Pain Relief....Want some?

The body is an amazing thing. It can run on coffee and fumes sometimes. But after awhile of whipping a dead horse, running on little sleep, nursing wounds from trauma or emotional abuse, or dealing with a bad diet of processed food and and the occasional chemical or alcohol intake...it starts to clog.
With pain or issues and symptoms of disease.

Sound familiar?

But I also believe that the body is resilient and can be fixed, by removing some of the triggers and giving it the opportunity and time and ways to heal. Modern medicine isn't all it's cracked up to be (altho there's nothing as wondrous for triage). Yet, there are other healing modalities besides surgery and prescriptions which more people need to avail themselves of.
 
I've always believed that light can heal. It's one reason why I choose to tan lightly in the winter time. Living here in Central New York, the winter brings days of 0% sunshine. Really. And I would cry and get depressed. I found if I tanned a little, my mood would be lightened by the pineal gland getting it's due.

In the past 2 months, I've been on a Quest of Health for myself (both inside and out) and I am feeling pretty awesome because of it! I wanted to share with you a few things. Utilizing some really amazing healing modalities is also making great sense to me and helping lots. I wanted to help you too, by giving you all this info as well!

First off...let me tell you that for the last 2 years, I've had a lot of pain.

Like ...

PAIN

Had tests done, and doctor ruled out the heredity curse of me having Rhuematoid Arthritis. Don't get me started on Fibromyalgia. It's a Catch-All diagnosis. While I think it exists...I think that pain like that comes from lots of places.
I've had injuries, surgeries, yes, and hormonal oddities..but also some damaging emotional devastation which can become lodged within our system via the metabolism. Lots of things (including our thoughts) can make us sick. Even PEOPLE can make us sick, and not by spreading germs either: I've been keeping a yearly journal, and I've realized that I would even get sick when I was around a certain one person every time we were in contact. Funny, but now that I have removed him from my life, I haven't been getting sick like that anymore!  Well, no, it's not funny....it's pretty appropriate. Our bodies tell us things that are important, and we should LISTEN. 
Not being around certain people can be healing...and vice versa...being around some people CAN make you sick! (and fat too).
Let me ask you a couple of questions:

*Have you gained a lot of weight lately? What's behind the emotion that makes you eat? Why do you choose that particular food? (i.e. When we eat something crunchy/salty we usually have some anger. When we feel the need to eat sweet or soft foods, we are usually in need of comfort...etc.)

*Is some area of your body becoming problematic? What does that part of your body say to you? (Funny, but here again, when I didn't want to "see" what was happening with a particular relationship...my eyesight went. Coincidence? I think NOT.)

*Are certain foods making you bloat? (Listen to your belly! Do you cramp up after eating certain foods? Watch your stools. There is a language in what they reveal to you. Investigate what is happening. You don't have to go to an internist to find out about some of this! Research your diet, your emotions, your daytime problems and your nighttime dreams for the answers first! Don't go under the knife if you don't have to!!)
Click this link to a guide to "Stool Nirvana!" :)

But I didn't stop there.

There are LOTS of ways to think of Pain Relief and to HEAL.

I also totally believe also in Metaphysical Healing.
My Health Bible these days is the book: "You Can Heal Your Life" by Louise Hay.  It makes so much sense to me.

Also this one:
Feeling bloated? Read this book! Gutbliss: A 10-Day Plan to Ban Bloat, Flush Toxins, and Dump Your Digestive Baggage

And for those of you going through Menopause, I would highly recommend this author. She has a lot of books out as she is a Gynecologist focusing particularly on Women's Health issues:
Read this book: "The Wisdom of Menopause" by Christiane Northrup

Over the last year, I too, have written a book, and it prompted me to analyze myself in so many ways. I put myself under a microscope and I learned LOTS. Not only about myself, but about the people around me as well! I've had to tune into what I really want and need in a big way because of it. I've been scrutinizing what (or who) is good and bad for my health, relationships and Spirituality. It has all been a big healer to do it for myself in a comprehensive way.

I'm no stranger to Alternative Medicine and Healings:
I've been seeing a Chiropractor since I was 11 for a neck injury. But for the past couple of years, it has been for some disc degeneration (L4 & L5 to be precise...read: Slipped disc) and for the damage that it has done to my lower back and legs.

I don't want to feel old! I'm not old. 54 isn't old anymore. I'm gonna fight this fecking pain every inch of the way! There is no need for pain in my life. Pain is a punisher. I have no need to punish myself anymore for things or situations I had no control over.

In my last blog, I told you about the Acupuncturist I've been seeing for help with hormonal balance, metabolism, emotional and organ repair. She's awesome and I'm a regular customer and would HIGHLY recommend it to others. (I mean, a healing practice that has been around for 2500 years has to be around for a good reason! It's because it WORKS.)

So, when my regular and wonderful L.M.T. (Licensed Massage Therapist) said that she was getting great results for Pain Management with her new Light Therapy Unit, well, I trust her and so I signed up!

I've had 2 treatments in the past 2 weeks. Frankly, I'm amazed at the results! After a long weekend of grueling weekend of Renaissance faire minstreling, doing shows, tapping my foot jingles while I play constantly,  climbing hills, constant drumming and strumming, and doing parades...historically, I am usually pretty banged up come Monday morning.

But today, the Monday after the first opening weekend of a particular hilly inclined faire...
I'm tired, but I'm not crippled. And hey, I'm all for that! YAY!!!

OK, so what is Low Level Light Therapy like and why would I want to try it?

Well, the FDA has been recommending it. It's called In light Wellness Systems.
The double blind studies and the results of years of use are pretty conclusive.
And it's got a lot of good reviews from folks and Veterinarians are even using it on animals with awesome results!

In Light Wellness Systems LED animation - Click here~

Click here to see it used on pets by Veterinarians!

My massage therapist told me to put on special protective eyewear, and then she encircled a band of lights around my head, on my back, torso, and on my troublesome ankle (I either have a bone spur, some nerve/ligament damage or a hairline fracture in it. It can be excruitiating out of the blue!)
Then she turns on the machine and my brain is flooded with brilliant white light. My blindfolded and protected eyes do adjust and I relax into the moment. While the lights beam good light into my cells, it does its job of reducing inflammation,  kills bad bacteria and infections, removes swelling and promotes healing and regeneration of muscle and ligament. It's a very pleasant experience. I chat with my therapist and visit for the 20 minutes of the Light Therapy, while she does Hand and Foot Massage or Reflexology on me...and all the while,  the lights do their good shiny thing.

It's amazing, but I am definitely feeling better!

Oh, I have to tell you that I'm also doing my part to remove pain, by removing some Food Triggers from my lifestyle and diet, like I've never done before.

Since the middle of May, I've removed sugar, sugary desserts and drinks, cow dairy, breads, cakes/cookies. It's been now 8 weeks without these things in my diet.
Not only am I feeling MUCH improved, but some folks at faire this weekend were wowed, and said that I "looked beautiful" and "You just glow!"

I HAVE been feeling better inside and out. The bloat is gone. So is the heartburn. The pain is receding....slow but sure!

Acupuncture is helping with my metabolism and emotional Chi and getting me more in balance than I've ever been.

Chiropractic adjustments 2x a month (I was going 1x a week or more when I was in excrutiating pain before) keeps me in the right stance and gets my discs moving instead of fusing.

Light Therapy is killing the source of pain and inflammation inside my cells.

My improved and more real food diet (fruit, veggies, grains, seeds, lean proteins of meat, fish and nuts, goat cheese, lots of water) is eliminating my personal detractors of health which are hard for me to digest, process or whacked my metabolism and emotions. I mean, if I really think about it....whenever I have had emotional drama in the past, I almost ALWAYS was eating sugar, dairy, breads and hard alcohol. It was a toxic diet for me, and I reacted violently to it.

Harry even said that even tho' I'm not eating certain things (nor am I buying them.. if he wants them, he buys them...), he's been eating less of these things and feeling better because of it.

*I do eat Goat cheese and Feta.

*I have had an occasional bowl of Gluten free pasta to feed my tomato sauce addiction (but usually I have it on cooked rice, millet or quinoa). And crackers that are mostly rice are fine.

*I have had some Stevia in my Smoothies, but usually have chosen to do without it and just get used to the fruit being a sweet treat in itself.

*I do have some Red Wine, and a wee bit of Vodka doesn't seem to bother me (altho, I think the tonic that I love with it, doesn't make me feel the best). But No whiskey for me. I realize that it gives me heartburn. A rare beer in the heat of the day is nice. But I don't drink like I used to. (But then again, I have removed some Drama Kings and Queens out of my life...and thusly, I don't feel the need to drink like I used to either. :)

Now, without those bad triggers, and getting the health help I need at a structural and internal level to process and mend the damage that our western way of life told me how to live by...

I am feeling better than I've felt in several years.
(FYI~ My blood pressure reading this morning was a whopping 95/63  and I'm NOT on any BP meds  :)

I wish you the same and share for your health in kind~

So be well, my friends!
Slainte'!

Week 11 of 52~ Read the fine print...and stretch yourself

Hey ho~ I'm on Week 11 of the book:

that I am doing with my friend Lorie and a few of you are following along with me.

This week's change is to: "Read the Box" 

That means checking labels for ingredients, fats and content. I do this already. I will try to do it more.

And No, I didn't blog about last week's change: "Take Time to Stretch" mostly because I've been doing Yoga and well, it was a hellacious busy week. Several gigs, 2 of which had major setup, backdrops, costuming, performance and break down time.

But mainly, the real reason I haven't been blogging is I've also got a problem. 

I'm out of whack. You knew that, tho', eh?

I've been without a Chiropractor for a year, since my doctor passed away last year. He basically dropped in the harness as it were, and died of a heart attack at work. It was very sad, but really it was a warrior's death and he was healing others till the very last minute of his life. A good man.

BUT....

Now I've been floundering without a doctor and a regular adjustment all this time and it's becoming apparent. I am starting to feel and walk like an old lady. Or like a horse that was "rode hard and put up wet." It isn't pretty.

Stretching aside, which is nice in theory...I really need a doctor to put some bones back in place. I got a referral from a friend of mine (Thanks Lynn!!) to her new doctor, not too far away, for this coming Friday. Will have x-rays and see WTF is going on within my achy body.

(It's my right hip and leg...I personally think it is Piriformis Syndrome....which I've had before. The BASTARD.
I sit at my desk at work a lot, and my "throne" chair at home has been killing me. I'm active, but, I'm in PAIN.

I am very much looking forward to my appointment. Until then, I'm doing some modified Yoga and walking the dog as far as I can without hurting myself.

This pose: "Thread the Needle" is the best thing for my current condition of pain. It HELPS.

This pose: "Lying Side Twist" is the 2nd best to make me feel better.

This pose: "Downward Dog" is good for stretching my hamstrings and calf muscles.

This pose: "Cat to Cow" (altho reversed in the picture) FEELS SO FUCKING GOOOOD.

(Tip: Exhale completely as you suck in your belly to your spine for the Cat pose...then inhale fully and drop your back and belly for the Cow pose. Do this for several breaths. It's AWESOME.)

The stretching and Yoga is helping.

As does Ibuprofen....

Hot baths.....

Early bed....

And WINE.

Hope you are doing good out there? Thinking of you, which is why I'm writing this. I am hoping that this blog is helping you too, in some small way :)

Oh, and don't forget to take your vitamins.