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In the current issue

Are YOU A Neoconservative?
If one had to choose a word to describe neoconservatism,...
Roses:
Gift of the Angels for Gentle Healing Roses have seduced people...
Leaks and Landscape During a Dry Winter
Did you know that most water customers start off the...
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Thom Hartmann

The nation's #1 progressive radio talk show host and the New York Times bestselling, 4-times Project Censored winning author of 21 books in print. In its eighth year, The Thom Hartmann Program  airs live daily, NOON – 3pm, ET simulcast as both radio and TV on over 120 radio stations. into more than 50 million homes via both nationwide satellite TV systems (DirecTV and Dish Network). http://www.thomhartmann.com

Local Foods Getting Even Better

Now how can that be? We are very lucky in good old San Luis Obispo County. The County is rated as one of the best places to live in the USA. And local agriculture is one of the big reasons.
Climate, soil and open spaces all allow agriculture to flourish. Sure, we have great wines and we also grow some of the best broccoli in the world. In fact, there really is not that much that we cannot grow in SLO. Well, pineapples, sugar cane and acai might not do as well here as in the tropics, but, I’ll eat some things outside the 100-mile radius once in awhile. That’s how I spoil myself!

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Love is the Place

Last month we looked at how misunderstanding and disconnection occur when we are living in fear instead of love. My husband and I learned how to move away from fear to this place of love by making some major shifts in our lives.

When I went back to school in 2006, I was tested for learning disabilities. The counselor thought I would benefit from therapy because she noticed I had such a huge problem with my self-esteem. While in therapy I decided that my husband Korby was not helping my self-esteem because he was often critical of me. I blamed Korby for my negative feelings. I saw him as the problem and I did not take responsibility for my experience.

Over the years we had created a negative way to interact: Korby would be critical and I would withdraw. We had worked on this problem for years. Things would get better for a time, but we always ended up back in a rut, because neither of us dealt with the real problem. So I decided I wanted to separate.

Naturally, Korby did not take the break-up very well. Initially he felt rejected and hurt, but instead of expressing the hurt, he became angry and this only pushed me further away.

The whole experience was possibly the best thing that ever happened to both Korby and me. Our pain caused us to want to know the truth of what we were experiencing. The way to understand the truth was to set aside our personal realities that were created by our insecure egos. When we did this we were able to move into present moment awareness and become more objective.

Korby had to go within and understand why he treated me negatively. He discovered he had a self-esteem issue himself and if he could make me feel bad then it made him feel better. Going within allowed Korby to rediscover his Inner Self that is good and then he was able to forgive himself.

I too had to go within. I had to remember that I had an Inner Self that is good and that when I felt hurt I did not have to withdraw. I could express how I felt in a positive way.

This inner work led to our ability to take responsibility for our own feelings; this meant not blaming the other. We were able to let go of anger and hurt, which allowed us to become curious. We learned to listen to how the other felt without judgment. Our respect and trust grew and the gate was open for us to connect in this place of love.

We practice this process daily: being in the moment, going within to understand what is true and sharing from love. So far we have found that living in this place of love is a pretty wonderful experience.

Sheila Is a Punk Roper

In the 70s, Janis Ian came out with “Seventeen”. Remember how she was never picked for basketball? Being both “athletically challenged” and terminally short, precluded me from being picked for any team related activity above “bench warmer”. In high school, my Converse sneakers, held together by the strength of bread ties and safety pins, would fly off every time I had to serve the ball in tennis class. In the 80s, Punk Rock was my saving grace from the deep dark oobliettes of teen angst and alienation, while mosh pits and punk shows where our physical fitness regimens on the weekends for my little brother and me.

The trouble with today's “designer fitness” programs, cute little yoga outfits, and exorbitant gym memberships, is the feeling of elitism that exudes from it. Participants are held up like Star Bellied Sneetches with “stars upon thars” while creating a bigger void between the haves and the have nots. But there's hope!

Jump Rope! Well, more specifically “Punk Rope” is the inspiration of Time Haft, who in 2004, at the age of 44, a personal trainer and track and field coach found himself with a knee that required surgery and two herniated discs in his lumbar spine. Tim wanted to find a fitness program that would meet his needs and safely get him back into shape. His goal was to find a class that was interactive, effective, and as fun as elementary recess. When he came up empty for such a class, he created his own utilizing rope jumping, high intensity cooperative workouts and drills, games, and relay races, and of course Punk Rock.

Punk Rope has grown by leaps and bounds to engage todays youth and yesteryear's “Youth Brigade” youth to bring whole communities together. Punk Rope has attracted government and non-profit programs like WIC, Healthy Schools Healthy Families, Big Brother Big Sisters, The American Heart Association and a host of others, including elementary schools in the New York City area. Because it is a community minded program, Punk Rope operates its classes in public settings like the YMCA, JCCs, park and rec centers, health clubs, colleges, skating rinks, bowling alleys, and city parks.

Each class runs with a different theme, from “Punk Rope goes Back to School” to “Punk Rope Goes to the Movies” and “Punk Rope time travels to the 1950s” The focus is on good health and building communities while having fun. Music can range from Punk to Ska, and Samba to Scottish bagpipes! If it can be dreamed, it can be created!

Adaire was so inspired by Punk Rope, she's fiercely training with her daughter's “Under the Sea” jump rope!

Herb in My Garden: Elderberry

Elder flowers and berries (Sambucus canadiensis) were once called “the medicine chest of the country people” for their legendary properties. Historically elder was popular in Europe for treating colds, influenza, fevers and sinus conditions and as an expectorant for bronchitis, sore throats and asthma. Native Americans also used elder berries and flowers for treating flu-like symptoms, rheumatism, nervous conditions and infections. A traditional folk remedy for colds and the flu is an infusion of elderflowers, peppermint and yarrow. The blue or black berries have been used in many foods and in wine, jams, jellies, and cordials. Elderberry wine was prepared and consumed by many early settlers to the U.S. and Canada and is still popular today.
Elderberry juice is rich in phenolics, anthocyanins, and flavonols; all compounds that are high in antioxidants. Elder has an antioxidant content similar to or, according to some recent studies, even higher than blueberry and cranberry. It also has a very high vitamin A and C content. “Sambucol” syrup and other medicinal products from the black elder are widely used in Europe and other countries as a flu remedy. Here in the U.S. elderberries and flowers are quickly gaining the reputation for fighting the flu, allergies, and other ailments.
Elder grows prolifically in the California foothills and in most woodland areas on the Central Coast. The blue species (Sambucus Mexicanus), found in southern California, looks similar to the blueberry but smaller. Many of the bushes are so big they look like trees. The white lacy clumps of flowers bloom in late spring. The berries appear in the fall and can be collected in moist areas on the Central Coast. Many nurseries now carry both species of elder.
Here is the old gypsy formula used by many herbalists. At the first sign of a cold or fever, drink sips of this infusion to alleviate the symptoms. The hot tea promotes perspiration to reduce temperature and release toxins. It also tones the mucous membranes to clear the nose and sinuses.
1 part elder flowers
1 part yarrow flowers
1 part peppermint leaves
Mix all the ingredients together; store in a glass jar away from heat and light.
To make the tea, pour one cup of boiling water for each teaspoon of tea mix used. Cover tightly and steep 15-20 minutes. Strain and serve. Drink 3 to 4 very hot cups daily. Children can sip on a ½ cup three times a day or add the tea to warm juice.

SLO Healthy Home presents

A Common Problem

“I wish I had more energy.”  “I don’t know what it is, but I just don’t feel like I can cope.”

Depression affects more women than men - twice as many women. It is a major illness and impacts 15 million American adults each year. As we can imagine, it negatively impacts the friends, spouses, children and coworkers of these people, as well. It isn’t hard to imagine the ripple effect this has on productivity and personal contribution to society. There are physical effects, too, like pain throughout the body, weight loss (not the kind so many wish for), constipation and low energy. The world often has a visual appearance of being darker to a depression sufferer. One of the first things noticed when free of it is the impression that the world is brighter and the colors are more vivid. Relief from depression can heighten the sense of taste, smell and sensation along with vision.

According to the website Bio Medicine, a double-blind study at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology shows magnetic stimulation of the brain eases severe depression, which affects some 10 million Americans. “Our findings are very exciting, since they provide clear evidence for the effectiveness of  TMS, at least over the short term,” explained Dr. Ehud Klein of the Faculty of Medicine at the Technion and head of the Department of Psychiatry at Rambam Medical Center in Haifa. “The treatment holds the promise of eliminating the need for ECT (electroconvulsive or electroshock) therapy in many cases.”

NBC Washington web news spoke with Dr. Scott Aaronson who runs the TMS program at Sheppard Pratt mental health system in Baltimore. “We apply magnetic stimulation to an area of the brain that we’ve associated with depression,” Aaronson said. “It’s an area of the brain that we can consistently see has decreased activity in depression. “Those are the same chemicals we are trying to adjust through our use of medications so this is an approach through magnets that may cause some of same changes in levels of neurotransmitters that antidepressants do.”

What This Means To You

Energy medicine, another term for applying non-invasive nature-simulating energy to the body as a solution to a mental or physical problem, is fast becoming the new wave of medicine. Many MD’s, research physicians, health practitioners and patients are becoming aware that chemically interrupting a dis-ease pathway to suppress or cut out a symptom is no more a cure than cutting off your toe to remove a splinter. Extreme example, perhaps, but it illustrates how important it is to seek the source of the problem and restore balance with  non-invasive, non-harmful means. First do no harm is how we commonly understand the Hippocratic Oath. It’s more complicated than that, but if we look to another quote of the wise Hippocrates we find direct evidence of the importance of energy medicine: “The natural force within each one of us is the greatest healer of disease.”  Energy Medicine focusses on the restoration and balancing of the body’s natural force. SLO Healthy Home works in harmonious partnership with each person to achieve balance in the 5 areas of life - Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy Family, Healthy Society, Healthy Finances.  What does life look like when all these are in balance?

SLO Healthy Home Sept 09

Have you ever thought about the health of your bones?

 

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