A therapist should be...

When a person makes a decision to employ the services of a massage therapist, reflexologist, manicurist, hairstylist or any other 'ist they are letting down their guard and placing their body in the care of another individual. This act may leave some feeling vulnerable, open and exposed. For some, this may pose a bit of a challenge and require a mustering up of courage. So the last thing they need is to walk into a room greeted by a person that makes them feel uneasy.Where is the stress relief in that?

If a person is uneasy and put off by something they see, feel or smell from the person providing a service, the intended purpose of the service / experience may be lost. Which in turn could have a client feeling as if it was a waste of money and cause the therapist to lose clientele.

Since being in business for myself this has always been a topic that is very important to me. When having this conversation with others it seemed to me that some may feel that this has a lot to do with vanity on my part. I don't believe this to be the case, I just feel that there should be certain standards when in a service oriented profession. I mean, when you go out to a restaurant and the chef is preparing the meal, how appetizing is it when you see that he/she is dripping sweat profusely over the main course? Or that they may have some dirt under their finger nails while they are hand mixing the ingredients? It is my guess that no matter how delicious the food smells and taste, you will not have enjoyed it half as much as you would if you did not have that picture in your head.

I see things this way because of who I am. Not necessarily a person of great vanity but one who loves great ambiance. Pleasant surroundings = pleasant feelings. It is important to create the enviornment and experience that I want my clients to have. I am passionate and I care about my healing touch and my clients should walk away feeling it mind, body and soul.

So whether you book your next therapy session with the women of Be.Beautifully.Well or someone else of your choice here are my list of things to look for in the ultimate experience.

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  Personal presentation. Being a beauty queen is not a prerequisite , however they should look like they took time to care for themselves before trying to care for you. Hair should be neat, nails clean. Skin should not be dry and cracking, they should definitely not have front teeth missing! (laugh not, I have seen a therapist missing teeth with bad dry skin in real life)

  
  


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  Clothing should be professional in appearance. Most wear a type of uniform i.e., black shirt, black pants, white shirt, white pants or whatever . It should should be clean, not displaying their coffee from breakfast or the salsa from lunch. If wearing a shirt sporting the company logo, that's great! It should definitely not be pealing or overly faded. It just looks tacky.

  
  


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  Very importantly there should always be clean sheets of decent quality. No one has to have egyptian cotton of 800 thread count (although that would be nice right?) but hopefully it's not the cheapest sheet set they could find either. You know the kind that has the little lint balls all over, ewww! If the provider lacks interest or concern in this matter, then what message might that send out about them?...

  
  


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  Clean equipment. Depending on the service certain tools of the trade may be used. Hopefully they are clean and sanitized.

  
  


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  Music is always a plus when receiving services. The volume and selection should be one that is appropriate for the occasion.

  
  


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  Candles help to create a soothing scene. I think it is best when the unscented kind is used. Some have a sensitivity to perfumes that may cause a headache. Additionally, the scents may clash with the massage oils or creams being used on you.

  
  

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  Most importantly, the therapist should listen and hear what your concerns are and act accordingly. There is nothing worse than suffering through a painful massage because the therapist does not care when you said the pressure is too much or the area is very sensitive. Or perhaps they are not applying enough pressure. Ruins the whole experience! Happened to me once, and I was not a happy camper. :(

  
  

So there you have it, my list of things you should look for or look out for when you are ready for your next therapeutic experience.