When providing massage for those with advanced illness or at the end of life, the goal of massage is NOT to FIX anything. Nope, you’re not trying to fix the injury or the illness.
The goal of massage is to be intentional about gently touching your loved one; intentional about being with them. Being present in a time of difficulty.
I have a story about not trying to “fix” when providing a massage. I recently received a massage. The therapist was lovely. Nothing to criticize about her skill or techniques. But, I described the massage as just ok.
I realized the next day that the reason I described it as just okay, was because she was too focused on fixing my neck pain. You might be thinking, what’s wrong with that?
It’s not her fault. Massage school teaches us to “FIX” the person on our table.
As I grew in my skill and attended numerous classes, I learned that there is more to massage than trying to “fix” the person you are working on.
I learned about deep relaxation and how massage calms the central nervous system.
I learned about presence and how healing it can be to simply but intentionally BE with someone, just as they are.
I learned about and experienced the great benefits of gentle-touch massage.
In my digital course, A Guide for Caregivers: How to Provide Gentle Touch for Your Loved-One, I teach a lot about presence and why “fixing” for those with advanced illness and at the end of life is not appropriate, but today I want to emphasize that the goal of massage is not to “fix”.
The goal of massage is to provide gentle touch, of course, but also to simply be with your loved-one. Intentionally be there. Focused on them.
Remember, the goal of massage for those with advanced illness or at the end of life is not to fix . The goal is to be there – really be there – with your loved one while providing gentle touch massage.
Questions? Comments? I would LOVE to hear from you. Please get in touch:
susan@progressivemassagetherapy.com