"Mindful Living NJ´s community events have really made an impact on my life. I´ve learned so much about holistic health and can be more empowered when it comes to my family´s health." jeanne
I’m starting a 21-day detox program today that includes a diet overhaul, some supplements and colonhydrotherapy. The main response I’ve gotten from a few people I’ve mentioned this to is, “why?” Some are confused because they know I live a relatively healthful life, particularly conscious of the foods I eat. Others don’t understand why we need to do anything special to detox if we have a functioning liver, kidneys, and other “detox” organs. Sandra LaMorgese of Wellness Innovations in Pequannock is guiding me through the program. In the video below, she provides an overview and an “inside look” at detoxifcation. Sandra has a Masters of Science in Holistic Nutrition and is a nationally board-certified colonhydrotherapist. For more information, visit www.wiwellnessinnovations.com
Here is a shout out to the land surveyors I chatted with at Whole Foods West Orange this morning!
As you can imagine, I love talking to strangers about holistic health and wellness. And, much to the chagrin of my family, I will often interrupt conversations already in progress if the topic is related to nutrition, conscious living, holistic parenting, or wellness.
This morning, while waiting in line for coffee at Whole Foods, I listened in on a conversation between a gentleman (sporting a neon-colored safety vest) and a male Whole Foods employee. The WF employee was sharing with the other guy the benefits of switching from sugar to agave nectar as a beverage sweetener. (More info on those benefits over at Mindful Learning.) The customer, who turned out to be a land surveyor, was so inspired by this exchange, he ate a spoonful of agave nectar right then and there and proceeded to share what he learned with his co-worker standing next to him.
Some time later, I found myself sitting next to the two land surveyors in the cafe area and sparked up a conversation with them. (My kids couldn’t stop staring at the neon safety vests.)
At that point, I didn’t know the men were land surveyors, but had already formed stereotypes in my mind about their level of interest in holistic health and wellness simply based on the fact that they were wearing neon safety vests.
Seriously. It took that little for me to form a stereotype.
Shame on me. Shame, shame on me.
Because those guys completely blew me away. They shared how much they loved Whole Foods, what a great store it is (I shared with them some tips on shopping at WF on a budget.) And how one also liked shopping at Trader Joe’s (I didn’t get into it with them about how I think Trader Joe’s is not an equivalent to Whole Foods.)
At first, they asked if I was an employee of Whole Foods. I told them no, and then shared a little bit about the educational and outreach work I do through Mindful Living NJ. One of them promised to check out the web site. So…I hope you’ve arrived here and got my shout out!
I absolutely loved this experience. A huge reminder of the old-school, “Never judge a book by its cover.” And, more evidence of The Wellness Revolution.
I recently returned home from a short visit to Scottsdale, Arizona. If it weren’t for my three kids waiting back in Jersey for me, I might not have come back. We lived in Tucson for a few years when my husband and I were first married, and vacationing in Scottsdale felt a little bit like going home.
We got off the highway and I needed a snack: Granola’s, a local health food store was right there on the corner. Driving down Scottsdale Road, there was a Pilates place and two yoga studios. Even a stretch of road was sponsored by a local chiropractor.
There’s something about Arizona that makes “mindful living” easy. Everyone at the airport going to Arizona was beeming…I knew they were looking forward to their visit to the world-renowned spa, the hiking trails, the destination wedding…whatever awaited them on the other side.
Not so at Phoenix International Airport. I imagined a few anxious grandparents eager to see their grandchildren, but other than that, no one looked as if they were excited about the prospect of going back to Jersey to dig themselves out of 14 inches of snow.
I was feeling a little down about it this week, but instead of wallowing in my longing, I posted a discussion topic on the Mindful Living NJ Facebook fan page, asking fans for their favorite specialty eatery in NJ. After all, if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.
As people starting responding, I started to feel lighter — eager to try all these fantastic restaurants serving up organic, vegan, or allergy-friendly food. I started thinking about compiling a tour guide. “New Jersey for the Mindful Traveler…” And before I knew it, I could picture it. New Jersey and You: Mindful Together. We may not have the picturesque mountains, nor the warm desert sun. Certainly seasonal snow and rain can put a damper on enjoying the outdoors. And “Jersey Shore” hasn’t done much to improve our reputation for quality and class.
All that being said, NJ has a lot to offer. I grew up enjoying Jersey beaches and still do…there’s a slow pace there in the summer that almost mimics the lifestyle out West (minus the South Jersey accent). Where I live in Essex County now, community members may take advantage of beautiful outdoor parks and trails in the South Mountain or Watchung Reservations. Montclair, a town a few miles from where I live, offers a wide variety of eclectic food, organic beauty salons (“spas”), multiple centers for spiritual and/or “healthy living.”
It’s time we work on revising New Jersey’s bad rap. With your comments below, please share with us all the places, businesses, parks, and services you think make NJ a “mindful destination.”
It’s highly likely that Canada Dry Ginger Ale, when it was first produced for mass consumption, contained a measurable amount of “real” ginger.
But highly doubtful that the latest incarnation of the soft drink, which is being marketed as of late as ginger ale with “Real Ginger!” has little more than a pinch of processed ginger powder as one of the many proprietary ingredients listed on the label as “Natural Flavor.”
The fact that the company is spending thousands of advertising dollars on promoting this high fructose syrup-laden SODA as a ginger beverage, though, indicates once again that we are in The Wellness Revolution. In addition to commercials on both TV and radio, there’s a huge billboard on Rte. 280W in New Jersey.
While ginger, in its true form, is known for its healing properties (from decreasing nausea to reducing inflammation), you may not count on Canada Dry Ginger Ale to do the same. Sorry. It’s yummy. It’s my soda of choice on the very rare occasion when I choose soda as a beverage. But it’s sugary, processed crap. There is nothing healthy about it. End of story.
I had a lovely meeting with my friend Maia Gilman this week and got to chatting about Reiki, seeing as she is offering a Level 1 Reiki class next weekend in South Orange. Last year, Maia came to my home to do space clearing work and also introduced me to the world of dowsing.
The more I learn about Reiki, particularly after my own Level 1 class with Amy Witmyer of Sacred Space Yoga & Wellness, the more I understand what a benign, beneficial, and relatively accessible modality it really is. I’m often envious of the practitioners I work with, who have such a wealth of knowledge and tools at their disposable. The great thing about Reiki is that while it does involve training, understanding, and practice, it’s not a healing modality that requires years and years of formal education before you can practice it on yourself or your family.
Most Reiki Masters suggest that once you’ve completed an in-depth Level 1 Reiki course, which includes an “attunement,” you are prepared to practice Reiki as self-healing or on your immediate family members. Pretty cool. I’ve been using Reiki to help fall back to sleep at night when woken up at 2 am by one of my sleepless children. I’ve also used it to calm my boys down before bed. Or help my husband relax after a stressful day at work (on a G-rated evening.)
Here’s how potentially beneficial Reiki is. The U.S. military uses Reiki to help soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. According to a USA Today article published last year, the Pentagon has been seeking new ways to treat troops suffering from combat stress or brain damage by researching such alternative methods as acupuncture, meditation, yoga, as well as Reiki. Suicides and violent behavior are at a high among soldiers both those in combat and those who’ve returned home.
It would seem that traditional therapies are not working. Wired.com reports that the Army last year unveiled a $4 million program to “investigate everything from ‘spiritual ministry, transcendental meditation, [and] yoga’ to ‘bioenergies such as Qi gong, Reiki, [and] distance healing’ to mend the psyches of wounded troops.”
This is evidence of the Wellness Revolution that makes me smile wide.
If you’ve seen Men Who Stare At Goats, you probably won’t be too surprised by the above news. But I’d like to think that if these modalities are being embraced by the U.S. military, which carries with it a stereotyped reputation of strict formality and convention, then mainstream America might soon follow suit.
