Mindfulness
from head
to toe
You certainly want your patients and cus-
tomers to be mindful of their feet, right?
Mindfulness is the psychological process of
bringing one's attention to the internal and
external experiences occurring in the present
moment, which can be developed through the
practice of meditation and yoga.
As a Pedorthist, I'm sure you've been your
own case study a time or two. You've tried a
variety of footwear and orthotics. You get why
we should take care of our feet. You have seen
the injuries and pathologies that have crippled
those you serve. You have more appreciation
for footcare in your pinky toe than all of your
friends do combined. You are diligent about
taking care of your feet and wished everyone
else were too! You are definitely more mindful
of your feet than the next guy because you are a
Certified Pedorthist!
When your feet are in alignment so is your
superstructure (and your brain for that matter).
What happens when you find just the right
footwear for yourself? Your feet thank you. Life
is all good again. (Thank you Pedorthists.)
Footwear experts agree that proper footwear
will have you walking with better balance and
alignment with the ground forces beneath you.
Thus, this will keep you on your feet, preventing
overuse, injury and pain. As we know, orthotics
are used to control, guide, limit and/or immo-
bilize, to restrict movement in a given direction,
to reduce weightbearing forces for a particular
purpose, like pain reduction, to aid rehabilita-
tion (from fractures after the removal of a cast
or post-surgical procedures).
Balance is defined as an even distribution of
weight or force enabling someone or something
to remain upright and steady. Personally, my
interest in balance is ultimately what lead me
to decide I wanted to become a Pedorthist. As
licensed Pedicurist & Yoga Instructor, it was
it somewhat of a smooth transition for me to
" mindfulness means
paying attention in
a particular way on
purpose in the present
moment|and non-
judgmentally. ".
- Jon Kabat-Zinn”
42
Pedorthic Footcare Association www.pedorthics.org
VIDEO OF JON KABOT-ZINN DESCRIBING MINDFULNESS.
YouTube ® Link: https://youtu.be/ULJSacYFzzQ