When you have muscular pain and want relief, how can you find a massage therapist who will give you the most benefit for your money?
A nice “feel good” massage has many benefits but not when what you want is pain relief.
There are many types of massage and a few different professional organizations and lots of massage schools. There are all types of different philosophies, personalities, beliefs and training. Some massage therapists have a ton of advanced training and some massage providers never go beyond their basic training (which may be short) not even to read an article or book.
Word of mouth is usually a great way to find a good therapist. If someone you know got relief from their massage therapist that may be a good person for you to interview.
There are credentials that can help you decide, too. Here are a few.
- Professional Membership in the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA.)
- Nationally Certified in Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork (NCTMB.)
- State Licensed. (At the time of writing, about 3/4’s of states license massage therapists.)
Here’s how to interview a massage therapist.
Most will be happy to give you a brief free consultation.
First of all, don’t ask, “Do you work with people who have (my type of) pain?” or, “Do you treat (this type of) pain?” There are many massage therapists who will say yes, even though they don’t have the training or experience to successfully treat your specific complaint.
Instead, ask him or her the following questions, and listen closely to his answers. See whether the answers make sense to you.
- What are the most common causes of (my type of) pain?
- How will you determine why I have pain?
- What is your pain treatment strategy?
- What type of massage training did you have?
- What muscles could be involved in my situation?
- How long do you think it will take for me to feel better?
- Will there be pain or discomfort from the massage?
Feel free to ask additional questions. Also, ask him to explain any answer you did not fully understand.
You can learn a lot on the phone, but you can learn even more in person. The massage therapist may actually touch your muscles as she explains, and that will make it even easier for you to understand.
Sometimes when muscles are very tight, as they often are with pain, there may be some discomfort during the massage. There may also be some tenderness afterward. That is because you have some areas of tight muscles and they are not yet used to someone pressing on them.
If you have any discomfort from the massage, you may perceive it as “good pain,” which is a fine thing. Your body is saying, “Yes! This is what I need!” Or it may be quite intense and you can ask the therapist to lighten up.
It is okay for you to guide your massage therapists. Please do! They want to know how you are feeling and responding. They want you to feel better.
Sometimes discomfort during a therapeutic massage session is unavoidable, and it’s usually worse the first time than later visits.
But, the payoff from massage therapy for pain relief can be huge.
Start looking for massage therapists to interview today.
“Because You Deserve To Feel Better!”
What a useful article to help people in pain separate the touchy-feelies from the clinicians in massage therapy who really understand the physiology of pain. Also quite helpful as a reminder to fellow therapists never to rest on their laurels, but to be inspired to learn more about their chosen metier so that they can provide the best and most effective service possible.
Kimberley
Hi Kimberley, Thank you for writing!
Some massage practitioners prefer to do “relaxation” or “stress reduction” or “wellness” massage and that’s fine. That has benefit. BUT when someone has pain and goes to one of those practitioners they generally are disappointed when they leave. As one woman told me, “I had no idea why I was handing over $70 after the session.” That’s not good for the client or for our profession. That client will say, “I tried massage and it didn’t help.”
Massage therapy is such great natural medicine when you are “in the hands” of a knowledgeable, skilled, well educated therapist. Love it!
Kathryn
What a wonderful and informative article!! This is a great way to inform the public of how to interview a therapist. Keep up the great work! =)
Hi Mark, Thank you for your comment. It’s very important that people know that there are different types of massage and massage practitioners. Some do great relaxation massage and others do truly therapeutic massage that can get rid of pain.
If a reader has pain but goes for a relaxation-type massage, he or she will be disappointed if the massage doesn’t relieve their pain. Picking the appropriate therapist for their needs means the reader will be happier.
Best,
Kathryn