Optimum Health for Body, Mind, and Soul

For the past 25 years, October has been Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM), using pink ribbons. BCAM was actually started by the drug company Astra Zeneca (which manufactures breast cancer drugs) and the pink ribbon originated from the Estee Lauder cosmetics company.

According to an article in The Nation magazine, November 15, 1993, BCAM was conceived and paid for by a British chemical company that both profits from this epidemic and may be contributing to its cause. Imperial Chemical Industries (I.C.I.), along with two nonprofit cancer groups, co-founded BCAM in 1985. The event has grown in influence. The thirteen institutions now on its board include the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute, and it has become fashionable. But since the beginning, all BCAM’s bills have been paid by Astra Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, the name of I.C.I.’s U.S. subsidiary.

Breast Cancer Action has pointed out that BCAM avoids discussion of the causes and prevention of breast cancer and instead focuses on “awareness” as a way to encourage women to get their mammograms. They have used the term Pinkwashing to describe the actions of companies which manufacture and use chemicals which show a link with breast cancer and at the same time publicly support charities focused on curing the disease. Other criticisms center on the marketing of “pink products” and tie-ins, citing that more money is spent marketing these campaigns than is donated to the cause (from Wikipedia).

Learn more:

http://www.whale.to/a/lanphier1.html

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=National_Breast_Cancer_Awareness_Month

http://www.preventcancer.com/patients/mammography/awareness.htm

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October 3rd, 2010 | Category: Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Since being released from much of my ego’s daily noise (meaning the constant chatter and stories I heard in my head that I assumed was the real “me”) a peace has been established though its balance is completely up to me. My ego used to be the one who spoke for me, defended me, and always tried to convince me that I was right and others were wrong. There were very few times my ego apologized, and when it did, I remember walking away thinking that I had somehow gained the upper hand, which is still the ego. But a small part of me was never comfortable with that way of being. There was a deep knowing, a tiny, tiny embryo of a voice that said I could be feeling better, I could have it better, and I was better than I believed. It was the voice I had heard more clearly as a child.

Our egos build our defenses and have a stance about everything; church, God, friends, family, country, politics, education, the weather. To the ego it’s all about separating us from others and convincing us that we are simply powerless humans. This has created a habitual pattern within our society of us focusing on and drawing to us that which we don’t want.

Great scientists have agreed that we live within an energy matrix where positive and negative charges are all there that exists. Our brains are conductors of energy and thoughts are either negative in charge or positive in charge. When we become angry in a situation, our ego goes into a defense mode and starts to launch negatively charged thoughts. If you are angry enough (which sends out some serious negative charges) you could end up with a consequence that reminds you every day of your actions from that situation. Perhaps the best way to sum that up would be to say your ego is your negatively charged thoughts and your essence is your positively charged thoughts.

The ego is not confident – you can build it up and tear it down in the same day. The ego is never satisfied with us, and for some people, their ego is constantly putting them down. When you hear, ” I am an idiot for doing that,” that voice is not you. But since it’s development at an early age the ego has convinced you that you are being represented fairly. The truth is that it is habitually keeping your confidence at a low vibration drawing to you more situations that reinforce low self-esteem. Your ego is not your friend – it is the great deceiver.

What does it feel like to not be attached to the ego? It’s really about a quieting of the mind, and the eventual loss of feelings of dread and disappointment. The more you allow yourself to just be, slowly dropping away everything you used to value thinking about, the more you will be in touch with your true self, and listening less to your ego. That means fewer labels, stories, pride, resistance, and no more negative thoughts. You will not disappear if you come to the conclusion that your ego is one sided and negative in charge. Instead you will begin to come back into awareness of your true self, which is positive, loving life, motivated, loving, kind, and compassionate.

Your ego is not your friend. Your ego wants to distract you from how things really are, which are eternal and filled with love. The ego wants you to stay in the past or concern yourself about the future. The ego is not comfortable in the here and now. If you have tried previously to ‘live in the moment’ but failed, it was your ego that caused you to fail. Recognizing the ego for what it is – a false, fear-based self, will allow you to pull your life back into the simplicity and serenity of the moment. Every spiritual and personal development leader that I know of uses daily meditation to maintain awareness of and control over the ego. Meditation as a practice of singular focus and training the mind to be quiet is the quickest way to gain control over your ego and allow peace and tranquility into your life.

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April 3rd, 2010 | Category: Awareness, Ego, Meditation, Mind | Comments (3)

I could write an entire book about the importance of living in the present moment, and maybe some day I will, however, in the mean time I will let you in on a couple secrets that were handed down to me from above. These two secrets, if used whenever you feel yourself slipping from the present moment, will pull you instantly back in.

What is the present moment, and why do I want to be there?

Time is an illusion. It is a construct of your egoic (and quite insane) mind. Your egoic mind is not interested in this moment. It is only interested in what does not exist – time, and more specifically, the past and the future.

If you are like most people, the majority of your thoughts are either on the past, or into the future. You worry about what might happen in your life (future) and you plan for the worst (future) or hope for the best (future). You resent something that someone did to you (past) and are still angry at them (past). You wish you had finished college (past), had children (past), or gone to the prom (past). You think about all the things that need to be done (future), or that you wished you had had time to do (past).

All this thought about past and future leaves no room for awareness and enjoyment of what your life is really about, which is NOW. Now is the only time that there is. If you are not living now, when are you living? If you spend most of your time in the future, think about it — when will you ever arrive?? How long have you been hoping that the future will be brighter than your current life? How long have you been saying, “When I get that new job, I’ll be happy.” or “When we retire, I’ll finally be free.” or “When the kids are gone, I will go back to school.” Planning is great, but if you look at your thought patterns and find that you are mostly dissatisfied with what is happening right now, it is not going to get better in the future; you will continue your patterns of dissatisfaction because that is how you have programmed yourself to operate.

If you tend to spend a lot of time in the past, focusing on guilt, resentment, and anger, there is no way for you to enjoy today because you are still back there, in yesterday, wishing it had been different. Can you see how insane that actually is?

Your egoic mind is bored with the present and tends to turn everything in the present into a ‘problem’ so that is has something of value to do. It is not content with simply watching the clouds float by, or listening to nature, children playing, or music. It judges you and tells you that you should be doing something important, useful, or productive.

The present moment is your life! It is happening right now, and it is the only time that there is. To learn to enjoy your life now, in this moment, requires you to learn new techniques for letting go of your egoic mind’s obsession with past and future. Here are the two secret techniques that I promised (there are more, of course, but start with these) –

Feel Your Body – When you are focused outside of yourself on the past and future, you are not in your body. You are not a mind and a body. Your mind and your body combine to create you and your life. You are your body. By becoming aware of your body, by residing in it fully, you come into the present moment. The focus and energy that it takes to become aware of and feel the energy that is the body takes some of your egoic mind’s attention away from its focus on past and future.

To feel your body, find a quiet, comfortable place to relax. Sit or lie down, close your eyes, and be still. Ask yourself, “How do I know that my foot is still there?” Concentrate on your foot without moving it until you can sense that it is still there. It may feel like a warm buzz, a vibration, or simply a presence. Whatever you feel, this is the energy that creates your life. It is the life force that is you. As you feel your foot, then try to feel the other foot at the same time. Rest here in awareness of the feeling of your feet. Just relax and play with it. Move your awareness to your hands. Feel both your hands and your feet. As you do this, you may start to spontaneously notice other parts of your body; perhaps your face, neck, or legs. As you feel more and more of your body, notice how much your presence is now focused on feeling your body and how your thoughts have slowed. Feeling the body is an intense gateway into the present moment. Whenever I find myself doubting, fearful, wondering, worrying, or regretting, I remind myself to feel my body, and it immediately pulls me back into the moment.

Feel the Love - Love is a powerful way to let go of past and future, and to come into the moment. It is also incredibly healing of both the giver and the receiver. You don’t have to have anyone or anything in particular to feel loving towards to generate love feelings. Love feelings are pure, unconditional, and utterly accepting. As you are feeling your body, generate in your heart the feeling of love. Use whatever metaphor, memory, or thought that you need to first conjure up a love feeling. It may feel like it comes from the center of your chest or solar plexus and emanates outward. It may start very small at first, depending on your history with feeling love. As you find any little loving feeling in you, focus on it and make it become more prominent. As you continue to feel the energy in your body, now also feel that energy turn into love and radiate out of your body and into the world around you. Feeling the love erases guilt and leads to forgiveness, which keep us trapped in the past. Feeling the love gives us hope and faith, which erases our obsession with the future.

As you feel both your body and your ever-present love, you will find yourself blissfully in the moment. You can do this while you are driving, while at work, walking down the street, or talking to a friend. There is not any moment in which you cannot be aware of both love and your body. Try this out for yourself and see if it doesn’t help you let go of thoughts of time, and bring you into the Now.

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February 24th, 2010 | Tags: awakening, body awareness, meditation, now, present moment awareness, the illusion of time | Category: Awareness, Mind, Soul | Comments (2)

Have you ever witnessed someone walk into a room full of people and by their mere presence the energy in the room either elevates or drops? It is a scientific fact that humans are energetic beings. Our brain waves can be measured as an electrical frequency by EEG, EKG, MRI, etc. As a culture, we have accepted, albeit unconsciously, the awareness of our own and other people’s energetic fields.

We notice and react to one another’s energy without even realizing what we are sensing. Each of us has highs and lows, which we experience emotionally: depression is a low, joy is a high. These are high and low emotional expressions of our own vibrational frequencies. There is a range, going from bliss and enlightenment which is the highest frequency, down to depression and despair at the very bottom, which is the lowest frequency. All other emotions fall in between in ascending order of low frequency to high frequency. Once we understand that our vibration and our emotions are inter-connected, we have a greater ability to decisively raise our frequency by using our emotions as a frequency gauge. If you are feeling good, your vibration is high. If you are feeling badly, your vibration is low. It is as simple as that.

Raising our vibration is valuable for a number of reasons, the most important of course being our own emotional and mental health. But raising our vibration has additional benefits, many of which are societal. Raising your vibration to one of compassion affects everyone that you have contact with in a positive way. Benevolence and unconditional love expressed through you to those around you has a spreading and multiplying effect. In addition, holding on to lower frequency emotions such as anger, resentment, and depression increase your risk for many of the chronic diseases that are now prevalent and are almost completely avoidable. The positive healing effects of higher frequency emotions, such as joy and hope, have been studied extensively.

One of the most effective ways of raising your vibration is to calm your mind. Easing yourself of the destructive ego chatter of lower emotional states by quieting the mind allows room for higher emotional frequencies, such as happiness and joy.

This all came to me clearly when I was experiencing extended periods of joy. I had days and weeks on end of utter joy from the changes that I had made in my life. One day, while in this state of joy, I realized that my mind was quiet and that I had very few thoughts. The thoughts that I did have were thoughts like “bird!” “ocean,” “beautiful!” “nice breeze…” “thirsty.” I noticed this and began to question what had happened to my ego chatter. I did not miss the endless gibberish of my ego mind and felt such peacefulness in my mind that I wanted to be sure that I could continue to feel joy, which seemed to bring quietness of the mind, or was it the other way around? Which came first, I wondered, quietness of the mind, and then joy? Or joy, and then quietness of mind? Frankly, I do not think it is significant, but the point is that we want to feel joy, which is a very high frequency, and if we are not currently feeling joy, quieting the mind is surely a way to get to joy.

The most effective and powerful way of learning to quiet the mind is through meditation. I have heard that all of the successful self-help gurus include meditation as part of their daily practice. I meditate as soon as I wake up and right before I go to sleep at night. If you are like most people, you are thinking all the time. This thinking mind is actually a false self; you identify it as “you” but in reality the real you that is buried beneath your chattering you is quiet and peaceful and not thinking at all. To find out more about the importance of quieting the mind, read Eckhart Tolle’s bestseller The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment .

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February 22nd, 2010 | Tags: bliss, emotional expression, emotions, Energy, enlightenment, happiness, highs and lows, hope, joy, meditation, peace, peacefulness, vibrational energy, vibrational frequency | Category: Soul | Comments (1)

What Are Hemorrhoids?

Hemorrhoids are swollen, painful veins in the lower part of the anal canal.
Veins can swell inside the anal canal to form internal hemorrhoids. Or they can swell near the opening of the anus to form external hemorrhoids. It is possible to have both types at the same time. The symptoms and treatment depend on which type you have.

Symptoms
The symptoms of hemorrhoids include:
• Anal itching and irritation
• Anal ache or pain, especially uncomfortable while sitting
• Bright red blood on toilet tissue, stool, or in the toilet bowl
• Pain during bowel movements, especially while straining, or while cleaning the anal area
• One or more hard tender lumps near the anus

What Do Hemorrhoids Look Like? Can I see them?

Internal hemorrhoids
Internal hemorrhoids occur at the beginning of the rectum, just inside the anus. You may see bright red streaks of blood on toilet paper or bright red blood in the toilet bowl after having a bowel movement. You may see blood on the surface of the stool. Internal hemorrhoids are small, swollen veins in the wall of the anal canal. But they can be large, sagging veins that bulge out of the anus continually. They can be quite painful if they bulge out, and are subsequently squeezed by the anal muscles. If the blood supply to the hemorrhoid is cut off, and your hemorrhoids bulge out, you also may see mucus on the toilet paper or stool.

External hemorrhoids
External hemorrhoids can bleed, and then the blood pools, causing a hard painful lump. This is called a thrombosed, which means a clotted hemorrhoid.

What Causes Hemorrhoids?
Hemorrhoids can be caused by extended sitting; for instance, many truck drivers deal with this condition. They may also be caused by straining while making a bowel movement. Constipation often causes increased pressure on the veins in the anal canal, resulting in the swelling and stretching of this tissue, hence, hemorrhoids. It is quite common for hemorrhoids to occur during pregnancy and after childbirth. Everyday stress is also a significant contributor to hemorrhoids. Stressed individuals may not pay proper attention to diet, hydration, exercise, or simple relaxation techniques integrated into one’s lifestyle. Individuals who have stress management issues often have digestion issues, and muscle tension, which transfer directly and indirectly to hemorrhoids.

What Can I Do About My Hemorrhoids?
There are many treatments available, ranging from over-the-counter corticosteroid creams, which can reduce pain and swelling. Hemorrhoid creams with lidocaine can reduce pain. A simple cleansing routine, such as using warm water, and soap, followed by application of witch hazel, upon drying the area, (applied with cotton swabs) can also soothe and reduce itching. Other steps for anal itching include:

• Wear cotton undergarments. Make sure the area is allowed plenty of air.
• Avoid toilet tissue with perfumes or dyes.
• Try not to scratch the area, or to aggressively wipe or clean the area.

Sitz baths can help tremendously. Simply purchase the container to use for your hemorrhoids and sitz baths, found at your local drugstore, which is a sort of plastic tub that fits perfectly over the seat of your toilet. Fill this tub with warm water and another component as well, usually salt or baking soda, and soak the anal area in it for about 15-20 minutes. It works by cleaning the infected and swollen area, while simultaneously increasing the blood flow to the pelvic region. Sit in warm water for 10 to 15 minutes. Stool softeners help reduce straining and constipation.

Reduce Stress
This may seem like an unrelated measure, but reduced stress will benefit most of all. Combine this with a diet high in fiber, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Drink plenty of fluids. At least eight glasses of water a day. This is the best type of prevention.

There are sometimes cases that don’t respond to home treatments. A surgeon or gastroenterologist can apply heat treatment, called infrared coagulation, which basically shrinks internal hemorrhoids. There is surgery that may be done to treat hemorrhoids, which includes rubber band ligation or surgical hemorrhoidectomy. These procedures are for patients with severe pain or bleeding who have tried every other alternative.

Hemorrhoids are not uncommon, and even simple to prevent, when a healthy lifestyle is given priority.
Lastly, A day or two of bed rest may indeed be necessary to take the pressure off of irritated and inflamed veins. Women who are 3-6 months pregnant may want to sleep on their side, or experiment with using a pillow to help reduce pressure on the hips. (although avoid using a ‘ring or doughnut’ cushion, as they will restrict blood flow.) Try to avoid long periods of sitting or standing when your hemorrhoids are most irritated. Slowly introduce more fiber and exercise into your diet.

Hemorrhoids do not have to be a part of your pleasurable and productive life!

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February 8th, 2010 | Tags: anal itching, anal pain, bloody stool, cure for hemorrhoids, Hemorrhoids, pain while sitting, painful constipation, sore butt | Category: Body, Diet and Nutrition | Comments (2)

Having suffered from hip pain myself, I know how frustrating and painful it can be, but did you know that your diagnosis might be incorrect and that it may be possible for you to heal yourself? Chronic hip pain is typically diagnosed as one of three possible syndromes: bursitis, tendonalgia (also known as tendonitis,) or arthritis, all of which may be misdiagnoses for the actual origin of your pain.

Arthritis – arthritis can be either osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. Many people with hip pain are given a diagnosis of osteoarthritis (wear and tear on the joint, usually seen on an x-ray) and assume that they will be dealing with pain and anti-inflammatory medication for the rest of their lives. In many cases when pain is attributed to osteoarthritis the real cause is something entirely different. Yes, you may show some moderate wear in your hip joint, but the pain may in fact be caused by tension myositis syndrome (TMS).

Bursitis – a bursa is a structure that protects underlying bone in areas of high pressure. Bursitis can affect the shoulder (subacromial bursitis,) or the hip, (trochanteric bursitis.) But in many patients bursitis is a misdiagnosis and the real cause is TMS related tendonitis.

Tendonitis – is a group of disorders attributed to a painful tendon inflamed due to overuse. In certain clinics, it has been found that tendonitis is caused not by overuse, but by a subconscious pain creating mechanism of our own minds called tension myositis syndrome (TMS).

TMS, or tension myositis syndrome, is a painful condition caused by our subconscious mind. It is mistakenly diagnosed by doctors as many other conditions, including; bursitis, osteoarthritis, tendonitis, pinched nerves, eczema, and ruptured discs, just to name a few. The pain caused by TMS is real, but the reason for the pain is not due to a physical abnormality and therefore can be easily healed. TMS is used by our subconscious to distract us from the even more painful emotions of anger and resentment.

Since it is unacceptable in most cultures to express anger and resentment we learn to hold it in. The amount of energy associated with negative emotions is quite great and your mind’s way of dealing with this repressed negative energy is to ‘put’ it somewhere in your body, such as your hip, shoulder, low back, or neck. Your subconscious mind then creates a painful condition, such as tendonitis, by restricting the oxygen and blood flow to the area.

TMS is little known in most medical circles, so asking your doctor about it will most likely do you little good. For more information about TMS and to see whether it might be affecting you, look for Dr. John E. Sarno’s book Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection. In it, he describes in great detail how TMS manifests. I have used and perfected a number of mindbody healing techniques to heal myself from chronic neck, back, and hip pain and you can too.

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February 1st, 2010 | Tags: arthritis in hip, bursitis, chronic hip pain, heal yourself of hip pain, hip pain, hip pain cure, hip pain while driving, tendonalgia in hip, tendonitis in hip, tension myositis syndrome in hip, TMS in hip | Category: Body, MindBody Healing | Leave a comment

Your ability to be happy and successful in life is directly related to your ability to control your own thinking. Research has shown that on average we have over 60,000 thoughts per day. Our thoughts define who we are and even create our lives as we go. There is nothing that you do in life that has not been preceded by a thought. Some spiritual teachings even go so far as to say that your thoughts create your reality, and science (quantum physics specifically) has proven this to be true.

Your 60,000+ thoughts each day, therefore, are creating your life as you go along. Many people allow their mind to just think without thinking about what they are thinking about. Does that sound like you? It is very easy to do. So easy, in fact, that most people go through their entire lives simply allowing their minds to run amok, thinking all sorts of unedited and unsupervised thoughts. This unsupervised thinking mind can get us into all sorts of trouble, or with a little guidance and education, can turn our lives from misery to ecstasy instantaneously.

The first step to gaining a positive mental attitude is awareness. Simply become aware of your thoughts instead of allowing your mind to do its own thing. Listen to the voice in your head and take note of the types of thoughts that you have. Pretend that your thoughts are your best friend and listen to what your friend is saying to you all day, every day. Does your best friend support you unconditionally? Does she have compassion for you when you make mistakes? Does he have patience? Does she know how to have fun or is she only a taskmaster? Does your best friend criticize you endlessly?

To become successful and happy you need to think as if you are the most patient, compassionate, and supportive friend that you have. Your thoughts need to be based on non-judgmental self-love. If you find that you are not having thoughts that are patient, compassionate and supportive towards yourself, then the next step is to clean house.

Getting rid of a habit of negative thinking is easier than you think. After all, you have complete and total control over the process. One of the easiest ways to start eliminating negative thinking is to first become aware of those thoughts that are negative, and then to stop your thoughts mid-stream and change them into positive thoughts. For example: “I’ll never get that raise. This company hates me.” This thought is actually two negative thoughts; one about your ability to get a raise, and one about your company and how it may or may not feel about you. If you believe that your thoughts create your reality then you can quickly see how your future is laid out before you – it is unlikely that you will ever get a raise because you have already decided that your company hates you. Whether or not you believe these thoughts, you must start to change them to change your life. So, next time you start to think, “I’ll never get that raise.” Change it instead to something like, “I am an excellent employee and I know that I am going to be paid fairly for my efforts.” As for your thoughts about your company, change them to, “My company appreciates me.”

At first, it may feel like a lie to you because your mind has convinced you that it knows the truth. But keep this thought in mind: The truth is what you make it. If you really want to be broke and constantly looking for a new and better job, then keep thinking negatively. If you want more money, to be appreciated, and compensated fairly, then you first have to start with yourself, with your thinking.

Another great way to start eliminating a habit of negative thinking is to use affirmations. Affirmations are simply positive statements said in the present tense. An example of a positive, present tense affirmation is, “I am a great employee.”

One of the most effective techniques that I have personally employed to reverse a life-long habit of negative thinking is to tie affirmations to flooding. Flooding is a training technique, often used on animals, and entails continually subjecting yourself to a new way of thinking. I committed to using flooding with affirmations for 28 days, and within only a few days, had very good results. Each day upon awakening, I would start with silent affirmations. With each breath out, I would say an affirmation that I made up on the spot. “I am beautiful.” “I am creative.” “I am capable of anything.” “I have good friends.” “I am compassionate.” “I am trustworthy.” I just made them up. As the day went on, whenever I would find my mind wandering to negative thinking, or just thinking about something that wasn’t important or directly related to my life, I would start in again with the affirmations.

Another aspect of flooding that I used involved reading inspirational books or articles every day. Whatever you may be interested in, find the best, most positive authors on the subject, and read at least 10 pages each day. For instance, if you are interested in making more money, start reading some of Napoleon Hill’s books, such as Think and Grow Rich.
If you want to learn how to harness the power of The Secret, try The Power of Intention
by Wayne Dyer. If you want to improve your diet or exercise, search for inspiring stories, books, or role models that you can learn from.

Changing your habitual thinking will require a concerted effort on your part, but it won’t take nearly as long as you think if you make a commitment to change and employ some of my suggestions. There are also many books available on positive thinking. Go to Amazon.com and simply search for ‘positive thinking.’ Changing from a negative mindset to a positive one will have far-reaching effects on your life, all good. So, good luck!

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January 27th, 2010 | Category: MindBody Healing | Comments (1)

There is one major reason to stay far, far away from alcoholic beverages of any sort. Alcohol is incredibly dehydrating. The human body requires a high level of hydration to function properly. Estimates on the percentage of water in the human body runs from 60% up to around 75%. Most functions in your body rely heavily on certain elements, such as water and minerals, to be present and in ideal balance to one another. When you drink alcohol chronically, you are also chronically dehydrated, unless you are doing an amazing job of drinking plenty of water every day. And by plenty, for an alcoholic, I would say a gallon of water every day would be a minimum. And that has to be counted separately from any water included in your alcoholic beverages. So, if you drink an 8 oz. bourbon and water, the water part doesn’t count toward your hydration needs.

If you are drinking a lot of alcohol daily, and not also drinking a lot of water, you are running a very high risk of early mortality from a variety of degenerative diseases. These diseases would include: Crone’s, Lupus, MS, Cancer, heart disease, atherosclerosis, stroke, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and dementia. Any illness or disease, though, will be made worse with the use of alcohol and its associated dehydration.

If you want to kick your addiction to alcohol one of the most natural ways to do it (which may also lead to a spiritual awakening for you) is to switch cold turkey to a raw foods diet. Within a couple weeks of switching to eating only raw, vegan food your body will tell you to stop drinking, and for the first time you will not only listen, you will be able to agree and comply with your body’s request. The raw foods diet detoxifies the body better than any other diet. It will rebuild you from the inside out because you will finally be feeding it the high nutrition that it has been begging for. Interestingly, alcoholism is actually a sugar addiction. When you balance your body chemistry out with the use of raw foods, especially a lot of dark, leafy greens, your cravings for sugar (and alcohol) will start to go away. It happens pretty quickly too.

This is not a diet that you go on to just lose weight; this is for the rest of your life. When you experience the profound affects that eating raw food have on you, and you stick with it for more than a few months, you won’t want to go back.

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January 25th, 2010 | Tags: addiction, alcoholic, alcoholism, drinking, hydration, raw foods, raw foods diet, Wellness | Category: Body, Diet and Nutrition, MindBody Healing | Comments (1)

I eat predominantly organic raw/vegan. And I can tell you, compared to the alternatives (packaged and fast food) eating healthy can be expensive. Corporations have tricked us into believing that we should be able to feed ourselves healthy food for dollars a day. This is just not the truth. Look around, especially if you are living in America. We are the most unhealthy nation on earth, and also the nation most addicted to fast food and cheap, processed food. It is our food that is killing us early, but we have become so brainwashed by the news that we believe it is normal to hit 40 or 50 yrs old and start sliding downhill fast. We have been lead to believe that aging is supposed to involve aches and pains, sickness, disease, disability, and the eventual wasting into a painful, sorry state of health that leads to our premature death. Nothing can be further from the truth. If you stand me up against many of my peers, the difference in our health and appearance has only to do with the difference in what we are putting in our bodies.

I don’t have health insurance. Health insurance is a misnomer – it ought to be called ‘Disease Treatment Reimbursement’ because it does nothing to ensure my health. If you want real health insurance start looking carefully at what you put into your body. Look at everything you drink, everything you eat, all the medications that you take, and even the air that your breathe. This is your health insurance.

The Bible says that we are supposed to live into the hundreds. Now I don’t know if the Bible is right or not, but I have heard the same thing from many experts on health. Our bodies are programmed to be vibrant and healthy up until the time that we die at a ripe, old age. Our bodies are not supposed to break down to disease over time. They are programmed to heal from illness by using the amazing immune system. The problem comes into play when you don’t feed your body the proper nutrition. When you create an imbalance in your body due to malnutrition (if you aren’t eating right, you are malnourished) your body will develop some sort of degenerative disease. Our immune systems were not designed to heal us from disease caused by nutritional deficiencies. Only proper nutrition can do that.
One of the most reliable, holistic therapies for healing from most diseases is a raw vegan diet.* Add to that a healthy dose of positive attitude, and the ability to forgive and let go, and it will lead to healing just about every time. There are more and more great books on the market on raw foods.

*What do raw vegans eat? Any fruit, vegetable, nut, seed, or grain that has not been heated above about 115 degrees. Raw foodists sometimes will dehydrate their foods, but mostly, they eat lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, smoothies, and soaked and sprouted nuts and seeds. Raw foodists typically do not eat any animal products, that means no cheese, eggs, milk, or any kind of meat. For more free information about a raw diet, google ‘raws foods diet’ or ‘raw foods lifestyle’.

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January 21st, 2010 | Tags: cost of food, healing with food, healthy food, raw food, raw food lifestyle, raw foodist | Category: Body, Diet and Nutrition | Comments (1)