ABMP Podcasts for Massage Therapists & Bodyworkers

This episode tells the story of a client who is approaching the end of her life. Cancer metastasis to her brain has led to some language difficulties. We will talk a bit about oncology massage therapy, palliative care, CyberKnife surgery, and cerebral shunts. But the main lesson here is about patience and presence with people who have some communication challenges.

In this episode of The ABMP Podcast, experts in the field answer your most pressing questions, from COVID-19 protocols and precautions to body mechanics, intake forms, and more. We hear from authors and educators Ruth Werner and Eric Stephenson, and check in with ABMP’s Director of Government Relations Laura Embleton, Risk Management/Special Services Debbie Higdon, and President Les Sweeney.

In this episode, a client might be disappointed. A therapist is very concerned. And we don’t know what will happen next. When a “pinched nerve” that has been quiet for six months suddenly creates symptoms in the middle of a massage, what’s a therapist to do? We will talk about what could be going on here (including some fascinating things about nerve-generated pain) and what the best next steps could be.

Author and instructor Cindy Williams, LMT, talks about what happens when powerful emotions like stress, sadness, and grief become too uncomfortable to manage and get buried beneath the surface. How can massage therapists and bodyworkers recognize the signs of hidden suffering, and what can they do to assist clients in becoming conscious of the emotions stored in the tissues of their body?

Guess the pathology: an egg-sized lump in the groin. In this episode of “I Have a Client Who …” a massage therapist describes a client who comes in asking for groin work—to help with a “knot.” What on earth is going on?

It turns out to be simple, but way, way outside our scope of practice—to label, or to treat.

What happens when the client is “right,” but factually wrong? Cal Cates and Kerry Jordan of Healwell have some thoughts about the difference between the validity of a client’s experience and what the therapist knows to be scientifically and mechanically sound, and why it’s important for MTs to stay present throughout a session to remain attentive and curious so clients feel heard.

A man has a stroke at age 35. He fully recovers, but is put on a lifelong prescription of anticoagulants. What is going on, and will he ever be able to receive the deep massage he wants? In this episode, Ruth looks at a common anomaly called patent foramen ovale. We discuss its connection to cryptogenic stroke (and we even dive into migraine for a hot second). Finally, we talk about the safety of massage therapy for clients taking anticoagulant drugs.

Zeel Co-Founder Alison Harmelin and Zeel Senior Director of Public Health and Workplace Safety Amir Hemmat discuss the current state of PPE for massage therapists, including how to prioritize which products to use and which partners to trust, how to plan ahead so you’re not caught unprepared in your practice, and what steps Zeel is taking to ensure the safety of their therapists and clients. 

A client who was recently in a motor vehicle accident was “cleared for massage” by her primary care provider. But it turns out she had no X-rays and that hid the fact that she sustained a fracture to her sternum. What is the responsibility of the massage therapist when a client has been “cleared for massage”? Ruth has some thoughts.

Author and educator Cathy Ryan joins the pod to discuss her love of fascia and how her work has been informed and changed by research over her 30-year career. We discuss Cathy’s approach to working with scar tissue, deep dive into the wound-healing process, and talk about the possibility of facilitating change in both mature scars and those soon after insult. 

An older long-time client is on the table, midway through her massage. When the MT undrapes her leg, she finds a string of red blisters from the client’s buttock down the leg. “Oh, yeah, it’s kind of itchy,” says the client. In this episode, we talk about undiagnosed skin lesions, how carefully we need to communicate to clients about them, and take a deeper dive into shingles: what causes it, what the risks are, and whether massage therapists might catch it from clients.

Is it possible that mouth breathing has contributed to, and exacerbated, numerous health conditions? Bestselling author James Nestor wants to convert you into a nose breather. He spent years in laboratories and ancient burial sites, working with researchers at Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, and other institutions to figure out what went wrong with our breathing—and how to fix it.