Salt Booth Therapy

If you don’t know this about me already I love Himalayan Salt rooms!  The relaxation, the ambiance but most of all the health benefits of breathing in the salt.  Yes there are health benefits of putting yourself in a room that is full of pink Himalayan salt.  In the medical world it is known as halotherapy (dry salt therapy) and research has shown it is beneficial for lots of different ailments but especially healing for the lungs, skin and immune system.  

Having had asthma as a child and my own healing journey of trying everything under the sun to help I fell in love with halo therapy when I first tried it in 2016.  Even though I haven’t used my inhaler since I was 17 and no doctor would say I have asthma now I still really enjoyed the benefits of spending 30 minutes in a salt room.  Feet up and just breath deep while meditating.  

So with the new office and the 8 treatment rooms I wanted one of the rooms to be a Himalayan salt room but with COVID I was thinking shared space for halo therapy was not a great idea at the same time we needed the support for our lungs and immune system now more than ever so I was so grateful when I found a Himalayan salt booth.  Best of both worlds, halotherapy with privacy!

Before COVID I was thinking halo therapy was great for 4 things: sinus and lung issues, skin issues, to boost up the immune system and to detox from crappy NYC air.  Now with COVID I think halo therapy is a must to stay healthy.  We can no longer just assume we are healthy but to take preventative measures to ensure we really do stay as healthy as possible.  So we can add wellness care to the list of why one would get halo therapy.  

Salt itself is known to be: anti-bacterial, anti-viral, mucolytic (loosens mucus & phlegm) and anti-inflammatory.  For this reason I have suggested using a Neti Pot which is specific container that you put warm salt water in to wash your nasal passages and sinuses with.  Instead of just rinsing out your sinuses, which is wet salt therapy, halotherapy, or breathing in salt vapor takes the healing properties of salt deep into the body through the lungs and the skin.  Breathing in the salt is super cleansing to the body because it’s full of negative ions. How can negative ions help your body?  Well, back to Science 101, “A negative ion is an atom that has more electrons than protons, giving the atom a negative electrical charge.”  Our bodies are full of positive ions from all the chemical reactions that occur and toxins we have in our bodies.  Positive ions also come from electronic devices like computers, TVs, microwaves, and even vacuum cleaners and can often exacerbate problems like allergies, stress and sleep trouble. An ion having a charge is known as a free radical and causes oxidative stress in the body.  That's why eating and drinking antioxidants is healthy for your body and now with the Salt Booth you can breath in salt which acts like an antioxidant helping the body to heal.  On a much smaller scale you can get a Himalayan salt lamp to have the health benefits at home.  I would keep it at your bedside to get the most benefit of breathing in salted air while you sleep.  The salt from the lamp automatically goes into the air from the humidity.  

When you breath in the salt or negative ions they neutralize positive ions by bonding to them.  With less positive charge on the body there is less stress and inflammation on the body and the immune system is boosted.  Negative ions occur more often in nature and they are often created by things like lightening storms, sunlight, waterfalls, and ocean waves. This is one of the reasons people often report feeling renewed or refreshed after a storm or at the beach. Other than walking along the ocean, or being outside immediately after a thunderstorm, it’s hard to expose yourself to as many negative ions as you can inside a halotherapy room or booth. It’s an enjoyable way to spend time literally recharging your body!

More than 40 years of research, conducted around the world, shows that treatment with halotherapy has beneficial effects for patients with:

Asthma

Chronic Bronchitis

Sinusitis

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

Allergies

Ear Infections

Various acute or chronic respiratory diseases

Smoker’s cough

Viral infections

Coughs and colds

Chronic ear-nose-throat illnesses

Salt is so good at killing bacteria and viruses that there is new research showing how salt on face masks can decrease the spread of infection. 

Salt is also extremely beneficial to your skin in treating:

Acne

Psoriasis

Hives

Eczema

In addition, negative ions have been shown to reduce:

Stress

Headaches and migraines 

Lethargy

Depression

High blood pressure

And negative ions can dramatically increase your:

Immune system

Energy

Mental alertness

Overall sense of well-being

As you sit in the salt booth you really want to spend your time taking deep breaths to get the most of your salt treatment.  The deeper the breath, the more oxygen can come in per breath.  The amount of oxygen that we inhale through our breathing, influences the amount of energy that is released into our cells. On a molecular level, this progresses all sorts of chemical and physiological processes. Breathing is controlled by the autonomic nervous system.  The part of our nervous system we don’t have to think about that makes our heart beat and digests our food.  There are two parts to the autonomic nervous system, sympathetic and parasympathetic.  These two parts control different things in the body.  The parasympathetic controls the breathing, digestion, sleep and libido.  This is the part of our nervous system that makes us feel relaxed and that is why breathing is so good to do during stressful times. It helps get us out of fight or flight mode. Breathing is also the easiest part of the autonomic nervous system to control and navigate. In fact, the way you breathe strongly affects the chemical and physiological activities in your body. It’s amazing what you can do when you can control your breath.  I’m not just talking about how long you can swim under water for but Wim Hof has developed special breathing techniques that keep his body in optimal condition and in complete control in the most extreme conditions. The breathing technique is first and foremost premised on inhaling deeply and exhaling without any use of force!  With his controlled breathing the heightened oxygen levels hold a treasure of benefits, more energy, reduced stress levels, and an augmented immune response that swiftly deals with all germs.

Wim Hof got his nickname “The Iceman” by breaking a number of records related to cold exposure. His feats include climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts, running a half marathon above the Arctic Circle on his bare feet, and standing in a container while covered with ice cubes for more than 112 minutes.  Patients who have used his method say that it helps with stress and it even helped one patient heal from his eczema and that’s even without the use of halotherapy!   He has great youtube videos that I do twice a day to stay healthy and strong.

I’m so excited to bring personalized skin and lung therapy into the office. When I discovered the salt booth not only did I get excited about the booth for privacy during COVID but I also liked the idea that if someone had acne on their back or rashes on their thighs or chest that with the privacy they could expose the skin the air and get even more benefit from the salt treatment.  The particles of salt are so small in the air that it won’t make you cough or irritate the skin.  It is also super safe for children and even babies.  I see a lot of babies with eczema and other skin irritations. I also love that with the salt booth unlike the salt room the concentration of salt particles can be adjusted to offer a more individualized and targeted salt therapy session.  Because the concentration of salt is higher in the booth and your the only one breathing it sessions only take 10 minutes.  There's nothing you need to do to prepare for your salt booth experience. There are no side effects and you can wear your street clothes in the rooms.  

Since salt is a drying agent, I do suggest drinking water afterwards. I also recommend waiting to shower afterwards since rubbing the salt residue on your skin can help soften it and act as an exfoliant.  If you stay away from having salt in your diet due to water retention or high blood pressure know that breathing in salt is safe to do and will not affect your water retention or blood pressure.  

If that wasn’t enough the salt booth also does sound and light therapy.  I love light therapy,  which you may already know because we have chakra light therapy and chakra glasses in the office already as forms of light therapy but this is my first type of sound therapy in the office.  Sound therapy has been shown to help relieve stress, help people have few headaches, increase focus and energy, have clearer thoughts, improve attention span and Relief from common ailments such as hypertension, stomach pain, depression, and joint pain.

Color therapy has been shown to reduce swelling and decreased inflammation in the body in this way it’s good for accelerating healing and pain relief.  Color therapy is also good for: 

Increased range of motion

Decreased muscle tension

Improved circulation

Anti-aging benefits, 

improve sleep and 

Regulated mood including seasonal affective disorder.  I recommend full spectrum light bulbs for the middle of winter because we don’t get outside enough and the full spectrum light bulbs literally emit all the electromagnetic rays ranging from infrared to healthy ultraviolet rays which are the wavelengths that are useful to plants. 

Now more than ever people are suffering from respiratory issues. I see it in my office now more than I have in the last 15 years.  From air pollution to airborne diseases, pollens and toxins our lungs need help to detox. Not only does salt therapy help with the lungs but also the skin and immune system while decreasing the stress on the body.  Plus the salt booth adds in privacy, sound therapy and light therapy.  A salt booth treatment is $30. Book here, you have to try it the next time you are at the office.  You won’t believe the results!

Resources:

In a 2007 study people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) had fewer symptoms and improved quality of life after halotherapy https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18019972/. And in 2014 COPD patients were tested before and after halo therapy and even though lung tests before and after halotherpay didn’t show a difference, 65% of patients were satisfied with halotherapy and requested it again https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4153239/ 

Halotherapy triggers anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic responses in people with bronchial asthma or chronic bronchitis, according to 2014 research

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4391365/.

Himalayan Salt Lamps -https://healingartsnyc.blogspot.com/2016/06/health-benefits-of-himalayan-salt-lamp.html

Salted Masks - https://www.nature.com/articles/srep39956

Wim Hof - https://youtu.be/wFj6TOYpQG8

Chakra Light Therapy - https://healingartsnyc.com/chakra-light-bed

Sound Healing https://www.healthline.com/health/sound-healing

5 Stretches to Prevent or Help Reduce Digestion Issues

When you feel bloated or constipated the abdominal and back muscles are tight because the organs are expanding and heavy. Whether you are trying to reduce the bloat or prevent it, the goal with stretching is to open up the back muscles while putting pressure on the abdominal muscles and stomach to move the gas or stuck bowel movement.  You may want to do the stretches in the privacy of your own home if gas does release out of the body.  Get out your yoga mat or find a place on the floor near a wall.  To complete all 5 stretches will take about 10 min. and best to do in this order. It’s ideal to do it in the morning before the bloating starts and to try to get a good bowel movement.  Prevention is the best form of medicine. 

Child's Pose

Child's Pose compresses your abdomen to help relieve bloating while gently stretching your back muscles. To get in the pose, start on your hands and knees on your yoga mat before shifting your hips back onto your heels while keeping your arms planted ahead of you. Rest your head on the mat and remain in the pose for a minute or two.

Knees to Chest

Instead of bringing your chest to your knees you bring your knees to your chest.  This stretch puts pressure on the abdomen while stretching the back helping release the build up of gas and improve digestion. To begin the pose, lie flat on your back and pull your knees to your chest, holding them there, hold for 30 seconds as you feel the low back stretch. Next, gently rock to one side and hold for 30 seconds and then rock to the other side and hold for another 30 seconds. 

Seated Spinal Twist

Similar to knees to chest stretch, the seated spinal twist works to relieve gas and help digestion but we are putting pressure on the abdomen in a different way. To begin, sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you. Bend your left knee and cross your right elbow over until you feel some resistance. Inhale and extend your spine upwards. Exhale and twist deeper. Hold this position for 30 seconds, then reverse.

Standing Forward Bend with Legs Apart 

This is another stretch to open up the back and put pressure on the abdomen.  Stand up with back straight and legs apart. Hinge from the waist and round your spine as you reach for the floor. If you can’t reach the floor hang or place hands on a yoga block. You should feel a stretch in your back, hamstrings, calves. Let your head hang heavy to stretch your neck, and reach your tailbone to the sky to maximize the stretch.  For a deeper stretch, touch your shoulders with opposite hands and allow gravity to do the rest, opening up the midback.  Opening up your neck in this way helps because the nerves to the stomach come from the neck.  

Legs Up the Wall

Finish with this gentle inversion that encourages blood flow and aids in digestion. To do it, lie on your back, feet facing a wall. Inch your butt up against the wall and raise your legs up to rest against the wall with your feet flexed, arms at your side, or wherever is most comfortable for you. If you have tight hamstrings, sit further away from the wall, or place a bolster or long pillow beneath your lower back for extra support. As you lay there for at least 90 seconds do deep breathing from your diaphragm.  The diaphragm sits on top of the stomach so as the diaphragm moves up and down in your breathing it massages the stomach giving it relief.

PEMF Mat: The Wonders of Healing Using Energy Waves

PEMF is an acronym for Pulsed Electro-Magnetic Field. PEMF therapy consists of a mat which emits pulses of energy waves. This energy courses through the body directly to inflamed or injured areas. The energy is also drawn to areas experiencing chronic pain.  The energy waves of the PEMF mat passes through the organs and tissues and into the cells of your body, amplifying the cellular energy. The increase in energy promotes a natural reaction that regenerates and enhances the efficiency of the cell’s function. This natural process stimulates healing and helps to improve your overall well-being including your mood.  I couldn't wait to have a PEMF mat at the office!

As the energy goes into the body patients usually don’t feel anything.  The energy is that subtle to not disturb the body’s natural process as it goes into the cells.  besides giving cells energy it also helps Increase blood flow which is also part of the healing.  With increased blood flow It is promoting an increase in the blood’s oxygen levels.  In causing the body to have more oxygen that’s how chronic pain and stiffness is reduced. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2670735/). If you have frozen shoulder or any other really stiff joints PEMF helps with range of motion (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15986086/).  

Healthy blood circulation in your system not only promotes thorough oxygenation of the blood vessels causing less inflammation and pain but it also helps cleanse out the toxic waste through the lymphatic drainage system.  In this way PEMF therapy also promotes lymphatic health and detox.  In fact there is a setting just for this type of detox. 

PEMF therapy also helps you have better sleep. A goodnight’s sleep allows your body the chance to recover from pain, rejuvenate, and regain lost energy. However, not everyone gets a good night sleep, which, in turn, robs them of the opportunity to recover and heal.  The body only heals when it is sleeping.  PEMF therapy tunes the frequency of the brain cells and transforms it into a pattern that calms the brain, regulates circadian rhythms and then enhances sleep. PEMF therapy also makes the Pineal gland release more melatonin in darkness, which is an important hormone to enhance sleep quality.

PEMF therapy also helps boost up the immune system.  There are many factors involved in helping our bodies to build and maintain a strong immune system; eating well balanced meals, exercising, keeping our stress levels low, to name a few are within our daily control.  

Keeping our stress levels low ie: a calm autonomic nervous system is of great benefit to the immune system and PEMF treatments do just that.  The electromagnetic waves have a calming effect on the autonomic nervous system as well as supplying more blood flow thus more oxygen to the whole body.  For this reason I feel like the more calm we are during a PEMF therapy session the more electromagnetic energy our body can absorb and use.  So try meditating during the session for greatest benefit and if you don’t meditate just take deep breaths and try to relax as much as you can.  

Not to get too technical but wanting you to understand more is that both interleukin-1 and interleukin-6 increase with PEMF therapy.  The result is that a larger number of intruders can be destroyed by white blood cells called macrophages.  In this way you have a stronger immune system. 

Interleukin 1 and 6 also increase the activity of bone and cartilage cells. Since PEMF therapy helps stimulate them PEMF therapy has been shown to help with bone growth (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30645684/) which you would want if you had osteopenia, osteoporosis, a fracture to heal or even with arthritis - rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, degenerative arthritis etc.  

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a serious and complicated disorder characterized by extreme fatigue that lasts for at least six months that can be helped with PEMF.  There are lots of reasons for CFS and is usually due to a combination of factors, including viral infections, hormonal imbalances, physical or emotional trauma, immune system problems, etc.

In people with CFS, the cells in the body have difficulty producing enough energy. For these patients, the symptoms of CFS may worsen after even minor physical, mental or emotional exertion. Through the increased motion of ions and electrolytes, PEMF therapy can help cells increase their energy by up to 500%. PEMF therapy is known as a safe and natural way to literally recharge your body and improve the symptoms of CFS.  Symptoms include trouble sleeping and joint and muscle pain that people with CFS usually have.  Both of those symptoms PEMF has been proven to help with.

By no means do I have CFS but the other day I did a PEMF treatment and put on the mode for energy and I swear to you I walked away feeling like I had just been on vacation.  I felt like a million bucks and thank God, because with COVID I haven’t gone on vacation in a year and a half.   That’s what an increase of up to 500% felt like to me.  

About half of people with CFS develop depression, stress and anxiety at some point. Some drugs used to treat depression have other effects that might worsen some other CFS symptoms.  PEMF therapy is a drug-free and safe method to help depression and mental wellness https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27449361/. It has been shown to have a dramatic effect on anxiety and depression in both chronic and acute forms.  In 2006 the FDA approved the use of PEMF therapy for the treatment of depression and anxiety.  PEMF therapy can also help with the insomnia that usually comes with anxiety.  Insomnia, depression, and mood disorders have been related to abnormal serotonin levels, while PEMF therapy works well on the alteration of serotonin by exciting the neurons to dispense their own natural chemicals to help balance out deficiencies and restore normal brain function. Also, it can work on the areas of your brain that control mood by affecting the electrical activity of neurons to change the neuronal networks.

PEMF has even shown to help many post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) sufferers with their depression. PEMF therapy can deliver repetitive magnetic pulses that stimulate various nerve cells controlling depression and reducing re-experiencing symptoms.  Many with PTSD often lack a sound, restorative sleep because of the traumatic events they have encountered. Low frequency PEMF devices can make them feel relax in the evening and help them fall and stay asleep. PEMF therapy also has positive effects on calming the brain and regulating circadian rhythms which have an important role in controlling sleep patterns and cycles.

Tinnitus is a common problem that affects many, usually described as a noise or ringing in the ear. It is a symptom of an underlying condition, such as age-related hearing loss, ear injury, heavy metal toxicity or a lack of circulation to the ear.

Tinnitus can significantly affect the quality of life. In some cases, the sound can interfere with concentration, sleep, and even mental health. Tinnitus usually isn’t a sign of something serious, but it is bothersome and may worsen with age. Fortunately, PEMF therapy has been proven to be a safe and non-invasive way to help people with tinnitus by helping cells increase their energy and opening up of the cell membrane to let nutrients enter the cells easily and quickly. By recharging cells and boosting nutrient absorption, PEMF therapy can stimulate the healing process of damaged cells and tissues in the ears. PEMF therapy can help treat the complications of tinnitus, including fatigue, stress, sleep problems, trouble concentrating, memory problems, depression, anxiety, and irritability, etc.  Treating these linked conditions may not affect tinnitus directly, but it can help you feel better and improve the quality of life.

PEMF can also help Lyme’s patients.  Lyme disease is a bacterial infection primarily transmitted by ticks.  Lyme disease can affect brain, muscles and joints, lungs, heart, intestinal tract, etc.

PEMF therapy can help with reducing inflammation, improving circulation, reducing pain and in general improving the therapeutic effect of other treatments. PEMF therapy can be a wonderful complementary therapy to your current treatment plan by boosting the immune system and stimulate the healing process.  Lyme disease in the brain, is especially challenging to treat. Many medical treatments and nutritional approaches can not access the hidden Lyme bacteria in brain tissue, due to not be able to get through the blood-brain barrier. PEMF therapy has been shown to increase the diffuse-ability of the blood-brain barrier, allowing better access of treatments, supplements, herbs, and nutrients into the brain.

It’s amazing what I have seen it do for my fibromyalgia patients.  If you suffer from fibromyalgia know that there is hope for I have seen PEMF therapy give absolute relief from Fibromyalgia and its symptoms. Some of you might not know what Fibromyalgia is.  It is characterized by extreme musculoskeletal pain coupled with memory loss, lethargy, fatigue, and an imbalanced sleep cycle. In addition to that, Fibromyalgia also amplifies how our brain receives pain signals, thereby intensifying pain sensation.

This phenomenon leads to almost unbearable physical discomfort that eventually takes a toll on mental and physical health. Loss of productivity, lack of memory retention, decreased concentration, lack of sleep, and loss of motivation to carry out the simplest of daily tasks are all by-products of Fibromyalgia. The reasons for the onset of Fibromyalgia are varied. It can stem from stress, surgical after effects, or any mental or physical trauma. There are plenty of drugs and invasive surgeries to address the pain and reduce its intensity, but PEMF works remarkably well.  So I knew if it could help with fibromyalgia it can help with other pain as well.

HOW IS PEMF THERAPY ADMINISTERED?

There are different types of PEMF therapy devices. The type of device best suited for you will depend on your needs and preferred method of application. Most of the time I suggest the PEMF mat.  It rests on the massage table and you lay on it, having electromagnetic pulses course throughout the entire body. These devices are a popular option for people suffering from fibromyalgia, inflammation or want more energy. The full body mat energizes all of the cells in your body.  Other accessory PEMF devices provide more direct pulses of energy for localized pain. For example, if you are having difficulties with pain in your knee joint, we have a PEMF ring at the office that  is a beneficial option for delivery of pulses directly to the joint. you can also put the ring around your head if you suffer from headaches or migraines.  I know it’s not always easy to come to the office with a migraine but it truly is the best time for a PEMF treatment.  The application process is simple and easy. There is no need for special preparation or chemical agents.  The energy waves go through your clothes too so you can lay on the massage table comfortably.  

Know that you can use PEMF with other treatments. PEMF presents little to no side effects or drug-related contraindications. This means that you can continue using prescribed medications while undergoing PEMF therapy sessions.  

Studies show that PEMF therapy for 20 min. once a week for 6 weeks helps with conditions like fibromyalgia, muscle pain, arthritis, depression, anxiety, tinnitus, PTSD, Lyme’s, chronic fatigue and musculoskeletal pain.  PEMF therapy is a great option for natural, chemical free pain relief and overall wellness because it functions through cell stimulation. Stimulation at a cellular level helps boost the body’s natural ability to fight back against inflammation. PEMF therapy is so effective because it is able to penetrate through skin, muscle, and even the bone. The electromagnetic field helps fight back against cellular damage and inflammation, and create healthier cells.  As the cells heal, the blood vessels, nerves, and capillaries dilate.  The dilated capillaries enable better oxygenation and blood flow.  Lastly, the increase in oxygen and blood flow encourage a healing environment.

PEMF sessions are 20 min. for $35

BOOK NOW

Resources:

PEMF good for post surgical pain and edema: https://academic.oup.com/asj/article/29/2/135/270272