Many thanks to Ashley for getting together and talking about the wisdom gained through her own experiences in American health care, as a massage therapist with a history of scoliosis, and as a person with Type 1 Diabetes.

Just click to play below.  Or download it to go.

You can read the “paper” version of our interview regarding the connection between the mind and the body here.

Want to nominate a friend or family member with a compelling story about balanced living? Please contact Dr. Ward drzward@fastmail.fm

Dr. Ward: What do people think of when they think of massage therapy?
Ashley Tape Fleming, LMT: The perception continues to evolve. There are generally two kinds of people: people who haven’t tried it all, and the people who have jumped into the natural world a little bit, including medical alternatives, and make it a part of their lives.

One common misconception is that massage therapy is just a luxury. That it may not have the therapeutic abilities that we know it does. Some people say, “I don’t need it. It’s just a luxury and we don’t do that in my house.”

Now, general relaxation massage, the kind they’re thinking about, is wonderful and valuable. It helps to reset the nervous system. But I’ve always thought about what I do in more of clinical sense.

So, how do you go beyond just relaxation massage?
My therapy room is set up in a very relaxing way. I try to have the same environment that you would think of for massage. But there is often feedback between the client and myself as we’re working. We establish goals and work together to achieve them.

Sometimes we’re doing passive exercise, range of motion tests, and stretches with the massage, so we’re really working out the body and unwinding the pain and challenges within the body. I’m listening to what the person’s body is trying to communicate.

I encourage my clients to reflect on what they really need. Once they’ve given it a little bit of introspective look, we may be able to address more than just the reason they came in the first place.

Do people always feel better after a session with you?
Often they do, but there’s an aspect to healing that we call the healing crisis. And it has a time frame of about 2 to 3 days. Sometimes the areas may be even sorer than they were. There may be weakened muscles because circulation has been decreased. They’ve been chronically tight for awhile. So as you get in there, and people discover they have muscles they didn’t know existed; they may be sore for several days.

Afterwards the results can be quite profound. The body may actually be tired as we work through some of the tension.

You’ve been doing massage therapy for 4 years and you specialize in the Pfrimmer Deep Muscle Therapy Technique ?
Yes, I went to the Alexandria School for Scientific Therapeutics. The school has been around since 1980. It’s a wonderful place. I did my regular training for 10 months, and then I entered the Pfrimmer Deep Muscle therapy program. My teacher is the only current instructor that trained with Therese Pfrimmer. Now I’m the editorial director for the International Association of Pfrimmer Deep Muscle Therapists. We have a full functioning board and a convention every year. It’s a group of people that are very passionate about what they do.

How did you get interested in massage therapy?
I was diagnosed with moderate to severe scoliosis at the age of 13. I was signed up for surgery, and what they planned on doing was opening me up and inserting some rods to straighten my spine.

But at that age I had a lot of time to make changes in the body. It was just developing.

My mother heard about this woman doing deep muscle therapy, Ruthann Hobbs. So, I began with the Pfrimmer massage therapy. After 3 to 4 sessions I went back in for x-rays, and my spine was straight. Her home was a therapeutic center for me, and she explained how my life was affecting my structure, and how my structure was affecting my life. I always had a thought, “I can help people like she does.” Ruthann actually became my teacher when I was in school.

Why do you choose to work with the body the way you do?
I think the best massage therapists learn from different schools of thought in massage, and then pay attention to the whole person. From the organs of the body and how they’re attached through connective tissue, to the spirit of the person. How they think. What emotions they are carrying.

There are just so many different ways to work with the body. And a lot of people have specialties. But when they recognize the combination of all of these things, they are the best they can be. Because we’re working with the whole person, just like chiropractic, and acupuncture. The more you can open your eyes and explore all aspects, the more your clients are going to have a good experience.

My work is a lot of hands-on and very detailed. I could spend hours exploring one shoulder or knee. I like to work together with chiropractic, because the client’s proper alignment is coming into play quickly, and I can help those muscles work through that process.

You are interacting with people in a very personal way. In what ways do you think you have touched your clients, and how have you been touched by them?
Well, I can say this:  as I continue to work with other people, I’m continuing to learn from them. A few years ago I had a set of tools and I expected them to provide certain results. But, now I can think of any client and reflect on the way they have helped my understanding.

I used to think a lot of the physical body. I didn’t recognize how much emotions affected health. I think I’ll be learning about that forever.

I’m beginning to understand the mind-body connection more. Sometimes there’s just disharmony in the body. Sometimes we know why. And sometimes it’s too complex to figure out. We just keep learning.

I’ve been learning how to encourage my clients to communicate  with me, and we learn together. Sometimes it’s as simple as having  a client close their eyes and ask themselves what they really need, and it comes to them: I need water. They need to drink more water. Or they see a picture of themselves which is very angry. The emotions are not in balance.

Can you give us an example of what this looks like?
Yes, here’s a really good example of how this communication evolves between the client and the therapist. I had a client come in with some restriction in the shoulder, and some slight curvature in the spine.

Both of us coming into it thought it was going to be a physical issue; we could release those muscles and see some improvement. This person had the insight to say “I feel I am having a hard time relaxing when you’re working with the shoulder. I almost feel like I don’t want you to work with me there.” The body was having a physical reaction. We explored what could be causing the discomfort in the area. There was physical pain in the shoulder, but the body implied that physical healing was not what was needed. With energetic therapeutics the client was able to process difficult emotions that he didn’t realize he was holding onto.

So, who needs massage therapy?
Massage is just a healthy thing to do. Anyone can benefit from massage therapy. The people who typically call first have a stiff neck, joint pain, low back pain, aches, etc. I work with athletes who want to improve performance, golfers who want to improve their score, and pregnant ladies with pelvic discomfort. Anytime someone says “I feel like I’m just getting old,” then massage therapy can be helpful.

What do you say to people who don’t understand that living in balance takes work? Do you see a difference between people who integrate this into their lives versus those who just try it once?
You always want balance and symmetry as much as possible. Most people who try this say “I wish I would have tried this sooner.” For people who stay consistent, they say they feel the therapy saves them money in the long run. They are more productive.

How does someone live more in balance by using what you offer?
One thing we get to do is have some interesting conversations. There’s usually time to ask “Where do you want to go with your physical body?” The routine of something healthy helps them build some self-confidence in their own health, which is integral to them staying in balance. People learn, they start to talk about how they really feel, and when families come in they learn how to do some basic massage with each other.

What can people learn about themselves through massage?
At first, people aren’t even aware of what hurts or where the problem is. Through massage we can increase physical awareness, and their mind begins to learn more about their body. And the mind is more connected to their body when they are out in the world. They realize what movements are affecting their pain.

They learn which places and what environments are stressful to them. They start to learn how stress can affect their physical body, and they get how the mind is connected to the body, and how their perception of the world is even reflected in the body. They start to find their own connection to their body.

How should someone prepare for an appointment with you?
The best thing you can do, no matter where you go for massage, is do your best to be hydrated. Drink half your weight in water in ounces per day. That’s a great way to have muscles ready for massage therapy. Be willing to communicate with your massage therapist. They are used to adapting their methods to you. They are used to working with bodies, but they don’t know more about your body than you do. Put your knowledge together and it turns out great.

So, to summarize your advice for balanced living?
I would say: drink water. Get involved with massage therapy and get to know your body. And think positively, because the way you think matters to your health.

Ashley Tape Fleming, LMT has a therapeutic massage practice, specializing in Pfrimmer Deep Muscle Therapy. Her practice is located near downtown Ames. Her hours are Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, from 10 until 5 pm, with the last massage beginning at 5 pm. (515) 708-4389