Reflexology

Reflexology is an age-old natural healing art that is primarily applied to the feet and hands. It’s aim is to facilitate a healing state within the whole body. The history of reflexology dates back thousands of years. A form of pressure point treatment was used in Indian and China, 5000 years ago and some Egyptian tomb drawings suggest that reflexology was in use in Egypt around 2330 BC. The Incas, an ancient Peruvian civilization, are believed to have used reflexology dating as far back as 12000 BC.

The reflexology that we know of today, was initiated by Dr. William Fitzgerald - an ear, nose and throat specialist in the late 1800’s. At that time, the medical community ignored his book “Zone Therapy” which introduced the idea of body zones…later to become the reflexology ‘map’ we recognize today. It did however capture the attention of a Dr. Joe Riley, who became interested in Dr. Fitzgerald’s work. In turn, Eunice Ingham, a therapist working in Dr. Riley’s office, was ultimately the one who set the foundation for further recognition of reflexology. Through dedicated research, Ingham found that the energy zones (from Dr. Fitzgerald’s work), located on the feet or hands, provided a map for the entire body. When the feet and hands were ‘pressured’ in certain areas, they created responses in related organs, glands and body parts. Using this map to guide treatment protocols, Ingham was able to create balance in the whole body, by simply working with the feet and hands.

Basically, the body (taken from anatomical position), is divided into ten vertical zones, starting from the top of the head right down to the sole of the feet or palms of the hands. An imaginary line is drawn through the centre of the body, which divides it into five zones on the right and five zones on the left. By dividing each foot or hand into five zones (left and right), these correspond to the body zones. For example the head is represented by the big toe or thumb, the spine is represented by the medial side of the foot or edge of the hand, the pelvic area is represented by the heel of the foot or hand and so on. The right foot corresponds to the right side of the body and the left foot corresponds to the left side. The internal organs are then located in relation to the skeleton. Each organ has a pressure point on the foot and hand in a defined location. Applying pressure on these points stimulates the circulatory and lymphatic systems. This in turn, encourages the body to improve circulation, release toxins and relieve tension. Ultimately allowing the body to make adjustments and heal itself.

Recent research indicates that reflexology works by nerve responses. The abundance of nerve endings on the feet (and hands), provide access to the whole body’s homeostatic response. When a person walks barefoot on uneven ground, the body must change it’s posturing in order to stay balanced and not fall over. This creates different weight distribution on the feet, which in effect, provides reflex point stimulation. As the weight distribution changes, the body naturally responds by adjusting the alignment of legs, pelvis, torso and head. These changes create minute pressure changes on the nerve plexii throughout the body and that in turn, creates changes in the energy flow within the nervous system. This energy flow distributes itself to the related organs and parts. Reflexology serves to manually create the same response as walking barefoot on uneven surfaces would.

Reflexology is a non-invasive method of treatment that can also be used as an assessment method - by analyzing tenderness of reflexology points to locate areas of dysfunction in the body. It uses no tools or instruments and feels very much like a very ‘detailed’ massage. It is performed without use of oil and generally is a very relaxing treatment. It has become very popular in the last 30 years and has become a well-established and recognized form of treatment for a variety of conditions.

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