How the Varied States of Consciousness Affect Massage Therapy

One reason to assess personal strengths and weaknesses is to determine your level of knowledge about the power of non-ordinary states of consciousness, such as the state of relaxation created by massage.

In a recently published article entitled, “Working States of Consciousness in Massage Therapy,” author and expert, Linda Derick, writes:

“I have heard it said that the hand is where the mind meets the world. Those of us who are lucky enough to be bodywork practitioners know that the quality of the therapist’s consciousness is a powerful influence on clinical efficacy. The various states of consciousness are influenced by thoughts, emotions and energetic quality,” adding that what and how you think—your states of consciousness—has clinical impact during a massage session.

Derick writes that there are many skillful ways to modulate your working state of awareness.

“The first step toward developing this skillfulness is to develop your capacity to maintain a witness state of observation,” she writes.

This is the work that you do, as a massage therapist, on the mat before practicing your craft in the massage room.

“Whether learned through meditation practices, yoga or any other discipline, the ability to observe oneself with a kind, open, curious but nonanalytic, discerning but nonjudgmental state is crucial to learning how to evolve your capacity to engage and maintain peak clinical effectiveness,” she writes.”