I have encountered every kind of client in my 20 years of practicing massage. Old and young. Men and women. Athletes and infirmed. The most rewarding are the skeptical, who visit me on behest of a worried spouse or plaintive children who see the stress of work, home or an old sports injury. Recipients of a gift certificate, they push towards me and mumble, "I got this so I guess I need to use it."

Evidence of their happiness to be here is communicated with the tension of a perpetual shrug, clenched hands and attack dog jaws; as if they've come to be assisted towards their own end. Prepared for torture, resigned to their own fate, these skeptics, every last one of them, are able to relax after a few sessions and a mutual dropping of our guards. They become comforted, and contribute openly to our work together. Jaws slacken, backs loosen, moods lift and smiles may return no matter how begrudgingly. They become my regulars. All this through simple touching.

Touch is the very first sense to develop. It holds a great amount of power but is most likely to be the first sense that we deny ourselves. By lack of access, refusal to accept or simply being overwhelmed by life's stresses, we pull away. We do have pain, we are embarrassed by our bodies, we have no time and we are tense. Man, do we do tension and anxiety well. It is a defense as natural as eating, but nowhere near as fun, one that ultimately defeats us. The power of touch is anxiety and tension's foil in its capacity to encourage self confidence and socialization in children, healing and comfort from physical and psychic stresses and the easing of the isolation of aging. I have witnessed it.  Touch, specifically through therapeutic massage, is how I have chosen to engage our struggles with overworked parents, athletes, and the struggling everyman. The need to improve, to provide ease and to heal.

When I came across Thai massage, I was intrigued by its 2,500 year history and endless future. I decided to return to one of the foundations of my field. Going back in order to move forward. It led me to Charlottesville, VA and Tao Mountain for a week immersed in the history, the practice and application of Thai massage.

And then came that question, "When was the last time you saw the Buddha frown?" The instructor asked. Never. The answer was definitely never. I had only seen the smiling, placid Buddha in pictures and statues.  In that question was what the entire week was about and what Thai massage is. We all understood. This practice was born of a place that did not become overwhelmed, which remained connected to life and endured existence with a pleasantness that did not deny pain or struggle, but embraced it, digesting it and allowing it to leave when it was time to go. As practitioners of Thai massage, we were to incorporate specific techniques of touch that made this statement a reality.

Thai massage incorporates acupressure and stretching on a matted floor iwhile loosely clothed. It activates energy lines (sen lines) to improve overall health. It is said to have originated in India by a doctor who was a contemporary of the Buddha. It assists in injury prevention, flexibility, stress reduction, detoxification, etc. It is a powerful piece in a holistic approach to one's health. But, more simply, what lies at it's essence is that it helps you to breathe with ease, erasing tension that blocks life's bright side. It allows one to breathe without aches, pains and anxiety, to bring you back to the important things in life that we all put aside by not making time for ourselves. A Thai massage can eventually, if you so desire, allow you to touch your toes to your face, but more practically, it can give you back the deep breathe of energy and enthusiasm outside of panic and pain.

Self love is ne'er so vile a sin as self neglecting, Shakespeare said. Nowhere is this truer than in our lack of attention to our own health. So whether it is through traditional massage or the more involved Thai massage, an alternative, holistic approach is available. And don't worry how it works, let me stress over that.

Laurie Watkins, CMT, practices her profession at BodyWorks downtown.