Being your own health advocate

By: Jeanette Rupar, LMT BCTMB

Last week, I wrote about how I’m big on having my clients tell me about what is going on in the moment when they are in the massage room with me. About communicating when something is too much or not enough for them on that day.

As someone who works in the wellness business, I love being able to help people through their health journey. It can be a wonderful thing. It can also be very difficult. I have worked on people who have absolutely nothing wrong with them, as well as working with people who are not as well off in their health. People who struggle with cancer or other illness. (No, having cancer is not a reason to not have massage. It is perfectly safe when performed by someone who is trained in Oncology Massage.)

There are many reasons people don’t seek out medical help. They don’t think the (pain, issue) is that bad. High deductables and insurance rates. Pre-conditions. Maybe they are afraid of being called a hypocondriac. Or being told time and again that their issue is in their heads. Or that they just need to lose weight and everything will go away (and yes, I”ve been told that one several times in my life, and I know just how darn frustrating this particular one can be).

But you know what? Your health is important. Because it’s yours. You deserve to have a good quality of life. Illness happens. It can be tough. But being proactive with your health can help so much. Getting an illness in its early stages is so much more easy to treat than something that has been there a while. (I.E. treating stage 1 cancer is much easier than treating stage 4 cancer, if we use the oncology example above).

Now yes, our doctors can be overworked and it can be frustrating on all ends. There is absolutely nothing wrong with getting a second professional opinion. See a specialist if need be. Your health is why they are there in the first place.

On that note… make sure that you and your PCP are compatible. Not every doctor is going to get along with every person they see and vice versa. Just no one massage therapist is right for all of the people all of the time. You are allowed to take control of your health. Learn what your body feels like healthy. Know how to describe the pain when it comes across. (And yes, this particular skill can be difficult, even for those of us who do this all the time, when we are in pain). Learning how to describe what you are experiencing can help your doctor to better help you and your health.

You and your doctor are a team, there to make sure you have your best health possible.