summer 2011: mental health: raising awareness and exploring alternative, holistic treatments

Our Vision To strengthen and support the community of holistic professionals.

Our Mission StatementTo create a unified community of compas-sionate holistic practitioners that will contribute to enhancing our profession and ourselves by providing a supportive space to share, learn, teach, grow, and lead.

Our PledgeThe Holistic Mentorship Network supports the Holistic Professional, as well as the Community by providing the space to network, build a referral base, mentor and support each other in business development and growth, promote community awareness and education of alternative services and products, and meet potential clients.

A Community of

Holistic Professionals

An international holistic and wellness

magazine that promotes conscious

living.

MARCI™ was started by Linda Mitchell in 2002 in response to a need for the hyper growth that the holistic wellness industry was experiencing. It was our intention for practitioners to refer to MARCI™ as a resource tool for their daily practice. Much to our joy, MARCI™ has grown by leaps and bounds and now features articles and tips on everything from health and wellness to sustainable living.

- Linda Mitchell, Founder of HMN & MARCI™

4MARCI™ Summer 2011

Inside This Issue:Photography for Cover Image By Dawn J. Benko

Raising Awareness About Mental HealthBy Linda Mitchell 6

“The Secret” Coaching: Surviving Lie’s PendulumBy Lisa Nichols 19Photo Essay: Genuine Alternative In Therapy Uses Horses to Help People 20By Dawn J. Benko

MARCI TM SPOTLIGHT WRITERAnti-Aging Requires Personal Paradigm ShiftBy Gary Null 22Childhood Has Become a Diagnosis GameBy Shelly Tzorfas 28Empowering Through Auto-Immune DiseaseBy Kim Ruggierio 31The Many Faces of FearBy Dee Broton 33Project Planet NetworkTM

A Quest for Good Mental Health and HappinessWith Garrett Winton 36Patients Find Inspiration and Guidance at Breast Cancer Conference 56Mercury Retrograde’s Deeper MeaningBy Sheri Horn Hasan 57

Featured ContributorEnvisioning a More Holistic Approach to Mental IllnessBy Jefferson Harman 10Funding Holistic Mental Health Care is KeyBy Jefferson Harman 12

Board MembersLinda Mitchell, Founder & Exec. DirectorDonna Price, PresidentVivian Sartoretto, Leadership & Membership & EventsJordan Brown, Integrative Medicine & EducationKathy Lynch, Integrative Medicine & Education Karen Flaherty, Public Relations Eileen Maciejunes, Secretary Tracy Nosal, Treasurer Joan Velardi, Marketing Jefferson Harman, Publishing

Publishing CommitteeJefferson Harman, ChairJanine M. Torsiello, Editor Erin Saxton, Media StrategistDawn Benko, Photojournalist Sheri Horn Hasan, Journalist Linda Mitchell, Exec. Dir.

StaffLinda Mitchell

Exec. Dir. & Editor-in-ChiefJanine M. Torsiello

Editor & Layout DesignerDawn J. Benko

Photographer

Disclaimer

The views expressed within the various articles are not necessarily the views of the Holistic Mentorship Network, publisher of MARCI™. Copyright for all articles, poems, etc. are owned by the respective authors. Permission to copy or use in any manner is at the sole discretion of the writer.

Letters to

We would love to hear from you!

Please write to us at:[email protected]

Inside This Issue:Book Review 60Product Review 61 Calendar of Events 63Announcements 68

ColumnsCreative ArtsWith Beth Olney 39AromatherapyWith Christina Santiago 40The Whole PetWith Beth Lowell 41Personal Development CoachingWith Hueina Su 42Working With SpiritWith Christina Lynn Whited 43Eat Right...Feel RightWith Judith Gisser 44Conscious Parenting: Age 13 & UnderWith Beth Haessig 45Conscious Parenting: Age 13-19By Jordan Brown 46SpiritualityWith Catherine Perry 47Money CoachingWith Tom Selkow 48Everyday AcupressureWith Susannah Pitman 49Night SailingWith Jefferson Harman 50Legislative MattersWith Omar Rashed 52


Contact Information55 Newton-Sparta Road,

Newton, NJ 07860Phone: (973) 300-1184 Fax: (973) 300-1189

www.HolisticMentorshipNetwork.com [email protected]

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “Men-tal Health is a

state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” In es-sence, mental health is the foundation for well-being, and how effectively we are able to function in our com-munity.

“Normal stressors of life” – Perhaps they were talking about the 50s and early 60s when we had sitcom shows like “Dennis the Menace,” “Leave it to Beaver” and “Fa-ther Knows Best” to entertain us. I would bet you, if “Dennis the Menace” were on the air today, Dennis most certainly would have been put on some kind of psycho-stimulant drug for driving Mr. Wilson insane.

We have so much stimuli to-day, is it any wonder any of us are sane? We are on the fast track, trying to keep up with the demands of socio-economic times, stressful working condi-tions, unhealthy lifestyles, gen-der discrimination, ill health and human rights abuses, not to mention the war and violence

ness is a big issue in our world, and we cannot hide from it or pretend it is not occurring in our neighbor-hoods, or in our own fami-lies for that matter.

We do not have to be part of the problem. Each of us can, as Ghandi extolled us, “be the change you wish to see in the world” by speak-ing out at rallies or gov-ernmental events in your neighborhood. Not every-one is comfortable with public speaking or being on the front line to advo-cate. That is OK. We need folks like you and I to be not only informed, but to know what you and I can do to be proactive in choos-ing a healthcare system that

works for all. MARCI™’s publisher, The

Holistic Mentorship Network, was recently designated as a 501(c)(6), tax-exempt trade as-sociation for the holistic profes-sion. What this means is we are able to lobby on behalf of our members, and the industry as a whole. What it means for the consumer of alternative services and products, is we are working very hard to have a voice in leg-islative law that will affect your right to consume alternative healthcare for your well-being and state of mind.

that is occurring worldwide. We sit on the fence waiting for the next tsunami or earthquake to hit, or is it a plane? You cannot live in today’s society and not have experienced some form of post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), an anxiety disorder af-ter an event that results in psy-chological trauma.

According to WHO, “more than 450 million people suf-fer from mental disorders, and many more have mental prob-lems.” The range of mental health disorders is broad, rang-ing from depression, to bi-polar and schizophrenia. Mental ill- cont’d on page 8


Raising Awareness About Mental Health

a message by Linda Mitchell,

Founder of HMN & MARCI™

Join Gary every weekday at 12 noon at ProgressiveRadioNetwork.com for the latest in health and hear conversations with the real voices behind a new renaissance — audacious thinkers, scientists, physicians and healers, polemicists, investigative reporters and raconteurs. Listen in anytime via the ProgressiveRadioNetwork.com archives.

The Gary Null Show on ProgressiveRadioNetwork.com

So, why starve yourself on NPR’s Wonderbread when you can nourish your mind with real food at WBAI?

Harvey Cox

Michio Kaku Helen Caldicott Andrew Bacevich

Ashok Gangadean Andrew Wakefield Sherri Tenpenny

F. William Engdahl

Cynthia Mckinney Michael Parenti Mae Wan Ho

Peter Breggin

Sister Miriam McGillis

Amit Goswami

Uri Avnery Wendell BerryRupert Sheldrake

Erwin Laszlo

Barbara Ehernreich

Lester Brown

William McKibben Marjorie Cohn

Jim Hightower

Joan Halifax Henry Grayson Chris Hedges Susannah Heschel Michael Hudson Rebiya Kadeer Naomi Wolf Dennis Kucinich Simon Johnson Rabbi Michael Lerner

Ralph Nader Marion Nestle Greg Palast Elisabet Sahtouris Nomi Prins Frances Moore Lappe

Michael Ruppert Joe Bageant John RobbinsJames Lovelock

James Galbraith Jane Goodall

Danny Schechter

Dean Baker

Gerald Selente Johan Galtung Morris Berman

Recently added to our team is Omar Rashed, Research and Public Policy Director for the network. He researches prob-lematic and encouraging pub-lic policies relevant to Holistic Practitioners and informs HMN membership and staff of policies to mobilize people to engage state and federal legislators. We are delighted to welcome Omar to our team, and invite you to stay informed by keeping up with Omar’s “Legislative Mat-ters” column.

Our Publishing Commit-tee has also added Sheri Horn Hasan to the team. Sheri is an astrologer, professional writer and editor and we are thrilled to have her expertise on board. Her proficiency will help boost MARCI™ to the next level that will continue to evolve as we bring in other journalists to cap-ture the stories of alternative services, products and mind, body and spirit experiences that give us depth in discovering our own selves.

We are forever changing, and just as I am seeing, you will wit-ness MARCI™’s growth as well. The publication committee will

be giving MARCI™ a new look and we will be looking at what content will go into MARCI™. Often times I am asked who is MARCI’s target market, as branding is such an important aspect of an organization’s iden-tity. It can seem complex, and yet I know MARCI™ (an acro-nym for Mindfulness, Aware-ness, Responsibility, Compas-sion & Intuition) is intended for all of us who have a garden which we are tending.

In my heart of hearts, I hope you will find MARCI™ to be a tool to a healthier you.

In joy, love & peace,Linda


Awarenesscontinued from page 6

Envisioning a More Holistic Approach to Mental Illness

HMN founder Linda Mitchell, in conversation with Jefferson Harman, HMN Publishing Committee Chair,

offers a glimpse into an integrative future for patients and caregivers with insurance coverage too

MARCI™ Featured Writer


Photo by Dawn J. BenkoLinda Mitchell, Founder and Executive Director of the Holistic Mentorship Network, publisher of MARCI™ maga-zine, has a vision for the future of the organization which will allow it to bring holistic health practitioners and into a more integrative relationship with medcine and more into the consciousness of patients and caregivers.

Jefferson: Could you give us a snapshot of HMN and MAR-CI™ and the role you see them playing in mental health?

Linda: The Holistic Mentor-

ship Network was formed in 2005. HMN was born because of

MARCI™ magazine, which was initially a workshop focusing on our practice as holistic pro-fessionals. How we are showing up in our practice really relates back to how we show up in our personal lives. Having come from a medical profession, I

saw a lot of things that were dysfunctional in the workplace. How we show up in our work-place, especially one where people have come to heal, af-fects our clients. They want to feel safe. And if we do not feel safe ourselves, then how can we create a safe platform for them?

So the vision of HMN is to support and strengthen the in-dustry. Often times in this field we can feel alone and isolated. The concept of the organiza-tion is coming together to create local chapters so that we would have a place to meet our col-leagues, to feel supported and to learn how to build our busi-nesses. Many people see the holistic field as more of a hobby and many practitioners feel un-


cont’d on page 14

Jefferson Harman reads the symbols present in your dreams & everyday life. By interpreting this invisible language, he identifies your blocks & challenges & ways to overcome them. He offers workshops & private read-ings in Lucid Dreaming & Overcoming Your Phobias. Jefferson is a recurring guest on “Life Unedited” with John Aberle, on WCHE Radio 1520 AM, in the Philadelphia area (listen live at wche1520.com). He is developing a podcast, “Everyday Symbol-ogy”, with psychic medium & certified hypno-therapist Patti Lehman discussing all things metaphysical. Jef-ferson is a Board Member of HMN, chairing the Publishing Committee, & is a practitioner at Peaceful Paths in Butler, NJ and Full Circle Counsel-ing in Lincoln Park, NJ. www.everydaysymbology.com ; 973.839.9317.

Photo courtesy of Jefferson Harman

A sea change is happening at the Holistic Mentorship Network and MARCI™ magazine. As one tide flows out, a new one flows in, bringing with it the prom-ise of new life for the Network and its flagship publication. Spearheading that

charge is Linda Mitchell, the Network’s Founder and Executive Director. In this recent interview, Linda talks about her vision for the Network and how it can help to change how mental health issues are addressed in this country. In addition, she discusses how the Network can be a valuable tool in providing assistance to practitio-ners, their clients, caregivers and advocates.


Jefferson: As a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, what are your initial thoughts about al-ternative medicine in relation to mental health issues?

Donna: I think that you have to separate out what I consider severe psychiatric illness that really needs to be treated with medication from stress-induced symptoms that may be treated very effectively with holistic modalities. I’m referring to schizophrenia, bipolar one disorder, schizoaffective disor-der, severe depression, illnesses where people become out of touch with reality and/or unable to function. That really needs to be treated with conventional medicine.

If people with these condi-tions are going to function at all, they really need medication. It’s certainly not ideal, there’s a long way to go in terms of find-ing things that are effective and things that have fewer side af-fects. But as a Psychiatric Nurse

Practitioner, I treat people with medication for these severe ill-nesses. They don’t work for ev-erybody, but for a lot of people they really are effective and get people back to the point where they can function. It really is amazing to see how the medica-

tions work. Which is not to say that there are not downsides to them.

That being said, a lot of people who don’t necessarily need medications end up taking

cont’d on next page

Donna Templeton is a New Jersey Certi-fied Acupuncturist and is certified as a Diplo-mat in Acupuncture by NCCAOM (National Certification Commis-sion for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine). Donna is a graduate of the Eastern School of Acupuncture and Traditional Medicine in Montclair, NJ and has done post-graduate study in Japanese acupuncture, oncology and infertility. Prior to opening Lake View Acupuncture, Donna practiced in Chatham,, NJ and Broadway House for Continuing Care in Newark, NJ. Donna is also an advanced Practice Nurse with a BS in nursing and MS in Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing form Rutgers University. Donna is a member of Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society for Nurses. Donna practices as a Psychiatric Nurse Prac-titioner at Runnells Specialized Hospital in Berkeley Heights, NJ. Donnas’ comprehensive knowledge base of both Western medical treatment and Eastern holistic practices offers patients the best ap-proach to healthcare. Donna’s goal at Lake View Acupuncture is to make acupuncture as accessible and affordable as possible. She is currently accepting new patients and may be contacted at 973-663-3500. You can learn more about Donna Templeton at www.lakev-iewacupuncture.com or the Holistic Mentorship Network at www.holisticmentroshipnetwork.com

Funding Holistic Mental Health Care is Key

by Jefferson Harman

In an interview with Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Donna Templeton, who is

also an acupuncturist with her own practice — Lake View Acupuncture — Jefferson Harman ex-plores some of the specific issues around making ho-listic modalities accessible to mental health patients.

Photo Courtesy of Donna Templeton

them. Somebody who is under a lot of stress may go to their pri-mary healthcare provider and talk about feeling depressed and not having much energy, and they end up on antidepressants when other holistic therapies might be more appropriate and effective. I think that’s where holistic medicine really can play a part.

Your response to stress im-pacts your life so much, and causes both mental and physi-cal problems. There are a lot of things out there that will help reduce stress and relieve de-pression and anxiety. Better diet and exercise, acupuncture, mas-sage, aromatherapy, are among the things that are helpful and there are many more.

Jefferson: So if they are still functional, these different mo-dalities can help them de-stress enough so that the quality of their life improves significantly?

Donna: Yes, I think a lot of people don’t quite understand how stress impacts them emo-tionally, mentally and physi-cally. I think that’s where the holistic therapies are effective because they really recognize that it’s all connected, that they treat people on all levels. Alternative therapies can be a good thing to try first, rather than medication that may not be needed and may cause side effects. But for people who do have to be on medication, some of the alternative treatments are a good adjunct.

Jefferson: Would you consid-er using alternative treatments as adjuncts to the more severe conditions like schizophrenia as long as that person is on medi-cation?

Donna: Yes, but the problem is that the more challenged you are psychiatrically, the poorer you are. Consequently, you usually can’t afford it. It’s not available to you.

Jefferson:And this is the rea-son we want to bring awareness to this. We believe that’s a prob-lem. Somebody who is suffering from a major psychiatric illness could benefit greatly from holis-tic practices that could augment their treatment.

Donna: Absolutely, if it were available.

Jefferson: And therefore, insurance companies should be covering more holistic practices. To just cover the pharmaceutical end of it, without looking at the body as a whole and seeing how it interrelates, is missing a big part of the picture. If alternative modalities could help someone with their stress-related symp-toms, why wouldn’t the same thing help someone who is severely psychiatrically chal-lenged? I’m not a psychiatrist, but I would think it would greatly augment their care.

Donna: I think that preventa-tive health, which would in-clude holistic health practices should certainly be covered. But when you talk about severely mentally ill people, in many cas-es, you are talking about people without insurance or who are on Medicaid or Medicare, nei-ther of which cover any holistic modalities. Acupuncturists have been lobbying to get covered by Medicare but have so far been unsuccessful. Some insurances may cover acupuncture for spe-cific medical conditions.

Jefferson: HMN (The Holistic Mentorship Network) really wants to raise awareness and

initiate a discussion around how to make holistic modali-ties accessible to more people. Clearly the system as it is does not work, certainly for people who are severely mentally ill.

Donna: So much else could be done for people who are severe-ly mentally ill. For instance, im-proved diet and exercise would be helpful but most of them re-ally can’t afford to eat a decent diet and don’t have access to exercise facilities, and certainly not to alternative medicine. It would be great if programs could be created to make these things accessible to them.

There’s a place in Newark called Broadway House. It’s a long-term residential care facil-ity for people with AIDS. They got some funding to provide alternative treatments. I was there for about a year as the acupuncturist. They offered massage, Reiki, hypnotherapy, aromatherapy, all these kinds of modalities, which is just won-derful. But this is because they had grant funding. So if you’re talking about providing ser-vices to a population of severely mentally ill people, then you’re probably talking about needing some kind of grant money.

Jefferson: What kind of grant would that fall under?

Donna: For that it was proba-bly Ryan White funding because it was for people with AIDS. To my knowledge, there’s no grant money for people with schizo-phrenia to receive holistic health care.

Jefferson: So maybe that’s something to add to the conver-sation, rather than just looking at this from the point of view of insurance, perhaps there are grants out there that could


cont’d on page 18

Fundingcontinued from page 12

comfortable asking for money. Or perhaps for altruistic rea-sons, they give their time and services away. That can cause us to feel depleted.

In regards to mental health, the feeling of being used up or depleted applies to the prac-titioners as much as it does the patients or clients. When I was doing a hospital-based program in New Jersey, often going onto the unit, I found the staff felt that they needed our services rather than giv-ing them to the patients. They were caring for the patients and the practitioners began to feel like they were the ones who needed the massages or the energy work. This is the work environment that we have in our healthcare system today. We really need to take a look at that as a healthcare industry, both in mainstream medical and alternative pro-fessions.

So HMN and MARCI™ are there to support and sustain practitioners so that they can be more effective in their work and personal lives. To that end, HMN applied for and has recently been approved

as a 501(c)(6) Trade Associa-tion, which means HMN will now be able to lobby on behalf of the holistic health field in Washington, DC. As such, we hope to be of assistance in bridging the gaps in the current healthcare system to include holistic modalities.

Jefferson: What is your opinion about the state of mental health care in the United States today?

Linda: I think that there is

too much emphasis on medi-cations and not enough op-tions with regard to health insurance.

Jefferson: OK, first let’s look at medications.

Linda: I don’t want to say that we should stop tak-ing medications altogether, there’s a time and place for everything. But I think what happens all too often is that we end up masking the core issues. And the more that you put one medication on top of another, the more the core issues get buried deeper and deeper. The person can end up living their life in a stupor. They don’t function, they can’t feel their emotions.

Jefferson: Then what do you believe is the best way to

maintain mental health? Linda: By looking within.

And it doesn’t have to be alone. There’s talk therapy, Cranio Sacral, Somatic Emo-tional Release, massage, dream interpretations, soul retrieval, hypnotherapy, acupuncture. All these different practices and services (and more) can help unleash things that get buried. Medications don’t do it. If you’re going through an emotional or mental or physi-cal challenge, there are core issues that are the root cause. The way that we heal is to take a look at them.

Jefferson: Why do you think mental health issues are so prevalent?

Linda: We live in such a

hectic society, which brings a lot more turmoil into our lives and certainly by the end of the day we can become more vul-nerable. Not having someone to reach out to only adds to your own stresses and isola-tion. Over time, that can create a lot of physical & emotional problems. As a practitioner in this field, I’ve learned how we hold information in our body. That information physiologi-cally affects us. But not every-body wants to go there be-



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Envisioningcontinued from page 11

cause peeling back the layers of your own life can feel very painful. But I do know from my own personal experience, going down to those areas that are challenging and difficult, there are so many blessings that free us. I think it’s much easier to understand abuse if it’s physical because you can at least see the scar. Whereas if it’s something emotional – something that can’t be seen – it’s more subtle. As long as these patterns are present in our lives and we don’t deal with them, we will continue to be in relationships that don’t serve us. This reflects in our children as well. If we’re not treating each other well, the patterns continue.

Jefferson: And then we get stuck in those patterns?

Linda: I think one of the

hardest things is when you get stuck. When you keep repeat-ing the same story over and over again and you don’t seem to be moving forward. And we can get in those places because of the drama. Most of our ad-dictions are an addiction to drama. We feed on it in our family lives, in media, what draws our attention and gets us gossiping. When you have that kind of festering going on it can get out of control.

Jefferson: A lot of it is about issues of power, isn’t it?

Linda: Yes it is. But there is

an awakening. We see it with the upheaval going on in the world. With the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan, Katrina, 9/11, so close to home. It’s all home, no matter where you

are in the world. The more we see these things happen-ing, there is a quickening and an awakening. Certainly the world is purging and it’s time that we also purge. We get to look at that every day by being mindful, being accountable, being aware of what’s growing in your garden. What are the weeds that you want to pull out today? I personally love my weeds.

Jefferson: What would you say to a person experiencing mental health issues?

Linda: I would want people

to know that they are not alone. Also, you have to be informed. I think it’s really im-portant to educate yourself to alternative practices. Massage therapy, Reiki, Pranic healing,

aromatherapy. ... What you’re eating is so important. Call the network and let us help you find a good nutritionist in your area. Find a life coach to guide you and to give you di-rection. Tai Chi is a wonderful way to rebalance your energy and to help you connect with your own personal Chi and the Earth. Get involved with a support group or community activities to get yourself out of the funk and into society. Be-come involved with charitable organizations. They are always good for the soul. Meditate. A lot of young kids are coming to me now to receive Reiki. They are finding that it really helps to rebalance them. They are finding that they can go a couple weeks before com-ing back to see me. They are feeling more centered and

Envisioning continued from page 14




grounded and more focused in school. The things that exter-nally caused them stress are not as stressful for them.

Jefferson: Scenerio: I’m a patient with mental health issues and I am in deep finan-cial trouble and I’ve just heard what you said and all of those things sound so wonderful. But at the moment I’m laying on my couch and I don’t have the energy to do anything other than maybe pick up the phone, but even that is a chore – because that is the reality of depression. It’s the reality of what a lot of people suffer when they have an illness and they are simply too physically down, energetically down to handle navigating all of it. Some of it you covered in support groups and similar alternatives. But let’s say I’m that person who doesn’t have the money to involve myself with these different practices to begin to heal. Where would I go? What would I do?

Linda: That’s a good ques-

tion because it really does become a problem. In my own practice, I’ve worked with people that were not able to pay. Often times in the holistic field we do give of ourselves because we don’t want any-body to go without these types of services. But that becomes depleting for the practitioner. As we’re moving forward, one of the things that I want as the founder of this organization is to be able to provide these types of services to everyone, including people who are going through hard times, by opening clinics. Unfortunately I don’t have a special answer

for you right now. I do know that the future for HMN is to open up clinics so these practices will be available for everybody.

Jefferson: So part of what’s missing here is holistic clinics that need to be developed so that over time these services will become available to a wider percentage of the public while still honoring the finan-cial needs of the practitioners themselves?

Linda: Absolutely. That is

our intent. We’re in the process right now of applying for the 501(c)(3) which will give us the ability to apply for grants for more financial backing. We have other fundraisers that we’re doing, so all these will help to provide the financial means to provide these alter-native services. Also, we’re mindful that we truly want to be integrative. We want to work with the medical profes-sion because as holistic practi-tioners, you do need the social

workers, the psychotherapists and the medical doctors to be there also. We need to under-stand each others’ fields so we can be part of the solution, and to give you a choice for your wellness plan. We want to empower you. So these clinics that I envision will be integra-tive, where we have both the medical and the holistic practi-tioners available.

Jefferson: And in regard to health insurance?

Linda: As we’ve been dis-

cussing, there are many holis-tic services available, but they may not be available if some-one is financially stressed, or if they have no way to get to these services. So the hard question is, how do we help them? Change happens when we start to say, “It’s not okay anymore.” And it never was okay. If you’re going to have healthcare reform, these ser-vices should be available for


Photo by Dawn J. BenkoLinda Mitchell said she hopes that in the future HMN will help to open up clinics to make holistic practices available for everyone, especially those who cannot afford these alternative health services on their own.



everybody. In my own mind’s eye and within this Network, there will be an insurance policy, whether or not we have to create it, or perhaps there is someone out there who is interested in seeing alternative practices be part of an insurance policy that works for everybody. If it does not work for everybody, then we have to go back to the drawing board. My thrust forward is that if the insur-ance policy isn’t out there that will include the vast variety of alternatives then let’s create it. There needs to be something that includes both medical and alternative practices for the patient.

Jefferson: How can insur-ance companies begin this dia-logue with the holistic health industry? Is this something that the Holistic Mentorship Network can help with now that HMN is a 50(C)6 Trade Association?

Linda: As an insurance bro-

ker, or someone who runs an insurance company, if you are tired of the way the insurance companies run and you want to see change happen, and you want holistic alternatives to be included in a well-rounded policy that offers both conven-tional and alternative cover-age, then call me and let’s talk. 973-300-1184. I would add that people should write their senators and congressmen and begin that dialogue as well.

Jefferson: In the past, there’s been a stigma around treating mental health issues. Do you still see that in your work?

Linda: Unfortunately, yes.

Somebody was telling me recently that there was a need to move a mental health center into a community and the community was up in arms about the center being moved there. Yet probably within your own household, your own family dynamics, there are mental health issues. You cannot shun it because it will continue to be an issue. It’s an opportunity for us as a com-munity to start to take a look at what are we shunning out, because those issues, those people are our mirrors. You can try to make things really pretty, but what do they look like on the inside? When it re-ally comes down to it, change happens from within. You have to be doing your own in-ner work.

Jefferson: How does your work affect you personally?

Linda: There’s a certain grati-

fication being able to help other people who are looking to heal. But there is a fine line there. As a practitioner it’s important that you don’t dive into the drama. That you stay in a healthy place where you can show up for others so that you can be part of their healing process. I would rather not have such a busy practice and know that everybody is well. It’s like a car, if you don’t take care of it, it’s going to break down. It would be great if everyone did more maintenance, and then came to see me just to get a tune-up.

You can learn more about Linda Mitchell and the Holistic Mentorship Network at www.holisticmentorshipnetwork.com


be providing funding to holis-tic clinics to treat people with mental health problems in some kind of group setting.

Donna: Yes. Here’s an exam-ple of how that’s already being done. There is an organization called Acupuncturists Without Borders that goes into areas like Haiti or New Orleans and sets up community clinics. Pro-grams like that might work as a means of offering holistic treat-ments to other underserved populations.

Another thing that might help is research. Everything is evi-dence-based now. But only the big pharmaceutical companies can afford to do research. So not a lot is being investigated about alternative methods. There is a little bit of research done by the government or NIH, but there’s very little because there’s not a lot of money being made off of it.

Jefferson: Do you have any suggestions as to how insurance might be able to help the situa-tion?

Donna:: What insurances should do is give everybody an allowance that they could spend on preventative or health promoting things. That way people could use the money for whatever services they wanted. They could use it for acupunc-ture, reiki, massage, essential oils, dream analysis, anything like that. I think you’re never going to be able to get insur-ance companies to cover every single holistic modality. But if insurance companies could be persuaded to give everyone an allowance that they could use to do anything that is health promoting, that might cut down

on their other use of insurance money for illnesses and their need for medication and other treatments. That might be a bot-tom line benefit for the insur-ance companies to consider.

Jefferson: Now that HMN is a 501(c)(6) organization, we are interested in lobbying on these issues. Any suggestions as we begin that conversation?

Donna: Anything that would reduce levels of stress and posi-tively affect health in general, mental and physical, is a good thing. In terms of lobbying, I think it would be most pro-ductive to lobby for insurance companies to pay a set amount of money for people to choose what they want to do to pro-mote their health, which would include alternative practices.

Fundingcontinued from page 13


“The Secret” Coaching:

Surviving Life’s

Pendulumby Lisa Nichols

Ever feel like you’re living life on a pendu-lum? One day you’re swinging high. Life is

great and couldn’t be better.The next day you’re swing-

ing low, and nothing’s work-ing as you think it should. You maybe feel like you want to ditch a frustrating job or trade in a sticky relationship for a bag of peanuts.

This is when we feel the most uncomfortable.

It’s usually because we’re putting up a lot of resistance, or we don’t show much flex-ibility.

We forget that life is always changing -- even though change is the only constant in life.

That’s why it’s important to give everything in your life, every part of your life, an opportunity to ebb and flow, to breath in and out, to con-

tract and expand.If you had a health regime

that you were excited about six months ago and now it’s fallen by the wayside, don’t beat yourself up. Accept that other priorities have taken precedence in your life.

If you can’t work out for an hour every day, do some-thing small.

Take time to notice your breath and practice deep breathing for five minutes a day. Start drinking an extra glass of water a day.

Your goals are likely to constantly change.

Perhaps you’ve already achieved a particular goal in your career or found another interest leading you down an entirely new path. Then shift your goals, and take one small step forward.

Everything does not have to be done today.

Remember, life is a jour-ney, not a destination.

Embark on a tempered pro-cess that allows you to enjoy the journey.

Every single day do some-thing that will bring you clos-er to your bliss, to your joy. It doesn’t have to be some-thing huge, overwhelming, or daunting.

So many people are so fo-cused on getting to the goal that when they finally look up, they realize they missed the whole journey.

I believe that the universe wants you to celebrate while you’re inside that process, while you’re on the journey.

So be kind to yourself while you’re swinging on the pen-dulum and enjoy the ride.

As you venture on your journey of success, I’d love to be right there by your side.

I love you.


Down a tree-lined, country road, several miles from the bustling downtown of Milford, PA, is a little red barn. It’s 8 a.m. on a crisp, breezy, spring morning, and volunteers begin trickling in to prepare the 10 horses that are housed here for the morning’s activities. This is the home of GAIT, which stands for Genuine Alternative in Therapy.

GAIT is a therapeutic riding center for individuals with special needs such as those with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, spina bifida and others. The programs include therapeutic riding, hippotherapy, equine-assisted learning, equine-assisted psychotherapy and vocational training. In addition to the riding programs, the center offers other hands-on activities such as crafts, a small garden and a labyrinth.

When talking about the benefits of the riding programs, Executive Director Martha Dubensky highlights the confidence the riders develop, “They’ve spent their whole lives having other people tell them what to do. But now they know words and have skills that

Genuine Alternative in Therapy Photo essay by Dawn J. Benko

A group of riders take a therapeutic riding class.

Volunteer Lizzy Peleski, 13, of Milford, Pa., grooms therapy horse Diggy in preparation for classes.

Nicholas Coakley, 10 and his sister Katerina Coakley, 7, walk a labyrinth that their family designed and built for the center.

no one else in their families have.”Patricia Marion of Lake Ariel has seen

changes in her four-year-old autistic son Paul. “Before coming here,” she says, “He didn’t trust people. Now he’s starting to trust. He changes, when he sees the horse. His mood changes, when it’s time to ride.”

Unfortunately for the Marion family and others like them, they have to rely on outside help to pay for the programs. The Marions have been relying on scholarships from Pike Autism Support Services. However, they were unable to secure another scholarship for the year, and Paul had just two weeks left.

“If I can’t get funding,” Patricia Marion laments, “He can’t come and he falls through the cracks.”

On this day, however, an anonymous angel was listening and offered to sponsor Paul for the rest of the year.

For more info on GAIT go to http://gaitpa.com/about.php

Therapeu-tic riding

instructor Elizabeth

DeLuca and Program Assistant

Barbara Hol-stein help

Kyle Jason, 30.

Elizabeth DeLuca, an NARHA (North American Riding for the Handicapped Association) certified instructor, directs riders during a therapeutic riding session.

Paul Marion, 4, of Lake Ariel, PA, takes a hippo-therapy class run by Jenny Bowden (right), who is a speech language pathologist. GAIT Executive Director Martha Dubensky leads horse (Patrick) and rider. Below, Paul thanks therapy horsePatrick, after a session in the indoor ring.

Martha Duben-sky spends a moment with therapy horse Patrick.

Anti-Aging Requires Personal Paradigm Shift

by Gary Null, Phd.

Today, the high performing, result-ori-ented generation of baby boomers has moved into the latter half of middle age and is now entering retirement. Yet boom-

ers remain determined to have it all. In increas-ing numbers they ask me: Does chronological age doom us to a sentence of gradual decline? Must we simply accept the inevitable weakening of our physical health and mental powers?

My answer: Absolutely not. It is never too early or too late to change our lifestyles and behaviors

to successfully maintain vigorous mental and physical health as we grow older. However, peo-ple need to adopt a proactive solution for taking control of their bodies as they age. Growing older does not mean we must accept the “inevitable” decline of our faculties usually associated with regressive aging. We can still counter the symp-toms and feel youthful and live life to the fullest. Thousands of people have followed my protocols



MARCI™ Spotlight Writer

Time magazine called him “The New Mr. Natural.” My Generation magazine dubbed him one of the top health gurus in the United States. For over 35 years, Gary Null has been one of the foremost voices of the health movement.

Through his New York Times Bestselling books, documentaries, and daily radio show Gary has continued to be a strong voice for the consumer, standing up against big pharmaceutical corporations. Gary has also exposed the massive drugging of children in our schools, the medicinal abuse of seniors, and the unnecessary and overuse of X-Rays, among other health issues.In short Gary’s entire adult life has been spent fighting for a better way for all of us to live. He has the longest running health radio program in American history. He broadcasts 15 hours live per week.

ery contrary to dogma.At any given time, a particu-

lar science establishes itself as the predominant world view, a belief system. Kuhn called these scientific edifices “para-digms.” Such a paradigm in time becomes a description of the environment within which the rulers of a given science, whether it be medical, envi-ronmental, physics, etc., oper-ate and define the paradigm’s beliefs, methods and practices. Kuhn felt that most scientists participate in what they under-stand to be “normal science,” which is any activity consistent with the existing scientific para-digm. Small gains are the rule, as small discoveries are stacked up continually to support the superiority of the ruling para-digm. But, eventually, anoma-lies are bound to arise that the paradigm cannot resolve. As these discrepancies accumu-late, some individuals will step out of the paradigm’s rigidity, now sclerosed by the powers of wealth and influence to un-

and the programs of other nat-ural anti-aging experts over the years with astounding results.

Nevertheless, when we look around ourselves, we still ob-serve so many individuals in the boomer generation (born between the years 1946 and 1964) refusing to take control of their future health and well be-ing. Others claim they are do-ing just that. They attend gyms; they take yoga or Pilates les-sons; they follow one fad diet book after another. “Fifty is the new thirty,” they proclaim, as they pop into their dermatolo-gist for another Botox injection.

But these practices and treat-ments, at best, only suffice to al-ter superficial surface changes. They do not address the true needs of our aging minds and bodies. Consequently, a vague feeling of uneasiness, even fear and dread, continues to overshadow our journeys into middle age and beyond. As members in the boomer gen-eration become caretakers for elderly parents, or have seen relatives lost to the ravages of an age-related disease, such as Alzheimer’s, they begin to sus-pect that these surface changes are little more than half-hearted attempts to crawl towards a more healthy lifestyle, and ulti-mately this is insufficient. They want to know what they can do to ensure that they remain physically vigorous and men-tally sharp.

In his seminal book during the early 1960s, “The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,” Thomas S. Kuhn, then a historian of sci-ence at MIT, secured his place as one of the most influential philosophers of science in the twentieth century. His major contributions were not the re-

sult of following in the footsteps of others before him. Rather, his novelty and importance lies in having broken away from “the dogmas of the quiet past.” Kuhn had the courage to look beyond the positivist doctrines among academia’s status quo, those who emphasized only science’s observable facts and excluded metaphysical speculation about the origins and causes of partic-ular events. In doing so, he gave birth to a new kind of scientific philosophy.

Before Kuhn, scientific knowledge was envisioned as an accumulation of all that had been learned over history, with each additional, newly discov-ered scientific law being piled onto preceding laws. When Kuhn looked at science, how-ever, he saw something entirely different. Instead of new laws simply being summed together with old ones and resulting in, at best, a small shift in the ac-cepted body of knowledge, he believed science could be pro-foundly altered by the addition of each significant new discov-

Paradigmcontinued from page 22



Photo by iStockGary Null says the current study of genetics in medicine needs a paradigm shift that looks at not only the genetic mutations that cause disease but also what metaphysical and emotional factors might be behind those causes.

dermine and defeat any oppos-ing system, and propose a new principle or law to address this new contradiction. If the sci-entific community accepts the proposed change, then science experiences a paradigm shift, and science proceeds with a new view of reality and under-standing of how the universe works.

One very obvious example that we readily observe by visit-ing daily science news Web sites is the burgeoning of genetic dis-coveries eager to associate any given gene to a wide variety of illnesses and behaviors, from autism to neurological degen-eration, from memory to crimi-nal behavior and even more re-cently claims for a “happiness” gene. Gene discovery is now the creed of corporate medicine

since it promises new drugs and places all blame for dis-ease upon familial inheritance, while ignoring environmental causes. It is determinist, reduc-tionist scientism at its best as a religious dogma, yet has been dismal in determining the rea-sons for the genetic anomaly in the first place. Moreover, after twenty-five years of promised miracles from gene research, no single cure for any disease has been found.

What I want to say to you about medical sciences’ genetic fad is something crucial to the paradigm shift that I am pro-posing: our genes can only be as healthful as the medium in which we allow them to exist. What I am proposing is a simi-lar paradigm shift in our per-ception of aging.

For several decades, my work has been devoted to fueling the need for a dramatic shift in medical science. What is being demanded is a holistic based,

all-encompassing medical para-digm that accepts and assimi-lates the most revolutionary medical discoveries in cellular regeneration, nutrition, mind-body relationships and dramat-ic behavioral changes that are now denigrated by corporate medicine and the elite guard in our federal health agencies. The fundamental change will never arrive in a top-down manner, rather it must emerge from a groundswell of people who awaken to the fact that our views, beliefs and behaviors must change.

Today, my generation and our parents from the Great Generation prior to World War II represent more than half of the American population. You might think that with the num-ber of wonderful, magnificent technological advances made from the time that I was a boy until today, we would have made more advances when it





comes to public health. After all, we’ve developed laptops, the Internet and cell phones. We have put men on the moon and explored the far reaches of space. But we have failed to im-plement a protocol for healthy, sustainable aging based upon all the incredible research stacking up outside our disease-based, pharmaceutical paradigm. We may have added a few years to the overall life span, extended a person’s longevity, but we haven’t done much for enhanc-ing the quality of life.

The medical establishment tells us they are making great strides to improve the quality of life. With misplaced pride they tell us that we are in the midst

of a war on cancer, a war on AIDS, a war on mental illness, a war on diabetes, a war on heart disease, a war on arthritis, and numerous other wars against the enemies of health. But the fact of the matter is our present medical paradigm is our great-est enemy. In reality, what we are in the midst of is a medical Vietnam. This no man’s land of drug-based medicine produces 780,000 deaths from medical er-ror and drug side effects in the US annually. Right now, the number one cause of death in America is bad medicine. Why do I say this? Because during the past fifty years there has been so little progress in pre-venting and treating illnesses.

According to an article in The Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging, by the year 2050, approximately 30 percent of people living in developed na-

tions will be sixty-five years of age or older. That means there will be an increase in neurode-generative disorders that may cause considerable cognitive and physical impairment and shortened life span. And when we see someone like Bill Clin-ton with a coronary triple by-pass operation, we must ques-tion how is it that none of his doctors noticed his condition until it reached such a Katrina moment.

I speak with hundreds of people yearly about their health issues, and the one thing I’ve learned is that the greatest con-cern for most aging baby boom-ers is not so much the threat of heart disease, cancer, or even diabetes. Rather, what people fear most is the loss of their mental acuity. In particular, they fear that Alzheimer’s, de-



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mentia, and Parkinson’s are in their not too distant futures. As they age, they see a loss in their cognitive function, a decline in their ability to recollect memo-ries and recognize familiar fac-es and surroundings. And they fear these early signs are sen-tences of doom.

Few people ask, “What is the cause of these age-related cog-nitive dysfunctions?” Were they to genuinely contemplate such a question, they would find the following causes: chronic inflammation, which damages both central and cerebral blood vessels; bad diet, which leads to nutritional deficiencies and a weakened immune system; hormone deficiencies; impaired breathing, which leads to de-creased oxygen to the brain and impaired circulation; a de-ficiency in essential fatty acids (EFAs), which every brain cell requires; free radical damage; the adverse effects from pre-scription medicine; and dam-age from environmental toxins.

With an intelligent game plan, however, the baby boom-ers need not live in fear of men-tal decline. These conditions can be prevented and reversed with lifestyle modifications. It’s an exercise in simple cause and effect.

The time is ripe for a shift in the aging paradigm and we are already seeing the positive signs of this transition sprout-ing. A whole new generation of people are not willing to wake up one day and find themselves suffering from Alzheimer’s, dementia, Parkinson’s, ALS, forgetfulness, wrinkles, and arthritic joints. They are finally willing to stop long enough to say, “Cause and effect. If it works in finance, if it works

in raising a child, it certainly should work with my body.”

All along, science has said, “We are what we eat.” The only external influences that can change us is what enters our bodies. So why would you give our cells, DNA and our cell’s mitochondria something that would destroy, alter, or dam-age them?

Science has told us we have approximately 65,100 trillion cells. And we know there are over 10,000 gene alterations per cell per day. One reason our brains lose function as they age is because we inflict injury upon them. Instead of helping the exquisite cellular web of neurons in our brains to repair themselves, we poison them with cigarettes, alcohol, white bread, processed meats, piz-za, French fries, milk shakes, cheesecakes, soft drinks and sugary foods of every kind. These are the things that ripen the conditions for biochemical reactions that cause inflamma-tion, free radical damage, and glycation that end up destroy-ing, harming, or altering our DNA. Such damage occurs all the time, and will continue to so as long as we do nothing to change it.

This is the future. This is what will allow a forty-year-old to look like a twenty-year old and have the energy of an eighteen-year-old. This is what will allow seventy-year-olds to rejuvenate their brains so that their mem-ories come back to what they were when they were at their brightest and sharpest. This is something we can achieve to-day, not in the next century. We don’t need to wait for a patented, exclusive proprietary drug from a private manufac-turer. We can act today. But it takes a different commitment. It takes discipline, patience, and a desire to learn. And it takes a personal paradigm shift in our

understanding of health.

Gary Null lives in New York City. On weekdays he hosts The Gary Null Show, an on-air health forum where he and other leading experts discuss a wide range of mat-ters from food production and alternative healing, including the politics of our healthcare system.

Gary also does original in-vestigative reporting series on a regular basis on such themes as Gulf War Syndrome: Kill-ing Our Own, The Politics of AIDS, Poverty Inc., Autism: Made in the U.S.A. and over 100 original investigative re-porting articles.

For more than 35 years Gary has had weekly programs on Pacifica radio stations KPFK, WPFW and WBAI. He also had his own very popular weekly program on WABC as well as ABC national radio. Additionally Gary has had more than 25 separate special programs presented on vari-ous Public Television Stations.



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Childhood Has Become a

Diagnosis Gameby Shelly Tzorfas



It used to be that in child-hood kids played games like hide n seek and ,”Tag, You’re it.” The games sadly

have changed. Today children are being diagnosed with a plethora of illnesses.

Autism and ASD, or Autism Spectrum Disorders, ADD; At-tention Deficit Disorder; ADHD; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, ODD; Oppositional Defiance Disorder, OCD; Obses-sive Compulsive Disorder, Sen-sory Integration issues, and the list goes on and on.

We have gotten to the point that letters in the alphabet stand for illnesses more than reading and writing.

In the upcoming fifth edi-tion of Diagnostic and Statisti-cal Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) there are even new la-bels for children who do not like math. It is now a psychiatric dis-order.

So let’s take a closer look and attempt to examine what might be happening.

One of the issues at play is that the diagnosis of children is not quite as standardized as you might think.

Take a child who cries, talks back, cannot seem to eat prop-erly or make friends and seems to run around the classroom a lot. In town A he or she might be

diagnosed as having ADHD. Now take the same child to

town B with the same symptoms and on the same day the child might be labeled as having a form of Autism, particularly be-cause the socialization is weak.

Take the same child to yet an-other town and the child will re-ceive yet another diagnosis.

There really is no blood test or scan for these illnesses.

A behavioral profile is filled out and a clinical judgment is made.

I have seen children who are age six given up to five different diagnoses, such as ADD with hyperactivity, ODD, OCD and bi-polar disorder.

At this point medications are prescribed several at a time. One for the day, others for the night.

Some local public schools offer classes for the grow-ing Autistic populations — all day handicapped programs. In those neighborhoods guess what might be diagnosed? High Functioning Autism (HFA), or Asperger’s another form of Au-tism.

In neighborhoods that offer Inclusion only, with an aide, a more general term might be giv-en such as Learning Disability (LD).

There are other areas of con-cern.When a child receives mul-

tiple diagnoses, or Co-Morbid labels, such as ADHD, OCD, Bi-Polar all at the same time, it is often in an effort to avoid the term of Autism. By avoiding an ASD, the school does not have to open a program exclusively for Autistic children.

How did we get to the point where so many children receive a diagnoses?

With the push for medications along with the exposure of toxic chemicals being routinely in-jected into our children we have been seeing an increase in diag-noses.

Twenty or so years ago Au-tism was rare. Today you can see these children at school, in the parks, at the libraries and even while food shopping.

The latest findings show that it may be as high as one in every 38 children. I estimate it is even a greater number, having worked with special needs children for 25 years.

If you claim that children have multiple illnesses often enough, what can the result be?

For one thing, we may see in about five years from now, ar-ticles stating that the numbers of Autistic children have gone down. The numbers are not really on the decline, Rather

the, “Diagnoses Game” has in-creased.

There was an article that showed, “Famous People with Dyslexia.” It is more than 20 years old. It included famous people such as Albert Einstein, Andy Warhol (artist), Henry Ford, to name a few.

Recently someone repub-lished the same list but changed the title to, “Famous People with Autism.” A YouTube video was made.

Having been a member of the International Dyslexia Associa-tion for nearly two decades, I wondered how this could hap-pen. Upon looking into it, I saw that Wikipedia listed a defini-tion for autism, Jan. 17, 2009 as, “Autism is a brain disorder char-acterized by impaired social in-teraction and communication.” In the Autistic Spectrum Disor-ders Fact Sheet: “Researchers claim that (Dyslexia) is a brain-based condition...they might be labeled as having a, ‘Behavior problem’.”

I will be the first to admit that there is an overlapping of symptoms. Thus a child that has trouble making eye contact and forming relationships might have an ASD or might just have a social problem that is common with Dyslexia.

Dyslexia is not simply re-versing letters or numbers. It is a, “Processing of information problem in the Auditory, Visual or Kinesthetic Mode.”

Many Dyslexics have difficul-ty with reading other people’s emotions or subtle cues. This year I have not seen one child in my non-medical opinion, prop-erly diagnosed. The boundaries have eroded.

One child thought to be on the ASD Spectrum was Dyslexic

and had anxiety. Another diag-nosed ADD, had Dyslexia. One child had no diagnoses but kept a poker face, did not interact, and behaved as if he was the only person in the room. Be-ing disconnected and lacking empathy or a basic connection with everyone, puts him at risk for Asperger’s Syndrome. Even when asked to express his feel-ings, he had no ideas. He did not know what one feeling to the next was.

Sometimes hyperactive chil-dren might actually have a sys-temic Candida infection because they have taken antibiotics. The antibiotics job was to kill the bad bacteria, the infection, but they simultaneously killed off the good bacteria. This is when the bad bacteria start to grow and take over. Yeast develops.

Yeast creates a situation in which children crave sugar, wheat, and foods such as pasta and pizza.

Those foods enable the yeast to grow and multiply in the bil-lions. The carbohydrates convert to sugar once ingested. many nu-tritionists agree that those foods should be eliminated. Some feel that by eliminating them ,the yeast infection will be cured. I disagree. An active yeast infec-tion takes far more than a simple change in diet.

Health food stores and ex-perts such as Gary Null and those that practice homeopa-thy, Naturopathic Doctors (ND) may recommend Caprylic Acid supplements, garlic which is an anti-fungal, grape seed extract

Diagnosiscontinued from page 28




plus others. Additionally, if you have a

young teen and try to change their diet, removing sweets and pizza might be impossible. Sure, you can get them to cut back, but to stop it entirely is way easier said than done.

In, “Help for the Hyperactive Child,” by Dr. William G. Crook, you can see at a glance what trig-gers yeast as well as what behav-iors may be involved. The book is laid out like a cartoon and is easy to digest.

The yeast-infected child might easily be misdiagnosed and medicated. Psychologists and psychiatrists are often not trained in these issues. It is up to the parents to look into what is best for their children.

Parents could learn to trust

their instincts. The conservative thing to do is to try to find out if yeast is playing a part in the dis-ruptive behavior. If, for exam-ple, a child has had several ear infections and then had tubes placed in the ear, it is likely that the child had several rounds of antibiotics leading to an internal yeast issue. The yeast could be cured from the inside out.

In today’s society one does not need to look far for children with problems.

The younger the child is when issues are addressed, usually the better the outcome.

Part of the problem is because of the diagnoses game. It seems as time goes by just about any-one can play. Teachers recom-mending, doctors mentioning what medication to consider, plus neighbors, friends and fam-ilies pointing out issues.

Finally with all the pharmaco-logical television commercials,

kids are now diagnosing each other. “Mom, do I have Rest-less leg Syndrome?” “Mom, doI have a social anxiety disorder? I think I need to see my doctor right away.” Illnesses have near-ly become the norm and that is something that can make any-one feel a true discomfort.

Shelley Tzorfas, M.F.A. has experience teaching ADD, ADHD, Autistic Spectrum Disorders, Dys-lexia and average struggling chil-dren and teens. Recover spectrum disorders. Nationally published, “Autism is Curable with Early In-tervention”, April 2009’. What is Dyslexia, My Child has ADD (Yeast). Home Educators Resource Directory Archives. One to one instruction. Creative fun learning-to-read through the arts approach. Teach your child “How” to learn. Reading, writing, comprehension etc. Visit her on www.betterschool-results.com.

Diagnosiscontinued from page 29


Autoimmune Disease is de-fined as an overactive immune response of the body against normal human tissue. In other words, the body attacks its own cells. The immune system rec-ognizes one or many areas as a pathogen (a germ, fungus, virus, bacteria, etc.) and turns against the body.

Perhaps the most confusing aspect of Autoimmune Disease is its diversity. It is not one dis-ease, but many different diseas-es and conditions. In fact, there are more than 80 that fall under this category, including Thy-roid Disease, Lupus, Crohns, Celiac, Rheumatoid Arthri-tis, Sjogren’s, Addison’s and Multiple Sclerosis. There are many more that are less com-mon, however, no less serious to those afflicted. Researchers are starting to believe there is a strong autoimmune component to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia, as well.

More than 50 million Ameri-cans have an Autoimmune Dis-ease, qualifying this challenge as a major U.S. health crisis. Women are afflicted 75% more often than men, and it ranks as one of the Top Ten Killers of women under the age of 65. Cases tend to cluster in families.

For example, if your grandmother had one, you could be at a greater risk for developing one yourself.

All Autoimmune Diseases have their own specific symp-toms, however, there are some that commonly cross-over from disease to disease. Challenges such as:

• Metabolic issues (such as unexplained weight gain or weight loss)

• Digestion problems• Achy, painful and or swol-

len joints• Extreme Fatigue• Circulation problems/

numbness in fingers and toes• Abnormal Blood Clotting• Insomnia or other Sleep

Disorders• “Brain Fog” - forgetfulness,

cognition issues• Hormone Imbalances• Blood Sugar ProblemsAs we know too well, when

people feel “off” they may lose focus and be unable to effective-ly communicate what they are experiencing, which can lead to misdiagnosis and ineffective treatment. We need medical professionals who can navigate through this self-defeating road block. Finding the right doctor

for your particular needs, can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. We need doc-tors who are knowledgeable, compassionate and willing and able to slow down and truly lis-ten to what we have to say. We desperately seek doctor “de-tectives” who investigate and treat the cause and not merely the symptoms. We need medi-cal professionals who view and treat us as a whole person, and are willing to offer alternative options.

If you suspect you are suf-fering from an Autoimmune Disease, make an appointment with an Endocrinologist or Rheumatologist. Seek out those with a strong reputation for “treating outside the box” and professionals who are open to holistic approaches. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, go for classic blood work, live blood analysis and other tests, and be sure to study-up on side effects of recommended medications. Understand what you are put-ting into your body. Use both your knowledge and intuition to help determine if this partic-ular approach is right for you.

EmpoweringThrough

Auto-Immune Disease

By Kim Ruggierio


Will it fix the problem or just mask your symptoms? Also, it is important to ask for other, al-ternative treatments. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your visit, always get a sec-ond or third opinion.

People with Autoimmune Dis-ease often feel alone with their disease and with the everyday struggles that it brings into their lives. By educating yourself and learning what your options are, you will be empowered. You will become your own health and wellness advocate. The in-ternet is full of websites that of-fer Blogs and support groups for people who struggle with Auto-immune Disease. You can learn, share and have a voice. People with Autoimmune Disease could benefit by finding a Lupus Foundation in their community. The Lupus foundation is not just for Lupus patients. They also fo-cus on helping people with oth-er Autoimmune Diseases. They can provide support and other services, such as Educational materials (most have a lending library full of books, brochures, CD’s and DVD’s) for the per-son with Autoimmune Disease as well as for family members who may not understand the disease and the physical, emo-tional, support the person may need. Family members may feel afraid, confused and not know their role in the healing process or as a caregiver. It is important their needs are addressed as well.

Stress (especially emotional stress) has a major impact on Autoimmune Disease. Stress generates brain chemicals that negatively impact your mood, your ability to heal and your overall state of well-being. By better managing or eliminating stress triggers in your life, the

Immune System may often re-turn to an optimal state to fight off disease. Start with shedding your guilt and carve out some quality time for yourself. Learn-ing not to take on too much at one time is also very important. One thing I have learned to say is, “I wish I could help you, but unfortunately I can’t right now. How about I get back to you on Thursday.” These are a few of many fairly simple, posi-tive changes that can result in a more balanced, healthy path through your illness.

Most importantly, open your mind to complementary and alternative treatments. Many people have experienced great success managing their Auto-immune Disease through the use of Acupuncture, Medita-tion, Reiki, Qigong, Massage, and Yoga. I myself have had great success with music, pet and play therapy. Any activ-ity that ignites your child-like sense of play, tends to yield great results. One activity in particular, Aqua Activities or pool play, has been very suc-cessful for my clients. This is a combination of low-impact movements in a pool that are choreographed to fun music while you laugh, dance, play and heal all at the same time. Depending upon your medical challenges, exercising out of the water can be difficult. By utiliz-ing the buoyancy of the water, even the severely challenged can exercise and splash their way to physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.

The most important lesson I have learned in managing Au-toimmune Disease is learning to fight on some days and sur-render on others. Surrendering does not mean give up. It just means allowing yourself to re-lax and heal, such as taking a 20 minute nap to recharge. Often-times, attack-mode and being “too driven” can make things

worse. Find your own personal balance point for coping, sur-viving and thriving through your challenges.

Founder, Kim Ruggierio, is the driving force behind Wellness Be-gins Here. Kim is a Certified Well-ness Coach, Reiki Practitioner, and a Degreed Exercise Physiologist. She has over 20 years of experience serving women, men and children from all walks of life. Kim has also survived health challenges of her own, such as Systemic Lupus, se-vere Hypothyroidism and Lyme Disease. She has combined her own personal experiences with her ex-tensive knowledge of holistic health practices, to assist other women in overcoming their own obstacles. Particularly women suffering from complex and confusing Autoim-mune Diseases. For more informa-tion visit www.wellnessbeginshere.net or email Kim at [email protected].

Auto-Immunecontinued from page 31


The Many Faces of Fear

by Dee Broton“Blue ran in terror through the

tomato vines, across the cornfields, trying somehow to outrun the thunder. Tearing wild-eyed down the centerline of a county highway, Blue came within inches of being hit by a passing motorist.”

This is an excerpt from Patri-cia McConnell’s book For the Love of a Dog. It highlights the all too familiar scenes experi-enced by dogs with phobias as-sociated with thunderstorms, but it doesn’t stop there. Phobias in dogs, just as with people, can be down right debilitating.

Mental illness in dogs, when compared to humans, is very similar, which could have some-thing to do with the fact that we share 95% of our DNA with dogs. Dogs experience extreme fears, phobias, anxieties, and stresses just as we do.

Fear is a negative emotion that all animals and people are pre-programmed with, as an in-stinctual response to potential danger. Some fear is healthy. It causes us to be cautious, but ex-treme fear can lead to the inabil-ity to have a normal life.

It is not uncommon to come across a dog that is fearful of men or fireworks, while other dogs, like our Rottweiler, Tuck-er, are fearful of anything new. When I walk him down the same street everyday and all of a sudden there is a for sale sign in someone’s front lawn, he im-mediately goes into flight mode. He freezes, his hackles go up, and he turns around and wants to run in the opposite direction. I

have been caught by several homeowners introducing Tucker to these signs so that he can see there is no reason to be afraid. So why would stationary signs scare a Rott-weiler? His fear and lack of confidence is due to poor breeding in a puppy mill and missing out on early so-cialization.

Genetics play a big role in mental disabilities in dogs as do early traumatic experiences. When I was a volunteer dog trainer at an animal shelter there was a litter of puppies that had been thrown into the Passaic River, and rescued by a Good Samaritan. Once these very young puppies were at the shel-ter, they were well cared for and given lots of love and socializa-tion. I have kept track of many of the dogs from my time at the shelter and from that litter; three of the dogs that I know of were eventually euthanized for fear-based aggression. So, the contro-versy of nurture vs. nature con-tinues. Was it genetics or trauma or both?

Anxiety is known all too well within the animal community. Animals in zoos and public ex-hibits experience an unbeliev-able amount of anxiety as do our pet dogs. Anxiety stems from lack of stimulation, being con-fined, limited socialization, and an inability to perform “normal” canine activities.

Take Separation Anxiety for example. Although I could not find any statistics to back up how many dogs are plagued

with separation anxiety, in the average veterinary hospital it is estimated that 14% of canine pa-tients exhibit one or more signs of separation anxiety. Separation anxiety is only second to aggres-sion when it comes to behav-ioral diseases. It is classified as a neurological distress response to being separated from the per-son whom the dog is attached. Some signs of separation anxi-ety include distressed vocaliza-tion, inappropriate elimination, destructive behavior, anorexia, depression, inactivity, psycho-somatic/medical consequences (excessive licking of hair coat, pacing, & circling), hyperat-tachment (constant pestering of owners), and hypersalivation.

The fear associated with separation anxiety often begins when the people in the home are preparing to leave. Dogs recog-nize the owner’s patterns of put-ting on shoes, picking up keys, etc. Destruction, elimination, and the strongest of fears occur within the first 30 minutes after a pet owner has left the home.

The good news is there is treatment. One recommenda-tion is to leave for very short pe-




riods of time — literally minutes — and then return and don’t pay any attention to your dog. Then leave again, walk around the house and come back in. Change up your routine, put your shoes on as if you’re about to walk out the door, but instead come back in for a cup of coffee, or pick up your keys and then go take a shower. Treatment takes patience, patience, patience, & more patience, plus understand-ing the disorder, but it is worth it in the end.

Aggression is often the result of fear and anxiety left untreat-ed. Unfortunately, we are not taught how to read canine body language in grammar school. In my opinion, it should be a mandatory course for all small children. I believe this would drastically reduce the number of children who are victims of dog bites. Recent studies showed that 1,000 people seek medical attention per day in America for dog bite related injuries. In 2010, there were 34 fatal dog attacks in the United States alone which is more than double the number of past years. So what’s going on with dogs in this country? Peo-ple who are uneducated in dog language, which is a good ma-jority of the population, tend to reinforce some symptoms of ag-gression, while others unknow-ingly make their dogs more ag-gressive by punishing them.

I use a combination of desensi-tization and counter-condition-ing to help dogs overcome their fears and anxieties, ultimately reducing their need to act in an aggressive manner. Dogs have a fight or flight response in which they literally have a matter of seconds to decide if they will flee or stay and fight. Dogs that are tethered in a yard, on a leash,

in a cage, or otherwise confined have no choice to flee and there-fore they fight to protect them-selves. If given the chance to flee many dogs would opt out of fighting.

According to the ASPCA, 5 to 7 million companion ani-mals enter shelters in the United States each year. Of those, 3 to 4 million are euthanized and 60% are dogs. Some of these dogs are sent to shelters due to no fault of their own, while others suffer from mental disorders that often can be treated if given a chance. Consider how many months of therapy and sometimes medi-cations it takes to help humans overcome similar disorders and they speak the same language.

Medication can also be pre-scribed by your veterinarian; however I like to begin with positive reinforcement training, diet, exercise, and essential oils. In some extreme cases I will rec-ommend the option of medica-tion, but only for a short period of time. Behavior modification must always accompany the medication as well. There is no magic pill that will change your dog’s behavior.

As for Blue, no one knows what caused him to be so afraid during that particular storm.

Thunderstorm phobias can develop seemingly out of no-where, but once they have de-veloped they will not likely go away on their own. There are ways you can help your dog to ride out the storm such as play-ing soothing music, applying an anxiety wrap, using alternative therapies such as flower essenc-es like Mimulus and essential oils such as Peace & Calming. I also recommend giving your dog a place to hide inside the home where he feels safe and of course, never punish him for inappropriate behavior during this time of extreme fear.

Dee Broton trains dogs using positive reinforcement training to modify unwanted behaviors. She says: “I step outside the traditional training box and use Young Living Essential Oils, flower essences, diet and exercise to assist in my behavior modification. My phi-losophy is to heal the dog’s mind, body and spirit, not just to rid the dog of unacceptable behaviors and to strengthen the bond with their families creating harmony in the pack.” She is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Train-ers (APDT); a mentor trainer for Animal Behavior College, Inc.; Pet CPR and First Aid Certified and a Certified Raindrop Practitioner.

Fearcontinued from page 33

Photo Courtesy of Dee BrotonDogs experience extreme fears, phobias, anxieties and stresses too.

It all starts right now. Here I am writing an article that should have been turned in about ten days ago. Or

perhaps not. You see, I started writing this article about mental health twelve days ago but didn’t realize I did not have all the pieces to complete the puzzle, even if I wanted to.

Nevertheless, as days went on and as events unfolded over the weekend, pieces fell into place helping me clarify that my journey was supposed to take me to this article.

I started my quest for knowledge of unlocking the key to mental health in my own home. I head downstairs from my room to the kitchen to find my brother and his friends winding down after a long day. Before I even get to the stairs, I began thinking to myself that perhaps what I was witnessing was the key to having good mental health and happiness; just being with friends.

As I walk into the kitchen to my brother and friends in a rather tranquil state, I thought surely I could find answers to my questions; I was wrong.

As I sit down and ask to interview them about mental health, right off the bat one friend says, “You’re askin’ the wrong guy.”

I now know I’m in for a challenge but I proceed.

“All right guys, so what do you know about mental health? The answers I received were not exactly what I was looking for however they were humorous.

I laugh and try to ask more questions but soon realize it’s not working out.

At this point, they are all being uncooperative. Out of pure frustration I abandon the conversation and head back to my room.

Sure enough, I hear a knock on my door and open it to see Jess, a friend of mine. She asked if I would like to interview her so we sit down and begin.

After listening to her story I suddenly realized the beauty that seemed clear as day on the outside, was merely a foggy representation of that which lies beneath. Her happiness that is often shown on the outside is only a fraction of the happiness that she wishes she were able to show.



A Quest for Good Mental Health and Happiness

by Garrett Winton

Therefore, I sat wondering, how such a manifestation could be altered to bring about happiness that is more meaningful. I tried to put the pieces together as I delved deeper with more questions.

I tried to steer Jess questions like, “What do you think you can do for other girls?”

The answer seemed so simple to me, but apparently, it wasn’t for Jess. I thought the key to happiness was to take your hardships and passions in life and combine them into a life for yourself in which you can also give back to others.

I soon realized that it was MY dream. I cannot force my ideals or ideas upon anyone and expect them to take root. It has to be taken upon each and every one of us to find our stars and make them align and persevere through whatever life throws at us.

My journey continued on Saturday, May 21; the day the world was supposed to “end.” Shortly after 6:00 p.m. rolled around, I got a call from a friend who I haven’t spoken with in a while. He asked me if I wanted to go out and catch up and I gladly said yes. So we headed out.

On our way, we are talking and laughing. Mind you, it has been the fifth straight day of rain and even with new tires, I still was rather cautious. I was approaching an intersection and the traffic light just turned yellow. Faced with the decision of stopping and potentially skidding into another car or accelerating (which was okay because I was under the speed limit anyway) I accelerated.

The sirens went off and I was pulled over before I knew it. As we’re sitting

there waiting for the cop to come out and ask for my information, I realized I didn’t have my registration. When he approached my window he was laid back and we began to exchange jokes so when he went back to his car I thought for sure I was going to get out of a ticket.

Wrong. Not only did he make us wait fifteen minutes to check the information but, sure enough he hands me a ticket.

Now, my mental health has never been that stable in the first place, but as angry as I became, I was still able to make jokes about getting a ticket. But this also had me questioning the mental health of the officer. Can someone really be that much of a power-monger to feel the need to give a ticket even after a kid with a sense of humor makes him laugh on the day the world ends?

Answer: yes.From this experience, I have come to

realize that each situation will obviously vary depending upon each person you encounter. However, the constant can always be the mental attitude with which you approach a situation.

For instance, when I was pulled over, I felt like the law at the time was not a friend. But now looking back, perhaps the big picture was in fact that I simply just caught a break.

In the conversation with Jess there were ideas floating around, and of course the ideas I mentioned to her were not of interest but at least she was open to them and receptive. Unlike the police officer who had his mind made up before




speaking to me, Jess was in a receptive state of mind.

But the lesson that I THINK I’ve learned was that because of my disdain for people who think their souls will be saved by a higher power other than their own self, I was given a ticket on the day of their prophecy. Of course, I snickered after 6:00 p.m. had come and gone but perhaps that was my dose of “Instant Karma.”

So I think the argument is not whether there is or isn’t a god, or how we judge those who seem to not be right in the head, but rather it’s all about how we perceive things in the moment, and how one act of kindness deserves another.

Some of us believe in fate, others are under the illusion that fate is under the control of one almighty being.

Some, such as myself, believe that we must take it upon ourselves to intersect the paths of fate with our own self-motivation and determination.

All these beliefs make us different, but what makes most of us similar is that we believe. Believe in yourself, believe in others, believe in doing the right thing and goodness will prevail.

“Believing” is often the first step to changing your stars and one of the biggest obstacles when trying to take

control of our own mental well-being. We don’t have to believe what others

believe but we just need to be respectful of their beliefs and be supportive of them if that is what is needed for them to find the finish line in their pursuit of happiness.

In conclusion, many factors go into one’s mental health – from upbringing to one’s current state of mind, and everything in between.

However, the path a person takes is their journey and theirs alone. In your own journey that has led you to have an interaction with others, all you can do is be conscious of the path that has led them to you, and be understanding of the complexities that have led them to you.

And in that sense of being understanding, we are being mindful, and by doing so are able to better communicate and assist in good mental health.

Truthfully when it comes down to it, and you find yourself asking how to better your own mental health or another’s, it’s not about the house you live in or the car you drive.

Rather, just remind yourself that all the gold in the world doesn’t outweigh the Golden Rule: be nice to each other.

Visit us on the Web at www.holisticmentorshipnetwork.com/Project_Planet.htm.

Project Planet Network™- Together we can heal the planet. Our decisions today are tomorrow’s reality. Let’s create a world that heals our bodies, our oceans, our

animals, and our Earth.

Garrett Winton is a 22-year-old Deisgner and Environmentalist from Hamburg, NJ. He will be joining in the work of the Project Planet Newtwork.


Mindful Awareness “Mind over matter” is a term that became

popular during the revolutionary 1960s and ‘70s. This phrase popularly refers to Psychokinesis (or telekinesis) and paranormal activity. There is something to be said for the integration of breath, soul, heart, mind and motion. However, such activity is best left to magicians and illusionists. Certainly, we exist in a world full of illusions, though it is our perception of illusion which constitutes our reality.

A more valuable understanding of “mind over matter” is that it is philosophical, spiritual and mind-centric in nature; indicating that mind even overrides physiological form. This is in accordance with the belief that we are mental, emotional and physical beings which forms our wholeness as living, spiritual beings. Thus, mind is not limited to mental acuity and brain function. Mind is much greater, meaning all is one.

Symptoms that hinder us and identify conditions of depression and anxiety are actually signals that one is distressed because our system, or mind, is trying to re-establish the whole. Amazingly enough, the mind possesses an innate inclination for balance.

Meanwhile, taking ones’ self too seriously, over what may be the matter, can lead to further self-absorption. I refer to getting out of one’s head, so to speak, as “mind over what’s the matter.” The fact is, we are much greater than any self-defeating thoughts that may enter our brain, for whatever reason they do. Such thoughts can trigger less-than feelings about our self yet, feelings are not facts. The argument of “the fact is, I feel this way” only rings as true if one chooses to stay focused on the feeling. For sake of peace of mind, I suggest that we choose to consider what is most tangible and empowering; our breath and heart. Truly feel what is and know that love is our ultimate truth as we breathe life.

There used to be a children’s book series called “Dick, Jane and Sally”. I distinctly

recall a lesson from it which read “Stop, look and listen.” Yes, this is elementary and also quite profound. When discomfort occurs, we can refer to these simple words, of a children’s book, which are attributed to the windows to our world; the senses.

So, thank goodness for the full expression of life expressed of Nature by summertime. Earth offers to us our greatest perceptibility and beauty for our windows. With awareness and gratitude, we can find

comfort from what is so freely given us.

Enjoy deep breaths as trees are in their glory. Warm your heart by listening with wonder and enjoy being like a wide-eyed child. Rejuvenate, for life is daring to be.

Elizabeth Olney contribues articles about

creativity and art for MARCITM magazine. You can see her mini bio, in the HMN directory: http://www.holisticmentorshipnetwork.com/Directory.htm, under Creative Arts- Arts Therapy or Integrative Medicine.

Creative Arts with Elizabeth Olney

Image courtesy of Elizabeth Olney

Miracle Brain, Master of Mind...Sharpen Your Senses

Ernest Holmes, one of the greatest philosophers and spiritual thought leaders of the 20th century said “The universal Mind contains all knowledge. It is the potential ultimate of all things. To it, all things are possible.” Though small in size, our brain has been a mystery to unravel dating as far back as the time of Hippocrates who first discovered that it played a significant role in intelligence and sensation. According to buzzle.com, “the number of neurons in the human brain is equivalent to the total number of stars in our galaxy.” 100 billion.

Imagine that your brain was filled with stars – 100 billion of them. Each of these stars are either brightly or dimly lit (like brain synapses signaling to each other based on whether the nerve endings are clogged or healthy). Our brain processes on average 70,000 thoughts per day. Do you think it might be a little complex to figure out how to best optimize mental function?

Enter therapeutic-grade essential oils which can help sharpen mental acuity and oxygenate the brain. Another one of the benefits of aromatherapy and essential oils is that they exert powerful influence on the limbic system of the brain – the center for memory storage, emotions and sexual arousal. Best of all, there are no harmful side effects. I am a proponent of natural health and wellness. Our bodies are meant to heal themselves given the right support and conditions to promote regeneration and renewal. There is a place for conventional medicine, however, we owe it to ourselves to

Aromatherapywith Christina Santiago

first explore natural alternatives. Consult your physician or healthcare provider of choice. And, remember to only use the highest grade of essential oils because of their purity and efficacy.

Young Living Essential Oils holds the highest standard in the industry.

Neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s have been helped by essential oils through topical use and inhalation. According to research in the Essential Oils Desk Reference, 4th ed., a leading neurologist in Washington, D.C. has stated that “maintaining normal synaptic firing would forestall many types

of neurological deterioration in the body.” Oils high in sesquiterpenes such as Frankincense, Cedarwood, and German Chamomile are known to cross the blood brain barrier.

Based on olfactory research, a University of Cincinnati study conducted in 1994 by Dr. Dember showed that Peppermint oil improves memory and mental concentration. I wish someone would have told me that back when I was in school taking all those tests, including the LSAT. I would have been a peppermint-sniffing machine! Additional cerebral stimulants include: Brain Power™, Clarity™, Lemon and Myrrh oils. More oxygen can lead to clearer thinking. Feeling a little

foggy? Reach for your oils.

Christina M. Santiago, CHBC, CCA is a holistic health educator, Certified Clinical Aromatherapist from the Institute of Spiritual Healing and Aromatherapy professional program, and keynote speaker with Sky Diva Oils, a division of Rising Above, LLC. Christina has been featured on CNBC On the Money and Cablevision For the Health of It, and is a contributing expert in Latina magazine and Garden State Woman magazine. For more information on Christina, please call 888.811.8883 or visit her Web sites: www.SkyDivaOils.com and www.RisingAboveLLC.com.


Treating Compulsive Disorders — Start with the Basics

Compulsive disorders in animal companions can be disturbing to witness, but they’re not impossible to resolve.

Key factors to optimal health are good nutri-tion, reduction of exposure to environmental toxins including household and outdoor chemi-cals, reduction of the number of vaccines admin-istered over a lifetime, adequate exercise, and eliminating stress.

Some compulsive disorders, for instance chronic shredding of bedding, are symptoms of a greater problem, like vaccinosis – the result of too many vaccines.

Vaccinosis is not always addressed by tradi-tional vets, whose protocol might include pre-scription drugs to help alleviate the behavior.

Getting to the root of the issue rather than

The Whole Petwith Beth Lowell

masking the symptom is a far better health choice for your pet.

What can you do? Take a Reiki or massage class and use these

methods to both bring your pet back to balance and build a stronger bond with them.

Consult with an expert about flower essences or essential oils – two very different but all natural tools that also help restore balance and health.

Enlist a team of experts to help resolve the compulsive disorders.

Find a vet who can work to bring the animal back to balance, through homeopathic or other holistic means, who is willing to work to get to the root of the issue, along with a trainer who understands that the behavior is a manifestation of a larger problem.

If your vet or trainer is unwilling to work with you, find a new one who will.

Most importantly, have patience and compas-sion, keep a positive attitude and have faith in your animal companion’s ability to heal.

Inspired by dogs, Beth Lowell established her pet sitting company, Good Girl, in 2002. Her services have grown to include Reiki for animals, flower essence consultations and canine massage. She is a regular contributor to the Reiki Digest and an ac-complished artist whose paintings grace the homes of dog lovers across the United States.The petsitter with the holistic touch, visit on the Web at www.bethlowell.com or call (973) 960-6464.


WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUTHolistic Mentorship Network...“It’s been a powerful experience for me to have connected with so many exuberant, dedicated and wholistic practitioners at HMN. I have been fortunate to have been invited into many of the members homes for the purpose of space clearing and feng shui. All the experiences have been filled with growth, graceand love. I am grateful to have found a center so enlivened and at one with their purpose.”

Deanna Trustwww.TrustFengShui.com


Are You Frozen in Fear in the Face of Change?

Lately it seems like everyone I talk to is facing some change or transition. They are overwhelmed, stuck in analysis paralysis, worried excessively and about to snap.

Some admit they are frozen in fear, like they are standing at the edge of a cliff, and any mis-step could result in a horrible death. They just stand there, unable to breathe, unable to move. I know that feeling because I’ve been there many times.

Now, I have thrived in many dramatic changes in my life, such as moving from Asia to the U.S. in my twenties (speaking little English and knowing almost no one); thriving in many industries; living in four states in six calendar years with two babies in tow; coping with my husband’s job loss when he was the sole bread-winner and we had a house and two kids under age four; winning Black Belt and eight gold medals despite injuries and fears; recovering from various illnesses and surgeries... You get the picture.

I’ve been through a lot of changes and I’m really good at thriving in change. But, I’m not immune to fear. In fact, I’ve had many frozen-in-fear, on-my-knees moments.

When you are faced with change, you need to think clearly, make the right decisions, and take swift actions.

However, when fear grabs you by your throat and your emotions hijack your mind, all you can see is worse-case scenarios.

Like the cliff-hanger, you try to hang on to what you think is safe with a death grip (pun intended), not knowing what you perceive to be safe (i.e. hanging on to the cliff) might ultimately lead to your demise.

I was reminded of this lesson recently when

I almost turned down perhaps the greatest opportunity for my business.

I was extremely anxious about the great risks involved, until my coach reminded me to focus on the opportunity, not the risks.

It’s like a boulder lifted off my chest and I can finally breathe and seize the opportunity.

When you are frozen in fear, you need someone who can see objectively to point out the right direction for you. A professional coach such as myself can do that.

As the famous quote by John Burroughs goes, “Leap and the net will appear.” Learn to trust yourself and have faith in the Universe.

When you leap in faith, the net will appear, or you might realize you’ve been wearing a parachute on your back all along.

But, you’ll never know until you take the leap. Remember the cliff-hanger -- the longer you wait, you’ll have less options and more risks.

So, make a decision and take action now.

Hueina Su is an internationally recognized expert in helping people find the missing peace and power in their stressful lives. A featured

expert in the upcoming movie “The Keeper of the Keys” starring Jack Canfield and Marci Shimoff, what sets her apart from other experts is the 5,000 years of ancient Chinese culture and wisdom behind her. She is a Mindful Wellness Expert, best-selling author of “Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s

Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Others,” international keynote speaker, certified life coach, and founder of Beyond Horizon Coaching. She started her first career as a registered nurse, and has more than 23 years of experience in nursing, coaching, counseling, speaking, training, nonprofit management, sales, and small business. She is on a mission to empower one million women nurturers to nurture themselves and create a life of their choice. For more information about Hueina’s speaking, coaching and products, visit www.HueinaSu.com

Personal Development

Coachingwith Hueina Su

Discernment & TestingWhen I first went through the spiritual

awakening process I was on a perpetual high, all that energy flowing into my life. All the information and wisdom Spirit was pouring into me. It was an incredible time, a time for which I am very grateful, and it marked the beginning of a long series of trials and tests that continue to this day, as they do with each of us.

At this time, I have a friend who is going through her process of spiritual awakening. I do my best to give her the benefit of my experience when she reaches a bump on her road, a blip on her panoramic screen. She has heard me mention the word discernment so often that she now mimics me in a sing-song voice.

Yes, it gets old. I remember that back in the beginning when someone who had been on the path longer than I told me that everything in life was a test. I too, whined: “Why do I have to be tested?” I wailed. “I’ve learned it! Why can’t Spirit just trust me on that?” I remember all too clearly the frustration I was feeling, the same frustration I hear in my friend’s voice when she laments yet another challenge, more tests, and more opportunities for discernment.

I realized the difference between us now is that I have finally accepted the need for testing and she has not yet made it to that place. I have accepted that there will always be tests, they are never ending, they will always be there, they just change in their intensity. I have also accepted the fact that I will fail some of them and they will be presented to me in a variant

form in the future. I do my best to discern the lesson whenever I encounter a bump or a blip, but honestly, sometimes I just don’t get it as soon as I could. Life is distracting, and that too, is a lesson.

As a result I have learned to forgive myself and get on with it. And I have learned to look forward to the next test, because they get easier to see every time I pass or fail one. Everything is a lesson, and we are always tested, and our discernment is always improving. Amen to that.

Rev. Christina Lynn Whited has developed Soul Path Clearance and created Unconscious Scripts Release as a means of empowerment for her clients. She is head of the Circle of Intention School of Intuitive Sciences in High Bridge, New Jersey, and is available for private consultations. Over the course of the last twenty years Whited has been featured in People magazine, on CNN and Geraldo, and in the New York Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and many other papers. She has spoken on radio programs across the country, talked to many groups both regionally and nationally, and has been featured in spiritual books. Her work has also been lauded by such notables as Dr. Wayne Dyer and Dr. Joe Vitale. She can be found at www.CircleOfIntention.com.

Working with Spirit:

Subtle Energywith Christina

Lynn Whited



Eat Right…Feel Right

with Judith Gisser

Mission Nutrition: Influence Your Mood With Food

Stressed out so much that you experience memory lapses, emotional outbursts, lack of mental focus, panic attacks and an inability to move yourself forward? Remember food is the greatest biological modifier there is.

Here are three important ways you can influ-ence your mood with food:

1. Balance the protein and carbs each time you eat.

• Begin with 1/4-1/3 of your plate=protein food: eggs, fish, poultry, meat or legumes (beans).

• Fruits and vegetables that raise blood sugar slowly=1/4-1/3: Leafy greens, crucifers (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale), radish, celery, green beans, peppers, zucchini, berries, melons, citrus fruit, etc.)

• 1/4-1/3 whole grain, high fiber bread, brown rice, yams, whole grain pasta, red potato, beets, carrots, corn or watermelon. Add an extra salad on the side.

If you no longer find yourself sluggish, sleepy, irritable, depressed, anxious or unfocused you are successful in maintaining blood sugar bal-ance. If symptoms creep back, look at the protein : carbohydrate ratio of your last meal. No need to reprimand yourself if you overindulged. Make the connection between action and reaction and better choices next time will result in feeling bet-ter.

2. Increase your awareness of how these downers contribute to your melancholy:

• Low calorie and low fat diets• Skipped meals• Caffeine and other stimulants• Junk and Processed foods• Aspartame

• StressEat foods daily to increase serotonin, lift your

mood and move that stagnation.• Animal protein• Adequate complex carbohydrates (Emo-

tions often flatten on high protein diets without enough carbohydrates.)

• Omega 3 and monosaturated fats from fish, flax oil, Salba® and olive oil

Foods that lift mood: Brown RiceCucumbers

ApplesCabbage

Fresh Wheat GermKuzu

Wild blue green algaeApple cider vinegar

Foods that move stagnation:Parsley, Watercress

Onion familyTurmeric

Basil, Bay leafCardamomMarjoram

CuminGinger

Dill, FennelBeet

PeachCherry

CruciferBlack pepperHorseradishRosemary

MintsFor a total recipe for mental and emotional

health, remember to add in a good dose of daily exercise, adequate Vitamin D and practice giving every day — a hug, a smile, a kind word, sincere recognition, your time. The act of giving stimu-lates the pleasure center of the brain.

Judith Gisser, MS, CNS. CWC, is a Board Certi-fied Nutrition Specialist and Certified Wellness Coach. Judith identifies your unique constitution and metabo-lism and teaches you to eat right, feel right and use simple tools to achieve sustained energy, resilience and peace. Appropriate supplementation is recommended. A member of the American College of Nutrition, Judith is also an herbalist, author, corporate wellness trainer, key-note speaker and developer of a 30-day Detox with a Difference program available in person, via teleconfer-ence and on CDs. www.judithgisser.com.

Putting Drudgery in Perspective

The young child with big brown eyes looks at me and I know god exists—in that moment, in his eyes.

She enters my heart and my soul. My whole being knows.

My whole self knows as I hold a pool of water in my hand and splash it over my face letting it drip down for the pure sensation alone, of the drip.

The miracle of everyday moments takes my breath away.

And She has been alive in people’s lives forever.

It’s only now that we get to experience the depth of people’s contact with god, from all over the world, through so many mediums.

Try YouTube and find Deval Premal “Om Namo Bhagavate.”

Just listen to that song before you snuggle

Conscious Parenting

Age 13 & Underwith Beth Haessig

your child goodnight, or change a dirty diaper. It will help you put all the drudgery in perspective.

When we allow the presence of the divine to be felt in our everyday moments of perceived darkness, or intense parenting challenges, we are kissing the moment with the kiss of the divine. T

hat changes everything—turning muck into a blooming lotus. We can do this.

You, the parent are the magic that your child is looking for.

You are the transmitter—the one who can bring that divinity into the space between the doing this and that, that ticks the clock, and now the day is done and it’s time to go to bed.

You are the one that by seeing the stars in their eyes, allows them to feel their own Source.

It’s this Source that brightens the dark, loves the rain, breathes the love, and meets our deepest of longings that are buried in our fleshy souls.

Om Namo Bhagavate puts all the laundry in its proper place, with your hands.

Beth L. Haessig, PsyD, is a licensed psychologist and a Core Energetics practitioner (body-centered psychotherapy). As a holistic psychologist, she works experientially through movement, breath, and mindfulness, to help children and families cope with the 21st century challenges we face in our mind/body/behavior. For more information, see www.BethHaessig.com or sign up for her newsletter at [email protected].


Look

for us on


Look for signs your teen is depressed

Being a teenager is hard. It is stressful to want to be liked, to do well in school and to get along with family members. There is some normalcy if your teen is experiencing “the blues” or occasionally feeling down. Unrealistic social, academic or family expectations can create a strong sense of rejection and this can often lead to disappointment. When things go wrong, teens often over-react. There are ways to cope with these feelings to avoid serious depression. Healthy relationships with peers are central to many teenagers self-esteem and more importantly, it provides an important social outlet. Participating in sports, activities and hobbies helps teens stay busy and keeps them focused on positive behavior. Asking a trustworthy adult for help when problems seem too big helps significantly and allows teens to get solid advice while knowing there is someone listening to them.

However, feeling sad, hopeless or worthless could be warning signs of a mental health issue. It is important for parents to understand that despite our best efforts, teenagers can become depressed. Many factors contribute to depression including a family history, difficult life events, side effects from medicine and also negative thought patterns. It is sometimes difficult to diagnose depression in teenagers because moodiness comes with the territory. These symptoms may indicate depression, especially if they last

for more than two weeks:Withdrawal from friends and activitiesAnger and rageChanges in eating or sleepingSubstance abuseSadness and hopelessnessPoor self-esteem or guiltLack of enthusiasm, energy or

motivationIt is extremely important that depressed

teens receive immediate and professional help. Parents alone cannot provide the type of help depressed teens require. Depression, if left untreated, can worsen to the point of becoming life threatening. Each year, almost 5,000 young people, ages 15 to 24 kill themselves making it the third leading cause of death in adolescents. Pay attention if your teen has made suicide threats, has an obsession with death, starts giving away their belongings, has a dramatic change in personality or appearance, has changed their eating and sleeping habits and begins to exhibit irrational and bizarre behavior. These warning signs need to be taken seriously. Caring and support can save your teenager’s life.

Depression is highly treatable. Teenagers must rely on us to recognize their suffering and get them the treatment they need. We can make a difference and we must. They are so worth it.

Jordan Brown is a Therapist, Empowerment Coach and owner of Full Circle Counseling in Lincoln Park, NJ. Jordan is the Director of an In-Home Intensive Therapy Program for families in

crisis throughout New Jersey. Jordan is the founder of a women’s empowerment group on meetup.com and is a recent co-author of the

book “Empowering Transformations for Women.” Jordan can be reached at [email protected].

Conscious ParentingAge 13 - 19

Jordan Brown

Spiritual Experience vs. Mental Disorder

As a former psychotherapist, I recall the importance of “going with my gut” in favor of adhering to conventional guidelines for diagnosing mental disorders.

Using my intuition gave rise to a greater understanding of how to truly help people.

Here is an example of that intuitive discernment: A woman, a client of mine, diagnosed as schizophrenic, wanted her life back.

Instead of the flat affect created by the antipsychotic medications she had taken for over a year, she longed to regain her bubbly personality.

Her lifestyle as a diagnosed schizophrenic caused her to gain fifty pounds as well as lose her job, her social life, her passion, and her marriage.

What brought her to the psychiatrist in the first place? Seeing spirits.

Yes, she was having metaphysical encounters — experiences documented by the American Psychiatric Association as having to do with mental abnormality.

When she began to see spirits in her bedroom, she hid in fear under the covers.

She would scream and beg the entities to leave her alone.

Her husband interpreted the events as a mental breakdown, so he set up a psychiatric evaluation.

The psychiatrist assumed that spirits don’t exist and asserted the occurrences were hallucinations.

The diagnosis came quickly: Schizophrenia. Then came the drugs.

My intuition was clear: The psychiatrist’s bias against spiritual

phenomena sent this intelligent, healthy woman into a downward spiral.

The spirits were real, and no one had validated the woman’s experience.

She reported that, in her childhood, she’d had premonitions and other psychic experiences.

Her father, an evangelist, was adamant that she was a witch, possessed by the devil.

She disclosed that her father did attempt to burn her alive.

She ran away from home to save her own life.

No one approved of her psychic nature. She shut off her abilities that later re-

emerged when she had married.I told the client about my frequent

communications with spirits. I informed her that thousands of mental

health professionals believe in, and validate metaphysical experiences.

I demonstrated how to set up spiritual protection and how to surround the entities with angels to escort them to the light.

Within a couple of months, the woman was free from medications, back at work, and enjoying her life again — with greater appreciation of who she is, what she is capable of, and acceptance of her fantastic metaphysical abilities.

I encourage anyone seeking mental health assistance, to exercise the right to ask if the providers use their intuition in their work.

This key is more powerful than any conventional diagnostic procedure available.

Dr. Catherine P. Perry, M.Ed, DD is a psychotherapist-turned-spiritual healer, intpsychotherapist-turned-spiritual healer, intuitive, lecturer, and author of the award-winning book “Courageous Wake.” She is an expert in energy medicine, intuition, human capacities, and self-healing. She owns a private healing practice and Reiki training center in Paramus, NJ. Dr. Perry holds a master’s degree in counseling and a doctorate of divinity in the spiritual healing arts. She is a certified Reiki master-teacher, certified hypnotherapist, certified Karuna Ki master-teacher, and a certified Seven-Rays practitioner. Her book “Courageous Wake” is available at www.authorhouse.com. For information about Dr. Perry, visit www.catherinepperry.net or call 888-330-7248.


Spirituality with Catherine Perry

If it isn’t workingget back to basics

Last quarter concentrating on verb tense was our focus. Hopefully you discovered some patterns and habits in that arena that were not serving you adequately and successfully replaced them. In this issue we’ll focus on what to do when the work and effort put into transforming your finances isn’t working. This is a frustrating reality for most that are making a serious effort to change things for the better.

In most cases, as echoed by most financial self-help authors and presenters, closer examination of why progress is slow or stalled reveals that the material isn’t being followed or applied correctly. The biggest problem seems to be the “thought without action” trap. The scenario whereby a person, seeking to change their financial picture, believes that changing their thoughts is enough to effect the change. Unfortunately without action, changing one’s thoughts will perhaps produce a sensation of progress but most likely nothing shifts. If this person tests objectively into their awareness, most likely they will realize they are not doing what needs to be done ― there is a delusion or denial of what is really going on.

Perhaps at this point the best course of action to follow is that of athletes ― return to the basics. Simple as it may seem it is one of the most powerful tools available to transform unsatisfactory patterns and performance. A good athlete,

when confronted with a situation where nothing she or he does works, will often return to the fundamental skills of their sport and rebuild. This same strategy can be used in the arena of finances and money. If you are working with a specific program return to the books or course materials and start again. Look honestly for places you have diverged from the core action plan of the training and correct them. If you are not working with a specific program it might be useful to research one and start.

For more information about transforming yourself using sound, tuning forks, and personal awareness tools, surprisingly fast, safe and comfortably contact me, Tom Selkow, by e-mail at [email protected] or phone at 862-268-4443.

Tom Selkow, Consciousness Technology Practitioner, is the owner of Zero Point Transformation, LLC, in Sparta, NJ. He is certified as a Matrix Energetics Master Practitioner, Money Coach and has a wide range of tools available to help his clients transform their relationship to abundance, life, career, relationships and more.

Money Coachingwith Tom Selkow


Acupressure for Headaches

Ugh, you have a headache. You feel that constant pain in your head and

it is starting to hinder your ability to get things done in your day.

The pain takes all of your focus.

You don’t really want to take over-the-counter medication because perhaps it will cause you unwanted side effects, or you live a complementary medicine lifestyle where you avoid medication as often as possible.

Still, how do you get rid of the headache? There is one powerful acupressure point that you can self-massage to help ease your headache.

Hegu, also known as “Union Valley,” is a wonderful acupressure point for relieving headaches.

According to the Chinese text Classic of the Jade Dragon, Hegu is an excellent point for relieving all diseases of the head.

This point is located on the back of your hand between the bones leading up to your thumb and index fingers, in the “valley” where those bones form a “union.”

To find Hegu, simply place your thumb on your opposite hand in that webbing and your fingers on your palm.

Move your thumb over the area and you may feel a spot where the tissue under your thumb feels “gummy.”

Gently massage the gummy area while you have a headache.

Sometimes, people feel relief instantly and sometimes it takes a little time.

If you have five to ten minutes where you can rest comfortably, close your eyes and gently massage Hegu on both hands, alternating sides moving back and forth between both sides.

This can provide a great deal of relief. There is no need to massage deeply – gentle

pressure often works best.There are two important instances where you

should avoid doing acupressure on Hegu. If you are pregnant, avoid massaging Hegu,

as this point can induce labor. Also, if you are experiencing the worst

headache ever and/or have other symptoms such as numbness or weakness, loss of balance or control of speech, confusion or trouble seeing, avoid massaging Hegu and seek medical attention immediately.

Getting regular acupuncture can also help prevent headaches, especially if you experience headaches regularly.

The World Health Organization recognizes acupuncture’s effectiveness in treating headaches, and people suffering from all different kinds of headaches often get wonderful results with acupuncture.

In the meantime, Hegu is a great acupressure point for relieving your headache and helping you feel better faster.

Susannah Pitman, MS, LAc is an acupuncturist with a private practice in Boonton, NJ. She completed her Masters degree from Tri-State College of Acupuncture and has traveled to China and Japan to further her studies. To learn more about Susannah’s practice, visit www.balanceacupuncturecenter.com or call 973-257-8924.

Everyday Acupressure

with Susannah Pitman


Photos courtesy of Susannah PitmanTo find Hegu, simply place your thumb on your

opposite hand in that webbing and your fingers on your palm.

Dear Jefferson, I do a lot of energetic work with the Earth. I

had an odd dream, possibly a vision, two nights ago. It seemed as though I had just closed my eyes and fallen asleep. I went into the dream or vision almost immediately. I first heard, “The Earth will stretch and bend.” The voice was very loud and I’m not sure who said it. I did not recognize it but it felt like it was a male voice. I didn’t see anything while those words were being said. Then I was hovering above a straight, flat street, looking down, in what felt like Southern California. I could feel I was on the North end of the street looking South. There were those very tall Royal Palm Trees. It felt like a wealthy Beverly Hills neighborhood, but no houses, no buildings, just plants, trees and flowers. To the left, it did feel like there was a wall of some sort, with a home behind it. There may have even been a residential neighbor-hood, but it was behind the wall and I could not see it. Even the wall was green, covered in vining plants and naturally made, not man made. I say that even though I could not see it, I just sensed it. There were beautiful plants, flow-ers, and shrubs — it was a very pretty street. Interestingly, I saw more to the left of the street, and only a little bit on the right. There were no buildings, no cars on the street, no birds, no animals, nothing else. It was a two-way paved road, with a yellow line down the middle, but I did not see any cars or people. As I said, ev-erything was green and vining — nothing man made, only Nature made. Up above me there was a silver disc hovering like a spaceship. I felt that whatever it was, they were here to help. That was it. What does this mean? Thanks.

Belinda, Bloomfield, NJ

Dear Belinda, The feeling that you had just closed your eyes

and were suddenly dreaming or having a vision

is not uncommon. It is possible that if you were already sleeping and awoke, then returned to sleep, you had already entered REM sleep earli-er and then returning to sleep, took less time to re-enter REM sleep. You may have had a vision or experienced hypnogogia: “On the borderline of sleep, there is a phase called hypnogogia, during which many people experience bizarre and dream-like imagery. ”1

I’ll address the voice later, but what it said, “The Earth will stretch and bend” is mirrored in the scene before you. Almost all the imag-ery is of vining greenery and palm trees. The mission statement of a vining plant is to stretch and bend and continually grow. The palm tree grows strong at the base and flexible as it stretches up. This way it bends in hurricane winds and survives. So the statement is about growth and flexibility, in this case for the Earth itself. This may mean growing pains, but there is nothing painful indicated here. Instead the imagery reflects the ability to adapt, to remain flexible. This is about evolution.

Juxtaposing that flexibility is a straight, hard, paved street, straight double yellow lines and a wall separating the neighborhood from the nat-ural surroundings. The lack of cars, people, ani-mals, etc. is simply to put emphasis on what re-mains, the greenery. Behind the wall are wealth, homes, people, and a neighborhood. This is the second chakra – money and relationships, but also first chakra – property, tribal energy. There is a part of you that sees man and his money as incompatible with Nature; that sees acquisition in opposition to Nature. The straight, two-way road with its double yellow line paved over the lush landscape is your mind’s way of saying you see man-made progress paving over the natural world. And in many cases it is. But your dream is telling you this does not need to be the



case; that it is possible for finance and Nature to coexist peacefully. After all, what is more abun-dant than Nature itself?

But in order to see this situation in a differ-ent light, you must become the observer of how you see the world, and so you hover above it. This is emphasized by being North facing South. The street, or path if you will, is femi-nine energy coming toward you on the left, and male energy moving from you down the right side. The community is behind a wall, because there the two energies coexist. You see more of the left side of the street than the right because you are in touch with your intuition (female). But male energy, in this case money, is out of sight, disconnected. And yet, it lives to your left behind a natural wall.

The fact that you are in Southern California is a correlation to the type of palm tree you men-tioned. The Royal Palm Tree is tropical, mostly native to the Caribbean. In California’s climate, the tree grows at a slower pace. So your choice of location and tree together are an indication of behavior. It is similar to the slow, deliberate growth of the vines also present in your dream. The choice of the Royal Palm indicates that you already see finance and Nature as potentially compatible. The palm leaf also symbolizes the outstretched hand, but toward what is that hand extended?

The neighborhood behind the wall shows that you are seeing affluence as separate from Nature, meaning there is a disconnect between how wealth is attained and the Earth is main-tained. And yet, American printed money is mostly green. The silver disc above you is a coin. Almost all the faces on American coins are men, and thus the voice you hear in the void is male. And it is hovering above you, as you are above the street. You see money, royal-ty in this case, as above you. Again, there is no real separation except in your perception. This

means you feel more connected to the natural world than to wealth. But if you are to success-fully marry the two energies you will need to recalibrate.

Through metaphor, you are being shown a way to bridge these two energies. It’s the Earth’s way of saying “go green”. The double yellow line represents two third charkas, or two individualities. The line to the left is yours and the other is the energy of the ones you would connect with on this journey. In order for abundance to connect with abundance, whether man made or Nature made, you must first stop seeing them as separate. The first place to look is the heart, the fourth chakra. Its color is green.

Jefferson Harman reads the symbols present in your dreams & everyday life. By interpreting this invisible language, he identifies your blocks & challenges & ways to overcome them. He offers workshops & private readings in Lucid Dreaming & Overcoming Your Phobias. Jefferson is a recur-ring guest on “Life Unedited” with John Aberle, on WCHE Radio 1520 AM, in the Philadelphia area (listen live at wche1520.com). He is develop-ing a podcast, “Everyday Symbology”, with psychic medium & certified hypno-therapist Patti Lehman discussing all things metaphysical. Jefferson is a Board Member of HMN & a practitioner at Peace-ful Paths in Butler, NJ and Full Circle Counseling in Lincoln Park, NJ. www.everydaysymbology.com, 973.839.9317

1 http://www.dreamtree.com/inside/dream-resources/dream-faqs/

Copyright © 2011 by Jefferson Harman. All rights reserved. Printed by permission of the author. Image Credit – “Night Sailing” Copy-right © 2011 by Jefferson Harman. Used by permission.


Mind-Body-Spirit Meets Society: Legislative Action

The Mind-Body-Spirit connection is vital for a healthy, happy, and fulfilling life. Understanding and nurturing these three deeply interconnected parts of the whole is the focus of much discussion in the holistic community, and different facets of these components are often highlighted and discussed in MARCI™.

In general, the holistic practitioners understand the importance of context, or the place and/or circumstances in which an event takes place. The primary example of this is the environment. Many holistic practitioners and their clients care deeply about the health and well-being of our one and only Planet Earth, and the treatment modalities that Holistic Healthcare Professionals use are often in sync with and supportive of maintaining and improving the environment for generations to come.

Indeed, many of HMN’s programs and activities (including Project Planet Network and Go Green) are geared towards informing men

and women, youth and adults, about how to better take care of our planet – the one thing we are all responsible for and share collectively.

But what about the societal context? Yes, our planet is one context in which we interact, but within society, there are certain attitudes, beliefs, and values that shape our interactions with one another. The codification of these values into a system of rules to create law and order are the local, state, and federal laws which govern us.

Sometimes, these governing bodies make exceptionally useful laws, such as those that allow for and protect freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and other rights.

Unfortunately, often laws are conservative in nature and locked into a neo-traditional mindset (meaning what has become traditional in the past two centuries that are called “modern improvements”) in almost every field. These laws do not allow for the tried and true understanding of holistic approaches, which are labeled either “historical / outdated” or “non-traditional”, outside the purview of science, and/or not evidence based. This is despite the proven effectiveness of holistic approaches and millennia of practical, natural, and beneficial techniques developed in societies all around the world over the course of history until today.

Even worse, many of the rules and regulations our government supports wholly serve “vested interests” (including insurance companies, doctors organizations, entrenched polluting energy organizations, etc.). Typically, statutes that become public law have powerful, wealthy, and profit-seeking organizations behind them, those that seek to use law to establish a powerful monopoly over health, lifestyle, and environmental issues, usually in a

Legislative Matterswith Omar Rashed




The sponsorship of this association conflicts with the legitimacy of their advice.

A nutritionist, on the other hand, in the true sense of the word, is a trained professional who helps people achieve wellness using drugless healing through a therapeutic program of diet, energy work, and supplements. They do not have corporate sponsors, the USDA, or the FDA dictating their guidelines, practices, or knowledgebase. They implement natural, holistic approaches, using tried and true methods.

Clearly, what’s good for the New Jersey resident is not being advocated for and supported by the bills mentioned; rather, it effectively silences anyone from discussing food health except licensed dieticians, who clearly give biased and misleading information

So what do we do about it? We have to get involved in the policy making process. We cannot, in good conscience and good faith, allow legislators (who often also have big corporations lining their pockets) to make policy that is destructive for all of us.

There are two ways of achieving a political and policy end: 1) mobilize money, or 2) mobilize people. When enough money is mobilized (by those who own most of the world’s wealth), they can change a legislator’s mind. However, when a large number of people – ordinary citizens – are mobilized, they can either convince legislators not to do something that is harmful for us all, or ensure problematic legislators are removed by voting them out.

If we, as holistic practitioners and as citizens of a community of our families, friends, and neighbors, want to really accomplish the revolution of the medical field and help people

way that does not serve the interests of people, families, communities, society, or the world community.

For example, in the state of New Jersey, consider a bill that is currently being advanced in both the State Assembly and the State Senate. These bills are called the “Dieticians Licensing Bill”. In the Assembly, it has the bill number A1987, and in the Senate, bill number S809. This bill restricts who is legally allowed to offer nutritional advice, limiting it to people who have:

1) Completed a Baccalaureate degree in a nutrition program

2) Have a documented supervised experience with a licensed dietician / nutritionist or licensed physician for 900 hours

3) Pass an examination created and administered by the

a. “Commission on Dietetic Registration of the American Dietetic Association,” or

b. “Certification Board for Nutrition Specialists”

Now, you may be thinking “It’s a great idea to ensure dieticians / nutritionists are licensed to practice. Won’t that make it safer?” The answer has two dimensions: First, dieticians and nutritionists are not the same, although this legislation uses the terms interchangeably.

By definition, a professional dietician is someone who follows the guidelines of the American Dietetic Association. This association, as evidenced in their website, has corporate partners like Coca-Cola and Hershey’s and premium sponsors like PepsiCo, General Mills, and Kellogg’s. If I wanted dietetic advice from corporations, I would not want it from the makers of these products (with high fructose corn syrup, excessive sugar, and simple carbohydrates that break down and increase fat). cont’d on next page

to achieve the balance of the body, mind, and spirit, we must act and engage in the political process. If we are silent, other vested interests will make decisions for us.

Until we can ensure that society’s laws align with the healthy way of living, our struggle will be uphill and never ending

Omar Rashed is the Research and Public Policy Director for the Holistic Mentorship Network. He researches problematic and encouraging public policies relevant to Holistic Practitioners and informs HMN membership and staff of policies to mobilize people to engage state and federal legislators. He completed his Baccalaureate degree in Social Work at Rutgers University and then went on to complete his Master’s of Social Work at the University of Michigan. His areas of interest are poverty, healthcare, education, and labor policy areas.


Legislative Matterscontinued from page 53


More than one hundred breast cancer patients and survivors found inspira-tion, support, hope, and coping strategies for their breast cancer journeys at a breast cancer conference organized and co-hosted by Summit Breast Care and Beyond Horizon Coaching in Newton, NJ.

Sponsored by the Sparta Cancer Center, Newton Memorial Hospital, and the Sussex County Can-cer Coalition and Project Self-Sufficiency, the con-ference’s keynote speaker, Hueina Su (MS, BSN, CEC, mindful wellness expert, certified life coach, and best-selling author) noted that she was “honored to be in a position to inspire, help and coach breast cancer patients, survivors and care-givers through their breast cancer journey.”

“Having been a registered nurse, a care-giver to family members with cancer, and having experienced a breast cancer scare myself, I know first-hand it’s a tough jour-ney, and I’m here to help,” Su, president of Beyond Horizon Coaching based in Den-ville, NJ, explained.

Health and wellness vendors also show-cased their products and services for breast cancer care.

The conference received overwhelmingly posi-tive response from breast cancer patients, sur-vivors and the local community. The advance registration more than doubled from originally planned. As a result, the conference had to move from Sparta Health & Wellness Center to a Proj-ect Self-Sufficiency conference room in order to accommodate more than a hundred participants, staff and vendors.

Coping with the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer is a very stressful journey for can-cer patients and survivors, complicated by fears, anxiety, grief, and many emotional issues. Su of-fered real life tools and tips to help breast can-cer patients navigate the journey from diagnosis

through treatment and to survivorship.

Since June 2010, Su has been leading a Mindful Wellness Coaching and Stress Management Pro-gram at Sparta Can-cer Center in Sparta, NJ. Over 80 cancer patients and care-givers have partici-pated and benefited from Su’s stress re-lief coaching pro-gram.

“Physical and emotional stress can wreck havoc in cancer patients’ im-mune function and healing process. Learning how to cope with stress ef-fectively is critical for their recovery and emotional well-being. Cancer pa-tients and survivors regain a sense of control and become more confident and resilient in dealing with cancer and other life changes

through learning stress relief techniques, self-care practices and life skills,” Su said.

“The well-being of cancer caregivers and pa-tient care staff is just as important as that of cancer patients. Having worked with cancer and other terminally ill patients as a registered nurse, I ex-perienced first-hand the high level of stress and its negative impact on physical health and emotional well-being. This is why I wrote my best-selling book, ‘Intensive Care for the Nurturer’s Soul: 7 Keys to Nurture Yourself While Caring for Oth-ers,’” Su said.

To sign up for free stress management video e-course and learn more about Su’s coaching, key-note speaking, training services and products visit http://www.HueinaSu.com.

Patients Find Inspiration and Guidance at Breast Cancer Conference

Photos courtesy of Hueina SuBreast cancer patients and others attend the conference in Sparta, above, and, below, Hueina Addresses the attendees as the keynote speaker for the day.


Oh no, Mercury retrograde—not again! During this period we may fear dilemmas connect-ed with travel, communication, electronics, large purchases, etc., but what most don’t real-ize is that it’s actually part of a larger astrological pattern that can help “reconnect” every indi-vidual to the cosmic rhythm of his or her life.

Many people familiar with the term “Mercury Retrograde” un-derstand that the planet Mercury appears to stop in its tracks and to begin to move backwards in the sky approximately three times a year for about three weeks each time. The next Mercury retro-grade cycle occurs from August 3 to August 26, 2011.

Eighty percent of the time Mercury moves forward in the sky, concerning itself with the functional, productive, and con-scious side of life. Its mission in everyone’s natal (or birth) chart involves the conscious process-ing of symbols (language, etc.) through the mind’s ability to interpret abstract data into con-crete ideas.

“When Mercury is direct…the mind operates on a very functional level,” explains Erin Sullivan in her brilliant book Retrograde Planets, Traversing the Inner Landscape. “There is

little time for introspection, and energy is expanded in produc-tive action. Our contemplative side is virtually on hold. This is a natural rhythm.”

Mercury Retrograde Enhances Creative Shift from Left Brain to Right Brain

The reason astrologers tell you that Mercury retrograde periods are a time to engage in all of the “re-s”—i.e., to re-do, re-think, re-organize, re-process, re-eval-uate, re-view, etc.—is because we’re being given the opportu-nity to take information collect-ed consciously and to process it

unconsciously.The retrograde period can lead

to the “apparently spontane-ous emergence of the so-called brilliant idea,” notes Sullivan. Though this is not always the case, these periods represent the opportunity to disengage from the intellect precisely so that in-formation can shift from the left brain to the right brain and ho-listically emerge as a fully blos-somed discovery or creation.

“In the course of retrograde cycles our perceptions often shift drastically as we contact information in new ways and process it unconsciously,” Sul-livan writes. “Mercury oversees the creative process which oc-curs spontaneously when one is trying to evolve an idea or a plan. In doing so, one employs both the conscious and the un-conscious mind simultaneous-ly; while creating the structure of the idea on a conscious level, the unconscious is processing the information in a non-linear fashion. “

How Do We Connect to the Cosmic Rhythm?

Mercury’s direct movement enables us to learn objectively by paying attention, while its retro-

Mercury Retrograde’s Deeper Meaning

How Mercury Answers Your Inner Questions About Outer Realities

by Sheri Horn Hasan,Karmic Evolution Astrology



grade period helps us to integrate what we learn into our aware-ness. This can be boiled down to the difference between knowing something empirically and un-derstanding it on a soul level.

The gift of true understanding results when we “listen” to our emerging awareness and allow ourselves to learn.

“The disastrous idea that ev-erything comes to the human psyche from outside and that we are born a tabula rasa* is respon-sible for the erroneous belief that under normal circumstances the individual is in perfect order,” said Carl Jung.

Processing symbolic informa-tion gives one the capacity to bet-ter identify what has emerged through the transformation from objective information into a deep-er, more subjective meaning at end of the retrograde cycle.

“When to consider and recon-sider ideas, projects, relation-ships, and lifestyle, according to one’s own unique timing is the greater purpose of Mercury retro-grade,” according to Sullivan.

Mercury Retrograde Cycles: How Do I Co-Create My Future?

Mercury retrogrades every four months for approximately twenty-two days each time and, as it does so, it moves through different elements for a period of approximately two-plus years. The messages of these differ-

ent elemental cycles—fire, water, air, and earth—constitute our marching orders to pay attention to where concentration and in-trospection are most necessary in our lives.

In December 2010, the Mercu-ry retrograde cycle shifted from earth into fire. Mercury retro-grade through the fire signs—Ar-ies, Leo, and Sagittarius—con-stitutes a two-plus year period when the benefit of “going deep” manifests on the level of testing your ability to “respond to life with spontaneous energy,” and to “be more creative with your decisions to change,” according to Erin Sullivan.

In August 2011 the final Mer-cury retrograde cycle for the year

Mercurycontinued from page 57



will occur in the sign of Leo. It continues its sojourn through the fire signs until February 2013, when the cycle will shift into the water element for approximately the next two years, and its mes-sage will change.

While everyone on the planet will experience Mercury retro-grade in the fire element at the same time, each individual’s fo-cus on its true meaning lies in the house through which it retro-grades. The incorporation and re-finement of those lessons occurs through the houses ruled by fire signs in your individual chart.

During this cycle through the

fire signs, you may experience a creative “block” that ultimately results in new creativity, an ill-ness may motivate you to become more physically fit, or a crisis may force you to decide whether or not to respond with your usual pattern (anger and resistance?), or propel you to develop a new per-spective.

Regardless of how it manifests, one thing is certain: “The revi-sion of creative focus in your life over the next couple of years can drastically alter your future direc-tion…in a way more appropriate to the new emerging you,” pre-dicts Sullivan. “And,” she advises, “for your own sake, find ways to relax and enjoy life’s pleasures.”

*Tabula rasa: The theory that one is born a blank slate and that knowl-

edge comes only from experience and perception.

Sheri Horn Hasan of Karmic Evolution Astrology is a professional astrologer who practices archetypal, intuitive, psychological & spiri-tual astrology. Sheri combines her knowledge of archetypes and psy-chology with her intuitive ability to interpret natal charts in order to fulfill her mission “to inspire, trans-form & empower through astrologic insight.” Use of one’s natal chart as a blueprint for forward momentum —particularly in times of crisis or confusion — often presents key in-formation that benefit her clients as they make their own choices and con-sciously live their lives to the highest potential possible. You may contact Sheri at www.KarmicEvolution.com, [email protected], or (732)547-0852.

Mercurycontinued from page 58

Book ReviewA fable that is comical, purposeful and an enlightening tale all adults, who wish to be enlightened, can relate to. Each character along the journey is alive with vibrate nuances that speak volumes about human nature. Finding each one along the way I was excited and inspired to see how they related to my own life’s journey.

Seeing parts of myself in the frightened chicken, the hardened lobster, Puffy the Glamour Queen, and Foxy the Drama Queen.

The illustrated cartoon characters even tell a tale of the parts people sometimes play. As many of us stumble through our lives we create characters to hide behind.

Self enlightenment is a true journey in the discovery of who we truly can be. Our own hidden potential can be unmasked if we seek to pull away at the façade. Mr. Palmer shows us how in this short, but poignant story. Doing so in a playful, sometimes painful, sometimes frightening way.

Our quest in life should be bigger than the fear of the unknown. Dragging our baggage through life can only slow us down and keep us from arriving to our true destiny. Only when we are balanced can we move the heavy stones out of our way and reach our full potential. Through this wonderful little tale one can see love is our only guiding force not fear.

Be a seeker of wisdom and remember who you are. Heal from your past as everything happens for a reason. As the old adage goes, “The teacher only arrives when the student is ready.”And as the Enlightened Lobster says, “Arise and choose your Destiny.”

Review by Fran DeCesare

THE LOBSTER AND THE CHICKEN By Herb Palmer Jr.

In 1987 Herb Palmer Jr. was hit by what he calls a “God hammer.” Prior to this event he’d been traveling through life in a walking sleep. Finding he had the abilities to heal and lead other people on their own paths he began his true life journey. It only took a major melt down during a powerful planetary line up to be awakened to his path. Seeking out his teachers and the wisdom he needed to create what he wanted for his extraordinary life to come. Palmer recognized his Inner Lobster just a few years ago, and from this realization his book, “The Lobster and the Chicken,” began to unfold.


Product ReviewGrief Re-Leaf

from David Winston and Herbalist & Alchemist

By Donna ReynoldsGrief Re-Leaf, a simple, lovely formula

created by renowned herbalist, David Winston, is wonderful for helping folks who have experienced emotional trauma and for those suffering through varying levels of grief and mourning.

While neither herbs nor pharmaceuticals are intended as a replacement for proper therapy in these situations, this formula can help start the healing process. Grief Re-Leaf has been beneficial for several clients who had not been able to move through their pain and seemed stuck in their grief and broken heartedness.

Grief Re-Leaf can be an integral part of a comprehensive Mental Health protocol, and should be used under supervision of an appropriate health-care practitioner.

This product is comprised of three medicinal botanicals:

Hawthorn berries, leaves and flowers (Crataegus spp.). Hawthorn is a trophorestorative herb, meaning that it nourishes, strengthens and tonifies a specific organ or function – a ‘food for the organ” if you will. Hawthorn has specificity for nourishing the heart muscle itself. In this formula, it is also helpful for anxiety induced palpitations and acts as a calming nervine, meaning that it has a calming or soothing effect on the nerves.

Rose petals (Rose spp.). Historically, Roses have been associated with emotional healing and are a sheer delight to one’s senses: they feel silky soft, they smell incredibly wonderful, they taste delicious in teas and jellies, and they look beautiful. Roses have

antidepressant, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity. As you may know, aroma therapists use rose attar to aid cases of depression, to comfort folks in distress, and to ‘open the heart’.

Mimosa bark (Albizia julibrissin). Also known commonly as “Silk Tree”, Albizia bark is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as a mood elevator (similar to an antidepressant) for treating anxiety, insomnia and depression. Known in TCM by its pin yin name of He Huan Pi or “collective

happiness bark”, Albizia is quite an effective mood elevator and calms disturbed shen (anxiety, bad dreams, insomnia).

Contraindications for this product: use cautiously with antidepressant medications and during pregnancy. As with any healing protocol, always use herbal formulations under the advice of a trained herbal practitioner and your chosen health care provider.

Follow the dosage on the label. Grief Re-Leaf is a product of Herbalist & Alchemist,

and can be found in most health food stores.

• • •Note: Any remedies or information listed are

from historical references and used for teaching/educational purposes only. The contents are

not meant to diagnose, treat, prescribe, cure or substitute consultation with a licensed health-

care professional. This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.

Donna Reynolds of Willow Moon Herbals is an experienced herbal practitioner, an herbal

educator, a voice for her native green plant allies as well as a quiet tree-whisperer.


Special LOBSTER COMBOW/ CHICKEN ON THE SIDE!

Ever wonder what is HOLDING YOU BACK from your best self? What’s STOPPING you from taking that next step in your life?

Why am I afraid to break out of the lobster trap?

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Author of The Lobster and the Chicken (A Fable for Adults in Search of Enlightenment)

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I’ve Lost My Trap Summer Special:4 Strategy Sessions (1 hour each) To get you out of the trap ($480 Value) 1 Hour of Intuitive Energy Healing ($175 Value) 1 Copy of The Lobster and the Chicken ($20 Value) All for Only $348.00!

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Don’ t miss this AMA ZING opportun i ty ! Ca l l o r Emai l today to reserve your spot before they’ re gone!

Reach outside the box and go a f ter what you tru ly want !

*The I’ve lost My Trap Special is valid for a limited time only, and may be withdrawn at any time.

"Working with Herb has helped me gain the clarity necessary

for effective business building." Joshua Russell – Fitness Coach,

Owner of Fitness Solutions LLC

Calendar of Events

27June, July and AugustWeekly Lunch & Learns at The Art of the Heart, 15 Perry St., Chester. Each week, Sue Freeman will present a different topic. On occasion there will also be guest speakers. Weekly topics in June, July & August are being set up and will be available on the Web site www.theartoftheheart-chester.com.To learn more about specific dates and times, RSVP to Sue on 908-879-3937. Cost for June 1st: $10.Tuesday, June 21The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn WhitedChurch of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comThursday, June 23Speaking for Mother Mary with Christina Lynn Whited – monthly channeling & attunement; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 7 to 9 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comTuesday, July 5The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn WhitedChurch of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comThursday, July 7Guided Emotional Healing Exercise with Christina Lynn Whited – healing cellular memory from past life trauma; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ7 to 9 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSaturday, July 9Orb Photography Attunement Field Trip with Christina Lynn WhitedInter-dimensional photos of orbs guaranteed; Berkeley Heights, NJ; 6 to 8 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, July 10Numerology #101 with Christina Lynn Whited; Learn how to understand your name through the meaning of numbers; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 12:30 to 2 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comThursday, July 14Past Life Recall with Christina Lynn Whited; Connect with two important past lives through Guided Meditation; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 7 to 9 p.m., $25Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSaturday, July 16Talking to Spirit: Personal Kinesiology & Dowsing with Christina Lynn WhitedLearn to use these tools to communicate with your Higher Self, & Spirit Guides & more;



Calendar of Events

28Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 1 to 4 p.m., $45; Reservations please 908-638-9066 ; www.CircleOfIntention.comFriday-Monday, July 15-18Matrix Energetics with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Levels 1 & 2Baltimore, MD; Marriott BWI Airport; www.Matrixenergetics.com. Saturday-Sunday, July 16-17Sue Freeman will teach her “Healing with Crystals” class, from 9:30 a.m.to 1:30 p.m. both days. This is a class for practitioners who want to enhance their practice by using crystals. Learn about different crystals to use for healing, layouts, grids, and receive a crystal attunement. Each person takes home an organza bag with tumbled crystals. Cost: $150. Please register in advance. Class size is limited to six. Being held at The Art of the Heart at 15 Perry St in Chester. For more information, contact Sue on 908-879-3937. More details on the Web site www.theartoftheheart-chester.comTuesday, July 19The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn WhitedChurch of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comThursday, July 21Speaking for Mother Mary with Christina Lynn Whited – monthly channeling & attunement; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 7 to 9 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSaturday-Sunday, July 23-24Reiki I Training with Reiki Master Teachers, Sue Freeman and Leona Kardux, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on both days. Learn the history of Reiki, be attuned and learn the hand positions so you may give yourself, friends and family Reiki. Cost: $125. Pre-registration required. Being held at The Art of the Heart, 15 Perry St, Chester. For more information or to obtain a registration form, call Sue on 908-879-3937. More information about Reiki can be found on the Web site www.theartoftheheart-chester.comSaturday, July 23Orb Photography Attunement Field Trip with Christina Lynn Whited; Inter-dimensional photos of orbs guaranteed; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 6 to 8 p.m., $25Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, July 24Numerology #102 with Christina Lynn Whited; Learn the potential contained within your birth date; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 12:30 to 2 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, July 24Dowsing Past Lives with Christina Lynn Whited; Learn to use your dowsing skills to unravel



Calendar of Events

29your past lives; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 2:30 to 5 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comTuesday, July 26Homes for Fairies: a Crafty Class with Christina Lynn Whited; Bring a birdhouse or a box and decorate a home for your favorite fairies; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 7 to 9 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSaturday, July 30Gratitude Journal Workshop, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. In this class led by Sue Freeman, create your own gratitude journal. Using a blank book, various embellishments and even your own photos, you will create something that is a constant reminder of all for which you should be grateful. The class starts out with Gratitude Oil and Meditation leading into your gratitude journal making. You do not need to have any artistic ability. It’s easy and fun. Cost: $79. Includes the blank book, embellishments and any other supplies needed. Pre-registration is required. A light lunch is included. Being held at The Art of the Heart, 15 Perry St., Chester. For more information call Sue on 908-879-3937.Friday-Monday, July 29-August 1Matrix Energetics with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Levels 1 & 2Denver, CO; Westin Denver Downtown; www.Matrixenergetics.com. Tuesday, August 2The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn Whited; Church of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, August 7Annual Summer Pot Luck Dinner; Come explore this lovely community of like-minded soulsCircle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 1 to 5 p.m., bring food or a donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comFriday, August 5-14 Limbic Imprint Re-coding Birthshops and Apprenticeship Training With Elena Tonetti-Vladimirova world renowned creator of “Birth As We Know It,” in 10-Day Apprenticeship Training, which includes Level 1 & 2 of the Workshop in the first 4 days, that can be taken separately. Do not have to commit to all 10 days, but attend any number of days. For complete schedule: http://www.birthintobeing.com/calendar.htmlFriday-Monday, August 12-15Matrix Energetics with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Levels 1 & 2Boston/Cambridge, MA; Boston Marriott Cambridge; www.Matrixenergetics.com.Saturday, August 13Exploring the Near Death Experience with Christina Lynn Whited; A wide variety of NDE’s will be discussed; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 1 to 3 p.m., $25; Reservations please



Calendar of Events

30908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, August 14Grounding in Mother Earth & Healing Her with Christina Lynn Whited; Guided Meditations to the center of Mother Earth and ways to send her healing; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ1 to 3 p.m., $25; Reservations please: 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comTuesday, August 16The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn Whited; Church of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comFriday-Monday, August 19-22Matrix Energetics Seminar with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Levels 1 & 2San Diego; Hotel del Coronado; www.Matrixenergetics.com.Friday-Monday, August 19-22Matrix Energetics Seminar with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Level 3; San Diego; Hotel del Coronado; www.Matrixenergetics.com.Thursday – August 27thSpeaking for Mother Mary with Christina Lynn Whited – monthly channeling & attunement; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 7 to 9 p.m., $25; Reservations please: 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSaturday, August 27Orb Photography Attunement Field Trip with Christina Lynn Whited; Inter-dimensional photos of orbs guaranteed; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 6 to 8 p.m., $25; Reservations please: 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comSunday, August 28Colorful Lives with Christina Lynn Whited; Color, its use and meaning in our lives; Circle of Intention, High Bridge, NJ; 1 to 3 p.m., $25; Reservations please 908-638-9066; www.CircleOfIntention.comTuesday, Sept. 6The Gathering – a metaphysical church service with Rev. Christina Lynn Whited; Church of All Creation, High Bridge, NJ; 7:30 p.m., donation; 908-638-9066 call for directions; www.CircleOfIntention.comFriday-Monday, Sept. 9-12Matrix Energetics Seminar with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Levels 1 & 2Chicago, IL; Hilton Rosemont Chicago O’Hare; www.Matrixenergetics.com. Friday -Saturday, Sept. 17-18Matrix Energetics Seminar with Dr. Richard Bartlett, Level 3; Newark/New York; Renaissance Woodbridge Hotel; www.Matrixenergetics.com.



31Holistic Mentorship Network Chapter MeetingsNew Jersey

Bergen County: 3rd Thursday of the month; 7-9pm Advanced Healing Center, 41 Locus Street, Emerson, NJ, Barbara Finlayson, 201-641-9008 | [email protected]

Butler: 4th Wednesday of the month (except June is 5th Wednesday);7:30-9:30pm Aquarian Sun, 1574 Route 23 North, Butler, NJJordan Brown: 201-370-6906 | [email protected]

Chester: 2nd Tuesday of the month; 7-9pm; The Art of the Heart, 15 Perry Street, Chester, NJ; Sue Freeman: 862.222.4268 | [email protected]

Montclair: 2nd Thursday of the month; 7- 9 pm Goddess in Eden, 50 Church Street, 2nd Floor, Montclair, NJ Robin Mansfield: 973.919.3600 | [email protected]

Morris County: 3rd Tuesday of the month; 7:30 - 9:00pm Presbyterian Church, 65 South Street, Morristown, NJLisa MacGray 973-879-1106 | [email protected]

Northwest NJ (Sussex County): 4th Friday of the month; 9:30 - 11:30am Unity Church of Sussex County, 25 Mudcut Road, Lafayette, NJ Tracy Nosal: 973.978.4230 | [email protected]

Pennsylvania

The Poconos HMN: 2nd Tuesday of the month; 6:00 - 8:00pmCar Quest Auto Plaza, RR1 Rt 611 2 FL Suite 3, Tannersville, PAEllen Suazo: 877.875.9634 | [email protected]

Northeast, PA: First Thursday of the month; 7:00 - 9:00pm 311 Pennsylvania Ave,, Matamoras, PA, 570-832-2123Dee Broton: 973-713-0175 | [email protected]

Interested in starting a new chapter in your area? Learn more here:www.holisticmentorshipnetwork.com/New_Chapters.htm


Calendar of Events

Swiftwind Therapy, LLC is bringing Shamanic Services, Ceremonies, Workshops, and Products to the New Jersey and New York area.Swiftwind Therapy is a place where you can begin to find your way back to Harmony. Utilizing various healing ways including Shamanic healing, Reiki, sound healing, drum medicine, and other techniques, you will become empowered to experience transformational healing and serenity physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Healing for pets, tarot readings, house blessings, and products are also available.Transformational and creative workshops, ceremonies, and circles are designed by Spirit and facilitated by Denise Saracco. By communing with her guides, Denise fuses their wisdom and healing ways into simple, engaging, sacred work. See upcoming events at: www.swiftwindtherapy.wordpress.com/events. A Spirit-inspired product line of incense, tea, cleansing sprays, and feather wands is also available. The magickal incense and spray fusions assist in creating an environment of Prosperity, Spirituality, Love, Healing, and Protection. Other inspired creations include natural feather fans and delicious tea blends. All Swiftwind Therapy products are 100% natural, handmade, and Shamanically charged and blessed.For more information, visit Swiftwind Therapy’s cyber home at www.swiftwindtherapy.wordpress.com.

Catherine Moon would like to announce the release of The Culinary Alchemist’s Superfood Smoothie Book, Recipes for Restoring Youthful Vitality by Catherine Moon. * Learn about the top superfoods and the potent healing properties they possess. * Discover how to artfully combine these life-giving ingredients to deliciously deliver powerful healing to your body. * Enjoy incredible vitality when treating your body to the high density nutrition it craves.

To order your copy visit Catherine Moon’s Blog at: TheCulinaryAlchemistBlog.com

Cover of book photo courtesy of Lauren Rutten, www.laurenruttenphoto.com

Announcements



Beyond Horizon International offers New Jersey-based professional/entrepreneurial women a new monthly forum in which they can network, and p-level” their personal and career success. Geared toward long-term business achievement, this monthly inspirational, empowerment and self-mastery program will be run by life coach, mindful wellness expert, best-selling author, and founder and president of Beyond Horizon International, LLC, Hueina Su.“I have been longing for a place where high-achieving, heart-centered, successful professional women can meet regularly to network and support one another,” Su explained. “What I firmly believe is that you must up-level your mindset and yourself before you can up-level your business and career success. Your level of self-love and self-care is directly related to your level of abundance in every area of your life.” Known as “VENUS” – Victorious, Exceptional, Nurturing, Unique, and Spirited – the group is designed for women who understand the value and importance of working on themselves for their long-term success, happiness, and well-being, according to Su. “Although it’s not designed as a pure business networking group, you will definitely get to network with high-quality, high-achieving professional women.” Join the monthly V.E.N.U.S. meetings the first Friday of every month at noon to 2:00 pm at Forte Ristorante, 486 Rt. 10 West, Randolph, NJ. The program fee is $20 per person. For more information and to register visit http://www.HueinaSu.com/venus-circle, or call Hueina Su at (973) 664-0446.

Mary Bennett of Mary Bennett Massage in Hardwick, NJ, – specializing in Massage, Lymphatic, Cranio Sacral therapies – very recently completed a course in Visceral Manipulation 1. Bennett says “It was at once challenging, fascinating and rewarding. I have already begun to implement it into my sessions and two people with obstinate shoulder joint pain are entirely happy and pain-free (maybe that’s why they’re happy). I’m eager to share it with others as the need arises.” Visit www.marybennettmassage.com

Judith Gisser, M.S., CNS, CWC, a Certified Nutrition Specialist and Wellness

Announcements



Coach specializing in Healthy Living and Effective Life Management and co-founder of Lifestyles of the Healthy Heart, LLC, announces: “I have a new tool in my practice to assess the root of unresolved health issues and at the same time gently prod the body back into balance and optimal function.”Gisser said, “It is called an AsyraPRO. The name is taken from sylum as a place of refuge and RA for Resonance Analysis. It reads the body’s energy and is able to tell where it is normal, stressed or under functioning and find an energetic frequency signature that will help it return to normal as needed. During the visit you receive an imprinting of these frequencies and take a remedy bottle home that has been imprinted as well.According to Gisser, “In a recent double-blind study conducted by E. Alan Jeppsen, M.D., and Steven G. Osguthorpe, N.D., of the University of Utah Alternative Medicine Department, the Asyra yielded a 97 percent correlation with blood chemistry using a clinical pool of 1,800 patients. “Another double blind study on people with allergies, showed a 90% decrease in symptoms after only 4 sessions. The placebo group which received a Non-Imprinted remedy and the control group who took no remedies showed less than a 1% change.”Gisser added “In the vibrational paradigm of Imprinting, which the Asyra utilizes to create remedies unique to each patient, works by emitting an electromagnetic signature, vibrating at a specific frequency that can be sensed and responded to by the cells of your body.”Watch the demos at www.asyra.com for more information on the technology and what the AsyraPRO evaluation is like.If you have allergies and/or food sensitivities or symptoms that have not been alleviated with other approach, call Judith Gisser to set up an appointment to explore the difference the AsyraPRO can make for you.Introductory special for Holistic Mentorship Network members: $80 off initial session through July 21st.If you have any questions or need more information, contact Gisser of Lifestyles of the Healthy Heart, LLC, at 973-625-3169 or [email protected]. Visit on the Web at www.judithgisser.com or at www.lifestylesofthehealthyheart.org

Announcements


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summer 2011: mental health: raising awareness and exploring alternative, holistic treatments

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