The ancient art of reflexology has been known to man for thousands of years. It was first practiced by the early American Indian, Chinese and Egyptian people.

 The body has the ability to heal itself, following illness, stress, injury or disease. It is a state of “imbalance”, and vital energy pathways are blocked, preventing the body from functioning effectively. Reflexology can be used to restore and maintain the body’s natural equilibrium and encourage healing.

What to Expect During a Treatment

A reflexologist uses hands only to apply gentle pressure to the feet. Trained hands can detect tiny deposits and imbalances in the feet, and working these points, the reflexologist can release blockages and restore free flow of energy to the whole body. Tension is eased, and circulation and elimination is improved. This gentle therapy encourages the body to heal itself at its own pace, often counteracting a lifetime of misuse. 

Reflexology is a wonderful distinctive therapeutic system that the foot provides a ‘map’ of the body, and that by massaging these points on the feet specific corresponding organs or parts of the body can be treated and restore any imbalances in energy that can lead to illness or stress.

History

In some parts of the world foot reflexology is a fully accredited medical treatment. It is often used as an accurate form of diagnosis, foretelling disturbances in the body long before they become apparent, and in correcting imbalances before they become serious.

Foot treatment was widely practiced in China, Egypt and India thousands of years ago. The earliest known record of working the feet is a wall painting in an Egyptian pyramid, known as the physician’s tomb, dates about 2330 B.C. The North American Indians also have a tradition of foot massage; central to their philosophy is the feet/sole is the connection with the earth and the universe.

Reflexology is based on the ancient Chinese understanding of health and flow of energy around the body. Ancient Chinese medical care was based on the understanding of man as a whole being, not just a correlation of parts. If illness occurred it was recognized as a problem of the whole being, for the body and mind were seen to be totally interrelated. So the connecting link throughout is energy, the life force, known as chi, that connect our being in to a living whole.

Illness was seen to be an imbalance, or congestion in the body blocking the passage of energy. The aim of the reflexology is to free the constrictions and balance the energy flow, so that the illness could be healed by the free flowing energy. It is the energy that contains our health. Every part of the body was shown to be on one of the various pathways, or meridians, of energy, so that an inner organ could be reached by working on points along the pathway related to it. Further, every organ and part of the body was seen to have reflex points (points that correspond to the organ through energy) in other parts of the body. Some of the most sensitive of these are found in the feet or hands. Acupuncture use needles, Shiatsu use pressure points to stimulate the on the energy lines and reflexologist apply pressure with their hands concentrating on the feet.

Benefits of Reflexology

You will receive treatments that take into account and enhance your whole person the way your body works, which in turn affects the way your mind works: and your lifestyle and the stresses you are under, which affect the emotions you feel and how they flow. The reflexologist, practicing in a holistic way, comes into all this to address what has upset the balance of our being. Then the practitioner helps to readdress the balance bringing the body back to ’homeostasis’ because it is this balance that our bodies need which is the essence of health in its fullest sense for the body, mind and spirit.

Balancing Body System

The reflexologist doesn’t heal – only the body heals. But reflexology helps to balance all the body systems, stimulating an under active area and calming an overactive one. It is harmless to those areas functioning correctly. Since all body systems are closely interrelated, anything that affects one part will ultimately affect the whole. Numerous practitioners, after years of study and practice, have concluded that reflexology works particularly well on three specific levels – physiological, psychological, and spiritual.