Many clients have been asking me how I feel about the news of last week. How again another massage therapist at Massage Envy has been found to be violating clients during sessions. Well to answer the question I think it’s deplurable. This massage therapist was arrested based on his own incriminating statements, not just the statement of the victim’s, and the police are incouraging anyone else who may have been victimized by this man to come forward as well. Because, as I have seen it stated on the news, these cases are not isolated to one event. And I would like to add my own encouragement. It’s not only more horrific in this case because the woman had special needs it makes people affraid to come in and get much needed therapy. The last thing my profession needs is people like this hurting people under the gies that they only want to help them heal.

Many people will choose a place like massage envy over an individual like me thinking it’s safer because there are more people around. Which of course is not true. Sometimes we come accross people that just don’t have normal thought processes and those people usually do not care how many people are around. Crazy is always crazy, some might beable to hide it more than others but for the most part the true colors come out no matter who is around.

So what can be done to protect yourself from crazy people? As I have suggested on my home page check out people’s licenses. Every therapist has a license number they should be able to give you the public does have the right to look it up on DOPL and make sure it is active and hasn’t been suspended for any reason. Unfortunately, I think this massage therapist is licensed and in good standing because no one had come forward before now to say what he was doing in his sessions. So what could take it one step further? You can always ask the company if they do back ground checks on all new employees. Most probably don’t, so far I don’t feel like I’ve given much hope so I plan to do more research and hopefully have more options for being safe in the future. But my main advice would be as soon as anything happens in a massage to make you uncomfortable end the session and be very vocal in asking them to stop such actions.

I really don’t understand people like this. In our day and age if they want things like that they could find consenting adults to do it with. But I have learned from friends that work at the rape crisis center rape is never about sex it’s about control. Most people committing these crimes feel like they have no control in their lives and this is one way they can assert control. But no matter the reason, their circumstances or yours it is always horrible that it happens and especially when it’s someone supposedly devoted to being part of the healing process instead of part of the pain. There is already enough pain in the world all I’ve ever wanted was to try and help heal it. Even though I know I can only reach the tip of this wide spread problem I still and always will be trying to help people with their pain.

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas I am leaving Christmas Day to go see my sister in DC and will be gone for a whole week, until New Year’s Day. I look forward to seeing any of my clients before I leave or after I get back.

Allison

I’m sorry to inform you all that 4 hand massages are no longer available it has been too difficult for Janet and I to sync up our schedules for them. However, couple’s massages are still available I have a couple other therapists that will work with me on those.

I hope everyone’s ready for the big storm coming in tonight. It’s a challenge staying warm these days.

Allison

I am in the process of trying to create another page for products I plan to sell through my business. I do have a few essential oils listed on the store page but do not have the links set up yet. These oils are available for purchase if anyone would like one. I have the prices listed and I’m hoping that very shortly I will have massage tools, pillows and oils available in the store. It’s definitely a work in progress. I was hoping to have it set up by Christmas since it could be good gift ideas but I’m not sure that will happen. I’m sure I’m the only one not ready for Christmas I wait til the last minute.

Allison

Janet, unfortunately is no longer working with me at the 970 plaza location. She has chosen to go out on her own and I wish her the best of luck. We are still trying to co-ordinate couple’s massages and 4 hands together so they are still available. Janet has decided to move back to her old location in West Valley and I’m still here on 3300 South and 970 East #9.

This has been a good year but all good things come to an end sooner or later. To all our clients thank you for making this year so good and hopefully we can both keep working on all of you at our seperate locations.

Allison

Janet and I have been working all day on trying to create an effective website and not getting very far with it really. Our website is relativly new but there is so much to learn about it. So you will notice that there will be slight changes and some of them won’t make sense at first but we will eventually have a site that makes sense and is easy to get around in. Thanks for your patience and visiting our site.

Allison

Sorry it has taken so long for me to finally post the last of the trigger point series. But here it is, the long awaited ending.

So we talked about prevention but what can you do after the problem already exist? The best thing I recommend is to get massages. As a massage therapist there are two main ways we treat this problem. We first go in and do cross fiber friction on the knots to start breaking up the deposits and then second, we do long Swedish strokes. The long strokes have two functions as well. One is to lengthen the muscle again. With all it’s twisting and bunching, the muscle itself has become shorter pulling at it’s attachments and causing pain where it attaches to the bone. Two, the long strokes help to get the muscle fibers running in the same direction again.

Another thing that can be done in between massages or for people who can’t get massages is foam rolling. You can get a foam roll at any back, massage or fitness store. I just use the ones at my gym. It works best on calves and hamstrings but if you’re creative enough you can find a way to foam roll anything. Just make sure to use your body weight for pressure and to hold the point until the muscle tension feels to be letting up. A tennis ball can also be used for around the shoulder blade. Just hold the ball in between your back and the wall or floor and then roll it over the knots.

This problem is as frustrating for me and Janet as it is for our clients. I can help for that week but if the cause of the situation is not changed and we don’t become aware of how we hold our bodies throughout the day then week after week the problem will be back. But I and many other therapists like me and Janet, will continue to struggle against the problem of trigger points.

So as I said, I will now try to answer the second million dollar question. What can be done to fix the problem? The number one best thing would be to focus on prevention. Adjust your equipment so it’s easier on the body, raise the computer screen or lower the office chair so you can look more straight on. Get a head set for your phone and a body pillow to sleep with at night. Concentrate on holding your head back over your shoulders when you walk and sit so your neck muscles don’t get strained from the weight of your head pulling on them.

So last time we talked about what knots were, how they form. Now lets talk about the million dollar question, what starts the chain of events? The answer is poor body mechanics. I wish I could tell you it’s a more exotic cause but it’s just plain and simple the way we carry ourselves everyday. Almost all of us are leaning over something all day at work, or looking down at a computer screen, holding a phone to our ear all the time, sleeping in awkward positions. Furthermore, when some people get stressed, frustrated, mad, whatever you want to call it, they tend to bunch up their shoulders and hold them up around their ears.

And the second million dollar question, I will answer next time.

In the years that I have been a massage therapist I have come across several different theories on this problem that plagues many of us. In part, I believe they all have some truth to them. Knots or, as massage therapists refer to them, trigger points can be very painful and debilitating to some individuals. Not only do they deflect pain to many parts of the body, they can also trap nerves which causes numbness and tingling in the limbs and hips.

The best way I’ve heard it explained was by my trainer, G. Simpson at 24 hour fitness. Your muscle fibers, much like a grain of wood, run in one direction. Knots or trigger points form when those fibers begin to crisscross. Muscle fibers can twist and get crisscrossed for many different reasons. Some say knots are a part of the muscle that is in continual spasm and that spasm leads to a small patch being constricted. I believe a muscle spasm is one of the causes in muscle fibers crisscrossing.

Another theory I’ve heard is it’s a part of the muscle that has been calcified. I don’t believe the muscle itself becomes calcified but where the muscle is bunching up into trigger points happens to form a dam that traps calcium deposits, as well as, other toxins. Surgery reserach has revealed these knots contain a higher than normal quantity of protein as well. The muscle is where protein gets stored but just as the dam effect traps calcium and other deposits it also is trapping more protein.

We will save discussing the causes and prevention of knots for future post.

Janet and Allison would like to address the stupid questions we get on the phone. For instance, the other day Janet received a call and when she asked who would you like to book with, the man replied with the question, Who’s prettier. And presisted on his intent to be with the prettier one. Well first of all it depends on the day who’s prettier and secondly it puts us in an awkward position. Neither one of us wants to have to admit that we’re either prettier or uglier than the other. So most likely you won’t get an answer to this. Another thing, don’t ask us if we’re hot. What do you expect us to say, I’m one unhot, ugly chickadee. Again we don’t like being put in a position to judge our own looks. We are what we are and I’m sure we could fall under either cateogory depending on who you ask.

Janet says: I know these pics of me on this site are hideous, but we all have our days, right? Anyway, there will be new pics soon. Regardless of how we might look on a particular day, we still give a killer massage and you should give us a try!

Allison says: She never think she looks good in any of the pictures we’ve taken, I think they’re fine. But Janet’s personality is hard to beat. She’s very personable and a great therapist. She’s right we do give killer massages. So you should come in and find out if you like the experience of coming to our studio.