We’re excited to share that both anecdotally and on a collective level, we’re seeing colonics gaining respect in the medical community for their efficacy. This is exciting news for those of us who bridge the western and natural medicine worlds, and this validates both clients who have seen their profound impact for years and those who are about to have their health changed through them. When controlled, regulated, and offered by I-ACT providers, colon hydrotherapy is safe and effective.
How safe is a colonic? What’s the experience like? Is there anything to be worried about? What’s the flow like?
These are all great questions, and after our colon hydrotherapists received their I-ACT Certification earlier this year, the expanded education demanded some small yet mighty tweaks to the experience that we’re excited to highlight for you. Whether you’re new to colonics or are a regular, we know you’ll find comfort in hearing about all the ways the experience, tools, techniques, and our wonderful staff are designed and prepared to help you have a safe, gentle colonic.
We want you to feel safe in your body. While we are not necessarily “trauma-informed” we are “trauma-aware” which our team truly concerned and compassionate for our clients bodies. We know that for many of our clients, any sort of service that takes place on, around, or somewhat within their body is one that can come with a lot of complicated questions and mixed feelings.
The colonic experience is not something that we want you to ever have questions or fear around. Colon Hydrotherapy at VIVA Wellness is completely safe and gentle—however we know that due to the nature of the location of the service and the reputations of some less-than-credentialed providers in the industry, we’d love to help put your mind and body at ease.
Our Colon Hydrotherapy Providers
- Our providers are I-ACT Certified. To earn the right to bear this acronym, a hydrotherapist must complete hundreds of hours with patients, shadowing and evaluation with a top-level trainer (16-year Colon Hydrotherapist and Naturopathic Doctor), rigorous study, training, and examination. You can trust these colon hydrotherapists. More on I-ACT and that certification process.
- Read more about Laura at the link above, too. She is a wonderful human.
Our Colon Hydrotherapy Technology
VIVA Wellness uses the Aquanet APS-100. This is an FDA-cleared machine. At VIVA Wellness, we love to empower ourselves with, and offer you, the absolute best the market has to offer. The APS-100 is basically the Rolls Royce of colonic machines. As people who receive regular colonics ourselves, we knew that going above and beyond in terms of safety and comfort would be worth it. And it truly is.
Read more about the machine and its high-end water quality, temperature comfort, and multiple built-in fail safes:
- 3-Step Filtration Process: This includes a pre-filter to remove sediment, an activated carbon filter to remove chlorine, and then treatment water passes through an ultraviolet sterilizer to treat any organics in the water. *If the facility you are going to does not offer filtration like this, be leary. It is extremely important when using water internally it be the highest level of filtration and sterilization, the point is to be detoxing, not re-toxing.
- Applied Pressure Sensing Technology: During a colonoscopy (not a colonic), the medical team may use 3PSI of gas to inflate the colon, but our machine maxes out at 2PSI of water and has a sensor to shut off the water if it ever reaches that level. During a colonic, we typically range between a .5 PSI and a 1 PSI, which is enough to be effective while still ensuring optimal comfort during colonics. This technology ensures there is no way to damage the colon or rupture it.
- Automatic Temperature Control: During your colonic, the treatment water will be kept at a safe, comfortable 36 – 38°C (98 -100°F). In addition to increasing patient comfort, this is a safety feature that automatically shuts off water flow in the event of cold water supply failure. This way there is never a chance to burn or induce hypothermia.
The Colon Hydrotherapy Experience Itself
A colonic is a series of alternating between filling and flushing—you hold the water in for short amounts of time to hydrate the impacted stool, then once you feel full, we will release it through the hose that feeds through the machine. Fill, flush, fill flush.
We’ve heard that in some other colon hydrotherapy facilities, clients are left alone for periods of time during the procedure. This is not the case at VIVA Wellness. We found more often than not that it was important for us to stay working together as a team. Your I-ACT certified Colon Hydrotherapist stays by your side during the entire colonic, constantly communicating with you, and talking you through determining when you feel full and are ready to release. We are always monitoring the machine to make sure this process is safe, but we find that allowing you to determine when you are ready, helps establish the gut-brain axis, especially critical for clients with goals around healing their peristalsis. In general though, this allows clients to feel more relaxed and in control, preventing them from ever feeling any kind of pain or pushing beyond their comfort zone. That’s great for some things—this is not one of them. We know our clients know their bodies best (or are cultivating that relationship), and we are here to help them feel their best while honoring their experience.
Your colonic will take about 30 minutes, and there is no set amount of fills and flushes: you and your body will let the colon hydrotherapist know throughout what the next best step is. In between fills, the colon hydrotherapist also massages the abdomen to help your colon release fecal matter. You also have a castor oil wrap with hot towels and heating pad on the area, which is supporting a gentle release and encouraging not just the colon, but the entire nervous system, to relax.
Speaking of Relaxation
It’s proven that the body reacts to the type of environment it’s in, so we are all about the vibes in the colonic treatment room—we know that the more relaxed you feel, the better the results. We’ve run with that fact.
Picture this: the lights are dim, there’s a northern lights projector on the ceiling, a vintage lava lamp to distract your senses, tranquil music playing, and in the attached bathroom relaxing lavender essential oils are being diffused while the warm light from a Himalayan salt lamp illuminates the room.
Other Things We’re Proud to Share
- The colon hydrotherapist that’s with you the entire duration, unless you were to ask for privacy, offers gut health coaching along the way! In addition to earning our I-ACT certification, we have done well over a thousand colonics. Laura has gone through their own gut-healing journey, as well as guided others through theirs, so she has the experience to empathize and knowledge to support you no matter where you are in your journey.
- You’ll never be exposed to any equipment that has been in touch with someone else’s body or waste, which is super important! This includes single-use speculum kits, blankets, towels, laundry, etc. Speaking of bedding, the towels and blankets ensure that you are both cozy and have the physical privacy that you prefer.
- Speculum insertion can seem intimidating, but we use a very thick lube for maximum comfort at both insertion and removal.
- You will not have any accidents. This is not messy. Everything leaving your body is contained within the machine or in the final bathroom visit at the end of the procedure—this is done in a private, attached bathroom and the provider will leave the room at this point. You will not experience an urgency to use the bathroom on your way home. You may find, and it’s normal to experience, that you don’t have a bowel movement for 24-48 hours after because so much was released during the colonic.
Our Message to You
We hear time and again after clients’ first colonic experiences that the fear and hesitancy were truly for “no reason” and that their first colonic was actually quite relaxing. We absolutely understand that this is an unknown and that is generally met with some trepidation.
Please know that each colonic is completely customized to you. You are not measured against your first or last colonic. You are not measured against any other clients. Your needs that day, as each day you come in your body may need something different, will be honored—we have various fill and flush patterns and massage placements at our avail per what the body is showing us.
Still have questions or want to learn if a colonic is right for you? Contact us today to chat with our team. We’d be honored to support you on your wellness journey. Gut health is a pillar of quality life, and we’re here to be a resource to you in your quest for optimal digestion and detox.