Most if not all of the massage therapists I know have a predominantly female clientelle, the same applies to the acupuncturists, osteopaths, naturopaths and chiropractors I know.

Women not only seem to be bigger users of Alternate Medicine they also are more likely to be a member of a gym. Add to this these often quoted Australian average life expectancy statistics: men who never marry live till 58, men who are married live to 78, women who marry live till 81 and women who never marry last on average to 85. Men are more likely to suicide than women and are more likely to die due to accidental and violent causes than women.

Women seem to be better at looking after themselves than men. In the 20 years I have worked in alternate health I wish I had a dollar for every time I have heard a female client tell me they wished they could talk their husband/ father/ son/ boyfriend/ brother or male friend into having a massage because they give every sign that they really need one.

So why is it us blokes are less willing than women to take better care of ourselves and do things like get a massage?, Is it possible that men have a higher threshold for denial that something is wrong with their body than women?

Are men more likely to use a muscle relaxant like alcohol to salve their pain? Does it have anything to do with the length of men’s working hours leaving less time for things like getting a massage or exercising regularly?  All of the above may be partly true.

Probably one of the most amusing reasons that some of my female clients tell me that they cannot convince their men to get some massage is that they do not like the idea of another man touching their body. Some men feel that female massage therapists are not physically strong enough to give a good massage, creating the dilemma that it is gay to get a massage from a man and a waste of time to get one from a woman. While it is true that more male than female practitioners of massage do deep tissue work I have had numerous massages over the years from masseuses who gave satisfying deep massages.

It is not in the best interests of either remedial massage therapists nor sex workers to ambiguously advertise themselves, you are highly unlikely to “accidently” find yourself in brothel if you are looking for a therapeutic massage. There is a big difference between bodywork and sex work.

If  you are a person who is not particularly proud of how you look without a shirt on get some massage where you can leave your clothes on, Chinese, Thai and Japanese massage is usually performed that way, if this is a concern for you just ring and ask.

Men need and benefit from massaage (and all those other therapies listed above) just as much as women do. The next time a woman in your life suggests that you need some massage consider it because she may be right and may then tell you at a later date “I told you so!” when you really do fall in a heap.

If you don’t want to pay for a massage then Self Massage.