How to live to 100

One of the most frequent questions I am asked by clients, is "will reflexology help my foot pain/tension or plantart fasciitis"? Reflexology is a whole body treatment, where the therapists stimulates reflex points on the feet to effect healing in the corresponding parts of the body. Reflexology allows the body to rebalance, which assists you to:

• De-stress
• Improve your sleeping patterns
• Reduce anxiety
• Calm an over active mind
• Relax the body to aid digestion

Reflexology does not work on the muscles of the feet. So the short answer is no, reflexology does not help with foot pain/tension or Plantar Fasciitis. (For more information on Plantar Fasciitis see previous blog post >> http://vitalitytherapy.co.uk/blog/heel-pain-part-1) If you have any aches, pains or tension in either of your feet then a deep tissue leg massage is the best treatment for you. The reason for treating the whole leg, rather than just the foot is that some of the muscles that control the foot i.e. flex or extend it start just under the knee and the same is true for the some of the muscles that control the toes. This is why if a client comes to Vitality Therapy with a foot issue we always massage the leg as well as the foot. So if you have problem with your feet why not book in for a deep tissue leg massage.

I know lots of people love travelling, but travelling to a new time zone can result in jet lag.  Personally I did so much business travelling in my late 20's and then in my 30's I travelled for pleasure, that more recently I have been happy to stay put in England and simply pop over to Europe when I wanted some sun.  This year I am planing to go on a training course in Canada so when I saw some recent research on avoiding jet lag it caught my eye. Jet lag occurs when your circadian rhythms are slow to adjust to the new time zone and remain on their original biological schedule for several days. This results in your body telling you it is time to sleep, when it's actually the middle of the afternoon, or it makes you want to stay awake when it is late at night. Here are some tips for minimizing the occurrence of jet lag:

• Select a flight that allows early evening arrival and stay up until 10 p.m. local time. (If you must sleep during the day, take a short nap in the early afternoon, but no longer than two hours. Set an alarm to be sure not to over sleep.)
• Avoid alcohol or caffeine at least three to four hours before bedtime. Both act as "stimulants" and prevent sleep.
• Try to get outside in the sunlight whenever possible. Daylight is a powerful stimulant for regulating the biological clock. (Staying indoors worsens jet lag.)
• On the flight set the time on your watch to the local time of your destination so you can mentally start adjusting to the new time zone.
• When you arrive eat with the locals.

Traditionally people have just slept off jet lag.  Recently university researchers in Surrey tested their theory that instead of sleeping, you should start eating meals at the same time as the locals.  They tested the theory on 60 long haul cabin crew workers, who either ate meals regularly on their days off in the destination city or followed no meal plan and ate when they felt like it.  Although both groups suffered some jet lag, the symptoms were less severe among those who followed a regular meal plan based on the local time.  They were also more alert. Reference Cristina Ruscitto, Jane Ogden. The impact of an implementation intention to improve meal times and reduce jet lag in long-haul cabin crew. Psychology & Health, 2016; 1 DOI: 10.1080/08870446.2016.1240174

In Part 1, I introduced the Bates Method. It was created as result of over three decades of clinic practice as an ophthalmologist. It is based on the theory that errors of focusing are temporary abnormalities which, due to the inability of the eyeball to change shape and when exposed to the healing powers of the body, can be reduced in severity or eliminated.   While conventional wisdom is based on the work of Hermann von Helmholtz states that errors of focusing are due to the inability of the lens to change shape. Dr W H Bates postulated that focusing problems where the result of strain, either emotional or due to “trying” to see. The logical anti-dote to strain is rest, hence he developed palming a technique for resting the eyes. As I know lots of my readers spend long ours in front of computer screens which can strain the eyes. I wanted to share with you this simple version of palming.

1. Cover your eyes with your cupped palms.
2. Add a pillow under your elbows if more height is need to keep your back relaxed and straight.
3. Breathe deeply while you palm for a few minutes.

Some people have found palming helps with headaches and dry eyes.