Relaxation with Hot and Cold Stone Massage
By Joy Sablatura, LMT What are the benefits of hot stone massage? It’s relaxing and increases circulation to the specific area being treated. This increased circulation, called “hyperemia” brings in fresh blood with its oxygen and nutrients to assist in healing. The sedative aspect calms the nervous system and brings the client into a deeper…
Read MoreMassage School | How to “Get Through”
By Jennifer Shaw, Guest Blogger and Austin Massage Therapist One of the questions I get most about massage school is about how I got through it – like it was a terrible life crisis. My first response is to laugh and say off-the-cuff, “It wasn’t hard.” And it wasn’t. After all, we are talking about…
Read MoreIndividualized Massage Therapy for Individuals with Special Needs
by Christopher Allan, LMT In my professional lifetime I have found nothing more rewarding than working with kids and adults with disabilities. I have also found most massage therapists are not fully prepared to handle the unique challenges brought forward when working with these individuals; which was the behind purpose creating the course, “Massage Therapy…
Read MoreTensegrity and Myofascial Release
Have you ever heard the word tensegrity? If you’ve been an engineer you might at least be familiar with the concept. But as a massage therapist – especially one who seeks to relieve pain and improve range of motion, understanding tensegrity is imperative to performing impactful bodywork. James Earls and Thomas Myers say it best…
Read MoreHow to stave off holiday stress!
The holiday season is stressful. There is no way to escape all of the various commitments that come with family, shopping, work, and parties. But we can take time to escape from the chaos and ensure our own health and sanity! Here are five ways to help make this holiday season a little more manageable.…
Read MoreThree Ways to Use Your Massage Income for Good
By Jennifer Shaw, Austin Massage Therapist and Guest Blogger The American Massage Therapy Association says 83 percent of massage therapists’ careers started as a second job – a means to supplement the income of a job they already had. Not for me. I wore rose-colored glasses. When I decided to go to massage school, massage…
Read MoreChair Massage is more than a “door opener”
By Jennifer Shaw, Austin Massage Therapist and Guest Blogger Just because chair massage is what massage therapist Lisa Santoro calls “a door opener,” does not mean it doesn’t require more technical training and practical experience than traditional massage therapy education offers. In an interview published by Massage & Bodywork Magazine, Santoro and fellow chair massage…
Read MoreLove your Lymph! Why it is important to massage therapists
By Jennifer Shaw, Austin Massage Therapist and Guest Blogger Lymph is a clear fluid that flows its way through the body toward the heart. If the words “toward the heart” didn’t sound significant enough to you, here are three more reasons why you should care about your clients’ lymph – and your own. The…
Read MoreInvest in the Art of Receiving Massage
Tim Sullivan is a yoga teacher and massage therapist in training. You can find him at www.timyasa.com and americainshort.com. I remember a conversation I had with the desk staff at a local spa. It was when I had first signed up for massage school, and they said I should book my appointments now because after…
Read MoreThree Myths Busted | Why You Need a Pregnancy Massage Course
By Jennifer Shaw, Austin Massage Therapist and Guest Blogger Even the seasoned massage therapist probably remembers the first time they worked on a pregnant massage client. When we reached the pregnancy portion of our massage training, I remember being terrified by prenatal massage. Even in my practice now – four years after my certification, when…
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