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OCR
6 THE KNE!IPP WATER CURE MONTHLY.
The Kneipp Gushes or Pours.
While the public in general is under the impression
that walking in the grass is the principal means of healing
in the Kneipp-cure, there is a little more to understand,
a little more to know for the practitioner of the Kneipp-
water-cure than simply the how and when to take a walk
in the grass. :
Kneipp’s gushes in connection with a well regulated
diet form a very important factor in the Kneipp-cure. The
cold water-gushes are the means of producing heat’ and
invigorating the whole system. Not everyone knows, how
these gushes have to be applied. The application of the
Kneipp-gush is an art which must be learned, the nature
and effect of which must be studied to be sure of beneficial
results. Experience is as necessary as understanding, but
experience will be the best teacher.
All patients are not equally strong, therefore it is the
duty of the Kneipp-practitioner to study the strength of
the system of the patient and regulate according to it the
length and strength of the gushes. With some people re-
action, the flushing of the skin sets in very quickly, with
others it takes more time, but this re-action has to come in
every case.
The Kneipp-gushes are: The head-gush, the face-gush,
the ear-gush, the breast-gush, the arm-gush, the upper-
gush, the hip- or thigh-gush, the knee-gush, the back-
gush, the full-gush and the lightning-gush.
The Head Gush.
The water-gush or pour is directed against the head,
not against a single spot but the whole head. The water-
pour must be moved in a circle five or six times.
The Face Gush.
Begin on the chin, then go up to the left eye over the
forehead, down to the right eye and back to the spot where
the gush was started. This is done five or six times. The
patient stoops forward so that the water has a good flow.
For head- and face-gush the patient remains clothed.
The Ear Gush.
For this gush the attitude of the patient is a bent
one, so that the water can run off. The gush is directed
round the ear four or five times.
The Breast Gush.
This gush is started on the arm from the hand up to
the shoulder and across the breast and back again for
about one or two minutes.
The Arm Gush.
Start with the gush at the right hand and go up to
the shoulder and remain there for a little while. Repeat
the same with the left arm. The gush lasts from one to
two minutes. /
The Upper Gush.
This gush is a difficult one and requires some practice
on part of the attendant. Start the gush at the right hand,
go upwards to the shoulder, then move the gush down the
back to a spot near the centre of it, rest here for a little
while so that the water covers the back well. The chest is
not gushed and it must be carefully avoided to let the
stream of water fall directly upon the spine. The gush
BACK GUSH.
lasts from one to two minutes. When treating weak
people it will be advisable not to rest in the spot mentioned
but to cross over the left side of the patients back, to move
up to the left shoulder and down the left arm. Then seck
a spot on left or right side from whence the water ‘may
flow over the back.
The Hip or Thigh Gush.
Start at heel of the right foot, move the gush up the
centre of the calf, rest here for a little while, so that the
water washes the whole thigh, move up slowly to the waist
and go back to the point of starting. The same is done
with the left foot. This has to be repeated three or four
times with each foot. Then the patient has to turn round
and the same process is repeated in the front, starting at
the right foot. The more equally the gush is applied the
greater the benefit. It has to last from one to three
minutes,
The Knee Gush,
The knee-gush is started in the manner as the hip-
gush but only carried up as far as the middle of the calf.
From this point let the water flow so that the whole calf
1s covered. Then do the same with the left foot and repeat
the process four or five times. Have the patient turn
round and start at the toes of the right foot, go up to a
point a little above the knee and keep the gush directed to
that spot for some time. Do the same with the left foot.
The gush has to last from one to two minutes.
The Back Gush.
_ _ This gush is started at the heel of the right foot, car-
ried up to the waist and back again. Then start at the
left foot, go up with the gush to the waist, cross over to
the other side of the waist and up to the right shoulder,
go again back with the gush to the right waist, over to the
left side and up to the left shoulder. The front part of
the body is not gushed. ‘The gush has to last from one
to two minutes.
The Full Gush.
This gush is started in the
same way as the back-
gush, but from the left shoulder the gush has to be carried
up to the neck. Is the patient a strong person, one may
at once start on the chest in the front, and let the water