The Path To Easy Weight Loss

Magical path in the woods

Yes, I said easy.

Before you click the X in the upper right hand corner of your computer screen and end this pseudo conversation (or before you want to reach out and slap me upside the head)... read on, add comments, and create a dialogue.

What is this path you ask? Mindfulness I say, mindfulness around your eating habits but more importantly, mindfulness around your life.

Mindfulness defined from Jenny Kenny Morrill (Colton, NY) 3 Marigolds Mindfulness Tutoring services:

Why Mindfulness?
Mindfulness teaches us to be present-minded and grounded in our professional and personal lives from a foundation of inner (my word) connectedness. A mindfulness practice involves a small amount of time devoted to re-setting.  This re-set allows us to be in the moment, make decisions, reflect, and communicate from our innermost - authentic voice.  

End Result: You make decisions based upon what is best for the growth of your higher self and the greater good not impulse based decisions to satisfy immediate gratification on some level or another.

Thank you Trillium Yoga for posting this Yoga wisdom picture on FB.

You have heard me speak of how my 16 year, daily yoga practice has created mindfulness in my life.  I also hope you have enjoyed my earlier post on Walking the Red Road... I remind you of these things, and previous posts, because I want to show you that all of this is within your grasp and you will start creating a healthier you (including that weight loss you have been intending on).

Pick a mindfulness habit that works for you and start watching your life look like this:

• Thinking thoughtfully around your day... "Oh, I have a big dinner tonight. I will mindfully eat very lightly the rest of the day to not over food, over stuff myself, in this 24 hour period.
• "Wow, that family celebration was heavy last night." Mindfully I decide to fast a bit longer today, skip break - fast, and breathe deeply knowing I am fine without food for a few hours more.
• You realize that hunger signals from the brain and belly do not always need to be immediately gratified. "Hey, I hear you speaking awesome body but I am going to pass on any food right now and I know I will be ok. This hunger pang too shall pass and I can wait until breakfast, lunch, dinner..."
• Working through the ending sugar addiction becomes a practice of self-love wrapped in gorgeous, mindfulness gift paper and ribbons. Gently reminding yourself:

                      "If I stop feeding the gut bugs that thrive on sugar and refined carbs what they want (more sugar and refined carbs) they, the sugar craving gut bugs, will die."

                      "Yup, starve the 'lil buggers to death. My whole food diet will re-establish the amazing gut bugs I do want in my digestive tract. These wanted gut bugs will not be begging me for sugar, they will not scream from deep inside my belly to run and find that hidden ice ' cream in the freezer or that bag of chocolate chips I hide from the family."

                     "Goodbye soda, other sugary drinks, and packaged refined foods... my gut bugs don't want you!"  

Seriously, have these dialogues with yourself and your gut bugs. Good inner dialogue keeps you mindful AND makes you chuckle (laughter is healing my friends!) as you move through your day on this magical path of mindfulness.

Use mindfulness to improve any aspect of your life, make those whole health lifestyle changes you have been meaning to, and support the kissing goodbye of all of the habits that are not cultivating your higher self or the greater good.

Need extra help?

• Find a yoga teacher and/or class in your area. Here in Northern NY: Trillium, Yoga Loft, Five Elements, Northern Light Yoga
• Call Jenny for mindfulness tutoring, see above.
• Try meditation: go to Five Elements Living and check out the offerings with Sarah Jane, check out the upcoming classes: Cultivating Ease & Liveliness
• More meditation in the Potsdam-Canton, NY area: Northern Light Yoga, Trillium Yoga, St. Lawrence University, SUNY Potsdam, and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Canton
• Find what works for you in your area: tai chi, qi gong, tae kwon do, prayer, walking meditation...
• Read a book on yoga or mindfulness and teach yourself... then practice every day.
• Go to my blog page (hey, wait... you are already here!) OK, then just do this for some added loving support: in the search bar type in Yoga. You will get many posts on supporting your mindfulness practice. Now type in weight loss... yup, more support 'cuz friends, that's what I do... work to support your health and healing needs. I am hoping that a word or two of wisdom will spark some sort of change in you to help you find your natural path, find you, again.

BIG HUGS (filled with mindfulness of course) , Paula

PS... Hey, I just remembered, I wrote a book and Jenny & I wrote a book together to help you cultivate your mindfulness and turn your life into a blissful existence. 

Currently unavailable. I have a few copies and am working on a re-publish. Contact me.

Available on Amazon or from me

I wrote another book to help you navigate lifestyle changes to restore your natural health and lose that weight. See, I do have your back 24/7!

Order at Amazon.com

Join My Home Study Courses, The School of Self Healing

To Mindfully Restore Your Health From The Ground Up

OR

Start learning with Divine Weight Loss to taste test

how I can support your health.

Find your path and walk in peace.

Walking The Red Road

22 years ago I was teaching School Health Education in the Syracuse City School District. The district graciously sent me "home" to a week long health conference at St. Lawrence University, Canton. I attended an amazing workshop presented by Ed McGaa, Eagle Man, Sioux Tribal Leader and purchased both of his books.

Now this was not my 1st experience with Native American culture; growing up 20 minutes from the Mohawk Nation and involved with the local lacrosse team, I was exposed to and aware of Native culture and philosophy. But honestly, traditional Native American spirituality is not something that was shared openly.

Over the past 22 years I have read many books by great Native American writers, healers, and visionaries. My latest book by Ehanamani, Dr. A.C. Ross, member of the Dakota Nation - Sioux Native Americans is titled "Mitakuye Oyasin." In this book, Ehanamani introduces me to the Native American principle of the Red Road.

The Red Road is a mind set, a way of thinking that carries one through their day's decisions. It is a way to make the best decision for you and the greater good, right now in this moment, without having that decision be the only choice you have for the rest of your life.

Let me give you an example:

• Someone offers me a large chunk of gooey dessert. My Red Road decision looks like this: "Not now, not today, this is not best for my health." Now this does not mean I can't decide tomorrow to have a gooey hunk of dessert. It just means that right now I am going to make the best decision for my health, for my higher self, for the greater good.

Taking the Red Road path in life gives you the emotional / spiritual comfort of not crossing out the possibility forever.

We have all done this sort of lifestyle planning... "I am not going to" 

• eat desserts ever again
• drink alcohol ever again
• eat pasta and bread ever again...

Then maybe 2 days or 2 weeks into our "not going to" lifestyle plan we have gooey desserts for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Taking the Red Road path in life spares the feeling of deprivation. It is a choice to do the best right now, in this moment.

I find that all paths of spiritual growth and transformation work on this same principle of mindfulness and choosing to do what is best for our personal growth or higher self. I have practiced yoga daily for 16 years and yoga teachings us, through practice, to make healing choices without our feeling deprived. A post I wrote in 2013 delves deeper into this Red Road perk of yoga: Why I Love Yoga And Other Thoughts On Whole Food, Whole Health Healing

We can also compare Red Road and yoga to other spiritual teachings:  Tae Kwon Do, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, Reiki... any deep and true spiritual teachings.

Open the door to new possibilities, take the first step on your personal Red Road Path... a lifestyle that supports health and healing.

If I can be a helpful part of your health repair plan, give me a shout! Happy Spring.

How Does Your Soul Shine?

Recently my oldest son was watching a show on Netflix when he popped into my room with a "Mom, just heard a quote that was so you."  He then spewed out the above John Steinbeck quote to me. I giggled as he's correct, he knows his Mom. I thanked him for the inspiration for my next blog post. And... here we are. The energy is perfect after my last blog post: Which End of the Battery Are You?

We all know on a deep level how we walk in this world: happy or sad. Happiness is a powerful healing force. Happiness works with the flow of life, the flow of nature, and you are nature.

Our thoughts and feelings are powerfully healing or destructive forces; for or against life. 

As an RN, working from a space of natural health education with my clients, I always stress that healing is not just a physical event. My home page words: Come Back Into Harmony With Yourself: Body, Mind, & Spirit

I am sharing this you tube video of Gregg Braden as it speaks clearly on the power of thought, feeling, emotions, happiness, compassion... all things good and healing.

This is a 29 minute video.

If you would prefer the 9 minute "What are the effects of positive living and feeling" condensed version of how thoughts, happy souls, can heal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZpRP1FV0lE   This is an excerpt from the above 29 minute video.

Enjoy. Be happy. Heal.

Which End of the Battery Are You?

Weight Loss, Vibrant Health, Dis - Ease of the body... How do they all fit together in some sort of sensible way?  And, what does the battery have to do with it all?

Reasonable questions, hang with me on this one and I will explain.

I work with people, daily, on their health & well being through my online classes and 1 on 1 consultations. These people, my clients and students, are motivated to change their lives, relief ill health symptoms, and live in a dis - ease free body.

The steps to getting to this space of ease in the body (lack of dis - ease) are similar for all problems:

• tease out the root causes of the problems
• remove the causes of the problem
• heal the digestive tract of inflammation of the gut lining, lack of balance in the gut microbes, remove food sensitivities...
• calm the immune system
• nourish the liver
• balance nutritional intake, balance blood sugar , & balance body weight
• add in healthy lifestyle habits (daily movement, botanicals-herbs, etc.), including whole food eating, that will nourish the body cells and whole body back to a state of ease
• understand this is a lifestyle and commit to living these changes... well, for life.

Each of these steps are personalized for each individual's specific needs based on their body's bio-chemistry and their own personality needs.

Let's get to that battery!

I have two teen boys. Teens can be snarly, negative word spouting fountains from time to time. We were having a dinner time discussion on the role of mind set in creating disease and healing the body. 

Spread Love Where Ever You Go.      Let No One Ever Come To You               Without Leaving Happier.                                    Mother Teresa.

Basically, which end of the battery are you? Positive or negative? What do you surround yourself with:

• negative or positive people?
• negative or positive words, thoughts, and actions?
• negative or positive media, screen time?

When we work to change our lives for healing, we must remember the power of the ends of our personal batteries.

Negative words, conversations, thoughts, actions, people, news, social media crap, etc. are just as toxic to our body cells as:

• heavy metals toxins
• agricultural chemicals, pesticides and the like,
• synthetic ingredients in factory made food
• factory made food itself
• chlorine
• etc. etc. etc.

Every negative experience, no matter how brief, creates negative vibrational frequencies in our miraculous & beautiful body cells. Just like other toxic impacts, these negative frequencies cause inflammation that lead to ill health, dis - ease in the body. Negativity contributes to a weaker immune system and the impacts of a weakened immune system: ill health in all areas (acute issues such as colds and flu to chronic inflammatory issues of lifestyle diseases, auto-immune responses, and cancer.

Your Everyday Positivity Prescription:

1. Every AM think of 1 kind thing you can do for someone else. Even tiny little acts of kindness have a huge positive ripple in your world and the world at large.
2. A positive act of kindness for self (10 minutes of yoga anyone?).
3. Be aware of negative thoughts creeping into your mind & stop them dead in their tracks. Replace them immediately with positive thoughts. Generating positive thoughts will become a habit quickly.
4. Negative people... move away. Surround yourself with positive people.
5. Negative conversations? Find a way to subvert to positive or excuse yourself from the conversation to go do a random act of kindness.
6. Everyday remind yourself of 1 thing you are grateful for.
7. Every night as you lie down to sleep: remind yourself of that thing you are grateful for and something good that happened that day. 
8. Remind yourself of the grateful thing every AM.

Gratitude is the attitude of happy folk!

The power of thought is the magic of the mind!  Lord Byron

Much love and gratitude for you being here & reading this! Paula

The sign on my front door:

Your Best Medicine

As an herbalist student of Rosemary Gladstar, I have great respect for her healing ways. This quote could not be nearer or dearer to my heart. Truly, the way we live our lives, every day, IS the best medicine we can give ourselves.

We have a powerful choice, every day, in the food we feed our body, mind, and soul with. 

Whole foods feed our bodies; feed our cells for vibrant health and healing.

Whole, positive thoughts (our own and those we invite into our lives) feed our minds for happy living.

Whole, deep spirited energy feed our souls for compassionate living and loving from our hearts.

I hope 2016 is your best medicine year yet! 

I am creating learn at home eCourses to better support you with my health & healing work. Learn from home and invite your best medicine into 2016 and your life!

E-Courses To Walk Your Health Path

Join me and bring powerful medicine into your life. We both will be glad you did!  

Healthy people make the best communities to live in.  Join my quest to support your health and healing and make our communities vibrate and glow with amazing health!

My Healthy New Years Gift to the next 5 people who enroll in:  Food As Your Healing Tool: using foods for your healing advantage & decrease disease causing inflammation.  

25% discount off the $60 tuition: $45 for the first five "get healthy in 2016" students!

Class release dates on January 6th & 13th, 2016

Gratitude Is A Form of Self-Love

Life is what happens when we are busy planning our lives. 

A comment made to me yesterday inspired this post.

Comment: Nothing in life ever turns out the way we plan it to, want it to.

I do not believe this to be true and I think when we put our focus on not getting what we planned or wanted, this is all we are going to see.

If we face life with gratitude for all we do have and all that does turn out as planned, our vision of the day and life is so different.

I remember a girlfriend's x-husband said this to her when she was pregnant: "Expect nothing from me and everything you get will be a gift."  I confess, at the time I thought "what an asshole he is!"  Many years later I can see the wisdom of his words (not that it was so wise to say to your pregnant wife!)

When we expect nothing out of the day or a given situation and open our arms with gratitude to all that does happen, our world is colored in a completely different way. Brilliant technicolor of joy. Gratitude is the attitude of joy - it colors everything in a new light.

Let the doors of life be open to synchronicity. Let your heart be open to synchronicity. As cliche' as it sounds most things do work out for the best. We may not see this in a given moment but hind sight usually tells a different story. Find the magic in life unfolding in every moment.

Gratitude brings peace. Gratitude is self-love. Listen to your heart, it knows.

My Bathroom Wall Quote

PS  After writing and posting this last evening, one of my morning inspirational emails came through with this:  (Serendipity rocks!)