This flow chart is not mine. It is from a Facebook Post by Tracy Walton, which you can find here. I’m pasting links to all of the resources mentioned in the flow chart beneath it.
I want to acknowledge how hard this is. Acknowledge that in many cases our livelihoods rely on working. Acknowledge the many massage therapists who are closing their offices and embarking on new ways of making a living who may never return to their beloved bodywork. Acknowledge the incredibly impossible position of having to choose between client and personal safety, and the ability to pay your rent/mortgage. Acknowledge that LMTs are getting jobs in warehouses and supermarkets, where they are unable to do what they have worked so hard to excel at. Acknowledge how hard it is to say "not yet" to a client who is in pain and just wants a massage. Acknowledge that many of us are taking on financial debt that may take years to climb out of, and that those who are able to go into debt are often the lucky ones, for they have access to a credit lifeline that many don't.
That, if it turns out that this was overly cautious, we have made a choice between potential unnecessary financial ruin, and potential unnecessary deaths, and have erred on the side of caution, for financial ruin is better than being a part of a chain in which people die (although yes, I know that because of our terrible health care system sometimes financial ruin and death are related).
And finally, I would like to acknowledge that this will pass. That we will climb out of this. That money is an energy that waxes and wanes, and waxes again. That we will, in a couple of months or a couple of years, be able to safely nourish people's health with touch therapy. We just have to get through this. May you all be well. May you all be safe. May you all have abundance. May you all be happy
LINKS from infographic:
(Video) Hayden, M., Werner, R., Thompson, D. A discussion on the potential changes coming due to Covid 19 to the massage/bodywork professions (April 20, 2020). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QN_IpPWkX9k&feature=youtu.be
Cates, C. “Your governor is not a massage therapist.” April 21 blog post at Healwell, https://www.healwell.org/…/your-governor-is-not-a-massage-…/
Koplen, M. Massage therapy and coronavirus: 4 reasons why masks and clean surfaces aren’t enough. Massage (April, 2020)
https://www.massagemag.com/massage-therapy-and-coronavirus…/
MT & COVID FB group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/covidandmassage/
US Dept of Labor, OSHA. Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19.
https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf