Massage Therapy as a Career

Have you ever thought of being a massage therapist as a career?

Had someone ever told you that you have a good hand for massage and that made you thought of pursuing a career in massage field?  Do you have a passion for making people good just by giving a good massage, or thinking of what kind of oil or lotion will be a good massage agent?

How about the smell? The aroma that you think will help in relaxing your tired client? or the scent that can energize and boost the vitality of an active person?  How about calming someone by using a scent while massaging someone who is stressed out with his or her daily grind?

Do you have this craving to know or discover your own technique and develop different kinds of massage modalities that will serve as your massage signature?

Do you want a freedom to work at your own phase and be a pleaser for your clients?

Stability

There are few things to think about when you are considering a massage career.  One of them is the financial stability, if you think you can serve and offer your service to a good number of people and continuously having new clients, and you are really good in marketing yourself, then massage therapy is for you.

Some CMTs work for massage spas and clinics just to keep them occupied and get a regular income.  Some jumps into putting up their own business by doing outcalls, or having their own massage clinics.  Of course being certified by the state and getting a license is the primary step once you are already a certified massage therapist.  Know every thing about setting up a small business.

Taking Care of Yourself

At any rate, being a Certified Massage Therapist is not just thinking of the well being of your client, it is all taking care of your own well being.  There will few side tracks on being a massage therapist and  when I say take care of yourself means take good care of your physical body.  You back, your thighs, knees, arms, hands, skin, your breath, smell and most specially your mind.

Most massage therapist experience back pain due to constant bending, although there is a technique in giving massage, a sudden movement can actually mess up you back.  Here a good back support can be very helpful to have, although this is not as important specially when you are on top of your posture, but an ounce of prevention of worth a pound of cure.  Investing on a good back support will eventually save you a lot of money and effort in performing a good relaxing massage.

Another part you must always consider taking care of is your knees, the constant shifting make can also hurt your knee, wearing a comfortable pants can help in your movement, now if you can spare some money in buying a good knee or leg support it will be a big relief for you.

Good Hygiene

When someone is getting a massage their senses are also being stimulated, and you don’t want them to smell things that will make them feel uncomfortable while they are in their most sensitive and vulnerable state, and because of the close distance we have from the client, we can smell each other and so as the room.  When someone is getting a massage their body exudes  their body’s natural smell, but, you can’t force them to shower just because you are massaging them, although you can ask them.

This also applies to the massage therapist; a good massage therapist always smells fresh and clean, remember you must make an impression to get a regular client.  So taking a shower before giving a massage is a must for me, and a sweet fresh breath comes with, you will be talking to a person who senses are very sensitive so you don’t want them to smell a pizza breath while giving them a massage.  Most of the time, you will be talking softly and this need full breath to regurgitate the sound.

Another this that I always consider doing before giving a massage is either have a clean shoes, socks or feet.  Make sure you have a clean shoes all the time, having a massage shoes does not have to be expensive, there are affordable plain colored shoes out in the market where you can get, you will only be using that when giving a massage, so trust me, it will last!

Unless you want to  give massage wearing socks or bare feet, I suggest make sure that your footsies are clean, because remember your client is facing down and with the hole on the headrest, your feet will be a target of scrutiny if you are not careful enough to take good care of your feet.  clipping the toenails and brushing it while you are taking a shower is not much of a work anyway, not unless you only want to do it only when you have a client call.

Your skin is what you should take care of the most too, your clients can be very critical to your physical appearance, specially women, they want to make sure that whoever is touching them is clean…period!

So having a good skin is definitely a  must, getting a body scrub every once in a while is a big plus, it does not only take away the dead cells to take away the impurities but also gives you a clean and clear skin.  You do not have to go to a spa just to get a body scrub, you can also do this at home with all the natural products that you can find in your own kitchen, go check the baking soda and olive oil, it is a great way to get a body scrub and get a smooth supple skin.

As a massage therapist our hands are the most important part of our body, this is what we use to give those long effleurage and petrissage, so taking care of your hand when you are a massage therapist is like taking care of your face when you are a beauty queen. Love your hand, do not be stingy, remember with those hands, you can get a lot of money.

Mind Power

Lastly, a peaceful and sound mind, your client can feel all the energy that comes fro  you and it radiates into their body, having a peaceful, calm and relax mind when giving a massage is very important. Grounding or shaking off yourself before the massage starts is what I always do, it makes me relax and of course keeps me grounded.  Shaking off all worries gets rid of stress and uneasiness, drinking tea is also one way to calm me down.  Always remember that whether you are giving the massage or getting the massage, you are passing an energy to one another, so having the good calm and relaxed energy can both bring you to a very fulfilled and invigorated state.

Providing the State of Well-Being

Massage Therapy as a career does not end in just giving massage and making people feel good afterwards.  There will be so much time to spend if being a massage therapist is your only career.

A massage therapist always think of the well being of a person, and this does not stop only to his clients.  Being a massage therapist is also being holistic in every aspect of life.

Being a massage therapist you get to talk to your client while doing the massage and you must make them feel comfortable to you by asking them not just the basic questions like “how is the pressure?” “does this hurt?” “where do you want me to focus?”.  Your client is allowing you and entrusting you their body, so treating them with respect is the main concern and along with this is to ask them certain questions like “how’s your day?” up until you both become more comfortable and start talking about things that makes one feel good.

Here is where you get all the ideas of how to help a person achieve that state of well-being.