Massage careers have recently had their turn in Hollywood’s 1
5 minutes of fame. Unfortunately, the portrayal of massage therapists is the stuff of fiction.
Lifetime’s “The Client List” is a new TV show starring Jennifer Love Hewitt who is a single mom, down-on-her luck, massage therapist who offers a little more than just a deep tissue massage to make ends meet. Janet Benoy, a massage therapist who owns Bliss Therapeutic Massage, worries Lifetime’s new show will send the wrong message about her line of work.
There is a lot of hard work be put into a career in massage therapy. Therapists need to know every muscle in the body, along with their function. They are required to attend 500+ hours of training and pass a licensing exam. There is also a very strict code of conduct for therapists. There was definitely a time when massages were held at massage parlors and offered much more than massages, but it is super important to remember that the industry — the real industry — has nothing to do with any of that.
Unfortunately, the “happy endings” joke doesn’t seem to ever go away. That’s why it’s more important than ever for trained/licensed professional massage therapists to know their stuff, so they can break down stereotypes, and provide the professional services they were trained to offer.
-Vernize Rios
