Therapeutic baths have been adored since ancient times for their ability to heal the body and soothe the soul. In Ayurveda, bathing is seen as a sacred healing ritual. Ancient Ayurvedic texts talk about elaborate bathing rituals to improve sleep, increase wellness and longevity, purify the body, and calm the mind. The combination of hydrotherapy and heat mixed with minerals and botanicals creates a luxurious healing experience that’s as beautiful as it is deeply healing. The skin has an incredible ability to absorb nutrients and plant medicine, and a bath ritual is a powerful way to drench the body and tissues with healing plants and rejuvenating minerals. You can make a bath at home with some of the ingredients listed below, or, for a simple and luxurious experience, use Surya’s signature bath soaks, each of which is designed to heal specific imbalances.
Simple Bath Soak Recipe
What you need:
- 2 Cups Baking Soda
- 2 Cups Sea Salt
- 4 Cups Epsom Salt
- Optional additions of aromatherapy essential oils or herbs (see the chart below for suggestions)
Tips for Custom Additions
When using pure essential oils for your foot baths the amount will vary depending on your sensitivity and the plant extract, we suggest starting with 5 drops and not exceeding 20 drops. For dispersing your essential oils; mix 5-20 drops of an organic essential oil (see our charts for dosha balancing suggestions) into 1Tbs organic castille soap to safely disperse the oils into your bathwater. When using herbs in your bath plan on using a larger serving for dry herbs, they are less potent in volatile oils and take up less volume. For fresh flowers you can use a few handfuls to float in the bath with you and for dry herbs we recommend using a sachet to steep the herbs and make cleaning up easy.
Tips for Removing Chlorine From Your Bathwater
If your water supply is chlorinated and filling a bath makes your home smell like a swimming pool, don’t worry we have some natural remedies to add to your soak that will bind to the chlorine and cause it to “fall” out of the water and air, thus reducing your exposure to absorbing or smelling it.
Make whatever bath soak recipe you like using our basic recipe and your favorite additions, then make sure you add ½ tsp of Ascorbic acid powder to the water while your tub is filling. This natural yet reined form of vitamin C is very affordable and very effective at binding with the chlorine compounds in tap water. Once the vitamin C binds to the chlorine it creates a heavier molecule that precipitates out of the water to the bottom of the tub, this way less chlorine is able to stay in solution in your soaking water or in the steamy air. You’ll notice immediately how much better your bath smells and feels. Chlorine may be helpful in public pools but it’s not helpful for a healing bath soak.