Last month, Bloomberg Businessweek ranked massage therapy one of its top 10 careers for 2011. U.S. News and World Report named massage therapy one of the 50 best careers.
In fact, more growth is expected in massage therapy than most other industries over the next decade. The U.S. Labor Department estimates an expansion of almost 20 percent, with the addition of 23,200 jobs by 2018.
The American Massage Therapy Association reported that, in 2009, the industry was worth between $16 and $20 billion, up from $6 to $11 billion in 2005.
From July 2008 through July 2009, an estimated 48 million American adults received at least one massage.
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"One of the reasons why complementary modalities are becoming so popular is people are just tired of being sent home with a pill," she said. "Whereas when you work with complementary therapists, it's more about engaging in the treatment yourself. People also cannot afford $1,000 a month for some drugs that are being prescribed with surgery."
Others may turn to massage therapy to avoid the side effects of conventional medication, said Mike Hovi, Illinois chapter president for the American Massage Therapy Association.
"Look at all the commercials on TV for drugs," he said. "You hear what the drug can do and then listen to all the side effects, everything from a heart attack to strokes, to death to suicidal tendencies. Well, there are no real side effects to doing massage."
**This makes me smile! I have been a massage therapist for almost four years now and I preach about this all the time. I know when times are hard, everyone is pinching their pennies, but even beyond the wonderful effects massage has right after you get one, think about what future issues or problems you may be preventing or decreasing in the long run. I think about it a lot when I go for acupuncture and I have to sacrifice the cash or check every visit. Don't get me wrong...I still think Western medicine has it's place. If you break a bone, don't come running to me first! :-) But I feel like our society is so quick to look for that magic pill or that surgery that will solve everything when it doesn't. I read somewhere and I wish I had the name of the guy who wrote it, but he wrote, "When you have a headache, its your body trying to tell you something, not that you have an aspirin deficiency."
These facts are copied from http://www.nwitimes.com/niche/get-healthy/mental-health/article_624ce060-3e89-5511-8fb8-1e2318747e14.html.
