If I told you that massaging pressure points in your feet could help your liver or soothe a sore neck, you’d probably be suspicious. And that is understandable! How can a foot pressure point affect other areas of your body? If you are not dubious, you will probably be astonished, and if you are not startled, you have most likely heard about reflexology.
How Does Reflexology Work?
Reflexology is a branch of research that holds that there are “zones” or reflex areas on the hands and feet that correlate to all of the glands, organs, parts, and systems located within or on the body.
According to reflexology, applying pressure to these spots with certain thumb, finger, and hand movements reduces stress in the body. This stress reduction is supposed to cause a slew of favorable physiological changes that can help with a variety of diseases.
Using the Pressure Points In Feet
Although one of the best benefits of reflexology is its ability to help treat or cure certain harmful ailments, it can also benefit relatively healthy people as well. Here are some other ways that the various pressure points in feet can help you:
- Stimulates nerve function
- Increases energy
- Boosts circulation
- Eliminates toxins
- Prevents migraines
- Cleans urinary tract
- Speeds up recovery time from injuries
- Treats sleep disorders
- Reduces depression
- Relieves pain
Reflexology Foot Massage: Pressure Points in Your Feet
Now that you know about all the ways that reflexology can benefit your health, I am going to show you how to perform it on yourself with this simple foot massage!
- The first thing you are going to do is sit on a comfortable but solid chair. Lift up one foot and rest it on the knee of your opposite leg so that you can easily rub and massage the bottom of that foot. Make sure to keep your back straight and not to slouch.
- Next, you need to take a look at your Acupressure Foot Chart (below, or click here) and identify what part of your body that you want to treat. For example, if you are having neck pain, find the number that the “neck” area is listed as. Then find the corresponding area of your foot located on the chart that is labelled with the same number. This is the area of the foot that you will be manipulating.
- Once you have found the area of the foot that you will be applying pressure on, use the tip of your thumb to press and knead that area deeply for between 1-2 minutes. Then repeat this with the opposite foot and the opposite thumb.
- Repeat this process for any other area on your body that you want to treat.