Christmas greetings with love

Hello, how are you?  How was your day? It’s great that you’re able to take time to read this, thank you so much.

When your partner or child walks in the house what do you see?  What do you do?  Do you notice the stain on their tie, or their shoes that need polishing?  Do you tell them to ‘hurry up and get a move on because we’re going to be late’?  Or are you doing something important and merely glance in their direction, mumbling at them to get their homework done?  How does it make you feel?  How does your loved one feel?  Are you even aware?

During an (old) episode of Oprah the other week, one of her guests had a brilliant lesson on greeting your loved ones with joy.  It's a very simple thing to do, but makes a massive difference to the quality of your life and those around you.  The next time you greet someone, whether they’ve come home from work or school, or you haven’t seen them in a while, smile, make a fuss, get excited, run to the door to hug them.   Make them feel that they’re the centre of your universe, that they’re number one.  It only has to take a few seconds of your time and gives you both a lovely lift for the day.

Why not make this your new year’s resolution?   It’s enjoyable for all involved, meaning it’s far easier to keep to after the second week!

Wise words from Rita & Eckhart

www.oprah.com/oprahs-lifeclass/The-Complete-Webcast-of-Oprahs-Lifeclass-with-Eckhart-Tolle-Video

In this inspiring webcast by Oprah Winfrey & Eckhart Tolle (please click the link to view), we meet Rita (21 minutes in, though I encourage you to watch the whole thing), an audience member, who shares a wonderful lesson on not allowing other people to hurt you.   Rita says “I don’t any longer think it’s possible that other people can hurt me.  They’re just giving me their observation, and I’m giving it meaning, and so I get to choose what that meaning is.”

She then goes on to say that her favourite response when she’s receiving criticism is ‘You could be right’.  How magical is that?  It completely dissipates the negativity and transforms it into nothingness.   What the other person is saying to you is their opinion, they’re entitled to it and in their mind, it’s right.  That doesn’t mean that it has to be right for you.  You have a choice.   You can choose not to get upset, angry and to enter into an argument about it.   You can choose to ignore it, or act upon it, but it doesn’t have to hurt you anymore.

Imagine the next time someone criticises you “The house is too messy and you’re a slob”.  When you feel that hit you and the anger rise inside, it would be very easy to say “How dare you call me a slob, you’ve got no idea how busy I’ve been today and when was the last time you did any housework anyway?”  You can see where that’s going, it’s a one-way street to argument town and before you know it you’re shouting and screaming obscenities at each other.  You both end up feeling wounded, frustrated and exhausted.  Now what would happen if you replied “You know what, you might be right”?   Not a lot, as the comment is completely blown through you.  No sore spots hit, no chords struck, just inner peace allowing the negativity to dissolve into nothingness.

It works for positive comments too.  People say nice things to you, and you can become addicted to that.  You can live for the appreciation, the ego boost, and get hung up on it when you don’t receive it.  When you make a choice about how it’s going to affect you, you can decide that whilst it’s lovely to hear such things, you’re not dependant upon it.  You’re not going to feel sad if no one complimented you today.

You’re no longer dependant on what other people say.  You’re no longer a slave to other people hurting you and making you feel bad, or relying on an outsider to give value to your life.   You’re enough when you receive negative comments and you’re enough when you receive positive comments.   Repeat after me – ‘I’m enough’!   What an amazing place to be.  Thank you Rita, Oprah & Eckhart.  

A round up of November's best web articles and videos

10 immune boosting flu shot alternatives [From foodmatters.tv]
The late and early months of each year seem to be when more of us catch colds and come down with the flu. So what measures can you take to ensure you are not sidelined with nagging colds or a debilitating flu episode?
This article will give you nine easy tips, with probably the most important last. There you'll also be able to access a Health Ranger video with Mike Adams, which convincingly debunks the concept of "flu season".
Your immune system
Boosting your immunity is important for coping with the cold and flu season. Of course, getting a flu shot with dubious efficacy is not one of them. All vaccines depress the immune... Read more

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Happiness = 8 hugs a day.  Here's the science bit:

Paul Zak: Trust, morality - and oxytocin 1894 ratings 49,826 views

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Forget Antibiotics, Steroids and Medication - Starve This Toxin out of Your Body [By Dr. Mercola]
Illnesses caused by mold exposure are a growing problem that few people are aware of, including most primary care physicians.   Environmental health experts are seeing increasing numbers of individuals with a complex myriad of symptoms directly related to mold exposure.   This has resulted in the proposal of a new term to describe this multi-faceted syndrome: Mixed Mold Toxicosis.... Read more

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"What's the best way of communicating in the world today? Telegraph? No. Television? No. Telephone? No. Tell a woman".
Bunker Roy: Learning from a barefoot movement

1761 ratings

Why complementary medicine doesn’t stand up to conventional medicine (and why that’s a good thing).

One in ten people in the UK use complementary medicine each year and 50% of those are lifetime users, despite it receiving repeatedly bad press and coming under increasing pressure from European laws.

So why doesn’t it stand up?
When you look at the total effect of any intervention (treatment), be it conventional or complementary & alternative medicine (CAM), there are five aspects that contribute to recovery (the following model is based on research done on back pain over a period of six weeks).

1. Regression to mean. This is where the extreme cases, at either end of the pain scale, move towards the middle (mean) of the scale over time.  This accounts for around 10% of the intervention.
2. Natural history of the problem.  In the case of back pain, from your previous experience, if you give it a few weeks, it can get better regardless.  This counts as another 10% of the intervention.
3. Specific effects.  This is the actual treatment given, whether it be medication, remedial massage, ice etc.  It may surprise you to learn that this also counts for only 10% of the intervention.  Drug companies only have to prove 10% effectiveness of medication for it to be granted a license.   
4. Non-specific effects.  This includes your rapport with the practitioner, the ritual of the treatment given, the surroundings, if you got stuck in traffic on the way and your blood pressure shot up as a result of all the miles of cones on the motorway and not a blooming workman in sight!  Together with the context/meaning/placebo effects (see below), up to 70% of the intervention efficacy relies on these two factors!
5. Context/meaning/placebo effects.  We all know of the placebo effect, but it is often dismissed.   Placebo is actually a good thing, as it still helps, and clearly demonstrates the power (and importance) of the mind in healing the body.

CAM doesn’t stand up to conventional medicine in the way in which the specific effect (which only accounts for 10% of the intervention) is researched.   Conventional medicine takes a ‘reductionist’ view, isolating the symptoms and looking objectively rather than subjectively.  This is how statistics are produced (or skewed – but that’s a whole other story) to show that X drug is more effective than no drug, and it’s what double blind, randomised controlled trials were designed for.   It’s hard to do these trials when CAM is based on holism, i.e. looking at the whole person - what they’ve had for breakfast in relation to the discomfort they’re in now.  By it’s very nature it’s subjective: I’m yet to meet a human being that isn’t affected by the fabric of life.

Why is CAM so popular?
Where CAM does outshine conventional medicine is in the non-specific effects.   CAM practitioners stand out against GPs, consultants and other conventional medical professionals as they have the time to talk to people, listen, reach out and look at the whole person.  Their treatment rooms are generally less clinical (avoiding white-coat syndrome), you don’t have to wait for months for an appointment and you’re more likely to find, and deal with, the root cause of the issue.

Conventional medicine has only been around for the last 100 years or so, yet it’s grip on the western world is all pervading and mighty powerful.   So what we need is a new (or perhaps recycled) paradigm.  One where the effectiveness of the treatment is measured not by statistics but by the patients themselves, by case histories, by generational, traditional, tried and trusted methods, built on holism and the inter-connectedness of humans, animals, plants, the planet, the universe…  You get my drift. 

A Tough Month

The last month at Peak Wellbeing has been tough.  It’s no secret.  I had to ask Matt to leave after a series of incidents led to a loss of trust.   I’ve handled the situation as best I can.

I’m taking it easy over the summer to recuperate, heal and please myself.   I need time to decide the best way for me to go forward.   I’d like to write a health-e-newsletter for you all but it needs to come from a place in my head & heart that I just can’t get to right now.   You’ll know when I’ve been able to write it as it’ll land in your inboxes.

I’m seeing clients at the clinic for Asyra Health Screening (see offer below) and Aromatherapy Massage, and am doing a course on TFT Tapping next month (taught by the lady in the video - click the link to view), so will be able to help with trauma, fears, phobias and stress (it will be a great healing experience for me too!).

Thank you for all the lovely messages I've received, you're all invited in for a cuppa next time you’re passing by the door.

I’d also like to give special thanks to Wendy, who sadly I had to make redundant.  She has been an exemplary employee and become a wonderful friend.

A tribute to the Wonderful Wendy Woo,

Bringing light and love to everything you do,
I only had to ask,
And each and every task,
Was a delight and a pleasure to do,
‘Cause you’re the Wonderful Wendy Woo.

Top Tips for a Great Night's Sleep

1.    Blackout your bedroom
Make sure your bedroom is as dark as possible – Your delicate circadian rhythm needs darkness at night (and natural light during the day) and to operate at it’s best.   Use blackout blinds, heavy curtains and avoid things that glow (electrical equipment – see below) in your bedroom.  I also like to use an eye mask when necessary, which gives an extra layer of light protection.

2.    No electrical equipment
Bedrooms should be free from all electrical equipment including TVs, mobile phones etc.   All electrical equipment emits electromagnetic radiation that is harmful and can disrupt your sleep.  They also normally have at least one glowing light or digital clock that glows that lights up the room.   If you regularly fall asleep in bed with the TV on, move it out of your room.   At the very least, unplug it from the wall before going to sleep.  Use a battery powered alarm clock or if you use your mobile as your alarm (as I do), experiment to see if the alarm will still work when the phone is switched off.  If it’s a smart phone, switch it to ‘Airplane mode’ so it’s not sending a signal out through the night (though it will still emit electromagnetic radiation)

3.    Switch yourself off
Can’t stop thinking?  Thoughts running through your head?  There’s nothing worse than lying in bed thinking/worrying too much and not being able to drift off or waking in the night and not getting back to sleep again for what seems like hours.  I’ve got a few techniques up my sleeve for this, my favourites being

1. Essential oils - Everyone knows lavender essential oil in the bath before bed or on the pillow can help, but have you ever tried frankincense or valerian massaged into your feet?   These essential oils are grounding and balance out all the energy whizzing about in your head.  Putting them on your feet adds to the grounding effect, so that you can quieten down the ever-chattering internal voice.
2. Bach Flower Remedies - These work in much the same way as essential oils, in that they help to calm the mind.  You can get Rescue Night (or Healing Herbs’ ‘Rest’ – available at Peak Wellbeing) which is Rescue Remedy (5 Flower blend) with added White Chestnut, for ‘Unresolved, circling thoughts’.  A couple of squirts under your tongue will help to get you gently off to the land of Zzzzz.
3. Visualisation - I also like to visualise the energy/thoughts leaving my body.  I do this either by imagining the energy flowing down through my body and out the soles of my feet into the ground, where the Earth absorbs and takes it away, or with every out-breath, I visualise the thoughts leaving my body with the breath and dissipating into the atmosphere.   If I have a specific problem I need help with, to add an extra dimension, I visualise (on an in-breath if you like) the energy coming back to me through the night in a calming, positive way, enabling me to get a good night’s sleep, waking up with a new way of looking at things and hopefully a solution to the problem.

A combination of all these techniques will help to create the right atmosphere conducive to a good night’s sleep.  Of course it goes without saying that a healthy lifestyle also plays a big part.  Do you have any tools and techniques that help you get to sleep that you’d like to share on our Facebook page?

The Art of Vulnerability

What does it mean to be vulnerable? The dictionary defines it as ‘More or most likely to be exposed to the chance of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally;’ [Wiktionary.org].   It may be seen as a sign of weakness to be vulnerable, but according to Brene Brown’s recent TED talk (see below), without vulnerability, we are unable to experience joy, happiness and gratitude. 

Brene has been researching human connection for over a decade, looking at courage, authenticity, shame and vulnerability.   What she found is that the people who have a sense of worthiness, ‘A strong sense of love & belonging’, believe they are worthy.  Those who struggle to connect, to be good enough, believe they aren’t worthy.  Simples.

So what underlies this belief in worthiness?  She discovered these people have the courage to be seen as imperfect, the compassion to be kind to themselves first in order to be kind to others, and connection to others – they were able to let go of who they thought they should be, in order to just be them selves and connect authentically.

And what about vulnerability?  These people believe what makes them vulnerable, makes them beautiful.  They embrace their vulnerability.  They say ‘I love you’ first, they’re not afraid to try, or afraid of failing, they ‘breathe through waiting for the doctor to call after a mammogram’.   It’s not comfortable, nor excruciating, but it is necessary to feel vulnerable in order to feel the opposite – strength, resilience and self-assurance.

By denying vulnerability, by numbing unpleasant feelings with drugs, alcohol, food, you also reject the pleasant feelings - joy, excitement, satisfaction.  Beware the downward spiral of denying all feelings to avoid pain, eliminating the opportunities to feel good and opening yourself to love & laughter.   In the words of Jill Scott ‘Just because you have a nightmare, doesn’t mean you stop dreaming’.

So what makes you feel vulnerable?  Is it asking for help when you live on your own?   Initiating sex?   Talking about the passing of a loved one?
And what/how did you gain from expressing your vulnerability?  A new friend?  The most amazing sex ever?  The joy of a shared memory?   Share it on our Facebook page.  

TEDxHouston - Brené Brown

Weight Loss Myth No 2

Weight loss myth number 2
If you eat a diet low in fat, you’ll lose fat and won’t be overweight.  It’s an assumption we all make, and with the supermarket shelves piled high with ‘Low fat’, ‘light’ and ‘0%’, it’s easy to get drawn into the hype.
So what fuelled this paradigm?  It seems to make perfect sense until you realise that obesity and heart disease are on the increase, and this low fat diet we’ve been following for decades appears to be having the opposite effect.

It was in the seventies when the research was carried out claiming a high fat diet leads to coronary heart disease, hence the birth of the low-fat craze in the early eighties that has been with us ever since.  But this research was flawed, not analysed properly, and has led us all astray. 

The research was based on LDL (low density lipoproteins, aka ‘bad cholesterol’) levels in the body.   Here’s what it concludes:
In the mid seventies they discovered that dietary fat (A) raises LDL (B):
   A → B
In the late seventies it was found that LDL (B) levels correlated with cardiovascular disease (C):
   B → C
So therefore, dietary fat leads to heart disease:
   A → C
Right?  

Wrong.  Here’s why:
There are two types of LDL that can currently only be tested as one:

1. Pattern A, large, buoyant LDL that floats through the bloodstream and doesn’t stick to your arteries (neutral)
2. Pattern B, small, dense LDL, which starts the plaque formation that causes heart disease (bad).

You have to look at the ratio of HDL (high density lipoproteins) to triglycerides (other fatty substances) to determine if the LDL you have is bad or neutral – low triglycerides to high HDL is considered good, high triglycerides to low HDL is considered bad. 

So what causes these different types of LDL to rise?   Pattern A is affected dietary fat, pattern B is affected by carbohydrates. 

And then what happened?   The American government started a campaign to reduce the amount of fat in the diet from 40% to 30%, and in true British style, we followed.  And achieved it.   But by reducing the fat in food, you also reduce the flavour, and it becomes unpalatable.  So to make it taste nice (and therefore sellable), food manufacturers added sugar, and sweeteners.   And what’s sugar?  A carbohydrate. And what do carbohydrates do?  Increase the bad form of LDL.   So we were doubly duped!
Click here for my previous article on sugar.  Sweeteners are just as, if not more evil than sugar – don’t get me started on them!   

Now I’m not proposing you give up all carbohydrates and eat bacon for the rest of your days, it’s all about finding out what’s right for your body.  Listen to it, it will tell you.  Feel bloated after bread?   Don’t eat it.  Get heartburn after fatty food?  Stay off it.   These are just a couple of examples of your body telling you it doesn’t like what you’re giving it.  And then of course there are my general guidelines such as avoiding sugar, exercising, eating whole, unprocessed foods, lots of fruit and veg and being happy.   Simples.

Weight Loss Myth No 1.

Weight loss myth number 1

You’ve all heard it – to lose weight you need to burn more calories than you take in.   Sounds like simple maths to me.  But have you ever actually worked out what that means in real terms?

An average woman may eat 2000 calories (give or take) per day and weigh 10 stone.   If she were to run a mile in 10 minutes, she’d burn 106 calories (nearly 2 Oreo cookies’ worth).   At that rate, she’d have to run 20 miles per day to burn just 120 calories more than her daily intake (2120 calories in total).  That’s 3 hours and 20 minutes of running.  Who’s up for a marathon today then?!!!

So if that’s the case, what’s the point in exercising at all?   It does help you lose weight, just not in the way you may have thought.  As you exercise, your metabolism is increased (by improving your insulin sensitivity in your liver & skeletal muscles), and it’s this that helps you burn more energy, more efficiently.   An increase in insulin sensitivity also reduces the rate of diabetes, along with high blood pressure, heart disease and bone loss.

The best reason though, I think, for exercising is because it makes you feel good.    Those wonderful happy hormones, endorphins, are stimulated when you exercise, leading to a feeling of exhilaration and wellbeing.
It’s also a great stress buster.   I remember as a child watching people playing squash, and wondering why they hit the ball so hard and made such a noise!  Now I realise they were probably imagining the ball was their boss’ head…   Ever wondered why people pace the room or tap their fingers when they’re tense?   Movement helps to relieve the primitive ‘freeze’ response to stress, and not forgetting those happy hormones giving you an extra anti-stress boost.

Even a professional marathon runner wouldn’t run 20 miles every day, and look how skinny they are!  So how does it become achievable and sustainable in everyday life?   The current NHS “Recommended activity levels:

• Adults: 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity at least five days a week.
• Children: 60 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each day.
• Targets can be achieved with 10-minute bursts of activity spread throughout the day.”

‘Moderate-intensity’ exercise means getting a bit out of breath, so you feel that warm glow as the blood (and endorphins) pump through your body.   It’s the ten minute bursts that entice me, as it means I can do a spurt of vigorous vacuuming before work (the sooner it’s over and done with the better if you ask me), go for a quick power walk at lunch, and when I get home, I can dance to a few tracks via the Xbox Kinect.   Bob’s your uncle, 30 minutes of ‘moderate-intensity physical activity’ done.   It really helps your motivation to find something you enjoy doing, so you keep wanting to go back for more.  My favourites include dancing, walking and horse riding.  What are yours?