Massage therapy uses touch in order to manipulate the soft body tissues to increase the health and well-being of each patient. The major goal a massage therapist has is to help the body to heal itself. This can happen by promoting blood flow, stimulating nerves, conditioning the skin and stretching and loosening up the muscles to keep them elastic.

Here are some tasks massage therapists undertake:

• Providing clients with rehabilitative exercises
• Conferring with clients about medical histories
• Developing client treatment plans
• Preparing clients for tests, therapy or treatments
• Maintaining treatment records
• Preparing and blending massage oils

Massage therapists need to be able to assess clients' soft tissue conditions, joint quality, muscle strength and their range of motion. They must consult with other health care professionals like physiotherapists, chiropractors, physicians and psychologists so they will be able to develop effective treatment plans for each client.

A career in massage therapy is competitive and fun. The pay range and demand for these therapists is dramatically rising each year. If you are interested in a relaxing and growing field and want to work with and help people, massage therapy is a great choice for you.

Massage Therapy Salaries

Massage therapists are important to both the establishment and maintenance of good health and complementary to other therapeutic processes. In 2002, approximately 92,000 massage therapists were employed in positions in the United States alone.

Salary Ranges / Job Outlook for Massage Therapy

As with most professions the pay range for a massage therapist depends upon factors like skill, experience, type of employment and location. In 2002, the median pay rate for massage therapists was approximately $28,600 in the United States. The low end of this scale earned around $14,200 and the high end of the scale earned around $62,400. Massage therapists may work for an annual salary or they may be paid through client commission.

Throughout the next decade position openings for massage therapists is expected to grow faster than the average for all other occupations in the United States. Nationwide trends predict massage therapy positions are likely to grow twenty seven percent within the next eight years. This means that there will be approximately 4,280 job openings for massage therapists in the United States yearly.

As massage therapy becomes integrated with traditional healthcare, demand continues to rise. A number of hospitals have also started using massage therapy as a means for recuperation. Currently, people are using massage therapy more often as a way to relax and for both therapy and rehabilitation.

Massage Therapy Schools/ Getting Started

Becoming a massage therapist usually requires nothing more than training and certification. However, many states require a license to practice massage therapy and most states require certification from the American Massage Therapy Association.

Certification will give you the skills and knowledge you need to be successful as a massage therapist and it usually takes less than two years. Many career colleges offer classes in various massage techniques including:

• Swedish massage
• Deep tissue massage
• Sports massage
• Shiatsu and acupressure massage
• Neuromuscular massage
• Reflexology

Since there are many styles of massage, most therapists specialize in specific styles. Good communications skills and the ability to make each client comfortable are very important skills a massage therapist should possess.