A Certified
Woman Owned Business
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Frequently Asked Questions
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I would like to start meditating, but I can't seem to just be still for 45 minutes. How do I get started?
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Jon Kabat-Zinn recommends meditating for 45 minutes per day, but most people find this is overwhelmingly difficult to fit into their schedules and frequently give-up meditation. I recommend that you start with short periods of 10 or 15 minutes twice a day. Set your alarm a little earlier in the morning and before you get out of bed focus on your breathing. Repeat the same thing at night.
The most effective breathing is abdominal or diaphragmatic breathing. Many people are chest breathers. It has been shown that chest breathing actually elicits the stress response. To practice effective breathing you want to push your abdomen out when you inhale and forcefully collapse your abdomen when you exhale. Your can determine if your doing this correctly by opening your mouth and hear the sound of the air as it forces through your vocal cords as your exhale. You will not be able to hear the sound unless you forcefully collapse your abdomen. After you learn to breathe abdominally you can let go of technique and allow your breathing to become peaceful. You may also want to add a prayer segment or calming word or phrase i.e. "Thy Will be done" or "Peace." Meditation is an important step on the journey within. Good luck on your journey.
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I have read so much information about supplementation. What are the important supplements to take?
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Supplementation is very confusing and there are many opinions on doses. There are lots of factors that effect what we need to be taking in the form of supplements. First of all, food is the best source of nourishment. Unfortunately the nutritional values of our soil has been depleted as a result of over-use without replenishment and the use of pesticides. For this reason some supplementation may be beneficial.
Lets start with the kind of food that you eat. Find a source of meat and eggs that is free of hormones and antibiotics. Eat organic fruits and vegetables. The process of finding foods that are free of pesticides, hormones, and antibiotics will be consumer driven. Our grocery stores will find sources for us if we continue to make these requests since we live in a world that maintains balance through supply and demand. Your plate should have meat about the size of your palm and the rest filled with fresh vegetables. Raw, then steamed, and frozen have the best nutritional value. Some vegetables, like broccoli, should be steamed.
Make sure you choose supplements made from food as opposed to chemicals. The body cannot assimilate chemicals as efficiently. Also, it is best to take vitamins and minerals with food since that is the natural way of taking in these substances. Most of you are familiar with the recommended daily allowance (RDA) which is the standard set to prevent diseases like rickets, beriberi and scurvy. We now realize that the recommended daily allowance may not be the optimal level doses for health. The optimal level can vary based on who is making the suggestion. I have put together recommendations based on my review of information (click here for vitamin/mineral information).
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I have heard that there is a connection between spirituality and health - is this true?
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More and more research is now available that connects healing and spirituality. Larry Dossey describes a large number of studies that support the relationship between prayer and healing. He has coined the term nonlocal medicine. I would venture to say that not only does prayer assist people to heal, nurturing ones spirit is probably the most important thing people can do to maintain good health. We are actually spiritual beings on a human journey. It is not that we need religion to be healthy, but that religions have done the best job of expressing how the spirit works. The stories in the bible help us learn how to deal with our difficulties. For example, when we begin to realize that our childhood was not the most loving and nurturing (all of us discover that this is true on some level) the bible tells of a story were the paralyzed man was told to pick up his bed and walk. When we are paralyzed from taking action and moving on we must pick up our beds and walk.
Our journey through life starts in the Garden of Eden where our parents take care of our every need. Eventually, our parents teach us the difference between right and wrong and during this time we begin to feel that there are parts of us that are unloved by our parents. From here it is a short trip for us to feel unlovable.
In the second half of life, we are tasked to love ourselves enough to accept our dark side. Our emotional and physical illnesses can be seen as our outward sign of what is going on within us on a spiritual level. As we attempt to heal ourselves outwardly we must also heal spiritually in order to achieve true health.
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