What has been hard for me is that even after multiple visits to multiple doctors I really haven’t felt heard nor cared for.  I have felt poked and prodded and seen only as my symptoms; seen only as another test that needs to be run.  Never at any point, has any doctor, nurse or tech, taken just a few seconds to ‘see’ me as I am;  which is not only my body and symptoms, but as a whole being:  body, mind, spirit, emotions, feelings.  Even though I have been touched, none of it has been done with care nor with any thought about how I might be feeling.  It hasn’t been done with deep respect, consciousness nor compassion.  They haven’t thought about how afraid I might be or how vulnerable I feel or even how frustrated I might be about everything that has been going on. They are truly treating my body and my symptoms.  And that is when I realized…that is their job…to see the body and its symptoms and try to figure out what is going on.

The cool thing about all of this is…what I do as a massage therapist, is that I DO see whomever is on my table as a whole being.  Not only a body, but also mind, spirit, emotions and feelings.  Each of those things are not separate entities or separate from one another; they are who I am, they are throughout all of me–my body, my mind, my spirit, my emotions, my feelings and even my thoughts, make up the totality of who I am.  They are me!  As well as, they are you–your body, your mind, your spirit, your emotions, your feelings and your thoughts, make up the totality of who you are.  You are not just one thing, you are all of them.

What I have learned from this whole experience is that the doctors have their job and I have mine–which is to provide conscious touch in an impersonal world.  By providing massage in an environment that is safe and seeing every individual that comes through my door as a whole being, I am ‘seeing’ each individual in their totality.  As a beautiful being–mind, body, spirit, emotions, feelings and thoughts.  It is a beautiful experience.

For anyone that hasn’t had a massage before, it can be a frightening idea.  The thought that someone you don’t even know will be touching you, touching your skin and be in your personal space, is enough to make anyone run screaming from the room. The same can be said about anyone that has experienced abuse–be it physical or sexual abuse or even emotional abuse, the very thought of having someone in your personal space and touching you can be very scary and intimidating.

The very nature of massage screams vulnerability, intimacy and, most likely, fear for someone that hasn’t experienced it before or for someone that has been abused at some point in their life.

There is also a space that is even closer to your body than your personal space.  This space is called ‘intimate space’, which is within 18 inches of your body.  This space is reserved for those people that are the closest to you.  You typically trust the person that you allow in this space.  I, however, prefer to call this space, ‘Sacred Space’.

Why do I call it ‘Sacred Space’?  I feel deeply honored  and blessed that the person that is on my table trusts me and allows me to work on their body.  This is not something that I take lightly.  It is deeply personal, vulnerable, intimate and, sometimes, very frightening.  To be invited into that space is an honor to me.  When I make my initial contact with someone’s body, I do so with respect, humbleness, love, presence, kindness and compassion.  Consciously coming in contact with the body this way lets the person on the table know that I respect and honor their trust and it also lets the body know that I also respect and honor it.  It is very sacred to me because I am invited into their inner sanctum.

Being allowed into someone’s ‘Sacred Space’ is truly an honor to me.  I feel so very grateful for my clients that trust me to allow me into their ‘Sacred Space’ each and every time they get on the table.  For someone that hasn’t ever had a massage or hasn’t been on my table before, please keep in mind your ‘Sacred Space’ and how it feels when someone touches you in the course of your day, be it someone you trust or someone that you don’t know.  Can you tell a difference?  Does it feel like they are infringing on your space or does it feel kind and gentle and loving?