Under the heading of “no one is as surprised as I am”, here are a few experiences I’ve shared with people who came for Foot Reflexology sessions over the last few years.

Observing benefits over the long term:

I saw a client about once a week over a year and a half. Mr. B had come for foot reflexology after being on an airplane which had caused severe swelling of the foot, ankle and up to the knee. He had experienced chronic pain in both feet for many years and had spent a lot of time soaking the feet in ice baths before going to work.

One kidney had been removed a number of years earlier and the remaining kidney was having a hard time filtering uric acid and other excess minerals from the bloodstream so the feet were literally packed with inorganic mineral deposits that prevented circulation and pressed on nerve endings, causing the chronic pain in the feet. Mr. B also experienced pain and stiffness in shoulders, knees and lower back. Blocked circulation also contributed to ‘borderline’ high blood pressure.

This was the chart indicating areas of pain and deposit locations taken at the first session. Mr. B does strenuous work outdoors in all weather so his feet were hard working, too. He continued to experience fluctuating minor swelling in either foot and some discomfort but after a while the pain in shoulders and back was ‘gone’. After 25 sessions five months later, his chart looked like this:After 47 sessions that ended in April 2013, Mr. B had no problems with swelling even after being on an airplane and experienced only occasional minor discomfort from his feet, usually after a day of hard work. No more ice baths and overall, a more contented person who avoided a prescription for blood pressure medication. Yay.

Long term benefits #2:

Mr. S went on a diet to lose weight, lower his blood pressure and had edema of the lower limbs that made walking difficult. Ordinarily, it’s contraindicated to work with edema but this was somewhat generalized.

We started with gentle lymphatic drainage and ankle rotations designed to make walking easier by decreasing swelling to increase flexibility in the ankles. He also experienced ‘twinges’ in one knee (making exercise unpleasant) and the other had had arthroscopic surgery to remove arthritic deposits. Our first session was in November 2011 and after nine weekly sessions swelling in the feet and ankles had reduced to the point that you could see he had ankles.
After about one year, he’d lost significant weight and his feet and ankles had better range of motion and continued to reduce in swelling. After two years his knee was noticeably acting up and one could feel a pebble-sized deposit on the surface of the kneecap. Applying gentle pressure to the ‘pebble’ out of curiosity, after about five minutes it seemed to ‘soften’. The next day Mr.S reported that the pain in his knee was ‘gone’.
We then skipped a couple of weeks and when I returned his feet and ankles were more flexible, with wider range of motion than ever before. At two doctor visits, his blood pressure had been ‘normal’ (lower). In 2014 he walks more easily with painless knees and flexible feet that lend him better balance to the degree that he now works out with a personal trainer. Yay.

“Wow, that’s amazing!” stories:

An acquaintance visited with her several month-old baby – mom needed to take Cumadin and baby was having digestive problems leading to constipation and righteous squalls. For about fifteen minutes I held baby and massaged her tiny feet, concentrating on the stomach, colon and intestinal reflexes. She was very calm and seemed to enjoy the sensation on her feet. Pretty quickly there was ‘a mighty wind’ which was soon accompanied by motor boat sounds, followed by diaper vibrations and a distinctive odor. Everybody was surprised and happy.

A gentleman with chronic migraines and who was in the middle of one now, sat in the chair and had an hour session. The first thing that became apparent were ‘pebbles’ in the mid-upper big toe pads on both feet. There were other deposits distributed around the big toes. I worked on the whole of both feet – the liver and intestinal reflexes, the adrenals and diaphragm reflexes for stress and pain, and returned to the big toes to break up the ‘pebbles’. When he got up from the chair, he said “Wow! My headache is gone!” I thought “Whew! What a relief!” I don’t know if he was relieved of them entirely, it was a ‘health fair’ setting, but it’s possible.

More to come!