The chair is not a jungle gym.

[TheSoyEatsYou]

Anyone else had this happen?I did some freebie 5-minute chair massages at one of the cosmetics counters at a local mall last weekend; a friend of mine is the manager there. It was a fun thing to do, and worked quite well.However, being in a mall, there's a lot of foot traffic going by, and 3 or 4 times people would be walking past with small children, and the children would immediately take to the massage chair as though it were a jungle gym (needless to say no one was sitting in it at the time). I was sitting down near the chair and would reach out to grab the chair and hold it steady -- the floor was that slick marble and I certainly did not want it tipping over, someone getting hurt, and ending up with a lawsuit on my hands.The thing that really burns me is that the parents would just say "No, no sweetie, come on, let's go..." and no one actually picked their child up off the chair to carry them away. I was rather irritated, and all I could find myself saying, as I held the chair, was "please be careful". Duh. At one point an adult woman plunked herself down in the chair -- backwards, I might add -- without asking any permission or even acknowledging me. What should I have said, without being snotty? 'Cause I can do that.... but I didn't want any beligerent parents on my case. Maybe I'm overly protective of my chair, but it is an expensive piece of equipment, safety issues notwithstanding.Has anyone else experienced this with their chairs out in public? How did you handle it?Andrea

 

[rocknrolltrekkie]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

Haven't had the same experience, but have offered chair massage in our front lot while the Gilbert Days parade went by. What about a laminated sign that you could put on the seat, saying get off! (no, I'm kidding). Maybe something like "Please ask Therapist how to SAFELY use this equipment" ??? I'm not sure if that would discourage the kids though. Its pretty amazing what parents don't prevent!How was the exposure & did you get some nice results from your efforts?Hoping so...Jill/Sagetherapist

 

[lena]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

i did have one client bring her 3 yr old son into the shop while her hubby got a massage (she wanted to wait for him) the kid climbed on the chair, threw stuff while i was in the tx room (we could hear it inside) at one point he asked me to tell her to take the kid home and hed walk. she wanted to wait. HEAVY SIGH. now, i have a kid myself, so im not anti-child...BUT...the parents need to be given a good talking to sometimes!!

 

[lil_tiger]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

I have a four-year-old.  I can see both sides to this issue.  Katykangaroo

 

[LC850]

Thanks for your comments -- I think I'll just take each event as it comes, but I still think it's rather rude behavior.Anyway, Jill/Sagetherapist: thanks for asking! They were kind enough to offer me the use of some drawing entry forms for a free 30-minute massage, so I have a few new names for my mailing list, and who knows? Maybe a few new clients -- I'm optimistic.  Have a great day --Andrea

 

[shadow95340]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

Gday, Just a quick suggestion- maybe you could drape a sheet or towel half over the chair while no one is on it. By half covering it you should show customers that it's a massage chair and it would also,(hopefully),stop children from climbing on it.I hope this helps.Matt

 

[Law Man]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

Luckily I've never been through that experience but I do like the stuffed animal idea.

 

[trenardy]

The chair is not a jungle gym.

I have a regular gig twice a week at a local healthfood store doing seated massage.I try and create a 'sacred' space around the chair. I have a small table where I have my business cards, sign, sign-up sheet etc. and angle it so that as people walk by, they almost have to walk around the chair.I also place a soothing colored mat underneath which the chair will not slip on. People rarely enter the area unless they are wanting to be worked on. Good Luck!!

 

[Bride2be]

Draping is good advice, and I love a teddy bear, positioned as correctly as possible to give people a clue how to sit. People may seem rude, but it can still be an opportunity when any body plops on your chair. I would have laughed in a way that showed I appreciated her fatigue, and in the most gracious way I could manage, showed the woman the correct way to sit on the chair. I would have given her a massage. Whether she really appreciated it or not, and I'm sure she would have! ...she would have learned what the chair was for. And massaging a body always stirs the interest of passers-by...especially exhausted bodies moaning in profound appreciation. With children, I'd drape over, or fold up my massage chair when I had to work in another room. There really is a liability involved, to child and to equipment if each is left unattended. Alas, we are not living in a world where we can depend on Mom or Dad to always intervene.If I'm standing there with my empty chair, and some munchkin jumps on the seat. I'd look at Mom first, for a response, and then treat junior as a little adult. "Would you like me to show you how to sit on the chair, and massage your shoulders a little bit?" If Mom thought no, problem solved. She'll take the child in hand and move on quickly.  If she was amused, or interested, and thought you were very sweet to give her little one kind attention, I would give the child a light massage while she watched. Time limit? I'd say "There, how did that feel?" with a big smile and help the child off the chair. It's all fun! And a child is still a body in the chair. Passers-by may watch with  interest. If you are obviously gentle, and can make a child feel comfortable and very special, they should have no doubt that you can do the same for them.

 

[sissy]

I've had that happen with both a chair, and with my table at onsite events. A friend and I were doing sports massage for a rodeo event, and we went to the restroom together; when we returned to the tables, there were kids WALKING on them! At the next event, we posted signs "Ask us! You can get a massage!" and "We don't play on your work equipment, please don't play on ours"(with a giant smiley face) some of the parents got a real kick out of that one, and it broke the ice, and more people were interested in what we were doing. We answered TONS of questions.

 

[diekery]

At the next event, we posted signs "Ask us! You can get a massage!" and "We don't play on your work equipment, please don't play on ours"(with a giant smiley face) some of the parents got a real kick out of that one, and it broke the ice, and more people were interested in what we were doing. We answered TONS of questions.

great idea!