"Come to our Massage school and have a life changing experience." Boy that is quite a claim. Many massage schools make similar claims, but how accurate are these claims?

Having resided in the massage world for twelve years now, I do like to look around and see if massage school has influenced lives. Of course the one life I spend the most time looking at is my own. I can definitely say that becoming a massage therapist changed my life.

I had been a stay at home mom for fifteen years prior to attending massage school. Heck yah, it was life changing! The problem with my example is that, at this point, any kind of career would have changed my life drastically. Therefore, I find it hard to be objective on the subject.

Another real life example would be that of my husband. He had been employed for twenty-five years by the U.S. Postal Service when he began attending massage school. He went to classes four nights a week for eight months. I believe the biggest change he experienced at the time, was a greater appreciation for self-employed individuals.

In comparing our school experiences, there are some observations about massage school that we agree upon. The first thing that we both learned was that a full time program definitely brought about more change. When I was submerged in massage for six hours a day, I felt like a massage therapist. There was something about the immersion that changed my outlook. My husband, on the other hand, tacked a few hours of massage school onto his already long work day. Having to change hats mid-day is never easy.

Another difference noted was how a full time program builds upon itself. We all started at point A, then worked, studied and grew to point B. My husband's classes started at different times with different people. We never did figure out any continuity in the program.

The adage 'you get out of something what you put into it' is definitely true of massage school. I believe the more of yourself - i.e.: energy, time, money, commitment - you invest in massage school, the more you will get out of it.

Since massage school, my husband and I have both taken many CEU classes. We both agree that the best ones require the most from you. I realize that there are times when it is just not feasible to participate in classes. The popularity of on-line courses definitely substantiates this. However, the life changing classes are the ones we have to: A, travel to; B, pay for; and C, take time for.

When I look at the certificates on the wall, I feel the most appreciation for those I worked the hardest for. There are a few certificates that I don't even remember the classes for. These were usually the quickies because I was short on time.

I believe that you can have a 'life changing' experience at massage school; but I also believe that you have to put your life into the school to experience that change. Hopefully we can all seek out these kinds of schools, and enjoy the pura vida that comes with these life changing experiences.

Roblynn Neumann is Co Director and owner of Costa Rica School of Integrative, a study abroad massage school located in Heredia Costa Rica. You can contact her at info@crmassageschool.com. She has owned and run a private massage practice for 12 years, and taught for 3 years.