Snoring can be the bane of your existence if it keeps you (or your partner) from getting restorative sleep at night. A variety of factors can be the cause of snoring, and some of them can even be very dangerous to the health. While it is recommended that anyone who snores chronically should see a medical professional to rule out underlying causes, many options for natural ways to reduce or cure snoring are available.
Understanding the cause of your snoring will help you to find a cure more easily and quickly. Most people’s snoring is due to nasal blockage or congestion, loose throat muscles, excess weight that blocks the airways, incorrect sleeping positions, displaced jaw positioning, smoking, or excessive use of alcohol or other drugs that cause muscle relaxation and impaired breathing.
Losing weight, sleeping on the side instead of the back, and reduction of alcohol use or smoking are certainly lifestyle changes that can make a huge impact on snoring as well as other health concerns. But if you live a generally healthy lifestyle and still struggle with snoring, you may be able to benefit from reflexology for snoring. Snoring that is caused by allergies, nasal congestion, loose tongue and neck muscles, or other respiratory situations can certainly benefit from the natural methods of reflexology.
What is Reflexology?
This holistic treatment system of stimulation and massage is used to treat illnesses and tension in the body. This scientific study bases itself on the theory that every point in the body correlates with pressure points in the feet, hands, and head. So when these points are massaged, they provide healing to the corresponding parts of the body.
Reflexology is not an instant fix for one specific illness as much as it is meant to help all of the systems of the body to work together holistically by stimulating glands, tissues, organs, and muscles of the body. So while you are using reflexology for snoring, you’re also providing your body with an all-around health boost that can help in so many other ways.
Using Reflexology for Snoring
Seeing a professional reflexologist may be just the natural answer you are looking for to help reduce your snoring or your partner’s snoring. When making your appointment with the reflexologist, be sure to let them know that you are looking to find relief from snoring so that they are prepared to treat you for exactly what you need.
When you attend your appointment you can expect that the reflexologist will give you an overall treatment to help with relaxation and promote general health and well-being of your body as a whole. He or she will also specifically attend to your needs and requests related to snoring, including practicing massage techniques on the feet and hands that are known to help with breathing, sinus pressure, and circulation.
Although oil and lotion are not typically used in reflexology, combining essential oils into treatments may extend the benefits through aromatherapy. In the case of snoring, a reflexologist who is also an aromatherapist may use peppermint or another essential oil that could help with opening up breathing passages and promoting circulation.
Most of reflexology takes place on the feet. The focus for reflexology for snoring will be to stimulate the organs in relationship with the respiratory system. To reduce snoring with reflexology, your treatment will likely focus on the tips of the toes, which are the areas that correlate the feet with the sinuses. The outsides of the big toes are reflexology points for the nose which can also be related to snoring. The areas along the bases of the toes correspond with the neck, and the balls of the feet are connected to respiratory organs such as the lungs and the diaphragm.
The ultimate purpose of reflexology treatments for snoring will be to:
- minimize the production of mucous that might be getting in the way of breathing at night
- open up the breathing passages in the nose and throat
- and tighten the muscle tone in the neck in order to reduce vibration that blocks airways and makes the snoring sound
It is likely that one session of reflexology will not show marked improvements in your snoring on its own. Talk to your reflexologist about how many appointments it might take and how often you need to have them in order to provide your body ample time to heal and reduce snoring. Having sessions once a week for four to six weeks or so may be enough, but it depends on the specific cause of your snoring.
Self-Reflexology for Snoring
A quick and easy help using reflexology for snoring, if you can’t get into a reflexologist quickly or you just need to maintain between appointments, is self-reflexology. Using this practice one or two times a day may help with snoring problems.
Sinus Pressure Relief.
As the sinus reflexes on the hands are located on the tips of the fingers and thumbs, these are the areas you want to concentrate on. Using the pad of the thumb of the right hand, apply gentle pressure to the tops of the fingers and thumb of the left hand. Move firmly but gently in a small circular motion for about two seconds on each finger. Change from left to right hand and repeat.
Neck Muscle Tone.
The reflex area for the neck muscles is found along the sides of the thumbs and up into the fingers on the palm side. Using the thumb on the opposite hand, bend the thumb and place digging pressure into the fleshy parts of the reflex area, moving it along like a caterpillar. Spend about five seconds on each finger or thumb and then repeat on the other hand.
Conclusion
Reflexology is a natural practice that can be incorporated into almost anyone’s life without any side effects. In addition to other healthy lifestyle changes, adding this massage method to your feet and hands could change everything about your snoring—and that could change your life!
