How Massage Therapists Protect from Burnout

The career of Massage Therapy is demanding work, both physically and energetically. I learned early on that a balanced lifestyle would be critical to survival.  But even though I eat healthily, sleep early, and exercise regularly, I still experience periods of depletion from my work. It just comes with the territory of giving for a living.

After one such episode of overfilling my work schedule, I was desperate for relief and booked myself a rejuvenating mini-vacation at Orr Hot Springs Resort in Mendocino county, California. I brought with me an old journal of quotes that I’d been collecting since my teens.

While soaking in mineral hot springs, I was also soaking in the words of my teachers. It was like a log of my own evolution, and cathartic to read. One of the reoccurring themes was the importance of self-care, and I was in the perfect place to contemplate that subject.

 

People who work in healing professions often experience periods of burnout. I like to joke that massage therapists are codependent people-pleasers, and there’s some truth to that. In our desire to satisfy our clients, we often give at our own expense. I’ve watched countless massage therapists leave the field for this reason.

Our fast-paced culture is desperate for nurturing. There’s a black hole of need, yet the culture doesn’t value nor compensate its healers accordingly. So there is a disconnect. People beat themselves up for money and this gets transferred onto the healers. But who nurtures the nurturer?

I’ve suffered several periods of chronic fatigue during my career, and it’s forced me to attend to this issue. The answer? It’s up to us because people will take as much as we will give. We must develop strong boundaries, stop engaging in activities that drain us, and consistently build upon practices that fortify us.

 

Taking Responsibility

The foods we eat, the company we keep, and the media we expose ourselves to, are choices within our control. We know when something is bad for us. Following through with what we know is so often where the ball gets dropped.

Ingesting junk food leaves us feeling empty because it lacks the nutrients our bodies require. That feeling of emptiness leads to indiscriminate grasping for something to fill the emptiness… often more junk food. The more we grasp the worse we feel, as the cycle spirals downward.

It takes effort to reach a bit further for health. But at some point, we must take responsibility for our lives, change the channel, and make conscious choices for self-love. No one can do that for us.

 

Uplifting Ourselves

In the same way that garbage attracts more garbage, purity breeds more purity. When filled with a pure substance, we’re not attracted to that which is un-pure.

“Everything is energy and that’s all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want and you cannot help but get that reality. It can be no other way. This isn’t philosophy, this is physics. ”   ~Albert Einstein

Whether through prayer, exercise, spending time in nature, dance, art, cooking, writing, music, sports, or mind/body practices such as yoga, meditation, mantra, martial arts… we choose activities that enliven and fill us up.

 

 

Letting Go

A full heart is able to let go. When filled with positive energies, we’re able to release wounds, resentments, destructive patterns, and forgive. It’s very hard to let go without filling up first. As one of my teachers said, “A 2-year-old won’t let go of a dangerous toy until you give him a better toy.”

Clearing out dense energies is crucial for healers because it makes room for light energies. We attune to the guidance of our heart rather than mind or ego-driven motivations. We become a conduit for life-force (Prana or Chi) to flow through us rather than depleting our own energy reserves.

 

 

Mentors

The guidance of people further down the path provides invaluable growth, inspiration, and encouragement. My teachers have provided solid examples and been lighthouses for me through the storms of life.

 

 

After two days of soaking and reading, I spent a day hiking on the Mendocino coast before driving south feeling refreshed. Arriving at my cabin as the full moon rose on Guru Purina, I was surrounded by the presence of my teachers and deep gratitude for the fortune of their wisdom in my life.

 

“Fill up regularly and take breaks when you’re low, but don’t stop giving. It matters. Unconditional nurturing is the highest healing force.”