Whole Living Today

I’ve almost finished reading the book Sixty Seconds, One moment changes everything, by Phil Bolsta. Phil sent a copy of his book for me to review. My final review will be coming shortly.

Phil’s book is a collection of inspirational, uplifting, heartfelt stories from prominent people who openly share intimate moments that have been a turning point in their lives.

If you are someone who has been following my posts, you know how important synchronicities are… to me or to spiritual growth.

Here’s my personal, intimate story from today…

My brother (my only sibling) had heart surgery a couple days ago. To get his heart back into rhythm. The rhythm didn’t happen. Another procedure (cardioversion - ”the process by which an abnormally fast heart rate or cardiac arrhythmia is terminated by the delivery of a therapeutic dose of electrical current to the heart at a specific moment in the cardiac cycle.”) was performed yesterday, twice. Didn’t take. Another one was scheduled for Monday.

Not his first. He just turned 45. At 20, my very fit, athletic brother developed an aneurysm on his aorta, right next to the heart. This part is a long story… he got flown to Houston; his aorta was replaced along with a heart valve. This was way back before technology developed to what it is today…

So, his heart keeps falling into fibrillation. The heart races, without a regular pattern as well.

After driving up to New Hampshire this morning and visiting with my brother for a while, I learned the ‘normal’ heart beats somewhere in the 70 beats per minute range. Athletes and yogis more in the mid to upper 50’s. His monitor showed between 110 & 124. And the pattern on the monitor looked more like someone was playing with an “etch-a-sketch,” there was no pattern to visualize.

Sitting in the visitor chair across from the bed, I started Reiki. My brother closed his eyes and just relaxed. Within 2 minutes the numbers on the monitor started dropping rapidly. When it hit 68 beats per minute I told him to look. It kept dropping… he smiled. The rhythm changed into a perfect pattern. We went to a 52 BPM and he experienced the meditative state.

We visited for hours, his heart stayed in rhythm, for the first time in a very long time.

Sounds like he’s being released tomorrow. Doesn’t need another cardioversion on Monday.

He wants to become Reiki certified. To help himself.

Before I left tonight he wanted to drop his heart beat back down to the 50’s, maybe to show my parents? maybe just because? It held it at a steady 54 before I said goodnight and I drove back home.

So, this is 60 seconds times 2.

We are living in such difficult times now, to have faith and hope in all that is good… is all that matters. 

With love & light,
~Tania

And I offer my sincerest thanks to my Reiki friends who sent distance healing to my brother last night. And the wonderful doctors and nurses at the New England Heart Institute.

“Even the most relaxed and mindful person can feel stressed by the demands of everyday life: work deadlines, family pressures, personal commitments, and unexpected crises that seem to arise inevitable at the worst possible times. One solution is to excuse yourself from as many responsibilities as possible for twenty-four hours. Call it a “mental health” day or a “time out.” Make sure you don’t waste this mini-break, however. Advance planning will help you get the most out of your brief escape from the pressures of modern life. Some suggestions:

• Seek and enjoy silence and solitude. Spend time in nature, sit in meditation, take a walk, or indulge in a sauna or hot tub soak [or bath]. Resist the telephone, computer, and TV.
• Give time to what you love most: family, spouse, a hobby, exercise, or anything that give you pleasure and feels neglected.
• Do one thing at a time, and give it your undivided attention. Multitasking makes it hard to enjoy any of the several activities you are juggling. It also tends to drain energy and increase stress.
• Avoid some decisions. Let others decide what to eat, where to go, and how to interact. This is particularly important for those of us who ordinarily make lots of decisions.
• Avoid clocks and do something that’s so absorbing that you lose track of time.
• If you can’t sit still, get rid of clutter. Extra and unwanted things take up space and absorb our energy because they take time to organize and maintain. You’ll feel lighter if you get rid of only ten things you know you are unlikely to ever use again.
• Make a list of what’s important to you, then reflect on how many of these things you are actually getting at present. If you want more of life’s rewards, zero in on ways to get them.”

From: Stillness: Daily Gifts of Solitude by Richard Mahler

Growing up, I always had water around me, whether is was a little stream in the woods, a crystal clear lake with a swamp off to one side, a river in the back yard, another stream through the woods and now, the ocean.

I would lose myself for hours in the magic and mystery of the woods and the little stream. I was always fascinated with the branches and logs that had fallen across the water, slowing the water enough so that leaves would get caught and pile up, creating a dam and stopping the flow. It’s still a vivid memory, the way the water changed when I removed the blocking branch. First the leaves would get carried away, the water would turn real murky as the new flow of water stirred up the accumulated debris, clear water gradually mixing in and washing the stagnancy away. The settled muck disbursed into the water, exposing the hidden sandy bottom. Crystal clear water flowing once more.

So is life. Blockages within our lives, bodies and environment create stagnant energy, blocking the flow of newness and clarity. Once these blockages are removed, fresh energy flows into our lives bringing with it new experiences and abundance.

“The underlying attraction of the movement of water and sand is biological. If we look more deeply we can see it as the basis of an abstract idea linking ourselves with the limitless mechanics of the universe.” ~ Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe

There are countless methods for releasing energy blocks in our bodies, environment and life. Anything that moves energy works. Journaling, yoga, qi gong, tai chi, energy work such as massage, Reiki, chakra work, or reflexology; a fast or detoxifying diet, feng shui, clearing clutter… 

Below are some posts I’ve run across on stagnant and negative energies. Take the time to read through these and let the crystal clear water flow into your life, allowing the murky waters to move on.

• The Emotional Cost of Clutter & Delete obstacles and welcome a rush of new opportunities from The Healthy Living Lounge
• What Can I Let Go Of Today? from The Beautiful Ego
• Releasing Negative Thoughtforms and Energy Blocks from Affirmations and Visualizations for Success

I started a new blog today, A Journey into Herbal & Natural Healing.

After some thought, I decided it would be better to post my herbal, nutritional and natural healing posts on a separate blog. It still needs some fine-tuning but it’s online.

 Please stop by, visit and let me know what you think.

Blessings,
~Tania 

“What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Many of our local weeds contain valuable healing properties. As the warmer weather approaches, weeds will be filling our gardens and as time permits, these same weeds will be pulled out and discarded (hopefully at least composted). This article will highlight some of the usefulness of our most common “weed”.

One of our most invasive garden weeds is the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). The common name is derived from the French “dent de lion” or lion’s teeth, because of the shape of its spiked leaves. As we all have have noticed, the dandelion is one of the first flowers to bloom in the spring and also lasts the longest into the fall season. Because of this long season, dandelions are an important source of food for the bees and honey production. The physical structure of the plant is interesting. Dandelion has a long central root (tap root) with its leaves arranged to catch water and direct it downwards to the root. Medicinal plants that have a long root system have the ability to pull valuable minerals and nutrients out of the soil and into the plant itself. The bright yellow of the flowers attract bees and just under the flower head are leaf-like petals (bracts) that help deter ants and other bugs from damaging the flower or acquiring the pollen and nectar. It’s also amazing to note that as wide-spread as dandelion is, the plant is not native to North America.

The first mention of the medicinal qualities of dandelion date back to Arabian physicians of the tenth and eleventh century. The genus name, Taraxacum, is derived from the Greek taraxos (disorder) and akos (remedy) due to the plant’s recognized healing actions. The species name, officinale, means, “used in the office or the workshop.” Both the roots and leaves are used medicinally.

Dandelion is most commonly used as a diuretic (increases the flow of urine), hence its English nickname of “pissabeds”. Medicinal plants contain a balance of properties and constituents whereas pharmaceuticals provide just the required chemicals to create the desired effect (and in many cases, side-effects). Pharmaceutical diuretics deplete the body of necessary minerals and nutrients, especially potassium. The dandelion plant is very high in potassium and other minerals so the body is not being robbed of vital nutrients when dandelion is used as a diuretic.

Dandelion is a very safe, valuable and useful plant with many medicinal uses. It is considered a tonic (tones the body), reduces water weight gain, a mild laxative, helps to eliminate toxins from the blood, promotes healthy digestion and will soothe an irritated stomach, acts as an anti-rheumatic, helps support the liver and kidneys, keeps the bowels in a healthy condition, stabilizes blood sugar, reduces blood pressure, has shown anti-tumor properties and clears the skin of impurities.

The milky juice from the stems and leaves acts as a fungicide and has antibacterial properties. The juice has been shown to be effective in the treatment of warts, corns, stings and blisters.

The dandelion plant contains one of the highest levels of vitamin A of all greens and also contains high concentrations of vitamin C, iron, calcium, potassium and electrolytes.

Although dandelion is considered a “bitter”, and it is bitter, acquiring a palate for the flavor is easy. The roots take on a kind-of nutty flavor when used as a tea. It is important to note that bitters provide their healing qualities from being bitter, they get the gastric juices flowing starting at the mouth downward. To provide the most benefit, herbs considered as bitters should not be sweetened or taken in capsule form.

The young leaves can be used as salad greens or cooked as you would spinach, the roasted roots as a healthy coffee substitute or raw as a tea. Dandelion root tea is made with one ounce of root to one pint of boiling water and steeped about 15 minutes. The flowers have been used throughout history to make dandelion wine, they can be stir-fried as an interesting and colorful change of vegetable or added raw to a salad. Dandelion flower tea with a little honey can provide relief for headaches, menstrual cramps, stomach aches and mild depression.

When collecting any wild plants, there are a few pointers to keep in mind. First and foremost, make sure you have positively identified the plant. A valuable reference for identification is a good field guide such as “A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants and Herbs of Eastern and Central North America” (Peterson Field Guides) by Steven Foster and James Duke. Do not collect plants from areas where fertilizers or pesticides have been applied and do not collect close to roadsides as car exhaust creates toxins in the plants.

This article may not help with your weeding woes, but hopefully you look upon dandelion a little differently now and maybe even give it a try for its health benefits.