How to receive a massage
Getting a massage for the first time, or from a therapist you’ve never met before, can be a nerve-wracking experience. Let’s face it: getting near-naked in a room with a total stranger for an hour or more while said stranger touches you all over your body – sometimes in places where nobody has touched you for a long time, or perhaps ever – well, it’s just a bit… extraordinary, isn’t it? If you’re the kind of person for whom the thought of this provokes anxiety, then don’t worry – you’re not alone. In fact, I’ll let you into a little secret. I only got my first proper massage – one where you undress and get on a couch and a trained professional puts oil on you and moves your tissues around – three years ago! No, that wasn’t a typo. Despite giving and receiving lots of massage during my time as an actor – in rehearsals and warming up for shows – I never thought I was the getting-near-naked-in-a-room-with-a-total-stranger type. The thought of it – the intimacy, the vulnera...