So you're ready to get your massage, now what?

I'm PamperingPalms with Pampering Palms Massage and Spa and I'd like to let you know about some basic massage etiquette tips.


Cleanliness
If you've never gotten a massage and you don't know what to expect, you're going to want to make sure that you're clean. Now it's a little bit of a touchy subject, but you really don't want to go into a massage after you've run a marathon or worked in the yard and you're all dirty and sweaty 'cause that's really not going to be a pleasant experience for the therapist and they're really, honestly, not going to want to work on you and they're not going to know how to tell you. So please be clean.

Do I have to remove all of my clothes?
This is the starting point of the massage that is, the client's disrobing or undressing. It's one of the first questions that come up once I've ascertain that I can actually work on a client. Frequently, clients will ask, especially if it's their first time, "do I have to remove all of my clothes?" Or, "how much clothing do I have to remove or should I remove?" The first thing to keep in mind here is that the entire process of massage is intended to relax you, whether it's therapeutic massage or if you're just there for general relaxation. So, with that in mind, I approach you from the standpoint of whatever you're comfortable with. If you're most comfortable leaving certain items of clothing on, then that's what's going to help you to be most relaxed. I may work to a different level in the future as I see you over repeated visits, but at least, initially, I always go with what makes the you most comfortable. As the massage therapist, I am able to work with any level of exposure to skin or work top of clothing, whatever may be necessary.

Please remove all your jewelry
If you have jewelry on, this really makes it hard for the therapist to work around and they hurt you too, if you have earrings on and they need to work on your ears, they may pinch you or the jewelry itself may pinch you. It's just not a good idea to wear jewelry.

Put your hair up
if you have really long hair, it's really considerate for the therapist for you to put your hair up so that it's not in the way and actually the therapist may actually end up pulling your hair or it may get stuck in the oil or cream and you don't want that stuff in your hair either.

Tipping
Now when you get a massage, your therapist is working really, really hard and often times, it's not even their first job, it's their second job. So they really are working for you and they're here for you and they're putting their heart and soul into your massage so it's always recommended and definitely appreciated that you tip. And the general rule is 20%.

Alcohol
Please clients, do not drink alcohol before or after a massage. Alcohol will impair you anyway, but with a massage, it opens up all your body systems and it will just heighten your impairment, it will hit you harder, it may make you sick and you may not even be able to drive home and you maybe stuck here for a couple hours and you don't want to be stuck anywhere.

The client/therapist relationship.
As in most professions, one of the basic tenets of any profession is the relationship between the professional and their client. Many of us are familiar with the sanctity of the relationship between a doctor and their patient, a lawyer and their client or even a clergy person and their clients. Those conversations, the communication between those individuals, frequently considered absolutely sanctimonious. This usually applies in very much the same way to the massage therapist. We're dealing with your health. Our goal is for a good, healthful session with you, a good therapeutic outcome.

Massage Etiquette for Men
Massage can involve a number of different movements. According to Massage Therapy Today, massage therapy may include rubbing, pressure, rocking, kneading, friction and compression applied by a massage therapist for the purpose of relaxing or otherwise benefiting the client. Massage therapy involves a great deal of bodily contact, and in a culture where intimate contact is not common between strangers, men can benefit from understanding the etiquette during massage.

Misconceptions
There is an unwarranted belief that massage therapy is related to prostitution. A professional certified massage therapist, male or female, is not a prostitute and insinuating otherwise will result in the end of the session and possibly a bar on further sessions.

Erections
According to the Institute for Integrative Health Care Studies, erections during a massage are common. It is entirely possible to be physiologically aroused without emotional or sexual desire. The massage therapist has likely seen erections on male clients before, and it is not a cause for embarrassment.