What Led Me to Earn ARCB Certification

To Every Reflexologist Who’s “Thinking

About It” – Here’s Why I Finally Took the

National Exam

November 24, 2025

If you’re reading this while telling yourself “I’ll get certified someday… when I have more

time/money/energy,” then this post is for you. And I personally believe that if you have

completed your required hours, then you ought to register for the hand or foot exams this year, while still being under the old requirements as opposed to the new requirements for 2026.

Afterall, you have one year from the time in which you register for the exam(s), to actually

taking the exam!

I had well more than the 200 hours of required training, a growing list of clients, and a growing, comfortable little practice. I kept thinking, “I’m already helping people. Do I really need to spend months studying and hundreds of dollars on another exam?”

Then it hit me harder than ever, if I want to move out of my state, and that state requires having the ARCB certification, or if state law changes such that it will be a requirement to have the ARCB certification, then I best sit for the exam now!

In addition, how do others in the profession, my clients and potential clients see me with and without the national certification?

Another reality check: experience is wonderful, but it’s invisible to strangers. National

certification is the universal sign that says, “You can trust the training I received, exams I’ve

passed, in person hours have been completed, and I have met the requirements completely.”

So, I signed up for the ARCB exam. I studied harder than I ever did in school (started studying earlier than cramming for an exam, flashcards, reading support materials, practice tests). I was nervous, excited, and honestly a little terrified I might fail.

I didn’t fail. I passed—and everything is shifting.

Here’s what actually taking place after I became Nationally Board Certified in Reflexology:

1. My confidence soared and I finally felt I belonged at the same table as other healthcare

professionals. Impostor feelings? Gone.

2. Potential clients can now find me online at the ARCB website because they specifically

search for “nationally certified reflexologist near me.

3. Clients who value the work enough to pay proper rates.

4. New doors are opening. Speaking engagements are happening. Doctors and nurses send

patients.

5. I became a better practitioner. Preparing for the exam made me sharpen everything:

anatomy precision, documentation skills, contraindications, ethics. My sessions are

deeper, safer, and more effective than ever.

6. I sleep easier. In a world where scope-of-practice questions can arise, having that

credential is the clearest protection I could ask for.

If you’re still “thinking about it,” please hear this from someone who waited and was a bit

fearful.

The exam is absolutely doable. The investment is tiny compared to what you gain. And the

feeling of framing that certificate and knowing you’ve reached the highest professional standard in our field? There are no words for how good it feels.

You already love this work with all your heart. You’ve already put in the hours, the care, the

passion. Now give yourself the recognition you’ve earned.

Go to ARCB.net today. Register for the exam(s). Download the toolbox. Pick the exam date that works for you; perhaps it’s register now but take the exam after the holidays. And when you pass (because you will), come back here and tell me—I’ll be the first one cheering.

You deserve this. Your clients deserve this. Your future self is already thanking you.

With warmth and so much belief in you,

Doring Lloyd, Nationally Board Certified in Reflexology – ARCB

Hand2Heel Functional Reflexology