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Healing Clay Wraps and Qi-Gong Balls
Creative Solutions for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Tendonitis What is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? The so called "carpal tunnel" is a small passageway
through the "carpal" bones in the wrists and hands. Nine
tendons and a bundle of nerve fibers use this tunnel
to reach the fingers. If any of these tendons
become inflamed, the median nerve ( also running through
the carpal tunnel ) becomes compressed due to the limited
space of this channel. This can cause irritation,
numbness, chronic pain and loss of motor function in
the hands. If left untreated, there is the possibility
of permanent damage to the nerves. The modern method for treating carpal tunnel syndrome
once it has reached a severe state is surgery. A
surgeon "scrapes" the carpal tunnel to allow more room,
thus relieving the pressure from the median nerve. The
effect is immediate. However, any tendons which
may have been severed during the surgery must be "tied" back together. In
rare cases, since a tendon is a high tension muscle,
it does not heal, and remains permanently severed. Anti-inflammatory drugs are also used in the
treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome, usually with only
temporary relief. Wrist braces, arm bands and
wrist wrests are also used to take the stress off of
the tendons. Sometimes, the effects can be slowly
reversed using muscle retraining methods such as Qi
Gong ( a Chinese method ). Relearning proper
use of the hands is a key factor in recovery, especially
for those who perform repetitive tasks, such as typing
on a keyboard, playing musical instruments-- any non-grasping
function. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is becoming more and more of
a concern in our culture. The hands, designed
by nature to be used to grasp, are called upon to do
more and more "pressing" functions, and in a manner
that does not allow for the proper use of muscles and
tendons. It's cause, according to some, is twofold: 1)
Improper diet - Inflammation and swelling is often
due to the body's inability to eliminate toxic conditions
within itself. 2) Misuse of the entire arm(s)
affected from the shoulder to the tips of the fingers. Stress
is a very common contributing factor to this condition. 
Treating Carpal Tunnel Syndrome with
Qi-Gong "Baoding" Balls If someone would have
walked up to me ten years ago and said: "Hey,
just slap some mud on your arm, that'll fix it!" I
would have walked away wondering why that person wasn't
locked up somewhere. My own personal recovery from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
took 8 months, cost me one job, and almost resulted
in the loss of use of my left hand ( I'm left handed
). The only reason I became motivated to
change my "hand habits" was the fact that I love to
write. The loss of my left hand would have been
a blow to my heart, and provided a great motivation
to find a non-surgical solution. As far as I
was concerned, surgery was out of the question. A friend
of mine no longer had the use of her right hand due
to complications arising from just such a surgery. She
will be on disability for the rest of her life barring
no medical breakthroughs. I had lost the ability to drive ( I had a truck with
a manual transmission at the time ) and my "word processing" speed
fell from 145 wpm to under 40 wpm in about one month.
I would soak my hands in piping hot water many times
daily for relief from the pain.
At that time, unfortunately, my studies had not yet led to Bentonite and healing
clays. I had to learn relaxation methods, since I carried a great deal
of tension and stress in my body.
 My
intuition led me into a Chinese goods store, where
the store manager, who saw that I was holding my arm
in pain, exclaimed, "I know just what you need!"
He handed me a set of Baoding Balls used in Qi Gong. I
twirled the jade balls maybe three times in my left
hand, then fell to the ground in pain. I knew
these were just what I needed; that this was an answer
to an unspoken prayer. Over the next few months, I redesigned the muscle
structure in my arms back to their "natural" condition. Slowly
the pain subsided. When first starting out with Qi Gong balls, one should
choose a size and weight that comfortably fits in the
palm of the hand. As the muscles are strengthened,
it is often advantageous to switch to larger and heavier
sets. One rotates the balls in the hand, always keeping
the balls touching until one achieves greater levels
of mastery. Both hands need equal treatment, and the
balls should be rotated in BOTH directions in each
hand, even though this may at first seem extremely
difficult! This is critically important to developing
lasting habits, and has many beneficial side effects. At first, depending on the severity of
one's condition, only use the balls for a minute or
two at a time, switching hands as needed. While the
novice may find it nearly impossible to accomplish,
the flexibility of the fingers WILL increase with practice.
When practicing Qi Gong, allow the upper arm and shoulder
to relax as much as possible, with the lower arm extended
and exactly perpendicular to the ground, so that the
arm actually forms an "L" shape. At first,
the wrist may not be strong enough to stay parallel
to the ground. As time progresses, try to adjust use
so that the center of the palm ( facing upward ) is
always parallel to the ground. The lower arm should
be perpendicular with the front of the body as well. Use should be adjusted to accommodate
individual conditions. One need not overuse the balls.
In the event one experiences any pain, simply reduce
the amount of time practicing. In time, balls that are as much as 20
times the original weight may be used. In fact, with
practice, anyone can use as many as four balls in each
hand simultaneously! There are many, many benefits of this
particular method of Qi Gong, most of which lie outside
of the scope of this work. The practice increases circulation
to the entire body, and massages the accupressure points
on the hand. Slowly, the muscular structure of the
arm is reformed to a much more natural state. Pain
subsides. Strength returns. The discovery of Healing Clays to treat
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome A year or so after my recovery, I discovered
healing clay. Since that time, I have witnessed
several very rapid recoveries from carpal tunnel syndrome
( see the forthcoming section on personal healing stories
). However, one will achieve far more lasting results
by changing the conditions which initially created
the problem! Hydrated Bentonite clay wraps properly and gently
heated and applied completely around the wrists ( about
1/2 - 3/4 inches thick ), covered, and left on overnight,
have a tremendous impact upon Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
usually within forty-eight hours. Some people
have reported increased localized pain and stiffness
after the first night's application. However,
these same people then have reported a lessening of
pain after 48 hours, and complete relief after 72 hours. Full
motor control in the severe cases I've seen is usually
regained within three weeks of continued treatment. In
two people that I've seen, the pain began to return
two months later; one treatment of clay relieved all
pain. How can clay possibly accomplish this? The answer
is as simple as it is mysterious. In his article "True
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome" ( Paul R. Martin, McHenry
NeuroDiagnostics, McHenry, Illinois, copyright 1996
) Paul writes "Anything which will promote circulation,
help to relieve inflammation, aid in removal of local
toxins, and soothe irritated muscles and tendons
will help Carpal Tunnel Syndrome."
Healing clay packs worth energetically with the human
system. By actually pulling contaminants through
the skin ( due to its electromagnetic properties
), the clay reduces swelling / inflammation and stimulates
the immune system. An energy exchange that occurs
in a strong clay action is so evident that it can be
visually measured. With a subtle radiation that is so minute it is nearly
impossible to detect, the clay also increases the flow
of energy to the area being treated. This phenominon
has neither been fully explored nor explained by modern
science ( to our knoweldge ). Due to the energy exchange
and the immune system stimulation, one should always
use the pinpoint treatment method, i.e. Never treat
more than one condition at a time. Clay synergistically works with the body. In
union, the clay and the body work to activate subtle
energies to restore the body to greater states of equilibrium. Please note that in my own personal studies, I used
a very high quality clay which I processed and prepared
using my own methods. I have never seen a store
bought clay or any other marketed clay as potent for
healing purposes as that which I have used. However,
the principles are the same, and anyone who prepares
store bought clay properly should experience excellent
results.
The
image above shows natural bentonite clusters
on a sloped embankment. After fragmenting
off of a partially exposed pure subterranean
vein due to minute amounts of moisture, the clay
chunks (shown on a previous page) are further
refined by a process of a) SLIGHTLY increased
levels of moisture b) extreme heat from a low-desert
sun which c) organizes the bentonite on a higher
energetic level and d) fragments the original
clay chunks into the above. The conditions
for this occurrence are rare; too much environmental
moisture ( through increased rainfall or high
humidity ) produces a clay sludge filled with
contaminants or yields a sandy powder, either
of which reduce the clays natural healing effects
tenfold.
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