Here are some ways you can grip the Thumbby^TM massager:

Flat Grip:

Place the massager on your middle fingers and hold the sides with thumb and pinky. Work the back of your neck, especially the edge of the skull, using the point or slope of the device. This grip can also be used to work the ITB, or for cross-fiber friction.

Heel Grip:

Place the massager on the heel of the hand and wrap thumb and forefingers over it. This grip is good when you need to work deeper, because you can lean onto the massager. This grip is good for circles, back-and-forth rocking, and for "walking" the massager along tight muscles. Use this grip when using oil to slide the Thumbby^TM massager along a muscle.

When using oil or working up against a bone, use your other hand to guide the massager.

Fist Grip:

Place the massager in the center of the palm, and wrap fingers and thumb around it as if you were making a fist. This grip is good for working the point of the massager into a knot or trigger point where you want to maintain a neutral wrist.

Since repetitive stress injuries are a growing problem for bodyworkers, I'd like to tell you about a new product that can help bodyworkers work longer with less fatigue - the Thumbby™ Soft Massage Tool.

The patent-pending Thumbby™ Soft Massage Tool is a rounded cone that's about as soft as a human thumb. It's 2.5" by 3" and weighs 5.5 oz.

Here are some specific ways the Thumbby™ massager benefits bodyworkers for both client and self-care massage:

** The softness of the Thumbby™ massager means the thumb-sized point feels like a thumb to clients. The softness also means therapists can safely use the Thumbby™ massager close to bone because the massager yields (spreads out) when it encounters hard areas in the body.

** The point of the Thumbby™ massager delivers eight times (8x) the force that is applied to the base. This greatly reduces thumb fatigue when doing deep techniques (e.g., trigger points and muscle stripping) or when working on heavily-muscled clients. Therapists can use their body weight with the massager to soften hard muscles, saving wear on their hands.

** The shape of the Thumbby™ massager plus its high coefficient of friction (i.e., it grips skin better than fingers do) offers therapists new techniques and new ways to do familiar techniques (e.g., cross-fiber friction, tapping, vibration). Here are two examples using two Thumbby™ massagers on the erector spinae muscles:

1) Put the shoulders of the massagers (the area above the base that's as wide as the heel of the hand) on the lateral side of each muscle. Use the massagers to push the muscles medially for a cross-fiber stretch. (The same thing can be done by pinching the two muscles between thumbs and fingers but it's very tiring to the hands.)

2) Position the points of the massagers close to the spine opposite each other. Alternately rock them up and down to stretch and mobilize a small section of the spine at a time.

** For self-care of the back, the Thumbby™ massager sticks to smooth walls for pressing points on the back. Any of the techniques described above can also be used for self-care. The shoulder of the massager can be used like the heel of the hand but by pulling towards instead of pushing away.

Q. What is the Thumbby™ massager made of?

A. The Thumbby™ massager is made of solid silicone, the same material used for many household and personal items. Silicone is non-reactive, meaning it can be used with most massage lotions and oils.

Q. How hard is the Thumbby™ massager?

A. The Thumbby™ massager is approximately the same hardness as a human thumb. In use it is often indistinguishable from a thumb by the person receiving the massage.

Q. How big is the Thumbby™ massager?

A. The Thumbby™ massager is about 3 inches across by 2 inches high, and weighs about 5.5 ounces - small enough to fit in a purse, briefcase, backpack, or carryon.

Q. Is it better to use the Thumbby™ massager dry or with oil?

A. The Thumbby™ massager can be used with or without oil. Each is better for certain types of massage.

• When the Thumbby™ massager is used dry, it grips the skin. This is good for deep pressure/trigger point work, cross-fiber massage, and vibration (shaking the muscle).
   
• When the Thumbby™ massager is used with oil, it glides over the skin. This is good for effleurage (broad strokes using the slope or shoulder of the massager), petrissage (circling movements using the point of the massager), and muscle stripping (slow heavy pressure along the length of a muscle). When using oil with a Thumbby™ massager, use your other hand to guide it.

Q. I'm a small person with weak arms and hands; my partner is very strong and needs deep pressure. How do I use the Thumbby™ massager to give deep massage?

A. Thumbby™ massager is designed to let you use body weight instead of strength to achieve deep pressure. Use this method to support your wrist while using body weight:

1. Hold the massager in your non-dominant hand with the point on the knot you want to loosen.
2. Make a loose fist with your dominant hand and place your knuckles on the back of the massager, as shown.
   
    
3. Hold the thumb of the non-dominant hand for stability.
4. Keep your arm and wrist straight and lean into it. Your upper body weight will be transferred to the point of the Thumbby^TM massager.

Q. I have back and shoulder pain, and no one to massage me. Can the Thumbby™ massager help me?

A. Yes. The Thumbby™ massager sticks to smooth surfaces, so you can stick it onto your refrigerator (for example) and be able to press the sore places into it. You can also place the massager inside the back of a chair and lean on it. And if you want deeper pressure, you can lie on a Thumbby™ massager on a bed, a futon, or the floor.

Kneading

Kneading (moving the massager back and forth on a spot or area) is a basic Thumbby™ technique. It is often used for cross-fiber massage. 
 

1. Put the point, slope, shoulder, or base of the Thumbby™ massager on a muscle. 
2. Move the massager back and forth over the spot. If using the point gives too much pressure, use the slope or shoulder of the massager instead.
3. Put the base on a large muscle or tendon and move the massager to gently stretch the tissue.

Circling

Circling can be done either of these ways: Put the point of the massager on a spot and pivot the massager around the stationary point; or put the point on a spot and move the point of the massager on and around the spot. 
 

1. Put the point of the Thumbby™ massager on a muscle. 
2. Move the massager in a circle on and around the spot. If using the point gives too much pressure, use the slope or shoulder of the massager instead.

Walking

Walking uses a rocking motion to press a line of points along a muscle or tendon, 
 

1. Put the point of the Thumbby™ massager on a muscle.
2. Press the massager into the muscle.
3. With a rocking motion, roll off the point and advance the massager a short way to the next spot on the muscle.
4. Roll onto the point of the massager.
5. Repeat steps 2, 3, and 4 until you have massaged the muscle.

Rolling

Use rolling on areas with a thin layer of muscle or tendon over bone where the massage pressure needs to be diffused rather than concentrated.  
 

1. Put the slope of the Thumbby™ massager on the area.
2. Use the shoulder of the massager to roll the slope back and forth across the area.

Since repetitive stress injuries are a growing problem for bodyworkers, I'd like to tell you about a new product that can help bodyworkers work longer with less fatigue - the Thumbby™ Soft Massage Tool. I've been a bodyworker for 35 years and am the co-inventor of the Thumbby™ Soft Massage Tool.

The patent-pending Thumbby™ Soft Massage Tool is a rounded cone that's about as soft as a human thumb. It's 2.5" by 3" and weighs 5.5 oz. It's manufactured in Portland, Oregon.

Here are some specific ways the Thumbby™ massager benefits bodyworkers for both client and self-care massage:

** The softness of the Thumbby™ massager means the thumb-sized point feels like a thumb to clients. The softness also means therapists can safely use the Thumbby™ massager close to bone because the massager yields (spreads out) when it encounters hard areas in the body. (The video on www.thumbby.com shows a Thumbby™ massager used on a piece of silicone that is close to the maximum hardness of human muscle - notice how the point changes the deeper the massager goes.)

** The point of the Thumbby™ massager delivers eight times (8x) the force that is applied to the base. This greatly reduces thumb fatigue when doing deep techniques (e.g., trigger points and muscle stripping) or when working on heavily-muscled clients. Therapists can use their body weight with the massager to soften hard muscles, saving wear on their hands.

** The shape of the Thumbby™ massager plus its high coefficient of friction (i.e., it grips skin better than fingers do) offers therapists new techniques and new ways to do familiar techniques (e.g., cross-fiber friction, tapping, vibration). Here are two examples using two Thumbby™ massagers on the erector spinae muscles:

1) Put the shoulders of the massagers (the area above the base that's as wide as the heel of the hand) on the lateral side of each muscle. Use the massagers to push the muscles medially for a cross-fiber stretch. (The same thing can be done by pinching the two muscles between thumbs and fingers but it's very tiring to the hands.)

2) Position the points of the massagers close to the spine opposite each other. Alternately rock them up and down to stretch and mobilize a small section of the spine at a time.

** For self-care of the back, the Thumbby™ massager sticks to smooth walls for pressing points on the back. Any of the techniques described above can also be used for self-care. The shoulder of the massager can be used like the heel of the hand but by pulling towards instead of pushing away.

Please share this information with bodyworkers and students whom you think would be interested. It will help many thumbs last longer.