Massage TherapyWhat's the quickest and easiest way to take a mini-vacation and feel totally rejuvenated, renewed and rewarded? Do you want a well-paid job that can give you and your clients this feeling? If so, I have the perfect job for you. But before I start telling you about it you need to have an open mind and realize that this job requires some work. I'll tell you some of the things you might need to do, the reasons why it's a growing industry, the places you can get this job, the salaries, the amount of education you need and where to get it, the curriculum of the schools, some what skills you need and how to start preparing for this job now. Of course, you want to know about the career I'm talking about! It's massage therapy! I know, I know, you're probably thinking, so I rub someone's back, big whoop! But there is much more to massage therapy. There are many different things that a massage therapist needs to do. First of all they have to find a place to work and find clients, but this is obvious. There are also other things they need to do afterward, besides just massaging. In an interview with Stephanie Melroy, who owns and operates The Massage Studio in Holdrege, she told me, "A lot of high school girls are really interested in massage therapy, but most of them don't realize all the work and l 'education that entails." requires. The classes you take aren't the easiest either. You have to take a lot of anatomy and physiology, know every bone, muscle and nerve and they work. You will need to prepare the client before the massage, which may include: application of heat, alcohol, lubricants, salt or other rubbing compounds. Naturally the masseur will massage the client using kneading, rubbing and/or stroking movements. You also need to know the different types of skin diseases and irritations because if they have a certain type of disease it is not possible to cure them. But there are also many types of massages or therapies that could be performed. This includes hydrotherapy, Swedish massage, sports massage, Shiatsu, Trager, Hellerwork, Polarity, Reflexology, Acupressure, Rolfing and many more. In addition to manual massage, they could also use mechanical or electric machines.