How to pick a good massage therapist: Get the perspective from a professional

The most important factor to consider when picking a good massage therapist is their skill level and experience.  As such, check their credentials and read their reviews.  Then, start small.  Schedule a basic massage to experience their work and their personality for yourself.  If they have what it takes and you enjoy their work, you’ve nailed how to pick a good massage therapist.

Though that seems simple enough, let’s dive into what makes a good massage therapist beyond the obvious. When you have pain from unique situations like surgery, pregnancy, and various types of injuries, you must pick a good massage therapist who can address YOUR specific pain correctly. Therefore, read on to uncover exactly how to pick a good massage therapist in your area.

Starting with a new massage therapist requires some due-diligence on your part. To begin, uncover what the certification standards are in your area. Then, get answers to the following questions:

1. Do your local laws regulate massage therapy?
2. To what extent is massage therapy regulated?
3. What does it take for the massage therapists in your region to become a massage therapists?

Once you discover what the standards are, use them, and favor the therapists who are well-trained and certified.

This is the time to be picky about pressure. On your first visit, ask for more or less pressure as needed throughout the treatment. Be nice and be respectful, but say things like, “That’s a bit too strong or too weak for me right in that spot. Ask for more or less pressure. If you get a no-pain-no-gain response, counter that by telling them you’d still like a little break from the intensity for a couple minutes.

If your massage treatment is too soft, be assertive and ask for more pressure. If your therapist doesn’t seem to hear you, or is dismissive, now you know they are not a good massage therapist. This is the single most efficient way of eliminating massage therapists who aren’t worth the money.

If you haven’t seen progress after your first three to six hours of therapy, stop going. There may be some “wiggle room” for certain pain getting worse before getting better, but not that much. Beware of excessively poor results, like feeling too sore and sick after a strong massage.

If you’re focused on a specific therapeutic goal like relief from back pain for example, continue therapy only if you see some signs of progress within three to five appointments in most cases.

Massage therapists who advertise “Medical Massage” are probably more interested in working with physicians than against them. And so the odds of finding good trigger point therapy are somewhat better in such locations.

Finding a good therapist can be an expensive multi-month project, with hundreds of dollars spent on relationships that go nowhere. But the consolation prize is great: a massage therapist you like and trust is extremely valuable.

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