• The Healing Power of Food
• Everything You Need to Know About Vitamin D
• Earth is Your Sweet Spot 

The Healing Power of Food 

I was a junk food junkie. As a kid I lived on cold hot dogs, bologna, white bread, and candy (lots and lots of candy!).  And I know that the subsequent health challenges I have had to deal with stem from the poor eating habits of those early years. Thankfully I now know how important the foods we eat are to the body's ability to heal and maintain good health...and that we truly "are what we eat!"  

Many years ago a naturopathic physican gave me some great advice that has helped me to make better food choices:  "before you eat or drink anything ask yourself this question: is this going to make me stronger, or make me weaker?"  When you make the choice to nurture your body by providing it with nutritious foods, you will likely be the recipient of better health! And when you continually choose foods that weaken the body, such as fatty, processed, high sodium, sugary foods, don't be surprised if your health suffers as a result.

I can't tell you that all of the benefits of each food listed below is supported by scientific fact...but I can tell you that eating these healthy, nutritious foods has dramatically improved my pesonal health and sense of well-being, and I believe is the key to your good health, too!  ~ Andrea Chervenak

Apples	Protects your heart  prevents constipation  Blocks diarrhea  Improves lung capacity  Cushions joints
Apricots	Combats cancer  Controls blood pressure  Saves your eyesight  Shields against Alzheimer's  Slows aging process
Artichokes	Aids digestion  Lowers cholesterol  Protects your heart  Stabilizes blood sugar  Guards against liver disease
Avocados	Battles diabetes  Lowers cholesterol  Helps stops strokes  Controls blood pressure  Smooth's skin
Bananas	Protects your heart  Quiets a cough  Strengthens bones  Controls blood pressure  Blocks diarrhea
Beans	Prevents constipation  Helps hemorrhoids  Lowers cholesterol  Combats cancer  Stabilizes blood sugar
Beets	Controls blood pressure  Combats cancer  Strengthens bones  Protects your heart  Aids weight loss
Blueberries	Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Stabilizes blood sugar  Boosts memory  Prevents constipation
Broccoli	Strengthens bones  Saves eyesight  Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Controls blood pressure
Cabbage	Combats cancer  Prevents constipation  Promotes weight loss  Protects your heart  Helps hemorrhoids
Cantaloupe	Saves eyesight  Controls blood pressure  Lowers cholesterol  Combats cancer  Supports immune system
Carrots	Saves eyesight  Protects your heart  Prevents constipation  Combats cancer  Promotes weight loss
Cauliflower	Protects against Prostate and  Breast Cancer  Strengthens bones  Banishes bruises  Guards against heart disease
Cherries	Protects your heart  Combats Cancer  Ends insomnia  Slows aging process  Shields against  Alzheimer's  disease
Chestnuts	Promotes weight loss  Protects your heart  Lowers cholesterol  Combats Cancer  Controls blood pressure
Chili peppers	Aids digestion  Soothes sore throat  Clears sinuses  Combats Cancer  Boosts immune system
Figs	Promotes weight loss  Helps stops strokes  Lowers cholesterol  Combats Cancer  Controls blood pressure
Fish	Protects your heart  Boosts memory  Protects your heart  Combats Cancer  Supports immune system
Flax	Aids digestion  Battles diabetes  Protects your heart  Improves mental health  Boosts immune system
Garlic	Lowers cholesterol  Controls blood pressure  Combats cancer  kills bacteria  Fights fungus
Grapefruit	Protects against heart attacks & strokes  Promotes Weight loss  Combats Prostate Cancer  Lowers cholesterol
Grapes	Saves eyesight  Conquers kidney stones  Combats cancer  Enhances blood flow  Protects your heart
Green tea	Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Helps stops strokes  Promotes Weight loss  Kills bacteria
Honey	Heals wounds  Aids digestion  Guards against ulcers  Increases energy  Fights allergies
Lemons	Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Controls blood pressure  smoothes skin  Stops scurvy
Limes	Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Controls blood pressure  smoothes skin  Stops scurvy
Mangos	Combats cancer  Boosts memory  Regulates thyroid  Aids digestion  Shields against  Alzheimer's
Mushrooms	Controls blood pressure  Lowers cholesterol  Kills bacteria  Combats cancer  Strengthens bones
Oats	Lowers cholesterol  Combats cancer  Battles diabetes  prevents constipation  smooth's skin
Olive oil	Protects your heart  Promotes Weight loss  Combats cancer  Battles diabetes  smooth's skin
Onions	Reduce risk of heart attack  Combats cancer  Kills bacteria  Lowers cholesterol  Fights fungus
Oranges	Supports immune systems  Combats cancer  Protects your heart  Straightens respiration
Peaches	Prevents constipation  Combats cancer  Helps stops strokes  aids digestion  Helps hemorrhoids
Peanuts	Protects against heart disease  Promotes Weight loss  Combats Prostate Cancer  Lowers cholesterol
Pineapple	Strengthens bones  Relieves colds  Aids digestion  Dissolves warts  Blocks diarrhea
Prunes	Slows aging process  prevents constipation  boosts memory  Lowers cholesterol  Protects against heart disease
Rice	Protects your heart  Battles diabetes  Conquers kidney stones  Combats cancer  Helps stops strokes
Strawberries	Combats cancer  Protects your heart  boosts memory  Calms stress
Sweet potatoes	Saves your eyesight  Lifts mood  Combats cancer  Strengthens bones
Tomatoes	Protects prostate  Combats cancer  Lowers cholesterol  Protects your heart
Walnuts	Lowers cholesterol  Combats cancer  boosts memory  Lifts mood  Protects against heart disease
Water	Promotes Weight loss  Combats cancer  Conquers kidney stones  smooth's skin
Watermelon	Protects prostate  Promotes Weight loss  Lowers cholesterol  Helps stops strokes  Controls blood pressure
Wheat germ	Combats Colon Cancer  prevents constipation  Lowers cholesterol  Helps stops strokes  improves digestion
Wheat bran	Combats Colon Cancer  prevents constipation  Lowers cholesterol  Helps stops strokes  improves digestion
Yogurt	Guards against ulcers  Strengthens bones  Lowers cholesterol  Supports immune systems  Aids digestion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  
   
  

 

 

 

 

 
   
    
 

 

 

 

 

 

  
   
    
   
  
  
  
 

 

 
 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everything You Need To Know About Vitamin D 

by Art Bartunek, founder of BCN (Beachwwod Canyon Naturally)

 Everyone is Talking About Vitamin D, But Few Are Telling You Anything Useful!

Vitamin D has been getting plenty of press lately, and it seems like everyone’s talking about the amazing benefits of this “sunshine vitamin.” And D is truly wonderful for your health. Obtaining adequate amounts on a regular basis can help you fight fatigue, normalize several hormones, and help to protect you from the onset of cancer, diabetes, dementia, hypertension, osteoporosis, depression, and even more!

But even though the benefits of D are clear, confusion still surrounds current guidelines on how much D you should take, and what healthy blood levels are.

BCN has done the homework for you! This article will give you the straight facts about how much D you need to enjoy the very real health benefits of this amazing vitamin.

D is Essential to Staying Fit and Active from infancy to Feisty Nonagenarians
(That’s people who have lived 90 to 100 years!)

D is important to everyone, boomers and youngsters alike, to help maintain physical function. Low levels of vitamin D are linked to being weaker and fatter, in young people as well as in older adults. Whether this linkage is causative (low vitamin D causes weak muscles and weight gain), or a sign of overall poor nutrition is not yet established, but we know that our muscles have many vitamin D receptors, and low vitamin D status in older people is associated with higher rates of falling. On the other hand, supplementation of vitamin D3 with young, healthy Asian Indian volunteers, males and females between 25 and 36 years old, who started with low Vitamin D blood levels and received supplemental D for 6 months, resulted in enhanced skeletal muscle strength and physical performance. So we know from current research that vitamin D makes a real difference here.

Another recent human study out of McGill University undeniably showed that Vitamin D insufficiency is associated with increased levels of body fat and decreased muscle strength in young women. Out of the 90 young women and teenagers examined in the study, the subjects with the lowest blood levels of D also had the most fat in their muscles. They also had more abdominal fat then those with proper blood levels of D. (What’s also surprising about this study is that over half the girls had insufficient blood levels of D, although it took place in southern California. One in four even had serious deficiencies, despite their sunny location!)

A study done at Wake Forest University looked at the relationship between blood levels of D and physical function among older adults. 2,800 adults with an average age of 75 were examined, and those who had the highest serum levels of D were also those that were the best able walk quickly, keep their balance, and perform other physical activities well. However, 90% of those who performed the worst were found to be insufficient or deficient in vitamin D. The findings were said to be the first ever to show a clear link between D levels and the maintenance of normal muscle function.

The Confusion Over How Much D is Enough

Current recommendations are now being reevaluated because they are too low, and don’t seem to deliver the established health benefits that D is known for. And with nearly 75% of Americans and 7 out of 10 children are thought to be deficient in D, it’s clear that a change in thinking is necessary!

But too much supplemental D can get you in trouble, too. Supplemental D and vitamin D made from the sun are not the same to your body. Vitamin D produced by the body from UV exposure is self-regulated, so you’ll only make as much as you need. However, we seem to be making less from the sun, even in the sunshine states, then we did historically. This is what has driven the recent interest in Vitamin D supplementation. Vitamin D taken as a supplement is not self-regulating, and the more you take the higher your levels go. Also, once your body obtains adequate stores of Vitamin D, your blood levels rise more per dose than before. To obtain optimal levels, monitoring your blood levels while supplementing is very important. If you take too much it can be just as hazardous to your health as not getting enough!

Everybody is different when it comes to D. So what is right for you may be too much for the next person. You just don’t know when your tissue will be saturated with the vitamin, resulting in higher blood levels. Some people will need to take more D for a longer period of time to get their blood levels up, while some will have to take less for a shorter period of time. This makes it absolutely critical to have your D levels tested relatively frequently while you are restoring your level to a healthy range - you need to check that you are getting enough D as well as make sure that you aren’t taking too much!

BCN’s Recommendations for Supplementing Effectively With D:

1. You NEED to Get Your Vitamin D Levels Tested.

Get a baseline test done initially, and then re-test every 3-5 months to check your levels. Ongoing testing is essential because the absorption of Vitamin D by the body varies widely between individuals, and between brands of supplements. You don’t want to overshoot the mark and have your levels get too high!

You may notice on your lab report that the acceptable D range starts at 30 ng/ml, and a lot of doctors think that this is adequate as well. But, as we said, most researchers now see 30 ng/ml as much too low, and are considering 75 ng/ml to be the minimum blood level. For older adults, over 95 ng/ml is ideal.

Today, the safe, target range for D is between 75 – 95 ng/ml, and getting these kinds of levels requires supplementation.

2. You NEED to Supplement.

Recent research shows, you just can’t get enough D from the sun alone anymore. And the difference between living in Boston vs. Miami seems to be making less difference than we thought. If you want to enjoy the health benefits associated with proper blood levels of this incredible vitamin, you’ll need to supplement no matter how much sun you get.

Follow the research and start with 3000-to-4000 iu daily of a high-quality Vitamin D3 supplement. Ongoing D tests will let you know if you should temporarily increase this, and when (and if!) you need to cut back. Research done in the winter, in New York, and adjusted for darker and lighter skin, put the range at 3916 iu for dark skin and 3040 for people with light skin to achieve a healthy minimum blood level. Some people will take these amounts for three months and exceed the target upper level. So start here and test. On average, 2,000 iu should raise your blood level 20 ng/ml, so 4,000 iu for someone with a vitamin D level of 30 should get into optimal range. (If you can’t reach your target range in 8 to 12 weeks with 4,000 iu per day, then get advice on how much to increase your intake, and retest within three months. Then monitor to be sure you don’t overshoot the mark once your storehouse is refilled.)

3. You NEED to Choose the RIGHT Supplement

The quality of a supplement can greatly affect how quickly your body is able to absorb it and how much you need to take. This is especially true with vitamin D. Begin by selecting a D supplement that is of the highest quality and made from pure ingredients. It is also important to remember that Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is the preferred form of supplemental D, since it is more readily absorbed by the body than vitamin D2.

Many manufacturers are coming out with unique formats that make taking D everyday easier and more convenient than ever. BCN’s favorites include:

- Rx Vitamins’ Liqui-D3 is a liquid supplement with 2000 iu of D in every single drop. Just one bottle provides nearly a year’s supply of vitamin D, making Liqui-D3 an amazing value!

- Pharmax’s Chewable D3 is another fun and convenient option. It delivers 1000 iu in a delicious blackcurrant-flavored chewable that is especially great for children.

- Freeda Vitamins’ Delta D3 “Tiny Tab” is 400 iu of Vitamin D in a small tablet, for those who prefer to get their D in a more traditional format. All Freeda vitamins are free of sugar, gluten and gelatin as well as any artificial colors or flavors.

For more information visit www.BCN4Life.com.

Arthur W. Bartunek, MA is President of Beachwood Canyon, Naturally, Ltd
212-665-8070 Toll free in US: 888-803-5333 art.bcn@bcn4life.com

 

 

Earth Is Your Sweet Spot

by Ellae Elinwood, Mary Lanier, and Katie Garland-Noble

   

Enter To Win a Copy of Earth Is Your Sweet Spot, Living Beautifully: A Woman's Guide simply send your email address to: Andrea@HealWithHope

Chapter One: Vitality

Revolutionize yourself. Radiate balance. Discover an infinite capacity for renewal. Unmask lifelong tools for youthful looks, health, and vibrancy. The simple journey to inner abundance begins with Earth. Earth is female and as a woman, you are one with her. Transform and influence your life. Become an exquisite woman. Learn the tools to positively direct your life.

Join with Earth's beauty and unlock your own.

Is this a lot of work? No. You're already there. You have just been distracted, in a state of temporary forgetfulness. Rediscover your source. Allow Earth to become a friend, a guide, a fountain of nurturing and renewal.

Elegant Balance

Seek and always find your inspiration in Earth. Birds, mountains, trees, flowers, viruses and bacteria, an endless list. Life, microscopic to enormous, burgeons unrestrained. Earth's nature is consistent, uncompromising and breathtaking. In the midst of this elegant balance, nature reproduces herself. With an uninterrupted brilliance, Earth adapts, renews, sustains, endures, and expands.

Your Source of Vitality

Earth is your source of vitality, the wellspring filling you up, facilitating your ability to connect with your surroundings. You can realize your union with her through your personal memories. In your busy world, or in your still world, Earth's magnificence envelops. Reflect. When was your attention drawn to her? What are your private memories?

Here are some of ours...

Inhaling the first smells of morning. Lying in sweetly scented grasses. Hearing the hum of insect life. Feeling gritty sand between the toes. Watching a bird in mid flight. Eying a floating butterfly. Smelling the fragrance of a pink rose. Stunned by a view. Earth is alive. She interacts with each one of us. In these moments, we are participating in a back and forth communication. Start now. Nature loves to be appreciated.

Ellae: "I remember the very first time I felt Earth's interactive inclusion. I was little, ten probably. I lay down in a small soybean field my father had planted. All summer I had eaten soybeans with endless contentment. The day was sunny and hot. I wiggled into a comfortable nest and relaxed. I was filled with a comfort that knew no loneliness or longing. I was complete. I settled into the comfort and slept. A magical moment fused into my cellular memory".

Earth's Resonance: A Brief History

Earth has her own energetic resonance, a discernable pulse. These energies form an infinite heartbeat, radiating from her. We are graciously included in this energetic environment.  Earth's resonance has been documented by physicists and scientists for over 60 years. Indigenous cultures have also held sacred ceremonies, sometimes involving beating drums, as a way to merge with, and revere the resonance.

Katie: "I am the kind of person that likes to ground information in scientific research.  As a result, I did a vast amount of exploration on these ancient traditions. Ellae and Mary gave me permission to include it in the manuscript."

In the 1950's, the German physicist Professor W.O. Schumann, of the Technical University of Munich, discovered electromagnetic waves in the Earth's atmosphere.  Dr. Schumann and his student Herbert König proved that these measurable resonance maintain a frequency of about 7.83 Hz.  These resonance, now known as the Shumann Resonances (SR), are electromagnetic impulses.  They are generated by electrical discharges such as lightning. (Source: Ingrid Pastl-Dickenson, (www.earthbreathing.co.uk)

SR and Human Health

Many scientists, physicists, and other curious minds have studied the Shumann Resonances.  Some individuals have found a fascinating correlation between the Shumann Resonances and its effects on human health.

A physician named Dr. Ankermueller recognized the relationship between the SR and human brainwaves.  Doctoral candidate Herbert König researched this connection, and discovered that the main frequency produced by Schumann Resonances are almost exactly attuned to the frequency of alpha rhythm brainwaves. (Source: Ingrid Pastl-Dickenson, (www.earthbreathing.co.uk).

He believed that the human brain, and the Earth's resonance, are therefore intimately connected. Some studies have proven that human health is dependent on these resonance.  Professor R. Wever, of the Max Planck Institute for Behavioural Physiology, researched this.  He created a vacuum in an underground bunker, free of any magnetic fields.

Young volunteers lived in this bunker for several weeks, and experienced headaches, emotional stress, and other illnesses. Also, their "circadian rhythms", i.e. their daily cycles of biological activity based on a 24-hour period, were severely disturbed. Early astronauts experienced similar symptoms, and space shuttles now simulate Shumann Resonances (Source: Ingrid Pastl-Dickenson, (www.earthbreathing.co.uk).

The Importance of the Shumann Resonances

These experiments bring to light the tremendous value of Earth's resonance. Human beings, and human beings, and mammalian brains need to stay in consistent connection with the Shumann Resonances in order to experience optimal health and emotional balance.  However, as electromagnetic devices have become so popular in modern civilization, the Shumann Resonances are weakening.  The static of our electronic devices are competing with the strong resonance emanating from Earth. Dr. Wolfgang Ludwig, who extensively studied the Shumann Resonances, proved this when he attempted to measure the SR.  Dr. Ludwig actually discovered that he could not obtain accurate measurements of the SR near cities because of the electromagnetic signals of electronic devices like cell phones, computers, etc. Dr. Ludwig had to go underground into mines, and above ground to the ocean to access strong Shumann Resonances (Source: Ingrid Pastl-Dickenson, (www.earthbreathing.co.uk).

We believe that human beings, and especially women, can consciously engage Earth's resonance in order to experience optimal wellness, emotional, physical, and biochemical balance.

Remember Earth and Earth's Resonance

Human beings are always connected to Earth's resonance.  We are one with her.  We just need to tune out the static and the distractions, and wake up to Earth.  She is ever present and ever supportive. Earth is alive, very alive. Look around you.  Nature, in all of her vastness and perfection, is everywhere.

Like Earth, women have the gift of reproduction. As a result, our bodies are especially easily attuned to Earth's resonance.  A woman can remember the ease of her connection to Earth at any time by placing her receptive body close to Earth and her creatures.  If you do not live in a place where it is safe to do go outside, you can join with Earth from the comfort of your home.

Next, you can offer appreciation to Earth and her beauty. Admire the cloud formations. Give thanks to the piercing pink hues in a chrysanthemum flower.

If your home is your safe place, cozy up to a beloved house pet. Perhaps you can offer a gift of thanks by watering and nurturing a plant.

It is important to express admiration and appreciation to Earth, and to be able to receive, and even perceive, her resonance.  Engaging with Earth is never sucking or pulling.  Simply open to her from a state of infinite gratitude.

Engaging with Earth is completely easy. It is never sucking or pulling, because this inhibits your ability to feel your oneness with her. Simply open to her from a state of shared beauty and gratitude.

A Remembering

Your connection to Earth and her resonance isn't something you have to learn, you already know it. It is embedded in your cellular makeup. Your conscious "discovery" of Earth and her resonance is simply a remembering.... a remembering that we are all collectively doing together.

Appreciate and Communicate with Earth

Much like we nurture relationships with people we love, we can also nurture our relationship with Earth. Earth is very alive, and the more we talk to her and communicate with her, the more vibrant she becomes.

Try:

Looking up at the sky. What do you see? Gorgeous, fluffy clouds?  Mist?  Birds? Pick an element of nature, and let Earth know how lovely she is.

Ellae: "I created a small ritual that I will briefly describe below, and include in the Ritual section.  Feel free to try it, and make it
your own."

Ritual

We each have a unique capacity to nurture a personal and personally rewarding relationship to Earth.  This relationship is a special opportunity to remember your connection to Earth and her resonance. It is mutually supportive and healing.

I will use the example of an oil tanker spill on Earth.  However, this ritual can be recreated, and made into a daily remembering, appreciation, and healing.  Earth does not need to have a physical and visible wound.  You can tend to her at any time, and you will both benefit.

When oil spills and damages Earth and her creatures, it is not far fetched imagine that you have a dear, dear friend in the hospital. Your friend is hemorrhaging and the blood has not been stoppable. Throughout the body, the suffocating flow is responsible for vital cells being killed.

Your friend needs to be comforted and encouraged, while navigating through this crisis to return to balance and strength. You are not a medical or scientific professional but you are a wonderful friend. Committed to healing and well being.    How would you respond to your friend's struggle?

This is the question I have been posing for myself.  Unable to live in complete daily detachment, I longed to find a way to be a part of Earth's challenge, and a part of the solution.  This has been my way, and perhaps it will help you find yours.

Earth everything to us. Without her we simply don't exist.  She is alive, very large, vastly intelligent, and tremendously generous. Earth is very responsive to our interactions with her.  As we have learned through the science of ecology, everything on Earth is connected. All of nature in it's interconnectedness is sensitive and responsive to all of our interactions.

With this in mind, I have been comforting the Earth. In my comforting I have been encouraging. I am tender with the flowers, her trees, grasses as I care for them. As I see, touch, smell each one I am giving comfort and encouragement, I run my hands over the dirt and grasses as if it is her skin, which it actually is. I offer understanding, sympathy, and support. This is exactly the care I would give one of you if you were in a wellness mess.

I am certain in myself that, at this time, Earth needs our comforting, tenderness, and belief in her that she will, with our help on all levels, find her way in healing herself.  She will bring up new life eventually. She will turn this mess into another example of her capacity to make everything grist for the mill in creating life. Unless she becomes overwhelmed with too many environmental challenges. She is very vulnerable now, not overwhelmed. She needs our comfort, tenderness, and support to find strength as she drains, and parts of herself die tragically.

Develop a silent, even secret relationship with her. No one needs to know that when you admire a bird in flight, or lovingly brush past a plant entering a restaurant.

Learn to be very aware of you contact with the Earth under your feet, lean against a tree, share amazement at the beauty of a flower that you are simultaneously encouraging, admiring, and comforting Earth. I find comfort that Earth still is able to maintain areas of such beauty and balance.

The snow still glistens on the mountain top, the spring flowers are still fabulous, babies in all shapes and sizes are popping out.  We are surrounded by her beauty and generosity. We all know the 50 things we can do to help Earth practically. Essential things. Now we know 51.

Earth is Open

Earth is open to all.  She is non-denominational, non-sectarian, and accepting of all faiths, colors, and kinds.  You can celebrate and appreciate your connection to her no matter your personal belief system. And, most importantly, you can make your relationship to her your own. You can craft your own personal beliefs into your unique connection to Earth.  Her generosity knows no limits, so you can celebrate her any way you like!

Let Earth Balance You

Open your body to receive her resonance. Let her ageless vitality refresh and balance you. You may feel the actual pulsation or you may not.  If you don’t feel it, it is still there doing the work of balancing and cleaning your energetic field.

Start Now

Explore connecting into Earth's resonance. Utilize the elements of Earth that are immediately around you. Begin with an animal or a houseplant.

Our editor described her interaction with her dog:

"I spent a few minutes this morning marveling over the softness of my miniature dachshund's ears and listening to her breathe. It made us both very happy".
(Margie Lawson)

Interaction with animals, plants, and the natural world are the bridges that lead us to Earth's resonance.

Transform

As you join with Earth's resonance, appreciate and communicate with her, a transformation occurs.  You move from exhaustion to vitality, from internal dissonance to greater harmony.  No longer as distracted, you are now closer to your own unique loveliness. Imagine how this world would be if every woman walked and talked in her own unique femininity.  We would pass from one inspirational woman to another.  To be uniquely whole and lovely is the birthright of every woman.  When grounded into Earth, a woman is in her true nature.

References
Gray, J.A., 1982, The Neuropsychology of Anxiety: An Enquiry into the Functions of the Septo-Hippocampal System.  Clarendon Press. Cherry, N.J., 2002, Schumann Resonances, a plausible biophysical mechanism for the human health effects of Solar/Geomagnetic Activity, Natural Hazards 26(3), p 279-331 Cherry, N.J. 2003, Human intelligence: The brain, an electromagnetic system synchronised by the Schumann Resonance signal, Medical Hypotheses 60(60):843-4 Cherry,N. Cell phone radiation poses a serious biological and health risk http://www.drscheiner muenchen.de/Cherryeng.htm König, H.L Bioinformation - Electrophysical Aspects. In: Electromagnetic Bioinformation, Popp, F.A., Becker,G., König, H.L.Peschka,W.,(eds.) Urban und Schwarzenberg p 25, 1979 Ludwig,W `Informative Medizin' VGM Verlag fuer Ganzheitsmedizin, Essen, 1999 Schumann, W.O.Ueber die strahlungslosen Eigenschwingungen einer leitenden Kugel, die von einer Luftschicht und einer Ionosphaerenhuelle umgeben ist, Z.Naturforsch. 7a, 149, 1952 Schumann W.O. König, H. Ueber die Beobachtung von Atmospherics bei geringsten Frequenzen, Naturwissenschaften, 41, 183, 1954

How often do you take time to appreciate Earth?
Try this test.

The Nature Deficit Disorder Test

On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being often, 1 being never:

• How often do you feel depleted by your life?
• Exercise in a safe place outside?
• Take a deep and satisfying breath?
• Notice a bird's nest?
• Observe the trees in your area?
• Appreciate a local flower bed?
• Watch the change of a season? For example summer to fall.
• Nurture your plants and animals?
• Sit outside, relax, and open up?
• Let your animals nurture you back?

SCORING:
50 - 40: You're there! You have nature integrated into your life.
40 - 30: You're doing okay. But there is more pleasure awaiting you.
30 - 0: Smell the roses. Time to change. Spend a little more time outside each day. Even if this is just consistently slowing down the walk from the house to the car. Admire. Interact. Enjoy. This is a simple pleasure with great rewards.

Emotional Excess

In modern culture, many people no longer return to Earth for revitalization and renewal. Perhaps you also no longer rely on her, and your Nature Deficit Disorder Test results reflect this. If you've lost your connection to her, you may feel fatigued, a lack of self-confidence, over-extended, or depleted. You have slid out of balance.

You may be in a personal state of emotional excess. This means that one emotion has overpowered the rest of your rich emotional life, and now dominates. Depending on your personal tendency, this emotion may be: fear, anger, anxiety, jealousy, sadness, depression, grief, ambition, fatigue, impatience, or sentimentality. Fear and anger most commonly reign supreme.

No matter what your personal tendency, the result is the same: the emotion becomes pervasive, and guards its right to monopolize your health. You will remain compromised until you recognize your deficit, and seek balance.

Accepting a full range of emotion is critical. To personally evolve and contribute to the evolution of others, it is important to experience a full emotional life, and consistently regain balance. Earth is your gateway to this stability.

Intend to Become Connected

Spend meaningful time with Earth. Interact with Earth. Feel an immediate difference in your core vitality and emotional health.

Many of us tap into useful resources such as therapy, doctors, spas, etc. to renew and replenish. These perfectly appropriate personal enhancers too often become temporary solutions.

It is only through harmonizing with Earth's vital resonance, and realigning with her life-giving energy that true revitalization occurs. While the other solutions provide a fleeting sense of ease, rejuvenating through contact and communication with Earth is timeless.

Rekindle

When you link your body with Earth's resonance, you enhance your femininity. A natural balance is renewed. There are many practical ways to connect. The important thing is to coordinate your pulse with Earth through physical contact. Set the intention to connect your physical body to Earth each day. This can be done by going for a walk, running your fingers through soil or sand, petting a loving animal, or watering a thirsty plant.

Mary: "I learned about the Shumann Resonances and connecting to Earth due to a personal illness I suffered from.  I was at my wit's end, and I had explored every avenue that modern medicine could offer... still I couldn't get better.

Ellae, a longtime friend, recommended I begin going on hikes, and connecting my physical body to the Earth.  At the time my immune system was greatly compromised, and I couldn't imagine walking down the street to get the mail, let alone going on a drawn out 'nature hike'.

Still, I felt I had limited options, and I started going on hikes. Something truly magical started happening. I experienced significant healing in my physical body, and my emotional state of being changed. I went from being constantly bombarded by my thoughts and experiencing anxiety to dwelling in the lower half of my body, breathing, and knowing true peace.

Eight years later, I am a different person. My liver enzymes have returned to healthy levels, and I gratefully have a clean bill of health.

My connection to Earth and Earth's resonance is the primary relationship I nurture.  This relationship fills me up, and has provided me with a truly abundant inner life that now manifests itself in my "real life". Does this mean my life is perfect, and free of pain? No. Perhaps the opposite is true.  In recent years I have experienced some of the most devastating heartaches.  But I believe my connection to Earth has carried me through the pain. It continues to give me more room inside to breathe, and brings me back to the beauty of life".

The Daily Connection

It is the daily joining with Earth that's key.

• If you have five minutes... Give a plant a bit of admiration and a gentle touch. Enhance your garden. If you have twenty minutes... Go for a pleasurable walk outdoors. With each step, feel your feet touch the ground. Imagine the vibrations of each footstep resonating down into the deep root system beneath you. Inhale. Exhale.
• If you have an hour... Discover a quiet trail by your home. Walk on the sand by the ocean. Amble through a wheat field. If you live in a big city, make your own trail. Meander on the sidewalks. Watch for insects, hidden plants, towering trees. Pay attention to the terrain. Marvel at nature's ability to display her right to exist anywhere and everywhere.
• If you live in an unsafe place, find a photo of your favorite element in nature, a mountain, a rose, or the beach. Let your five senses take you there. Imagine! Feel it, touch it, taste it. No matter where you are, appreciate the raw majesty of Earth.
• Start where you are. Start now.
• As you set the intention to spend valuable time to connect into Earth each day, you may discover yourself making more time for interaction. Five minutes willingly becomes twenty. Twenty minutes becomes an hour.
• Stay open and receptive. Earth is calling you.

Connect In

• Discover a place that is quiet, even silent. Relax.
• Choose a safe location. Let your body open to this safety and soften.
• Feel the beat of your heart, and you may feel Earth's resonance.
• As you open, you become more receptive.

Other Ideas

• Lie on Earth for an hour, perhaps in your backyard, in a park, or on the sand by the ocean.
• Sleep outside, if you live in proximity to a space where it is safe.
• Go for a walk.

Now You Try

• Think of five creative and fun ways to reignite your connection with Earth. Use the resources that are available right now, right here.

Taking it Further

• Imagine you are dragging a luxurious tail of your choice behind you. One day try an ostrich, another a peacock, alligator, monkey, kangaroo. Your choice. Have fun with it!
• Let your energy trail below your waist. This visualization will help you drop your energy into the lower half of your body, and bring an understanding of what it is to be grounded in Earth.

An Alchemist

Uncompromising and essential femininity creates a comfy body, a warm and confident emotional life, a clear mental purpose, and a profound spiritual maturity. A woman who aligns herself with Earth's resonance is an alchemist who takes the raw material of youth, and weaves it into the gold of ongoing maturity. She sees the miracle of life.

Our love and gratitude to Ellae, Mary, and Katie for sharing an excerpt from their beautiful book!

For more information about Earth Is Your Sweet Spot visit: www.earthisyoursweetspot.com

About the Authors:

Ellae Ellinwood

Ellae is a well known teacher of optimum health and well-being, anddraws upon a background rich in varied experience.  For many years she was an instructor of Hatha Yoga and T'ai Chi, privately, and at colleges, universities, and fitness spas throughout Southern California. 

She pioneered a program teaching Yoga to the elderly in convalescent homes which was televised nationally at Forever Young; A New Approach to Our Aged. 

Ellae developed her comprehensive facial toning exercise program, and published Timeless Face (St. Martin's Press 1999), in which she demonstrates how many of the facial features of aging are actually symptoms of emotional distress and lack of facial fitness, which can be corrected through the book's program of toning, acupressure, and self-awareness.

She has inherited from her Celtic ancestors a gift of great intuition.  As a result she has shared her gift with thousands of clients over the last 25 years.

Books by Ellae Elinwood:

• Earth Is Your Sweet Spot (Co-Authored with Mary Lanier and Katie Garland-Noble)
• The Everything T'ai Chi and Qigong Book (Adams Media, 2002)
• Stay Young With T'ai Chi (Tuttle Publishing, 2003)
• The Everything Numerology Book (Adams Media, 2003)
• Qigong Basics (Tuttle Publishing, 2004)
• Find her personal blog at: www.ellaeblogs.blogspot.com

Mary Lanier

Mary Lanier is a proud mother of three. Mary holds a Master of Arts in Psychology, and worked 25 years as a psychotherapist in Missouri, California, and abroad in Paris, France.  She expanded her private practice and worked as a consultant, trainer and human resources representative for leading international organizations and corporations.

In her forties, Mary's health crisis led her to rediscover her connection to the planet, studying meditation, and spending time in nature.  She healed her ailments and aligned with her purpose: to be the voice of Earth.   She is currently a teacher, healer, and writer who lives in San Francisco, California and Melbourne, Australia.

Find her personal blog at: www.marylanier.blogspot.com

Katie Garland-Noble

Katie Garland-Noble is a professional actress, screenwriter, and author based in Los Angeles, CA.

Personal website: www.katiegarlandnoble.yolasite.com 
Twitter.com www.twitter.com/ktgarlandnoble
 Facebook.com www.facebook.com/katiegn

Send questions or comments to: Andrea@HealWithHope.com
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