Self-care is essential to living well. As a Certified Health Coach, I talk daily to people who want to know how to live healthy lifestyles. One of the biggest patterns I’ve noticed in the hundreds of people I’ve coached is that most people who feel unwell have been neglecting self-care. Spending a little time each day to care for ourselves makes us better at everything we do — from our career, to parenthood, to being a citizen of this beautiful planet.
One of my favorite ways to keep up with in self-care is to take a nice long epsom salt bath at the end of the day. I call it my Soak-The-Day-Away Detoxifying Bath. It’s cheap, easy, and can be done at home on your own time. I tell all of my clients there’s no excuse not to try it.
Epsom salts (aka magnesium sulfate) create a wonderful soak for your body. You’ll absorb some of the magnesium through you skin to help relax your muscles, and the baking soda neutralizes acids on the skin and dissolves oil and perspiration.
The epsom salts also raise the water’s specific gravity, making the body more buoyant, which in turn allows you to feel light as you relax. Adding a few drops of your favorite essential oil will enhance your experience and allow you to fully de-stress.
Soak-The-Day-Away Detoxifying Epsom Salt Bath
- 2 cups epsom salts
- 2 cups baking soda
- Optional: 5-10 drops your favorite essential oil.
- Try lavender to relax (my favorite), peppermint to energize or eucalyptus if your immune system is down.
- Add ingredients to a full, warm or hot bathtub and soak for 20 minutes. Any easy way to remember this bath is 2-2-20. Two cups epsom salts, plus two cups baking soda for 20 minutes.
Dim the lights, light a candle and add some peaceful music or a nature sound track for an even deeper relaxing effect. Take your time to just relax and breathe. Most skin experts say to soak for 20 minutes to allow the epsom salts to pull the toxins from your pores, but not more than 20 minutes as you risk re-absorbing the impurities.
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Note: Epsom salt poses serious safety risks when taken orally. Do not take epsom salts orally unless directed by a licensed health care provider.
Happy Soaking!
Overall helpful, but the “acids on your skin” are there for a reason – to maintain your acid mantle and keep your skin healthy by creating an acidic environment where bacteria can’t flourish as easily. By adding baking soda, you’re destroying your skin’s ability to do that. If anything, you should be adding apple cider vinegar to help exfoliate the skin and keep it pH happy.