The Rev. Robert A. O’Meara Scholarship 2008 Winner

Jennifer Reed

It is my goal to be an effective massage therapist who helps her patients to live better lives. Part of being a responsible massage therapist is staying on top of new techniques and research in the profession. Also, it is important for a massage therapist to complete continuing education, as the 1000 hours of education required for licensure in New York State barely scratch the surface of the information required to be a truly accomplished massage therapist. Experience in the field builds confidence and helps the therapist to refine their personal technique but it is only through contact and training with other therapists that a therapist can grow and expand their abilities.

Another goal I have is to help people undergoing treatment for cancer. Cancer massage is a relatively new field that is still being developed, but research shows that massage can help a cancer patient’s mental health, improve their response to treatment, and decrease some of the negative side-effects of treatment, such as nausea. Cancer patients who receive massage therapy have fewer instances of having to delay courses of chemotherapy for health reasons. Also, for someone who is constantly being poked, prodded, and examined by caring but often hurried or clinical medical professionals, it can be a transforming experience to have an hour of positive, painless, touch. The time on the massage table is all about them, there is no other agenda.

Both of the courses that I would like to take will further me along the path to being an effective massage therapist. Pain management has become an important aspect of treatment for a population that is seeing an increase of repetitive motion injuries. A responsible massage therapist knows that it is important to be able to treat common muscular complaints, such as tendonitis and carpal tunnel problems. Mr. Waslaski’s course will allow me to better treat those who experience chronic pain and muscle injury. Ms. Ferner’s class will enable me to understand how to work with cancer patients, as they have a unique treatment protocol. Her course will start me on my way to safely working with cancer patients.

Explain how the intended program relates to human services:

Massage therapy is a human service. I was drawn to the massage profession for the opportunity to help people live better lives. It is amazing to me how different a person looks after a treatment. It is an honor to help someone reduce their pain or their feelings of stress. Everyone can benefit from massage therapy, even if they have no specific complaints – it’s not just about fixing a problem but improving the condition of life. Massage has been shown to positively affect health by increasing circulation, decreasing blood pressure, decreasing reported stress levels, improving sleep, and reducing muscular pain. Massage can be used in the treatment of muscular injury, reducing dramatically the recovery time from muscle trauma. Mr. Waslaski’s course relates directly to this last, by outlining treatment protocols for injury recovery, as well as pain management for chronic conditions.

Ms. Ferner’s course on cancer massage will help me address my long-term goal of working with cancer patients. In massage school, I was deeply touched by our class (one day out of 6 months) on cancer massage and how patients are so deeply moved by their massage experience.

Both of these courses will improve my abilities as a massage therapist. It is my desire to leave my mark on this world one person’s body at a time. I want to help our world by helping the people in it move better and feel less pain.

Explain how this award will help you:

This award will allow me to take continuing education in areas that I find highly interesting. As a member of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) I am required to take a certain number of hours of continuing education over 4 years, even though New York State has no continuing education requirements (which we are trying to change). It is my belief that every massage therapist should be taking continuing education because we don’t learn enough in school and because new research is always uncovering better ways to help people. However, continuing education can be very expensive. The better a course is, the more likely the cost of it to be high. Although I could take continuing education in any area relating to massage therapy, including reading on-line articles, – hands-on, in-person training is the best way to learn. Also, I feel it is important for my continuing education to address areas of my own personal interest as well as areas that apply to the patients I am working with. Without this award, I find it financially impossible to take these courses, as I am just starting out and in the first year of building my practice.