Thai Massage Loses Its Charm Behind Masks, Social Distancing

[lensta]

3 hours ago, wealthychef said:

I feel like this is just people uncomfortable to accept the strange new normal.  Do you really spend much time in your massage looking at the face of the person massaging you?  I agree it's nice to see someone's smile, but it does not bother me at all if they wear a mask, in fact it's reassuring.  Gloves would suck.  The lady in the photo is not wearing gloves as she massages.  I don't think that's a thing is it?  

There is no "New Normal" Something is either normal or it's not. End of.

[Rutho]

3 hours ago, SuwadeeS said:

First of all, the so called "new normal", I hate it, many people hate it.

Wearing a mask unnatural !!!!!

I like to see the face of people, I like to see the expression when talking to them.

 

For all the discomfort and disadvantage, somebody has to be responsible.

As a matter of fact, its China with all the lies and disinformation.

Why everybody here ignores it?? 

Massage is not fun anymore.

We all have to pay a price because of China.

I agree 100% with you, unfortantely China is very powerfull and the real Boss in Asia.

[wealthychef]

30 minutes ago, lensta said:

There is no "New Normal" Something is either normal or it's not. End of.

 

Nothing is more productive than arguing about definitions on the internet.  LOL

[NoshowJones]

1 hour ago, toofarnorth said:

Oh dear . At 73 years old I am supposed to do sports 5 times a week , oh and look Trump has appeared again in this ' Thai massage loses its charm '.

I hope I'm still riding my bike twice a day five days a week when I'm 73. I don't use the local

exercise park anymore as when the machines break, they do not get fixed.

[Mike k]

6 hours ago, mberbae said:

We should all patronize our local massage shop. These ladies have

been out of work for a long time.

I do forget the mask and other protective clothing after a very nice massage only 1 piece of protection used

[visacrack]

2 hours ago, tifino said:

strange... I had the impression that the Immune system instead goes into Overdrive - with the signs from the huge inflammation and fluid flooding

It does, but that doesn't necessarily prove the statement wrong: It just 'burns itself out trying to get through all that fat' (my wording - that was the image I took away from reading the article). Or think of a hamster in his wheel: He can also be in overdrive, and without really getting anywhere. 

 

I read the article twice, this statement even more often, and I am certain that this was the gist of what the scientists quoted were saying. But I didn't save it, it would take me hours to find it (if at all), thus your choice is to take take it or leave it... 

 

Mind you, it seems people have a tendency to find the funniest excuses when it would come to deal with their various degrees of personal obesity - Boris Johnson would be a good example, who keeps showing the sheeple his in-office pushups ('Look how fit for office I am'), while he locks out the cameraman during his excessive burger & co meals. He's been put on notice months ago, so if he had taken any real consequences of the new knowledge, we should see it by now. But he's probably just another epitome of the bungling that british politics is so typical for these days (not that other countries were decisively better)  .)

 

[visacrack]

1 hour ago, toofarnorth said:

Oh dear . At 73 years old I am supposed to do sports 5 times a week , oh and look Trump has appeared again in this ' Thai massage loses its charm '.

Not quite sure what to do with this. Would you feel addressed when you read 'Mind you, it seems people have a tendency to find the funniest excuses when it would come to deal with their various degrees of personal obesity'? Ok, then scroll down a bit for a response I've just given someone else - after waiting til it has passed through 'moderation'  .)

[outsider]

As an amateur runner, I find Thai foot massage to be helpful with recovery. I seldom chat with the masseuses beyond initial pleasantries, not out of cockiness, but mainly because I like to nap while the masseuse does her job. Also allows her to focus on what she does. So she can hide behind a Darth Vader mask if she wants - it changes nothing for me. And since I take a nap, it doesn't matter if the person next to me is a friend or not, so personally I do welcome the extra in-between space now! However, if this goes on, it probably means the operators may need to raise prices to account for the lower turnover etc. A fair increase, rather than a Thai-style 400% spike, is acceptable, in my opinion. Don't ask me what is a 'fair' increment. I am not an operator so I do not know their P&L. Something deemed 'fair' by general consensus, perhaps? Tourists (if any) looking for happy-endings may beg to differ, of course LOL

[DualSportBiker]

Let's start with some basics. Genetic cross-over from animals to humans is a given; it happens. Given enough time and opportunity (accumulated time exposed to animals), moves closer to a certainty. That it happened in China does not make China responsible. The authorities in China delayed the flow of information for sure; they screwed up. However, the chances that they could have curtailed its spread and kept the outbreak in China is small, very small. Blaming China for the disease is ridiculous, blaming their system for failure to address the issue is appropriate, but a global outbreak was inevitable as it took weeks to discover carriers could be asymptomatic.

 

Blaming China for the lack of fun having a massage with a masseuse in a mask is pathetic on two counts. China can't really be blamed and genuine massages are not impacted by the wearing of a mask.

 

Now for the conspiracy theories. Covid-19 is not the flu. No doctor, virologist, infectious disease expert, or immunologist has said so. Politicians and armchair 'researchers' aren't qualified to comment. The great sadness of the internet is the false belief that having the capacity to state an opinion means the opinion has some validity. Most don't.

 

It will take months before the true transmission characteristics of Covid-19 are understood. Those will only be understood after the collaborative work of hundreds of learned medical professionals - not a bunch of self-proclaimed genius armchair researchers griping that their liberties are being stolen by some global conspiracy to rebrand a common flu as a dangerous pandemic. If doing nothing for months and allowing 130,000 to die in the US is not a clear sign that such thoughts are patently wrong, perhaps you'd be better off looking for aliens, Elvis and Hitler partying on the moon in broad daylight. I know another genius who has the coordinates if you're interested...

 

During a two hour massage I spend over an hour face down or on my side. Why do I need to see the masseuse's face? When some muppet talks too much, either to the masseuse or on the phone, most decent shops will ask them to shut up so all the other customers can relax. If you want more from your massage, fine. That is your choice. Don't conflate a sub-standard massage and a happy-ending with a real massage.

 

4 hours ago, SuwadeeS said:

First of all, the so called "new normal", I hate it, many people hate it.

Wearing a mask unnatural !!!!!

I like to see the face of people, I like to see the expression when talking to them.

 

For all the discomfort and disadvantage, somebody has to be responsible.

As a matter of fact, its China with all the lies and disinformation.

Why everybody here ignores it?? 

Massage is not fun anymore.

We all have to pay a price because of China.

2 hours ago, visacrack said:

We know this saying of some politicians: Covid is just like a flu. And after following covid developments for months, I'm convinced they're right - provided those affected do not suffer from excessive body fat - or possibly even lifestyle diseases due to it, like diabetes or high blood pressure. 

 

I've read that bodyfat excess prevents the immune system from working properly, in a sense that its agents are being 'prevented to really get there fast to join the action' (or something in that sense). Another aspect was that while eating 'traditionally', we inflict more constant damage on the body's cells than most of us are aware of - and thereby, we keep the immune system busy trying to repair the cells affected, while its full capacity would be needed to fight off an aggression like covid (or flu, for that matter).

 

How do we avoid excessive body fat - in the first place, or reduce it to a healthy level once it's there? Simple: Eat the right diet, and do sufficient sport. The internet told me that a low-carb diet will probably be effective, and my personal experience shows that this is true. That we should do sports five times a week, half an hour each, is probably known - swimming is useful, if you swim with an effort (thus have a raised heartbeat, pulse and breath frequency).

 

If you now ask yourself if all these important covid-related measures that leaders are taking, and on a global basis, are headed in the wrong direction (because they fail to address the true cause), not to mention the untold damage they keep on inflicting on the economy, then there is some evidence that you are right. But due to the classic ignorance of those in power, plus herd effects (and it's not 'herd immunity'), and undue economic considerations (like protecting McDo & co), it is hard to imagine that we will begin to see the light anytime soon. Stock up on masks, and keep your TV in good working order (or what else you spend your homeoffice time with). 

 

PS: Ironically, some of the 'flu' political protagonistas (Trump or Bolsonaro come to mind) are not exactly delgado themselves...

 

 

 

2 hours ago, GeniusFarang said:

What’s sad about this is the government will continue to take freedoms and rights away and turn us into lab rats where we will need to wear masks wherever we go, force businesses to install expensive useless medical equipment, walk through unvetted chemicals, get a vaccine that will be useless (flu vaccine is around but yet we have 65k deaths a year anyways) and no one questions what’s in the vaccine even though is runs through our veins DURRR. They won’t stop until they destroy business and individual freedoms all in the guise of “your safety”. 
 

It’s easy to see that all this is big corporations stepping in to take over and destroy their competition (the small business). Big corps have the funding and the likes of Bill Gates, Zuckerberg, Bezos, Walton’s etc begins their push. When you have that much power, you need more. 
 

They use words like “new normal” and “Covid era” because the want to program the idiots into thinking it’s normal to not have human contact and wear a mask and be afraid of your shadow. It works on many idiots (many commenters I have seen in Thai visa actually) and the low IQ. 
 

If people are actually scared of a Covid flu over Tuberculosis which has killed over 1.5 million last year (without the help of extra hospital funding and lenient CDC guidelines like “guessing the cause of death”) then we have bigger problems heading our way when it comes to government overreach. 
 

The really sad part of this, is that so many who are driven by fear and scared of their own shadows don’t have the ability or basic intelligence to research on their own so they just accept the airplane of pea soup fed by the government and swallow big like they are told.

 

Moral of the story, don’t be an ignorant “Maskhole”.

 

[visacrack]

31 minutes ago, DualSportBiker said:

 

... During a two hour massage I spend over an hour face down or on my side. Why do I need to see the masseuse's face? When some muppet talks too much, either to the masseuse or on the phone, most decent shops will ask them to shut up so all the other customers can relax. If you want more from your massage, fine. That is your choice. Don't conflate a sub-standard massage and a happy-ending with a real massage.

 

 

 

 

Why did you quote me? You said a lot there, much of what seems right, but failed to address the point made in my post, which appears to be crucial: ie the role that excessive bodyfat plays in each individual development of this disease, and what every obese person can and should do to become slim again. 

[KMartinHandyman]

1 hour ago, lensta said:

There is no "New Normal" Something is either normal or it's not. End of.

So what happened to people riding around on a brontosaurus’s back? These car thingy’s are just a temporary abnormality? End of what? Your depth of critical thinking? 

[ryandb]

3 hours ago, visacrack said:

We know this saying of some politicians: Covid is just like a flu. And after following covid developments for months, I'm convinced they're right - provided those affected do not suffer from excessive body fat - or possibly even lifestyle diseases due to it, like diabetes or high blood pressure. 

 

I've read that bodyfat excess prevents the immune system from working properly, in a sense that its agents are being 'prevented to really get there fast to join the action' (or something in that sense). Another aspect was that while eating 'traditionally', we inflict more constant damage on the body's cells than most of us are aware of - and thereby, we keep the immune system busy trying to repair the cells affected, while its full capacity would be needed to fight off an aggression like covid (or flu, for that matter).

 

How do we avoid excessive body fat - in the first place, or reduce it to a healthy level once it's there? Simple: Eat the right diet, and do sufficient sport. The internet told me that a low-carb diet will probably be effective, and my personal experience shows that this is true. That we should do sports five times a week, half an hour each, is probably known - swimming is useful, if you swim with an effort (thus have a raised heartbeat, pulse and breath frequency).

 

If you now ask yourself if all these important covid-related measures that leaders are taking, and on a global basis, are headed in the wrong direction (because they fail to address the true cause), not to mention the untold damage they keep on inflicting on the economy, then there is some evidence that you are right. But due to the classic ignorance of those in power, plus herd effects (and it's not 'herd immunity'), and undue economic considerations (like protecting McDo & co), it is hard to imagine that we will begin to see the light anytime soon. Stock up on masks, and keep your TV in good working order (or what else you spend your homeoffice time with). 

 

PS: Ironically, some of the 'flu' political protagonistas (Trump or Bolsonaro come to mind) are not exactly delgado themselves...

 

low carb diet is fine but it doesn't make a difference if you eat more calories than you burn off, Diets are useless the only thing people need to know is track your calories (my fitness app is good) work out roughly what you burn in a day and eat less than that if you need to lose weight and eat roughly the same to maintain. Weigh yourself each day or every other and if you gain then your calorie burn is lower than expected so reduce calories again. My rule is dont drink your calories water, soda water and black coffee

[Nielsen]

3 hours ago, visacrack said:

We know this saying of some politicians: Covid is just like a flu. And after following covid developments for months, I'm convinced they're right - provided those affected do not suffer from excessive body fat - or possibly even lifestyle diseases due to it, like diabetes or high blood pressure. 

 

I've read that bodyfat excess prevents the immune system from working properly, in a sense that its agents are being 'prevented to really get there fast to join the action' (or something in that sense). Another aspect was that while eating 'traditionally', we inflict more constant damage on the body's cells than most of us are aware of - and thereby, we keep the immune system busy trying to repair the cells affected, while its full capacity would be needed to fight off an aggression like covid (or flu, for that matter).

 

How do we avoid excessive body fat - in the first place, or reduce it to a healthy level once it's there? Simple: Eat the right diet, and do sufficient sport. The internet told me that a low-carb diet will probably be effective, and my personal experience shows that this is true. That we should do sports five times a week, half an hour each, is probably known - swimming is useful, if you swim with an effort (thus have a raised heartbeat, pulse and breath frequency).

 

If you now ask yourself if all these important covid-related measures that leaders are taking, and on a global basis, are headed in the wrong direction (because they fail to address the true cause), not to mention the untold damage they keep on inflicting on the economy, then there is some evidence that you are right. But due to the classic ignorance of those in power, plus herd effects (and it's not 'herd immunity'), and undue economic considerations (like protecting McDo & co), it is hard to imagine that we will begin to see the light anytime soon. Stock up on masks, and keep your TV in good working order (or what else you spend your homeoffice time with). 

 

PS: Ironically, some of the 'flu' political protagonistas (Trump or Bolsonaro come to mind) are not exactly delgado themselves...

 

Spot on. Well put.

[Eindhoven]

1 hour ago, outsider said:

As an amateur runner, I find Thai foot massage to be helpful with recovery. I seldom chat with the masseuses beyond initial pleasantries, not out of cockiness, but mainly because I like to nap while the masseuse does her job. Also allows her to focus on what she does. So she can hide behind a Darth Vader mask if she wants - it changes nothing for me. And since I take a nap, it doesn't matter if the person next to me is a friend or not, so personally I do welcome the extra in-between space now! However, if this goes on, it probably means the operators may need to raise prices to account for the lower turnover etc. A fair increase, rather than a Thai-style 400% spike, is acceptable, in my opinion. Don't ask me what is a 'fair' increment. I am not an operator so I do not know their P&L. Something deemed 'fair' by general consensus, perhaps? Tourists (if any) looking for happy-endings may beg to differ, of course LOL

 

Indeed, I don't know why all the fuss. I have no issue with the general increase in personal hygiene.

Her wearing a mask doesn't affect my perception of the massage.

In fact, I went for a massage just yesterday. I dislike sitting in cold air-con rooms with others in close proximity anyway. So finding an open air place that charged a little more is right up my street. 250 baht for a foot massage, with no air-con, just open air and cooling fans, a diligent check-in system with alcohol gel provided, mask wearing masseuses who don't talk all the way through the massage....

Seems an improvement to me.

[rtco]

5 hours ago, Matzzon said:

What is not same? Are you talking about massage, or something else?

Massage ... no h/e

[Matzzon]

12 minutes ago, rtco said:

Massage ... no h/e

Just another delusional comment in the line of many.

[RocketDog]

10 hours ago, mr mr said:

maybe the customers are not happy with the end result ? 

Maybe, but latex is a turn-on for some folks! ????

[DualSportBiker]

1 hour ago, visacrack said:

Why did you quote me? You said a lot there, much of what seems right, but failed to address the point made in my post, which appears to be crucial: ie the role that excessive bodyfat plays in each individual development of this disease, and what every obese person can and should do to become slim again. 

Why did I quote you? It would be because you said "I'm convinced they're right" about politicians falsely stating Covid-19 is just a flu. 

[RocketDog]

3 hours ago, lensta said:

There is no "New Normal" Something is either normal or it's not. End of.

Why are you getting all twisted about semantics?

 

I understand that nobody likes the situation we find ourselves in right now. Unfortunately very few folks get to vote on how the world changes. 

 

Life changes every day as does 'the world as we know it' (normality) and there is no 'end of' until you die. 

[chilli42]

Not sure where all of you are going but everything back to the old normal in the couple of places I frequent.  Fed up with all the excessive caution.  At my age the chances of ending up on the wrong side of the grass (1.5%) is far less than having a heart attack or cancer.

[rtco]

1 hour ago, Matzzon said:

Just another delusional comment in the line of many.

Not delusional at all ... reality

[phetphet]

10 hours ago, mberbae said:

We should all patronize our local massage shop. These ladies have

been out of work for a long time.

The two local ones that I used, one for many years have both closed permanently.

[visacrack]

1 hour ago, DualSportBiker said:

Why did I quote you? It would be because you said "I'm convinced they're right" about politicians falsely stating Covid-19 is just a flu. 

Ok - just to get this straight: I didn't say that the motives these politicians' had (when they made the 'covid same flu' statement) was right. I expressed that it ultimately might be right, although for a different reason, and one we ought to know by now - excess fat. I also said that Trump and Bolsanaro - those best known for this statement - are not exactly role models when it comes to fat...

 

[Skeptic7]

Old Asia "charm" has been lost nearly everywhere in The Kingdom for at least a decade. This is just the final nail in a musty ol' coffin. ☠️

Edited July 13, 2020 by Skeptic7

[smudger1951]

9 hours ago, SuwadeeS said:

First of all, the so called "new normal", I hate it, many people hate it.

Wearing a mask unnatural !!!!!

I like to see the face of people, I like to see the expression when talking to them.

 

For all the discomfort and disadvantage, somebody has to be responsible.

As a matter of fact, its China with all the lies and disinformation.

Why everybody here ignores it?? 

Massage is not fun anymore.

We all have to pay a price because of China.

Well said Sir, I am surprised how little China is mentioned for the impact it has caused all over the world.

[Derek B]

You would think that with the promotion of washing frequently with soap for at least 20 seconds that "soapy massages" would of been the first to open back up.

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

19 hours ago, chilli42 said:

everything back to the old normal in the couple of places I frequent.

Yup. I think the Thais have decided the new normal is over. No one's doing the Thai Chana anymore. People walk in and security doesn't stop them. They still do have to wear masks though. They hold up the thermometers, but I don't think they're really scanning anymore. At one local mall, there were once seating areas outside the shops, where you had to wait since capacity was limited. These have just been removed. Then over at Mega Bangna, especially on Sundays, it's total chaos. Queues and crowds everywhere. Don't expect to get a table in the IKEA restaurant. Do expect impatient hi-so looking types to invade your personal space practically on your behind, angrily tapping their feet or fingers on the counter. I'm guessing the virus has been downgraded on their list of priorities.

[Awinkl]

I cannot believe so many people are making negative comments - I am stuck in Oz and miss my 2-3 weekly Massages (for 300 baht....) when I was in LOS. I usually rotated between Oil Massage, Thai Massage and Foot Massage. Here, they are $70 - 80.00....... and that's a HUGE difference!! The Facemask would not be any trouble at all since I usually fall asleep anyway - I just miss it a lot.

Edited July 14, 2020 by Awinkl

[Rimmer]

An inflammatory post and a reply has been removed

[Acrylic]

On 7/13/2020 at 1:20 PM, DualSportBiker said:

Let's start with some basics. Genetic cross-over from animals to humans is a given; it happens. Given enough time and opportunity (accumulated time exposed to animals), moves closer to a certainty. That it happened in China does not make China responsible. The authorities in China delayed the flow of information for sure; they screwed up. However, the chances that they could have curtailed its spread and kept the outbreak in China is small, very small. Blaming China for the disease is ridiculous, blaming their system for failure to address the issue is appropriate, but a global outbreak was inevitable as it took weeks to discover carriers could be asymptomatic.

 

Blaming China for the lack of fun having a massage with a masseuse in a mask is pathetic on two counts. China can't really be blamed and genuine massages are not impacted by the wearing of a mask.

 

Now for the conspiracy theories. Covid-19 is not the flu. No doctor, virologist, infectious disease expert, or immunologist has said so. Politicians and armchair 'researchers' aren't qualified to comment. The great sadness of the internet is the false belief that having the capacity to state an opinion means the opinion has some validity. Most don't.

 

It will take months before the true transmission characteristics of Covid-19 are understood. Those will only be understood after the collaborative work of hundreds of learned medical professionals - not a bunch of self-proclaimed genius armchair researchers griping that their liberties are being stolen by some global conspiracy to rebrand a common flu as a dangerous pandemic. If doing nothing for months and allowing 130,000 to die in the US is not a clear sign that such thoughts are patently wrong, perhaps you'd be better off looking for aliens, Elvis and Hitler partying on the moon in broad daylight. I know another genius who has the coordinates if you're interested...

 

During a two hour massage I spend over an hour face down or on my side. Why do I need to see the masseuse's face? When some muppet talks too much, either to the masseuse or on the phone, most decent shops will ask them to shut up so all the other customers can relax. If you want more from your massage, fine. That is your choice. Don't conflate a sub-standard massage and a happy-ending with a real massage.

 

 

 

 

I agree with you. Many blame China because China is convenient scapegoat for their falling. We know white people is racist toward Asian especially Chinese. Having Trump as President doesn't help either because China dare to rise to challenge America hegemony. That's given they won't let this chance to bash China and Chinese until the end of the world.