Benefits of Thai Massage
If you google “benefits of Thai Massage” you will get thousands of hits with lists of conditions which Thai Massage is supposedly good for.
Even here in Thailand, where I have been living for 20 years, I have seen extensive lists of treatable conditions. You find these posted in Thai Massage schools, Thai Massage shops, traditional Thai medicine clinics, and spas.
That’s the theory. However the truth is that Thai Massage doesn’t treat or heal anything – it’s the practitioner who does that.
Mechanical Thai Massage
I have received plenty of sessions where the therapist knew all the moves, all the techniques, all the sequences. But at the same time the most important element was missing.
There was no energy in the session, there was no heart and soul in the treatment, it didn’t flow, it felt mechanical, and I could feel that those therapists just did their jobs – nothing more.
In such a session very little, if anything, gets treated or healed. It’s not the technique that heals – it’s the human being who gives those techniques the quality of healing.
Inspired Thai Massage
I have also received many sessions where the therapist knew all the moves, techniques and sequence, AND had a “magic touch”, a compassionate attitude, a finely tuned sensitivity for my needs, and a creative way of working that was just right for me.
After such a session I always feel like I am walking on clouds, my head is clear, I feel balanced and peaceful, my energy feels light and I can just feel the healing benefits.
The truth is that those lists with conditions which Thai Massage can treat are only as useful as the therapist who is implementing them.
Thai Massage doesn’t treat – therapists do
Thai Massage techniques by themselves don’t treat anything, but therapists who are equipped with those techniques do.
At this point I am supposed to state that the therapist has to be well trained. Although it is certainly true that training and a good repertoire of skills are important, there is more to it than logging hundreds of hours of schooling. There is another factor involved.
The technical training is just not enough! There are some skills that can be learned, and there are some skills which only develop with lots of experience.
Not every therapist develops those.
Tapping the full potential
For example you might give a top of the line Porsche to an old lady who just timidly drives to the grocery store every now and then.
She has a great tool, but is not using it’s full potential.
You might give the same car to a business man who uses it every day to go to work, attend meetings, or visit clients. He uses more of it’s potential but not all of it.
Then you might give the same car to a race car driver who knows how to squeeze every ounce of performance out of this vehicle.
The tool was the same in all three cases, but the full potential was not realized by everyone.
Different levels of Thai Massage therapists
Thai Massage is somewhat similar:
- Some people just learn a basic mechanical sequence of techniques and never go much beyond that.
- Some people learn as much as they can about Thai Massage.
- And some people are inspired to be real healing artists with a great touch, wonderful energy, and a finely tuned sensitivity which works like a sixth sense to find and treat problems of their clients.
A good teacher can inspire students to develop such skills, but those who truly develop them are rare gems. In their hands Thai Massage can treat many conditions effectively.
Thai Healing Massage Academy specializes in online training courses which are designed to teach all the technical skills, AND all the intuitive, creative and energetic skills.
The combination of these two is what creates true healing artists who can really help people, treat many conditions effectively and get their clients to feel like they just entered massage heaven!
The author, Shama Kern, is the founder and director of Thai Healing Massage Academy, and the creator of 20 online Thai Massage training courses. He has been practicing and teaching Thai Massage for 20 years and has trained over 2000 students.
Thanks Shama. I have found this to be true particularly in the tourist areas, where too often the practitioner goes through the motions but there is no attempt to relieve anything other than the clients wallet.
Very true, in tourist areas the quality is often lacking. Aside from that, it is not so easy to find a really good Thai Massage therapist, even right here in Thailand.
Thank you, Shama. I enjoyed this article and agree with your points.
I am not sure. You may feel better after a massage done with sending all the energy, but for healing I’d rather go to a doctor
They both have their place. However healing is not a term which you can apply so generally. For example, a massage therapist might be able to help you with an aching back or a sore neck much better than a doctor, whereas if you have a broken bone or need a cataract operation, you are obviously better off with a doctor.