By Randy Rabney

“I feel a recipe is only a theme, which an intelligent cook can play each time with a variation.” ~ Madame Benoit

I often teach about the importance of keeping your house stocked with herbs, spices, condiments and basic food items so that you can make great tasting healthy food on a regular basis. Sometimes, when I tell this to people, they seem confused. They don’t know where to begin and ask for examples.

Today, I am going to share with you some of the things that I always keep on hand to make my food taste great and to make a quick meal from ingredients in my kitchen. Remember, this is my list and I created it based upon what I enjoy eating. You can use this as a guide, but your list should be created based upon what you enjoy.

If you’re ready, here’s a peek inside my refrigerator, freezer and pantry.
• Dijon mustard
• Hot sauce
• Shoyu or tamari (Good Quality Soy Sauce)
• Toasted sesame oil
• Gamasio (a blend of sesame seeds and seaweed)
• Organic apple juice (I use it for a sweet element in cooking)
• Organic raw honey, if you can get local even better
• Real maple syrup
• Good Quality Butter (unsalted is best for cooking)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Brown Rice Vinegar
• Herbs de Provence
• Chili powder
• Cumin
• Cinnamon
• Dried Basil
• Sea Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper 
• Vanilla Extract
• Mellow white miso
• Onions and Garlic
• Carrots
• Lemon
• Lime Organic
• Whole wheat, spelt and or corn tortillas
• Organic Eggs
• Organic Milk
• Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• Organic Cheddar, usually raw
• Frozen organic spinach
• Frozen organic peas
• Whole wheat pasta
• Soba noodles
• Quinoa
• Various types of nuts
• Various Sea Vegetables
• Dried Lentils
• Canned Organic White Beans
• Canned Organic Chick Peas
• Canned Organic Refried Beans
• Some type of tomato product
  
Special extras: White truffle oil and Saba
 
These are the things that are my staples. They allow me to cook quickly and add flavor to my food. As I begin to run low on these items, I replace them. Having these things in my home forms the foundation for fast, healthy and DELICIOUS meals. I encourage you to create your list and stock your home so that you too are ready to cook well.

If you want help creating your list or want to learn more about my list, contact me at Randy@TheConsciousplate.com.

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This week, Science Daily published a report on a study out of Boston University School of Medicine which claims “an association between yoga postures, increased GABA levels and decreased anxiety.” Basically, a regular yoga practice can shift your mood. In fact, the study says, yoga might be even more powerful than regular exercise.

More than a little part of me gets this school-girl obnoxious feeling inside when I see stories like this in the mainstream media. I almost want to put my hands on my hips and sing, “Nyah, nyah, I told you so.” The more beneficent side of me is just thrilled that this information will hopefully be passed along to the Average Joe and Jane…accepted and shared in therapist’s and doctor’s offices.

The purely optimistic side of me wants to xerox the study and hand it over to the local department of health so we can apply for a grant and get yoga in our schools.

Who wants to take that on? I’m ready to appoint some volunteers.

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You don’t need to be a wellness expert to impact your family’s health and wellness. Start small by learning about your options and how simple changes may make a big difference. Check out these upcoming events that can get you on the right track.

Your Holistic Life 101: Simple Strategies to Get Started

In this three-part class series, Jen Maidenberg of Mindful Living NJ (aka “The Wellness Bitch”) shares with you information she’s learned on her journey towards wellness. We’re bombarded by information every day about what’s safe and what’s not for our families. This can be overwhelming at best, and at worst, completely paralyzing.

In this class, no one is judged. Wherever you are is perfect. We believe knowledge is power. With information and simple tips, discover how choosing a more holistic life is actually easy, affordable and accessible. >>READ MORE

Mini Holistic Pregnancy and Baby Fair

Friday, October 1, 3 – 7 pm
Event Description: Are you pregnant or looking to get pregnant in the near future? Are you interested in a holistic pregnancy? In keeping healthy and fit before, during and after pregnancy? Meet with a nutrition counselor, lactation consultant, doula, prenatal yoga instructor, pilates master, chiropractor, and midwife to learn more about your options. Workshops, demos, and healthy food. FREE. Chiropractic Wellness Center of Clifton. Clifton. Join us on Facebook.

Open House and Children’s Respiratory Wellness Event

Sunday, October 3, 12 – 4 pm

Event Description: Asthma rates in kids are rising. The typical protocol in the doctor’s office is steroids that have potentially harmful side effects. Are you interested in a less invasive, more preventative approach to your child’s asthma? Respira Salt Wellness Center in Berkeley Heights presents a FREE open house and educational event on Children’s Respiratory Health. Learn how yoga, reiki, chiropractic, nutrition and salt therapy may prevent future attacks. http://www.respirasalt.com

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“Do you know a holistic…

MD? OB? Dermatologist? Dentist? Pediatrician?”

The follow up question to that is: Do they take insurance?

We know many holistic health and wellness practitioners in this great state, and we’re happy to refer you to them. (We also love www.wellnesspossibilities.com a web site directory populated with a lot of NJ wellness practitioners.)

And while we do know a handful of conventional physicians (MDs or DOs) who take a holistic-approach to practicing medicine, we’re sad to report that the list is too short for our liking. How do we build that list? With your help.

Mindful Living NJ wants to hear about your doctor. The seemingly conventional MD who takes a holistic approach to your health. Whether he or she allows alternative vaccination schedules, or is extraordinarily supportive of VBAC, or encourages you to wait out a cold rather than medicate it. Does your doctor use alternative forms of diagnostic tools? Unconventional blood tests or saliva testing? Is your doctor specialized in caring for chronic illness from a holistic approach, such as approaching ADHD and autism through diet or environmental causes?

If you are currently working with an MD who takes a holistic approach to your wellness, please let us know.

Email the following to info@mindfullivingnj.com. In the subject line write MY MINDFUL DOCTOR.

Your Name:

Your Doctor’s Name:

Your Doctor’s Specialty (ie. OB, Primary Care, Pediatrics):

City Your Doctor Practices In:

Contact Info for Your Doctor

Does Your Doctor Take Insurance:

Why Your Doctor Is Holistic:

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Local Author and Healer, Maria Tabone, Suggests Answer to Anxiety May Be Found Within
By Jen Maidenberg

“For those who want to get to the bottom of their anxiety, and deal with it long term without therapists or drugs, there is a magic bullet,” writes Maplewood-based healer Maria Tabone in the introduction to her new book “The Holistic Root to Managing Anxiety.”
 
This is a surprising statement from someone who practices health from a holistic point a view. But Tabone is not recommending a specific medicine or even a specific herb. What she encourages her readers and her clients do instead is “figure out the root of your anxiety.”
 
“Self awareness is the best tool,” says Tabone.
 
She speaks from experience. A full chapter of Tabone’s book is devoted to describing her own struggle with debilitating anxiety that led to bouts of vertigo and shortness of breath. The root of her anxiety was a toxic work situation, Tabone explains. “I had a boss who was a real bully,” she says. “The situation was so bad, but I needed my job. I didn’t think I could choose to leave.” At the same time, Tabone’s mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The two stressors made a cocktail for disaster. She knew she needed help.
 
A fortuitous meeting with a compassionate and holistic-minded doctor led Tabone to realize how her life was “spinning out of control.” This was the first doctor who asked her to talk about her life, recalls Tabone, and he actually listened.
 
“The epiphany for me was the realization that I needed to change. I started taking yoga, classes on herbs, spirituality, eating healthy and the mind-body connection,” she says. Now, with a Master’s Degree in Experiential Health and Healing and certification as a member of the American Association of Drugless Practitioners, Tabone wants to help others.
 
“I don’t want people to suffer or feel sad or pain,” she says. “I wrote this book to give readers good, solid information in a concise way about simple steps they can take to improve their life. Sometimes too much information can be overwhelming, but if you break things down in a way that is easy to understand and apply, especially for people who are new to alternative and complementary therapy, you can really help change lives.”
 
For more information about Tabone’s book and services, visit http://theholisticroot.blogspot.com  

 READ MORE OF THE LATEST ISSUE OF MINDFUL LIVING NJ MAGAZINE
(Inside: Remembering Joy at Health-e-Motion, Upcoming certification classes: learn how to be a doula, practic pranic healing and Reiki, Upcoming NJ Wellness Events, Coupon for IM=X Pilates of Clifton and more)
………………………..

MINDFUL LIVING NJ MAGAZINE PAST ISSUES

READ July 6, 2010: The Kitchen Yogi presents new cookie cutters / Holistic Moms announces 2010 National Conference / EcoMaids of NJ offers green cleaning solutions

READ June 14, 2010: Local quantum healer Safiya Oni Brown / Hypnobirthing for pregnancy / Alternative approaches to fertility and natural childbirth

READ May 24, 2010: Respira Salt Therapy Wellness Center / Chlorine free pools in NJ / Local honey, fruits and vegetables to find in NJ / Upcoming events

READ May 3, 2010: Highlands GreenFest in West Milford / Workshop by Dr. Lawrence Rosen in Montclair for holistic parents / Upcoming events

READ April 13, 2010: Prenatal Chiropractor Dr. Michael Magwood Aims to Educate on Cesarean Awareness / Kula for Karma Wellness Symposium in Montclair / Upcoming events / Coupon for naturopathic visit

READ March 29, 2010: UMDNJ Offers Program on Complementary Medicine / Local Therapist (Amy Kruvant) Gives Back to Community / Beat Spring Allergies By Keeping A Green Home

READ March 3, 2010: Breast Thermography / Food Conscious 101: Registered Dietician in Montclair / 3rd Annual Mindful Living Holistic Health and Wellness Fair

READ January 25, 2010: Know Soul Language with Jennifer Urezzio / Holistic Education in NJ School Wellspring Community School / Cold Season Tips from The Whole Child Center / Upcoming Wellness Events in NJ

READ January 5, 2010: Wholesome Kids Cook classes / New Year’s Detox with Natural Foods Chef Tara Bogota / Mindful Parenting with Dr. Rob Handelman / Cancer Prevention at The Rocking Chair Women’s Wellness Center

>>PAST ISSUES FROM 2009

Mindful Living NJ Magazine is a free e-publication delivered directly to your inbox every three weeks when you subscribe to Mindful Living NJ.

To be the first to know the lastest holistic health information, find out about local wellness events, and get insider deals, subscribe today!

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You wake up. You get dressed. You take your coffee or tea. You eat breakfast. You prepare to set out. You map out the route or you grab your GPS to do the mapping for you.

You’ve planned your day. You know what’s ahead of you.

And then you don’t.

What happened?

You wrote the directions down wrong. The GPS battery died and your forgot the charger. You made a wrong turn. An accident caused a back up. The train broke down. There was a roadblock or a detour.

Yes, that’s what happened. But none of that truly matters, does it?

Seriously, pause and think about it. When all is said and done, and you finally arrive at your destination (whether that destination is the same or different from the one you anticipated), what really matters? 

I suggest that what’s real is who you choose to be in the face of road blocks, traffic, and wrong turns.

Do you get to be angry? Or accusatory? Or self-doubting?

Or do you get to be graceful? Forgiving? Accepting?

I got to experience the often frustrating, yet valuable upset that is life while driving in my car this morning. Looking back on my morning, it’s easy to laugh at the real-time metaphors that kept cropping up. It wasn’t so easy at the time, though.

This morning, I had every intention of meeting up with my friend Kathy Smyly Miller of Wellness Possibilities to try out a new fitness/self-improvement program called IntenSati. Knowing I had about a 40 minute drive ahead of me and knowing it would be rush hour traffic, I got into my car with a plan…and plenty of time to spare.

I’m tempted to give you a play by play of my morning. How, beginning with writing down the directions, every wrong turn just led to another one. How I encountered every man-made and natural diversion known to man while trying to make my way to Kathy. Wrong turns, traffic, accidents, slow moving grandma traffic, construction, detours, you name it. Not to mention, I had no gas, no cash, no map (or GPS), and a very full bladder. It sounds like bad planning, I know. Which is even worse for someone who prides herself on being a planner.

I kept telling myself to breathe. I reminded myself of all the tools I have to keep calm. And yet I still succumbed to the upset. I cursed. I cried. I made myself wrong. I replayed over and over again all the mistakes I made that got me into this situation.

Until I finally got to Kathy. I made it. An hour late and about 40 miles from my original destination, I found myself.

Yes, lucky for me, I had a very patient and loving friend waiting for me on the other end. Every step of the way, Kathy gracefully changed directions and altered her own plans to adjust for what life was throwing at me that morning. I joked with her when we finally (FINALLY) met up at a diner in Summit: “You were an unknowing participant in a life lesson for me this morning. I’m treating you to breakfast.”

Within ten minutes of chatting, the upset magically disappeared. From that vantage point, I could finally see what I did right that morning.

I acted with integrity (I called Kathy to let her know what was going on.)

I asked for help (In the absence of maps, I called my husband to help me navigate the way.)

I asked for forgiveness. And I quickly let go.

I was able to laugh at myself. I was able to acknowledge the Universe for knowing that sometimes it’s the “wrong turns” and “roadblocks” that get you where you need to go and show you who you get to be.

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Chronic Pain Chiropractic – weather from Business Network on Vimeo.

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By Jennifer Chaky

As I walk and bike all over town, I hear central A/C units cranking all day in huge 3,000-square-foot homes whose owners aren’t even home during the day. I asked one such homeowner why they keep the a/c on even when they are not home and they told me it’s so the house is cool when they get home. I can’t help but wonder what becoming a society that cannot tolerate being uncomfortable for even 10 minutes is doing to us—both personally and physically.

Now that I am committed to not using A/C and keeping my heat low in the winter, I’m finding that I am developing a tolerance to heat and cold that I never had before. And this year in particular I discovered how my metabolism and my wellbeing adjusted to this deeper experience of the seasons.

Last winter I kept the heat at 58 degrees. I wore sweaters and hats in the house and frankly I wasn’t miserable (and I am NOT a winter person). But my body adjusted, and instead of craving warmth, I craved fats. We are a vegan household so our fats come in the form of nuts and oils, and boy, did I crave them last winter. Talk about being in tune with nature! The weather was actually directing what my body needed. And while everyone around us was falling ill to the dreaded flu, we managed to stay completely healthy all season.

And now this summer, since I am experiencing the heat without the aid of air conditioning, my appetite has dramatically decreased and I only crave fresh fruits and vegetables. That diet, plus the fact that I’m biking and walking more, have resulted in getting more toned than I have been in years. I feel great! I have learned to cope with extreme temperatures by controlling my body temperature instead of controlling the air temperature around me.

Here are the ways I keep cool naturally:

# 1: Drinking tons of ice water. My insulated stainless steel water bottle has become my best friend and I sip from it all day long.

# 2: Keep the air moving. Human beings have a natural cooling mechanism called sweat. We sweat, air moves over our skin, the moisture evaporates, and we are cooled. You can enhance this process by spraying yourself with a mist of water and using fans and open windows. Put a bowl of ice, or a bowl with frozen water bottles that you can refreeze, in front of a fan directed at you if you are doing something stationery like working on the computer or watching TV. You may actually get cold.

# 3: Do a mini-cooling with ice water on the back of your neck, wrists, and feet. The body radiates heat from the hands, feet, face, and ears, so cooling any of these will efficiently cool the body.

# 4: Keep the sun out. Close blinds or drapes so the heat of the sun does not reach inside.

#5: If you still need to use the A/C, setting it to a high temperature like 80 degrees will cut the humidity and a ceiling fan will create a nice cool breeze. There is no sense in cranking an A/C so much that it is actually frigid. It is very inefficient and the planet just can’t withstand that kind of waste. And by all means, cool just the rooms you are using, not the whole house of empty rooms! And of course, turn the A/C off when you leave the house!

#6: Don’t forget to leave ice water and open windows for pets. They know what to do when it gets hot—they drink and lay still, usually finding a nice tile floor.

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I’ve just returned from a two week tour of Israel with my mom, who was experiencing the country for the first time. I, on the other hand, am familiar with Israel in July as three of my four previous trips to the Holy Land were taken in the summer.

Summer in and of itself is a season I associate with love, loss, and other ailments of the heart. Is it just me or is it simply easier to fall in and out of love during the hot, balmy season of summer?

Walking along the beach in Tel Aviv with my mom, I was easily transported back 18 years to my first trip to the country while on a teen tour with other Jewish youth during which I fell head over heels for an Israeli soldier. Lovesick and determined, I made all the adjustments necessary to my schedule to make sure I could spend as much of my free time with him as possible. This included goading my girlfriends to join me at the Dolphinarium club in Tel Aviv one weekend to meet up with him and his buddies.

The Dolphinarium now, literally a shell of its former self after suffering a terrorist attack in 2001, is no longer a love den. But it still sits there…a reminder to locals and to visitors alike.

When I realized where I was, I smiled and could almost feel my heart palpitate as I walked by the spot where my younger self giggled and flirted the night away.

What would my older self think if I could witness that courtship dance taking place just beyond the rocks jutting out from the shore almost two decades prior? Oh, to be able to be an observer of young love.

Almost a decade later, I would walk along a stretch of Mediterranean beach again as one-half of another courtship dance, with my future husband-to-be.

I was a counselor in the summer of 2000, and he a program director, of a teen tour of American Jewish youth. Sound familiar? Back to the scene of the original crime, you might say, but with some life lessons learned and others still to acquire. As I said, summer is a season of love, loss, and other ailments of the heart. That one was no exception. Ten years later, now a grown up and married to that man who once gave me butterflies, I could still feel the fluttering throughout my mid-section, as if I was that young girl once again.

Is time travel really necessary, I wondered? I’m practically back there right now. At least I feel that way…in my heart. In my belly. In my throat.

I don’t experience memories like I imagine most people do. Mine are not albums of yellowed photographs or an out-of-focus film. Mine are not familiar scents or old songs. Mine are not dates or timelines or milestones. For someone who tends to be very much up in her head, I experience the past very…

Heart-centered.

My memories are physical. I can feel in my heart the love or loss or excitement or fear as strongly today as I did when I first experienced it in that moment I am reliving. Even if the original experience was 10 or 20 years ago.

Would you call this a gift or a curse? Perhaps, it’s yet another disease of the heart? And, if so, why isn’t registered in some medical encyclopedia? With tips on how to master it or at least on how to manage it?

Because I don’t only remember love and passion. I remember anger and fear and pain, too.

Travelling through Israel, where I experienced some of the most joyful love and the most painful heartache of my life, I realized the physical impact of how I experience my past.  Some of it is glorious and some of it is so painful I can’t even catch my breath.

And then it passes.

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By Dr. Judy Morgan

When we tell a new client about our practice, one of the first questions we hear is commonly: “What exactly is Holistic Medicine?”

While it can be applied to a wide variety of things, it’s simplest to look at the root word “whole.” Holistic medicine treats the whole of the patient’s mind, body and soul. Around the world this philosophy has been applied to preventative medicine quite commonly and is finally crossing into the western world. Why is it becoming so popular? Simply put, it’s safe, it’s natural and it works.

 We all love our pets. They’re part of the family and we try our best to treat them accordingly. We shower them with affection, treats, beds, toys, and their favorite, table food. When we go on vacation we board them in kennels that cost more than our children’s college fund. We really try our best to pamper them.

But some people think that all veterinary experiences are the same. A doctor only needs to be good at knowing what’s wrong with the pet and diagnosing ailments when they come up. Other than that, an office visit consists of the vet freshening up a laundry list of booster shots and sending them packing for the next year.

Holistic medicine is different. Each animal is an individual whose needs are to be catered to personally, on a case by case basis. Most problems can be avoided by formulating a unique care plan for each animal. It is really simpler than it sounds; if you would do it for yourself, then you should do it for your pets. Just like people; diet, mental health, wellness and avoiding unnecessary chemicals and toxins are key.

Holistic veterinarians offer many of the same treatments alternative physicians do. If you have back problems and go to a chiropractor, why isn’t your dachshund going to one also? If you’ve got persistent stomach cramps and need to see a nutritionist, why isn’t your Persian cat seeing one too? Getting back to a more natural care plan for your pet that includes a focus on alleviating stress and maintaining a well balanced diet not only can save you money in vet bill, but may also save the life of a family member.

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