If you are in the bodywork industry, you need to be very aware of transfer, what it is, and especially how it relates to your job. My understanding of transfer is best illustrated by the following scenarios:
1. The therapist sees a client with headache, “bug” symptoms, acne, anger, fatigue, good or bad pregnancy-related issues, and other emotional scenarios. The client leaves happy, refreshed, and ready for life, but the therapist suddenly, or later, begins to display symptoms that he did not have before.
2. The client is nervous and cannot relax. Suddenly, a therapist who is usually self-confident begins to feel nervous and restless during the session (or vice versa).
3. During the massage, the client or therapist feels extremely powerful parasympathetic/reverse parasympathetic stimulation and begins to believe that more is happening during the session than is actually happening. (Either of them could imagine that they are “in love”, being “beaten”, harassed, touched inappropriately, etc.).
4. The therapist and client, knowingly or not, disagree about the purpose of the massage. (Clients can tell if a therapist is committed and believes in therapy, or if this is just a job and the therapist is anxious to get done and go do other things.)
5. The client, or therapist, spends the session discussing personal issues/gossip and when they break up, one or the other or both are still in the negative emotional place of the discussion.
6. The client or the therapist decide when they find themselves not liking one, the other, or each other.
7. Client has a preconceived idea of the therapist’s skill set/caliber and begins to patronize or intimidate; maybe say something negative about the establishment etc.
8. Client has a history of sexual abuse and/or rape trauma and related issues, etc., and misinterprets “normal and professional” handling during the session as “harassment.”
9. Client becomes upset during treatment (perhaps the therapist forgot a “request not to do”) and speaks angrily to the therapist, begins to breathe angrily or frowns, or some other defensive reaction, verbal or nonverbal .
10. The session “takes the client to a place” that they have difficulty or were not ready to go to and this has caused an emotional release (laughter, crying, embarrassment, etc.) or physical release. (Wrongful responsibility/blame etc. can sometimes be projected in either direction.)
Any of the above illustrations will affect business, delivery and/or receipt of service, therapy outcomes, as well as whether the client returns for follow-up care and/or the therapist exercises their right of refusal. of such care. There will be a certain “energy” shift in that environment and it will set a tone, like when someone unappreciated, trusted, powerful, loved or esteemed, etc., walks into a room full of people. That person can usually feel the “presence” of the mass and whatever the dominant energy is.
So how does one protect/protect oneself from any energy transfer? Any defense will have a lot to do with your belief systems and/or your own personal convictions, as well as your upbringing. If you believe that you are a conduit between the universal energy and the client, then you know that to be effective in this task, one must be centered, grounded, and committed to being the best, purest, and cleanest conduit with purpose. This is accomplished primarily through the breath, allowing the energy to flow through you with limited attachment.
First of all, the therapist must be very confident and know your skill set and especially the purpose of being in business. Second, that therapist must understand her purpose in treating each client and continue to mentally “refer to” it throughout the treatment. Why am I touching this person and what result do I want it to have? For me, is massage just to “feel good”? Equally important to these is to BREATHE, with a purpose. If the therapist is not breathing properly, and therefore administering self-care, he will interpret and react or respond to any “inappropriate or inconvenient findings.” The reverse of this is also true for the client. Both people need to focus on their breathing and the purpose of being in that small room together, regardless of the nuances. The deeper you breathe, the more oxygen your heart will get to pump and the faster the energy will flow out into the universe; In addition, the calmer you will remain, grounded, collected and focused on the purpose at hand. When client and therapist work as a team with a common purpose or goal, there will be plenty of room for the healthy benefits and enjoyment of massage therapy and less chance of transferring the unwanted.
Hands can transfer energy, good or bad, from client to client, between therapists and vice versa. It is imperative that each party, but especially the therapist, take care of “self” before, after and during the session, to allow only limited attachment to any unwanted “energy” or ailments. Wash your hands immediately after each session and before touching another person, including yourself. As soon as possible at the end of your day of giving/receiving therapy, do some cardio, meditation, etc., and definitely shower. Depending on your convictions, as mentioned, a therapist might want to do your laundry in preparation for the next day. Never go to bed without washing after giving therapy to someone and if you are a client who felt some ailment or unwanted energy was transferred during your session, take another shower/bath. These are very effective in cleansing and calming “the spirit” as well as the body.
