Drew Hume 
“I know what their body needs, so when they come to me, they get what they need instead of what they want”. There’s a lot of this type of approach out there in massage. I’m jumping in here though to suggest that it’s the wrong approach even though it might sound like perhaps the right … Read more
There’s a lot of emphasis placed on the idea that “it’s the thought that counts”, and I often hear this show up in the context of massage as reinforcement for the idea “that all we need is intention”. When actually, what serves everyone best is not INtention, but instead ATtention. Attention = currency Even though … Read more
*Enters the room.* “Go and fill up the car with fuel, now.” *Leaves the room.* The person on the couch sits there thinking “what the heck” just happened. Also, they’re probably not going to do it. Almost all of us don’t like being told what to do – let alone without any context or conversation … Read more
I’ve got a bit pf a reputation for going on the hunt for things – trigger points specifically – and that’s really detailed work aimed at getting to the source of pain.
It can also be a little intense. And sometimes your client wants something less intense – and more soothing.
This is perhaps one of the most common questions I get from people taking training with me, and it’s a brilliant question. It’s not the easiest to answer though, because there can be quite a lot to it – but it’s still an important answer to give because it can help you feel more immediately … Read more
In my last post we talked about touch, Oxytocin and the social bonding that occurs as a result of the physical contact that produces Oxytocin release. The conversation of touch, Oxytocin and social bonding leads us into a conversation about autism. So here we are – let’s explore this. A couple of things that are … Read more
We often talk about how touch can be really beneficial, how it leads to the increase in release of the feel-good hormones – which includes Oxytocin, which the “bonding hormone” and so it helps us build social connection (which, if you haven’t heard is a really key component to longevity). You might have even heard … Read more
The other day a client asked me if everyone had tension in the same spots or if I was specifically finding the spots that needed attention. And the answer is yes and yes. Yes, people mostly carry tension in the same areas. Almost everyone in the last couple of weeks of treatments needed attention to … Read more
Mostly I teach you to wait for some kind of change in the tissue when you’re applying pressure. You maintain your weight on the spot you’ve found until you notice some change in texture – hopefully some kind of softening or the sensation that there is now some more space in the tissue. That holds … Read more
You know when you get a massage and your practitioner is on the perfect spot and with the perfect pressure that it feels so intense and yet you don’t want it to stop because there’s some part of you that knows that this is exactly what you need? I’ve been thinking how it is we … Read more
You’ve probably heard the phrase “Yin yoga gets into the fascia more”. The question is, is it true? And if it is, how does that happen?
It’s a really commonly used term these days, but what does fascial stretch even mean? You might think it’s an easy situation of the fascia getting pulled on in order to make it longer. But that’s not really it, or at least it’s more complex than that. All stretching technically includes the fascia – so … Read more
There are of course lot’s of things that might contribute to low back pain – but in almost all situations, the following technique can help at least a little. Try it out and let me know how you feel at the end:
Whether you give massage or receive massage, these things are good cues from the body to pay attention to. Massage has an ideal pressure – and that’s different for each of us. If we use the following 5 signals from the body as cues to avoid, then we’re giving ourselves a better chance at finding … Read more
Is there a best way to practice Thai massage? This might be something you’re thinking about if you’re searching for courses or you’ve been exposed to different styles.
Obviously, it’s a loaded question and you could make the answer a simple “no” or you could also explore the intricacies of that conversation. Which is what I’ll attempt to do here. I’ll also take you in a bit of a different direction, so that instead of thinking about one “style” of practice being better than another, it’s more about the methods you use for your people.
In the massage world there’s this term that gets used a lot: “release”. And I use it a lot too. Even though I use it, it’s kind of frustratingly vague – like, who even really knows what it can mean?
I think the thing is, it’s pretty non-specific when it comes to describing something – and because of that it’s hard for people to conceptualize the release. What do you look for? Or more appropriately, what do you feel for?
It looks unlikely for the most part. At least in the context of how we medically understand adhesions. I’ll go into more detail about “the most part” below, because of course it’s not as simple as”no”. We’re tackling this because manual therapies all over the globe have made the claim that they can break up … Read more
There’s a lot of talk about traditional Thai massage in the community. As in, a lot of people use that word “traditional” to market themselves – using it in a way that attempts to differentiate themselves from people who don’t practice in a traditional way.
There are still a lot of schools of Thai massage and Thai-inspired manual therapies who teach massage protocols. One posture, followed by another posture, followed by another – in the same order, every time. Both in the classroom and out in the wild when working on clients. Many will suggest a degree of benefit to … Read more
When you work on people with arthritis there’s not necessarily a whole lot you need to change, but there are two main things I’d like you to consider as you go through the session: The first thing is extra prop use – more blankets and more cushioned surfaces, specifically for affected joints. There tends to … Read more
