Colon Hydrotherapy
What is Colon Hydrotherapy?
Colon hydrotherapy (also called colonics or colon irrigation), is a safe, effective method of removing waste from the large intestine. By introducing filtered and temperature regulated water into the colon, the waste is softened and loosened, resulting in evacuation through natural peristalsis.
The physical goals of each session are to hydrate the system, remove waste, stimulate peristalsis, rehabilitate the nerves, muscles, glands, circulatory and immune systems that form the components of the digestive system, and to reposition the intestines.
What kind of people receive Colon Hydrotherapy?
- Athletes have opted for colon therapy to improve metabolic efficiency.
- Many receive the treatments during a period of life-style change or as a preventive measure.
- Another group may have symptoms of intestinal distress; constipation (some from prescription drugs), carbohydrate indigestion, diarrhea, gas, bloat, hemorrhoids, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, diverticulosis, colitis, parasites, skin conditions such as psoriasis, shingles, and eczema, inability to loose weight, scar tissue and adhesions from surgery.
- Another group is pain motivated; abdominal pain, continuous headaches and migraines, back or shoulder pain, aching joints, gout.
- A number of clients are immune-compromised with lupus, MS, rheumatoid arthritis, arthritis, cancer, chronic fatigue, Epstein-Barre, candida, infections, colds or influenza.
- Some people use colon hydrotherapy sessions for medical reasons: pre- and post-surgery or barium x-ray, or for stool samples.
- A number come in during a fast, a cleansing program, a raw food diet, a liver and/or gallbladder flush, or are recovering from an accident.
- Some are working on emotional issues which they feel are physiologically rooted in their intestines.
Is it embarrassing to have a colonic?
No, you will fully maintain your personal dignity. You will be in a private room and your hydrotherapist will be there only if you need her. She fully appreciates the sensitivity of the colonic procedure and will help you feel at ease. Your emotions will be acknowledged and honored.
You are completely covered at all times and you insert your own slender, flexible, sterile rectal tube about 1 inch. The tube will allow water to gently flow into your colon. You will be instructed in how to hold in the water and how to push which is the identical feeling of passing a bowel movement. Fecal matter is eliminated into the basin of the table where it is gently bathed with warm water jets. There is no mess nor any odor.
Is it painful?
It rarely is. Usually, painful experiences are the result of resistance and tension. A professional colon hydrotherapist is skilled at putting you at ease and minimizing discomfort which is what we do at CALM. Many people actually enjoy the session and are especially pleased with the unaccustomed sensation of feeling lighter, clean and clear afterward.
Sometimes during the session, the colon muscles will contract suddenly expelling considerable amounts of liquid and waste into the rectum. This may feel like cramping or gas, and may create a feeling of urgency to empty the rectum. Such episodes, if they do occur, are brief and easily tolerated.
What does colon hydrotherapy do to the colon?
- Cleanses the Colon: Toxic material is broken down so it can no longer harm your body or inhibit assimilation and elimination. Even debris built up over a long period is gently removed in a series of treatments. Your colon can begin to operate again as it was intended. In this sense, a this is a rejuvenation treatment.
- Exercises the Colon Muscles: The build-up of toxic debris weakens the colon and impairs its functioning. The gentle filling and emptying of the colon improves peristalsis (muscular contraction) by which the colon naturally moves material.
- Reshapes the Colon: When problem conditions exist in the colon, they tend to alter its shape that in turn causes more problems. The gentle action of the water helps to eliminate bulging pockets of waste and narrowed, spastic constrictions finally enabling the colon to resume its natural state.
- Stimulates Reflex Points: The colon connects to every system and organ of the body with reflex points. The colonic stimulates these points thereby affecting the corresponding body parts in a beneficial way. In this way, it can positively affect your entire body.
What are the characteristics of a healthy, well functioning colon?
Healthy babies, animals and adults not subjected to the "refinements" of civilization (i.e. aboriginal peoples) have bowel movements shortly after each meal is eaten. So, assuming there is sufficient fiber and water available to the colon, one characteristic is a bowel movement shortly after a meal is eaten.
Once the urge to eliminate is honored by a trip to the toilet, the elimination should be easy and take no more than a few seconds. The stool will be long, large in diameter, light brown in color, without offensive odor and should float or sink very slowly. When the toilet is flushed, the stool immediately begins breaking apart by the action of water movement. As incredible as this may sound, it is true and commonly experienced in cultures where people live more naturally.
What effects does colon hydrotherapy have on our immune systems?
The removal of stagnant waste material and hardened, impacted toxic residue could rejuvenate the immune tissue that resides in the intestines. Recent European studies speculate that 80% of immune tissue resides in the intestines. This is much higher than previously thought and makes it logical to believe that this type of therapy could influence such immune deficiency diseases as M.E., cancer and A.I.D.S.. Colon Hydrotherapy is not a cure-all, but an important adjunctive therapy in your overall health care.
Will it be okay to eat after having a session?
We suggest that you eat at your normal meal time, and consume a moderate amount of whatever seems gentle and nourishing to you. Just as it doesn't make sense to have your car cleaned and then immediately drive it through mud, eating a meal known to cause trouble in your abdomen directly after a session isn't a sensible choice. Vegetable soups or broths or other easy-to-digest foods your body is already familiar with are the best choices.
Will it make me constipated or give me diarrhea?
The most frequent post-session experience is to have a slight delay in bowel movements and then a resumption of a somewhat larger, easier to move stool.
Sometimes if the colon is weak and sluggish, there may be no bowel movement for several days following a session. However this is not due to the session, but rather to the weakness of the colon, and should be interpreted as an indication that the colon requires strengthening and healing.
Very infrequently diarrhea or loose bowels may be experienced. This could be due to the extra water introduced into the colon or to the stirring up of toxic waste. If this should occur, it is usually of very short duration.
Does colon hydrotherapy wash out intestinal flora and valuable nutrients?
It may in the short term which is why we give you an electrolyte drink immediately following. We also urge all clients to take acidophilus and bifidus, good bacteria that is commonly found in better brands of yogurt.
Longer term, the washing out of putrefied material in the large intestine, increases the good intestinal flora. Good bacteria can only breed in a clean environment which has been washed free of putrefaction and its accompanying harmful bacteria. This is why the intestines of a new born baby immediately begin to grow good intestinal flora. Each time you clean out the putrefying rubbish and make a better environment for the good flora, they start to multiply immediately in their natural media. It also stands to reason that valuable nutrients can better be absorbed in a clean environment than in a putrefied one.
How do the intestines get out of shape?
Everything we put in our mouth touches and effects the walls of the stomach, small intestine, and colon (large intestine). When these substances or their by-products are toxic (sugar, flour, pesticides, preservatives, processed foods, etc.), they damage the intestinal wall and cells, intoxicate the nerves and glands, and can be absorbed through the walls into the blood and lymph and ultimately to the cells and tissue. As a result, peristalsis declines. The slower transit increases fermentation and putrefaction of undigested food by bacteria and yeast. The bacteria and yeast give off toxic wastes in the form of acids and gasses. These substances also cause inflammation and damage to the cells of the intestinal walls.
Research indicates these substances can create abnormal behavior and abnormal brain behavior. The nervous system is directly affected.
Elimination becomes incomplete and waste remains in the intestines. Dehydration and stagnation occur. This matrix sets the stage for erratic conditions in the body we call disease. The main dietary offenders are sugar, flour, processed foods, soda, chemicals, and drugs. They are usually lifeless and give very little energy to the digestive system.
Are there any additional benefits I might expect from colon hydrotherapy?
Yes, there are several. Working with the skilled therapist at CALM HealthWorks, a session can be a truly enlightening educational process. You will learn to expand your awareness of your body's functioning by including signals from your abdomen, your skin, your face, and even from that most taboo of natural products, your elimination.
You will find that you can spot the beginnings of developing conditions through clues from these body regions and functions before they become serious. You can deal with them sooner and more easily than you otherwise might if you waited until they produce effects seen elsewhere in the body.
Also, the solar plexus is the emotional centre of the body and the transverse colon passes right through it. If an emotional event is left uncompleted, it often results in physical tension being stored in the solar plexus, which affects all organs of the area, including the colon.
This on-going tightening of the colon muscle results in diminished movement of fecal material through the colon, which is experienced as constipation. Not only does colon hydrotherapy alleviate the constipation, it can assist you in creating a fully holistic view of your body's functioning, leading to a better quality of life.
Will one session completely empty the colon?
Almost never. Firstly, many of us have a considerable amount of impacted feces in our colon. This is hardened, rubbery, or wallpaper-like material. Substantial work must be done to remove it. Secondly, there is a subtle learning process involved in receiving colon hydrotherapy.
As you become more aware of what is going on in your abdomen, and as your body learns how to allow the cleansing experience, you are better able to enter into that process, and therefore more material is released. One session will remove some of the stagnant waste in the colon. The second and subsequent sessions will remove more. This is one reason we recommend starting with two sessions on consecutive days, so, one on Monday and then one on Tuesday. Because you'll go further the second day, it's more "bang for your buck!" How many you may wish to have will depend upon your personal objectives.
Is there anything I should do to prepare for a session?
The key thing is to arrive and not put any agendas, protocols, conditions between yourself and the session. Bring yourself. Be prepared to receive and to experience. It is helpful to eat lightly ahead of time.
The intestines work best when they are relaxed, when the parasympathetic nervous system is predominant. (Parasympathetics govern life-supporting organs such as the heart, liver, kidneys, intestines, spleen, pancreas and lungs.) Laughing, breathing, exercising, relaxing, listening to soothing music, being in a supportive loving environment all help relax the intestinal nervous system. And if that’s not your situation, come on in anyway! Our hydrotherapy environment is designed for relaxation and rest.