Theory & Practice of Therapeutic Massage (Softcover)

Rating:
Summary: Great manual!
Review: I am a massage student, finishing up a 510 hour, year long course, and I LOVE this book. I do agree with the other reviewers in that it is general with respect to some of the anatomy and physiology. However, I used it this way: First I read an A&P chapter (for example, on the Digestive System) in Milady's as a sort of introduction, then I read the corresponding chapter in my anatomy book. this sort of "tiered studying" helped me to understand the more verbose, difficult A&P info. I hope that helps someone out there.... bottom line, this book was the cornerstone of my studies!

Rating:
Summary: From a student in a Massage Therapy course...
Review: I don't think I'd want to pay $80 for this book, but getting it used in paperback was well worth the investment! I'll have it as a guide for years to come. The end of chapter quizzes were very useful in test preparation, and I found the massage routines useful since I didn't learn their style in my massage schools. Could use more in terms of Ayruvedic medicine, though, since that's part of the National Exam now.

Rating:
Summary: Well-written book and good reference for NCETMB
Review: I used this book to help me prepare for the NCETMB. It was especially helpful for draping techniques, massage techniques and massage theory. It has some anatomy and physiology information for the boards but it wasn't enough. I also used the following which is also available on amazon:
The Ultimate Study Guide for the National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork: Key Review Questions and Answers
(Vol 1) ISBN: 0971999643
(Vol 2) ISBN: 0971999651
(Vol 3) ISBN: 097199966X
The last three study guides are just great for the type of questions to prepare for on the national certification examination for therapeutic massage and bodywork. These study guides were very complete for all the topics being tested on the NCETMB.

Rating:
Summary: Covers a lot, but not clearly and not in enough detail
Review: I used this text (and workbook) in massage school last year. While the text has its strengths and weaknesses, too often, key concepts were not explained clearly or in enough detail. In studying for the massage exam (NCTMB), I found it essential to use other books (e.g., an anatomy and physiology text) in order to have an understanding of some fundamental concepts that were either skipped or superficially discussed in the text. My expectation was that this book would be a good reference for using in my massage practice. Based upon my experience so far, it would need more details in many key areas in order for me to use it this way. Since school, I have rarely referred to it, and used it only occasionally in studying for the exam.

The books strengths are primarily in the extent of the material that it covers. I have not found any other single book that covers such a broad scope of information. And some of the information covered, I have not yet found anywhere else.

This book has a few weaknesses that if addressed, could make this THE text for massage. First, there tends to be a general lack of clarity in presentation; issues are often talked about rather than clearly stating what something is and how it fits in with the larger picture. I often had to reread sections several times (very frustrating) in order to understand what point the author was trying to convey. I noticed when reading a separate anatomy and physiology text (I bought one while I was in school), that concepts were explained in more detail, and one or two readings were sufficient. In this text, anatomy and physiology facts were often stated one after another and made into a paragraph, which made understanding difficult.

Second, there tended to be a lack of detail on key concepts. This was frustrating and motivated me to look for other sources that would give more detail. Surprisingly, this was even true in the area which describes the massage strokes and their usage. As a result, I recently purchased Mosby's Fundamentals of Therapeutic Massage (so far, looks good, but too early to tell yet).

Rating:
Summary: Covers a lot, but not clearly and not in enough detail
Review: I used this text (and workbook) in massage school last year. While the text has its strengths and weaknesses, too often, key concepts were not explained clearly or in enough detail. In studying for the massage exam (NCTMB), I found it essential to use other books (e.g., an anatomy and physiology text) in order to have an understanding of some fundamental concepts that were either skipped or superficially discussed in the text. My expectation was that this book would be a good reference for using in my massage practice. Based upon my experience so far, it would need more details in many key areas in order for me to use it this way. Since school, I have rarely referred to it, and used it only occasionally in studying for the exam.

The books strengths are primarily in the extent of the material that it covers. I have not found any other single book that covers such a broad scope of information. And some of the information covered, I have not yet found anywhere else.

This book has a few weaknesses that if addressed, could make this THE text for massage. First, there tends to be a general lack of clarity in presentation; issues are often talked about rather than clearly stating what something is and how it fits in with the larger picture. I often had to reread sections several times (very frustrating) in order to understand what point the author was trying to convey. I noticed when reading a separate anatomy and physiology text (I bought one while I was in school), that concepts were explained in more detail, and one or two readings were sufficient. In this text, anatomy and physiology facts were often stated one after another and made into a paragraph, which made understanding difficult.

Second, there tended to be a lack of detail on key concepts. This was frustrating and motivated me to look for other sources that would give more detail. Surprisingly, this was even true in the area which describes the massage strokes and their usage. As a result, I recently purchased Mosby's Fundamentals of Therapeutic Massage (so far, looks good, but too early to tell yet).

Rating:
Summary: From a student in a Massage Therapy course...
Review: One thing my entire class has noticed is that there are several typographical errors in this book (and in the workbook). It provides good information, but sometimes it doesn't make sense, causing my teacher have to look it up elsewhere. Otherwise, it's a great book, very informative.

Rating:
Summary: This books offers hows, whys and what not to dos of massage!
Review: This book is an excellent starting place for beginner massage therapists & bodyworkers as well as reference for those in existing practices. Offers insight into the beginnings of massage; the benefits, precautions & contraindications of massage; anatomy & physiology; a variety of other modalities; and complete "how to" chapters with illustrations. This book was my bible when I was a student in massage school. Hope it helps you, too!

Rating:
Summary: Well-written book and good reference for NCETMB
Review: This is not a "specialization" book. But it does give a good, comprehensive overview. If you're in a massage school, or you're one of those people who gives really good back rubs, then this book should make it to your "short list"

It goes over various parts of the body, methodologies and techniques, and problem areas. It has quizes at the end of each chapter. I found the areas on draping and assisting the client very useful.

It does NOT go into too much detail on hand techniques. But, let's face facts here, that's what the labs/practical part of massage school is for. You can only learn so much about massage by reading. If you haven't noticed, massage is a very "hands-on" job. :-) It DOES goes over the basic strokes/methods, but leaves the details to whatever class you're in.

If you're short on funds, and need to stretch your dollar, this is the book to get. I use it as a supplimental reference all the time.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Beginning Point
Review: We are currently using Milady's text (paperback); while it is an excellent beginning for the new student and Beck covers extensively the muscles and nerves, cells, and skeleton, chapters on the skin, excretory, respiratory, and digestive gave very broad and brief information. Also in using the workbook several errors were found (only noticed with the use of other reference materials). However, a good beginning but should not be solely relied on for study.