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NHI President Tim Veitzer and I just returned from the American Massage Therapy Association Council of Schools (AMTA-COS) in San Antonio.  Here it was announced that roughly 44 million Americans (20% of the adult population) had a total of around 209 million massages in 2008.  The most common factor for getting a massage was stress-relief at 36% followed by medical reasons at 31%.

On the heels of these outstanding numbers, National Public Radio (NPR) reported this morning that massage is faring well in a flagging economy.  It’s part of the ”comfort consumption” that experts say always spikes during stressful times like a recession.  People are cutting out their big expenses like vacation and travel — and spending more on smaller indulgences.  Click here to read the entire NPR article.

Good morning!  I’ll post some convention pictures when I return to the office next week, but so much is happening that I wanted to get some of it down now!  Some highlights…

• Watching Judith Aston dance on a spinning cycle.
• Having lunch at the table with AMTA President M.K. Brennan.
• Meeting pathology expert and textbook author Ruth Werner.
• Learning more about massage therapists’ increasing ability to bill insurance companies for their patients’ treatments.
• Enjoying some spinach & artichoke dip with the magnificent Andrew Biel, author of our textbook Trail Guide for the Body.
• Sharing a spontaneous stroll through downtown Phoenix with Patty Glenn, President of the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards.

So much more, but I must go do even more today!