I was a licensed massage therapist, having completed the prescribed course of study and subsequent state licensing test. These stories have brought back a lot of memories....both good and bad.
First off, as a massage therapist you get used to “aromatherapy” from clients. It just happens and I have smelled some of the wettest, raunchiest farts that mankind has ever produce. And all with a smile on my face as I silently gagged myself to death. Such was the life of a student intern.
Perhaps the thing I never got used to was the distinct smell of a menstruating woman and, in particular, the woman who spotted my brand new massage table sheets. Ugh! Those sheets subsequently took up residence in the local landfill.
Lastly, and quite sad, was the gentleman who came to the school I was studying at to get a reduced price massage from student interns ($35 at the time). That was all he could afford. The guy was heavy-set and had a severe skin condition that wasn’t contagious or anything. His skin was simply unpleasant to look at. He confessed to me one day that he liked to get massages because that was the only human touch and interaction in his life and it made him feel like a human being. I learned something about the human condition that day.