Journey to Wellness May 2011

Last month I wrote about the awesome you. I hope you took that message to heart, because I know that each and every one of you have incredible capabilities.

This month it seemed like my life was turning upside down. For the past almost three years I have been Vice President of a non-profit corporation, Senior Citizens of Davis, Inc. (SCD), in the town where I live. I also have devoted an additional day, sometimes more, to volunteering at the Senior Center of Davis. SCD is the support arm of the Davis Senior Center where we serve about 1600 members, plus many seniors who are not members.

Then two weeks ago, very unexpectedly our President resigned due to health reasons, and I became president of this organization. I was really shocked to say the least. I had not expected the resignation. So I have been thrust into a new learning situation. I often talk about mirror conversations with yourself - I have had a lot of those in the last couple of weeks!

My goal is to handle this new assignment, as well as continuing all the other things to which I am committed. My first commitment is to you, my loyal readers and Internet family, who have been with me in many cases for years. As the old saying goes, where there is a will, there is a way! So now I have another opportunity to practice what I teach!

I hope this issue of Journey to Wellness will help you to see a new image of who you are (perfect), and your capabilities (unlimited), and that something in this issue "speaks" to you.

Last month many of you responded with notes about the April issue, telling me that I am awesome. In each case I replied that each one of you is awesome, and that what I do is simply provide a mirror in which you may see yourself; that is, who you really are.

I call them LifeDesign Videos, and since I introduced them the response has been very gratifying. Each video is from 3-1/2 to 5 minutes in length and incorporates affirmations and appropriate images, backed up with motivational music. The five videos currently available are:

            Spirituality
            Health and Weight Loss
            Designing My Abundant Life
            Daily Lifestyle - Lady
            Daily Lifestyle - Man

If you received one of the videos before I was able to make them available
for download from my website, and you are still accessing them only from
YouTube, please send me a note and tell me which video(s) you have and I'll send
you download instructions so you can place an icon on your computer
desktop for ease of playing.

You may mail your contribution to Iams House, 139 Inner Circle, Davis, CA 95618, or use credit card or Pay Pal at my on-line shopping cart here. When making your contribution through the shopping cart, please indicate under "shipping instructions" which video you would like to receive. The on-line shopping cart makes it very easy, You will receive instructions, normally the same day, for downloading directly from my website. If you send a contribution by mail, please be sure to include your e-mail address and video selection. Your contributions make the website and this newsletter possible.

Breakfast is generally considered to be the most important meal of our day. I tend to tire easily of the same old breakfasts. Here is a yummy and healthy breakfast that you can create in minutes. Try this for a delightful change of pace, especially on a warm summer morning.

If you love sweet potatoes, as I do, here is an incredibly easy, healthy and tasty sweet potato side dish. It comes from Ellie Krieger, nutritionist on the Food Network. Enjoy

Sweet Potato-Pecan Casserole
Cook Time: 1 hr 15 min 8 servings

Ingredients:
    Cooking spray
    3 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 5 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
    1/3 c. honey
    1 large egg
    1 t. ground cinnamon
    1/4 t. ground nutmeg
    1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
    Kosher salt
    1 T packed dark brown sugar
    1/3 c. finely chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mist an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a pot with a large steamer basket in place. Put the sweet potatoes in the basket, cover and steam until tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and let cool slightly. Add the honey, egg, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, the nutmeg, ginger and 1/2 teaspoon salt; whip with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the sweet potato mixture in the prepared baking dish.

Mix the brown sugar, pecans and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl; sprinkle over the potatoes.

Bake until hot and beginning to brown around the edges, 40 to 45 minutes.
Per serving: Only 160 Calories

Note: I bake this in several serving size ramekin dishes, freezing some for other days. Baking time will vary with the size of your baking dishes, so be careful if you use small baking dishes as I do. I set my timer for 30 minutes and then check for doneness

Over the years I probably have received more mail about meditation than any other subject. Therefore I write often about this topic.

As a matter of fact you can hardly open a major news publication without seeing yet another scientific study raving about the incredible benefits of meditation. It is true . . . meditation has been proven to extend your life . . . increase inner peace . . . lower stress levels . . . increase mental clarity . . . and resolve long-standing emotional problems. In addition it is credited with creating an increased level of health. As my grandson might say, "What's not to like!"

In my experience all the above are true. Interestingly many are still in a quandary about how to learn to meditate. Questions I get arrange from "What is meditation?" to "How do I get started?" Actually there are so many facets to meditation that many, many whole books have been written on this subject. From the vantage point of having been a regular and serious meditator for many years, it is challenging for me to remember when I had some of the same questions to may have.

I think everyone's experience of meditation is probably somewhat different. Meditation is simply turning off the constant mind chatter that we all experience. Buddhists call that "monkey mind." Until one learns to meditate the only time we experience that state of mental silence is when our conscious mind sleeps. This is a very basic, simple "level one" explanation of what meditation is. More on advanced levels a little later.

Oh yes, that state we just talked about, when we still the mind chatter, is called an alpha state. It is somewhat like the state between being awake and asleep. I learned meditation years ago at the Chopra Center in San Diego, and was taught to call that state "the space between your thoughts." Whatever one calls it, getting to that place is the ultimate goal of meditation.

There are many different ways to get started with meditation. Some people find it very easy to just focus on their breath, while most focus on mentally (thinking) repeating a word or phrase. That word of phrase is called a mantra. Its purpose is simply to help you still the mind chatter.

I have known people who had to make the first step just simply sitting and listening to very soothing music to help them quiet the mind. Some people find it helpful to visualize a very peaceful place. Once you find the approach that works for you, you will be able to put yourself into that alpha state very easily and rapidly.

THERE IS NO RIGHT NOR WRONG WAY TO MEDITATE! Each person will find their own special approach. Some people may need to listen to a recorded guided visualization in the beginning.

In the past I have referred my readers to Marc Stecker's Wheelchair Kamikaze blog. Marc is a brilliant writer and regularly shares his wit and wisdom with those of us fortunate enough to have found him on the Internet. Marc's photos of New York City, taken from his motorized wheelchair, are incredible. Many have a deeply spiritual quality. This particular one, which I share here with Marc's permission, is a beautiful metaphor for meditation.

At first glance one sees this photo as a black and white. Then one becomes aware that there is a yellow light atop the lamp post. That is exactly what meditation is to me - a light in the darkness. The more I concentrate on the light, the more I realize that this photo is not about the snow, nor the gray day, but only about the light. I see the light representing the spirit within all of us, and when we meditate we are able to tune in to that light. Eventually I hope you may be consumed by that light and perhaps have an experience of falling into the "gap between your thoughts" wherein you lose touch with time and space. It is truly a life changing experience like no other.

Thank you Marc for allowing me to share your beautiful photograph. When I communicated recently with Marc about this photo, he sent this note:

". . . It's not one of my "wheelchair photos," though, as that particular shot was taken before I was hit with MS, during a lull during a snowstorm in Central Park. I called in sick from work that day, for the express purpose of taking photos of the virgin snow in the Park, and to enjoy the company of my snow crazy Labrador Retriever (now, sadly, deceased). Fond memories . . ."

Be sure to check out all of Marc's New York City photos at his Wheelchair Kamikaze blog, and while you are there, subscribe to his mailing list. You'll be glad you did.

Five "Clean Eating" Tips from Qi Gong Master Lee Holden

Chew more. Practitioners of Chinese medicine recommend that you "drink your food," meaning chewing your food more to help digestion. This also causes you to eat more slowly, which helps avoid overeating.

Drink more water. All bodily functions depend on the flow of water. Every cell requires hydration. Here, the Qi Gong experts advise you to "chew your liquids," meaning to taste them and meditate on how they cleanse the body and give life.

Eat more fruits and vegetables. Not only do they taste great, but bite for bite they offer fewer calories and more vitamins and nutrients than do many other food choices.

Drink warm beverages. While ice-cold drinks are refreshing, the body must warm up any liquids to its internal temperature of 98 degrees. This warming process requires expending energy that could be better used by your digestive system to extract nutrients and fuel from your meal. Practitioners of Chinese medicine believe that warm beverages also help keep digestive acids balanced.

Eat plenty of anti-oxidants. Fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, herbs, and spices may help clean out "free radicals" and help prevent cell damage.

HONEY BODY SCRUB FROM YOUR KITCHEN

Honey is one of nature's best humectants, drawing water into the skin, while sugar buffs away dead cells so gently that it dissolves as it works. Adding a touch of citrus adds an invigorating scent. Here's the super-easy "recipe."

This scrub comes from a well-known spa, and speaking from personal experience, it leaves your body glowing and feeling wonderful. With winter's dry skin challenges, you'll love this easy and inexpensive scrub.

Author Eckhart Tolle, whose excellent world-wide best selling book, A New Earth is one of my personal favorites, tells us that, although it’s important to accept ourselves and our emotions, it’s also (really!) important to notice what behaviors and thoughts consistently lead to suffering and to QUIT DOING THOSE THINGS and to QUIT THINKING THOSE THOUGHTS!

He says it’s sort of like getting food poisoning from eating certain types of food but then, for some wacky reason, continuing to eat those foods. And, as a result, you’re sick again and again and again. Makes no sense. Right?

So check yourself out and see if you’re giving yourself thought and behavior poisoning on a regular basis. And then quit doing that!

From the humorous to a very important serious nutrition issue. Please everyone, take a few minutes and watch this very important lecture on YouTube.

Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology

Dr. Sanja Gupta on CNN also featured Dr. Lustig, and he was a guest of Dr. Oz, discussing this lecture. Dr. Lustig's video will really make you think.

▲ If you have funds to donate for MS research, may I suggest that you consider Dr. Gary Siskin's study. He is one of the brave physicians who early on began to treat people with MS to reverse the obstructed blood flow which is at the heart of CCSVI.

▲ Baylor College of Medicine, home of famed heart surgeon Dr. Michael DeBakey, now offers CCSVI Treatment.

Be sure to read the article referenced here. It gives a lot of information about CCSVI in general, as well as Baylor's treatment program:

▲ There is an important west coast CCSVI conference coming in mid-May in San Diego. Here are the particulars:

▲ Drs. Siskin and Mandato have published their findings about the safety of CCSVI treatment in the Journal of Vascular Interventional Radiology. You'll find details at:

▲ Here is a link to Ashton Embry's Direct-MS.org Facebook essay about this BNAC study. You will really want to read this:

Buffaloed: The anti-CCSVI Bias of the University of Buffalo Researchers and their Unsupported Interpretations

Last week researchers from the University of Buffalo published the results of their 2009 research on the prevalence of CCSVI in various groups of people including 289 persons with MS, 21 persons who had experienced a clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) (often a precursor to MS), 163 healthy controls and 26 subjects who were suffering from other neurological diseases. The paper was made available online on the website of the medical journal Neurology. Here's a link to the entire article.

Please note that this BNAC study shows that people with MS do have CCSVI too! My thanks to Denise Manley for sending this along.

I'm including the following research report because it makes me so angry. See my note below.

ANN ARBOR, Mich., May 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Adeona Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (AMEX: AEN), a developer of innovative medicines for serious central nervous system diseases, announced today that after scientific review, the ongoing clinical trial of its Trimesta™ (oral estriol) drug candidate for multiple sclerosis (MS) has received an additional $1,594,553 in grant funding from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NIH/NINDS). The clinical trial is led by Rhonda Voskuhl, M.D., Director, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Multiple Sclerosis Program, UCLA Department of Neurology. Along with the recent grant award of $409,426 received from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS), this NIH/NINDS grant award should support the ongoing Trimesta clinical trial to its completion.

"The goal of this clinical trial is to demonstrate a reduction in the rate of relapses in female MS patients with a treatment regimen of oral Trimesta added to the standard of care Copaxone®. MS is a debilitating disease, therefore, slowing the progression of the disease could potentially allow these patients to achieve a more normal quality of life," said Dr. Voskuhl. "We are very grateful to the NIH for supporting this important mission. Their commitment to pursuing estriol as a novel treatment for MS has been unwavering."

This ongoing clinical trial previously received a $5 million grant from the NMSS in partnership with the NMSS's Southern California chapter, with support from the National Institutes of Health, $860,440 in grant funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and recent additional funding of $409,426 from the NMSS. In November 2010, Adeona announced that it was awarded $244,480 under the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Program to support research and development expenses related to the Company's MS program.

The 150-patient, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of Trimesta is currently underway at 15 centers in the United States. Investigators are administering either Trimesta or matching placebo in addition to glatimer acetate (Copaxone®), an FDA-approved therapy for MS, to women between the ages of 18-50 who have been recently diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS. With 133 out of 150 patients enrolled in the clinical trial as of May 1, 2011, the Company anticipates full enrollment by the second half of 2011. Additional information regarding this multiple sclerosis clinical trial is available at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00451204.

"We are very pleased that the Trimesta MS clinical trial has been awarded over $8 million in grant funding by organizations such as the NIH, NMSS and other third party groups. This support demonstrates independent scientific review of the clinical work being conducted by Dr. Voskuhl and provides funding for our MS program that is non-dilutive to our shareholders," stated James S. Kuo, M.D., M.B.A., Adeona's Chairman and CEO. "We are also excited to be exploring new opportunities with Dr. Voskuhl that could further expand our MS clinical program beyond the current trial."

PLEASE NOTE: Our U.S. tax dollars are funding this Adeona Trimesta clinical trial in yet another attempt to develop outrageously expensive and questionable drugs to provide symptom relief for multiple sclerosis. Meanwhile the MS community begs and pleads for funding for CCSVI. We MUST - all of us - continue to scream about the inequities of this funding. We must continue to make our voices heard. I urge all of you to get involved.

Hello Betty. Wow! Loved your March and April newsletters. I wish I'd found you sooner. So far you have really gotten my attention and now I am ready to get started. I know if you can turn your MS around, so can I. /s/ P.R. in Minneapolis. [This reader then ordered the e-book Four Steps to Overcoming MS, and the Yoga for MS video.]

Thanks for your note P.R. Your have made great selections to get started on a healthier lifestyle. Responses like yours make me remember why I continue my work on the Internet. If I have helped even one person to truly realize their potential, then I feel validated.

Thanks for another great newsletter. You have truly made a difference in my life. I would like to ask a question. You write about how powerful affirmations are, and I have tried writing and reading them, but they don't seem to make any difference. I'd appreciate any insight you can offer. Thanks again for all that you do. /s/ Roberta

Hi Roberta. Thank you for writing and for your question. It is one that I struggled with for a long time. As I got your note I was reading a book by Dr. Judith Orloff, Emotional Freedom: Liberate Yourself from Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life. In it she says:

"Stand in front of a mirror and sincerely say to yourself in a loving, appreciative tone, "I look terrific and I'm a fantastic person." Stay focused on your positives. Then feel, don't think. Notice how your body reacts. Are you breathing easier? Do your shoulders relax? Does your gut tighten? Does your energy rise? Do you feel happier? Lighter? Freer? Also, note any other changes."

This is an example of a positive conversation with yourself, and the emotions generated. Those positive emotions are what we need to experience when we repeat our affirmations.

For those of you who have one of my motivation videos, all based on positive affirmations and accompanying images, please remember that the more you generate the positive emotions Dr. Orloff writes about, the more effective your affirmations will be.

I always watch one or two of the videos every day, and I have learned to say the affirmations loudly and with all the emotion I can engender, as I watch. The more I can create the appropriate positive emotion, the more effective my affirmations will be. Always remember that affirmations are a way to reprogram our subconscious mind.

Thanks for another great newsletter. Betty. I just wanted to tell you what a difference your Spirituality video has made in my life. It is truly a gift. Thank you for having the courage to just be who you are. /s/ John K.

Featured Books, DVD Exercise Programs and Videos

Please, everyone, do not sit around and wait for testing and treatment if warranted for CCSVI. Even if that becomes the standard MS treatment down the road, you need to get moving and improve your quality of life NOW. Even those who have the corrective procedure done still have to work to recover their quality of life.

How do you do that? I suspect that you already know. Start a simple daily meditation ritual, and move your body with healthy exercise.

Oh you say you can't exercise? Excuse me, but that is rubbish. There is no such thing as a person who can't exercise. You can do a very effective exercise program sitting in a wheelchair, or even lying in bed. You just begin with some simple deep breathing and very simple arm movements. EVERYBODY CAN IMPROVE HIS/HER BODY WITH A COMMITMENT TO EXERCISE.

If you don't have them, order Yoga for MS (for strength) and/or Tai Chi/Qi Gong for Seniors (for healing) Gentle Fitness (for overall fitness) and get moving. PLEASE DO NOT WAIT! Then pick two or three things from one or two of these programs and get started. Soon you won't believe what a tremendous improvement you will experience. The only thing hindering you is your own lack of enthusiasm and passion. There is no person who cannot improve the quality of his or her life with exercise. Just get moving!

I absolutely know that one of the primary reasons I live a normal, healthy life today is because of these exercise programs. Come on. Get started today!

CHECK OUT THE DETAILS OF THESE VIDEOS AND FEATURED BOOKS HERE