Short answer: Yes, please.
Long Answer: Yes, please.
Massage is great. You know this. But it’s not always a great idea.
Cold and flu season is in full swing and it’s important that you know when it may be necessary to cancel your appointment.
Why?
When you are sick, your body needs rest. It’s strange to think about it this way, but receiving massage is an active task, it is not entirely rest. Massage causes change in the body, and your body has to work to maintain stability. Getting a massage when you are sick takes attention away from infection-fighting. That’s no good.
You’re not going to be cozy on the massage table. Sure, it sounds like a warm squishy massage table would be great. But the moment you put your already-stuffy head into that face cradle, you’ll realize the error of your ways. Gravity and pressure are not your friend here. Even if your therapist does a great face massage to drain your sinuses, you’ll likely feel worse when you get off the table.
You could get us sick. Since most of the common winter viruses are contagious even before symptoms show up, your therapist could pass the cooties along to more clients before they even know it’s happening.
Further, when we get sick, we have to cancel clients and take a few days off work. Therapists work for ourselves, with no paid sick days to compensate for lost wages. Sure, we may have a fund for these situations but would rather use that fund for a true medical emergency and try to stay germ-free for the remaining of the cold and flu season.
So it’s a deal. You’ll cancel so as not to infect your therapist and our massage rooms, and we will do the same for you……We’ll keep each other safe and healthy.
When to cancel
If you have nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea in the past 24 hours, or are still feeling punky from a recent bout of such things.
If you’ve had a fever in the past 24 hours, or fever-related symptoms. This includes chills, aches, and fatigue. Even if you’re keeping the fever down with medicine, you’re still sick. The fever counts.
If you are itchy, runny, and/or sneezy, and you’re not 100% certain it’s seasonal allergies. And even then, allergies may leave you so miserable that the hour on my table would be wasted time and money for you.
If you are coughing constantly, or just a lot.
If someone in your household is ill and you are feeling at all funky, please cancel.
There is often some gray area here, especially if you are in the recovery phase of a virus or bacterial infection. If you’re unsure about your situation, please call us before your appointment and we can make a decision together.