Likewise, ice or icy water should not be used in the hydropathic treatment of chronic diseases. Excessive cold is as suppressive in its effects upon the organism as are poisonous antiseptics or antifever medicines.
The baths, sprays, douches, etc., should not be kept up too long.
The duration of the cold-water applications must be regulated by the individual conditions of the patient and by his powers of reaction; but it should be borne in mind that it is the short, quick application that produces the stimulating, electromagnetic effects upon the system.
In the following pages are described some of the baths and other cold-water applications that are especially adapted to the treatment of chronic diseases.
How to Keep the Feet Warm
The proverb says: "Keep the head cool and the feet warm." This is good advice, but most people attempt to follow it by "doctoring"
their cold feet with hot-water bottles, warming pans, hot bricks or irons, etc. These are excellent means of making the feet still colder, because "heat makes cold and cold makes heat."
In accordance with the Law of Action and Reaction, hot applications drive the blood away from the feet, while cold applications draw the blood to the feet. Therefore, if your feet are cold and bloodless (which means that the blood is congested in other parts of the body), walk barefoot in the dewy gra.s.s, in a cool brook, on wet stone pavements or on the snow.
Instead of putting a hot-water bottle to the feet of a bedridden invalid, bathe his feet with cold water, adding a little salt for its electric effect, then rub and knead (ma.s.sage), and finish with a magnetic treatment by holding his feet between your hands and willing the blood to flow into them. This will have a lasting good effect not only upon the feet, but upon the entire organism.
The following cold-water applications are very effective for curing chronic cold feet:
(1) Foot Bath
Stand in cold water reaching up to the ankle for one minute only.
Dry the feet with a coa.r.s.e towel and rub them vigorously with the hands, or walk about briskly for a few minutes. Repeat if necessary.
(2) Leg Bath
(a) Stand in water up to the calves, then proceed as above.
(b) Stand in water up to the knees, then rub vigorously or walk as directed.
(3) Barefoot Walking
Walk barefoot in wet gra.s.s or on wet stone pavements several times a day, from ten to twenty minutes at a time, or less in case of weakness. The early morning dew upon the gra.s.s is especially beneficial; later in the day wet the gra.s.s or pavement with a hose.
After barefoot walking, dry and rub the feet thoroughly and take a short, brisk walk in shoes and stockings.
(4) Indoor Water-Treading
Stand in a bathtub or large foottub containing about two inches of cold water, step and splash vigorously for several minutes, then dry and rub the feet and increase the circulation by walking around the room a few times.
(5) Foot Spray
Turn the full force of water from a hydrant or hose first on one foot, then on the other. Let the stream play alternately on the upper part of the feet and on the soles. The coldness and force of the water will draw the blood to the feet.
These applications are excellent as a means of stimulating and equalizing the circulation and a sure cure for cold and clammy feet, as well as for sweaty feet.
In this connection, we warn our readers most strongly against the use of drying powders or antiseptic washes to suppress foot-sweat.
Epilepsy and other serious nervous disorders have been traced to this practice.
(6) Partial Ablutions
Partial ablutions with cold water are very useful in many instances, especially in local inflammation or where local congestion is to be relieved. The "Kalte Guss" [cold water splashing] forms an important feature of the Kneipp system of water cure.
Sprays or showers may be administered to the head, arms, chest, back, thighs, knees or wherever indicated, with a dipper, a sprinkler or a hose attached to the faucet or hydrant. The water should be of natural temperature and the "guss" of short duration.
(7) Limb Bath
Take up cold water in the hollow of the hands from a running faucet or a bucket filled with water, rub arms and legs briskly for a few minutes.
(8) Upper Body Bath
Stand in an empty tub, take water in the hollow of the hands from a running faucet or a bucket filled with cold water and rub briskly the upper half of the body from neck to hips, for two or three minutes. Use a towel or brush for those parts of the body that you cannot reach with the hands.
(9) Lower Body Bath
Proceed as in (8), rubbing the lower part of the body from the waist downward.
(10) Hip Bath
Sit in a large basin or in the bathtub in enough water to cover the hips completely, the legs resting on the door or against the sides of the tub. While taking the hip bath, knead and rub the abdomen.
Dry with a coa.r.s.e towel, then rub and pat the skin with the hands for a few minutes.
The duration of the hip bath and the temperature of the water must be adapted to individual conditions. Until you are accustomed to cold water, use water as cool as can be borne without discomfort.
(11) The Morning Cold Rub
The essentials for a cold rub, and in fact for every cold-water treatment, are warmth of the body before the application, coolness of the water (natural temperature), rapidity of action and friction or exercise to stimulate the circulation. No cold-water treatment should be taken when the body is in a chilled condition.
Directly from the warmth of the bed, or after sunbath and exercise have produced a pleasant glow, go to the bathroom, sit in the empty tub with the stopper in place, turn on the cold water, and as it flows into the tub, catch it in the hollow of the hands and wash first the limbs, then the abdomen, then chest and back. Throw the water all over the body and rub the skin with the hands like you wash your face.
Do this quickly but thoroughly. The entire procedure need not take up more than a few minutes. By the time the bath is finished, there may be from two to four inches of water in the tub. Use a towel or brush for the back if you cannot reach it otherwise.
As long as there is a good reaction, the "cold rub" may be taken in an unheated bathroom even in cold weather.
After the bath, dry the body quickly with a coa.r.s.e towel and finish by rubbing with the hands until the skin is dry and smooth and you are aglow with the exercise, or expose the wet body to the fresh air before an open window and rub with the hands until dry and warm.
A bath taken in this manner combines the beneficial effects of cold water, air, exercise and the magnetic friction of the hands on the body (life on life). No lifeless instrument or mechanical appliance can equal the dexterity, warmth and magnetism of the human hand.
The bath must be so conducted that it is followed by a feeling of warmth and comfort. Some persons will be benefited by additional exercise or, better still, a brisk walk in the open air, while others will get better results by returning to the warmth of the bed.
There is no better means for stimulating the general circulation and for increasing the eliminative activities of the system than this cold morning rub at the beginning of the day after the night"s rest.
If kept up regularly, its good effects will soon become apparent.
This method of taking a morning bath is to be preferred to the plunge into a tub filled with cold water. While persons with very strong const.i.tutions may experience no ill effects, to those who are weak and do not react readily, the cold plunge might prove a severe shock and strain upon the system.
When a bathtub is not available, take the morning cold rub in the following manner:
Stand in an empty washtub. In front of you, in the tub, place a basin or bucket filled with cold water. Wet the hands or a towel and wash the body, part by part, from the feet upward, then dry and rub with the hands as directed.