WATERGRAAFSMEER WELLNESS
MASSAGE THERAPY
Foot Reflexology
Foot Reflexology is not your standard foot massage. Pressure is applied to specific points in order to stimulate different parts of the body, including glands and internal organs. In this fashion it is possible to treat the entire body by working solely on the feet. Foot Reflexology’s goal by stimulating the reflex points is to decrease stress, increase circulation and facilitate detoxification, promoting homeostasis of the whole body. In the late 1800s in England and Germany, research on foot nerve endings and their neurological connections to the rest of the body provided the scientific basis for the development of modern Reflexology. In the early 1930s, a nurse from the United States named Eunice Ingham (1889-1974) developed the modality that we use today. Ingham combined a theory developed by William Fitzgerald (1872-1942) known as Zone Therapy with compression massage to the feet, as well as mapped out the exact location of reflex points through years of research and practice.
Zone Therapy
Foot Reflexology is based on the theory of Zone Therapy developed by Dr. William Fitzgerald in the early 1900s. Dr. Fitzgerald was an ear, nose, and throat specialist who claimed that by applying pressure to one part of the body had an aesthetic affect on another part. The theory developed and is based on the idea that if you take the body and divide it lengthwise into 10 zones, with the end points being at the top of the head, in the hands, and the feet, pressure applied anywhere in a zone will affect the entire zone. Reflex points are also found on the hands and ear and too can be stimulated in order to affect specific parts of the body.
What to expect from a Foot Reflexology treatment?
Foot Reflexology sessions are given with the recipient laying on their back or in a semi-reclined position on a massage table or with the recipient sitting in a chair with their legs raised. The practitioner sits at the feet. The recipient does not need to remove their clothing for the treatment but make sure that their pants are rolled up as far as the knee so as not to get any cream on their clothing. Very little cream is used during a Foot Reflexology session to avoid unwanted slipping and to attain the proper pressure. Sessions begin with standard massage techniques to warm up the tissue and include movements of the joints in the ankle, foot and toes. Direct pressure is then applied systematically over the entire foot using specialized Reflexology techniques such as thumb walking, finger walking, hook in and back up, and direct finger or thumb pressure.
Treatments may last 30, 45, or 60 minutes long and may also be included with a classic massage if requested. Reflexology is one of the few forms of massage therapy that can be performed even when the receiver is feeling ill. Classic massage is contraindicated when someone is sick with a fever or infection because the act of physically pushing the blood at a higher rate throughout the body can spread the illness quicker (same if someone is taking a strong medication, massage will increase the speed at which the medication enters the blood stream, occasionally causing unwanted results.). As long as there are no local contraindications on the foot, such as open wounds, cuts, plantar warts, and other conditions that may be painful to touch, the whole foot may be treated, thus treating the rest of the body and encouraging its speedy, natural recovery. Adjustments in the treatment are employed for pregnant women, and extra precautions are taken for individuals who have diabetes.
30 minutes: 70 euros
45 minutes: 90 euros
60 minutes: 110 euros
Interesting Foot Facts:
-There are over 7,000 nerve endings in each foot.
-Shock travels through the body at 320 kph.
-The Achilles tendon is the longest, strongest, and most commonly injured tendon in the body.
-There are five arches, 20 muscles, 26 bones, 55 joints, and 107 ligaments in each foot.
