Earlier this winter, I experienced a traumatic back injury in the least assuming place… the dog park. Unfortunately, I got swiped in the legs by a 100lb dog with a case of the zoomies that left me face-up, flailing on the ground like a bug on it’s back. It’s sounds dramatic, but I was pretty convinced I broke my back. A trip to my physical therapist confirmed there were no breaks, and fortunately no herniated disks—but when my back pain wasn’t getting better (with all the Advil in the world), I reached out to my friend Chris who broke his back a few years ago. He claimed one of the treatments that helped his healing process was the use of a far infrared bio mat. A bio mat is like an oversized heating pad that’s lined with far-infrared lights and healing amethyst and tourmaline crystals. Chris brought the mat over to my house and has been letting me borrow it.

A few days after, I caught COVID, which resulted in not only us having to cancel our IVF cycle, but meant I was now sick with covid, a back injury and my body surging with IVF hormones and the associated depression that came with all of it. I started laying on the mat for about 45-60 minutes every day, with a weighted blanket draped over me and turned on an episode of TV (or listened to an audiobook). The mat creates a gentle warmth that relieves pain, improves circulation, and speeds the healing of soft tissue. I found that the biggest benefit was that it soothed my anxiety.

I created a little “chill zone” in my house for use of the mat. This cozy little corner became my place to melt away anxiety.

The BioMat is very different from a standard heating pad. It does not contain heating coils, or any point sources of heat, so it does not present the practical dangers (like electromagnetic fields) associated with heating pads. The BioMat can transfer far more heat into the body, compared to a heating pad. This is because the heat transfer is radiant, not conductive. And since the heat is distributed evenly throughout the body, rather than just on the skin, there is great therapeutic value. The radiant heat is produced by hot crystals that cover the surface of the mat, and there are settings to control the desired temperature of the crystals.

The BioMat Mini contains alternating rows of amethyst and tourmaline stones. Natural crystals convert conductive heat into far infrared light very efficiently. Tourmaline is another wonderful natural crystal with healing qualities.

Takeaway

After using the BioMat daily for 4 weeks, I can’t confirm it healed my back, but I have LOVED using it for calming, soothing purposes. I will be sad to return it to Chris and definitely I plan to purchase my own—but it won’t come cheaply. The model I borrowed is a staggering $700. There are alternative brands available on Amazon for cheaper, but I suggest dong research on the quality of materials and infrared light used before purchasing. These babies are expensive, but the technology is there.

Model I tried: Richway – Mini Biomat 7000 MX 33″x20″

Price: $700

Link: biomatdirect.com

Here’s a more affordable version for 1/2 the price on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3GEvapV