Hand Reflexology

Your hands have a vital role in such pointing therapies since there are a lot of acupressure points on hands. These pressure points have straight connections to various organs in your body. This means you can use these points of pressure to relieve yourselves from pain existing in various organs of the body. In this article, I will tell you everything about Acupressure points on hands which can potentially help you recover from many ailments.

Hand reflexology is nothing but a way of using the acupressure points on hands for optimum results. Hand reflexology is as good as any type of reflexology. Reflexology on your hands will offer you the same outcomes as what you would get if you did it on any other region in your body. However, the results in this case are eventual. Hand reflexology is used mostly to relieve the human body from health issues such as constipation, headaches, shoulder aches and a lot more than that.

I will tell you steps on how you can perform hand reflexology. This reflexology makes use of an entirely different method compared to foot reflexology. This is mostly because your hands are much flexible and the reflexes are more deep under your skin which only means you must go deeper and stress for a long time to stimulate a point of hand reflexology. The best way you can get another person to perform reflexology on you is by sitting across the table with them. Here is how you can get it done.

Relaxation Exercises

Each reflexology session must begin with an exercise for relaxation. This exercise basically sets up the tone of your treatment through relaxing and aids in soothing your muscles before you go into deeper massage on the reflexes during the therapy. You can do this by clasping your hands and loosening your hands.

Feeling stressed out but don’t know what to do? This is a normal situation that overwhelms most of us in our daily life. Well, the saddest part is that it may not be possible for you to reach out to the nearest spa and rejuvenate yourself at the exact time. Interestingly, there are some simple relaxation techniques that take hardly 10 minutes from your time. And thankfully, these best relaxation exercises actually work positively!

Here are the top relaxation exercises that you must start now if you want to shed the extra baggage of stress from your lifestyle.

Deep Breathing Relaxation Techniques

Relaxation breathing exercises are intended to reduce the stress and lower your blood pressure. Controlled breathing helps to de-stress completely and makes you feel happy. Deep breathing relaxation techniques must be practised in a relaxed ambiance to let the fresh air enter your lungs.

Be comfortably seated to start relaxation breathing exercises. Now put your one hand on the stomach and another one on the chest. You can also do this breathing exercise by lying straight on the floor and keeping a light book on your abdomen.

Start breathing in. Ensure that the hand you put on stomach should also rise with breathing. Try to keep your other hand calm at its position.

Slowly exhale through the mouth and contract your abdominal muscles. In the meanwhile, again remember that your hand on stomach should move in with exhaling while the other hand should not move very much.

Repeat this relaxation breathing exercise for some minutes to relax your mind and body.

Pranayama: Relaxation Exercises

Apart from the deep breathing relaxation techniques you learnt in the above point, there are some awesome Pranayama techniques as well to reduce your stress instantly. Pranayama literally means relaxation yoga breathing techniques. Just practice them anywhere and any time that suits you the best.

1. Equal Breathing Exercises or Samavritti

• Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Keep your spine straight all the time.
• Inhale slowly through your nose and count till four. Now exhale for the equal count of four through the nose.
• This exercise will calm your nervous system and reduce stress substantially.

2. Abdominal Pumping and Breathing

• Sit in a comfortable position and inhale through your nose. Count 3. While breathing in, try to expand your abdomen.
• Now breathe out slowly. While doing this, press your stomach at the pelvic area to throw out the stale air from your body.
• Repeat the process for 4-5 times for complete relaxation.

3. Alternate Nostril Breathing

Sit straight in a comfortable position. Place your right thumb on the right nostril and inhale from the other side. When you are inhaling at the peak position, press the left nostril with your ring finger and exhale slowly from right nostril. Now, repeat this process from your left nostril. By clearing all the barriers from the mind, this technique brings focus and energy.

4. Skull Shining Breath or Kapalabhati

This is one of the most popular pranayama exercises that work like a shot of energy. Start by a long and slow inhalation through the nose. Then, exhale quickly from your lower abdomen with force. Increase the speed of this exercise with gradual practice.

All these relaxation techniques are time-tested for their effectiveness. The experts further say that you shouldn’t rely on them only. There are other techniques as well that you can try.

These relaxation exercises include laughing it out loud to lighten your mood, listening to your favorite music or dancing to your tunes, socialize with your best friends, or just have a cup of water or fruit infusion . Do whatever it takes to relieve your stress and you are ready to take on the fresh challenges!

Reaching the Hand Reflexes

• You can do this by using any finger, say thumb, to put strong pressure on any one spot of the hand.
• Without taking away that finger, rotate the used finger, thumb in this case, so that the pressure is applied in circular manner.
• Do this on the same area for nearly five seconds.
• Move your thumb to another spot where you have to work on, and repeat the same process for nearly five seconds.

Performing Reflexology on Your Hand

Start each hand reflexology treatment on your right hand. Do it on the whole of that hand and next move onto the left. Here is how.

1. Relaxation Exercises

• Use some baby oil or massage oil and rub gently around the wrist of your right hand. Make use of wide outward gentle sweeping motions of the thumbs and move slowly.
• Retaining the exact motion, move your thumb onto the palms of your hands, gently working from the center or inside of your palm all the way to the edges. Repeat the same for nearly thirty seconds.
• Flip your hand, and use the thumbs to push gently in between the bottom of your fingers/ knuckles and across the top of the hand. This is soothing. However, you must know that immense pressure could be painful.
• Hold one finger in a moment, hold as if you are wringing the finger off your hand, and do a subtle twisting side to side so that your bone joint of the knuckles get some rotating motion. There should be no noises of cracking done on purpose, though sometimes it may happen naturally. Repeat gentle rotating of the knuckle joint and go all the way to the top of the finger doing the same.

2. Stimulating Hand Meridians

Use the above mentioned step and apply some pressure in those circular motions for nearly five seconds both anti clockwise and clockwise on every point shown in the reflexology chart. Lung meridian, large intestine meridian, triple burner meridian and heart constructor meridian are some of the meridians in the hands. The triple burner meridian, however, is not precisely an organ as mentioned in the ancient medical texts of China but a connection among various organs.

It relates to three important cavities of the body and the organs present within. Hence, it is important to stimulate meridian points to promote constant balance within your whole body.

3. Working On The Fingers

Fingers basically represent everything that is above your neck. It represents brain, skull, ears, sight glands and much more. Even the toes represent these regions. However the difference between performing reflexology on fingers and toes is that fingers provide a larger region to perform reflexology on. You know, fingers are the zoomed in versions of the toes!

• Perform reflexology on fingers using these techniques.
• Start at the tip of your thumb of the right hand, and move all the way to the base of that thumb, start again at the tip of the same thumb and move down again over a new region where you haven’t yet applied pressure. Keep doing this until the whole thumb is stimulated with the reflexology technique.
• Repeat the same with your index finger, and later do the same on each finger of your right hand. Make a note that you must concentrate on each region of skin, both outside and inside of the fingers.

4. Palm of Your Hand

The palm region represents the torso of your body. Have you noticed that your palms have various color shades, it is usually lighter at the center and darker at the top and the edge? Well, the pink area at the top is basically your chest, the lighter region in the center comprises your liver area and stomach, while the padding at the end close to the wrist and the side of your hand approaching the little finger is your digestive system.

• Right below that little finger, on either sides of the hand is the shoulder region. Rub this area using the reflexology method to relieve yourselves from subtle shoulder pains.
• To perform this step, lay your right hand flat on a soft surface or a table, your palm looking at the ceiling. Use reflexology techniques slowly for every step mentioned below.
• Start on the soft padding below your fingers and move downwards over that region, and then go upwards and later sideways.
• Do the same with the centre of your palm.
• Continuing the same technique, go with the same pattern on the outer edge of your hand.
• Perform same reflexology from the bottom of your thumb across the edge of your hand, including the soft padding between the wrist and the palm. This is an important region as it is connected to various things, including the digestive system and the spine.
• To end with, softly and gently rub your wrist from right to left and then from left to right.

5. Back of Your Hand

• Now flip your hand, your palm facing downwards. Here, you use the same reflexology technique but more gently. This is a sensitive region and gentler pressure is what is needed. Frequently check if the pressure being applied is okay.
• Work downwards in a single direction, from your knuckles to your wrists until all the parts of the back of your hand has been covered.
• Gently perform reflexology around your wrist bone and along your wrist.

6. Repeat on Your Left Hand

• Repeat each of the step mentioned above on your left hand.

7. Relaxing Exercises

• When your left hand is facing down, apply few drops of massage oil or cream upon the skin, and subtly rub from wrist to knees in gentle slow motions and do this for half a minute.
• Rub around hour wrists for 10-15 seconds.
• Turn your hand with the palm facing up, use your thumbs for gentle slow sweeping motions across your palm. You can begin with the center of the palm or your wrists and later move upwards.
• Wring out every finger of the hand.
• Perform the same on your right hand as well.

8. Water

Water is vital since it increases blood circulation which only means that your body will get rid of all the waste quickly. Since water is what carries out the waste, make sure you have ample water to put out any of the excessive body waste from your blood system so that you avoid symptoms like flu.

Hand reflexology can be done on other people. However, you can do it yourselves as well. It helps in getting rid of that excruciating headache you have, and much more!

Three amazing benefits you receive through hand reflexology.

1. You get good relaxation.
2. It promotes balance and harmony in your bodily systems.
3. Increases your blood circulation slightly.

Acupressure Points On Hands
As per Chinese studies, the human body has about 340 pressure points discovered so far, and 28 of them are right on your hands. You can find out these pressure points and stimulate them to enjoy amazing benefits which the reflexology therapy has got to offer. You can either rub your both palms together until you feel the heat, since it will stimulate may points in you hand, or go through the following points which will tell you more about particular acupressure points on hands which will help you in treating particular ailments.

1. The Hand Valley Point

is one among the highly popular acupressure points on hands which can be used to treat various problems in the body. This is situated between the thumb and your pointer finger and aids you in getting rid of migraines, stress, shoulder tension, headaches, toothache, neck pain and constipation. Besides, this is one of the most vital acupressure points on hand for diabetes since it reduces the strain on the heart. This is among the popular acupressure points on hands for back pain too.

2. Base of The Thumb

This, too, is one of the popular reflexology points in hand if you’re looking at testing yourself. You can locate this acupressure point right below the base of the thumb and just over the wrist. Find this point and apply gentle pressure with the help of the thumb on your other hand. Frequent stimulation on this pressure point can aid you in finding relief from breathing problems and also coughing.
Wondering how to relieve sinus pressure? Find here how you can achieve quick and long lasting relief from pain.

3. The Wrist Point

Do you find yourself always undergoing stress? Do you want an effective yet simple remedy? Well, you must consider this wrist point then. It works wonders on relieving your stress. Most people make use of this particular point to treat themselves and most often get great results. This particular point is situated on the wrist, and is collinear with your tiny finger. Once you find this point, put firm pressure on the point and hold it for some while. Stimulating this particular point will help you in alleviating stress and improves the emotional state of your mind as well.

4. Inner Gate Point

Are you wondering how to treat the nausea you are suffering from? Then this one is a great solution. Find the inner gate point, stimulate it and relieve yourselves from nausea. You can locate this specific point on the wrists. It is nearly three centimeters from the wrist crease. When you locate the inner gate point, make use of the thumb to stimulate it and put good pressure for a while. Stimulating this point frequently will help you in getting rid of nausea, anxiety, stomach pain and will also treat your indigestion issues. This is one of the prominent acupressure points on hands for gas problems.

5. Thumb Nail Point

You will be able to locate this pressure point on the outer surface of the lower corner of the nail of the thumb. Make a note that this point will be on the lower left while you are looking for it on the right thumb, and vice versa. Find it and apply gentle pressure or just massage it for a while to stimulate it. Putting pressure on this point will help you relieve yourselves from negative feelings.

6. Elbow Point

At the inner region of the elbow crease on your arm, you will locate the large intestine pressure point which is situated at the side of the end. This pressure point aids in stimulating the intestine functions. It just gets rid of extra body heat and unnecessary moisture which exists in your body. This acupuncture point removes body heat and if you use the thumb to press this particular point, at least for about a minute, you will understand that this is one of the highly potential acupressure points on hands for weight loss.

7. Balayam or Finger Nails

Curl up your fingers towards the inside of your palm. Bring together your fingers as close as to touch the nails on the other fingers. Rub them rigorously for nearly five minutes. You must make sure this is not done to the thumbs. This will make the hair follicle roots to send enough energy to your scalp to stimulate hair growth. Hence, fingernails are the acupressure points on hands for hair growth.

We often say use the phrase “Everything lies in your own hands” quite figuratively. What we are unaware about is that it is true in its literal sense as well. All the acupressure points on hands are connected to some or the other vital organs of our body. If we can effectively use these reflexology techniques, we are sure to stay Hale and healthy!

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