I've Got You Covered

It is common courtesy for me to go over the protocol for what clothing you leave on or take off whenever I see a client for the first time, even if they tell me they have had many massages before. As a professional, I like them to know what I expect. Massage Therapy is different than a Physiotherapy session where the Physiotherapist can still effectively work on a client wearing shorts and a t-shirt. 
 
In North America, a sheet always covers the client during the massage and only the areas being worked on are the areas exposed. It is wonderful that we live in a very multicultural society and I see many clients from many different backgrounds, and therefore, different comfort levels of nudity. Maintaining professional standards is my main concern no matter the background of the client. As you can imagine, Europeans are more liberal and might even start undressing while I am trying to collect their health history. I always leave the room while a client is getting on the table. I have to go wash my hands anyway.

It’s important to feel comfortable during your massage, and I can always work around clothing. It can always depend on the areas being worked on as well. For the most part, a client is on the table for approximately sixty minutes, so I want them to be comfortable without worrying about their pants getting wrinkled, or their belt buckle jabbing them in the stomach. I also need sufficient access to the areas being treated so that I can give an effective massage. If the glutes need to be worked on for conditions such as sciatica, then yes, with client consent I will need access to the glute muscles to effectively treat sciatica.

Most clients undress down to his or her underwear. This is ideal because it maximizes the areas the Massage Therapist can work on, it gives us a place to tuck in the sheet when we work on the back or the legs, and it also is the most comfortable for the client on the table. Massage Therapists are proficiently trained in draping techniques to ensure the privacy and comfort of the client during a massage.

It’s normal for a client to feel nervous for his or her first massage, and so I encourage if a direction is not clear, that he or she asks questions before I leave the room. It will happen more than once in our career, that we return to the room and find the client standing or sitting in their underwear because they didn’t listen. It’s completely innocent and makes it even more important to help the client feel at ease while they are in our care.