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| should be wet enough to stay cold for several minutes. When it warms to body temperature, soak it again, adding ice as needed to keep the tea cold. Repeat until the treatment has lasted 15 to 20 minutes. Dry the skin gently. |
| A fomentation is a hot compress. Fomentations increase circulation and soothe injuries. They often bring relief to painful joints, although it's worth experimenting with both cold compresses and hot fomentations to discover which provides the most relief. Wearing rubber gloves, saturate a thick cloth with strong, hot, strained tea, wring it gently, then unfold it to let it cool slightly. You don't want it to burn or scald, but for best results it must be as hot as possible. Test the temperature against your inner arm. When it's hot but not too hot, apply it to the desired area and cover with a thick folded towel to retain heat. Repeat after 10 minutes. |
| Hydrotherapy is a healing art in itself. A quart of strong oatstraw, peppermint, chamomile, comfrey, lavender, ginger, lemon balm or sweet spice tea added to your bath is both an herbal and aromatherapy treatment. An effective therapy for muscle soreness and arthritis is to add salts as well as herbal teas to your bath. For a luxurious spa treatment, look for bath salts from the Dead Sea or add a little seaweed to your salt bath. Try combining any quantity of table or sea salt, epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) from the drug store or supermarket, baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and borax, the laundry product. Dissolve at least four cups of this blend in hot water |
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