Reflexology Works - with Nicola Fox

[music] Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of uh Wednesday's reflexology wisdom and we are carrying on with our series on reflexology works and I am super delighted to welcome Nicola Fox. [cheering] YAY. >> NOW, Nicola is uh part of the Integrated Reflexology Consortium team. Um she's actually somebody that I'm frightened of now, David. You should be now. [laughter] >> She's actually one of the internal verifiers, so she makes sure that we do it right. But Nicola, you you've got some fantastic stories that you can share of successes that you've had with Reflexology, I believe. >> Absolutely. Absolutely. >> Okay, over to you. >> Right. Well, I thought the first one I'd start off with is uh regulation. So, each week I go into a school for children with uh special educational needs and um I think I've got about eight or nine that I see in a day and some of those are then few more on rotation. Uh but there's one um young lady, she's about 12 years old really struggles um in a morning first thing coming in um especially cuz her friend's not there on a Thursday. So I always see her first thing um and she's often really upset uh doesn't want to work, doesn't want to engage. Um she'll often say, "Oh, I've got a tummy ache. I've got a headache." And whether she has or not, nobody really knows. However, um so she comes in, she has hand reflexology. Um so my main focus is doing the rainbow relaxation room that I learned with uh Lorraine senior and then an added few >> Oh, a wonderful teacher. Yes. >> Yeah. Fantastic. So it's been been a great course that has really useful especially with um with like children with autism and ADHD. Um, so usually start and generally within 10 15 minutes you can literally see her change in her face and then she'll start talking and she's laughing. Um, and then and by the end of it you can see that she's nice and calm and ready to go back to class. So, I take her back into class and nine times out of 10 the teacher will say, "I don't know what you've done to her, but uh [laughter] she's come back happy and she's actually sat down and she's ready and she's focused and she's been able to to get on with her work." And I think, you know, and you can see that as an immediate effect, but then o over time, you know, now she just comes in and you can instantly see her relax as she comes in to where I do the reflexology and sit down and and it's now not taking as long to to get that regulation. >> That's amazing. So, just to recap, it's called the rainbow technique. >> There is the rainbow relaxation routine. >> Sorry, the rainbow relaxation. It's part of the functional reflex therapy uh framework that um >> and this is Lorraine Senior's course, isn't it? >> Yeah. >> Which of course is an AO approved course. Well, we'll put we'll put a link down at the bottom so [laughter] everybody can see what it is. Um what I am going to say is Nicola because this is Lorraine's technique. Don't tell people how you do it. That's if people want to learn it, >> go on to course. Absolutely. >> Absolutely. It would be wrong of us to share that without Lorraine. >> What is what I do love about this is actually when you do the course with Lorraine, you you learn it as a self-care um routine that I can then teach to the children um one or two of the techniques that they can then go away and use in the classroom and help with their own regulation. >> That's amazing. Brilliant. Oh, and literally just 10 15 minutes. >> Uh, usually about 20 25 minutes I do. So, I do add in some little bit extras, but the the re the routine can take 10 15 minutes, but you you notice a difference. So, generally I I tend to do one hand and then the other hand just with the with the uh chair and the positioning I've got on the luma. Um but yeah what by the time I've done the first hand that she the complete regulation before I go on to the second and then the second is more right now now she's now she's relaxing now she's ready ready to roll. >> Perfect. Perfect. And literally from the first session she you could see the results >> from Yeah. From the first session you can see the the results. Yeah. And now we've been working overtime. So there there, you know, it's probably been a year and a half that I'm working with her now. Um, and you can really see now as she comes in um and and even in the mornings that that deregulation is not as what it was kind of uh six to eight months ago. >> Amazing. That's just fabulous solution. >> It is. It is. It's so nice. >> Absolutely. showing reflexology works and I'm so pleased that you have bought in if I can call it an emotional a well-being um uh condition rather than just something physical because this just goes to show reflexology works mind, body, spirit. I think that's just absolutely fabulous. >> Absolutely. I mean a lot of I I do work mainly with a lot of people with anxiety. um stress hormones and actually when you look at it a lot of is linked with that emotional. So that will kind of take me on to my my next one that I wanted to talk about. >> We got another Oh >> yes, if we've got time we got time. >> I want to hear it. >> Um what um well I suppose IBS symptoms specifically bloating and uh constipation. >> Okay. [snorts] um those seems to be really tied in with kind of stress and anxiety and that feeling of um holding on to things and and not being able to let go. And that's for, you know, children and and adults. Um and I think you remember from back in my days in teaching, David, I was always uh uh quite good at um relieving people of their uh constipation. And and that's and that's >> am I allowed to say what we used to [laughter] say? >> Go on then. Now we're here. >> So yeah, I guys just I did train Nicola [laughter] years ago and we used to call Nicola Knuckles Nicola the constipation queen. >> It was the case studies. Every single case study that you did involved constipation in one way or another, didn't it? It was amazing. >> Yeah, definitely. And and I've carried on with that, David. [laughter] >> Although I don't tell my clients that's >> No, no, no, no, no, no. [laughter] >> But but it does it does it does really help and like to say it is not immediate this certainly with the constipation. It's usually with an hour and often people don't mention um that that that they're constipated. It's not necessarily something that people particularly want to talk about. >> No, it's not, is it? People get embarrassed about it, don't they? >> It's embarrassed, but you can feel it. And I tend to say, >> "How's your digestion?" And they're like, "Oh, yeah. It's not not always great." And actually you as you work in around the colon in particularly you can often feel those uh congested areas and uh on more than one occasion I've had a message afterwards thinking saying I don't know what you've done [laughter] but it's helped. >> That's a very polite way of saying it. >> Yeah. Yeah. Not all of them are that polite but [laughter] depends how well I know them. >> [laughter] >> But but even with the kids uh in the in the schools and the children that come and see me actually you know a lot is that anxiety and you can just feel it in that digestive area and um many of time there is um wind that is released even during during the session [laughter] >> they're like oh to be fair the kids don't appear to be embarrassed they just crack on >> and and for you it's nothing you haven't seen before. >> No, I've got my own children, so they're happily Yeah. >> Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. And so I take it again pretty much instant results. Obviously not immediate, but within half an hour, an hour or so. >> Yeah. By the time they've got home, probably relaxed a little bit more, had some water, then usually that it um helps to clear them out. >> Okay. Now then, I'm gonna tell you I'm gonna I'm gonna tell everybody a story >> on constipation because it's appropriate. >> And you won't have heard this story because >> I don't think I was a grandfather when I taught you, was I? >> No. No. >> It really was a lot of years ago. about seven years ago now I think David. [laughter] >> So my my daughter she contacted me and I forget which grandchild it was and she was saying dad you know and which whichever the name was um hasn't been to poo for a few days and she was worried and quite you know rightly too. >> Yeah. And it was unusual because um this baby wasn't being bottlefed or anything like that. So everything should have been fine. And I said right and do you know it's br WhatsApp's brilliant because I just got this picture of the foot chart showed her where the colon is. >> Yeah. >> And I said right now can you see where you've got this on our foot chart? It's brown. Isn't it very appropriate? [laughter] So, I showed her where the ascending colon was, transverse colon, descending colon, and I said, "Just dip your finger into a little bit of olive oil." And this um grandchild of mine uh could have only been 3, four months old, that's all. Something like very, very young. And I said, "Just trace the colon with your finger across the sole of the foot." >> Yeah. >> And she says, "Is that it?" I said, "Yeah, that's all you got to do." And literally half an hour later, she phoned me back and she goes, "Dad, dad." She goes, and it was just then one word, "Poo, naughty." She's going, [laughter] >> "But just the joy in her face. I must admit, there must have also been the relief for my grandchild." And it's a wonderful thing. And Nicola, I know we used to call you Knuckles, Nicola. Do you still work the colon with your knuckle? >> Uh, sometimes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Not not not always. >> Always. Okay. But it's a case of what I would say if you're working on a young baby. >> Yeah. I wouldn't >> very young child, you don't need to go in deep. >> Um, and literally just trace it fair the light touch across. Um, and also this is the other thing that says to me, reflexology isn't a placebo. It's not a I'm going to tell the client what I'm going to do, therefore they will believe it. If you're talking about babies as well, Nicola and everybody that's watching, they don't understand. Their bodies just react to the reflexes. Brilliant. >> I I've got another one, David. I went to I did a uh self-care workshop with uh some foster parents and one of them had got a little baby there that they just got in and um you know the [clears throat] mom had been on on drugs so they were still kind of you know coming around from that the baby was really struggling with the stomach and I just got the feet just work gently around that digestive system and it just kept pulling its feet in and obviously there was they could feel some reaction going It was just natural. As soon as I stopped, legs went out and got the feet again, did it again. And so I said to the foster parents, you just need to keep doing that really gently and eventually it will just really help help with their their stomach. >> Brilliant. Brilliant. That's wonderful, Nicola. Thank you so much. >> No worries. >> These experiences, >> that's just fabulous. Um, so guys, I hope you've learned something today. I hope that you have also um seen the passion that Nicholas's got in [laughter] what she does. Um and it's great to get the alternative conditions um that we've been talking about here. So um until next time, stay well, stay safe, and on behalf of myself and Nicola, thank you very much for watching. >> Bye-bye. Heat up here.