Fitness: losing sight - losing balance

Last night was my second session at the health and fitness class. Our teacher had prepared the room with many obstacles (balls, bottles, steps...). After a warm up session we took part in games designed to work on balance and auditive memory! We were attached in pairs, left foot to right foot, and had to coordinate our steps to progress and go over the obstacles. We had a good laugh as we were going in different directions but still attached to each other. In the end we were counting "1, 2, 3, step over the ball" or marching like the army to avoid tripping over! Then one of us was blindfolded and had to be guided by the other over a circuit of balls, bottles, cones...

It's amazing how you lose your balance once you lose vision, you get disorientated, and it's sometimes difficult to rely (=trust) the other's guidance.

Which brings me to the subject of reflexology: I have never practiced on a blind or visually impaired person and I wonder if the feelings/senses are more intense. For example, when applying pressure on a reflex point near the head or neck, some people "feel" something in their head or neck, like a tingling, or a sensation of become lighter.

I know there are some blind reflexologists that are brilliant and I've just found a film on the subject made in Singapore http://cahaya.terapad.com/ . Written and directed by Johan John, ‘Cahaya’ revolves around Salleh, a blind reflexologist who lives in his own dark world but believes in the light of life and Maria, an escort who lives in a world full of colour but sees only darkness. This heartfelt drama is very nicely done.



But I just wonder if as a patient, visually impaired people react in a different way. Please share your experience with us!