2.0
Verified
Debbie McRobie - Unprofessional and Unsafe practitioner.
I had a very disappointing experience with Deb. I am sorry to say that as she is a very warm, engaging and thoughtful person to encounter. However, my experience with her as a clinician and a facilitator was unsatisfying, disorganised, confusing and unsafe.
From the beginning there was some confusion regarding the starting time of the retreat. She was also a little late in arriving to us. She was kind and tried to explain the mix-up. At this stage it was easy to let it go and get on with the retreat.
As the morning progressed, however, it became very clear to me that she was very un-centred and was often speaking in tangents and wandering off topic quite often. There were 7 of us initially in the class- and most of the students had never even placed their hands on a body to give a massage – let alone a Lomi Lomi style which comes with such deep and potent cultural heritage.
There were a few instances that then became red flags for me. Although I’m sure Deb has a very sweet and nurturing heart, I struggled to find authenticity in her connection to Hawaii, the spirit and meaning of aloha ...but most especially in being consistent in the practice and importance of creating/maintaining a circle of trust amongst a newly gathered circle of students.
We were told that the instruction would be for an 'intuitive' massage. And as such, it meant that one was to read into their feelings (and the instructions of our guides) to show us where to next give attention to the client's body. It was actively stated that there was no need to feel you had to give equal attention to 'sections' of the body - and that by doing so would allow the client to enter a desirable, relaxed and blissful state. Essentially, she promoted there was no need to feel you needed to have a plan. However, this only served to create confusion with some participants who had never given a massage treatment and felt that it might be necessary to have a fundamental plan in order that they not only give caring touch to all parts of the body, but to do so in a timely manner to fit it into the timeframe.
She said that there did exist a video that does given guidance and instruction for a full/all-over planned technique, but that she preferred that we did not see that - but that it would be made available to the students post-workshop. (This seems counter-intuitive as it is only through having a fundamental plan in one's mind can one feel confident to deviate and tailor a treatment for a client. At the very least, for new students, it would seem obvious to show them a basic structure so they know how that feels and gain skills in addressing all areas of the body)
We were told of the importance to invoke our guides/ancestors/feelings and to (vocally) call in their love and direction. It was impressed how important this was to do prior to beginning the treatment. All well and good.
However, when she did have a volunteer from our group be her 'client' for the purposes of demonstrating, she did some energy clearing (completely acceptable and appropriate) but then completely skipped over the prayer and began the massage. When questioned about the prayer from one of the students, she simply stated that she had done this privately in her heart - seemingly giving mixed signals as to just how important this is.
Continuing on with the demonstration, the client/student was prone and naked (but with privates very conscientiously covered) while Deb began demonstrating various strokes and techniques. These were very general and not done in any obvious planned order (as one would expect a teacher guiding students on fundamentals). At one point, she then stopped to give us a lesson/discourse on living the life of 'Aloha' - that approaching life with kindness and is transformative. Again, completely appropriate. However, the lesson then evolved into a metaphor of managing unruly children and how to get them to behave. It was a lengthy explanation - easily 2-4 minutes. All the while, the student/client is lying there on the table - naked and seemingly forgotten. It was later in the day and cooling down (2-4 minutes is a long time while unclothed and covered in oil). I recalled thinking that it was disrespectful for her to be lying there - bordering on undignified with no attention being paid to her. When Deb did finish a very convoluted explanation of Aloha, she then did think to ask the student how she was - to which she rightly replied she was cold.
Cold and left on the table while Deb trailed off unwittingly with a story that should have been told at another time.
It was just not respectful nor was it being present to what was going on.
At the end of the first day – after numerous instances of her going off topic and more than once needing to be redirected to topic– I found myself alone in the nearby storeroom helping her gather massage tables to replace the 'too-small' and inappropriate tables that were initially set up.
And I took that moment to ask her if everything was okay (because I was actually open to hearing that perhaps she was having a situational crisis outside of the teaching, etc….)
Her response to me was a question – “Why? What are you picking up on?“
There was a curious but almost adversarial tone to her voice – and I thought to myself “Well, now that you’ve asked…”
I essentially told her of my concerns – of how I was feeling for the new students and the scattered presentation – of the fleeting reverence to the power of the modality – and the lack of fundamental structure. I did say it with care and told her that I was looking forward to the next day. I impressed that I felt sure that once we are all rested that a full day of body work together would be good (I was trying to make myself believe that). We parted and things felt fine.
However – the next morning did not prove to be better. In fact once she was demonstrating the massage to the class, she actually did something that was medically unsafe – as in obviously very unsafe. She had her assistant prone on the table to demonstrate. She had positioned both arms hanging down in order to show how to stroke in a downward direction towards the floor. She repositioned her right arm but left her left arm dangling. Deb then continued with her notion that her 'intuitive' approach meant that she was being guided to work elsewhere on the body. All the while leaving the left arm hanging. After some time, se di return to the left side and, surprised, announced that the client's arm had turned blue. There was a quick repositioning of the arm onto the table and some quick arm rubbing - followed by a statement again about the arm's colour and how one can quickly rub it and get it back to it's normal pink colour. She then actually said that there are instances where the process of blocking circulation is ‘good for you’.
This is simply not true. In fact, the opposite is true.
irreversible tissue damage from limb ischemia can begin after only a few minutes. The exact time depends on various factors, but acute limb ischemia is a serious vascular emergency where every minute makes a significant difference in the outcome. As a medical professional myself, absent-mindedly reducing/blocking blood flow to a client/patient is never warranted. And certainly not in a massage treatment that is not medically overseen or regulated.
I saw red.
This coupled with everything else made it clear to me that I could not stay with the training. I spent the rest of the first session devising my exit plan at the morning tea break.
I took her aside and bluntly said I had made the decision to leave the training. I was very clear that the breaking point for me was when she had obviously left the clients arm turning blue with lack of circulation. And how she brushed that away as being normal or okay . I told her that that is not okay and that it was giving a very misleading impression to people starting out giving massage treatments.
I was clear – I was not angry – I told her that I was requesting a $300 refund. (the training itself was $800.) I told her I respected all of the efforts that she had made to put the training together – and I honoured her for how difficult it would probably be for her to go back into the group with me exiting so suddenly. But that I could not 'unsee or unhear' the things that had become apparent.
She said she’d need some time to consider my offer but has now rebutted stating her cancellation policy and no refunds to be giving once the training has begun.
I find this stubborn and ungracious. My request for a meagre refund would have gone a long way in displaying kindness and goodwill considering the red flags I witnessed. I did not reach out to any of the other participants to side with me and handled by exit with pleasant discretion.
I am disappointed, but resolute on my perspectives as a body worker and health professional. I welcome any discussion or questions to clarify my review and account.
R. Arthur - Registered Nurse
From the beginning there was some confusion regarding the starting time of the retreat. She was also a little late in arriving to us. She was kind and tried to explain the mix-up. At this stage it was easy to let it go and get on with the retreat.
As the morning progressed, however, it became very clear to me that she was very un-centred and was often speaking in tangents and wandering off topic quite often. There were 7 of us initially in the class- and most of the students had never even placed their hands on a body to give a massage – let alone a Lomi Lomi style which comes with such deep and potent cultural heritage.
There were a few instances that then became red flags for me. Although I’m sure Deb has a very sweet and nurturing heart, I struggled to find authenticity in her connection to Hawaii, the spirit and meaning of aloha ...but most especially in being consistent in the practice and importance of creating/maintaining a circle of trust amongst a newly gathered circle of students.
We were told that the instruction would be for an 'intuitive' massage. And as such, it meant that one was to read into their feelings (and the instructions of our guides) to show us where to next give attention to the client's body. It was actively stated that there was no need to feel you had to give equal attention to 'sections' of the body - and that by doing so would allow the client to enter a desirable, relaxed and blissful state. Essentially, she promoted there was no need to feel you needed to have a plan. However, this only served to create confusion with some participants who had never given a massage treatment and felt that it might be necessary to have a fundamental plan in order that they not only give caring touch to all parts of the body, but to do so in a timely manner to fit it into the timeframe.
She said that there did exist a video that does given guidance and instruction for a full/all-over planned technique, but that she preferred that we did not see that - but that it would be made available to the students post-workshop. (This seems counter-intuitive as it is only through having a fundamental plan in one's mind can one feel confident to deviate and tailor a treatment for a client. At the very least, for new students, it would seem obvious to show them a basic structure so they know how that feels and gain skills in addressing all areas of the body)
We were told of the importance to invoke our guides/ancestors/feelings and to (vocally) call in their love and direction. It was impressed how important this was to do prior to beginning the treatment. All well and good.
However, when she did have a volunteer from our group be her 'client' for the purposes of demonstrating, she did some energy clearing (completely acceptable and appropriate) but then completely skipped over the prayer and began the massage. When questioned about the prayer from one of the students, she simply stated that she had done this privately in her heart - seemingly giving mixed signals as to just how important this is.
Continuing on with the demonstration, the client/student was prone and naked (but with privates very conscientiously covered) while Deb began demonstrating various strokes and techniques. These were very general and not done in any obvious planned order (as one would expect a teacher guiding students on fundamentals). At one point, she then stopped to give us a lesson/discourse on living the life of 'Aloha' - that approaching life with kindness and is transformative. Again, completely appropriate. However, the lesson then evolved into a metaphor of managing unruly children and how to get them to behave. It was a lengthy explanation - easily 2-4 minutes. All the while, the student/client is lying there on the table - naked and seemingly forgotten. It was later in the day and cooling down (2-4 minutes is a long time while unclothed and covered in oil). I recalled thinking that it was disrespectful for her to be lying there - bordering on undignified with no attention being paid to her. When Deb did finish a very convoluted explanation of Aloha, she then did think to ask the student how she was - to which she rightly replied she was cold.
Cold and left on the table while Deb trailed off unwittingly with a story that should have been told at another time.
It was just not respectful nor was it being present to what was going on.
At the end of the first day – after numerous instances of her going off topic and more than once needing to be redirected to topic– I found myself alone in the nearby storeroom helping her gather massage tables to replace the 'too-small' and inappropriate tables that were initially set up.
And I took that moment to ask her if everything was okay (because I was actually open to hearing that perhaps she was having a situational crisis outside of the teaching, etc….)
Her response to me was a question – “Why? What are you picking up on?“
There was a curious but almost adversarial tone to her voice – and I thought to myself “Well, now that you’ve asked…”
I essentially told her of my concerns – of how I was feeling for the new students and the scattered presentation – of the fleeting reverence to the power of the modality – and the lack of fundamental structure. I did say it with care and told her that I was looking forward to the next day. I impressed that I felt sure that once we are all rested that a full day of body work together would be good (I was trying to make myself believe that). We parted and things felt fine.
However – the next morning did not prove to be better. In fact once she was demonstrating the massage to the class, she actually did something that was medically unsafe – as in obviously very unsafe. She had her assistant prone on the table to demonstrate. She had positioned both arms hanging down in order to show how to stroke in a downward direction towards the floor. She repositioned her right arm but left her left arm dangling. Deb then continued with her notion that her 'intuitive' approach meant that she was being guided to work elsewhere on the body. All the while leaving the left arm hanging. After some time, se di return to the left side and, surprised, announced that the client's arm had turned blue. There was a quick repositioning of the arm onto the table and some quick arm rubbing - followed by a statement again about the arm's colour and how one can quickly rub it and get it back to it's normal pink colour. She then actually said that there are instances where the process of blocking circulation is ‘good for you’.
This is simply not true. In fact, the opposite is true.
irreversible tissue damage from limb ischemia can begin after only a few minutes. The exact time depends on various factors, but acute limb ischemia is a serious vascular emergency where every minute makes a significant difference in the outcome. As a medical professional myself, absent-mindedly reducing/blocking blood flow to a client/patient is never warranted. And certainly not in a massage treatment that is not medically overseen or regulated.
I saw red.
This coupled with everything else made it clear to me that I could not stay with the training. I spent the rest of the first session devising my exit plan at the morning tea break.
I took her aside and bluntly said I had made the decision to leave the training. I was very clear that the breaking point for me was when she had obviously left the clients arm turning blue with lack of circulation. And how she brushed that away as being normal or okay . I told her that that is not okay and that it was giving a very misleading impression to people starting out giving massage treatments.
I was clear – I was not angry – I told her that I was requesting a $300 refund. (the training itself was $800.) I told her I respected all of the efforts that she had made to put the training together – and I honoured her for how difficult it would probably be for her to go back into the group with me exiting so suddenly. But that I could not 'unsee or unhear' the things that had become apparent.
She said she’d need some time to consider my offer but has now rebutted stating her cancellation policy and no refunds to be giving once the training has begun.
I find this stubborn and ungracious. My request for a meagre refund would have gone a long way in displaying kindness and goodwill considering the red flags I witnessed. I did not reach out to any of the other participants to side with me and handled by exit with pleasant discretion.
I am disappointed, but resolute on my perspectives as a body worker and health professional. I welcome any discussion or questions to clarify my review and account.
R. Arthur - Registered Nurse
