Monday
Most of the staff in the care homes that I visit don't really know what 'complementary therapy' means. When I try to explain that I offer reflexology, massage and aromatherapy, this often only causes further confusion. Reflexology is simply unknown and the other two are frequently seen as nothing more than a luxury indulgence - the privilege of those with money to burn on 'pampering' themselves in a spa.
The health benefits of these age-old healing techniques are still very much overlooked, particularly in relation to elder care, and thus I often feel I am waging a war against misunderstanding, with much of my time spent breaking down barriers with endless information and demonstration sessions.
Today I am doing this with a foot massage workshop for staff. People hold such a lot of tension in the hands and feet, and a 15-minute hand or foot massage can have tremendous therapeutic effects for the whole body and also the mind. But for these workshops I focus mainly on the feet because this gives me the chance to talk about reflexology. People are always amazed when, just through feeling their foot, I can identify their various ailments such as headaches, digestive disorders and backache - and work through the foot to ease these complaints.
Complementary therapy can stand in juxtaposition to mainstream healthcare, but the two can work effectively together and it is interesting to be operating as a bridge between.
Tuesday
My regular weekly slot with a ninety-five-year-old lady who came to residential care after breaking her hip last year. She is not particularly happy here, but looks forward to the aromatherapy massage that has helped tremendously in rehabilitating her wasting muscles and stiffening joints. I do my best but know that my input is limited: away from her own familiar environment she has lost her sense of self, she is not eating properly because she does not like the food but likes even less to complain. She finds the dementia patients frightening and so spends a lot of time alone in her room, and there she sits unmoving and uninspired, her mind along with her body increasingly underused.
As a natural health practitioner I know that many of her health problems could be alleviated with improved nutrition, increased person-centred activity, and a reduction rather than increase in her steadily growing number of medications, prescribed not only for her ailments but to alleviate the side effects of the medications themselves. This however is not my role here, and thus I content myself with leaving her snoozing on her bed, wrapped in towels, comfortable and happy; her muscles eased, her joints loosened, and her mind soothed by the aromatic blend of essential oils that will linger in the air for several hours.
Wednesday
"Oh yes - I'll have a bit of reflexology, I've got terrible feet!" is the most common misconception about this powerful whole-person treatment. Slowly I am spreading the word, and today I have three new clients; a 60-year-old learning disabled man with chronic IBS, a female resident with neck pain and headaches, and member of staff curious but sceptical of my claim to be able to help her with stress.
The day passes in a whirl, driving between locations, setting up, cleaning and tidying away after each session, with paperwork and a speedily grabbed lunch in between. The three-day week suits me just fine, because for the rest of the time I can focus on my other interests: alongside my work in the homes I also take my services into a mental health setting. I am also a freelance writer, in my spare time an allotment gardener, and I have to be sure to spend time looking after myself, restoring the depleted energy that is so easily drained in any 'caring' role but particularly so in the field of complementary and alternative Health.
Thus I am careful to build in the time for 'self care'. I eat well, swim and do yoga, try to get enough sleep. I really enjoy my work, even with the frustrations of misunderstanding and the frequent feeling of being undervalued. I know I am doing good work, and am lucky to be in this position, making a difference doing something that I enjoy.
(Pic: Nick J Webb on flickr)
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