Reduce your stress with simple hand reflexology you can do anytime, anywhere
Take a moment to step away from everything that's weighing you down with this ancient technique believed to have major benefits on your physical and mental health
Sometimes, you want an almost instant solution to stress - and as tempting as it can seem, getting drunk won't ultimately help you, trust us. According to the Association of Reflexologists, reflexology is an ancient therapy that dates back more than 5,000 years. Treatments try to bring back balance to the body, encourage healing and increase relaxation, and can be done on the hands as well as the feet – similar to Chinese foot massages.
You can pay a professional reflexologist to do this; but doing the treatments yourself means you don’t have to fork out the cash. Plus, a study at Kangwon National University in South Korea found that (literally) treating yourself helps in reducing perceived stress.
The techniques
Hand reflexology can be used to help manage your stress levels any time when you feel you could do with some relaxation. It focuses on breathing and the stress response, and should only take five to 10 minutes of your time.
There are two techniques used in this treatment. The first is thumb-walking, when you press the tip of your thumb on the reflex area (the area you want to work on), lifting up and pressing down again in tiny little steps as you “walk” across the reflex area, almost like a caterpillar. The second technique is a rotating technique, where you place your thumb directly on top of a reflex point and slowly twist several times clockwise, then anticlockwise.
With both techniques, you should use the fingers of your working hand to support the hand you’re treating. This means you’re using your working hand to work as an anchor, or counterweight, for your thumb.
