Safe Table

Some clients come to a massage table with secrets, either on their bodies or in their hearts, and they find a safe sanctuary under the soft flannel sheets, dim lights, soothing music, and healing hands of a therapist.

One lesson I learned from massage school was to be very discreet about any bruises on a client's body. My teacher said to simply note that there was a bruise and ask if it was tender, thereby acknowledging the existence of a past pain without requiring an explanation of how it got there in the first place. I have worked on women who had obvious finger marks on their arms and legs, and after remarking the presence of bruises on her body, the women said nothing more. They were obviously still involved with the person who had given those bruises to them and any further discussion might open the door to dealing with issues beyond their comfort zone.

Because I was trained in counseling and worked in a battered women's shelter, I have the tools to deal with a discussion about physical abuse, but many therapists are not and many clients feel vulnerable enough being naked on a table without also baring their souls to their therapist.

Some clients have secrets that they only feel safe expressing to a "neutral" third party, like a desire to quit their jobs, leave their spouses, or their problems with parenthood. Like hairdressers, massage therapists are the people who hear about the intimate secrets that are completely forbidden topics in "polite" discussions with friends, coworkers, or family members.

My motto has always been "What gets said on the table stays on the table." Like Las Vegas, my table is an oasis of peace and pleasure that lives outside the boundaries of "normal" life. It is the place to let go of all the burdens and pains. It is the place to breathe and relax. It is the haven where the focus on on YOU and your needs instead of obligations and responsibilities.

My table is the safe table in a world of reservations.