a community of practitioners

Am I just wasting my time?

I posted a blog on this site and also on my facebook account in which I tagged nearly 30 massage therapists in, but so far have only heard from about 4 or 5 people total between the two places. I realize I posted this over Easter weekend, and many people were probably with their families rather than on their computers, but I'm starting to wonder if this is a worthwhile project or if I'm just going to be wasting a lot of time and resources trying to actually do this. So my question is, do people care about research? Do people want to be able to understand and use it? Or am I way overestimating the number of people who would actually take advantage of this project? Project description and reasoning is below..I really would love to hear from as many people as possible, whether you are interested in it or would never use it. Thanks

Original message:

A lot of massage therapists are becoming more interested in the research going on in our field and want to be able to read it, understand it, and put it to use. The problem is, essentially all research articles are geared towards other researchers or those who at least understand research, and most massage therapists have never taken a class in research methods. This is creating a frustrating disconnect that I want to help change.

I started learning about research about 7 years ago when I was getting my Bachelor’s Degree in psychology. I am currently working on my Master’s Degree in applied psychology which has a heavy emphasis on research, and little to no emphasis on counseling (think putting theories to use in broader terms and conducting the research that will then help people). To sum it up, I don’t remember what it’s like to not know about at least basic research methods and terminology.

I am in the process of designing a website geared towards helping massage therapists to understand research and this is where YOU come in. I need all of you out there who are confused, frustrated, upset, eager to learn, etc. and I need to know: What do you want to know? What would be helpful? What specific things have you confused or wanting to throw your arms in the air and give up? Any and all feedback will be extremely helpful in making this site work for YOU. Please get in touch with me either through this blog post or email (kgorallmt at yahoo dot com [trying to avoid spamming]) and let me know what you want! Please cross post this if you'd like- the more input I can get, the better this will be.

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Permalink Reply by Kim Goral on April 10, 2010 at 6:40pm

The second article I posted addresses your exact question. The bottom line is, in the studies assessing cortisol levels, a between groups design (massage group and comparison group) was used, however they reported a within groups (repeated measures/ pre-post analysis) for cortisol levels. Basically, yes they found a reduction in cortisol for the massage group- but not any greater than the reduction in cortisol for the comparison group. Chris' article explains it in more detail.

Rajam K Roose said:

Yes, thank you Kim. About the cortisol, that is interesting--the Touch Research Institute headed by Tiffany Fields has a great deal of studies where the cortisol levels in saliva were measured, do the articles you posted basically cover that all cases of measuring cortisol are inconclusive for massage? Sorry to hijack the thread, I'll be happy to see your site!

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Permalink Reply by Stefanie Adams on April 14, 2010 at 1:14pm

Yes, you are wasting your time. The massage community as a whole is not interested in research. A few individuals are, but not enough to make a difference.

Those of us who are interested in education and research are better suited for another profession. There's no room for us in massage, which is fine.

I have decided to throw my arms up in the air and give up. I've been thinking about leaving massage for a year now, and this debate coincides with my final decision to do just that.

Whew, what a relief!

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Permalink Reply by Christopher A. Moyer on April 14, 2010 at 4:46pm

The profession will be poorer without you, Stefanie, if you really do decide to leave.

What are you thinking of doing in place of massage therapy, if I may ask?

I haven't posted to Kim's thread on this topic because she and I have plenty of opportunity to talk in person, but I don't think she is wasting her time. But, I also think Stefanie is partly correct - a large portion of the profession is not and will not be interested in research.

But that's O.K. If Kim makes a useful webtool about MT research, interested people will find it. And if that turns out to be only 20%, or 10%, or .5% of massage therapists, that will still be a nice number of folks who are helped by it.

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Permalink Reply by Stefanie Adams on April 15, 2010 at 9:01am

Christopher, my new career choice was pretty simple. The criteria are "give your clients what they want, do no harm, be of service, and do something that has been done for thousands of years". So I'm moving to Nevada where it's legal and becoming a prostitute. Nothing fits the criteria better than that. (I know, I know, that was in very poor taste!)

No, Ty, I'm not leaving because there aren't enough therapists interested in research! I'm leaving because my beliefs have changed since I went to massage school, and I don't fit in any more. Massage is for feelers, and I'm a thinker. Another reason is I thrive in stressful, challenging situations and massage has become too routine and comfortable for me.

I volunteer for a political campaign and for the past year have been developing a web-based system that integrates every campaign function imaginable. My candidate had very little money to start with and this saved him the $2,500 a month plus commission to contract out the same services. There isn't a single system available that does everything candidates need for a reasonable price. I have picked up paying customers along the way and don't have time to massage any more. Talk about stress! This is it! And it's the ultimate job for a thinker.

Ty and Christopher are absolutely correct. Kim, you're not wasting your time. You are much braver and admirable than me to stick it out despite the obstacles!

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Permalink Reply by Kim Goral on April 15, 2010 at 9:39am

Thank you, Stefanie (and Ty and Chris). I'm not sure that it's a matter of being brave or admirable, I just inherited my dad's stubborness ;) And darnit, I'm going to do this even if the only people who ever use it are a handful of my friends who are supporting me in it! But I think I may lay low for a bit and follow in the footsteps of those who have been down this road before and already learned what I am learning now. It seems most people here are not interested and content with the status quo, and rather than continue to push and build up defensiveness on their part, I think it best to just agree to disagree and focus my efforts in more productive endeavers. Thanks for the support from those who are giving it and thanks for the lessons from those who are not!

And Stefanie, I understand relatively how you feel. I know I will never be a full time therapist again, and at best very part-time. I will stayed tied to the massage profession through other avenues but I know I too will thrive in a different environment that is always changing and presenting new challenges (doing evaluations of different programs, developing and working on different health interventions, and hopefully doing different research projects in massage therapy). Different strokes for different folks :)
Stefanie Adams said:

Ty and Christopher are absolutely correct. Kim, you're not wasting your time. You are much braver and admirable than me to stick it out despite the obstacles!

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Permalink Reply by Christopher A. Moyer on April 15, 2010 at 9:48am

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Permalink Reply by Stephen Jeffrey on April 15, 2010 at 5:19pm

Kim, do it because you believe in what you are trying to achieve and it will benifit others, you will learn loads and make good contacts along the way:)

Stefanie, wishing you well whatever you decide to do, make sure the MTF has your CV, I think they need more specialist campaigner's skills to get the money they deserve.:)

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Permalink Reply by Jenny Lancey-Flammia on April 17, 2010 at 7:14am

I think it would be great! And in advance, Thank you

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Permalink Reply by Emmanuel Bistas on April 17, 2010 at 11:00am

Kim, that would be a good idea. What I would like to see is explanation of different research approaches and methodologies and how to critically read a research paper. I don't necessarily want to see research articles because those can be found on many different places, but more of an education on what to look for when I read research articles out there.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Grounds on April 23, 2010 at 6:28pm

Hi Kim,
I did not see your original post.
YES I would love to be a part of such a network. Research is so important and I, for one, need a mentor to help me.

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Permalink Reply by Donna Martin on April 24, 2010 at 10:37pm

Kim I am new here but think your idea is wonderful. I am not interested in doing research but I am very interested in reading the different and many times conflicting findings to understand what might or might not work. I hope that you will pursue this as I think that you will find that you will have support as you get it going.

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Permalink Reply by Marilyn St.John on April 26, 2010 at 9:20am

Kim, I applaud what you are trying to do and try to keep up with your posts. Please don't stop, seems only a handful of us are interested and fewer of us are able to participate as much as we'd like. Speaking strictly for myself, I get really quite geeked about research and just don't have anything to contribute at the moment, just busy observing on this end and formulating questions that pertain to my practice. (Gee, I like to think this is, in fact, not just a "feeling profession.")