Therapeutic massage has become a popular way to reduce the amount of stress you feel. It has also given rise to a lucrative massage therapy industry. Lots of people have become interested in being massage therapists and a lot of online resources offer information on learning how to give a great massage.
Although there are websites that give professionally taught massage lessons, merely learning how to give a massage online does not make one a licensed massage therapist. There is no online training that will lead to a license in massage therapy.
Generally, one needs to have around 600 hours of class training to become a professional massage therapist. There are even those who try to get more hours of training to create more credibility with other health professionals. There are already a lot of programs that offer a thousand hours of training.
As of now, there are 34 states that require massage therapists to obtain license from State Boards so they can practice massage as a business. These states are Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Illinois, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware, Maryland, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. Four states require massage therapists to have certifications before they can practice massage commercially: Wisconsin, Indiana, Virginia, and New Jersey. While in California, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, there are state regulations passed about massage therapy licenses or certifications but they are not yet implemented. There are also local or city regulations that concern massage therapy license.
Different states have different regulations covering massage therapy licenses or certifications. Most states that require massage therapists to take and pass a national certification examination before they can be licensed or certified by the state. To maintain certification status, there are states that require massage therapists to earn additional continuing education credits.
Copies of regulations are available usually at no charge in State Boards overseeing massage therapy license and certifications. Aspiring massage therapists should review descriptions of regulations in full so they can have detailed understanding of such directives and guidelines.
There are states that do not have regulations on massage therapy licenses on a state level. These are Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Minnesota, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Vermont. However, these states might have local or city regulations covering massage therapy practice. As a rule, it is recommended that one has to attend a massage school if one intends to practice massage therapy professionally.
