Water healing, or hydrotherapy, is one of the world’s oldest, traditional type of therapies for the treatment of diseases. Hydrotherapy couldn’t be made much simpler or cheaper. There are full body showers and baths, hot baths, saunas, sitz baths, foot baths, vapor baths and herbal baths to name just a few. All different baths are set at varying temprtures aimed at tackling illnesses in different parts of the body.
Synonym
Hydropathy
About the Procedure
Basically, hydrotherapy takes advantage of our body’s reaction to different types of temperatures, usually either hot or cold, and the sensations these cause. Hydrotherapy, stimulate the immune system, which enhances the production of stress hormones, digestion and circulation, stress hormones and blood flow, while managing to reduce pain, weakness, tension and sensitivity.
Types and Options
The number of different hydrotherapy techniques is very high indeed. Below are a list of many of them and the ailments they can cure.
Cold rubbings.
Using a simple linen towel, a cold rubbing invigorates and tones up our body, enhances blood flow and circulation and treats infection of the respiratory system.
Douches
Using water streams of varying strengths and directions and types such as knee douche, thigh douche, lower trunk douche, arm douche, chest douche, upper trunk douche, back douche, neck douche and face douche, innumerable illnesses, disorders and problems can be treated. They are:
• Headaches & Migraines
• Low blood pressure
• Insomnia
• Varicose veins
• Complications of the digestive and reproductive organs
• Urinary tract infection
• Irritable bladder
• Rheumatism
• Crural paralysis & neuralgia
• Complications during menstruation
• Diabetes mellitus
• Enlargement of the liver, gall bladder
• Nervous disorders
• Catarrh
• Bronchitis
• Asthma
• Heart problems
• Disease of the larynx and vocal cords
• Hypersensitivity, Vertigo
• Depression
• Diseases of the lungs
• Toothache
Sauna & Steam Baths
Saunas and steam baths are not only wonderful for alleviating stress, but the steam and heat treats respiratory problems, enhances blood flow, increases heart rate, promotes hormone production, regulates the vegetative system, body pain arthritis, hypertension and asthma
Partial and full immersion baths
There are several types of bath which are used with hydrotherapy. They utilize varying temperatures and added substances. Kinds of bath include: cold foot bath, warm foot bath, rising heat footbath, cold arm bath, rising temperature arm bath and sitz bath. They can treat:
• Common cold
• Back pain
• Varicose veins
• Insomnia
• Headaches
• Low blood pressure
• Circulatory problems
• Sweaty feet
• Bronchitis
• Asthma
• Respiratory infection
• Angina pectoris.
Wraps
Using a moist linen towel of varying warmth and coldness, wraps on different parts of the body can alleviate:
• Sore throat
• Bronchitis
• Lung disease
• Neuralgia
• Inflammatory disease of the upper abdomen
• Gastric and duodenal ulcers
• Cramps
• Insomnia
• Fever
• Prostatitis
• Vaginitis
• Varicose veins
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Arthrosis
Who is an ideal candidate?
An ideal candidate would suffer from any of the ailments as mentioned in 'types & benefits'
Anesthesia
No Anesthesia
Risks / Complications / Side effects
• Those with diabetes should avoid hot application to the feet or legs and avoid full body heating treatments.
• Those who have Raynaud’s disease should avoid cold application.
• Those suffering from diabetes, multiple sclerosis, abnormal blood pressure and pregnant women should avoid long hot immersion baths.
• Those who are prone to bladder or rectal irritation or suffer from sciatica, pelvic inflammation or rheumatism in the toes or ankles should avoid cold foot baths.
• The elderly and the young should avoid long full-body hot treatments such as immersion baths and saunas.
• Those who have heart disease and pregnant women should seek the advice of their doctor before taking a sauna.
Price range
USD43-103