Food For Thought

If you are eating well you shouldn't feel tired.

Salt tends to over-stimulate the adrenal glands, whereas sugar tends to over-stimulate the pancreas.

If you are experiencing headaches, cold sweats, or get cold just after eating, your body is giving strong signals that you are out of whack. 


Coffee stimulates the endocrine/nervous system as a whole. It can over-stimulate our nervous system. If you are experiencing sharp spikes of energy with subsequent 'crashes' you may want to look at caffeine as a culprit. Carbohydrates can be another hidden simulator with a similar spike and crash pattern.

Using stimulants to kick an under-nourished body is rather like beating a tired horse. If your body is not looking or acting the way you would like, be prepared to make the necessary changes.

Food should energize through nutrition, not stimulation

I remember reading an article about a young man who traveled across the United States for employment and used only hot sauce to keep him awake, rather than coffee.  He arrived in New York State feeling alert and energized.

Being out of the spiral of stimulating foods means that I can trust my body to nudge me towards what it really needs. 

There are certain foods that just make me feel better. My body loves carrots, spinach, dandelion, kale and beets. These are my own personal super foods. I crave them. Sometimes I want meat. I tend to use the 24 hour delay button here and see if I can make my body happy by supplementing protein and Floradix iron or having a meal with beets. If that does not satisfy, then a meat meal it is.

Foods I would avoid:

Junk foods/Prefab foods/Franken-foods, refined foods, Sugar/Salt laden foods, Canned foods/Frozen Foods, Toxic Fats/Deep Fried Foods, De-vitalized foods, Moldy foods such as mushrooms, peanuts and pistachios, simple carbohydrates and Carbonated drinks.

Eating Lower on the Food Chain

The higher up on the food-chain that we consume, the more accumulated toxins the food contains. 

Eating lower on the food chain not only means cleaner food, but can also mean less expensive food. 

(Diet for a Small Planet)

Another name for diet is ‘food style’. One ‘food style’, known as ‘food combining’ which is outlined in the
The Fit for Life Diet. ( advises eating proteins and carbohydrates at separate meals.  This really takes the stress off the whole digestive engine).  

The Blood Type Diet is a wonderfully researched thesis that focuses on the genetic/antibody link to foods.  For example, Type O is typically the meat eating, hunter/gatherer, whereas Type A is Agrarian.  Type A’s usually do well with a vegetarian diet.

We are hardwired for Feast and Famine.  You can’t fool the body.  If you have a ‘starvation and boom and bust’ kind of eating style, your body will prepare for famine and conserve every calorie.  Deprivation just doesn't work to control weight. Maintaining a personalized food style works.

The wise choice is to eat foods that are lower in calories and higher in nutrition.  Usually people eat food that is nutritionally empty, laden with calories, and too much of it.

When high activity makes physical demands on one’s body, repair with quality protein and eat just enough carbohydrates to maintain a good energy level.  The best choice is complex carbohydrates such as unrefined whole grains, which allow a slower glucose release into the bloodstream.

It isn’t just what we eat, but when we eat.  The Body Type Diet looks at the dominant glandular tendencies and food choices that over-work specific endocrine glands.  For example, I notice that if I eat too much too late in the day, I am unusually hungry all the next day.  If I eat a heavy breakfast, I am unusually hungry all day long. It doesn’t work for me.

When your systems are working well, and your food style is in balance with your life, still be prepared to make ongoing changes.  We are constantly changing too, and our food choices need to reflect our real needs on a personal and physical level day to day.

My favorite diet is The Dolly Parton Diet. The reality is that your first taste of anything is an explosion of sensation in your mouth.  The second taste is good, but by the third spoonful, you can no longer taste what you are eating. A teaspoon of anything isn't too much, calorie wise, but why eat volume when you can no longer taste your food?

Staying Healthy with the Seasons

Changes in the seasons create big changes in the body.  Extremes in temperature and humidity can really stress the body’s coping mechanisms, not only in detoxification but endocrine balance as well.

This is the wisdom behind eating watermelon and cucumbers, raw foods, fruits and salads that cool us in the heat of the summer.  In the winter we are attracted to soups, stews, foods that are oven baked.  All of this tends to create more warming for the body.

With this in mind, we can maximize our personal ‘house-cleansing’ of primary elimination systems at these peak times of year.  In the spring, the body is focused on cleansing the liver system, which includes the blood and intestines. In the fall, the body is focused on flushing the kidneys and the whole genito-urinary system and cleaning the blood. 

A simple way of looking at this is that in the spring the wood element is highlighted – hot and juicy (liver), and full of growth and expansion. In the fall the water element is highlighted – cold and damp (kidneys), and 

the body is conserving and contracting.  The foods we eat every day make a tremendous change in how effective these peak times are maximized.  The quote “Let food be your medicine” is certainly true.

What is your personal super-food?

I have been approached by so many people over the years, each selling a plethora of products guaranteed to ‘cure whatever ails ya’.  How could one product be good for everyone? For example, Chamomile herb is in the same family as ragweed.  Needless to say, it doesn't affect us all in the same way. 

Fortunately, by using bio-feedback testing, such as specialized kinesiology, it is easy to assess what your personal needs are and what specific nutrients meets this need in the most body-friendly way.

 

The following is a list of nutrients that in my experience have been on many people’s ‘top picks’ of super-foods.  Don’t assume that you need to supplement all of them.

ü  Green Food Blends (Vegge Green) - These blends nourish, as well as detoxify & alkalize the body.

ü  Minerals: Make sure these are ‘body friendly’

        

Calcium

            Magnesium

            Iron

            Iodine

            Multi Mineral

ü  Antioxidants:

            Co-enzyme Q 10

            Network Antioxidants (Phytoberry)

            Lutein

            Grapeseed Extract

            Lycopene

ü  Digestive Enzymes

ü  Digestive Tonics

ü  Essential Fatty Acids

ü  Vitamin C (Ester C)

ü  Vitamin B & B Complex

Manufacturing quality is always important. Choose top quality companies.  Be tested and make sure that the brand you are using is really performing for you, and that you are getting the optimal amounts. 

What I mean by that, is some people are taking too much at once whereas taking less over a long 
period of time would help make profound gains in well'being. I have to say again, that if you are not 
putting top quality in, you are not going to experience the change your hoping for. Worse yet, what you are using may by toxic, or a elimination burden to your body.

Spend a little more and get a lot more results.

Scalp Issues

Scalp issues like skin issues are far more than skin deep.

I started out my professional life as a hair stylist, and I worked in the cosmetic industry for over fourteen years. Clients would often ask me for my personal recommendations for products to use to treat extreme scalp and skin issues.

I found myself looking at my clients skin, scalp and hair, thinking to myself that the issues were deeper than what could be cured by a bottle of stuff.



In almost all cases, what I was seeing was some sort of imbalance from deeper in the body.  This could be signs of irritation from the products there were using, but for the most part, what I was seeing was signs of allergies, nutritional starvation or signs of systemic (whole blood/body) infections that were building high levels toxin in the blood and the toxins were in turn draining out through the skin.

More than just skin deep
The most common infections are bacteria, yeast/fungus, viral and parasitical.  Micro-organisms don't play nice.  Mixed infections 'dysbiosis' are a mixed bag of infection acting together like a street gang (dysbiosis is like symbiosis but with a bad attitude). Bacteria can either show as large yellow oily flakes, often with an inflamed looking scalp with sores underneath.  Another type of disturbance is small white dry flakes with an overall red irritated scalp underneath, sometimes in localized patchy raised red areas. The dry version is often accompanied by an intense itch.

Psoriasis is a blood toxin issue that has an infection (usually a combination bacterial/fungal) root.  This condition really amps up when there is more personal, dietary or life stress.  Psoriasis will also get worse in the presence of sugar, simple carbohydrates, beer, yeast, wine, mushrooms and junk food.  Antibiotics or hormone imbalances can make it worse to the point where the skin cracks and 'weeps'.  Eczema looks similar, and can worsen with outside factors, but has more of a deeper genetic or inherited root than other skin conditions.  Cradle cap (it doesn't just affect babies) is a sign of a systemic yeast overgrowth.

Cleaning up the diet can really help.  Drinking warm water and lemon first thing in the morning can be a good habit to cultivate.  Cleansing herbs, cleansing teas and green foods can really help to clean up the blood. Just be aware that chronic digestive issues may also be showing all sorts of symptoms and issues, including skin irritation. This may require a deeper and longer look to focus on restoring the health of this primary system.

Single homeopathic remedies may also really help the body to overcome the problem.  Also recognizing that when overgrowths are the root of the problem, a protocol for clearing the infection may be the most sensible first step for lasting change.  Remember that what you see on the skin is the symptom not the cause.

All that being said, I have some advice concerning treatment and balancing of the scalp.  I love LUSH products which are handmade small batches of body care products using only natural ingredients.  I like owner Mark Constantine's philosophy.   His advice is to treat the scalp and hair separately.

Be careful with styling products and conditioners on the scalp
A while back I got into trouble by using a styling product directly onto my scalp.  I was trying to amp up the curl by getting a lot of product at the base of the hair.  Wrong!  It irritated my scalp to the point where I was crazy with the itch.  It took months to get the balance back.  Now prevention is the key so I still follow the system I outline below at least twice a month.

Healing and preventative program
Here are some ideas for a scalp and hair healing program.  Superbalm is a treatment for the scalp.  I use the flat surface of a toothpick to scrape up a little of the product and then warm it between my fingers.  Then I massage it into my scalp being careful to avoid getting it in my hair.  This is a exercise in patience.  If you do this at bedtime, cover your pillow case to protect it and leave the treatment in overnight.  Shampoo it out in the morning as usual.

Exfoliate your scalp
Roots is another great healing product for the scalp, especially if the scalp is dry and itchy. It is minty and soothing. To exfoliate the scalp, you can add sea salt to the Roots product to create a salt scrub to clear away some of the dry skin on your scalp, or use Ocean Salt  as your creamy scalp exfoliant.  If you have open skin, it is going to sting so be wise here.

Using a gentle touch is key.  Going tooth and nail is just going to make things worse. Gently massage for a bit; rinse out and then shampoo as usual. The salt treatment will also make your hair extra shiny.  Ocean Salt scrub gets full bonus points with me.

If you have the oily large flake variety of dandruff, you may need to soften the scales off with oil first (castor oil, or olive oil is good, but if you go slap happy here, you are doing to have a bugger of a time getting all the oil out of your hair after).  You can add antiseptic essential oils to the carrier oil. Lavender, rosemary, oregano are great choices.  Again, you can leave this on overnight and shampoo out the treatment in the morning.  Don't be a 'flash in the pan'.  You will have to keep up using the treatments until the scalp is 'fixed'.

Treat the scalp and hair differently
I have long curly hair that tends to be scary big hair unless I take serious measures. If you have short hair that doesn't need conditioning, ignore this.  For a full treatment I would use the Superbalm on the scalp first and then put a moisturizing conditioning treatment on the hair.  Either leave on for twenty minutes or overnight before shampooing off. After shampooing I use a leave-in anti frizz boost of moisture, called R & B.  If I do all this, I don't need a styling product, or at least very little of it.

I want to point out here that I am not affiliated with, or paid to endorse Lush products.  Lush hair products just happen to have worked better than anything else I have tried so far.  I personally will not use chemical laden treatments.  The Lush product line is also affordable.  You can order on line or visit store locations. The staff are really helpful and they are very generous with giving out samples to try.

Home made 'Snake Oil'
Lush produced a bar scalp treatment that I liked called 'Snake Oil' that is now discontinued.  I now make my own version of it. I start with a jar of cocoa butter (with 5% jojoba oil) by a company called 'Now'.  I melt it using a bain marie method.  When it is evenly melted I add about 20 drops each of essential oils of: lavender, rosemary, cade (juniper), tea tree and balsam of peru.  Pour the mixture into molds (nothing fancy, I just use the plastic form that rice crackers came in).  When the bars are firm wrap the bars individually in waxed paper. I keep one bar handy and store the rest in the fridge.

To use, as with the Superbalm; the heat from your fingers will warm the oils and you can massage it into the scalp.  If you have extra dry or frizzy hair, leave this treatment on overnight.  It will work its way down the hair shaft a bit and work miracles to tame unruly locks.

Experiment until you find what works.  Consistency is the key.  If you stick with the program, I trust this will help.  If the topical approach is not working, you most likely have a very tenacious underlying infection or your core digestion is whacky.  In a way it is a blessing that your body will not hide the problem.  Such is the body's wisdom.

Keep well_ Nelda

Learn to Cook Delicious Vegan Food

"Let Food Be Your Medicine" - Hippocrates 460 B.C - 370 B.C.

My belief is that Food and health are intricately entwined.  With this in mind, I am offering a 4 week program for individuals who are interested in learning Vegan Cooking. 

Introduction to Delicious Vegan Cooking

Thursday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m.

Feb 20^th to March 13^th,

Costs:    $140 per 4 Weeks               

Space is limited to 8 persons so register early

This four week program is for those who are interested in cleaner food, a diet with less meat, low meat or no meat or for those who entertain dinner guests who have special needs.

This is a ’hands on’ class; the goal is to make real food for real people.

This is also an opportunity to learn how and why different foods balance and heal the body

Benefits of Vegan Cooking

·         Healthier food

·         Cost effective

·         Fast and easy to prepare

·         Tasty and interesting meals

·         Simple meals & Recipes for each lesson

What people are saying.....

“Only glowing accolades for the culinary skill of Nelda. Beautiful thing is, it’s the healthiest nutrition this body ever consumed. Nelda, being a wonderful authentic soul is always willing to share her knowledge and recipes with clarity, enthusiasm and obvious passion.” GM

 "During my training to become a Kundalini Yoga Teacher I was truly privileged and grateful to have Nelda provide our lunches for us. I was a picky eater most of my life but after experiencing Nelda's wholesome dishes, I quickly realized that I was discovering my spirituality through food just as much as I was through the other components of the yoga training.  With Nelda's gift to us of fresh, light & clean foods to which she lovingly shared with us, I feel I was truly tasting and experiencing food for the first time.  

Fingers crossed that there will be a 'From Nelda's, With Love' cookbook soon!" TM

 “I have had the privilege of attending events where Nelda has catered the meals and have to say that I have never been so well fed, with such interesting and delightful food! Without reservation, Nelda’s meals are above and beyond any other catered event I have attended, or dining out experience I have had.”

“Having also attended programs taught by Nelda, I have to say that Nelda brings to the ‘table’ a vast and well thought-out knowledge that she shares with such clarity that it seems like you should already know it, even hearing it for the first time! Her ability to see and understand all aspects of health-to then apply and/or share that with her clients and students in a manner that everyone understands, is truly a gift. I would strongly recommend her classes to everyone, and I look forward to future classes with her myself!” CH

For more information contact Nelda McEwen

A Cure for Old Knees

Marlene Dietrich once said, “Careful dress and grooming can take 20 years off a woman’s age but nobody can fool a flight of stairs”.

We are only as old as our knees think we are

Many people believe that it is normal to expect that our bodies are going to wear out and break down.  Is this true in all cases?  Perhaps we give in too soon.  I’d like to share my personal process of bringing my feet and knees back to health.  I am living proof that our bodies can heal and repair and that there is real value in an alternative approach.

Walking the talk! 

 The last three years have been a limp of faith for me. I love to dance.  Five years ago, I decided to take ballroom dance and I now have my bronze level in 7 dances.  I fast tracked with the goal to complete this within three years…..in high heels.

I have moved my home and office 3 times within the last 8 years and have done extensive remodelling each time.  Read ‘the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak’.   I have a gift and passion for designing small spaces. I love giving that part of me free rein.    

Two of these re-locations required 3 months of work each.  As a result, I have had the joy and satisfaction of creating unique and beautiful home and work spaces.  On the dark side, my poor old body has to bear the brunt of these Olympian  projects.  

If my body were a horse I’d have been reported to the SPCA.

This is going to read like the never ending saga, so if you don’t want the morbid details…..quit while you still can.

Move #2

Three years ago on after a stressful move, I could hardly stand on my feet.  If I put one shoe on I couldn't put my weight on that foot to put the other shoe on.  I still had to paint, unpack my home and office and get back to work as soon as possible.  So why did this happen all of a sudden?

 

The truth is it wasn't all of a sudden.  We are taking about 60 years of history here.  I was looking at acute and chronic elements affecting many major systems of my body:  structural, immune, circulatory, urinary, hepatic, lymphatic and nervous system. 

Arch Supports and Orthotics

I’d like to make a comment about arch supports and orthotics.  Architects will be the first to tell you about arches and how the pressure from above makes them stronger.  Putting pressure from beneath them makes them weaker.  Many people swear by arch support technology, but I have to say that they make no sense to me. I wasn't looking for a crutch.   I wanted my feet back.

What I Chose to do

I made an appointment with my brilliant RMT (Registered Massage Therapist).  She began to work on the structure of my foot, and began to break down and iron out the scar tissue that had built over time in the arches of my feet.  This condition is called ‘Plantar Fasciitis’.  

With Plantar Fasciitis the plantar muscles can begin to shorten and if left untreated, can pull the heel bone forward and down, which then causes bruising when you put weight on it.  Also when you step down and the tissues aren't warmed up, the tissue rips a bit more and the body creates more scaring in its attempts to heal the tearing.  This can be reversed.  During treatments I practically had to bite down on a belt because this procedure really hurts.  This took a few visits. 

Next, I made an appointment with a reflexologist.  She started easing the general structure back to mobility.  She said I had ‘uni-foot’.  It felt like a block of wood.  Over the next few weeks, my feet began to articulate in the way that they were designed.  Then she started on the reflexes.  Many were painfully active.  The significant ones were the kidney and urinary reflexes which were active for many weeks as was the sciatic nerve reflexes. 

The sciatic nerve runs all the way from the atlas wedge in the neck (C1) down the back, divides in two and runs down the legs to the heel.  Most people complain about the pain in their leg or in one buttock, but I noticed the inflamed nerve issues in my heel and feet.  Working with kidney drainage and getting the nerve inflammation down was the piece that I know well, so I put myself on’ a taste of my own medicine’.  Inositol, (a water soluble B factor vitamin) by the way is a big player when you need to get the inflammation down quickly in the nervous system.  I took about 8 to 12 capsules a day for about a week then reduced to about 4 a day.  

After several reflexology visits, and time, and some wise self-care my feet were feeling mint

.

Move #3

Two years ago I started renovation on an upstairs flat which took three months to become livable.  This required 10 and 12 hour days, 6 days a week.  In addition I was trying to keep up with my client needs. 

I moved before I had finished painting the walls.  Within 5 days I left for a 10 day trip to Texas.  I took the opportunity to rest.  I had 10 hurting digits and knees that felt broken.  When I got back home, only my thumbs were still hurting.  Hurting or not, I launched into painting walls and getting my life settled again.

Last May I was carrying my groceries in a back-pack while I carried my bike up 3 steps onto the porch.  When I put the combined weight on my left leg I heard a huge ‘crunch’ and my knee gave out.  It hurt so badly I thought I had broken something. 

Getting the inflammation down is the first thing.  Putting a bag of frozen peas on it and using homoeopathic Arnica helped.  After this injury I started to experience wicked leg cramps when my knees were flexed that did not respond to magnesium supplementation.  (For the keeners I will list all assorted products used near the end of this article.)

Lucky for me I know really clever people in the healing field.  My colleagues (RMT and Electronic homoeopathy) helped me figure out what was going on.  The chronic bit was scar tissue that had built up over time to the point where my knee was pushed slightly out of joint.  When I put the weight on it that fateful day I crunched through the scar tissue.  I was left with stretched and misaligned tendons, ligaments and cartilage. I couldn't put any lateral flexion on the injured knee at all.   This made trying to sleep a whole lot of fun!

I also had circulation congestion (bruising and blood clot) issues that were chronic (ageing) in my legs which was the underlying issue in the cramping.  This congestion also can contribute to restless legs. Kidney drainage (congestion) causing swelling and fluid in the knees was also a root concern.  There were a list of usual suspects (infections such as bacteria, parasites, mixed infections and their TOXINS in my system and especially getting stored in my knees).  I also had to address the poor circulation to my extremities.  If the blood is not flowing well, the healing potential body in the local area will not detox well or receive nutrition well either.  There was still scar tissue needing to be broken down in both my knees.

The key modalities were massage therapy, reflexology,electronic homeopathy, nutritional, herbal and homeopathic therapies.

Here is a list of products and why

I didn't take them all at once, but this is the general list of players over the last 10 months:

Prickly Ash Combo – herbal - circulation

Cleavers Combo - herbal - blood, lymph, liver, kidneys

Borage Combo – herbal – adrenal, immune

Nettles tincture – herbal – blood – minerals

Glucosaplex – natural anti-inflammatory with kidney drainage built in and a highly absorbable glucosamine

MSM Glucosamine – connective tissue nutrients for repair to joints

Unda # 25 for arterial and circulation clean up

Unda # 33 for clean-up of peripheral circulation

Unda # 258 – joint drainer – liver and kidneys

Pinus Montana – herbal/homeopathic to stimulate repair of joints and bone surfaces.

Anti-inflam – herbal – to reduce swelling

Vegan Protein – building blocks for repair

Essential Fatty Acids – anti-inflammatory and lubricates the joint surfaces/ nervous system nutrition

Hyaluronic Acid – increase synovial fluid in joints

Cina homeopathic/Oil of Oregano/Echinacea Mix 1 – infection fighters

Vege Greens – detoxifier and general nutrition

Liquid magnesium – feeds muscles

Juncturinum Plex – helps stimulate repair of joints and bone

Super Cal Mag – minerals

Flora Salushaus liquid cal-mag – highly absorbable minerals and nervous system nutrition

Sinew Plex – nutrition for building and strengthening connective tissue

Topical creams:

I started out using Trammel gel.  This helped for the initial swelling.  Then I switched to arnica topical cream and Now brand MSM, arnica and Glucosamine liposome lotion.  I used Minute Muscle Relief cream.  I have Guinea- pigged almost everything my suppliers had available during the last 10 months.

Here is the mixture that worked the best for providing comfort and healing - swelling, pain, re-sprains, re-strains and bruising (circulation).  Apply morning and night or as often as needed to find relief.

Arnica cream - 1 part (Unda)

Minute Muscle Relief cream (Peaceland) – 1 part

Devil’s Claw cream (Genestra) – 1 part

PharMax ‘delivera’ compound base cream (Seroyal) – 1 part

Rest

Resting the injured part of our body is often the missing ingredient.  Wisdom prevails.  We need to determine what approach will speed the healing process.  Do we push on through or do we give the injury total rest. 

Re-injury is the factor that slows down healing.  Few of us have lives where we can rest completely.  I tried to find the healthy balance where I was able to rest my knees (the local area) but get enough movement to promote and enhance circulation and lymph flow.  Keeping muscles strong and toned prevents undue strain on the associated connective tissues.

I'm back on track, wearing flip flops, or bare feet (my favourite).  I'm biking, walking and playing with horses.  I can trust that ol' knee to get me safely in the saddle.  

A Desire to Heal

The path of healing chronic issues isn't for the faint of heart, but when we truly desire to heal,  it is a matter of patiently peeling though the layers in priority. Take it a step at a time; work with what presents itself and then as each layer resolves, go deeper.

Whew!  This was wordy.  Great that you stuck with it to the end.

Keep well_  Nelda

Reality Check

When I am on my home turf, I find myself surrounded by people who can appreciate my point of view.

As a result I have been lulled into the illusion that I (along with my point of view) are almost hitting the normal zone.



The definition of a real vacation is 'the rare opportunity to see life through a different lens that is very different from our own'.  


I enjoyed some relaxing down time this past Christmas.  I was visiting family in the Southern US . While there I was exposed to American Reality TV, in large doses and for an extended length of time.  I don't have a TV at home so if there is video screen in the room I am like a Mennonite in a furniture store.  I can't help myself.  My eyes keep getting drawn in by the movement.

One night I had a dream about Pickers and Pawners.  Although these were the shows I enjoyed the most while away, the dream itself was more of a nightmare.

I am by nature a neat freak.  I find clutter to be painful.  In this dream I was trying to clean out a building that was full of trash.  The other characters in the dream kept tossing the stuff back to me telling me how valuable all this junk was, and that I should hold on to it and sell it.  Rick says to me "You could make a fortune!".

Is this for real?
The drugs commercials in particular blew my hair back.  The visual images always showed radiantly happy  families blissfully doing outdoorsy things together.  In the US, by law, the advertisers have to list the side effects of their products in full, and most of the slotted airtime was given to this verbal listing.

So as one is hearing the horrific list of ills like "may cause drowsiness  headaches, blindness, cause sterility", bleeding, and "some individuals may experience homicidal  or suicidal tendencies", you see these beautiful people going about experiencing the best life has to offer (in slow-mo with great music).


One advertisement in particular was describing the benefits of a drug used  for the treatment of chronic body pain.  It showed a lovely woman sitting on a  park bench serenely  reading a book.  All the while my ears are being subjected to the horrible litany of side effects which goes on and on and on. (and on).



So as I am watching this, I am wondering if it is just me or is everyone else on glue?


Through my networks I hear many people who are upset about the drug companys' agenda.  Yet I wonder how any company or any movement can continue without the mass of people to support the enterprise?  Companies usually survive by giving people what they want.  Maybe soma is what most people want?  Or perhaps people don't have enough information or common sense to make different choices.

Long ago,  before my personal exploration into the world of natural healthcare, my medical healthcare providers would  suggest medications to me.  I always considered the treatment they were offering, but gave myself the choice.

 I give myself the choice to 'Just Say NO'.

Sometimes I followed their suggestions. Sometimes not.  I wasn't opposed to 'swallowing the pill', but for the most part I just couldn't see a future in it.  I wanted real answers to real questions.

These questions were usually:  What ?  How?  Where? and Why?

I never got great answers.

On one occasion the attending  doctor at my local clinic suggested that my digestive ills were because I was a woman, and women tended to be hysterical.  I want to let you know that I let him live, if only for the reason that if I actually bitch-slapped him, I would indeed prove that I was hysterical.

I did visit with a local herbalist and she was able to determine that I was experiencing simple liver and gall bladder overwhelm.  I also had a congested large intestine.  (She never mentioned 'hysteria' thing at all.)

So back to the chronic body pain.  We can say it in another language 'arthritis' but al in all, our structure hurts. It hurts when we move or it hurts when we don't.  Or we hurt all the time. When it goes on for a long period of time without relief or our bodies don't resolve the problem on its own, we call it 'chronic'.

Here are some thoughts.
To view the body holistically one must assume that we exist in a time continuum, experience cause and effect, and accept that no part or aspect of the body is divorced from the whole.  To push this right into the Quantum zone, we are energy and matter.

Pain is really a symptom of a mystery.
Do we have too much mineral?  A lack of mineral?  Infection toxins backing up in the blood and being pushed and stored into the joints?  Is this an allergic symptom?   An immune response?  Is there a chronic shortfall of nutrition needed for the joints to build?  Is this local or systemic?  Are we over/under exercised.  Perhaps we have toxic blood, or poor circulation?  Is this pain in the area of an old injury or birth trauma?  What about our nervous system pathways?  Is this pain a drug reaction or side effect?

There are so many possibilities.  To my mind, drugs that suppress symptoms short circuit the body's ability to heal the root of the problem.  Removing the pain and leaving all else keeps us from looking at the real issues.


So the questions remain:  What?  How?  Where? Why?  And what can I do about it?

Keep Well_
Nelda

Every Little Thing

Sometimes some little thing has occurred.  Perhaps it is consuming food that is a little off or perhaps it is a parasite that affects your digestion suddenly.  Maybe a viral infection has set in quickly.  These are the kinds of acute conditions that respond well to fast, dramatic and heroic measures.  Easy come; easy go.

Chronic conditions in the human body that have occurred over a long time may be tied up with lifestyle excesses or profound nutritional shortfalls.  This must be approached completely differently.  In these situations, a customized healing plan over a longer period of time must be developed. 

Our health is managed on a daily basis.  Here is an analogy.  When we look at our finances on a daily basis we can see how the cash comes in and how the accumulated supply gets spent and depleted.  Day by day we create our financial wealth. 

In the same way, our body receives core nutrition and undertakes its internal healing processes day by day.  We build our health and stamina by managing it day by day.

Many people are strong stuff.  They are living out the legacy of their ancestors.  If your parents and grandparents had a lot of vital reserve, lucky you!  You inherited that.  If your genetic legacy has strong immunity, chances are you are going to have inherited that too. Here’s the thing; unless you continue to contribute to this resource, you take the chance of draining it dry.  This genetic depletion can occur in the lifetime of one generation. 

Year ago, I had the privilege of assessing the health of two people who were unrelated to each other.  Both happened to be children of concentration camp survivors in Europe during WW II.    They were both surprisingly strong adults but the one thing they did have in common was an unusually high need for minerals on an ongoing basis.  It was as if their bodies had lost the capacity to store minerals effectively. 

I found this to be curious.  If we have starvation and famine as part of our legacy, how does this change our personal needs?  Another shaping factor is when our genetic DNA shows evidence of a past disease in the family line that weakens the DNA.  For example, this could be the weakening effect of Tuberculosis or Syphilis.  This potential weakening becomes part of our legacy.  What happens when an ancestor has had immune breakdown or nervous system collapse?  What can we do to build our own legacy?

Clean up the terrain

Terrain is a term used by holistic practitioners to describe our foundation, genetic, congenital and acquired. In other words ‘the ground we grow in’.  Often people become burdened by the toxins from unresolved infections, or pathogenic overgrowths.

We have different ancestors, with different genetic strengths and weaknesses.  We have had unique birth and formative year experiences.   Our nutrition and food styles are different. Our resistance to bacteria and viruses are uniquely our own.  The emotional stressors we experienced and our resilience to these emotional stressors are different.  We have different pain thresholds.

Trauma can be stored in our tissues, or surprisingly, not.  Many people have scars that interrupt the body’s electrical flow.  Many people have had vital organs and glands removed or tampered with.

Dental surgery has profoundly affected many people, bio-chemically and magnetically.  Some individuals are more sensitive to mercury, heavy metals, radiation, or agricultural chemicals.  Each of us has a unique response to vaccines and their toxins.

So many people have been using medications on an ongoing basis that it is unusual to find anyone over the age of 30 who is not on some form of prescription or over the counter drug.  When past health issues have been handled in a suppressive manner, some individuals may find that they do not respond as well to natural products as they had hoped.  Some people use natural products, all the while expecting a drug effect.

Building our reserve has a lot to do with modifying the excess we have become accustomed to, or worse, addicted to.  This may include food excesses or even an excess of sloth.  Some people have become so accustomed to junk food that their digestion can no longer handle the big job of digesting real food.

A little comment on what is real food

When most of the mainstream is encouraging us to read our food labels carefully, I suggest to you that real food doesn’t have labels.

I have a food category that I call ‘glue’.  Anything that has been processed (including flour) is in the glue zone.  In point of fact the term ‘cereal’ identifies whole grains, not the stuff in a box.  I have no issue with fun food that is great for celebrations.  My concern is what happens when this ‘party food’ becomes our foundation for health.

Many people have lost the capacity to digest.  People can’t digest grains anymore, they can’t digest protein, and they have huge issues with Candida and other overgrowths in their digestive tracts.  This is huge.  Our digestive factory is the core area of our survival.  Metabolic dysfunction can be expressed as liver, skin, respiratory or sinus congestion.  A broken digestion system may show over time as stress in other systems such as joint issues, constipation, and proneness to infection or constant fatigue

Liver support products and digestive enzymes are great short term helpers; however, what is required is a total re-education of the whole digestive process.

Underlying almost every food allergy is an ‘inability to breakdown and digest’.  When we take measures to unburden and heal our digestive system and restore the appropriate healthy bacteria, we can restore our immune systems back to health simultaneously.  This is a process that can only be accomplished by gentle measures over time.

When our personal health profiles show evidence of  imbalances that did not occur in a day, we can cause ourselves further stress by approaching our health care in a quick fix way.  The body’s response is to mask the symptoms, move the symptoms to another system, or bury the symptoms deeper.  In fact we can make our situation worse.

It is the small improvements over time that will restore the body back to balance.

Keep Well_

Nelda

Notes About Observing People Over Time

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I seem to have found myself in the perfect place and time.  I am in the ‘mastery’ phase of my career, just when the rest of society has woken up to realize that they want more choice in respect to their health services.  I’m not really sure how I actually navigated here into this future?  It’s a wonder, really!

In retrospect, it looks like a straight line, but from the starting point, it was all about faith. Twenty six years ago, I had already been a hairstylist for 13 years.  (By the way, my professional goal was to become a hair colour technician.) Being a complimentary health care provider wasn’t something I had even heard of, so that was definitely not on my list of career choices. 

In the course of my usual hair-type occupational duties, I would observe people’s skin and hair.  I would take note of things like chronic dryness, irritated, skin that was inflamed or dull.  I would notice that some people would be inclined to swelling and ‘bloat’ while others would appear to be under-nourished, and ‘dried up’. Many clients were already using creams and treatments that were either over the counter drugs or products that were prescribed by their physicians.

Was I observing a whole body problem? This got me to wondering about what was going on inside them.  One could suggest topical creams and conditioners, but really that was not going to change the chronic nature of the problem.

I also had the privilege of listening to people. People who get haircuts, tend to talk about whatever stress they are chewing about inside.  This was a rare chance for me to view the world from another perspective and to see how other people ‘ticked’.    Along the way, I got to hear really fascinating stories and learned a lot about people’s dreams and hopes, their losses and pains.  All in all, it was quite an education, and although I didn’t realize it at the time, a wonderful training ground for the intuitive observer.

One of my favourite customers was the daughter of the Patent Medicine Woman of the local First Nation community.  She knew that I had an interest in herbal remedies.  I knew the English names for many herbs, and with an introduction to my client’s mother; a whole vast area of knowledge was generously shared with me. 

I also studied with a practising Herbalist who was willing to teach me the basics of Iridology, which is the study of the body using the iris of the eye as a ‘map’.  From this start point, a charmed journey unfolded; correspondence courses, a major move, workshops, serendipitous meetings, mentors, seminars, falling into Behavioural Kinesiology, more questions, more courses, more moves, more mentors, and more questions….

Maybe God does work in mysterious ways.

And I still have more questions….

I hope this finds you well and happy_

Nelda

Springing Ahead in Health

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Ahh, spring!  We can look ahead to days where we don’t have to struggle just to stay warm.  We don’t have to work flat out for 20 minutes dressing like Eskimos just to go outside. We can relax and stretch out into the great outdoors.  Food is fresh, natural and plentiful.  The sun is shining and life is good.

Spring is the one time of year where we can design, direct, and improve our health in a big way.  According to Oriental Five Element tradition, the liver is in the wood element, which describes the gland and organ (liver/gall bladder) that is hot and juicy.  Conversely, the kidneys are cold and damp, just like autumn.  The moist hot days of spring are the best time to eat very simply, eat a little less, and show our body more care by adding cleansing tonics and fibre to our diet. A little focused attention on your liver will have year long benefits

The whole digestive tract is governed by the liver.  This multi-purpose gland is located just beneath the ribs on your right side.  The busy liver also works to filter the blood, biodegrade hormones and balance aspects of the immune system.  The large intestine is the last process in the liver/digestive system.  In the bowel water is reclaimed and re-cycled back into the body and wastes are eliminated.  This is the reason for auto-intoxication. 

When bowel transit time is slow, many people experience chronic sinus congestion, laborious digestion, lymph congestion, or various skin issues.  Surprisingly, when questioned, most people consider their bowel elimination to be good even when they experience these signs of overload.

Liver cleanses can be a misery if the stored toxins that are being released have difficulty exiting the body.  Nausea, cramping, bloating, prolonged fatigue and headaches are a common complaint, when there is ‘no easy way out’.  The first order of business is to open the bowel. Not everyone is robust.  Extended fasting, and aggressive herbal cleanses are not for everyone.  This is an area where personal and genetic vitality (constitution), determines how a person’s body can handle releasing toxic accumulation on a cellular and system level.

The body also pushes some forms of toxins to the adipose (fat) cells.  I believe there is a correlation between weight gain and toxin.  Extra care needs to be given to weight loss programs where the toxins released can damage the liver/gall bladder and kidneys.   

As a practitioner, I like to develop specific and unique programs for every client.  An alkalizing food plan can initiate the detoxification process, for example, if one has trouble maintaining balanced blood sugar levels.  A week of lemon juice in water every morning, and fasting until lunchtime may work

for some.  A personal plan may also include other resources such as dry brushing the skin, infra-red saunas, enemas, Epsom salts baths, foot patches, and lymph massage or ion foot baths. 

The liver is always trying to unload toxins and repair itself.    Natural plant based remedies can help the body help itself.  It’s the way nature designed us.   A little timely housecleaning and repair can do wonders to increase our energy and immunity, and for improved over all well being for the whole coming year.

Let Food Be Your Medicine 

Scandinavian Winter Salad

2 Cups Pickled Beets (or Roast 4 large beets in oven) until tender, cool and peel

3 large carrots peeled

Grate beets and carrots in food processor

Chop ½ Cup green onions

1 Cup chopped parsley

Mix in large salad bowl

Dressing:  ½ Cup light tasting oil (Organic Canola) and ¼           1Cup apple cider vinegar

                Basic sprinkle and herbamere

                Grind 1 tsp Thyme and 1 tsp coriander (optional)

* Scandinavian salad gets better when covered and marinated in the fridge for an hour or more.

Swiss Dandelion Salad

1 large potato, scrubbed, cooked whole and hot

2 handfuls of wild or cultivated dandelion greens, washed and drained and chopped fine

Dressing:  Apple cider vinaigrette

                Herbamere

                Fresh ground pepper

The trick with this is to first wash the greens really well.  If you are using dandelion greens gathered from the wild, washing is a huge job, but is worth it in the end.

The next thing is to mash the cooked potato quickly in the bottom of a salad bowl and throw the greens in really fast and toss well.  Then dress the salad and serve. The hot potato takes out the bitterness of the greens.  This is the best spring tonic ever, and it’s tasty too.

Steamed Artichokes

1 medium or large artichoke for each person

Sauce:  Melted butter with fresh squeezed lemon juice and crushed garlic for dipping.

Prepare the artichokes by cutting off the stem, and then cutting off the top inch so it will perch nicely upside down in a steamer.  Cut off all the ‘picks’ by using scissors.  Rinse in cool water and drain upside down.

Steam artichokes upside down until the base is tender when tested with a toothpick.  Don’t over cook.  Remove from steamer directly onto the plate. To eat, the trick is to remove some of the tough outer leaves and discard them, and then eat by ripping off each leaf and dipping the base into the butter/lemon and then use your teeth to scrape the pulp of the base of the leaf. Discard leaf remains as you go.   Keep doing this until you come to the inside fuzzy core (the choke).Use a spoon to scrape away the fuzz and then cut the ‘heart’ into quarters and dip and eat.

These little wonders cleanse and nourish the liver and make a wonderful light meal with a green salad and basmati rice.