Spas unwind your body, tranquil your mind and invigorate your soul.
Ancient cultures believed that imbalances between body and mind were the main reason for illnesses and different forms of health-related problems.
Even though since Plato we have known that the body and mind are an inseparable unit and must be treated together in order to achieve health improvement, philosophers, scientists, biochemists and neurologists still keep discussing the exact research results regarding this issue.
Our mind is often said to be responsible for our feelings, thoughts, beliefs, awareness and drive, and can therefore positively or negatively affect our biochemical functioning and overall health and well-being. That being said, it is up to us to keep control of our thoughts and how we react to the things happening around us.
Treatments
Nowadays, in our hectic life there is a constantly growing demand for relaxation and recreation. Spas play a main role in the healing process and serve as preventative well-being hubs. They stimulate all our senses – sight, smell, touch, sound and taste – and thus have a direct impact on us from all angles.
Apart from all those benefits that we have already discussed in our earlier posts, such as the healing effects of water or the beneficial massage therapies and indulging treatments, spas also serve as a refuge for the mind. Their tranquil atmosphere, beautifully designed spaces, charming smells and alluring treatments are enough for the mind to go “offline”.
Leading spas reinforced the significance of including services to their menus that are recharging, rejuvenating and relieving from stress from head to toe, inside and out. They advise and coach relaxation techniques, yoga, tai chi, chanting and meditation. So-called “biofeedback services”, combined with visualisation and breathing exercises, guided meditations in order to reinstate overall well-being have also already been introduced to the market. Overwhelming rituals are being performed to treat the body-mind-spirit trinity. The use of integrative medicine is incorporated in order to restore the inner balance and optimize the clients’ outer presence. However, let’s not forget that all these treatments are not new to humanity, we just tend to forgot that our ancestors strongly believed that beauty and harmony comes from inside.
So the aim of these holistic treatments is to alleviate our entire being. To re-connect body, mind and soul in a way that brings our inner and outer selves into better balance.
Body-Mind connection from different aspects
Psychology aspect
The psychology of bathing can also be connected to the concept that life originates and develops in early stages in water. We – as babies – start our life in water, in the amniotic fluid. This nine-month period leaves a lifelong experience and when later on during our life we take a bath, the brain subconsciously and randomly calls back memories from this period of time when we felt safe and secure, protected and sheltered in our mothers’ wombs.
Collective consciousness aspect
The other factor that plays a part comes from the culture of bathing and from the fact that water has always served for healing purposes and has been applied for purifying ceremonies by early civilisations for thousands of years.
Physiology aspect
Immersion in water has favourable impacts on our mood and body. Our joints and muscles move more easily and recover faster and due to the fact that we partly leave gravity we feel lighter. We perceive ourselves thinner, smaller and our skin smoother. We feel clean.
In water at body temperature, hormonal changes are prompted by the pituitary gland (which produces many important hormones) and after complex biochemical shifts the stress hormone cortisol is produced that regulates glucose and protein metabolism, which has an impact on the immune system, boosts our energy levels and leaves us with a feeling of well-being.
Finally, some thought-provoking facts:
Based on different surveys we know that recovery from an illness – apart from medication and treatments – highly depends on the following factors:
- The communication and relationship between doctor/specialist and patient
- The way how the doctor explains the situation to their client
- Belief in recovery and willpower of the patient (mental strength)
- The surrounding where the treatments is done and where patients stay after the cure
In some of our upcoming articles we will introduce forms of relaxation techniques and some complementary spa treatments that can further enhance the benefits of visiting a spa.
