What is the description and salary and the education needed to become a Massage Therapist?
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at
4:45 pm
What is a description of what a Massage Therapist does.
What education does a Massage Therapist need?
Where do Massage Therapists learn what they know?
What is their highest yearly income/salary?
Filed under: Alternative Medicine
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A massage therapist is someone who treats those with tension and helps improves circulation by bringing oxygen and other nutrients to body tissues. They use many different forms of body techniques for these issures.
I went to a place called Lincoln Technical Institute. The courses I had to take were the following: Massage Business Administration, Psychology of the Body and CPR, Intro to Massage & Bodywork, Massage & Bodyworks Procedures, Techniques, & Routines, Reflexology & Acupressure, Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology I and II, Massage Bodywork and Specialized Massage, Trigger Point and Myofascial Therapy, Spa Services, and my last class was Clinic where my class mates and I had to pretend we were in a real-life Massage Clinic. Kind of like our internship. You have to go to a school that is credited for Massage Body work. If you need help with that you can e-mail me and tell me your area and I can find out where you can go. But you need to know your bones, bony landmarks,and muscles. You need to no where the muscles insert and the origin. You have to be able to identify pain. If a person has a head ache it could be because of lower back pain. You have to no your medical terms if you work in a medical setting.
Now salary varies. If you are on your own I can’t stress enough that you are not going to make loads of money at first. It takes time. My best advice for you is to apply to a Spa or Chiropractor’s Office first to get experience. It is really up to you how much you will make. If you don’t promote yourself and love what you do. You are not going to make any money. I graduated this year in Feb. I thought I would be making loads of money but with how the economy is now, it is hard to start a business on your own from scratch. You have to no what kind of client you want to have. Do you want ppl that need more medical attention or do you want to work in a relaxing place such as a spa. Or maybe you would like to be more involved with sports, so you could study Sports Massage.
There is a lot more I could tell you so if you have any questions just let me know.
Email – Smwal_0915@yahoo.com or Sagan_0214@yahoo.com
There are numerous methods of massage and just as many types of schools that teach them. But essentially you will use a combination of techniques to release stress and tension from the muscles in the body.
The education depends on the state in which you are applying for your license. Most cities have massage therapy schools and offer certificate programs in Massage Therapy. Some therapists then go on to become physical therapists by enrolling in college level classes.
In my city, masseuses average about 25.00 per hour, this is after supplies, rental of space and averaging in taxes to be paid at the end of the fiscal year. The problem however is maintaining consistent clientèle and having somewhere to practice. And being responsible for paying their own taxes each year bites into their gross salary quite a bit.
try this site for reference, it’s bit long.
http://www.jobguide.thegoodguides.com.au/occupation/view/349411A
Here’s a chart from PayScale.com showing median starting salaries for massage therapy as well as a massage therapist’s salary over the course of 20 years: http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Massage_Therapist/Hourly_Rate/by_Years_Experience&src=yahooA You will see that a massage therapist’s salary can vary widely depending on experience level. Median starting salaries for massage therapy are fairly low, but this chart shows that a massage therapist’s salary can increase dramatically over time.
Other factors that will influence a massage therapist’s salary include location, employment setting and certifications. For example, a self-employed massage therapist’s salary is often higher than the salary for therapists who work in other settings.
To find more accurate salary data for your specific massage therapist position – taking factors such as your location and qualifications into consideration – you can take PayScale’s free salary survey. http://www.payscale.com/?src=yahooA
Hope that helps,
Assistant to Dr. Salary