Pathology Archives - Tracy Walton & Associates

The Massage Meant for Someone Else

July 25, 2013 by Tracy Walton 28 Comments

Each time I teach a new group of students, it takes me a day or two to learn their names, and to straighten them out in my mind. The first day of a course finds me squinting at name tags and mouthing their names as I move through the room. When there are two students […]

5 Questions for the Client with Neuropathy. And What to Do with the Answers.

June 9, 2013 by Tracy Walton 23 Comments

It’s cold out, and your client keeps her socks on during her massage, leaving them for you to remove when you’re ready to work on her feet. As you peel off her left sock, you notice an abrasion on the ball of her foot, one she hadn’t noticed because of her loss of sensation. Later, […]

Why take a course in oncology massage therapy?

There are so many good reasons. Here are a few:

Service. During cancer treatment and beyond, people need support. They need symptom relief. They need sleep. Oncology massage therapy (OMT) can help people cope during cancer treatment, at end of life, post-treatment, and during diagnosis.
Practice building. With the right skills, you can meet growing client demand and build your practice. You can be part of cancer care. It is better for your business to be able to work with people right then, right where they are, than to refer them out or send them home.
Career satisfaction and longevity. OMT is immensely satisfying work. Your steady presence and your hands can make a huge difference in someone's day or week. You might even find our approach to be easier on your hands and alignment. We offer new ways to provide comfort without effort and "deep tissue" work.

To practice OMT, massage therapists need to know what to ask clients before the massage, and how to use the client's answers. They need to know how to think through what to do, and how to communicate with clients in difficult circumstances. They need confidence, sensitivity, strong interview and table-side instruction. They need to learn from actual case studies and real-world exercises, and good chances to practice.

We provide these learning experiences in our 4-Day Intensive, Oncology Massage Therapy: Caring for Clients with Cancer.