Pasteurization & Bone Health Better Choices for Better Bones November 25 2013

Pasteurization?  It’s good for us, right?

Here’s what pasteurization really does whether you’re talking about dairy, vinegars, eggs, kombucha or many other raw fermented foods :

1. Diminishes all nutrients which are heat sensitive 

2. It does not destroy all harmful micro organisms

3. It does destroy beneficial bacteria’s (probiotics)

4. Destroys the active enzymes

5. Denatures fragile milk proteins

6. It denatures the food changing it from a live healthy food to a dead food

It seems odd that something so simple could actually be affecting your bone density and overall health.  Consider just the vinegar for a moment.  Distilled vinegar leaves an acid residue whereas the raw vinegar leaves an alkaline residue.  Your body will try to maintain a certain pH and if you are too acidic, it will leach alkalizing minerals from your bones to achieve a pH balance. Your goal is to consume 80% alkalizing foods and just 20% acid forming foods on a daily basis.

To give yourself every advantage for building better bones and better over-all health a couple of options include:

If you are going to consume dairy products, purchase raw products made from organic, grass fed cows.  Grass fed is desired over silage fed cows, providing a much higher content of essential fatty acids which also aids in building muscle mass, losing fat, stimulating your immune system and may help to fight against illness and disease.  In many states it is illegal to sell raw milk , therefore requiring you to purchase cow shares making you part owner of a cow.

   *Switch to Almond Milk.  It’s much higher in calcium than cow’s milk and it’s alkalizing rather than acidifying. 

   * In many recipes where milk is called for, all you really need is something wet. Consider using water or almond milk.

   *Purchase Raw Apple Cider Vinegar as opposed to distilled vinegars.  Again, you are choosing an alkalizing food. 

   *Make your own kombucha.  It’s easy, tasty, economical and great for your health.

Three Questions to Test Your Knowledge of Disease! September 05 2013

Question #1:   If you’re aging and your black hair starts to go gray, can we call that a hair disease?

Question #2:  If you’re aging and your skin starts to sag and wrinkle, can we call that a skin disease?

Question #3:  If you’re aging and your bones start to naturally thin, should we automatically call that a bone disease by the name of Osteoporosis?

Obviously, the answer to the first two questions is “no.”  However, the answer is, “no” to the third question as well.  Just because your bones are a wee bit thinner than before doesn’t mean you have a disease any more than the absurd thought that you have a disease because your hair is graying and your skin is losing recoil. 

There is a plethora of false information regarding bone density and osteoporosis. We’ll start with just a sneak peek:

Number 1:  There is no way for you to accurately determine how much bone loss you’ve had, unless you had your bone density measured at its peak at some time during your 20’s.

Number 2:  As we age, there is a normal thinning of the bones, just as there is a normal loss of natural hair color and loss of recoil to our skin.

Number 3:  You do not want to retain old brittle bone, you want to build new, flexible, dynamic living tissue called bone.

Number 4:  Milk doesn’t build strong bones, it weakens them.  Milk doesn’t put calcium into the bones, it causes calcium to leach out of the bones.  Milk doesn’t do a body good; it does a body harm.

I’ll be devoting the next several posts to things that you can do to naturally address bone density.  Be prepared for a few surprises and in the meantime, pitch the milk. 

Emotions, Lies and Bondage Breakers January 20 2012

I received an exceptional amount of feedback on the Emotional Outlook Questionnaire with remarks including everything from, “Wow, this is great!” to “I flunked emotions.”

Emotions are an interesting thing. We wrongly consider some good and some bad, when in fact, emotions are just emotions. It’s what we do with them that matters. In conjunction with emotions, we often find that it gets complicated by the lies that we believe. Emotions can settle into our body systems and wreak havoc with our health.  Remember how you’d get a stomach ache just thinking about having to give a speech in front of the whole class?

Below is a sampling of emotions and lies for you to consider and then review the flower essences that can help you move into emotional health.

GUILT: There is true guilt and false guilt. True Guilt would be something like, I wrongly accuse someone of something and I need to apologize and make an amends. False Guilt might be that I sent someone to the store for ice cream and they got into an accident and it’s my fault they were injured because I sent them to the store and now I can never forgive myself.

GRIEF: Some people never allow themselves to start the grieving process and others can’t figure out how to stop it. Guilt could be tossed in there too somewhere. Left unresolved, grief tends to settle into the respiratory system and the heart. Grief comes in many venues: death of a loved one, death of a dream, loss of a job or health, grief over betrayal, or a missed opportunity, and the list goes on. The big lie may come in with feeling that because you are a christian, you shouldn’t feel this way, you shouldn’t cry so that you can be strong for everyone else, or you shouldn’t be sad because they’re in a better place, complicating the grief with false guilt.

ANGER: This has many faces. You may have the anger of righteous indignation because helpless people are used and abused. Or you may be angry because the whole world is against you and nothing ever goes right for you. One is based on truth and another on lies and a gross generalization. Anger can be a red flag to you that someone has crossed a boundary and you need to protect yourself. Anger in and of itself, is often not the real underlying emotion. The actual emotion may be rooted in fear, hurt, helplessness, resentment, bitterness, being taken for granted, a need to protect yourself or someone else, or feelings of unworthiness. Anger can also be the result of unattainable expectations where you must determine which of the expectations are reasonable, unreasonable, self inflicted, dictated by culture, a belief system or your family system.

Natures Sunshine has developed a line of seven different flower essences for emotional health. Each one is designed to help you acknowledge, process, accept and express the emotion in a constructive way. They are designed to bring the emotion out. Use one formula at a time.

Keep Cool: Designed to assist the body with feelings of anger and irritability and to help control anger, fear, grief and to calm the temper. Designed for controlling domineering personalities.

Find Strength: For people who tend to suppress their anger. It may give you the emotional strength to stand up for yourself.

Release It: For those who need to release grief and let go of past victim-hood or sadness. 

Open Heart: May help to assist with the ability to love, for those who suppress grief or who lack empathy or compassion for others.

Be Courageous: Excellent for those who have fear, need help making decisions, moving forward in the direction they want to go, need aid in self confidence, have indecisiveness, uncertainty and nervous tension.

Be Response-Able: This can help you to be aware and to take charge in a responsible manner by helping you with self-defeating behavior.

Distress Remedy: Designed to balance or center an emotional state. Great to use in stressful situations.

The Compass has been updated so that I can assess your bio markers using just these seven formulas. See “Compass Scan” under “Services” for a more thorough explanation.

These liquid formulas come with an eye dropper so that they can easily be dispensed directly under your tongue. Another great way to use them is to mix with water and sip throughout the day or mix with water, put into a spray bottle to mist throughout the house or office.

Flower essence formulas – don’t let your emotions keep you in bondage. Experience Emotional Freedom.

This is not meant to replace counseling or medical intervention when warranted. It is simply an additional tool for integrating your total health and wellness program.  For further study consider the following two books:  The Lies We Believe and The Lies We Tell Ourselves, both by Dr. Chris Thurman.

A Better Body Builder Therapy #3 Whole Body Supplementation Rather Than Symptom Supplementation January 12 2012

Most people eat a lot of food, but enjoy very few nutrients. If you’re eating a processed diet where most of it is pre-packaged, cooked or microwaved, you’re probably consuming foods void of nutrients but chuck full of toxins and calories. 

I’ve heard it stated that many of the people who have health issues could resolve them and bring all body systems into harmony by supplementing with a core program of:

• Probiotics,
• Fiber,
• Multivitamin with Minerals,
• Food Enzymes
• Essential Fatty Acids and
• Antioxidants

Entire books have been written about each of these categories. For simplicity sake, I’ll give a brief description with general rules of thumb, and at least one Nature’s Sunshine option. 

Probiotics: These are the powerful good guys (bacteria) that keep the bad guys (bad bacteria) under control.  I’ve read that the ratio of good bacteria to bad should be 85:15 to keep your body systems in balance. If you’ve been on an antibiotic, consider following up with a probiotic with a therapeutic dose of  3 – 5 times the normal amount until one bottle has been consumed and then resume with normal dosage. Probiotics show promise for prevention of cancer and kidney stone formation, reversing constipation, diarrhea, inflammation, and in some cases even depression. Try Bifidophilus, Probiotic Eleven, or the children’s chewable Probiotic Power.

Fiber: Fiber is your friend. Available in capsule or loose form, fiber absorbs toxins in digestive tract, helps you to feel full, is a time release agent for sugar, helps absorb bile from the gallbladder to help reduce cholesterol levels, reduces inflammation in the gut, is helpful for regular elimination and can help to reduce the risk of colon cancer and prevent diverticulitis and hemorrhoids. Loose fiber choices includeLOCLO, Everybody’s Fiber and Nature’s Three. Encapsulated fibers includePsyllium , Psyllium Seeds, and Psyllium Hulls Combination

Multivitamin with Minerals: A definite must. Trying to build a healthy body without vitamins and minerals is like trying to grow a garden without soil, air, water and sun. A deficiency of any nutrient will eventually result in an illness or disease. Super Supplemental and Multiple Vitamin and Mineral are both excellent choices for adults. The children’s Multiple Vitamin and Mineral gummy bear is tasty enough for kids and adults like them too.

Food Enzymes: These guys make the digestive system function and are the “spark plugs” of life. Generally found in raw foods, they are destroyed by heat, help the body break down, absorb and assimilate nutrients, and assist in practically all bodily functions. There are three main categories of digestive enzymes. Consider theChildren’s Whole Food Papayazyme, Proactazyme or Protease Plus if you eat a lot of processed food and try Food Enzymes if you are elderly, weak or have lost the ability to digest food. To improve digestion herbally, consider Spleen Activator, Anti-Gas Formula with Lobelia or the Chinese Anti-Gas Formula. 

Essential Fatty Acids: Most of us do not get the required amount of good fats in the typical American fare. Essential fatty acids play a role in heart health, a healthy immune system, brain function, body temperature, production of hormones, kidney, nervous and reproductive system functions as well as prevention of degenerative diseases. NSP choices include Super GLA, Super Omega 3, and the children’s chewable gummy bear, Omega 3 with DHA.

Antioxidants: Depending on whose research you read, we have about 75 trillion cells in our body and each one takes approximately 10,000 free radical hits a day. Free radicals/oxidative stress are what cause aging as well as about 50 -80% of all chronic and degenerative diseases. Antioxidants are the warriors that fight these free radicals, disarming and neutralizing them. Excellent antioxidant choices include Thai Go, Super ORAC, and the children’s gummy bear Whole Food Antioxidant. 

If you’d like to start out with a smaller program, take a look at Super Trio. You receive 60 packets, each containing Super Supplemental without Iron, Super Omega 3 and Super Antioxidant. Take one packet twice daily.

A Better Body Builder Therapy #2 Let Food Be Your Medicine and Medicine be Your Food – Hippocrates January 04 2012

Healthy eating needs to be simplified.  Think of this as a beginners practical guideline rather than lots of rules.  For starters, be intentional about eating a well balanced, low-glycemic diet. Those food items with a glycemic index of 55 or less are considered low. Foods with a low GI don’t break down as fast in the intestines, therefore resulting in more stable blood sugar levels. This may then result in sustained, stabilized energy, fewer mood swings, and fewer cravings. Don’t think of eating nutritionally as consuming a certain amount of protein, carbs and fats. Think of eating real, whole foods including meat, chicken, vegetables, fruits and grains. Increase the amount of unprocessed, raw foods and consume a variety of them.  Start somewhere, anywhere, and go from there.

Please click here for an example of a GI Food list.

Another component to food therapy for Building your health is to incorporate more foods that are beneficial for your blood type. A general listing is below, but realize that there are 6 subtypes in each blood type group. Your local library will most likely have books on this topic by Dr. Peter D’Adamo. There is no need to obsess over this and hold yourself hostage to it; use it as a tool.

I’m a Type A blood type and I feel great eating lots of salads, topped with boiled eggs, nuts and seeds. My husband is a Type O blood type. If he doesn’t get his red meat, he is lethargic, grouchy and depressed. As a Type A, I do well to exercise with lots of stretching, walking and singing. My husband and his Type O blood, requires a sweat drenching, aerobic work out. It’s true, opposites attract and one size, does not fit all.  Generally speaking: 

• Recommended: vegetables, seafood, tofu, beans, grains, legumes and fruits
• Not Recommended: meat, dairy products, kidney beans, lima beans and wheat
• Recommended for weight loss: vegetables, pineapples, vegetable oil and soy foods

• Recommended: meat, dairy products, beans, grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables
• Not Recommended: peanuts, corn, sesame seeds, lentil and wheat
• Recommended for weight loss: eggs, greens, liver and tea

• Recommended: meat, seafood, dairy products, beans, legumes, grains, tofu, fruits and vegetables
• Not Recommended: red meat, kidney beans, lima beans and corn
• Recommended for weight loss: seafood, dairy, greens, tofu and pineapple

• Recommended: meat, fish, vegetables and fruits
• Not Recommended: wheat, beans, corns, cabbage, brussels sprouts and cauliflower
• Recommended for weight loss: seafood, red meat, liver, spinach and broccoli

A few thoughts to consider:

1. Keep a positive attitude. No matter what you’re eating, enjoy it.
2. Light the way for others by making the changes in your own eating habits first. No need to criticize the eating habits of others.
3. Pay attention to your own body and how it feels. Some do best with egg on toast, first thing in the morning. Others do best with fresh fruit. Listen to your body.
4. Think of this as an exciting adventure.  

Water: A Better Body Builder Therapy #1 November 21 2011

The best way to begin building a better body is with water.

Next to oxygen, water is the most crucial thing your body needs. 

• A loss of just 2% of your hydration can begin to affect your thinking ability
• A loss of 15% – 20% of your body’s water can be fatal.
• 75% of all Americans are dehydrated
• 1/3 of Americans have a thirst mechanism so weak that it is mistaken for hunger
• Dehydration is the number one trigger for daytime fatigue

Dehydration can lead to:

• indigestion
• colitis
• appendicitis
• heart burn
• rheumatoid arthritis
• back and neck pain
• headaches
• stress
• depression
• high blood pressure
• asthma
• fatigue
• memory loss
• allergies
• THIS IS JUST TO NAME A FEW

Research suggests that sufficient amounts of water can:

• Reduce colon cancer risk by 45%
• Reduce breast cancer risk by 79%
• Reduce bladder cancer risk by 50%

So where does one start when drinking water? A simple rule of thumb is to :

• Take your body weight (Example: 150 pounds)
• Cut that number in half (Example: 75 )
• Drink that many ounces of water a day ( Example: 75 ounces of water, daily)

Drink even when you don’t feel thirsty. When the human body dehydrates to a certain point, its thirst mechanism shuts off.

Just to clarify, pop, juice and coffee do not hydrate the body. They dehydrate the body and they do not count towards your water intake for the day.

Can’t take just plain water? You can add:

• Fresh pressed lemon or lime juice
• Raw apple cider vinegar and real maple syrup
• Liquid Chlorophyll
• Stevia and fresh pressed lemon
• One drop of Nature’s Sunshine Peppermint essential oil to 16 oz – 32 oz of water
• Nature’s Sunshine Solstic Immune
• Nature’s Sunshine Solstic Revive
• Nature’s Sunshine Solstic Energy
• Nature’s Sunshine Solstic Twenty-Four

If you haven’t been a water drinker in the past and find this difficult, start by increasing your water intake by a glass a day and increase from there. You will find that you’ll start craving it.

The kind of water you drink is important. At the very least, drink water that has been purified in some way.

Emotional Outlook Questionnaire with Essential Oil Suggestions, Activation Part III October 25 2011

Essential Oils have been used as a specific remedy for activating healing for physical, emotional and spiritual imbalances.  However, not all essential oils are created equally. Nature’s Sunshine features a line you can trust. Emotional outlook is crucial to overall well being and activation of healing.

Compliments of Jay VanDenHeuvel, N.D., I have listed below 27 different emotional states and the essential oil you may want to consider for use.

One or more of these oils can be selected for emotional support, however, it is always advisable to start with one oil and work into combining them after you have experienced your body’s response. It is best not to exceed more than four or five essential oils at one time.

The oils can be diluted in Aloe Vera Gel, or Nature’s Sunshine Massage Oil and applied topically. You can mix a few drops of essential oil with water and a drop of Nature’s Sunshine Concentrate (to keep the oil from separating in the water, ) put in a spray bottle and mist on your body or in the air around you. You can also diffuse the oils into the air with the Nature’s Sunshine Diffuser, or use the other accessories that they sell for application which includes Spray Bottles, Roll-On Bottles, Plug-in Diffusers, Funnel, and an Aromatherapy and Essential Oil Guide.  There are many ways to incorporate the essential oils into your every day lifestyle.  Have fun with it.

• Are you compulsive, or do you have impulses to do things obsessively
• Do you lack confidence in yourself
• Do you expect failure
• Do you feel inferior, or do you feel that others are more capable and qualified than you are

• Compulsive and/or obsessive behavior
• Lack of self-confidence
• Tension
• Depression
• Anxiety  

• Do you frequently burst into tears or react in a highly emotional way to life’s situations
• Do you feel a lot of tension or congestion in your stomach or solar plexus, as though feelings are stored there
• Do you believe you need to have more serenity in life
• Do you fluctuate between emotional moods
• Do you lack stamina

• Tension
• Darkness
• Stress
• Anger
• Insomnia
• Hyperactivity
• Learning problems
• Moodiness
• Daydreaming
• Impatience 

• Do you anger easily
• Are daily activities sometimes confusing
• Are you easily irritated

• Tension
• Lack of inner self
• Lethargy
• Negative energy

• Do you need to develop more objectivity and perspective about recent life events that trouble or perplex you
• Does your life seem more accidental than purposeful, making it hard to have much insight into, or acceptance of, the people and events surrounds you
• Are you in an elder phase of life, wanting to gather wisdom and reflect on the meaning of your experience
• Do you have concern about aging

• Aging (fear of)
• Immaturity
• Change or transitions
• Drawing wisdom from experienced
• Finding purpose
• Ill fated or undeserved feeling 

• Do you have difficulty with short term memory
• Do you feel out of touch with your intuition
• Do you feel your emotions cloud your perception
• Do you have a sense of detachment from the world

• Memory
• “Seeing” clearly
• Nervousness 

• Do you feel like you are being choked
• Do you feel like you have something to say but are not saying it or expressing it
• Do you have trouble accepting life as it is
• Do you feel separate, resulting in a reduction of energy

• Constraint
• loneliness
• Trouble accepting life

• Do you suffer from unknown fears
• Do you feel unsafe and insecure
• Do you find it difficult to concentrate
• Do you feel like the world is crashing in on you
• Could you benefit from an infusion of faith

• Fear
• Uncertainty
• Poor concentration
• Insecurity
• lack of self confidence
• Anxiety
• Hyperventilation
• Hyperactivity 

• Do you hold grudges or refuse to let go of past hurts
• Do you come on strong or seem overbearing to others even though you are just trying to convey confidence
• Do you feel overly tense or anxious
• Do you suffer from mood swings

• Over excitement
• Anxiety
• Mood swings
• Weakness
• Nervous Tension
• PMS
• Depression
• Letting go of past hurts

• Do you have many plans or intentions that never seem to materialize
• Do you brood, think about or reflect, rather than plan and execute
• Do you feel sluggish
• Have you had a difficult childhood

• Mood swings
• A sense of drowning in life
• Inner child issues – unresolved trauma from childhood 

• Are you in a state of crisis or emergency
• Are you having trouble letting go of “stuck” emotions and hurts from the past
• Is change difficult
• Do you feel emotionally exhausted or disoriented

• Shock
• Pain
• Trauma
• Great for the nerves
• Helps remove stubborn emotions of jealousy, anger and bitterness
• Very healing on all levels
• Can be used for drug detox

• Do you replace your daily life with fantasy
• Do you need constant motivation to complete a task
• Do you wish you had a better sense of well-being

• Impotence
• Grief
• Heartbreak
• Anger
• Depression
• Postpartum Depression
• Finding life’s purpose

• Would you describe yourself as strung out, nervous, or hyperactive
• Do you have difficulty sleeping or are you restless
• Do you have difficulty concentrating when praying or meditating
• Do you suffer from a chattering mind with no clear, calm, concise thoughts
• Is your life out of balance

• Emotional blocks
• Stress
• For sensitive people
• Argumentative individuals
• Meditation
• Universal oil that relaxes and stimulates

• Do your relationships seem toxic
• Are you tense, or do you have unresolved conflict
• Do you have lack of inner life
• Do you describe yourself as being “out of it”
• do you tend to feel that everything is unclean

• Issues of self
• Tiredness
• Lethargic
• Anxiety
• Feelings of impurity
• Universal emotional balance 

• Do you suffer from every day fears
• Are you overworked
• Do man people comment you don’t seem happy

• Sadness
• Stress

• Do you need a sense of comfort
• Are you having difficulty getting over losing someone in any way
• Are you sensitive or impatient
• Do you feel melancholy

• Heavy sighing
• Loneliness
• Rejection
• Insomnia
• Grief
• Tension
• Inappropriate sexual behavior/desire

• Do you have trouble exercising patience
• Is there a tendency to self-destruct
• Do simple things irritate you
• Do you suffer from a loss of stability

• Hyperactivity
• Stress
• Lack of inspiration

• Do you have trouble making decisions
• Do you anger easily
• Do you often think, “What’s the use?”
• Do you have general anxiety of fears

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Tension
• Upset for no reason
• Low Libido
• Fear
• Lack of self confidence
• Sexual Problems

• Do you have trouble looking into a mirror and honestly saying “(Your Name), I love you.”
• Do you have difficulty seeing yourself as a unique individual
• Do you feel your life is painful

• Pain
• Issues of self esteem
• Gives synergy to other oils for use in blends 

• Do you always need to be right
• Do you have difficulty with decisions
• Do you suffer from apathy or indifference

• Anxiety
• Stress
• Trapped emotional energy

• Do you lack energy or stimulation
• Do you find it hard to get motivated
• Do you find it hard to get through the day
• Do you have trouble being creative

• Insomnia
• Laziness
• Lethargy
• Sluggishness
• Mental cloudiness
• Low energy
• Poor concentration
• Good for students
• Helps with digestion of the body and the mind

• Is it hard to find direction
• Do you have harsh expectations of yourself
• Is it hard to let go of past mistakes or failures

• Pity
• Guilt
• Blame
• Exhaustion
• Self Criticism

• Is your heart heavy or sad
• Do you lack comfort
• Do you need to develop greater courage to confront rather than retreat

• Shame
• Depression
• Grief
• Irritability
• Shyness
• Inspires: Joy, Love, Confidence, Love of self, Inspiration, Renewal, Independence

• Is there a side of you that needs more attention or understanding
• Do you tell white lies or are you living a lie
• Do you have trouble accepting your spiritual side or do you question it
• Do you see the world as pieces and parts rather than a meaningful whole
• Are you forgetful or are your extremities cold

• Confusion
• Exhaustion
• Bitterness
• Nightmares
• Inspires: Wisdom, Truth, Peace, Meditation, Creativity

• Does life seem overly chaotic
• Do you have trouble organizing your life
• Do you suffer from a chattering mind or where daily activities and worries are constantly thought about – possibly obsessive compulsive

• Hyperactivity
• Negative programming
• Enhances meditation and prayer 

• Do you often deny your own needs
• Do you care more about everyone else instead of spending time on yourself

• Builds emotional strength 

• Do you spend time trying to understand the meaning of life
• Do you feel like there is not enough time in your life to do everything you want to do
• Do you feel that it’s not fair that we age

• Issues of time and trying to beat the clock
• Speeds healing of tissues
• Builds: Strength, Courage, Longevity, Concentration

• Do you wear a mask of cheerfulness while you feel different on the inside
• Do you judge before you act and are you even aware of it
• Do you ever have difficulty really hearing what others are saying
• Do you have difficulty with imperfection, either in yourself, or others
• Do life’s unfolding events often irritate you

• Hyperventilation
• Shock
• Stress
• Anxiety
• Nervousness
• Anger
• Bitterness
• Depression
• Lack of interest
• Jealousy

Profound – Simple – Free, Activation Part II October 12 2011

You’ve had a few days, since the last post, to consider the thoughts and beliefs that are roaming in your head and how they might be affecting your capacity towards health and wellness. Let’s discuss some practical applications to help you stimulate and activate healing.

Prayer: Scientific studies have proven that patients who were prayed for, fared better than those who were not prayed for. Prayer, a profound, simple, free, curative.

Affirmations: Positive thinking actually provides an electrical stimulus through the nervous system, thereby activating the healing energy of the tissues. You can use positive affirmations and statements to enhance your healing process. A person with a broken bone could say, “My bone IS whole and strong.” Use the present tense as though the healing has already happened. (Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1)

If you are struggling with emotional issues, you could ask yourself, “What would it feel like if…….. I were happy? I were motivated? I were peaceful and calm? I had clarity? 

The only way your mind and body can answer these questions is to start generating the feelings desired by envisioning oneself as peaceful, happy, serene, bold, courageous. (Phil 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.)

Deep Breathing and Relaxation: It really is amazing how many of us practice shallow breathing instead of deep breathing. When you breathe deeply, it allows the tissues to be oxygenated, which fans the spark of life throughout the body. Deep breathing also allows you to get in touch with buried feelings that need to be brought to the surface and resolved. Feelings buried alive, don’t stay dead and quite often, rise up in an unpredictable manner. 

Deep breathing enables the body to relax. In our fast paced culture, we desperately need to give our body a chance to relax and to bring balance to our autonomic nervous system. In studying the oxygenation of the body, I could literally write several pages on the benefits of a properly oxygenated body. 

A practical and easy technique for deep breathing and relaxation is to sit in a comfortable chair, slowly relaxing each part of your body, allowing the muscles to tense then relax, breathe slowly from the abdomen and then focus and count when breathing, “In – two, three four, out –two, three, four.” With practice, you will find that you can quickly de-stress using this method.

Visualization: When relaxed and breathing deeply, many people use visualization for activating healing. Cancer patients have been encouraged to visualize their white blood cells gobbling up the cancer cells and destroying them. Amazingly enough, studies again have proven that such visualization actually enhances immunity and healing.

Touch: Hugs are healing. Massages are healing. Holding hands is healing. Being intimate with your spouse is healing. Each of us has energy and far infra-red within us that can bring healing to others.

Did you happen to notice that all five methods of Activation that we discussed today incorporate the physical, emotional and spiritual? Our bodies were created to heal themselves when given what they need. This doesn’t mean that we will never get sick or that we’ll live forever. We do live in a fallen world. But we were not left without hope or remedy.

Pray. Affirm. Breathe. Relax. Visualize. Touch.

Profound. Simple. Free.

Take a few days to incorporate these activation methods and in the next post, we’ll talk about specific remedies which will include essential oils, herbs and flower essences.

This is part two of a three part series.  Please see previous post.

It Couldn’t All Be In My Head – Could It? Activation – Part I October 07 2011

Apologetically and with a nervous chuckle, the young woman who had been suffering from some long term health issues said, “This is going to sound weird, but I think I started to feel better right after calling you to set up the appointment.”

Was it just in her head? There were actually a couple of dynamics taking place.

First: Most of us have heard of the Placebo Effect. People are given sugar pills and a certain number of them will get well just because they believe that this pill will make them well. 

However, there is also something called the Nocebo Effect. In one study, cancer patients were given sugar pills, but were told it was chemotherapy drugs. 30% of the cancer patients lost their hair. Why? Because they believed that they were being given chemotherapy drugs and knew that a side effect was hair loss.

The Placebo and Nocebo Effects lend credibility to the idea that a person’s attitude and emotional state can cause a physical problem to appear or disappear.

Your thoughts matter and what you believe matters.

This young woman, at some level, believed that it would be beneficial to at least set up an appointment and come to see me.

Second: Another dynamic that took place with this young woman was that by setting up an appointment, she gave herself HOPE. Hope is an amazing thing. Take it away from someone and what have you got left? Scripture says it perfectly:

Proverbs 17:22 – “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”

Unless you are already dead, there is always hope.

Third: There is a systematic approach to natural health and healing referred to as the A B C + D Approach. The “A” is activation. Activation is always the first step in the healing process and it may well be the most critical.  You probably already utilize this concept and aren’t even aware of it.

More on Activation in Part II.  In the meantime, ask yourself, “What’s in my head?”