5 Moments to Tune Into Your Body In Your Next Massage
Want to be a better friend to your body? In your next massage, take the time to tune into what’s going on inside of your body to improve your interoceptive awareness (read our blog post here).
Here are 5 great opportunities
to check in with yourself
01. Intake
You arrive and sit down to have a quick chat with your RMT about how you’re feeling and what you want the treatment to look like. Your RMT asks you a question trying to get at what areas of your body need attention (my favourite question is “How is your body feeling today?”). Before you answer, pause. Take a moment to get quiet and tune into what sensations are going on in your body. There might be something shouting for your attention (your achy low back) or it might be a bit more muddled or quiet. Sometimes it helps to scan your body from head to toe. It can also help to take your hands and gently pat along as you scan with your mind’s eye. You might feel silly or in a rush to get on the table, but rest assured, as RMT’s, we wholeheartedly believe this is time spent wisely.
Bonus: During intake, you can also let the RMT know if you’d like a quiet massage. Having a quiet massage can help you better tune into your body. There are questions we have to ask to ensure it’s a safe and effective massage, but we are happy to stay quiet otherwise.
02. On the Table
You know that moment where you get on the table and you’re waiting for the massage therapist to come back in the room? Use it to feel what it’s like to be on the table. Are you warm enough? In the cold months, we’ll often offer to turn on our table warmers so don’t hesitate to ask to turn it on, or if it’s feeling too toasty, for us to turn it down. How does your body feel against the table? It’s not too often in our day-to-day lives that we lie face down on a firm surface so take a second to see if you notice anything different from when you were sitting in the chair. Maybe all you notice is that it feels good - yup, that’s an extremely important insight too, and one of the key benefits of interoceptive awareness.
03. First Pass/Last Pass of A Body Part
Let’s say you’re having your back treated. Massage therapists will often start with a long, smooth, gliding stroke (called an effleurage) that travels the full length of your back. Take a moment to feel the sensations of this first pass and see how your body responds to it. Often massage therapists will end with the same technique too, so it’s a great opportunity to take stock of what and how your back feels different.
04. Right Side/Left Side
Your massage therapist has massaged one side of your body, say a right leg, but not yet the left leg. Take a moment to feel one, then the other. Do you notice a difference in sensation? It is normal to orient to the side that feels more pain or discomfort and that is okay. Once you’ve done so, shift your focus to the other side, the side that has been treated. Does it feel more relaxed? Feel into what sensations let you know that.
A gentle note - interoceptive awareness is about noticing what’s going on *inside* our bodies, not what’s on the outside. This moment is not about judging or scrutinizing ourselves. Our bodies do not need to look or feel symmetrical. Try to tune in on a more global, holistic level by noticing the impact of the touch and attention that went into the treatment. If you know that looking at one side then the other is likely to bring up comparison tendencies for you, feel free to skip this one.
05. At The End
It can be a sad moment when you realize the treatment is over, but wait, because there’s still some gold to be had even after the massage therapist leaves the room. Before rushing to get dressed and go back into the world, take a few breaths (or about 30 seconds’ pause, if you’re not into breathing exercises) to pay attention to how you feel. You may want to repeat the body scan you did at the beginning, or you can zoom out and take in how your whole body is feeling at once. See if you can notice more than physical sensations too - how about your emotional self? Remember, the practice of interoceptive awareness is just about being aware of how you feel, not trying to change anything. Whatever is present gets to be there. So while massage can often help us feel regulated and relaxed, it’s okay if that’s not the case for you in that moment. Maybe you tune in and realize that, after a long massage, you’ve got a really full bladder 😛- amazing, you’ve done a good job of interoception and your awareness will pay off! Haha. No matter what you discover, know that you are strengthening an important mind-body connection simply by carving out time for yourself.
Written by Alexandra Timoteo RMT, who’s always keen to hear your insights when you tune into your body!
