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Within this report, I will be giving a critical reflection of evaluation in regards to my own treatment of my three clients. In addition, I will be drawing conclusions as well as discussing realistic improvements for my own future practice.
During the conduction of my first massage therapy session, it was established that improvement could be made when introducing the client to massage. In addition, the initial explaining of the postural assessment for the client could have also been made clearer and more informative. Moreover, during the initial postural assessment and medical history/data collection of my client, I failed to notice that my client had knocked knees (inverted). Due to my lack of observation in this phase of the massage, I could not advise or treat the client regarding this area as I had not made myself aware of this. However, during my second and third massage sessions, I provided the client with a descriptive, detailed, and informative introduction and postural assessment. In addition, I assessed the client’s postures and noted that they either had certain postural defects/miss-alignments. I then ensured they were aware of this and provided them with the correct exercises and treatments needed to aid them in correcting these issues.
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Moving on, my form/posture when massaging my clients started off optimal but with time, deteriorated. Although this did not negatively affect my client’s treatment or the effectiveness of the massage, it did however, affect me in regards to fatigue. Moreover, certain techniques require a certain posture to be executed by the therapist in order to distribute weight and resistance from massaging the client evenly as well as onto the correct areas of the body. For example, when performing the hacking technique you are required to stand with feet shoulder width apart, maintain a neutral spine and a straight posture. However, although I started off with this form I later began to lean over my client more thus, creating an abnormal arch in my back. Because of this, I soon began to tire as all of the weight and resistance from the massaging of the client was placed upon my lower back vertebrae (Lumbar region). In spite of this, I realised this soon enough and corrected my posture during all techniques of the massage on my client. In addition, this allowed me to complete the massage effectively without the experience of fatigue from poor posture.
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On the other hand, I achieved numerous successes during my three client massages. Such as, excellent client feedback. Moreover, I provided effective client feedback to all three of my clients in regards to their postural assessment, treatment, corrective stretches and post hydration advice. Although an effective massage can significantly aid in a client’s relief in muscular tension and tightness, one is simply not enough for permanent correction. This can be due to the client’s muscular system having had muscular imbalances and tension for a long time which can often lead to the body developing ‘poor muscle memory pathways’. Consequently, the tense areas that were released during the massage will eventually go back into their poor and tight state. However, I recommended that the clients undergo massage therapy at least two times per week for one month as well as perform the provided stretches for them to execute at home. In addition, this will allow for the corrective muscular release to be more recognised as it has been performed more frequently, encouraging the body to create new ‘good muscle memory pathways’ opposed to the poor ones it once had prior to massage therapy. Furthermore, I advised and educated them on the importance of the consumption of water post massage and its effectiveness in the release of muscular tension. During massage, we encourage the release of waste products found in the muscle into the bloodstream. By consuming at least one pint of water post massage, this will aid in the complete removal of waste products by the process of urination.
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In the same manner, I also provided my three clients with effective and frequent client communication throughout the duration of the massage. To illustrate, I maintained clear communication with each one of my three clients from the start of the massage to finish. Moreover, I ensured that I made my clients aware of which type of technique I was performing on them at any given time as well as asking them frequently if there was any abnormal pain they might have been feeling at any point of the massage. In addition, I ensured I also asked them how they felt the massage was going for them throughout the course of the treatment. For this reason, I provided the client with a sense of reassurance and clarity in regards to the techniques I was using for the aid of muscular tension-release. Moreover, by frequently asking my clients how they are feeling during the massage session, I establish whether or not the client is in any discomfort at all or if they are feeling fine. If I did not maintain this frequent communication, the client might have felt too nervous to make me aware of any pain or discomfort they might have been experiencing. As a result, this could lead to the client obtaining a potential injury through lack of communication and awareness from the therapist. Due to this reason, this was a success within the massage sessions of my three clients.