Massage Therapy School in Springfield, MA
Massage therapists in the Springfield, Massachusetts area can be found a lot of places: private studios, spas, wellness centers, healthcare offices, and even onsite at people’s homes and workplaces.
Massage is more than a simple luxury, as more and more people – and businesses – are finding out. Business West recently reported on a Massachusetts company that was bringing services to some very deserving employees (businesswest.com/blog / bottom line bodywork brings massage workplace/). The article focused on a nursing home in Palmer where employees could sign up for a weekly fifteen minute massage; people could choose to donate their own shift to someone who especially needed it. Those fifteen minutes felt very good to nursing assistants who were getting ready to start 12-hour shifts: ones that were demanding physically as well as emotionally and could involve lifting people. The Director stated that employees told her the service made them feel like the company cared. While her business didn’t have data about the program’s impact on sick leave or worker’s compensation, she could point to research that suggested that such programs did far more than pay for themselves.
Massage research. There’s a growing body of it, involving many conditions and circumstances — and many different treatment approaches. A massage isn’t simply a massage as there are different modalities indicated under different sets of circumstances. That’s one of the reasons education is on the increase nationwide. Students complete programs that include lots of technique but also help them understand indications and contraindications and assess client needs.
Massachusetts requires 650 hours of education and has provided a curriculum breakdown. Programs are to include 100 hours of anatomy and physiology, 300 hours of massage therapy technique and practice, and 100 hours of unpaid clinic or internship (at least 60 of which are hands-on application). The state has also set minimums for pathology, kinesiology, and other professional issues. There are, however, provisions in place for candidates whose programs fell short on theory and technique.
Overall, schools in this area educate students well. Educational standards are higher in some regards on the other side of the Massachusetts-Connecticut border: 750 hours total.
Students who are considering attending an out-of-state option will want to consider how the curriculum matches up to Massachusetts specific curriculum requirements.
Massage Therapy Schools in the Springfield Area
The Massage School-East Hampton (Hadley, Massachusetts) currently is offering scholarships to Massachusetts students; this significantly reduces their tuition burden. The program is 750 hours and includes 200 hours of supervised student clinic.
Asnuntuck Community College (Enfield, Connecticut) offers an associate degree option; Connecticut and Massachusetts students are currently treated the same with regard to tuition/ fees.
American Institute (West Hartford, Connecticut) offers a massage therapy program with multiple scheduling options. Sports massage and acupressure are among the modalities covered. The American Institute is a school member of the American Massage Therapy Association. It is accredited by the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). AMTA lists the program hours as 810.
Massage Therapy in Healthcare
One can find massage therapists plying their trade in a number of the region’s small healthcare offices. Langlitz Chiropractic and Massage, for example, combines chiropractic services and massage, a very common pairing nationwide. Maplegate Rehab combines several disciplines, including acupuncture. There are currently three massage therapists on the team, two of whom are also chiropractic assistants. Pain Management + Rehabilitation has medical, chiropractic, and massage services available. Rehab Solutions, Inc., meanwhile, combines physical therapy and massage therapy. (The Rehab Solutions Holyoke location was among the businesses advertising for a massage therapist in late 2019.)
Healthcare systems are placing more emphasis on wellness and preventative care. Mercy Medical Center recently initiated Sparkle! Springfield, a wellness event designed particularly for women. It features resources and vendors, and free chair massage at the Serenity Space – for those who can get themselves a spot (womenhavespirit.com/event/ sparkle springfield).
In the Springfield area, as in many places in the nation, people are working to bring massage to cancer patients. The Cancer House of Hope has assisted oncology patients in receiving massage services.
Massage Practices and Spas
The following are among the popular massage practices in Springfield and the surrounding areas:
- Zenergy Spa
- Peoples Massage
- Abundant Wellness Center
- Mind, Body & Skin
One will also find some familiar names like Massage Envy and Elements.
Some massage therapists travel to clients. Bottom-Line Bodywork, the Massachusetts massage practice featured in Business West, focuses on healthcare settings like nursing homes, assisted living, and doctor’s offices.
Bottom-Line is LMT-founded, as are a number of small businesses in the area. Some massage therapists want to enjoy job flexibility doing something that inspires them; some have very specific visions that they want to manifest. They may work solo or with others. Ingleside Therapeutic Massage and Yoga is run by a husband-wife team who, between them, have several credentials, including massage, yoga, and trauma-informed mind-body work.
Advanced Massage Training
Massage therapists sometimes travel for advanced training intensives in specialty areas. In a metropolis like this, one may not need to travel far.
The Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge is one provider. It offers training in Positional Therapy for Chronic Pain Relief. Level I and Level II trainings each take place over a long weekend and are NCBTMB-approved for 20 or more hours.
Springfield Massage Therapist Salary
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has collected information about massage therapist wages for the greater Springfield, Massachusetts metropolitan area, extending across the border into Connecticut. Massage therapists in the Springfield area earned a mean hourly wage of $22.34 in 2018. The 10th percentile wage was $16.40, significantly higher than the 10th percentile wage nationwide. The 90th percentile wage was $30.77.
Additional Resources
Massage Schools in Massachusetts
Massage Schools in Connecticut