Reflexology and Down's Syndrome

Sophie (not her real name) is a 22 year old with Down's Syndrome.  Her mother phoned me to ask
if she could book Sophie in for reflexology as she had had treatments before and enjoyed them.

Of course I agreed, but wasn't quite sure what to expect.

It turned out that  Sophie's comprehension and mobility were quite good, however initially I found it diificult to understand her speech and was pleased her mother was there.

I wondered if Sophie would keep still long enough for a full treatment, but agreed with her mother that we would just see how it went.

During the treatment, I watched Sophie's face and tried to monitor her reactions all the time.  Working the spine reflexes and around the ankles across the acupressure point UB62 seemed to calm and please her and I completed a full treatment.

By her third treatment Sophie was very much at home in my treatment room and could say my name.  She chattered to herself during the first part of the treatment, but then was quieter.  Her mother said she was rarely still for so long at home and was also beginning to sleep better at night.

Sophie is coming to me once a month.  Her mother sits in the armchair in the treatment room and, with the soft lights and soothing music, often falls asleep herself.  So two people are benfiting from the reflexology - lovely.

Once Sophie was accompanied by her 'supporter' instead of her mother.  This lady was also a teacher in a life skills class for people with similar challenges to Sophie.  She marvelled at Sophie's calmness during the treatment and said how wonderful it would be if more students from her class could have reflexology.

So we are working on the idea.  Watch this space.