Therapeutic Massage has to be the oldest Therapy. It must have started before we even learnt to stand on two feet! It became far more developed by the Greeks and Romans. Nowadays though, the techniques used have French names and the subject is officially taught in College.
It can be used to give a very relaxing full body massage. but can also be used with other therapies, for instance to relax tight muscles before Acupuncture.
This is one Therapy that I did not learn at College. I was treating a lady masseuse who had been in practice for 14 years. she was very depleted and had M.E. She was getting better week by week but, as she was not working could not afford to carry on with the treatment. So we bartered. I gave her a treatment and she would give me a one hour lesson in massage! She got much better and stopped coming over time and I got a good grounding in massage! What better way to learn than one to one especially with a manual therapy? I combine my knowledge of Acupuncture, Tuina, and Trigger Point Therapy into the massage so that I can become aware of problems to treat there and then or later with Acupuncture.
Due to the current 'compensation culture' I no longer feel confident enough giving full body massages and so only use massage as part of another treatment. Single therapists have no way to protect ourselves from these unscrupulous predators so full body massage is out of the question at the moment. Of course, if I could video record the session to protect myself this may change. Any video recording would be protected under the auspices of the Data Protection Act for the privacy of the Patient and any genuine Patient, I am sure would understand this.
