2.4. Intervention
dehydration, muscle soreness, headache
DEHYDRATION, ADVERSE EFFECTS, COLD, COLD
The most beneficial time for a sand bath is during the summer months in June, July, and August, as the sun is very hot. Sand bathing was performed in the afternoon at 1:4 During the sand bath, the patient was asked to lay down in the hole and was covered to the neck level with hot dry sand from the surface of the desert which is 75 to 82 °C in temperature. This takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes or according to the patient’s tolerance, but not more than 30 minutes. When the sand became wet from perspiration, it was replaced with hot-dry sand. Ten to 20 cm under the sand surface, the sand temperature was 50 to 60 °C. Immediately after the sand bath, the patient was wrapped carefully in a blanket and placed in a well-sealed tent located close to the hole for 15 minutes or according to patient tolerance. In the tent, the patient’s body relaxed and returned to its normal condition. Wrapping protects the patient from cold air drafts, which can lead to adverse effects, such as muscle soreness and headache. Patients were provided with many hot liquids (e.g., lemon juice, paddock, anise, and licorice) to prevent dehydration. Drinking water is prohibited immediately after the sand bath. Patients were instructed to continue drinking fluids until their bodies were replenished with dehydration. The patients were instructed to lie down until the body was adjusted to the lower environmental temperature. They were also asked to wipe the sand off their body and change their clothes when sweating on their shirt dries. Hot water was used to wash hands and face. water anywhere else in their bodies is avoided. Cold, fans, and air conditioners are prohibited during treatment days. On the final day of the sand baths, the traditional healer gave the patient a full-body massage using olive oil.