Your body organs communicate with each other via a delicate, beautiful and diverse symphony of chemical messengers. Where there is imbalance in one of the instruments, such as in your liver, or your fat tissue, the whole song is thrown out of key. The beautiful symphony develops a few flat notes, a few out of tune instruments. Instead of making beautiful music, disorder and disease is starting to manifest.
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This weeks full moon on the 9/9 was a weird one. I was bringing up old energy from the past all over the place. There were vivid dreams that involved old boyfriends, unrequited love and resurfaced childhood emotional-neediness. Stuff came up that I thought I had resolved years ago.
Old destructive habits reared their ugly head and I ended up with an acute stomach condition that started on Saturday afternoon. I thought it more then coincidental that I was having issues with my stomach- the meridian of earth and nurturing- while simultaneously feeling emotional pain for a lack of nurturing (that old unresolved emotional neediness I touched on in the last paragraph).
I’m not really an astrology gal though I do occasionally enjoy the musings of astrologer Anne Ortelee. She wrote Saturn’s prescence in Scorpio will throw us back to between the ages of 16 – 23 for the week leading up to the full moon.
Yep, this is where I went, back to my 16 year old self with emotional angst, and I even had a strange craving for playing video games, something I haven't done since my teens.
In search for answers I looked to the moon mavens I usually confer for comments on the lunar cycles, but they both have been silent this full moon. They weren't the only ones, I’ve been pretty damn silent myself.
The weather went absolute gang-busters all over Perth, wild winds and bucket loads of rain descending down on us, shaking us and confining us indoors hoping the windows don’t break in and the roof doesn’t blow off.
My sickness stirred and grumbled in my tummy for a few days, building. It felt my large intestine was inflamed and red sore. The wind battered and howled outside as did the wind inside. Whoa man.
I’m not going to share the finer details of my food poisoning incident, trust me, you don’t want to hear it. But eventually after a couple of day of stirring, growling and causing pain, I literally let everything go. I purged, I cleansed, I slept, and then I was healed.
The night of the full moon itself went by almost without notice. A thick cloud covering hid if from view. It was apparently completely full at 9:39am, when it was daylight and blocked from vision by the rotation of the Earth .
Out of sight out of mind, no one has mentioned the moon to me this week. I think about this time the words drained, spacey and withdrawn come to mind. I even forgot to put crystals out, I watched a webinar that went late and went to bed.
The following morning I rose and gathered my rocks and jewellery, placing them in the garden bed with intentions of cleansing. Ready to take responsibility for myself once more.
My emotional drama and my physical illness heighten the importance of a letting go, letting go of emotional crap that comes up and threatens our productivity and success, because lets face it, it’s just not worth dwelling in a place of zero creation and stagnant growth.
So recognise your troubles, the ones that hold you back, and let them go. The full moon is the perfect time to let go of unnecessary baggage, habits that no longer serve you, and beliefs that keep you stuck.
Physically expressing your intention to let go of an emotional pain or memory that you no longer need to hold on to through ritual is one of the most powerful thing you do to begin your healing journey.
I was going all gung-ho at writing my own releasing rituals when I realised the gorgeous Karina Ladet (she pops up a lot for me lately, I think she’s becoming a muse) had already listed some gorgeous releasing rituals in her 7 days to a more intuitive you course and sent them to me this very week. This list combines my releasing rituals with Karinas because her's are so good.
The full moon is a time to let go of your shit. LET IT GO. Even though the day may have passed this month, the waning moon is a closing energy, a winding down and releasing to make way for the new moon two weeks later, where everything begins afresh.
Shiatsu Massage and Flower Essences are a wonderful tools for releasing and overcoming fears and emotions. And so is talking through stuff, and balancing your hormones. I’m available for Shiatsu massage and Naturopath appointments and I love to help. Give me a holler.
I want to talk about some of my least favorite things. Stomach pain, flatulence, bloating, the runs, and constipation. Does this sound like you?
Irritable bowel syndrome is a really common, in fact it's the most common condition I see as a naturopath. However there's no simple solution. Everyone is different and what’s causing your trouble may not be the same as your friend.
Numerous theories abound as to what may be causing your digestive upset. I’m going to cover the most researched hypotheses right here.
Your brain is in communication with your digestive system via a few different pathways in your nervous system.
The parasympathetic nervous system is known as ‘the rest and digest’ nervous system. This is switched on when you feel relaxed and there is no danger. Conversely the sympathetic nervous system is your ‘fight and fright.’ When you’re feeling stressed this will be switched on.
When you’re in stress mode, your body switches on your brain and muscles and turns off your digestive system. This is because digesting the food you just ate is the last thing you need to be doing when you’re in danger. No you need to be running away and figuring out how to outsmart the threat.
If you’re chronically stressed, this has an ongoing negative impact on your gut, where food in not digested properly causing pain and discomfort. You’ll also be missing out on the nutrients in your food because you won’t be absorbing them properly.
You may have heard of this neurotransmitter that often has feelings such as happiness and joy attributed to its actions. Did you know much of your bodies serotonin is actually manufactured in the gut? 95% of body stores are found in the digestive system. Serotonin has a major action on your gut motility – that is how well your digestive system passes food from one end to the other.
Researchers have found an excessive level of serotonin is likely to cause diarrhoea whereas too little tends to cause constipation.
Do you have an awareness of your digestive function? People with IBS tend to have a painful awareness of the stomach, small intestines and large intestines. Increased hypersensitivity has been associated with lower levels of serotonin.
After a severe bout of gastroenteritis the upset to your happy commune of gut bacteria may be enough to completely through the balance out of whack and IBS symptoms ensue. The harsher the infection, the more likely you will develop post-infection IBS. Other risk factors include depression, being female, longer duration of illness and fever.
Gut flora is commonly altered in incidences of IBS. This can be caused by antibiotic use, poor diet, the contraceptive pill, stress, and anti-inflammatory drugs.
Alterations in gut flora can eventually lead to overgrowth of the wrong kinds of gut bugs leading to poor immune defence and less production of short chain fatty acids. These short chain acids help water absorption and also feed the good bacteria. They are crucial to good gut health.
Bacteria who are good in one place can be bad in another. Sometimes they start colonising in places they shouldn’t, such as your small intestine. Small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) is found in 50% of IBS cases.
Possible causes for SIBO include gastrointestinal surgery, proton pump inhibitors (medications for indigestion such as Omneprazole), immune insufficiency and malnutrition.
SIBO has been associated with medical conditions such as depression, acromegaly, diverticulitis and interstitial cystitis, cystic fibrosis and fibromyalgia.
Do your symptoms get worse after you eat certain foods? Some food intolerances may be because you lack an enzyme required to break the food down. For example you may lack lactase required to break down lactose, a milk sugar found in dairy. Others might be because your body can’t transport that kind of food molecule effectively. Basically in some way shape or form, your body is just not equipped to deal with that food.
When you do eat one of these foods you can’t handle, your intestinal wall becomes inflamed. This inflammation causes further sensitivity and creates even more intolerance. Food you were able to eat as a teenager is suddenly making you feel very under the weather.
The good news is, you may be able to recover from most of your intolerances once the daddy of all intolerances (milk, fruit, wheat, soy whatever it is for you) is removed from your diet).
If you regularly suffer digestive discomfort I’m sure you might have an idea or two about what might be contributing to your symptoms, especially after reading the above. Once we figure out the source of your discomfort we can go about treating you as quickly and as effectively as possible.
Naturopaths are great at treating gut problems. We have an arsenal of gut soothing herbs, intestinal wall repairing nutrients, and can offer support and direction in your dietary choices. You don’t have to live your life afraid to go out in case you suffer a flare up/make a lot of smelly gas/feel bloated and disgusting.
If you’re a Perth local please make an appointment here I’d love to help you.
I wish you peaceful meals
References
Sheppach W, 1994, GUT an International Journal of Gastroentology and Hepatology Effects of Short Chain Fatty Acids on Gut Morphology and Function.
Hectman L 2012, Clinical Naturopathic Medicine, Churchill Livingstone Elsevier
Gorgeous photo credit to artist Camila Carlow, isn't it amazing? A floral digestive system. I love x
There’s a few safety issues I want you to consider before jumping on board any old detox program;
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I love the term wildcrafting, don't you? It's so earthy and free. It means to harvest produce that grows wild, be it for food, medicine, or beauty. Wildcrafting is going into the wild and taking what is naturally available. There’s something so gorgeously real, primitive and abundant about getting what you need from the earth. There’s no exchange of paper money, or disconnectedly swiping a piece of plastic card through a machine.
Last year I planted some mustard lettuce in my vegie bed. It fed me well and eventually it’s life circle completed, I let it go to seed, it seeded. Everywhere. And then it died.
This year I have mustard lettuce growing up through the lawn and in cracks of my brick paving, It’s adorable and tasty and full natural goodness. And so so convenient too. I love pulling lettuce out of my lawn, giving it a wash and putting it in my lunch.
I have another weed growing ambitiously all over, and I had a sneaking suspicion was the medicinal dandelion species we use in herbal medicine as a liver cleanser and digestive tonic, but couldn’t be sure.
I looked it up and although my weed and the medicinal dandelion had very similar leaves and flowers, their sizes varied hugely. This was definitely a different plant.
The Taraxacum officinalis (botanical speak for Dandelion) seems to hang out low to the ground, whereas my ‘dandelions’ were towering up to over a meter high.
I had get to the bottom of this.
I pulled off a baby leaf of my mystery weed and gave it a little chew. Hmmm, a little spiky around the edges, slightly bitter but definatley palatable. Tastes like healthy greens, not poison. This was a good start.
So here comes the part where most would get on google, but I decided to meditate on my weeds first, to see what my intuition could tell me. I had a guided meditation waiting on my computer specifically for connecting with nature and this was the perfect time to use it.
Sitting in the garden, sun flowing over my face, headphones in my ear’s and computer by my side. I clear my chakras under the guidance of the beautiful Karina Ladet. I put my hands around a particular healthy specimen of this mystery ‘dandelion’ and felt a cleansing tingling feeling throughout my body. My blood felt clean flowing and light filled. My mouth moved towards a leaf and made a chewing motion, my bodies way of showing me it’s ok to eat this plant, and if fact I should eat it. I sat with my hands on the leaf for a little longer, I then decided to chew off a bit of leaf as if were an ape in the jungle, tearing the end of the leaf with my teeth, straight from the plant. It was a wild moment of connection with my inner animal, followed by a self-directed laugh at my gorilla-like behavior.
Giggly and amused, my guided meditation ends leaving me with a giant warm and open heart. I got the message that this plant is super healthy and definitely edible but the scientist in me wants some solid proof. Inside I identified my mystery weed as the Sow Thistle aka Sochus oleraceus, thanks to the wonderful guide to Edible Weeds and Foraging in Perth by Charles Otway (see reference below). Some sources report that this baby has a whopping 1500mg of calcium per 100g and 45mg of iron. It’s also high in potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and a good source of vitamin C. Not to mention the phytochemicals the flavones, stilbenes, polyphenols and glycosides that exhibit anti-inflammatory, anti-tumour and all round good stuff properties.
Charles Otway thinks Sow Thistle tastes better when it’s still quite young, before it shoots up and flowers. I tried a mature flowered sow thistle though and I thought it was still good.
It’s very name ‘oleraceus’ is latin for good eating.
In short, you can safely pick (wildcraft) the leaves from these plants and nutritiously mix them through your salad, through your scrambled eggs, put on your pizza, use absolutely anywhere you use greens FOR FREE!
Traditionally more mature plants are boiled or steamed, but young leaves are good raw. I do recommend mixing the leaves up with other greens, rather then eating a bowl of sow thistle all by itself, simply because like all things, you can have too much.
A New Zealender by the name of Mawalagedera (2009) wrote a thesis about the antioxidant value of this plant, and makes a point that the a particular New Zealand Maori population has less incidence of colorectal cancer dispite being in a very high risk group for the disease. She writes that sow thistle is a staple in the diet along with sweet potatoes, silverbeet and watercress. Perhaps these foods are offering the protective factor?
She also writes the more mature plants have a higher antioxidant value.
A 2013 study reports sow thistle is may be an effective option for treating Diabetes because the high antioxidant value protects the liver, kidneys and blood plasma from damage caused by high blood sugar.
Wildcraft away. I know what’s going in my salad.
References:
Mofor Teugwa1*, Pascaline Chouadeu Mejiato1, Denis Zofou3, Bruno Tugnoua Tchinda1 and Fabrice Fekam Boyom2 BMC Complimentary and Alternative Medicine 2013,Antioxidant and antidiabetic profiles of two African medicinal plants: Picralima nitida (Apocynaceae) and Sonchus oleraceus (Asteraceae) 2013, 13:175 doi:10.1186/1472-6882-13-175
Sundara Mudiyanselage Maheshini Rangika Mawalagedera 2014, Antioxidant Activities of Sonchus oleraceus L.
Otway, Charles (undated) Edible Weeds, Common Plants and Foraging Around Perth, www.terraperma.com.au
Karina Ladet www.karinaladet.com
You need iron to produce red blood cells. These deliver the most essential nutrient of them all, oxygen to all the cells of your body.
Low iron left unchecked and untreated can develop into iron deficiency anaemia, this is where you may notice symptoms of fatigue, weakness, pale skin and shortness of breath.
On top of this, iron levels affect cellular energy production, hormone production and detoxification pathways. If your levels are low your going to be feeling under the weather...all the time.
Iron is absolutely crucial for periods of growth, especially pregnancy, teenagers and for children six months to four years of age. If iron levels aren’t up to scratch in these special times, you might see suboptimal growth and development.
Do you have low iron? Read through these questions and take note of how many yes’s you have.
1. Do you feel tired or fatigued?
2. Do you feel weak?
3. Do your skin, nails or gums look pale of feel cold?
4. Do you get short of breath or breathe rapidly?
5. Do you get dizzy or lightheaded?
6. Is it difficult to concentrate?
7. Does your pulse race?
8. Do you have heart palpitations (are you conscious of your heart beat often?)
9. Is your menstrual cycle irregular
10. Do you have numbness or coldness in your hands and feet
11. Do you have Restless Legs that keep you up at night?
12. Are you irritable and grumpy?
13. Do you feel sad or depressed?
14. Do you suffer from recurring infections or colds?
15. Is you have haemoglobin levels less then 130 – 170 g/l for adult males and 120 – 150 g/l for adult females (you’ll get this in a blood test)
16. Have you ever been diagnosed with anaemia?
If you answered yes to five or more of these questions, you may have an underlying iron deficiency. We'll have to test you to be sure. It's important not to commence iron supplementation without consulting a health professional. I highly recommend you discuss this with your naturopath so we can further evaluate your iron status, and set you on the path to wellness.
If you're a sandgroper and worried about your iron please drop into the Fremantle Markets and speak to a qualified Naturopath at the NatMed stall on the weekend. Otherwise contact the lovely reception girls at NatMed 9339 1999 and make an appointment.
Look after yourself
References: Hectman L, Hywood A, Newton T, Integria Pregnancy Intensive Handouts, Eagle 2014.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned it's that if you want to make any real progress you need to push outside your comfort zone.
Resistance had prevented me from properly starting a detox all year. It slings a rope around your neck and hangs weights from your shoulders. Resistance pops it's ugly, time-wasting head in to remind you that going without simple things that bring pleasure and comfort is terrifying. Will life still be enjoyable without coffee, toast, and wine with girlfriends, wine as you cook dinner, wine on a beautiful afternoon…..? Yes there was resistance for sure, but once I pushed through, it’s like I’ve broken free from a murky fog into clarity and a fertile path before me. And it feels AWESOME.
Without a doubt, my detox has been successful because I’ve been gentle with myself. There has been two occasions where I really felt the need to have a coffee, so I had one. Two coffees in four weeks is not such a big deal, especially with all the help I’ve been getting with the detox supplements I’m taking, and lack of alcohol, dairy, gluten and sugar.
Some very happy things have been happening since I've been detoxing.
My skin has cleared, I’ve lost weight, and the bags are gone from under my eyes. I’m loving the gym again. This from a girl who has resisted workouts that span more then 20 minutes and the slightest sweat for a long time.
I haven’t felt like a drink. Not one, zip, zilch. I feel healthier than I have for a long time. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t swigging the bottom of a wine bottle every day or anything, but I’ve always loved a social drink with friends, and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to resist the temptation at an afternoon gathering, but so far it’s been plain easy.
My intuition is speaking louder. I’m seeing synchronicity all over the place. I’ve been fast tracking my happiness and spiritual connection after feeling called to begin Gabrielle Bernstein’s May Cause Miracles, I’m on day 8 and already feeling way more in tune. I’ve started a new blogging course, which is absolutely adorable. I’ve sorted out my finances and set myself up with a retirement plan, Not to mention new inspiration I’m getting from everywhere, my garden, the beach, my clients, internet land.
Everything feels clearer, smoother, cleaner. I love it.
If you need to give a detox a whirl I have some great news. I’m very excited to be presenting MY VERY FIRST SEMINAR! I'm giving a FREE talk on detox coming up on October 7. I’ll release the particulars coming up in the next few weeks.
Of course you don't need to wait until then, you can always come and see me beforehand.
From my heart to yours
Lib
PS. I’m writing this in the George St Bistro, its so French style in here a coffee sounds delightful, But I resist! And this time my resistance feels like the right choice.
PPS Are you stressed? Have a shiatsu! It's divine.
Oh my, it’s that time of the month again, one minute you’re snapping at your partner, the next your crying over a video on Facebook, and you could murder a chocolate bar. Yes your mood and your hormones are inextricably linked. Nowadays science knows a fair bit about the intricate hormonal dance that goes on in your body there and there is plenty you can do to minimise the crappy feelings that come with your monthly.
Understanding exactly what’s going on is vital to easing your PMS symptoms.
With some loving kindness, some gentle lifestyle changes and a few key herbs, you can reduce your miserable PMS moods.
I’ve listed some of the most common PMS symptoms below accompanied by a biochemical explanation with tips on how to mend. Dig in!
Carbohydrate Cate: Your estrogen levels rise and fall throughout your menstrual cycle, peaking at ovulation. Estrogen tends to keep your levels of happy juice serotonin up by preventing its breakdown. Serotonin is important for feelings of joy and restful sleep. When levels of estrogen go either up or down, especially if rapidly, serotonin levels drop away accompanied by low mood, tears and sadness.
When your serotonin levels reduce you crave carbs, why? Simple sugars allow for a crucial ingredient of serotonin, the amino acid tryptophan (found in foods such as cottage cheese, turkey almonds and bananas), to enter the brain. The quicker we can get that sugar in the sooner we can make some more serotonin. How’s that for Mother Nature answering the call of the wild (wild woman)?
Estrogen also increases lighthearted opioid and feel good endorphin activity…. Feelings we’re sure to miss when estrogen levels change. Funnily enough chocolate also boosts opioids and endorphins. One of the many reasons we reach for a chocolate fix at that time of the month.
Constipated Chloe: But only on your cycle? This is another symptom of serotonin deficiency, probably caused by a drop in estrogen.
Bloated Betty: Bloated tummy, swollen breasts and water retention. In theory, this is also attributed to high levels of estrogen raising aldosterone levels, a hormone that manages body water levels. But is also related to poor hydration, too much salt intake, and magnesium deficiency. Be sure to lay off the salty junk foods and get your magnesium rich greens into you.
Acne Ann: Acne around the chin and jaw line is usually progesterone related.
If this is you, you can lessen and eventually eradicate symptoms by focusing on enhancing your natural detoxification and elimination pathways. This means looking after your liver and lymphatic system by getting plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, take a good quality multi vitamin (ie not from the supermarket) reduce alcohol and coffee intake and try having 2 tsp. of apple cider vinegar in water first thing in the morning. If your spots bother you I highly recommend you see a naturopath or herbalist for some hormonal testing to pinpoint exactly what’s going on and get some herbs and nutritional support to aid detox and get your skin clear.
Dreamless Daisy: No dream recall is another symptom of lower serotonin levels, so if you don’t dream on your cycle, this is quite likely because your estrogen levels have lowered.
Anxious Anna: Do you also tend to pear shape? Get sore breasts around menstruation and carry a lot of water? Estrogen increases synthesis of prolactins. In excess prolactins make you feel insecure and unsafe, anxious, antisocial and parked on your couch.
How’s that for a paradox? Above we learnt that estrogen boosts serotonin and therefore makes you happy. And then we learnt that excess estrogen can make you anxious. It goes to show that the interplay between your hormones and your neurotransmitters like an intricate dance, a little something out of whack over here puts something way out over there.
Indecisive Irene: Do you find it difficult to concentrate and make decisions? This is to do with your sex hormones (progesterone, estrogen) modulating the effect of GABA, another neurotransmitter. Low GABA also means interrupted sleep, anxiety and alcohol cravings. I remember some fond memories and some not so fond hangovers where I’ve gone completely overboard on the champers right before the first day of my period.
Depressed Dina: A few years ago, I was having periods where I felt so low I couldn’t get out of bed. The rest of the month I was cruising around happy as Larry. This is usually attributable to progesterone dominance. With a few herbals and lifestyle changes, I never feel like this anymore.
If you have a pre-existing diagnosis for depression or anxiety not related to your period, symptoms are nearly always worse pre-menstrually.
If you feel down please make sure you talk to your loved ones, or seek support in some way. You are not alone; we love you and want you to be okay.
The Pregnancy Princess: Did you feel amazing during pregnancy while your bestie felt terrible? This is due different hormonal baselines. Pregnancy is accompanied by a sustained boost in progesterone. Progesterone enhances mood, cognition, memory, and anxiety and regulates the effects of estrogen. Progesterone is like a love drug. For those who don’t feel awesome while up the duff, you may already tend to higher levels of progesterone and so higher again doesn’t feel any good. . Either your going to be estrogen dominant, or lack normal levels of progesterone
Snappy Susannah: Progesterone rises naturally during the second half of your cycle, dropping sharply to trigger your period.
This sharp drop in mood enhancing progesterone explains a sullen descent into serious crankiness and irritability.
Thrush on your period? This is linked to estrogen excess and is treatable with an anti-candida plan and therapy to balance your hormones naturally. See your naturopath if this is a problem.
Are you overweight? Did you know that fat cells produce estrogen all by themselves? Excess fat tissue leads to estrogen excess putting your hormones out of whack. This is true for men also, heavyset men produce estrogen in their fat cells leading to gynacomastica (aka man boobs) and big hips.
A little word on pain
There are a few theories as to why our uterus will cramp us into foetal position on menses.
One is that the endometrium, the uterine lining that is shed on menstruation, contains prostaglandins, little chemical messengers that cause inflammation, when they are shed, they react with the uterine tissue causing a reaction.
A sharp drop in progesterone is also one of the many hormonal signals that bring on labour, our body is designed to open up and spasm to birth a child, we do so on a smaller scale to shed menses.
Painful periods are officially titled dysmenorrhea and tend to be worse in young women. If this is you, rest assured that most of us grow out of it, especially after we have children. Severe pain that lasts for more then a day needs further investigation, chat to your naturopath about what to do next.
So what can you do about it?
There’s plenty you can do to reduce painful and moody periods.
Looking after your liver, eating a healthy nutritionally rich diet, and engaging in stress reduction activities all play a big part in balancing your hormones to happy. This means reducing alcohol to no more then 2 drinks on any one occasion, reducing environmental toxins and indulging in delicious fresh wholefoods with plenty of magnesium rich green salads, green juice and dark chocolate. Also consider magnesium supplementation. This nutrient is involved in over 300 of your bodies enzymatic processes, you should be aiming for 600mg of magnesium a day.
Are you majorly stressed? Works a killer, the kids are screaming, the house is a mess? High levels of cortisol will block estrogen receptors, leaving you prone to severe hormonal symptoms. To get this under check making time to engage in stress reduction activities is absolutely imperative, and getting on some stress managing herbs can help also. Try long romantic walks in nature, yoga, meditation, a hot bath with essential oils, make quite time to read a favourite book or magazine. Better yet, have a shiatsu massage, a divinely relaxing way to relieve stress.
Increased levels of exercise are associated with lower incidence of PMS, so get a sweat on 3 – 5 times per week. Your body will love you for it.
Smoking tobacco and high caffeine intake are also related to painful PMS. Cut down on the coffees during your period, and, well, you know what to do with the fags. If you’re a smoker and want to give them the flick, I highly recommend reading or listening to the audiobook version of Allan Carrs “Finally Free: The easy way to stop smoking for women” to put you in the right mindset to succeed.
Whats Normal? A normal cycle length is considered to be between 21 and 35 days and should stay consistent. So if you’re a 29 day girl you should stay at around 29 days. Minor variations …give or take a day or so, is considered normal. A widely varying cycle length needs further investigation. Make an appointment with a naturopath for some assistance.
Do you feel like you’re doing all the right things but are still suffering 1 – 2 weeks in four?
Do you fancy sailing through your periods giving loving kindness to your family, feeling footloose and symptom free? This is a real possibility (kind of) first though we need pinpoint what’s going on.
Sure we can look at your symptoms and make assumptions about what’s happening, but the only way to find out what exactly is going on, is to test you.
Salivary and serum hormone testing is available through most naturopaths, and is recommended to determine where your hormone levels are at so we can put together the best care plan to get you on the road to joyful and painless balance.
Your thyroid health comes into play also, An under-functioning thyroid will contribute to depression and anxiety, so if these symptoms are common for you, consider getting checked out for thyroid issues also.
There are plenty of amazing plant medicines available to balance female repro and abolish PMS. Addressing underlying nutritional deficiencies is essential for optimal body function, because if the nutrients are missing, it’s not going to work.
Pop any questions in the comments below, and if you’re local and struggling with PMS, book in for an appointment.
Lots of Love:
Libby
References:
Halbreich U, Kahn LS. Role of estrogen in the aetiology and treatment of mood disorders. CNS Drugs. 2001;15:797–817. Felthous AR, Robinson DB. Oral contraceptive medication in prevention of psychotic exacerbations associated with phases of the menstrual cycle. J Prev Psychiatry. 1981;1:5–14.
Cheryl Watson et al. Estrogens of multiple classes and their role in mental health disease mechanisms International Journal of Women’s Health 2010:2 153–16
Hectman, L 2012, Clinical Naturopathic Medicine, Saunders Elsevier
Sarris J, Wardle J 2010, Clinical Naturopathy Chuchill Livingstone
Oh no, there's a familiar yet dreaded tickle in the back of your throat. Your energy levels drop to zero and that mild headache just won’t go away. Don't distress! Follow these guidelines and with some good rest you’ll be back on your feet and healthy before the snot stream cascade. This is what I do when I’m getting sick. With these little tricks of the trade 95% of the time I manage to prevent my condition developing and lasting more then 1 – 2 days.
Hit the Herbs: Here’s the thing, while conventional western medicine can’t do anything much to kill a cold or a virus, there ‘s heaps of help waiting in the plant world. There are many amazing dynamic and effective herbal combinations that boost your immune system and have direct anti-microbial and anti-viral action. Herbal medicine can reduce the duration and severity of your cold/flu by days. Taking herbs in liquid form is best, but dried herbs in capsule form also work, albeit probably not as fast. Most naturopaths do quick acute immune consults so call ahead on the day and book in.
Essentials Oils: Eucalyptus and Tea Tree are magnificent anti-viral’s and decongestants. Thyme and oregano are also great anti-microbials and fab for throat infections. I’ve become a devotee of throwing my head back, opening my mouth and letting 1 drop (that’s 1 drop) of tea tree oil fall onto the back of my throat. You can then gargle and swallow, or if gargling is too much, just swallow. Make sure your tea-tree is 100% pure. Right now in my essential oil diffuser I have eucalyptus, cloves, wintergreen and myrrh, all wonderful for killing bugs and helping you breathe easier.
Zinc and Vitamin C: During periods of illness I recommend 45mg of zinc daily in two divided doses and vitamin C at 2000mg per day (for an 60kg adult) in divided doses. For a child administer the weight appropriate percentage of the adult dosage, for example, a 20kg child would take 700mg of C in instances of respiratory illness.
Eat whole cloves of garlic. I know this sounds yuck, but you can swallow it like a pill, you don’t have to chew! It’s important to crush the garlic first, this activates the anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial immune boosting goodness called Allicin within the clove.. Garlic also helps keep you intestinal bacteria in check. Some people do this every day as a preventative measure. Apparently after you get used to it you don’t smell so much. Hmmm.
Ginger and lemon tea: I like to chop my ginger and simmer in a saucepan for 20 mins or so, and then add fresh squeezed lemon juice just before I drink, You can add garlic and honey to this combo, but I prefer to eat my garlic whole (see above)
Healing Chicken Soup: A high quality protein soup made with bone broth is full of minerals and amino acids required for kickass immune function. Plus the act of making a delicious home made meal with the intention of healing is beautifully nurturing and health restoring for all who partake in it's nourishment. There's magic in the mix. Try my recipe here.
Bed Rest. I know it’s hard to drop everything, obligations and necessity keep us out and about. Do what you can to rug up and keep warm as much as poss, and get some good and proper rest! Outsource the cooking duties for one night, leave the washing in the basket. Get into a good book or a fave magazine, and laze about with your aloe vera tissues and an immune essential oil blend (see above) The more energy you have to devote to fighting off that flu the better.
Get well soon my lovelies
Love Libby
Australians, did you know we have a new guide to healthy eating? It’s definitely an improvement on the old 90’s food pyramid that had me as a child trying to stuff in six serves of white toast and breakfast cereal with juice a day…I shudder at the thought, luckily I escaped obesity and diabetes, my heart goes out to others who weren’t so lucky.As you can see, the new guidelines are a pie chart, that kind of looks like a plate. The Department of Health and Aging suggest we eat these relative proportions of food groups daily. The dept’ is well intending though some of this research is a little out dated. Here’s my nutritional critique of our eating guideline pie:
1. You are not the same as your friends, your kids, or your parents. People of different ages, sizes and backgrounds have bio-individual needs. So releasing the one document as a way to eat is to be used as a loose guideline only.
2. The dairy component of this pie chart is the least essential part. Yes cheese is delicious, on occasion. And in fact I’ll be putting some high protein cottage cheese in tonight’s Nutloaf for celebration of Yule. However, all the goodness in dairy is available in the other food groups on the chart, especially within the proteins and healthy oils. Yes dairy is high in calcium, and that is the reasoning behind it’s high inclusion in these guidelines. However in scientific studies high dairy consumption has had no preventative effect on osteoporosis and fracture in the elderly. And people from countries where they traditionally consume no dairy (china, japan) have healthy strong bones and less rate of fracture. The science just doesn’t add up.
Dairy is a major allergen for many people in the population, and is often relatable to skin conditions. If you can tolerate dairy go ahead, but it’s not a necessary part of your daily diet.
3. The overall message of this pie chart is that fat is bad. On the contrary, fat is absolutely essential. Healthy oils such as olive oil and canola oil are completely left out of the pie and are in the same category as margarine. This is RIDICULOUS. The trans fats in margarine and other hydrogenated vegetable fats (that is fats that are usually liquid at room temperature made solid through processing) have been shown over and over to contribute to blocked arteries and heart disease, while diets high in olive oil and omega 3 fatty acids protect the brain and heart. The canola-margarine industry is big in Australia, and perhaps this is why margarine is listed in the same category as olive oil, but really, you are better off with butter on your bread. Whole saturated fat butter is better then trans fat margarine any day. Also it’s interesting to note the Australian guidelines warn against modern nutritional wonder food, coconut butter for it’s saturated fat. Recent research indicates that saturated fat is not the enemy we thought it once was, and heart disease and blocked arteries are more attributable it is the high intakes of refined carbohydrate, sugars and trans fat as well as excessive arachidonic acid in red meat that creates heart disease. This is a whole other story.
4. Proteins. Proteins are so important. The relative amount of protein looks good here in this chart. I’d like to point out however that those proteins are not all created equal. The legumes are filled with fibre but don’t really have a comparable amount of protein to any of the animal based products. So if you’re vegan and eating legumes for protein, mix with some wholegrain for a complete amino acid profile, it doesn’t need to be in the same meal.
Also worth mentioning is the ‘mixed nuts’ as a source of protein. Yes nuts are protein filled. However, salted roasted nuts from the supermarket are not a good choice. They are probably roasted in some kind of vegetable oil, which will have been damaged in the roasting process, further the delicate healthy oils within the nuts will also be damaged by any heat. So when choosing your nuts, make sure they are raw, and preferably organic. If you love a roasted nut, dry roast at home for a few minutes, the longer they are exposed to heat the more damaged and inflammatory they will become.
5. My my, there’s an awful lot of grains in this pie. I can’t actually imagine eating that many grains in a day, but that’s just me. The most important thing to remember with grains, is that it it’s refined, it’s inflammatory. Your insulin will spike, and then it will dip, and you will feel tired brain fuzz. The very young and very healthy can handle refined grains. If you continue to eat them, especially a lot, it will catch up with you. White Rice (except Basmati) and white bread are definitely ones to stay away from. As well as anything that contains flour mostly. Fibre from wholegrain and beans is linked with a reduction in cholesterol and lower rates of heart disease. Whole grains are healthy, I’m not convinced we need to eat that much in one day, and I definitely wouldn’t recommend that many grains to a diabetic.
6. Vegetables, my favorite, I love vegetables. I think we should steal the space used for dairy and fill it with vegetables, and also steal some space from the grains also, filling with more vegetables. When half this pie chart is filled with vegetables, I will be satisfied in my perfect diet world.
7. Fruit is delicious and packed with vitamins. It is high in fructose however so eating masses of it may upset your tummy, and for some with fructose intolerance, even a little can upset the tummy. It’s also high is natural sugars. People who are insulin sensitive, tend to have blood sugar imbalances or are trying to lose weight are best limiting fruit to no more then 2 pieces per day.
8. Water! The water is outside the pie chart. However there is only one glass. I’d like to see some guideline as to how much water we should be drinking.. Drinking more water is probably the number one thing we all could do for better body function. If you are an average sized adult aim for 2.5 litres a day. You can include herbal teas and soups in this equation. Water drinking is habit, like anything else. Choose a water bottle and get in the habit of carrying it around.
Coming home late in the dribbly, grizzly rain and bitter cold that has me shrugging up my shoulders and going “Brrrrrr…” . I need some quick, easy and delicious food can I whip up and eat…pronto! Garlic greens and white beans go well in a pan, combine with a jar of marinated artichokes and a wee bit of delicious goats cheese……or chedder or any cheese for that matter top with a poached egg, and I have myself a bowl of wintertime wellbeing.
1 – 2 Tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 big bunch of Silverbeet/kale/spinach or a combination, 1 big clove of garlic, chopped 1 tin of cannellini or butter beans 1 240g jar of marinated artichokes 2 – 4 eggs 2 tsp of white vinegar Cheese of choice ..goats cheese, chedder, Parmesan or use chopped nuts for a dairy free version
You can also substitute the egg for tofu, or even chicken and turkey.
1. Prepare your greens first. I like to fill my sink with warm water and wash the leaves one by one, and then tear the leaves up with my hands, placing them in a colander to drain.
2. Heat olive oil in large fry-pan, once heated add the garlic and let it sizzle for about 40 seconds. Add the greens and toss through the oil. Let them reduce somewhat, it will probably take about 3 minutes. If you’re using spinach it will reduce much quicker, like 40 seconds.
3. Drain the artichokes, chop them a little smaller, and add to the pan. Drain and rinse the beans, add those to the pan also. Stir the beans and artichokes through the greens. Season with salt and pepper as desired and reduce heat a little.
4. Meanwhile prepare you eggs. Fill a saucepan with about 2 inches of boiling water from the kettle and place over medium heat. Add 2 tsps of vinegar to the water. This helps the eggs stay together. Gently break an egg into the water. I usually don’t try to poach more then two eggs in a saucepan at any given time. Try an keep the water on a simmer, but don’t let it boil. The eggs should be ready within 2 minutes, depending on how well done you like them.
5. Scoop the greens/beans mixture into a bowl, sprinkle with your cheese of choice and then gently remove a poached egg from the water and place on top. Viola! Dinner is served.
Okay so my poached egg wasn't that pretty. Can't get it perfect every time. This baby is getting into my belly!
The discovery of hundreds of happy little mosquito larvae wriggling around in my backyard pond caused me substantial alarm. To counteract this direct threat to backyard safety and comfort I brought home 5 sweet and beautiful little goldfish. I had gone to the aquarium store with the mind to get some of these mosquito-eating machines, not really considering that they would become part of the family, but once they were bagged up and looking at me adorably through the clear plastic goldfish bag, my heart filled with warmth and opened up for new pet-love, they had me 100%. I gently placed their aquarium bags in the water, praying they would survive, gradually adding pond water to their plastic bag to acclimatise them as the hours passed. They were psyched to be there, they could see all the wrigglers floating around freely available and were keen to start eating.
This morning I was thrilled to find them still living and I let them fully integrate into the water. They were cautious at first, but I can see it is a goldfish paradise for them, complete with live food to chase, plenty of natural sunlight, and aquatic plants to hide amongst and chew. Inside that pond they are 100% free to be themselves and express their personalities fully, I'm happy for them. They bring mega positive feng shui vibes through the back yard …I’ll take a goldfish pond over a mosquito farm any day.
I’d been concerned for their survival due to the reputation goldfish have for kicking the bucket. They’re sensitive little beings. I’m also aware that often a goldfish may be brought home and added to a bowl, or tank, perhaps with no plants, no one else to play with and a set feeding time each night, quite unnatural for a fish, who likes to swim all day nibbling at pleasure and weaving through flora. If I was suddenly placed in a sterile boring unnatural environment, far removed from my internal yearnings, I might just die too.
These days of artificial light and artificial sweeteners and even artificial grass have us living further away from our forest dwelling ancestors then ever. We make our goldfish live in environments like ours. We give them a sterile house, artificial food and electric lights and wonder why they don’t thrive.
All night entertainment from computers and tv, and shift style work schedules force us out of natural cycles. Is it really surprising that many of us feel out of touch with our own bodies?
Since the event of electricity in homes and the massive technological advances in the decades following, depression and mental illness have risen exponentially while male sperm counts have dropped by over 50%. Experts are pointing the finger at man-made chemical contamination and sedentary lifestyle as the major culprits (Sharpe, 2000) We’re unhappy and it seems our ability to reproduce healthily is suffering.
There’s plenty we can do to get back into nature, or feel ‘Earthed’ as I like to call it. One of the easiest and simplest ways to get in tune is with your food. Within the Eastern medicine and the Shiatsu world, eating with the seasons is vital for a vibrant circulation of body chi and good health.
When we consider mental illness such as depression is accompanied with disconnection from nature, eating with the seasons may have humongous positive impact.
Consciously eating in line with natural Earth rhythm is a great way to connect with your intuition and improve connection to nature. Eating whole natural, seasonal and locally produced foods prepared at home feels healthy, supports your community, is budget friendly and great for the environment too. Sounds like a recipe for good karma and happiness to me. Below is a list of winter produce in season for WA, add a few to your shopping list this week. If you read this from afar, google seasonal produce in your area to stay in the loop.
I’ll be sharing some wonderful winter warmer meal creations on the blog, so keep an eye out.
Winter blessings for you my friend x
Love Lib
I should be able to put myself on a detox right? After all I’m a fully qualified professional. I have more then enough knowledge to take myself through the ins and outs of a piddly little detox. How can anyone possibly know what I need more then me? I’ve actually been attempting self imposed detox for years and I have a metallic silver detox ‘journal’ to prove it.
Let's revisit some of these detox attempts shall we?
24 January 2010
As I wear these now rather tight pants, the same work pants I’ve owned since I was 21 that are feeling a little pulled across the backside, I contemplate the rather bizarre rocky road craving I just indulged. The remainder of the package is hidden safely at the back of the pantry top shelf, out of sight.
On one hand I’ve just read a book about macrobiotic veganism and am inspired to increase vegan meals, on the other hand since Friday I’ve shamelessly cracked 2 beers, 1 Jim Beam and coke (?!...I never drink that stuff) and about 3 glasses of wine. I also helped Andy through his Myalup service station hot chips and corn chips with salsa and guacamole both Saturday and Sunday. Why this self-destruction I wonder? I’m sure my sugar cravings are directly related to the alcohol consumption
2 Jan 2011
December was like a month of endless pleasure and indulgence. It’s time for detox once more.
21 October 2012
My Detox Intentions: – I will be more beautiful then ever turning 30. I eat well, in small portions of amazing food. My body is strong. I love to exercise. I’m toned. I look great in those Current Elliott skinnies. Other people respect me because I respect myself.
There have been times when I’ve come up detox trumps, with mega energy, sparkly whites in my eyes, looser clothes, soft lustrous hair, glowing radiant skin. It was great, and when I look back on it, those times were helped because I had a support system, I had detox companions to hold me accountable, and we talked about our experiences, our cravings and our successes to cheer each other on.
Back to present day I’m well a truly due once again for a good detox and regeneration. My own rules and plans just havn’t been cutting it. I don’t listen to myself enough. Especially not in the long term. If it’s just me to answer to, I might just let those slip ups slide.
Well I tell you I’m sick of failing, I don’t want to find myself still drinking coffee in three weeks, when I’m supposed to be detoxed by then, like history repeating. Real change starts with the individual, but support and encouragement get results.
Having a professional take you through the detox process and the very act of making a time for appointments as well as a financial exchange is a powerful deed. It cements commitment. And further to this, chatting to a health coach about your goals achieves clarity about what you actually want. With a pro you get measurable results, such as live blood analysis, gut bacteria testing and acid/alkaline balance.
Lets face it, it’s embarrassing to admit failure to anyone, especially after promising them and ourselves from the bottom of our hearts we’ll do otherwise. It’s called social accountability and it goes a long way towards measurable results and long lasting success, especially among women.
This is why I’ve enlisted the support of an experienced naturopath, the wonderful Cassandra Boylen of Cassandra Boylen Naturopathy, for my detox this time round. It’s the real shebang, six weeks of alkaline foods, liver nourishment and gut repair to have me radiating health and rainbows from the inside out, and you know what, I can’t wait. I’m excited about herbal tea in the morning instead of coffee, I’m excited about morning yoga and fab skin.
More then anything else, I’m excited about regular sessions with my naturopath to chat about ins and outs, ups and downs, my emotional detox response, cravings, daily successes and miniature failures. I want encouragement combined with professional health care. I’m forgiving myself for not being little miss perfect naturopath with a goody goody green-ness track record, because I’m not. I’m human and I want to achieve my health goals. I realise my value, and future are totally worth the investment of a pro to help me with my detox commitment.
So there you have it, why evens pro’s need other pros to lean on (cue The Beatles song of the same name). If you want to detox yourself, get rid of hassled sugar cravings, bacterial overgrowth, troubled digestion, regain your energy and feel bliss, give me a call, we’ll book you in for a detox intro sesh.
Green Smoothie Goodness to ya
Love Lib
After smashing on 10kg when I was 12 and then another 10 kilo when I was 13, I was horrified with my reflection. I spent the next few years of teenager-hood depriving myself during the school week and then bingeing on Friday night. A whole packet of Caramel Crowns and I were good friends. My giant butt and I were not good friends. The boys at school used to call me stumps.
When I was 15 I started to explore my spirituality. I did a magic spell to lose weight. It involved chopping up bay leaves into little tiny pieces, breathing my intention to lose weight over them, and blowing them to the four corners. Afterwards I went inside and fixed myself some toast, like usual, with Grandpas homemade Jam. I had a bite, and for the first time, realised I wasn’t hungry enough to finish it. I learnt how to tune into by body and listen. I could taste the density of all foods I made and whether or not my body needed it or not. Every bite of a chocolate bar tasted like fatty calories, and white rice felt, well, empty.
Thats me in the white, age 16, 75kg
My eating habits changed. I started to eat regular sensible meals. I was still tortured by my heavyset body, and longed for a boy to find me attractive. Slowly though, with sensible and natural eating I had lost 10kg or so by the time I turned 17 and when I turned 18, I had lost the other 10. I was 162cm and 53kg. In the end the weightless was pretty much effortless.. I hadn’t even kept a regular exercise routine. I had been walking long distances pretty much daily as I didn’t yet have a license. God bless 17 year old metabolism! Plenty of boys found me attractive.
The next 6 years after leaving high school were a breeze - well in the weight control sense anyway.
On an 18 year old roadtrip wth my bestie Kat
This entire time my relationship with food was effortless and I remained slight, though I must say being a cigarette smoking vegan might have had something to do with it. A bad habit I’m grateful to see the end of.
Age 22 at Yallingup, 54kg
I moved to Perth with my boyfriend. Andrew and I adopted a puppy-child named Jim, and we lived a very happy little family life. I was thrilled to fulfill my call to massage by studying Shiatsu Therapy during the evenings, as I worked an office job to pay the rent. Andy and I married in Lorne Victoria (near my place of birth). The day was perfect. I had no body hang-ups and in fact, I had consciously tried to put on a little weight before the wedding so my boobs would look good in my dress . This plan went out the window when I pretty much forgot to eat for the week prior to the big day, running on adrenaline.
Andy and Me on our honeymoon in NZ
Something changed after the wedding. I was 24, suffocating in my corporate job and eager to study for a career that I actually wanted. My husband was at a crossroads in his professional life, and on the verge of setting up his own business…but not sure if that was what he really wanted at the time. Things were uncertain. You know, they say the first year of marriage is the hardest, and I began to diet.
I wasn’t even overweight by any measure, but I could definitely be thinner, and I absolutely hated my legs, chubby little legs that they are (I say that with love). I severely restricted calories and would sit on the bus hungry and miserable comparing myself with all the girls on St Georges Terrace.
Then one day, I got sick of being hungry and just started to eat again. This was the first yo yo of my twenties. Loving being a new wife, I developed a huge love of cooking and especially baking. Within a few months I’d regained all weight I had shed earlier and added on a kg or two. I’d started an exercise routine, jogging in the park and on the beach with my dog. But even with the exercise I still put on weight. The running made me hungrier and served as a mental excuse to eat more then usual. This kind of behaviour went on for a few years, my diets, though healthy and nutritionally sound, were coupled with extreme sessions at the gym and calorie counting. I’d successfully get into my skinny jeans and celebrate regularly with champagne and raw desserts....continuously for several months. Whoops now the jeans don't fit, and I'd actually put on a little extra. Repeat.
Everything changed in the weeks leading up to my 29th birthday. I was ridiculously fit, and time-consumingly counting every calorie. I'd lost 5kg within the previous two months and should have been feeling amazing. Suddenly a horrible and nightmarish trauma for my family back at home and a separate personal trauma for me in Perth hit in the same week, and on the cusp of leaving my security blanket job. I was shocked, devastated and gutted all at the same time. I realised I had been chasing a grueling illusion. A banging bod doesn't solve all your problems. My hot bod wasn't going to make my life awesome, it's just a hot bod. Sure, it helps, but it certainly doesn't make you happy.
The months following my gym attendance ...just....dropped....off. I had been a get-up-a-5.30-and-go-every-morning kind of girl. I used to proudly declare I would work out two hours a day if I had the time, but I just didn't care anymore. The motivation was gone. I started yoga, and enjoying leisurely walks rather then runs. I ate whatever I felt like, I put on 8kg.
It's been nearly 16 months since that traumatic December. At first, when my exercise motivation stopped, I thought it would come back "I'll get back into it," but then days, turned into weeks, turned into months, turned into a year. Though there have been a few moments when I felt bigger then I wanted to be, I feel I've slowly made peace with my pants. Maybe its helped by my age, 30 now, maybe by the security in my romantic relationship, but if anything good came out of that traumatic time in my life it's that I now have a new kind of body comfort, a healthy, curvy, feminine shaped body comfort that won't compare myself to others or stress over not looking like Miranda Kerr. It feels cruisy, easy, free, just how I like it.
I've actually been revisiting the gym recently, out of a want to maintain muscle mass, enhance my circulation, clear my mind and keep my skin young. There's no guilt for missing a day, or even for leaving early. I'm giving myself some loving kindness, and my resultant peace of mind speaks volumes.
You are absolutely gorgeous, no matter what your size, and you completely deserve some loving kindness too. Love the one you're with.. ....I'm talking about your body honey!. If you feel drawn to chat with a professional about your body love goals, don't hesitate to drop me a line or pick up the phone.
Happy Avocados and Mega Melons
Love Lib
Me, being curvy, 63kg
My wonderful reiki-healing friend Anyes and I on on my 30th birthday
I made the sexiest, most fertility enhancing slow cooked beef ras el hanout last night. Sure to start a fire in any mans heart (or pants). If your man comes home to find this in the oven (or slow cooker), he’ll be more then willing to settle down and start a family. And if he’s already committed, this certainly confirms he’s made the right decision.
What makes it a fertility masterpiece you ask?
The ‘meat’ is extremely high in fertility essentials, zinc, iron, B vitamins and plentiful in protein. Nutients so so important for powering healthy sperm and supporting the growth of new cells.
But the real magic, I believe, lies in the spice mix. North African ‘Ras el hanout’ translates into “head of the shop” meaning it’s a mixture of the best spices there is to offer. As I put this together last night, I found the spices remarkably stimulating and sensuous. So when I did a bit of research I was pleased to find that Ras el hanout traditionally contained a powerful aphrodisiac called Catharides, made out of the Spanish fly (yes you read that right, an insect) an ingredient banned in the 90s. In fact, according to my friend Wikipedia, Henry IV was said to consume spanish fly to aid erection, at risk of his own good health, like insect Viagra. Caesers wife once stirred Catherides powder into the dinner of her politically powerful guests in the hope of encouraging them into behavior she could later black-mail them with. What a bitch.
History aside, even without crushed Spanish fly, the ingredients of Ras El Hanout are a circulatory stimulating, blood flow enhancing, anti-inflammatory, feel good shebang of love you long time.
You can buy ready made preparations of Ras el hanout from gourmet supermarkets and possibly your local farmers market, but I made my mix with the spices in my cupboard.
If you make your Ras el Hanout at home, and I recommend you do, read through the properties below as you add the spices. Focusing intention on your spices as you add them and mix them together makes a much more effective and romantically spicy mix, don’t ask me why, it just does.
Ingredients ½ tsp each of ground cloves and cayenne pepper.
Cloves are warming and grounding, with phenomenal levels of fertility essential nutrient manganese, cayenne pepper is a circulatory stimulant and has an excitatory energy about it, spice it up and get things moving! 2 tsp each allspice, ground cumin, ground ginger, ground turmeric, freshly ground black pepper (I used an Australia Bush Pepper blend) and ground cardamom.
Allspice aka pimento is traditionally associated with prosperity, ground cumin contains coumarone, an anti-inflammatory, likewise, Turmeric is the best source of coumarone available, a potent healer. Ginger is a great energy and circulatory stimulant, as well as a digestive tonic and an overall wellness warrior. Black pepper is anti-cancer and has an overall spicy energy while cardamom is antioxidant and very much a love and success herb.
3 tsp each of ground cinnamon and ground coriander.
Cinnamon is a blood sugar balancer but is also quite sweet and dare I say it feminine in energy, sure to make you sparkle in your mans eye. It’s anti-inflammatory and is soothing on the digestive system, great for digestive conditions. Ground coriander is a great source of minerals as well as being delicious and fragrant.
1 ½ tbsp. of freshly grated nutmeg.
Nutmeg has long been associated with good health, and in Elizabethan times was believed to ward off the plague. Today we know nutmeg has a high essential oil content, with anti microbial, antioxidant and immune protective effects.
Add all spices together and mix. Store in a jar, preferably with a beautiful label you have created yourself.
Inspired by a recipe by the Sydney Monday Morning Cooking Club featured in their recent book “A Feast Goes On” and published in the May 2014 issue of Delicious magazine
Serves 2 – 4 (my husband ate enough for two easily, and perhaps 3)
500g organic grass fed steak, like chuck or rump, diced into 2.5cm pieces with gratefulness to the cow for providing nourishment (or for a vegan version, you could use tempeh, but I can’t promise the man catching properties will be the same…of course there’s always exceptions, you know your man better then I do)
1 onion 2 garlic cloves 2 tsp ras el hanout spice mix 2 small red chillies sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste 1 tin of tomatoes + 1 big tomato OR use 4 – 5 big tomatoes ½ a preserved lemon rind, chopped finely, discard pith and pulp (optional) 2 tsp honey coriander parsley
1. For the slow version preheat oven to 140°C. For the quick preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Get out your favourite, most home-cookin casserole dish
3. Place the beef in the casserole dish, and add all the rest of the ingredients, bar the fresh herbs.
4. Mix it up, visualising happy husbands and happy tummies, love and connection
5. Place in the oven for 3 hours for slow cooked version. I’d run out of time for slow cooking, and so I turned up the heat and popped this in the oven at 180, set my timer for 2 hours, and went down my garden path to give a Shiatsu massage. Meanwhile, my husband Andy came home and following his nose to the oven, found the dish, which he described as ‘nourishing goodness,’ and decided it was ready to eat after an hour and a half cooking time, as I found him with a giant bowl and rye toast when I walked in the door.
I served it up with the fresh herbs on top, steamed sweet potato, a tahini, tamari sauce and some lightly stir fried broccoli with red capsicum. The vegetables complimented the fertility powers of the Ras el hanout perfectly, but that’s another blog post.
Andy then showered me with affection for the remainder of the night, grateful for such a wonderful meal. I lapped it up like a princess, charmed by his positive reaction and delicious results.
I’d love to hear about your sexy cooking efforts. If you have a story to share please tell me about it below.
Take care my lovelies,
In wellness, Lib.
Sexy fertility enhancing beef ras el hanout sure to make a man fall in love with you
Yesterday only hours after boasting about my ‘immune system of steel' my husband Andrew, I fell ill with headache and fever. I was straight home to bed were I stayed for hours, I downed immune boosting herbs, anti-viral essential oils, vitamin c and zinc, I was making myself ginger lemon tea and swallowing garlic cloves whole. I managed to muster up the strength to cook myself a healing whole chicken soup, and today after plenty of rest, I feel like I’m in convalescence, I managed to stop this monster in it’s tracks.
A soup made with the whole chicken, provides proteins essential for the production of immune cells, and all the wonderful minerals from the bones are leached into the broth providing zinc, magnesium, calcium, and Vit D just to mention a few. Only recently have a started eating meat after 13 years as a vegetarian, and sometimes vegan. I ate my soup yesterday with gratitude reverence for the chicken, and all of the life giving and healing vitality it bestowed. I beleive yy intention of healing while I prepared and ate this dish played just an important role in my quick recovery as the nourishing ingredients themselves.
Here is my recipe adapted from Perth author Jude Bleureu's “Healing Chicken Soup in her amazing book Wholefood.
Okay first of all this works best if you have a really big soup pot, like a proper stock pot. I don’t have one of these and tried making my soup with a le crusset casserole dish. It worked but it was a tight squeeze, and I made a bit of a mess.
I whole organic free range chicken 2 medium sized brwn onions or a large brown onion 3 stalks of celery 3 carrots a few sprigs of fresh thyme 6-8 sage leaves 2 sprigs fresh oregano 1 corn cob, kernals removed and reserved 3-4 garlic cloves 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 2 bay leaves sea salt black pepper 2 handfuls of flat leaf Italian parsley 8 dried shitake mushrooms two handfuls of noodles, soba noodles, vermicelli egg noodles, or whatever noodles you acquire
1. Place your large soup pot over a low heat and place the whole chicken inside. IF therese is skin on the chicken the fat will serve to cook the vegetables, but you can add some olive oil to help the cooking process along.
2. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and gently sizzle. Add the thyme, sage and oregano, and then the corn and the corn cob, garlic, ginger and half the parsley. Add the stock, the shitake mushrooms and the bay leaves. Cook for one hour.
3. Lift the chicken out of the liquid and remove the flesh. I used a pair of tongs, and a fork to get this job done. Also take out the shitake mushrooms and slice them up nice and small. Add the bones and mushrooms back into the broth and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.
4. Remove the bones and the corn cob, and check soup for consistency and flavour. Add the noodles. Add more herbs if you like, some extra salt as required or some tamari. When the noodles are cooked through the soup is ready.
Happy Wellness
I give shiatsu purely and simply because I discovered I had a gift for it. Actually, that's not quite right, I didn't so much 'discover' my gift, as I was not looking for it, it was more that my gift came up to me one day and 'healed' me in the face.
The universe works in funny ways, at the age of 20 I found myself quite accidentally, but very happily living out of a tent on a beautiful bush property just meters from the northern NSW coast. Wondering down the street of nearby Byron Bay one day I happened upon a street stall selling crystals. Without any prior experience in crystals and very little money I found myself attracted to a particular flourite crystal cut into a long cylindrical shape with a point on one end. This stone is beautiful, a transparent green and purple glassy like crystal, smooth, powerful and of the heart chakra. This crystal showed me how to heal by conducting and moving energy. It guided me, my intuition tuned into this rock, and it absolutely blew me away.
I then found myself giving massages. It was like the crystal opened up the door to an inner wisdom, a knowing. People tend to be weirded out at the prospect of a crystal healing (a what?) but are very open to have someone physically manipulate their muscles. I had no massage training and no prior experience but somehow I knew how to run through a massage routine and relieve stress and strain. Even more incredible is that I met certain people who would seek massage from me and pay me for it. This was not something I had to look hard for, they came to me. I guess the moral of the story is that I tuned into the universal healing flow of love that allows us to heal.
Libby is a damn good shiatsu massage therapist.This is the crystal that inspired her healing path.
I have since completed formal massage training with a diploma in Shiatsu, thereby gaining an understanding of Traditional Chinese Medicine. After a couple of years I had developed a passsion for discovering the biological science behind our wonderful bodies and took up Biomedical Science and the University of Notre Dame. I completed a semester, studying hard while at the same time developing a relentless obsession with healthy food and new recipes. I decided to look into nutrition and found myself drawn to the nature cure promise of Naturopathy. Five years later I'm a naturopath who absolutly love's to practice Shiatsu. There is a therapeutic elegance in the simplicity of a massage.
My massage studio is not a clinic, it's a true escape from the outside world. Some clients feel like it's an alternate universe. I think of it as a more a medititative haven. However you see it, once your inside there's nothing to do but release stress, pain, and worries.
Feeling a bit hot lately? Thank heavens for the air-con in my Shiatsu Studio! I remember one time long ago, I was with my Bestie and sweltering in 47° C at a New Years festival somewhere very far inland, close to the Victoria-NSW border. I’d noticed all these people walking around covered head to toe is dry cracked mud and nothing else (hey, it was Confest) and was quite perplexed at the reasoning behind this mud skin. We happened upon a giant rubber tyre tube and giddy with excitement launched ourselves into the bush creek that circled the festival. We drifted slowly with the current and then suddenly, there it was…. the mud bath. A big 3m diameter hole completely filled with gooey, slippery, dark grey, slightly smelly mud. My Bestie looked at me with a glimmer in her eye “let’s do it.” Oh my God here goes. I shut my eyes and started to wade. It was so cool in there. It was a muddy heaven in contrast to the relentless dry heat that beat on us from all places that weren’t filled with mud. With that mud on our skin we stayed cool for at least an hour, a very efficient cooling method by any camping measure.
But Alas, it’s not always practical to just have a mud bath and walk around practically nude. These days when the Perth mercury rises above 35 every single day we are well and truly in the throes of the fire element. Tuning into your body and flowing with the season is vital to maintaining inner balance and harmony.
The fire element is directly related to your heart meridian. Your sense of joy and happy spirit are dependent on the state of your fire element. Such weather extremes can easily throw you off kilter causing excess and have you wishing away your summer days. Here are some tips for keep your chi flowing freely and have you thriving in the heat.
1. Eat a rainbow of bright summery fruits and vegetables and get your chef on by creating gorgeous meals. Cold foods are indeed delightful in these conditions however too many cold foods cause contraction, hold in heat and sweat, and interfere with digestion. Ice cream and heaps of iced drinks are therefore not the best choice (I’m sorry). Instead lightly cook your food in high heat quickly, and season with pungent flavours such as ginger, garlic, horseradish, black pepper and cayenne. Hot food and drinks, and I’m talking about both temp hot and spicy hot here, induce sudden sweating and therefore have a cooling effect on the body.
2. The best foods to cool summer heat are apples, lemons, watermelons, limes and cucumbers. Try for a cooling atmosphere when you eat, like on the deck or a picnic in the shade. Enjoy with loved ones.
3. Heavy foods such as meats, eggs and an excess of nuts, seeds and grains cause sluggishness on a hot day. When you think about it salads, fruits, a little seafood and dare I say it tofu are way more appetising in extreme heat. When we don’t pay attention to our bodies it’s easy to habitually eat the same old menu, and feel worse off for it.
4. Plan a little holiday. Soon. Summer time is a time for outward activity and expansion. Getting out and doing something new is completely in sync with the energy of Summer. This is joy time. The health of your joy emotion is directly related to the state of your fire element. Any disbalance in this area means a disbalance of joy. So get on with it, action something that makes your heart sing!
5. Get up early and go outside. Reach your arms up and say hello to the sun. Outdoor early morning yoga, runs on the beach, Qi Gong in the park. These are all perfect ways to say hello to the day and keep your fire element happy. Summer is a very yang time, and the Sun is the most yang of all. To quote Paul Pitchford “Summer is a period of luxurious growth. Reach to the sun for nourishment to flourish.” Nothing like a little Vitamin D to nourish you and make you strong, just get under cover before the UV rays start to burn.
Happy harmony seeking my friends. I wish you many happy spirit summers and tremendous joy.
Shiatsu is a Japanese massage that brings your energy back into balance. So if the summer has already got to you, please don’t hesitate to see me! I’d love to help you out.
Love Lib
References Paul Pitchford, Healing with Whole Foods, 2002.
Feeling excited by all things healthy skin this week as I trial an exciting new offering, a delightful shiatsu facial that will be available very soon so watch this space. I am freshly home from a blessed weekend on the majestic Yallingup hill, I am yet to unpack but very keen to share some skin love aspirations with you.
In my teenage years I longed for clear, bright beautiful skin. I wanted the peaches and cream freckle-free doll complexion that my very best friend was blessed with. Of course when I look in back in photographs, my skin was glowing with youth, but at the time, I was my own worst enemy. I wouldn’t even leave the house without a protective layer of foundation.
I was prone splotchy red patches on my face, I’m sure because of a terrible diet with regular missed breakfasts and a often a large chocolate milk for lunch.
As I grew older my interest in health food and eating vegetables grew, the unhealthy self neglect and party habits of youth were tossed away, I started to exercise regularly and my skin got better and better. Now I’m 29 and haven’t worn foundation in years. I believe my skin looked better in my late twenties then in my early to mid twenties, simply because I was a nutrition nerd with a keen desire for a sweaty workout.
Our skin is literally a reflection of what is on the inside. If we give ourselves all the nutrition and care we need, this self love will be reflect on the outside, no matter what your age.
Here are 6 absolute must do’s for a complexion you can wear with confidence. This is for everyone, from you daughter to your mother, and even your boyfriend.
1. Hydration
You know you need to drink water, and maybe you drink plenty, good for you, excellent, But many people don’t drink enough …I know I have my bad days. Water plumps of your skin cells keeping them full and firm and filled with nutrients
2. Exercise
Exercise floods your body with oxygen, the most essential nutrient of all, Well oxygenated skin repairs faster ,and eliminates unncescessry toxins. Oxygenated skin glows. If I’m heading out for the evening and want to look my best I always do some cardio that day, I can see the difference in the mirror.
3. Eat your Greens
Chlorophyll containing foods actually contain plant chemicals that reflect light and brighten your skin tone. If you eat your greens, you are literally eating a light, bright glow for your skin. Take this further, add a teaspoon of spirulina or vital greens supplement to your morning smoothie. Your insides will love you.
4. Essential Fatty Acids
Healthy fats act like a nourishing protective barrier for your skin cells. They help keep the cell hydrated by keeping the moisture in, and essential skin nutrients like the radiant vitamin E hang out in fats. Make sure you get plenty of omega 3’s in ground linseeds, flaxseed oil, fish oils, and walnuts. Get you mono-unsaturated fats in almonds, avocados, olives and seeds.
5. Bathtime Bliss
Hot water strips your skin of protective fats drying it out. It’s so tempting up the hot water on a cold day but the drier your skin the less heat you should use. Likewise, vigorously towelling yourself dry will irritate your skin, causing redness and inflammation, rather lovingly pat yourself dry and apply a water based moisturising cream when it’s still slightly damp.
6. Antioxidants:
My favourite foods are loaded with antioxidants. These guys scavenge free radicals keeping you clean, fresh and beautiful. So just imagine you have all these atoms circling in your body. These atoms like to be attached to one another, just like people, but sometimes another atom will swing by, attracting a new mate and then leaving some poor atom stranded and left behind. This guy left behind becomes dangerously pissed off and starts causing havoc and inflammation to everything around him. If you have plenty of antioxidants in your diet, like the kind you get from berries, vitamin C and green tea, the antioxidants attach themselves to the angry guy left behind, soothing his bad temper, keeping everything peachy keen, smooth, youthful and beautiful.
If you have any skin tips or tricks to contribute please share them below. I'd love to hear from you.
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My blood pressure dropped dramatically greying out my vision as I stood up from a forward bend in yoga this morning. My vision returned and I managed to steady myself, averting a fall. This wasn’t the first time I had a dizzy spell in the last couple of days. I wondered what has caused this sudden blood pressure irregularity and then it hit me… I gave up coffee the other day. I, almost ashamedly, have been quite a coffee drinker of late, particularly my student self who was afraid that a lack of caffeine would dreadfully impact my powers of concentration and academic smarts. I knew the excess coffee was stressing me out but like a true addict, was too scared to stop.
Coffee has long been linked with a rise in blood pressure. Caffeine stimulates adrenals gland to release cortisol and aldosterone – the blood pressure hormone.
I’m pretty sure my coffee intake was elevating my aldosterone and driving up my blood pressure. To compensate, my body had been releasing less aldosterone because my coffee intake was dependable, regular and catalysing the release of aldosterone for me. So I quit coffee and my blood pressure drops for a few days while my body figures out how to bring itself back into balance.
Rather then get into a lecture on the negative health impacts of coffee here, I simply wish to remark at the incredible intelligence and beauty conveyed by the human body.
I just wanted to take this moment to truly express gratitude for my body and the amazing balancing wholeness that it is. This caffeine addiction experience (the latest of a long on-again off again love affair) was also a bleeping red alert to take better care of my clever body.
We are the custodians of a brilliant finely tuned living breathing physique that we should absolutely be in love with. Your body will love you back providing you take good care of yourself. Since giving the black gold the flick I am sleeping better, dreaming better, I have lost a little weight (or fluid) and my eyes are brighter. Small changes can harbour big results over the long term.
What small change can you make today to make yourself feel healthier? Share your ideas in the comments below.
It’s an exciting time coming up, in December I will be graduating as a Naturopath and I am look forward to sharing loving health and wellness thoughts with you for many moons to come ;-) Click here to to get my newsletters in your inbox.
Take care of yourselves beautiful angels
Love Lib x
Naturopath and Shiatsu Massage therapist with a great wellness blog
The part of this story I am thinking about the most though, is the way my hand jumped when writing his name.
When a high-profile case like this becomes news, the language used by the media and the outspoken medical professionals is around holistic medicine being 'alternative' and not effective.
It’s extraordinary that I was present when my father passed suddenly. Mainly because we live on opposite sides of the country, and I’ve only seen my dad for a handful of days in the last 15 months. I have shared the story of our last day here.
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This is a great example of how chemicals in many household cleaning and personal care products are assumed safe until proven harmful, when perhaps they should be assumed harmful until proven safe.
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Some 'to-do's' have significantly more positive impact on your life than others.
This is a really simple, nourishing and easy one pot dinner, with plenty of protein and fibre and some healthy fat.
It's the kind of soup where you know you're looking after yourself with every slurp. The spices and ginger have some wonderful anti-inflammatory properties. It's inexpensive, easy, and counts as self-care points for the day.
A shiatsu at Wild Grace is a spiritual experience. Healing occurs in both physical and spiritual planes. A shiatsu involves breathwork, massage to physically manipulate and stretch muscles, and the use of healing sound to move energy out and through. At times I may guide you through healing imagery, and you may receive guidance from your spiritual support crew.
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New research with some surprising new information on preventing and treating long covid, with some tips to make it accessible at home.
I’m always on a mission to eat the healthiest foods possible. Here’s twelve of the most nutritionally dense foods in our supermarkets and tips on how to eat them.
Have you noticed that you're gaining weight but don't think you've made any change to diet and lifestyle? Or it used to be easy to drop a couple of kg by cutting out snacks and exercising a little more but now that doesn't seem to be working. In fact, your jeans just keep getting smaller.
If you have chronic disordered digestive function, irritable bowel, weight gain, inflammation, low energy, autoimmune or chronic mental illness a thorough investigation into your microbiome can provide a very solid basis upon which to build a treatment plan and resolve your symptoms.
and maybe it was a missed opportunity to role model healthy self esteem and masterful life skills.
a gentle reminder to bring mindfulness to your dinner table and as an in-depth guide to how you can nourish yourself and your family with ease and joy.
Some herbs, like licorice, can interfere with the attachment of viruses to host cells and prevent their entry into the cell, helping prevent an infection from taking place.
I woke up minus the sore throat albeit with a husky voice, and no snot has overcome me.
Shiatsu is it's a combination of lightwork and deep physical manipulation of musculature. Rhythmic breathing and meditative music means you float out of the massage room feeling like you're walking on a cloud.
We all have a dialogue in our heads with a running commentary about our lives and opportunities. Do you let that voice diminish and debase you? Or do you train that voice to be on your team?
For the sake of better health, I want you to think seriously and honestly about what habits are impacting negatively on your health and what can you can do to avoid those triggers.