A Day Spent Under Healing Waters

     Water, it covers the face of the Earth and comprises over 60% of our body's weight.  Without it, we would cease to exist as a human race.  Water has also been used for centuries for its healing properties in a practice known as hydrotherapy.  Today, I am going to introduce you to Father Sebastian Kneipp "The Father of Hydrotherapy" who used water to cure thousands of people of many ailments including tuberculosis.  Then, we will visit a modern day spa that continues to follow the precepts laid out by Father Kneipp more than one-hundred years ago

 

     Sebastian Kneipp was a Bavarian priest who lived and worked in Bad Worishofen, Germany.  During his 28th year of life, a young Sebastian contracted tuberculosis, which was considered fatal in the 19th century.  Kneipp stumbled upon a book written by Dr. Johann Hahn, that described the healing power of water.  Sebastian extracted enough information from the book and created his own protocol to cure himself of his tuberculosis.  Several times a week Father Kneipp would run down to the Danube River, strip off his clothes, and dive into its icy waters.  He would then redress and re-warm his body.  By all accounts the intermittent exposure to this cold water had boosted his immune system and returned him to good health (2014). 

       Over the course of the next 25 years, Father Kneipp continued to experiment on himself as well as others who were either turned away from, or could not afford to see a doctor.  His treatments included the following methods: full cold water immersion, alternating hot and cold half-baths, steam and herbal baths, hot/cold compresses, water stepping and wet packs (2006).  Father Kneipp, at the urging of others, passed along these healing methods in a book titled My Water Cure which sold by the thousands over several printed editions.  Father Kneipp died on June 17th, 1897 at the age of 76 in Bad Worishofen, Germany (2014).

     So, what is hydrotherapy?  The website About.com defines this natural healing modality as " The use of water to revitalize, maintain, and restore health" (2014).  Types of hydrotherapy include: saunas, steam baths, whirlpools, and hot and cold compresses.  This website also noted that Father Kneipp believed that disease could be cured by removing toxins from the body via alternating hot and cold water therapy.  This modality creates a distinct physiological response in the body.  Cold water causes the superficial blood vessels of the skin to constrict thereby redirecting blood to the internal organs where it is filtered by the liver and kidneys.  Hot water will dilate these same blood vessels which aids in removing the toxins via sweat and perspiration.  This method will also decrease general inflammation (2014).  Let us now take a look at a modern example of Father Kneipp's water cure in action.

     Over the past several years, as part of my wellness regimen, I take an annual trip to the Kohler Waters Spa in Burr Ridge, Illinois.  No matter what type of spa treatment that one receives, each guest has the opportunity to experience the Circle of Tranquility.  All you need is to wear a bathing suit and have the courage to follow in Father Kneipp's footsteps, because this "Circle" provides a complete hydrotherapy experience.

 

 

 

     As I entered the area, I moved to the left of the room into the first of 3 distinct open shower areas.  Each one provides the user with different methods of pulsating or deluging water that alternates between hot and cold.  After the final deluge, I continued around the circle and chose the steam room on this day (Kohler also has a 160 degree sauna).  For the next 15 minutes I sat, with my eyes closed, and practiced relaxation breathing.  I inhaled deeply to receive the distinct aroma of eucalyptus which opened my lungs and cleared my mind.  The steam also opened my pores and I could feel the toxic load leave my body in each droplet of sweat.

 

     I then exited the steam room and stood before my ultimate nemesis: the 8 foot deep cold water plunge pool.  I am not a member of a Polar Plunge Club, nor ever will be.  However, I did not shy away from this part of the circle as the rewards reaped outweighed my discomfort with extremely cold temperatures.  Once you commit to the jump, there is no way to turn back or chicken out.  As I submerged into the nearly 64 degrees of cold water, I felt immediate relief to my aching joints.  I surfaced, exited, and then entered the final leg of the Circle:  the whirlpool with an 8 foot high waterfall.

     As I entered the whirlpool, my body was treated with an immediate contrasting warm water soak.  My favorite part is spending almost the next 20 minutes under the cascading power of the waterfall which kneads my head, shoulders, back, and legs much in the same way as a massage therapist uses his/her hands to the same effect.  Tight muscles become more elastic which is a nice precursor to any spa treatment, be it bodywork or additional hydrotherapy modalities.  I may journey to Kohler only once a year, but the resulting holistic bliss is priceles

     I leave you with the words of one of Father Kneipp's most prolific students, Dr. Benedict Lust (pronounced Loost), known as the "Father of Naturopathic Medicine", who best summed up this healing priest's philosophy:  "Know how to live, do not overdo anything, lead a clean life, trust in God, and let nature cure you" (2006, p. 31).  In a spin on milk commercials: water, it does the body good.

References

About.com (2014).  Different Types of Hydrotherapy. Retrieved from http://altmedicine.about.com/od/therapiesfrometol/a/hydrotherapy.htm  on 5/5/2014.

Sebastian Kneipp. Retrieved from http://kneippus.com/sebastian-kneipp.html on 5/5/2014.

The Life of Sebastian Kneipp. Retrieved from http://www.kneipp.com/kneipp_philosophy/sebastian_kneipp/the_life_of_sebstian_kneipp.html on 5/5/2014.

Boyd, A. & Yarnell, E. (2006). Collected Works of Dr. Benedict Lust.  Seattle: Healing Mountain Publishing.