Botanica WestHolistic Healing & Therapy from a Master Herbalist

The bath tub is one of my most healing rooms of my house. My dear husband built and sculpted a beautiful Japanese soaking tub for two in my Arrowbear home. It is the perfect escape after a hard days work. It has candles, incense and music cued up whenever we’re ready to relax.

Prior to getting into my bath I dry brush massage my body starting from the furthest point and working my way toward my heart in a circular motion. This takes a good ten minutes or more as my tub fills.

Sometimes I use a salt or sugar scrub to get my circulation going. It helps to drink a cup of ginger or yarrow tea to induce sweating.

Also, a relaxing tea can be a great idea but I have also been known to take a glass of good Cabernet with me and soak away as well.

In my line of work I deal with others health and emotional problems and my ritual bathing is a way for me to cleanse my spirit and purge all negative energy from my body. To clear, I may add salt, herbs, and essential oils to heighten this experience.

Since the tub is for two, my husband may join me as well and rid ourselves from the remains of the day.

After bathing in Japan it is a normal ritual to soak in tubs even big enough for several people and socialize. But I have a two person soaking limit in my tub and preferably with someone I’m married to.

My ritual soak is not a place where I do my feminine hygiene or monthly  body maintenance it is just for soaking and clearing. Maintenance is work. I soak here to clear myself, release and relax.

Women in the Victorian times used to bath and soak quite often by adding assorted bathing powders and bubbles to the tub. They were a lot calmer women in those days.

In earlier times, sanitariums would put their patients in mineral baths to calm them on a daily basis. We now go to a  hot springs resort to receive this experience and pay through the nose as well.

Many homes are no longer equipped with a decent bathtub anymore. We personally ripped apart two bathrooms in each of our homes to achieve this experience, that’s how important it is to us.

THINGS TO SOAK IN

In the Vodder method of lymphatic drainage they have a guideline for three different soaking baths to rid your body of certain toxins.

One is bleach, good old fashioned Clorox believe it or not once a week for only two weeks.

You add 1/4 to a standard bath tub 1/3 cup to a ball and claw bathtub or 1/2 cup to one of those large hydro therapy tubs . And soak for no more than thirty minutes and don’t forget to shower afterwards and wash off the bleach.

Put some Vaseline on your privates and wear underwear during this process since it can irritate sensitive areas of the body.

This was used to expel chemicals and artificial  toxins from the body through the skin. It tends to deplete your natural minerals especially potassium and can be dehydrating. It is supposed to clear clogged oils from the pores to open the skin to expel toxins more efficiently.

Another is organic apple cider vinegar and kelp, one pint vinegar and 1/4 cup kelp powder per average tub of water. I was told it removes excess negative energy found in radiation and electrical circuits.

Natural apple cider vinegar is supposed to replace the good flora on the skins surface and to neutralize the skins PH balance.

We use this bath for cancer patients that have undergone radiation therapy.

Epsom salts are used to draw out toxins naturally produced by our bodies organs such as our liver, gall bladder and kidneys and is especially useful for inflammation and swelling of the joints. Use two cups for a standard bath tub.

In my practice I make a purging salt with epsom salt, sea salt, dead sea salt, bicarbinate of soda, herbs such as ginger, sage. rosemary, yarrow and essential oils from most of these herbs to induce sweating.

We originally used Mexican remedies such as cayenne and dry mustard to the bath, or as a poultice, but some people’s skin is very sensitive to these herbs and it may cause a rash on sensitive areas of the body.The standard amount is 1/4 cup in a bath. Make sure tub is filled first because if you throw it in when the water is running well I don’t have to tell you what would happen! ACHOO!

There are some less invasive things to soak in that are mild and soothing to the body such as adding one to two gallons of milk to the bath to soften and sooth dry skin.

Baking soda is good for the PH balance of the skin and to soften the water. One small box will do.

Oatmeal water works well too. You boil a cup of oatmeal to a gallon of water and sieve out the oatmeal and pour the oatmeal starch into the bath. This is an excellent bath if you had a bad reaction to a soap product or a detergent from your clothes.

The juice of six to eight lemons to a bath is very refreshing and is good for oily or discolored skin. Throw the lemon halves in and you’ll know what a pitcher of lemonade feels like.

There are assorted over the counter remedies you can buy at health food stores and spas that contain assorted salts and essential oils, herbs, spices, clays etc. But if you have sensitive skin, make a paste of the product and spread it on a delicate area like the inner arm or inner thigh an leave on for ten to fifteen minutes to check for skin reaction.

Herbs and flowers  steeped in a strong tea may be thrown in such as lavender and jasmine for relaxation; chamomile and lemon balm to calm the mind and sooth the skin; white willow and comfrey for pain and swelling.

Search online and look up herbal baths and find numerous recipes on this subject.

So take a bath and take care of yourself! It’s good for you.