How MELT self-treatments helped heal my feet
- 09/15/2018 7:37:21 PM
As a dancer, gymnast and yogi for many years, I was always experiencing major foot pain. No matter how much time I took off from teaching, how much icing, wearing different shoes, reflexology treatments, pedicures, or acupuncture treatments I got, I could not find relief for my aching feet and random bouts of plantar faciitis. I remember vividly when I finally reached the level of Black Belt in Nia, I was so excited to be at the training but I couldn't dance for the first 5 days of the 7 day training because I had plantar fasciitis so bad that I could barely walk, let alone dance. I layed on the floor with my feet up the wall for most of the days. It was a lesson in rest for me, but I still felt very dissappointed. My thoughts about my feet were less than compassionate and I realized I had resolved that I was always going to have foot pain.
After listening to me complain about my feet one too many times, a friend of mine invited me to a MELT Method workshop with her. I was interested, but honestly I was skeptical about the idea that these little blue balls could make a difference. Little did I know how effective they were in hydrating the connective tissue in my feet and relieving my pain. What convinced me to give it a try, beyond the pain, was my curiosity about the science of connective tissue. My inner anatomy geek got curious and I read the MELT Method book. I began to open to the idea that MELT might just work. So, I committed to practicing the MELT Foot Treatments for 2 weeks every day to see if I would notice a difference in my feet. I remember Sue Hitzmann saying that "consistency is key" and finding a way to fit the self-care treatments into my regular schedule would be the best way to get results. So, I put a large soft MELT ball in my dance bag, my purse, my car, my bathroom and the kitchen so that whenever I saw the ball, I would pick it up and either use it on my hands or my feet. I know it sounds funny, but I decided to do my foot treatments in the bathroom while I was drying my hair. It didn't take time away from anything else and since I'm such a multi-tasker, all I had to do was put the ball on the floor, do my foot treatments and dry my hair. I committed to those two weeks of treatments and I seriously have not looked back. I have not had a bout of plantar faciitis since that day 5 years ago.
After that two week experiment, I decided to attend the first level of MELT education - Hand and Foot Instructor Training - where we dove deep into the Science of Connective tissue. I could so relate to Sue and her science brain. It stretched my brain and I love learning new ways to help my clients. I was hooked! I knew I wanted to teach MELT to as many people as I could because it was a simple, didn't take much time, and always made me feel better.
Since that training, I progressed to the 2nd level of MELT training - Instructor Level 2 - and it taught me how to use the MELT Soft Body Roller to hydrate my connective tissue and rebalance my nervous system...on my own. That is key. Putting the power back in the hands of clients to do this self-care on their own is empowering. It is so easy to incorporate these moves into my life and my classes and makes such a huge difference in my performance and my whole body.
If you are interested in learning about MELT, join me in class or schedule a private session here on my website. Once you learn this simple self-treatment technique, you'll be on your way to freeing your body from pain and stiffness all on your own!