Detox

Men drinking alcohol

Shortening Recovery Time After Overindulgence
Shortening Recovery Time After Overindulgence 2560 1707 Recovery Lounge & Spa

Happy month of overindulgence, to those who celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in the American manner! When we’re young it’s a lot easier to bounce back from a fun night or even more than one, but a normal part of aging is the accumulation of toxins that slows down our body’s ability to recover and detoxify. How can we improve or assist that recovery time for those special occasions when we want to indulge a bit, whether that’s in alcohol, other substances, or even foods that aren’t the healthiest for us?

Our most assistive modality in that regard is definitely the IonCleanse Foot Detox. Occasionally we will have clients who want to get a leg up on that overindulgence recovery time and will come in for a foot detox BEFORE a night of partying, but we actually don’t recommend doing so. The reason is that the foot detox actually starts a detoxification process throughout the body that will generally last for the next 3-5 days, and to overindulge once you’ve kickstarted that process would be more taxing to the body. In essence, your liver, lymphatic system, and other detoxification organs and systems will already be working hard so you don’t want to add on additional stress. However, coming in a day or two AFTER overindulging is a great strategy! 

The IonCleanse “patented program generates positive and negative ions from the electrolysis of water to create an ionic field that neutralizes positively and negatively charged toxins from the body”. (Source: amajordifference.com/detox-footbath-heavy-metals/) In essence, stored toxins in our body have a charge, and we are using the opposite charge to attract and neutralize them. The current generated in the water also activates the parasympathetic nervous system, helping the body get into rest and digest mode, as opposed to the constant fight or flight that many of us tend to get stuck in. 

A toxic environment affects every system in the body, impairing our immune system, impacting our gut health and metabolism, and can even lead to cognitive dysfunction and brain fog. In order to get to a baseline of a detoxified system, IonCleanse recommends doing as many sessions as one’s age – weekly, biweekly, or even more frequently if the body is handling it well and one is staying hydrated and supplementing trace minerals. After that, you can switch to a maintenance regimen, that may be monthly, bimonthly, or quarterly, depending on your lifestyle and exposure to daily toxins.

The best advice we can give for pre-party prep is tanking up on hydration, adding some electrolytes and trace minerals, prioritizing good sleep, and of course having a plan for indulging safely that includes a safe ride home. Party on, have fun, and we’ll see you on the flip side! 

Our March specials include a Lymphatic Massage & Foot Detox for just $129, and both are very helpful in detoxification in addition to simply being relaxing and assisting the body in working optimally, helping to shorten recovery time, whether from illness, injury, fatigue, or overindulgence. 

 

woman getting lymphatic massage

Lymphatic Drainage Massages Will Tell Your Hangover to Take a Hike
Lymphatic Drainage Massages Will Tell Your Hangover to Take a Hike 1707 2560 Recovery Lounge & Spa
by Lizzy Hill
Sourced from SheKnows

 

After a night of hitting the sake a little too hard in a Tokyo alleyway aptly nicknamed “drunkard’s alley,” I woke up in my tiny hotel with one of the worst hangovers of my life. I was traveling with one of my best friends, who’d just woken up too — only annoyingly, he was bright-eyed and chipper that morning. Somehow, he appeared totally unaffected by the fact that we’d been pounding tall tumblers full of sake the night before, convincing ourselves we could speak Japanese to the unfortunate locals we crossed paths with.

“What do you want to do today!?” he said eagerly, rattling off a list of places we could walk to.

“I want to move as little as humanly possible,” I said bitterly. Seeing his crestfallen face and realizing that we had a limited number of days to explore Tokyo, I realized I had to get myself together. I was desperate and would try literally anything to murder this hangover, so I booked a lymphatic drainage massage at a Shibuya spa called Natura that promised to remove toxins from my body — and man did they ever deliver. As it turns out, lymphatic drainage massages were the best hangover cure I’d never heard of.

Generally, I don’t go for woo-woo promises about toxin elimination, but positive reviews online made me think that there might be something to lymphatic drainage massages. These massages are huge in Asia, but still haven’t become mainstream in North America, though people are increasingly aware of them with many hailing them as the reason French women allegedly don’t get cellulite. Though in my experience, they have way more important benefits (because honestly, I’m just so tired of caring about cellulite).

But first of all, what in the world is a lymphatic drainage massage? As it turns out, it’s a special massage technique that focuses on your lymphatic system and helps trigger the natural movement of lymph, a clear fluid that gives waste products a ride out of your body.

My massage therapist lightly pushed and stretched my skin with her fingertips, focusing a lot on places other massage therapists generally skip — where your lymph nodes are located — like my armpits, back of my knees, face and chest. Though it felt kind of weird at first to have someone poking and prodding at me, I quickly relaxed and actually fell asleep on the table. When the massage was over, I felt like a million bucks, was light-headed and was shocked to notice my morning-after face looked different as the massage actually reduced fluid retention. My puffy eyes were gone and my cheeks actually looked more chiseled. I felt miraculously fresh and ready to take on my day, despite the fact that I’d drank like a fish the night before.

The scientific world is just catching up to the health benefits of lymphatic drainage massage, but research into its effects on the body appears to take a positive bent. For instance, a study in The Journal of Neuroscience on 32 male subjects found that this form of massage “was effective in reducing the activity of the sympathetic nervous system.” Translation? Lymphatic drainage massage will calm you the eff down as it slows down the fight-or-flight part of your nervous system that triggers adrenaline when under stress.

Part of the reason you feel so crappy when you’re hungover is because your sympathetic nervous system goes into overdrive. When alcohol dials up your sympathetic nervous system, symptoms can include “increased systolic blood pressure, rapid heartbeat (i.e., tachycardia), tremor and sweating,” according to research by Dr. Robert Swift and Dr. Dena Davidson. And that’s just the physical symptoms!

The mental symptoms can include: “ dizziness; a sense of the room spinning (i.e., vertigo); and possible cognitive and mood disturbances, especially depression, anxiety and irritability.” So this could partially explain why I felt so ridiculously good after my lymphatic drainage massage, as my massage therapist was actually slowing down my overtaxed sympathetic nervous system.

Natura Spa also claims that their lymphatic drainage massages can boost blood flow and are great for those with poor circulation, and I totally believe it. As it turns out drinking to excess also messes with your blood circulation, and these negative effects can be seen in as little as two drinks. Dr. John Floras, director of cardiology research at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, studied the impacts of drinking on blood flow, and found that “two or more drinks would seem to turn on systems that stress the circulation.” But let’s be real here, sometimes most of us are going to have more than one glass of wine, and when we do, getting a lymphatic drainage massage that will help improve our circulation the next day may not be a bad idea.

That all being said, you should definitely avoid getting a massage if you’re still drunk, as most massage therapists seriously advise against doing that. And while a lymphatic drainage massage worked like a charm for me and cured my hangover, it’s important to be aware of what your own body needs. Communicate with your massage therapist if you are hungover and be sure to let them know if anything they’re doing feels uncomfortable in a bad way.

Of course, lymphatic drainage massages aren’t just for hungover messes — they can also help you stay healthy during cold and flu season, boost your immune system, help people who feel low energy, aid in your recovery from surgery and the list goes on. Why haven’t I been getting these my whole life?

If you don’t live in a big city or have extra cash to blow on massages, don’t fret! I was pleased to discover there are plenty of self-massage videos on YouTube for people hoping to try lymphatic drainage massages at home. So if you’re wondering what I’ve been up to lately, you’ll find me home curled up on the couch and self-massaging my lymph nodes while watching Mr. Robot — I highly recommend it!

Two people laying on PEMF mats

Improve your Heart Health with PEMF Therapy
Improve your Heart Health with PEMF Therapy 852 383 Recovery Lounge & Spa

When customers come into Recovery Lounge & Spa for the first time, many of them do our Intro Special and try out three of our Recovery Services. When we ask our customers which service was their favorite, most often, it’s PEMF Therapy. A retired Vietnam veteran told us it’s “like a visit to the beach, a peaceful oasis.” 

Our Pulsed Electromagnetic Field Therapy Mats with Far Infrared are designed to increase blood flow and supercharge the mitochondria. Users experience deep relaxation and pain relief but often wonder “What’s the Science behind PEMF?”

February is the month of Love. In honor of the heart, we’d like to share a video testimonial by Dr. Jim Maynard, who shares his experience using PEMF Therapy to improve his heart health. Throughout the video testimonial, he refers to his Omnium1 PEMF Mat, which is the travel version of the iMRS Prime that we use here at Recovery Lounge & Spa.

Dr. Jim Maynard is a 71-year-old retired optometric physician who retired in 2003 and had his first heart attack in 2006 due to a 98% block in one of his coronary arteries. Following his triple bypass surgery, he went on to have 4 more heart attacks over the next 4 years, experiencing greater pain and fatigue with each subsequent heart attack. 

After watching Dr. Oz talk about PEMF Therapy, Dr. Jim Maynard purchased an Omnium1 in June 2017 and shares a testimonial of his experience with PEMF Therapy, how it has impacted his heart health, and the results he tracked through his Darkfield Microscopy exams.

 

Time of Darkfield Microscopy Results:

Dr. Jim Maynard purchased an Omnium1 in June 2017 

  • 1st Blood Analysis in July 2017 (3 weeks after using Omnium1) –
    Result looked good.
  • 2nd Blood Analysis in Oct. 2017 (3 ½ months after using Omnium1) –Results looked even better.
  • 3rd Blood Analysis in March 2018 (3 weeks without using Omnium1) –‘DISASTER strikes’, he said.
  • 4th Blood Analysis in April 2018 (3 weeks after using Omnium1 again) –
    Back to dramatic improvement.

 

Questions for Dr. Jim Maynard about his blood flow analysis testimonial:

Am I understanding what he did? Did he use it, got well, stopped using it, and got sick again? Do you have to use PEMF for life? You would think that after using it so much you would have sustained improvement because you’ve created healthier cells? Can you explain this?

 

Response from Dr. Jim Maynard:

If your goal is to improve cellular status, yes, you must continue it for life. Because, when you have coronary artery diseases, the cells are damaged at the stem cell level and PEMF (as far as I know) does not cause our cellular growth to reproduce healthier cells. 

  • The PEMF effectiveness is accomplished by improving the quality of the cells we have by making them more efficient at their job. 
  • It improves the wall thickness, allows cells to carry a higher volume of oxygen, and the magnetic effect on the iron (hemoglobin) keeps them from clumping with other cells. 
  • This produces a more efficient cellular function and thus improves shortness of breath along with providing our muscles and organs with more oxygen critical to metabolism and growth.

 

It may be that there are disorders that are only temporary to begin with that once the PEMF brings them under control and returns them to normal that one can cease the use of the Omnium1. But that seems to be counter productive to me. Why would you want to discontinue something that helped you become healthier and improve your immunity or resistance to a disorder of any type? Now, I can say that missing a few days may not be critical as it took weeks for me to reach that frightening state again. I suspect the time before I would return to that state now may be longer than before. But I cannot know that without stopping and testing again. I’ll never do that again. The reason I did it then was because I wanted to see what the cells looked like prior to my beginning the Omnium1 Mat.

Believe me, with my health issues of the past and the fact that I am now feeling healthier and looking younger than I have in many years, I have no desire to find out what might happen if I totally stopped. I feel much better also. I’ll never give up my Omnium1 Mat. EVEN my cardiologist is now looking into the studies and research. I can’t promise everybody my results. I was pretty bad off. But I’ve come a long way baby……….

 

Best wishes,

Jim Maynard

 

The Omnium1 is the less expensive travel version of the iMRS Prime which is what we use, at Recovery Lounge & Spa. If you’re interested in renting or purchasing a Swiss Bionic PEMF mat, contact [email protected]

Woman relaxing in spa

The Link between Detox and the Immune System
The Link between Detox and the Immune System 2560 1707 Recovery Lounge & Spa

How DOES detoxing improve your immune system?

 

You may have heard from friends and trusted sources that detoxing or cleansing helps your immune system. But have you ever wondered why or wanted more of an explanation? Here at Recovery Lounge and Spa, we are curious people and like to seek out more information to answer these frequently asked questions.

 

Our immune system plays an important role in protecting our body from toxins and other harmful substances. When toxins enter the body, our immune system recognizes them as foreign invaders and triggers an immune response, releasing antibodies and other chemicals to fight them off. This immune response can result in inflammation and other symptoms, depending on the type and frequency of toxins you’re being exposed to.

 

Traditionally, health care providers have told us that eating a healthy diet, getting plenty of rest, and exercising regularly builds a strong immune system. Lots of people take it one step further and reduce exposure to environmental toxins by eating organic and replacing toxin household chemicals with nontoxic alternatives.

 

Recently, we’ve heard some holistic health experts say that where diet and a healthy lifestyle used to be the key to a healthy immune system, lately and increasingly, improving your diet and lifestyle just doesn’t seem to be enough. This sparked our interest and we wanted to learn more.

 

First, we wanted to know what are toxins exactly and where do they come from?

 

Let’s start with toxins. When most of us think of toxins and limiting exposure to toxins we are actually thinking about “toxicants.” Toxicants are synthetic or manmade substances that we’re exposed to from beauty products, pollution, pesticides, and household cleaners. Those of us who jumped on the nontoxic bandwagon and have already swapped out the chemical based beauty products and household cleaners for natural and nontoxic cleaning products ask, haven’t I addressed that already?

 

Reducing your exposure to toxicants in your household is a great first step. But, as the pandemic restrictions recede, we are spending less time at home and more time out and about. When we are out and about, we are exposed to commercial cleaning products and (since the pandemic) high levels of toxic pesticides in commercial disinfecting products intended to kill infectious viruses and bacteria like COVID. So, even when we reduce our exposures at home, we have very little control over what we are being exposed to in public spaces AND the amount of toxic substances being used to clean and disinfect those public spaces has increased exponentially over the past 2 years.

 

Now, I am not advocating that we stop disinfecting in the face of COVID, that would be an unhelpful solution. And, at Recovery Lounge and Spa, we use commercial-grade nontoxic disinfectants so we’ve already taken extra steps to reduce your exposure to toxicants when you come to see us. But, in this climate of higher than ever exposure to toxicants through commercial disinfectants, we are suggesting that there might be a new and increased need, to help our bodies get rid of all the toxicants that we are exposed to on a daily basis out in the community and that’s where detoxing or cleansing comes in.

 

Before we move on to solutions though, I want to talk more about toxins. When most of us think of toxic substances, we are thinking of the manmade toxins or “toxicants.” But there’s a whole other variety of naturally occurring toxins that are produced by living organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi, and mold. These types of toxins are left behind in our bodies every time our immune system fights off a virus, cold, or flu and COVID in particular, leaves behind a high toxin load.

 

So, if your family feels like they can’t get a break this cold and flu season, there might be a good reason why. As we’ve all heard on the news, the viruses might be particularly more contagious this year or our immune systems may have been weakened by wearing masks and social distancing. But another contributing factor might also be that our bodies are struggling under the high toxin load left behind from COVID and RSV. That, in combination with a constant exposure to toxicants from the physical environment taxes our system to rid the body of all the toxins from the last illness and rebound fully before getting hit by another. This can have a compounding effect with each illness and be particularly difficult for kids with immature detoxification pathways and for pregnant people or people with already compromised immune systems.

 

This is where detoxing and cleansing can help. When you have lingering fatigue after an illness or symptoms that just don’t seem go away, these can be signs that your body is struggling to break down toxins left behind by the virus or bacteria that caused the illness.

 

Our Detox and Immunity Boost day spa package was designed to help rid your body of toxins at every level, so your body doesn’t have to work so hard to get rid of them and you can feel better faster.

 

We’ll start you off with Infrared Sauna and PEMF Therapy. The Infrared Sauna detoxes your body on a cellular level, helping your body to release toxins stored in the cells. PEMF Therapy increases circulation to help open up detox pathways so your body can move the toxins. You’ll finish with our IonCleanse Footbath which helps your body to release toxins through pores in your feet and starts a 2-3 day full body detox process.

 

If you really want to take your immune system to the next level, combine our Detox and Immunity spa package with a Lymphatic Massage. Lymphatic Massage helps to physically move and flush the lymphatic system which is responsible for removing toxins and pathogens from your blood and it increases lymph circulation 1000% for up to 32hrs after your massage.

 

For those of you who can’t seem to get better and stay well this winter, we recommend Sauna & PEMF followed by Lymphatic Massage and Foot Detox for the ultimate immune system flush and reset.

 

If you really want to take your immune system & resilience to the next level, detoxing and cleansing monthly, as a part of your regular healthcare regimen helps to reduce the toxic baseline inside your body. So when you are exposed to bacteria or a virus, your body can have a swift and targeted response to a single invader, rather than a systemic level immune response, reacting to all of the toxins in your body at once.

 

This may be one factor playing a role in why some people get sicker than others when exposed to the same illness or why some people have more trouble recovering from illness than others.

 

Here at Recovery Lounge and Spa, we know that not everyone’s body functions the same. And, in some cases, more detox is not better. So, for those of you who are struggling with autoimmune challenges, Lyme and mold, be sure to consult our suggested modifications before scheduling multiple services in one day.

 

In our next blog post, How Detoxing can Change your Life, we’ll share stories from some of our guests and ask one of our community health partners why they recommend detoxing to their patients.

lymphatic facial massage

What is the Lymphatic System?
What is the Lymphatic System? 2202 1466 Recovery Lounge & Spa

What is the Lymphatic System?

The lymphatic system is part of the immune system, helps keep fluid levels throughout the body in balance and helps to protect us from infection and disease.

The lymphatic system is made up of lymphatic vessels, tissues, organs, and glands that work together to drain a watery fluid called lymph from throughout the body. This lymph system acts as a drainage system from our tissues into our blood. Lymphatic fluid flows through a network of lymph vessels which connect to lymph nodes that act as a filter to trap pathogens.

Inside the lymph nodes is where our white blood cells (lymphocytes) live. They attack and break down bacteria, viruses, damaged cells, and cancer cells. Lymphatic fluid carries waste products from destroyed bacteria, viruses, and damaged cells from the lymph nodes back into the bloodstream, and onto the liver and kidneys. The liver and kidneys then remove the waste products and destroyed pathogens from the blood and pass them out of the body with other bodily waste. 

The lymph system only flows one way, towards to heart. When our lymphatic system is not circulating well, we can experience swelling and edema in the tissues. The lymph system is stimulated by gravity, movement & exercise, hydrotherapy (alternating hot and cold water on the skin), breathing, lymph drainage therapy, and massage. 

Ways to Boost Your Lymphatic System

Ways that people can boost functioning of their lymphatic system to improve their immune system and expedite waste removal from the body include:

  • Increase Daily Water Intake
  • Engage in regular physical activity
  • Eat fruits and vegetables & limit the intake of processed foods
  • Utilize Cold Water Therapy after Sauna
  • Lymphatic Drainage Massage

Lymphatic Drainage Massage increases lymph circulation by (%) and is particularly helpful to stimulate the immune system, post surgery to help move lymph from swollen tissues into the bloodstream to expedite the healing process, and to help the body increase lymph circulation to help process & excrete excess toxins from the body.

Detoxification: The Missing Link to Wellness
Detoxification: The Missing Link to Wellness 2560 1707 Recovery Lounge & Spa

We live in a toxic world. There is no question about that. Here in Denver, Colorado we have had the dubious honor lately of having the worst air quality index in the world. Many are struggling to breathe, especially if they have underlying lung conditions. As if that weren’t enough, the number of environmental toxins we encounter on a daily basis tends to be very high, especially if we aren’t making any effort to mitigate our exposure.

The importance of detoxification is often overlooked in the big picture of overall health and wellness. If the body’s detoxification pathways are overburdened and sluggish, the resulting toxic burden can manifest in a variety of ways. These might include fatigue, brain fog, skin issues, digestive problems, muscle and joint pain, sinus congestion, poor sleep, headaches, hormonal imbalances, anxiety, and more.

Toxins can even amplify the impact of viruses, as discussed in this paper: The under-reported role of toxic substance exposures in the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors state, “Different people will be exposed to distinct toxic stressors combinations, and will respond differently according to the composition of the toxic stressors combinations and a person’s genetic makeup and overall level of health.”

Here at Denver Recovery Lounge, we offer a variety of modalities that can assist your body in optimizing detoxification. Good nutrition, hydration, and exercise are certainly paramount, but adding in a detox protocol can definitely help keep one’s toxic burden from manifesting in illness. In the informative video below, Dr. Mark Hyman and Maggie Ward MS, RD, LDN, talk about How to Optimize Your Body’s Detoxification System. In addition to taking a holistic approach that looks at an individual’s entire spectrum of health, and first looking to food as medicine, they mention how utilizing a sauna can help in the detox process.

Our Sunlighten Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna generates a sweat that is 7x more detoxifying than a traditional sauna. Researchers have long known that toxic substances, including heavy metals, are eliminated from the body through sweat. Therefore, the more you can safely sweat (while maintaining proper hydration), the greater quantity of toxins will be released from your body. Infrared sauna usage is one of the most effective methods of inducing a detoxifying sweat.

The sauna isn’t our only modality that aids in detoxification, but it is a great place to start. Our Thrive Membership includes unlimited sauna and iMRS mat, which is our Pulsed Electromagnetic Frequency (PEMF) therapy, which you can learn more about here. At only $120/month, it pays for itself with just two hours of use. Book online or give us a call at 720-460-0003 to discuss options.

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