Thai massage is a therapy indigenous to Thailand that has been used to promote general wellness, treat disease and injury, and provide comfort. It is one element of Traditional Thai Medicine, which is a comprehensive system of medicine that derives from indigenous practices of Thailand, as well as strong historical influences from Buddhist philosophy, yoga, Ayurveda and Chinese medicine.
Have you heard of the ICMT—the International Consortium on Manual Therapies? Its goal is to bring together the many diverse practitioners of manual therapies, including massage therapists, chiropractors, osteopaths, structural integrationists, physical therapists and others who specialize in various types of bodywork, in order to allow them to collaborate, share research and understand each other’s approaches.
The Chinese scraping method of gua sha is rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, and is becoming better known and utilized by Western health care practitioners. There are many uses for this method, including benefiting the skin, muscles, fascia and various body systems. This article will explore gua sha’s impact upon the lymphatic system and provide suggestions on its usage.
Do you know how to stick to a budget? It’s the first step to financial freedom. With the fast pace of life and the many demands on our time, it’s easy to be in denial about finances. A simple and time-tested antidote to this common experience is to develop and work with a budget.
Massage therapists are in a unique position in the world of health care. In some states, we are recognized as licensed health care providers; in others, we are not. While most of us strive to meet the highest standards of practice, there is one way to guarantee that we will not: when we deviate from the scope of our professional practice.
When it comes to massage room décor, color can play a role in helping create a soothing environment. You know not to paint your massage room fire-engine red if you want to create a relaxing effect—but there are a lot of paint options between fire-engine red and contractor white. Now, science can help guide you to make the best paint-color choice for your massage room.
Many studies have indicated benefits of reflexology—but how does reflexology work? The truth is that the mechanism through which reflexology works is not known. There have been many proposals as to how it works; the two most prominent theories are that it works through the nervous system or that it works through the meridians of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).
I did not set out to be known as the massage-tool guy. Achy hands pushed me to make changes in the massage room, and eventually, massage tools replaced my fingers and thumbs for a majority of pressing and gliding work. When that happened, my massage practice took off.
Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) is in high demand by the public, especially by people undergoing cosmetic surgery. Esthetic body procedures, such as abdominoplasty, buttock augmentation and liposuction, increased by 63% between 2020 and 2022, making MLD a potentially lucrative specialty.
Pickleball has become a smash hit in the U.S. in recent years—and along with growth in popularity of this sport popular with the over-50 set has come myriad pickleball injuries, especially in the feet, knees, hips, shoulders and arms, which may respond well to massage therapy.