Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Job Satisfaction

I know I bitch about stingy tips, complain when business is slow, etc., etc.

However, the reason I went into massage therapy still guides me: I want to help people and make them feel better.

Whenever I can alleviate a client's pain, when a client exits the treatment room beaming, saying he feels fantastic, like a million bucks, outstanding, any monetary considerations are immaterial.

I massaged an elderly lady last week who'd had rotator cuff surgery a few months ago. She was in a lot of pain, and still didn't have full range of motion of that arm. Even though she was booked for a Swedish massage, NOT a deep tissue, I still went ahead and did deep/injury work on her arm and shoulder. She told me, "You don't know how good this feels. Bless your hands! You better take care of those hands, they're gonna help a lot of people!"

I felt such a burst of joy when she said that, it was like an explosion of sunshine in my chest. I had to hold back tears.

She went on to have a facial after our session, and I ran into her later while I was between other services as she was getting dressed to leave; she smiled at me and told me again how good I'd made her feel.

That evening, as I collected my tips from the tip-box, I saw she'd left myself and the aesthetician who had done her facial $2.00 each. As my colleague groused, I just smiled and walked away.

5 comments:

Chuck said...

It must be nice to actually have the ability to make a difference in someone's life. Wish I could do that. Alas people treat the the product of my job as trash.

Christina RN LMT said...

I'm sorry if that's true, Chuck. It's never too late to make a change...

Christina RN LMT said...

Besides, you can't say you don't make a difference in the lives of your wife and kids, right?

phlegmfatale said...

You've gotta love little old ladies. Plus, that $2 for her was probably more of a sacrifice than some people who casually tip $20. It's relative, and she'd already given you something more precious. Well done, you. I totally want a massage from you!

Christina RN LMT said...

Anytime you're in town, or I'm in the DFW area, I'll bring it!

That's a standing invite, btw. Any blogger I'm somewhat familiar with will receive a massage on the house when in Vegas, time/scheduling permitting.