Reflexology as Informant

Translation:  "Don't hurt me." reply: "I shall act so you praise me."

I've found, in the role of Reflexologist, people can be funny about their feet.  They're hyper-conscious of what they look like, they are ticklish, or hyper-sensitive to stimulation or alternately, they almost border on a touch fetish.  And you can tell a lot about a person by their feet.  The care (or not) which has been given to them, fungus or yeast conditions present, deep cracked callus', tenderness, discoloration and swelling present.  All feet are not created equal, even when they belong to alternate legs on the same body.  Invariably, one foot is a lot more less "troublesome"than the other, has more flexibility, more willingness to be revealed. It all creates a picture for me as to who the person is whose tootsies recline before me.

As appendages, feet are amazing.  Many inches long and a lot fewer wide, that group of twenty-six tiny bones support approximately 100-300 lbs of adult for umpteen hours a day, every day for several decades. They synergetically adjust and absorb to the shocks of running, walking, dancing and they rebound! Even when the posture is amiss, even when one's body compensations are wide and varied, they carry us. Rarely do they fail.  When they do, it's usually no fault of their own. I've always watched body's move, pedestrian or otherwise.  But I often (when on a beach, sidewalk or check out line) look at how people's feet are when I'm behind them; where do they place most of their weight, how do they move through the foot or not when ambulating.  It's just interesting.

Per the Ingham Method in which I was trained, Reflexology is a science that works on the principle that there are reflex areas in the feet and hands (and earlobes!) that correspond to all glands, organs and skeletal parts of the body.  Reflexology relieves stress and tension (aiding us in reaching homeostasis), improves blood supply and promotes the unblocking of the nerve impulses.

Pain and sensitivity in areas of the foot indicate a congestion in the zone of the body as indicated by the zone of the disturbed area on the foot.  For example, tenderness felt on the medial (inside) aspect of the foot's metatarsal corresponds with the spine, both being in Zone 1. In this case, clearing the zone with Reflexology promotes better energy flow, blood supply and improved nerve impulses to the spine.

I'm particularly fond of Reflexology, as a practitioner.  It's a time when I usually enter a state of deep relaxation; I mostly always feel there is a tremendous amount of self care embedded in the work.  Many of the relaxation "moves" of the technique are meant to cut the tension in the practitioner as well as the client. Breathing deeply. Listening closely to self and other. Receptivity. Responsiveness.  It's a kind of Holy.

Resource for training or finding a certified practitioner:
Reflexology FL USA - International Institute of Reflexology ...