Confession

From the Author

Dear Followers,

I believe today's writing contains important educational content, and that is the only reason I am sharing something so personal with you.

This presentation is about significant changes in my views on medical massage in general, as well as profound changes in how I view myself as a massage practitioner.

To avoid repeating myself, I will provide links to articles in which I have described events and realities that became part of my professional life. Those of you who have already read them will understand the references I make here. Those who have not may wish to read them to better understand what I am discussing.

For the first 46 years of my career, I never considered myself an overachiever, nor did I believe I knew everything. At the same time, I felt, in healthy proportion, that I was an established medical and sports massage practitioner with the right to hold professional opinions.

I consistently reproduced positive outcomes in some of the most difficult cases involving back and extremity disorders, headaches, and other chronic conditions. I truly loved my profession. I had passion for my work and a deep desire to help people achieve meaningful results.

I understood that while massage science originates from general biomedical science, the science that guides our hands-on work is different in many ways. It is a science designed for the clinical application of medical massage.

I knew about the healing power of massage. I was disappointed that massage therapy was not more widely recognized as a legitimate healthcare methodology. I was equally disappointed that many licensed massage therapists felt compelled to use alternative titles rather than proudly identifying themselves as massage therapists.

Yet despite these frustrations, my gratitude was endless. I had been blessed with a remarkable career, wonderful opportunities, and abilities for which I remain deeply thankful.

As I describe in the article linked below, my beautiful professional life—my beautiful world—collapsed.

Massage Therapy Demand vs. Client Retention

For some time, I could not understand what was happening to me. There were moments when I blamed myself. Perhaps I had become too proud. Perhaps too arrogant.

Honestly, I do not believe that was the case. I lived my life within what I considered normal human imperfections. And as I described in that article, thank God, I eventually received what I can only describe as a revelation.

Following the personal drama—and even trauma—I experienced during that period, I developed a dramatically different understanding of both myself and my profession.

First, I realized that the treasure of knowledge and clinical experience I had accumulated over decades was only a foundation. The reality was much larger, much deeper, and much more powerful than I had imagined.

I confess that I became far more humble. My appreciation for healing, for life, and for the privilege of helping others grew profoundly deeper.

Today, the meaning of that statement is far greater to me than it was before.

One example is the remarkable case of Leonard Cohen, whose story I described in one of my articles. May he rest in peace, and may God bless his memory.

Miracles and Mysteries in the Field of Massage – Part 2

That experience also deepened my understanding of the placebo effect.

I understood its power before, but I began to appreciate that there may be dimensions of healing that extend beyond what we currently understand.

At Leonard's memorial service, an oncologist who had originally referred Leonard to me attended. He was fascinated by the case and once again asked me:

I answered that in cases such as this, one could certainly argue that placebo mechanisms played a role. However, I also believed there was something more occurring—something we may not yet fully understand.

Generally speaking, if the improvements had been solely attributable to a conventional placebo response, one might expect corresponding changes in laboratory values, weight gain, sleep pattern improvements, appetite, mobility, and other measurable parameters. Yet some aspects of the case did not fit neatly into that explanation.

The physician smiled and replied:

I agreed. Yet I continued to feel that the trigger for healing involved more than placebo alone.

I encourage you to read the article to better understand what I mean.

The Placebo Effect and Its Role in Massage Therapy – Part 2

Today, my perspective on the body's capacity for healing is much broader.

• The way I practice has changed.
• The way I teach has changed.

And now I would like to discuss something that further supports my core principle:

In another article, I described an interesting case involving a neurologist who became interested in my concepts and later volunteered to help edit one of my articles.

Neuroinflammation, Stress, TBI and Long COVID

About a month ago, this neurologist contacted me and asked whether I had ever treated a patient with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS).

I replied that I had never knowingly treated a case of POTS.

He responded:

I agreed, but first asked him to send me the scientific literature regarding the syndrome.

My dear friends, it is still too early to report definitive observations. However, I can briefly share what I have noticed.

One of the primary biomarkers of POTS, much like Long COVID and many chronic stress-related disorders, is autonomic dysfunction.

The cascade of pathological events appears remarkably similar.

So far, the medical massage protocol I developed for chronic stress and Long COVID—with minor adjustments—appears promising.

Thank God, I had already come to understand that chronic stress is often a major contributor to the chain of physiological reactions underlying many complex disorders. It appears that the same principle may be relevant in POTS as well.

Of course, I want to proceed responsibly.

After I have observed approximately 15 cases, I will report my findings in greater detail.

For those of you who have already completed my webinar, please know that if these observations continue to be reproduced consistently, I will share the protocol adjustments with you in detail.

Everything necessary has already been presented in the webinar. The only difference may be spending slightly more time on certain techniques and making minor adjustments to the sequence.

The complete protocol must still be implemented.

If the outcomes continue to be consistent across additional cases, I intend to publish my observations.

As always, you are welcome to ask questions.

Best wishes,
Boris Prilutsky