Barbara Scott - Reflexology for Fertility: A Practitioners Guide to Natural and Assisted Conception

B arbara Scott has been in practice as a reflexologist for over 20 years and has been teaching and lecturing in Reproductive Reflexology for the last seven years. She is well respected as an authority in the field of Reproductive Reflexology, having treated many hundreds of couples on their journey to parenthood.

She is Chair of The Association of Reproductive Reflexologists, who run frequent lecture days and undertake data collection and research projects. Barbara has also lectured for the British Reflexology Association, the Association of Reflexologists, Leicester Royal Infirmary (Fertility Clinic), Derby University (as a Guest Lecturer on Reproductive Reflexology), Reflexology In Europe Network Bi-Annual Conference in Madeira in May 2014, and continues to speak at the Fertility Show at London Olympia. Additionally, she has broadcast on BBC Radio Nottingham, Heart FM and provided information for the local press.

Barbara runs training courses around the UK and Europe and has trained over 300 practitioners in the UK, Germany, Denmark, India and Israel.

REFLEXOLOGY
FOR FERTILITY

A PRACTITIONERS
GUIDE TO NATURAL AND
ASSISTED CONCEPTION

BARBARA SCOTT MBRA MARR

This edition first published in the UK and USA 2016 by
Watkins, an imprint of Watkins Media Limited
19 Cecil Court London WC2N 4HE

Design and typography copyright Watkins Media Limited 2016
Text copyright Barbara Scott 2016
Illustrations copyright Barbara Scott 2016

The author has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without prior permission in writing from the Publishers.

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

Designed and typeset by Clare Thorpe
Illustrations by Harriet Combes

Printed and bound in the UK by CPI Group (UK) Ltd.

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-78028-901-4

www.watkinspublishing.com

Publishers note: The information in this book is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice and treatment. If you are pregnant or are suffering from any medical conditions or health problems, it is recommended that you consult a medical professional before following any of the advice or practice suggested in this book. Watkins Media Limited, or any other persons who have been involved in working on this publication, cannot accept responsibility for any injuries or damage incurred as a result of following the information, exercises or therapeutic techniques contained in this book.

CONTENTS

FOR KATE, TOM, ALEX AND MOLI
AND ALL OF THE MANY, MANY CLIENTS
WHO HAVE TAUGHT ME SO MUCH.

AUTHORS NOTE

I began writing this book 14 years ago whilst waiting for my youngest daughter to be born, and still have the original synopsis that I had put together at that time. The book that you are now reading is a very different one to the one I would have written then, and one that I like to think is more comprehensive, more detailed, is more understanding and most definitely contains more technical knowledge. I hope that it provides you all as practitioners with the ability to nurture and support your clients on their journeys to becoming parents.

During this time the support and encouragement from family and friends has been key to being able to finish what I started all those years ago.

So firstly, I would like to say thank you to my four children, Kate, Tom, Alex and Moli for their belief in me, and especially to Kate for reading great tranches of text to make sure that it was understandable.

I would like to thank my husband, Nick, for cooking so many suppers whilst I was furiously writing and trying to meet deadlines.

To all of the clients over the last 23 years who have taught me so much and provided such inspiration.

A huge thank you to Michael Mann, of Watkins Media, for his vision and belief in the book, and also to Judy Barratt and Deborah Hercun, my editors, for all their hard work, insight and thoughtful suggestions in making it what it has become.

And finally, and by no means least of all, I am so grateful to Harriet Combes for her skilful illustrations and diagrams, without which, the book would be so much less.

FOREWORD

I am very pleased to write a foreword for this book because I know how important it is for practitioners to be given the knowledge to help clients who are trying to conceive or are going for IVF.

From my own clinical experience of over 30 years in the nutrition field, I know how crucial it is for practitioners to have a book that provides step-by-step information on the treatment protocols for both men and women and the conditions they present with.

I have taught on Barbaras courses and I know how experienced and professional she is, and that she provides the practitioners with valuable tools that allow them to be able to interpret information and plan treatment for not only infertility, but more complex reproductive issues.

This book gives practitioners so much more than a course and will be an invaluable reference manual for reflexologists, giving them the confidence and protocols to help their clients in such a meaningful way.

Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD
Nutritionist and bestselling author of Getting Pregnant Faster
www.marilynglenville.com

INTRODUCTION

PLEASE DONT SKIP THIS BIT!

T his is probably one of the most important parts of this book. It guides you through a straightforward planning sequence that enables you to gather information and work out how to use it to formulate effective treatments for your clients.

I have deliberately made the chapter short, so that you dont have great reams of information to trawl through, and have provided a checklist at the end, which you can use as a quick reference in the future.

Before you go any further, though, there are just a few points I would like you to consider.

YOU AND YOUR PRACTICE

Before you begin seeing clients, you need to think about you. The work you will be doing will be testing at times, and will need lots of careful thought and plenty of research, particularly if Reproductive Reflexology is new to you. From the outset you will need to be sure that it feels like the right path for you to follow.

You will need to think about how the work will fit in with your own day-to-day life. In particular, you may need to be flexible with your working hours. Clients who are undertaking assisted conception may need you to work at weekends or to meet with them during unsociable hours so that you can time your treatment according to their own treatment protocol.

Where will you be working? How will you present yourself and your professional image to your clients? Does your clinic space provide a safe and quiet space for you and your clients to work undisturbed? Does your clinic space give you a secure place, such as lockable storage, to keep client medical notes or records, if youre given access to them? How will you greet your clients? What will you wear to ensure you appear professional but not intimidating?

How do you feel about discussing the deeply intimate details of your clients, ordinarily, private lives? Conversations with you may be the first time a couple has shared such personal information with anyone you will need to feel comfortable and confident enough that they feel you are listening to, respecting and valuing all they have to say.