Germany excommunicated Walmart from their land about 5 years ago, so did the European Union decide to ban airport x-ray scanners over health concerns.  Walmart showed itself out of Germany's doors because things were inadvertently done the the "Walmart Way" without enough consideration for local customs, among other reasons.  For example, Wal-Mart offered services such as grocery bagging. It turned out that Germans didn't want strangers handling their groceries. And when clerks followed orders to smile at shoppers, male customers took it as a come-on.  Imagine: a peoples' victory-over CUSTOMS!  But the issue at hand involves a lot more than just local customs; this is your life and death we are talking about, not just what is offensive at an observational level.  Shouldn't that be enough for a recall of these machines?  This is so outrageous.  

So the EU bans the airport porno scanners over health concerns.  Or should I say, BECAUSE of health concerns. Health concerns, oddly enough, seem to rule a little more heavy-handedly across the ocean than they do here.  In May of this year, Mother Jones dared to ask, "Why won't TSA make its scanners available for independent scientific assessment—the same kind of assessment required for medical imaging machines?"  In other words, why can't the American public see what the risks to their health are before being forced to stand in one of these machines?  It isn't difficult to suppose that obviously, they have something quite substantial to hide.  As Mother Jones stated, ..." the independent testing of the safety of these specific scanners has not been rigorous nor has it been held to the standards usually associated with new devices before approval for utilization in the public sector."  The same logic that the FDA and pharmaceutical companies use could apply here. It's cheaper for corporations to pay fines for accidental deaths and injuries than to do the actual 3rd party testing to see if a product is indeed safe for consumption or use. 


After all, it was only 7 years ago that Merck withdrew the drug Vioxx after disclosures that it withheld information about its risks from doctors and patients for over five years, resulting in between 88,000 and 140,000 cases of serious heart disease. And all of it in the name of profit:  In the year before withdrawal, Merck had sales revenue of US$2.5 billion from Vioxx.  Slick advertising coupled with a very large budget does a great job of selling the American people things they think they need, healthy or not.

So now I have to wonder, how many TSA workers, frequent fliers, or the incidental one-time flier will get cancer this year from filing through airport "security"?  The message here is simply this: Get your information from reliable, 3rd-party sources to make your own decisions about your health.  Of course, there's no disputing scientific facts, but you have to sometimes dig to get what you're looking for.  And opt out, if you must.  If everyone chooses a pat-down, we'll start making progress as a collective and angry bunch of airline passengers.

So when will it be curtains for airport scanners here?

30, 50, 60, 75, 80, 90, 100 Minutes? The lowdown on session times.

Everywhere you go, it seems like massage therapy clinics offer a wide variety of different session length times available for your choosing.  Many businesses allow you to select between a 30-, 50-, 60-, 75-, 80-, 90-, or 100-minute session.  So it's not surprising to wonder, "How much time do I really require?"  If you aren't sure, I'll try to break it down for you based on my experience as a therapist. 


A popular massage therapy membership chain, for example, touts a "Introductory 1-Hour Massage Session" for a low price.  Not a bad deal, but you'll notice after the session is completed that you will be lucky if you got 45 minutes of actual table time.  I'm not here to berate these places, but too often, such establishments claim you will get an hour massage while not telling you that also encompasses the time for you to get situated, undress, and re-dress at the end.  So the actual session ends up being around 50 minutes and usually less.  If you are in search of a great, complete, and truly relaxing full-body massage, this may not be the best option.


I do one-hour full body massages quite often.  If you are just looking to relax, and do not wish to incorporate having specific areas attended to (such as a little attention and deep tissue work to the shoulders and neck), 60 minutes will usually suit you just fine.  However, if you do request a little extra time to iron out some low back tightness for example, it may be necessary to ask you if it is OK to leave out massaging the arms.  Otherwise, there may the tendency to feel like an hour session is a bit rushed.  If you are fine with this, an hour is the way to go.


Warming the tissue and giving a problem area the time it requires to settle down out of spasm and/or eliminating possibly several trigger points is a process.  A process, if you have a good therapist, that should not be rushed.  It's true that patience really is a virtue, and also something very scarce in our instant-gratificated world.  You wouldn't put in a hard-core workout at the gym or run a marathon without a substantial warm up.  Doing otherwise could subject you to serious injury. The same thing goes for massage;  the muscles need time to warm before serious and effective change through deeper work can occur.


So when many spas and other massage therapists offer 50-minute sessions, I wonder (and cringe) at just what that is going to accomplish or how the client will feel like if and when all of their concerns were not possibly addressed.  Thirty and 50-minute sessions should be seen as fast-forwarded relaxation-only focused sessions or work to a specific area only.  A good deep-tissue massage probably isn't going to happen in less than an hour.


Which brings me to the all-star here:  75-minutes is the absolute minimum to get the best, most sure-fire RELAXING massage session.  You may not believe it, but I wish full-body massages would all last an hour and 15 minutes.  This is the time needed to allow all areas to get the work they need in a non-hurried fashion.  And it also makes it very easy to attend to a specific area with deeper pressure while not sacrificing another (and thus it not being a true "full body" massage).  To us, many times an hour flies by and we feel like the pace and flow is going way too fast toward the end.  That extra 15 minutes goes a long way, as it allows for full warming of the whole body with clients eventually appreciating it. 


So then we have the half-hours.  In all honesty, hardly anything good at all can come out of this brief time period.  If you are only looking for a good loosening of the neck muscles only, that's ok.  Don't even attempt to request a full-body massage here.  It sort of reminds me of the days when I was working as a flight attendant for United Express.  One of our regular routes was O'hare to South Bend, Indiana.  In a car, it can take you two hours to drive this distance.  By plane, it's a quick 20-minute amusement park ride at roughly 15,000 feet.  Back in those days, passengers still indulged in treats like cashews and soft drinks no matter how short the flight.  So when the 64-capacity turboprop was filled to the gills, the beverage and snack service was a swift juggling act, heck, even a magic act.  My partner and I commonly flew through the cabin flinging bags of nuts and pouring drinks at lightning speed, all the while cruising at an altitude where the clouds liked to hang out together in large clumps and cause increased turbulence.   Think eating and drinking on a roller coaster, because that's the best analogy I can think of.  Some days, it could digress into a total barf-o-rama.  I remember picking up half-full plastic cups of soda that many people just simply could not guzzle down, especially if they were among the last people to be served.  Very often, I was still running down the aisle picking up trash as the plane was a couple hundred feet from the ground and was lucky to get buckled into the jumpseat before the tires screeched onto the runway.  The point is that we got our job done, but it would have been so much nicer to have that extra time where everyone could relax and feel a sense of calm during a potentially unpleasant experience.


90-Minute Massages: perfect for some serious deep tissue.  If you are in some serious pain, this is the best choice.  If you have pain accompanied by a chronic health issue or condition, this is the best bet.  Maybe you have a herniated disc in your back, maybe you've had a recent surgery, maybe you are still in physical therapy.  Either way, your massage therapist needs time to assess the level of pressure and which techniques will best benefit what is going on in your tissues.  Almost always, where you pain lies is not "where your problem is."  For example, if you are experiencing knee pain, your pelvis may be tilted anteriorly or posteriorly, your hip flexors may be tight and/or disengaged, and/or your calf muscles may be riddled with trigger points.  It takes time to feel and assess and decide what we think will benefit you the best.  Pain likes to develop within the deepest levels of muscle and works its way out to the superficial layers later on.  And pain itself may only materialize after there have been "issues in the tissues" for quiet a while.  So even a one-hour session could seem like it's rushed and fast-forward when you think about the process it may take to attend to different but decidedly related muscle groups contributing to the pain pattern being felt by the client.  If you have low-back pain, a good therapist will attend to your adductors, abductors, glutes, deep posterior rotators, sacroiliac joint, thoracic back, and even calf muscles in addition to those low-back erectors.  It is not uncommon to spend an hour and a half on tight IT bands and hip flexors, for example.  A client may present such increased levels of pain or unattended build-ups of hyper-irritable nodules of muscle tissue that multiple sessions may be required for change to occur.  Your muscles tend to have a mind of their own, and it's best not to fight them.  So it's best to err on having too much time for what you would like worked on instead of too little.  I have done 100-minute massages, but only when a 90-minute massage warranted just a few more minutes.  The number "100" just seems like a gimmick to me, and really would serve no further purpose other than a massage therapy business promising something bigger and better than the next place. (But not really.)


Massage therapy is a craft and an art, and I believe that what makes clients keep coming back isn't just the techniques, but how the whole session is put together and what is communicated to the client.  If we have the adequate time to work efficiently, you will be much happier, your body will thank you, and you will feel the effects longer.  So the next time a daily deal site offer pops up for a very cheap 30-minute massage, just remember to communicate clearly with the therapist what you're realistically hoping to accomplish.