This week I am bringing in Matthew Howe to talk about working with clients who have PTSD. Matthew is the president of an international education company called Touch Education. He blends his 15+ years of clinical experience with the art and science of touch. They offer several continuing education classes with an emphasis on bodywork for PTSD. You may also have heard about him from an article he wrote for Massage Message about Autonomic Flexibility. I have had a few conversations with guests around working with Trauma, but talking with Matt gave me the opportunity to focus specifically on PTSD. I really enjoyed my conversation with Matt, as his personality is very warm and welcoming. I am sure this is one of the qualities that helps him be so successful as a practitioner and as an educator.
In this episode:
[1:30] Misconceptions massage therapists have about PTSD
[5:50] How Matt educates massage therapists to work with PTSD
[9:55] Patterns of PSTD that display in clients on the table
[13:58] Good guidelines for working with PTSD
[17:40] How to not diagnose
[19:55] Working with hospice clients
[28:10] Three book recommendations
Notable quotes from Matthew:
“One of the common misconception I see is that people think that, PTSD is just for people in the military.”
“Its not necessarily about the destination, it’s about giving them the tools to learn how to manage the nervous system response in real time.”
“The most important lessons we learn, are ones that do not come from fear.”
“Its important to make sure we aren’t caring more about their wellness than they are.”