It might be an idea to discuss what is meant by crystals and what that means to us.
It isn't something I subscribe to either and if someone could tell me the significance of what these are supposed to be and the significance, then I am all ears.:)
I believe reflexology to be a wonderfully relaxing treatment but no more so than a good massage is. Obviously during a massage areas of tense muscle can be found but we do not describe this the same way as reflexology often is...why not? We work the muscle in massage to ease the tension, is that the same in reflexology? (I do play devils advocate here tho').;)
Often I have had reflexology to be told I have had crystals, poppy bits, crunchie bits etc but again often none have had any significance to me. I often don't tell people I do therapies when I go but when I ask them to explain by crystals/poppy/crunchie bits I have been advised that something "may be wrong" in that area. :confused:
Sorry for taking thread off topic but I think this is an interesting concept as some of us go with it and some don't and it makes me wonder why. Still a bl**dy good treatment tho'
If anyone wishes to test this out for themselves, then find someone who has lost their legs and see if they will let you perform Reflexology on their missing feet as an experiment, visualise the feet are there, work them in the normal way that you would and see what you pick up and what they can feel in their body whilst you are performing Reflexology. 😉
Yep, my son has a below knee amp and he was a case study of mine whereby I worked where his foot would be and he did think he could feel things but them most amps do still feel their limbs that are gone. All very interesting 😀
So much we don't know.
Hi Patchouli
I believe reflexology to be a wonderfully relaxing treatment but no more so than a good massage is. Obviously during a massage areas of tense muscle can be found but we do not describe this the same way as reflexology often is...why not? We work the muscle in massage to ease the tension, is that the same in reflexology? (I do play devils advocate here tho').;)
Thats all right, I often find myself doing the same thing. 🙂
It is all down to perceptions, when I first started to help people professionally more years ago than I care to remember, I decided that the best way to apply healing would be to incorporate it into a massage, so I devised a full body healing massage.
I used to say to people, do not tell me what is wrong with you and I will tell you what I find and we can tally up at the end of the session, I always found what was wrong with them.
I got introduced to the concept of Reflexology through an exchange and as the concept resonated completely with healing, I promptly added that to the massage routine, the crystals are just a way of alerting the healer to the problems that need addressing, they do not exist, they are created on a need to know basis, they were accurate enough for me to send someone to their doctor to have their heart checked out, they did that and the medical results showed no problem, three days later she was in hospital with a minor heart attack.
The strange thing was that I did not pick up on that whilst massaging, but I did when I brought the Reflexology or zone therapy as I was introduced to it, that was probably due to the fact that we are constantly moving about when massaging but we are still when performing Reflexology, so more focused upon the job in hand.
We have to set up what we wish to do and how we are going to achieve it, if we perceive that Reflexology is a relaxing foot massage, then that is what we are going to set about creating, if we perceive that it is a way of healing through diagnosing the body through the image that we create on the feet, then that is what we are going to set about creating. 🙂
Strangely enough I seem to be much more tuned into things during massage or reiki and have often felt things in myself i.e. my stomach started going ballistic when I had someone who had diverticulitis (she didn't tell me that) I also have a lady with progressive disability and happened to ask one day during reiki if her condition had progressed as I "felt" it had as I often started to get leg pains when working on her and this time (for me) they were higher.
Often people will tell me I should protect myself from these but it is when I feel most in tune with someone..the symptoms always go when the person goes away.
I wonder why I do not feel this with reflexology? I do get great feedback from what the client feels though hhhhmmmm :confused:
That's what I do love about what we do though and although coming from a more scientific background I am a great believer that there are things in life we just haven't found out why they work.
Hi everyone, and Delighted especially,
Maybe there's a rule or something(?) but I actually really like it when things go 'off topic' as it means we're getting involved in a very lively debate. it was a challenging question you asked and I'm really glad you asked it so please don't feel put off asking another one! Also I know myself that it can be hard on here sometimes not to, but please don't take anything personally.
I think its difficult to answer interesting questions & stay totally 'on topic'. Going off on tangents makes it really into a 'forum' as opposed to just Q & A's which would be a bit dry & boring.
delighted just noticed you're a senior member so I'm sure you're a lot more used to using the board & all its many joys than I am...love the cat pic by the way. or is that actually you?
Hi Patchouli
I wonder why I do not feel this with reflexology? I do get great feedback from what the client feels though hhhhmmmm :confused:
How were you taught Reflexology? How do you think it works? What do you expect to happen when you perform it?
Your underlying thought patterns and beliefs define the way you set it up and perform it as well as influencing the outcome of each session.
If someone is taught that Reflexology is purely a mechanical process and then someone else tells them that they can perceive crystals in the feet as they palpitate them, that the crystals represent the imbalances within the body, that they can then send healing to the area indicated through the zones in the feet and as the healing creates a change in the area of the body worked upon, the crystals that they are perceiving will dissipate, then they will find it difficult to implement the intuitive healing way because there is a conflicting belief that it is purely a mechanical process and the crystals do not exist. 🙂
Sometimes Delighted it is hard to advice on forums with very little info. I don't subscribe to the "crystal" theory based on my experience of reflexology, but what do I know since I've only been doing it for 15 years :p But I did give advice so wasn't totally having a go at you. That is just the joys of internet forums, it very hard for us mortal beings to keep on topic :rolleyes:
You're mortal?!:eek: :p 😀
It might be an idea to discuss what is meant by crystals and what that means to us.
It isn't something I subscribe to either and if someone could tell me the significance of what these are supposed to be and the significance, then I am all ears.:)
I believe reflexology to be a wonderfully relaxing treatment but no more so than a good massage is. Obviously during a massage areas of tense muscle can be found but we do not describe this the same way as reflexology often is...why not? We work the muscle in massage to ease the tension, is that the same in reflexology? (I do play devils advocate here tho').;)
Hi Patchouli - well, when I did my course in 2007, I was taught that the 'poppy' bits were called crystals - and that they were calcium deposits. Since that I had read that in fact this was incorrect. Then there was the documentary that discredited any scientific basis upon which reflexology could be relied upon. i.e. no nerve endings in the feet that correlated to organs/systems etc within the rest of the body.
I questioned my tutor back then about the fact that you aren't allowed to stimulate certain reflexology points on the feet when you are pregnant. Yet, when you are doing a foot massage, the massage encompasses all of these areas. I was met with a slight look of disdain and a comment about how it is all down to intention. I have often questioned the validity of reflexology and whether or not it actually 'works' in anything more than a form of relaxation. However, I have now come to the (slightly wobbly) conclusion that yes it does work. IMO it works (potentially on a medical/scientific basis - let's face it we know limited information about the body and how it works. We are still coming across new information daily - we may yet discover empirical evidence that there are points on the feet that are linked to the organs and systems) on a psychosomatic level. And if, as Paul says, we can 'think' ourselves well then that's enough. If you only think that you are going to be relaxed. Then you setting that limit for yourself and, hopefully, relaxed you will be. However, the majority of my clients have reflexology because they have heard (anecdotal) evidence that it has worked for friends/colleagues/family members etc.
Now concerning the gritty/poppy/crystally (sp?!) bits - I 'aint got a clue! Sometimes they point to a presenting issue either biomechanically, mentally, emotionally - whatever.. sometimes they don't. We were taught that this is how you identified that there may potentially be an issue around these reflex points. How do you (Patchouli and Reiki Pixie) do your treatments if you don't subscribe to the crystal theory? What do you look/feel for? Indeed do you look or feel for anything?
delighted just noticed you're a senior member so I'm sure you're a lot more used to using the board & all its many joys than I am...love the cat pic by the way. or is that actually you?
Hi Angelat - God I wish I were a cat.
Yes I am a senior member (feeling very senior at the moment - but that's for other reasons :D) - and I think that one has to try hard to remember that we never know what mood the person is in when they are posting, so then you can pick up nuances that either are or aren't there. If, for example, you had just walked in dog excrement, had a sales person banging at your door and then your oven blew up - you might post with a little less patience than if you had just exited a 2 day yoga retreat. (Neither of which has ever happened to me, I might add).
Encouragement..!
Dear Delighted...as I read some of the responses I think you might be feeling that just because you asked a question, you've been judged...and found wanting!
I want to encourage you, and hopefully people didn't mean to sound like they were picking holes and sniping at each other ... besides, with all your scientific/medical back ground, I personally believe that your choice to re-train and practice for many years as a reflexologist speaks volumes in terms of your credibility to everyone who comes to you for treatments, both in terms of your depth of knowledge and your open mindedness.
Keep it up!
Thank you FItFeet for your words of encouragement! Although I don't have a medical/scientific background as such (not sure medical secretary and healthcare assistant qualify :D!!) - I do appreciate your comments. Thank you.
I use colourful language when giving feedback using words such as poppy, crunchy, puffy, hard, soft & sunken, and not all highlighted areas mean there's a problem.
For instance, the digestive system is alawys in a state of flux depending if the client has just eaten, or is hungry.
I tend to have my own lingo for Reiki too. I beleive it helps to increase my sensitivity and understanding when working with energy that sometimes can be very difficult to explain.
I also agree that intention is the key... or in this case beleif or perception.
If you perceive reflex just to simply be a tool for relaxation then you wont get anything more meaningful out of it. Which applies to the difference in charts also. If you beleive you're working on the heart then you will be stimulating the heart reflex.
Oh, and while I'm giving my input, I have to disagree with the shoe analogy. Its not the shoes that shape the feet, its the mind and body.
Mental and emotional expressions can potentially shape any part of the body. Wearing shoes does distort the feet and the biomechanics of the whole body. I recommend "The Barefoot Book" by Daniel Howell.