by Dr. Marcel Hernandez, ND
I’m pretty sure we’ve all seen videos of naked elderly Swedes sweating in a sauna, lightly lashing their bodies with birch fronds, then trotting through the snow to leap into the freezing waters of a Nordic lake, Viking-style, with whoops and hollers.
Not your thing? Not your idea of a good time?
We hear you. “Well, maybe – but only in case of a dire health emergency!”
Still – people have been jumping in cold lakes with a whoop and a holler for a very long time – as long as recorded history, in fact.
The Edwin Smith Papyrus (3500 BC) makes reference to using cold for therapy. A friend of ours tells how, when he lived in the Sierra foothills, he would often end his runs by breaking the ice at the edge of a half-acre pond and swimming all the way around its circumference. He recalls how his body vibrated amazingly with robust vigorous magnetism when he stepped out onto the icy shore.
Hot-cold contrast hydrotherapy continues to be highly valued in nature cure circles, for its ability to stimulate overall metabolism, activate circulatory and lymphatic detoxification, and enhance general health.
Cold water immersion has gained traction in health-improvement circles in recent years for benefits that include enhancing immune function, increasing energy and alertness, improving mood, and more.
The Japanese tradition of takigyo, or “waterfall purification,” is based on ancient Buddhist practices of physical and spiritual healing that aimed to purify the heart and wash away physical and mental impurities.
At our Hawaii Peace Garden Healing Retreats, we offer our guests the opportunity to do a sequence that begins with an infrared sauna, followed by a cold shower, hot tub, cold tub, hot tub, and cold tub.
Still not convinced? That’s perfectly fine – these therapies are entirely optional during our retreats. We fully recognize and respect that for some folks, deep cold holds absolutely no appeal, just as for others, reading a book while tanning under a blazing tropical sun is very far removed from their personal concept of paradise.
Still, if you are interested, you can derive similar benefits by trying it in the privacy of your home, with alternating hot and cold showers, beginning with hot, then cold. We recommend repeating the cycle three times.
Start with a gentle warm and cool contrast shower, and see how you feel as you progress to slightly increased hot and cold. At the very least, you may find you feel pleasantly invigorated.
Infrared Sauna for Detoxification
The wonderful sauna at the Hawaii Peace Garden Retreat is very popular, and in near-daily use during our Healing Retreat programs.
The skin is the body’s largest organ for detoxification – that is, for ridding itself of waste products that, if not eliminated, would create an unhealthy metabolic environment that would pose a variety of health risks.
While sauna has many health benefits, its major value for detoxification is that it decreases stress on the kidneys and liver, the body’s next major detox systems.
As you sweat, you are clearing out environmental toxins that have been stored in fat cells.
Are our bodies really in danger of toxic overload? Consider the Inuit people of the Arctic far north. They live in one of the most pristine natural environments on earth – yet scores of persistent organic pollutants have been found in their blood and fatty tissues. (More information HERE.)
Flower Essences for Detoxification
The famous Bach Rescue Remedy flower essence formula is frequently used to alleviate physical and emotional traumas.
Flower essences are a form of vibrational remedy, similar to homeopathy, but more refined.
The healing effects of flower remedies are based on resonant frequencies. They are particularly useful to ameliorate mental, emotional, and spiritual stress, and to bring these systems back into balance and harmony.
Because the flower essences address subtle vibrational disharmonies, their healing power operates on the causal realm. Ancient Eastern teachings tell us that the physical creation in which we live is a reflection of a corresponding subtle energy realm, the astral world to which we go after death, and that the astral world reflects, in turn, a still subtler realm of pure ideation known as the causal plane.
Thus, substances that help balance our causal body may transmit their healing effects to the astral and physical planes as well. People who take the flower essences may find their physical bodies feeling harmonized.
During our Hawaii Peace Garden Healing Retreats, we design individual flower essence formulas corresponding to the guest’s individual core health concerns.
During the retreats, we suggest that our guests pair their flower formula with appropriate mental affirmations and images to enhance its vibrational efficacy. Cleansing at the causal and energetic levels facilitates cleansing at the physical level as well. (More about flower essences HERE.)
The Much-Dreaded “Cold Plunge”
At Hawaii Peace Garden Retreat, we encourage guests to consider taking the leap and trying a cold plunge, after spending time in the sauna or soaking in the hot tub. As we suggested earlier, a cold plunge after heat therapy has established a long list of benefits throughout history:
- Improved Circulation: The alternating hot and cold temperatures stimulate blood vessels to dilate and constrict, enhancing blood flow throughout the body.
- Reduced Muscle Soreness: Cold plunges help reduce inflammation and numb pain, alleviating muscle soreness after exercise or sauna.
- Increased Metabolic Rate: The body works hard to reheat after a cold plunge, boosting metabolism and potentially burning calories.
- Enhanced Alertness: The cold shock triggers the release of adrenaline, increasing alertness and improving focus.
- Stress Reduction: The contrast between the hot sauna and cold plunge can promote relaxation and reduce stress.
- Immune System Boost: Some studies suggest cold plunges may stimulate the immune system.
- Improved Skin Health: Cold plunges can tighten pores and reduce inflammation of the skin.
- Other Potential Benefits include improved sleep quality, increased fat burning, and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease.
Don’t worry, cold plunges are entirely optional during the retreat. They are entirely a matter of your own personal choice. Our role is simply to guide you, in order to ensure that you approach them gradually and safely, well within your personal comfort and tolerance, with duration of no longer than a few minutes at a time.
At Hawaii Peace Garden Retreat, we modulate the cold plunge tub temperature from cold to tepid for folks who haven’t experienced this wonderful therapy and prefer to approach it gradually, with all due caution. (More information HERE.)
Our previously sold-out March 10-18 retreat has had a cancellation and now has room for one person or a party of two. Reserve now! You may also reserve for the June retreat. Reserve your space here.
May Peace and Happiness be Ever Yours.
Drs. Connie and Marcel Hernandez
DrConnie@DrsHernandez.com
DrMarcel@DrsHernandez.com
650-796-9631 (voice and text)