Reflexology.
The Human body is very complex piece of very sensitive technology. Normally the body works as one but sometimes it looses the balance, due to stress, injury or disease. Other parts of the body have to work over time to compensate for this. (this applies to most Holistic therapies) . Each individual has a preference to how they deal with occurrences . Reflexology is one.
The earliest records of reflexology dates back to tombs in ancient Egypt where paintings on the walls showing persons "massaging" other peoples feet. This tomb belonged to Ankhmahor A very respected physician of that time. There is also paper trails both written and in picture form showing pressure being applied to hands and feet. Even back in the ancients times 2500 BC acupuncture was being used and they had a understanding of Meridians (the bodies energy lines ) They believed that blockages in the meridians were a contributing factor to illness /pain in the body. There are reports of reflexology being used in India , also Buddhist monks taking a early form of this technique to China with them. It is claimed that the Incas gave the American Indian some of these techniques. However this has not been substantiated as yet.
Dr William Fitzgerald practiced Reflexology, how ever at this point it was more commonly known as ZONE THERAPY. While he was working on his clients he found that by applying pressure to certain points in the nose , mouth and throat relieved pain in other areas of the body. This man also started to map this finding out, he also split the body into ten equal longitudinal zones (meridians) . Each zone runs from the big toe up to the brain and to the thumb respectively (I shall get a diagram to clear this point up) and so the next toe goes through the same process and reaches the corresponding finger. Dr Fitzgerald knew these energy connections could effect other areas of the body to aid pain relief.
Eunice Ingram (also known as the "mother of modern reflexology") took this concept further. She mapped the entire body into the feet and realised that a healing effect was also apparent while putting some pressure in certain areas of the feet. IT wasn`t long before other therapists of time realised the importance of what she had discovered. Her nephew Dwight Byers works with the International Institute of Reflexology in St Petersburg Florida.
The reflexologist reads the area, in this case I am going to say feet. Not only are feet useful to walk on but they can cause bad body posture, yes back problems. what the reflexologist looks for for in the feet.
1. Shape of the foot ( If the shape of the foot is not good it may lead to pain in the foot )
2. Swelling on or around the foot. Sometimes swelling around the feet or on the foot may not be recognised by the client and while they may feel no pain in the foot they may have pain in another area of the body )
3. Colour (Circulation or infection may lead to discolouration in the feet. )
4. Vitality ( Do the feet look healthy)
5. Moistness ( The skin on the feet should be like the rest of the body but it maybe dry and cracking or if infection is there it may be wetter than normal
6. Temperature ( Hot or cold can lead to circulation issues or could be a sign of a problem somewhere else in the body)
7. Texture (some infections can change the texture of the foot )
8. Formation of the feet (crooked toes, miss aligned ankles, feet pointing in or out)
9. Smell ( Well some feet do smell this may be through personal hygiene or it could be through infection , Just watch out if some has had Garlic the night before :)
10. Flexibility. (I have found that people who are stiff in the feet are usually stiff in the body to.)
11. Skin condition, hard areas. (some people get hard skin due to ill fitting shoes. I personally have found women who wear high heels also suffer from back problems more. Also infections can cause hard skin /broken skin in the foot area)
Well hopefully from the insight above you will take more care of your feet. Recently I did a treatment on a lady and while working on the inside of the feet I came across a area of pain that related to the broken back she suffered two years earlier. After the treatment she claimed she felt like she had received a full back massage. I was aware of this through the consultation process but it was nice to receive the feed back from the client.
Here are some general areas in which reflexology may help you. Balances your body energy , Provides pain relief through endorphins being released by the gentle pressure applied , Can help problems to occur through the relaxation of the treatment as well as the stimulation of slow working areas, detoxifies the body as I said earlier the pressure applied on the foot can lead the client to feel they have received a full body massage, help to increase body circulation, Stimulates the nervous system as well