Twenty five years ago I started massage school. I finally decided to do this because someone very dear to me told me that if I didn’t, I would not be a pleasant person to be around in twenty years. They said if I didn’t do this now, while I was living in San Diego, I would miss my opportunity. The first challenge for me was to figure out which massage school to attend. Even in 1987 there were a lot of massage schools in the area. I decided to visit all of them before I made my decision. I attended each school’s open house and also visited afterwards to discuss the actual details. At the time it was frustrating and challenging. Looking back on it, it was amusing.

Please remember, I was not from California, I was from Oklahoma. I was a Navy wife with two daughters and was working full time at an oil company. So this wasn’t an easy thing for me to do.
I am not going to mention the exact names of the schools because it really doesn’t matter and while a couple may still be around they are much different than they were twenty five years ago.

I visited the first school on my list and I was overwhelmed. It was huge. There were a lot of different instructors and different classes. It was confusing. They showed me wonderful pictures of their graduates that were practicing successfully in the area and they were all beautiful and incredibly cool looking. It just didn’t feel right.

The next school was a little farther away but, I wanted to see what they had to offer too. They thought it would be the best idea for me to attend one of their “special” classes. These classes were only a few hours or a day and often had massage therapists, bodyworkers and laypeople in the classes. The one I went to was being taught by a famous author. Boy was I surprised when less than 15 minutes into the class we were directed to get undressed completely and get comfortable in our skins. I offered to go get my bathing suit that I had in the car. They said no. They said I had “body issues” and was a “prude”. They said I needed to learn to let go of things and have more self esteem for my body. I just didn’t take it well. I remained as calm as I could but, I told them I was a size 6 and had a better body than most of the class. Just because I chose not to show it off to the paunchy old bald guys in class did not mean I had issues. It meant I had respect for my body that only my husband got to see naked. They said I had to be naked to remain in class or it wouldn’t be fair. I said I would participate if I could wear my swimsuit and that perhaps they should consider fair being what a person was actually comfortable with and not what someone was pressured into. I got to do the class as the only clothed person in my swimsuit but, I decided that wasn’t the school for me.

I visited the next school on my list and it was curious. It wasn’t just a school. They explained that after I finished a certain amount of the training I would be working in their “parlor” for a while before I would be allowed to continue with the next part of the training. Then I could work in a different location of theirs that was more of a fitness type place. After I worked there for a while and proved myself I could take the advanced training and maybe, just maybe, get to work in their special location. I saw this location and it was plush. The therapists (male and female) were amazing and dressed like rock stars. I am serious, they could have blended in with Buckingham Nicks any day. It just didn’t seem right. Something was amiss.

So on to the next school. Which was much more encouraging. They seemed laid back but organized. They explained that part of my training would be working in their student clinic. I asked them how much I would be paid for that and they laughed. They said I wouldn’t be paid anything, I had to work in the clinic as part of my hours. I really didn’t know any better, it just seemed strange. So they invited me to get a massage in their student clinic so I could experience it myself for free. I agreed. Sounded like a reasonable thing and I could then actually experience what the students were learning. I asked them what time I could come for my massage and they told me. When I arrived I was surprised because I didn’t actually have an appointment. It was like a free night and there were a large number of people there. It looked like I could have sat and waited for hours and may not get a massage. The said that did happen often because they were so popular. I asked if I could pay for an appointment another time and they scheduled me for the next day. When I went the next day, it was much calmer. I filled out my information form. Went into the room with the therapist who looked at me quite thoughtfully and said “Your Spirit Animal is the Beaver”.
I was shocked. I had no idea how this fitted with the massage. I was glad they moved on and told me to get undressed and get the table. The music was okay, the massage was boring. Not relaxing enough to fall asleep or nod off, just boring and very oily. Driving home I still felt like I was sliding around in an oil slick. So of course I marked that school off the list.

I went to the next school on my list was much more structured. Everyone seemed not quite as cool and laid back and more professional. I thought this might be a good thing. Everything seemed to be falling in place. They agreed that I could schedule a massage in the clinic like I had at another school. I was beginning to learn about this clinic thing but, still didn’t have it all figured out. When I got to the clinic for my appointment, I filled out my information form. I was led to the room by the student and they seemed more confident, actually kinda bossy. “Get undressed, face down first, I will start on your feet” they said. I didn’t know any better, so I did. During the massage it got a little weird though. The music just could drown out the sound of the student counting the strokes out loud. I was so obvious…one..two..three…four…one …two..three..four…one.two.three.four.five. one.two.three.four.five and so on. I asked them if they were counting the strokes and they said yes, it was the best way to learn. I asked if they had an actual recipe so they knew how many of each stroke they did and they said yes. I knew I would not be happy there.

I was disappointed. There were a couple other schools that either were not well recommended or a bit too far. It seemed that there was not a massage school I would be happy at. I questioned myself and thought perhaps I was being too picky. After all I couldn’t actually say what I expected or wanted, only that it wasn’t anything I had seen so far. I almost gave up. Decided to put it on the back burner and wait a bit and maybe get more information.

Then one day within a month my friend brought me a local newspaper and showed me an advertsement. There was a new massage school opening and it was pretty close, just about 20 minutes down the highway. They were having an open house the next week. Okay, so I went. I was so impressed. For the first time no one was trying to sell me on how much money I would make or list all the impressive things I was going to learn. Instead they were passionate, funny and informative. They actually asked people in the crowd to get on the massage table so they could demonstrate some of the things they were going to be teaching. They laughed when someone asked if they should take off their clothes. They assured them it wasn’t necessary. They demonstrated such amazing knowledge. They seemed to be offering a unique more advanced training with an incredibly thorough education in the basics without teaching a recipe. I knew immediately that this was the person I wanted to learn from. Lucky for me Barry Green, PhD, agreed to be my teacher. I began attending Body Mind College in San Diego, California twenty five years ago. It was the single best decision I have made in my professional career.

I still have no clue what my animal spirit is however, I am a very accomplished and successful Massage Therapist because I had an amazing teacher. Barry Green was a real teacher, he took that title as an honor and a commitment. He was never afraid to be authentic and help us learn. He was never a salesman or just doing a presentation, he actually taught and shared knowledge which is more rare than we sometimes realize. I am honored to say he is still my teacher and my mentor and he still has a private practice and is still teaching continuing education classes.

If you are a teacher will your students say this about you?
If you are a student who is your teacher?
If you are a Massage Therapist are you willing to be a teacher and/or mentor some day?