I finally got a massage today. I ended up at the Marriott spa, so I paid way too much -- $135 -- but it was a fantastic massage, so I'm not as annoyed at the price as I might be.
I even tipped $20, which shocked the heck out of the receptionist and the therapist. I finally got them to accept the tip by saying "I'm a massage therapist and I know good work when I receive it.". (Tipping is not common in Australia.)
The MT has only been in practice a year but she's got very well-honed palpation skills. She found all my tender spots, even ones I wasn't aware of. She also did a great job of listening to me and getting feedback at the appropriate time.
We talked a bit about how she works and she admitted she goes on "intuition" a lot. She sounded a little embarassed about that and said she wasn't always sure it wasn't just her imagination.
I hear that a lot from MTs. It's a shame. The more I've learned to trust my intuition in these last few years, the better my work has gotten.
Intuition doesn't get the respect it deserves. "Intuition" is just the name we assign to data we gather by other-than-overt-obvious means. It's still valid data, it's just coming in on some subtle channels.
I found myself reflecting on how much better the massage was because she was using her intuition. It made for a different kind of partnership between she and I. She wasn't just following a set protocol but actively responding to the tissue and to the clues that were coming in on those subtle channels.
And she was talking to me about it. It made me reflect on / connect to my body at a different level. It asked me to pay attention to more subtle things and anything that gets a client to really hone in on their body and connect with it runs a good chance of improving your session.
In the end, despite the price, I felt like I'd really lucked out by getting assigned to this therapist. PLUS she gave me a lead on some "woo-woo" practices in a nearby suburb. :)
All in all, a good day for intuition.
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