I did a blindfolded massage today. This is where the subject can’t see what I’m doing. Just kidding.
When we were in school, the teacher mentioned getting to the point where we could do massage blindfolded, the blindfold being on the therapist, not the subject. What this would show, would be the therapist’s ability to read the body they are working on without having to see it. This would mean following the muscles, finding where the spine is, and working an hour massage routine without having to look to see where we are.
This is actually a difficult thing to do. One is dependent on knowing how a body fits together and the many landmarks from the bones to the muscles. As with any massage, one wants to do good, healing work while keeping the client comfortable and not touching any areas they’re not supposed to. This is something that is harder because of not being able to see what one is doing.
In school, we never had this class. That came mostly from the maturity of the children (er, other students) that were in my class. In fact, I was so very surprised by their lack of maturity. I felt that none of them had any business going into the field until they grew up a bit. Unfortunately, like so many other things we didn’t do in the class (for the same reason), we missed out on this experience.
Today, I had a client in who is also a close friend and gifted healer. We had talked about this before, and she told me to go ahead and work blindfolded. Well, it was an interesting experience. It was also a very good learning experience.
Although I do most of a massage with my eyes closed, I still open them very often to see where I am, and to align with certain points. I also open them to move around the table (go figure).
One of the things that got me was that I found it harder to center while blindfolded. Working with the body was fine, but I was really thrown with my environment outside of the body. My work area in the room is a little tight, so I was a little cautious when I moved around the table. And although I knew very well where the body was, I had a hard time knowing where the massage table that they were lying on was. The other thing I missed was not being able to look at the clock. No matter how many times I do bodywork, I have to glance at the clock to keep the session to the time frame. (Unlike some of my former classmates, I don’t have a piece of music where I have it timed to places I should be during a routine, and the fact that the routine is never the same, changes all that anyway.) So, it was very strange doing the session hoping that I’m within a time frame.
The good news is that the session went very well. My friend said it felt wonderful, and was very happy with it. I was able to maneuver the body and work exactly where I needed to, working the steps I wanted with no problems. I also was able to stay within the boundaries and not touch anything I’m not supposed, although, I did hit her nose once or twice.
Of course, the blindfold had no effect on my energy perceptions. Once it was on, I scanned her with no problems, and I was able to see the areas that I was being told needed extra work. As far as timing went, I ran long about 10 minutes. This is something that happens now and then when I can see the clock, so I felt pretty good about it.
It was a very good, learning experience. I’m thankful to my friend for allowing me to have the opportunity to do it.