Massages

[harllee]

I've at times thought about those $3K massage chairs for my living room. It could pay for itself compared to the cost of regular massage monthly.

No massage chair could give the deep trigger point massage I am getting for my back pain

 

[MrsHaloFIRE]

A found a mobile massage company in my city BC my back was so bad I couldn't take myself anywhere. Setup in my LR. Saved my back. I could walk after he left. He didn't do a style on me, it was more of a custom medical situation. Apparently my back went out causing a HUGE knot in each if my glutes so he would work on them a bit then switch to my neck then got back. Finally got the knots to relax then did some mobility with my legs. It wasn't pretty sexy or relaxing but it darn sure worked. I was yelping

 

[albireo13]

What a waste of money!

 

[Amethyst]

It doesn't sound like you know what it's like to experience intractable pain, then have it relieved for a while without taking any drugs.

Money isn't worth much when you hurt all the time, and pain drugs have nasty side effects.

What a waste of money!

 

[harllee]

What a waste of money!

I have gone 3 times over the last 3 weeks to therapeutic massage. I was in terrible pain with my back and could not get a doctor's appointment until June. The massages have reduced my pain to a manageable level and I feel so much better. The 3 massages cost $330 and well worth every penny. Definitely not a waste of money for me.

 

[martyp]

I am living in Thailand. We are currently in lockdown but normally I get a weekly Thai massage. There is nothing gentle about a Thai massage. It helps my old stiff body have a greater range of motion. A two hour massage here is 750 baht which is $24. I have a regular massage lady and she is very good. I tip her 300 baht.

I have an N95 mask that I was wearing to massages this past year.

Four years ago, before I moved to Thailand from the US, I found a good Thai massage place and it was $120 for a two hour massage and I tipped $20. I could only afford to do that occasionally.

 

[Amethyst]

When we visited Thailand with a group tour, Mr. A. and I had a couples massage from two Thai ladies in our hotel room. Very respectable, recommended by a tour guide, and of course much more expensive than it would have been if we'd just walked into a local place. Oh well, there wasn't time to arrange anything on our own.

These were not delicate little women. They put a lot of muscle into the massage, but weren't rough and didn't hurt us. They clearly knew their anatomy, which direction to rub various muscles, how to isolate "knots."

Did wonders for the neck, lower back and hip pain that tends to build up when you are riding all day in various conveyances on a group tour schedule. Husband said he hadn't realized he even had any aches until they were gone.

I am living in Thailand. We are currently in lockdown but normally I get a weekly Thai massage. There is nothing gentle about a Thai massage. It helps my old stiff body have a greater range of motion. A two hour massage here is 750 baht which is $24. I have a regular massage lady and she is very good. I tip her 300 baht.

I have an N95 mask that I was wearing to massages this past year.

Four years ago, before I moved to Thailand from the US, I found a good Thai massage place and it was $120 for a two hour massage and I tipped $20. I could only afford to do that occasionally.

 

[Aerides]

What a waste of money!

I'm quite sure there are any half-dozen things other folks spend money on that I could say the same.

But I don't.

Because I understand that everyone has their preferences and choices. One person's waste is another person's favorite thing in the world.

 

[RetireeRobert]

Never had a full-blown professional massage, but several times with an occasional achy stiff neck I have wondered about getting one.

I have a knot near my right shoulder blade on my back and I think I must have an old injury that contributes to the occasional stiff necks on the right side.

Wonder what kind of massage might be helpful and/or soothing for that type of thing?

 

[Nick12]

When I was vacationing in the Philippines I even got a head massage when I got a haircut! I am fortunate the hotel gym facility I work out of as a local has a soothing 104 degree hot tub next to the indoor pool I soak in to help with sore muscles and or a great way to relax.

 

[harllee]

Never had a full-blown professional massage, but several times with an occasional achy stiff neck I have wondered about getting one.

I have a knot near my right shoulder blade on my back and I think I must have an old injury that contributes to the occasional stiff necks on the right side.

Wonder what kind of massage might be helpful and/or soothing for that type of thing?

I get a "trigger point" massage for back pain and it has really helped. The therapist presses hard on sore muscle areas and holds the press until the pain subsides. I would think that type of massage would help a stiff neck and knot in the shoulder blade. But it is not a pleasant soothing massage. It is fairly painful when it is going on but I feel so much better afterwards.

 

[ncbill]

It doesn't sound like you know what it's like to experience intractable pain, then have it relieved for a while without taking any drugs.

Money isn't worth much when you hurt all the time, and pain drugs have nasty side effects.

Yes, I'm very grateful I have not yet experienced the back problems that plagued my dad who always needed regular massages....even when we were young kids he'd have us walk on his back I guess as a sort of pressure point massage.

 

[Amethyst]

The salon I used to frequent when we lived in England, always gave divine head massages when they washed your hair. I don't know why every place doesn't do that!

When I was vacationing in the Philippines I even got a head massage when I got a haircut! I am fortunate the hotel gym facility I work out of as a local has a soothing 104 degree hot tub next to the indoor pool I soak in to help with sore muscles and or a great way to relax.

 

[Nick12]

The salon I used to frequent when we lived in England, always gave divine head massages when they washed your hair. I don't know why every place doesn't do that!

It is those special things I remember and them getting a bigger tip.

 

[mountainsoft]

I love a good relaxing massage (Swedish for instance). I'm not into any of the massage styles that focus on working out knots. I don't want to spend hard earned money to leave feeling worse than when I came in.

My wife and I like to get couples massages together. We treat it like it's romantic, but the truth is 5 minutes in we forget the other person is even in the room. Unfortunately, we usually only get a massage about once a year, and thanks to COVID it has probably been closer to two years since our last massage.

Sadly, it's hard to find a good massage therapist. Every time I find a good one they go out of business or move to another location. We've tried a couple of the Asian run spas that have popped up all over town with mixed results. One provided nice massages but seemed kind of sketchy. The other seemed more legit, but the massages were only so-so. The language barrier doesn't help either, not that we usually talk much.

I also don't care for any of the chain spas, like Hand and Foot. They're always trying to push their memberships, and we just don't get massages that often.

Most of the resort spas are just too expensive at $100-120 per massage.

Years ago I tried a couple of mobile massage services. One gave a good massage but she talked non-stop which made it hard to relax. The other was relaxing, but she must have quit giving massages. I'm not sure where I would even find a mobile massage service these days. It was nice to not have to get dressed and drive back home afterwards.

 

[Amethyst]

That would drive even me crazy, and I'm a talker. Massage is a very self-focused thing - you should not even need to be thinking about what they are doing.

Moreover, with a skilled therapeutic masseur/se, there should be no painful "working out of knots," which, to me, almost smacks of masochism.

For example, I was prescribed PT for a severe shoulder impingement. The therapist started every session with a 10-minute massage which reduced my pain and increased my mobility so I could do the prescribed exercises. If I winced at all, she stopped massaging, said, "I'm sorry," and tried a different tack.

IOne gave a good massage but she talked non-stop which made it hard to relax. .

 

[martyp]

Moreover, with a skilled therapeutic masseur/se, there should be no painful "working out of knots," which, to me, almost smacks of masochism.

I understand what you are saying about pain however, here in Thailand, I have received foot massages where they start using a pointed stick on the bottom of my feet. It is incredibly painful but afterwards my feet never felt better. I can’t explain why.

 

[harllee]

I understand what you are saying about pain however, here in Thailand, I have received foot massages where they start using a pointed stick on the bottom of my feet. It is incredibly painful but afterwards my feet never felt better. I can’t explain why.

My massage therapist does not use a pointed stick but he has strong hands and uses them to work on pressure points. It is not excruciating pain but is painful for 10 seconds or so has he applies the pressure to each area. Of course he would stop if I told him to. I don't understand why but what he does to my back has really helped. I go into the appointment feeling a lot of pain and walk out pain free. The first time, the pain stayed away for a couple of days, but the more massages I get the longer the pain free period lasts. When my back started hurting over a month ago I tried to get an appointment with a highly recommended back physician. The first appointment I could get was not until June. If I keep going to the massage therapist I may not even need to see the back physician (although I will probably keep the appointment just to see what he says).

 

[Amethyst]

That's great. The therapist sounds like a really good one.

My PT sessions were overseen by a senior therapist, from Colombia, and several recent graduates of a year-long PT certification at one of the state colleges. What they told me came down to a few things:

1) My right shoulder impingement was mainly due to posture - a surprise, since I've always been told I have great posture. The exercises they gave me, aimed to a) better center the head of the humerus in its socket and b) strengthen the spinal muscles that support the shoulder.

2) One type of massage was mainly to "break up the fascia," which are a kind of netting over the muscles. Evidently my shoulder and upper arm fascia were irritated and going in all directions ("they feel angry," I was told), which was limiting my mobility. This massage, done with a plastic scraper or strigil, helped the fascia to go in the direction Nature intended. That is how I understood what they were saying. It certainly helped.

3) The other massage, done with hands, was to get my overworked, undersupported muscles to stop spasming. That's where trigger points come in. It only hurt for a second or two while the muscle fibers managed to relax. Although the muscles ached later on, it was from the muscle spasms themselves, not the massage.

My massage therapist does not use a pointed stick but he has strong hands and uses them to work on pressure points. It is not excruciating pain but is painful for 10 seconds or so has he applies the pressure to each area. Of course he would stop if I told him to. I don't understand why but what he does to my back has really helped. I go into the appointment feeling a lot of pain and walk out pain free. The first time, the pain stayed away for a couple of days, but the more massages I get the longer the pain free period lasts. When my back started hurting over a month ago I tried to get an appointment with a highly recommended back physician. The first appointment I could get was not until June. If I keep going to the massage therapist I may not even need to see the back physician (although I will probably keep the appointment just to see what he says).