Are you caught in a cycle of unwellness? Are you constantly getting sick, unable to achieve optimum health, or have a chronic issue that’s keeping you down? Or is the unwellness more mental and emotional? Are you replaying dysfunctional stories, ending up in the same toxic relationships, unable to achieve success, or feel like you’re plagued with “bad luck”? Sometimes challenges to our body, heart, and mind occur over and over to get our attention. Let’s talk about how to stop the cycle of unwellness and truly heal.

Recognition Before You Can Heal

Of course the first step to stopping the cycle of unwellness is to realize that you’re not well! What you’re dealing with is not normal, just because it feels normal (you got used to it) or you see others with the same issue. You also need to acknowledge that healing is possible. Until you have that awareness, you might be saying things like:

“I was born this way”

“It’s my genetics”

“I just have bad luck”

“All the good ones are taken”

“There’s no cure for this; I just need to manage it”

“There’s something special about THEM and that’s why they have success and I don’t”

You might believe that things just happen to you and that you have no control. You may even have an underlying belief that you deserve to be unwell and unhappy! All of these examples are going to cloud your ability to understand your situation completely and know that you can heal.

It took me a long time to realize my chronic sinus and urinary tract infections were a problem I needed to deal with. Once I was aware, I was eager to make changes to improve my health. (And I was very successful in stopping those cycles for good – I haven’t had an infection in over 15 years!)

By the time I was diagnosed with a thyroid condition years later, I was already primed to know that I didn’t need to accept this. My doctor presented my condition and medication plan as a life sentence. But having the experience of healing so many other areas of my holistic health, I knew it was possible with this too! I found stories from other people with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis who were able to bring it into remission. I now have my situation under control, for the most part!

Partner With Healing Coaches & Practitioners

Though I love teaching all about self awareness and reliance, as I mentioned above, it can hard for us to see our situation objectively when we’re in the middle of it. It’s wise to partner with a health coach, energy worker, therapist, acupuncturist, or other practitioner who fits the need of the condition you’re trying to heal. They can create a safe space for you to explore self growth and healing.

When I was having one dysfunctional relationship after another, some loving friends suggested that I see a therapist to help me. Not only did this therapist help me break out of the cycle of bad relationships. But in that 5 year period, she also helped me:

• make life changing decisions to study TCM
• leave my biotech job
• build a functional relationship with my husband
• heal deep-seated family trauma
• support my mental/emotional health when pregnant & post-partum
• and so much more!

The time and money I spent on those therapy sessions were priceless.

She didn’t do the work to make shifts in my life – I did. But I needed her to support me as I moved through some very huge transformations. I needed to bounce ideas off of her. I needed her to assure me that I wasn’t crazy when I felt the world pushing back on me to remain the same when I wanted to bust out of all of it. And I needed her to tell me the truth when I was “the problem” and needed to change my outlook on life and my actions.

Of course how much the practitioner or coach does with you hands-on is dependent on the scope of their practice. But I feel like more work is done when practitioners have a hands-off approach and work through your emotional and mindset issues that may be at the root of your problems.

Be Open To Constructive Criticism And Reflection

If you’re receiving help to break your cycle of unwellness and heal, it’s important to stay open to criticism and be willing to change. As I mentioned before, that was one of the major roles of my therapist in our time together. And as an Acupuncturist and a Health Coach, I make sure that my clients understand that this is my role too – to reflect back how they’re caring for themselves and what their energy is that they’re putting out into the world. Sometimes that process doesn’t feel good, but it’s necessary.

This story will help illustrate what I mean:

A friend went to an acupuncturist for fertility treatments. The acupuncturist told her that she was “too intense” and that she needed to make major changes in her lifestyle & attitude to increase her chances of conceiving a baby naturally. The client left feeling really upset. She said the acupuncturist was too harsh on her. She wanted my opinion on whether she should keep seeing this acupuncturist or to find someone else.

I told her first that the #1 thing that’s important in a healing relationship with a practitioner is that she feels safe to share what’s on her heart and that the practitioner really cares about her. If there’s no rapport, then find someone else.

However…

In this situation I felt like the biggest problem was that the client was not open to criticism. As a practitioner myself, I don’t think the practitioner was harsh at all. I would have said the same thing if I felt her lifestyle habits were making it challenging to conceive!

That’s a super important point for people to realize when they’re breaking out of an unwellness cycle.

• Doing what you’re doing now is not working.
• You need to try a new approach or change something in your life that’s keeping you from being well.
• The practitioner is trying to help you with that!
• If you can’t see that, then it just feels like you’re being blamed and the practitioner is being mean.
• You need to take responsibility for how your life has unfolded and get out of a victim mentality if you’re to have any hope in healing.

In Conclusion

This information I’m sharing is not going to land well with everyone. And not everyone is ready to heal. There needs to be some self-motivation and a willingness to look at the situation honestly & then change.

If you have that inner drive to break out of your unwellness cycle, I hope this helps you move forward! Comment below if you have any questions, or want to share parts of your wellness journey. And if you need my personal help, know that I can work with you 1:1 with Holistic Health Coaching to really move the dial in your life!

Well wishes to you friend…

I came across a thread in an Acupuncture Community forum a few weeks ago that inspired this week’s blog post. The author was complaining that Massage Therapists who practice Reiki are making their profession seem “like a joke”. The author asked that we Acupuncturists stop talking about or doing energy work. He said we seem less professional when we include energy-work.

Eeek.

This was confronting & confusing, because the practice of Acupuncture is based on vital energy!

It took a lot of strength to not argue with the author (as many in the community were doing). I chose instead to write this article to educate about energy-based medicine in general. These energetic modalities can help people in ways that physical-based biomedicine cannot. I feel that it’s important people know enough to avoid making sweeping judgements against them.

Energy is the Basis of Eastern Medicine

Vital energy is called “Qi” (pronounced “chee”) in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). With Yoga, it’s “Prana”, which is linked with the breath. In Reiki, it’s called “Ki”. In Star Wars they refer to it as “The Force”!

All of these modalities have Shamanic roots that address healing on physical, emotional, mental, energetic, and spiritual levels. The energy is one in the same. It’s what animates us and everything around us. Practitioners harness the energy differently, depending on the modality.

Energy Work With Yoga

Mobilizing Prana with the breath is central to a Hatha Yoga practice. With Pranayama , Prana and breath are controlled directly. It’s a more advanced practice. Pranayama extends one’s life as you slow down the breath and expand the capacity for Prana within ourselves.

TCM, Qigong & Reiki Energy Healing

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), we balance Qi with tangible methodologies like acupuncture, herbs, massage, and/or nutrition. But Qigong can be used as well, which is an invisible art. Practitioners are able to build up their own Qi with a personal practice. They can also channel energy from the Earth and Heavens and project to a patient to adjust their Qi too. Reiki is very similar to Qigong, with origins in Japan.

Shamanic Roots Of Energy Work

Shamanism is the first healing practice in existence, > 30,000 years old! Though Shamanism is performed in numerous cultures, each with their own unique rituals, journey-work is present in all of them. Journeys are done to gain information about one’s health & life path. They’re also the place where we practitioners do deep healing in the world and with people’s souls. Shamanic practices seem very different from the modalities mentioned above. However, the common aspect is that we can also extract unhelpful energy while infusing healing light for people and communities in need.

There are many more energy modalities, but these are the ones I practice and teach. I’m relying on them more and more to really get to the root of issues. Energetic disturbances are linked with physical, emotional, or spiritual trauma – or unhelpful habitual patterns. 

What Beliefs Make People Skeptical Of Energy Medicine And How Does One Overcome Them?

Here in the West, there is a great deal of skepticism when it comes to alternative medicine. But this is especially true when it comes to energy healing. Just like the person I mentioned at the beginning of the article here, many people don’t take energy seriously. Or they may claim it doesn’t exist. This is really too bad, since I believe energy medicine is the only way to resolve many of the issues we’re dealing with today. And this is why I believe it’s the medicine of the future.

You’ll appreciate reading on if you’re intrigued about energy medicine, but need to know more before trying it. If you find yourself holding one of these beliefs, try the suggestions I make to move beyond them. I did it and you can too!

These are the common reasons why people don’t understand and appreciate energy medicine…

1. If They Don’t See Energy, They Don’t Believe In It

Energy is hard for people to conceptualize because it’s not tangible. Some of us have trained eyes that can see where there’s energy in one’s body and where there is not. But the majority of people can’t see bodies this way.

So it’s perfectly natural for people to be skeptical of this invisible substance if they can’t tell if it’s working. They don’t want to be taken advantage of.

But there is a way to know that it’s happening. When you become more sensitive, you can feel energy moving through the body. And when you stick to regular treatments, you’ll also see that your symptoms lesson or get completely better.

If you have this belief too, you may want to do self-cultivation practices and work on self-healing before working with a practitioner who projects energy to you. You can do Qigong exercises, Tai chi, or practicing yoga while mindful of feeling energy moving through the body.  If you don’t have someone local in your area to practice with, consider my Yoga & Self Healing Practices course. I teach about Qigong and Yogic energy practices in depth for healing on every level.

A lot of this sensitivity work uses your imagination to move energy and as you open up the mind,  you open up the whole body to feel.  I have a very simple exercise you can try in this video to develop greater sensitivity.

2. They Don’t Believe Energy Medicine Is Powerful Enough (Too Gentle)

Sometimes people believe in energy medicine, but they don’t think Qigong & Reiki are as powerful as more tangible forms, like acupuncture & massage.  I used to believe this too! 

When I first started doing massage in 2000, I did exchanges with a friend who would give me Reiki.  I didn’t think it was an equal trade. While the Reiki was relaxing, it wasn’t as sensually pleasing as massage.

One time when I was receiving a Reiki session, I felt a tickling sensation down at the base of my tailbone. But when I opened my eyes, my friend wasn’t even in the room! I asked her about this when she came back in. She said she kept working on me as she tended to her dog who was needing attention.

I left shortly after since I felt my intestines moving. I completely evacuated my bowels when I got home. (I was obviously constipated. I was very out-of-touch with my body back then and didn’t pay attention to regularity.) Anyway, it had a very powerful affect on my physical body! I realized in that moment that my friend was truly a Master. And I’ve never doubted the power of energy medicine since.

3. Thinking Only In-Person Energy Medicine Will Work

Another misconception is that only in-person energy sessions will work, just like other in-person modalities. So people dismiss distance energy work since they can’t imagine how it’s possible. However, there are no solid boundaries with energy. It can regulated with intention alone, like I mentioned when my friend was doing it on me from the next room. 

Again, it may be helpful to work on your own personal sensitivity to Qi through self-cultivation practices first. Or, you can experience group healings first which are usually less expensive, or sometimes free. It doesn’t matter how you get there! Just to find a way to open up your mind to greater possibilities and become more trusting. Then you can experience powerful distance healing from whichever practitioner you want around the world!

4. They Believe Energy Medicine Is “Magic” And “Evil”

Fear is the biggest reason people reject energy medicine. They’re afraid of it’s formless nature.  Or their scared because it’s like magic. They’re afraid it can harm them.

These beliefs usually stem from negative programming, usually with religion. And therefore there’s nothing I can say that will help you accept it more. I will mention – my life has only improved since I’ve been receiving and giving energy medicine to others.

Perhaps one day you’ll change your mind! Just make sure that you find a practitioner who you feel completely safe with. That’s all you need – a loving practitioner and an open, receptive mind, body, and spirit. Energy healing can only help move you toward balance, so it’s worth a try.

I hope this has been great food for thought! I’m curious to know if you’ve had energy work before, and how it worked for you. Please leave a comment below! And if you’re wanting my personal help with energy work, feel free to contact me. Well wishes!

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Do you feel betrayed by your body? Has an injury, trauma, chronic illness, or cancer scare left you feeling confused about how to take care of yourself and what your body can handle? Let’s talk about how to regain trust and begin to heal holistically, on all levels.

Did Your Body Fail You?

Many people have had experiences that threatened their belief in their body’s ability to stay strong and heal. I started thinking about this a few months ago when someone close to me was polling her friends on Facebook, asking them whether she should get the Covid-19 vaccine or not.

Instead of giving her this advice, I asked her why she wants her friends to tell her what to do. She answered that she’s had a few experiences that have left her unable to trust her body: 2 emergency C-sections and also has chronic asthma. She doesn’t understand how this all came to be and so needs a lot of help making medical decisions.

I had an emergency c-section too, which was fairly traumatic. Afterwards, I felt like a failure and was paranoid about building up my baby’s gut flora and immunity, knowing that a vaginal birth is what establishes it. I didn’t understand how I could be strong & flexible with Yoga, but not be able to birth a child. But there were many things that were in my power afterwards that helped me heal my body, heart, and mind around this experience.

How To Befriend Your Body Again

Have you had a similar experience like this too, where your body disappointed you? Did it lead you to stay in your power as you got help to heal? Or did it leave you feeling lost and confused about whether you could ever trust it again? If it’s the latter, I have a few steps you can consider (this is what I did!) to strengthen your relationship with your body so you can continue to make empowered decisions for yourself.

1. Accept That Your Body Needed Extra Support

First, it’s important that you accept what happened to your body. It’s likely that at the time, it wasn’t in your control. Or you may never really know exactly why it happened.

I was hard on myself initially when I had my C-section until someone reminded me that another being was involved who has his own karma. Perhaps my son really needed this birth. Or maybe he just needed more time, but our circumstances wouldn’t allow for that. These things were not in my control and it stopped my obsessive thinking about it.

2. Take Responsibility For Your Body’s Condition

On the flip-side though, there MAY a reason for what happened that you still need to work on. For example, if it’s being around a lot of toxic chemicals that may have caused cancer, or poor gut health that led to a chronic disease; your lifestyle does need to change in order to prevent another occurrence and to help your body heal. Your body may be desperately trying to communicate with you. Sometimes illness, injuries, and disease needs to happen for us to finally listen! Maybe it’s a wake up call to attend to your health better.

Going back to my birth experience, there were clues telling me that my hips may be misaligned which may have affected my son’s position and ability to descend. Even though I’ll never really know what happened, I’m now clued into the fact that my body is limited in this region and attending to it is helping to reduce back pain, digestion issues, and other things I have been experiencing. So I’m very thankful that I finally listened to my body’s message that it was off balance!

3. Recognize The Importance Of Your Wellness Journey

When we can accept the situation and take responsibility for it at the same time, we step into a powerful, aware state that can help you heal on a much deeper level. Recognize that this is the beginning of a wellness journey for you, and that there may be many layers to it.

4. Get Help To Befriend And Heal Your Body, Heart, Mind, and Spirit

The final step here would be to actually get the support you need to heal. Who you go to for help depends on the situation you’re dealing with, of course. Maybe you need a medical doctor or psychiatrist if it’s serious. For most situations, its most empowering to avoid drugs, so to seek a more natural or therapeutic approach. I recommend choosing a practitioner who gives advice while respecting your ability to make informed, independent decisions for yourself.

If you’re interested in working with me closer, I love helping women (especially moms) resolve stress, anxiety, and trauma with holistic wellness coaching and empowerment. I pull from many eastern healing traditions and can offer you energy medicine, yoga & meditation, natural health education, and intuitive guidance to help you find inner harmony again. Reach out to me if you have any questions!

In Conclusion

Hopefully this information reassures you that it’s possible to relate to your body well again in a more deep and meaningful way, and that you can fully heal. I would love to hear if this help you!

Let me know about it, and ask any questions, in the comments below. Well wishes!

We all have our own reasons for doing a diet and lifestyle detox cleanse program.  Personally, I want to get to the root of some unpleasant symptoms, bring my autoimmune thyroid condition back into remission, reduce inflammation, and manage my weight better. 

I developed Nourish To Heal after years of trying many detox programs and elimination diets.  After 12 days into it, I can say that it’s definitely worth the time and effort  because of all the positive results I’ve noticed.

If you’re on the fence about doing such a program, you may want to read on and/or watch the video below.  I hope that it will inspire you to commit to yourself, making longterm changes that can benefit your life on all levels.

In the Nourish To Heal program, I suggest that participants keep a daily journal. We’re eliminating processed foods, sugar, alcohol, gluten and caffeine (and optionally dairy, corn, and soy as well). In the journal, you’ll note meals eaten and any symptoms that come up while eliminating the inflammatory foods just mentioned. I ask that you note any social events and how you’re feeling emotionally too.

This daily diary is important to see how you’re progressing and if it’s worthwhile to continue, for I really believe that it’s healing for people to be eating like this MOST of the time!

That was my case.

So even though there’s an initial commitment of a week, I will be sticking to it for at least a month and possibly longer if I continue to progress.

Here’s what I’ve noticed about myself so far, 12 days into the program. The results positively impacted me on more layers than just my body. Read on if this interests you!

7 Of My Personal Detox Cleanse Program Results

1. Inflammation Culprits Identified!

Since my diet is already pretty clean, there’s less puzzle-work to get to the root. The major changes for me in this cleanse were to remove ALL processed junk food that contain inflammation-inducing polyunsaturated vegetable oils. I also omitted dairy and all added sugar. Everything else I keep out of my diet on a regular basis, and I only eat organic foods.

Just with those changes I’m losing some water weight. I’ve also noticed that I’m not as achy in the mornings when I wake up. Plus, my digestion and elimination is way quicker, easier, and has made my body feel light and free!

2. I Know What My Food Addiction Is

Now just because I have less to work to remove foods in the dietary portion of this cleanse does not mean it has been easy for me! I am acknowledging that I have an addiction to dairy, especially cheese. I love the flavor, the texture, and that it’s so easy to snack on! But being that it is likely one of the culprits causing the inflammation and disrupting my digestion, I am happy to take it out, at least temporarily, until I feel like I can bring it back in to test in small amounts without gorging.

This has also made me be more careful having healthy snack foods around the home. There’s plenty of nuts, dips, veggies like carrots & celery, and fruit that I can easily nibble on when I’m hungry in between meals.

I highly recommend you do a cleanse like this not only to free up your body, but to help create more healthy habits that include confronting addictions.

3. Stress Made My Symptoms Temporarily Worse

I made the mistake of doing too much during this cleanse. There are no mistakes though, only life lessons! And the big lesson here was that it’s best to just focus on myself doing something like this and not trying to lead a cleanse for the first time when doing it! I had a viral breakout on my lips and felt very run-down for a few days as a result. But it forced me to slow down and not obsess over adding content to the cleanse program. It got done, just a little behind schedule.

So you may want to take note too! It’s best to do this cleanse, at least the first week, when you don’t have much else going on. And make sure you’re prepared!

4. Lifestyle Cleansing Was Helpful For My Home And Finances

The fine-focus on my diet also helped me see more clearly other areas of my life that felt clogged and unpleasant. I noticed the clutter around the home and was able to commit to making small changes every day to clear it. I also created more movement around my finances to get my taxes organized so there’s less work for me later. I did some reflection on my business as well and committed to focusing on certain aspects while letting go of what hasn’t been working. All of these areas of my life now feel like they have greater flow and fresh energy around them.

5. Social Media Detox Came Naturally

The journal work in this program helped me to stay in-tune with my emotions. With this mindfulness, I felt less compelled to listen to political news shows that often get my blood boiling. I temporarily stopped listening to a few people on Instagram (again, who have inflammatory messages). And I got very quiet on my own social media channels.

This lull helped me see clearly that what I’m consuming through my eyes and ears is just as important as what I’m eating. It felt so good to have a healthy break from social media, I almost made the decision to stop building my business there altogether. But instead, I just decided to start posting again in a more healthy way. Now, I’m only going on to post content and engage a bit, not get sucked down any rabbit holes. And I’m still only engaging with other people’s content if it makes me feel good.

6. I’m More Emotionally & Energetically Free

The journal work also helped me to see how I was holding on to other people’s emotions and energy. This happens to “empaths”, and especially body & energy workers. Even those who are aware that it can occur are not always mindful of what “belongs” to them or not. I incorporated clearing exercises and essential oil protocols to help me consciously cut any energetic cords connected to others.

If you have similar issues and want to learn how to release them, reach out to me and I can help you.

7. I Learned I Want To Continue To Help Myself & Others This Way

Overall, this has been a very helpful and enjoyable experience! I love how focusing on my personal holistic health is helping me be a better guide for others. This program is now complete and available for anyone to purchase. I’d love to help you out as you go through it. But I’m also opening up some spots for health coaching too since I’m exploring an interest in that direction. Feel free to sign up for a free 15 minute call if you’re interested in working with me!

Have you done a cleansing program before? What did you learn about yourself? Did you make an permanent changes because of it? I’d love to hear more – please share in the comments!

Detoxifying and cleansing the body is more than a trendy practice to help you lose weight.  Did you know that it can actually initiate the beginning of an empowering wellness journey?  Did you know that you can heal holistically – in body, heart, mind, and spirit – when doing a cleanse gently and mindfully?  

Knowing that you can much more out of a cleansing program makes a huge difference in your ability to stick with it and get results.  So if you’re interested in doing a cleanse but not ready to commit yet, this information will hopefully get you off of the fence and preparing your kitchen & body!

What’s Your Intention For Cleansing?

When starting a cleanse, a detox diet, or whatever you want to call it – I believe it’s important to go into it with the right intention. This will help you choose the program style and to stay as objective as possible as you’re moving through it.

In my opinion, the best intention is to want to HEAL. Healing means that you’re moving from a place of disconnection, imbalance, or disease to a state of joyful well-being and acceptance.

This is important to distinguish from the negative intentions that motivate many people to cleanse. Feelings of disgust, disappointment, or inadequacy can lead you to choose extreme diets under the disguise of a therapeutic cleanse. That could cause further imbalances with metabolism, gut health, and muscle loss. Going into a program with a negative attitude is definitely not going to help you experience mental and emotional benefits. It will just continue the cycle of self-criticism.

Whereas if you go into a program with the intention to heal, you’re looking for positivity. You’ll make decisions based on self-love. And even if the physical results aren’t super profound, you’ll likely experience other benefits that are well worth the time and effort.

Holistic Benefits Of A Cleanse

Here’s what you may experience on all levels if you approach a cleanse with self love and the desire to heal. This is assuming that you’re choosing an organic, whole food cleanse with balanced macrobiotics, avoiding the major inflammatory foods & oils, and if you’re actively avoiding toxins.

Physical Benefits of a Detox

• As your body releases toxins more efficiently, you’ll able able to assimilate nutrients easier, fueling and hydrating all your cells
• By decreasing inflammation, you’ll lose weight, find more ease in your muscles & joints, and reduce symptoms of most chronic diseases
• Better sleep, allowing time to restore cellular health and energy
• Balanced hormones (purging excess estrogen) – this helps with emotions too!
• Clear skin
• Smooth digestion

Mental Benefits of a Detox

• Bringing more mindfulness into preparing, eating, and digesting your meals will help you appreciate these experiences more
• Notice which foods are best for you and your constitution (especially if using a food journal)
• Helps you prioritize eating healthy meals (time to shop & prepare – less likely to pick up junk food)
• The discipline of a cleanse can help you with mindfulness meditation too, cleansing your mind of stressful thoughts that impact your body and emotions

Emotional Benefits of a Detox

• Release emotions stored in the body as you let go of toxins and tension
• Experience more pleasure during eating rituals
• See more clearly if you’re dealing with any addictions that are keeping you unwell and develop the courage to release them

Spiritual Benefits of a Detox

• Enlightenment is more possible if you’re body, heart, and mind are clear (this is why cleansing practices are so important in Yoga)
• Experience self love and the deeper spiritual connection that stems from that

Here’s A 7+ Day Cleanse You Can Try

If you resonate with this list of holistic cleansing benefits, then you’ll also enjoy the program I just created called Nourish to Heal! It’s organized as a course in Teachable that you’ll have lifetime access to. Check out the details below and sign up when you’re ready! Note that I’ll be leading us through it April 5-11 and am offering it at a discounted price until April 11 (but it will still be available for purchase afterwards).

This program is the result of my combined work over decades to heal my own autoimmune thyroid condition as well as guide my TCM clients to nourish themselves in accordance with nature.⁣

Commit for a week for a simple reset, or for longer if you want to make serious lifestyle changes! ⁣ Hope to see you in the course…
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My health mindset is what guides me when dealing with challenging issues for myself and my clients. However, the same mindset permeates into other areas of my life too. In this post (and the video below), I share with you the five aspects of this mindset and how it can help you take charge of your health and master it by the end of the year!

Also be sure to grab this free health mastery blueprint that will help you flesh out your own health mindset!

How to Take Charge of Your Health

I do not have perfect health (few people do), but I am healthier than many. What helps me stay well is a constant movement toward health mastery. The health challenges that I’ve overcome are what make me successful as a wellness practitioner too.

The major challenges that stick out as I reflect on them are my healing journeys around Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, emergency Cesarean birth, and my son’s eczema and gut health issue as a baby.

The following are aspects of my health mindset when working toward healing , which is the goal of any health challenge. As I introduce these, I’ll share how I applied them to putting my thyroid disease into remission.

1. Holistic View

In order to heal completely, it’s important to look at your situation with a holistic view. Holistic means that you’re embracing the physical, mental, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects that may be contributing to un-wellness. It also means that you’re looking at the situation from all angles.

I knew that there was much more to my Hashimoto’s diagnosis than what my doctor was telling me. I wanted to know the underlying cause and how my lifestyle might have contributed to the outcome, not just take medication for the rest of my life while my thyroid was quickly destroyed.

Branching out from this narrow Western view is what led me to approach healing from many different angles: whole food organic diet, detoxing, energetic clearing with acupuncture & essential oils, and meditation to manage my stress. Without this broach approach, healing may not have been possible.

2. Natural Approach and Support

I’ve come to realize over time that much of the health issues we deal with in this country are due to us being far removed from nature. We have unnatural sleep/work habits, and unnatural diet of franken-foods, we dope up on medications that are highly purified that the body has a hard time recognizing and processing.

Whenever I’ve taken a natural approach to health, things have fallen in place. I’m not just talking about using natural therapeutics, though they are also key. But even beyond that, I feel like I’ve always been offered the best wisdom from nature and practitioners who are aligned with it.

Of course this is what we learn in Traditional Chinese Medicine, that we’re microcosms of nature. So when I started this thyroid healing journey quickly after I starting TCM school, I was set up with both a natural approach, but also teachers who saw me as a whole person. All aspects of me were embraced as a patient. That, on top of the self love I was already experiencing, was deeply healing.

3. Take Responsibility as You Take Charge of Your Health

I know this is a tough one for people.

When you are unwell, or especially if you’re a parent of an unwell child, it is upsetting to think that something you did or did not do is contributing to the situation. But it is important to take responsibility for where you are now because that means that you also have the power to get yourself out of most health challenges.

When I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s, I knew I had been burning the candle at both ends. I was extremely stressed out, my sleep was messed up, I lived on coffee, I was getting lots of sinus infections with rounds of antibiotics, my diet was not the best, and I worked around toxic chemicals in my lab.

There was no way I could just turn a blind eye to this disease and continue living as I had. I took responsibility and changed what I could. Those simple actions, built over time, are what helped me heal.

4. Adjust Expectations and Take Action

Quite often people delay their self healing work because it doesn’t seem like the right time, or they feel they don’t have enough money or resources. Truly, there is no perfect time and if you really want to heal, you shouldn’t delay. Our time here on this planet is uncertain, so everyday is precious! Embrace life and work toward wellness now!

It’s really important that you have realistic expectations. Be open to stalled progress. Be open to pleasant surprises like the perfect blood work I eventually received after years of lifestyle changes. Just keep moving forward.

Trust that your body is constantly working toward balance and want you to survive and works in it’s own timing.

5. Prioritize and Focus on Your Health and Healing

If it’s really important for you to manage your health issue, you will prioritize the work needed to do so. You’ll also

I started working to heal my thyroid immediately. It was so important to me, that I didn’t care how long it would take or if it would even work at all. I just had to do whatever I could, not just for myself, but as a wellness practitioner I wanted to understand this disease for others too.

This drive for health mastery is what has made me stick to a gluten free diet for 6 years, to put filters on our water supply, and to remove our home of toxic products. So prioritizing and focusing on your health also means to remove the things that are distracting you or keeping you from healing completely.

I hope my health mindset is giving you something to think about if you’re wanting to commit to mastering your health. It has worked for me and my clients time and time again, so I know it can help you too.

If you need more help, get my Health Mastery Blueprint below which has prompts that can help you flesh out what needs to be done to promote self-healing. Please let me know how it works out for you and if there’s anything you’d change. You can share in the comments below.

Well wishes!

If you like this blueprint, then you’ll love my new 6 week course I’m offering: Yoga and Self Healing Practices for Holistic Health. I’ll teach you traditional healing practices that are both practical and deep.

Are you stressed out and want to do something about it that greatly improves you life? If yes, then you’ll want to keep reading because, not all stress relieving methods are the same. Here’s 5 aspects to stress management techniques that I’ll share with you to keep the negative effects of stress at bay.

Everyone experiences stress. Yet since stress is a response to what is happening from someone’s individual perspective, the experience of stress is difference for everyone!

It’s known that as stress accumulates over time, your health can really suffer. So it’s a very good idea to try to relieve it every day. Some ways to relieve it are worlds better than others though, so it’s really important to talk about these five aspects to look for.

Before we get into this list, take a moment to think about or write down your favorite ways to relieve stress. When you’ve had a bad day, what do you do to relieve the stress that results?

After you go through this list, you can decide if your stress relieving method makes the cut or if you think you need to make some adjustments

5 Aspects of the Best Stress Relieving Methods

1. Is It Holistic?

When you’re doing something to relieve stress, does it benefit your physical, mental, and emotional health?

It’s common for people to just prioritize their body, relieving stress that shows up as physical tension. So in the case of a tension headache, they might just take medication to remove the pain, the symptom. But this ignores the fact that there’s likely emotional or mental stress that is manifesting as the physical headache! So to completely let go of stress, the work needs to be on an emotional and mental level too.

Spirituality comes into play as well. When one is not feeling supported in life, like they have no purpose, that is a spiritual issue. So stress might have a root that is even deeper than the heart and mind.

It would be best for you to choose stress relieving activities that are holistic, which means that you give equal attention to body, heart, mind, and spirit.

Yoga is an excellent example of a holistic activity that has a potential to relieve stress on every level. Just be careful here, that you’re not making assumptions about a certain class. The depth of your experience is dependent on the teacher, if you’re doing a led-class, but also on your approach.

You may want to check out Yogic Approach to Stress Relief to make sure that you’re making the most of your stress-relieving practice.

2. Are You Checking Out Or Checking In?

Choose an activity where you’re constantly checking in with ourself. 

Watching TV is an activity that many people like to do because they no longer experience the stress of the day while they’re doing it. But this is because they’re completely focused on something else. They are “checked out”. 

The stress will still be there when the show is over though. Nothing has changed or shifted!

It’s best to choose an activity like journaling with which you can check in with yourself and actively process what’s going on.  In fact, just writing down how you feel can shine a light on how stress is showing up in your life and it will be easier to see how you can avoid or release it.  Typically, once our feelings are acknowledged, they shift into something less intense and the physical tension shifts too.

I hope you’ll try it! Here’s more information on how journaling can help you.

3. Does It Support Your Health?

Some people reach for alcohol, drugs, or engage in addictive habits when they’re stressed out. This is a way of checking out and unconsciously disconnecting from the source of stress.

This is important to talk about, especially right now when we’ve had continuous stress from the Coronavirus pandemic for six straight months. Obviously, it’s not the best idea to rely on a stress relieving method that harms your health when done multiple times, every single day.

So sorry moms, I’m not laughing at your memes anymore about how much wine you’re needing to deal with your kids who are learning at home. Yes, believe me, I know it’s stressful. But there are much better ways to handle it that actually improve your health.

You can try this breathing practice, for a relaxing start to your day.

4. Does It Offer Short-term Or Long Term Effects?

Yes, sometimes we need to do something to take the edge off quickly.  But typically these are not the things that will lead to long-lasting effects. 

Engaging in stress management practices like deep breathing, mindfulness, aromatherapy, journaling and yoga can actually develop you to a degree that you can avoid stress or you’re just less affected by possible stressful events.  This cannot be said for quick pampering activities like getting a massage or your nails done.

Believe me, I LOVE to pamper myself.  I am not at all knocking these activities and recommend you keep doing them. But I would be clear that it’s for self-love, not as much for stress relief. The reason I don’t like that association is because, again, stress needs to be managed daily, so the way to relieve it needs to be simple and accessible, daily. It also needs to be something you can do for yourself.  

5. Does It Strengthen Your Connection To Others? 

Whatever you choose to do to manage your stress will be even more impactful if the effects are noticed and felt by other people in your life in a positive way.  It is very clear that when I’m meditating regularly, my home life and my relationships are more harmonious. 

What about meeting with friends – going on hikes, going out to dinner, or meeting for drinks? Those meeting can be extremely positive and supportive!  Or they can be detrimental and useless. It really depends on whether you’re having deep conversations that help you grow or if you’re just drinking wine and complaining about how life sucks! See, it’s what you do with the time that matters.

Conclusion

I hope this information is helpful and that is doesn’t trigger you!  I’m only going to recommend the stress management techniques that work effectively and consistently.

If you want to learn more about self-healing stress relieving practices, join my free 5-day Stress Less Holistic Health Challenge that is beginning on Sept. 28, 2020. 

This challenge will also help you with consistency and accountability if it’s just hard for you to make the time for these stress relieving activities.  We have a Facebook group that you can join, so we all support each other. 

What is your favorite way to relieve stress? Are you still thinking this is the best way to manage it now that you’ve reviewed this list? Please let me know in the comments!

Do germs terrify you? Do you try to sterilize your home and body to prevent infections from viruses, bacteria, and fungi? What you may not realize is that our immune health depends on microbes and that your cleaning routine may actually be harming your health and contributing to chronic disease for the entire community. Germs are good for you!  

As, I’m writing this, we’re in the middle of the Coronavirus pandemic so what I’m saying may seem strange.  Even with this crisis, I believe (and many scientists concur) that killing everything in the environment that has the potential to harm us through our sanitizing regimens, and sterilizing our bodies with pharmaceuticals, is not a good idea!

Unfortunately this is the message many of us hear from the medical community, from politicians, and commercials for popular cleaning products. We’ve been led to believe that if we can’t control nature, we’re at it’s mercy, and there’s nothing else we can do about it.

I’m hoping you’ll hear me out! I believe our health problems are much, much bigger than Covid-19. Our aim of sterility and fear of infectious disease is contributing to these other problems – especially with our children. 

With this information, it’s my wish you’ll become less fearful of the beautiful microbial world. You’ll see that it’s necessary for us to interact with in order for our immune systems to function well. Here’s 4 reasons why you should stop obsessively disinfecting today.

Why We Need to Stop Sanitizing Everything

1) Over 97% of Microbes Are Benign or Beneficial

Our microbiome, the population of beneficial bacteria in our gut and on our skin, are needed to protect against possible pathogens.  We can think of them as generals of the immune system to direct it’s weapons against invaders. 

Our bodies are inoculated with these microbes as we exit the birth canal. This is one of the many reasons we need promote natural birth when possible. It’s why we shouldn’t bathe our babies so much. If we promote extended breastfeeding, babies and toddlers will continue to populate their guts with beneficial bacteria in mother’s milk.  These practices give children a head start with good health and wellness.

But that’s still not enough! We need these beneficial microorganisms throughout our lifetime through exposure in our soil, from pets and farm animals, in fermented foods that we should all be eating, and from human interaction. Hugging, kissing, and shaking hands are all necessary for our physical and emotional health!

2) Lack of Microbial Exposure Can Cause Chronic Disease

This Hygiene Hypothesis says that conditions like allergies, asthma, autoimmune disorders, and obesity are caused by lack of exposure to microbes. 

An interesting 2016 study looked at children in two traditional Christian farming groups: the Amish and the Hutterites. The Amish practice traditional farming, using hand-held tools. Hutterites, on the other hand, use modern farm equipment and have less interaction with the soil.

Researchers found that far less Amish children had asthma compared to the Hutterites. After testing their blood, they also discovered that the Amish kids had significantly more white blood cells. We know that white blood cells are necessary for fighting infections. One could guess this was because of their direct exposure to microbes, which boosted their immune system.

We have a major issue with chronic disease in this country, and it’s growing at an alarming rate with children. Many people with chronic disease have poor gut health and it directly affects immune system function.

3) Bleach & Other Disinfectants Can Damage Your Body and Increase Infections

When we use harsh cleaning chemicals indoors, they are killing ALL microorganisms – the possible pathogens as well as the beneficial ones. These products also strip our skin and gut of it’s protective microbiome. Remember that when gut health is diminished, so is our immunity, and we’re more prone to infections.

A 2015 study in the Occupational & Environmental Medicine journal looked at the effects of bleach use in the homes of more than 9,000 kids ages 6 to 12 in Spain, the Netherlands and Finland. In homes where bleach was used, there was a much greater incidence of the flu, tonsillitis, sinusitis, bronchitis and pneumonia.

In addition to killing our beneficial microbiome, we also know that many cleaning products contain chemicals that are known or suspected carcinogens, endocrine disruptors (meaning they affect hormone balance and regulation), and increase the risk of chronic respiratory disease. According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), 53% of cleaning products harm the lungs and “about 22% contain chemicals reported to cause asthma to develop in otherwise healthy individuals”.

4) Sanitizing Our Bodies and Environment is Pressuring Microbes to Mutate

Anti-microbial soaps, hand sanitizers, disinfectants, and ALL pharmaceutical drugs that are meant to protect us from and treat infections actually threaten the existence of microbes. 

The problem: Microbes want to live as passionately as we do! And nature is smart. Remember these words from Jeff Goldblum’s character Ian Malcom in Jurassic park?

via GIFER

Microbes will evolve and mutate in order to live. We are pressuring them to change in order to infect us better! This is a response to our interaction with them.

Antibiotics and antibacterial products are not fooling them at all. Chemicals like triclosan are so purified that it’s easy for the microbes to recognize and form resistance against them which creates superbugs that cannot be managed with standard antibiotics.

Triclosan typically ends up in nose secretions of people who use triclosan-containing products.  Methicillan Resistant Staphlococcus Aureus (MRSA) then binds to collagen and keratin proteins there since tricolosan poses zero threat to them. This creates harmful infections that don’t respond to standard medicines.

Although it was banned from handsoaps by the FDA, triclosan is still present in popular toothpastes, dish soaps, personal care products and other items on your store shelves to this day.

How Do You Stay Healthy During An Outbreak?

Let’s get back to the elephant in the room, that we’re dealing with a global pandemic. What do I hope you’ll glean from this information that will help you and your family stay healthy & well?

I’m hoping this information relaxes you to the point where you can focus on what truly matters right now. Instead of killing everything in the environment and hiding from each other, we should instead focus on wellness. How do you do that during a pandemic?

1. Hand washing – gentle soap and water will remove potential pathogens from your hands without depleting the microbiome on your skin or in your gut. 
2. Building your immunity – you can read more on how to do this in How to Boost Immunity Naturally with 5 Key Tips.

If you were to let go of your sanitizing efforts and instead focus on boosting your health, then you’ll continue to live your life with greater confidence, trusting your body and nature. 

We also want to think about future consequences of our actions right now. 

If we keep obsessively cleaning our environment and sanitizing our bodies, then we will no doubt see a greater increase of infections in the future. This will not be due to a lack of social distancing with fellow humans, but because pathogens are getting stronger and smarter, and we are becoming more weak.

I hope you found this information interesting. If so, please let me know if you have any questions in the comments below!

Asthma is on the rise in this country for many reasons.  Chances are, you or a close family member is suffering from this chronic disease right now or will be soon.  I’m sharing with you today, 10 acupressure points for asthma which can be used as a long-term, natural approach to managing asthma attacks and help support your respiratory health.

An alternative approach to asthma is needed, since unfortunately, steroid medications used to control attacks suppress the immune system.  This means that asthmatics are more likely to come down with colds and other infections, which then aggravates their asthma.  So they’re stuck in a cycle of sickness with medications that are actually making them sicker.  In integrative approach to care is needed so one doesn’t have to be as dependent on steroids and can get ahead of their illness to improve health.

I’ve already written about how Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can be one of the best integrative approaches for treating asthma.  TCM is great for kids too!  Asthma sufferers have reported that TCM treatments result in:

• Symptom relief – deeper breathing, less wheezing, greater physical endurance
• A decrease in asthma attacks
• Less dependence on medications

I highly recommend working with a TCM practitioner who can give you personalized treatments and advice.  They will still ask that you do your part to treat yourself at home.  This acupressure protocol can be one of your best tools!

Before you learn these 10 acupressure points for asthma, you may also want to grab my acupressure guide for stress.  You can download it here for FREE.

In the stress relieving acupressure guide I share 6 other acupressure points that can help you relieve tension and help you sleep at night, which everyone needs!

Acupressure Points for Asthma

I am not a medical doctor and this is not medical advice. It is advice meant to empower you to care for yourself and your family at home just like our ancestors used to. It will also build your confidence to talk with your medical provider about weaning off medications when you become healthier with acupressure and natural medicine.

You don’t need anything special for acupressure – just clean hands. If you’d like, you can enhance the effects of acupressure by using therapeutic grade essential oils topically on the points as you press. For asthma, I suggest using Frankincense (boosts cellular health), doTERRA Breathe blend (opens & relaxes airways), and/or Lavender (anti-inflammatory).

Press each point for 30-90 seconds, depending on the age of the person you’re working on (hold longer, the older the patient). You can also round rub each point, instead of holding your fingers still. See the video above for the best demonstration.

Lung 1 & 2

Kidney 23 & 25

Ren 17

Urinary Bladder 13 (Lung point)

Urinary Bladder 23 (Kidney point)

Stomach 40

Kidney 3

Lung 9

I’m eager to hear how you did with acupressure! It may take some time to notice a difference, and you shouldn’t expect your asthma to completely disappear. First, you’ll notice you’re getting sick less. Then you’ll have less asthma attacks, wheezing, and chest tightness. Again, this is a long-term solution – wellness is something we need to be working on everyday!

When it comes to managing modern health challenges like chronic stress, anxiety, and inflammatory conditions, it’s best to take a natural approach. People now realize how dangerous it can be to become dependent on pain killers and mood-altering drugs. Cannabidiol (CBD), is a popular natural solution, but the lesser-known Copaiba essential oil is even better in my opinion. Here’s why I think it’s a clear winner when people are considering Copaiba essential oil vs. CBD for holistic health.

Why Focus on the Endocannabinoid System?

The endocannabinoid system has only been studied in depth over the last decade. Scientists discovered that there’s a nexus of cannabinoid receptors on cells throughout the entire body that interact with cannabinoids and can be key in managing disease. So far, they recognize two types of receptors.

CB1 receptors reside in the brain and link with Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive chemical derived from the Cannabis sativa plant. This explains the “high” that someone experiences when they use it.

CB2 receptors cover cells everywhere else in the body. They receive two cannabinoids: Cannabidiol (CBD) which is also derived from Cannabis sativa and beta-caryophyllene which is largely present in Copaiba essential oil (also in black pepper, clove, melissa, and rosemary essential oils, but in a smaller amount) . CB2 receptors support the nervous, cardiovascular, digestive, and immune systems and are responsible for healthy inflammatory response.  

CB2 activation does not create a psychoactive experience like CB1 receptors, so one becomes very relaxed but not “high”.

Many of our health issues these days are due to stress, or too much time spent in a sympathetic nervous system state (flight or flight) as opposed to the parasympathetic state (rest and digest). We also have issues with lowered immunity or auto-immunity. Then there’s pain and inflammation that have many causes. CBD and beta-caryophyllene from Copaiba essential oil both create beneficial systemic effects that help manage symptoms of these health challenges and increase our body’s capacity to heal.

Efficacy of Copaiba Essential Oil vs. CBD

One of the reasons Copaiba sets itself apart from CBD is that it’s cannabinoid binds directly to CB2 receptors! Beta-caryophyllene is quickly available for the body and has a long half-life, meaning it lasts long in the body.

CBD, on the other hand, binds indirectly after several internal processes, which means it takes longer to provide symptom relief. The longer activation cascade of CBD also make dosage confusing because the amount of CBD that’s activated is not always consistent. CBD has a shorter half-life than Copaiba’s beta-caryophyllene

Generally, a smaller amount of high-quality Copaiba essential oil is needed for beneficial effects compared to CBD. You get what you pay for in both industries. But even the more expensive therapeutic-grade brands are still a less expensive option than CBD because of the dose difference.

Research Supporting Copaiba Essential Oil

Exciting research shows that Copaiba essential oil can help with many health challenges!

Check out these studies to learn more:

• Chemopreventive role of Copaifera reticulata Ducke oleoresin in colon carcinogenesis.
• Antimicrobial activity of copaiba oil (Copaifera ssp.) on oral pathogens: Systematic review.
• Medicinal Plants from Northeastern Brazil against Alzheimer’s Disease
• Effects of a massage-like essential oil application procedure using Copaiba and Deep Blue oils in individuals with hand arthritis

How to Use Copaiba Essential Oil

Here’s some ideas of how you can use Copaiba essential oil for holistic health at home.

Aromatic

Place a few drops in a water diffuser to relax your mood. It blends well aromatically with Lavender, Douglas Fir, Frankincense, Peppermint, Clary Sage, and many other essential oils.

Topical

Combine 3-5 drops of Copaiba with 1 oz. of carrier oil like Fractionated Coconut Oil and massage into target areas of the body.

Another fabulous benefit of Copaiba is that it enhances the effects of other essential oils. Try these powerful combinations:

• Blend with Deep Blue to massage into any painful or inflamed regions of the body
• Add into moisturizer along with Geranium and Frankincense to care for blemished, dry, or wrinkled skin
• Massage into soles of feet along with Vetiver to support deeper sleep.

Internal

Take 1-2 drops of therapeutic-grade Copaiba essential oil under tongue or in a vegetable capsule with olive oil to access all of it’s health benefits.

Have you used Copaiba essential oil? Please share your experience in the comments! I’d especially love to hear if you’ve been able to compare it to CBD. Which do you prefer? Well wishes to you…