The AMTA 2022 Schools Summit will take place on February 17-18 in San Antonio, Texas. This premier event allows you to connect with other massage school educators and administrators. Take advantage of this opportunity to create new relationships or enhance existing ones, learn from each other in engaging continuing education sessions, and most importantly, have fun!

*NOTE: AMTA School members are eligible to receive one free Schools Summit registration. To receive this benefit, call your AMTA Account Executive at 847-905-1674.

Registration Information

For $199, receive access to all continuing education sessions and the exhibit hall.

Click here for more registration information.

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Save the date for the 2022 ABMP School Forum! We’ll be back for an in-person event at the Halcyon hotel in Denver, CO, Friday and Saturday April 22–23, 2022. We’re looking forward to seeing our school community and gathering together for an event full of inspiration, education, and community building, and we’ll be sharing more information about the schedule over the course of the next few months. ABMP Premier schools get one free seat and ABMP Enhanced schools save $100 on registration. If you are at an ABMP Premier or Enhanced School, call 800-458-2267 to contact Becci McCormack (ext. 1633) to register, as discounts cannot be applied online.

Click below for more registration information

Although some massage therapists and clients may consider hot stone massage to be simply fashionable, the use of stones and gemstones for healing purposes dates back thousands of years.

A Part Of History
Both verbal and written history confirm the Chinese used heated stones more than 2,000 years ago as a means of improving the function of internal organs. Stones were also used for healing work in North America, South America, Africa, Europe, Egypt and India.

These traditions included laying stones in patterns on the body, carrying or wearing stones for health and protection, using stones for the diagnosis and treatment of disease, and for ceremonial uses, such as sweat lodges and medicine wheels.

A Source Of Healing
The healing practices of curanderas (literal translation: “healers” in Spanish) and other female caregivers often included dealing with disease as well as pregnancy and childbirth. These folk healers used heated stones to diminish the discomfort of menstruation, plus the application of cold stones to slow bleeding after labor.

Some sources also cite instances of cultures in which women believed that simply holding stones during labor added to their strength and endurance.

Ancient Greek and Roman cultures have a long recorded history of many forms of massage and bodywork. The Roman Empire, which dates from 27 B.C. to 476 A.D., is noted for its creation of the Roman baths.

This ancient tradition is still with us today in the form of modern hydrotherapy practices. The Romans also used stones in saunas and combined the effects of hot immersion baths with the cooling effects of marble stone and cold pools.

An Old Technique Is Reborn
The use of heated stones in massage was reborn with the introduction of LaStone Therapy, created by Mary Nelson, in 1993. Stone massage has blossomed since then into a multimillion-dollar industry.

Stone massage, done correctly, is one of the most relaxing forms of massage a person can receive and because of its popularity, has once again traveled quickly around the globe.

The full-body, hot-stone massage has evolved to include deep tissue-specific work, hot-stone facials, hot-stone pedicures and manicures, and hot-stone meridian therapy. Because of their incredible energy, stones are used in reiki, polarity therapy and cranial sacral work.

There are many therapists who use their own variation of stone massage, from just placing stones on the body to a deep-tissue massage. Two important safety factors, however, apply to all uses of hot stones in massage therapy:

Never place a hot stone on bare skin without moving it.
Always use a barrier, such as a specific textile product designed for stone placement, or at least a sheet or towel to protect the skin.
The Evolution Of Stone-Supply Companies
With this massage modality growing in popularity, the need for sources of hot stone massage became a necessity. To this end, stone-supply companies evolved, such as Desert Stone People, TH. Stone, RubRocks and Nature’s Stones Inc.

The next challenge came with the need for heating the stones; incredibly, the initial suggested means of heating stones was in a turkey roaster.

Other options included crock pots, electric skillets and warming trays, all of which carried the possibility of overheating the stones and burning the client.

The problem, of course, was that all these options were actually kitchen appliances as opposed to being professional heating appliances manufactured specifically for spas, chiropractor’s offices and massage-therapy treatment rooms.

After much collaboration and cooperation between Nature’s Stones Inc. and the Metal Ware Corporation (makers of Nesco products), the Spa~Pro Massage Stone Heater, a unit designed specifically for hot-stone massage, was created.

The Value In Hot Stone Massage
As therapists recognized the value of working with massage stones, they also saw the need for high-quality instruction in the use of massage stones. Nelson assembled a team of therapists to teach all around the world. Sonya Alexander from TH. Stone was busy teaching, while Carollanne Crichton, founding director of The Institute of the Healing Arts in Rhode Island, then produced a video showing her method of stone massage.

As one of the first therapists on the East Coast to do stone massage, I was busy designing protocols for different modalities and teaching in Europe, the Caribbean and across the U.S.

Please look for future articles on www.MASSAGEmag.com, as I explore the exciting arena of stone massage. I will write about safety issues, contraindications, the expansion of stone therapy to different modalities, the evolution into cold-stone therapy with marble stones and now the resurgence of stone massage with the innovation of carved basalt stones.

I will also discuss accessory products, such as massage oil, essential oils, heaters, textiles, DVDs and seminars. I look forward to an ongoing conversation with you.

An estimated 10 million Americans suffer from a known hypothyroid condition, and 10 percent of adult American women may have some degree of such conditions, according to endocrineweb.com.
January is National Thyroid Awareness Month, sponsored by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, a time when massage therapists can learn how clients with thyroid disorders might benefit from massage therapy.

Signs of a Challenged Thyroid
Hypothyroidism

The term hypothyroidism encompasses any condition witnessing the thyroid gland’s inability to produce adequate levels of hormones known as T3 and T4. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune inflammatory condition that destroys the thyroid gland, is the leading cause of hypothyroidism. The other major cause indicates a broad medical treatment term that includes surgical procedures to remove all or a portion of the thyroid. Removal of cancerous tissue in thyroid cancer patients is a prime example of this cause.

Major signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism include fatigue; muscle weakness; fluctuations in weight without an obvious reason; dry, thinning hair; rough skin patching; cold intolerance; depression; abnormal menses; decreased libido; and cognitive challenges.

A patient may be difficult to diagnose by her physician due to not manifesting many of these symptoms initially. Insidious changes occur slowly, leaving a patient wondering why he feels off-balance. Most people will not think to consider their thyroid as the culprit, resulting in symptoms worsening slowly over time. Serious complications can occur, including heart failure, coma and severe depression.

The Enlarged Thyroid
Goiters, or enlarged thyroids, may be witnessed in hypothyroid patients. These result from an

Thyroid Gland

overproduction of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) from the pituitary gland. The constant stimulation from TSH will cause the thyroid tissues to swell. If the thyroid gland still cannot produce adequate T3 and T4 hormones, the patient will be considered to have goitrous hypothyroidism.

It is important to note that the presence of a goiter does not always equate to hypothyroidism. Other conditions featuring the development of a goiter include dietary iodine deficiency, the patient taking lithium carbonate, infectious disease, postpartum complications or a rare fibrosis condition called Riedel’s thyroiditis.

A massage client with hypothyroidism could be on one of several different medications for the treatment for hypothyroidism. The most common drug is a synthetic thyroid hormone usually sold under the brand name Synthroid or Levothroid, according to the website of the Mayo Clinic. The generic name of the drug is Levothyroxine. This drug is a synthetic form of T4 hormone (the most significant of thyroid hormones) and is used to replace one’s T4 hormone levels. Evaluation of dosage can be tricky for some patients. Proper communication with the endocrinologist is key to determining the proper dosage daily. An annual evaluation of the drug’s effectiveness is expected as well.

The half-life of Levothyroxine is six to seven days, meaning it takes this time period for the drug serum levels to drop significantly enough to become insufficient in the patient. Because of such a long half-life, massage therapists must communicate effectively with the client to determine how the drug is affecting the client at the time of massage treatment.

Common side effects of Levothyroxine and other hypothyroid medications include chest pain, changes in menses, headache, fatigue, heat intolerance, hives, facial swelling, breathing challenges, fainting and tremors, according to the Mayo Clinic’s website. Overdosing symptoms include changes in consciousness, skin pallor, vertigo, changes in pulse, confusion and sudden headaches, aphasia and apraxia. It is important for massage therapists to recognize these signs and symptoms with their hypothyroid clients.

Massage for Thyroid Patient Health
Massage therapy and related bodywork can benefit the hypothyroid patient in many profound ways. First, a significant reduction in the patient’s symptoms can be witnessed with the usage of acupressure. This benefit was demonstrated by a research study in Russia conducted in 2011. Reflexology and Gua Sha technique were also utilized in this study involving Chinese medicine theory in addressing hypothyroidism.

A second benefit of massage therapy for the hypothyroid patient is aiding improved blood and lymphatic circulation. Since proper blood and lymphatic flow is vital for all endocrine organs, the thyroid could benefit from improved circulation.

Reduced inflammation is a third benefit derived from massage therapy and related bodywork. Research through the Buck Institute for Research on Aging in Novato, California, and McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, indicates that massage therapy may create a result similar to anti-inflammatory medications at a cellular level. This benefit will aid the hypothyroid patient with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or similar inflammatory concerns.

A fourth benefit of massage treatment is reduced stress within the body. This benefit can decrease cortisol and other stress hormones to help manage weight healthily.

Finally, increasing muscle strength will combat the fatigue and weakness often felt by the hypothyroid patient. A Swedish massage including a large percentage of petrissage strokes can enhance the size, strength and stamina of muscle tissue.