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They say the best things happen by chance. One such happy chance for me was discovering the therapeutic mud baths in Pomorie. Two friends who had been going for years invited me to join them — and curiosity got the better of me.
In brief
- Pomorie mud is liman mud — rich and greasy, with a high sulphur and iron content; the unpleasant smell comes from the hydrogen sulphide.
- You can apply it at the sanatorium (after a doctor’s examination) or on the small beaches along Pomorie Lake.
- For a noticeable effect you need at least 12 treatments; the results show after about a month.
- Mud is contraindicated in heart conditions, high blood pressure, varicose veins and oncological diseases.
The queue for the sanatorium
I became even more intrigued when I learned how hard it is to get a place at the sanatorium, where the treatments are carried out under medical supervision. On the first day of the month, when the cards are handed out, people queue all night. Officially you can book by phone or email, but in practice that doesn’t work.
I had no card and had missed the first of the month, so I rented a room and by 7 in the morning I was standing outside the doctor’s surgery to be prescribed treatments on a paying basis. The queue was impressive, and a large part of those waiting were Russians. The staff turned out to be surprisingly friendly. An examination by a very courteous doctor established that I had a curvature of the spine — and that is how I gained access to the sanatorium’s mud beach.
Day one: a courtyard full of “aliens”
The mud beach is a walled, sand-covered courtyard next to the sanatorium building. At the appointed hour some 30 women in their birthday suits rushed towards a large stone trough filled with raven-black mud with a rather unpleasant smell. The smearing began, from head to toe — only the whites of our eyes were left showing. Within minutes the courtyard was full of alien creatures, visibly delighted by their contact with Pomorie’s black gold.
The conversations all revolved around the benefits of the mud. Many were there for the tenth or fifteenth time. One woman described how she had overcome severe disc disease and hadn’t missed a year since. Another said the mud baths had helped her psoriasis, while a third was hoping to resolve a gynaecological problem.
The Egyptian mud bath
We dried like clay statues, studying the drawings on the walls — ancient Egyptians and inscriptions reminding you that the treatment comes from an Egyptian technique for healing and beautification.
How the Egyptian mud bath is done
- It begins with a sunbath, in the open air.
- The body is coated with about 1 cm of warmed, thick mud.
- You wait for the mask to dry and crack.
- The body is rinsed with sea water or with brine.
The whole treatment takes about 2 hours and can be done with liman mud or with mineral-spring mud.
After 20–30 minutes as little black devils, it was time for the warm lye showers to wash the mud off. Lye plays no less a part than the mud. Afterwards no soap or shampoo is used, so as not to neutralise the action of the minerals.
I couldn’t believe how clean and soft my skin was after the mud, rinsed off with lye. After each treatment I looked at myself in the mirror with greater satisfaction, and my body felt light, as if relieved of a weight. I was already falling in love with the Pomorie mud baths.
The mud and the huma clay by the lake
Falling in love turned into love when I discovered that you can use the mud not only at the sanatorium, but right by Pomorie Lake itself. There are small beaches there where resourceful locals dig out the mud and strain it of pebbles and shells. For 2 leva you can coat yourself in thick black mud like marmalade. Sometimes there is fresh huma clay too, just taken out of the lake — I was advised to use it on my face and hair, and to leave the mud for my body.
You wash it off in the lake. Its water is called brine — salty and rich in minerals thanks to the sediments and the processes in the lake. So the mud comes full circle: from the lake to the body and back again. Little fish swim around you in the shallows.
Personally, I prefer the treatments by the lake: the view of the mirror-like water fringed with reeds, the black granite sand you can warm yourself on, and the conversations with others who love this place.
What the doctors say about the mud on the shore
Mud loses half its properties within a few days in the open air, and mud left lying on the shore may be contaminated, warns physiotherapist Dr Antoaneta Grozeva. Good mud is black with a slightly greyish tinge. Read the interview with her.
The spit between Pomorie Lake and the sea. Photo: Mojmir Churavy, Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
“The mud makes you younger” — what the regulars say
One pensioner, a regular visitor, still plays football and tennis several times a week — he says he keeps his knees going with mud treatments. Another comes every Saturday and Sunday from out of town to “stock up” on minerals for better circulation. He explained to me that the secret isn’t to smear the painful spot as if with an ointment: the body absorbs the minerals, circulation and metabolism are boosted — and that is where the healing effect lies. It is thought that at least 12 baths are needed, and the effect only shows after a month.
What the doctors say: sulphur and iron
According to Dr Stefan Shishkov, chief physician of the Anchialo balneotherapy centre, the mud in Pomorie Lake is liman mud and differs in composition from the mud found in Italy, France, Spain, Japan and other countries. You can read the full interview with Dr Shishkov separately.
Pomorie mud contains a great deal of sulphur and iron. The unpleasant smell comes from the hydrogen sulphide. Liman mud is greasy to the touch, with an alkaline pH — a uniform, plastic mass that retains heat for a long time and contains many biologically active substances and living microorganisms. It has formed over thousands of years from the minerals, trace elements and organic substances accumulated by the water.
Sulphur is involved in every movement the body makes, but it becomes depleted over the years, and there is no medication that can replace it. That is why the main area of treatment with Pomorie mud is disorders of the musculoskeletal system — arthrosis, lower back pain and osteochondrosis (so-called bone spurs).
ANCHIALO body mask with lye and liman mud
Therapeutic mud has an anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and immune-stimulating effect, improves circulation, boosts the metabolism and strengthens the bones. Thanks to this it also helps with conditions of the peripheral nervous system — disc problems, plexitis, periarthritis — as well as with skin conditions and certain conditions of the female and male reproductive systems.
In her article “Mud Baths”, Irina Stefanova explains that the microparticles in the mud penetrate the skin and gently press on the tissues. In this way they stimulate circulation and help flush out toxins, while at the same time the skin absorbs minerals and biologically active substances.
When mud is not advisable
- heart conditions and high blood pressure;
- varicose veins;
- oncological conditions.
In all cases, consult your doctor.
A little history — and Rafi
Pomorie Lake is believed to have formed around 740 BC after a major earthquake. In the Roman baths, and later in the Turkish hamams, mud baths were a ritual for recovery after battle, for relaxation and for renewed strength. In 1905 Dr Petar Stoyanov began research into Pomorie mud, which led to the opening of the first mud therapy centre in Pomorie.
Today Rafi looks after one of the little beaches — a colourful character whom everyone loves. He cleans the beach as early as spring and offers mud and clay all summer long. A small community of mud enthusiasts has already gathered around him.
Once you have had your fill of chatting with them, you can walk ten metres or so along the sandy spit that separates the lake from the sea and carry on to the Black Sea. Isn’t that paradise? It is no coincidence that 269 bird species have chosen the lake as part of their Via Pontica migration route. The birds have always known about its bounty. Now I have joined them too — I promised myself I would fly in at least once a year.
Source: spisanie8.bg
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