Language of the feet.

https://www.facebook.com/christinelynne.stormerfryer?fref=photo

Cancer patient’s relief after reflexology treatment

A cancer patient who has been experiencing hot sweats at night time as a result of his cancer

is now able to get a good night’s sleep thanks to a reflexology treatment at St Oswald’s Hospice, based in Newcastle.

read the article here

SEMINARWEEKS ΚΕΠΑΝΣΗ

...έψαξα να βρω μαντινάδες*

Αυτή την Τετάρτη 24/2/16 θα βρίσκομαι στο Ηράκλειο Κρήτης με αφορμή τις Εβδομάδες Γνώσης (SEMINARWEEKS) του Εκπαιδευτικού Οργανισμού ΙΙΕΚ MORFI και ΚΕ.ΔΙ.ΒΙ.Μ. 1 ΚΕΠΑΝΣΗ.

Στους σπουδαστές αλλά και στους απόφοιτους θα παρουσιάσω δύο ομιλίες.

Η πρώτη θα είναι η ομιλία που έκανα στο Παγκόσμιο Συνέδριο Ρεφλεξολογίας ICR το Σεπτέμβριο του 2015 στο Σέφιλντ, με τίτλο:

"Αφήστε στην άκρη για λίγο την ενέργεια και τους χάρτες Ρεφλεξολογίας.
Ας κοιτάξουμε καλύτερα την ανατομία των ποδιών και την φυσιολογία σε αυτό που κάνουμε."

Η ομιλία αυτή εκπροσωπεί την προσέγγιση της Ορθοπεδικής Ρεφλεξολογίας.

Η δεύτερη ομιλία μου θα είναι ουσιαστικά ένα σεμινάριο/μάθημα όπου θα μας απασχολήσει το νευρικό σύστημα και ο πόνος.
Θα μας δοθεί και η ευκαιρία να σας μιλήσω για την Νεύρο - Ρεφλεξολογία, αλλά και να εξασκηθούμε σε διάφορες πρακτικές τεχνικές για την αντιμετώπιση του πόνου.

Θα χαρώ να δω παλιούς συναδέλφους αλλά και να γνωρίσω νέους.
Οι ενδιαφερόμενοι μπορούν να επικοινωνούν με τον οργανισμό και να κλείνουν τη θέση τους στο σεμινάριο στο τηλ. 2810263833.http://www.morfikepansi.edu.gr/iek/el/home.html

*Με αφορμή το ζήτημα του πόνου που θα μας απασχολήσει την Τετάρτη έψαξα να βρω Κρητικές μαντινάδες που να μιλούν για τον πόνο.

Η έρευνα μου με οδήγησε στο συμπέρασμα ότι οι Κρητικοί δεν νιώθουν πόνο, τουλάχιστον "σωματικό πόνο" άξιο μνείας στις μαντινάδες τους.

Το εντυπωσιακό είναι ότι έχουν αρκετές ερωτικές μαντινάδες και οι περισσότερες μιλούν για συναισθηματικό πόνο, τι άλλο θα έκαναν?

Ενημερωτικά, ακριβώς τα ίδια εγκεφαλικά κέντρα που ερμηνεύουν και "νιώθουν" τον σωματικό πόνο ενεργοποιούνται όταν βιώνουμε εμπειρίες συναισθηματικής απόρριψης...

Αυτά από κοντά όμως (φέρτε και τσικουδιά), μέχρι τότε...

Τα μαύρα ρούχα τα φορώ γιατί πονώ και κλαίω
πονώ γιατί σε έχασα κλαίω γιατί δε φταίω.

Σα θες ν' αστράψεις ουρανέ κάνε το σα θα κλαίω
τα βάσανα μην ακουστούν που σαν πονώ θα λέω.

Τρέχω όντε βρέχει να βραχώ ν' αφήσω και το δάκρυ
να ξεχειλίσει μην το δουν στων αμαθιών την άκρη.

AT-HOME THERAPIES HELP CANCER PATIENTS COPE

Wyatt’s previous research has shown reflexology, a deep pressure technique applied to specific areas of the foot, to be highly effective in managing symptoms such as shortness of breath and fatigue.

“What we found was after four weekly sessions of reflexology, patients reported a significant decrease in feeling short of breath,” she said. “We also discovered that patients could function better on a daily basis and felt more active.”

During the study, a trained friend or family member will provide both therapies in the homes of more than 300 patients suffering from breast, lung or colon cancer.

“Many caregivers are willing to assist in this way and will be taught by trained providers on what to do when administering both techniques,” Wyatt said. “For example, with reflexology, there’s a check list of 10 steps to follow that ensures specific reflexes are stimulated with the proper amount of pressure and time.”

http://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2016/at-home-therapies-help-cancer-patients-cope/

Ριλαξίνη Relaxin

Pregnancy may increase a woman's foot size, a change that appears to be permanent, according to a new study.
http://www.livescience.com/27583-foot-size-pregnancy.html

But why?

It's the Relaxin silly!
http://www.yourhormones.info/hormones/relaxin.aspx

It's supposed to relax the ligaments in the pelvis among other things, but are there not ligaments in the feet also?
Yes, many actually!

What about the boys, do they have relaxin, and what for?

In men, relaxin is secreted from the prostate gland and can be detected in the semen, but is not generally found in the blood circulation. The role of relaxin in men is less clear. However, there is evidence that it may increase the movement of sperm cells in the semen.

I believe the boys contribute highly in pregnancy by offering generously their relaxin for the first months of pregnancy and when there is no pregnancy they contribute in womens beauty!

There is some evidence that low levels of relaxin may contribute to a condition known as scleroderma, where the skin thickens and hardens. This is caused by the development of fibrosis and scarring on the skin.

Men care about womens beauty...

Extra tip: In 2010 designers came up with a running shoe for women which adapts shape to suit their hormone levels. It was the Asics GEL-KAYANO 16

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1249982/Running-shoe-women-adjusts-according-time-month.html

Cross reflexes, referral areas and diagonal reflexes

We have cross reflexes, we have referral areas and we have diagonal reflexes.

I have discussed these relationships in my presentation of the ICR conference 2015.
Read it here: http://spiros-reflexologia.blogspot.gr/2015/09/my-ppt-presentation-for-icr-2015.html

Here is a nice article discussing the anatomical relationship in one example of diagonal reflexes.

Piecing It All Together

So what do we know? We know that the right side of the patient’s Gmax is slightly slower in terms of its firing pattern and that this muscle plays a role in the force closure process of the SIJ. This tells us that if the Gmax cannot perform this function of stabilizing the SIJ, then something else will assist in stabilizing the joint. The left latissimus dorsi is the synergist that helps stabilize the right Gmax and, more importantly, the SIJ. As the patient participates in running, every time her right leg contacts the ground and goes through the gait cycle, the left latissimus dorsi is over-contracting. This causes the left scapula to depress, and the muscles that resist the downward depressive pull will be the upper trapezius and the levator scapulae. Subsequently, these muscles start to fatigue; for the patient in question, this occurs at approximately four miles, at which point she feels pain in her left superior scapula.
http://www.fascialfitness.net.au/articles/298/

Fascia and Reflexology

It gives me great satisfaction and pleasure to read articles like this one "Fascia and Reflexology" that support one of the reasons Reflexology is an effective modality for the whole.
I am also proud that key elements of this article have been also presented through the Orthopedic Reflexology approach.

The feet are a whole old world, it is waiting to be discovered and in our Orthopedic Reflexology training we will rediscover this world.

According to Julie Day, a physiotherapist working with the Stecco group in Italy: “The fact that the superficial fascia and the deep fascia almost fuse together in the soles of the feet and the palms of the hand could be an explanation for why working deeply in these areas, as in reflexology, can affect areas that are distant from the area we work on.” Julie said that she had often used plantar reflexology in the past and but, at that time, had not found any plausible anatomical explanations for its effectiveness. Reflexology is a relatively easy technique to learn and it can either be incorporated within a massage session or as a specific session apart.

According to Dr. Ida Rolf in “Rolfing and Physical Reality”: “The meridian points and reflex points in the feet are most likely end-points of myofascial strain, the result of imbalance which transmits its difficulty in compensating pattern through the body to the surface. Fascial planes may be the route of mechanical transmission of pain.” She also mentioned “Foot reflexes are peaks of strains. They are nothing mystical; they are where strain goes in the foot. If you are relieving strain above the reflex points (for example in the ankle and shin) you will relieve those points of strain in the sole of the foot. When a weight goes down and dies in some place, it becomes a reflex point.” And “I think that many if not all reflex points in the foot are simply points where gravitational strain inserts and comes together. They are the end of the line we call balance”

In most parts of the body, the superficial fascia is an elastic connective tissue layer surrounded above and below by adipose tissue. However at the palm and sole of the foot, the skin is tightly bound to the underlying tissues to prevent or restrict movement (Figure 2) . If movements were allowed to occur here within fascial planes, then the hands or feet would not been able to have a firm grip. The retinacula of the retinacula cutis layers in the palms and soles are much thicker. They bind the superficial fascia to the deep fascia and adipose tissue is sparse beneath the skin. It is even absent at the finger creases on the palmar sides of the interphalangeal joints, so that the skin immediately covers fascial tendon sheaths (Benjamin, 2009). See also Figure 2 and Figure 3 of Mike Benjamin’s article The fascia of the limbs and back . (The article also provides a thorough anatomical view of the fascia of the hands and feet). Pavan et al. (2011) studied the mechanical properties of the plantar aponeurosis.

http://www.fascialfitness.net.au/articles/fascia-and-reflexology/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2667913/

Qi Blood TCM and Western Anatomy/Physiology

I love coincidences, do you?
...ohhh and it seems that the Chinese are right again...!

Qi "lives", is transported through blood...
"it is at the extremities (Jing-Well points) that the Qi changes direction" (TCM theory)

Curiously, however, the perforating veins in the foot lack valves and thus do allow bidirectional flow. (Western anatomy/physiology)

The direction of flow in the 5 Shu-Point theory
is not as important as the quality of energy described at each of the points. The Jing-Well points, for example, are situated on the tips of the fingers or toes, where there is little flesh. The Qi here is shallow and narrow, yet
dynamic, pouring forth like a spring or a well. The volatility of the Qi at these points is emphasised by the fact that in the theory of the circulation of the 12 channels,
it is at the extremities (Jing-Well points) that the Qi
changes direction and where Yin and Yang channels
transform into each other.
JOURNAL OF CHINESE MEDICINE NUMBER 42 MAY 1993
https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache%3Ay8o41Sc6ufsJ%3Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.jcm.co.uk%2Fsubscriber%2Fdownload%2Flink%2Fdownload%2FMC44NTg2MTUwMCAxNDUzMzEzOTA1Nzg5MA%3D%3D%2F+&cd=1&hl=el&ct=clnk&gl=gr

Curiously, however, the perforating veins in the foot lack valves and thus do allow bidirectional flow. According to Meissner et al. (2007), the calf muscle pump is the most significant and has the largest capacitance, but is primed by muscle pumps in the foot.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2667913/#b2

Hippocrates Workshop at the American College of Greece