Skip to main content

ABMP Podcasts for Massage Therapists & Bodyworkers

Image of microphones on booms with the ABMP Podcast App Icon overlaid on the left side

 

Exploring the issues and challenges unique to the massage and bodywork community.

Subscribe to The ABMP Podcast in the Apple Podcast Store, Google Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you access your favorite podcasts, or click on an episode below to listen online.

Send questions, topic ideas, and guest recommendations to podcast@abmp.com, and we may answer your question on a future podcast.

 


On the heels of the encouraging information from the past two weeks, and information about Pfizer’s and Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccines and their effectiveness, we wanted to check in with our good friend Ruth Werner to get her opinion on a range of topics: the current vaccines in production and the new technology used behind their speedy creation, the potential for long-term effectiveness, virus mutation, and more.

In this episode, I revisit a previous podcast with a surprising outcome, I share a story-within-a-story, and I say some things that are sometimes hard to hear. This “I Have a Client Who ...” has surprises, uncomfortable truths, and a wish for my very own massage therapy super-power: ultrasound ears.

Bridging the worlds of manual and movement therapies can be a boon to both practitioner and client. Join us to hear Dr. Joe Muscolino break down his cover feature in the latest Massage & Bodywork magazine. Dr. Muscolino was encouraged by this topic after visiting Singapore on a teaching and education trip several years ago. Listen in to discover how combining the strengthening of muscles with soft-tissue manipulation can perhaps create the best of both worlds.

An adult client has Tourette’s syndrome with tics that include various jumps and vocalizations. Her massage therapist notices a surprising change with supine neck work and a traditional craniosacral hold. What is Tourette’s syndrome? What are tics? And why might massage therapy have any kind of influence here? This is a mystery that deserves some attention.

Alex Caspero joins the podcast to discuss her love of healthy food and how that spurred her to become a registered dietician. Alex tells us about how to become better food planners, how to batch cook, and how making one small change in your diet a day can have a profound effect in the long term. We discuss boredom eating, maintaining a healthy diet during a pandemic, her take on a variety of diets (keto, periodic fasting, etc.), and how to encourage your children to become healthy eaters too.  

A pregnant client vomits and loses consciousness in the middle of a massage. The therapist shows remarkable presence of mind and everything worked out fine—but what on earth happened? Would it have been possible to predict such a thing? Carole Osborne, author of Pre- and Perinatal Massage Therapy, A Comprehensive Guide to Prenatal, Labor, and Postpartum Practice, took some time to talk me through this so I could bring some true expertise to this discussion.

Massage therapists have the tools clients need, and human touch is the outlet for our anxiety, loneliness, and depression. Erik takes us through valuable research, then guides us on how to down-regulate the stress response. From what to look for when clients enter your practice; to making them feel comfortable; to your communication, eye contact, and first strokes, Erik lets us in to his insights garnered over many years of bodywork practice.

A massage therapist has an opinion about when to work after a client’s flu shot. Her colleague has a different opinion. Who is right, and based on what data? Join me for a discussion of flu shots, appropriate delays (or not) for massage therapy, and intriguing possibilities for future research.

What’s the difference between petting our dogs and cats versus offering them pet massage? Northwest School of Animal Massage founder Lola Michelin joins the podcast to discuss hands-on skills for working with animals, training, and contraindications. We also dip into communication strategies with our four-legged friends, as well as safety protocols.

Two clients. Two left legs that are swollen and hot. Two surprising outcomes. We explore deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and venous thromboembolism, and even take a quick peek at aortic aneurysm. Lots of long words in this one, and lots of opinions from me.

Angie Parris-Raney is Chopra Center Certified in meditation and ayurvedic lifestyle. She joins the podcast to give us a brief introduction to ayurveda and the science of conscious-based living. Angie discusses the value of a daily meditation practice, gives tips for surviving in the digital age, offers suggestions for daily self-massage, and provides ideas for eating to support a healthy immune system.

Allissa Haines and Michael Reynolds join the podcast to discuss the wake-up call that the pandemic served. COVID magnified what MTs were doing well or poorly pre-shutdowns. Did you have your earnings in order? Did you reach out and get the resources that were available? Did you treat your business like a business? Find your weaknesses and hone them in preparation for 2021 and beyond.