Finding a Great Massage Therapist takes persistence and patience. What makes a massage therapist great to one person often is the thing another person hates. Massage is such a personal experience and it may take awhile to find the perfect fit but with knowing more about what to ask and knowing yourself, you can often find one that you will never want to leave and you won't want to give their name out to others because then they will get too busy to get you on the schedule.
Many states license massage therapists as health care providers which does help weed out some irresponsible therapists but it is not 100% effective. There are still many massage parlors offering "other" services that are giving the profession a bad image. In licensed states, you can go to the state board website and often find a list of licensed providers to confirm their status.
Some of the places to look for a therapist:
1. Ask your friends, family and co-workers first! There is nothing better than a recommendation from someone who has had a massage from that person. (But remember who the source is and if your needs are similar to theirs.)
2. Ask your physician or other health care provider for a referral.
3 Search online for one close to your home. ("Massage, Seattle") Anyone who has taken the time to get their massage website up and running to be on the top few pages of results should be put on the list of possibilities. Read their website and call a few taking the following questions into consideration.
Some of the things to ask the therapist or look for on their website or to ask in an email or phone call are:
1. How long have they been in business? (While there are some great therapists just out of school, you have a better chance of getting a great massage by finding someone who has been in the business 5 years or more.)
2. Tell them about what condition you have that you are seeking help with and ask what experience they have had with that condition.
3. Ask them what training they have had? Deep Tissue and Swedish Massage are the most common, but there are over 250 different types of massage and more emerging everyday.
4. Ask them if they offer a free 1/2 hour or some kind of special so you can come in and meet them.
5. You should be able to tell if you would like to try them after a few minutes just by trusting your instincts. How do they make you feel when you talk to them or get a email response? Do they take the time to explain things? Do they call you or email you back quickly? (within an hour says something about the person and their integrity.)
6. If you already have had some massages you can ask them about specifics that you like -the amount of pressure you like, that you like to be touched with their hands and not tools or elbows, that you like your head and/or feet worked on or other specific areas. Tell them what techniques you have experienced and liked to see if they know what you are talking about.
After doing your research the only thing you can do is try one. And then, just because it didn't work out the first time, doesn't necessarily mean that the person is not for you. It sometimes takes awhile for the therapist to know your needs. Every body is so unique that it takes time to build a relationship.
It also requires that you take the time and effort to ask for what you want to make that massage great for you!
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