Short answer
No. Absolutely not.

Long answer
I’ve found many massage therapists and bodyworkers say, “Undress to your level of comfort.” I think that’s way too vague. And people new to massage have no idea what that means. Heck, I’m not even sure what that means. I’ve even been told by a client that one therapist got angry at him because he did not take his underwear off. Yikes! Here’s what you need to know about clothing during a session:

First, no matter what, you’ll always be covered (draped) with a sheet, at least over your groin and the crevice of your buttocks. Sometimes I include a heated electric blanket. I keep my room warm, and have a table warmer. The most I will ever undrape on someone is both legs, including the hips, and above the groin. This allows for a style of massage similar to Esalen and Lomi-Lomi, which glides over the whole body as a single unit, rather than chunking the massage into “now I work on the leg” and “now I am working on the arm”. However, if I get any indication that my client is uncomfortable with being that exposed, I will not expose them. Or if you’re chilly, I will be sure to keep you covered.

When I work on the full back, I fold the drape down at the hips. If you’re wearing underwear I’ll gently tuck the sheet around the waistband, to protect your clothes from massage oil. If you’re wearing a bra, I’ll work around it. If you’re wearing a tank top or shorts or long johns, I’ll work through it. I know plenty of very effective massage techniques that can be administered over clothing. If I feel I can’t effectively treat your issue through the clothing you’ve chosen to wear, I’ll tell you, and we’ll figure out another approach. Jeans are generally not a good clothing choice for accessing the tissue – the fabric isn’t very stretchy or flexible, and it’s pretty thick. So if you want to receive a massage fully clothed, I recommend wearing yoga pants, leggings, very loose fabric, or a stretchy, thin, fitted fabric…basically anything you’d exercise in. That will allow the greatest movement on your end and for my hands to access your muscles for manipulation.

Please know that I don’t care, and I’m not judging you. This massage is about you and it’s important you feel comfortable. For some people that means leaving some clothing on. For others, it means taking it all off. There is no right or wrong, this is your massage.

Enjoy your next massage!