Steam Shower and Spa Resource

Salt with that? Embracing Osmosis...

    Draw a warm bath, not like a Mike Meyers character on Saturday Night Live! actually draw the water from the beautiful silver water jets, perhaps enjoy a nice acupressure massage as you fill the tub if you own a bath which allows for such therapy/luxury, if not, look into one.  Trust me, worth it's weight in doctor's bills.  As you draw this bath, lets make a twist on the conventional therapeutic and relaxing bath and add a margarita garnish (non-drinkers, please scratch the previous few words and move on in the article- and count me among your ranks... I don't drink either) pour some salt into the bath and enjoy a bit of Hydro-science.  Allow me to refresh your memory and whisk you back to the beginning of your dealings with science and water.  And a really cool Ozzy Osborne Album- scream it out Zack Wylde!  Osmosis.  Sorry Ozzy, i like your spelling better, but in the interest of Hydro-science...

Osmosis: 1, the tendency of a fluid, usually water, to pass through a semipermeable membrane (your skin!!!) into a solution where the solvent concentration is higher, thus equalizing the concentrations of materials on either side of the membrane... 

   The dirt: elevate the level of salt in the water surrounding your skin and your skin will make an attempt to equal the balance though Osmosis.  We have already learned and embraced the idea that sweating and any secretions through the skin hasten  the detoxification process.  This will be no different in that aspect.  As the fluid leaves your skin it will start to detoxify your skin and thereby your body.  And it all starts with a dab of salt...  Send salt bath specific questions in the form of comments to this or other blog entries and I will research and respond for you.

     Thank you to my boss and best friend of too many years to count without aging during the counting process for the inspiration for this article.  It occurred to me the other night after a business meeting and dinner as I watched my friend in mid sentence walking into his kitchen dump salt onto his palm and ingest it without wincing!  He needs salt.  He has always had this curious habit and i have always commented on it.  But, he says, "salt is good for you" after each comment.  So good friend, you're right... and this one is for you.  Salt IS good for you.  Eat it, bathe in it... either way.  It's good for you. 

      

Hydration, dehydration and hypernatremia

     Hydration, hydration, hydration... you cannot have enough water, you simply can't.  As long as nutrients and sodium levels in your system stay at a healthy and relative level to the water you ingest and get rid of through diaphoresis (sweating) and urination, this holds true; however, if you ever allow a dip in sodium or nutrients and you let the H2o follow suit and become dehydrated you may come to experience Hypernatremia.

     Hypernatremia: breaking down the words inside the word "hyper" over or "above" or "too much" as those who are hypertensive have "high" blood pressure.  Natrium (Sodium.)  Put the two together in one word and we have the meaning "too much sodium."  Hypernatremia.  When you fall victim to dehydration you also, through urine, sweat, and salavitory excretion lose some sodium with your water.  But, mostly you lose water and leave sodium intact in your system.  Which results in too high a level of sodium.  In it's least dangerous presentation it can present dangerously like dehydration, muscle cramps and everything which you would associate with dehydration. 

   Mild to Severe Hypernatremia and it's symptoms result from brain dysfunction which can lead to confusion, seizures, as well as muscle twitching and further on to coma and death if there is no clear fluid intervention.  Most importantly, if you think you are suffering from Hypernatremia you should slowly rehydrate yourself.  Don't just overload your system with water and expect everything to simply be okay all over again.  You could risk permanent brain damage if you rehydrate too rapidly.

   A tip and a simple thing to keep in mind which got me through six years of service in the Army, three of them in the Infantry walking everywhere i went and two of them in Iraq, one of the hottest places I can imagine exists: if you are thirsty it is too late.  You have lost a slow battle of dehydration.  I myself carry or find water everywhere I go.  I am one of the people who is probably made fun of for carrying a water bottle everywhere.  I do not waste money and buy bottled water everywhere.  I simply refill the water bottle when it is empty- tap water will do.  And using our rule of moderation you should simply sip your way to never ending proper hydration.  Just in case, we learn the meanings and symptoms of words like Hypernatremia...

The depth of knowledge and beauty...

My dear readership,

     In an effort to stay up to date and current on health topics and to keep myself, my writings, my thoughts and the My Bath Blog relevant, I went to the Internet to look for, not only top searches, but also to look in the items/subjects offered on all first pages to be offered up for free searching- I feel too often like we are trafficking a "hot" commodity in the form of health information, as it seems taboo in the way that it is not open to the public so much as it should be.

     I do not expect to search at length of such things as Hydrology, Hydroscience, Hydrotherapy or the like  and have the pages just unfold before me yielding their secrets, as they are YOUNG-old sciences.  Which is to say, even Steam Inhalation is somewhat in its infancy in western science. 

     However, I do wish to see "HEALTH" not "beauty" being advertised and having HEALTH information disseminated to a culture which is wrought with body image disorders, anxiety problems, and all different sorts of psychological problems, which, perhaps if beauty took a back seat to health then we could find health information and we might begin to see healthy people and unhealthy people, not a beautiful person and an ugly person.  Got news for ya... the Model that smokes, or does drugs, or drinks, or eats too much sugar and is taking advantage of her youthful metabolism (Oh, we'll all have a great gut chuckle when it bottoms out, right...) is about as ugly as they get.  The ugliness on the inside, the toxins, The hidden residual effects and deposits being ingested, absorbed and retained is sort of like beauty's little whip-lash, waiting to strike those who sought and found comfort on the level of their skin alone. 

    I come full circle for I am disappointed not in the models or the lifestyles of those who choose unhealthy ones, but rather in the fact that what is available for the top searches reflects the public's interest in the knowledge as well as the people who hoard such knowledge.  Which means we are not reaching enough people with the message that they should care about their health.  That there should be so many searches going out for items to bring into your house like infrared Saunas, Steam Showers, whirlpool tubs that the icon to be clicked on will be located right next to the latest of all the "cool toy" technology which is always posted, or the sports stats (if you relish the stories of sports field glory and those who provide you with dazzling reasons to read about them, forget not that they are athletes and by nature they are healthy and I'm willing to bet they would be just as interested in your readership of anything which would improve the quality and longevity of your life.)  Please, you must search for the knowledge on health, you must.  And if you don't want to type it into the search engines please post a comment/question on the My Bath blog, which i update and write for about 6 days a week.  I will water your curiosity and I will research as you direct me with your questions.  I'm simply asking that you ask them... and get this beauty crap off the front page of all of our reading materials.  It can be in there, that's fine, but lets give health its due.  Deal?

Proactive

    I believe there is a trite saying- or two or three or a few amalgamations of the one or two or three -somewhere about being offensive and/or defensive in your approach to life, a game with a ball of some sort, relationships, business, the list goes on and on- and somehow though it's time, culture, and universally transcendental wisdom imparting qualities so do sayings such as these which we term proverbs, allegory, whatever you wish to call them... trite being somewhere in the top five of the adjectives slung at and landing accurately on such sayings.  As, I've just devoted a paragraph to it... sorry, I'm an enabler.

   Proactive is the word for the day.  There are those in the world who are reactive: doctor's appointment, bad news, alternatives offered, and life style changes result.  Then there are my favorite types of personalities the Proactive types, the ones who are "go getters" or alpha personalities.  And these people will never need to see a Dermatologist, or watch a horrible television "paid programming" propaganda slinging commercial and hefty duty medical jargon coming out of the mouths of the flavors-of-the-month-popular-people with reasonable price tags hanging off their adorable faces which are supported by their personal trained sculpted bodies- "which you too may have in X amount of weeks."  Before you waste money on that, I know of a young family member who swears pigs could fly- perhaps you'd rather feed a healthy imagination and a youthful innocent interest in science instead of bogus-absolutely-no-way-in "pigs will fly first-" anti science-pro-line-someone's pockets with your money capitalist endeavors!  Or not, I can be zealous and passionate in my ideas sometimes.  I won't apologize, officially; its done with the best of intentions.

    Proactive is what you have to be with everything: Proactive in the pursuit of health, Proactive in the search for longevity, proactive in the improvement of your skin and it's appearance.  If that's what you're truly interested in, youthful looking skin at any age- it's in your skin and it's abilities waiting to be exploited by modern bath science and technology (Hydrology, being developed and researched by My Bath)- a dermatological detoxification and/or anything else?  Seek out (pro-actively, in your best interest) the Steam showers, or the Saunas on the My Bath web site, and call Michael Crutcher or Tim Reich or Chris Mowre and see what they have to say about getting started toward a healthy lifestyle.  I know, I'm pushy and I've had to win them over to the mindset also at certain points in our dealings as friends and colleagues, but they will have information in the setting of a dialogue.  It's that, or you may post a comment as always and I can address your concern.  Any of these avenues are great in my book as they are Proactive and I or they are aiding you (being made reactive through your assertiveness) in your pursuit of a healthy lifestyle.   

   Psychologically this is not so much about talking to Michael (though he is a spirited conversationalist,) or about looking at a website(though it is well put together and decorated with cool pictures of our products and some AWESOME-though I may be biased -text to describe them,) so much as these are Proactive gestures in and of themselves which can signify a shift in attitude, and will, if you allow them to and follow them to their altruistic fruition result in a healthy lifestyle.  This is Proactive.  Making the call will be Proactive.  Changing the way you think and feel must be the result of Proactive behavior and ideation to feel the true impact of awesome proactive thoughts.  Anything is possible; to the proactive minded individual, to the My Bathers- the water's warm, jump in and be cleansed. 

Doctor of... what? I presume...

    Some people know the exact nature of their doctor's specialty- which in general practice is a misnomer in and of itself- and some don't, and the majority of those who do and don't... don't care.  (smile, that was a joke, rooted soundly and sadly in truth.)  It would be more accurate to say, some people are familiar with the approach toward treating the human body which their doctors have, some don't- i think the same percentage of apathy would be found either way we look at this, which is what we're aiming to adjust.  I'm not an economist nor am I a statistics expert but, how you view your doctor's approach to you care, is important either way.  there are two main types which will be found in general practice or family practice and those are M.D. (Medical Doctor, or Doctor of Medicine- either way, I think the same thing regardless of the arrangement of the words) and D. O. (Doctor of Osteopathy.) 

     This says nothing of specialty doctors, as most likely you will first be channeled through one of these types of Medical professionals before being referred on to a specialist, leaving the general type scratching their heads and dog earing, highlighting, and underlining their old trusty PDR's (Physician's Desk Reference.)  I have a few myself.  They are updated, out dated and made obsolete faster than digital music technology and I am often not sure which one I am more familiar with; all I know for sure is that an "oops" with a digital music device most likely sends out far fewer ripples in the pond, and I doubt the tide ever spans the distance of the technological body of water. 

    I would have to believe most people seeking out refuge in our Steam Showers, Saunas, Whirl Pool Baths, and Hot tubs are most likely being advised to do so from the latter type of Doctor.  The doctor which is most concerned with the structure of the body, osteopathic- having to do with bones, bone structure and the manipulation of joints and muscles to relieve disorders and pain.  The D.O. (Doctor of Osteopathy) would have, at the genesis of the practice in the late 19th century, would have been known as an Osteopathist. 

     We are all familiar with the pops and cracks which occur inside the offices of Chiropractors and Osteopathists and some even cringe while simply thinking of the sound and subtly violent manipulative jerks.  However, the manipulation is necessary.  The integrity of the whole system which is your body is paramount to heath.  Believe it or not, the brutal yanking motions of Chiropractors and Doctor's of Osteopathy produce similar therapeutic results as those found in the relaxing effects of sitting in a Steam Shower, bathing in a Whirl Pool Bath, or sweating out your frustration and toxins during a 20 minute session in one of My Bath's FIR (Far Infrared) Saunas.  Muscles and joints, whether relaxed in a thermal and therapeutic Steam Shower, massaged gently with Infrared Rays, or yanked into submission/position by a chiropractor all produce the results of restoring the body's natural structure.

    Once the body is performing in its natural state it is economizing energy and it WILL reward you with all of those feel good chemicals that the brain sends out to say, "thank you for that Steam Shower..." "thank you for the Infrared Sauna..." "thank you for paying a bit of attention to me and my structure... here's a huge dose of ENDORPHINS!!!"  Please, feel free to abuse this chemical as you see fit.  Restore structure, abuse natural feel good chemicals and with the aid of the products like Steam showers and Saunas and other such products from My Bath, avoid the those violent Chiropractors and brutal Osteopathists...    

Periodic Limb Movement Syndrome

          PLMS!  Are you exctited at be introduced to a new acronym?  If it's new, you should be, unless it actually effects you.  Otherwise I hope you already sought some form of therapy for this disruptful sleep syndrome, especially if you sleep with a partner.  You might have taken a hint if the spouse, girfriend, boyfriend, or sleep partner donned soccer shin pads each night before slumber.  STOP KICKING the people you love... just kidding, chances are you're not even aware of your combative transgressions. 

         They occur repetitively, and are jerking and spasming of the legs; it can be as often as every few seconds, or as spread out as minutes apart.  This is a syndrome which occurs during NREM (Non Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, or the dreamless sleep during which we are both consciously and unconsciously moving toward that idealic world where our ever whim is catered to.  We'll explore light therapy, hydrotherapy, FIR and many other treatment options gained through the My Bath line of luxury bath products.   

         

         

Outlining our terms as perpetual students...

        I can sincerely say- no, not strong enough... I predicate that -one of the great joys and priviledges of my involvement in the Research and Communication Departmentfor the My Bath company has been the amount of information I've come accross which I feel, and believe should be available to the masses.  I have already stated the degree to which I am indignant when it comes to what is available and what is not... information belongs to no one person or profession, it's proliferation through the World Wide Web which spits it out theraputically AND possibly destructively, in many forms, many facets, and with varying intensity... we may liken the surge of information to that of multiple jets in a whirl pool bath, or hot tub.  Their propulsion, discharged without regard to the hydro-trajectory of the other complimentary and/or opposing jets; it is the wit and resourcefulness of the user upon which the efficacy and applicibility of the product or, in this case the information rests... ultimately.  Knowledge is not the answer without someone actually being able to Apply the knowledge.  So, that said...

         It has come to my attention in my own writing and revising that I have been blanketing what we're studying and learning about, and most of us are applying under a few terms which I myself have neglected to fully describe, or in some cases use properly.  And, the comic beauty of this is that anyone who knows me and knows my passion for language and words knows that I hate the idea of repeating anything, hated the idea of a blog and the internet due to the fact that there would have to be "key words" and such... so, here's where I correct myself and say that there are many instances in which I wish to use the word Hydrology.  It will be used specifically enough to be understood by all of the people subscribing to the My Bath philosophy and line of products, but not so much to the point of being so esoteric someone could not jump in on the blog and understand. 

           When I speak of what the benefits are I will say hydrotherapy; however, in the interest of stoking the fire which burns however subtly inside every human being who truly never ever wanted to stop learning I will use the word Hydrology.  We will study the effects of everything water oriented or having to do with water in all of its forms.  Let us proceed now with a more sharply directed and lucidly defined study of this widely impactful "simple" element, water- which we treat reverentially at all times.

Echo of interests

      Dear loyal blogees,

      Please remember that none of the proposed manners of treatments offered or any of the ailments which we are writing of and reading about will be healed and cured through the products which My Bath shares with you, alone... your health is something which requires an unparalleled zealotry to maintain and sustain.  There is a reason that most people who are health oriented are called almost derogatory names such as "gym rats," "health nuts," and every other name which you have heard to describe these human beings, be they male of female, bound for longevity.  It is my belief that we deride these people and their choices because they have convictions which make us seem non-vertebrates.  We slouch in the shadow of their strength as weak and peril ridden masses of weak protoplasm. 

     I am being as antagonistic as I can against even those who subscribe to our products and our philosophy because I do not want complacency to ever enter the mind of someone who walks by their Sauna, Steam Shower, or Whirl pool bath and think that simply because it's there that they have garnered the right to stand abreast the real "health nuts" who do not schedule their health around their lives, but rather their lives around their health.  Your health is paramount.  I cannot have your readership if you do not continue to draw breath, and thereby siphon oxygenated blood into your interested and knowledge thirsty brain... so, if you wish to think me selfish for passing along this knowledge, you may take a podium opposite those in marketing who would damn me for intimating there is a probability the products which I write about are not the magic bullet, that securing a famous Floridian pig skin tosser and coining a phrase of such vagary to be dangerous and physiologically negligent, yet catchy enough to deftly perform the "Flosberry flop" over the bar of intellectual mediocrity and land triumphantly, plaguing television robbing the wallets of many Americans who are searching for knowledge and products to placate the damage done by their fast paced, anxiety inducing lifestyle with the promise that they may see immediate results and have their lives changed by "our" products.  Sorry, we may play only a part in this... and, no one nutrient, exercise, or product can jockey to obtain top billing, for the play which is your body and it's function is an ensemble cast.   

       The truth is this: interest in your health does not cease, is not deterred by finances, social status, level of education, or any other imposed societal identifying factor.  Because at the end of our days, as we lay down to rest we are human and it is the health of the human body, your body, which we are trying to preserve and actively improve.  So, take interest in our products, but please, please, please first and foremost take an interest in your health. 

    

Your sinuses, drain them... please.

        We all know someone, the sniffer, the person who always has something in their sinuses... no idea what, don't care what... but for some reason they sniff every third sentence, every fourth sentence, every second sentence... maybe they sniff in the absense of sentences.  Point being there is something wrong with their sinuses which perpetuates interuptive nasal audible fungus with communication and most likely goes unnoticed by them after the 24,601st sniff made (les Mis fans, that one was for you.) 

          Most likely they have problems draining their sinuses.  Fortunately for them relief is in thier house already.  It may not be as effective or impressive as what the My Bathers utilize for their relief.  However it is actually steam inhalation which is produced by showering with hot water in a cool environment.  Simply innundating youself twice daily if you are one of the affected "sniffing" humans walking this earth will aid the drainage of sinus fluid, and spare those of us who are the collateral damage of this all too common sinus problem.

Monthly Cramps: a regular pain...

Over 50% of 52% of the population experiences mild to sever discomfort on a schedule more regularly than… you know, the numbers alone have made my brain hurt.  But, I’ll try to shed some light on menstruation and the symptoms which come along with it every month as well as some proactive bath and shower oriented relief which may be obtained from My Bath Products.

Cramps.  Not the type of cramps we’ve spoken of where lactic acid builds up in muscles due to exertion.  The type of cramps experienced by the better part of the human species, females; are actually contractions of the uterus caused by hormones known as prostaglandins which enable the uterus to jettison its lining every month and begin anew the process of nesting a hospitable environment for the possibility of gestating a fetus/future child/future adult human being.  In order to complete this process the uterus contracts and coerces the lining out of the vagina. 

I’ve already stated the numbers of women who are affected, and if I speak of numbers any more I’ll induce a migraine and be forced to research medical information to cure myself in order to continue writing this blog.  For the women affected in such a painful manner, and pain is pain- it is all subjective and no one can truthfully rate anyone else’s pain; sorry to the medical community and their arbitrary 0-10 rating system -and females suffering a pain which men cannot truly relate to due to the lack of a uterus and menstruation as well as misogynist oriented propaganda/jokes about this pain, all of which has essentially robbed this beautiful and natural affliction of it’s severity and poignancy in everyday life, we are now addressing a problem which affects the lives of some women to the point of not being able to work, move, or enjoy daily matters… and is so regular that it’s approaching presence alone induces anxiety in some sufferers. 

We may disagree as I’ve dubbed women the “better part of the human species,” it is my blog after all; now let’s set differences aside and see this natural biological occurrence as something which deserves our undivided attention in abating its effects and whose sufferers deserve our compassion.  Any other problem which affects that great of a number of the population would not even take a second for an entire campaign to be launched with television ads and ex-vice presidents to be globe trotting in pursuit of raising sympathetic awareness to instigate effective care and relief for its patients…  However, the portion of the populace is female- draw your own conclusions.

Some solutions which can be achieved through the My Bath line of products:

Hot Sitz baths (baths in which the pelvis and pelvis alone is submerged in water) are extremely, as in time tested and approved to alleviate uterine cramps.  They are popular in Europe; considered to be a folk remedy- meaning, I think that if we were to doubt it’s veracity or applicability we would be greeted with scoffs and disbelief from our across the pond allies and fellow English speakers; thanks for the language and the folk remedy.  Doesn’t matter what you call it, how you administer it or where it came from; what is important is effectiveness and applicability.  As I stated previously; all pain is subjective. However, it stands to reason that if 9 out of 10 people receive relief from a certain therapy, you have a better chance of being one of the 9, then you do being the "unlucky and turned away to search for relief elsewhere" number ten person.  Let’s qualify “hot,” if even vaguely so.  Hot enough to say, “That’s hot.”  But not hot to the point of spontaneously uttering expletives before saying, “…that’s hot!

            And, let’s not ignore ancillary benefits such as steam inhalation and other healthy effects such as diaphoresis (aka sweating,) sorry, liked the sound of the word and had to look it up myself a few years ago.  Sweating also initiates detoxification, boosts immune response, and are simultaneously invigorating and relaxing.  A friend of mine has said it is the paradoxical nature of all things in life which makes anything worth writing about in the first place (I am paraphrasing in lieu of plagiarizing.)  I will continue to add treatments and quote research studies in my women’s health section of the blog.