With the many types of practitioners who provide a range of natural health care services such as bodywork, it can be challenging to choose the appropriate practitioner to meet your needs. I hope this article will stimulate your thinking about your particular healthcare needs and how to determine and locate who may be best able to help you with them.
When I am contacted to provide bodywork services, one of the first questions I ask potential clients is what prompted them consider bodywork. There are a range of responses I often hear, from, "my neighbour told me about how you helped her," to "I was in Thailand and had a Thai massage and decided I wanted to have another one just like that after I was home." It's useful to think about what your priorities are with respect to your body and your overall health. Are you looking for support in recovering from an injury or chronic pain? Are you seeking relaxation and/or transformation in some aspect of your physical, mental, emotional or spiritual life? Depending on what your needs are, what type of service might best help you to achieve those goals? Each type of bodywork has its own philosophy, techniques and intended types of outcomes. It will be worth your while to find the best match possible between your needs and a given form of bodywork.
Other questions you may want to ask yourself before you seek out a bodywork practitioner are: "Do I enjoy touch?" "If so, do I prefer gentle touch or deep pressure?" "Do I enjoy movement?" "Am I comfortable being physically moved by another person, or do I prefer to be in charge of my movement?" Your answers to these and other questions about what you enjoy and what has been helpful to you in the past will be important guides in choosing among the many approaches to bodywork which are available.
It's important to have a good understanding about the service you are about to access before you arrive for your appointment. How can you do that? If you have been fortunate enough to hear about a certain practitioner from someone you know, then you can ask your friend for some specifics about their experience. What happened when you were there? How did you feel in the days after your session? Was it what you expected? Would you return for another session? Why or why not? Did you feel comfortable communicating with this practitioner? Your friend's responses to these questions can give you some information. Just because this was the best bodywork for them, however, does not necessarily mean that it may have been the best for you.
Communication with your health care provider is key, before, during and following any appointments. When there is discussion before your appointment, you can speak with the potential provider of the service to inform him or her about your goals and hopes for what you will achieve or experience in accessing this service. In turn, the practitioner will also be able to give you information about how this service may or may not benefit you, so that you will have more specific-to-you information about how one modality or another may or may not be suited to what you are seeking.
You are already doing things that support your health. These may be regular practices for you, such as what you eat and how you exercise, or they may also include visits to a health care provider or taking natural products or medications. It's important to let the practitioner know about what your health habits and challenges are and to co-ordinate any new modalities with those that are already part of your regimen. If the proposed service would be of no clear benefit to you, or there are significant risks involved for you, (along with possible benefits) the practitioner needs to communicate this information to you. Sometimes a discussion with your primary health care provider (such as a physician or naturopath) can offer additional helpful information in determining the value of a proposed modality for you, and sometimes the bodywork practitioner may recommend that you access another type of health care provider who may better be able to meet your needs at that time.
Communication with the practitioner during your initial (and any subsequent) session(s) is of fundamental importance so that you can be as comfortable and relaxed as possible, thereby being able to access the maximum benefit from the bodywork. These are easy words to say; yet sometimes it's hard to put them in to practice. Allowing someone who is new to you to touch you is a big step for many people, especially those who have not had much bodywork before. Even for seasoned receivers of bodywork, expressing your own needs, preferences and questions as the session proceeds requires attention, awareness and courage. I know this from when I've been on the table or mat, and needed to say something to the practitioner, that was not an easy or comfortable matter for me to broach. Talking about our bodies and our body-feelings can be a new and sometimes daunting experience.
It is essential that there be an atmosphere of safety, trust and clear communication when you are working with a health care provider. You may have new experiences or questions that arise for you following your session, so you want to be able to feel comfortable to contact the practitioner at any time after your scheduled appointment. Both you and your practitioner can learn from the feedback that you provide.
How can you become more informed about the different bodywork services that are available in your area? Many practitioners choose to and/or are required to belong to one or more professional organizations that can be an additional source of information about the services being offered. Such organizations normally have a Web site and other sources of information which describe the services provided as well as their intent and rationale. You should also ensure they have a code of ethics which outlines what you can and can not expect will occur in your interactions with professional from that organization.
If it is not obvious through any written materials whether a practitioner belongs to any professional organizations, you can simply ask that person if he or she does. If the practitioner is not affiliated with any organizations, you could ask them to provide you with the name(s) of one or more clients who may be willing to speak with you directly about their experience with that provider. If such references are available, this is another source of information for you in determining if this is the person with whom you want to work.
Although it can be challenging, it can also be very rewarding to arrive for your first appointment knowing that you have done a little research and will be an informed recipient of whatever service you are about to receive. Of course whenever you are beginning something new, it is always an adventure that can not be fully known in advance. When you have determined the modality and/or practitioner that is the one for you, I invite you to embrace this opportunity whole-heartedly!
Emily is a member of the following organizations and invites you to visit these web sites for further articles and information:
by Emily Weber
