08/26/2026
6 THINGS WE WANT YOU TO KNOW AS AN LMT & MEDICAL MASSAGE THERAPISTS
After 26 years as a Licensed Massage Therapist, there are some things I genuinely WANT my clients to know.
I don’t believe massage should be mysterious. I want you to understand what I’m doing, why I’m doing it, and what we’re trying to accomplish together.
So, here are 6 things we wish everyone knew before getting on our tables:
1. PAIN DOESN’T TELL ME HOW MUCH PRESSURE YOU NEED.
“You can go harder. I have a high pain tolerance.”
I know. 😂 But your pain tolerance and the amount of pressure your tissues will respond well to are two different things.
When pressure becomes too intense, your nervous system may interpret it as a threat and respond with muscular guarding…an involuntary tightening of the muscles to protect the area.
If I’m trying to get tissue to relax while your body is actively bracing against me, adding MORE force isn’t necessarily going to help.
Sometimes harder is deeper. Sometimes harder is just…harder. 😏
Our job is to know the difference.
2. MY HANDS ARE ASSESSING YOU WHILE THEY’RE TREATING YOU.
Massage isn’t simply rubbing where it hurts.
Through palpation, which is the use of touch to assess the body, I’m paying attention to tissue texture and mobility, muscular tension and guarding, tenderness, asymmetry, and how an area responds as I work.
And something important happens during treatment:
I (we)reassess.
If the tissue changes, my approach may change with it. I may alter my pressure, angle, technique, positioning, or move somewhere you weren’t expecting me to work.
There’s usually a reason.
3. WHERE YOU FEEL PAIN ISN’T ALWAYS WHERE THE PROBLEM STARTED.
The human body is interconnected.
Muscles, tendons, fascia, joints and nerves all influence movement, and dysfunction in one area can contribute to symptoms somewhere else.
That painful spot may absolutely need attention, but chasing the painful spot alone isn’t always the answer.
For example, shoulder discomfort can sometimes be influenced by muscles of the neck, chest, upper back or scapula~the shoulder blade.
That’s why I assess the person attached to the painful body part. Not just the body part.
4. I NEED YOUR FEEDBACK.
I can learn a LOT through my hands.
But I cannot feel what YOU feel.
I need to know if something feels sharp, burning, electrical, numb, unusually painful, or simply wrong.
Those sensations are different from the dull ache or “good hurt” someone may experience during focused therapeutic work, and they can give me important information about how your body is responding.
Speaking up does NOT interfere with my treatment. It helps guide it. This is your body. You are an active participant in your care.
5. I MAY NOT TRY TO “FIX EVERYTHING” IN ONE SESSION.
More treatment is not automatically better treatment.
Sometimes tissues need time to respond. Sometimes several areas are involved. Sometimes your body has been compensating for months…or years, and attempting to address everything aggressively in 60 minutes isn’t appropriate.
I would much rather make meaningful progress, see how your body responds, and have you return for additional treatment than overwhelm your tissues trying to accomplish too much at once.
And yes, some temporary tenderness can occur after focused therapeutic work.
But my goal is NOT to make you feel like you lost a bar fight. 😂
6. I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND YOUR OWN BODY BETTER WHEN YOU LEAVE MY TABLE.
This may be the biggest one for me.
Patient education IS part of treatment.
If I notice a pattern that may be contributing to what you’re experiencing, I want to explain it in language that makes sense. If I think a stretch, positioning change, movement, hydration, rest, or another healthcare professional may be appropriate, we’ll talk about it.
I don’t want you dependent upon me to understand your body.
I want you involved.
Because ultimately, massage therapy isn’t something I simply do TO you.
Therapeutic massage is something we work through together—my education, assessment and hands-on skills combined with your history, your feedback and your goals.
I can feel what your tissues are doing beneath my hands.
But you are the expert on what it feels like to live inside your body.
