How Reflexology Saved My Life and Gave Me a Rich Career

This is the face of corporate burnout. A colicky baby. That’s what I was.

Many of my former corporate colleagues felt the same way. They hurt. All over.

But, they would contend, “you just have to grind through it.” Or, they’d say, “the grass isn’t greener on the other side, it’s just a new set of problems in new clothes.”

There was no consoling this sick baby with any of those “pep talks.” And those colleagues? I could see their mounting pain all over their faces.

So, when I decided to “jump ship,” I jumped like a white man trying to dunk a basketball. I didn’t get very far.

I quit a corporate job only to take a freelance project doing THE EXACT SAME JOB. I thought it would be different. It wasn’t.

That was my epiphany. I just let go of needing to be a marketing guy to earn money. I turned to my savings account and for months nursed myself back to adult form. My colicky baby stopped crying.

Along the way, I tried every imaginable form of stress relief and natural medicine.

I was probed, electrified, wrapped, unwrapped, poked, jump-started, lasered and modified. From neurofeedback to SAD lights to drugs, I tried it all.

Then, one day I became a client of a reflexologist. My wife had found this little place here in Portland and we had a really nice time soaking our feet and receiving some pretty impressive foot work. Like a massage. Not like a massage.

This was the beginning of truly transforming my stress.

I visited this place like 10 times over 2 months. I was hooked. Reflexology gave me something nothing else did.

One day, as I was receiving a treatment, the owner said to me sheepishly, “maybe YOU should become a reflexologist.” Whatever would give her that idea? That I would be good at this, let alone want to do it? What had I said to her to prove my viability as a practitioner of feet? I didn’t even like feet!

And, wouldn’t you know that mere weeks later my wife enrolled us in a basic reflexology class? Serendipity. This was going to save my life.

We took that class and more classes, and when I felt comfortable I called that little reflexology shop and said, “You remember me? I took the reflexology training and wanted to see if you needed an extra set of hands.” Did they ever.

October 2013 I began my career as a reflexologist. I became an instant trillionaire.

Richness is not about money. For a slight introvert, richness is being in service to people who appreciated me. Richness is being requested by a client, over and over again. Richness is meeting people from every industry, of every life circumstance, from the world at large. I found passion in the very people I sought to avoid when I was so stressed in my corporate job. It was like reflexology turned me into an extrovert, and created this whole new community of people that support me as much as a I support them. Reflexology saved my life and made me rich.

Over the past year and a half I have given treatments to 700+ people. I have made friends – some quite good – of all ages. I started this blog as a creative labor-of-love to document the stories people would tell me. I would find myself weaving in the other parts of wellness business, and gain new clients for the reiki, essential oils and even guitar lessons I also offer.

All of this – the healing I’ve witnessed – the friends I’ve made – the love exchanged – is because of reflexology. A career I never would have dreamed could change me so profoundly.