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The other day I had a new client...A young healthy pregnant women.. About three months pregnant...Totally fit and healthy..  She told me that she was refused massage by two massage therapists because they were concerned about causing her problems?  WTF?  Both those therapists are nationally certified..  My goodness.. Chiropractors are adjusting pregnant women all the time.. Combine that with being taught to run to a medical doctor if you think you might be getting carpal tunnel..  What kind of education system is this? Its fake. Not real... This education system castrates massage therapists from the very beginning...Crippling our whole profession...And nobody involved in the education of our profession sees this? ... I guess this is more of a rant then a discussion... I just dont get why Im the only one that sees this??.  Our education leaders don't see this???   That pregnant women was young and very healthy.  All you new therapists out there... Know that you dont have a clue as to the capabilities of your profession...and you are loosing money.  That pregnant lady is my new client now...I thank your teachers, education, and text book authors for that..

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I am STILL finding things I have to unlearn that I was taught in school - like the stuff with pregnancy massage being discussed in this thread.  Gordon, I don't have the years of experience yet (only been at this for 4 years) to teach school but I can guarantee that if I did it would be very different than what I was taught.  Give me a few more years and I'll have a better idea of what needs to be taught! :) At the point I am doing the work I'm doing for people and it's because I've thrown out 90% of what I was taught in school - that's sad.  And my teachers meant to do a good job!  They just hadn't ever re-evaluated what they learned.

Katie - I agree with you that pregnancies can be fragile.  And how sad is that - what has happened to us that we are that fragile?  Humanity has been around for a very, very long time.  We can't always have been this fragile or we wouldn't be here. 

I find that a lot of therapists simply repeat what they have been told, without any independent  real thinking....Repeating stuff back..Just like you have to do to pass an extensive multiple choice exam.. Real learning is a lot different then just accumulating information.  Espesially when most of it is useless and has little to do with your actual work. Thats the main reason there is such high burn out rate in our profession. 

Therese Schwartz said:

I am STILL finding things I have to unlearn that I was taught in school - like the stuff with pregnancy massage being discussed in this thread.  Gordon, I don't have the years of experience yet (only been at this for 4 years) to teach school but I can guarantee that if I did it would be very different than what I was taught.  Give me a few more years and I'll have a better idea of what needs to be taught! :) At the point I am doing the work I'm doing for people and it's because I've thrown out 90% of what I was taught in school - that's sad.  And my teachers meant to do a good job!  They just hadn't ever re-evaluated what they learned.

Katie - I agree with you that pregnancies can be fragile.  And how sad is that - what has happened to us that we are that fragile?  Humanity has been around for a very, very long time.  We can't always have been this fragile or we wouldn't be here. 

Therese, I think it has a lot to do with women that shouldn't be getting pregnant (infertility issues) that do get pregnant by any means possible. I think that pregnancies are judged as fragile because you hear so much about miscarriages and difficult pregnancies. Not all pregnancies are fragile (I know I totally just contradicted my last post) Healthy, fertile women are going to carry to term no matter what (barring some terrible trauma) I think that a high risk pregnancy should be treated with caution, but as far as a normal healthy mama, I'm massaging away!

I agree about the infertility issues - I've long been against the idea of any means possible.

I'm really glad to know there are so many people who are doing massage for pregnant women.  I've only had one request for a pregnancy massage and I referred her to my massage therapist who was happy to do it.  We only did one night of pregnancy massage in school and that was over 4 years ago - I guess part of my lack confidence is because I really don't know how to do it.  

Keep up the good work!!

I just finished working on a physician.. She asked me a few questions...After a while I apologized to her for talking so much... She said " Oh no please keep talking... I'm learning a lot.  I never realized any of this information you are telling me.."  After the massage she typed in her ipad some of the information i told her along with. Buy  MYOFACIAL PAIN AND DYSFUNCTION THE TRIGGER POINT MANUAL. BY Dr. Janet Travell and Dr. Dan Simmons...Along with scheduling her husband for a session with me, sense he has been suffering with an on going shoulder problem for some time.

Gordon J. Wallis said:

Yea, and the easy way to do what Daniel just explained is to make  sure she is comfortable and that she is enjoying the massage.  If you do that..You will  not cause a miscarriage.  I keep coming back to the same theme...If they would quit teaching for the tests, and spend more time teaching people how to actually massage.... We graduate, get nationally certified, but are afraid of massaging pregnant women...Only armed with wives tails of various sorts..and then run to the doctor if we think we might be getting carpal tunnel...Gosh....I should start my own school..And underground one or something. It wouldn't be recognized(probably banned) by any organization or state, but for $2,000.00 and a months time..You wouldn't be able to pass a national or state exam.. But you would know how to massage with confidence. And you would never have to run to the doctor if you think you might be getting carpal tunnel..I guarantee that. 

That is fantastic!  Way to go, Gordon!

It requires not only stumbling on the right source but being able to listen to something different and hear it. She is a lucky person.

Gordon J. Wallis said:

I just finished working on a physician.. She asked me a few questions...After a while I apologized to her for talking so much... She said " Oh no please keep talking... I'm learning a lot.  I never realized any of this information you are telling me.."  After the massage she typed in her ipad some of the information i told her along with. Buy  MYOFACIAL PAIN AND DYSFUNCTION THE TRIGGER POINT MANUAL. BY Dr. Janet Travell and Dr. Dan Simmons...Along with scheduling her husband for a session with me, sense he has been suffering with an on going shoulder problem for some time.

Gordon J. Wallis said:

Yea, and the easy way to do what Daniel just explained is to make  sure she is comfortable and that she is enjoying the massage.  If you do that..You will  not cause a miscarriage.  I keep coming back to the same theme...If they would quit teaching for the tests, and spend more time teaching people how to actually massage.... We graduate, get nationally certified, but are afraid of massaging pregnant women...Only armed with wives tails of various sorts..and then run to the doctor if we think we might be getting carpal tunnel...Gosh....I should start my own school..And underground one or something. It wouldn't be recognized(probably banned) by any organization or state, but for $2,000.00 and a months time..You wouldn't be able to pass a national or state exam.. But you would know how to massage with confidence. And you would never have to run to the doctor if you think you might be getting carpal tunnel..I guarantee that. 

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