Category Archives: Lifestyle

WHERE WILDERNESS CREATES ABUNDANCE

One of the nicest thing in my life is my garden. I always had one, no matter where or how I lived; little tiny gardens in my window, a somewhat larger one on the balcony, or even a few different ones when I live in a house surrounded by land. When I feel depleted or exhausted I go into my garden to replenish; smell a flower or a herb, replant something, clear some weeds…having my hands touch the earth is soothing and healing. I can spend hours in my garden and I love all the scents!

For an outside garden I have found it takes 5 years to reach balance, that is when the garden has found its rhythm. Some plants have an affinity for each-other and thrive together – in my garden the most obvious at the moment are the different thymes that are so loved by the roses…I can feel their harmony.

Some plants just can’t stand each-other – lately it has been the rosemary and parsley – and need to be moved apart. Other plants are okay, but not happy and it takes me some time to realize that they need other neighbors. It also happens that plants shrivel up and die, very quickly, when they are not happy. When a new plant comes to my garden, I place it in different spots, with different “friends” to see where it is the happiest, it actually perks up when it hits the right spot. I tried, at one point, to plan my garden – to no avail. The plants, herbs and flowers were not always happy with my planning and I had to start moving things around a bit. This is why it takes time…plants live, breath and have different personalities; I’ve got the pushy roses, the shy ones and the very careful, sensitive ones. They are all roses but oh so different in character. I had a beautiful Aquilegia that just shriveled up and barely survived, so I moved her to the back-garden which is wilder and rougher…she has now become a huge family, lining the neighbors wall and thriving with high grasses, blackberries and nettels…she likes the wild life!

Most of my berries live in a totally wild area behind my house. It is a tiny jungle of currants, black and red, gooseberries and raspberries mixed up with a jumble of vague bushes. Each year they deliver such an abundance of fruit that it keeps us with jam and juice for the entire winter season. Once I tried “cleaning up” the jungle a bit, that year we had no berries… so I go with the flow and allow it to happen as it will. Sometimes the plants that arrive chez moi are hot-house bred and they almost always need to die the first season, no matter how diligently I try to nurse them, only to come back with a vengeance the year after. Some of the stuff in my garden just moved in by itself and stayed, chatting happily away with the neighbor.

We don’t create our gardens, we open a space where creation is allowed and then it happens. This is my best tip for stress-management :-)

THE MAGIC OF SCENTS

Ever since I can remember scents were always important; they would work on my imagination and carry me off. I never thought about it because it has always been such a vital part of who I am, but lately I have looked at what scents do to me. (Mind you, scents can even be smells or stinks…it doesn’t matter, I make no difference.)

When I think of scents, there is a whole world opening up in me; scents are the embodiment of history, every single story told and untold. They evoke mystery and adventure, they are the whiff of faraway lands, dreams and colors, displaying a whole array of emotions and music within. Scents are truly Grace.

I believe scents have not changed that much through history; lavender probably smells the same as it did centuries ago, so we might actually have the same experience now as was had then…scents span time. A story from the bible tells of Maria Magdalene rubbing Jesus’ feet with the oil of Spikenarde (Nardostachys jatamansi). I love that oil with its fresh, deep and musky scent. Knowing the properties of the oil (calming, grounding…) makes the story so much more interesting. I can rub my feet with Spikenarde and have the same experience 2000 yrs later – mind-boggling! Look at ancient poetry and you will find that the herbs, plants and oils haven’t changed. The poems speak of rose, jasmine, sandalwood, aloeswood, rosemary and thyme…

In the bible, poems and other written work through history we can find recipes for perfumes and scents that were used at the time. By recreating them we get an idea of the evolution of perfumery. Every century had its own “scent-fashion” and it has changed over time. Some of the perfumes, or scents, from ancient times would not be very popular today. At the time much of the known perfumes were connected to religious ceremony since scented matter oftentimes was costly and difficult to come by. By offering these expensive and evocative perfumes to the God(s), people hoped that the gods would be benevolent towards them.

The earliest perfumes were usually made from resins and woods, mixed into fat and then burned or anointed. Little by little, over time, the art of securing the evocative and fleeting scent of flowers was found and has been perfected ever since. Today lots of synthetics and alcohol is used in perfumes which somewhat takes away the “heady emotional reaction” to a scent, though the pleasure of it is always there. Everybody reacts on scents in some way, even anosmic people. Scents evoke memories, even long-buried ones, to be brought forth in vivid detail; matter might desist, but scents remain forever.

Babies given anti-obesity drugs in the womb – Telegraph

Babies given anti-obesity drugs in the womb – Telegraph.

Obesity has become a serious problem over the years. What is so surprising is that instead of “cleaning up” the food market and teaching people about healthy living, it seems all kinds of other measures are taken; this is only one of them. When it comes to smoking, drugs, medication and alcohol, large measures are taken to stop the population from using, but when it comes to food, nothing is done. What about setting restrictions on the food-industry, seeing as this is the largest part of the problem; all the sugars and unhealthy stuff that goes into pre-fabricated food…

What do you think about this?

HUMANITY

Uplifting, want to share this.

IS SUGAR TOXIC?

Is Sugar Toxic?.

I strongly recommend you to read this article.

CENTERED IN THE SELF

One of the most important things for balance in life is to be centered in the Self and this is not always an easy thing. From early  age we are conditioned to put others before ourselves and when we don’t we are called egoists. This has created tremendous amounts of guilt in most of us and guilt moves into anger and fear. The egoist approach awakens when we are not centered in our Self, when we constantly fear that we will not get what we need, then we will override both our Self and others to make sure that we are safe – or seen.

So what is being centered in the Self, and how do we stay centered? First of all it’s about self-respect and self-love; listening to our inner voice and the signals we send ourselves, not overriding our own will in favor of others. When we are aligned with ourselves, we will automatically align with those around us and all needs will be filled.

Centered in the Self is abut that; centered. In each and every situation we need to feel if this is right for us. Sometimes our reactions come from conditioning and they are recognizable by the accompanying feeling of guilt or grudge. Feelings move and are received on a subconscious level. We have all received something (be it thing or action) that was accompanied by guilt or grudge and we knew it. It made us feel uncomfortable and guilty, so the exchange became an exchange of guilt instead of something positive. Each time we do something from guilt or fear, the feelings transport themselves in the action, creating even more negative space.

When centered in the Self, we give with love and joy, transporting a sense of positivity, making us and the receiver feel good. When we are centered we give love and respect to others because this is what we carry within; We can never give that what we don’t have. Being centered means that we open up space around us which helps us to not get overwhelmed and exhausted. This same space automatically opens up to others as well. The conditioning of negative egoism makes us deny ourselves in favor of others, this means that others need to deny themselves in favor of us – or we would all be in a bad place. What is going on here is a complete denial of self-responsibility, leaving us depleted, helpless and scared.

Being centered in the Self is self-empowerment; from this place we are able and capable to do wonders – both to ourselves and those around us without being depleted or depleting others. Remember; “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and he’ll eat forever.” Now, this guy might not thank you, because he wanted the momentary fish to eat. But when he finds the self-empowerment of not being in need, he will be happy….and he’ll teach somebody else to fish.

It is not easy to step out of the vicious circle of guilt and fear, so deeply is it conditioned. The conditioning says that not catering to the needs of others is unloving, this is not true. Sometimes the greatest act of love is a kick in the behind.

KARMA

“What goes around,  comes around”. That would imply a circle of punishment or rewards for our action. If we behave badly, bad things happen to us and vice verse. I like the phrase, but I don’t believe in punishment and reward. The more time passes, and I look closely at the implications of my actions, I have come to realize it is the other way around; Karma is one of our keys to learning. Karma is not the response to our actions, it’s the trigger. When Karma happens to us it is because we attract it for our personal growth, and our reactions define who we are. Karma is constant.

Example: Late one night I was driving home on a deserted highway, when suddenly a young man was standing by the road. My first instinct was to pass him…you never know, right? But I stopped and picked him up. It turned out that his moped had run out of gas somewhere and he had been walking for 2 hours, trying to find a gas-station. I took him to a gas-station and he filled up a canister, but then he had no idea whatsoever of where his moped was, somewhere in a village. We drove around for more than an hour in a myriad of little villages until we found it. The boy was only 17 and going back home from his girlfriend’s house and he was totally lost. When he asked me why I had helped him and how he could repay me, I said: “Karma, one day you will do the same thing for somebody else and even if it takes 20 years, when it happens you will remember this”. And honestly, I felt sooo good about myself, I was purring like a cat, thinking; “oh yes, I got myself some good Karma there”.

Looking at this episode today I realize that Karma did not come to me from what I did; the boy was Karma – the choice of helping or not. The situation triggered something in me, defining who I chose to be at that moment. For the boy I was not Karma, the breaking down of the moped and finding himself abandoned in the night was his Karma – not for anything he had done before, but because he needed to learn something about himself.

Karma is there, around us, all the time; the chance to personal growth, it is up to us to choose it. And sometimes Karma comes and hits us so hard in the face, that we lose our breath, this is when a learning experience is absolutely necessary, not because of something we did, or did not, do. We will constantly attract Karma in different ways and the results of our actions is not Karma, it is what we learned from the Karmatic experience.

Massage reducing anxiety and improving alertness

Massage reducing anxiety and improving alertness

There are now a number of research papers demonstrating the beneficial effects of massage therapy in relation to the physiological and psycho-logical aspects of stress (see ALTERNATIVES in healthTM Vol 1;2 and Vol 1:5) and the latest controlled study conducted at the Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine, Florida, USA shows once again that massage therapy has an important role to play in the alleviation of stress and stress-induced illnesses.

In the study two times every week for five weeks, twenty-six adults were given a chair massage and twenty four adults were asked to relax in the massage chair for 15 minutes to be used as controls.

On the first and last days of the study all of the participants were monitored for EEG, before, during and after the sessions. In addition, before and after the sessions they performed math computations, they completed POMS Depression and State Anxiety Scales and they provided a saliva sample for cortisol.

At the beginning of the sessions they completed Life Events, Job Stress and Chronic POMS Depression Scales. The results revealed the following:

1. Frontal delta power increased for both groups, suggesting relaxation;

2. The massage group showed decreased frontal alpha and beta power (suggesting enhanced alertness); while the control group showed increased alpha and beta power;

3. The massage group showed in-creased speed and accuracy on math computations while the control group did not change;

4 Anxiety levels were lower following the massage but not the control sessions, although mood state was less depressed following both the massage and control sessions;

5. Salivary cortisol levels were lower following the massage but not the control sessions but only on the first day; and

6. At the end of the 5 week period, depression scores were lower for both groups but job stress score were lower only for the massage group.

This small-scale study suggests that massage therapy offers benefits in not just alleviating the physiological effects of anxiety, but also in improving mental alertness.

Field T; lronson G; Scafjdi F; Nawrocki T; Goncalves A; Burman I; Pickens J; Fox N; Schanberg 5; Kuhn C.Massage therapy reduces anxiety and enhances EEG pattern of alertness and math computations. mi Neurosci (ENGLAND) Sep 1996,86 (3-4) p197-205.

SENIORS & STRESS

Seniors are a growing but invisible group in society. More often than not do they come to the point of moving into a home where they can be properly looked after. This is an intensely stressful event. Some people choose to move into a home of their choice at the time of their choice, but they are few. Most seniors slide into a solitary life in their own homes until they can’t manage it anymore and then are moved to a senior home. At this point they often become confused, scared, depressed and angry.

From these negative feelings arise many problems; circulatory, emotional, sleep-disorders, appetite and digestion. Sometimes seniors deteriorate very quickly in a home; the older we get, the more loath we become to leave our familiar – and therefor safe – surroundings and when this safety is taken away the world falls apart. When there is also mental confusion, a move at this time in life can become a huge trauma.

AROMATHERAPY:

I have done some work in retirement homes using essential oils and the results are amazing! By using carefully blended oils in proper dosages a lot can be done. Together with massage they work wonders on stressed individuals. Massage can be as simple as stroking somebody’s hand, bringing peace to the person. There is no need for massage-training, all that is needed is care. Scents in diffusers also help with emotional balance and a stress-free environment.  Anxiety, fear, stress, confusion, depression, anger….all schoolbook examples on areas where essential oils are helpful.

  • Emotional disorders: Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia), Orange (Citrus sinensis), Geranium (Pelargonium graveolens), Frankincense (Boswellia carterii), Rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora), Petit grain (Citrus aurantium), Bergamott (Citrus bergamia), Ylang-ylang (Cananga odorata). When severe: Neroli (Citrus aurantium ssp. amara var pumilla), Rose (Rosa damascena), Melissa (Melissa officinalis).  Massage, diffusion.
  • Sleeping disorders: Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia), Bitter orange (Citrus aurantium), Ylang-ylang (Cananga odorata). Massage, diffusion.
  • Stimulating appetite: Lemon (Citrus limon), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Diffusion 20 min. before mealtimes.
  • Mental stimulation: Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia), Lemon (Citrus limon), Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), Peppermint (Mentha piperita)

Seniors are frail in many ways, not least physically. Always contact a professional aromatherapist before using essential oils.

ANIMAL INGREDIENTS IN SKIN CARE

I have written earlier about pig-fat in skin-care, also about mineral oil. Nowadays ingredients should always be labeled on the package, but this is not always the case. Of course, cheap ingredients – such as animal fats and mineral oil – are attractive to manufacturers as they give a larger profit / keeps the price down.  Alternatively, some ingredients from the animal kingdom can increase the price as these are the “unique specials” in the product. Here are some materials that can be found in skin-care – especially for aging skin.

  • Bovine colostrum: This is the first milk produced by mammals during late pregnancy, it is high in antibodies and proteins to protect the newborn baby. Bovine colostrum comes from cows.  Most calves are separated from their mothers at birth and are then fed the colostrum by bottle, the rest is used for other purposes.
  • Placenta: Proteins from the placenta is used in skin care products for aging skin; it is and are supposed to hydrate and tone the skin.
  • Sperm: Crystals are extracted from sperm and is said to be more active than vit. E to keep the skin healthy.
  • Allantoin: Is found in the urine from cows and mammals. It increases smoothness in the skin, is cell-regenerating and wound-healing. Natural allantoin can be found in Comfrey root (Symphytum officinale).
  • Hyaluronic acid: Is found in the umbilical cord and fluids around the joints; it is a protein that is used as an anti-wrinkle agent. Hyaluronic acid is also used as an injectable filler (Restylane & Juvederm)
  • Mink oil: Comes from the thick, fatty layer under the skin of the mink. The fat is removed from the pelt and made into oil. It is high in palmitoleic acid. Palmitoleic acid is present in humans but diminishes with age. Natural palmitoleic acid is found in Macadamia oil (Macadamia ternifolia) and Sea Buckthorn oil (Hippophae rhamnoides).

Then, of course, there are all the “flashy” stuff in high-end, ridiculously expensive creams: Caviar, Snake venom peptide, Oyster… But I’m not going there today.