Exposed and the Overheating Bath

 

We've been having friends come and visit on our back patio over these last few COVID risky years.  Sitting in the sunshine, with the table between us, giving us all a good six to eight feet distance and only a few guests at a time feels pretty safe and is a nice way to connect in person.  This may seem overly cautious to some, but since many of us now know a few COVID "long haulers," or even some who have died, or who have come close to death, I certainly don't want to take any chances.  

The New York Times printed an article last month (February, 2023) titled, "The Pandemic is Not Over for Older Americans."  (Because dis-information is so prevalent these days, it's good to consider reputable news sources with a history of journalistic integrity and accurate reporting when sharing information of this nature.)  The New York Times reported that there were 11,500 COVID related deaths for the month of January, 2023 alone.  Roughly 50% of the people who died were vaccinated, and 50% were not vaccinated.  The number of deaths rose proportionately with each decade of age, being over 65, over 75 or over 85 years old.  And, only 10% of the 11,500 people who died in January were under the age of 65.  

To put this in perspective, during all of the years of the Vietnam War, we lost almost 60,000 United States combatants.  Though I was barely in my teens at the time of the active protests against the war, I remember how intensely our population rose up to try and prevent our young men from going off to Southeast Asia.  And now, with this country's January COVID deaths, we've had over one sixth of all of those Vietnam years of total "casualties," in just one month's time.  Yikes!  So, yes, I agree, for older Americans the pandemic is not over.  And some of the all too common lingering symptoms like brain fog and fatigue are quite terrible so, I like to be cautious.

Though I am cautious, we all make mistakes, often without even realizing it until we look back with the hindsight view.  Last week, one of our dearest friends was fresh in town, just off of two airplanes.  It was his birthday and I wanted to make him a pie.  So, we invited him to the patio the day after his arrival, (my first oversight being immediately after his multiple public airport and plane exposures,) and served him an all fruit, no sugar home baked pie, (my second oversight because we do sometimes get a little close, with masks off, while serving and eating,) and then we wound up standing and talking, also a bit too close without our masks on, as the clouds floated in front of the sun, (my third and forth oversight.)

The next day, he came down with flu symptoms, achy joints, headache, coughing and he called that night to tell us.  The following day, he tested positive for COVID.  The next day he couldn't lift his head from his pillow and was experiencing rapid cognitive decline.  His family lives here and fortunately they were able to safely take care of him.  The next day, the forth day after we were with him, he started on the new Rx Paxlovid, within the five days suggested to stop the viral damage before it becomes too severe.  We are dropping off some lovely homemade chicken soup for him today.

In the meanwhile, having been exposed and in the susceptible age groups, Frank and I have put ourselves in 'home isolation' and have jumped on precautionary and hopefully preventative actions.  (Please see my YouTube channel for "My COVID-19 Prevention Routine.")  First and always, as we already know, after being in public: soap and water.  Washing hands, clothing, dishes, kitchen counters, a nice shower and shampoo does wonders.  Second, supplements: Vitamin C, Zinc, Vitamin D, Andrographis, Monolaurin, Usnea, and Propolis are all good friends of mine.  Third: I like to use either a simple salt water solution snorted up my nose or Xlear nasal spray: both the salt or the xylitol, when delivered to the sinuses helps to break through the biofilm, which is a protective barrier that infectious materials form around themselves to keep our immune response at bay.  Breaking through this barrier gives our immune system access to, and a better chance at overcoming the invaders.  Forth: holding a positive outlook and sleeping well.  Getting afraid, catching a chill or lack of sleep can dip our immunity.  So, it's good to avoid those stressors and hold positive thoughts, dress warm and tuck in a little earlier.

These are all great strategies to use on a regular basis, especially during the cold and flu season.  But, when I really want to stop something in its tracks, I turn to the overheating bath.

I first tried an overheating bath in the 1990's when my dad had a quadruple bi-pass surgery and I flew home to take care of him.  On the plane I caught something nasty and woke the next morning with that 'uh-oh feeling.'  I had recently read about this technique in Linda Page's excellent book Healthy Healing, the 9th edition.  We know that overheating therapies have been used since the time of the ancient Greek physicians and are still used by natural healers in clinics world round.  Many cultures of the world value the healing properties of heat and utilize: dry saunas, wet saunas, natural hot springs, sweat lodges, etc.  Since none of these are immediately available to me and I have a bathtub, I like using the overheating bath and I have found that I can gain some of the same healing effects right here in the comfort of my own home.

In her book, Linda Page, N.D., Ph.D., explains that virus replication is considerably reduced with even slight increases in body temperature and has long been successfully used against acute infectious diseases.  At the time when she wrote her ninth edition, the AIDS epidemic was raging.  Linda cited reports where overheating procedures were found to be effective in reducing symptoms of AIDS and even in eliminating the virus from the blood.   Without any effective medications available at that time and with overheating therapies being so effective, she felt that hyperthermia might again become recognized for the wonderful healing tool that it is.

As for myself, back then, not wanting to risk infecting my still hospitalized and vulnerable father, I enlisted the help of my sister-in-love and gave the bath a try.  It worked.  The hot water treatment raised my body temperature to 103 degrees, for fifteen minutes.  That night I sweated it all out and woke the next day feeling great and ready to see and start taking care of my dad.

An overheating bath is a pretty tricky procedure and I always enlist the aid of an able bodied assistant before hand, just in case I have need, because I have found that it can leave me feeling weak as a kitten.  And it is important to realize that overheating baths may be counter indicated or dangerous for people with various pre-existing conditions.  So, do some research in advance, (Linda gives a full how-to description in her 9th edition on pages 38, 50 and 51) and talk it over with your healing team before giving this a try.

I'm glad to say that it really works for me.  And I do a variation that simplifies it.  I start with two thermometers, a candy thermometer to register the bath water temperature and a standard glass and mercury mouth thermometer to keep track of my body temperature.  I have a nice deep tub and I block the overflow outlet, so I can fill it all the way to the top.  Again, do your own due diligence here before attempting this procedure.  

For my body, I can tolerate a high bath water temperature, and I put in Epsom salts and other minerals like dead sea salts and magnesium chloride flakes to aid in the detoxification and remineralization of my body.  As I spend time in the tub, my body temperature rises.  My assistant and I keep track of both.  Again, caution should be used with anyone either young or old and as Linda advises, the pulse should never rise above 130.  Additionally, if someone is ill, constant supervision is absolutely necessary.  I use this as more of an early stage or morning after kind of a prevention treatment rather than a cure, because someone who is already sick with a virus might be too weak to tolerate the heat very well.

During the bath, I usually keep a quart of herbal tea to hand, so as to prevent dehydration from sweating while the bath salts pull out toxins.  I usually take a shot or two of Dr. Schulze's Cold 'n Flu formula (https://www.herbdoc.com/cf-herbal-shot#KCFS) as well, to boost my immunity as the heat races my blood and the herbs all around inside of me.

Once I've held my internal body temperature up nice and high, preferably at 102 or better yet, 103 degrees for fifteen minutes or so, I start cooling things down by letting out a little hot water and adding in some cold water.   And, as I mentioned, high fevers can leave one feeling weak, so this is where an assistant is essential to help keep track of and monitor the situation.  (Healing clinics with spas and saunas have attendants for good reasons.)  As the bath water gradually cools over time, my body temperature returns back to normal, and I rinse the bath salt residue off my skin.  Then I slowly and carefully make my way to my bed to sweat out the reminder of any toxins, perhaps with a few beach towels between the sheets, and I sleep it off.  I keep a quart or two of water bedside to rehydrate with if I wake during the night and in the morning.  

It has been five days now, since my nice hot bath, and I'm not expressing any symptoms.  So far, so good, with my recent exposure.  I'm still going to keep myself in isolation for the full two weeks, just in case.  As we know, this virus is not just an ordinary flu.  It can be really dangerous and I wouldn't want to take the chance of being a vector.  

Bless you all.  Be careful and stay well.

 

 

As a Clairvoyant Healer, Spiritual Counselor and Intuition Instructor, I share many tips for leading a healthy and fulfilling life.  Please be advised that I am not a doctor. Nor am I licensed in any healing modality. However, I have had years of experience in alternative and complementary health and healing. All healing programs, including standard western medical protocols in addition to natural therapies, can cause harm rather than the benefit that you may be searching for. After all some people can have a strong reaction to something as seemingly innocent as peanuts or strawberries. Therefore, anything that I may recommend in these blogs and videos could be dangerous for you to try. So, it is important that you Ask Your Doctor First before trying any natural healing protocol. However, most medical doctors have little experience regarding natural healing programs and herbal medicine. So please understand if your doctor is unfamiliar with these ideas.

Fantastic Water Fasting

 

 

My mother used to say, "Starve a cold, feed a fever."  But I like to say, "Starve Everything!"  Whenever I am feeling punky or out of sorts, I find that the quickest way for me to turn a situation around is water fasting.  I've had friends ask, "Wait a minute, Josephine, do you mean that you don't drink any water?!," because fasting usually means abstaining from something.  But, no, on the contrary, it means drinking a ton of water and abstaining from all foods, ideally, not one single calorie.  Instead, I try to get at least one gallon of water down a day.  

When it comes to healing and detoxifying my body, whenever I do cleanses, I prefer to use distilled water, as it can really pull the junk out.  Unfortunately, my first distiller turned out to be all aluminum on the inside.  Not wanting to risk alzheimer's in my later years, I quickly ditched that one and blessedly found an H2O Labs distiller instead, which is very well made.  The water only touches either stainless steel or glass and it will give me a full gallon, or 128 ounces, in one night, drop by drop.  I am always amazed by the stench and the scum that I find in the bottom of my water distiller when I go to clean it, with a little white vinegar, which I do in the mornings, after I have run it.  

Water quality is important.  For our drinking water, years ago I found out that the 5 gallon plastic water bottles, that I had been putting on top of my ceramic water cooler in the kitchen, were made from a poor grade of plastic.  The days are now long gone since those bottles used to be made of glass, and all plastic water bottles hold the potential for releasing toxins into our drinking water.  Not wanting to risk potentially toxic exposures, we now have a charcoal based water filter to use for our drinking water, which we originally get from the kitchen sink.

As Mary Oliver, the beautiful poet has said, one of the greatest crimes of her lifetime was losing the ability to drink water freely from the wild springs, streams and ponds she encountered while venturing forth into the natural world.  And this is truly a crime, sadly world wide.  But, at least, and thank goodness, in most of the western world, our water from the tap is potable, and safe enough to drink.  Many people around the world do not have that blessing these days.  And though I prefer distilled for my water fasts and cleanses, due to it's lovely clear flavorless taste and it's ability to pull toxins from my body, any pure or filtered water will do for a water fast.

When we give our bodies a break from all of the hard work of digestion, they can put that energy into the task of healing.  Water fasting also engages an activity know as autophagy or self-eating.  That may sound a little scary, but actually it is a tremendous benefit because it is like an internal house cleaning.  Children naturally have a high level of autophagy going on in their bodies because of the constant creation of new cells associated with growth.  Our bodies have a deep wells of incredible wisdom and are always trying to find or maintain the balance of health and this includes getting rid of old cells and toxins.  And when we do a water fast, that is exactly what can happen.  

The thing about water fasting is that it is extremely important how you break the fast.  Of course, we already do a little fasting during the night, while we sleep, and in the morning we usually break-the-fast with breakfast, often the lightest meal of the day, typically something like toast and tea.  But for a real water fast, say one or two or three days long, it is especially vital to be mindful about how you break the fast.  It is also best to prepare for the fast in a similar way.  So, if I am planning on doing a one day fast, I plan on three days: the pre-fast day, the fasting day and the post-fast day.  If I am going for a three day fast, I try to plan on nine days: three pre-fast days, three fasting days and three post-fast days.

In the days before a fast, I gradually move from solid and more dense foods toward liquids.  I'll stop eating heavier foods like concentrated proteins, beans, nuts or eggs, and move to foods like soft cooked vegetables or fruits and then to liquids like blended soups, juices or smoothies.  After the fast, I do the same, only in reverse.  I start with a liquid diet, move to well cooked veggies or fruits and then later onto the proteins.  The reason for this is that your digestive tract shuts down during fasting and it is best to awaken it slowly and gently.  Otherwise, you can do more harm than good.  No one wants to do their heaviest lifting without first warming up.  Cars like to be idled for a little while before driving off.

During my fasting days, as I mentioned, I drink a lot of water, at least 128 ounces a day to really help my body flush and clean itself out.  Water is good for cleaning everything, and this is where distilled water is especially helpful as it is so empty and free of dissolved substances.  This lets the fasting water pick up and carry out more toxic materials than regular water can.  And, if ever I find myself feeling a little hungry or head-achy, I just drink more water and those feelings will quickly pass.

Here is my typical routine.  I have 16 ounces by my bedside that I may drink if I wake during the night and I have an additional 16 ounces that I get down before I start my day.  That's 32.  Then I might have a cup of herbal tea.  I like Throat Coat by Traditional Medicinals.  Another 8 ounces.  Mid morning I do another 16 and may take a multi-vitamin or mineral supplement with that water, just so long as the supplement doesn't have any added calories.  That's now 56 ounces.  Around mid-day, I might enjoy a quart of water with two tablespoons of nice Bragg's Raw Apple Cider Vinegar and perhaps a drop or two of stevia extract or a little splash of vanilla or orange essence.  That brings me up to 88 ounces, and I'm well on the way to 128.  In the afternoon another cup or two of herbal tea, brings me now up to 104 ounces.  And a nice 16 more ounces in the evening gets me up to 120, and that leaves just one more glass before bed to reach 128 ounces in the day's total. 

Generally, if I decide to do a longer fast, say longer than 5-7 days, I add some calories to the additional days.  Perhaps I'll include a clear vegetable potassium broth, (to see the recipe I use scroll to the bottom,) or lemon/lime water, (after drinking, always rinsing my mouth with clear water so as to preserve the enamel on my teeth,) and perhaps a half of an avocado, capping my daily caloric intake at around 200 calories total.  Though autophagy best happens with zero calories, once activated, I personally feel that it continues with minimal calories.  

In addition, I also stop the distilled water and switch to filtered water, for my longer water fasts, as distilled water can lower one's pH, thus inhibiting nutritional uptake, if used on a regular daily basis.  And while fasting, distilled water can also result in a rapid loss of electrolytes, like sodium or potassium, and it can deplete our trace minerals as well.  But it is great for a shorter termed fast or for any short term detoxification program because it so actively absorbs toxic substances from our bodies, helping to eliminate them.  And I do always use distilled water when I make my potassium broth, as it really pulls the minerals from those vegetables, making them available for me to absorb when I drink my broth.

As Peace Pilgrim, who was a big water faster, once said, "Water fasting makes one feel preternaturally clear."  I couldn't agree more.  When we fast, little cells in our brains, called appropriately "janitor cells," get active and gobble up all of the old, dead, or toxic materials that are lying around.  They only do this when digestion is not taking place, typically at night.  But while we water fast, they really get an opportunity to dust away all of the cobwebs and we wind up thinking much more clearly.  After a water fast, I also notice that all of my joints move more easily, I have tons of energy and I feel much lighter, because I am lighter.   

We now know that almost all diseases, including cancers, are caused by or worsened by high levels of inflammation.  Water fasting drops inflammation down quick as a flash.  A water fast lasting just two to four days in length, also reactivates a tired immune system, generating new white blood cells by reactivating our stem cells.  And the good news is, if I do a fine water fast for just three days, I may loose 3-5 pounds.  And, if I do my post-fasting exactly according to plan, it says off, especially if I take care to not go crazy with the calories in the weeks that follow.  This is just one more benefit to the beauty of water fasting, permanent weight loss.

But, don't take my word for it.  I recently discovered a gem of a little book, and a really quick read, titled, Water Fasting, by Kate McCarthy.  Her subtitle is, How to Lose Weight Fast, Increase Mental Clarity, Heal Your Body and Activate Autophagy with Water Fasting.  Her book is packed full of beautiful instruction and truly convincing studies showing just how effective water fasting can be for preventing, reversing or stopping potential disease conditions like: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, hormonal imbalances, obesity, blood sugar problems, cognitive decline and many other health concerns.  And she answers all of the questions one might have.  So, read Kate's book.  It's great.  

I have periodically enjoyed water fasting, my whole life long.  It has certainly helped me to get out of some tricky situations.  And is often one of the first things I turn to when I find myself in trouble or have a little problem developing with my health.  It is surprising to discover how easy water fasting can be, once you make your mind up to give it a try.  It always really helps me to increase my level of health, and I'm sure it will be able to help you do so too.  Enjoy.

 

 

Potassium Broth

In one or two large stainless steel or glass cooking pots add:
the peelings of 5 potatoes,
the peelings of 5 carrots,
one whole head of celery, chopped into small chunks,
three whole beets, chopped into small chunks,
half a head of dino kale, loosely chopped,
half a bunch of parsley, loosely chopped,
two onions, peeled and chopped into small chunks,
five cloves of garlic, minced and aired for 5 minutes before adding,
all of the nice beet greens that came with the beets, loosely chopped,
one tablespoon of Celtic Sea Salt, which contains over 84 different minerals.

Cover the ingredients with distilled water and cook for four hours.
Take the lids off of the pots for the last hour and turn the heat down to sim, to reduce the liquid a little.  This concentrates the flavors and makes a lovely broth.
Strain and store in glass jars.  This broth can be frozen, to use after your water fast.

I put my cooked vegetables in a nut milk bag and first hang them to drain and then squeeze the veggies into a separate bowl, to get more broth before placing them in my compost.  The squeezed veggies have more chance of bacterial involvement from my hands, so I keep that broth separate and consume it first. 

As a Clairvoyant Healer, Spiritual Counselor and Intuition Instructor, I share many tips for leading a healthy and fulfilling life.  Please be advised that I am not a doctor. Nor am I licensed in any healing modality. However, I have had years of experience in alternative and complementary health and healing. All healing programs, including standard western medical protocols in addition to natural therapies, can cause harm rather than the benefit that you may be searching for. After all some people can have a strong reaction to something as seemingly innocent as peanuts or strawberries. Therefore, anything that I may recommend in these blogs and videos could be dangerous for you to try. So, it is important that you Ask Your Doctor First before trying any natural healing protocol. However, most medical doctors have little experience regarding natural healing programs and herbal medicine. So please understand if your doctor is unfamiliar with these ideas.

Christine Kent - A Whole Woman (or, How to Heal Your Knees, Hips or Prolapse Naturally)

Some of us have to fight the dragon before we can bring home the gold.     

In the 'Hero's Journey,' so beautifully encapsulated by Joseph Campbell, the hero, or in this case, the heroine, goes forth into the unknown.  They enter the forest in their own place and way.  In Christine Kent's case, this was a journey of prolapsed organs after a surgery for a minor incontinence problem.  The surgery and its subsequent prolapse left Christine emotionally isolated from the image of a whole or intact woman that she had previously known.  In an attempt to heal she found herself going against all of the conventional wisdom that the medical community had to offer.  This was the fighting of the dragon.

When the hero fights the dragon, he gets the pot of gold that the dragon was guarding and can then bring it back to his community, for the benefit of all.  Our heroine, Christine, has done just that.  She has not only healed herself, but she has also brought to all of womankind the ability to heal our hips and knees and pelvis of all sorts of disorders.  All of this is done with a few simple exercises to help us correct our beautiful posture and maintain our true natural feminine carriage, gait and grace.  And it is blessedly done without the drugs and surgeries, which are so invasive and yet are considered to be 'the gold standard of care' common these days in the medical view.

Unfortunately, our Western cultural postural ideal is based on a misinformed view of how we should stand and walk.  We all know this "ideal."  It involves tucking the butt under and holding the belly in.  I can't tell you how many times my mother whispered this to me and then tapped or struck me lightly between the shoulder blades to stick my chest out, with shoulders forced back, in the military position.  Sadly, this was all wrong, wrong, wrong, for keeping a woman's body healthy and whole.

When we tuck our rear ends under, it does indeed minimize the look of our butts.  But it also tips our pelvis forward.  As we do this our 'pubic bone,' which is actually a cartilaginous arch between two joining bones, moves to the front of the body instead of staying underneath our abdomen where it belongs.  Without this support, the female body is vulnerable to having organs fall down and out, especially if a woman has birthed children.  As Christine explains, all of the Kegels and tightening exercises to 'strengthen the pelvic floor,' are unnecessary and even damaging to the natural alignment of the organs within the female pelvis.  The real support for these organs should come from the pubic bone, acting like the straps under a saddle, naturally placed at the bottom of the body.  And this only happens when we tilt the bottom of the pelvis back, which makes our butts stick out a little bit.

It is harder to tilt the pelvis back when the stomach is pulled in.  "Pull in your stomach!"  As well intentioned as our mothers were with these words, they set us up for all sorts of pelvis and breathing disorders.  When our stomachs are pulled in we can not naturally relax and receive our in-breath.  The belly has to be loose and dropped down in order to breath properly.

For Christine's Whole Woman posture, this is the start.  Let the pelvis tilt naturally back and relax and drop the belly.  Then, as well, we don't want to collapse the ribs with a forward slouch, we want to lift the ribs and at the same time tuck the chin.  A chin-jut, which happens when we stick our chin out forward, crimps our necks in the back and pinches our cervical spine.  It also realigns the way we look at the world through our eyes.  Instead, when we lower our chin, our eye lids naturally open, allowing us to see more easily as well.

Many cultures, far older than our Western one, often embrace the posterior alignment of the rear end.  It is part of the natural feminine grace and strength.  A woman's natural posture involves: keeping the feet pointing forward while walking, tilting the pelvis back and dropping the belly softly forward to allow easeful abdominal breathing, lifting the chest and tucking the chin by letting the back of the neck be long and lifting the crown of the head from behind.  When we do this, it opens our eyes as we look forward and creates a beautiful feminine form.

But don't take my word for it.  Go directly to the source and see for yourself the vast array of support and information available to you at Christine's website, wholewoman.com.  Whether you have problems with your hips, knees or pelvis or are lucky enough to already have comfort and ease in your body, you will find a true wealth of information there.  I hope that you enjoy it as much as I have.

Blessings to you all and may you have a Healthy and Beautiful New Year.

 

 

As a Clairvoyant Healer, Spiritual Counselor and Intuition Instructor, I share many tips for leading a healthy and fulfilling life.  Please be advised that I am not a doctor. Nor am I licensed in any healing modality. However, I have had years of experience in alternative and complementary health and healing. All healing programs, including standard western medical protocols in addition to natural therapies, can cause harm rather than the benefit that you may be searching for. After all some people can have a strong reaction to something as seemingly innocent as peanuts or strawberries. Therefore, anything that I may recommend in these blogs and videos could be dangerous for you to try. So, it is important that you Ask Your Doctor First before trying any natural healing protocol. However, most medical doctors have little experience regarding natural healing programs and herbal medicine. So please understand if your doctor is unfamiliar with these ideas.

 

 

Nutritional Genomics or How What You Eat Affects Your Genes

 

 

When I'm working as a Clairvoyant Healer, I've often wondered why I can look at one person and see that their main underlying problem is coffee and yet when I look at someone else, who is drinking coffee all day long, it is not a problem at all.  It turns out that there is a gene CYP1A2, that does not express itself well for some people who have that gene and drink coffee.

Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief, uses a good analogy to describe this phenomenon.   He says that how our genes are expressed is like someone wearing a long sleeve shirt.  When the shirt sleeve is long, we are expressing those genes in the normal way.  But in the presence of certain conditions like stress, or negative self talk, or a particular pharmaceutical medication, or various foods, then it is like rolling up the shirt sleeve of that genetic code and a whole different expression of those same genes are revealed.  In people who have the CYP1A2 gene, it is the coffee that rolls up the sleeve.

When it comes to nutrition, the field of genomic research is still relatively in its infancy, but it certainly holds vast promise for helping us to understand why some of us react one way to a certain food while others react another way.  Donna Gates, who wrote the book The Body Ecology Diet, now in its eleventh year of publication with Hay House, is passionate about the study of nutrition and how the foods we consume relate to our individual genes.  She is the one who coined the term "inner ecosystem" to describe the vast array of non-human organisms that preside over digestion in our gut tracts.  We need this network of microbes, now called "the microbiome," in order to digest our food.  And the foods we eat feed not only us, but also these organisms, which are comprised of a variety of bacteria, viruses, funguses, yeasts and more.

If we eat a diet of primarily white flour, coffee, alcohol, meats and lots of sugar, we promote populations of little critters in our gut tract that thrive on those foods.  If we eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, we promote the growth of a very different microbiome.  

Many of us now realize that one of the biggest problems associated with poor digestion in our culture stems from the overuse of antibiotics, especially in childhood.  The current medical trend for occasional or rare use of antibiotics is helping to correct this, and fortunately does not cause the same devastation to our microbiome and the "good bacteria," as the regular use of those drugs did in previous decades. 

However, after WWII, it was discovered that the use of antibiotics in animal feed either significantly increased weight gain and/or prevented disease in farm animals.  The practice of including antibiotics in animal feed in the animal husbandry industries, continues to this day and has had a very serious lasting effect on many a digestive tract in our American human population.  So, if you are eating non-organic animal products you are adversely affecting your microbiome with low level doses of antibiotics with quite probably every one of those meals.

Most of us have heard the term 'probiotics' by now.  These are the 'pro' meaning positive, and 'biotics' meaning relating to or resulting from living things, like gut flora.  But not that many people are familiar with the term 'prebiotics.'  'Pre,' meaning that which comes before or creates, and biotics, which is basically life.  Prebiotics are fiber rich foods, like fruits and vegetables, that create the conditions that are favorable to the intestinal flora or 'friendly bacteria.'  These foods are what we need for good digestion.  Prebiotics feed the microbes so that they can first break down our foods so that we can absorb the nutritional components.  Prebiotics in the form of raw fruits and vegetables are best for breaking down into materials that promote good probiotics in our gut tracts.

Fermented raw foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, or live culture nut and other milk yogurts, (with an especially favorable nod to organic raw goat milk kefir,) are particularly good at feeding and rebalancing the microbiome.  These foods have been used for centuries among human populations to restore healthy gut flora or to assist digestion when it tends to decline in advanced age.  As my husband who makes a spectacular kimchi sometimes says,  "There is a reason for why people eat these things."

Meanwhile, pasteurized, cooked or canned sauerkrauts, kombuchas, yogurts, et all will have very little to no positive effect on repopulating a microbiome as their cultures have been killed primarily through heating, but also through other food processing methods.  So, "Rah, Rah, Raw!" for raw fermented foods.

Now, back to nutritional genomics.  Genes are in every cell of our bodies.  They are located in the mitochondria of the cell, which holds the DNA.  The DNA, as you probably recall from biology class in school, is a pair of twisted strands, looking something like a spiralized ladder.  Our genes are located on these two strands and they contain all of our genetic material.  Each and every cell in our body has genes and every cell needs food.  That food comes from our digestion.  The food is delivered to the cell by our blood.  The nutrition in the blood that feeds the cell also feeds our DNA.  If our DNA is fed bad food, we then get the bad expressions of the genes, also known as disease.  The shirt sleeve gets rolled up.  It's that simple.  That's why junk food is bad for you.  

Our individual genetic code explains why some foods are good for some people while those same foods may be bad for other people.  Knowing one's personal set of DNA answers the question of why some of us do poorly with too many carbohydrates while others do really well with non-refined carbohydrates and actually need them for good quality sleep, and good mental and physical health.  Our genes can explain why some foods serve us and some foods don't.

None of our genes, not a single one, is positively expressed in the presence of sugar.  I'm not talking about the sugar from fruit here, which is a natural and very healthful food, loaded with bioflavonoids or other wonderfully nutritive elements like enzymes, vitamins and minerals.  But the processed, stripped bare, plain old sugar that comes in a box or a bag, does not feed your good genetic expression.  It feeds the bad ones.

Genes are labeled using a series of numbers and letters.  The MTHR677 gene is very common in Italian and Hispanic populations.  When people with this gene eat the good 'Mediterranean Diet' with plenty of vegetables and fresh olive oil, they have good energy, less cardiovascular disease, increased fertility and lots of happy smiling faces.  People with the "slow" version of the CYP1A2 gene don't do well with caffeine and will feel jittery and nervous when they drink coffee or eat chocolate.  Children with autism will always have an MTHFR gene mutation and will be unable to methylate or detoxify their bodies adequately.  For individuals with this gene a clean healthy diet, free from junk foods, is especially important since it is harder for their livers to detoxify their bodies.

There are companies that can analyze your genetic code from saliva and many people are doing this now.  But there are only limited ways to figure out what all those letters and numbers mean.  I'm guessing that it is a bit like getting a printed off and analyzed astrology chart, somewhat helpful, but not terribly clear.  Hopefully more diet and nutrition majors in food science studies will enter this very promising field because coaches are not yet all that readily available.  

Also, it is worth mentioning that some of the bigger corporations have been found snatching up personal genetic information, presumably for advertising opportunities.  I understand that this was the case with a major online retailer.  They were purchasing personal data from the genetic code company called "23andMe," who was offering genetic testing comparatively inexpensively until the FDA issued them a warning, which shut down their marketing for a while, opening the door for dialogue on standards. 

If you do choose to get your genes analyzed, see if you can find a good nutritional gene coach.  They can help with bringing balance and suggest supplements to support various situations, but the main tool for creating balance and stability is always diet.  Donna Gate's book, which I mentioned earlier, The Body Ecology Diet, will get you there, pretty much no matter what your genetic code may be, because diet is always at the root of our good or bad health.  And her number one tool is first clearing the chalk board by cutting out the common offenders and stopping eating whatever is causing the trouble and then rebuilding the microbiome with raw fermented vegetables.  

So, check out my husband's wonderful kimchi video and start off your New Year with a fresh clean slate of healthy prebiotics and a great diet element for creating beautiful lasting health.

 

 As a Clairvoyant Healer, Spiritual Counselor and Intuition Instructor, I share many tips for leading a healthy and fulfilling life.  Please be advised that I am not a doctor. Nor am I licensed in any healing modality. However, I have had years of experience in alternative and complementary health and healing. All healing programs, including standard western medical protocols in addition to natural therapies, can cause harm rather than the benefit that you may be searching for. After all some people can have a strong reaction to something as seemingly innocent as peanuts or strawberries. Therefore, anything that I may recommend in these blogs and videos could be dangerous for you to try. So, it is important that you Ask Your Doctor First before trying any natural healing protocol. However, most medical doctors have little experience regarding natural healing programs and herbal medicine. So please understand if your doctor is unfamiliar with these ideas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm So Grateful for Homeopathic Medicine

 

 

Decades ago one of my main mentors, Charles Otto, D.C., introduced me to homeopathic medicine.  And I'm so grateful.  This extremely effective and subtle healing therapy works in part on the principle of 'like treats like,' somewhat like vaccinations.  This is known as 'The Law of Similars,' where something that triggers a disease can also be used to treat that condition.  With homeopathy, the substance is used in minute concentrations, where it is almost a mere whisper of its former self, and the more dilute the preparation the stronger it is. 

Homeopathic medicine was first created by Samuel Hahnemann, a German Doctor in the late 18th century.  It found widespread use throughout Europe and North America.  Though still embraced in Europe, its use was diminished significantly in America, in the 1950's, when the pharmaceutical and related industries began stacking the Boards of Directors of all of our medical universities with men who would promote their approach to healing using drugs and surgery to the exclusion of all other types of healing modalities.  The end result of this planned monopoly was that hundreds of natural healing clinics fell out of popularity and closed their doors in the decades that followed.  

Fortunately, two natural healing colleges have remained, Bastyr University in Washington State and until very recently Florida College of Natural Health.  (Sadly, as of 2020, FCNH no longer exists.)  Students of natural healing, known as Naturopaths or Naturopathic Doctors, can practice in many states in America, though a number of states require additional licensing or certification.  Similar to how a plant that has been sprayed with poison may die in one area, blessedly what works well for nature will continue to survive and pop up in another area.  So, we do still have access to Naturopaths, which include herbal doctors and homeopaths, who can help us with our healing journeys using tools other than the too often dreaded standard western medical approach of drugs and surgery, sometimes referred to as allopathic medicine.  Naturopaths are often preferred as they can offer more gentle, less invasive options which are still very effective.

Most healthy food stores across the western world do offer herbs and supplements along with homeopathic medicines.  These persist due to their efficacy even though they are not supported by our insurance industries and are paid for out-of-pocket.  Consumers spend billions of dollars annually on these products.  This alone stands as a testament to their usefulness.  My own personal apothecary is full of natural healing products.  I have supplements to address many vitamin and mineral needs.  I have herbs to provide broad spectrum healing, many of which I grow and harvest myself.  And I inherited a Standard Homeopathic kit from Dr Otto after he passed.  Many different homeopathic medicine kits are available for purchase like the HomeoFamily Kit by Boiron.  But I love my old one, with the good doctor's hand written notes alongside the map of remedies inside the top.  

Homeopathic medicines come in the form of tiny little tablets or balls that have been infused with the energy of the plants or other substances from which they were derived.  And as I mentioned, the more dilute they are, the more powerful they are.  So a homeopathic medicine that has been diluted two hundred times, 200x, is more potent than one that has only been diluted six times, 6x.  A 6x formulation can be used many times a day, for instance, one might prefer to take a 6x dose of Hypericum perforatum along with 6x Arnica montana every half hour, or as needed, to speed the healing and ease the pain of a burn.  Whereas, a 200x formulation of something like Ignatia amara might just do the trick, with a one time dose, for easing the sighing disappointments of a teenager.

 Some of my favorite remedies are as follows.  I frequently use Arnica montana for injuries like bruises and scrapes, Hypericum perforatum for nerve troubles like aches and pains, or Belladona, also for pain.  Whenever I get something in my eye or a little sliver or a splinter or have a run-in with some fiberglass, I turn to Silica, sometimes labeled Silicea, to help bring relief.  Apis mellifica eases the sting of insect bites or punctures, the ones that like cold compresses.  Ledum palustre also helps with puncture wounds, the type that likes hot compresses.  Ledum is good for dog bites, impalements and vaccinosis.  Symphytum (comfrey) helps with fractures and torn tissues.  I have used Ignatia amara for grief and the negative thoughts that can sometimes accompany that situation, along with Aconitum napellus for the shock of bad news.  

My basic homeopathic kit holds several dozen remedies along with descriptions of their common uses or indications, but there are hundreds of homeopathic medicines, all with wonderful uses and I only have a working knowledge of a very few.  Often homeopathic remedies can be quite specific, depending on the individual and how the symptoms are uniquely presenting themselves, so, it is, of course, best to consult with an experienced homeopath or naturopath to really dial in an appropriate cure.  However, if you need a little shortcut, the Boiron company has a homeopathic medicine finder on their website, https://www.boironusa.com/mf/.  They also have a hot-line that you can call at 1 (800) 264-7661 where their knowledgeable staff can help you to make a selection. 

Dr. Otto taught me, years ago, that homeopathic medicines should always be taken away from food, either a half an hour before eating or an hour afterward.  They do not like to be taken while someone is using essential oils, or drinking strong beverages, like coffee or black tea.  These are subtle medicines and they can be influenced by other materials, so they do not like to be stored near any electronic devices.  They prefer to be stored in a cool dark place, (as is also the case for most herbs and supplements.)  When taking homeopathic medicine, one should place a single little pellet under the tongue and let it dissolve there, taking care not to touch the fingers, lips or mouth to the inside of the container.  If they are handled carefully, none of these subtle medicines will ever expire.

Interestingly enough, prior to the 1950's and the subsequent takeover of our medical approach to healing by the pharmaceutical, surgical and related industries in this country, most medical doctors were quite proficient at prescribing appropriate homeopathic cures.  They used them to help with healing and as an adjunct to their procedures.  But, now that time has passed, and very, very few medical doctors in the U.S.A. have any knowledge of homeopathics, nor of most other natural therapies for healing, including the basics of diet and nutrition.  Hopefully this tide is turning with our new millennium.   

Please understand that I am not opposed to the standard western medical approach to healing.  Prescription medications and surgical remedies certainly do have their place and I will absolutely avail myself of their services, should I have need and gratefully too.  But, sometimes a more subtle, or more far reaching approach to healing is worthy of consideration.  So, for those among us who enjoy being self empowered and prefer to care for our own bodies for most of the ills that seem a part of life, I'm writing this blog to encourage you to check out homeopathic medicines if you have not yet been introduced.  You will find them right there, in your local neighborhood healthy food store.  So stop in, and say 'Hello,' because a good thing will always prevail.

 

 

 As a Clairvoyant Healer, Spiritual Counselor and Intuition Instructor, I share many tips for leading a healthy and fulfilling life.  Please be advised that I am not a doctor. Nor am I licensed in any healing modality. However, I have had years of experience in alternative and complementary health and healing. All healing programs, including standard western medical protocols in addition to natural therapies, can cause harm rather than the benefit that you may be searching for. After all some people can have a strong reaction to something as seemingly innocent as peanuts or strawberries. Therefore, anything that I may recommend in these blogs and videos could be dangerous for you to try. So, it is important that you Ask Your Doctor First before trying any natural healing protocol. However, most medical doctors have little experience regarding natural healing programs and herbal medicine. So please understand if your doctor is unfamiliar with these ideas.

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

The Secret of Life is Enjoying the Passage of Time

 

 

More than forty years ago, James Taylor recorded a song with this refrain: "The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time."  This musical lyric has been playing in my head all month, and I believe it to be true.  As the words have been percolating deeply into my psyche, I find myself relaxing into greater and greater levels of contentment and an underlying sense of joy.  

Allow me to digress for a moment into the physiological anatomy behind all of this.  The autonomic nervous system of our bodies is comprised of two basic parts, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nervous systems.  

The sympathetic nervous system is our 'fight or flight' mode and it is our common response to stress.  This is where we are all charged up, our heart rate increases and our kidneys release adrenaline.   When our sympathetic nervous system is engaged, we are on our guard and ready to go, full speed ahead.

The parasympathetic nervous system is our 'rest and digest' mode. Here our bodies can tend to housekeeping and maintenance.  We are relaxed, our heart rate slows and we are at ease and can undergo repair.  Too often in modern life, this aspect of our beingness is over-ridden by stress and the cares and concerns of the day, leaving us in an unbalanced state.

For a healthy nervous system it is best if we allow both these modes of being to occur, perhaps giving a little more time to our parasympathetic mode, in order to even out the balance.  When we take the time to pet the dog, cuddle the cat, smell the roses or gaze up into the blue sky, even if just for a few moments, we are tipping the scales more toward that balance. 

It is worth our while to note that our internal mental climate is so often controlled by habit.  We do have choices.  And sadly, we sometimes choose to develop habits of being self-critical, or routinely pessimistic, or even being easily offended.  These types of thought habits put us in that 'fight or flight' mode.  Should we choose instead, (using our will and consciously directing our attention,) to notice what is beautiful, right and good around us, we shift our energy into a calmer more relaxed way of being.  And this is not only a healthier way to be, but is also a much more enjoyable way to spend time.  All it takes is a little self-observation and a tiny bit of conscious effort.

Now, I'm not saying that we should ignore the world's suffering.  Our advocacy on behalf of what we believe is right and good in the world can be a passionate and very positive use of our sympathetic nervous system.  There is a time and a place to vehemently defend what we believe in.  But I feel that it is best if we don't allow it to habitually completely consume our light.  We can also have gratitude and give ourselves time to remember and enjoy the beauty that we may have been fighting for.

A great healer and a friend of mine recently told me some profound wisdom and I typed out on a piece of paper.  

He called it "The A,B,C's."  

"A" is for Awareness.  (Be) Aware that I have choices.  

"B" is for Breathe, Better.  When we Breathe Better, we pause, we take a moment that allows us to relax or rethink our stance just a little.  

"C" is for Choose, Better.  I can think about how to Choose Better.

My friend is a healer of the physical body, and this was intended as a first response for injury or trauma, but right away I noticed how in my life his same wisdom could also be used for my mental, emotional and spiritual health as well.  Why not find ease and grace in my mind as well as in my body?  So, I leave you with these beautiful A,B,C's of his and the secret of life, which is enjoying the passing of time.

 

P.S.  Vote.

Your Most Elevated Thought of the Day

Lately, an elderly friend of mine has taken to asking me what was my most elevated thought of the day.  This has given me the opportunity to stop and notice from time to time where my head is at.  Just like any other part of our routines, our thoughts can become quite habitual and his question has been reminding me that it is good to remember to cultivate elevated ones.

I feel that we are more creative than we realize.  Our thoughts, and where we are focusing our minds, are the first step of that creative process.  

One of the things that my spiritual teacher, Jana Massey, used to advise, being as we live right next to a major earthquake fault line, was to take care not to envisage disaster in our area.  After the Santa Rosa fire, of 2017, here in California, and initially after the Y2K concerns at the beginning of the new millennia, my husband and I have taken the very practical steps advised regarding having an emergency evacuation kit ready-to-go.  So, we have copies of our important documents, pet carriers, change of clothing and other essentials packed and gathered should there be need.  And though thus prepared, I try not dwell on it.  As Jana suggested, I like to see my community as happy and whole and settled in my mind's eye.

Here, on the Central Coast, mere days after a severe heat wave, it is natural to be concerned about the very real results of climate change, and its varied and widespread impacts on human communities and wildlife world wide.  This is certainly something that we want to address and give pro-active efforts toward.  And though there is always room for improvement, I do much toward that end.  

Then, as well, similar to what Jana advised with envisaging peace and tranquility, I also like to make an effort with what might be called spiritual activism, thus I place some of my thoughts positively in the etheric realms as well.

Years ago, I saw a PBS documentary called 'Next Year Country.'  It was about the severe drought in Montana, in the early 2000s.  Several ranchers, fearing for their livelihoods, pooled their resources and hired a rainmaker.  He came from the Mount Shasta area and brought with him large long metal pipes and other equipment and camped out on the land for several weeks.  He aligned the pipes with underground water ways and ley lines.  Then he chanted and sang.  And he laughed and spoke with and got to know the people.  And he did indeed call the rain.  That year, that corner of the state was green and full of rain and grain.

I've been remembering what the rain-maker said.  He explained that clouds are alive and that they are like children or animals or anyone else, and we need to be delighted to see them if we want them to come around.  He said we need to let them know how we feel and engage with them, talk to them and smile and celebrate their presence.  

So, as one example of my most elevated thought of the day, lately I've been engaging in etheric, spiritual activism by practically jumping up and down with joy at the sight of these big cumulonimbus clouds that have been sailing around the edges of our sky since the two glorious days of gentle rain that fell on our dry ground right after the heat wave.  Those drops of rain swirled among the leaves of the oak trees, moistening their branches and the earth and the air.  I went out several times and danced in the rain, loving those cold drops on my skin and in my hair.  Glad of my happy warm home to come in to, and of the moisture that was soaking deep into the ground.

I remember once coming across a quote.  It might have been Ram Dass.  In any case, it spoke deeply to me and I'll leave you with this as a beautifully elevated thought for you, if you'd like, to hold for today.
"The foundation of our spirituality is to be appreciative of the gift of life, to have fun, to play, to laugh, to see our lives as a piece of God."