- How should you undress?
- How much will you be asked to take off?
- Will the therapist stay in the room?
- Should you keep your bra on or not?
- Should you bring shorts?
- If you're having a back massage should you take your trousers off?
- Do you keep my socks on?
So many questions all of which you want answered, preferably, before you're about to get undressed so you can arrive at your appointment confident of what is expected and going to happen.
Firstly I'd like to say that this is how it is in my clinic, it might be (and probably is) slightly different in other clinics, but it shouldn't be too far off.
The most important thing for me is that you feel completely comfortable and relaxed. If you feel self-conscious or nervous because you've been asked to take your bra off when you didn't want to then the massage will not be as enjoyable or effective as it possibly could be. So, only undress to a level you are comfortable with, there is no pressure to undress any further than that.
The majority of the massage techniques I use are performed directly on the skin, this means I will ask you to remove those items of clothing that cover the area to be massaged. So for legs I would ask you to remove your trousers, dress or skirt. For back, neck and shoulders I would ask you to remove the upper part of your clothing.
I will always give you time on your own in the room to undress and also to get dressed again at the end of the treatment. I will always knock before entering the room and if you need more time you can just ask me to wait.
For women the question of whether to remove their bra is totally individual, I have many clients who do remove it and many who keep it on. It is often helpful to be able to unclasp it when working through the shoulder balde area but I will always ask you if this is ok.
Should you bring shorts? Many clients who are sporty will bring shorts to wear during the treatment, this is fine if it is how you are most comfortable but it isn't actually the best for massage as shorts tend to be difficult to move out of the way when needing to reach some of the upper leg muscle attachements.
To get the best out of your massage I recommend you to wear as little as you are comfortable wearing. Small stretchy underwear is the best as it can be easily moved to reach muscle attachments but still protects your modesty, keeping your bra on is helpful if we are going to be working with you in a side lying position.
You are given a large sheet to cover yourself when first getting on the table and this sheet is used to cover you for the whole treatment and only the body part being worked on is uncovered at any one time.
You are encouraged to tell me if you are uncomfortable at any point, if you require additional covers, pillows or supports.
I hope this information helps to answer some of your questions before you come in for a treatment if you do have any more questions you can't find the answers to on my website then please do contact me.
