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Ep 209 - How to Avoid Violating Client Boundaries with Dr. Ben Benjamin

03/15/2022
Massage therapist looking out the window with a smile.

Cultivating sensitivity and trust is essential to keeping clients safe—especially as we are aware that many women and men have experienced physical or sexual trauma. In this episode of The ABMP Podcast, Kristin and Darren speak with Dr. Ben Benjamin about how to avoid violating client boundaries, understanding the patient is in charge of the session, why it’s important for the therapist to understand the power differential, and whether maintaining boundaries is a shared responsibility between client and therapist.

Related Articles in Massage & Bodywork magazine:

“Keeping Clients Safe, Part Two,” by Dr. Ben Benjamin, Massage & Bodywork magazine. July/August 2021, page 70.

“Keeping Clients Safe, Part One,” by Dr. Ben Benjamin, Massage & Bodywork magazine. May/June 2021, page 64.

Author Images
Dr. Ben Benjamin, author of The Ethics of Touch.
Author Bio

Dr. Ben E. Benjamin has done much pioneering work in the areas of ethics, communication, and sexual assault prevention, writing articles on professional, sexual, and business ethics. He is the co-author of The Ethics of Touch, a textbook used in schools throughout North America to teach ethics and boundaries to massage therapists as well as other hands-on health-care professionals. He has been an expert witness in cases of sexual assault in the massage and bodywork field since 2004. In 1974 Dr. Benjamin founded the Muscular Therapy Institute, a school he owned and nurtured for over 30 years. In the 1980s he developed a 150-hour curriculum in ethics and communication skills for therapists in training. He has taught courses in ethics, boundaries, sexuality, and communication to somatic therapists for over 30 years. 

Additionally, Dr. Benjamin earned a PhD in sports medicine and has dedicated his life to helping people cope with and overcome the pain and stress caused by injury to the body in his muscular therapy sports injury private practice since 1963.

Sponsors

This podcast sponsored by: 

Anatomy Trains:

Anatomy Trains is a global leader in online anatomy educationand alsoprovides in-classroom certification programs forstructuralintegration in the US, Canada, Australia,Europe, Japan, and China, as well as fresh-tissue cadaverdissectionlabs and weekend courses. The work of Anatomy Trains originated with founder Tom Myers, who mapped the human body into 13 myofascial meridians in his original book, currently in itsfourthedition and translated into 12 languages. The principles of Anatomy Trains are used by osteopaths, physical therapists, bodyworkers, massage therapists, personal trainers, yoga, Pilates,Gyrotonics, and other body-minded manual therapists and movement professionals. Anatomy Trains inspires these practitioners to work with holisticanatomy in treating system-wide patterns to provide improved client outcomes in terms of structure and function.

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Universal Companies:

Universal Companies has everything the spa professional needs for success, including massage tables and accessories, linens, tools, pain relief products like arnica, and a range of lotions, oils, and gels. The products we offer help the independent practitioner save on their everyday expenses, as well as provide the convenience of shopping across broad categories.

Recognized as the “Favorite Distributor” in the American Spa Professional’s Choice Awards for the past 17 years, we see this as a continuous challenge to provide the best products that pros trust the most.

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Handspring Publishing:

Handspring Publishing specializes in professional-level books for massage therapists, osteopaths, yoga and Pilates teachers, physiotherapists, and other professionals who use touch or movement to help patients achieve wellness. Handspring Publishing’s books are written and produced to serve the professional and educational needs of health and medical professionals, musculoskeletal therapists, and movement teachers. Its list includes bestsellers like Fascial Stretch Therapy by Chris and Ann Frederick, Fascia: What It Is and Why It Matters by David Lesondak, Pre- and Perinatal Massage Therapy: Third Edition by Carole Osborne, Michele Kolakowski, and David M. Lobenstine, and the recently published Oncology Massage: An Integrative Approach to Cancer Care by Janet Penny and Rebecca Sturgeon. Handspring’s books combine attractive and accessible presentations with an evidence-based approach to writing, including referencing the latest research findings. Authors are drawn from the ranks of highly respected teachers and experts in their area of specialization, including Jim McCormick, Til Luchau, Robert Schleip, Graham Scarr, Gayle MacDonald, and Carolyn Tague, among others. ABMP members save 20% on regular list prices. Visit handspringpublishing.com and use discount code abmp20 to order. Shipping is free to all addresses in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Website: handspringpublishing.com

Email: info@handspringpublishing.com

Instagram: instagram.com/handspringpublishing

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Facebook: facebook.com/handspringpublishing

YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCiD4TybAPVTbCL_xvCrwNOQ