What is Reflexology?
About the method
Under the term “Reflexology”, I combine the most effective methods of stimulating reflex zones on the body’s surface, in order to promote change within the body.
I apply these techniques to the feet, lower legs, hands, face and head.
Building on the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), I integrate elements from prenatal therapy as developed by Robert St. John, foot reflexology as practised by Johann Schwarz, and reflexology as taught by Andrea Maria Wirth.
The aim of this treatment is to promote vitality and harmonious functioning within the patient’s organs; through these means alone, ailments, symptoms, and illnesses can improve or even be resolved entirely.
Through careful observation, active listening, assessment of your reflex zones, and constant reference to the Five Elements, it is possible to identify the underlying causes of illness.
Did you know, for instance, that allergies usually originate in the large intestine or lungs? Or that most cancers are brought about by an imbalance within the Earth element (stomach and spleen)? Or that the kidneys control your lumbar spine?
In TCM, every organ and structure in our body is associated with a specific phase of transformation (or element), which in turn has precisely defined relationships with the other phases of transformation. Based on the symptoms and signs your body exhibits, broader connections underlying your complaints can be identified.
The “root” and “branches” of your condition can thus be addressed equally.
Our feet (as well as our hands, ears, and other body parts) contain a reflection of our entire body. Organs, nerve pathways, the aorta (main artery), lymph vessels, sensory organs, the spine, joints: all of these can be influenced via reflex zones.
Through thermal imaging, one can observe how the corresponding areas that are treated via reflex zones become warmer— this is due to increased blood flow.
Thanks to Dr. Jesus Manzanares, we now have a more precise understanding of how this form of treatment works: The results of his research show that reflexology works through the nervous system and is therefore based on neurochemistry; When an organ is diseased, a pressure-sensitive hardening of the tissue can be felt in the corresponding reflex zone on the body.
Dr. Manzanares’ biopsy results demonstrate that at precisely this point, the concentration of nerve fibers in the subcutaneous tissue is approximately five times higher.
Through targeted stimulation of this site, stimuli travel via the nervous system to the brainstem (Formatio Reticularis), wherein the body is mapped somatotopically. From there, impulses are relayed back to the stimulated organ, restoring balance within the autonomous nervous system.
As such, this form of treatment is about self-healing through the body’s own mechanisms and from the inside out, which in turn is mediated by brain (central nervous system) function.
In China, work on the foot reflex zones was part of traditional medicine until the 11th century AD—alongside other forms of therapy such as herbal therapy and acupuncture.
Evidence of this form of treatment can also be found in other ancient cultures, such as Egypt, India and South America.
In my practice in Vienna, I integrate prenatal therapy (or “metamorphosis treatment” as described by Robert St. John) into my work. By chance, this gifted Englishman discovered in the 1950s that there is a connection between the 40 weeks of pregnancy and the individual vertebrae of the spine. Each period of our life, before as well as after birth, is associated with a specific vertebral region.
The spine (or the axis between the pineal gland and the coccyx) functions as a central channel through which life energy constantly circulates up and down.
If, for example, an expectant mother suffers an accident, a shock, or other traumatic, this can imprint itself as a disruptive factor at the corresponding level of the child’s spine. From there, the child’s surrounding organs and tissues are in turn likewise negatively affected.
According to Robert St. John, this is due to the unconscious mind’s tendency to cling on to adverse experiences. As a result, it is possible that part of our physical and mental strength and abilities remain stuck in the past.
By applying a specific, gentle touch to the feet (to the reflex zone of the spine), it is possible to release these traumata from our time both as an embryo as well as from the period after birth.
Our attachment to past times and moments is loosened, and we are able to regain possession of our strengths, abilities and talents in the present.
Just as in the wondrous transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly, this process involves the transformation from who we are to who we can become: toward the full realization of the potential we have always carried within us.
This treatment is especially well suited for children, as it is completely painless and can yield significant results after just a few sessions.
