This is the third blog in my Body Mechanic Series. In the first two we discussed correct couch height and looked at the basic working posture. In this one I’d like to concentrate on the importance of your alignment whilst working with clients. I would consider the two biggest challenges we face as massage therapists…

In order to work as a successful massage therapist, we need to make sure we have the best foundations possible. This series on body mechanics will offer tips and insight into how best to ensure we have these foundations in place in order to have a long, injury free career and are able to work…

This is the second blog in my body mechanics series. I decided to write this series because good body mechanics is the foundation of all practical massage techniques. I hope that through my writing and videos I can help you on your way to a long and successful career, free of personal injury. This blog…

Where do I start? Is it when I gave birth to my daughter at the age of 29? It was thought I might have had gestational diabetes, a condition that has a greater chance of manifesting diabetes type two in the future, although the original diagnosis was never confirmed. Or is it from years of…

Historically, massage has mistakenly been viewed as a contradiction for clients who are currently undergoing treatment for, or who have a history of cancer. Traditionally, it was believed that massage could exacerbate the problem by spreading the illness throughout the body, or even be passed on to the masseuse. With advancements in science and a…

Historically, massage has mistakenly been viewed as a contradiction for individuals who are currently undergoing treatment for, or who have a history of, cancer. Cancer is a broad term used to describe a set of diseases characterised by cell mutation, and division of cells in the body that often spread to surrounding tissue forming tumours….

Excerpts from Sports Massage, a hands-on guide for therapists… by Susan Findlay Event work can be rewarding, challenging, and have an air of excitement. It also provides an opportunity to demonstrate your skills to potential clients.  Many of my graduates use event work as an opportunity to network, get their foot in the door, gain experience…

Touch is one of our fundamental senses. We love to touch things – soft fabrics, furry pets, other people – but scientists had struggled to understand our sense of touch until recently. They understood that our nerves play a role, but not how receptors sense heat and cold. However, this understanding was recently deepened by…

Understanding Complementary Therapies The words complementary therapies sometimes get confused with alternative therapies – non-evidence-based treatments that have questionable results. Alternative therapies are often touted as alternatives to conventional medical treatment – for example, someone would use an alternative medicine rather than taking paracetamol. On the other hand, complementary therapies are designed to complement conventional medical treatment! That is…

The latest blog in this body mechanics series focuses on movement. The goal in massage is for us as therapists to be able to apply the appropriate broad-based compressive force to soft tissue whilst at the same time, using as little physical effort ourselves as possible. More often than not, when you ask clients how…