Getting a massage at home can be a great way to enjoy the pleasure and health promoting benefits of professional massage right in your own living room.
However, massage at home is different in many ways from the traditional spa or massage establishment experience. (I would argue better in many ways!).
Unlike visiting a spa or massage establishment, there are several variables that cannot be controlled when it comes to at home massage. Adding the element of travel also leaves the door open for the unexpected.
Getting a massage at home is a great idea, but it’s also good to recognize some of these variables ahead of time so you can be prepared for the unexpected and plan for the best at home Massage experience.
1. The kids, the dogs, your spouse… (aka DISTRACTIONS!)
The problem: When you think about going to get a massage somewhere, you might envision soothing music, dim lights and the smell of lavender. You’re probably not picturing your kids, spouse, mother in law or your dogs in the room!
They’re not invited after all- it’s your time! Massage is generally not a group activity. The less distraction, the more your mind and body will benefit.
What’s more, these distractions not only can affect you, but they also affect your massage therapist – probably more than you might imagine.
The solution: If you’re going to have a massage at home, do your best to make sure you have some quiet priva
te space set aside for your appointment. Try to schedule it when others are not at home or after the kids have them put to bed. Try to keep animals out of the room if possible so they don’t distract you either.
Also, if you want to get the best performance from your massage therapist, limiting distractions will absolutely help.
2. Surprise massages
The problem: We see this often, despite our best efforts to educate customers about the potential perils of scheduling a surprise massage for someone else.
In a nutshell, scheduling a massage at home for someone as a surprise gift sounds like a great idea and sometimes works out, but in many cases the surprise we encounter is not the one that was planned.
Like “Surprise honey I am actually not coming home right after work” or “Surprise I’m really not in the mood for a massage tonight!” Yes, it really can happen!
Keeping someone in the dark about Massage plans can backfire in any number of ways. What can you do when the massage therapist is at your door ready to go but the person it’s intended for is not?!
These are some of the reasons why we require a nonrefundable advance payment for any kind of surprise massage. We have to make sure that we will be able to compensate our therapist for making the trip whether they are able to complete the massage or not.
The solution: Surprise massages can often work out great and we are happy to do them. If you are prepared to gamble the fee in case things don’t go as expected, then you can roll the dice and we will do our part.
3. Cars on roads (including traffic, flat tires, GPS problems, etc.)
Problem: In order to perform successful at home massage, the massage therapist first must get there! Since we are not yet in the age of transporters ala Star Trek, this usually means that your therapist will be driving to your location.
It’s not uncommon for your therapist to need to drive 30 minutes or more from wherever they are coming from to get to you.
While generally rare, Unexpected car problems are a fact of life for just about everyone. Tires go flat, batteries die. Fender benders and other road hazards can occur without warning. These things can happen and do on rare occasions.
Professional-minded mobile massage therapists such as the ones that Body Well features will leave themselves enough time, check traffic and make it to your location on time.
But when it comes to vehicles and roads there can never be 100% certainty that the therapist, despite his or her best efforts, will be able to make it on time, or in some cases, at all.
Solution: No one wants it to happen to them, but simply recognizing that there is always the possibility of a car issue will help us to resolve it in a calm and constructive way in the unlikely event that it does.
The worst-case scenario would be that the therapist is unable to make it and we can’t get a replacement quickly. The last thing we ever want to do is let you down by failing to show up. We can reschedule or do our best to find a way to make it up to you.
Car problems come with the territory when scheduling any type of service visit to your home.
While there can be no way to predict or prevent many of these issues, it’s how everyone responds in these situations that makes the difference.
In conclusion
Far be it from me to try to scare anyone out of getting an in-home massage! It’s what we do after all!
The policy at Body Well has always been to be as honest and straightforward with our customers as possible, and this blog is just part of that.
We’d love for you to be our valued client! Just remember some of these items and you’re sure to have a stress-free experience!