How to pick out a new massage therapist - my best quick tip

Not all massage therapists are alike. Since you're reading this online, I assume you may not come from my area of the country in Newburyport Mass., so I'm not an option for you. In my experience, the key to finding a good therapist lies in asking them about their training.

Broadly speaking, I've found there tend to be two different types of schools for massage therapy in the US. The first group are like the Bancroft School of Massage Therapy which I graduated from ten years ago. They focus on turning out class after class of thoroughly professional therapists with a solid background in anatomy and physiology (A&P) as well as how to run a business. I found A&P so useful to my practice that I went on to take advanced studies later on which really expanded my understanding of the body and layers of tissue. I also gained even more respect for the human body!

Some other schools focus more on spirituality and intuition. I do believe that spirituality and intuition are all a part of good massage therapy. However, that's something you can bring into massage yourself or extend your training in as an adjunct. Whereas if you don't have a solid understanding of how the body functions via A&P, you're not going to be able to give a great massage or understnad the physical symptoms clients will be presenting you with.

So, when you interview a possible massage therapist, be sure to ask them about their A&P backround and what their focus or type of massage is, aka, sports, relaxation, trigger point therapy (many of these can be combined and often are to help resolve the physical ailment). If you don't understand the terms used by the therapist please, just ask them to explain so you can choose what feels right for you. Applied pressure is also a common concern; for some it's whether too little will be used or too much. A great therapist will always ask you to let them know what is right for you and ALWAYS respond in kind. This is your time and needs to be comfortable for you.