Ah! There's the Rub!

In spite of Western skepticism, massage therapy has been and is an honored tradition throughout the rest of the world. Ancient Chinese, Egyptian, Japanese, and Arab medical literatures frequently refer to it as a health treatment. It's been recognized in Europe for a long time and is making a resurgence there. Yet many Americans aren't even aware of it or are just discovering this therapy.

Debra Davido, a licensed massage therapist (State Medical Board-Ohio) and affiliated with the American Massage Therapy Association, believes that her fellow countrymen (and women) can also benefit from massotherapy as a supplement to other medical techniques.

Older men and women can find relief through some of massotherapy's physical bebefits, which include improving circulation and stimulating the nervous system. It can also provide relief from fluid retention, contractions, and especially stress. Psychological benefits include being taken care of and self-care due to the body's positive reaction.

In Ohio, massage therapists are considered to be limited practitioners. In some states the medical board doesn't oversee licensure-those therapists are viewed as a personal service rather than a medical one.

"In terms of perceived seediness, I suspect that what happened was, as time went by, places that were termed 'massage parlors' were really fronts for prostitution," Davido said. "And unfortunately, since they're using the same term, we prefer the word 'massotherapy' or 'massage therapy' to set it apart."

She recommended that anyone seeking a massage therapist should ask if they're affiliated with particular associations. "If you're looking for a legitimate one by phone, remember that the Yellow Pages now has two separate listings: 'massage' and 'massage therapists.' We've been working hard over the years, as a group, to try and make that distinction clear to the public," she explained.

So what's the first appointment like? What happens in a massage room?