Who Needs To Take An Aromatherapy Massage Course?

Anyone interested in healing is encouraged to take an aromatherapy massage course.  You do need to keep in mind how much money and time you are willing to invest in such a course.  Because of the high interest in aromatherapy and alternative healing, you may be better off finding a weekend workshop or an afternoon seminar rather than enrolling for a semester’s aromatherapy massage course at the local college or university.

What Are Your Goals?

Many people find that they are incredibly interested in aromatherapy and so have an underlying desire to learn all they can about it.  Some people want to learn about it because they are already in the medical profession.  Still others want to start their own business.  There are many reasons that people have when they decide to take an aromatherapy massage course.

But there are different levels and intensity of aromatherapy massage courses.  If you just want to impress a girl on a hot date coming up, then you don’t need to invest the time and money for a few weeks of intensive training.  Also, if you are continuing education in your chosen medical field, you may need to get a certification to fulfill your medical license requirements.  Stick to your goals and you will find the aromatherapy massage course for your needs.

What About Online Classes?

Online aromatherapy massage courses are not recommended, due to the hands-on nature of learning a skill like massage.  You need to practice on bodies.  No amount of text work or even using an instruction DVD can help you deal with the gritty reality of half naked flesh in front of you.  Although you can learn about aromatherapy online, it’s the massage part that needs to be learned in person.

What Do You Learn?

You learn a wide variety of things when taking an aromatherapy massage course.  You’ll learn about the different uses for aromatherapy oils, and about holistic aromatherapy massage, which works to help the whole person (body and emotions).  You learn some etiquette (like carefully taking care of a client’s clothes) and learn to deal with issues that may come up over the course of massaging a half-naked person.

You can find aromatherapy massage courses or workshops in your local community college, occult or New Age bookstore, yoga center or YMCA.  You should also check out the classifieds in your local papers for announcements of any classes open to the general public.

Things To Keep In Mind With Aromatherapy Body Massage

You don’t have to take an aromatherapy massage course in order to give someone a satisfying aromatherapy massage.  A lot of that course will talk about becoming a professional masseuse and may even go into how to run your own business.  Although that’s important for people planning on becoming professionals, it’s not necessary for amateurs at aromatherapy body massage to learn.

Keep Your Hands Warm

One of the most important things you need to keep in mind about giving a loved one an aromatherapy body massage is the temperature of your hands.  Although they will soon warm up, the sudden shock of frigid fingers will make your loved one tense up and quite possibly hit the roof.  That’s not conducive with getting a relaxing massage.

Not only are your hands to be kept warm, but also the oil, lotion or alcohol rub you’re about to slather onto your loved one’s bare skin.  You can keep the oil warm by placing the dish of oil over a tea light candle (much in the same way a candle food warmer is used) or you can stick the dish under the radiator for a few minutes.

Don’t Massage Bones Or Wounds

Your loved one will probably tell you how uncomfortable it is, but some people are too polite to speak up.  When you are giving an aromatherapy body massage, don’t rub the spine, ribs or other bones.  You can stroke the area like you are petting a cat or dog, but don’t do any circular rubbing, kneading or other maneuvers.

Likewise, avoid touching any wounds.  Half-healed scratches or really minor wounds are not to be worried about, but things like deep cuts, broken bones or some other injury can worsen if you touch them or get aromatherapy oil into them.  But still, an aromatherapy body massage on all other parts of the body can help the patient relax and recuperate.

Let Your Intuition Guide You

It often doesn’t matter just what kind of hand positions you do when giving an aromatherapy body massage for relaxation or to kindle some romance.  Just having a warm touch can help soothe.  Remember how you like to be rubbed and transfer that to the person.  Let them know to tell you whenever something doesn’t feel right.

Many people have had a professional massage before and they can help you with some particular finger and thumb movements with their aromatherapy body massage.

Why Mix Your Own Aromatherapy Massage Oils

One of the most affordable luxuries in the world is getting an aromatherapy body massage.  This is a great way for couples to really get to know each other and keep the tenderness and romance alive, too.  Although you could buy ready made aromatherapy massage oils, it’s far more fun to mix your own.  You don’t have to have a degree in perfumery in order to mix your own aromatherapy massage oils.

Supplies Needed

You should have a bowl that you only use for putting in your aromatherapy massage oils.  The oils will make the bowl useless for food or drink.  It can be fun shopping in thrift stores or charity shops to find a pretty and inexpensive bowl for this purpose.  But you may have a bowl ready and waiting in your home, attic or garage.

You also need to get an eyedropper or pipette if your aromatherapy essential oil bottle doesn’t come with one.  You can also get a mixing stick, but it’s not necessary.

The Base

Another thing you need is the base oil.  Although many aromatherapy essential oils are already sold diluted, you will go through a bottle really fast.  Considering the price of some oils, this can turn into a very expensive hobby.  It is far more cost-effective to buy even a very small bottle of pure aromatherapy essential oils and then buy the base oil yourself.

Base oils should make up nine-tenths of your aromatherapy massage oils.  They should be easily absorbed vegetable based oils like apricot kernel, jojoba or olive oil.  Cooking oils like canola or peanut oil usually are far too slimy for the skin to absorb.  Depending on how much your partner likes this idea, it’s best to go for more easily absorbed base oils.

Essential Scent

All you need is really just one essential oil to make aromatherapy massage oils.  Over time, it can be fun to blend the scents in order to produce a certain mood.  But some oils like frankincense are very expensive.  A good and inexpensive aromatherapy massage oil to start out with is lavender.  This can help promote relaxation and calm.  Many people also claim that the scent of lavender helps ease their headaches.

Before you massage your partner, make sure there’s an old towel to catch any spills or cover up a bare patch of skin before you can work on it.  Blow on your hands to make sure they are warm before applying your aromatherapy massage oil.