I am Temporarily Closing my Massage Practice Because of COVID-19 and Here's Why
So the short update for you is that I have decided to close my massage therapy practice temporarily for at least 3 weeks until Monday, 4/6/2020 due to COVID-19. I will reevaluate weekly and have currently closed online booking entirely for now. Because, frankly, massage isn’t safe right now.
Let me say that again: Massage is not safe right now. (And yes, I recognize all too well that this is a wildly unpopular sentiment at this time.)
I have already gotten a number of questions, so here’s the longer version of why I have made this decision and what it means for you. (Just a heads, up, though. While I do view this as a serious topic, my usual humor and snark will make an appearance. It’s just how I process things. It’s not my usual format but I’ve put this in the format of a hypothetical Q&A session.)
Q: Jenn, are you sick?
A: Nope.
Q: Were you exposed to COVID-19?
A: Nope, not that I am aware of. I would absolutely follow recommended quarantine protocols as well as inform my friends, family and clients as directed if this were the case.
Q: Are you out of Clorox wipes?
A: Nope, I always have lots of those on hand as well as many other cleaning products and tools. Many of you know I teach and I have actually taught Health & Hygiene to massage therapists including how to wash hands properly. I’m very well versed in how to clean and disinfect (and yes, the two are different) my linen, equipment, office space and self. Have I made some changes recently? Yes. But I review my protocols periodically anyway. This week I played a fun game of seeing how many different surfaces I touch during 1 massage session. It was a lot. So, I played it over in my head a few times to get the number of “touch points” down. If I touch fewer surfaces, I contaminate less overall. That’s just good practice. It was a very productive exercise. So high fives to me! But these are still best practices in precautions…none of these is 100% foolproof.
Q: If you’re doing all the CDC recommended stuff, then why are you closing?
A: It’s about way more than cleaning.
Q: Like what?
A: Like the fact that I literally slough skin cells and germs off of human beings. For a living.
Q: Ew, Jenn. That’s gross.
A: Well, sure, when I put it that way, yeah, it sounds kinda icky. But I assure you with some nicely scented lotion and chill music, it’s quite delightful.
A: Okay…what about the fact that a massage session isn’t a crowd? Small interactions are considered ok.
Q: While that’s currently true, individuals are recommended to maintain 6 feet of space between each other. When seated and doing neck or shoulder work, I do my darnedest not to breathe in your face, but my face might be as close as only a foot and a half away. Oh. And I touch you. Space apart: zero.
Q: But aren’t you concerned about increasing fear in your clients or the community?
A: I don’t see it that way. Let me give you an example. A potential client asked me today, “If I book a session, how much danger does that put either one of us in?” And you know what? I don’t know. With all of the information out there and the fact that I am, if I do say so myself, a conscientious and evidence based massage therapist, I don’t know all the risks. You have to understand…before every single session I do, I ask myself, “Can I cause them harm?” Right now, my answer is “I don’t know.” THAT is scary. I don’t like saying that to my clients. And It’s not that I don’t understand the info out there…I do. I think people forget that I see other clients. When you are on my table, you SHOULD forget about everyone else. You should just BE. But I see roughly 22 people per week for at least 30 minutes but most for 60, 90 or 120 in close proximity. And THEY interacted with loads others.
So the way I see it, people are struggling and conflicted with determining what is safe and what is not safe right now. I do not want to contribute to that struggle and conflict…there’s enough of that going around. So I am taking the decision related to their massage sessions out of the equation. I’m opening up space for them to mull over and get comfy with other more important decisions they need to make right now.
Q: But couldn't massage reduce their anxiety some?
A: Not if either one of us is wondering the whole time if it’s safe.
Q: But what if your client isn’t in the high risk group?
A: Well, I am very glad that they are not. But wanna know a secret?
Q: YES!
A: I am in the high risk group.
Q: NO WAY!
A: WAY. I have asthma and have very recently started a new medication regimen as the past 6 months have been a very bad session for us asthmatic types. So yeah. Not only that, I have become aware of LOTS of folks I know in the high risk group that I didn’t know were high risk before. Because we LOOK healthy. (And young. We look SO damn young it’s shocking, really. Our dewy skin is the envy of children.)
Q: Huh…so you aren’t gonna let us come for a session. For real?
A: For real. Listen…the same reasons you chose me as your massage therapist? My practice is so clean it advices Mr. Clean himself, I’m a long time science nerd who has even taught the basics of how immune systems work and I’m funny as hell? (Okay…so that last one is up for debate.) Those are the exact reasons I won’t LET you book a session right now. You might feel great about one right now, but I don’t. It’s not about you. It’s not about me. It’s about us. All of us. This was a super hard and trying decision…one of the hardest one’s I’ve made. That store bought hair color that turned my hair radioactive pink a few years back? THAT was just a careless and bad decision. This one kept me up at night. Until it didn’t. A nifty colleague of mine reminded me recently that there’s really no such thing as a massage therapy emergency. So it can wait.
And I promise to open the booking flood gates as soon as I can.
