Touch is a wonderful therapy!
People today are much more comfortable touching each other!
Today more and more people hug when they greet each other. Even guys will give each other a hug today whereas 30 years ago it would not have been an acceptable way of greeting each other.
The Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami’s research has shown that Massage Therapy can help people who suffer from a variety of problems:
- Back Pain
Our skin is the largest organ in our bodies. So the massage therapy benefits of all those body parts is enormous.
Touch is a form of communication that brings about changes in our neural, glandular, muscular and mental systems. Touch also reassures, comforts and helps develop self-esteem. It's also pivotal in developing the ability to trust and understand the needs of others.
As a Massage Therapist you are healing people by touching people! You are not removing anything physically from their body and you are not putting anything into their bodies such as drugs etc, You are simply helping them help themselves by massaging them.
How wonderful is that?
Working in a calm environment, nice relaxing music playing, touching and helping other people and getting paid to do so.
It doesn’t get much better than that.
Guest blogger Scholarship Student Kathryn:
It’s no secret that the health and wellness industry is the next big thing. With our country’s
healthcare in the dreadful shape it’s in, it’s more important than ever to stay healthy. At age 50, I have decided to change careers and merge my personal and professional life in the world of natural health and wellness. For starters, I intend to get certified to be a massage therapist so I’m enrolled at the Massage Center in Thousand Oaks. I haven’t felt this excited or elated since I found out I was pregnant!! Since that was over 2 decades ago, I’m due for some excitement!!
Part of the reason I’m so excited is because of my teacher, Daun. Whatever doubts I might’ve had going into this, Daun has made them disappear. Specifically, I had an unspoken concern that I wasn’t sturdy enough or big and strong enough, or that an old back injury would put me on the disqualified bench. Enter Daun “Lucky” Webb. When God was creating Daun, He said, “I’m going to give this child such a sense of adventure that it will blur the lines of her physical capabilities!” And so it went that in her very adventurous life, she has practically broken every bone and pulled or torn every muscle. And with few exceptions, she’ll tell you she was having a blast immediately prior to each accident! I love this about her for a bunch of reasons. For one, she is so humble and still grateful for her health. She has grown up with a background of natural healing at her core, making her a wonderful mentor for someone like me just starting to acknowledge our own healing energy. Now I not only know that I can do this, but I am confident that I'll be really good at it. I look forward to coming to school every day. I’m excited about my new path and I’m happy to have Daun as my guide.
Massage therapy during pregnancy is a wonderful complementary choice for prenatal care. It is a healthy way to reduce stress and promote overall wellness. Massage relieves many of the normal discomforts experienced during pregnancy, such as backaches, stiff neck, leg cramps, headaches and edema (or swelling). In addition, massage reduces stress on weight-bearing joints, encourages blood and lymph circulation, helps to relax nervous tension-which aids in better sleep-and can help relieve depression or anxiety caused by hormonal changes.
The therapists take extra care to ensure that prenatal clients are comfortable. Sideline positioning with supportive, soft cushions is used which alleviates the extra strain on the lower back and pelvic areas when the pressure of massage techniques are applied. Extra strain in these areas can cause unnecessary back pain and discomfort. Through the second trimester of pregnancy, it is also acceptable for clients to lay on their backs with a small cushioned wedge placed under one hip which provides a slight elevation.. Depending on where you are in your pregnancy, your therapist may utilize such massage techniques as reflexology, Swedish massage or certain techniques that address your specific requests and needs.
Here are benefits of pregnancy massage:
- Relieves headaches
- Relaxes muscle tension Reduces fatigue
- Alleviates backaches
- Relieves leg cramps
- Reduces swelling/edema
- Relieves pain
- Enhances sleep
Women with normal, low-risk pregnancies can benefit greatly from the variety of massage techniques offered by a Massage Envy professional massage therapist. However, women in high-risk pregnancies should consult their doctor or midwife before beginning one of our massage therapy programs. If at any time during the prenatal massage you experience discomfort, tell your therapist immediately.
Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing.
It is administered by "laying on hands" and is based on the idea that an unseen "life force energy" flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. A treatment feels like a wonderful glowing radiance that flows through and around you. Reiki treats the whole person including body, emotions, mind and spirit creating many beneficial effects that include relaxation and feelings of peace, security and wellbeing. Many have reported miraculous results.
Performing Reiki to children requires a light touch. Careful placement of the hands will give a soothing effect for the child and calm them enough to perform the actual therapy. Many children take a liking to Reiki for the smooth, reassuring feeling of the Reiki practitioner’s hands on them. Reiki can be a powerful therapeutic method in treating children with Autism and Aspergers and other types of developmental syndromes. As treatments for these syndromes are limited in conventional medical treatment, Reiki as an alternative therapy offers significant benefits to the child.
Daily practice to Reiki for children can solve many emotional complications in children. Children suffer from confidence deficiencies and social phobias as well as other social disorders. Through Reiki, children can learn the power of the universe and how we all are connected to this greater power. Even small children are able to understand the spiritual power associated with Reiki and will draw confidence from the healing and sense of well being they experience after a session. This therapy is known to build children’s personality and confidence levels along with their immunity and emotional strength.
Reiki is a non-intrusive therapy and practicing it on children is harmless. There can only be beneficial results and it is a completely natural therapy which simply depends on the energy sources surrounding us. If you have a child that can benefit from emotional harmony, reduced stress, better confidence, strengthened immunity or simply a relaxing experience, look for a Reiki therpaist in your area.
Health Care trends are in continuing to grow, everyone wanted some kind of restorative medicine... take a pill for this ailment but then you have a side effect, then take another pill and have another side effect. It's no wonder people are looking for preventive medicines, more natural, holistic and without side effects.
Massage Therapy in the Health Care Industry is absolutly on the rise... To relieve pain and prevent injury -- that's a big responsibility. It may not be for everyone but if you enjoy making people feel better, this is the field for you.
Massage therapy positions in health care are up 166 percent in the past year. Massage therapists in health care environments have the second highest percentage of repeat clients at 77 percent.
The employment outlook for massage therapists in the Health Care Industry is expected to grow at a faster than average rate as more people become interested in alternative medicine and holistic healing. It’s estimated that between 2006 and 2016, massage therapists are likely to see a 20 percent increase in job opportunities as more people learn about the benefits of massage therapy.
Increase in demand for massage therapy and other complementary and alternative therapies is also being driven by the skyrocketing costs of health care, as well as the millions of baby boomers who are now reaching ages where chronic conditions become more evident.
If you have been thinking about becoming a Massage Therapist, now is the time. Considered a Massage School that is not offering financial aid. Many smaller schools will let you make tuition payments, if you can’t afford to pay in full. These smaller schools normally have smaller class sizes, and a more authentic feel to them as well.
Many Massage School that do “sell” financial aid and Title 4 loans are more in the “loan business” and not the education business.
Guest blogger Instructor/CMT-Daun Webb
Our Deep tissue massage course for certification is driven by the primary goal of any deep tissue massage: to restore balance to the body by affecting the deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue. While techniques may vary, the objective remains the same: to relax and lengthen restricted tissues. By combining superior technique with our client centered approach in the deep tissue massage course,
The Advanced School of Massage in Thousand Oaks takes this therapy to another level.
The following advanced massage techniques are included in our integrated approach to deep tissue therapy
- Therapeutic Touch
- Cross Fiber
- Deep Transverse Friction
- Assisted Massage (combines massage with movement)
- Deep Tissue (gliding style)
- Connective Tissue
Our experience has shown that you can greatly enhance the results of the deep tissue massage course by emphasizing the client centered approach. Increased awareness and attention to detail allow the client-centered therapist to detect the subtle changes many therapists miss. Long held tension patterns dissolve when a skilled therapist accesses the deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue and identifies the dysfunctional fibers. Clients report increased relaxation, pain reduction, better posture and more flexibility as some of the long lasting benefits provided by a therapist well trained in deep tissue massage.
Today’s massage therapists are…
- Most likely to enter the massage therapy profession as a second career.
- Predominantly female (87 percent).
- In their early 40s, on average.
- Most likely to be members of a professional organization.
- Most likely to be sole practitioners
- Working an average of 15 hours a week providing massage. (Excludes time spent on other business tasks such as billing, bookkeeping, supplies, maintaining equipment, marketing, scheduling, etc.)
- Charging an average of $60 for one hour of massage.
- Earning an average wage of $41 an hour (including tips) for all massage related work.
- Heavily dependent on repeat clients.
- Likely to provide massage therapy in a number of settings, including clients home/office, spa/salon, their own office, a healthcare setting, health club/athletic facility, or massage therapy only franchise or chain.
- Use an average of eight modalities/techniques
- Eighty-eight percent (88 percent) of massage therapists provide Swedish massage, followed by 84 percent who provide deep tissue massage, 55 percent trigger point, and 53 percent sports massage.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor in 2010, employment for massage therapists is expected to increase 19 percent from 2008 to 2018, faster than average for all occupations. However, this is one percentage point lower than their forecast in 2006. Between July 2009 and July 2010, roughly 48 million adult Americans (18 percent) had a massage at least once.
Choosing the right Massage School
Top 5 questions about becoming a Massage Therapist
Guest Blogger Instructor: VIcki Albin
Welcome to the wonderful world of subtle energy! Sensing subtle energy involves the domains of manifestation of vibration and light of which there are four: the physical world (our body), the realm of thoughts and ideas (mind/emotions), the realm of myth (soul) and the world of spirit (energy). Our 5 most familiar senses - touch, taste, smell, hearing, and vision tell us many things, some conscious, but most are at the unconscious level.
In this introduction to energy class we will gain an understanding of how we can work with those four domains through right and left brain knowledge. Then we’ll experience how to ‘feel your chi’, or energy, within and around your body and those of your classmates. Science and quantum mechanics have proven the existence of our subtle energy fields and now we get to step into how we can use it with intention to shift how the physical world changes when we look at it and change our thoughts. Stay curious!
The techniques taught in this class can be used on yourself, family, friends and clients to aid in the healing process.
This workshop is open to the public.
Friday 03/02/2012 10am - 1pm
805-495-1353
2012 Massage Continuing Education Workshops
Massage gift certificates are a great way to share massages with the people in your life.
Looking for the perfect birthday gift, or just want to say thank you to someone. Purchase a massage gift certificate for them. Giving someone a massage gift certificate allows them to experience massage without financially committing to something that they might not be sure about. After the initial visit, they will know if this experience makes them want to pay for another one.
Friends and family are more likely to follow your lead if you show them that you enjoy, and benefit from, receiving massage. If you have a regular routine and are feeling good, when you recommend bodywork to others it will be more influential. Whether it's increased range of motion, a happier disposition, or an improvement in posture, what you've gotten out of massage will be the best advertisement you can show them.
Choosing the right massage therapy school for you is extremely important. This investment is not just money and time, it is also the foundation of your new massage career.
Consider how quickly someone responded to your request for information, how friendly were they? Were they encouraging and able to meet your schedule requirements? Request a tour. Is the class room clean? Was the staff friendly? Were the students happy?
Your Massage education will provide you with a foundation to build upon as you practice over the years; therefore, understanding what the curriculum has to offer is extremely important. The admissions manager should be able to answer all of the following questions.
- Are day and night classes offered?
- How many hours is the entire program, and how do those hours break down on a weekly basis.
- What are the state requirements to practice massage and/or receive licensure or certification?
- If you are planning on moving, will the hours stand up to the requirements of the other state?
- How are hours split up into subject matter (anatomy & physiology, pathology and modality specific training such as Swedish Massage)
- Are specialty courses included in the main program or do they cost extra; such as, reflexology, Deep Tissue, pregnancy massage, acupressure, sports massage?
- Does the program offer business and ethics classes?
- Does the school operate a clinic in which the students practice what they are learning on the general public?
- Does the school market for clients or are the students responsible for bringing in friends and family?
- How much does it cost?
It is not important that you ask every single question, but it is important to have a basic understanding of the education you will receive and the commitment of the school staff. When you think back to compare the massage schools you visited, consider which school had staff you would feel comfortable reaching out to during the program should the need arise. Which school seemed to have the most staff members that were sincere and knowledgeable? All of these answers relate to choosing a massage school with great instructors and a supportive staff, and this is the ideal massage school.
Massage School Student Loan not necessary