The New Generation Massage Therapist

Send us Fan Mail What if one of the most powerful clinical tools you have isn't a technique — it's what you say? In this episode, Jamie closes out the Hobfoll's Five Essential Elements series with Element 5: the Promotion of Hope. And the focus is on something that's massively underestimated in our profession — reassurance. Drawing on a quote from Louis Gifford — *"Effective reassurance is a bloody good painkiller"* — Jamie breaks down the research on what reassurance actually is, how to deli...

Send us Fan Mail What if the most powerful thing you can do for a patient in chronic pain has nothing to do with your hands? In this episode, Jamie shares a story that changed the way he thinks about practice — a patient who had been living with chronic pain for 30 years, and what actually made the difference in her very first appointment. From there, Jamie dives into the fourth of Hobfoll's Five Essential Elements of trauma-informed care: the Promotion of Connectedness — and specifically, th...

Send us Fan Mail Most of us were trained to fix people. And it feels good when it works — the patient comes in hurting, they leave feeling better, and you did that. But here's the question: what happens between appointments? Are they getting better? Or are they just getting better at coming to see you? In this episode, Jamie dives into Element Three of Hobfoll's Five — the promotion of self-efficacy — and makes the case that the most powerful thing you can give a patient isn't a treatment at ...

Send us Fan Mail Most massage therapists think of calm as something they create with their hands. But what if the most powerful thing you brought into the treatment room had nothing to do with technique? In this episode, Jamie shares the story of a Navy veteran with PTSD whose wife noticed a transformation every time he came home from his appointments — before he noticed it himself. What happened in that room wasn't about the low back treatment. It was about the space Jamie created for him t...

Send us Fan Mail Before your technique, before your assessment, before your hands even touch the table — there's something your patient needs more: to feel safe. In this episode, Jamie dives into the first of Hobfoll's Five Elements of trauma intervention: the promotion of safety. Drawing on a vivid story from his time as a firefighter learning rope rescue, Jamie unpacks why so many patients walk into your room with a nervous system that's still braced for danger — and what you can actually d...

Send us Fan Mail What do you do when a patient starts opening up about something heavy — and you're not sure if it's your place to respond? Most massage therapists either freeze, change the subject, or redirect to something clinical. And while that feels safe, it sends a message the patient notices more than you think. In this episode, Jamie breaks down what trauma-informed care actually looks like in practice — not theory, not counseling — just how you show up in the room. You'll learn: Why ...

Send us Fan Mail There are people I treated early in my career who I owe an apology to. Not because I didn't care. Not because I wasn't trying. But because I was doing things I genuinely believed were helping them — and I'm not sure they were. This episode is about the shift. The messy, frustrating, identity-shaking process of going from someone who thought they had it figured out to someone who had to admit they didn't. From the sports guy who believed deep pressure was the only way to mak...

Send us Fan Mail We learned how to help people physically. We learned technique, anatomy, and how to build a treatment plan. But managing our finances as self-employed practitioners? Nobody taught us that. In this episode, Jamie sits down with friend and fellow RMT Heather Green — founder of The Proactive Practitioner — to talk about the financial systems she's built specifically for massage therapists. From tracking business expenses to navigating GST, setting aside the right amount for tax...

Send us Fan Mail This is the final episode of the Are We Mental Health Professionals? series — and this one gets personal. Parts 1 and 2 were about your patients. This one starts by turning the lens on us. Because everything we've been talking about across this series — the psychological weight patients bring, the emotional complexity of these conversations, the pressure to get it right — all of that lands somewhere. And a lot of the time, it lands on us. In this episode we cover: How integ...

Send us Fan Mail Most of us were never taught that our words could make our patients worse. But the research is clear — the language we use in the treatment room produces real, measurable outcomes. Not just emotionally. Neurologically. In Part 2 of the Are We Mental Health Professionals? series, we're diving into one of the most underappreciated concepts in all of healthcare — the nocebo effect. And once you understand it, you'll never hear your own language the same way again. In this epis...

Send us Fan Mail Are we mental health professionals? It's a question that might make some of you uncomfortable. And honestly, that discomfort is exactly why it needs to be asked. Because most of us are already influencing our patients' mental health every single session. We're just not being intentional about it. In Part 1 of this three-part series, we lay the foundation — the hidden half of every treatment that nobody taught us about in school. We look at what the research actually says a...

Send us Fan Mail As our profession pushes toward patient-centered care, one thing is becoming clear — the old clinician-as-the-expert model isn't serving our patients the way we think it is. In this episode, Jamie sits down with Walt Fritz — a physical therapist with nearly 40 years of experience and someone who famously walked away from a prominent role in the myofascial release world to publicly question the narratives he'd built his career on. They talk about shared decision-making, info...

Send us Fan Mail We've been told a lot of things by our regulatory bodies about what we should and shouldn't do in our treatment rooms. But there's one area where I think we've been steered in the wrong direction — and that's mental health conversations. Of all the musculoskeletal professions out there, our patients open up to us the most. They're on our tables for an hour, relaxed, vulnerable, and trusting. And yet we've been consistently told to shut those conversations down and hand them ...

Send us Fan Mail We didn't learn this in school — but we probably should have. In this episode, Jamie sits down with friend and fellow RMT Mike Reoch to talk about something most massage therapists are never taught: how to actually build a sustainable practice. Mike has been a massage therapist for 18 years, worked in seven clinics across five cities, and now runs a thriving clinic in Kamloops with his wife — and he has a lot to say about what actually makes a practice work long-term. In t...

Send us Fan Mail We've spent three episodes talking about your patients' nervous systems. This one is about yours. If you're showing up for complex, trauma-affected patients with skill and sensitivity — you're absorbing something in the process. That's not a weakness. That's the cost of caring. And it puts you directly at risk for compassion fatigue. In this final episode of our four-part series on trauma and the nervous system, we turn the lens around and talk about what this work actually...

Send us Fan Mail "Your patients don’t respond to a technique. They respond to safety." Why do some patients instantly brace when you touch them, while others fail to relax no matter how gentle your manual pressures are? In this episode, Jamie Johnston cuts through the academic fluff surrounding "trauma-informed care" to deliver a highly practical, clinical protocol for the treatment room. When a patient has a history of trauma or persistent neurological pain, your treatment table isn't just a...

Send us Fan Mail "It's not a mechanical problem. It's a biological debt." Why do some patients plateau despite perfect manual technique? In this episode, Jamie Johnston dives into the structural and neurological changes that trauma leaves in the body—long after the distressing event has passed. We move past the philosophy of trauma-informed care and get into the hard science: how childhood trauma alters gene expression (Epigenetics), why adulthood stress creates a "physiological overdraft" (A...

Send us Fan Mail "It's not an attitude problem. It's a nervous system response." Have you ever had a patient who seems "jumpy," constantly guarded, or simply fails to respond to treatment despite your best manual techniques? In this episode, Jamie Johnston breaks down why these "complex" cases often have nothing to do with physical tissue issues and everything to do with a nervous system stuck in protection mode. We explore the anatomy of the survival brain—the Brain Stem, the Limbic System, ...

Send us Fan Mail "If you move, your disc will bulge." "Your pelvis is out of alignment." As massage therapists, we often use language intended to help, but we might actually be planting seeds of fear. This fear of movement, or kinesophobia, is one of the biggest drivers of long-term disability. If you find yourself constantly adding new manual modalities to your toolkit because your persistent pain patients aren't getting better, it’s time to challenge the idea that another technique is the a...

Send us Fan Mail "How do I treat PTSD differently than childhood abuse?" If you have ever asked this question in an RMT group, you aren’t alone—but you might be focusing on the wrong thing. In our profession, we’ve been taught to categorize trauma into boxes: combat, medical, sexual, or relational. This categorization often leads to "analysis paralysis," leaving therapists second-guessing every word and touch. In this episode, Jamie Johnston breaks down why the source of the trauma matters mu...

Send us Fan Mail "I’ve tried every technique and every modality, but they’re still not getting better." If you’ve ever felt this frustration, you aren’t alone. When a patient is stuck in a cycle of persistent pain, our instinct as massage therapists is to chase the next certification or find a "magic" hands-on tool. But what if the problem isn’t your toolkit? What if the problem is the patient's belief that their body is broken—and the solution is showing them otherwise? In this episode, Jami...

Send us Fan Mail "I'm not a psychologist. I should just stay in my lane, right?" As massage therapists, we are often told to refer out the moment a patient mentions mental health struggles. But what happens when that referral is the very thing that makes a patient feel dismissed? What if "staying in our lane" actually sabotages their physical recovery? In this episode, Jamie draws on his experience as both a massage therapist and a firefighter to explain why you are uniquely positioned to hel...

Send us Fan Mail "But Jamie, I’m not a personal trainer. I don’t even have a gym in my clinic!" If you’ve ever felt like movement-based therapy is "out of scope" or requires fancy equipment, this episode is for you. Many of us were taught that our value lies solely in what we do to a patient on the table. But when we rely only on passive techniques, we miss the most powerful tool for building long-term resilience: Movement. In this episode, we’re debunking the myth that you need a CSCS certif...

Send us Fan Mail "I did the work, gave them the stretches, and they still came back two weeks later with no improvement." If that sounds familiar, you aren’t alone. Most massage therapists respond to "difficult" cases by chasing more certifications and better manual techniques. But what if the lack of progress has nothing to do with your hands, and everything to do with the gap between what you say and what your patient actually hears? In this episode, we’re breaking down why communication is...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever scrolled through social media, seen a post about "pain science" or "evidence-based practice," and felt an immediate surge of defensiveness? Like everything you spent thousands of dollars and years of school to learn was being called a lie? In this episode, we’re getting vulnerable about the professional "identity crisis" that many therapists face. I share my own journey from being a modality-driven therapist who wanted to "hammer muscles and tear shit up" to som...

Send us Fan Mail Are you a massage therapist who feels in over your head or finds yourself avoiding crucial conversations about mental health with your patients? You don't have to keep feeling that way. In this powerful episode, we tackle the reality that your patients often carry more than just physical pain. We introduce a systematic and compassionate approach to navigating mental health discussions right in your treatment room—a method that is designed to build trust, honour professional b...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever frozen mid-massage because a patient opened up about something heavy—trauma, grief, or deep anxiety—and you had no idea how to respond? In this raw and honest episode,I share the story I rarely like to tell: the day I completely failed a patient after he shared a horrifying moment from his past. I unpack a cringeworthy mistake I made—centering myself in his trauma—and explain why the conventional advice to keep "mental health out of your scope" is actually causi...

Send us Fan Mail I think we've all seen changes in the past couple of years with the pandemic and other things going on. For the both of us, we experienced a significant amount of burnout, so we thought we'd share our stories as we're sure we aren't alone in the experience. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Education, education, education. We constantly promote a better education for Massage Therapists and as those who teach continuing education courses we have a lot of responsibility to keep current with new evidence and research. And so do our associations. Our associations wield some great power in what can and is offered to their perspective memberships for continuing education. But are they all handling their responsibility well? If not, their members should demand bett...

Send us Fan Mail As massage therapists, we often rely on learning new modalities or rely on many of the ones we learned in college as a way to help our patients. But does it really matter which modality we use? There are so many other factors that contribute to better outcomes when people come to see us, the modality we use while the person receives treatment matters less than we've been lead to believe. Let's start to worry less about learning new ways to touch people and start focusing o...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we discuss some of the advances, changes, and recommendations that have taken place since the biopsychosocial framework was introduced 40 years ago. This is one of the many things we discuss in our upcoming courses along with therapeutic movement and rehab. These courses can be taken in person, or online so please click the link below and join us in October! REGISTER HERE And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com a...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we discuss the buzzwords circling around our continuing education and how you can interpret and decide whether the course you're taking is evidence based. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we discuss the updated education requirements from our college in BC. While some take this update to think they don't have to take continuing education anymore, we argue that it is our responsibility as healthcare professionals to do so. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we discuss some papers that challenge some of the available pain models of understanding. While there are some good challenges on language, the overall message remains the same; treat the person in front of you. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we discuss some papers on therapeutic exercise for the neck as well as the low back. We also look at challenging industry norms and how others get upset by what you're saying. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail You ever have one of those moments where you get faced with a piece of research that challenges, something that you've been saying for a long time? We're going to talk about that today. Because I've been long saying how going for a walk is one of the best things you can do for low back pain. And while it's can still be an effective thing, we've come apart come upon some research that tells us otherwise. So we'll get into that today. But I think before we get into that one, we...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at a great paper entitled: "Challenges for Evidence-Based Physical Therapy: Accessing and Interpreting High-Quality Evidence on Therapy" This was a great paper as it shows us several different challenges to incorporating research into practice, what the best research papers are, and why it's important to use them. While it does highlight some of the challenges, we as healthcare professionals should look at this not as a challenge but rather an o...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, we chat about some of the failures we've had in our careers. It's important to talk about failures because you can't succeed without failing. Also because we all make mistakes in practice but we're not alone, the more we discuss them, the greater growth we can have. And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc.com hello@ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at a great paper entitled: "Manual Therapy: Exploiting The Role Of Human Touch." This was a great paper as it shows us several different things about the benefit of touch. While there are some therapists out there saying things like: "manual therapy sucks" this paper helps refute that and shows the benefits of touch in a therapeutic setting. Here is a link to the paper: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2468781219302...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at a research paper entitled: Manual therapy and exercise for rotator cuff disease (Review). This paper helps us understand a bit better how we can help people with possible rotator cuff issues and the best approach to use. Here is a link to the paper: https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD012224/pdf/full And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at Tone Police and Language and how this functions within our profession. We are of the belief that we choose how to react to someone's words and perhaps the way we react isn't always warranted. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, c...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at "Beliefs Vs. Science" and how this functions within our profession. We are of the belief that if science refutes or proves your belief wrong, we have a responsibility as healthcare professionals to change that narrative. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principle...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we just basically rant about several things in our industry with our buddy from the UK Tristen Attenborough Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, check out our websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and our emails: jamie@themtdc...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at the research around using IASTM in your practice. This is a popular modality but does it actually do what providers say it does? The research tells us otherwise. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, check out our websites. www.the...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at why it is important for RMT's to learn from RMT's and why we need more Massage Therapists stepping into the education ring. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, check our out websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com and...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at why it is important to challenge our bias' and identities in massage therapy. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, check our out websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Support the show

Send us Fan Mail On this episode we look at the difference between "Evidence Based Practice" and "Evidence Informed Practice" and how this relates to Massage Therapists. Check out our upcoming live courses in October that can also be attended via zoom by clicking the link: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ And as always, check our out websites. www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Suppor...

Send us Fan Mail This week we look at a paper discussing the overuse of MRI in MSK care. This paper really highlights the importance of how medical imaging is overused and its compounding effects as a result. Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ Support the show

Send us Fan Mail This week we look at the contributions to the manual therapy professions from one of our hero's, Louis Gifford. Louis was probably one of the founding fathers of pain science and has shared his knowledge for many of us to improve as clinicians. Quite frankly his contributions are GOLD! Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exe...

Send us Fan Mail This week we have our second guest on the podcast the one and only Paul Ingraham. Paul Ingraham is a Vancouver science journalist and publishing entrepreneur and a former Registered Massage Therapist. He left that profession over concerns about pseudoscientific beliefs and practices, and went on to create PainScience.com, a website about the science of pain, injury, treatment, and rehab. He has written hundreds of articles and ten books on these themes (and about half...

Send us Fan Mail This week we have our first guest on the podcast the one and only Matt Phillips. Matt has extensive experience helping runners with injuries, so we delve into his knowledge on how to help runners when they come into your clinic. Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-f...

Send us Fan Mail This week we look at another paper by Darlow et al on the impact of what clinicians say. . Forgive us, we say it's episode #3 but then we recorded a couple of other ones and published them first, it's actually episode #5. Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ Supp...

Send us Fan Mail This week we look at the contributions to the manual therapy professions from one of our hero's, Louis Gifford. Louis was probably one of the founding fathers of pain science and has shared his knowledge for many of us to improve as clinicians. Quite frankly his contributions are GOLD! Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-man...

Send us Fan Mail This week we look at a paper from Bialosky et al on the mechanisms of manual therapy. This is an important topic so we can give our patients a simpler and better understanding of what we are doing to help them create self-efficacy to help manage pain episodes. Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Also have a look at our upcoming courses: https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we take a look at the research and how we can change the narrative around the Psoas muscle. Is it the "Muscle Of The Soul"? or just a good stabilizer. Check out our websites: www.themtdc.com www.ericpurves.com Check out our upcoming courses which we are offering in person and via zoom! https://themtdc.com/courses/clinical-applications-of-pain-science-manual-therapy-exercise-and-rehabilitation-principles-for-rmts/ Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Jamie Johnston RMT & Eric Purves RMT break down two research papers from Darlow et al on how patients beliefs, the community around them, and the clinician can affect pain. Support the show