Cannabis & Hydrotherapy
Vis Medicatrix Naturae. This is the Latin meaning, “to act in cooperation with the healing power of nature,” and it is part of the oath taken by future physicians on graduation day from Naturopathic Medical school. Water is one of the elements of nature and it has the power to create life, sustain it, soothe and heal and wash away that which is not of the highest good for the body, mind and spirit. Using water as a form of therapy is called hydrotherapy and it pertains to baths, soaks, ice plunges, poultices, enemas, colon therapy/colonics, salt glows and sugar rubs and sitz baths to name the most common forms of hydrotherapy. The cannabis plant can also be part of a person’s healing journey and adding it with the healing power of water creates an experience of cleansing and soothing.
Living in the desert, we know the value of water. When it does rain, it is a relief and so welcoming. Do you know that feeling when you have been camping for a few days and then you get to take a shower at your home and clean off? That is the power of water. Or how about while you are mowing the lawn, doing yard work or gardening and you drink that iced tea and it tastes so good and your thirst is quenched. How many of you go to sleep at night with a glass of water by your bedside? This is the comfort of water. The splash on the face of cold water in the morning to wake up and the warm shower after a hard day of work to relax the muscles and end the day. The necessity of water is found when making coffee or tea and refilling your dog or cat’s water bowl.
Cannabis oil can be added to epsom salts, baking soda and other essential oils to make bath soaks which can then be added to a warm bath. Soaking in epsom salts, which is a form of magnesium, helps to relax the muscles. Depending upon what essential oils are added to the bath soak, the effect can be uplifting with citrus oils and calming with lavender or chamomile oils. If you are someone who works on their feet all day or works with their hands, then soaking your feet or hands in a basin with some cannabis bath salts can relieve the achiness and increase circulation to the area. This can also relieve any inflammation associated with carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritis in the hands and feet and feet disorders like bunions, hammer toes and arthritis. These bath soaks can be found in dispensaries in Arizona or you can make your own with many recipes available on-line. Some of the soaks contain THC from cannabis as well as CBD from hemp.Those with diabetes, nerve pain or numbness and anyone with metal hardware (pins, plates) in their hands or feet should avoid doing this, however.
Since you will be soaking your body and can absorb substances through the skin, then it is best to soak with natural ingredients including pure essential oils, instead of artificial perfumes or dyes which can cause irritation especially to a woman’s urinary tract.
+++ Advice to women:
Before you are going to soak in the tub, wash the tub clean and add a cup of vinegar to the bath water to cleanse the water of any microbes and prevent irritations to the urinary tract.
Water … All Day Long Wake up. Take a sip of water In the shower: inspired with new thoughts Water Aqua Lake, Sea, Mer, Stream, River Rain clouds and snowflakes Ice cubes in my freezer I soak in your warmth and I wish for you to fall from the sky That relief you give; the life you give Thank you Bless all waters