Phyiotherapist VS Massage Therapist: What Should You Become?
So you’re stuck between trying to determine whether to become a massage therapist or a physiotherapist.
These two careers can be confusing. However, when you get to know the differences and similarities between these two careers, it will be much easier for you to determine whether massage therapy education is the best choice or you would like to become a physiotherapist.
Let’s begin by seeing what a person who goes to massage schools Winnipeg will be doing for the rest of his or her life.
What Do Massage Therapists Do?
When you become a massage therapist, you will be responsible for focusing on both the entire body and the mind of your patient. You will have the freedom to choose the direction you want to focus your therapy in, whether that be spa therapies, rehabilitation, pregnancy massage, palliative care, etc.
You’ll also have the plus of choosing how you want to work. There are so may different environments you can choose with the same diploma that you may find yourself switching multiple times throughout your career: Spas, mobile services, your own home, massage therapy clinic, etc. You can also choose the hours you want to work which is a super big plus!
After completing your massage therapy education, you will be responsible for holistic care, that includes working within your scope of practice, giving advice regarding the posture, ways to stay healthy, ergonomics, stretching and simple fitness plans.
What Do Physiotherapists Do?
As a Physiotherapist, you’ll be working with people who are recovering from trauma. The patient could be recovering from an accident, injury, disability,etc.
Your responsibility will be to help that individual get back to being fully functional as quickly as possible. Physiotherapists usually work with people who are recovering from neck injuries, back injuries, and other neurological issues.
Due to the nature of the job, you may have a limited choice regarding where you work. You will need to work in hospitals, ambulatory care clinics or physiotherapy clinics.
The Major Differences Between Becoming a Physiotherapist and Becoming a Massage Therapist
Ten years ago, it may have been more black and white as to who would be providing the primary care for people recovering from injuries. But recently there has been more recognition from physicians towards the work that massage therapists do and you may find yourself more involved than ever in the rehabilitation of an injured patient.
The difference between the physiotherapist and the massage therapist would be the type of primary care they would be putting forward.
Another key difference is that when you finish your massage therapy education and land a client, you can work with the client for his or her entire life. However, when you become a physiotherapist, you will work with clients for the period they are recovering only.
Physiotherapists focus on making their clients feel better so that they can get to move on.
Massage Therapists focus on making their clients feel better in a continued wellness approach that integrates massage as part of that plan for life.
In most cases, for a person to see a physiotherapist, he or she will need a prescription. People can see a massage therapist without a prescription.
Obviously, you need to make your own decision as to whether you want to become a massage therapist or a physiotherapist. And obviously, we are a little biased towards becoming a massage therapist, cause heck, we love what we do!
One thing we do want to point out is that with becoming a massage therapist there may be more opportunities to fluctuate within the profession and change directions while still maintaining the original education you earned from your diploma.