What is Massage Therapy?
Answer: Massage Therapy is one of the oldest health care practices known having roots in both ancient Egypt and ancient China. Worldwide it is still one of the most popular healing modalities. The definition of Massage Therapy according to the medical dictionary is; “A scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues which consists of manual techniques that include applying fixed or moveable pressure, holding and/or causing movement of the body”. Massage therapists manipulate the soft tissues of your body which include muscle, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments, fascia and skin affecting the muscular, skeletal, circulatory, nervous systems of the body, and to improve immune and lymphatic systems functions of the body.
Communication via touch is crucial and is the Massage Therapist’s primary tool to assess their clients’ tissues, which provides useful information to the therapist as they work with the client to affect change within the musculoskeletal system. The benefits with Massage Therapy are endless. Benefits include working with techniques very specific to each individual to manually manipulate soft tissues to improve circulation, promote relaxation, relieving stress and fascial tensions, increasing range of motion, improve pain management and work with many types of injuries to restore normal function. Massage therapy treatments can also aid in promoting our mental wellbeing. There have been many studies contributing to the realization that Massage Therapy treatments are very beneficial to aiding in reducing the use of opioids for chronic pain management while simultaneously increasing one’s quality of life.
Massage is generally considered a part of an integrative medical approach. It is used for a wide range of medical conditions and there is great benefit that can be found in collaborating with other health care professionals such as chiropractors, physicians, psychologists, and physiotherapists to assist with treatments and develop client treatment plans.
A Registered Massage Therapist has a great foundation in providing treatment that can be expanded with advanced skills. There are numerous learning opportunities for Registered Massage Therapists and each therapist has the ability to become more specialized in their specific area of interest. Therapists tend to continue adding new modalities to their tool box such as Manual Lymphatic Drainage, Suction Cupping, Hot Stone therapy, CranioSacral Therapy, Visceral Manipulation just to name a few. Some therapists go on to add the additional profession of Manual Osteopathic Therapy. The options for continuing education and the expansion of therapeutic practice are endless.
On the business side Massage Therapists can choose to work in a clinic as an employee or subcontractor, work a home based business or mobile, work in seniors’ facilities or a room rental scenario. A therapist has many business roles such as scheduling, purchasing products, marketing, bookkeeping, basically managing all aspects of a small business. Also teaching and course development can be another avenue which a therapist may consider branching into. Massage therapists bring many unique strengths to the table. With so many options to pursue, this career choice will never get dull.
Massage Therapy schools deliver education in many different styles from in class learning to on-line with choices of weekdays, weekends, evenings or once a month options. To be Registered as a Massage Therapist you require a 2-year program with a minimum of 2200 hours of training from an approved school. Not all schools are created equal. It is a good idea to check with the Associations you are interested in joining to make sure your school of choice is accredited and accepted.