If you have been in practice as a professional massage therapist or bodyworker for a good number of years, you may have a nice array of favored massage creams you always keep on hand in your session room. Hopefully, most veteran massage therapists and bodyworkers have had a chance to sample and test a variety of massage creams over the years, in order to determine exactly which kinds of massage creams they like best.
Of course, given the fact that new and improved massage creams seem to become available on a fairly regular basis, the sampling and testing of massage creams could continue on if a massage therapists or bodyworker is committed to staying up to date on the latest and greatest massage creams.
For most practitioners, however, there does seem to be a middle ground—keeping a chosen few massage creams in the cabinets of the session room to use on a regular basis, but also venturing out and sampling new or different massage creams now and again, as the need arises.
If you are wondering why a massage therapist or bodyworker would want a variety of massage creams in his or her session room, rather than just one go-to massage cream for every client, the answer is simple—different massage creams may be better suited not only to different clients, but also to different touch techniques.
For example, a massage therapist or bodyworker may stay stocked with a massage cream that does not contain any fragrances or synthetic ingredients. This would be the massage cream the practitioner would use if a
client reported a sensitivity to fragrance or synthetic ingredients on his or her intake form. It would also be a good massage cream to use if the practitioner is uncertain about how the client might respond to one of the bolder massage creams in the cabinet.
However, one of those bolder massage creams could be just right for another client, such as one who reports insomnia and high levels of emotional stress. In this scenario, a massage cream that contains a nice blend of lavender essential oil might prove the perfect enhancement to the relaxation of a hands on massage therapy or bodywork session.
As mentioned previously, diversity in one's supply of massage creams can also come in handy for those practitioners who use diverse techniques. A massage therapist who practices both deep tissue and lighter relaxation massage may want to have massage creams that are geared to these two ends of the touch spectrum—one with more friction and one with more glide.
Throughout the years, as a massage therapist or bodyworker gains more and more daily experience with different clients, techniques and massage creams, he or she should get better and better at knowing what kinds of massage creams to keep on hand and what to look for in a new or different massage cream.
The perfect time for sampling and testing other massage creams may be when you are getting close to running out of one of your massage creams, or when you find yourself wishing you had a massage cream to suit a particular purpose.
--Brandi Schlossberg
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