The naturopath Adolf Just (1859-1936) is the discoverer of the modern healing earth therapy. Pastor Emanuel Felke is considered his most famous student. Because of the success of his healing earth therapy Felke was later known as the “Clay Pastor”.
The internal application of healing earth (Luvos)
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Information on the application of healing earth (Bad Sobernheim Clay Healing Earth):
Depending on the season the bath is either prepared in the hall or outdoors. The baths outdoors are dug into the ground. To ensure a good “grounding” the bath should remain open towards the bottom so that contact with the earth is warranted. These baths are not heated, which means they are as cool as the earth.
The healing mud half-bath is a specific cold treatment according to the original specifications of Pastor Felke, which is regulated by the length of the bath, the water content, the temperature of the earth and the environment. The healing earth used for the bath is dug out after use and replaced with fresh healing earth for the next guest. The fresh clay is dug out in the vicinity of the hotel, stored, and transported in wheelbarrows to the emptied baths. Water is added to the earth and roughly mixed.
For the next step the guest takes clay from the bath and rubs it all over his/her body all the way to the belly button. He/she puts on “clay pants”. Persons in weakened physical condition, for example suffering from hip osteoarthritis or osteoarthritis of the knee joint, should not dig themselves into the clay but rather sit on the edge of the bath and rub the clay onto their bodies.
When seated, shovel the clay onto the legs; rub it onto arms and chest. You’re also welcome to rub it onto your face (as a face pack only during the last 10 minutes) and hair. The time in the clay should begin with 15 to 20 minutes and can be extended up to an hour.
The time that the “clayer” spends in the clay bath should be used to break up small, leftover lumps of clay. Working the hands in the cool clay strengthens the fingers and hand muscles. The cool clay relieves pain in the hands caused by rheumatism, reduces swelling, and heals inflammation. The bathing guest is in constant movement in the clay bath.
At the end of the clay bath the guest slowly and deliberately digs himself/herself out again. The weight of the clay forces one to move slowly mediating peace and relaxation. One stands up slowly from the earth and scrapes most of the clay off the body, either with the hands or with special scrapers (available at the reception desk). Before leaving the clay bath the feet are washed off (bowl of water).
Pour the water into the clay bath so that the clay does not dry out for the next day. With a cloth clean off the edge of the clay bath and wipe off the handrail. (Applies only to the clay bath in the hall – so that during the daily hosing down of the clay baths your clay bath edge will stay clean and the bath won’t be watered down too much.)
If the weather allows one massages the remaining wet clay into the skin and lets it dry in the air and sun. Due to the volume change the dried clay creates a pleasant tension to the skin and a lifting of the connective tissue under the skin. An important side effect of the clay bath is the treatment of cellulite.
With circling, massage-like movements the clay that has dried on the skin is now rubbed off the body. The time the clay is drying on the body is used to prepare the clay bath for the next day. The clay bath is smoothed, cleaned on the edges and, according to texture and weather, covered with a little bit of water so that it doesn’t dry out.
The rest of the earth on the skin is to be washed off with cold water, either in the Felke-Sitzreibebadwanne (seated-rubbing bath tub) or if the weather permits directly in the Nahe River. The water in the tub is changed thereafter and is fresh again for the next morning. One more quick splash from the cold hose and then slap the skin dry, like after the morning seated-rubbing bath.
Lots of people have to first get used to cold impulses and therefore prefer a warm shower in the clay hall for cleaning off. After a warm shower you can still enjoy the cold seated-rubbing bath just like in the morning. After the clay bath you should most definitely rub your skin with oil or lotion (ideal: BollAnt's Grape Seed Oil or Grape Seed Oil-Body Butter with the strong effect of OPC), because the clay draws the oils out of the skin and with that also moisture which should be replaced.