Learn To Get Healthy

Massage therapy is fast becoming a central part of health therapy. In fact, some clinics only offer massage, although there are usually different types on offer such as aromatherapy, hots stone massage, reflexology, Shiatsu, Swedish oil massage and Thai massage. Some spas and resorts are even providing weekend massage breaks away.

This has created quite a number of jobs for massage therapists or masseurs. in the Developed World most massage therapists are able to perform a number of sorts of massage, whereas in the East most masseurs specialize in just one variety. Therefore you will have to decide whether you want to specialize or not.

Pay is more than average at between $20,000 and $30,000, but staff in the leisure industry rely on gratuities to enhance their salary and the gratuities in massage are usually pretty good, if you know your stuff. This suggests that it would be a wise thing to have a speciality, say, Thai massage, but also to know something of oil or Swedish massage too.

lots of women like an hour of reflexology after a day on their feet either because of shopping or working. Reflexology is partially incorporated into Thai massage too, so these two would be a good fit. Thai massage is a therapeutic massage style rather than a calming one like Swedish.

The massage therapy business is part of the leisure industry and is in some measure regulated in most countries. There are examinations and qualifications to prove that you have been trained. A basic course in massage therapy lasts about 800-1,000 hours, which works out to six months full-time education or a year part-time.

The 800-1,000 hour courses teach basic anatomy and physiology and different massage techniques. The course may also contain modules on how to run your massage salon and how to carry out the administration in order to keep it legal. There are additional courses that can be taken in school or on line at a later date.

The problem that the student has is that not each country has the same regulations and frequently neither does each state within a country. This means that you should have an notion of where you want to practice before you study and make certain that the qualifications that you will get will be sufficient for you to find a career where you would like to.

If you choose to move and find that your qualifications are lacking, all is not lost. You will almost certainly find that your qualifications are recognized, but you may need to follow an extra module or two to bring them up to local standards.

One of the modules that you might need to take if you have left employment in order to open your own salon, is business administration, which is a requirement for business owners in some regions. It is obvious that you would have to know employment laws if you take on help.

Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on many subjects, but is currently concerned with the thai massage parlor video. If you have an interest in massage, please go over to our website now at Classes For Massage Therapy

It’s summer time again and biting insects are in full bloom. Though many commercial insect repellents exist, they often contain DEET, or diethyl-m-toluamide, which has questionable health effects, especially for youth. There are many safe and proven-effective natural aromatics which you can easily blend at home. Here’s a look at these essential oils and how to use them. The following recipes and directions will help you do just that.

drugstore insect repellant formulas contain DEET, a chemical shown to be hazardous to children (read:humans). Thankfully, catnip oil is ten times as effective at repelling mosquitoes without the potential safety risks. Folks who are interested in protecting their health and the environment are noticing the benefits of essential oils as healthier replacements for chemical bug repellants.

At the 222nd National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, an Iowa State Research Group presented their findings that Catnip repels cockroaches. Below is a description of the group’s methodology:

Researchers put groups of 20 mosquitoes in a two-foot glass tube, half of which was treated with nepetalactone (our Catnip essential oil is 80% neptalactone). After 10 minutes, only an average of 20 percent - about four mosquitoes - remained on the side of the tube treated with the oil. The same tests with DEET (diethyl-m-toluamide) resulted in approximately 40 percent to 45 percent - eight-nine mosquitoes - remaining on the treated side.

The results from each tube were rated on a scale from -100 to +100, with 0 meaning exactly half of the insects would be on the treated side, and half would be on the untreated side. The tests of Catnip yielded values between +49 and +59, meaning that the majority of the insects traveled to the untreated side. The DEET tests produced results between +6 and +16, meaning that more mosquitoes remained in contact with DEET in the treated side of the tube.

To achieve similar results in repellency, researchers adjusted the dosages of nepetalactone and DEET, and found that one part nepetalactone produced the same effect as ten parts DEET. Thus, nepetalactone is assumed to be ten times more effective at repelling mosquitoes. Commercial formulas typically use between 5-25% DEET, which means that your home blend should require a mere .5-2.5% of catnip oil to be equallyeffective.

Given the higher effectiveness of Catnip essential oil, it takes less oil to reap the same benefit as you would get using more of the potentially harmful DEET. There are also two other delightful blending oils that provide repellency. Their scents are a matter of taste; the newest oil is Eucalyptus Citradora, which doesn’t exhibit Citronella’s classic scent of lemon-grass.

So you have a variety of means to use catnip and other oils to repel insects during the warm season. You can make a lotion or a water (or even partially-alcohol) based spray, or simply let the oils run in a diffuser in your home.

If you would prefer to make a high-quality body spray, you will need to keep the oil and water from separating; our preference is a naturally-derived product called “tween” to help you do just that. Look for tween on our mixing bottles page. If you don’t mind shaking the bottle before using it, mix a ratio as small as :1, tween to essential oil. If you prefer a well-suspended blend, use up to a ratio of 1 to 1, tween to essential oil. When formulating lotions, use an unscented cream base, such as our organic Jojoba/Coconut, and no tween is needed.

Following are three recipes to try, or you cancreate your own! Each blend yields one total ounce of liquid

Refreshing Blend

1.5ml Catnip Oil 1.5ml Eucalyptus Citradora Oil 0.5ml Peppermint Oil (use only 7 drops if the spray will be used on children under 12) add perhaps 10 drops of Tween (don’t be offended by the smell - it actually is almost undetectable in about a day) and fill the bottle the rest of the way with water and/or alcohol (some folks find the alcohol mixes better, but we use water).

Recipe 2

1.0ml Catnip Oil 1.5ml Geranium Oil (A VERY popular ingredient in natural mosquito repellents) 1.5ml Citronella OR Eucalyptus Citradora 0.5ml Peppermint Oil (again use only 7 drops if the spray will be used on children under 12). The peppermint is not really a requirement, but we think the menthol may add repellent action.

Recipe for Diffusers

Due to the expense of catnip essential oil with a high concentration of neptalactone (like ours), you may add none at all, or perhaps 1/10th of your entire formula being catnip, the rest being other oils you enjoy! Our favorites include: Eucalyptus Citradora, Citronella, Geranium, and a little Peppermint. ALL these oils have been shown to be effective, and we think experimenting at home is fun. For best long-term results, make a note of what you put in your diffuser each time, along with the results.

The author is a natural health practitioner in Boulder, Colorado. She is a regular user of therapeutic aromatherapy and consultant to aromatherapy creations at The Ananda Apothecary.