FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS“I’ve been diagnosed as having cancer, can I still have Reflexology?” – Absolutely no problem at all. The body is a magnificent healing machine and the act of Reflexology is simply encouraging that activity naturally. Therefore Reflexology is a very useful therapy for treating cancer patients in that the patient is receiving a ‘hands on’ treatment and by receiving a holistic treatment, they may simply feel better, especially when receiving heavy duty drug therapy. “there’s nothing wrong with me, can I still have Reflexology?” – Absolutely! In my opinion Reflexology is one of the best ‘preventative medicines’ and therefore may be used for example once a month for maintenance, i.e. by stimulating the body’s healing mechanism and boosting the immune system it is intended to maintain optimum levels of health and avoid many chronic, stress and immune related conditions, that we normally put up with. An hour dedicated to your own well-being has got to be a good thing! “I’m pregnant, can I have Reflexology” – Unfortunately I have come across many practitioners who refuse to treat pregnant women, because of the way pregnancy has been portrayed during their training. This would appear to be a lack of understanding regarding the limitations of Reflexology. Ultimately, Reflexology can only deal with conditions within the body, utilizing it’s healing mechanism. As far as pregnancy and Reflexology is concerned, the act of Reflexology alone cannot initiate anything that would not occur naturally anyway. However, appropriate care (common sense) should be taken, for example the reproductive reflexes may be excluded altogether during a treatment, especially during the early stages of pregnancy. I personally have treated many pregnant women for conditions such as morning sickness, cystitis, sciatica and lower back pain without any problems, not to mention my own partner for labour pain! (see testimonials) “How often should I have Reflexology?” – Often the texts books will tell you six sessions at weekly intervals is an average course of Reflexology. This is a reasonable guide but in actual fact will depend on what condition is being treated, how long the individual has had the condition and how they respond, but it is crucial to keep appointments as close together as possible in the early stages for maximum impact the intervals are then decreased as the individual responds. Many clients come once a month (if there are no particular health issues) as a maintenance program for general health and relaxation. “Isn’t it all in the mind?” – Partially! Reflexology is a holistic therapy, i.e. treating not just the physical but also the mental and emotional levels. So the mind has a part to play in healing and many conditions nowadays are originated from the mental/emotional levels, even though the symptom appears to be very physical! “How much can I expect to pay for a Reflexology session and how long are they? - Reflexology sessions last between 50 minutes and 1 hour. At Harmonious Healthcare we normally charge £30 per session, but give generous discounts during the day for senior citizens, students and the unemployed. Between £30 - £35 is considered the normal price for Reflexology. “Can I claim Reflexology treatments against my Health Insurance Plan?”- I am very pleased to say that some companies have just started to include Reflexology in their policies. This was news to me and I therefore checked with the two companies concerned, and happily my qualifications met their requirements. Another step towards integrated medicine?…………… HOW DOES IT WORK? Apart from the map of the body transposed onto the feet, we also believe that there are invisible lines of energy within the body (similar to acupuncture). In Reflexology, we believe these lines of energy follow the toes all the way up to the top of the head and down to the fingers on both sides of the body. Therefore there are ten lines of energy within the body, connecting organs, nerves and tissue. During a treatment, if tenderness is experienced, it doesn’t mean you have a sore toe or foot, but that the corresponding part of the body is out of balance. Another way of expressing this is to say that there is a blockage in that particular line of energy and simply by applying firm pressure, one hopes to release that blockage and encourage self-healing through stimulation. To satisfy the clinical Western mind, one could argue that many nerve endings are found in the feet, and by applying firm pressure to the feet, we are stimulating the body’s central nervous system. However at the time of writing, I am not aware of any method to clinically prove this theory! |
