Energize your brain by walking on uneven terrain

Curtesy of Brain HQ....Energize Your Brain

Take the Road Less Traveled

Most of us usually walk on hard, flat surfaces: sidewalks, floors, and the like. And when we walk, we often wear shoes. But all of that is actually pretty new for humans. We used to walk over a wide variety of uneven terrain, often barefooted.

Scientists believe that walking on uneven surfaces may actually useful for honing the vestibular system of the inner ear, which plays a central role in balance and equilibrium. Our current way of walking—on flat surfaces in thick-soled shoes—doesn’t challenge this system. Perhaps partly as a result, as we age, it becomes harder to safely walk on uneven or more difficult surfaces.¹ Studies suggest that the challenge of walking on rough surfaces, where you have to adapt your balance and equilibrium very quickly, can refine the vestibular system and improve its function.²

Here are a few activities that can help give your vestibular system a workout.

Idea 1: Hit the Beach
Walking on shifting sand gives your brain an extra balance challenge. Plus, it’s a good overall workout: walking on sand brings about larger increases in strength measures than walking on firm surfaces.³

Idea 2: Take the Rocky Road
Try an off-trail hike, cobblestone road, or balancing through rocks along a streambed to challenge your balance. 

Idea 3: Feel the Grass
Some people believe that the thick soles on shoes mute the subtle challenges of walking. Take off your shoes and walk through a grassy lawn or field to see how much more you have to adjust your balance.

Idea 4: Walk Backwards
To challenge your balance a little differently, try walking backward up and down a slope. It’s been shown to positively affect gait and balance, too.⁴Just be sure to check your surroundings first so you don’t bump into anything! 

Inspired by Chinese traditional medicine
One study on this topic grew out of a Chinese tradition of cobblestone walking paths. Researchers at the Oregon Research Institute investigated whether walking on cobblestone paths would improve balance and mobility when compared to general walking. It did. It also led to a decrease in blood pressure.⁵

What if getting out to an uneven walk isn't possible for me?
For those of you who don’t have access to sand or rough ground, there is another option: cobblestone mats. You can buy a cobblestone mat to use at home, or even make your own by filling a large flat container with smooth pebbles and stones. 

¹Marigold DS, Patla AE. Age-related changes in gait for multi-surface terrain. Gait Posture. 2008 May;27(4);689-96. 

²Li F, Fisher KJ, Harmer P. Improving physical function and blood pressure in older adults through cobblestone mat walking: a randomized trial. Journal of the American Geriatric Society. 2005 Aug;53(8):1305-12. 

³Morrison K, Braham RA, Dawon B, Guelfi K. Effect of a sand or firm-surface walking program on health, strength, and fitness in women 60-75 years old. Joural of Aging and Physical Activity. 2009 Apr;17(2):196-209. 

⁴Cha HG, Kim TH, Kim MK. Therapeutic efficacy of walking backward and forward on a slope in normal adults. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. 2016 Jun;28(6):1901-3. 

⁵Li F, Fisher KJ, Harmer P. Improving physical function and blood pressure in older adults through cobblestone mat walking: a randomized trial. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 2005 Aug;53(8):1305-12.

I loved this article published by Brain HQ....one of my favorite Apps to use for brian training. I love teaching mobility and balance classes and this article had such great tips and information to share.

Why genetic Testing is about more than just your Ancestry...

 If you've heard about genetic testing in the past decade, it's probably been through the marketing of ancestry companies. There's the allure of finding out where you came from (or uncovering family secrets!), and at-home kits provided by these companies have shown everyday people how easy it is to test their DNA. 

But unfortunately, due to the popularity and widespread marketing of ancestry tests, most people aren't aware of the other benefits genetic testing can provide. While ancestry testing simply tells you where your family came from, genetic testing for health and wellness can lead you to a whole array of actionable insights into optimizing your eating, exercise, lifestyle choices, and more in order to achieve better health. 

As we’ve been utilizing genetic testing with our patients at Natural Health Haven LLC,  here are a few ways genetic testing can inform your health and wellness. 

  Personalized Care 

A lot of approaches to health and wellness these days focus on a one-size-fits-all approach, prescribing the same diet, exercise, and lifestyle choices to everyone. But everyone is unique — so shouldn't healthcare be tailored to that unique individual? Genetic testing uncovers a person's genetic variants, which give us insight into how that person’s cells and systems function, show the impact of the types of food you eat and the environment around you, and more. 

  Disease at the Root 

In addition to the one-size-fits-all approach to health, many times practitioners are helping their patients simply combat symptoms of chronic illness. But constantly treating symptoms can be timely and costly, and never really addresses the root issues anyway. Since genetic testing reveals how your body works at the cellular level, it can point towards the root causes of illnesses that are generating those symptoms. That way, diseases can be treated at the source. 

  Losing Weight 

Those who have struggled to lose weight may spend time, energy, and money seeking new ways to get healthy and lose weight when their genes are able to give them all the insight they need. Genes are able to give insight into what types of exercise are best for your body, whether it be more endurance exercises or power exercises. They can also show how your body stores fat, which nutrients it absorbs best to inform which foods to eat, and other insights that can form a more targeted recommendation plan. 

  Metabolism 

Your genes can also tell you more about your metabolism. We know that metabolism has a connection with energy and vibrancy, yet many of us have a "sluggish" metabolism we're not sure how to correct. Knowing your genes can give you insights into how your metabolism is affected by what you eat, how you burn energy, how you store fat, and more. 

  The Right Exercise 

What if you've been hitting the gym and trying to get fit, but you've been doing the wrong exercises all this time? Getting insights into your genes can actually show you whether your body is more suited for endurance activities, like running or bicycling, or whether your body is more suited for power activities like sprinting or weight lifting. Knowing more about how your body works means being able to choose the right activities for you. 

  Caffeine Intake 

We're all affected by caffeine in various ways — some people can drink coffee right up until bedtime, when others have to cut themselves off mid-morning! But do we know why? Our genes can tell us! Our genes are responsible for how quickly we metabolize caffeine, so we can know whether to have that extra cup or not. 

  Better Daily Choices 

As you can see, knowing your genes and how they affect your body can give you insights into many different aspects of your health and wellness so that you can make better choices each day about actions that affect you. For example, did you know that your genes can determine how well your body eliminates toxins, which can help you make choices about what environments to be in? Your genes can also give you insight into your stress levels, and flag if you're not getting enough sleep at night. 

   More Than Ancestry 

Knowing your genes can reveal a lot more to you than just what's stated above. Additionally, as our knowledge continues to increase around how genes work and how they impact our bodies, the blueprint that genetic testing provides for your optimal health will only become more detailed, allowing you to build the perfect life of health and wellness suitable to you. 

 Ready to start your personalized health journey?  

Let's talk..... Email us today at naturalhealthhaven@gmail.com

Need more information, here's a short video on the 3x4 genetic testing!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9VJ_0_n6-E

7 ways to build a healthier Immune system

 I love sharing articles from people I respect and admire in the health field. 

Here is an article written by Dr Robert Silverman that is excellent and will help you navigate a healthier lifestyle and Immune system.

Enjoy!!

7 ways to build defenses against illness and disease when patients ask how to build a strong and healthy immune system

Robert Silverman, DC January 3, 2023 <https://www.chiroeco.com/how-to-build-a-strong-and-healthy-immune-system/

The immune system has a difficult job. Its primary focus is to protect and keep you healthy from foreign invaders. It’s always walking a tightrope between being hypervigilant and not being vigilant enough. By supporting it — with proper nutrition, healthy lifestyle choices and nutritional supplements — you allow your immune system to rejuvenate and maintain its delicate balance. But how to build a strong and healthy immune system, and why does it matter?

A weakened immune system can leave patients vulnerable to infectious diseases, autoimmunity and chronic illnesses. And they don’t have a backup immune system if they choose to neglect the one they have.

Thankfully, there are many safe, effective avenues when patients ask how to build a strong and healthy immune system.

Here’s what I recommend.

1.    Eat better for a stronger immune system

Stronger immunity starts with a better diet and good gut health. Begin by saying no to gluten, processed foods, sugar, dairy and artificial sweeteners. Likewise, avoid deep-fried foods and foods cooked in pro-inflammatory vegetable oils.

Avoiding these foods is the basis of an anti-inflammatory diet. Removing them from the diet reduces cellular stressors, inhibits inflammatory signals from the immune system and promotes healthy gut microbiota. A diet high in sugar, for example, can damage your immune system; more specifically, sugar can damage the immune cells in the gut.

The healthiest diets focus on nutrient-rich whole foods, lots of plants and limited processed foods. The Mediterranean and plant-forward diets are anti-inflammatory in addition to their other benefits. Research has found that eating a Mediterranean-style diet leads to a healthier gut microbiome with more beneficial bacteria, along with lower inflammation and better blood sugar control. A healthy gut microbiome is also associated with a lower risk of illness, including COVID-19.

Detect and avoid food sensitivities

Detecting and avoiding food sensitivities can be a game changer for patients when it comes to immune health. Food sensitivity is an immune-based reaction to food that elevates inflammation. Undetected food sensitivities can lead to chronic inflammation, possible autoimmunity and a compromised immune system. Treating and avoiding food sensitivities can make a dramatic improvement in immune system function.

Environmental toxins such as lead, acrylamide, BPA and many others can enter the body and interact with the immune system, causing detrimental immune activation or suppression. A semi-annual quality detoxification program will help rid the body of toxins. At the same time, patients should work to reduce exposure to environmental toxins.

Focus on hydration

Staying well-hydrated aids in maintaining a properly functioning immune system. A good rule of thumb is to drink three-quarters of your body weight in ounces, spread throughout the day. Drinking water improves overall immunity and helps the body eliminate some pathogens naturally. Avoid fruit juices, alcoholic beverages, soda and other sweetened beverages. Stick to plenty of filtered water, organic coffee, black tea, green tea and mild herbal teas.

Manage blood sugar

When asking how to build a strong and healthy immune system, controlling patients’ blood sugar is essential for peak immunity. The glycemic index diet is one of the best dietary approaches for controlling blood sugar. It focuses on foods that have a low impact on your blood sugar.

For example, the glycemic index is a way to rank carbohydrates by their effect on blood glucose levels. Low GI (1 to 55) foods are mostly whole, unprocessed carbohydrates such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. High GI (above 70) foods, which can send your blood sugar soaring, are mostly sugary foods and processed carbohydrates such as white bread and pasta. A low GI diet helps keep your blood sugar at a healthy level and enables you to maintain good metabolic health, including good insulin sensitivity.

When metabolic health is good, the immune system functions optimally.

Consider intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting, or time-restricted eating with a 14- to 16-hour fasting period, allows patients’ immune systems to rejuvenate through autophagy and mitophagy. The rejuvenation process reprograms the immune system, leading to improved immune balance and better immune resilience. Autophagy also plays a crucial role in gut health. It maintains intestinal homeostasis and allows for the interaction between the gut microbiota and the innate and adaptive immune systems.

In addition, intermittent fasting helps maintain intestinal barrier integrity, which improves overall immunity. Some evidence suggests that people who follow a time-restricted eating pattern experience fewer complications from COVID-19.

Make clean eating a priority

It’s been said that eating organic isn’t a trend; it’s a return to tradition. The many chemicals we’re exposed to through our food can damage our immunity. Make clean eating a priority by choosing organically grown produce, grass-fed meat and pasture-raised poultry and eggs whenever possible. Organic bone broth is a great way to get vital minerals such as calcium into the diet.

The immune system needs to get plenty of omega-3 fatty acids to function well. Choose wild-caught SMASH fish: salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines and herring. Avoid processed vegetable oils; use extra-virgin olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil and macadamia nut oil for cooking instead.

I strongly recommend a plant-forward diet for patients that is high in organically-grown fruits/vegetables, raw nuts/seeds and quality clean proteins. This diet is high in the fiber needed to support gut health. In addition, a plant-forward diet is high in polyphenols and plant compounds such as quercetin and resveratrol, which are powerful antioxidants. Polyphenols improve gut health and activate the immune system. Foods high in polyphenols include vegetables, berries, herbs and spices, dark chocolate, nuts, olives, coffee, and green and black tea.

In a recent study of almost 3,000 health care workers worldwide, those who followed a plant-forward diet had a 73% lower chance of becoming ill with moderate-to-severe COVID-19 than their colleagues who didn’t follow these diets. If they followed a plant-based or pescatarian diet (eating fish/seafood but no other animal foods), their chances of moderate-to-severe COVID-19 were 59% decreased compared to those who didn’t follow these diets.

2.    Manage stress

Ongoing stress can sharply reduce immunity by raising cortisol levels and causing inflammation. Recognizing that stress affects patient health is the first step to reducing it. Once one acknowledges their stressors, various techniques are available to help cope. Some of my patients find meditation, mindfulness and yoga very helpful; others prefer to work out or spend time on a relaxing hobby. No one approach is better than any other; the key is to find a stress reduction technique (or more than one) that works and to use it regularly.

I often see a real improvement in immune systems when my patients take stress reduction seriously. They get sick less often, reduce their joint and muscle pain, and have less systemic inflammation.

Chronic stress often occurs with chronic sleep loss. The two feed on each other, causing inflammation, hormonal imbalances, digestive problems and decreased immunity. More on the importance of sleep is below.

3.    Patients need to get sufficient sleep

Sleep is the silent superpower. It enables immune systems to function efficiently and effectively. While patients sleep, the body repairs itself and removes toxins and waste. At the same time, their levels of immune cells rise naturally. A growing body of research shows that getting 7-8 hours of quality sleep daily is essential for the immune system to reboot.

4.    Exercise regularly

Regular exercise is one of the key pillars when patients ask how to build a strong and healthy immune system . One of the easiest ways to improve immunity is by getting regular, moderate exercise for 30-60 minutes a day. Exercise reduces inflammation and stimulates immunity by improving the circulation of immune cells and antibodies in the body, which makes it easier for the immune system to detect and respond to potential threats.

As with sleep, make daily exercise a top priority for patients, especially if they have a job or lifestyle that means they spend more than a few hours a day sitting. As I tell my patients, sitting is the new smoking.

Numerous studies show that almost all forms of regular exercise give you the same fitness and immunity benefits. When we exercise, antibodies and white blood cells circulate throughout the body faster, making it easier for the immune system to detect and respond to potential threats. Running or jogging, walking at a good pace, exercising along with a video, practicing yoga and performing resistance exercises are all excellent choices. The key is to do some form of exercise regularly for at least 30 minutes per day, 5-6 days per week.

A single 30-minute session of weight resistance training, for example, will boost a patient’s lymphocyte count. They will see the payoff in stronger muscles, better body composition and better overall fitness. Sufficient muscle mass allows for a better immune response in most people. Patients probably won’t get sick as often with minor illnesses like colds — and research shows exercise can reduce inflammation and cut the risk of autoimmunity and chronic disease.

A 2021 study of nearly 50,000 COVID-19 patients found that consistently inactive patients were more than twice as likely to need hospitalization or die compared to those who consistently met physical activity guidelines. Compared to patients who only did some physical activity, those who were consistently inactive were 20% more likely to need hospitalization and 30% more likely to die.

5.    Improve patient body composition

Excess body fat creates systemic inflammation and reduced immunity; metabolic disorders increase inflammation and further reduce immunity.

A key finding from the pandemic is that being overweight and obese are significant risk factors for severe infection. People of any age who are overweight or obese are much more likely to get infected with COVID-19. If they do get sick, they are more likely to get severely ill and need a lengthy recovery period. Overweight or obese people with metabolic disorders such as metabolic syndrome or Type 2 diabetes are even more likely to get seriously ill.

The pandemic has been a wake-up call for many of my patients to work on losing weight and improving their diets. They now realize how being severely overweight or obese can affect their immunity and understand how significant weight loss and a better diet are to enhancing their immune systems.

6.    Pair with chiropractic care

As we are well aware, chiropractic care can improve the body’s function in a multitude of ways. Include advanced nutrition and physical modalities training in your practice armamentarium, paired with your vast knowledge of the body and synergistic treatments that can also allow the central nervous system to perform optimally and improve immune system function.

Low-level laser therapy

I believe that low-level laser therapy (LLLT), also referred to as non-thermal laser therapy, is the most versatile health care modality of the current century. Research has shown it provides beneficial effects for a wide array of health conditions, such as musculoskeletal injuries, vagus nerve stimulation, gut restoration/health and improved immune function.

LLLT can stimulate and balance the immune system and reduce inflammation. Laser therapy enhances microcirculation of the blood and lymph, which can aid immunological adaptation and strengthen the immune system.

7.    Boost patient immune health with supplements

Eating a well-balanced, plant-forward diet low in sugar and processed foods is key to strong immune health. However, eating well may not always be accessible for patients in today’s fast-paced, fast-food society. They sometimes need more of a vitamin, mineral or nutrient than they can realistically get from their diet.

Depleted cells in the body may not be repleted sufficiently by food alone. That’s why I often recommend specific dietary supplements as an addition to a healthy diet. Supplements can provide good nutrient status and nutrient stores. This status provides balanced immune system function, which will provide a strong defense against pathogens.

Vitamin D, for example, is necessary for strong immunity. Vitamin D mostly comes from exposure to sunshine, but we spend 90% of our lives indoors. A daily supplement is the best way to ensure you get enough of this vitamin.

Top five supplements for immunity

My top five daily supplements synergistically stimulate, balance and support both the innate and the adaptive immune responses:

Daily multivitamins with minerals: Vitamins A, C, D and the mineral zinc are needed to build the many enzymes for immune cells to produce cytokines and antibodies efficiently.

Omega-3 fatty acids: Omega-3 fatty acids help lymphocytes produce cytokines and chemokines that direct the immune response.

Vitamin D3 with vitamin K2: Taking vitamin D3 with vitamin K2 helps ensure the calcium transported by the vitamin D is absorbed by bones where it’s needed most.

Pro-resolving mediators (PRMs): PRMs help limit acute inflammation and promote resolution after an immune response.

Prebiotics and probiotics: Prebiotics support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut, while probiotics aid in modulating the immune system by providing beneficial bacteria to the gut’s ecosystem.

Today more than ever, building a strong immune system is essential for vibrant health. We now have many effective modalities for helping patients strengthen their immunity. As our understanding of the gut microbiome and other aspects of immunity expands, we can successfully target our treatments to meet individual needs.

If history is to repeat itself, there will be other health pandemics. But we can learn something from the past: The first and most controllable line of defense against illness is our own immune system. When considering how to build a strong and healthy immune system, instead of only reacting to sickness, a proactive approach to immunity can help reduce the risk of illness — and possibly even prevent it.

HOW SAFE ARE YOU FROM EMF RADIATION IN YOUR ELECTRIC CAR?

 

Is Your Electric Car Zapping You With EMF Radiation?

By ANH-USAOn 01/24/2023 https://anh-usa.org/is-your-electric-car-zapping-you-with-emf-radiation/

Electric cars are becoming more popular, but do they come with new risks?

Electric cars are on the rise. Their share of new vehicle sales almost doubled in the first nine months of 2022. The number of Tesla vehicles on the road rose 33 percent in 2022. Many automakers are planning to switch to electric in the coming years. This may have benefits for the environment, but what, if any, are the human health implications? Concerns about cars as a source of exposure to electromagnetic field (EMF) radiation are well-founded, but these concerns are not exclusive to electric cars.

There are, of course, many different types of cars on the road—different manufacturers, different models, years, gas-powered, diesel, hybrids, and electric. Due to the variety of different cars that are available, the EMF dangers also vary. 

With that said, electric cars can have elevated EMF levels for a number of reasons. They operate on large AC batteries that are generally placed much closer to where people sit; in Teslas, they are placed directly underneath the floor of the car cabin. These batteries emit extremely low frequency (ELF) EMF radiation, and the closer you are to them, the more radiation you are exposed to. Additionally, charging electric cars creates substantial amounts of dirty electricity. Dirty electricity, or electrical pollution, is a form of EMF that is generated by electronic devices that, when they operate, convert AC power to DC, creating high-frequency voltage spikes that flow back into the power grid, piggy-back on existing electrical wiring, and radiate into the environment. It is yet another route of exposure to harmful EMF that has been linked to a variety of negative health outcomes. Studies have shown that taking steps to reduce dirty electricity (by installing filters that short out high frequencies and reduce transients on electrical wiring) reduced headaches, general weakness, asthma, depression, anxiety, and skin irritation.

But almost all cars, including gas powered vehicles, contain EMF-emitting components. Many cars are now equipped with Bluetooth connections for phones, radars for crash prevention, back up cameras, and provide WiFi hot spots, to name just a few examples. All of these components emit EMF. In fact, some informal testing of EMF levels from cars found that gas-powered cars registered EMF readings just as high as electric cars. Consumer Reports also did some testing back in 2010 and found that the Chevy Cobalt, a gas-powered car, emitted far more EMF radiation than the Toyota Prius, a hybrid. Given that nearly all cars are sources of EMF radiation, it is important to look at cars individually, rather than by category, in weighing the risks.

Should we be concerned about the level of EMF emitted by cars? Digging into the details is not reassuring. The FCC set limits for maximum permissible exposure to EMF radiation in 1996. These levels were designed to protect against thermal effects as a result of short-term exposure to EMF radiation—that is, the potential of EMF radiation to heat body tissue like a microwave. 

As we all know, a lot has changed since 1996, and our daily exposure to EMF radiation has increased dramatically. The changing technological landscape spurred scientists to issue an appeal to the World Health Organization, warning of “serious concerns regarding the ubiquitous and increasing exposure to EMF generated by electric and wireless devices.” They go on to explain that “numerous recent scientific publications have shown that EMF affects living organisms at levels well below most international and national guidelines.” These health effects include increased cancer risk, cellular stress, increase in free radicals, genetic damage, changes in the reproductive system, neurological disorders, and more. These concerns were echoed in an October 2022 paper published in Environmental Health, which flatly stated: “Exposure limits for RF radiation are based on numerous assumptions; however, research studies published over the past 25 years show that most of those assumptions are not supported by scientific evidence.” This all means that our current safety standards are woefully inadequate to protect us from the dangers of constant EMF exposure. 

As we noted with our coverage of cell phone dangers, the problem is that many health and safety studies on EMF, particularly with regard to cell phones, are bought and paid for by the telecoms industry. For example, an analysis of safety studies on cell phone use concluded industry-funded studies were two and a half times less likely than independent studies to find a biological effect from cell phone radiation. 

So, should we be concerned? Experts in the field seem to think so, but their voices are likely to be drowned out by industry-funded studies that conveniently and predictably find no evidence of harm, providing the government cover to keep EMF safety standards rooted in a time when flip phones were revolutionary technology. With the rapid rollout of 5G technology, with its dense network of EMF-emitting “small cells,” this problem is poised to get even worse.

There are ways to lower your EMF exposure in your car. Choose standard options that limit the wireless bells and whistles. You could also opt for used older cars that do not have many of these components. If possible, turn off Bluetooth, though in newer car models this may not be an option. Remember, too, that we need to think about EMF exposure as a whole, so we need to look at our homes (hard wiring computers instead of using WiFi, avoiding smart meters if possible), our cell phone use (using speaker phone whenever possible, avoiding Bluetooth headphones), and our work environment, in addition to our cars, to try to limit our exposure to EMF.

Why are you not healing?

 Recently Dr Mark Hyman posted this on his Instagram...

"Most people don't talk about how your spirit, emotional health, your beliefs can actually help determine so much about your health.

Your thoughts, your feelings, your emotions, your beliefs literally communicate with every aspect of your biology, every second."                      ~ Dr Mark Hyman

If you believe and deeply trust that a certain treatment, supplement etc will not help then it won't and if you believe it will, then you are on your way to better health.

The placebo effect is real. Many people do not realize how powerful their minds are and how it basically conditions every aspect of their lives and how they respond to the world.

Our emotions are such an important factor of healing. So many different emotions get stored in the body. Fear in the kidneys, grief in the lungs and pain in the heart. Low self esteem in the gut/stomach area and stress in our adrenals, to mention just a few organ associations. It is vital to deal with trauma when it occurs, to feel all the feelings and investigate the thoughts and beliefs you have and form around events in your life because they become the lens through which you see the world and that shift in energy is what you continue to attract to your world. And you judge everyone and everything from this new viewpoint, that was created by your trauma.  Your perceptions are a mirror of your internal emotions, thoughts and beliefs.

What you believe about yourself, your world and others helps create a world in which that belief system gets validated. You have the power to change your beliefs and your thoughts. It takes effort at first because we have become accustomed to our thoughts running us instead of us running our thoughts and the same goes for our emotions. We also live our lives so attached to our beliefs. They change so much over a lifetime that it seems crazy to become attached to them.

We tend to respond emotionally and thoughtlessly to a lot of the situations in our life without paying attention to the impact it has on our being.

It is time to consider healing your wounds, becoming the master of your mind and truly investigating where your beliefs come from. You may discover that they aren't yours at all (the beliefs, thoughts) but someone else's that you decided to own and live your life as if they are factually yours and real.

There are many modalities available to help you heal your emotions, take charge of your thoughts and shift your beliefs, so that they are more in harmony with your spirit. I invite you to start investigating what may be the best modality to help you become the beautiful, healthy and happy being you deserve. It is your birthright to be abundant, healthy, happy and to share that with the world.

I love meditating and doing my own self healing and energy balancing and I practice mindfulness so that I may find the emotions that are locked in my system as well as the thoughts and beliefs that have formed around them. I do this so that I can heal and be more loving and caring and have more clarity, so that I don't spew my pain all over the world and cause more trauma for anyone else.

You may not be healing a persistent issue due to the fact that you have some underlying emotional trauma or thoughts and beliefs that are prohibiting the total release of energy there. Some people have identified themselves with their diagnosis and/or they may be receiving attention that they desperately seek and desire and therefore they continue to hold unto the ailment. (these are some possibilities)

Many of the reasons why we don't heal are things we don't want to look at or change.

Ask yourself, am I willing to heal, change and let go of that which has brought me to the imbalance, this particular point in my health, or not?

It takes courage to say yes and then act. And it is with courage that we change our lives, our health, our thoughts, our beliefs and eventually our world. Be courageous.

www.naturalhelathhaven.net

Dream a better world into being with eagle courage....

 It is a new year and I am working on shifting my perspective to bring in more conscious awakening within myself and to inspire it within others. I love the Shamanic views of the four directions and the animal totems and powers they encompass and I wish to incorporate that energy into my life and being, so I often call upon the eagle to share it's courage and teach me to be more courageous and to fly wing tip to wing tip with great spirit and to be able to see and rise above the obstacles of life.

I invite you to embrace and call upon the Eagle Courage to empower you and to dream a better world into being for yourself and others.

I share this wonderful piece written by Alberto Villoldo from The Four Winds:

https://thefourwinds.com/eagle-courage/

Eagle Courage:

In eagle consciousness, we’re plugged into the divine matrix, aware that we’re at one with the infinite force of the universe.  To be truly creative and draw inspiration from this level – that of Spirit, of genuine originality – is the highest form of courage.

Now originality doesn’t mean figuring out how to build a better mousetrap; it means conceiving of a world where mice and humans live in harmony and our lives are all fulfilling, abundant, and sustainable.  This can only happen when we stip perceiving mice as adversaries that are separate from our world . . . which comes to us easily when we’re in eagle consciousness.

I recently read of a boy in Canada who exhibited great eagle courage.  Ryan Hreljac was just six years old when he learned in school that there are people in Africa who have no access to clean water and, as a result, they often die of disease at a young age.  Ryan couldn’t believe that anyone would have to walk all day to get to a clean water source – so although he was only a first grader, he became determined to find a way to finance a well for an African village.  He started by asking his parents if he could do chores to earn some cash, and when he brought his meager savings to a charity that builds wells in Africa, they were so impressed by his efforts that they promised to match any more money he brought in.

Newspaper stories about this bighearted child began to appear all over the world, and as more and more people heard the story, they began contributing to what became known as “Ryan’s Well.” Eventually, Ryan was able to pay for his well in Africa; his charity has inspired many people to contribute to the cause, and many more villages have received wells as the result of his efforts.

So we can see that when we have courage at the level of eagle, we have a perspective that’s beyond our years and experience. We don’t collude in the nightmare of powerlessness but instead trust that we will find the resouces we need to manifest our dream.  Eagle gives us the nerve to enter the unknown and trust that possibilities will present themselves.  In this state of creativity, all the filters in our mind that tell us why we can’t accomplish something disappear.

Experiencing creativity at the level of eagle is what some of us call “being in the zone,” or in perfect rhythm with whatever we’re doing.  Because we’re co-creating with the divine, the sculpture leaps out of the stone that’s been encasing it, or tennis match seems effortless, and so on.  Eagle creativity is fresh, original, and courageous; we don’t need a story to describe it because we can simply enjoy it in all its whimsy, messiness, confusion, brilliance, and beauty.

Are you ready to dream your world into being with eagle courage?