Visions Medical Center

And now we reach the bottom line of all “negative” emotions: longing. Because we are designed in the image and likeness of our creator, we are creators ourselves.

Longing is all about desire. Desire foreshadows all creative processes. The question to ask yourself to complete this Act of Forgiveness is:

What do I really want?

Then hold still until you know, really know. What do you really want under it all, dear one? This is one of the hardest things—actually to allow yourself to feel the longing of desire.

What it means is that you also feel the ache of not having what you want. I know there are those who avow that it’s never too late to have a happy childhood, and on some levels, it isn’t. On the other hand, the past cannot be undone. What has happened has happened and no amount of affirming will change the actual events.

Forgiveness doesn’t change past events, but it can change the emotional charge that the events cause, and that’s what we’re after.

Light candles. Forgive yourself for wanting what you want, for not having it, or for getting it and then not wanting it. Forgive the thing itself for not manifesting in your life. Then forgive God for not showing up the way you think He/She should have.

Remember that Peace and Freedom live on the other side of forgiveness.

For spiritual nourishment, visit Dr. Susan Corso’s website and blog, Seeds for Sanctuary. Follow her on Twitter @PeaceCorso and Friend her on Facebook. And discover your own Inner Peace at, To Me Peace Is … What is Peace to You?

A patient once confessed to me that she had contemplated quitting alcohol for some time, but had not been able to muster up the determination to stop, until she began receiving Network chiropractic adjustments, and her hangovers became more intense.  She took this as a forceful message from her body, to which she gratefully and firmly resolved to listen.  She soon reported that her health, and her life, took a marked turn for the better.  Now she gets up and runs and bikes and plays tennis and basketball on weekends, instead of lying on the couch all day in misery.

Another patient had persistent severe low back pain.  When she asked me why it was not resolving, I asked her about some possible sources of stress in her life.  When we touched on the topic of her job, her whole body stiffened, and she spat, “I hate my job!  I hate my boss!  But I can’t quit.” But her back pain did not improve.

One day she came up to me with a big grin and declared, “I quit my job last Friday and last weekend my back felt better than it has in years!  And I’ve already found something better!”  She gave her life a break, and her body thanked her for it.

One gentleman complained of pain in his chest following adjustments.  I strongly recommended he see a medical doctor.  He stopped coming in, but his family persuaded him to return.  I felt his issues were physical and emotional, and at my urging he consulted a cardiologist and a therapist.  He did turn out to have a heart condition.  He also revealed during therapy that he had been carrying grief over the loss of his daughter for years.  As a team, we all supported him in recovering his health, and his happiness.

Network chiropractic care not only can help you feel better, it can help you better feel.  By releasing tension from the spinal cord, it reduces distortions in the nervous system that interfere with coordination and communication between the brain and body.  Between you and your body.  So it will usually enhance your body awareness and sensitivity.

Sometimes this sensitivity can show up as feelings we do not particularly want to feel or experience.  But they may be important; they may be warnings.  Just as a pain in your hand can alert you to quickly get your hand off of a hot surface, so too can various pains and symptoms be critical indicators that something needs to be done, something in your body or in your life needs to be changed, needs to be acted upon.

Pain and other symptoms can give you a message to change your life for the better.  They could even save your life.  So please listen.

To learn more about enhancing your own self awareness, contact Greig Andrews DC MA at Visions Medical Center, (781) 431-1333.

Connect with Dr. Greig Andrews, D.C. through his blog, on Twitter @GreigDC and via Facebook.

Has all of the hubbub and excitement of the holiday season lost its luster along with the fresh fallen snow? Is the charm of our crisp winter air suddenly a biting reminder of why you had the automatic car starter installed? Are you feeling lethargic and struggling to stick to your New Year’s resolution of going to the gym every day, or giving up caffeine?  If so, you may be one of so many people who start to feel a bit down after the New Year.  It’s dark, it’s cold, the ground is brown with dirty snow, and all of the frenetic activity of recent weeks has recently and suddenly crunched to a halt.  Our outside world can feel bleak and depressing, and it seems like a long gloomy tunnel of time until the birds begin to chirp and the flowers begin to bloom again.

Mother Nature has her seasons (at least around here), and we do as well.  This time of year can actually be a well-deserved invitation to dial it down a bit.  Rest, recuperate, regenerate.  And it can be so very helpful to listen to our bodies’ internal clocks (along with the external seasonal clocks), to do just that.  Hibernate!  Like the bears do.  Turn off your cell phone, answering machine, and computer. Take a sabbatical: go to bed early, sleep in when you can. Rest & regenerate.  Now is the time to baby and nourish yourself. Your body needs it. Your soul needs it, and once you’ve delighted in the techniques of self-nurturing……..you’ll feel recharged and the need to move again.  Your batteries will be fresh.  And when that times comes (don’t rush it)………..here are some basic principles to keep in mind that support us in being mobile again: light, air, water, healthy food and stretching. We do not get anywhere near enough of our bodies’ basic requirements in the winter.  These simple things are among the most important reasons why people flag during the cold months.  Why so many of us struggle with motivation and feel tired all the time, why we gain weight, why we keep getting sick, or why we seem to go for weeks without fully recovering.

Our bodies need adequate light and fresh clear air to function optimally.  Drinking a ton of water can seem counter-intuitive, because we are often not as thirsty as we are in the heat of the summer.  But because the air is so much drier this time of year, we need more water.

Muscles and joints tend to contract and tighten in cold weather,  feeling stiff and sore,  so we need to take extra time to gently and carefully warm up, stretch, lengthen and loosen them.  Adequate water content in our bodies affects the tonicity (the suppleness and stretchiness) of joints and muscles.  When it’s time to go out in the wind and the wet and the cold, take the time to dress appropriately.  There is a saying in Sweden:  ”There is no bad weather, only bad clothing.”  So bundle up, cover all those exposed body parts, and walk, or run, or sled, or skate, or ski, or snowboard, or snowshoe.  But get outside and get fresh air and sunshine.  Natural light is a natural requirement.  So if you can’t get outside enough, consider getting a full spectrum lamp.

In short, if you find that the dark dogs of winter bite you, simply hibernate, hydrate, motivate, activate, elongate, and illuminate. And now that it’s officially winter, the period of daylight is increasing, day by day, which means each day has one or two more minutes of more light than the day before it.

Frequently, I am asked what a OneStep trainer is.  I am a trainer who listens deeply to your needs.  My goal is to create change in your body, by creating a sustainable long-term movement program, that starts wherever you are, and moves you OneStep further towards your personal goal for health.  My goal is that movement becomes joyful, and that you tune in to yourself.  My role is to work with you to emphasize your strengths, improve your flexibility, deepen your relaxation, strengthen your core, and improve your cardiovascular health.  Through these avenues, I help you to create the foundation of a lifestyle that includes movement.

Genetics can take us only so far; the rest is up to us.  My passion is to inspire you to create your new body, your life as you want and the future you always wanted.

It is not about body building, since it is not about the body. It IS about how you feel in your body. It IS about how you can control your energy level.  As a OneStep trainer, I guide you to your true potential self using the necessary appropriate steps.  My role is also to assist you in overcoming the obstacles you may run into along the journey to Wellness and Health.

Life is about evolution, balance and change.  Movement brings those things about.  OneStep training starts the journey.

As Goethe said:   “…Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.  Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.  Begin it now.”

This February, before your New Year’s Resoutions fade, take this opportunity to rediscover yourself, your wonder and your ability to move.  You won’t regret it.

Fear is a surefire motivator to create change, or so many health care practitioners seem to believe.  When I observed other dietitians and doctors early in my career, I frequently heard them offer foreshadows of doom, such as, “If you do not start taking better care of yourself, you are going to be a dead diabetic in five years.”  Then after the patient would leave, the practitioner would role his or her eyes and predict, “He’s not going to change anything; he never does,” thus implying that the patient is lazy, stubborn, or in some other way to blame.  Little do these practitioners know, however, that this supposed motivational technique, informally known as the Scare Tactic, rarely actually works and often hinders change.

More often than not, the Scare Tactic triggers hopelessness, denial, and powerlessness, none of which leads to change.  No wonder the recipients of this technique usually maintain their negative lifestyle behaviors.  After witnessing its repeated failures, I resolved not to use the Scare Tactic in my practice and instead built a skill set of motivational tools that are more empowering.  Unless a patient is in the pre-contemplation stage of change, which means he or she is not even considering making change, discussing the risks of maintaining the status quo is rarely helpful.  I find that greater motivation and change occur when emphasizing the positive.  In other words, rather than focus on the health consequences they are trying to avoid, I encourage patients to concentrate on what they are striving to achieve.  Besides, I figure most patients understand the risks even if they go unspoken, right?

Then two weeks ago, one of my new patients had a heart attack within hours of leaving our initial appointment, and I started to reassess my assumption.  We may superficially acknowledge the existence of a grave event, such a heart attack or cancer diagnosis, in a detached, distant, and almost theoretical way, but the cold and blunt reality of it actually happening is another matter.  I know I felt differently after my patient had this crisis.  I wonder if the risks are really as understood as I assumed them to be.

Upon learning of my patient’s heart attack, one of the doctors at Visions said to me, “We got to her too late.”  His comment reminded me of a rotation I had in a rehabilitation hospital where I saw wards literally filled with people who had procrastinated taking care of themselves only later to suffer severe consequences.  I met a man who put off going to the dentist for a toothache.  The infection that developed spread to his neck and required major surgery.  He could not look at me as we talked, as his metal halo prohibited him from moving his head in any direction.  Because he had such difficulty eating, we were evaluating whether or not he required tube feeding, a process that involves inserting a plastic feeding tube up the nose, down the throat, and into the stomach.  The placement is so uncomfortable that sometimes a patient is actually tied down to be prevented from pulling out the tube.  This patient could have avoided his entire situation with a trip to the dentist.

I lost count of the number of hospitalized diabetics who ignored their conditions which then led to amputations, blindness, or dialysis.  Not everybody with cardiovascular disease dies instantly of a heart attack; many survive and, like my new patient, face extensive rehab.  Some never regain full function.  At a large table in the center of the ward, several patients who could no longer feed themselves gathered at mealtimes for impatient staff to push utensils into their mouths.  On a daily basis, patients expressed regret, “I wish I had taken better care of myself before it came to this.”

I still maintain that the Scare Tactic is overused and is an inferior motivational tool, but perhaps it is worth stating, just this once, what exactly we are trying to avoid.  The work that I do with my patients reduces their risks for heart attack, stroke, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disorders, osteoporosis, fatigue, immobility, memory loss, and many other diseases, as well as the catastrophic fallout that these conditions may create for an individual and his or her family.  Can I safely assume that we all understand the risks now that they have been spoken?

The emotional hierarchy continues. Stay in that safe place with any sadness you are unable to resolve. Consider those circumstances again. Again,  make sure you are safe with the feelings.

Now lift the sadness and peek underneath it. Usually what’s under sadness is plain old fear. Ask yourself what you are afraid of.

Let the fear be what it is. Fear isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Most often it’s an early warning system. What usually causes problems with fear is the actions you take to mitigate it.

There is no action to take here except a deeper level of forgiveness. Forgive the other person/people involved for causing your fear reaction. Forgive yourself for having the fear reaction.

Some people say that the word fear is an acronym for … FEAR.

F alse

E vidence

A ppearing

R eal

Personally, I prefer this one …

F eel

E verything

A nd

R elax.

Fear is your friend if you’ll let it be. Forgive it, forgive yourself. Light those candles and move on.

For spiritual nourishment, visit Dr. Susan Corso’s website and blog, Seeds for Sanctuary. Follow her on Twitter @PeaceCorso and Friend her on Facebook. And discover your own Inner Peace at, To Me Peace Is … What is Peace to You?

Since it is the cold and flu season, it is worthwhile to consider vegetables that are potent in antioxidant qualities, have calcium and iron, and are simple to prepare.

I recall a day when thinking of steamed greens just did not sound exciting.  But then, I recalled how my mom used to cook spinach - boiled, drained and tossed with the magic ingredient - apple cider vinegar. WOW, did that add flavor.  Years later while in college studying foods and nutrition, I learned how acids help to unleash the calcium and iron in foods.  It all came together and now I have an easy fix to “just so” greens.

Wash and cut off the stems to virtually any green - swiss chard, kale, beet greens, collards, spinach.  Save the stems for a juicer if you use one.  Cut the greens in 3/4 inch slices up the stem and place in a microwavable glass dish or steamer.  Cook for about 4 minutes, drain and toss with freshly minced garlic (or a dash of garlic powder), 1 tbl olive oil and either apple cider vinegar or lemon.  You may also steam the greens in a steamer, or cook directly in an oiled pan.

Greens go well with any dish - meat, fish, poultry or vegetarian casserole. And remember, they are rich sources of antioxidants, calcium and iron.

Mange!

Julie Freeman, MA, RD, LD

We are all unique individuals who have the ability to create our lives. Mindfulness is one of the key ingredients to creating a life that you love…A life in which you are happy, healthy, expressed, fulfilled and feel fully alive.
To become more mindful is a practice of awareness. Allow yourself to notice new and different things about yourself and your surroundings. Be open to the mindset that all things happen for a reason and are present for growth and transformation. When your attitude around experiences shifts, you have an opportunity to make a difference in your own life and in turn contribute to the health and balance of others and the planet as a whole.

The first step in becoming more mindful is to make it a practice to look within and acknowledge all that is going on with you on a daily basis. Do this by allowing yourself a few quiet moments each day without distractions. Closing your eyes is essential for inner focus. Allow yourself to journey inside and expand your awareness. Be sure to acknowledge how you feel physically, emotionally, mentally, energetically and spiritually. Sit with these different aspects that make up the essence of who you are and get reacquainted with yourself. Know that this relationship with yourself may change from day to day. Be in the inquiry of who you are and how you show up in the world with no judgment. We are often out of touch with the details of our own lives. If you need something in your life to shift you must first be mindful of it, as you cannot transform anything that you first do not acknowledge. Being mindful can enrich your life as you become more in touch with all aspects of who you are.
Mindfulness starts within, then it expands to all aspects of life. Opening your eyes and seeing as if for the first time, assists you in developing external awareness. Consciously start to observe new things. Tune in to the details of nature and your environment. Notice something different about the people you interact with. Open your mind to a new experience of the world, which will allow you to personally show up more powerfully. As awareness increases, your essential nature, which includes your mind, body and spirit, are stimulated and you end up happier, healthier, and more fulfilled.
Becoming mindful is a journey that can shift your reality and enhance your life. Once you develop this consciousness it continues to grow and show up everywhere, no matter what you’re doing or where you are.

One thing that is certain in life is that reality shifts and everything in the world is constantly in a state of fluctuation. if you keep your mind open to the ebb and flow of the ever changing universe and see the learning held within each circumstance, you can transform your health and the way you choose to live.

In the many, many years I have worked with forgiveness, I have discovered that the process tends to work best in layers. This means we have to get into emotional process which is as individual as … well, each individual.

Despite that, I am going to generalize here and say that usually the issues which have made you angry arise first in forgiveness work. Anger is the simplest of the major emotions and because of its simplicity, it comes most often with clarity.

However, anger often masks a deeper feeling. If you’ve done the Forgiveness Ritual with the things which have made you angry and there are any which feel unforgiven, revisit those issues.

Allow your anger to bubble up, and then watch it. Imagine that you are creating a large sacred space in which both you and your anger are safe. A huge padded cell, if you will, for your mad.

Then use your imagination further to lift the burbling anger and peek beneath it. Most of the time what you will find is sadness. Something about the situation that caused your anger made you sad.

Allow the sadness to expand. Let yourself feel it. If tears come, let them flow. The sadness that undergirds anger is usually a function of feeling disappointed.

I wrote my book, God’s Dictionary, because of that word: disappointment. Follow my logic. Dis- as a prefix means not. When one is appointed to something, one is chosen. When we are disappointed, we feel not chosen. By extension, it usually means that we are not choosing either.

Let the sadness be and forgive the sadness itself, and yourself for feeling disappointed. Light more candles and let go the sadness to Peace and Freedom.

For spiritual nourishment, visit Dr. Susan Corso’s website and blog, Seeds for Sanctuary. Follow her on Twitter @PeaceCorso and Friend her on Facebook. And discover your own Inner Peace at, To Me Peace Is … What is Peace to You?

Once you have your lists complete, and you’ll know inside when they are, then it is time to do your Act of Forgiveness. I like to call this Your Forgiving Birthday.

You need to gather some materials to accomplish this. Here’s the list:

Cookie trays

Aluminum foil

Boxes of birthday candles

(as many as are items on your lists)

Matches

Your lists

To prepare yourself and the process, allow for two hours of uninterrupted time. Take a shower, and wear comfortable clothes. Prepare the cookie trays by covering them with aluminum foil.

Open all the packages of birthday candles. Then sit and breathe. Add music that soothes you if you like. Or music that makes you feel brave.

Reread your lists briefly. In most cases, there are two “people” we forget to put on the lists. The first is yourself, and the second is God. Add both to both lists now.

Now begin the rite. Speak:

I am ready and willing freely to forgive, and freely to be forgiven.

As an Act of my Free Will,

I willingly forgive, I release, I let go.

I set free all those whose names I am about to name, and all those whose names elude me now.

I am free. They are free. We are free.

So it is.

Then begin with the To Forgive List. Light a candle, address the person, and speak whatever forgiveness arises in your heart for them. Here’s an example:

David, my brother, I forgive you for

humiliating me at Mama’s funeral.

Let some of the wax drip onto the aluminum foil. Stick the bottom of the candle to the foil so it can burn itself out. Fire is the element which creates rapid and spiritual change. Here you are letting spiritual fire cleanse your spirit, soul, and body. It must burn itself out unless there is danger in which case a glass of water nearby isn’t a bad idea.

Do the ritual with each name on your list. You will end up with a blazing cookie tray of release, freedom and change. Do the ones you need to forgive, and then do the ones you need forgiveness from.

Wait until all the candles burn themselves out. Meditate. Pray. Sit. Dance. Sing. Give thanks. Use an affirmative statement like: I am free. You are free. We are free. Use an afformation like: Why are we all so free now?

Personally, I find that afformations are much more powerful than affirmations. Another option is to breathe in the word Peace, and breathe out the word Freedom. Peace and Freedom are the emotional hallmarks of the forgiving and the forgiven states.

Sit quietly until all the candles have burned out. Then remove the aluminum foil and discard it, knowing that you have completed the first part of the ritual of Your Forgiving Birthday.

You have set in motion something powerful. Let it work through you over the next few days. There are layers and levels to forgiveness and forgiven-ness.

For spiritual nourishment, visit Dr. Susan Corso’s website and blog, Seeds for Sanctuary. Follow her on Twitter @PeaceCorso and Friend her on Facebook. And discover your own Inner Peace at, To Me Peace Is … What is Peace to You?