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sweetestgirlintown111 · 8 days ago

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henry winter x reader

authors note: I decided to write for Henry Winter as way to get him out of my system, and this is the byproduct. While reading this please keep in mind that it's my first time publishing my work and that English isn't my first language that said of course, feedback is always appreciated so if you have any notes feel free to point them out in the notes or in my asks box. about the story, this won't be following the exact plot or timeline of the book, it's an academic rivals to lovers trope, I have 5 chapters written already and I think it safe to say that it is more of a slow burn, somethings id like to point out is that this fic handles the themes of Catholicism directly and child sexual abuse within it in an indirect manner so if you are uncomfortable with these topics I'd advise you to refrain from reading, of course, content warnings will be present to individual chapters including these topics, also there will be swearing, and I haven't yet decided if there will be smut in this piece, also in this fic I wont be using (Y/N) or any names for my character I also try to refrain from physical descriptions although female pronouns and anatomy are used. lastly, if you think this piece isn't for you please feel free to reach out and send prompts for one-shots or if you would like scenarios or ideas to include in this series, thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy!

prologue |

Henry, stoic, cold, luring Henry. like a fire luring in moths, we were all ready to do as he pleased, convinced that in some way he always knew better. Maybe he did, maybe that's why all seven of us were so complaint, but me -I was so beyond them in that aspect I was fascinated with Henry Winter I would've gone happily to my demise if he ordered me to if it meant that he would be pleased with me.

I first saw Henry at Julian's office, before lessons had started I was there to ask for a schedule since I hadn't got one -the process of signing in to his class was very hard in itself but Julian was an old friend of my mom which was the main reason I got accepted- he was sitting on a couch listening to something Julian was saying that I unknowingly interrupted. he seemed huge at first glance tall with broad shoulders and hair so dark in contrast to the paleness of his skin and the shine of his blue eyes framed with a pair of old-fashioned round thick glasses, he was beautiful that much could be said. but he was also uninterested his glance almost dismissive that look he gave me the same look he’d give me plenty of times after that- a look that made me feel tiny which in comparison to him I was, and so naturally I made him the center of my life at the time. it wasn't so estranged of me to pick the one thing that I couldn't have easily and dig my claws into it, after all, I loved a challenge except this time I wouldn't be able to decide who won if either.

Ancient Greek, this dead language, so esoteric, so elite that naturally I gravitated towards it. at ten its hard to stand out -especially when going to an elite boarding school in the middle of Sweden, everyone's daddy was crazy rich, all the kids had ponies, and all the girls went to the best ballet academies thus nothing materialistic could make you special, so developing an obsessive interest in ancient and dead languages was not only sure to make you stand out but also get you the praise of your teachers, all the while being hard enough that any competition would give up on their own. so it became my niche, my specialty- and by the time I finished high school, it was an easy choice to go to Hampden, seeking an exclusive course of studies with a class of six other students.

although I always strove to stand out academically, I was never as bright socially, usually feeling more fitted with my translations, and maybe in my younger teens, it saddened me, to watch my classmates playing and having so much fun together, and not being able to join- not because they wouldn't let me but because I couldn't let myself. but that envy quickly faded, when plying around turned into partying, sex, heartbreak, and filthy drugs. not that I didn't indulge in substances from time to time, but it was never the cheap stuff and never on school grounds. and so that's how my teens came and were spent, books during school and books -with a little bit of drugs- during whatever break that would send me home.

Back to Hampden, our first class Julian gave us the time to get to know each other and get familiar with one another, going in i'd figured that Henry was the guy I had met earlier- and he had a friend that came with him, Edmund everyone called him Bunny, very chatty which was a striking difference to henry. Two other students were twins a boy, Charles, quite handsome, and the female version, Camilla, they were both boyish and had the same mannerisms they also both had slight southern accents. And then there was Francis, redheaded, tall scrawny, and very stylish indeed and seemed very friendly and inviting and lastly, there was Richard a Californian, quiet and shy. meeting with them was easy enough that it didn't feel dreadful and I quite enjoyed their company, being a bunch of weirdos I felt welcomed in a way, the time was spent discussing literature, ancient scriptures, and civilizations. they all seemed to know enough about the Greeks, Henry, in particular, made it clear that he was above them all when it came to knowing the ancient culture, for the first time in my life I felt like I was on par with someone in knowledge and for the first time as well I didn't feel threatened.

classes with Julian were what any seasoned student would want, he was challenging and inspiring, but having Henry as a competitor wasn't easy, while I was excited about the competition he never held back and it felt like it wasn't just academics we were fighting over but rather something else, the praise of Julian mainly, and I wasn't going to hold back either. I couldn't, even if I wanted to, my whole life the only thing that inspired me to work harder and be smarter was the validation of my teachers, being that I went to boarding school and didn't have the strongest relationship with either of my parents, id turn to whichever adult that would spare me the attention and more often than not they were my teachers, so no I wasn't going to let him have the praise of Julian our only instructor, I wasn't going to make it easy for him.

at first, it started as banter in the middle of class -correcting each other's quotes, racing to answer Julian's questions faster- but later on in the semester as it was clear that we were academically equal, it would turn into pure unfiltered hate. And Henry Winter would make sure that I never forget any of my flaws, ever.

#henry winter fanfic #henry winter x reader #henry winter #the secret history #tsh #tsh donna tartt #donna tartt #richard papen #francis abernathy #camilla macauley #charles macaulay #bunny corcoran

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tommyboweinabowtie · 19 days ago

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About Spencer's One Ball

okay first of all disclaimer: I know that for some people this post will seem too much and I'm aware, but to be clear, all I used was what Spencer talked about publicly in videos, mostly in the 2 truths 1 lie with Tommy, everything else is Medicine and Science and statistics. I did not have access to anything else like medical records or anything related.

Also important here: I am a certified doctor, I know I just be silly online but I studied medicine and I happen to be in pediatrics, one of the few specialties that would deal with said diagnosis, so since the first time I saw that video it got me wondering exactly what kind of "condition" it would be, I was curious, so I decided to research. And bring my research findings here.

Keep in mind english is not my first language, but I tried to be clear and simple.

"Having only one ball" medical term would be "monorchism", or "monorchidism". That means only one testicle in the scrotum. (Trivia no one asked for: everything related to testicles has "orchid" in its name, the plant is also called that because it has a scrotum-looking thing in its roots). Having only one ball later in life usually means surgery or injury, but as he said, not the case.

In the video he says he was born with only one testicle. So he didn't say he had any testis removed, or that it was somewhere else, just that he only had one. Okay keep that in mind. Let's understand first how normally a testicle develops. A healthy embrio is sexually indifferent at first, the Y chromosome has a gene that makes it develop testicles instead of ovaries. That happens inside the abdomen, below the kidneys, and when the testis cells are developed, they produce an hormone that will supress other "female" anatomy. This hormone is also responsible for the descend of the testis into the scrotum. This descend happens after the seventh month of gestation. So until then the testicles are inside the abdomen. About 3% of XY term babies are born without 1 or 2 testicles in their scrotum. That's calles cryptorchidism ("hidden testicle"). It is more common in premature babies and babies with conditions such as down syndrome. More than half is unilateral. So when a baby is born doctors examine it and see if the testicles are inside their ballsack, if not, usually (80%) within the first year it has a "delayed" descent. If it is not in the scrotum, maybe the doctor sees it somewhere else, close, right above it. Little image to show where it can be found:

So directly from the simplified words from wikipedia: A testis absent from the normal scrotal position may be:

Anywhere along the "path of descent" from high in the posterior abdomen to the inguinal ring

In the inguinal canal

Ectopic, having "wandered" from the path of descent, usually outside the inguinal canal and sometimes even under the skin of the thigh, the perineum, the opposite scrotum, or the femoral canal

Undeveloped (hypoplastic) or severely abnormal (dysgenetic)

Missing (also see anorchia).

So if we can't find the testicle in the first few months, we usually ask for an ultrasound, to see if it is inside the abdomen and to search if there's any intersex characteristics, or other conditions, associated. If it is found, usually there's a surgery, either to place the testicle where it is supposed to be, or to remove it. Why not just leave it inside, or forget about it? Well, undescended testicles have a higher chance of testicular cancer. So it either has to be in the scrotum to keep it in check with self-exam and ultrasounds, or completely removed.

Spencer never mentioned a surgery, and they talked about surgeries and procedures in that episode. He'd probably have talked about it. So I don't think he had ectopic or undescended testicle.

The abnormal testicle also rules out because he would have said it was deformed or something. Not that he was born without it.

So that leaves us with anorchia. Or in his case, monorchia. (He has one normal right testicle there, the left one is missing.)

If you look for this terms you will find mostly genetical disorders, or like intersex individuals with other health issues associated. I don't think that's his case.

So what I think it is, is a condition called "Vanishing testes syndrome" or "testicular regression syndrome". It results in anorchia or monorchia. It is kinda rare, less that 5% of those with cryptorchidism. To make it simple, the embrio develops the testicle, but something happend with it along the way before the baby is born, like a torsion, or ischemia, and it "dies" or stops developing, leading to a baby without the testicle. It is more common to happen to the left testicle. The individuals usually delevop a completelly tyical male phenotype, as seems to be Spencer's case as well. (Unless the regression is bilateral and happens too early in the pregnancy, leading to lack of testosterone, but thats less usual). Some doctors and scientists recommend a surgical approach to remove the small scar tissue and remnants (0-16% of studied cases have like a tiny amount of live testicular cells in the scar tissue wherever the testicle died) to avoid potential testicular cancer as well, but it was never documented, so it is not needed, it depends on the attending doctor.

Also some patients may want to have a prosthesis implanted, for cosmetic purposes, but also not needed.

Let's just trust that Spencer was cared for by good doctors that did whatever testing it was needed and got to the most likely diagnosis.

So that was my wild research You can officially read the paper about this condition here: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3459158/

I have more commentary about smosh health conditions and stuff, this one just was more in my field and also spiked my curiosity, i just needed to. But like about Tommy CPR thing, Shayne drowning, probably more stuff i can't remember now. Let me know if any of you would like to see more lol.

#smosh #spencer agnew #long post #i don't even know how to tag this properly #health stuff

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i-did · 4 years ago

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hi hello i couldn't sleep last night so i was scrolling thru all ur asks and stuff and ur opinions and analyses are so interesting!!! and then afterwards i was thinking about what u were saying about mlm smut and i'd also been thinking about such things a little bit recently bc like.....at a certain point it becomes quite clear that the vast majority of smut-writing is just imitation. like there's the sex noise verb list and all and the whole general mechanics of the sex and those things just .... replicate over and over. and the whole thing w people writing mlm vs wlw smut regardless of their own sexual orientation..... like i feel like a big part of that is just a self-perpetuating thing. like if u have not had sex and u r getting all ur (pleasure-related) sex ed from fandom (even if u do watch porn, that doesn't rlly tell u how to describe stuff? idk) regardless of What fandom , the majority is going to be mlm smut. which is itself majority imitation of other mlm smut, imitating and imitating back to whoever knows what the first smut fanfic was etc. there's just way More to mimic than there is on the women side of things. which then becomes a self-perpetuating thing, bc the mimicry continues and generates more and more. and---if there are fundamental misunderstandings of anatomy involved---those self-perpetuate as well. and maybe even exaggerate. and yeah. does this all make sense? idk i was just thinking about it. like all the stereotypes and stuff continue bc writers are getting their inspo from other writers rather than their own brains. or something. idk!!!!! it's just all... divorced from reality? bc words. or something!! i hope u get what i'm trying to say. just thoughts i've been thinking. anyway i think ur thoughts are cool. and ur writing. ok bye have a good day!!

Okay yeah this is kinda messy but hope u see this, uhh yeah I think you're right about the echo chamber effect fr about stuff. I think it's a mix of projecting too sometimes. talk more under the cut and also link to a video essay since I love video essays.

Here’s a video that sort of touches on this topic:

“Gay fanfiction” by Sarah Z. (has CC)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8E_C00dKwI

This video begins to talk about fetishization at the end, but also… not really. The words “gay fanfiction” is used as a catchall, when really gay fanfiction is largely mlm written by non-mlm.

Fandom is a largely women's space dominated by the female gaze in a media industry world that is dominated by men and the male gaze. I'm really glad women have this space to explore creativity and queerness, and I don't expect the female gaze to go away, but I am still ultimately bummed out I can’t read most fanfic or interact with most fandom spaces without having fetishization in my face.

So about 80% of fandom is women, and most of those women aren't straight, but 90% of those women prefer mlm ships. Why don’t they prefer wlw ships? Well definitely part of it is the fact that queerbaiting is centered around white straight men, and then there is also the fact that women tend not to be written as well charcter wise. But the fact still remains that you get jerjean getting priority over Layla and Alvarez who are in canon just as much and are a canon wlw couple who actually interact as well as Alvarez could likely be a woc because of her Hispanic last name. Korasami doesn’t get nearly as much hype as zuko and saka, despite the fact that they are 2 fully dimensional characters who canonly kiss and hold hands, something the creators fought for and ended up having to sacrifice another reboot for.

I do believe the fandom echo-chamber is largely responsible for… a lot of things, like you're saying. But what's interesting is that the complaints I've heard about visual porn from non mlm in the fandom space is that they can’t get off to it because its for the male gaze and misogynistic usually. But they also don't seem to notice how the mlm smut circles has the female gaze and is also… almost always mlm. If it was a pure anatomical not knowing thing, I get that, but I also think that leads to the question of “then why the male body for porn, and not your own? The one you know and are familiar with?”

I know some people want to get outside of their own body for porn and don’t want to think of their own anatomy at all, but overall I'm still uncomfortable. If an anglo said “well I watch porn of only Mexicans so I don't self insert” I'm gonna be like … hhhh in a similar way. I understand people “like what they like” but I wish they also noticed said patterns in the first place. I understand the t4t tumblr porn circle, and how it's different from cis people who only watch trans porn.

I actually wished that instead of fandom focusing on mlm ships where some asshole guy hits on bottom troupe charcter for top troupe character to save, was instead… a wlw character experiencing said shitty getting hit on and other wlw swooping in. what's interesting is fandom writes a lot about misogynistic experiences without often realizing it. Ive read fanfic where guys get called sluts for sleeping with people or called bitch for speaking their mind, these arent things men usually experience, but rather women. Fandom has a lot of internalized misogyny and also queerphobia imo. Women characters often get pushed to the sidelines and men become the canvas for female fans to project onto.

There is this natural inclination to mlm. When people are talking about “gay shipping” or “gay books” or “gay feels” or even just “gay” mlm is what’s largely in mind. I honestly am kinda saddened by this because if gay fanfiction was really solely about writing more to feel represented, then you would see a lot of bi and ace and lesbian rep, but this isn't the case. Queer women are seriously underrepresented, and I want to hear their stories and read them in fanfiction as well as published. 50% of lgbt literature is mlm, and of that its largely written by women. Becky Albertalli, Rainbow Rowell, Maggie Stiefvater, are the YA big names and are all women writing mlm. Red white and royal blue is written by Casey McQuiston and Captive prince (which is not YA) is written by C. S. Pacat, who is non-binary, but is also TME and not mlm. These are all the big names in mlm lit, behind them is some gay men, but honestly their stories aren't preferred, they're not the right “flavor” for the consumers usually, who are largely women. In general YA consumers and authors are women, but I wish that they… just wrote about women too. I think there is a certain… snowball effect to the overrepresentation of mlm representing the whole LGBT community that leads to fetishization, as well as misogyny playing a factor in: less women characters being written well to write fanfic on, when they are written well they're taken less seriously or the audience struggles to relate to them, they're less marketable then men.

Idk I never feel “seen” or “represented” by any of the books above, which don't address boyhood and manhood and queerness intersecting really, and AFTG doesn’t either. I relate to AFTG as a trauma victim who has experienced a lot of what many of the characters go through and have gone through in the EC as well as them just overall being very well written characters, but I don't relate to it as a mlm really. I've never seen like.. gay voice or being straight passing or femphobia or how boyhood can be affected from a young age by those around you sensing you're ‘other’ or if you didn't experience this you feel outside the mlm community. Let alone sub cultures like bear and leather and pup, at most you see the word “he's such a twink” in fandom which... i fr hate non mlm using that word because it's usually used to replace the f-slur essentially, used derogatorily or to call him “such a bottom” and stuff like that. It’s like a joke or an insult.

Long story short, idk mang this was a ramble and I think I'm coning down with something. I wanna see more queer women rep and women authors writing about being a queer woman too. I think it's a complex web of fetishization and a bit of forbidden love yaoi culture (or it used to be in the BOYXBOY days) as well as misogyny on an industry level, creator level, as well as reader/consumer and fandom level. I don’t think it’s inherently wrong to explore other peoples stories and what we read has to be segregated, “only mlm are allowed to read and write mlm, only wlw are allowed to read and write wlw,” but I also think author’s intent and audience and background is telling, as well as overall statistics. Like about an hour ago I was looking for cookbooks in spanish or in english, and I was looking for some mexican food cook books, but I had to look for them using words in spanish because otherwise what came up was a bunch of “fiesta party, easy as uno dos tres authentic cooking!” and I was like… hm. Since I could tell they were marketing to anglos. (also the author’s last names were like michelle smith, james cooper, and this could be for a variety of reasons, but I trust Hispanic names more tbh and deadass would look at the authors pictures and if they had other books in Spanish or what their specialties were.)

anyways. not sure how to end this. uhm if anyone has any book recs (my to read list is like 500 books tho no joke) preferably not YA white mlm written by a white lady, hopefully queer women written by queer woman, LMK, I need more wlw and queer women stories on my list. I have a decent amount but always looking for more. I kinda wanna link my goodreads or my storygraph but I also don't want to get doxxed and it has my legal name on it so.

Also, I'm dyslexic and using spell check but if there's like some wild typos my b.

#ask #fandom politics #fandom culture #fandom psychology #mailob

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aplusblogging · 4 years ago

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youtube

Portrait of a Lady on Fire: The Female Gaze in Film A video essay by Ella Boers and Ella Walken

This is two of my classmates’ joint final project for Sociology. I loved it so much I asked for their permission to share it here. Hope you enjoy it too!

Transcript under the cut, since the auto-generated captions are mostly accurate but punctuation is good for comprehension.

TRANSCRIPT:

“Boers: In 2019, French screenwriter and director Céline Sciamma released her fourth feature film, Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Following the narrative of two lesbian women, the movie highlights their story of love and art, and explores a woman's place in the society of 18th-century France. Sciamma's presence is a rarity in the heterosexual male-dominated film industry, as she is an out lesbian making films about her lived experience regarding sexuality. Her knowledge of queer womanhood manifests in quiet ways; a soft smile or longing gaze quietly and authentically conveys the depth of the love and respect women have for one another. While each of her films highlights stories which explore gender and sexuality, we will be focusing on Portrait of a Lady on Fire, where Sciamma portrays her characters as complex and multi-dimensional women.

Walken: Historically, women in film are portrayed as subordinate, less important, and one-dimensional in comparison to their male counterparts on screen. This unequal depiction of women in the media—called the "male gaze"—is everywhere in film, from more obvious movies such as Transformers and The Wolf of Wall Street portraying women as objects of pleasure for the heterosexual man, to Disney princess movies that more subtly objectify women through their sexy clothing and unrealistic body proportions. This is largely due to the movie industry being predominantly male-run, as producers continue to churn out the same material that has proved to be successful in the past. However, in recent years cinema has slowly been transitioning to a more accepting, equal, and diverse set of stories and characters.

Boers: Where the male gaze fixates on medium close-up shots of women from over a man's shoulder, shots of a woman's body, or scenes where a man is actively observing a passive woman, Sciamma directs the camera work in Portrait of a Lady on Fire so that it centers on her character's expressions and body language, revealing in them the complexity of the women's dreams and aspirations. In fact, Sciamma's execution of the female gaze encapsulates the women so well that when a man is shown on screen—an occurrence that only happens twice in the film's entirety—it comes as a shock to the viewer.

Walken: The main plot of Portrait of a Lady on Fire follows Marianne, a painter commissioned to do a portrait of bride-to-be Héloïse before she leaves for Milan to marry. As Marianne and Héloïse's relationship morphs into a passionate romance, the commentary on artist and subject becomes all the more apparent. Yet, as the relationship continues to blossom, it is still handled with the utmost care. Despite the fact that homosexuality was maligned in the setting of the film, Sciamma steers clear of any tired tropes in queer cinema, which often display and occasionally exploit trauma. Although the story is not unrealistic to its time period, the film chooses to take a caring route, never allowing a hint of the hate of the outside world to pervade into the relationship the couple shares. Even amidst a plot surrounding the painting of a woman's beauty, we as viewers experience with the characters what it means to be observed by a respectful female gaze rather than the aforementioned assertive male gaze, discovering a world where women can love and be loved for more than just their looks.

Boers: But beyond the directing and writing of camera work and plot, Sciamma's gaze extends—or rather, brings us back—to the 18th century, addressing limitations and societal norms that created obstacles for women, many of which still exist today. Marianne's profession as a painter was rather frowned upon for women of her time, and while girls of the middle and upper classes were encouraged to partake in the arts, taking it to a level past a leisurely hobby was viewed as losing sight of her priorities. Even women who did make the bold decision to pursue a career in art were restricted by their lack of access to art education. At the very simplest level, female painters were prohibited from studying live nude models, as it was considered indecent to do so. Their lack of education on the human anatomy limited the genres of which they could paint, and many, like Marianne, turn to portraiture for their primary specialty. On top of this, Portrait of a Lady on Fire touches on the life of an unmarried woman, challenging the common perception that a woman of that time is either married or to-be-married by instead portraying these women as content, having actively chosen their single lives.

Walken: A final important aspect of the female gaze in Sciamma's film is her attention to the complexity of women in all social classes. Similarly to Marianne and Héloïse, who fall into the higher classes of society, housekeeper Sophie is portrayed as complex and driven, despite her lower place on the social ladder. Towards the beginning of the film, Sophie finds out she is pregnant and enlists the help of Marianne and Héloïse in terminating her pregnancy. In addition to the abortion side-plot, all three women—no matter their economic status—are shown cooking, playing games, and enjoying the company of one another. In one particular scene, the two upper-class women work together to cook a meal while Sophie works on her art. Although a simple cinematic gesture, by including this small moment, Sciamma establishes Sophie as a character who is more than her work, and is allowed pleasure even by the women who she is working for.

Boers: Upcoming films such as Promising Young Woman and Wonder Woman 1984 continue to normalize the placement of women as main characters, centering the stories around the complexities of their lives and the depth of their potential. However, Sciamma's storytelling is unique in her ability to uplift women on screen without making a large gesture of it. Her film shows that the empowerment of women can be achieved through tender care, as she quietly explores the story of Marianne, Héloïse, and Sophie through the careful nuances of their friendship. Unknowingly, we are engulfed into a world where women have agency, where they can love, and where they have a depth to their character and dreams. Portrait of a Lady on Fire reflects the strength of the women in our modern world, and shows in its subtlety how to properly paint an image of a woman.”

End of transcript.

#Portrait of a Lady on Fire #video essay #film analysis #queer cinema

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scriptmedic · 8 years ago

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Massage Therapy: Medical Applications and Mythconceptions

Hi everybuddy! Aunt Scripty here. Today’s guest post is written by Nana, a Licensed Massage Therapist in the US.

This is part 1 of a 2-part post on the basics of what massage therapy is (and, more importantly, isn’t). I’m so excited to have Nana’s posts here on the blog!

Keep in mind that even though this is a guest post, and I have not 1000% verified everything in it, it is still subject to The Disclaimer Of Doom. (The Doomsclaimer?)

I hope you all enjoy!

Nana, take it away!

Hello! LMT Nana here! ( @theoremofwhat ) You’re probably wondering what the heck I’m doing here. Or what the heck an LMT even is. I’m here today to help Aunt Scripty in her quest to dispel some Mythconceptions surrounding the medical field in a two part post on my specialty: Massage Therapy.

For the uninitiated, your first thought is probably something along the lines of, “LOL, happy ending, yo!” I’m here to smack that right out of your head.

Let’s start off with what Massage Therapy actually is. Defined by the medical dictionary,

“Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues and consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or causing movement of or to the body.”

Okay. What the heck does that mean? I’ll put it into context for you. A massage under this definition is when a trained person uses their hands, forearms, elbows, or other parts of the body to apply force to the patient’s body, or stretching/moving joints, for the purpose of loosening muscle and connective tissue, or to stimulate fluid flow (blood/lymph).

Sweet. That’s down. Let’s continue.

Massage is one of the oldest forms of medical care, …..

….with origins going back almost 5,000-4,000 years in Polynesian, Egyptian and Chinese cultures, these are passed down through written and oral traditions. Massage became popularized in western medicine by Hippocrates, who believed that massage was a highly effective and underutilized tool that requires a great deal of knowledge and training- views still held today by professionals.

The full history of massage is quite long and complicated- something I won’t go into here. It’s quite the drama, part of which contributes to some modern Mythconceptions that organizations like the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) are trying to smash out by regulating the practice and increasing public awareness. Studies into the history of massage, and even observances in modern populations have shown that the urge to aid hurts by applying manipulation through the hands is likely an ingrained impulse in humans.

Knowing this, one would think that just anyone could get up off the street and give a massage. While many a family member or good friend has helped that “knot” (called a trigger point) in your shoulder, giving a full body massage with the intent of aiding healing requires a lot of hands on training and knowledge of the human body. You wouldn’t want a receptionist diagnosing your cancer- you don’t want a receptionist handing your massage either.

Let’s go over the qualifications for a massage therapist, known professionally as a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) standardly, and/or BCTMB if they are Board Certified.

Here in the United States (where I am) regulation is left up to the individual states. I am licensed through the state of Utah, so many of the laws and regulations I will be defining for you will be through that lens. If you would like a good launching board for other states, head here.

The AMTA suggests a minimum of 500 hours of training for licensing, but states such as New York require up to 1,000 hours. Here in the state of Utah 600 hours is the minimum requirement. This translates to about 7-12 months of schooling.

During the course of schooling a therapist will spend most of their time learning medical Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology, and Kinesiology. Basically? How the body is made, how it works, and how it moves. They are then trained in how this information applies to injury, illness and rehabilitation.

The rest is hands on training, identifying in person what abnormal tissue feels like, how to change it, when you should and can, when you should not massage, and areas of endangerment. And this is a VERY brief overview.

Aside from the all important training in medical A&P, we are given intensive training in the ethics side of massage. This is perhaps one of the most important separators between a LMT and a non licensed individual. LMTs are unique in the medical community because we have a specific training in how to touch.

Touch is one of the most sensitive things in the modern community- many suffer from Touch Deprivation because of stigma surrounding touch. Many perceive touch as a sexual thing. Others will react negatively to touch due to trauma in their life. Massage therapists must be prepared to present the massage in a way that cannot be perceived in a sexual, or threatening way, and may receive extra training to deal with victims of violence.

We receive training in how to conduct the massage- specifically in how to greet and interview the client, how to drape (the covering and un-covering an area to be worked.) and how to interact through out the session and how to end it.

To be licensed in the state of Utah, I had to undergo 600 hours of schooling by an accredited school. In my case it was a technical school focusing on medical careers: Nursing, Physical Therapy, Personal Trainers, and Dental Assisting. My actual course was almost 700 hours- ten months of school in total. After passing my schooling I took a national exam called the MBLEx, a test monitored by the FSMBT. (Which is terrifying, by the way. I legitimately cried when I passed. Most do not pass the first time around.) The Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing required proof of my schooling and my testing scores, along with proof of residency and I was fingerprinted.

Once licensed and practicing you also need to understand that LMT’s have what’s called a scope of practice. This means we can only do certain things under our license, primarily, massage. We cannot diagnose, or prescribe anything. We are trained in Pathology so that we may identify potential symptoms, but we are under strict laws to only bring up our suspicions and direct you to your primary care physician or a specialist. We can suggest common, well accepted home lifestyle changes/ remedies with the caveat that the client must still check with a doctor before starting anything new. You should never take anything a therapist tells you as gospel truth because even if they have had excessive continuing education or 20 years of experience, we are not doctors.

Now that you know all this, let’s go over the common Mythconceptions we face in media. Because guess what? Massage is a largely misunderstood area and has been misrepresented so often I want to tear my hair out. These are things you should AVOID in your writing. Personally? I don’t care if you’re actually writing a story about a prostitute that wants to hide their illegal activities under the label of a masseuse. Figure something else out. I don’t really care if you’re going for a laugh, or a shocker. It’s an entire industry that you are undermining and actually inhibiting real world people from getting help.

Massage Therapy is purely for pleasure/pampering/rich people. Or, Massage Therapists are sex workers.

This is one that causes the most harm to my blood pressure. While massage is excellent for general mental health, it is also good for almost all areas of health, both as a preventative measure and an aid in recovery. I personally specialize in injury recovery- even more specially in rotator cuff injury. (The rotator is my favorite muscle group.) Others specialize in automotive accidents, surgery rehabilitation, trauma recovery, geriatric care, arthritis, sports, autistic children and adults, and hospital massage(for very ill people). The list is endless, actually. Specializing therapists can work independently or attached to doctors/ physical therapists/psychiatric professionals.

Changes in health care and pricing have made massage much more accessible. Many offices will accept insurance as a form of payment, and more and more insurance companies are paying for it. The industry standard in charging is $1 a minute- and considering the amount of training and the wear on the therapist’s body, this is more than fair. Other businesses will offer specials and memberships aimed at making regular massage more affordable to the average american. Depending on the office/private practice you visit, they will even help you with payment plans for your care. So even if your character is struggling financially, there are always options.

Massage being perceived as a sexual thing is a complicated subject, largely due to abuse of the term in history and cultural views(as mentioned above.) And it’s actually a dangerous one. Many, if not most, therapists are female.(This is beginning to change and it’s really exciting.) It’s not unheard of for a skeevy guy to go in for a ‘happy ending’, get refused by his law-abiding therapist, and attack her. I have not yet experienced this- but friends and coworkers have. Prostitutes masquerading as therapists also enforce this view that a massage is sexual.

In the 1800s, police began to crack down on certain businesses and drove prostitution from these places into massage parlors and bathhouses- leading to the degradation of the term “masseuse”.

So please. Do not use the term masseuse/masseur. As a professional I would say this would be the only time to use this portrayal of sex and massage- historically- and as long as you also make the commentary that there were legitimate practitioners at the time and this was an abuse of the term.

Please, please, please, do NOT use this in a modern setting unless you are prepared to make some very direct commentary on this abuse of the industry.

Aunt Scripty’s Note: Having gotten lectures from the FBI about this, it’s also important to know that a lot of the cheap / fake “massage parlors” you see (the really, REALLY easy to spot kind) are fronts for human trafficking. The “employees” may be victims of forced prostitution, held against their will or manipulated by others stealing their passports, and other atrocious human rights abuses. When you portray massage in your fiction as having “happy endings” or a front for prostitution, you are actually advertising for human rights abusers.

Now that we have that gross lump out of the way, moving on to number 2.

Depictions of a Massage in Advertising and Media.

You’ve all seen the classic image of a beautiful woman working on an equally beautiful human with the client laying face down, head resting on their arms, a gentle smile on their face with a blanket neatly arranged around their midsection, the beautiful therapist standing over them and tenderly dragging their fingertips across their skin, or placing hot stones right on the spine, and they are surrounded by nature and flowers or some shit.

WRONG WRONG WRONG.

I googled ‘massage’ and looked up images. I had to scroll for a good long while before I even found something that ALMOST represented what an actual table looks like, what proper body mechanics look like, what proper draping looks like. It’s vomit worthy. And holy-mother-of-profanities. You would NEVER rest hot stones directly on skin, much less the SPINE.

The last thing I want on my table is flowers and fluffy shit. It’s unhygienic, potentially allergy triggering, and just in my way. Licensed practitioners follow strict guidelines set up by the local Health Department, and follow Universal and Standard Precautions set by the CDC. This prevents transmission of disease.

My actual table is not so glamorous: made of standard wood or steel with a nice firm pad on top, ankle/knee bolster, and a face rest. (The face rest is either not too bad, or HELL, depending on the person. But it’s a necessary evil. That face rest is there for breath-ability when you are completely face down and I’m working on shoulders/neck.) We can dress them up in nice sheets and blankets, table warmers and the like. But they still need to be cleanable.

And you’re definitely not going to look glamorous getting a massage. At times a client is so relaxed they end up drooling and snoring. It’s fantastic. Moaning and groaning is totally normal in a non-weird way. Falling asleep and waking up disoriented is also very normal. Twitching is also normal- although it feels weird. This is a sign of the muscle releasing.

If your character suffers from any anxiety, they may struggle to fall asleep on the table, or relax completely- they may attempt to exert some manner of control over the massage- by holding arms and legs, fidgeting, or they may relieve tension through talking. All of this is also 100% fine, but the therapist will likely try to help them relax in order to allow the massage to be as effective as possible.

Next is the portrayal going the opposite way: guy goes in to get a massage and is practically torn apart and beaten by his therapist in order to get a “deep tissue” massage. This leads into the next Mythconception:

Massage HAS to hurt or leave you sore to be effective.

I’m not going to lie. Some times a massage does hurt. Sometimes it does leave you sore afterwards, technically you get a work out during a massage. Sometimes those muscles and fascia are so bound up and tight that releasing it is Not Fun™. Some muscles just don’t like to be worked. (Hee-llO subscapularis and psoas.) But there ARE ways around it. There are very gentle ways of coaxing a muscle, tendon, or aponeurosis into it’s natural state.

Also. DEEP TISSUE DOES NOT MEAN DEEPER PRESSURE. Repeat after me, children: Deep tissue does not mean deeper pressure. A gentle relaxing massage can have bruising deep pressure(not that I recommend it, and it’s probably not relaxing anymore!) Deep tissue is a specific modality with techniques to accessing deeper muscles under superficial layers of skin, connective tissues and surface muscle. It’s actually a very slow and focused type of massage. You don’t move fast unless warming up the superficial layers. It can utilize deeper pressure, but does not have to.

You might feel sore the next day; absolutely. You might feel a bit like you have the flu. This is common, but not the norm. You can wake up the next day feeling 100% fine. These not fun effects are though to be caused by the muscles getting a work out during the massage- just like the gym. The flu effects are thought by some to be caused by gunk pushed out of the tissue and back into the blood and lymph systems, or by dehydration due to increased circulation. This is why therapists will commonly tell clients to drink a lot of water/hydrating fluid after a massage. One single cause is not nailed down by researchers yet. Regardless, you should never be so sore that you can’t function the next day. That’s called an injury. (There are some applications of this in Physical Therapy, but I am the last person to ask about that.)

Men give the deepest massages/Women only do the ‘fluffy stuff’

Again, this is silly. Take me for example: I am 5 foot zero and weigh 110 pounds, struggle lifting more than 50 pounds, and I have made a big biker guy cry on a dare. I was often the one in school to get the deepest pressure once I learned how to apply myself. (We tiny women actually have a reputation in the industry for this!) It’s not about strength or body type. It’s all about your body mechanics and leverage. I wish I had pictures of me pushing my foot/ standing against a wall to get deeper pressure into a client’s traps. Cuz it looks awesome. Plus, muscling your way through a massage is most likely to injure you as a therapist.

All massage is the same.

Massage is a scientific art form. This translates to there being as many styles of massage as there are therapists and clients. It all is dependent upon how/ what the therapist feels, personal experience, and training bias. Each client will receive a massage tailored to their body.There is no universal technique guaranteed to work on everyone. Every body is a wonderful, unique body. Every body.

I personally combine techniques from Deep Tissue, Structural, and Shiatsu massages. This for me turns to a relaxing massage that targets connective tissue to release longstanding holding patterns or to prevent them from forming after injury. I also specifically target techniques to stimulate the Endocannabinoid system. (Yeah. You read that right. Endocannabinoids.)

You shouldn’t get a massage if you are pregnant/ have cancer.

It used to be believed that massage could terminate pregnancy or spread cancer cells. Recent research shows the opposite to be true. Medical Massage has been shown to decrease unpleasant side effects of pregnancy and cancer treatments. There are different treatments for cancers that would be a contraindication (such as radioactive implants) and other medical conditions during pregnancy that would warrant it as well. There are other medical conditions or medications that require abstinence from massage, but that is in Part Two.

Massage is a new thing made up by hippies/ My character in a High Fantasy World/historical setting wouldn’t experience/need massage.

This is just silly. As we’ve seen in in our history, Massage is ancient, maybe even ingrained into our species. Massage was originally a tool of Shamans and other ancient healers- and very common in Midwifery. The applications of massage are endless in all time periods and worlds.

As for the hippy thing- Yeah. A lot of us are absolutely more 'crunchy granola’ than the rest of our medical world friends. Many believe and receive training in Energy Work including Reiki, accupressure, and other meridian massages. I won’t post any information on it here as this is a medical website and we do not have scientific proof of any of it yet. But it does happen, and at the VERY least has a strong placebo effect, so if you want to include it in your story, go for it. Just put some proper effort into how these things go down.

(BTW, you’ve probably seen some manner of funny human making jokes about their weird experience with an 'auric massage’ and the therapist just floated their hands above them, right? That’s because energy healers do not have the licesce to touch. As far as my current knowledge goes, there is no government regulation regarding energy workers of this class.)

Massage is a magic cure all

This may be originating more from bias within the profession- we all want to think what we do will help humanity live better all the time. Massage has HUGE benefits and many, but can’t fix anything and everything- and it certainly won’t fix you in one session. When I was recovering from a particularly nasty whiplash injury it took 6 months of bi-weekly appointments in conjunction with other therapy to fix me. How exactly this will work out I’ll cover in my second post.

Massage is a woman’s industry

This is mostly true, based only on statistics. It’s believed that only 12% of LMT’s are male. This is changing, slowly. It’s true for some pretty messed up reasons, and those reasons should die. Those who want to hide from some brutal feminist truth should leave now.

NOTE: What I am about to say does NOT apply to those of you who have suffered through any kind of trauma. Your worries and fears are valid and will be treated as such by any competent therapist.

Many people, male or female, simply do not trust male therapists- due to homophobia and gross concepts of masculinity, that being worked on by a male will make them gay/seem gay, or the fear that they will be accosted/fondled, even if they have no history of such a thing happening to them.

I straight up call out anyone who has the homophobic view as fucked up. Sometimes the thought isn’t even consciously homophobic. Casual bigotry is still bigotry. This also shows an underlying belief that all touch is somehow sexual.

So if your character doesn’t want a man touching them because it’s 'gay’, what does that say about them preferring a woman’s touch?

This also highlights the shitty idea that only women can be caretakers/healers/provide a service for tips or so on. It’s a similar situation to how people are surprised at or even mock male nurses, belittle high ranking female anything, or how a woman can’t be a soldier or cop. But that is a debate for another time. Just know it’s fucked up and please don’t perpetuate it, please do everything you can in your stories to change this view.

If you are going to a reputable business there is no worry about any of these things of course- for anyone. Laws, company policies, and personal ethics will prevent any misconduct on the therapist’s part.

Here’s a few things to read up on regarding this: 1, 2, 3: This one is long but one of the best.

It’s a fact of life for massage therapists that at some point in our careers that we will be propositioned, or accused of inappropriate conduct (even if it is only perceived misconduct, or someone angling to get a free service).

This is not to say that misconduct doesn’t happen. Unfortunately it does. If you are including this in your story please frame it as something that is quite not okay on the part of either party, and show that the proper action is taken by authorities. This should never be portrayed as okay ever. (I’m looking at you- “hand of glory at the end of my Thai Massage Dean Winchester.”)

So there’s a number of Mythconceptions busted here. If you want to continue your research, hit up a local practitioner in your area- Many are more than excited to spread their knowledge! If you made it all the way through, congratulations! Your prize is reading Part 2: When your character will be needing/receiving massage, when they won’t or really shouldn’t, how a modern set up will go and how the therapist might be, and possible applications in a non-modern set up!

Hey everyone! Aunt Scripty again.

I hope you enjoyed that post as much as I did. Thanks again to Nana for her expertise and experience, as well as writing-focused perspective!

If you are a healthcare practitioner and want to clear up some myths about YOUR specialty, hit me up and let’s talk!

xoxo, Aunt Scripty

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