In sales, one is supposed to have a 30 second commercial ready to go so that when you're in an elevator and someone asks you what you do, you'll be prepared and sound intelligent. When I sold Creative Memories scrapbooking supplies my commercial sounded like "I help people get their photos organized into albums that are safe and meaningful."
I haven't written my commercial about massage yet. I really need to because while I believe in it with all my heart (and a sizable chunk of my money invested in tuition) I was not able to articulate anything about my passion while under the gun this weekend.
I was hanging out with a new friend and someone mentioned that I was back in school. I almost didn't want to tell her what I was doing because I knew that she wasn't going to understand. She's a lot of fun to hang out with because we both have very sarcastic and irreverent senses of humor so I should not have been surprised when she actually laughed out loud when I told her I was learning animal massage.
I babbled a few things about it being one of the oldest therapies and it's still in use today because it works. I tried to use some specific examples of ailments that can be helped with massage but it was falling on deaf ears. She seemed somewhat impressed with all the schooling involved and the anatomy that we cover, but in the end I put a funny spin on things making her laugh.
I'm going to have to do better if I want people to take me seriously and not think this is a joke.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
I'm enrolled in an animal massage school. Sometimes that statement elicits a startled reaction (really people do that?) Some people mask it better than others and politely engage in a conversation to cover their confusion, but there are those who "get it" and think that my choice is perfect for me.
I've always had a connection with animals of all kinds and a few years ago Amy at Muddpuppies brought up the topic of animal massage and although I'd never heard of it, it made sense to me right away. I've had amazing results when being massaged and couldn't wait to give that gift to my furry friends. Personally massage has cured my tension headaches by getting the knots out of my back and neck, helped me in physical therapy and of course help me relax. Animals need to be massaged for those and many more reasons too!
Things have changed in my life with living in a new state and deciding what I want to be when I grow up. When my husband got laid off this year, I realized that despite my college education and a resume filled with volunteer work, there was no way that I'd be able to earn enough money to support my family without going back to school. I didn't want to be stuck in an office and have to get dressed up to go to work, and I knew I wanted to work with animals. Luckily I discovered there was an amazing animal massage school in my county!
I'm two months into the program and I've done a lot of studying. I had a lot of biology & anatomy in school so it wasn't like learning a foreign language, but I did have to memorize many names/parts that I'd never heard of before. In order to understand what we're massaging, it's important that we understand what's going on beneath the skin. By memorizing muscles and their locations (origins and insertions) I'll be able to have a better understanding of which muscles to massage in different situations. We've studied animal behavior, first aid and learned about business. Now we're finally getting to the good stuff - learning how to actually use our hands!
Hands isn't quite the right way to put it. We're learning how to use our entire bodies when we massage. How do we know we're doing it right? Instead of practicing on dogs, we've been practicing on each other. I know it's rough letting someone use you for a massage guinea pig, but I'm willing to make that sacrifice to help my classmates' learn! My family volunteered to help me study for my first practical exam (which I passed with flying colors!)
After passing my hands-on exam, I had more confidence to start trying my techniques out on some four-leggers. I made my dog Jimmy quite happy and he was like jello in my hands. I also did a little work on a couple of horses at the barn and I could tell that they were enjoying it. I even found a spot that was tight on one of the horses and worked the area and felt the muscle relax.
At that moment I knew that I'd made the right choice. I felt like that would never get old - I felt home. I can't wait to graduate and start my new life in earnest!
I've always had a connection with animals of all kinds and a few years ago Amy at Muddpuppies brought up the topic of animal massage and although I'd never heard of it, it made sense to me right away. I've had amazing results when being massaged and couldn't wait to give that gift to my furry friends. Personally massage has cured my tension headaches by getting the knots out of my back and neck, helped me in physical therapy and of course help me relax. Animals need to be massaged for those and many more reasons too!
Things have changed in my life with living in a new state and deciding what I want to be when I grow up. When my husband got laid off this year, I realized that despite my college education and a resume filled with volunteer work, there was no way that I'd be able to earn enough money to support my family without going back to school. I didn't want to be stuck in an office and have to get dressed up to go to work, and I knew I wanted to work with animals. Luckily I discovered there was an amazing animal massage school in my county!
I'm two months into the program and I've done a lot of studying. I had a lot of biology & anatomy in school so it wasn't like learning a foreign language, but I did have to memorize many names/parts that I'd never heard of before. In order to understand what we're massaging, it's important that we understand what's going on beneath the skin. By memorizing muscles and their locations (origins and insertions) I'll be able to have a better understanding of which muscles to massage in different situations. We've studied animal behavior, first aid and learned about business. Now we're finally getting to the good stuff - learning how to actually use our hands!
Hands isn't quite the right way to put it. We're learning how to use our entire bodies when we massage. How do we know we're doing it right? Instead of practicing on dogs, we've been practicing on each other. I know it's rough letting someone use you for a massage guinea pig, but I'm willing to make that sacrifice to help my classmates' learn! My family volunteered to help me study for my first practical exam (which I passed with flying colors!)
After passing my hands-on exam, I had more confidence to start trying my techniques out on some four-leggers. I made my dog Jimmy quite happy and he was like jello in my hands. I also did a little work on a couple of horses at the barn and I could tell that they were enjoying it. I even found a spot that was tight on one of the horses and worked the area and felt the muscle relax.
At that moment I knew that I'd made the right choice. I felt like that would never get old - I felt home. I can't wait to graduate and start my new life in earnest!
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