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Greetings!
Happy May! I am so happy that we are nearing the end of
the frost period. Soon zucchinis, pumpkins, tomatoes, and
fresh herbs can go into the garden with out any fear of frost
damage barring some unforeseen fluke of the weather ( of
which there have been many lately, I might add). Health , like
gardening works best when one tunes into the cycles of nature.
After all, our bodies are living organisms that are tied into the
nature cycles whether we as individuals want to honor that
truth or not! "Nature Cure" , which is the origin of what today
is modern naturopathic medicine, includes eating a pure and
balanced diet, fasting on occasion, fresh air, pure water,
sunlight , exercise, bowel cleansing and hydrotherapy.
Springtime is the best time to incorporate some of those old
detoxifying therapies. According to the Chinese 5 elements
system , it is the time for the liver. The liver is the body's
detoxifier. If your liver chi is unbalanced, you may have more
anger, irritability, depression, constipation, headaches, and
impatience, and increased allergies. In this newsletter I will
touch on some of those old
naturopathic methods. I hope you find it informative and
interesting and please continue to enjoy this beautiful spring!
| Hydrotherapy - Using Hot and Cold Water to Heal! |
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Developed in Europe by such physicians as Benjamin Lust and
Karl Lindlahr, though doubtlessly used throughout the ages by
many healers and wisewomen, hydrotherapy is defined as the
selective use of alternating hot and cold water to tonify the
circulation, aid in detoxification and elimination, and to support
the proper functioning of the immune system. Hydrotherapy
also increases what the old-time naturopaths called the "vital
force", also known as "chi" in the Chinese healing tradition, and
"prana" in the Ayurvedic healing tradition. A constitutional
hydrotherapy treatment consists of alternating hot and cold wet
towels applied to the abdomen and back along with very mild
and comfortable electrostimulation to the abdominal organs
and kidneys. The effect of the treatment is to flush the blood
from the surface to the deep organs while stimulating
peristalsis and kidney function with the electrostimulation. Not
only are these treatments beneficial and therapeutic, they are
also incredibly relaxing and de-stressing. I have found a series
of these treatments to be beneficial for the following
conditions: Chronic fatigue syndrome, a weakened immune
system, chronic asthma, depression, constipation, female
reproductive issues, acne, weakened adrenal glands, chronic
insomnia, digestive difficulties, and endometriosis. These
treatments are contraindicated for the following conditions:
Pregnancy, women during the time of their period, individuals
who have a pacemaker or unstable heart condition, and anyone
with an active fever. For the best effect, I recommend a
series of treatments. Please call my office at (303)443-2206
for more information on whether constitutional hydrotherapy
can benefit you as part of your treatment plan this spring!
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| Hydrotherapy Case Study |
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C.B., a female 27 year old graduate student, came to my office
referred by a family practice physician for treatment for
chronic fatigue post-head injury syndrome, as well as for
chronic asthma. All of her bloodwork and other tests had come
back completely normal and her physician thought that maybe
a naturopathic approach could help to unlock the puzzle. She
had been on steroidal inhalers for many years for her chronic
but mild asthma. I felt that the steroids had suppressed her
adrenal glands to the point where she just had no more "get up
and go". Or to put it succinctly, her "get up and go" had "got up
and went"! After a few months on various herbs to support her
adrenal glands, therapeutic dosages of vitamins, and a well
chosen homeopathic constitutional remedy, there was very
little
change. I decided to resurrect this old-time naturopathic
approach called constitutional hydrotherapy that I had studied
while at naturopathic school and incorporated it into her
treatment plan. After the initial treatment, she actually felt a
little more tired that night, but then felt a little better the next
day. After only 2 treatments her energy levels were beginning
to increase significantly. After 5 treatments she was feeling
great! We continued her treatments weekly until she moved
away to another city where we found a naturopathic clinic that
offers these treatments so that she could continue them. 1
year later she continues to do well.
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| Eat your Beets! |
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Beets are a great spring liver-health promoting vegetable. I
have included a link to a myriad of wonderful beet recipes.
Enjoy these recipes this spring and summer, and remember, if
you have eaten beets recently the red material in your stool
and urine is NOT BLOOD! It is the beet pigmentation that
contains a lot of wonderful antioxidants. Enjoy your beets!
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| Hydrotherapy Treatment Sessions! |
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Benefit your own health or that of a loved one's!
Constitutional Hydrotherapy treatments are offered at my
office for $50.00 for a single treatment, or purchase a series of
5 treatments for $200.00! That is a 20% savings, or it comes
down to $40.00 per treatment!
Our Price:
$50 for single, $200.00 for 5 treatments
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Fasting, Is it a Good Idea? |
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Many of you ask me about fasting. Fasting can be a great way
to clear your mind, body, and spirit of any impurities known
and unknown that one may be harboring. That said, many of
you also know that I hardly ever spontaneously recommend
fasting for my patients
as part of a general treatment plan. The main reason for this
that in order to do a fast ideally one needs to be able to devote
all of their time to resting, meditating. and doing as little as
possible. As
food and nutritional intake is decreased, so is one's bodily
energy, causing many fasters to experience weakness and
dizziness. While some people feel a burst of energy and a
heightened awareness as they
clean out, others experience fatigue and some other
uncomfortable symptoms of rapid detoxification. In our
modern world with
our crazy overbooked schedules many of my patients can't
afford to set aside enough time completely free from their
responsibilities to properly fast without compromising their
health and performance in life. So most of my patients aren't
good candidates for a true fast. Other methods of cleansing
are available and I often do a long slow gentle cleanse rather
than a fast. For those of you who are really interested in
fasting, and can devote 10 or so days for it here's how I
recommend doing it. Of course one can do a shorter fast , but
here is my 10 day or so protocol.
Day 1 - Eat cooked or raw fruits and vegetables,fruit and
vegetable juices, brown rice, hummous and water;
Day 2 - Cooked or raw fruits and vegetables, juices, brown rice
and water;
Day 3 -Lightly Cooked or raw fruits and vegetables, juices, and
water;
Day 4 - Fruit and vegetable juices and water;
Day 5 -water only for as many days as can stand;
Day 6- Same as Day 4;
Day 7 - Same as Day 3;
Day 8 - Same as Day 2;
Day 9 - Same as Day 1;
It is very important that foods are introduced back into the
body slowly.
Please note that fasting will NOT help you lose weight. You
may lose it temporarily but will gain it all back once you
resume eating. In fact fasting may ultimately cause you to
actually gain weight and lose muscle tone as your metabolism
slows and your thyroid gland shuts down. Fasting is a good way
to give your digestion a rest, and to detoxify. Before starting
any fasting program , please check with your physician (myself
or anyone else you are established with) to determine if this is
a safe option for you.
Find out more....
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