From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant) Fri Dec 11 21:58:17 EST 1992
Article: 1072 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!linac!Firewall!lll-winken!sundance!fastrac!keg
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: how to get certified
Message-ID: 
Date: 10 Dec 92 17:37:13 GMT
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In article <9J8TBQ3L@cc.swarthmore.edu>, chorwit1@cc.swarthmore.edu (Cathy Horwitz) writes:
|> Someone out there must know....How does someone go about getting certified?
|>  I'm not totally sure that I want to, but I would like some information. 
|> Do you take a test?  Is it written or practical or do you just complete the
|> training?  Also, what about cost (ouch)?  If someone could send information
|> and could give me the name of the organization that does the certifying I
|> would be a very happy one.  Thanks,											Cathy
|> 

Cathy,

I only wish it was all that simple.  Certification and licensing requirements
vary considerably from state to state.  In states that haven't established
uniform requirements licensing requirements are often left to considerable
local discretion - in training requirments, licensing procedures, and
physical facility requirements.

On the one hand, the American Massage Therapy Association is pushing and
has conducted an initial testing for a national certification exam.  This
is a purely written exam with, most simply, a prerequisite of 500 hours of
massage training (I compare this with an entry level commercial pilot's
license requiring ~250 hours and carrying equal or greater technical
competence and responsibility to the client).  On the other hand, the
AMTA approach is of a clinical mindset, historically oriented only to
Swedish modalities, and politically controversial.

Noah Press, which publishes Massage Magazine, published a massage resource
guide a couple of years ago.  The specifics are:

International Massage & Bodywork Resource Guide

More than 520 listings of schools, associations, seminars and laws related
to the healing arts of massage, bodywork and holistic health along with tips
on choosing a school, a glossary of techniques and a book review section.
114 page.  $12.95 + $2 S/H to: Noah Publishing, P.O. Box 1500, Davis, CA 95617.

(The 800 number for Massage Magazine itself is 800-533-4263)


Station Hill Press also has published a guide for people considering a
massage career.  I don't have the specifics (title, ordering info) today
but can post them later.

The total cost of training will vary with the hour requirments, but something
on the order of $8-$10 per hour of training wouldn't be that unusual from
my experience.

-- 
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+


From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant) Sat Dec 12 20:43:38 EST 1992
Article: 1080 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!lll-winken!sundance!fastrac!keg
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: how to get certified
Message-ID: 
Date: 11 Dec 92 18:33:02 GMT
References: <9J8TBQ3L@cc.swarthmore.edu>
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Originator: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov


In article <9J8TBQ3L@cc.swarthmore.edu>, chorwit1@cc.swarthmore.edu (Cathy Horwitz) writes:
|> Someone out there must know....How does someone go about getting certified?
|>  I'm not totally sure that I want to, but I would like some information. 
|> Do you take a test?  Is it written or practical or do you just complete the
|> training?  Also, what about cost (ouch)?  If someone could send information
|> and could give me the name of the organization that does the certifying I
|> would be a very happy one.  Thanks,											Cathy
|> 


As an addition to the response I made yesterday, this is the info on the
book I mentioned about massage cert. requirements that was published by 
Station Hill Press.  I don't have a copy, so I can't attest to how
comprehensive the book is, but they are a publisher of quality books.

Ashley, Martin: Massage - A Career at your fingertips,  Station Hill Press,
Order No. P1354, $19.95 paper, ISBN 0-88268-135-4, 7X10, 292 pages, index.

[Description from the Body/Mind books - Winter 1992-93 catalog]
A growing interest in therapeutic massage has focused increasing attention on
career opportunities in the field.  Now in Massage: A Career at your
Fingertips, a successful therapist draws on his own experience, as well as
interviews with more than 50 massage practitioners and bodyworkers, to produce
a comprehensive reference to the profession.  Here is the complete rundown on
schools, licensing, professional organizations, sources of equiptment,
suppliers in the U.S., legal requirements, and more.  A thorough overview of
career options and a user-friendly career-planning guide compplete this 
invaluable reference for novices, students, and practicing professionals

Station Hill Press, Inc.
Barrytown, New York, 12507
914-758-5840
Credit Card orders: 800-342-1993 (ask for extension Station Hill Press)
-- 
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+


From jamie@uwo.ca Mon Jun  7 16:18:49 EDT 1993
Article: 1620 of alt.backrubs
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!csd.uwo.ca!jamie
From: jamie@csd.uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
Subject: How long to accreditation? (was Massage Therapy Schools (?) HELP!)
Reply-To: jamie@uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
Organization: Computer Science Dept., Univ. of Western Ontario, London, Canada
Date: Mon, 7 Jun 1993 20:14:57 GMT
Message-ID: <1993Jun7.201457.15027@julian.uwo.ca>
Summary: Can one be trained and accreditated in 6 months?
Keywords: accrediation register government regulation massage professional
References: <1993Jun7.114136.4992@ccsvax.sfasu.edu>
Sender: news@julian.uwo.ca (USENET News System)
Nntp-Posting-Host: berfert.csd.uwo.ca
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In article <1993Jun7.114136.4992@ccsvax.sfasu.edu>
z_leachms@ccsvax.sfasu.edu wrote:
>[...]                              where I could gain a certification within a
>six month period during the fall semester of 1993.  [...]

	Can people really get trained an accreditated in six months?
The last course I heard of took two years (it's in Toronto and the
registration is for Ontario).  Perhaps they did more than was strictly
necessary to satisfy the authorities.  
	I'll post a summary of mail messages.
-- 
James Blustein                                        `Did you say "knives"?'
                                        `*Rotating* knives, yes.'


From jamie@uwo.ca Thu Jun 24 07:34:15 EDT 1993
Article: 1667 of alt.backrubs
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!csd.uwo.ca!jamie
From: jamie@csd.uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
Subject: Re: How long to accreditation? (SUMMARY)
Reply-To: jamie@uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
Organization: Computer Science Dept., Univ. of Western Ontario, London, Canada
Date: Thu, 24 Jun 1993 11:33:08 GMT
Message-ID: <1993Jun24.113308.20511@julian.uwo.ca>
Summary: A summary of mail I received.  6months is enough in (parts of) the USA.
Keywords: accrediation register government regulation massage professional
References: <1993Jun7.114136.4992@ccsvax.sfasu.edu> <1993Jun7.201457.15027@julian.uwo.ca>
Sender: news@julian.uwo.ca (USENET News System)
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In article <1993Jun7.201457.15027@julian.uwo.ca> jamie@uwo.ca (J.
Blustein) wrote:
>In article <1993Jun7.114136.4992@ccsvax.sfasu.edu>
>z_leachms@ccsvax.sfasu.edu wrote:
>>[...]                              where I could gain a certification within a
>>six month period during the fall semester of 1993.  [...]
>
>	Can people really get trained an accreditated in six months?
[...]
>	I'll post a summary of mail messages.

	I had only 1 response.  Apparently once can be certified in
the USA after 6 months training.  The person in question completed a
siz month course in Florida and has been working as a MT in New York
while waiting for her board exams.
-- 
James Blustein                                        `Did you say "knives"?'
                                        `*Rotating* knives, yes.'


From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant) Fri Oct  1 13:48:45 EDT 1993
Article: 1879 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!utnut!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!lll-winken.llnl.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!keg
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Certification exam
Date: 1 Oct 1993 09:14:19 -0700
Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
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In article , mg@unomaha.edu (Matt Galardi) writes:
|> I am about to take the national accrediation exam for becoming an L.M.T.
|> Does anyone have or know where about I could find a study guide for the
|> test.  I have been through a massage school but I would like further aide
|> in preparing for the exam.  Any help would be appreciated.
|> 

I haven't seen anything advertised specific to the national cert. exam.  
There is a book advertised in Massage Therapy Journal (the AMTA rag) 
which claims to have over 400 questions/answers on anatomy, physiology,
manipulations, hydrotherapy, muscle and skeletal charts.

How to Pass your Massage Therapy Exams
ISBN 0-9617223-3-9

Hughes Henshaw Publications
Medical Division
7196 W. Fourth Avenue
Lakewood, CO 80226

Single book order $19.95+$2.50 S/H (Book Rate) $3.50 S/H for first Class.
If sending Money Order books will be mailed same day as Money Order is 
received. Please wait 2 weeks for delivery if ordering by check.


-- 
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+


From greybear@numachi.com (Bob Beecher) Wed Jan 26 13:00:28 EST 1994
Article: 2250 of alt.backrubs
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!noc.near.net!mv!numachi!greybear
From: greybear@numachi.com (Bob Beecher)
Subject: Certification in Mass....
Message-ID: 
Organization: Numachi
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2]
Date: Tue, 25 Jan 1994 17:23:08 GMT
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Hello;
I lived in Mass for most of my life, and currently reside in New Hampshire,
were to be a massage practitioner I was required to have a MINIMUM of 
1000 hours of study and another 3 to 500 hours of clinical practice to
be 'certified'. Then theres the state of New Hampshire 4 hour long massage
test to take for licensing. A one hour practical - demonstrate your massage
to the examiners (in a room full of other people doing massage also) and 
then the 3 hour written (this really only took about an hour).
Massachusetts currently DOES NOT have any state wide requirments for massage
practice, but check with your town for any local requirements for a massage
establishment. In some parts of western Mass. you cannot do any 
'cross-gender' massage or therapy unless you are a 'doctor', 'nurse', 
'therapist' -(real therapist not just call yourself one), or a minister 
or priest.   Some of them old blue laws just keep going. ;)-

You can get "certified" in as little as 200 hours from some massage schools,
the Kripalu school for example, but after the training I went through, I 
would hardly consider even bothering to go to someone less experienced 
than myself. After all there are tons of people *more* experienced than 
me to choose from up here (sigh**) and my back is happier for it.
-Later-
-Greybear-



From russest@ampex.com (Steve Russell) Thu Jan 27 07:43:27 EST 1994
Article: 2252 of alt.backrubs
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!sgiblab!barrnet.net!nntp.ampex.com!russest
From: russest@ampex.com (Steve Russell)
Subject: Re: Certification in Mass....
Message-ID: 
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In article  greybear@numachi.com (Bob Beecher) writes:
>Hello;
>I lived in Mass for most of my life, and currently reside in New Hampshire,
>were to be a massage practitioner I was required to have a MINIMUM of 
>1000 hours of study and another 3 to 500 hours of clinical practice to
>be 'certified'. Then theres the state of New Hampshire 4 hour long massage
>test to take for licensing. A one hour practical - demonstrate your massage
>to the examiners (in a room full of other people doing massage also) and 
>then the 3 hour written (this really only took about an hour).

California recognizes 100-hour certification via an authorized
post-secondary school but in most cases you need to work for
someone else until you meet the minimum training hours mandated
by local authorities - ranging from 200 to 1000 hours depending on
location. Local registration may also require back-ground investigation
and fingerprinting (which you pay for) and a business license.

It pretty much sucks.

What I'd like to know is if I'm only paying 200.00 a year for 4 million
in liability insurance and only 17 states out of 50 have any regulation
at all concerning massage practioners - WHAT IS THE BIG FUCKING DEAL???

-steve




From Bill_Arnett@mindlink.bc.ca (Bill Arnett) Wed Feb  9 08:56:11 EST 1994
From: Bill_Arnett@mindlink.bc.ca (Bill Arnett)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Certification
Date: 9 Feb 94 10:48:55 GMT
Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada
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Distribution: world
Message-ID: <38298@mindlink.bc.ca>
NNTP-Posting-Host: mindlink.bc.ca

Steve Russell wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
The fact remains, however, that (at least in the state of
California) I've seen local license requirements ranging from Zero
to 1000 hours or more with no restrictions to extreme restrictions.
And there are some places that only allow _same-sex_ massage.

Given that the state only offers certification of a CMT through
a minimum > 100-hours < training at an approved post-secondary
school, I fail to see a need to extend the hours of training for
giving a basic massage to clients beyond the existing state mandate.
<<<<<<<<<<

Here in BC there's only one school that offers training for
certification.  Their *only* program is 3-years, full-time.
It costs about $24,000.  At the end you write an exam that allows
you to become a registered massage therapist (RMT).  Ontario
certification is transferable.  Also, I've been told that the
*exam* (written) is the only manditory part of the process, so you
might be able to train elsewhere and then pay something to do the
exam.

The interesting part, though, is that you are free to practice
*without* the RMT certification.  The only requirement (I don't
know if it backed up by law) is that you can't advertise "massage".
You CAN advertise "swedish bodywork", etc.

Cheers.  Bill.
--
Bill_Arnett@mindlink.bc.ca                Bill Arnett Consulting
PO Box 32593,                             - Mainframe, IBM PC, and
Aberdeen Centre P.O.                         Macintosh programming
Richmond, BC.  V6X 3S1                    - Technical writing
     "See me.  Feel me.  Touch me.  Heal me." - The Who


From singer@cmb26.larc.nasa.gov (Bart Singer) Wed Feb  9 16:49:45 EST 1994
From: singer@cmb26.larc.nasa.gov (Bart Singer)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: National Certification
Date: 9 Feb 1994 21:11:27 GMT
Organization: NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA
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References: 
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In-reply-to: russest@Ampex.COM's message of Tue, 8 Feb 1994 17:58:20 GMT
X-Md4-Signature: 5b40adfdeba8dcabbce14ee2e8afd0e5


In article  russest@Ampex.COM (Steve Russell) writes:

[lots of stuff deleted]

   We, as massage practioners, do not diagnose, prescribe, or treat any
   symptoms of illness. WE ARE NOT DOCTORS. All we do is make people feel
   better by touch yet because of that (the touch) we get regulated up the
   wazoo compared to an appliance repair place, a barbershop, a beautyshop,
   or even a doctor or chiropractor. You don't see doctors and
   chiropractors having background checks and being fingerprinted
                        ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
   just to practice.

[lots more stuff deleted]

I can't comment about MD's and chiropractors, but engineers DO get
fingerprinted and DO need to provide character references in order to
take the take the exams that are required to become a licensed
professional engineer.


--

                                         Bart Singer
                                         High Technology Corp.
                                         MS 156
                                         NASA Langley Research Center
                                         Hampton, VA  23681
                                         b.a.singer@larc.nasa.gov
                                         (804) 864-2316


From nkraft@crash.cts.com (Norman Kraft) Fri Feb 11 08:28:27 EST 1994
Path: falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!torn!utnut!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!news.intercon.com!udel!news.sprintlink.net!crash!nkraft
From: nkraft@crash.cts.com (Norman Kraft)
Subject: Re: National Certification (Yes, again)
Organization: CTS Network Services (CTSNET/crash), San Diego, CA
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 1994 22:37:25 GMT
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In <38390@mindlink.bc.ca> Bill_Arnett@mindlink.bc.ca (Bill Arnett) writes:

>Steve Russell
>Address : russest@Ampex.COM wrote:
>
>>A bad massage is a bad massage whether given by a rank beginner or a
>>practitioner with 2000 client-hours. If you do bad work then eventually
>>you have _no_ work - ie. massage is self-regulating.

>I've been worked on by one therapist who had completed two years of
>full-time training at the only local massage school.  He had nearly
>completed his required hours to become registered.  It was obvious
>that he had an excellent *theoretical* knowledge of the workings
>of the human body, but as a masseur he was *pathetic*!  

I have had much the same experience. Here in San Diego, CA, there are
a variety of licensure levels for practitioners: 100 hours for a
"massage technician", 500 hours for a "massage therapist", and 1000
hours for a "Holistic Health Practitioner". The technician title is a
local one, I believe, and the others are defined by the state.

Anyway, I have had numerous massages from techs, therapists and HHP's
and have found that there is very little correlation between training
and the quality of the massage experience. The best bodyworkers I know
are all licensed as "technicians", who started out with a 100 hour
training level and have continued their education from there. What I
like about this system is that the basic entry level has been defined,
which allows those with the in-dwelling talent for massage to begin
working with clients sooner than later, and allows further education
to take whatever path seems appropriate to the practitioner. 

After all, working one on one with a more experienced practitioner in a
massage swap situation is likely to teach a talented student much more
than another 400 hours of formal schooling ever could, and the
experience of actually working with clients and piecing out the best
methods for addressing their needs is miles ahead of either.

I know of many tech's making their living with massage, with lots of
very happy clients. I also know of HHP's who, after spending $5-6K on
their education, are working as book-store clerks and just can't seem
to build a practice or keep clients.

Of course, I could be biased. I am one of those 100 hour techs (though
I don't make my entire living from it).

>I heard a bunch of similar stories about students and graduates of
>that program.  It seems clear that tons of training and even certification
>does *not* guarantee competence.

Nothing can replace the natural talents of those that are really good
at this healing profession. This is not to say that massage should be
limited to some chosen few, but rather that more than education goes
into a good massage.  Knowing the correct anatomical and biochemical
nature of a muscle may get you past a few exams, but that's about it.
When your hands are on that muscle, sensing its individual expressions
of movement and tension, seeking the manipulations that will achieve a
result, following the rhythms of your client, and seeking to lower
barriers of tension and stress, all that textbook education is little
help. 

Some people are simply not cut out for this business regardless of
their training, and it shows when they have their hands on your body.
Massage is an art, not a science, or at least science only plays a
small role in it.

>>Yes, I know you don't massage away from the heart.
>>How many hours does it take to learn that?

>The local massage school teaches their students to only stroke *up*
>the back (never *down*) because you always have to stroke toward the
>heart.  This seems fairly pointless to me since there are no major
>surface veins in the back as there are in the limbs.  There is no
>single direction that is clearly "toward the heart" from a circulatory
>point of view.

That is certainly true of the circulatory approach. The direction
which would be "toward the heart" is not always intuitive, and this is
one of the instances when good anatomical understanding will help a
lot. Lymphatic massage is similar in this regard, in that the paths of
lymphatic drainage are not necessarily where you think they would be.
The back is worked in entirely different directions i.e., from medial
to lateral on the upper back, latero-superior to medio-inferior in a
semicircle with an axis at the axillary for the middle of the back,
etc. So, is there a "right" way to work the back?

My point is that the issue of direction is highly dependent on what
approach you take with your massage, and there is no "right" way to do
it. I practice Chinese Tui Na massage, which is more akin to Shiatsu
than circulatory in that we are meridian and acupoint oriented in our
approach. The direction I work a particular limb depends on the part
of that limb I am working and generally follows the flow of qi in the
channel which lies beneath my hands. Thus, I frequently will work down
the arm, since this is the direction of flow for some arm channels,
and just as frequently go up since this is the flow of others.

This is one of the problems I have with the AMTA approach to massage.
By their standards, I don't *really* practice massage since a minority
of my protocols are circulatory. Gee that's funny, my arms sure *feel*
like I've been giving a massage, and my clients sure think so. Guess
not, though. The AMTA wouldn't approve.

>Opinions?

I've probably already given too many. I'll be quiet now... :)

Norm.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Norman Kraft                            INET  : nkraft@ucsd.edu (work)
Peptide-T Clinical Trial                or try: nkraft@bkhouse.cts.com (home)
HIV Neurobehavioral Research Center     UUCP  : ucsd!nkraft
Dept of Psychiatry, School of Medicine  
University of California, San Diego          Usual disclaimers...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------


From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov Tue Feb  1 10:54:31 EST 1994
Article: 2274 of alt.backrubs
Path: falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!torn!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!koriel!lll-winken.llnl.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!keg
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: AMTA?
Date: 31 Jan 1994 14:00:42 -0800
Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
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References: 
NNTP-Posting-Host: strathspey.llnl.gov


In article , mmarkert@maroon.tc.umn.edu (Micky Markert) writes:
|> Could some of the professional MTs reading this group give me some
|> insights into AMTA affiliation?  I have a choice between two schools of
|> massage therapy, and the one I want to go to isn't AMTA affiliated.  How
|> important is this?  Would I be shooting myself in the foot by not being a
|> member? The school I prefer teaches Esalen, and is a member of the
|> Associated Bodyworkers and Massages Professionals, if that means anything.


A few thoughts:

Both AMTA (American Massage Therapy Organization) and ABMP (Associated 
Bodyworkers and Massages Professionals) are national massage organizations.
AMTA has state chapters and accredits schools that meet their criteria.
ABMP is an umbrella organizations for affiliated organizations and schools.
Both organizations publish a journal and offer insurance coverage plans.
Details and types of insurance differ, so this might be a factor contributing
to your decision.

AMTA has worked hard to increase both the visibility and credibility of
massage as a profession.  Their approach to credibility is to stress
technical techniques and clinical application substantially beyond what is
necessary to give a very good relaxation-style whole body massage.  As a
consequence of this approach the require 500 hour training programs at an
accredited school, lobby for state legislation to support this view point, 
and have spun-off a nominally independent organization to administer 
"National" certification exams (written material only).

The "National" certification exam at this point has limited acceptability by
various states.  It may become an asset to inter-state portability of
training in the future however.  Taking the exam does not depend on being
trained in an AMTA school.  They have set up a prerequisite of 50 points.
One gets 10 points for each 100 hours of training they have taken.  The catch
is that training doesn't count unless it was part of a program of 100 hours
or more.  Personally, I feel this last conditions is especially absurd.  As a
comparison, most 3 unit classes on an academic quarter are about 39 hours.
During 1994, therapist who have been practicing for at least a year can
take the exam without meeting specific prerequisites via a grandfather clause.

According to Martin Ashley's "Massage, a Career at you Fingertips", Minnesota
does not have any statewide licensing requirement.  The city of St. Paul
has a local requirement for 40 hours of training.  Check with

   Health Occupations Program, Dept. of Health
   717 S.E. Delaware St. / P.O. Box 9441
   Minneapolis, MN 55440
   (612) 623-5185

for current info.

Requlations not contradicting, I personally advocate a modal of learning that 
provides an initial 100-200 hours of training, followed by gaining actual
job experience doing basic relaxation massage.  I feel that this provides 
better motivation, perspective, and background for making the most of 
additional advanced certificate training.  It also provides a part-time or 
incremental model for entering the massage profession while surviving off of 
another job. An additional consideration is that the additional training can 
be tax deductible.  Check if the school offering the "Esalen" style training 
offers advanced certificates or workshops.

-- 
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+


From jamie@uwo.ca Tue Feb  1 11:04:48 EST 1994
Article: 2277 of alt.backrubs
Path: falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!csd.uwo.ca!jamie
From: jamie@csd.uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: AMTA?
Date: 1 Feb 1994 16:02:31 GMT
Organization: Computer Science Dept., Univ. of Western Ontario, London, Canada
Lines: 11
Message-ID: <2iluen$mho@falcon.ccs.uwo.ca>
References:  <2ijv2a$bdd@strathspey.llnl.gov>
Reply-To: jamie@uwo.ca (J. Blustein)
NNTP-Posting-Host: gleep.csd.uwo.ca
Summary: `National' means USA in this context
Keywords: AMTA ABMP certification USA national usenet
Disclaimer: It's people like you what cause unrest!

In article <2ijv2a$bdd@strathspey.llnl.gov> keg@strathspey.llnl.gov
(Keith Grant) wrote:

>The "National" certification exam at this point has limited acceptability by
>various states.  It may become an asset to inter-state portability of

	I hope no one will mind my pointing out that `the "National"
certification exam' is for the USA.  
-- 
James  Blustein                                        `Did you say "knives"?'
                                         `*Rotating* knives, yes.'


From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov Thu Apr 28 14:49:32 EDT 1994
Article: 2761 of alt.backrubs
Path: falcon.ccs.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!overload.lbl.gov!s1.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!keg
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: National Certification Exam
Date: 28 Apr 1994 09:55:12 -0700
Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, GCR/RAS Division
Lines: 88
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <2poppg$s9e@strathspey.llnl.gov>
References: 
NNTP-Posting-Host: strathspey.llnl.gov


In article , mg@fm.unomaha.edu (Matt Galardi) writes:
|> In all it's wisdom the State of Nebraska switched from a state certification 
|> exam to the National Certification Exam a few months ago without
|> telling anyone until it was said and done.  I graduated from Massage Therapy 
|> school last January and felt ill prepared from what the school taught to take
|> this test. (Not blaming the school, since their cirriculum was geared to the
|> state test)
|> I have gather the following aids in preparation for the test:
|> 1)Massage Exams: National & Local Certification Textbook
|> 2)How to Pass your Massage Therapy Exams
|> 3)The Book! and accompanying video by Cal Cooley.
|> 4) I also am utilizing my school books and reference material.
|> 
|> Any suggestions as to what to concentrate on from those who have taken the
|> National test would be greatly appreciated.  Also, what is the test format ?
|> (i.e. Multiple guess, fill in the blank)
|> 

The test format is 150 questions, multiple choice (a,b,c,d). Scoring is 
based only on correct anwsers - you don't lose penalty points for wrong
answers, you just don't get positive points.  Time for the test is 3 hours,
which I found to be more than ample.  The test has a heavy emphasis on
anatomy and physiology. Types of questions range from the action of
particluar muscles, to which part of the nervous system does xxx? to what
nerve etc. would be endangered by pressing too heavily on yyy?

IMHO some of the test prep books are not nearly as well done as the test
itself.  I found some of the prep books either have conflicting answers or
give a direct quote from Beck's book taken out of it's original context.
>From what I've seen and heard, "The Book!" is supposed to be the best of
the lot.


The test booklet has a page of references in the back.  Some books I found
to be especially helpful are:

 93-28234: Beck, Mark.  Milady's theory and practice of therapeutic massage
     /  2nd ed.  Albany, NY : Milady Pub. Co., 1994.  p. cm. (this is a new
version of the classic classroom massage text. A lot of the background and
info on supporting modalities (e.g. hydrotherapy) is found here.

 85-62295: Sieg, Kay W., 1942-
  Illustrated essentials of musculoskeletal anatomy / Kay W. Sieg, Sandra P.
Adams, with contributions from the first edition [by] Anna Deane Scott ;
[illustrators, Dan Conway ... et al.].  2nd ed.  Gainesville, Fla. : Megabooks,
1985.  xi, 154 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.
(This has great drawing of muscles with appropriate detail. Text adds 
info on the action of specific muscles and their insertions and origins)

 93-23382: Thompson, Clem W.  Manual of structural kinesiology /  12th ed.
     St. Louis : Mosby, c1994.  ix, 228 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 28 cm.
     LC CALL NUMBER: QP303 .T58 1994
 (Another good ref on the structure and action of major muscles)


1. 91-29836: Thibodeau, Gary A., 1938-  The human body in health & disease /
     St. Louis : Mosby Year Book, c1992.  xviii, 569, [98] p. : ill. (some
     col.) ; 26 cm.
(This is an excellently written and illustrated text for anatomy, physiology,
and general pathology.  I believe Mosby has published an accompanying workbook)

63. 87-10076: Juhan, Deane.  Job's body : a handbook for bodywork /
     Barrytown, N.Y. : Station Hill Press ; New York, N.Y. : Distributed by
     Talman Co., c1987.  xxxi, 365 p. : ill. ; 27 cm.
(A general physiology book from a bodywork perspective - readable)

 88-14559: Tappan, Frances M.  Healing massage techniques : holistic,
     classic, and emerging methods /  2nd ed.  Norwalk, Conn. : Appleton &
     Lange, c1988.  xix, 347 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
(A good reference on general terminology and various styles of massage)


 92-24314: Ashley, Martin.  Massage : a career at your fingertips /
     Barrytown, N.Y. : Straton Hill Press, 1992.  p. cm.
(all you need to know on business practices and ethics for the exam)

-- 
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+


From LIPSCHOJ@ccmail.orst.edu (Jim Lipschorken) Thu Apr 29 16:47:40 EDT 1993
From: LIPSCHOJ@ccmail.orst.edu (Jim Lipschorken)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Breast Massage
Date: 29 Apr 1993 17:07:51 GMT
Organization: Consulting
Lines: 95
Distribution: world
Message-ID: 
References: <1993Apr22.214218.7677@njitgw.njit.edu> <1ra183INN7d9@skeena.ucs.ubc.ca> <1rfmtl$sug@bigboote.WPI.EDU> <1rgls3$s1i@vtserf.cc.vt.edu> <1993Apr28.170516.382@linus.mitre.org>  <1993Apr29.140504.527@nntp.nta.no>
NNTP-Posting-Host: 128.193.214.70
Status: RO

In article <1993Apr29.140504.527@nntp.nta.no> BARANSKI@veamf1.nusc.navy.mil (Jim Baranski) writes:
>From: BARANSKI@veamf1.nusc.navy.mil (Jim Baranski)
>Subject: Breast Massage
>Date: Thu, 29 Apr 93 14:05:04 GMT
>In  LIPSCHOJ@ccmail.orst.edu writes:
>
> Having a nude class of massage enthusiasts opened the gateway to
> discussing other irressolvible, preference based, topics like breast massage
>
>A question I've had that I'd like some opinions on:  What strokes for breast
>massage work for you?  How do (male) LMT's handle (sick!) issues around
>massaging breasts?  Seeing that there is little/less muscle, what are the
>benifits?
>
>Jim.

I'm *not* an LMT, but I do play on TV...

Seriously, I have gone through about six months of a two year LMT program,
and I hang with a few LMTs and have some interest in acupuncture and
chi-kung which have some degree of overlap.

The primary benefit of massaging the breasts is relaxation.  It allows
you to avoid unneccessary draping, and allows smoother effleurage
and transitions which can be made awkward by avoiding the breasts.

This is a key point, it is not that you concentrate on the breasts, it
is just that you do not avoid them and integrate them into the massage.

If a woman is uncomfortable with having her breasts massaged, there is not
point to it, the relaxation component is lost.

The "Swedish" massage which was taught in the LMT program had two types of
breast massage, one was effleurage on the sides of the breast, sweeping up
and down the torso, and on the inside and outside of the breasts.  The other
was a "cup and roll" procedure involving gently cupping the breasts and
rolling them in small circles.

Even in the context of the class, some women were uncomfortable with
having their breasts touched.  Some women, however, would ask you to
do more, it's an individual thing.

BTW, at that time the draping standards and rules involving breast massage
for the LMT exam were ambiguous enough that the instructors *strongly*
advised using a male subject for the practicum portion of the exam.

One thing that I have noticed is that particularly with LMT's interested
in traditional Vedic and Chinese medicine, massage takes place on several 
levels.

1.	Swedish massage, heavy draping standards, no breast contact.
	This is the general and most public service offered.

2.	Swedish massage with some Vedic, Shiatsu, Acupuncture Theory
	or other techniques mixed in, less or no draping.  This is
	generally offered to clients who express a specific interest
	in these things.

3.	Mixed massage, no draping, may involve bathing and/or contact
	to "forbidden" regions of the body.  Almost never offered to 
	clients, but to friends and fellow massage artists.

4.	Mixed massage involving some Tantric or other "sacred sex"
	traditions, which can involve direct massage of the sex
	organs, but is not necessarily solely sexual in intent.
	Usually offered to lovers, never to clients, sometimes to
	close friends/fellow LMTs.

Although, #4 is never done for pay, since this could get one arrested for
prostitution, it *does* occur, and is not necessarily directly sexual.

An example of this is the Tantric massage of the sexual organs which is
done *not* to pridcue orgasm (although this can happen), but to produce
a profound relaxation.

An example of #4 of was related to me by a friend who is a male LMT, who was
trading massages with a female LMT who was *not* his lover.  Both of them
were nude, and when he turned onto his back he found he had a *huge*,
almost painful, embarassing erection.  Rather than ignoring it, she gently
massaged his penis until the erection subsided.  Somewhere along the
way he did orgasm, but he did *not* consider it to be the same as
just being masturbated.  It was profoundly relaxing rather than profoundly
sexually satisfying.

Sorry to shock anyone here, but these things *do* happen in the real world.

The thing that fascinates me is there are distinct differences between
this kind of sexual contact and eros/promiscuity.  It is almost similar
to the way in which nudists can be the *worst* sexual prudes.

Jim



	


From garyc58971@aol.com (GaryC58971) Mon Aug  8 15:32:23 EDT 1994
Article: 3407 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!swiss.ans.net!newstf01.cr1.aol.com!search01.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: garyc58971@aol.com (GaryC58971)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: National Boards Exam
Date: 8 Aug 1994 13:45:03 -0400
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
Lines: 21
Sender: news@search01.news.aol.com
Message-ID: <325quv$gks@search01.news.aol.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: search01.news.aol.com

I have been asked by the Chairperson of the National Certification Board
for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) to make this anouncement.
Please do not flame me if you are against the exam, I am just making the
anouncement. (Don't shoot the messenger.)

The last opportunity to Grandmother this examination will be on:  November
12, 1994. 
The deadline to appy for this test is September 16, 1994, or with an
additional late fee of $20, on September 30, 1994.

(This means that the requirements to sit for this test will be made more
difficult after this test date. I do not know what those requirements will
be.)

To order the handbook that will explain all the details, test dates, fees,
requirements, etc., you may call:  1-800-622-3231

The handbook is free.

Thank you,
Gary


From keg@strathspey.llnl.gov Wed Feb 15 19:00:42 EST 1995
Article: 5295 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!news.cs.utah.edu!dog.ee.lbl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!dancer.ca.sandia.gov!cronkite.nersc.gov!osi-east2.es.net!lll-winken.llnl.gov!fastrac.llnl.gov!usenet
From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Of mailing lists and the ABMP/AMTA rivalry, was Re: ANNOUNCE; NEW MASSAGE MAILING LIST
Date: Tue, 14 Feb 95 20:10:14 PDT
Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Atmospheric and Geophysical Sciences Division
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References: 
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In article , 
> 
> What was the national exam like?
>

As another person who jumped the hurdle of the National Certification Exam,
it was a reasonable test of anatomical knowledge, covering muscle action,
ennervation, nerve and artery endangerment sites. There was also a
reasonable section on basic massage stroke identification, identification
of sympathetic versus parasympathetic nervous system responses...

Not a bad precursor to doing deep tissue or sport's massage, but somewhat
overdone for nongeriatric relaxation massage.

The were a few questions on identifying a basic concept or two from other
modalities (any idea what a meridian is?), but nothing as complex as the
anatomical/physiological part.

The business ethics part was relegated to questions like identifying the 
portion of your income to be reported to the IRS (10%, 20%, ...).

While strictly physiological endagerment was a big factor in the test, I
didn't find any component dealing with emotional or psychological 
problems (e.g. abuse victims). Nor was there any component on the larger
somatical issues of fluidity of movement, focus of awareness, postural
habituation that might be of equal usefulness (at least not in 1993).
In short, the exam was very oriented towards verifying the technical knowledge
competency for physically therapeutic (as constrasted to preventitive or
emotionally therapeutic) massage. 

As a side note (question?), I'm not aware of any provisions that the 
administers of the test have taken to facilitate dyslexics (verbal question
readers?) or the sight-impared. Anyone have any knowledge on this?

..Keith

__
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I Common sense and a sense of humor are the     I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I same thing, moving at different speeds.  A    I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I sense of humor is just common sense, dancing. I
  I                         I (or perhaps dancing is just common sense)     I
  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+




From mvdg@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca () Fri Feb 17 10:09:49 EST 1995
Article: 5310 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!news.mindlink.net!rover.ucs.ualberta.ca!news.sas.ab.ca!freenet.edmonton.ab.ca!mvdg
From: mvdg@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca ()
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Of mailing lists and the ABMP/AMTA rivalry, was Re: ANNOUNCE; NEW MASSAGE MAILING LIST
Date: 17 Feb 1995 15:40:05 GMT
Organization: Edmonton Freenet, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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References:  <3hs07t$s4v@fastrac.llnl.gov>
NNTP-Posting-Host: freenet.edmonton.ab.ca
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2E]

keg@strathspey.llnl.gov wrote:

: In article , 
: > 
: > What was the national exam like?
: >


: As a side note (question?), I'm not aware of any provisions that the 
: administers of the test have taken to facilitate dyslexics (verbal question
: readers?) or the sight-impared. Anyone have any knowledge on this?

: ..Keith
I was involved in test question writing for the National Exam several 
years ago so some of these comments might not be current but from the 
concerns I have seen posted so far I think some might be relevant.  

The question writing process focuses on trying to imagine what an entry 
level practitioner should know.  In fact, after we had completed our 
question generating workshop, these same questions would be "tested" by a 
second group who specifically were at the entry level place.  Anything 
that was too advanced, too specialized was thrown out.  

I think the process was very thorough, a professional attempt by a very 
competent organization - the Psychological Corporation - to create a base 
line competency exam, something they are in the business to do.  However, 
there are some questions about the range of competency tested such as 
meeting the commitment of the exam committee to provide a testing tool 
that was suitable for the range of organizations that have supported it 
such as Oriental/Energetic approaches  or Rolfers.  In these areas the 
exam tends to fall flat, catering mostly to mainstream massage skills.  

I have some sympathy for the National Certification people in this 
regard; they are over quite a difficult barrel that is truly a sign of 
our times.  In the end, the exam is not just testing a base level entry 
skill of practitioners, it is a measure of the base line of education 
these practitioners are getting.  Much of the expectation of the exam was 
set on parameters established after exhaustive questioning of 
practitioners of all persuasions in the field.  Essentially they were 
asked, "What do we need to know to be competent out there?"  The response 
(an interesting read in itself) is far more advanced and wideranging than 
what is available in most massage schools these days.  For example, it is 
still common for a massage practitioner to not have a basic understanding 
of what a meridian is.   In any other field, not having essential 
understandings like these would just be bad educational practices.  In 
massage and bodywork, the constraints of expectation on how long one 
needs to go to school (among other limitations) don't allow schools to 
entertain such important questions, and so we stick to the basics.  

The basics in this case are what the National Certification Exam is all 
about, and until something changes in the field I think it is a very 
truthful if not very comfortable reflection of the level of development 
our field is at. 

--
Matthew Van Der Giessen              email: mvdg@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca
6304 109A Street                     phone: (403) 438-3757
Edmonton, AB, T6H 3C7



From awelling@aol.com (Awelling) Sat Mar 25 07:49:43 EST 1995
Article: 5664 of alt.backrubs
Path: newshost.uwo.ca!torn!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!newsfeed.pitt.edu!uunet
!newstf01.news.aol.com!newsbf02.news.aol.com!not-for-mail
From: awelling@aol.com (Awelling)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: RE: certification
Date: 24 Mar 1995 17:45:21 -0500
Organization: America Online, Inc. (1-800-827-6364)
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Reply-To: awelling@aol.com (Awelling)
NNTP-Posting-Host: newsbf02.mail.aol.com
 
Doug,
 
You may want to contact an organization responsible for national (not
state) certification of massage therapists and bodyworkers, the National
Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork in Arlington, VA,
regarding educational requirements for taking their certification exam.
Try 1-800-296-0664.