Your Future as a Massage Therapist
(Or Several Good Reasons Why You Should Become One!)

by Dr. Gregory T. Lawton

Is this your new office? Massage therapy is one of the oldest healing professions on earth. It certainly predates most of the health care systems commonly practiced today, and yet it is still valued and highly regarded by therapists and clients alike. Among all of the different kinds of healing systems that are available, massage therapy has one of the most holistic and wellness focused approaches to health care.

Massage therapy’s holistic understanding of the mind, body, and spirit nexus not only provides a comprehensive approach to client therapy, but also provides the massage therapist with an avenue to personal transformation and positive life change. Many massage therapists have left what they viewed as unrewarding jobs or careers in favor of holistic health care, because they perceived that the natural healing professions provide a dual role of benefiting both the client and the health care practitioner. Massage therapy is not a single profession, but is in fact a sum total of many different kinds of massage, including relaxation massage, spa and salon massage, eastern or oriental forms of massage like Chinese massage or Japanese acupressure, medical massage, clinical massage, sports massage, and the list goes on and on.

Students chose the massage profession, and a massage school, for many different reasons, and there is no such thing as an average massage student. Younger students chose massage therapy as an entry point for their initial education and career over college or universities. They do this for many reasons, including the fact that massage therapy is an exciting, dynamic, and rewarding field. Massage therapy is also a valuable health care service. And for students looking for a meaningful career, something beyond the corporate grind or "bored room", massage is a great alternative.

Massage therapy training in a state licensed postsecondary school is also a great alternative to the high costs and complexity of colleges and universities. Massage schools are usually smaller and less intimidating than the administrative treadmill found in many colleges. Most of the top educators in the massage industry are found in small private massage schools, while the community colleges generally attract instructors with less training and career experience in the massage field. Private massage schools also provide a massage curriculum that is centered entirely on massage education, while community colleges require other unrelated classes and courses, or their basic science classes are courses that everyone at the college takes, and they are not directed solely at the massage student. When a massage student in a private massage school studies anatomy, they do so with the end in mind of learning anatomy from the total perspective of massage therapy, and not as a freshman college course.

Massage therapy in the US is a growing field, and the US Department of Labor statistics indicate that massage therapy and alternative health care will continue to grow for some time to come. There are several complicated reasons for this, but the short answer is that massage is a proven and effective form of health care and is less expensive than other forms of therapy and treatment. Many people in the US are looking for either preventative health care, or effective and less expensive alternatives to the high costs and risks of medical care.

When a student is choosing a massage therapy school, they should look for older, well-established massage schools with excellent reputations in the massage profession. Teachers cannot teach what they do not know, so teachers need to be experienced not only as massage educators, but also as massage therapists. A teacher with very little time and experience in the actual practice of massage therapy, is not going to be able to provide a student with much depth or substance regarding the practice of massage. Students should choose a massage school based on the kind or type of massage that they want to study, and later practice. Different massage schools may specialize in a specific form of massage training.

For example, the Blue Heron Academy of Healing Arts and Sciences, located in seven schools across Michigan and Northern Indiana, specializes in medical massage therapy, where another school may strictly offer relaxation and spa massage training programs. The student who wants to be able to work in medical, chiropractic, or clinical environments, will not be well-prepared to do so if all they know is salon or spa massage. The student should also beware of massage schools that claim to teach all kinds of massage therapy. They rarely, if ever, have the actual credentials and ability to do this competently, and the student ends up not knowing many of the important skills they actually need in practice.

There is no doubt about it. Massage therapy is a growing and popular field for many who are looking for a diverse, rewarding and enjoyable career field. Massage therapy offers so many opportunities and directions that it is hard to keep up with all of the exciting possibilities. What other profession offers so many choices? Full time, part time, self-employment, private practice, group practice; a member of the medical or chiropractic health care field, or the wellness, spa or alternative health care community; working in an office, a spa, or on board a ship; the possibilities are almost endless, and the choice is yours! For more information about your career choices as a massage therapist visit the career link at www.blueheronacademy.com.

Dr. Gregory T. Lawton is the owner and founder of the Blue Heron Academy of Healing Arts and Sciences. He is the author of over 30 books on healthcare. 1-616-285-9999; www.BlueHeronAcademy.com