Massage Schools Guide

A brief but impactful story about the benefits of massage therapy appeared in my Inbox this morning. WCTV-TV in Tallahassee, FL presented results from a study that indicated that massage can add years to the life of the recipient.

In addition, the story recommended that those wishing to take advantage of the health benefits attributed to massage can save some money if they take advantage of lower priced services offered by massage schools where the practitioners are students in training.

It seems there is no end to the career options that keep developing for professional massage therapists. In a town where the word “massage” frequently connotes the sleazier type of body work, casinos have found another niche target for the healing power of touch. Las Vegas casinos employ licensed massage therapists, mostly female, to provide upper body massage to poker players who need relief from the stress and tension of the high stakes game.

Two veteran poker players have imported the idea from Las Vegas and introduced the concept to Miami gaming parlors. They founded Casino Massage Services and were written up by the Miami Herald recently.

I guess the casinos figure that the more relaxed the player, the more relaxed he will be with his money.

Just one more job opportunity for students in Nevada massage schools or Florida massage schools.

The list of states without regulated massage may be shrinking from the current 11 as Pennsylvania considers a bill to regulate the profession. The bill under consideration would require 600 hours of training before certification would be provided. The bill has passed the state House and is being considered by the Senate.

This is a big step to bringing credibility and validation to the thousands of trained therapists in one of the nation’s most highly populated states. Students attending Pennsylvania massage schools that make the investment of time and money to attain the proper knowledge and training by attending credentialed massage schools will now be able to differentiate themselves from the hacks that try to pass themselves off as qualified professionals.

Read more at EveningSun.com.

This is the second story that I have seen in two days regarding the benefits of infant massage. With all of the benefits claimed by practitioners and experienced moms, what new mother wouldn’t want to be trained in these techniques? (Read the infant massage story here)

I truly believe that students of massage will find more and more opportunities available to select a specialized field of massage. That means that therapists will be able to carve out a niche practice and build a reputation that differentiates them from generalists if they so desire.

As massage therapy becomes more accepted by the mainstream medical establishment as a valid therapeutic option, the choices for current massage students and for certified massage therapists continue to expand.

It is no longer an accurate perception of massage as the domain of the pampered, the stressed and the athletic. Massage therapy is now being segmented into specialized areas that call for very specific forms of training and education.

Using massage as part of the treatment regimen for cancer patients was long discouraged. It was thought by some that by stimulating the flow of blood and improving circulation, massage would promote the spread of cancer throughout the body. This view was due to misunderstandings about how cancer spreads and spotty research on the subject.

Today, massage is recognized as a legitimate and quite useful treatment for cancer patients. In fact, massage therapists should be specially trained and and fully aware of the appropriate techniques and contraindications for the use of oncologic massage therapy. An article on MassageToday.com gives an overview of the considerations for the use of massage to treat cancer patients.

Specialized training is available and you can find a wealth of information at tracywalton.com. Tracy is a massage therapist and researcher who focuses on treating cancer patients with massage. She stays current on the latest developments and writes prolifically about the subject.

Massage is becoming highly specialized and it is now possible for therapists to make career and vocational decisions that allow them to pursue a more general, commercial approach to massage therapy or to become more specialized and work within, or in conjunction with, the healthcare system in a variety of specialties such as geriatric massage, infant massage, pregnancy massage, sports massage, ortopedic massage and of course, oncologic massage.

Curricula in massage schools will certainly continue to evolve to address these growing specialty areas.

In November of 2007, the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork (NCBTMB) stated that they would accept distance education as a valid form of training for massage therapy and bodywork. This decision has been a much discussed issue since this decision. The NCBTMB apparently is seeking to create a forum for discussion about this topic by establishing a blog specifically about distance eduation as it relates to massage training and certification.

Currently, there are only three posts on the blog, all posted on May 15, 2008. While the consensus seems to generally be in favor of distance education, there is obviously a misunderstanding of the definition of acceptable distance education as defined by the NCBTMB. Those who were critical of the Board’s decision voiced concern that distance education could never tale the place of hands-on training and experience. In fact, the organization has stated specifically that “only course work that is theoretical and not hands-on is allowed.”

There will never be an adequate substitute for hands-on training for a massage therapist. However, the Internet has opened the door to thousands of time strapped individuals seeking an education and the opportunity for career advancement. The theoretical portion of a massage student’s training seems to be perfectly appropriate for presentation through distance education modules. After all, registered nurses can study online to receive a Bachelor’s degree in nursing and no one is complaining. That is because the clinical training for nurses remains in a clinical setting as does the hands-on training for massage therapists.

Before criticizing the NCBMTB for their position on distance education, critics should familiarize themselves with the Board’s actual position.

Many students or recent graduates of massage school may find themselves intimidated by the prospect of opening their own business even if that is their real dream. Of course, there is always the option of putting in some time as an employee in someone else’s business to gain experience before embarking on their own entrepreneurial adventure.

But some massage therapists just have that taste for forging ahead on their own. It can still be an overwhelming and risky prospect, especially if the goal is to create an entire spa environment with massage as one of the primary services.

I was looking online for resources for massage business owners and came across a few that I spent some time with. One was Spa Marketing Tools, a website that offers a training program and coaching package for salon owners. Another was Help Your Practice, a website that presents marketing tips and client generation techniques specifically targeted and massage business owners.

What really struck me about these sites was the selling technique the sites themselves use to present their programs. Both use the standard online marketing approach of a presenting a very long sales letter with big, bold call-outs that make enticing statements about the opportunity to build success with expertise and secrets provided by the author.

Search for “make money online” or “online marketing” and you will find hundreds of websites that look almost exactly like these massage marketing sites. They are loaded with testimonials and the more you read the more exciting the offer sounds. By the end of the Spa Marketing Tools you are half-convinced to drop the $4450 asking price for the course!

Frankly, I have no idea what the value of these online programs really is. They may be great and well worth the investment. All I know is that an approach like these is essentially the internet “used-car salesman pitch.” You may get a great deal but you are always left wondering whether someone just picked your pocket.

The best approach to starting a massage business is to:

• Learn to practice your trade. There is no substitute for building a reputation as an excellent massage therapist.
• Find a mentor. Someone that you can trust and who has built their own business will be a tremendous asset.
• Be prepared to be a businessperson first and a massage therapist second. If you can’t manage your business by following sound business principles and practices, it doesn’t make any difference how good you are as a massage therapist.

If you are a prospective massage therapist make sure that the massage school you select has a strong curriculum in business principles. Be good with your hands and smart with your head.

Apparently, we Americans take so many prescription medications that they are passing through our bodies and ending up in the water supply. Consequently, everything from antibiotics to sex hormones are floating around in America’s drinking water. This predicament has led one newspaper to suggest that we take a more eco-friendly approach to our health and “go green” with some forms of treatment.

Among the “green” treatments are acupuncture, chiropractic and, naturally, massage therapy. The theory is that if we seek alternative treatments for our health problems then we can avoid polluting the ground and water with tons of waste pharmaceuticals.

Massage as a green practice. Intriguing.

Read the article here.

A lot of people have an interest in becoming massage therapists these days. Some want to earn a few bucks part-time while others want to make it a career. But this is the first time I have read about massage therapy being a sort of family trade.

David Jewell is part of a family with a heritage of massage therapy. David discusses his influences, his job activities and his massage school experience in this article from the South Bend Tribune.

There are many ailments and conditions that seem to respond well to massage therapy. Joint pain, muscle strain, specific injuries and general stress have all been found to respond well to massage as a treatment modality.

One of the more mysterious but increasingly pervasive conditions that seems to be responsive to massage therapy is fibromyalgia. This condition is characterized by chronic, widespread pain that is sensitive even to light touch. Since the disease, though little understood, primarily affects the neuromuscular system, the symptoms of pain and tenderness have been found to respond to massage therapy in many cases.

This is just one more condition for which massage therapy has been found to be a viable alternative for treatment. As the benefits of massage become more apparent to a mainstream audience. the opportunities for massage therapists expand. All the more reason to consider a full-time or supplementary career as a massage therapist and receiving training at an accredited massage school.

Read more about massage and fibromyalgia here.