Our feet happen to be the furthest appendage on our body. For many of us, especially as we age, reaching our feet for regular “maintenance”/hygiene becomes a chore.
Over the years, I have experienced a myriad of foot conditions. Such as corns, bunions, arch pain, calluses, arch pain, ball-of-foot-pain, heel pain, dry/cracked heels and overall tired feet. I have found that due to the location of our feet they often get neglected compared to the rest of our body because finding the right foot treatments is often very difficult.
I have learned that maintaining our overall physical health must include a plan for keeping our “wheels” (feet) at optimal operating levels. Our feet carry our entire body weight and bear the burden everyday of all the downward force from walking, running or just standing. Paraffin wax heat treatments, which have been around for many years, are mainly associated with hand therapy.
Wax warming machines are usually found in nail salons, for fingers, nails / cuticles & hand moisturizing. In addition, physical therapists utilize the properties of wax heat to treat sprains, strains, tendon / ligament injuries and scar therapy. What I did not realize, doing wax therapy at home can be very simple. Once I was set up with the basic supplies, such as a wax warming machine, my favorite wax scents (Lavender, Mango & Peach), and gloves / foot booties, it became easy to treat my body to spa treatments.
Doing regular wax treatments on my feet became like daily yoga class, a Zen-like experience. Almost immediately I had improved circulation throughout my feet, it was a noticeable feeling of warmth and improved flexibility. The before and after, comparing the foot treated to the one that was not, was obvious. Of course I make sure to treat both my feet during each session.
The other major benefit was moisturizing, over the years I have tried numerous over the counter remedies to treat dry / cracked heels. Most of us eventually accept this extreme condition and do nothing about it. However, paraffin wax, which is 80% petroleum jelly, has been the only effective treatment for me.
I made a conscious decision to take better care of my feet, that part of the body which takes undo punishment, yet gets the least amount of attention. Having your feet looking better and feeling better, helps to revitalize your general wellbeing.
And by the way, those dried out, aged toenails / cuticles, took on a new shine. Foot pain, like any pain, is debilitating, paraffin wax therapy is a step in the right direction to correct these issues.
