The Real Key to Wellness

Well I just didn't have time to do a formal blogspot this week. I was supposedly on vacation with my kids. We did go to Cape Cod for a few days and did the New England thing. When we had finally had enough of lobster and New England Clam chowder, we knew it was time to head home. Of course, upon arriving home, my phone messages and desktop mail were calling my name..vacation over.
I thought I would take a week off from the blog, but here I am on Easter eve, in between laundry loads, meditation and prayer, and I feel the need to write.
The past three days have been a whirlwind of personal issues. It is when I take the time to pray that I am able to sort out the issues, the struggles, the roadblocks. Clarity sets in when I pray, and the mountain becomes a small hill...and I can handle a small hill...no problem. When I pray the urgency and desperation lessen, and I feel the calm.
This Easter Eve I took some time to reflect on what the significance of the past three days means for Christians...and for me. I thought about the agony, suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. I thought about the sacrifice, and the love that was the basis for the sacrifice. When we have different levels of love, so to speak, there are different degrees of sacrifice. For example, the sacrifices I would make for my mom would be different than the sacrifices that I would make for a co-worker (one that I am close to and do love). Sorry, I am just not evolved as Jesus Christ. Guess what? NONE of us are!!!
So, the greater the love, the greater the sacrifice.
One day I would like to experience ONE LOVE...maybe in this lifetime? Maybe not. I have WAYYY too much ego.
The other thought that came to me during prayer had to do with the Resurrection of Jesus. To me that represents, new birth, new life, the future with endless possibilities. In the moment that I was thinking of all of this, I felt this incredible need to let go of so much guilt, angst, anger, prejudices, old bad feelings. I needed to FORGIVE myself, my kids, my ex-husband, my parents, just everyone. I needed to puke...is what it felt like. So I did. I puked. I cried. I verbally forgave everyone on my hate list. I cried some more...this time from relief.
You know what? I feel great! I feel 10 years younger. I just realized that the true secret to anti-aging is just living well and free of bad feelings. Why do most of us hold onto shit for years?? Hold on to it like our lives depended on it??
This is the answer I hope that you all allow yourselves to experience. Experience great love. Just love...unadorned, untamed, unconditional, unadulterated. That love allows you to just LET GO. Just letting go...of the past, of old hurt, of old mistakes, of old regrets. Wipe the slate clean; it is so refreshing.
Forgiveness frees you from chains of bad feelings.
It is truly the best anti-aging potion around. I guarantee you that.
Have a Great Easter everyone, whether you are Christian or not. We all have the opportunity to resurrect our spirits, and the renewal of mind and body will follow.
Be Well.
Have Faith.
Forgive them...for they know not what they do.
Pace,
Tina

Sustainable Wellness

This seemed to be my theme for the entire day yesterday. It began with an amazing hike in bright 55 deg early morning weather, where I could smell the beginning of spring. It then moved on to my vegetable garden which historically, and continues today, to be the only place where I can honestly let go and relax. I trace this back to my childhood. My childhood home had a HUGE garden. The vegetable garden was separate from the flower garden. The flower garden was designed in sort of a maze...and as a child it seemed to go on for miles. There was a fish pond, and roses, montauk daisies, dahlias, lilac bushes, honeysuckle, lavender,and rosemary. We also had morning glory that covered all of the chain fencing. How magnificent, and when I close my eyes and think, I can remember the fragrance of it all. Countless hours were spent in that garden. It's where I learned to walk, to play, and experience life in botanical terms. I grew up seeing plants born, live gloriously, then die....only to return again the following year. How spiritual the lesson!! The pergola which gave us the most unbelieveable abundance of delicious grapes each year was our piazza, and it was where I had countless uninterrupted conversations with my grandparents. It was our immigrant italian version of a summer home! The vegetable garden was meticulously laid out, and where my grandpa spent his days. The produce from the garden fed us (6 of us) daily. I read about "farm to fork" programs now and I laugh. That was all I knew back then. How many times the tomatoes wouldn't even make it to the kitchen...I would eat them right off the vine..and wash them down with water from the garden hose. LOL So my current veggie garden pales in comparison to the garden of my childhood, but I do the best that I can. Yesterday, my first day there, turning the soil and adding compost, and planting seedlings...I could feel my inner child. Memories flooded my brain. It felt so comfortable. I felt the spirits of my grandparents. It felt like home. It was so emotional for me. I sobbed and I believe it was a combination cry of joy, loss, renewal, release. No one was watching, and it was a place of safety and comfort for me. My dear blogger friends and family....THAT is sustainable wellness. The farming practices of my ancestors, the garden memories of my past, the soil in my hands today...all feed and nourish my "garden" within. These are the practices and values that will sustain my children, my grandchildren, and so on. I know that they will remember the natural world that I have exposed them to. We are so blessed to be surrounded by all of the colors, smells, and tastes of nature. This coming week we are off to experience spring in Cape Cod and the Hamptons. We can't wait to go hiking, fishing, biking, maybe some kayaking...and eat some farm fresh early produce, and New England seafood. Topping off this nostalgic experience, was an AMAZING event last evening that I was able to enjoy with my BFF on Sustainable Wellness....Coversations with Frank Lipman MD, Christiane Northrup MD, and Kris Carr. Great energy, great information on what the meaning of wellness is, and how unprepared and misguided the medical establishment is that regard. I just love being surrounded by people that have the same philosphy of health that I do. Some of us just get it, and for all the rest I pray. LOL but not so funny. Ok so this wasn't the blog on dairy that I promised, but I could not let this opportunity of sharing with you all just pass by. I pray that all of you can find what "sustains" you, what makes you feel whole. Maybe its getting rid of a bad habit, maybe it's cleaning up your diet, maybe it's making amends with a parent or sibling (pssst...forgiveness is BIG when it comes to feeling good), maybe it's spicing up your relationship with your spouse, or reconnecting with old friend that you loved. Its Passover and Holy week this week. What better time to reflect, rediscover, reconnect, and re-prioritize (pssst..always put love in 1st place). Have a wonderful week, everyone...and BE WELL.

Una Tazza di Caffe

As I say good morning to all my blogsta babies, I have by my side a piping hot cup of coffee... herbal coffee, that is. As most of you know I gave up my morning french press 22 days ago as part of a complete cleanse I was doing. The cleanse is over...and so is my indecisiveness about "to do or not to do" coffee. I actually had an espresso yesterday morning. Ya know what?? It was no big deal. I wasn't craving it. I didn't NEED it. What a great feeling...to know that I've lost my coffee crutch. I don't have an addictive personality, and I have never liked feeling dependent on anything. Needless to say, I'm feeling quite victorious over this nonsense accomplishment to some, but BIG deal to me.

Now that I'm a recovering Coffee-holic (LOL), I can look at this wonderful, aromatic,tasteful bean from a different perspective. I can honestly say that I think that coffee is OK...y punto. My belief in whole food dieting tells me that coffee is a natural product/bean, and that its brew is also natural. Does it acidify your system? Yes. Is that the worst thing in the world if you are generally feeling ok? Of course not.

The real problem with coffee is not the bean, it's the people that get hold of the bean...and rape it and modify it, and try to make it better (as if God doesn't know what he's doing LOL) The oils that are added to make flavored coffees are not good for you. The other real problem is that people just drink too much coffee, and most times that coffee comes with milk and sugar. The dairy and the sugar...uh, oh...DON'T get me started on that. Oh and that cigarette that goes along with every cup of coffee...BIG problem there. As with all things, moderation is best. There were some studies done that showed that some of the natural oils from the coffee bean could aggravate liver enzymes and maybe play a role in high cholesterol when take in HIGH AMOUNTS. Again, moderation is key. Now I don't know what the ideal number of cups is. What I will say is that if one or two cups of coffee is your pleasure and you do not smoke, have high cholesterol, palpitations, osteoporosis, heartburn, cancer, intestinal problems or any other inflammatory condition, then enjoy it.

If you love coffee then try to enjoy its flavor without sugar. If you can't drink it black, then try a milk substitute. Trader Joe's soy creamer is a great half & half substitute. As much as I hate to push genetically modified soy products, a teaspoon of the soy creamer is far better than dairy. You know what??? I'm gonna do my next blog about my thoughts about dairy and its impact on inflammation. So stay tuned.

Ok, so will I drink coffee again? Absolutely yes. Will I drink it daily? Probably not. I've really grown to love the Teeccino I'm drinking daily. This is what works for me. It makes me feel good.

My friends, always do what works for you. Do what is wholesome and makes YOU feel good. Make the intention wellness, and the rest will all fall into place.

Great weekend everyone.

Let me know if you wanna meet for coffee!!!

The Compost of Life

Yesterday I met up with an old friend who now owns a popular gym facility near my hometown. It was great to see him after 6 years. He is a practicing Buddhist, a philanthropist, and spent many years fundraising for various Non For Profit organizations. He always had a wonderful stories to tell, and I was excited about meeting with him again. When I walked into the gym he was involved in a doubles raquetball match. I watched him play and I thought, "Wow, he is 72 years young...and look at him go!!" He walked me around showing me his latest "baby", and I was impressed that he would take on this big responsibilty of running a business and having 30+ employees at this stage of his game. As we talked and laughed and met with others, I realized how incredibly youthful he was overall. His speech was sharp, his movements and balance were light and sharp, he was witty, his skin was essentially wrinkle free and smooth, and he had loads of energy. We sat face to face and caught up on each other's lives. He wanted to know all about my medical practice and how it had evolved from the time we last saw each other. I was only doing acupuncture, in addition to ER, at that time, and had not fully integrated at that point. I told him that my entire approach to medicine and life had changed. I grew up; I learned more; my personal struggles played a big part in my transformations. I had joys, pains, doubts, mistakes, successes, bad days, good days.....and they all shaped the woman and the doctor that I am now. He smiled...that very enlightened kinda smile. He called all those experiences, both good and bad, the compost of one's life. I LOVE THAT! The compost of life!! The shit, the refuse, the leftover food stuff that gets fertilized into our lives. You gotta love it! All of it is YOU!! Aaahhh these Buddhists are unbelievable! You guys remember Kung Fu? Well Grasshopper, this was like a Kung Fu moment! He talked about his meditative practice and how over the years he has also transformed. He was so serene in his speech, and it was at that point that I realized that his steady practice of meditation is what has kept this man looking and acting this young! So we talked a lot about meditation. I do meditate, but I call it prayer. He says you can call it whatever label you want. Of course, my meditation has a focus and a direction and it is guided by me. His meditation is just "being"...no direction, just in the moment, and guided by no one. That is hard to do for those of you who have never tried it. The mind is all over the place. I talked about how the hardest part of my job is cutting through all the energy levels that a patient presents with...cutting through all the "clacking" in their brain. Most people can't listen to me because of all the jibber jabber in their head. They can't let go of their own dialogue long enough to listen. They hear, but they cannot listen. So, my goal is to not get caught up their negative or chaotic energy, and to redirect them to a more grounded place. I have decided to go to the Buddhist center and give weekly group meditative sessions a try...AGAIN. I have also decided to find a really well -trained Mind/Body Therapist to add to my practice. It is so important in a wellness program. The body hurts because the mind hurts. The body knows how to heal, but the mind needs help with healing. The body never lies, but the mind always lies. Our bodies don't play tricks on us, but our minds do. Moral of the story: If you are fucked up in the head, the body doesn't stand a chance!! Lets all take the time to meditate daily. 10 minutes to find the peace and calm within. Your health depends upon it. Have a great week everyone. Smile...it will change your mood and outlook. Peace be with you. xxx Tina xxx