Touch This Special Chinese Foot Reflexology Point to Activate Your Body’s Natural Healing Abilities
BY HOLLY TSE
the chinese mapped special reflexology points on your foot that when massaged and stimulated can radically improve your health.
Did you know that your feet are a source of wisdom? By studying Chinese reflexology of the foot, we’ve learned that they reveal where you hold stress and how you approach life, and they can even tell you where emotional pain is hidden deep inside your body. Your feet never lie. They always tell the truth about your current state of health and well-being.
Chinese reflexology points on your feet correspond to different areas of your body. By checking the sensitivity of the reflexology points on your feet, you can gain insight into what is going on in your body.
Your feet can also give you insights on how to create harmony in your life, as well as clues for following your soul purpose. By studying Chinese reflexology of the foot, you can feel more connected with your body so that you can integrate your body, mind, heart, and spirit.
But before you begin your journey into Chinese reflexology, it’s important to get a snapshot of where you are right now. When you know where you’re starting from, it can help you reach your destination faster.
It’s like when you’re at the mall looking at the directory and you’re trying to figure out how to get to the shoe store. The map is overwhelming with all of those little boxes, squinty numbers, and an endless list of stores in categories that are too numerous to decipher.
However, once you see that little red dot with the words “You Are Here,” you feel a sense of relief. Suddenly getting where you need to go becomes much easier. The same is true for healing your body through Chinese reflexology and following your passion.
We are inundated with so much information on Chinese reflexology of the foot that it’s hard to know what is right. And don’t even get me started about the Internet! It’s the virtual candy store for the mind when it comes to researching what ails you.
Fortunately, there’s a simple way to cut through the clutter.
There are three Chinese reflexology points that can tell you what’s going on in your body right now and what you can do to improve your health and vitality. By testing these points on your feet, you bypass your mind and get the truth straight from the best source of insider information—your body.
When you listen to your body, you begin realizing your own power to heal and transform your life. It is not the doctor, diet, or medication that heals—sure, they can help you along, but it really is your body that does the healing. That’s why it’s so important to study Chinese reflexology so that you can pay attention to what your body has to say.
There’s a Chinese proverb that says, “The superior doctor prevents sickness. The mediocre doctor attends to impending sickness. The inferior doctor treats actual sickness.”
What this means is that a great doctor will help you stay healthy, whereas someone less skilled will allow things to progress until physical symptoms appear and then they will treat the condition at the early stage. On the other hand, an unskilled doctor will let things get so bad that you actually get sick, and then they will try to fix things.
This proverb makes it easy to blame the doctor when you get sick. However, it’s very disempowering to do this instead of learning skills like Chinese reflexology for yourself. The old Chinese proverb needs to be tweaked for modern times. Here’s my take on it:
“The superior patient prevents sickness. The mediocre patient attends to impending sickness. The inferior patient treats actual sickness. The really inferior patient sticks their head in the sand until things are so bad, it’s almost (but not quite) impossible to return to wellness.”
Unfortunately, it’s pretty common in our modern society to ignore the early warning signs, like those we detect through reflexology of the foot, in our bodies. The mediocre patient will let things progress until they notice early-stage symptoms and then they will finally do something about it. The inferior patient lets things deteriorate to the point where they get completely sidelined before they address the problem.
And then, we have the really inferior patient who ignores the problem until they come down with something that is “incurable” or becomes chronic. At this point, the condition is much harder to treat, and it takes a much longer time to return to health.
So, my question for you is, who do you want to be? Regardless of what is going on in your body right now, you can be the superior patient by mastering skills like Chinese reflexology—only you shouldn’t see yourself as only a patient.
When you do, you’re giving away responsibility for your health.
To take command of your health, you need to be your own “superior doctor,” using Chinese reflexology for healing at the energy level to prevent physical symptoms before they happen.
If you can catch and reverse problems at the energy level, you can prevent them from manifesting in the physical body. For physical issues, you can also use Chinese reflexology at the energy level to support and superboost your body’s natural healing process for a quicker return to wellness.
Massaging a Chinese reflexology point sends healing qi to the affected area, and this helps to improve the flow of blood to the area. In this way, qi supports the body in clearing toxins and getting what it needs to heal—whether it’s oxygen, nutrients, or antibodies.
To figure out where your body needs healing energy the most, let’s do a quick test of a few key Chinese reflexology points. Testing these points can uncover qi disharmonies in your body and also give you instant feedback on your overall health and well-being.
Please note if you are pregnant: There are acupuncture points in and around your feet that are used to induce labor. Thus, it is best to avoid practicing Chinese reflexology on yourself if you are pregnant.
Chinese Reflexology Point for the Kidneys
Use It to Check: Your overall levels of life force qi.
Why It Matters: In Traditional Chinese Reflexology Medicine, the Kidneys are considered the root of life. They store Kidney jing—your reserves of life force energy. The Kidneys are like batteries storing the energy available to you for your lifetime. When your Kidney jing is depleted, it’s like draining the battery on your cell phone.
Eventually, your phone dies, and the same thing happens to your body when you’ve used up all of your jing.In Traditional Chinese Reflexology Medicine, deficiency in the Kidneys is associated with numerous health issues:
+ Exhaustion and chronic fatigue
+ Fertility issues, low sex drive
+ Premature aging: gray hair, weak knees, lower backache, hearing loss, and memory loss
+ Edema
+ Frequent urination
+ Asthma and allergies
How to Test Your Kidney Reflexology Point
Important: The Chinese reflexology foot point for the Kidney is quite close to the acupuncture point Kidney 1. This point is sometimes used to induce labor in a pregnant woman who is past her due date. Therefore, without proper training and extensive hands-on experience in locating these points, do not massage this point or practice reflexology on yourself if you are pregnant.
The Kidney point is an oval located on the sole of your foot.
You have a Kidney point on each foot, but for this exercise, you’ll use your left foot. We’ll go over a simple method to get a general location for your Kidney reflexology foot point, and then we will take a more detailed approach later.
To locate the Kidney Chinese reflexology point, sit comfortably and rest your left foot in your lap so that you can see the sole of your foot. Imagine a line dividing the sole in half horizontally. Be sure to measure from the tip of your big toe to the base of your heel and then divide this length in half.
Next, imagine a second line dividing your foot in half vertically. These two lines create four quadrants. On your left foot, the Kidney reflexology point is located primarily in the top left quadrant.
Place your thumb pad just above the horizontal line and to the left of the vertical line so that you’re in the top left quadrant. To test this Chinese reflexology point, press firmly with your thumb. You can increase the pressure by leaning in with your body weight. You can also use the knuckle of your right index finger to press on the point. After pressing, slide your knuckle or thumb pad up slightly and press again. Continue until you are just below the ball of your foot.
Rate Your Sensitivity Level
Give your Kidney foot reflexology point an overall rating between 0 and 5 according to the following scale:
+ 0: The point is not sensitive at all. You can’t feel a thing other than the sensation of pressing on your foot.
+ 1: It feels uncomfortable to press on the point. It’s just below the threshold of what you would describe as pain.
+ 2: The point is quite sensitive with pressure, and you feel pain as you increase the pressure.
+ 3: The point hurts when you press on it. Definitely painful.
+ 4: The point is very painful and almost makes your eyes water when you press on it.
+ 5: @#%! The foot reflexology point feels extremely painful even with light pressure.
What It Means When Your Kidney Point Is Sensitive
There are many reasons why your Kidney point may be sensitive. To understand the big picture, you need to view this in relation to your other Chinese reflexology points, overall constitution, and lifestyle.
For example, someone would have a sensitive Kidney point if they have or had kidney issues such as kidney stones or chronic kidney disease. They could also have a sensitive Chinese reflexology point if they’ve been taking medication for a long period of time because their kidneys have to work harder to filter the excess medication.
However, for the purpose of this exercise, we’ll focus on what this point says about your life force energy levels.
Rating: 0 or 1
Ideally, if your qi is strong and robust, you would rate your sensitivity level as zero. I’ve only met one person who had a zero rating the first time I pressed on their Kidney point. He was a vegan college student and barefoot runner. Since he was jogging barefoot on rocky trails, it was like he was getting a Chinese reflexology foot massage session for his feet every time he went for a run. If you don’t feel anything when you press on this point, and you’re not a vegan barefoot runner, chances are you need to press harder.
A rating of one suggests that overall, you are very healthy, or your general constitution is very robust. You have excellent energy levels, but you may be doing a little too much lately. It would be good to relax and recharge.
Rating: 2 or 3
This suggests that you have been depleting your qi over time.
Using the cell phone analogy, your battery is only half-charged.
It is important that you stop pushing yourself or giving too much of your energy to others. Your Chinese reflexology foot point suggests it would be very beneficial for you to make time and space in your life for rest and rejuvenation and to nurture yourself.
Rating: 4 or 5
Your Kidney qi is weak and has been depleted over many years.
It could be that you are a type A personality, pushing yourself too hard. Or if you’re a type B, you’ve been putting the needs of others ahead of your own. This sign from your Chinese reflexology point is your wake-up call that you really need to focus on resting and recharging. You should be your number one priority right now.
How to Boost Your Life Force
To replenish your life force, you have to eliminate what is draining your energy. Start at the root of the problem. I’ve observed that people with Kidney deficiencies tend to have similar characteristics. Ask yourself the following questions to see if this sounds like you:
1. Do you put the needs of other people ahead of your own? Do you give too much of yourself to others?
2. Are you an overachiever? Do you push yourself when you know you should be resting? Do you work too hard?
I understand that it’s hard to change who you are. However, it is simple to make a small shift in your thinking or to change one choice you make today, and much easier when you know how to use Chinese reflexology to identify issues.
For example, if you’re feeling tired, but think you “should” go for a run today, skip it. If you’re thinking about working late to finish a report, turn off the computer a half hour earlier than you would normally. If someone asks you for a favor, today is the day you trust your Chinese reflexology point and tell them, “No.”
Every time you have a decision to make, choose the one that is most nurturing. It may go against all of your previous conditioning and habits, but over time you will see that by doing less, you actually get more done. When you recharge your batteries, you’ll be more effective because you’ll have abundant energy to invest in everything you do.
This piece on Chinese reflexology is excerpted with permission from Sole Guidance by Holly Tse.
About The Author
Holly Tse is a former high-tech worker turned holistic healer, teacher, author, and Dragon Spirit Guide. In addition to wearing many hats, she is also a full-time mom. Holly is the founder of ChineseFootReflexology.com, the premier English language website on Chinese reflexology, with readers from over 200 countries worldwide. Holly’s internationally bestselling book, Sole Guidance, was released by Hay House in 2016. Visit her website at ChineseFootReflexology.com.
