Reflexology has been around for centuries. It is believed that the Reflexology was brought from India to China by the Buddhist monks around 5,000 years ago. The oldest Chinese medical book has “Examining Foot Method” which is very similar to modern Reflexology.

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The oldest record of reflexology was found on the wall of ancient Egyptian physician’s tomb from 2,330 BC. The inscription of the receiver says “Do not let it be painful” and the giver replies “I do it so that you will praise it, King.”The base concept for the modern Reflexology was first introduced by Dr. William H. Fitzgerald in 1917. He was a nose and throat surgeon who discovered there are “zones” in the body and they have pain relieving or numbing effect by applying constant pressure to fingers and toes. This Zone Theory was further developed into Reflexology in the 1930s by physiotherapist Eunice Ingram who mapped the reflexes of the entire body onto hands and feet.

The difference between foot massage and Reflexology

So what is the difference between a foot massage and reflexology? A foot massage is massaging feet often with a lubricant such as massage lotion or oil. It helps to improve circulation on a surface level and loosening the muscles and fascia which is a web-like soft tissues between the muscles.

On the other hand, Reflexology is more specific. It is done by applying pressure to the reflex that corresponds to a certain organ to achieve homeostasis or balanced state. For example, if you have a diarrhea your large intestine is hyperactive. If you have a constipation, your large intestine is dormant. In both cases you would press the large intestine reflex to calm the large intestine for diarrhea and activate the large intestine for constipation.

So Reflexology can be part of a foot massage to promote more health benefits.

Types of Reflexology

There are many variations of Reflexology. In general, Eastern approach is “No pain, no gain.” It uses lots of force, joints, and even wooden sticks to stimulate the ailed areas and often people agonize in pain. Western approach is rather gentle. It uses the pad of the fingertips to stimulate the area without causing agonizing pain.

There are many versions of Reflexology charts. It is because there is no industry standard designated by the Reflexology associations, schools, and practitioners. There is also a copyright issue so the practitioners have been modifying it here and there to come up with their own version.

Even if there was an industry standard, since human body is 3D and everyone is different, it’s very difficult to accurately render all the organs in one chart in 2D. Most of the chart is the same because how the organs are generally placed in our bodies is the same. Use the chart as a guidance. As long as you cover every square inch on both feet you will touch all the reflexes. The purpose of this Reflexology course is to make your partner happy with a great foot massage using Reflexology concepts and techniques.

2. History