MT spent most of the time massaging my back?

[Sammzie]

I received a massage today that was very good, with the exception that I had almost no time spent on my chest or top of my legs. It was a ninety-minute session, and probably 75 minutes of that time I was lying on my stomach. The MT did a great job on my back, back of my arms, shoulders, neck, and back of my legs. I wondered if she would spend any time at all with me lying on my back. She did ask me to turn over, but spent less than five minutes on my chest, biceps, and "top" of my arms, and also spent less than five minutes on the top if each leg (calf and thigh). I understand that many MT will not massage the abs or lower stomach because of issues with arousal, but this massage seemed to be very "disproportionate" in terms of the time spent with me lying on my stomach vs. lying on my back. I am not very experienced as a client, but have had a few massages where the MT seemed to spend more time than this with me lying on my back. I did not request special work that required more time on my stomach. Can any practitioner tell me if this is somewhat a normal experience, and why? Thanks!

 

[PROTEA]

MT spent most of the time massaging my back?

I don't consider your experience to be "typical" but I have come across it before. It seems to be more likely when massage therapists have been trained to start their clients face down and do as much as possible before turning them over. Some MTs go a bit overboard, but perhaps this therapist was finding lots of things to do, got carried away, and simply didn't give herself enough time to do a thorough job with you lying face up.

Many MTs are trained to start their clients face up and end with them face down. You might have the opposite experience with one of them.

Ideally, an MT will be able to work effectively with you in nearly any position. Some of the best sessions I've had were balanced more by what my body needed than by how much time I was in any one position.

 

[tripageous]

MT spent most of the time massaging my back?

I received a massage today that was very good, with the exception that I had almost no time spent on my chest or top of my legs. I wondered if she would spend any time at all with me lying on my back. She did ask me to turn over, but spent less than five minutes on my chest, biceps, and "top" of my arms, and also spent less than five minutes on the top if each leg (calf and thigh). I understand that many MT will not massage the abs or lower stomach because of issues with arousal, but this massage seemed to be very "disproportionate" in terms of the time spent with me lying on my stomach vs. lying on my back. I am not very experienced as a client, but have had a few massages where the MT seemed to spend more time than this with me lying on my back. I did not request special work that required more time on my stomach. Can any practitioner tell me if this is somewhat a normal experience, and why? Thanks!

1. "I understand that many MT will not massage the abs or lower stomach because of issues with arousal..."

• I disagree and find nothing of the sort.
  
  I am unaware of this being the reason many MT's (or even few for that matter) don't work the abs/stomach. Many times, it is just a personal preference. Or, they have become used to so many clients not wanting ab work, that they just no longer offer it unless a client requests it.
  
  As a rule, abdominal massage does not produce arousal when performed therapeutically.

2. "It was a ninety-minute session, and probably 75 minutes of that time I was lying on my stomach. The MT did a great job on my back, back of my arms, shoulders, neck, and back of my legs."

• The timing does sound disproportionate, however, if you requested a particular problem to be addressed, it is possible that she divvied up the time accordingly.
  
  Just last week I did a 90 min, with 45 mins. of the time just for the left hamstring. It was a runner, who had all sorts of problems that needed to be dealt with.
  
  I normally go over the clients reason for coming in to see me, and then tell them what my plan of action is, along with asking if they would like more or less time in any of those regions. I am open minded enough that my clients know they can tell me if they don't like my game-plan.
  
  If your MT didn't do this with you, just have a little more discussion about what you are seeking in regard to your care, the next time you see her.
  
  Sometimes it takes a few sessions to really put together a plan that works for a client. Much of it comes down to communication.

 

[Julianna]

MT spent most of the time massaging my back?

Most MT's will spend extra time on the areas that you say you want addressed.

Whether it's a 60 or 90 minute session...if client's main complaint is shoulder/back/neck those are the areas that will receive the majority of the work.

Your responsibility is to communicate prior to the beginning of the session what your needs and goals are.

Without more information I think it is inappropriate to "blame" the MT.

 

[Natalie j]

MT spent most of the time massaging my back?

Wow, JasonE, Pueppi, and squash_blsm, thanks for the excellent (and quick) responses. This gives me a better perspective. As I said in my original post, I did not request special work on any part of my body with which I was having problems. We did discuss what I needed, and I just told her "overall stress relief" and that I wasn't having problems with any particular part of my body.

Pueppi, thanks for the perspective on ab work. I had read or heard somewhere that some MT might not do that as much because of the arousal issues, but I cannot remember the source(s). Due to my lack of experience, I really was just grasping at straws to think of a reason why so little time was spent with me on my back I know there is a lot of work other than just abs that can be done with a person lying on his back, but I was taking a stab at guessing about this. Your answer was really good, thanks.

All in all, even saying what I did about the massage, I did not leave discouraged. It was actually an outstanding massage, compared to the few others I have had, and I will definitely go back to her. I am better equipped because of the answers you guys gave me so that I can maximize my experiences in the future.

I really wondered how closely people, especially practitioners, pay attention to these posts and if I would even get a response. This was so encouraging