The Love Jar consists of thoughts, quotes and scriptures I collect for the person in particular.  I usually like to fill the jar with 365 thoughts so he/she may have one for every day of the year.  Sometimes I even put in stories about the person or ways he/she makes me smile.  Mostly the theme is thoughts of encouragement for the recipient. 

 Once I have collected 365 thoughts, I head to the local craft store and pick out a jar.  The jar doesn’t have to be that big, just big enough for the person to get their piece of paper out each day.  I have decorated the jars in the past or just added simple ribbon.  Whatever you feel your jar needs will work. 

As time consuming as this project may seem, it is worth it. With a whole year until the next Valentine’s Day, you’ll have have plenty of time to prepare.  I have had recipients ask for more love notes to add when the year is up.  And my mother-in-law recycles the notes to keep hers ongoing.  It is a fun, cheap and easy way to show someone how much you care. 

Post contributed by Laura Bryan.  Laura is a mother, wife, dog owner and human being.  She loves God, the ocean and s’mores.  Being a mother has taught her/me nothing is perfect and why should it be because life is more fun when it’s messy and character comes with the interruptions.  

 One day, however, he was not with her so I asked, “Where is your grandson today?” 

 She looked at me quizzically.  “Who?” 

 I spoke louder, “Your grandson.  The young man who walks with you every day, I notice he’s not with you.”  I said noticing a frightened look come across her worn gray eyes. 

 “I don’t know who you are talking about,” she stated and walked off.  I was confused.   It seemed odd she didn’t remember someone walks with her every day.   Maybe he was an angel and only I could see him!  Quickly ruling out that silly fantasy, I set my mind to find out who this mystery man was. 

 The next day I saw him, so I stopped to talk.  He told me he is not her grandson, or her son. In fact, he is not even related to the woman he walks every day.  The elderly woman has a daughter who is friends with the young gentleman’s mother.  The daughter asked her friend if the son, who lived in the same town as this elderly lady would check in on her and walk her each day.  I was stunned.   I couldn’t imagine ever taking time out of my day to walk someone who was not a relative, neighbor or affecting my life somehow.  Immediately, I thought the guy was either running a meth lab out of her house or writing down all of her stories to turn them into a number one selling novel.  But my musings aside, the guy still shows up day after day to be there with her. 

 Slowly it hits me, this is what love looks like.  Not the man loving the woman, but the daughter loving her mother enough to ask her friend a favor.  The friend loving the daughter enough to ask her son, who out of his love for his own mother decides to walk a woman daily who has no idea that he shows up day after day.  Love is a chain reaction that, in its truest form, must be shared.   Often the biggest declarations of love are done in secret while no one else is watching, except maybe a nosy neighbor.   

Post contributed by Laura Bryan. Laura is a mother, wife, dog owner and human being.  She loves God, the ocean and s’mores.  Being a mother has taught her nothing is perfect and why should it be? I believe that life is more fun when it’s messy and  that character comes with the interruptions.  

 P.S. Love is something that must be walked every day, not just on Valentine’s Day .

When I returned home last night, and learned about the death of Whitney Houston, I was struck by another moment of awareness when I was reminded by broadcasters that her greatest songs were about love. It seems  that the timing of her death was almost planned, as if to remind all of us to love ourselves more.  These seemingly coincidental things happen all the time, and the more I pay attention, the more I am reminded of the expansiveness of love.

Love is not about what you say, but what is in your heart. 

Sometimes our egos get in the way of love. My ego tends to do this on a daily basis. Our ego is valuable because it often gives us the strength to survive, it protects us and helps us get ahead when that is our goal. But our ego is not who we are. And it’s not who those around us are either. It’s difficult to look past strong egos and notice the spirit underneath it all. It is those people with strong egos that are sent to us so that we can learn how to love more fully.

While I was away this weekend, one of the speakers, Diana McKendree, talked about how we all want to be invited in. I know I do. And I’m sure you do too. The reality is that someone has to send the invitation. Why can’t it be us?

Today’s Mindfulness Practice: Mindfulness is about awareness without judgment. Often, we react to the ego of others. This exercise is about noticing the spirit of others without reacting. To be still and listen. To notice any negative (or positive) emotion that may arise within you, and let it go. Breathe. After letting the emotion go, return to the act of stilling yourself and listening. Choose one person to practice this with, or maybe even spend a whole day practicing this with whoever crosses your path.

The poem below is a gift to you, from my friend Chrisite. May you pass this spirit of love on to those around you.

Wings of Change

By Christie Derrick

Like a butterfly,

You emerge from the darkness of a gray cocoon.

Breaking the threads of pain and hopelessness,

You unfurl your brilliant wings of yellow and blue.

I pray for the wind to lift you above your sorrows.

I pray that you have food from plentiful flowers.

A symbol of freedom.

A sign of change.

I pray that God grants you love always.

I love this spot on the Congaree River in Columbia

What happens when you hold on too tightly? You’re likely to squeeze so hard that you either loose hold or the thing that you’re holding crumbles to pieces right there in your hand. When that happens, I’ll bet half the time most of us will continue holding on to absolutely nothing.

We hold on to relationships that are damaged. And jobs that are unrewarding. We hold on to possessions that are suffocating us (anyone watched an episode of Hoarders lately?). We hold onto emotions like anger, fear and sadness as if these feeling are adding anything of value to our lives. As we hold on, our lives swiftly pass us by.

My friend Catherine uses the phrase, in her endearing sarcastic tone, ”that’s so upstream” to describe this act of holding on. Catherine’s phrase comes from the metaphor of a river. Imagine taking a boat trip, and placing all of those things that you are holding into your boat, and then imagine paddling that boat upstream. This sounds like a miserable trip to me. Plus you’d never get to the destination, because it’d just be too damn hard.

Imagine taking a trip down the river instead. There is swift movement and stillness happening simultaneously.

Now that is peaceful.

During lunch the other day, Catherine and I were discussing the art of manifesting what you want in life. Struggling a bit with this concept myself these days, I asked her how she is able to manifest the things that she wants. Her answer? A practice of faith and detachment.

The water doesn’t cling to the rocks as it makes its journey to the ocean, but it eventually gets there. These concepts of faith and detachment have to do with remaining connected to the present moment while trusting that whatever you want or need is on the way. At the same time you want to remain unattached in thought or feeling to the outcome.  

With practice, and by taking our cues from nature, we may all find a little more peace.

Overall the most single attitude for healing is forgiveness.  Carrying a grudge is like taking poison yourself and expecting it to kill your worst enemy. Norman Shealy from Sacred Healing

Acceptance, and forgiveness, is an art. It is also a challenge.  The key with acceptance is to let go of unhelpful emotions such as anger, fear or sadness first, then choose acceptance. See, our minds are tricky: with acceptance, we have to choose this path over and over again.  When we least expect it, that poison will sneak up on us, and leave us right where we started. So again we choose acceptance.  Keep choosing the path of acceptance, and eventually, you’ll find it easier to let go.

Today’s Mindfulness Practice: Choose one thing that you would like to forgive. If you have a hard time accepting things, then start with something small (say your partner didn’t put the dishes in the dishwasher this morning). Write that problem down on a sheet of paper. Take the sheet of paper and throw it away. The next time you think about that problem, notice the thought and choose to accept the problem. Let it go. Do that over and over until the problem posions you no more.

Apple Kale Slaw

Ingredients:

1 bunch kale (I prefer the dark green flatter leaves vs the curly for this)
1 apple (I use gala)
1 carrot (med-large)

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

3 Tbsp Raw Apple Cider Vinegar

Salt (optional)

Honey or Agave (optional)

Instructions:

Rinse kale and gently/briefly massage under warm water, dry

Peel carrot, julienne (cut into thin strips about 1-1 1/2″ long – or shred in food processor)

Julienne the apple – or shred in food processor (thin strips 1 – 1 1/2″ long)

Cut sides of kale from stem, toss stems (you will not use these). Cut kale into long strips about 1″ wide. Stack the 1″ strips and cut into thin slices the short way so you end up with julienned kale

Mix all together in bowl.

In small separate bowl mix 3 tbsp olive oil, 3 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar, 1/2 tsp salt (optional), and 1tsp honey (optional). Mix well then pour onto slaw.

With fingers massage dressing into slaw until well mixed and kale softens a little.

Enjoy!

Recipe contributed by Amy Stafford. Amy has a BS in Exercise Physiology, and has studied nutrition.  She worked in outpatient physical therapy for 6 years and was a consultant for orthopedic surgery patients for 2 years.  Amy has a passion for all things holistic, and prefers to use natural remedies and treatments before using pharmaceuticals to treat any injury or illness.

There are many different ways to attract health and healing to your life, and the path you choose will be determined in part by how you define health for yourself.  For me, health means freedom to live (by being free from negative thoughts, from pain, and from illness); it also means having energy and simply feeling alive.  Personally I have been on a long journey learning how to attract health and healing to my own life.  Along the way I have learned so much, not just about what steps to take to bring about health and healing in my life, but also more about who I am, and that how I choose to live my life has a direct and far reaching impact on the people around me and the earth in general.   It has been an amazing journey so far, and I never would have dreamed that simply taking that first step towards better health would have brought so much to my life.   I also understand that for me this is a lifelong journey, since I will always want to live my life in a way to attract health and promote healing, and that there will always be something new to learn. 

It has been difficult to ‘unlearn’ certain things (the way I had previously thought about health and healing, habits in the kitchen, habitual thoughts, etc).  It has been challenging to adopt a new lifestyle and way of thinking about food and my daily habits; and this is still something I am working on.  We are creatures of habit, and we often dislike change.  Stepping out of the comfort zone is never easy, but if we are striving for change it is something we must do.  

This journey is not something that can (or should) happen overnight, and it is not something that you can accomplish simply by stating that “I am going to be as healthy as I can be”.  It requires that you embrace it, and that you live it. 

There is a LOT of information out there on health and healing, and it is so hard to know where to find good information and whom to believe.  I used to rely 100% on what is known as allopathic medicine (practice of conventional medicine that uses pharmacologically active agents or physical interventions to treat or suppress symptoms), but have found that I now rely primarily on holistic healthcare and will see a conventional doctor if there is something requiring that approach.  Letting go of my reliance on conventional medicine’s approach to health was hard, because it was all I had known, but I am now very thankful I did.  I encourage you to continue to educate yourself about natural healing and health  and to seek out a holistic health care provider so you can go forward confidently and attract health and healing to your own life.  Don’t get me wrong, conventional medicine is needed and necessary;  the two approaches to health complement each other and incorporating both into your life is a more holistic approach to your health.

There are three things I pay attention to that help me to determine how I am doing on my journey towards health and healing.  The first is the strength of my immune system (which relies on the food and nutrients we eat, sunshine, exercise, sleep, etc); the second is the toxic load in my life and thus my body (for example: I use natural cleaning products, nontoxic cosmetics, etc); and the third are my thoughts and emotions (focusing my attention on the positive).  Your focus may be on different aspects of your life than mine, but that doesn’t mean you will not attract health and healing.  We will all have our own individual journey, and our own individual belief systems when it comes to healing and health.  

Below are some areas of living that are important to all of us as we attract health and healing; regardless of your definition of health, or the path you choose in attracting it to your life.   

Water. 

Water is life.  Without water we would not survive for more than 3 days.  The quality of the water we drink, and the water we use for bathing plays a huge role in our health.  City water is typically chlorinated, fluorinated, and full of residual chemicals and even drugs or heavy metals, all things we don’t want in our body.  Using a high quality water filter (your basic pitcher or faucet filter won’t cut it) is the only way to ensure that the water you drink is clean and pure.  Reverse osmosis filters and water distillers are the only way to remove fluoride (which is very toxic when ingested).  You can also purchase filters for your showers and baths that remove most contaminants (but unfortunately they don’t remove fluoride) – the benefit to using a shower filter however is that it prevents the chemicals in city water from vaporizing in the air that you breath. 

Food.

“The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.” — Ann Wigmore

A major area of your life to look at is the food you are eating.  To truly attract health and healing into your life one of your primary focuses should be on ensuring that the food you eat:

1. Is in its most natural state (not processed), and minimally cooked (in a lot of cases raw is best). 
2. Organic if possible (free from pesticides as well as higher in nutritional content),
3. Not genetically modified (this ingredient is not labeled, but you can find more information here)
4. Your meat should be from an animal that was living it’s natural life (grass-fed beef, pastured pork, free-range chicken, wild fish). 
5. Dairy should be from grass-fed cows or goats and eggs from organic free range chickens. 
6. Avoid processed food as much as possible (avoid it entirely if you truly want to heal). 

The simple truth is that the food you eat can not only kill cells or heal cells, but it can change your gut flora as well, which has a direct impact on your immune system and your brain function.  A holistic nutritionist or a Naturopath are excellent resources for learning more about how to incorporate a clean, wholesome diet into your life.

Sunshine. 

Getting the right amount of sunshine is very important.  Obviously you can get too much, and you want to make sure you don’t burn.  Typically about 15 minutes a day (majority of your skin exposed) will give you enough Vitamin D and other critical hormones, etc that your body relies on.  If you don’t get enough sunshine, than you can take an oral Vitamin D3, but I need to stress that you need to be sure it is D3 and not D2, and that you get your levels tested.  More information on Vitamin D here.

Get Moving.

Merely standing is better than sitting.  Did you know that when you stand your legs release enzymes that help you maintain a healthier weight?  Exercising gets your heart pumping, and thus gets your blood and other fluid flowing through your body (which helps to clean your system – sweating is also very important for this); exercising also strengthens your muscles and increases your metabolism and energy.   It doesn’t take much to receive some benefit – as little as 15-20 minutes a day of getting your heart pumping and breaking out in a sweat can have positive benefits.  It has also been shown that exercising first thing in the morning provides the most benefit.

Cleansing and Detoxification.

Regardless of how clean you live, you are in constant contact with chemicals in the air you breathe, the water you use, and the food you eat.  It is necessary to clean your system out periodically in order to keep your body healthy.  There are many detoxification programs out there.  The most basic is simply through food and water.  Drinking lemon water  made with juice from 1 whole lemon throughout day can help cleanse (this can bring on a headache if you have never detoxed, so be sure to drink at least 8-10 cups of water throughout the day to help it flush out).  Going on a juice fast (using a juicer and organic produce) is another way, although some feel this can be a harsh way to detox and thus prefer to go on a blended juice fast (using a high-speed blender it keeps the whole fruit/vegetable and is thus gentler on your system).  I have personally had great success with Dr. Schulze’s programs, but I am sure there are others out there that work just as well.

Emotional Freedom.

Find ways to free yourself from stress, from negative emotions and thoughts.  Whether thru meditation, yoga, the Emotional Freedom Technique, and/or  counseling, learning ways to manage stress and stay positive will have a profound impact on your health and your life.

Finally, oftentimes we are not starting our journey in optimal health, and thus must seek ways to heal what is ailing us as part of our journey.  Below are great resources for natural healing of pain or illness.

Natural Healing: (The resources mentioned below are merely to serve as guidelinesand/or to provide a basic understanding of that type of care; there are many options available within each and so researching on your own is highly encouraged).

                Using Ice:  How to Ice an Injury

Epsom or Dead Sea Salt Bath: this can help sore muscles, but has another benefit as well.  We are typically deficient in Magnesium, and a Salt bath allows your body to absorb this essential mineral through your skin.  There are some cases where this is not recommended (stated on the container), so if you have health issues, please ask your doctor.

Self-Hypnosis: Pain Control and Self Hypnosis ,  Using Hypnosis for pain control ,  Hypnosis for Childbirth ; Techniques for pain control in self-hypnosis include use of breathing exercises, dissociation, transference, visualization, and more.

Massage:  Massage for pain relief

                Acupuncture:  Acupuncture for pain relief , Treating pain with Acupuncture

Chiropractor:  Personally, I see an Upper Cervical Chiropractor (NUCCA) because their adjustments are gentle, they only work on the atlas where your head rests on your spine, which then brings the rest of your body into alignment.  If you can’t find a NUCCA chiropractor in your area, there are other upper cervical chiropractors, and many other chiropractors to be found.  I would work off of referral by word of mouth, since it is so difficult to know how to choose a chiropractor. (Study shows chiropractic more effective than pain meds in relieving neck pain).

Herbal medicine and detox.  Sometimes pain and illness is caused by an overload of toxins in our system, and thus cleansing toxins from our body can promote healing.  I personally use Dr Schultze’s products. 

                Reiki:  WebMD on Reiki , What is Reiki?

Meditation.  Learning Meditation.

Emotional Freedom Technique.  What is EFT?  Using EFT.

Naturopathy. What is Naturopathy?  Unfortunately, this is not an option for everyone, since currently they only practice in about 15 states.  If you are in a state that does not have practicing Naturopaths, I would search for someone trained as a Naturopath and licensed in another state, but practicing another form of holistic or alternate medicine (some work as acupuncturists for example).  I have used this alternative medicine with great success.

Ayurvedic Medicine.  What is it?  This is a holistic form of healing from ancient India. I personally have not used this, but understand it to be an excellent approach to healing.

Homeopathy. What is Homeopathy?  You can seek the help of a Homeopath for treatment of chronic or acute illness and first aid.  I highly recommend finding someone who practices classical Homeopathy.  A recommended Homeopath is Kari Kindem, who is a classical Homeopath, and with Homeopathy you can do phone consults so it doesn’t matter where you live.  I have only used Homeopathy for acute and first aid, but have found if done correctly is very successful.  (You can self treat with homeopathy for minor acute and first aid, but never for chronic illness).  For some FAQs click here.  See below for information on correctly using homeopathy. 

To learn more I recommend the book “The Complete Homeopathy Handbook” by Miranda Castro.  Additionally, if you really want to learn about how to administer Homeopathic remedies for acute and first aid you can take an online course.  Online Homeopathy Course .  

You can purchase most homepathic treatments from any health food store.

Post contributed by Amy Stafford. Amy has a BS in Exercise Physiology, and has studied nutrition.  She worked in outpatient physical therapy for 6 years and was a consultant for orthopedic surgery patients for 2 years.  Amy has a passion for all things holistic, and prefers to use natural remedies and treatments before using pharmaceuticals to treat any injury or illness.

We all strive to be healthy – but how does someone achieve and sustain health? and what is it?  How do we attract it to our lives?  What motivates us to do so?  In a world where chronic disease is rising, stress is at an all time high, and toxins are invading our food and environment, how does one navigate their way to a state of optimal health?  I hope that what I share with you today will encourage you to attract health and healing to your own life.

What is health?

Health is often defined as the condition of being sound in body, mind, OR spirit: freedom from physical disease or pain; and the general condition of the body.  I personally don’t believe that this is an adequate definition.  For me, health is when you have achieved a balance – in body, mind AND spirit since all three are interconnected; and true, optimal health is when you are not only in balance, but also full of life (energy) and vitality.  Without balance, energy and vitality are we free to be who we truly can? To enjoy life to its fullest? 

Most people view health as merely the absence of disease, if they aren’t sick then they believe they are healthy.  It is all relative I suppose.  For some, this would be enough.  What does health mean to you?  Defining health for you is the first step in trying to attain it.   How you define health will determine  how you approach attracting it to your life.  I encourage you to think holistically (body, mind and spirit).  Don’t focus solely on just the physical aspect of your health because your thoughts and emotions play a huge role too. 

How do we attract health to our lives?

I believe the most important aspect of attracting health to our lives is by staying positive.  Avoid approaching health with the mindset that you are doing it to avoid disease and illness.  A more positive approach, and one that is mindful of the laws of attraction, is to approach health with the mindset that you will be the healthiest you can be.  Thoughts of illness or disease (or losing weight)  should not enter your mind as you are deciding to take steps towards health.  Give yourself positive messages, for example:

“I love to eat whole, clean, nutritious foods that so my body and mind will stay strong and healthy”

“I love to exercise because it strengthens and heals my body, it calms my mind, and it gives me endless energy”

“I believe that my body is capable of healing itself, as long as I give it what it truly needs.”

Attracting health and healing requires more than simply staying positive.  It requires that you educate yourself and that you set goals, and that you take steps  towards attracting health to your life.  There are many resources available today to help you create your own path towards health and healing.  Some key steps that I believe everyone should incorporate are: pure water, clean and live food, detoxification and cleansing, natural cleaning, relaxation, exercise, sunshine, and emotional freedom.  Some of my favorite books and websites on some of these topics are:

Dr. Schulze — you can visit his blog to read his information for free here (his books are in .pdf format on the right side of the screen).

Natures Diet — my Naturopath, Dr. Iverson, wrote a great book on nutrition and healing. 

Prescription for Nutritional Healing

Dr.  Mercola — I love his website (www.mercola.com)  as an educational tool for nutrition, exercise, health, and healing.  Just please be aware that he writes about EACH and EVERY thing that could potentially harm your health, and it can be overwhelming and too negative at times.  I still subscribe simply because it does bring to my attention to things I should be aware of, and I appreciate that.

Environmental Working Group – This website is an excellent resource, especially their Skin Deep Database, and their handout on pesticides in produce.

Healthy Child, Healthy World – Specifically their Live Healthy tab at the top.  The focus is on children, but the information is applicable to adults as well.

Tomorrow I will discuss in more detail how to incorporate the steps towards health and healing into your life.

Post contributed by Amy Stafford. Amy has a BS in Exercise Physiology, and has studied nutrition.  She worked in outpatient physical therapy for 6 years and was a consultant for orthopedic surgery patients for 2 years.  Amy has a passion for all things holistic, and prefers to use natural remedies and treatments before using pharmaceuticals to treat any injury or illness.

Attracting Health and Healing

It’s the end of January, so I’m just wondering, how are your New Years resolutions going? Are you feeling as motivated as you did on January 1,  or did you fall of the wagon?  And if you’ve fallen, just how long did it take? As we approach February, it may be important to revisit goals for the year or officially change resolutions that haven’t worked out so well.

What often happens with resolutions is that we over plan, and what does that usually lead to? A big fat failure, right? Maybe it’s time to back up and figure out this: “What do I REALLY want in my life?” 

This week our focus at Flying Fish Blog is on attracting health and healing.  Whatever it is that you may be looking for, I’m sure that health and healing must be a part of what most of us want. Why then do we so often make decisions that take us away from our own true path?

Very often we identify our goals based on what others have done, or what others think we should do. In actuality, effectiveness is not about following the paths that others have blazed, it is about following your own true path. It is about waking up to your own creative energy so that you can live the life you were born to live.

Maybe you can revisit your goals and purpose for the life you are living. And if you do, I would recommend that your focus be around doing more to promote health and healing. The image above is a collage that I worked on over the weekend. These are the things I want more of in my life, so the collage hangs in my bedroom where I can look at it every morning before getting up. With a focus on health and healing, I’m am looking forward to attracting more of these things into my life. You can use this as a mindfulness practice, and it’s fun too!

Today’s Mindfulness Practice: Create a collage of things that you want more of in your life. Make your focus be about attracting health and healing. Include things that you feel passionate about (or have felt passionate about in the past). Be sure to also include items of fantasy and even your wildest dreams. The practice is to create a full collage with lots of ideas, and with no judgement. If you find yourself judging, then notice the judgement and let it go. Don’t judge yourself for judging!

Hang you collage somewhere that you will see it on a regular basis. In a month or so, sit down and look at the collage again, make additions or changes if necessary. Notice if you have attracted any of these things into your life since completing the collage.

For any of you who have experienced pain, it can be disconcerting and anxiety inducing, especially if the pain is severe and continuous or the cause is unknown.  There are different levels and kinds of pain, and I believe that everyone experiences and handles pain differently. 

What is pain?  Can our thoughts change how we perceive it?

Pain exists as a survival mechanism to initiate action, because it is typically telling us something is wrong.  It can initiate either an evasive action such as avoiding putting weight on an injured leg, or an active action such as seeking out relief or seeking to eliminate the cause.  When we experience pain, we should be mindful of it no matter how minor, and actively seek out ways to heal the source of the pain. 

I, like everyone else, have experienced pain in my life – from injuries, illness, malnutrition, toxicity and emotional stress.  I have also experienced natural childbirth, which for the majority of our society is associated with intense pain, although I hesitate to support that notion.  There are many, many women who have calmly and peacefully had a child without any indication of pain, because in their mind it wasn’t painful.  Modern (western) society has placed into our psyche that childbirth is painful, has created a sense of fear about the prospect of natural childbirth, and so most woman enter childbirth with the notion that it is going to hurt.  It is truly amazing the power our thoughts and beliefs hold over us.  If we think it will hurt, it will.  If we think it will make us sick, very likely it can and will.  Using the power of our thoughts and exercising our mind can go a long way towards learning how to navigate life, and is very instrumental in how we choose to manage our pain or illness.

Sometimes, the only thought that enters our mind is to flee from the pain, by any means available.  Additionally, if we don’t know the source of the pain, we can experience anxiety and fear, which can increase the level of pain we experience.  Using our thoughts, we can change the way we perceive pain, and we can also control our fear or anxiety so that the perceived level of discomfort is lessened.  Staying calm and relaxed, and using positive thoughts during intense discomfort may seem impossible, but it can be done.  People have successfully undergone surgery without any type of medication, they’ve controlled their sensation of pain merely by controlling their mind.  Known as self-hypnosis, people have successfully used it during childbirth, during medical procedures and surgeries, to deal with stress, as well as for dealing with emotional pain and trauma. 

Since we know that there is a definite mind-body connection, we know that our thoughts can have a positive or negative impact on how we perceive pain.  By choosing to control our thoughts and using our mind to control our perception of pain, we can more readily deal with what may come our way.  This will allow us to make more conscious choices in how we choose to manage and heal the source of the pain as well.

So how do we most effectively manage pain? 

The first obstacle to managing pain is the fear and anxiety that often accompanies it. 

Fear and anxiety cause our muscles to tighten and constrict, they release a flood of chemicals into our system in preparation for ‘fight or flight’, and not only can these increase the pain, but they are counterintuitive to dealing effectively with it.  I will use the example of childbirth. 

When a women enters childbirth being fearful of it, believing that she will experience pain, her anxiety and fear can cause an actual physical change with her uterus.  Instead of simply ‘letting go’, relaxing, and allowing her body to do the work (the uterus is one big muscle, so a contraction is simply a muscle contraction designed to cause other changes that allow the baby to be born), she tenses up. 

When a women in labor tenses up she restricts blood flow to the muscle contracting (the uterus), which will continue to contract anyway.  Imagine trying to do leg presses or some other exercise with no blood flow to that muscle, it would hurt! 

When a women ends up getting a c-section due to failure to progress, surgeons have found that the uterus is actually white (muscles are typically pink or red), because there has not been any blood flow to the muscle (all due to fear and anxiety of the experience and thus tensing up).  If she had been able to control her fear and anxiety, or better yet get rid of it completely, she would have had an entirely different birth experience. 

My personal experiences with childbirth were not painful.  They were overwhelming and intense, but it was not pain.  Although, if I had gone into the process with the idea or belief that it was supposed to hurt, or if I was unable to remain relaxed, then I most definitely would have experienced pain.  Learning to control our thoughts (and thus our fear and anxiety) will help us to discover the most effective means of dealing with the pain as well as having a positive effect on the level of pain we experience.

The second obstacle can be dealing with pain of unknown causes.  

The unknown can bring on anxiety in any situation, so identifying the cause or source of your pain is often a major step towards finding relief.  Approaching pain of unknown origin with a holistic view (body, mind and spirit) will increase your chances of finding the source since it can be as a result of any number of things (to include negative emotions).  By controlling our thoughts, we are able to be more present and attuned to the signals our body is giving to us.  Learning to become more aware of our body through mindfulness will enable us to be more able to find the cause, and thus bring about healing.  For example, if we know our pain is as a result of something mechanical, than we would know to find a chiropractor who can treat the source of the pain, instead of simply relying on pain medication or ignoring it.   

Most people manage pain with pharmaceuticals.  Unfortunately, pain-killers only block pain signals, so usually do nothing to eliminate the source of the pain.  Next time you experience pain , before automatically reaching for pain relieving drugs, I encourage you to try other pain relieving techniques (see some options below), and also to focus your efforts on healing the source of the pain versus continuing to mask it with drugs, which can have a detrimental impact on your health.  Additionally, unless you eliminate the source of pain, pain will continue with the potential that further damage may occur.

Healing the SOURCE of the pain.

NOTE: If you experience an injury or illness that needs treatment, please see a doctor or health professional. 

Pain from injury is typically the easiest to manage, because once your injuries heal, your pain goes away.    Should you experience an injury that requires medical treatment, first get yourself to a doctor.  During the process of receiving treatment tell yourself the worst part is over,  address any fear or anxiety you may have, and focus your mind on healing and pain relief (you could try to use self-hypnosis techniques to control your level of discomfort). 

Remember that your thoughts can impact the level of pain you experience – so learning to control your thoughts (an example might be: instead of continuously telling yourself it hurts over and over, try telling yourself it can only get better, it is healing, and imagine it happening while you’re thinking it over and over).  Once the immediacy of the situation is dealt with then you can truly focus your efforts on healing the source of the pain.  

Seek out, and try other options for pain management besides drugs (applying ice, getting therapeutic massage, using homeopathy are just a few).  Seek out alternatives for healing a more serious injury (surgery may not always be the right solution – you always have the option to get other opinions).  See the list below for some alternative options with links to websites that describe them in detail.  As with anything, do your research, as there are many different providers in any given area, and there are many alternative methods for managing pain.

Pain stemming from illness, toxicity or malnutrition can sometimes be the hardest to identify.  Approach it holistically.  Your first step should be to see a doctor (whether it is your primary care or one in alternative medicine). 

Keep searching for an answer, and once the source is identified, turn your focus and your thoughts to healing.  Don’t focus on the illness or the pain.  Be Positive!  If you can’t find an actual answer as to what is causing your pain, but find that a treatment you’ve tried works (for example acupuncture relieves your pain, but you never identified what was causing it) just keep using that treatment unless of course you start notice it is no longer working.  

Toxicity is unique in that it is very rarely addressed by a traditional doctor, unless of course there was an obvious poisoning, etc.  We live in a world full of toxins – it’s in the air we breathe, in the water we drink, in the food we eat, and in what we put on our skin.  When toxins build up in our system, it can cause pain like headaches, and general body aches.  When we are living in a moldy home, the toxins in the mold impact our bodies and can cause aches and pains, headaches, etc.  So staying present and aware, and actively seeking for the source of the pain will help you find a way to heal. 

For some, your primary care doctor may not be able to find the cause or source of your pain and may try to suggest that it is ‘all in your head’ and prescribe anxiety medication or antidepressants.  If you are truly experiencing uncontrollable anxiety or severe depression, than obviously this is something to consider.  However, if you are experiencing pain and discomfort (which can cause anxiety and depression by the way), I would suggest getting second or third opinions from other doctors and/or see someone in alternative medicine. 

One of my personal experiences involved systemic pain with no discernible cause.  After unsuccessful attempts at getting help thru my primary care physician, I sought help from a Naturopath who put me on Vitamin D3, and my pain disappeared within 3 days!  My primary care doctor had simply instructed me to take pain medications, and tried to put me on anti-anxiety pills.  More information on Vitamin D here.   

Negative emotions can also be a source of pain.  Viewing health from a holistic point of view (body, mind and spirit) will greatly increase your success in identifying and then healing the source of pain.

If you are experiencing pain, and aren’t satisfied with progress you have been making thus far, seek second opinions, seek out alternatives.  Simply tolerating the pain, relying on pain medication, surgery, or anxiety medications are not your only options.  Listen to your intuition.  Treat the SOURCE of the pain so you can eliminate it altogether. 

Take action, be present, and seek the best way for you to eliminate pain in your life.  Focus on healing and stay positive!  Your body, your mind, and your spirit will thank you.

Post contributed by Amy Stafford. Amy has a BS in Exercise Physiology, and has studied nutrition.  She worked in outpatient physical therapy for 6 years and was a consultant for orthopedic surgery patients for 2 years.  Amy has a passion for all things holistic, and prefers to use natural remedies and treatments before using pharmaceuticals to treat any injury or illness.