Benefit of Water Therapy
Water Therapy is a natural therapy based on the internal and external use of water in prevention and treatment of diseases, rehabilitation and improving ones overall well being.
The human body consists of over 60 percent water. It is not surprising then that water has so many healing applications. Water heals from both the inside out and the outside in.
Water can be therapeutic in many ways:
Physical Water Therapy:
Different recovery centers are using water therapy programs as integrative ways to address chronic illnesses and conditions that have not responded to conventional medical modalities.
In these centers, patients suffering from debilitating pain, diabetes, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, and other illnesses have significantly improved their quality of life.
Physical water therapy incorporates many techniques including:
Swimming exercise, swimming pool games, water walking exercise, massage therapy, anti aging exercises, and stretching to treat physical dysfunction or injury.
There are many benefits from participation in a physical water therapy program beyond the fact that the aquatic environment is very enjoyable:
- The buoyancy of the water supports and lessens stress on the joints and encourages freer movement.
- Water also acts as a resistance to help build muscle strength.
Jump in! Burn fat, tone muscle and stay in shape even if you are plagued with knee, ankle, foot or leg problems...
Water fitness programs can be highly challenging and effective for people of all ages and they have multiple healing effects, like:
- Relief of pain and muscle spasm
- Re-education of walking patterns
- Increased joint range
- Increased muscle strength
- Improvement of peripheral circulation
- Balance enhancement
- Support of otherwise completely immobile people
- Recovery from surgery (e.g. joint replacement), or complex trauma
- Movement pattern improvement
- Functional retraining for work
- Alternative medicine for sports injuries
* see also Bath and Body Works page on this site for training and fitness
Benefit of Water Exercise:
1. Water Therapy - natural cure for arthritis:
- water may be the only way to save yourself from the surgeon's knife...
The hydrostatic force of the water is thought to bring about pain relief, which may result from taking stress off the affected joint, relaxation or other factors. It is most commonly prescribed for patients with psoriatic arthritis or for rheumatoid arthritis symptom ... Arthritis Treatments
2. Water therapy - a different approach for treating Fibromyalgia:
According to the The National Fibromyalgia Association: Anyone in pain knows how soothing it is to slip into warm water. A sense of well-being flows over the skin and muscles and the mind stops working on its problems. When you add mild, appropriate exercise to the warm water, you've found an excellent recipe for relieving the aches and tenderness that accompanies fibromyalgia. By slowly stretching the neck, shoulders, upper back, and arms, you've begun to alleviate FM's symptoms. Then, when performing exercises against the water's resistance, you gain strength without risking injury. In deep water, there's no impact during exercise, so walking and running are possible even for the sorest muscles and joints.
3. Water Therapy - efficacy of aquatics for individuals with Asthma:
"There are numerous reasons why aquatics is good for individuals with asthma. These include low asthmogenicity, induces less severe bronchoconstriction, and enhances ventilatory muscle endurance and mucus clearance. Aquatics is well tolerated, it improves lung capacity, circulation, cough reflex and breath control. It also increases aerobic capacity, overall fitness, balance and coordination, and individuals can work at their own pace. . . ." - explains Darlene A. Herfurt, MSHA, MBA from Water Therapy & Rehab Institute.
4. Did you know that: Swimming is a liberating experience for many blind people?
"There are a surprising number of blind people who have never had the courage to move rapidly, or run full speed for fear of colliding with something. Some of us, who did have the courage if not the sense, have the scars to prove it. Diving into a pool, and swimming full out, or diving deep and swimming the length under water gives a real sense of freedom. In a pool you can assume many different body positions while moving through the water which feels wonderful, is good for you physically, and actually sensual. My sense of touch is developed not only in my fingers but also all over. When touch becomes a primary sense, instead of a secondary one, you pay much more attention to your skin sensations everywhere. The water in the pool is stimulating to the entire skin area." ... Benefit of Swimming for Visual Impairment -
The
waters of Abano Terme spring out of the earth at a natural temperature
of 85 degrees Celsius (185 degrees Fahrenheit). As the water travels
through calcareous rock (limestone and marble) three thousand meters
below the earth's surface, it becomes infused with minerals such as
salts, bromine, iodine, calcium, and magnesium.
The philosophy behind Idrokinesis, or thermal healing spring water rehabilitation, is that a wide variety of medical conditions can be treated through techniques incorporating this all-natural, rejuvenating mineral spring water. Patients suffering from physiological conditions such as fractures, chronic joint diseases, post-surgical trauma, arthritis, Parkinson's, and chronic back and neck pain have achieved positive results through these techniques.
Treatments range from Kneipp water therapy (which involves walking in thermal pools of various depths, temperatures, and pressures) to strengthening exercises overseen by a physiotherapist. 'Mature,' thermal mud is applied in a number of therapies administered by practitioners who work closely with La Residence's doctors. La Residence has indoor and outdoor thermal pools offering simple relaxation, in addition to the Idrokinesis center, which is reserved for patients who have devised a personalized rehabilitation program with the center's specialists.
Click here to select your the appropriate spa for your own health condition.
Romanian water therapy spas
Romania tops the list of countries with rich natural elements for all kinds of cures. The variety of relief, its climate and the abundant of mineral water springs made possible the establishment of numerous resorts in earliest times.
Techirghiol
From
Wikipedia: According to a legend, a blind and crippled old man named
Tekir and his old donkey reached the shore of the lake by mistake.
Trying to pull his stubborn animal out of the mud, Tekir was miraculously
healed so he could see and walk normally again. Since then the lake
has become famous for its healing properties.
Tekir and his donkey are featured in a statue located in the center
of the town.
The name also means (in Turkish) "Striped Lake" (tekir -
striped, and ghiol - lake). This is because of the salinity of the
lake; when the wind blows, white salt stripes appear on the surface
of the lake.
Techirghiol Balneotherapy Center
The sapropelic mud from the Techirghiol Lake (on the Black See coast), is the jewel of the resort. In 1924, at the Universal Exposition from Paris, the Techirghiol mud received the golden medal. Alphons Saligny was the first to study the therapeutic use of the mud; after this the Romanian Institute of Balneology approved it and during the 1930s the studies realized by Alphons Saligny and the Institute were the base for solid scientific proof regarding the therapeutic actions of the sapropelic mud of Techirghiol and the methodology of those treatments.
The sapropelic mud of Techirghiol is used warm for different kind of procedures:
- Wraps
- Cataplasm
- Water mixed, for baths in bathtubs
- Massage
- The use of therapeutic mud is also recommended for:
- Better skin elasticity,
- Hydration for cell strengthening and for dryness prevention.
- Skin healing ( in cases of psoriasis and eczema)
- A better state of well-being and relaxation
- Improvement of pain from anterior accidents, as well as those from rheumatism and muscular immobility.
General detoxification of the organism can easily be achieved after a series of general massages with mud, or after a cure of wrappings in the comfort of your own home, or in a specialized saloon, or on the seashore.
Sovata
The geological events in 1875 gave birth to the Bear Lake, which is unique
in Europe, its water being helio-thermal and salty, with well-known therapeutic
effects (for chronic gynecological symptoms, severe rheumatic pains, peripheral
nervous system and post-accidental motor diseases).
There are four more salty lakes: Nut Lake, Black Lake, Red Lake and Green Lake. In the interwar period, Sovata became one of the most fashionable spas in the country, visited several times even by the Romanian Royal Family.
Find the best deal, compare prices and read what other travelers have to say about hotels in Sovata
The Complete Waterpower Workout Book: Program for Fitness, Injury Prevention, and Healing
" I had a devastating knee injury about five and one half months ago (the doctor stated that I may never be able to obtain my pre-injury range of motion). The traditional rehab was going very slowly and very painfully. I asked my physician if I could exercise in the water, and after his approval, I started with the workouts in this book along with my prescribed rehab. I have gained 80% of my pre-injury range of motion and on a good start with my strength and balance with VERY little pain!! My physical therapist said I started improving much more rapidly after starting the water workouts and I have already exceeded the expected post-operative range of motion. I could not have done it without the water workouts!!" tells a reader.
Click here for more water
exercise books
Psychological benefits of water therapy include:
- Relaxation due to warmth and weightlessness
- Increased feeling of health and well being
- Increased self-confidence
- Recreation
- Improved mood through positive interaction with other participants
And guess what :
Pets can benefit from water therapy too!
Swimming is a form of rehabilitation therapy particularly appropriate for dogs and horses recovering from a range of conditions - especially those involving problems with limbs. All animals can swim by instinct. How much they enjoy it depends on their confidence in the water and this can be increased by gradual acclimatization. Read more...
