Musings of a Massage Therapist in the Academy

Welcome to the first post of my put off life AKA. The official launch of my website and Mobile Massage Therapy

Mobile Massage Therapy today- Perfect for Covid-19? #openforbusiness #mobilemassage #RMTnews

So, many of you who may read this, welcome. For my old clients, welcome. For my new (potential) clients, welcome! For all my Queers and Dears and underserved peers, a really big WELCOME! You are valid. You are loved. You are needed. As a queer therapist myself I often represent the underserved LGBTQ2A+ population. I advocate for both safety on and off the table here and in other professional settings. I am proud to offer my table as a place of refuge for all.

It was with those words I realised my dreams too. A long time ago, I started off in the brave massage world having being churned out of the naive education of massage therapy. Not saying my education was bad, but no amounts to learning outside of a degree could possibly prepare a person for what lay ahead. It was based on those experiences I am who I am today. So, what are you getting at you crazy canuck? Well, I started off all bright eyed and bushy tailed with my fresh off the press Diploma in Massage Therapy (DipMT) and my new title official from the Massage Therapists Association of Nova Scotia (MTANS) as a Registered Massage Therapist. What did that mean? I dunno, but it made me sound cool until I realised I knew nothing (Jon Snow).

Technically today, it is a title protected under Nova Scotia law that means I have completed the necessary education of at least 2200 hours in Massage Therapy as acknowledged by the Dept. of Health and by the Associations and Insurance Companies and can offer billable services as necessary to improve health functions. That is a rather large mouth full and only a brief overview of what it really means to be a massage therapist in an unregulated/semiregulated province (fact: we are the only unregulated province on the East Coast). I am sure in further posts I may get into that and my thoughts on the matter (and why it needs to change). Anyway, back to the story.

I became a RMT and rented my first office space and worked part time as a RMT at one of the local massage clinics. It was a no glamour type gig, and I was ok with that. I met the most amazing people who helped shape me into the man and therapist I am today. However, within the year, I was making zilch. I was going further into debt. I was earning less than I was spending just going to work. I was only getting paid sporradically at best, and I considered myself an absolute flop and failure. I quit both jobs and headed outside of the city and worked at a physiotherapy clinic in East Hants until a car accident took me out of that job and almost disabled my entire career. But, in those times, and throughtout those times, some of my most loya clientele and now friends and family (I know, ethics, but you know who you are) supported me and continued to inspire me. I started offering them mobile massage therapy sessions in their homes, and then started mobile massage parties when their friends wanted in on the deal. Word of mouth spread, and I became somewhat stable in part time work that allowed me to go back to school and pursue my other passions of learning and the academy at Saint Mary's University with a BA (hoping to finish soon) in Anthropology and Religious Studies. During all this time until now, I was also practicing massage at Massage Experts, a place I happily worked from 2017 until the end of 2021, only changing due to the COVID-19 rise of the Omicron variant here in Nova Scotia (again, another discussion).

With all of that, I left my comfy 'guaranteed' (ask me why this word is moot in the service industry) position, where I built up a solid following of clientele and friends, to only offer mobile services and go out onto my own in a scary world again. This is back to unwanted and uncharted territory for me again. Not unwanted in that I cant or didn't want to work at this, but in the sense I didn't think I was ready. I didn't want to take on the responsibility. I was scared. I was worried. And that is entirely ok.

Deep down, I am afraid I will fail again. I am afraid this will go nowhere. I am worried. But those are human emotions and I have faith that this will at least be a learning experience for me.

Back to what I said at the beginning, You are loved and you are valid. For too long I equated filure with unworthyness. I equated failure with lack of self love. In one sense I thought I failed before back then, but I realise now I was exactly where I was meant to be. Often times you find the clients you need and they also find you- ie., you attract those who suit you best as clients. This is very much true, and through that love they have shown me, I have learned to love myself and expand. This is just one of those attempts and ways I can do so and bring my dreams of accessible massage therapy to all and put my fears aside. I am ready. I am hear. I am valid. It is now time.

A big shoutout to my therapists and especially my coach who helped so much in showing me that I can do this, Dr. Kyle Dean Freeman, PT, DPT. If anyone is needing a good kick to meet their life goals, I highly recommend him. You can findhim @ www.drkyledean.com . For everyone else, you know who you are. Thanks for helping me meet my goals and allowing me to help meet yours.

To book your own appointment and see how I can help you, check out my fancy QR code below (click or scan works).

Cheers, R Dylan Stewart, CMJ, RMT