More about Judith Nourse
With more than 40 years in healthcare, Judith Nourse has become proficient as practitioner and educator in two other complementary healthcare practices, Reflexology and Krieger and Kunz Therapeutic Touch, and is co-developer of Gentle Paths, an integrative approach to infertility. For details, please read on!
Reflexology
Reflexology is an ancient hands-on healing art involving alternating pressure applied to points and zones in the feet, hands, ears and face for stress reduction and many other beneficial health effects. Judith began her careeer in professional reflexology in 1996. She is board certified by the American Reflexology Certification Board and licensed under the North Carolina Board for Massage and Bodywork Therapy. She is an instructor for Cross Country Education, teaching a 6 CE hour continuing education course in Therapeutic Reflexology to licensed healthcare professionals in major U.S. cities. See crosscountryeducation.com for her monthly schedule of classes. She continues to see clients in her private practice in Hendersonville, NC.
Krieger and Kunz Therapeutic Touch
Therapeutic Touch is a method of learning to use the hands to balance and heal the body by affecting the energy field. It was developed by professor of nursing Dr. Dolores Krieger, Ph.D., R.N. and colleague Dora Kunz in the 1970's. Judith has been a practitioner of Krieger and Kunz Therapeutic Touch since 1987. She begins or ends every reflexology session with Therapeutic Touch for inducing relaxation and assessing and balancing the energy field. Her own training in this modality includes intermediate and advanced invitational trainings with Dolores Krieger, Ph.D., RN, and Dora Kunz, developers of the method, at Pumpkin Hollow Farm in the early '90's.
She teaches a 6-hour class in the practice of Therapeutic Touch for health professionals (NCBTMB-approved for massage therapists and ARCB-approved for reflexologists) and the general public. As guest lecturer at Wagner College, Spiro School of Nursing, she introduces senior nursing students to Reflexology and Therapeutic Touch, teaching them how to apply techniques of the two modalities for self-care and in their nursing practice.
Gentle Paths -- a unique, integrative, nonmedical approach to infertility
In 2007 Judith completed training hours and case studies with British nurse/midwife and certified reflexologist Susanne Enzer in Maternity Reflexology. This method includes reflexology to reduce stress and support the endocrine system when there has been failure to conceive or difficulty in sustaining a pregnancy. She has also studied and consulted with board certified reflexologist Vera Krijn of New York, developer of Reflexology Assisted Fertility, who has helped over 35 women become pregnant via weekly reflexology sessions. See fertilitybychoice.com.
For many women, reflexology appears to counteract the effects of stress, supporting and perhaps energetically balancing the endocrine system, and restoring its ability to conceive and sustain a pregnancy.
Judith's case studies in maternity reflexology include a Hendersonville woman with only 1/4 of one ovary and a history of polycystic ovary disease and two failed IVF attempts with no viable eggs. After two months of weekly reflexology, one more attempt was made. This time, five viable eggs were harvested, conception occurred, and she had a healthy pregnancy and delivery of a healthy baby girl, now age 10.
In another case study, a 33 year-old Hendersonville woman had a history of two years of unsuccessful attempts to become pregnant naturally, followed by three failed intra-uterine implantation attempts and use of Clomid and medication for possible polycystic ovary disease. At her second weekly reflexology session, she reported that she had a positive pregnancy test on day 31of her cycle, confirmed the following week by her Asheville obstetrician, Dr. Cobb, of Grace OB-GYN. Was this coincidental? More likely, the maternity reflexology method of energetically balancing the endocrine system perhaps helped this woman to support conception, a healthy pregnancy, and birth of a healthy baby.
Another case studies included a 42-year-old patient of Dr. Krishna Dos of Hendersonville, who gave written permission for this client to have reflexology during her 2nd pregnancy. Her first pregnancy ended abruptly in a Cesarean Section due to pre-eclampsia, and client reported that Dr. Das was concerned about her blood pressure elevating in the 7th month. When she began reflexology, it was 130/90 at her last check-up. It gradually decreased with maternity reflexology every two weeks, and at her 7th month check-up it was 110/78, and 120/80 one week before birth (taken from MD's notes with client's permission.)
Another case study involved a 33-year-old patient of Dr. Victoria Arcara of Hendersonville, already on a low-dose blood pressure medication for an elevating blood pressure. With reflexology, she completed her pregnancy without needing an increase in the medication dose, and got significant relief from groin pain the week before the birth.
There have been numerous anecdotal reports of these effects from maternity reflexology in the world maternity reflexology community.
In the fall of 2010, Judith and licensed therapist Shirley Nicholson of Hendersonville, NC will introduce Gentle Paths -- a 6-week program for women with infertility issues that includes weekly Reflexology, a Feng Shui assessment, a private therapeutic session, and active participation in four 3-hour classes on a variety of relevant and helpful topics and practices. The program will be offered in both Brevard at the Center for Integrative Health and Healing, office of Charles Lefler, MD, and in Hendersonville, at the office of Sharon DeMocker, MD.
Please call Judith at 828-698-8036 for information on any of the above offerings.