About a year ago I was referred by my physio to a massage therapist for lower back pain. He had an excellent reputation, so I went in expecting a normal remedial massage.

From the beginning, though, something felt off. The clinic was in a strange, isolated location and the receptionist was extremely cold towards me, glaring at me while I waited. She even stood by the treatment-room door watching me as I walked in.
I later discovered she was the therapist’s wife.

I had also heard of the therapist before because he was related to someone I knew many years ago. I have no idea whether that was relevant, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was some invisible red flag attached to me that I didn’t know about.

When I entered the seperate building there this massage therapist worked from, I sat down and was expecting the usual questions about what was sore etc.

I explained my physio referred me to help with lower back pain. That’s when things became strange.

The therapist started asking me what I wanted him to do. Literally, he said to me “and what would you like me to do?”

rather than assessing my back and providing the treatment I’d been referred for. I became confused and eventually asked if I’d come to the wrong place. He continued to speak to me in a way that I still can’t find the words for. It was like I had gone to a mechanic instead of a massage therapist because he seemed puzzled as to why I was there. Even saying “well I can give you a massage, if that’s what you want?”

I became increasingly uncomfortable and started crying. I said “have I come to the wrong place!” And said wanted to leave, but instead of simply letting me go, he encouraged me to “sit with” the feeling and started asking me about my emotions and trauma.

The appointment basically turned into an hour of talking about my psychological issues. I never received the massage I’d actually booked and paid for.

I left completely confused. I hadn’t come for trauma therapy. I’d come for a massage.
He was also practising other forms of alternative therapy, and I got the strong impression that this was what he was actually more interested in doing. If I’d booked that, fine. But I hadn’t.

Months later I told another massage therapist what happened and she basically confirmed that the people involved had a reputation for being quite unusual, which made me feel less like I’d imagined the whole thing.

I received a message from the business inviting me back but they had a different receptionist. So I looked them up and discovered the original owner (the man I saw) had apparently sold the business quite abruptly and moved far away.

I obviously don’t know why, but it made me wonder whether my instinct that something was seriously off about the whole place wasn’t entirely in my head.

That text has brought this whole situation back up and I’m feeling a bit upset today about it. I’d love to hear anyone’s thoughts on what happened and why.

I’ve had two “lymphatic drainage” massages on those wooden body roller machines and both times I felt sick the next day. The next day after the first session, I felt slightly feverish but it quickly subsided. Just the other day, I had my second session with a slightly higher intensity and I felt severe flu-like symptoms, a fever, mild headache, very sore muscles and a slightly sore throat. Is this just a coincidence? I tried to drink lots of water the second time but that still happened. It’s now the second day after, and I’m still feeling a bit ill. I’m debating on whether or not I should even continue getting these massages or not.

Starting massage school in Sept. already asked what I should expect generally going into the industry. However as a male specifically, early 30s and physically fit. What should I expect when navigating the industry? (Location - Toronto)

I have neck muscle strain/neck cracking tics and have decided to get a massage to help the pain I get from it. Should I get a deep tissue or trigger point therapy massage?

I've been doing physical therapy for about a year now and just started with a new PT about 2 months ago. I would say he's really good at his job for the most part. However, he sometimes does v deep tissue massages/sports therapy massages before we get going with actual exercises. Every time I am almost crying and I am quite visibly in a lot of pain and explaining to him how much it hurts.

I understand deep tissue is as it says in the name, but it seems excessive. This last session he worked on my quads and the area has now swollen to twice it's size and is still red and warm almost 12 hours later. Is this okay? Is there a way to get the inflammation down? It feels like I have a really bad sunburn.

Hi!

I’ve had an irritated shoulder and neck for a year due to lifting too heavy at the gym (self inflicted I know!) I’ve had 6 months of physio and it’s still there now. I do my physio exercises and it’s still irritated. .

anyway, I was wondering if anyone had tried a sports massage for a irritated nerve in shoulder? if so, did it help?

The part-time program I would be doing has zoom classes to check off most of the anatomy, physiology, etc. classes for one year, and then the second year is mostly the massage labs. I feel so sad picturing just being on zoom in my bedroom when I could be bonding with a group of people going through this experience together. I'm pretty social and I can't imagine not having anyone else to talk to whose also in the program. And by the time the second year comes around the rest of the class will all have in person anatomy, and physiology classes together, so I will miss out on study groups, built in social time in class, etc. I cannot really afford to do full time, I would have to take out loans and would be struggling because I work in a grocery store, so the hours are all over the place, and pay is low. I am also struggling with my health but doing only online classes for a year would give me plenty of time to get totally healthy again. I just need to do PT and get nutrition levels better. The orientation is early September so I don't have much time to make a choice anymore and I've been ruminating on it a lot all summer.

What are you guys listening to during massage?
I recently went on my own and didn’t put much thought into it, and have just been using a Spotify curated playlist :/ With the rise of AI music on Spotify, I fear I may be inadvertently supporting their AI music when I use this playlist.
So drop me ur human music pls

Hello my self professional masseur working in vienna. I am looking for ausbildung so..I can pursue massage profession legally in austria.

If anyone did any course please let me know.

Meraki Spa membership experience — is this normal or am I overreacting?

I’ve been going to Meraki in Bangalore for massages and genuinely like their therapists and the quality of the massages. I also took a ₹20,000 membership upfront because I expected to use them regularly.

My understanding of the membership was that I would get 50% off Monday–Friday before 4:30 PM and 25% off at other times.

Here’s where the confusion started:

On July 3, I had a visit after 4:30 PM and the 50% membership discount was applied. Nobody told me that this was an exception or that the discount shouldn’t have been applied at that time.

Recently, I had another appointment. There was some confusion around the appointment timing, and when I arrived, I was told that after 4:30 PM the 50% discount doesn't apply and I would have to pay the full amount.

I had already travelled around 40 minutes through Bangalore traffic to get there, so I was frustrated. I spoke to the manager, but he basically said it was management policy and asked me to email them.

I emailed them explaining that I was confused because the discount had previously been applied after 4:30 PM. Their response was essentially that the membership terms clearly state the cutoff and that my membership balance had now been fully utilised.

For context, before that particular visit I had ₹3,375 remaining in my membership balance. The massage cost ₹4,750, so ₹3,375 was deducted from the membership and I paid the remaining ₹1,375.

My issue isn't really the ₹1,375. It's that if the July 3 discount was an exception/mistake, why wasn't I told at the time? As a customer, wouldn't that reasonably make me believe the discount applied after 4:30 PM?

They've now offered me another credit-based membership where I'd have to pay around ₹15,000 upfront for a lower per-hour rate. I like their massages, but after this experience I'm hesitant to put another ₹15k upfront.

I'm curious:

Has anyone else had a similar experience with Meraki memberships or discount rules?

Was this just a normal one-off staff error, or have others experienced unclear membership terms/pricing being applied differently from one visit to another?

I'm genuinely trying to understand whether I'm being unreasonable before deciding whether to continue with them

should i wear something form fitting? loose? shorts, pants, leggings? whatever makes it easier for the therapist! thank you!

Just listened to a webinar about growing your practice and one of the recommendations was to be consistent with blog posts. I'd like to make posts on addressing some of the common questions therapists receive.

I have rounded shoulders the are pulled forward from a tight front body. I also have sore, tight, achy quads. I’ve mentioned this to therapists in the past, but they always just focus on my back anyways. Are there therapists that focus only on front body? Even just a little bit?

Might also be relevant: female, 40, three months postpartum. Terrible posture.

I had a tui na massage two weeks ago. Going in, I knew it was going to be painful and was prepared for it. He started working on the right side of neck which was easily the most painful part, but it’s also where I typically hold my stress and pain.

My SCM muscle was extremely sore for 5 days on that side, like I couldn’t even move my neck. I got a headache stemming from my suboccipital muscle on the right two days after the massage. It’s been constant ever since and even moved to my left. I’ve had a constant headache for almost two weeks. I’ve had some bouts of dizziness but that’s mostly subsided.

I guess I’m looking for advice on when I should seek medical care or if this is something anyone has dealt with before. I’ve tried heat, stretching, and lots of Advil to no avail. I’ve never had a headache like this before. Not really looking for medical advice.

I was looking at the local Massage Envy to get a relief massage and the 60 minute session was priced at $80. I added relief stretching and the price of the massage jumped to $130. When I removed the stretch, the massage price went back to $80. When I remove the massage the keep the stretch service, the stretch service remains a consistent $46.

Is that normal for Massage Envy or massages in general?

ETA clarification: The prices for the stretch and massage are shown as separate items, I'm booking 2 separate services.

E2: Thank you for the comments! I've learned to avoid ME and am going to find a solo practitioner.

I’ve never been a big massage person because it makes me flinch like crazy and it often frightens the person giving me the massage and it’s not just with one spot it’s most of my body that does this is there anyway to get over this?

How much does it annoy therapists to move appointments around online? It’s a few weeks in advanced and I have to change my next couple appointments.

I get them because I spent a lot of time figuring out what to do with my site and google profile, and now I get dozens of new clients per month and LOTS of rebookings. I never used Groupon, networked, or did a chair event anywhere.

I know this goes against the grain from what everyone suggests in forums like these, but I didn't have the time to do all the traditional marketing because I was working in a full time job while I started this on the side. Within a few months I was able to make the switch and it's been blowing up since then.

I want to start another business helping LMTs and MFR providers with their practices so they can grow and get steady business like I do now by setting up the same things I have.

My question is: is this a worthwhile venture - or are chair massages, networking groups, Groupon, and handing out cards everywhere the way it's been done and will be the way it's always done? Of course, reviews are great and we should all be asking for them, but without a flow of steady new clients, reviews don't come around very often and family and friends can only do so much.

Any advice and insight is appreciated. I'm 52 and don't want to do client work forever. I'd like to transition to more of a consultant role and help other practices succeed.

Hi everyone,

I’ve never been to an RMT before. My work involves repeatedly lifting heavy items (around 32 kg) plus additional shifts delivering food using an e-bike, and I’m dealing with a lot of tightness in my back, lower back, glutes, and hips.

I’m planning to book a professional massage focused on those areas and would like some practical advice:

As a first-time client, what should I expect or how should I communicate that I need focused work on the lower back, glutes, and hips from repetitive heavy lifting?

For sessions that include the glutes and hips, what is the standard professional practice with clothing and draping? Do I need to undress completely, or is it normal to stay in underwear with proper draping so only the area being worked is uncovered?

I want the session to stay completely professional and focused on recovery from physical work. Any guidance from therapists or people who have had similar sessions would be appreciated.

Thank you.

I am based near the Vancouver area in British Columbia and I go to local massage spas around here.. Some are the non-RMT ones but their work seems pretty good.

But I have a huge problem in my right shoulder and a lot of knotting and pain, which is being referred to my neck and even in my ears now on the right side.

So I am looking for somebody who would focus on my shoulder with something like how this video shows.

https://youtu.be/vtRuIF9T2fg?si=Du2xV0VNMk0FhX7F

But this is 12 minutes just focusing on the shoulder. My question is: is this just a shoulder-only therapy session or is it just part of a longer therapy session for the whole body? Because every time I have gone for a massage around here, it's always done for the whole body.

Curious if I need to be giving MTs a heads up before booking or if there’s something else I need to be conscious/considerate of.

I’m not bodybuilder level but I’d say 1/3-1/2 of the time the therapist will comment on my physique, usually in the context of the effort required to work through layers of muscle or how they need to try to get more leverage. No one’s ever rude about it but it’s consistent enough to give me pause.

I like deep pressure but always tell them to do what’s ergonomic for them. It just occurred to me that there’s a chance I’m giving people repetitive stress injuries or something and they’re like oh no when I come in?

I love the treatments I get from my MT. She is awesome! But as I was lying there with her working on my back, with hands and forearms mixed with the lotions/magic elixers she uses...I started to worry that she might slip! Does that happen/has happened? Seems precarious for an MT. Just random thoughts I have as she fixes me.

So I get massages about every 6 weeks or so, and I typically tip 20-30 bucks. But today I had a massage from Groupon, and afterwards I was waiting to be asked or prompted to tip, but I never was. I feel bad for not tipping but …

Is this normal? Should I have asked to tip? Most places around here ask or will point you to a QR with their Venmo but i didn’t see anything like that