The year was 2017 and I was just dipping my feet into the waters of Thai Massage. I was still a student in massage therapy school and all I knew was that Thai Massage intrigued me. I had no idea how to become certified in this modality and quite frankly I felt overwhelmed with the very idea of doing so. Fast forward to present day – 2023 and I’m so close to becoming a Certified Thai Massage Therapist that I can taste it. Here are the 5 steps I followed to become a Thai Massage Therapist.
Before we dive into this, I’d like to explain a couple things. Firstly, there’s a difference between specializing in Thai Massage and being certified in Thai Massage. Therapists who specialize in Thai Massage have likely completed a couple Thai classes and have some basic knowledge of how to practice it. Therapists who are certified in Thai Massage have completed extensive training through a separate program or company to receive their certification.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk about the 5 steps I followed to become a Certified Thai Massage Therapist. I completed my Thai Massage certification and training through Living Sabai. This Asheville-based company has been in business since 2009. Living Sabai’s mission is to offer CE or continuing education courses to Licensed Massage Therapists. It currently hosts CE’s in four states across the United States: Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.
Continuing Education courses is how I was introduced to Living Sabai. Each year Massage Therapists have to complete a certain number of Continuing Education courses, (in the State of Tennessee where I’m licensed, the requirement is 24 credit hours) in-order to maintain our licensure. This leads me to step 1 of 5 of how to obtain your Thai Massage Certification.
Step 1 – Find Your Program & Take the Core Classes
I aligned myself with Living Sabai’s Thai Massage Advanced Certification program – but there are so many companies out there offering Thai Massage Certification. I chose Living Sabai because it seemed to be the most comprehensive and legitimate. Living Sabai’s Certification Program was also free – outside of the separate costs of course tuition. Additionally, it helped that Living Sabai’s classes were being offered in Nashville, TN where I live.
There are three core classes you must take to qualify for advanced certification through Living Sabai: Thai Massage 3 Day Intensive, Thai Massage Weekend Immersion, and Traditional Thai Foot Massage. Each of these classes are offered at different days and times throughout the year and have varying CE credit hours. Some therapists have knocked out all three core classes in a couple months. It took me nearly a year and a half to complete them due to my own hectic work schedule.
Step 2 – Assist in One of the Core Classes
Step 1 down – four more to go! After taking all three core classes, you’ll need to serve as an assistant in at least one of the three core classes you just took. To sign-up to assist in a class you’ll simply email Living Sabai with the date and time and location of the class you want to assist in. Side note: you are not able to assist and take a class simultaneously. Both steps must be completed separately. I served as an assistant in the Thai Foot Class December 2022 and found it to be an awesome experience. Overall it served as a sort of refresher for the class I’d already taken and I also picked up a few informational bits that I missed the first time around. As an assistant you’ll work hand in hand with the teacher of the class. Duties include: helping set up the classroom beforehand with learning materials, answering any questions students may have throughout class, and simply being there to help with anything the teacher may need.
Step 3 – Complete 15 Thai Massage Practicals
Your family and friends are going to love this one. You must complete 15 Thai Massage practicals – 10 of them being 90 minutes in length and five of them being two hours in length. The client must also complete a short evaluation form after each session. The only caveat here, the 15 practicals can not be performed on one single person. You must have a least four unique clients. Believe me, you won’t have trouble finding people to volunteer. People LOVE free – especially free bodywork. Outside of family and friends, I connected with students from Thai classes I took and worked on them. I also used co-workers from the spa I work at as practical clients. Pro tip here: complete the practicals simultaneously as you finish the three core classes. This gives you time to actually practice and perfect everything you learned in class. The great thing is Living Sabai offers mini USB video trainings for you to follow along with post-class to serve as practice guides for your practicals. In total it took me about a year and a half to complete these 15 practicals. I offered each session for free and completed them at home in my apartment. It was super fun to take what I learned in class and perform it solo. Don’t forget, you will need to invest in a Thai Massage mat for this step. Living Sabai does sell its’ own mat. However you can also buy a Thai mat online via Amazon or Massage Warehouse. Personally, my Thai massage mat was gifted to me by my awesome friend Keri, who was moving out of town and no longer needed hers – #lucky and #perfecttiming amiright?!
Step 4 – Create Sample Thai Sequences
Step four was actually the easiest and the most fun for me. Here you’ll tap into your creativity as a Massage Therapist and create three Thai Massage sequences. Of the three sequences you’ll need: one 60-minute, one 90-minute and one 2-hour sequence. Pro tip here: I found it best to practice the sequences I typed up. I also created my sequences based on potential client needs. For example, my 60-minute sequence addressed shoulder pain/tightness. My 90-minute sequence targeted lower back pain. My 2-hour sequence centered around a simple full body Thai Massage session. You’ll type up each sequence separately and can use pictures, words or titles of poses to create your sequences.
Step 5 – Receive Thai Massage
For step five – you’re the lucky one now! You will need to receive two separate Thai Massage sessions. After each one you’ll complete an evaluation form detailing what you thought of the session. It’s important to point out, you will pay for these sessions out of your own pocket. On average I found that most Thai Massage sessions cost between $130-$175 – depending on the length of the session. I’m lucky to live in a city like Nashville where Thai Massage practitioners are easier to find. My favorite places for Thai Massage in Nashville are The Lotus Room Ayurveda, Zen Blossom Massage & Wellness, Thai Yoga Strength and Massage of Nashville. ,
Finish Line
Congratulations! You’ve reached the finish line. Now that you’ve completed all five steps, the last thing you’ll need to do is mail it all off. Be sure to mail all documents at once. That means your 15 practical evaluation forms, your 2 solo Thai Massage evaluation forms, your 3 mock sequences and a copies of the 3 certificates you’ll receive from completing each core classes. You won’t need proof of assisting, as Living Sabai takes note of this upon sign-up. If this seems like a lot to remember don’t worry, Living Sabai has an entire checklist for you follow along with.
Overall, undergoing Living Sabai’s Advanced Thai Massage Certification Program has been an awesome learning experience. Being honest though, it does take time and dedication. My best advice is to enjoy the journey and don’t rush the process. In total, completing this certification has taken me nearly two years to complete. I’ve come out of it nowhere near perfect, but I’m definitely confident in my skills as a Certified Thai Massage Therapist and can’t wait to share everything I’ve learned with the greater Nashville community in the future.
