ABMP reports in their 2007 member survey report that Close to 83 percent are women. AMTA report that their members are 85% female and 15% are male. Male’s entering the massage profession find themselves in the minority which is a very unusual place for men to be.
One of the most FAQ’s on my website -www.massage-career-guides.com is about the demand for men in the massage profession.
Is the massage profession for men?
Is there a demand for men?
Women have played the role of nurturing for so long that many are drawn to the massage profession to continue their work of helping others. I actually just had the thought that maybe it is also the reason why so many people struggle as a massage therapist. Through my own process of learning and discovering the hidden side of helping (see the code of the caretaker category) and seeing it in the massage therapists that I work with and interact with online and in person, I have seen that so many massage therapists confuse helping with running a business. (This is a whole other post for later!)
So what are the challenges for men in the massage profession?
Women clients find themselves uncomfortable being touched my men in some situations. The abuse of women by men sets up the bad image that males are faced with as a massage therapist. Men are skeptical of getting massage by men as they may also feel threatened sexually or they just prefer to have the nurturing of a woman.
Whatever the reasons many men are left out in the cold when looking for a job because men do not seem to be in demand in the massage profession. But how much of that is actually create by the massage profession itself?
In about 2002, I asked a male massage therapist, Ryan Hoyme (who went on to create www.massagenerd.com) to write an article on my website -www.thebodyworker.com about what issues males are faced with and how he overcame those issues.
Through the years he has also gotten many inquiries and replies to his article and he has posted them on his website at www.massagenerd.com.
The thing is that there are many successful men in the massage profession. Many have gone on to become teachers and develop their own methods of massage and bodywork. Many have written books.
Paul St John- Creator of Neuromuscular Educators
Leon Chaitow- Massage Today articles and profile,
Whitney Lowe- Massage Today articles, Founder and creator of Orthopedic Massage Research and Institute, author of
Keith Grant- Massage School teacher and writer who is very informed about the politics in the massage profession and is working to create standards for the massage profession. His website is www.ramblemuse.com
Ben Benjamin- Massage Today articles
Thomas Myers- Started with Ida Rolf and Rolfing and developed his own system of bodywork – Anatomy Trains.
Stuart Taws- British Sports Therapy
James Waleski – Orthopedic Massage
Art Riggs - Deep Tissue Massage Manual
Steve Capellini – Articles on Up Close and Personal, Spa Instructor and author. See his website www.royaltreatment.com.
John Upledger – Massage Today articles and profile. founder of the Upledger Institute.
George Kousaleos- Founder of the Core Institute
Harvey Kellog- Early Manual Therapy
Robert Calvert – founder of Massage Magazine and author of the “History of Massage”
Eric Dalton - Massage Today articles and Profile, Freedom from Pain Institute
Joseph Heller -Studied with Ida Rolf and created his own version of Structural Integration called Hellerwork.
Milton Trager- Tragerwork and Mentastics.
These are just a few of the many males in the profession who have created a name for themselves. They all have done it by working on many people and studying the body.
I also wonder if part of the problem is that men are not used to being discriminated against. It is a new feeling for them to be faced with. Massage schools are also telling them they will have difficulties and so when they are faced with hiring challenges they may take it personally.
The thing is that if whether you think you will or will not have issues or challenges as a male in the massage profession – you are right.
Focusing on the problem will keep you stuck on the problem. Focusing on the solution will keep you focused on creating what you want for yourself.
If you find that you are always finding the spa or job that is against hiring males, it is just a good opportunity to look at your own resistance and fear of working in the massage profession as a male. Most of the time it is some unconscious thought process that is keeping you from finding your ideal job.
One of the things you can do is to join or start your own peer supervision group that can be men only or a mixed group. Talking about these issues is one of the most important things we can do as a profession. Being able to share your concerns and yes- feelings is how the images of males as being a minority in the massage profession can begin to be changed.
Men also do well in sports massage in general. Find out more about becoming a sports massage therapist.
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I have been in business for 3 years and I have done fairly well, but I have to admit that as a man in this profession you absolutely have to put in the extra effort to make a go of it. To me, it meant taking lots of extra courses to learn techniques that would give me an advantage. It also meant creating a website and doing lots of promo work. But in the end it all pays off. It is a wonderful profession, the market is changing, and hopefully one day there will be significantly less sexual discrimination out there and people will look at male massage therapists the way they look at female doctors.
There are still lots of successful men in the profession. I have a male supervisor Jack Blackburn who has worked for years as a massage therapist and now teaches. I go to a spa where there are 2 men on staff and I go to one of them specifically. There are also plenty who have worked in the trenches and work on a local level. Just start looking around.
Steve Capellini is an authority on spa massage and has a few books on it. He started out just doing regular massage. I was taught structural integration by William Leigh who started out in Rolfing and then created Zentherapy.
Men and women who are afraid to get a massage by a man need to be educated and taught that their fears are unwarranted. There is a lot of healing that can happen with opposite sex and same sex massage. There is a big need for that in our culture. Just take a look around you to see it.
Don’t look for a job on craigslist. No massage therapist should look there. Everyone knows it is just a prostitution ring anyways. Create an opportunity for yourself. If you have to take a job – find someplace that respects men or teach them to respect men.
Most massage therapists start their own business anyways. Create a male spa (not for gay male massage) or learn injury work and orthopedic massage.
It is only your thoughts and attitudes that will get in your way.
I just happened upon your site and read the article. As a male looking to start a massage therapy program to become a sports massage therapist you touch upon all the “myths” and misconceptions that everyone I know seems to have. That is, that it will be very, very difficult to make a great living with a massage practice because I’m a guy. I think there’s also a fear that guys who practice massage are gay if they massage other guys. I think it depends on the situation between first time clients and the male therapist. For example, I want to specialize in sports massage rather than relaxation and stress reduction. In this way, athletes, whether male or female, are not going to think about these myths and misconceptions as much as if they are going to a therapeutic massage therapist. The reason being that athletes are only thinking of results, not who is doing the massage. So, I think men can be successful in this business but it depends on their mindset and what they want to achieve.
I would also like to get some bios on men in the massage profession as I would think that even the men I mentioned started as clinicians and I know the Steve Capellini did relaxation massage to begin with. (He talks about doing his first massage in one of his books.)
As you know, Julie, I am attempting just what you speak of with my new website
http://www.male-massage-therapist.com
My thought is that that are some very successful male massage therapists out there, and what I mean by successful, is more than just writing books or teaching classes. Some are very successful as clinicians in practice, making decent money. My speculation is that their approach to success is made by exploiting the strengths men bring to the practice setting and avoiding the stigmas or negative perceptions (valid or invalid) associated with being a male therapist.
Either way, the new site will attempt to make frustrated male therapists feel they have an outlet to vent from, and allow successful male therapists to share their wisdom as to how to make it in a profession which is viewed by most of the public with a “no way I’m getting massaged by a dude” mentality.
P.S. I like the new look!!
I think you touched upon this in the article; I just want to state it in a more specific/direct way. Men tend to do better in this field when we specialize in something other than relaxation massage or spa work. Look at the list you provided. They are all specialized forms of bodywork that are more ‘medical’ or more ‘therapeutic’ than your basic swedish massage.
I feel this has to do with society’s perception that men are more ‘medical’ or scientific than woman (not my belief – just my opinion on society’s view). Men are doctors, men are mechanics, men are the ‘fix it’ gender, and I feel this applies to massage/bodywork as well.
In my practice, I specialize in CranioSacral Therapy and still give some massage. The vast majority of my practice are clients who come in to address specific issues and health concerns. I have less than 5% who come in for just a ‘relaxation’ session. I have several doctors in the area who refer clients with specific health issues.
My hope is that eventually gender will not be an issue. People will choose a therapist based on experience, training, and who meets his/her needs without gender playing into the decision. Until then, bring me your migraines, chronic aches/pains, immune disorders ……….