MEDITATE. Do I Have To?

Truth 1:  not all things are for all people.

Truth 2: we are living in a very compressed world at the moment.  And as I've said in prior posts, our central nervous systems (CNS) are on overload (guaranteed).  Physiologically speaking, a taxed CNS means lower immunity, and a much higher susceptibility to disease.  Of course, one's mental health and overall well being is drastically effected, impacting one's personal life and work performance.  Personal and cultural interventions are required.

Meditation in the last 15-20 years has been the trending panacea for the ills of stress.  And I'd be the first one to promote it, (mostly) enjoying a 38 year meditation practice, having taught meditation and having had it at the center of my work with others for over two decades.  I've been around long enough to find, meditation (as we think of it, sitting on a cushion in a quiet room) definitely is not for everyone.  I wish it was.  But it's not.

So, let's think.  What does the CNS require to stay my body healthy during trying times?  What is it about meditation that covers this territory?  What are other options if meditation is not for me?

A little physiology lesson to start:  The CNS is made up of the SNS (Sympathetic Nervous System, "flight or fight" response") and the PNS (Parasympathetic Nervous System, "rest and relaxation" response).  Ideally, these are in harmonious relationship.  But, in today's world it's rare this is the case.  The SNS is on overdrive related to this earlier mentioned cultural compression most everyone is experiencing, added to the electromagnetic over stimulation of technology and media, added to the often poor food/fluid intake, laced with GMO, pesticides, overprocessing, toxic air and environment conditions etc, added to the high anxiety of family, neighborhood, community, country, world events.  And if you aren't experiencing any of these at the moment, just get in your car and go for a drive (all that stop and go and the traffic!) or open the paper and your SNS will do what it does, kick in.  It's on overdrive.  Believe me.  The PNS can't get an impulse in edgewise.  It doesn't have a chance.  Even the rest periods at night, we're still expected to have, are not restful.  Insomnia is a huge problem.  People today sleep 20% less than they did 100 years ago, more than 30% of the population suffers from insomnia, including 40% to 60% of people over the age of 60, 90% of people who suffer from depression also experience insomnia, and approximately 10 million people in the U.S. use prescription sleep aids.  We have a sleeping problem, we are not getting the rest we need.

Our relaxation is not relaxation in the least.  For many, it's vegging on the couch watching a movie.  Or hanging on Facebook for a few hours after work, playing phone games or obsessing over word puzzles.  This is just more electromagnetic stimulation and mental gymnastics.  We never stop going; and many of us wear this like a badge of honor. It's not.  It's distracting foolishness.  It's wearing our body's systems down, creating conditions for disease to move in.

So, back to what does the CNS require to stay my body healthy during trying times?  We need to give the SNS a break and allow the PNS to deploy.  Meditation is a wonderful groundwork for this.  It brings stillness to a series of moments.  Helps us see and experience the separation from the busy mind and other parts of myself.  It slows the SNS down and encourages the PNS to do its thing.  It's a great practice-- if you can do it.  If you can't, other tools must be used.

Rest and Relaxation can be found in a lot of places, meditation doesn't have a corner on the market here.  Playing is a supreme place for some r&r.  Playing for adults is very individual.  How do you have fun (good, clean fun not involving substances)?  Engaging in a creative process is not only fun, but often elicits a meditative response.  Again, this is very individual.  Creativity doesn't necessarily require art supplies.  It can be making a garden, re-thinking a use of an empty room, fooling around with a recorder (musical instrument or auditory machine).  Writing an entertaining letter (do people still write letters?), decorating a child's stool, even scrapbooking.  Six of the top 20 books selling on Amazon are adult coloring books.  Coloring is a great decompressor and it's immediate and they say, it's a contender with meditation for getting into that still, quiet place in oneself.  Pull out those watercolor pencils and go to town!  Let go of control and illusions of a perfect product, just enjoy your senses.  Explore. Risk. Fail. Triumph.

Handwork like knitting, crocheting, sewing and needlepoint are rhythmical and repetitive, hence meditative in nature.  They bring the energy down into the middle of myself (unless the patterns are tricky and require a lot of mental attention).

Exercise is the number 1 stress buster.  Catch two fish with one net (two benefits from one activity) and do QiGong, TaiChi or Yoga.  All 3 practices are meditative in nature, work with creating deep breath work (meditation!) in the movement sequences.  Imagination is key in especially yoga and Qigong.  Poses in yoga have imaginative names that inspire more of me to participate (i.e. Warrior I, Pigeon pose,  Downward Dog) and Qigong integrates imagery as part of layered sequences.  The third fish is they're all really fun to do, once you relax into it. These are "low impact" exercises, so your cardiologist and physical therapist will love you for doing them.  Swimming is low impact as well.  Doing laps gives you the opportunity to get into "the zone" (meditation!). Again, it's rhythmical and repetitive, it's exercise (!).  A lot of fish with one net.....

Many people say Great Nature is their church, their temple their 'resting' place.  If this is so for you, surround yourself with trees, get a fish tank or table-top water fall for the office.  Enter the magnificence that is nature.  If this is where you find your breath,  resonating with the slowness of the Mother in your midst, than here is where you must be a good deal of time. Not just weekends, not just holidays-- several days a week.  Nature's impact is fast, but its penetration is slow; unless you give yourself some generous time there.  Nature works in layers (like meditation).  But you have to give yourself time there.

Yes, giving oneself time.  This is the key in all these practices, including meditation. This is the obstacle.  All of these practices require a discipline, a commitment.  They require a shift in perspective.  Do you have to meditate? Shrugging off instituting a meditation practice because it's not your thing is one thing.  But we can't shrug off the connection that is inherently right in myself that I'm missing.  Choose your rest and relaxation path, your direction and embrace it.  Your health and well being depends upon it.

The Peace of Wild Things,  Wendell Berry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief.  I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light.  For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

Not Knowing

Before the longing to know in human nature, came the deep need to explore.  One only needs to look at babies and small children to recognize this.  A toddler will climb up and down stairs repeatedly to experience this interesting physical phenomenon.  Or adventure all sorts of objects into their mouths exploring the thing’s dimensions, as well as tastes and textures.  Once the newness of something is ‘known’, we move onto other adventures.  And so it goes.

As ego develops in human beings (thanks in part to all this acquiring of skills and knowing), the focus shifts from exploring to knowing.  The culture at large supports this.  The value of not knowing falls to the wayside.   What is the value of not knowing?

The knowing state is a static state (usually).  It tends to be fixed, inflexible, not expansive.  It also tends not to be open, is incurious and often prejudicial or biased.  One’s sense of identity (ego again) is often wrapped up nicely in what we know.  This is a comfortable place to be.  And the basic human/animal organism’s main thrust in life is to find and maintain comfort in all things.

So, what is the value of not knowing?

To the basic part of myself, not knowing is of no value, in fact should be avoided at all costs (even at the cost of ignorance or denial of not knowing).  Possibly why projection is such a powerful and forever present aspect of daily living.  We project onto others who we believe ourselves to be, who they are, our desires… everything.  Distortion is inevitable.  Our reality is of our own creation. This is a way of cementing our knowingness.  Projection, like ego and knowing is always with us.  An awareness and interest in how it is manifesting is to slip into the curious, requiring another type of attention.

To the other part of myself, the part or parts that have more possibilities, not knowing is of value.  This is the (more conscious?) part, the aspect of ourselves that separates from the enmeshment of engagement, that isn’t buried in the past or future.  It’s an acquired state, being in the unknown.  Outright uncomfortable, almost painful at times, not knowing throws out most of what I thought I knew and leaves me feeling stranded in an unfamiliar abyss.  Most of me fights hard to leave this disruptive place.  If I am lucky enough to gain some experience there, it becomes less and less awful the more I allow myself to experience it.  Something in me recognizes the value of that kind of bearing.

So, when I am in front of an octogenarian failing in memory or a three year old having a melt down, sometimes bearing witness, being with, is a more useful act than supposing the reason to the unreasonable behavior (and god help me, if I attempt to fix it).  I stand with them in not knowing.  I only know what is, right now.  And I am with them in that unknown place.  Wonder flows, tensions fall away.  We’re only human after all.

Spontaneous Meditation

We live in a world that is self-centric. Human propensity (and culturally condoned narcissistic tendencies) dictate the belief in individuality, promoting that each of us is the center of the universe. So, we have "my life.... my community.... my meditation practice", and so on.

Lately, I have had the sublime experience of frequent spontaneous meditations; a 'sitting' period in the middle of somewhere (not my usual morning cushion), at a time of day when I'm not used to partaking in this activity.  What has surfaced over these unusual (for me) occurrences, is the realization I take false ownership of this thing I call meditation, and how usually there is a lack of mutuality with the energies around me, the divine, the relationship with Other-- that which is unseen and largely unknown.

Meditation in the past has in good part been 'work', self-discipline, occasionally agonizing.  Someone in me often labels meditations as:  a "good" sitting, a "difficult" sitting and everything in-between.  Rarely, is this naming habit self-questioned, this attitude that marks my internal experiences noted.  So, to have these spontaneous occurrences of connection to more of myself and to that which is around me and the enjoyment of the movement of the accompanying energies inside and outside of me is surprising.  It's not work, it's not self-disciplined and it's definitely not agonizing.  It brings to me the question, what in me sits:  wants to sit, needs to sit?  This is a feeling, a sensation not a thought.  Is the value of it usually a mental exercise of what I think is good for me (and maybe the world outside of me)?  This experience of a spontaneous meditation, feels organic, natural, unforced, not premeditated (no pun intended).  It also has a quality of connection that isn't self-centric.  It's not for me, about me, nor is it mine.  It's an engagement of another order.

This is not to judge the decades of the other qualitative types of sittings I've known.  It's probable that one type of connecting to oneself builds on the other efforts made which prepares the ground for yet other types of self-relatedness to be in existence.  So all is good; no effort goes unwasted, as it is said.

Which brings me back to the notion of being and acting from value not obligation, discipline and duty.  The quality of the experience is enhanced with the former.  An opening transpires, curiosity and  interest carry me with a buoyancy.  One's sense of aliveness is palpable,  When I value and feel the worth of the Stop, the breath, the stillness, the what Is, my connection is very different.  I become relatable, the attention is softly acute.  It's a state somewhat removed from the ordinary, unattached to my usual human struggle.

Obligation, duty, discipline-- there is a place for them, in meditation and elsewhere.  As I am finding with many practices, even diet awareness and exercise, when I approach them with excitement and curiosity or engage out of enjoyment instead of duty something else happens besides the accomplishment of a healthy meal, an exercise routine done or a morning meditation completed.  An experience, often transcendent, occurs.  I have more Life.  I have an experience which is more connected to myself and more related to the subtle energies that surround me.

Virtual Bodywork (?!)

It is the 21st century.  I am finding through trial and error, exploration and surprise there is a practice which could be named Virtual Bodywork.

Merriam-Webster's definition of bodywork, in my estimation, is woefully vague and lacking:   "therapeutic touching or manipulation of the body by using specialized techniques."  My experience of what bodywork is, from both the giving and receiving point of view, is complex and layered.  It includes M-W's definition, but goes way beyond (see a more in-depth description in my post:Bodywork, Energy Medicine: Whole Healing).  Bodywork is an act of a layered, mutual listening between facilitator and client.  Intuition and all senses are engaged in an acute attention.  The relationship in the experience of bodywork is anchored in trust; it has to be, because what occurs is deep, intimate, and often edgy.  From both role's point of view (the facilitator and receiver), there is a heightened sense of the sublime in oneself:  the way energy is moving, expressing itself; and the subsequent following provides information to the now and what is present.  The facilitator is not only grounded in whatever skills he/she might have developed, but is also providing an attention (full-bodied listening capacity) and meta-witnessing skills that are flexible enough to go with the flow, often the unexpected.  Trust is implicit. Trust of one's knowing in a moment.  Trust in one's inclinations as they come (even if they seem cognitively bizarre in the moment).  Trust in other.  This happens for both parties.  Whereas there is room for wonder and question, there isn't room for insecurity and fear.  Easy to say, hard to Be.

Based on the decades I have done bodywork, I can say that communication between facilitator and receiver is not usually seated in verbalization.  Bodywork is, by nature, often nonverbal; and when it's not, the verbal communication is based in an energetic exchange and doesn't usually have a 'chatty' or talkative quality.  Good facilitators and open receivers who are experienced in this type of work don't have rigid agendas or hard and fast rules.  To get the most from the work both facilitator and receiver allow the "energy bath" of the work to wash over them without immediately interpreting, but just following.  We are curious energy detectives, following the small and large clues, making no immediate conclusions, allowing what is to Be. 

Some of my work with people necessitates the use of the internet, webcams and (virtual) software applications.  Up until recently I was using this technology primarily for wellness coaching, which works pretty well with clients whom are long distance.  Almost accidentally, as of late, I have begun using this technology to do a version of long-distance bodywork.  

Emotional Competence and Autoimmunity

In his illuminating book, When the Body Says No: Exploring the Stress-Disease Connection, Dr. Gabor Maté, introduces this interesting concept of emotional competence in relation to autoimmunity and stress-disease.  His clear and simply spoken statements of the workings of the psycho-immunology-endocrine system is refreshingly understandable and straight forward.  This book is definitely worth a read for a better understanding of the physiology of this system's relation to disease and the stress response.  Also, an additional bonus is his erudite position on the now-rampant autoimmune disorder problems that have evolved in western culture and their possible holistic management.

Such a great descriptive phrase:  emotional competence.  What does it mean?

Mate describes the four requirements for same being:

1. the capacity to feel our emotions, so that we are aware when we are experiencing stress.

2.  the ability to express our emotions effectively and thereby to assert our needs and to maintain the integrity of our emotional boundaries.

3.  the facility to distinguish between psychological reactions that are pertinent to the present situation and those that represent residue from the past.  What we want and demand from the world needs to conform to our present needs, not the unconscious, unsatisfied needs from childhood.  If distinctions between past and present blur, we will perceive loss or the threat of loss where none exists.  and

4.  the awareness of those genuine needs that do require satisfaction, rather than their repression for the sake of gaining the acceptance or approval of others.

Mate claims the absence of any one of these criteria, disrupts homeostasis, leading to ill health.

What are autoimmune disorders?  There are almost 200 identified autoimmune disorders ranging from mild to lethal.  Most people who have one, ultimately will have a few others in addition. The most familiar to the general population are:  Addison's disease, Grave's disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis,  Alopecia Areata, Aplastic Anemia, Cardiomyopathy, Celiac, Chron's, Fibromyalgia, Raynaud's, Psoriasis, Ulcerative Colitis, Schlerodema and Restless Leg Syndrome to name a few.  An autoimmune response is when the immune system recognizes healthy tissue or cells as invasive and attack, creating inflammation and damage to tissue/muscle/bone/organ.  It's an error message to our (psycho)immune (endocrine) system and it results in havoc to our health.  There are no exempt systems.  Mate suggests it's base is in emotional incompetence: learned, suppressed responses possibly believed to be needed for survival (especially at a young age) carried into adulthood as a habit leading to a physiological dysfunction.  Mixed messages swallowed, a turning away from one's truth in order to live.  Some examples of these emotional burdens are, "the (always) good/compliant/cooperative girl",  "the perfect son", the child never allowed to have or show anger for the convenience of the adult (avoidance of rejection).  A common mixed message is: "you can do anything in life you want to/you can't do anything in life you might want to, you're not good enough."  According to Mate, the messages are often subtle, insidious, originally related to survival, remaining long after survival is a moot issue.  They become a modus operandi, a way to live a life; hence the chronic dysfunction becomes embedded, ultimately becoming dis-ease.  The body becomes confused and attacks/eats away at itself.

Some reminders may be needed here before we erroneously jump to the conclusion that autoimmune disorders are purely psych/emotional based.  No disease has a single cause.  We are complex organisms influenced by DNA, social and environmental input.  All three aspects running amok creates a 'perfect storm', insuring disease outcomes.  As we don't have much influence over the DNA aspect, it is possible we can impact the social and environmental factors. 

Stress is a disturbance of the body's internal balance in response to perceived threat, including deprivation, a disruption of psychological harmony or emotional nourishment.  The word "healing" has an ancient derivation of the word "whole".  It's a phenomenon of finding balance and harmony.  Looking at disease as a cause-and-effect model of science is incomplete and erroneous, because it's not one cause, not one effect, but a myriad of influences on this sensitive and complex organism.  Perhaps viewing disrupted homeostasis or disease from a biopsychosocial model is a more whole approach.

Mate says: "Life is possible only within certain well-defined limits, internal or external.  We can no more survive, say high-sugar levels in our bloodstream than we can withstand high levels of radiation emanating from a nuclear explosion.  The role of self-regulation, whether emotional or physical, may be likened to that of a thermostat ensuring the temperature in a  home remains consistent despite the extremes of the weather conditions outside."  He goes on to say, "Children and infant animals have virtually no capacity for biological self-regulation; their internal biological states-- heart rates, hormone levels, nervous system activity-- depend completely on their relationships with caregiving grown-ups. Emotions such as love, fear or anger serve the needs of protecting the self while maintaining essential relationships.  Psychological stress is whatever threatens the young creature's perception of a safe relationship with the adults, because any disruption in the relationship will cause turbulence in the internal milieu."

We see the importance of the four foundations of wellness:  optimum nutrition, adequate rest, connection to the creative/divine, and exercise.  As I mentioned in my post Social Beings, nourishing social relationships should be part of these foundations.  Western culture at large is set up to be nuclear, stressing hyper-independence. In another scenario, family/dear friends are in possibly far-away places. A connection with those you love and whom love you is a marker to good health.  Conversations that make you feel connected, affirm you as valuable, that reinforce one's life purpose is an absolute requirement for keeping our psychosocialimmunity strong and intact.  The "error messages" received earlier in life, with awareness and courage can be healed working through a creative process, engaging in a healing with a bodywork practitioner or with traditional psychological professionals.  But the day to day love connections we have is what sustains us, even can correct that which has been undermining both in our past indoctrinations and our health.

The pursuit of self awareness, self care and a more mindful approach to the daily details of our lives positions us in a place of availability.  Availability in recognizing patterns that serve and don't serve us and a prayer of a chance of healing the patterns that work against our wellness and wholeness.  Emotional competence may not be a (present) given, but it can be earned and developed.

The Detox Dance

It's that time of year again; the time to cleanse, reinvigorate and renew.

Doing cleanses and detoxes through juicing or fasting has become almost common place.  When I started biannual cleanses back in the 90's, it wasn't usual with many people.  Back then, I was dealing with a serious healing crisis, and with the support of a wonderful naturopath went through a 6 month healing that involved several detox cleanses, hydrocolonic therapy, white light therapy and vitamin/mineral therapy. It was intense, expensive and totally worth it.  I completely healed without invasive procedures.  It actually changed my life and put me on the course I presently pursue.

So, why should people periodically detox (if you aren't contending with a healing crisis)?  And what is the best way to do it?

Our human propensity is grounded in habit; the good, the bad, the ugly and beautiful.  We are routine and habit oriented.  Never changing up the way we eat and behave creates a static energy field, and this most often leads to dis-ease.  As I've said in several posts,  we live in a vessel that is constantly working for us, often taxed and on overdrive.  The heart never stops beating, the lymphatic, circulatory and gastrointestinal systems similarly are always at work.  To give them a rest, a break from dealing with breaking down fats and sugars is a way to renew their function.  This sort of change, reinvigorates our metabolism, allows the systems to relinquish stored toxins, provides our spiritual self new impressions and jump starts a heightened awareness, hopefully offsetting the need to ever have to manage a healing crisis.  Cleansing rejuvenates and reinvigorates and is fully sympathetic with the Spring and Autumn seasons.

To the question, what is the best way to do it, well, there are many, many ways.  Back in the '90's it tended to be "hard core".  Juicing juicing juicing.  Water water water.  No morsel of anything with non-liquid texture touched one's lips for 16-30 days.  Kind of rough and kind of exhilarating.  Today, there are all sorts of products and ways to approach it.  What I initially counsel to others and take into account for myself is, who am I right now?  What can I manage?  What is feasible within a budget, and where is my spirit in relation to the endeavor of this type of renewal?

For those going through a healing crisis, jumping into a very intense period of fasting/juicing may not be ideal.  It may be necessary to build the body up first, get the liver filtering optimally before one undertakes a detox.  This requires guidance and support and one should get this from a trusted healthcare partner.

There are a few circumstances to consider when undertaking a detox:  avoiding free-radical conditions and constipation.

Free radicals are molecules with unpaired electrons. In their quest to find another electron, they are very reactive and cause damage to surrounding molecules.  In detoxing, it's important to continue to nourish the body while avoiding a starvation situation.  As soon as the body senses it isn't getting nourished, it goes into lock down to avoid what it perceives as starving/imminent death, releasing an onslaught of free radicals into the blood stream. Free radicals are everywhere, in the air, our bodies, and the materials around us. They cause cellular and molecular deterioration causing age-related illnesses, and are unwanted contributors to heart attacks, stroke and cancers.

Constipation happens when fiber is eliminated from the diet, circumstances which are prime when one is exclusively juicing.  To offset this, maximum hydration is required and use of hydrocolon therapy (colonics) and or use of natural products like psyllium (natural bulk laxative).  Work with a professional to consider the best options for you.

One of the interesting things about cleansing is watching how you handle the stages.  Initially, there can be irritability, headaches, low energy. As the cleanse progresses, it's not uncommon to feel an incredible inner and outer lightness and high energy.  Part of detoxing is listening to the body and providing. If you need to rest or sleep, make the time.  The commitment to the process is an exemplary effort of caring for oneself.  All the time cutting the vegetables, preparing the broths, cleaning the juicer parts.  It's a big investment of time, energy, mental focus/planning and money. It's beautiful when the commitment is strong in oneself; a true sense of self worth and love to oneself is experienced (even if there are periods of grousing about the time consumption!).  Recommitting to one's prayer or meditation practice helps deepen the cleanse experience.  It brings fortitude and a certain internal power and verticality that can offset the challenges and heighten the satisfaction.

photo credit: Lalu Danzker

Ways to approach a detox:

One can gradually move into it, eliminating a meal a day, replacing with juicing and gradually eliminating 2 meals and finally 3.  Have a plan or protocol for yourself, a structure and a way you will emotionally, spiritually and physically approach the effort.  Get some help and support for the plan by a healthcare partner.

Be careful what you juice.  Vegetables should be your primary source of nutrition with inclusion of few fruits.  For those with a big sweet tooth, you will be tempted to do a lot of fruit juicing.  Minimize this.  Also, even if vegetables are your main source of juice, one's stomach lining can get irritated.  Balance the juicing with alkaline broth.  One glass of broth accompanying a glass of fresh juice usually offsets stomach aches.  Alkaline broth can be made with vegetable scraps.  Potato skins, beet tops, spinach/chard stalks, etc.  Avoid salting the broth or using veg high in sodium, like onions.  Add lots of fresh herbs to make it tasty.  You can make a pot-full and strain it into glass containers (old peanut butter jars) for the week.  Try not to drink it cold; the juice tends to be cold and you want to offset the temperature with other.  We are particularly sensitive to "cold" foods when fasting, why we undertake it in the spring, not the winter.  You don't want the intestines to seize up but accept what is received graciously; so warm the broth when possible, drink a lot of herb tea like nettle and hawthorne.

photo credit: Lee van Laer

Go all organic, go seasonal.  You will be tempted to do cantaloupe and watermelon; they're big, you get  a lot of juice at one time, they taste great. But they're not seasonal in April and May (at least not in the northeast).  Tip your hat to disappearing winter and juice a lot of root vegetables in the spring (beets, parsnips, carrots, etc) adding in "new" spring greens like spinach, dandelion, chard.  This is an opportunity to fall in love with bitter greens like arugula; so tangy and delicious.  Organic is a no- brainer even if it's pricey.  The whole idea of a detox is to detox.  You don't want to put into your body low grade foods, taxing your cleanup process with pesticides and unfriendly microbes.  We are trying to decrease and neutralize inflammatory processes, bring more alkaline (vs acidic foods) into the system.  We need high quality vegetables and fruits.  Again, go organic.

For some, it is too stressful not to be able to masticate every day.  Foodies need texture.  Hence, exclusively juicing may not be possible.  There are many good products on the market that provide shakes, even bars to chew on while doing a cleanse.  This process is about wakening to oneself, where one is in the now.  We aren't trying to be perfect or hyper disciplined.  The "discipline" comes from the interest in the process.  If we've committed to eliminating food-food for a period there are going to be challenges.  If you have to masticate something, and there is too much tension and effort around the cleansing commitment, eat something.  If possible make it whole: carrot  or celery sticks, cucumber slices.  Don't complex carb-out with bread or junk. Sometimes a thin soup with vegetable nips the hankering.  Eat a piece of fruit.  Try to stay in the parameter of the things you are juicing (dandelion green salad with a few drops of olive oil and spray of lemon).  There is no guilt or forgiveness necessary.  Take care of yourself.  One of the signs that it's time to move out of the fast is the amount of daydreaming and planning one begins to do in relation to food.  If you find yourself thinking for inordinate amounts of time about what you're first meal is going to be, writing lists of menus for the first week back--- it's time to start shifting out of a cleanse.  When one begins to feel deprived, or is experiencing scarcity in relation to food, this is another cue it's time to back into a more normal dietary pattern.  Denial is not a great place on any level to live.  It undermines what efforts you've made thus far and puts future detoxes at risk.

When we detox, we aren't just eliminating through our gastrointestinal system, but through our skin and respiration as well.  Doing Ayurvedic skin brushing with a medium coarse, dry loofah sponge or brush prior to showering helps this process by stimulating lymph and circulation.  Brush the limbs and the torso several times always toward the heart. Do this before showering.  Finish the shower with a cool rinse.  Do exceptionally good mouth care.  Brush, waterpik, floss, tongue brush, mouthwash; the whole kit-n-caboodle.  Halitosis or bad breath is common during the detoxing period.  As you clean your body, clean your mouth:  with intention and excellence.  In all of this, you'll feel like a million bucks.

Back out of your cleanse the way you went into it:  gradually.  Eat small amounts of complex carbs (1/4 cup cooked per day) after a few days add in some dairy (preferably yogurt). You don't want to shock your sensitized system by going from nothing to a full fledged meal.  By the end of a fast, time has become slower, impressions are received in a much more sublime and quiet way.  Appreciate this.  Take stock in the detox dance you completed.

Human Duality

We have this miraculous organism, a vessel from which we move and act from.  An aspect of this organism is purely autonomic and mechanical; another aspect of us has the possibility of conscious creativity.  How do we reconcile these aspects?  Give each aspect its due?  Find a relationship, understanding and acceptance between these two vital aspects of our human experience?

The Autonomic/Automatic/Mechanical
This is the part which we most often abhor; we don't like the way it looks, resent its sometime mis-workings, and ignore/disregard its incredible capacity.  The eyes dilate and moisten according to circumstantial conditions or the light present.  The heart and all the related nerve and electric impulses, pumps away circulating life's blood and oxygen through our system.  The lungs working in concert with the heart expanding and contracting, filtering oxygen, releasing carbon dioxide just the amount required for optimal function.  Our many yards of gut move (again in gorgeous relationship with nerve impulses) through our torso, breaking down food in regular, specific steps, absorbing and distilling what's needed at each step and allowing the waste to move on and out.  Our sensitive, under the radar thermostats know when to subtly sweat to cool us down and do so beautifully.  Our hearing capacities modulate incoming sound through its interesting internal shape and form, allowing for further interpretation to the rest of us through facile and lightning fast neurotransmission.  

Our body's fascia, ligaments and musculature along with the nervous system responds most often accurately and with incredible swiftness to the subtlest of stimulations.  These are just some of the miracles of everyday functioning in our bodies, going on almost entirely without any thought or intention on our parts.  Purely mechanical. Purely automatic.  We almost always have no say in its workings, and even with directed thought, impact it marginally.  This autonomic functioning happens every second, every minute and hour of every day we live.  If it wasn't healthy, there would be no life, no being in this human form.  There would be no possibility of the other aspect of ourselves, the creative consciousness, to be.  This other part of us could not exist without this mechanical part working well.  Both aspects have to be related to know a full life, to pursue a purpose.


The conscious, spiritual, creative part:  the Part with the possibility of Choice.
This is the part we also can (and do) largely ignore.  Something in us aches when it's not in play, feels alone, even abandoned when not regularly engaged.  It's opaque, almost hidden or its invisible nature is easy to miss, not pay attention to, relinquish for long periods of time when we (or ego) are on autopilot. For those of us who invest considerable time and effort in revealing and nourishing this often mysterious aspect through contemplative practices, we tend to put this amazing part on a pedestal, believing it is the end all.  Whereas, the sometimes sublime experience of this in self and in community is compelling and can create a vertical experience in what usually is a linear life, unless one lives in a hermitage on top of a high mountain, trying to live from that place is not realistic and actually not desirable for the daily human experience.  It is the actualization through movement between these two parts that make life interesting and provide the large framework from which a meaningful life is possible.

One part has delineated form.  The other is without form or measure.  Both are essential to an existence.   Depending on your indoctrinations, we spend a lifetime struggling with that which is weakest in us or succumbing to that which is well settled in us.  We do this repeatedly for decades, often way past the stage of it being static.  We spend a lifetime knowing and building up further our strengths, be it the creative life or the logical, way of reason.  Rarely do we stand between what we know and what we don't know, without prejudice or reaction, and have that experience.  Our incredible human duality.

Back to the questions:  How do we reconcile these aspects?  Give each aspect its due?  Find a relationship, understanding and acceptance between these two vital aspects of our human experience?

It would be so easy to be Cartesian and rely on old adages like, "if you don't have your health, you don't have anything."  Health is reliant on each aspect being functional and well.  A troubled spirit impacts the body and mind.  A troubled body and mind impacts the spirit.  We are designed to be in concert in our Whole. Finding one's own deep appreciation, even a love for both the automatic and the conscious creative may be required.  With appreciation and respect comes an interest and curiosity and perhaps eventually a tenacious unwillingness not to be in regard of the other.  Our life long, well fueled natural propensities may release their grip on us, the enamor not as strong as in earlier decades.  Vulnerability fears flatten, don't have the depth or width they used to have, leaving an opening for other more lively questions or findings.

Magnesium: The “Original Chill Pill”

A young friend of mine last year had a trauma in a foreign country.  She was treated with magnesium (not a sedative, anxiety or muscle relaxant prescription – standard of care in the US) to help calm her shaken self and bring her emotional state back to homeostasis.  Using magnesium for this purpose is not standard of care in this country--- maybe it should be.

Physiology:  The effect on the body and mind

Magnesium helps maintains nerve and muscle function (including the heart), maintains endocrine function (immune health) and keeps our bones strong.  It also aids in regulating our blood glucose levels and the subsequent production of energy.  99% of our magnesium is located in bone, muscles and soft tissue.  It is a Cofactor for over 300 enzymes, oxidizes fatty acids, activates amino acids, synthesizes and breakdowns DNA. In the brain it is key in neurotransmission.  Magnesium is essential for other minerals to be effective, such as calcium, potassium, phosphorous and vitamin B.

Magnesium deficiencies are related to anxiety and depression.  Deficits in magnesium increase physiological stress and stress reduces magnesium; a lose-lose cycle. Magnesium impacts each biological action related to depression, which is linked to systemic inflammation.  Magnesium repletion can be instrumental in reversing irritability, depression, headaches and moodiness.

An insufficient Magnesium level effects other mineral levels in the body.  Without magnesium, calcium cannot be properly used or absorbed by the body. (Read more about how calcium and magnesium work together.)  

Magnesium Requirements

•   14 - 18 years old (boys): 410 mg

•   14 - 18 years old (girls): 360 mg

Adult females: 310 - 320 mg

•   Pregnancy: 350 - 400 mg

•   Breastfeeding women: 310 - 360 mg

Adult males: 400 - 420 mg*

Magnesium’s action

Magnesium acts on the hormonal axis and aids in regulating the stress response in the central nervous system.  It can suppress the release of cortisol and ACTH.  It also acts on the blood brain barrier, preventing stress hormones into the brain.  Hence, it has been called “the original chill pill.”

photo credit:  Lalu  Danzker

Food/Supplement Resources

Most dietary magnesium comes from vegetables, such as dark green, leafy vegetables. Other foods that are good sources of magnesium:

•   Fruits or vegetables (bananas, dried apricots, and avocados)

•   Nuts (almonds and cashews)

•   Peas and beans (legumes), seeds

•   Soy products (soy flour and tofu)

 Whole grains (brown rice and millet)**

Foods grown under industrialized farming conditions are typically grown in depleted or chemical-fertilized soil, further decreasing micronutrients, vitamins and minerals in the foods we ingest.  It’s imperative to have ideal agricultural conditions when trying to get your vitamins from food: organic whenever possible.

Soaking in an Epsom salt bath is another way of absorbing magnesium.  When taking supplements, enteric-coated magnesium supplements are not as effective as non-enteric coated pills; they absorb 67% less effectively.  I use drops.  Two squirts in 3 oz of cranberry or sour cherry juice (low sugar, vitamin rich) makes the mineral taste bearable going down.

How do we deplete Magnesium further from the foods we eat?

•           Dry roasting nuts removes the highly nutritious oils, which contain magnesium.

•           Milling flour from grains strips magnesium from the grain.

•           Sugar in anything uses up magnesium.

•           Fluoridated, softened, and distilled water depletes magnesium.

•           Carbonated beverages and some processed foods, like lunchmeat, contain phosphates that bind to magnesium molecules and flush it out of the body.

•           Alcohol blocks magnesium, especially if you have three or more drinks a day.

•           Coffee works like a diuretic to flush magnesium from of the body.

•           Some foods—like raw or roasted nuts and seeds, soybeans, spinach, and chard—contain compounds called phytic acid and oxalic acid, which can cause magnesium to be eliminated from the body.

According to the Physician’s Desk Reference, these common drugs can create a magnesium deficiency:

•   Common diuretics and cardiac drugs

•   Birth control pills

•   Insulin

•   Digitalis

•   Antibiotics

•   Cortisone

•   Antacids***

In these winter months, when we all are more susceptible to lower immunity and may be struggling with altered moods, consider upping your magnesium intake, “the original chill pill.”  60% of us lack this important component in our diets.  For optimal physiology function and well being, increasing our leafy vegetable intake and taking a supplement gives us the best chance of getting the Magnesium our bodies require.

*http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002423.htm

**http://www.jigsawhealth.com/resources/magnesium-mineral-deficiency

***http://blog.wellnessfx.com/2013/07/31/three-main-causes-of-magnesium-deficiency-part-2/