OTHER NAMES
• La stone® Therapy
• Hot Rock Therapy
• Stone Therapy
• Stone Massage
• Hot/Cold Stone Therapy
• River Stone Therapy
• River Rock Massage
• Geothermaltherapy
• Geothermalcryotherapy

SUGGESTIONS
• Have the client test the temperature before you begin.
• Keep fresh drinking water available at all times and encourage them to drink regularly.
• Test the temperature of the rocks on your forearm before placing them on their body.
• Place towels on the client’s body before you begin the treatment.
• When you use hot and cold stones together, it helps balance yin / yang concept.
• Hydrotherapy can be exhausting and dehydrating to the body.
• Working with temperatures ranging from 0 degrees to 140 degrees.
• More temperature is not always better.
• A 10-degree difference in cold temperature is the minimum to be placed directly on the skin.
• You can incorporate other forms of hydrotherapy into a hot rock therapy.
• Treatments usually are booked for 60-90 minutes.
• The more times you use the stones with oil, the darker they become.
• Ask questions during the treatment.
• Oil can be used to massage the rocks on their body.
• Stay with the client at all times or give the client an emergency signal such as a bell (Be sure it can be heard above anything else).

THE ROCKS
• The hardness of basalt stones is 7 on the Mohs' Scale of 1-10, a diamond being a ten.
• The density of basalt stones is 2.5 times the weight per volume of water.
• The basalt stones have been formed downwind of a volcano.
• Boil & disinfect the stones before you use them on a client.
• Either you can buy a set of rocks for around $100 or you can find your own rocks at lakes or rivers (Watch for “No picking rocks” signs).
• The joy of finding your own stones carries with it a deep connection to each stone.
• Make sure the rocks are smooth, many different sizes & flat.
• Black basalt stones stay hotter longer than any of the other colors.

SUPPLIES
• You can use a freezer for the cold stones.
• You can use a crock-pot, electric frying pan or a roaster with water in it for your heated stones.
• If you don’t heat the stones up, then you can use them for cold rocks (They are naturally a little cold).
• “Bed, Bath & Beyond” and “Target” and other retail stores sell hot rock sets (Not recommended).
• Use a tongs, fish net, giant curved spoon or rubber gloves to take out the rocks.
• 30-50 different size Basalt riverbed stones are the choice.
• Aqua marine stones or marble stones are the stones of choice for cold stone therapy.
• People can purchase seven semi-precious stones for the chakra points.
• Thermometer
• 2-3 large towels
• Laundry bag

PLACEMENTS
• Test the rocks with essential oils on one part of the body for one minute to find if the client is allergic to the essential oil (It is called a Patch Test).
• Once the rocks start cooling down, you may place them on the client’s back or other parts of the body.
• You can place rocks or crystals on Chakra points on the body.
• Small rocks can be put in between the client’s toes and fingers.
• Place the rocks on a towel between the whole lengths of their legs to cool them off.
• Never place cold stones directly on the body.
• Once the rocks are getting cold, place them back in the heating unit and take out the rocks on the bottom.
• Apply cold or hot compresses to the head for long treatments.
• Rubbing alcohol is sprayed on the rocks if they are too hot.
• Next is the massage itself, which can involve a variety of treatments including deep tissue,
Shiatsu and basic Swedish.

AFTER THE TREATMENT
• You can finish with a no rock massage or just lay the rocks on the client to relax.
• To finish the treatment put all the rocks in the crock-pot or roaster (In the laundry bag) and wipe the oil off the client with the sheet or towels.
• Keep client from being chilled after the treatment by giving the client warm towels or a bathrobe.
• The body should be allowed to rest for at least 15-30 minutes after a full body hot application to allow the body to return to normal.
• Clean the stones with soap, water and a vegetable brush. Tea Tree oil can be used to clean the stone.
• Let the rocks breathe after they are cleaned (Lay them on a towel).