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What is Reflexology?

Reflexology is a unique method of using the thumb and fingers to stimulate more that 7,200 nerve endings in each foot.  These nerve endings correspond to all parts of the body, including organs and glands.

Origins of Reflexology

Reflexology is no new age trend.  Dr. William Fitzgerald, in his book Zone Therapy, states that “a form of treatment by means of pressure points was known in India and China 5,000 years ago.”  There also appears to be evidence of reflexology being used in Egyptian art around 2330 BC.

What are the Benefits of Reflexology?

Reflexology can relieve stress and tension within the body.  It improves circulation and lymphatic flow, and works to unblock nerve impulse pathways.  These benefits all work toward helping the body to heal itself by restoring balance to the vital energies.

According to Shelly Hess, author of The Professional’s Reflexology Handbook, “Reflexology works to discover how the soft tissue organs and the entire skeletal system are functioning.  Through trained fingers, the Reflexologist can detect early warning signs that the body is struggling and can then help restore the internal system to better balance.”

 What Are Some Specific Conditions Where Reflexology Might Be Helpful?

-Headaches, including migraines
- Arthritis
- High blood pressure
- Backache and sciatica
- Stress
- Allergies and sinus problems
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
- Constipation
- Insomnia
- Pre-menstrual syndrome
- Menstrual cramps

Who Can Benefit from Reflexology?

People of all ages can benefit from reflexology treatments.  We all suffer from stress at one time or another, and aches and pains are a part of daily life.  Reflexology has a long history of promoting relaxation and healing. Reflexology can be a great treatment by itself or combined with another treatment. Schedule a Soothing a Soothing Foot Massage for 30 or 60 minutes today! 

Seasonal Transition and Ayurveda

Ayurveda is an ancient healing system from India that uses nutrition, herbal body therapy, massage and physical activity to optimize health and establish and maintain balance. The Ayurvedic approach is tailored to your dosha or constitution. Ayurveda offers accessible healthy living choices that blend practical solutions like diet and fitness with pleasurable herbal body treatments and massage to bring you into balance.

According to Ayurveda, our natural state is one of health, happiness and an inner sense of well being. Health is defined as the body being clear of toxins, the mind is at peace, emotions are calm and happy, wastes are efficiently eliminated and organs are functioning normally. In a busy, stressful and toxic world, our physical and mental systems accumulate toxins causing deterioration in bodily functioning. This eventually weakens our systems, which opens the door for chronic, degenerative, and non-specific diseases to develop. These can evolve into serious specific diseases, ultimately damaging an individual’s health and wellness.

Ayurveda recognizes that when the external environment changes, so does the internal environment within us. In ancient India the sages observed that people were more prone to illness during a period of seasonal change due to the shift in the external qualities of air, fire and water. As the winds increased or the temperature began to fluctuate or more moisture and dampness developed, they observed that our doshas – vata, pitta and kapha started to show signs of aggravation. During these periods being very observant of one’s food and lifestyle was emphasized to minimize this seasonal effect. Massage is often recommended to help prevent the doshas from becoming too weakened.

The reason we have challenges with our health around seasonal changes is that we have to allow sufficient time for our physiology to catch up with the changes in the external environment. Typically at the beginning of spring temperatures can be extremely variable, which causes our internal thermostat to have a hard time keeping up. We also see that the winds tend to increase. On days when it is extremely windy the movement principle of vata dosha, known as chala, is increased. This in turn will increase that quality of vata in us. The end result is that both vata and pitta have trouble adjusting to these sudden changes and usually will take a few weeks to acclimate to the environment.

One of the best things you can do to help mitigate this effect is to eat a simple diet. Try to be as diligent as possible to receive a weekly massage during this time and spend time out in nature so that your body can have an opportunity to adjust to these seasonal changes.

Schedule a massage that will help you adjust to the seasonal changes!

To learn more about your dosha and take a free dosha analysis visit http://www.whatsyourdosha.com

Five-Minute Stress Buster - October 12, 2009

Does the idea of finding a half-hour a day to meditate make you even more tense? Try getting your bliss in five-minute increments instead.

Set your computer, cell phone, or watch alarm and take two or three short meditation or visualization breaks a day. Polish your self-soothing skills with a full-length class or videotape on the weekend or when you do have the time.

The first rule of stress-reduction: don’t stress over it!

Take a multivitamin that contains B vitamins – November 30, 2009

Take a multivitamin that contains B vitamins. The B vitamins folic acid, B6 and B12 are related to cognitive function.

If you swallow your vitamin supplements with your morning coffee, you may be missing out on possible health benefits. Take them with food for the best results. Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble, requiring the presence of some fat (think good fats, such as the omega-3’s found in flax seed) in the gastrointestinal tract for optimal absorption.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Bodywork Treatment Proves Successful

By Cathy Ulrich

It started as a vague feeling of numbness in her thumb and first two fingers, then progressed slowly to a definite tingling that woke her several nights a week. “It’s not so bad on weekends when I have a chance to rest my arms, but it’s now getting in the way of things I like to do at home,” says Marie, who spends long hours during the work-week typing at her computer keyboard. “I love to knit and cook, and I’ve had to curb these activities, as well. “Diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome, Marie displayed the classic symptoms: soreness in her forearms, pain in her hands at the end of a long day at the computer, and a feeling of tightness that had spread from hands and wrists all the way to her elbows. And recently, she’d been getting headaches.

Marie has a couple of different options for treating the problem. “My doctor tells me he can operate, but the surgery isn’t always successful,” she says. “He recommends I try bodywork first.”

Because Marie does the same motion in the same way many times a day over a long period of time, she has literally worn out the tissues involved in that motion. This type of injury — called a repetitive strain injury, or RSI — creates tiny tears in the fibers of the soft tissues of the body. While they don’t immediately cause loss of function, these micro-tears set up conditions for chronic inflammation that will eventually manifest as pain, soreness, tightness, tingling, and burning.

CTS

The hand and wrist combination work together as an amazing, mechanical anatomical wonder. Imagine a set of ropes and pulleys that travel from the elbow through the wrist to the fingertips. The muscles reside in the forearm, moving the fingers via long tendons that run through channels in the wrist. The nerves that send and receive sensory and motor information from the brain run alongside the tendons through these same channels. When bending or straightening a finger, these tendons slide back and forth, just like cables. When continually working at a keyboard and using the same motion in the same position thousands of times a day — like millions of Americans do — the cables begin to wear. And just like threads in a rope, some of the collagen fibers will tear. This process progresses until enough fibers are torn that the body develops inflammation in the tendons and sheaths. Swelling ensues, which pinches the nerves, producing the classic symptoms of tingling, swelling, and even loss of grip strength.

The Bigger Picture

Can Bodywork Help?  

A recent study conducted at The Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine looked at the efficacy of bodywork in treating carpal tunnel syndrome. Researchers found that after the completion of four massage sessions, the participants experienced an improvement in grip strength and a decrease in pain, anxiety, and depression. Participants also showed improvement in specific medical tests used to diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome. This landmark study verifies what bodyworkers have observed clinically for years: Massage — and especially deep tissue techniques, such as Thai massage,  — can reorganize the connective tissue fibers, break up scar tissue, and reduce or eliminate the cause of inflammation. Soft tissue work helps realign these tiny fibers of the tendons and sheaths, and the body can then heal itself — and ease or even eliminate carpal tunnel syndrome.

Bodywork to the entire arm, shoulder, and neck will also free soft tissues where hidden tightness can contribute to the problem. Soft tissue inflammation can travel through the continuous connective tissue framework from fingertips to head and even cause headaches — as was the case with Marie. Massage can restore these tissues to normal function.

Other Considerations
In addition to bodywork, it’s important to evaluate postural habits, work station positioning, and movement patterns. When workers become so focused on their work that they forget their bodies, they tend to maintain positions that contribute to the cause. It’s important to identify several ways and several positions to accomplish the same thing. Moving the mouse from one side to the other, even during the same day, can help prevent fatigue and tissue failure. Wrist rests and keyboard trays are important, and a regular stretching routine is essential.

Finally, along with exercise and good nutrition, include bodywork as part of your regular health maintenance program. Regular massage reduces connective tissue inflammation and prevents scar tissue from forming. Movement education, such as the Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais Method, structural integration, and Trager Approach can help correct postural issues that also contribute to the problem. Bodywork is a treatment of choice to keep carpal tunnel syndrome from slowing you down.

The Turtles were Talking to Me

by David Roylance (Founder of Touch of Asia)

I took off on Tuesday and went kayaking with a dear friend on the C&O canal.  It was beautiful, serene, relaxing and great fun. 

(I officially got my first sun burn of the year being unprepared and caught without sun block.)

It was also my first time kayaking and I loved every minute of it.  Fletchers Cove just above Georgetown is a great little spot.

I learned two valuable lessons that I’ve just got to share with you today.

Let me explain.

While I was on the water, I saw over 42 turtles. (My friend was actually counting.)  The turtles seemed to speak to me and told me something that will help re-enforce a very important lesson.

I’ll tell you exactly what they said.

(Lesson #1)

Please do not think I fell off my rocker or anything.  But “yes” the turtles were talking to me. 

Not with spoken words but they actually confirmed something for me that I decided I just had to share.

Kayaking for me this past Tuesday was welcomed down time on the water.  It was a chance to relax and learn something new, “how to coordinate the paddling”. 

What great fun that was.  ; )

As we made our way up the canal, I kept noticing all these HUGE turtles EVERYWHERE.  (On the shoreline, on submerged logs, and swimming in the water.)

As we paddled up and down the canal getting closer and closer to each turtle, I noticed they would slowly make movements towards the water. 

Carefully, calmly, nice and easy…into and through the water.

After about the 23rd turtle, I started thinking about how they have been around for ages, live such long lives, and why that is the case. That’s when it dawned on me that I had to share this important lesson that the turtles shared with me.

I noticed they all seemed super relaxed on the submerged trees and when disrupted by our kayak, they just slowly and smoothly made there way into the water. 

No fast jarring movements or stress responses from these turtles that have lived for so long.

Nice and smooth.  From a calm almost meditative stance to a smooth swim in the water.

What that confirmed for me is that, “we all need to be like turtles”.  Calm, relaxed, smooth, and steady, to help us

enjoy a nice long life.

We can never completely eliminate stress from our daily lives but managing it is super important.  Of course, turtles just  swim around, sleep, and eat all day. 

So, their stress levels are amazingly low and perhaps contributes to their long life.

For us non-reptilian creatures, a regular massage is what helps us to manage our stress and keeps us as calm as a turtle. 

So, remember to receive your regular massage each week, bi-weekly, or every month.

We can not sit around sleep, eat, and swim all day but we can be calm as turtles with a regular massage.

Click here to schedule your next massage,  http://www.GreatMassageVA.com/schedule.htm or

call 703-430-8660.

(Lesson #2)

PS - One other lesson from my kayak adventure, when you are ready to get your stress relieving massage you do not want to leave it to just anyone. 

You want someone that is experienced, talented, and is specialized to perform high quality stress relieving massage therapy. 

That’s us here at Touch of Asia. 703-430-8660.

(Because we did not know a thing about kayaking and by the time we got back to the dock an hour later, there as a ½ inch of water in our kayak and we were both soaking wet.)

It wasn’t on purpose that we were wet, it was because we were highly inexperienced and had no idea how to stroke effectively. : )

(What a sight to see.)

Not what you want when you are ready to kayak or when you are ready for a stress relieving massage.

Keep your kayak dry and your stress levels down then you’ll be as calm as a turtle.

We are here to help. 703-430-8660. http://www.GreatMassageVA.com/schedule.htm

- David, Founder of Touch of Asia

The Scoop on Meditation 

A Simple Practice with Profound Benefits

People who meditate regularly appear internally and externally five to 10 years younger than their non-meditating peers, according to author Deepak Chopra. That’s good news for the estimated 10 million people who practice meditation on an ongoing basis and experience the resulting calm it cultivates.

The rich benefits come from doing something that looks like nothing: Sitting still, being quiet, and breathing deeply. Meditation works simply but profoundly by defusing the onslaughts of life — a racing mind, busyness, deadlines, commutes, all of which have physiological effects on well-being.

Meditation calms the nervous system, decreases metabolic rate, heart rate, and blood pressure, and lowers levels of cholesterol, stress hormones, and free radicals. It also has a direct effect on breathing, slowing and deepening respiration so more oxygen circulates throughout the body. Not only that, meditation is said to lessen feelings of anxiety and depression and improve memory and concentration. And all of this culminates in slowing the aging process, as Chopra notes.

There are many meditation techniques, including focusing on a mantra, a sacred word or phrase, or your breath. But the basic intent of all meditation is focus and attention. And it doesn’t take hours a day in an ashram to meditate effectively. Benefits kick in with even a short period of devoted time.

How to begin? Wear comfortable, unrestrictive clothes, sit on a cushion or chair with your back straight (think once again, comfort), rest your hands on your legs, let your eyes go soft and out of focus or close them, breathe slowly and deeply, and — the hardest part — attempt to empty your mind of thoughts and quiet the internal dialogue. When thoughts flit through your mind, let them pass without judging them and come back to your focus (your mantra, counting, etc.) and breathing.

Start with this sitting meditation technique for five minutes a day, and add on time as you get more at ease with the process. For more information on techniques and benefits, check out the ABC’s of meditation.

 Bodywork Improves Quality of Life

Almost 35 million Americans are age 65 or older, and about 2,000 more reach this age every day. As the U.S. demographic shifts to an older population, it’s important to find ways of helping our elders maintain their health and vitality. Massage for seniors is gaining importance as an alternative therapy to increase quality of life, and many massage therapists are getting special training to better serve this growing population.

Seniors’ Special Needs
While similar in technique to other forms of massage, geriatric massage considers the special needs of the elderly. The specialty-trained practitioner knows about positioning for greatest comfort and will often have the client rest in the same position for the entire massage. Mobility challenges may dictate the massage be done in a bed or wheelchair. The therapist may also work both sides of the body at the same time to enhance body awareness, or only work hands and feet, if the client prefers. 

Benefits of Geriatric Massage
A recent study conducted at the Weaver’s Tale Retreat Center in Oregon looked at the effects of massage for elderly clients. The results of the two-year study showed that participants experienced a decrease in breathing rate of 50 percent and an improvement in range of motion, posture, body awareness, skin color, and muscle tone. Furthermore, it is well documented that caring touch benefits emotional well being in seniors — a population at greater risk of suffering from depression.

Ease Stress to Relieve Allergies

Lighten the load on your immune system to scale back symptoms

Stress can bring on asthma attacks, and some experts believe it probably exacerbates nearly every kind of allergy. What does stress have to do with allergies when it’s your immune system’s overreaction to certain allergens that causes the problem?

Stress increases the adrenal gland’s production of cortisol and spurs the sympathetic nervous system to make more epinephrine and norepinephrine. An oversupply of these hormones cuts your immune system’s effectiveness.

Massage Away Tension
Getting a massage is one of the best ways to get stress out of your system. “Research shows that the rhythmic pressure of massage lowers heart rate and blood pressure while improving blood circulation,” says Andrew Weil, MD, director of the Program in Integrative Medicine and clinical professor of medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. Massage also carries oxygen and nutrients to the cells and removes waste products such as lactic acid, which causes muscle cramps.  If you are suffering from allergies, get a massage to reduce the suffering so that you can breath again.