Ahhhhhh… March. Spring will be here, officially, in less than 3 weeks. It has gotten a tad warmer in recent days which has been wonderful. Often our minds turn to spring cleaning at this time of year. We go through our winter clothes, decide what to put away, what to give away and what we need to keep out to wear just now. We thoroughly clean our house. We have an “Out with the old, in with the New” sort-of-feeling that makes us feel like we need to get RID of the ICK and stagnation that has built up over the past year. I think that is another reason we feel so obligated to get back into (or at least into better) shape this time of year, as I wrote in my last post, “Getting in Shape”.

But what about the inside of our bodies? How many of us think about going on some sort of a fast or maybe a detox to clean out our insides? Some of us are just too busy or other factors prevent us from getting that serious about it. But what can you do? I ask you to consider Hydrotherapy.

Hydrotherapy is surely one of the oldest, safest and least expensive forms of treatment for many common ailments. The Greek Hippocrates, the “Father of Medicine” wrote about hydrotherapy and mineral baths as treatments for many diseases.

Today, Hydrotherapy is mostly understood to mean the treatment of illness through the use of water. The concept of Hydrotherapy is to rid the body of toxins that may be inflicting joint pain, inflammation, and other attacks on the systems of the body. It is used to relieve symptoms of:

• Arthritis and other joint problems (The buoyancy of the water relaxes the muscles, and supports and reduces stress on the joints which encourages freer movement. Relaxing the muscles helps to increase their range of motion.)
• Back pain
• Insomnia
• Muscle weakness
• Sports Injuries
• Poor circulation
• Stress
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Cellulite
• Anxiety
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Colitis and Gastritis
• Sciatica
• Fibromyalgia
• High Blood Pressure
• Migraines
• Varicose Veins

The pressure of the water literally massages the body, stimulating lymph drainage. Lymphatic drainage is important, because within and of itself promotes detoxificatoin of the body, reduces swelling, relieves sinusitis, bronchitis, and chronic pain. Lymphatic drainage can also regenerate tissues around wounds, stretch marks, scars and wrinkles, highten the immune system, reduce adiposis and cellulite tissue and has anti-aging effects! (Of course, you can get a lymphatic drainage massage or stimulate lymph flow in other ways; but that’s another article all-together.)
Hydrotherapy works by the water motion stimulating the touch receptors on the skin, relieving tight muscles and releasing chemicals that we produce in our body called endorphins. The hot water relieves fatigue and prevents stiffness. You experience a weightlessness which supports your body and lifts your spirits!

Various salts, herbs, oils and other additives can be very healing and can contribute to your overall hydro-bath experience. At Grace Healing Therapies, you have a wide range of choices to help you acheive your desired results.

This month, I’m extending my previous Special for an Aromatherapy Bath and Body Refiner plus Healing Massage for only $99! This will only last until March 15, 2007. For more information on our Spa Bath Oasis, visit our Hydrotherapy page.