What is Reflexology?
Reflexology is a holistic treatment where pressure is applied to the feet using the hands. It was rediscovered in the 1920’s by an American doctor who utilised it for its pain relieving properties to perform minor operations without anaesthesia.
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Are their any side effects of Reflexology treatments?
The aim of Reflexology is to restore harmony within the client and instil a sense of well being. During a Reflexology treatment, some clients experience fleeting sensations in their body. As part of restoring the body to balance some clients may notice subtle changes in their appetite, changes to their sleeping pattern, dream more often, go to the loo more often or feel tired. All of these reactions are short lived and the vast majority of my reflexology clients simply report that they felt tired after the treatment and then slept better.
Reflexology and Pain Management – Part 2
In part 1, I explored what pain was, the pain response and briefly explained how reflexology helps manage pain. Much anecdotal evidence shows the benefits of reflexology in pain management and several studies indicate successful treatment outcomes including pain reduction. (See references at end of article). However I would like to focus on one recent study by Dr Carol Samuel and Dr Ivor Ebenezer of University of Portsmouth as this is the first time Reflexology has been scientifically evaluated as a study for acute pain. The results indicate that reflexology may be as effective as pain killers for common conditions such as osteoarthritis, backache and cancer. Participants attended two sessions, in which they were asked to submerge their hand in ice water. In one of the sessions they were given reflexology before they submerged their hand, and in the other session they believed they were receiving pain relief from a Tens machine, which was not actually switched on. The use of the Tens machine is equivalent of a sugar pill in drug trials. The researches found that people felt about 40% less pain, and were able to stand pain for about 45% longer, when they used reflexology as a method of pain relief. So if you are in pain now, by not book a reflexology session. References Booth L (1997) Vertical Reflex therapy: results of a reflexology trail in a Bristol residential home for elderly Khan S, Otter S and Springett K (2006) The effects of reflexology on foot pain and quality of life in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis: a case report, The Foot 16 pg 112-116 Brown CA and Lido C (2008) Reflexology treatment for patients with lower limb amputations and phantom limb pain: an exploratory pilot study, Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 14 pg 124-131 Hughes CM, Smyth S and Lowe-Strong A (2008) Reflexology for the treatment of pain in people with multiple sclerosis: a double-blind randomised controlled trail, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 14(1) S1-S109
