Hour 15

Date: May 4th
Patient: Nicholas Reyes

Nick is one of my closest friends on the club and ever since I massaged him for the first time last year, he always asks for a massage.

I massaged him after Auntie Nan so I did feel a bit tired, but I really didn't feel it while I was massaging him. He has a broad back so it took some time for me to go through the regular massage, but I got through it. He paddled that day too so I can feel how tense his back was. By the end of it, he said he felt really good and relaxed.

I don't normally massage boys but I found that a lot of my patients are similar. Since they're all under some sort of stress or they all are active in sports or excessive, everyone so far has knots in their back and fine great relief when I massage their upper arms and shoulders.

Its getting to the end of the year and everyone's stressing out so I just try to calm them down. I know that I'm in a desperate need for a massage because I haven't seen Mng Adring in weeks, but I'll be okay. I'm happy with massaging people and making them feel good for my hours. I do feel the soreness in my hands after but it just reminds me that I've been working and that I just need to keep going.

Hour 14

Date: May 4th, 2013
Patient: Nanene Kainoa Ching Garcia
Body Type: 5'8'' fit

It's been a long time since I've seen our paddling club and it was really great seeing everyone again. When everything was dwindling down, I gave my coach, Auntie Nan, a shoulder and back massage.

I've been massaging people who are close to my age, but this is my first time massaging an older adult. She's been paddling since she was in high school and she's in her forties now (she won't tell me exactly how old she is). She coaches my age group, 19 and under, as well as the adults. She looks over the entire club.

I was just relaxing with my teammates and I pretty much just start massaging people randomly. It's become a habit. At the end of the year party last year, all the girls slept over Auntie Nan's house and I just gave everyone massages. Again, this is before Capstone and before Mang Adring mentoring me. I just did it because I just wanted to help. I ended up massaging about 20 people. So everyone calls is "The Gaea Massage." So now the club knows me as the back rubber and massager.

Anyway, a couple of my teammates were surprised that Auntie Nan never received a "Gaea Massage" before so I gave her one right then and there. She was still wearing her jacket, so I wasn't accustomed to massage people through clothes, but I did my best.

Right when I started she was already impressed. She was impressed at how strong my hands were and she assumed it was because I played volleyball. I clarified and told her that I've been training and practicing hilot for my senior project. Then throughout the massage I explained what hilot was and why I chose to do it.

I found a knot above her right shoulder blade and she tensed up at first, but when I massaged it out, she relaxed. She was really happy that she finally got a "Gaea Massage." Pretty soon, I had a line forming behind her.

She was one of the only people that didn't have any previous experience to compare it to, but she said that it was great and she's looking forward to a full body one.

Even though she's an older adult, again, everyone has the same muscles and the same bones so I just stuck with what I knew and tried to help her out. I can feel my hands getting stronger and I'm getting more comfortable with the body and how to better relieve it.

Hour 13

Date: May 3th, 2013
Patient: Madeline Chong
Body Type: broad, thick

On Friday, I helped my outrigger paddling team prep for our malasada booth at poly fest the next day. My teammate, Maddie Chong slept over and I took that oppurtunity to massage her.

She is a paddler so she has a lot of stress built up around her back and shoulders, and not to mention that she's been stressing on IB and AP exams so I just wanted to relieve some of the stress.

I gave her a shoulder, back, arm, and head massage because her legs are ticklish.

It was interesting to massage her because I haven't massaged her body type before, but everyone has the same muscles and the same body parts so I just focused on what  I knew.

By the end of it, he said she felt "sooooooooooooooooooo much better." I've massaged her before, as in before Capstone and before my training, but she said that this time was "on point." I laughed at the comment, but now that I think about it, I am proud of myself and I just want to keep getting better.

Hour 12

Date: May 3, 2013
Patient: Sarina

When I asked her how she was feeling the next morning, she said she felt a lot looser, a lot more relaxed. That made me relieved and proud because I can really feel myself improving. I gave her another massage and after, I noticed that she was coughing a bit more. Her body was just flushing out all that mucus and phlegm. I remember doing that after getting a massage from Mang Adring when I was sick.

Just that my sister is getting better from my massaging (combined with over the counter medicine) confimed what I was trying to prove in my paper. I'm just really proud that I'm actually succeeding in helping people get better and that I'm improving as well.

Hour 11

Date/Time: May 2, 2013, 10-11PM
Patient: Sarina Salazar

Sarina has gotten really sick. She caught something and now is coughing and sneezing ever half second. I massaged her for my ninth hour.

I gave her the usual standard hilot massage. I used the wintergreen oil Mang Adring gave me.

I focused a lot on her upper back. She didn't have a lot of noteworthy knots, but she a a very big one under her right shoulder blade. My sister is one of my more sensitive patients, even more so because she's sick. She tensed up a lot so I adjusted the massage a little so I didn't press as hard and went slower. It seemed to do the trick because she after I finished, she said her thanks then fell asleep right away. I plan to check how she is feeling in the morning.

This is her second day being sick so hopefully she'll feel better tomorrow. I massaged her after my volleyball practice. Even though I felt pain in my knees and back while I was massaging her, I pushed through it because I'm working hard to even come close to being a manghanghilot and I want to make Mang Adring proud.

Hour 9.5 to 10

Date/Time: April 29, 2013, 1230-1
Patient: Ryan Martin
Body Type: 5'3'', thin, athletic, toned

My friend, Ryan, was really stressed and irritated when he walked up to me during lunch for half an hour, making my hours even again. While he was talking/venting, I took the liberty of giving him a shoulder and back massage. He was getting really heated, but once I started massaging him, he stopped talking mid sentence. As I continued, he paused, then continued talking, but in a calmer voice. When the bell rang, he thanked me and said that hilot on top of talking it out made him feel better.

I know it may seem little, but I was really proud of myself that I was able to calm him down from his initial anger. It made me realize that physical touch can really help someone who's under any stress or discomfort. It's one thing to help someone feel better through a scheduled massage, but helping a friend out is really gratifying.

Hour 9.5

Date/Time: April 26, 2013, 6PM to 7PM
Patient: Allen Abello
Body Type: 6'2'', built, toned

I massaged my cousin, Allen, for my eighth hour. It was the day before my tournament and I promised him I would massage him the last time I visited him in Las Vegas in March. We were in Reno for my tournament and I massaged him after he arrived from Las Vegas. Allen is 24 years old and works as an E.R. scribe as well as a UNLV T.A. He is moving to Florida in the fall to attend medical school.

I did the same massage I've been practicing but it took longer than usual. Instead of an hour it took an hour and a half because he was bigger than any of my hilot patients and he had a lot of knots. There were mostly around his upper back in his around his shoulders and shoulder blades.

Since I had no massage table, we managed with three blankets on top of the carpet floor. I didn't bring the oil either, so I used eucalyptus spearmint body lotion. Although it lacked the tingly feeling that the wintergreen oil has, it served its purpose. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't add any discomfort from friction of dry skin.

I was really excited about this hour because I love my older cousin a lot and I know he's really stressed. I was looking forward to relieving some tension from his daily life. I was already really happy that he came to watch me play but it was a privilege for me to make him feel better.

I was concentrated throughout the massage and I wasn't worried as I was before in previous massage sessions. Once I was done, I was physically exhausted but I was really satisfied. Allen expressed his appreciation and gratitude through a lot of thank yous and compliments. He even said he'd pay me (he never did). He said he felt a lot better and he didn't feel as tight. The next day he said he slept a lot better than he has in a while. That made me really happy.

I knew that massaging him would tire me out but not as much as it actually did. My hands were sore and so was my back. Since I had him on the floor I was crouching a lot more so I put a lot of stress on my shoulders and lower back. It's nothing that some good 'ole fashion stretching won't fix, but it added to my overall soreness after I played. I haven't received a massage myself in a long time and I'm really starting to miss it. Nevertheless, I just need to keep massaging and practicing even if it does tire me out. I'd rather work hard for someone else to feel better than just sit around and do nothing. The fatigue just reminds me that I made someone feel physically and mentally better that day.