Simplify Your Life – And, That Includes Your Medicine Cabinet
“Every morning, after we do our yoga, we each take a clove of garlic, chop it up and swallow it whole.” – Sara L. and A. Elizabeth Delaney
Americans spend billions of dollars yearly on heartburn relievers, stomach coaters, hemorrhoidal preparations, eye drops, tranquilizers, sleeping pills. nose drops, decongestants. The pharmacy shelves are lined with totally worthless items, many of which are expensive. Many of these over-the-counter products may also be health risks for the users.
Whenever I feel that I need something to ease some type of distress, I get a reflexology session or Reiki therapy session and then, if I still feel like I need something, I take one of two products: aspirin or garlic.
For me, aspirin is a true miracle drug. I doubt seriously if it would pass FDA testing and even get on the market if it were introduced today. It’s my drug of choice on most everything. For me, if aspirin and/or reflexology doesn’t help…it’s time to call the physician. I usually give the aspirin and reflexology 1 day’s chance before I call her. (And, I rarely call her.)
Aspirin is a respected pain reliever.
Aspirin is thought by many to prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Aspirin is used as a fever reducer.
Aspirin is used to stop aches and inflammation.
Garlic is the other indispensable item in my arsenal. Garlic is a true wonder drug which can be eaten raw, cooked, crushed, or chopped. It can also be taken as a supplement.
Like aspirin, scientists aren’t sure what makes it the miracle worker it is. What many professionals agree on, however, is that garlic is the best tonic out there.
Tests have shown that garlic eaters have less stomach and colon cancer.
Tests have shown that garlic lowers cholesterol
Tests have shown that garlic lowers blood pressure.
Tests have shown that garlic helps prevent heart attacks.
Tests have shown that garlic improves brain function.
Tests have shown that garlic acts as an antianxiety drug.
Tests have shown that garlic has antiaging properties.
So…if garlic does all these things, how should it be taken? Garlic can be taken fresh, powdered, or dried. Books and magazine articles claim garlic supplements have the same chemicals as fresh garlic and don’t cause bad breath. My experience with several different kinds of garlic pills is not that positive. I get garlic breath from the pills as well as from eating fresh garlic.
Cooked garlic is milder than raw and also is probably not as effective as the raw. (That’s my opinion, anyway.)
So, how much garlic is too much? Any product or food which claims to be therapeutic can be overdosed. Eating more than three raw garlic cloves daily has been known to cause gastric distress. If you’re taking the supplements, limit your intake to what the manufacturers recommend.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Books tell us that
Searching for the Fountain of Youth? Eat Foods and use Essential Oils High in Antioxidents.
So, what are antioxidents anyway? Antioxidents are chemicals in food which fight free radicals. A popular theory is that we age because of the free radicals which cause oxidation. In other words, we rust.
This oxidation process damages our cells and tissues, allowing diseases such as heart disease, alzheimers, cancer to invade our bodies. It’s possible to take antioxident pills but studies show that eating the foods high in antioxidents is more effective.
If your health interests include a longer, healthier life go for the food. Choose foods with a high Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity (ORAC).
Try to eat five servings daily of foods high in antioxidents: alfalfa sprouts, avocado, baked beans, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cherries, cranberries, garlic, kale, kiwi, onions, oranges, plums, prunes, raisins, raspberries, red peppers, spinach, strawberries, white grapes.
Some essential oils also have significant to high ORAC counts. If you use essential oils, you might as well choose those with ORAC counts: Anise, Basil, Black Pepper, Blue Cypress, Blue Tansy, Cardamom, Cassia, Cedarwood, Celery Seed, Canadian Cinnamon Bark, Cistus, Citronella, Clary Sage, Clove, Coriander, Cumin, Cypress, Dill, Douglas Fir, Eucalyptus Citriodora, Eucalyptus Globulus, Fennel, Fleabane, Frankincense (Boswellia carteri), Galbanum, German Chamomile, Ginger, Goldenrod, Grapefruit, Helichrysum, Hyssop, Idaho Balsam Fir, Juniper, Kaffir Lime, Laurus Nobilis, Lavender, Lemon, Lemongrass, Lime, Mandarin, Manuka, Marjoram, Melaleuca Cajeput, Melaleuca Ericifolia, Melaleuca Quinquenervia, Melissa, Mountain Savory, Myrrh, Myrtle, Nutmeg, Orange, Oregano, Palmarosa, Patchouli, Peppermint, Petitgrain, Roman Chamomile, Rose, Rosemary, Rosewood, Sage, Spearmint, Spikenard, Thyme, Tsuga, Vetiver, White Fir, Wintergreen, Yarrow.
While you are doing this, please don’t forget that weekly reflexology sessions encourage homeostasis which is extremely important for continued good health.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
In the Kitchen – What are Some of the Best, Healthiest Foods to Have on Hand?
Hippocrates is believed to have said that our food should be our medicine and our medicine should be our food.
As we work to stay healthy and live long lives, this statement cannot be overdone.
What are some of the best foods we can eat as we work to stay healthy? An important component in this statement is that we tend to eat what we keep in our kitchens. So the question isn’t what are some of the best foods to eat but, rather, what are some of the best foods to keep in our kitchen?
Begin with leafy greens: spinach, kale, watercress, and arugula. These leafy jewels help clear our arteries of cholesterol, reduce blood pressure, and lower our risks of cancer.
Cancer fighting greens include broccoli, kale, cabbage, Brussel sprouts.
If we’re concerned about heart disease, some forms of cancer, and immune system power, onions and garlic top the list.
Big cholesterol fighters include nuts.
Yogurt is important for its probiotics, important for digestion. For vegetarians, yogurt is a good source of protein as well. It’s also a fermented product which we don’t get enough of.
Yellow and orange foods strengthen our blood vessels, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. They also help prevent allergies, inflammation, and strengthen veins and arteries. Yellow and orange foods include oranges, tangerines, lemons, limes, gratefruit, papaya, pineapple, and nectarines.
White and green foods are anti-inflammatory, anti cancer, fight allergies and asthma. Again, think onions and garlic.
Green tea has powerful anti cancer properties. Green tea is believed to be more powerful than Vitamins C and E.
An important concept to remember is that your body is made up of whatever you put in your mouth.
When asked if we eat a healthy diet, the most popular response is usually “Yes.” But, for three days, step back from your diet and look at each food you cook with, serve, and eat as if you had never seen it before. Read the labels. Ask yourself objectively: is this food really good for me? If the answer is “no” or “I’m not sure”, do some research. Eliminate from your diet those foods which are not good for you.
The goal is to not get caught in the trap of eating products manufactured to be eaten which are, in fact, not food. The goal is to eat the food.
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Thurman Greco
This is the only post for most of this week. Thank you for reading this blog/book. Thank you for your support. – TG
Sinusitis – Reflexology for the Spirit Helps
A scourge. That’s what Sinusitis is.
Sinusitis is an inflammation of the mucous membranes that line the sinuses. It can be caused by allergies, pollutants, temperature extremes, and upper respiratory infections.
Several things can be done to deal with sinusitis. One of the first things is to try to determine what the underlying causes might be: allergies, dental infection.
If you know you have a tendency to suffer with sinus infections, try to deal with the allergies, use saline nasal sprays daily, and take natural decongestants and immune-enhancing herbs.
Visiting an otolaryngologist and an allergist helps also. The main thing is to keep the sinuses as clear as possible and to maintain drainage. This will encourage homeostasis when the reflexology session is given.
People become susceptible to sinus infections when they experience irritation, fear, anger, frustration. Sinus infections tend to occur when a person has a difficult situation in life and doesn’t know how to resolve it.
When offering a Reflexology for the Spirit session to a sinusitis sufferer, begin by working the endocrine system with emphasis on the pituitary gland and adrenal gland reflexes. Work the respiratory system with emphasis on the sinus reflexes. Focus on the lymphatic system reflexes. End the session by working the liver and solar plexus.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
sinuses reflexes.
Lung Disorders Often Have Grief as an Underlying Factor
The respiratory system is often unable to function well because of infections, inflammation, abscesses, emphysema, and many other diseases. These conditions are all connected in some way to grief.
When a client partner comes to your table suffering with a lung disorder, begin by working three reflexes: the diaphragm reflex, the respiratory system focusing on the lung reflexes, and the endocrine system focusing on the adrenal reflexes. End the session by working the liver and with a solar plexus hold.
Always encourage your client partners to consult a competent health care professional with all respiratory system issues..
Encouraging your client partner to begin to take a sufficient amount of essential fatty acid Omega-3 Oil daily. This doesn’t mean s/he should go down to the local drugstore and purchase a bottle of pills. In order for the omega-3 oil to be effective, it needs to be the right kind of oil, the right amount, and the oil needs to have the cleanest origin.
It’s important to get not only your essential fatty acids but also your nutritional supplements from someone you can trust. I get my oil from Liz Malgieri at Woodstock Apothecary in Woodstock, NY. Her phone number is 845-679-0790. I’ve built a trusting relationship with her because I feel she’s a person who knows her products and will not sell something which is either worthless or harmful. It’s also important to have a person knowledgeable about nutrition, which Liz is. In the end, I know that I’m going to save money by using Liz because I’m not going to waste money on products which aren’t going to do anything for me.
There are other nutritional supplements which will help people suffering with respiratory system issues. However, for my money, the one bottom line product which will make a difference in the life of a respiratory system sufferer is Omega 3 Fatty Acid.
For the average healthy adult who is not taking a blood thinner, 3000 milligrams daily is a good basic dose. To make sure you are going to get the correct amount add the total of the EPA and DHA numbers one the label. The number should be 3000. Then, call your professional health care practitioner and discuss this decision with him/her.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
A Guided Meditation – An Angel, a Gift, and a Safe Place
For this meditation, the first thing to do is get as comfortable as possible. This means being in a comfortable chair, recliner, or lying face up on a massage table or other flat surface.
Straighten your spine, relax your shoulders, allow your chair, recliner, or massage table to support your body.
Now, make sure your clothes are comfortable. Loosen anything that is tight or constraining.
Uncross your arms, legs.
Focus on your breath as you go within. Gently , bring your awareness to your breathing. Be aware of how you relax as you breathe in and out. Feel your spine, neck, shoulders, arms, and legs relax as you breathe.
Use your breath to allow yourself to become more relaxed. As you breathe in and out, use your out breathe to release tension. Use your in breath to bring relaxation and appreciation into your body through your respiratory system.
As you breathe in, continue to allow your breath to bring relaxation and appreciation to your entire body, ending with your feet. Breathe deeply and relax with each in breath and each out breath.
As you become more and more relaxed, you realize you have a visitor, a very special visitor in this space with you. Quietly, as you breathe in and out, you see an angel close by. This angel has come to visit with you for a few moments and to bring you a special gift.
Notice this angel now. How does this angel appear? What colors do you see?
As you note the angel’s size, colors, and general appearance, you become aware of the angel offering you a special gift. As you make contact with this angel and begin to communicate, you learn that your angel is giving you a beautiful glass bottle with a stopper.
You notice what this bottle looks like, how large it is, what color the glass is and what the stopper in the top of the jar looks like. Your angel offers you this special jar and you are happy to accept it.
You begin to realize that this jar has a special purpose just for you. You see that this jar is empty now and that it is waiting to be filled by you.
You know that your angel wants you to take your burdens and put them in this beautiful container. So, you remove the stopper and begin to place your burdens in the bottle: work, anxieties, apprehensions, stress, fear, dangers, questions, pain.
Continue to place these concerns and burdens in this bottle until you have filled it with every concern you have.
Now, very carefully, place the stopper on the bottle. As you are holding this bottle filled with your concerns, you look around and see a table nearby. You gently place the bottle on the table.
You realize that by placing your problems and concerns in the jar on the table, you are disposing of each and every one of them.
You know that, should you need them, you can return for them. But, you also know that if you don’t need them, they are gone. Thank you angel.
You thank your special angel for this wonderful gift. What a lovely thing…a bottle especially created to hold your worries.
You now become aware of your breathing again. You are ready to return to the present. You breathe deeply for a few more moments and then begin to gently move your hands and arms, feet and legs.
You are back in the room now. Rested. Relaxed. Happy to have visited with your angel. Happy to have received the beautiful bottle with the fancy stopper. Happy to have disposed of troubles.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Bronchitis – a Spiritual Affliction Attacking the Respiratory System.
Bronchitis is an inflammation of the lining of the bronchial tubes usually caused by a bacterial or viral infection. Bronchitis rears its ugly head when one’s resistance is low, frequently after a cold. There is a very real spiritual aspect to bronchitis.
People suffer from bronchitis when they’re feeling too much pressure. Conflict, anger, and grief are important aspects to bronchitis. People come down with bronchitis when they need time to themselves because they feel a lack of appreciation or love.
Bronchitis can often be a precursor to asthma. A good thing to find out when a person begins to suffer with bronchitis is what was going on in the person’s life before the bronchitis, what was upsetting the person. Basically, it’s important to find out the spiritual and emotional issues behind the disease.
Begin a Reflexology for the Spirit session which focuses on bronchitis by working with the solar plexus and the diaphragm reflexes. Then move on to the respiratory system as you focus on the lung reflexes. Work the endocrine system and focus on the adrenal gland reflexes. Finish up with the lymphatic system reflexes.
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As always, this post comes to you from my healing space in scenic downtown Woodstock, NY.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Depression can be both physical and Spiritual and definitely affects the Respiratory System
Depression occurs when a person undergoes stress and tension manifested as anxiety, fear. Factors contributing to depression include death of a close friend or relative, moving to a new location, buying and selling a home, changing employment, financial worries, divorce, feeling that a situation is hopeless.
Depression becomes monumental to its sufferers. Depression can become a huge weight carried around by its sufferers. Just the words associated with depression carry weight: overwhelmed, failure, anger, helplessness, misguided, fatigue, melancholy, anger.
No one should suffer through depression without medical help. A competent medical professional should guide a depressed person through the situation by searching the person’s health and background to discover:
underlying diseases and preexisting medical conditions
proper specific nutritional guidelines
prescription drugs which may be contributing to the depression
what sleep disturbances may be contributing to the situation
what environmental toxins may be contributing to the worsening of the situation
what lifestyle factors may be involved,
what allergies, if any are contributing to the situation.
Throughout all this, the person needs counseling, an exercise coach, and regular Reflexology for the Spirit sessions as well as a support system of health care professionals.
When working with a depressed client partner, you may be offering different sessions at different times depending on the person’s journey to health. A good beginning protocol includes working the solar plexus and diaphragm reflexes, then moving on to the endocrine system with emphasis on the pituitary reflexes, the thyroid and parathyroid glad reflexes. Then, work the respiratory system with focus on the lung reflexes. The urinary tract should be worked with emphasis on the kidney reflexes. End with the spine reflexes. The goal here is homeostasis.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Asthma – a Very Real Spiritual Disease
Asthma is a condition involving severe breathing difficulty due to allergies, emotional and/or spiritual stress as well as other issues. Asthma attacks include shortness of breath, cough, generalized wheezing, and abnormal breathing.
Spiritually, people suffering with asthma seem, to me, to be trying too hard to please others. When people are trying to be perfect, they sometimes have trouble standing up for themselves and expressing their feelings. Asthma sufferers often feel controlled, hurt, stuck, and caged.
Asthma is one disease which is rising rapidly in our country. Many children suffer with asthma. My opinion is that children suffer with asthma when they are pushed toward independence too soon. The children may feel insecure. The relationship to the mother is important here.
As the child grows up, the relationship issues are more often involving the boss in a work relationship. As an employee, the person has trouble breathing for him/herself. The person feels helpless and is in a situation where suffocation describes the situation. And, of course, stressful events just make the asthma worse.
Emotions felt here include a need to express one’s feelings and emotions. Anger, grief, lost boundaries.
The person suffering with asthma can do several things, the first of which is to have a competent health care professional actively involved in the situation. Asthma is not a situation where a person self treats. ACUTE ASTHMA ATTACKS REQUIRE MEDICATION IMMEDIATELY.
A good first step is to identify allergens, and take steps to reduce the allergic threshold. This means taking allergy shots. This can save or eliminate much discomfort.
Eating a diet suitable for asthmatics can significantly improve your health. Generally speaking, a vegan diet is best for an asthmatic. This diet eliminates all animal products. Your positive response to this diet might be slow so plan to eat a vegan diet for several months before you notice dramatic reduction of asthma symptoms. Consult with a nutritionist to make sure you are eating the best foods for you and your condition.
Try to eat pure foods as food additives can contribute to asthma attacks. Basically, avoid processed foods as much as possible. Stick with fresh, organic foods whenever possible.
Be sure to get a sufficient amount of omega-3 fatty acids daily.
Vitamin C, Magnesium, and B6 are also helpful.
Let your nutritionist guide you through the food supplement maze.
Whenever I need supplements, I go to Liz at the Woodstock Apothecary. She is their staff nutritionist. Her knowledge and experience have saved me money and improved my health.
When using Reflexology for the Spirit to offer sessions to an asthma sufferer, begin by focusing on the solar plexus and diaphragm. Then work the endocrine system focusing on the pituitary gland reflexes and then the adrenal gland reflexes. Work the respiratory system focusing on the lung reflexes. End the session by working the intestinal reflexes.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Hay Fever Attacks us Seasonally When Our Defenses are Low
Hay Fever is a seasonal affliction which succeeds in making its sufferers totally miserable. My mother had several serious diseases in her life. The one that caused her the most trouble and discomfort was hay fever.
Hay Fever is not contagious. It is an allergic reaction to airborne substances such as pollen and pollution. Hay Fever sufferers are always easy to spot because they have watery inflamed eyes, inflamed sinuses, and nasal passages resulting in runny noses. There’s a lot of itching also. Sometimes, when life is really bad, they also have a sore throat and irritated bronchial tubes.
Hay Fever sufferers have a tendency to overreact to the symptoms. The itching can be very irritating. The runny eyes are very distracting.
Although Hay Fever is seasonal, its sufferers can have attacks whenever there is an intense emotional reaction to a situation.
Visiting a competent allergist regularly to reduce one’s sensitivity to allergies can change an allergy sufferer’s life for the better.
If you have a client partner suffering with hay fever, suggest weekly Reflexology for the Spirit sessions at least during allergy season. This will offer some relief and much needed homeostasis.
Begin the session by working the diaphragm reflexes and the solar plexus. Move to the endocrine system and focus on the pituitary gland reflexes and the adrenal gland reflexes. Then move to the respiratory system focusing on the lung reflexes. Finish the session by giving attention to the liver and returning to a solar plexus hold.
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Peace and food for all.
Thurman Greco
Finish with
