An Acupuncture & Naturopathic Home Remedy for Sinus Congestion
The Naturopathic Sinusitis Home Remedy Secret
This one's a crowd pleaser: One of the foundational modalities of Naturopathic medicine has always been Hydrotherapy. From turn of the century health sanitariums promoting hot-and-cold baths, to the healing waters of natural springs - using water to heal is as old as medicine itself.
One Hydrotherapy technique that has stood the test of time is the Wet Socks Treatment.
"Wet What?!" you gasp. Yes, "Wet Socks!"
Phoenix Naturopath Socks it to Sinus Congestion
The Wet Socks treatment is a simple home remedy for treating sinus congestion. Here's how you do it.
Take 2 pairs of socks. It works best if one is a thin cotton sock and one is thicker wool, but any socks will do really.
Wet the thin pair of socks with tap water. (some people recommend cold water but I do not. Use room temp). Then wring the wet pair of socks out so that they are damp, but not dripping all over the floor.
Put the wet pair of socks on your feet. (Yuck! This will feel pretty gross!)
Next, put the dry, preferably thicker, pair of socks on over the wet ones.
Now, jump into bed! (Best to put a towel down under your feet so the dampness doesn't seep through onto your sheets)
If you lay pretty still the wet feeling will fade into the background and beleive-it-or-not, most people report a very deep night's sleep.
Here's Why it Works:
As you sleep, your body is going to want to get rid of that wet irritant is senses on your feet. So all night long it's going to be shunting blood and lymph from the upper part of your body down to the lower parts - to raise the temperature of your feet and dry them. When you wake up, both pair of socks should be totally dry and your head should be a whole lot clearer!
I usually tell my patients to do the Wet Socks treatment for a few nights in a row and then take a few nights off. Repeat for a couple of rounds if needed.
Not for Everyone
Now, because this is the internet, I have to just add a few words of caution before a viral Wet Socks craze sweeps the nation:
This home remedy is not for everyone and it's not a cure for sinus infections. If you have a foot problem, either pain, inflammation or infection, I would not recommend this. This is also not advised for people who are very weak or deficient - either with long term illness, heart disease, recovering from cancer, children or the elderly or just a more fragile constitution. If you have any questions what-so-ever that means it's not for you until you get cleared by your personal physician.
But for otherwise healthy adults, the famous Wet Socks treatment can be a magic non-drug answer for annoying sinus congestion.
If you give it a try, please let me know what you think!