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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]

Mom comforting teen daughter

Teens & Mental Health
Teens & Mental Health 2560 1707 Recovery Lounge & Spa

At Recovery Lounge and Spa, we work with a lot of parents. When listening to parents of teens and young adolescents, we hear a lot of concerns about teen mental health and about the obstacles that parents face when they try to get help. In this blog, I’m going to share strategies for normalizing mental health, warning signs that your teen needs help, things parents can do to support teens who are struggling, and why Dynamical Neurofeedback is a great resource for teens. Don’t just take my word for it, I reached out to Lauren Brown, LPC at Discover Peace Within, for help.

When listening to parents talk about teen mental health, the top 3 challenges that I hear from parents are:

  1. Their child doesn’t want to go to therapy
  2. Parents can’t find providers who take their insurance or are accepting new clients
  3. The waiting list to get in with their providers can be long

Anyone who reads media headlines or talks to parents knows that nationally our teens are in the midst of a mental health crisis. And yet, many of us still don’t know how to break through the stigma of mental illness and normalize mental health.

How to talk to your Teen about Mental Health

Chances are that every one of our families is going to need support at some time in our teens’ young adult lives. In my opinion, the number one thing that we can do as parents to support our young people and bypass some of these obstacles, is to normalize talking about mental health and create a safety net of support long before they need it. 

One strategy for normalizing mental health care is to establish a relationship with a mental health care provider for your teen whether they are actively having mental health concerns or not. Then when issues arise, as they are bound to do with teens in today’s mental health climate, you both can call on someone that you already know instead of beginning this search when your family is struggling and overwhelmed with concern.

When talking to your teen about meeting a mental health provider, you can explain that it’s just like going to their pediatrician for well visits, something most of them have been doing their entire lives. You establish care and check in with them regularly (whether you think you need to or not) and then when you get sick, you already have a doctor you know and trust, who can give you medical care.

You can explain that we treat mental health the same way we treat physical health and that mental health is impacted by factors in our daily lives just like our physical health. Just like we are more likely to get sick during cold and flu season or during a COVID outbreak, we are more likely to have impacts on our mental health during a pandemic and national opioid crisis. This is a good opportunity to talk to them about things that have been going on at home or school recently that could impact the mental health of members in your community.  

It’s important to let young people know that healthy people frequently get sick when exposed to factors that cause illness and that there’s no such thing as being 100% mentally healthy or 100% mentally ill. While there are some people who may need ongoing care for their mental health (just like people with long term illnesses) there are people who need temporary mental health care just like when you get a temporary physical illness that needs medical attention. 

We can explain that taking care of our mental health is no different than taking care of our physical health. So, just like they would go to their PCP when they have a physical illness that comes up, it’s a good idea to have a mental health care provider as part of their healthcare team that they can see when they aren’t feeling well mentally or emotionally. That way, when mental stress or illnesses arise, you can call on someone you already know. Because let’s face it, with everything our young people are facing in their homes, community & schools, how could they not need a safe, neutral person to talk to from time to time?

Now, of course this approach may not work for everyone and not every provider may be willing or able to take on a caseload of perfectly healthy young people for regular mental health well visits. So, for parents in need of a more tangible approach, I reached out to Lauren Brown, LPC, a therapist who works with teens at Discover Peach Within, and here’s what she had to say:

Warning signs that your teen needs mental health support

Every child is unique in terms of mental health concerns and symptoms. But as a parent or caregiver, you have a good sense of what their “typical” looks like.

  • Changes in eating habits, sleep, or other everyday patterns
  • A loss of interest or avoiding things they usually love, including socializing with friends, sports and other activities
  • Academic struggles that are unusual for your child, such as a sudden drop in grades
  • Isolating from friends and family
  • Entirely new group of friends that engage in negative behaviors
  • Obsessive thoughts that won’t stop, including fear of death or something catastrophic
  • Engaging in self-destructive behavior, including drug and alcohol abuse. This can also include self-harm, such as cuts or bruises that seem unusual to you

What parents can do at home to support your teen

  • Even if there’s nothing wrong, regularly check in with your child. This will help you have a better sense of when something is wrong and continue to build a line of communication with your child. 
  • Keep in mind it is not abnormal for kids to avoid talking with their parents, no matter how close the relationship. Try not to take it personally and continue to communicate to your kid that they can tell you anything and you will be there for them when they need you.
  • Create an atmosphere where your child feels safe to discuss tough issues with you.
  • Emphasize that you will not judge them and explain you want to understand what they’re going through. Try to listen and empathize more and be careful to manage your own fears during the conversation. 
  • Help your child maintain a self-care routine and healthy coping skills (ex. physical activity, art, being outside, music, socializing, etc). 
  • Set rules for social media and phone time, including phone curfews. Social media is the number one cause of teen mental health issues at this time. 
  • Make family time a priority and spend time with your child doing activities they enjoy. 

When and Where to Get Help

It can be difficult to tell the difference between typical teen mood swings and when your child needs mental health counseling. Again, you know your child best. Trust your intuition. If your child is displaying several of the warning signs above for an extended period of time, it may be time to seek professional help.

What to do if you’re having trouble getting your teen to agree to counseling or your provider is hard to get in with when you really need it

Dynamical Neurofeedback or Brain Training is a great option for immediate support when your child is resistant to counseling or is unable to get in with their provider right away. Here are our Top 6 reasons why Dynamical Neurofeedback is great for Teens:

  1. No Talking Required
    Many teens are resistant to talk therapy and when given a choice between talk therapy or NeurOptimal®, they choose NeurOptimal® every time. And for cases where Brain Training can’t and should not replace the support of a professional mental healthcare provider, 80% of users experience greater than 40% improvement in counseling outcomes with 20 or more sessions of NeurOptimal® Brain Training.  NeurOptimal. (2014). Efficacy of NeurOptimal® Training [Data set]. Zengar Institute Inc [Distributor].
  2. No-one is telling your brain what to do, your brain is in charge.
    Brain training is different from traditional Neurofeedback, instead of trying to push your brain towards specific outcomes, it’s giving your brain feedback in real time so your brain can see what it’s doing and decide what to do about it. It’s like looking in a mirror and making adjustments to your appearance based on what you see in your reflection.  
  3. Parent-Approved Screen-time
    They can relax & watch a movie, listen to their favorite music, read a book, or get their homework done during the session. If they decide to watch a movie, NeurOptimal® provides feedback through the movie’s video & audio.
  4. Brain Training does not hurt
    There is no electrical input going into the brain. NeurOptmial® uses 5 sensors to listen to your brain activity and gives feedback that sounds like little clicks in the music or video audio  Watch this video to see what a session looks like. 
  5. Flexible Schedule
    It can be easily done during school breaks or vacations, after-school hours, and/or weekends.
  6. Rental Systems
    If coming to us doesn’t work with your family’s busy schedule, we rent NeurOptimal® systems for home usage.

Watch a Testimonial of one Teen’s Story: Things I Can’t Say: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJ8k1z2tZIg

Want to learn more about brain training with NeurOptimal®? Call 303-242-6938 or schedule a free virtual consultation with one of our certified Brain Trainers. 

 

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.

The Role of Diet in Chronic Inflammation & Pain
The Role of Diet in Chronic Inflammation & Pain 2560 1709 Recovery Lounge & Spa

I haven’t had any white sugar in over a year. People tend to respond with shock and/or disbelief, and will say things like, “I couldn’t do that,” or “Wow. You really have willpower,” or “That’s amazing!” The long and short of it is that sugar makes me feel really bad. I wish it didn’t. I wish I could indulge occasionally and have it be okay, but time after time my body shows me that it’s just not for me. I even have to limit the alternatives that I am able to tolerate: coconut sugar, agave, honey, and very occasional maple syrup. If I feel a rush or have a crash, I know it was too much.

I have a slew of chronic health issues, most stemming from a mild traumatic brain injury I sustained a decade ago, and I have had to learn through trial and error what works for me and what doesn’t. When I started researching to try and gain an understanding of what was happening to me, I learned that inflammation was likely at the root of most of it.

This article from Nature explains:

“Although intermittent increases in inflammation are critical for survival during physical injury and infection, recent research has revealed that certain social, environmental and lifestyle factors can promote systemic chronic inflammation (SCI) that can, in turn, lead to several diseases that collectively represent the leading causes of disability and mortality worldwide, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders. In the present Perspective we describe the multi-level mechanisms underlying SCI and several risk factors that promote this health-damaging phenotype, including infections, physical inactivity, poor diet, environmental and industrial toxicants and psychological stress.”

It was really fascinating to learn about, because as I moved out of the acute injury phase, one way that I described what was happening was that I felt stuck in fight or flight, and also, “It’s like my whole body went haywire.” Super technical terms, I know, but as it turns out, my whole body really DID go haywire.

Early on I figured out that gluten was very inflammatory for me, and eliminating it from my diet had a huge positive impact. I also discovered which foods were causing allergic reactions and eliminated those as well. A lot of the experts say that dairy is inflammatory for everyone. I have found that organic, full fat dairy in moderation is okay for me. However, I can’t tolerate soy. Every body is different! Even though at the time I didn’t have this excellent advice from Dr. Mark Hyman, this is essentially what I did:

1. Eat a whole food, high fiber, plant-based diet which is inherently anti-inflammatory.⁣⁣

2. Eat healthy fats from olive oil, nuts, avocados and omega 3 fats from small fish like sardines, herring, sable, and wild salmon.⁣⁣

3. Exercise.⁣⁣

4. Learn to actively relax to engage your vagus nerve, the powerful nerve that relaxes your whole body and lowers inflammation, by doing yoga, meditation, deep breathing or even taking a hot bath.⁣⁣

5. If you have food allergies, find out what they are and stop eating them.⁣⁣

6. Take probiotics (“good bacteria”) daily to help your digestion to improve the healthy bacteria in your gut which reduces inflammation.⁣⁣

7. Take a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement which helps reduce inflammation.⁣

The holidays are a difficult time for needing to be on a specialized diet, whether that’s due to allergies, inflammation, preference, or other reasons. Over the years after letting go of the foods that are inflammatory for me, I’ve had to learn how to adapt. That often means I’m making and bringing my own food to gatherings, but over time I’ve gotten used to it, and I really have fun experimenting with making new versions of well-loved treats. I’ve had success creating an alternative recipe for my favorite ginger molasses cookies, and my next experiment is going to be homemade eggnog, as that is something that I definitely miss this time of year.

What works for me is not going to work for everyone. Health is a very individual experience. However, if you are dealing with chronic health issues, taking a close look at diet, limiting or eliminating inflammatory foods, and optimizing your nutrition as you’re able can really help overall health. From there you can adapt traditions or create new ones!

Learn more about anti-inflammatory foods from Harvard Health.

In addition to diet changes, having access to our detoxifying and vagus nerve activating modalities (particularly NeurOptimal® and the infrared sauna) here at the Denver Recovery Lounge has also been key for me in attaining an anti-inflammatory lifestyle. I continue to see improvements and feel better and better each day!

 

 

The Many Benefits of Infrared Sauna Use
The Many Benefits of Infrared Sauna Use 1496 1076 Recovery Lounge & Spa

We’ve had quite the stretch of warm fall weather here in Denver, but it’s finally cooling down! Getting nice and toasty during the colder months is far from the only benefit of infrared sauna use, though. We go over many of the benefits on our website, including detoxification, pain relief, weight loss, wound healing, and more, but are excited to see emerging research on infrared sauna use in helping to relieve depression and boosting immunity.

We are proud to offer a Sunlighten mPulse 3-person Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna at Denver Recovery Lounge. Sunlighten is the only patented Solocarbon 3-in-1® full spectrum infrared sauna on the market that provides all three infrared wavelengths in one place and is customizable to each user.

Sunlighten explains in detail the mechanisms of How Infrared Saunas Can Boost Your Immune System During Cold and Flu Season on their blog, with the following conclusion:

“To maximize the synergistic immune-boosting benefits of infrared sauna, use full-spectrum infrared therapy. The near-infrared spectrum can stimulate immune cell growth and activity by stimulating your mitochondria. The mid-infrared spectrum penetrates deep into your tissues, ensuring that you benefit from the immune-stimulating effects of heat throughout your body and improving your sleep. Lastly, the far-infrared spectrum possesses great healing and anti-stress benefits.”

They have even more great info in another blog post, Immune System Hacks: Hormesis, Heat Shock Proteins, and Hyperthermia:

“Hormesis is the idea that the body needs to know how to adapt to extremes, like extreme heat or extreme cold, to be as resilient as we need it to be to fight off colds, flu, and other viruses and infections.”

Finally, in a third excellent and informative post, Sunlighten discusses How Infrared & Heat Help Relieve Depression. They cover all the emerging science on heat as a standalone or complimentary therapy in improving mental health. It’s all absolutely fascinating, so be sure to check it out.

Drop in for 15 minutes complimentary sauna before or after visits with our practitioners. We’re excited to announce we’ve added two practitioners to our team  – MiraClaire, CMT offering Lymphatic Drainage & Therapeutic Massage and MirIam Chernila offering Integrated Thai Massage. Learn more about their offerings HERE. Now through the end of the year, use Discount Code MCINTRO when you book a massage for $20 off your first visit. 

If you are ready to give regular infrared sauna use a try, we highly recommend our Thrive Membership, which includes unlimited sauna and iMRS PEMF Therapy mat. It pays for itself after just two hours!

Remember, you can add a friend or family member to your sauna visit for only $5.

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.

Breaking Free From Quarantine Stagnation
Breaking Free From Quarantine Stagnation 2560 1709 Recovery Lounge & Spa

It might be you or someone you know and love that just can’t get going right now. Things are shifting, vaccinations are out, masks are being removed, and “life” is opening up. We can see the smile from the grocery store checker…maybe. With a sense of liberation from quarantine, and the lingering unsteadiness that we’re not out-of-the-woods yet, some of us are not able to give that full smile.

​Because something still isn’t right inside. Effects of long-term stagnation for many people manifest as mental fogginess (AKA Brain Fog), puffiness, sore joints, bloating, feeling overloaded, fatigue, inability to interact, depression, anxiety, moodiness, and much more.  At the Denver Recovery Lounge (DRL), we’re calling those lingering experiences “Quarantine Stagnation.” And here’s why…
​
What is Stagnation in the Body?
It’s difficult to remove the mind and emotions from this discussion, so when we speak about the body in this context, know that we’re talking about this from a wholistic perspective. All inclusive. Because what happens to the gut affects the brain, and what happens to the brain when on overdrive affects the entire body.

Stagnation, in general terms, is when something that has a natural flow significantly slows down or stops. We cannot escape the natural flow in our bodies. Even in a coma systems are still moving. The heart is pumping, the breath is flowing, cells are metabolizing, and on and on it goes until our last breath. Even then, flow is still happening when our spirit is released and the body begins to decompose.

Stagnation is the culprit behind inflammation and the resulting symptoms that show up. We may not feel inflammation, as it can come on slowly. Have you ever woken up one day and just felt full or tight in your skin? Clothes don’t fit right, rings or jewelry sit differently?  This may be inflammation that you’re now aware of. It might go away, or it might linger. This experience is stagnation at work.

When we have too much stillness in our lives, our mental, emotional, and physical beings are affected. From our blood, lymph, digestion, and cerebral spinal fluid, to muscle hydration and even our emotions, this experience can leave us feeling depleted on many levels. Many times, the first signs of stagnation may be in the form of pain. When we stop moving our muscles, they begin to tighten up and lose flexibility and tone. When blood stops moving, it begins to pool. The same is true for lymph, which cleans the tissues and blood.

You may notice swelling of tissue or an overall feeling of fatigue or puffiness. Your belly may become more bloated after eating. You may become moody, restless, or easily agitated.  Stagnation can show up in our thought processes when you begin to notice thoughts on repeat. Some people use the analogy of feeling like their mind is in a “hamster wheel” and it keeps going round and round. This results in a lack of creativity, over-stimulation, and an increase in depressive moods or decision fatigue.

These are just a few ways that stagnation shows up, and experiencing quarantine and times of lock-down put us in the perfect environment for this to take place.

Creating Movement When Stagnant
If you’re nodding your head reading this and relating to how this feels in your own body, the million dollar question sitting at the tip of your tongue may be, “What’s the best way to restore flow and movement?!”

At the Denver Recovery Lounge (DRL), we can answer that. We have several modalities available to support YOU, all specifically designed to increase flow in the body. From CranioSacral Therapy and Community Acupuncture to Qi Gong classes and custom circuits, there are multiple ways to approach improving your wellness.

So, by the time stagnation is actively creating inflammation in your body; with fluids pooling and systems no longer working with ease, stagnation has reached the cellular and neurological levels. We give you options that address AND keep you at optimum performance.

While getting out for a 30 minute walk every day can be incredibly supportive, that walk isn’t going to move the heavy load that was created when you weren’t walking for the past year. You must go deeper.

Take Charge of Your Wellness
Taking charge of your wellness isn’t only in understanding what’s going on alone. It also means knowing what will support you in creating the results that you’re seeking.  If you know that we’ve got what you’re looking for, then jump on the schedule link here and sign up for the Brain Health Circuit or Weekly Detox Circuit. Keep reading if you want to learn more about why we recommend these two circuits.

Brain Health Circuit
This circuit incorporates the iMRS PEMF Detox, NeurOptimal®, and Sunlighten Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna. These services work together to promote cellular health and repair, pain relief, boost immunity, and reduce brain fog, stress, anxiety, and fatigue.  Through the iMRS PEMF Detox, you will stay clothed and lay on the iMRS mat and allow the Pulsed Electromagnetic Frequency (PEMF) to surround you. You may not feel anything specific until you get up and start moving around. What’s happening is the mat is emitting frequencies that are aligned with the earth’s frequencies. The research has shown when your cells vibrate at this frequency, they function the way they were designed to.

Which means for you:

  • More Energy
  • Increased Blood Flow
  • Ease in Your Healing Process

NeurOptimal® will help ease the lingering effects of the pandemic by down regulating your nervous system and training your brain in resiliency. While you sit back and listen to relaxing music, NeurOptimal® provides feedback to help you brain break mental habits leading to depression, anxiety, brain fog, and decision making fatigue.
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The program monitors shifts in the brain frequencies and through interruptions in the music,  notifies your brain when it shifts away from states of regulation and resiliency.  After using this, people report feeling:

  • Improved Mood
  • Better Clarity and Focus
  • Higher Levels of Decision Making

The Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna is one of those places to sit back and breathe. Bring a towel and have water for before and after. It’s not just about sweating it all out. This full spectrum infrared sauna has some of the best technology on the market to deeply penetrate into your cells. While you close your eyes and rest, read a book, or meditate, the infrared lights heat your body from the inside out and stimulate cellular regeneration. This means:

  • Pain Relief
  • Ease of Movement
  • More Energy
Weekly Detox Circuit 
This circuit combines the Ion Cleanse® Foot Bath with the iMRS PEMF Detox and Full Spectrum Infrared Sauna. These services together create a powerful and deep detox that works with all systems of the body, purging stagnation and inflammation.The Ion Cleanse® Foot Bath is a warm soak that will change the way you look at pulling toxins out of your body. The charge created in the water flows through you and “picks up” neutrally charged particles in your body and through osmosis delivers them to the water. This powerful little machine supports you in:

  • Immune Function
  • Pain Relief
  • Memory and Sleep

If you want more specific information on how each of these services works, check out the linked web pages. We’ll also speak more about detoxifying the body next month for when you’re no longer experiencing the effects of stagnation in your life.

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Taming the Red Dragon
Taming the Red Dragon 2560 1707 Recovery Lounge & Spa

I was introduced to the QiGong practice of “Taming the Red Dragon,” at a martial arts retreat in Costa Rica last December. This practice was passed down by Daoist Nuns to my Sensei Mike Ninomiya and from him to me. What a different world we were living in a year ago.  

During the martial arts retreat in Costa Rica, I was spending several hours each day in training – Kata & Shamanic QiGong with trees at sunrise, sparring and throwing techniques into the waves at sunset.  On the night of the full moon, engaged in QiGong while immersed in the sound of waves crashing around me, I realized – if the moon is powerful enough to change the tides of the ocean on this planet, it is certainly powerful enough to cause a migraine when the flow in my body is out of sync.  And so, my journey began.

Navigating my cycle has often been turbulent, fraught with interpersonal clashes building up to the start of my flow. While partners called me crazy and emotional, I began to see a pattern. All the little things that were brushed under the rug throughout the month built up until I could no longer stuff anything down and would roar to the surface. The older I’ve gotten, my periods have become more intense -prolonged and heavy bleeding, fatigue, debilitating migraines leading up to the day of full flow, and a sense of shock at how intense my emotions had gotten when the release of the flow finally moved through.
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Each cycle since Costa Rica has taught me something new. Over the past two months, the pandemic has filled my household with tumultuous change, pushing me to find new depths of self preservation and transform old beliefs overlaying my current life circumstances.  This month, as my cycle began perfectly in sync with the new moon yet my life was feeling quite disharmonious, I leaned into my moon practice to stabilize and once again found revelations in the wisdom of the moon.

As my cycle harmonizes with the moon, I am finding a grounding source outside myself. When I journey in to face the build up of entanglements that need to release, it is easy to get lost. Historically, I’ve tended to go so deep that I lose faith I will come out the other side – that my energy will return, the migraine will recede, the bleeding and emotions surfacing will release and my happiness will return.  As I practice my QiGong Moon Flow each month, my physical flow becomes gentler and I bleed with more ease. Some months my migraines are better than others and I’m learning how to manage them without medication. When I find my emotions swallowing me, I have a powerful practice to release from them and recenter.

But this month, on top of all of this, I also had an external guide. A source of stability. The moon always returns from the shadow. Every month. And when I hit my depths of uncertainty that I will return from my shadows, I can turn to her to guide me back. She is always resourced. She is ever present and available for me to connect with. She is predictable and consistent.

As I sync with her, I find resilience in a source outside of myself. I realize that I am not doing this alone. I don’t have to figure out how to pull myself out of the depths or worry about whether I’ll be able to. I can simply use the practice to purge and trust that I will return along with the moon.

My daughter is 10 and started her cycle three moons ago. I am excited to engage in a practice with her that can allow her to purge as she grows. I wonder, if she embraces her cycle and consciously releases each month, will the transition into menopause be less wild for her? With a monthly practice, will she not have to suffer from 30 years of suppression attempting to surface and release each month?

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