The Moondance

Although I began writing the following post with divine feminine energy in mind, I believe those of you embodying divine masculine energy might garner a thing or two as well…both for your partners as well as yourselves;)…

I don’t recall being “regular” during the first several years of my cycle. It could have been just an initial bodily adjustment curve or that I dabbled in birth control off and on for many years. It wasn’t entirely out of the norm for my body to skip periods altogether or for them to considerably vary in duration and/or intensity. It wasn’t until I began the practice of grounding many years later that I began to notice a connection with our moon. At first it was simply a kindred awareness. There was an innate pull to focus on her, her divine feminine energy, and how it reflected and seemed to strengthen my own. I began charting my cycles and noticed that they often mirror the moon’s rhythm. I am full as she is full…and I regularly bleed as she wanes.

The lunar cycle consists of 29 and a half days, shifting from the waxing moon of increasing light to the full moon of complete illumination, to the waning moon of decreasing light and beginning the cycle again with the waxing new moon of increasing light. It does not seem coincidental that the average length of a woman’s cycle is 29 and a half days as well, parallel to the moon’s cycle.

I have read that it was the norm for women to menstruate with the moon cycle before the addition of artificial light into our lives. Both the exposure to large amounts of artificial light as well as minimal amounts of natural light (and I’m certain a slew of other factors including the amount of pharmaceuticals and food additives that make their way into our bodies and our environment every year) create an inability to tune into the subtle cues and energetic shifts of the earth and moon. In the process of becoming disconnected with these sacred and celestial bodies, we’ve also journeyed a bit further into a disconnect, of sorts, with ourselves. Our bodies are no longer in complete sync with the harmonic structure of our surrounding elements, the rhythms of our natural world, which in part translates into a disconnect from who we innately are; our variant and unified ambitions, and our formations and routines in the interminable interim.

I’ve also read that Native American women would separate themselves from the tribe during menstruation. They cycled together in a “moon lodge” while the men and grandparents temporarily took over caring for the children and other responsibilities. During this time, women were considered even more powerful and would focus their individual and collective energy upon meditation, transformation, reflection, decision-making, and, in general, deeper truth.

For me, it also serves as an energetic source of strengthening the bond between our collective divine feminine energy. I feel very close to my girlfriends during my cycle. And (maybe not so surprisingly) I would almost prefer to be around them during this time at the entire exclusion of masculine interplay.

There’s definitely a profound energy that streams into these few days. For myself, as well as many others, it’s the energy of creativity, of reflection, of letting go, and then, of nourishing and rebuilding.

Repeatedly, during this string of 5 days, I bring my A-game to the table. Close friends joke around with me about how I accomplish more during this stretch of time than I do during all other remaining days of the month combined. It’s true. It’s almost as if I go through a mini-nesting phase each month, working overtime to get everything in order in preparation for the arrival of a both an unclear and uncertain “something.”

Side note: before nixing processed foods, I experienced cruel and compassionless cramps each month. I’ve always been conscientious regarding medications, but my drawer was reliably full with one exception to my typical “tough it out” protocol: Midol! …and lots of it. I cannot recount the times that I sent a friend or lover on Midol runs if I had even the faintest notion that I might run low mid-cycle. When I was much younger, I recall a couple of family members experiencing this variety of near-debilitating cramps, as well. Admittedly, I thought that they were over-exaggerating their experiences, that is until I spent several times, myself, curled up in the fetal position on my bed. After switching to a whole foods diet, however, all cramps- every hint of them- entirely vanished. A very welcomed outcome, and alone, worth the dietary change.

It’s not uncommon to hear women complaining about the inconvenience(s) of their cycles. However, if we shift our understanding of what menstruation is, what it symbolizes and the ways in which it connects us to others and the world around us, we can better understand and lean into this time for the gifts of growth and change that come through release, reflection, and renewal.

While I’m certain that the crone years will hold their own unique offerings and energy, I occasionally imagine that I will miss this current sacred stretch of {methodically} dancing alongside the majesty and mystery of our moon.

Make your own vitamin C at home, and make it better than any store-bought vitamin C

Vitamin C Recipe

So you may not know that almost all of the vitamin C supplement manufacturers are making their vitamin C from genetically engineered corn. What! You exclaim. How am I supposed to get enough vitamin C into my family if I don’t buy store bought supplements? Answer: You make your own! What you are about to read is something that the giant pharmaceutical companies don’t want you to see.

Even the health food stores don’t want you to know about this secret. You can make your very own vitamin C supplement that is ten times better than anything you could buy in a store at NO EXTRA COST TO YOU!

Does it have a 1,000 mg of vitamin C per dosage? Nope. Does it have the USRDA amount per dosage? Not at all. Has it been approved by the FDA?  Absolutely not!

What homemade vitamin C does have is live enzymes that allow the vitamin C to be 100% assimilated into your body.  It has its own natural source of rutin, hesperidin, and bioflavonoids. It’s easily acquired, easy to make, and even tastes good, too. It’s just orange & lemon peels.

It’s that easy. Any organic orange or lemon peels left over from the fruit you  buy will do the trick.  Save all of your peels after you eat the inside of the fruit and cut them into thin strips. Place them on a plate on your dining room table and let them dry at room temperature for a couple of days until dry and crisp. You can also dehydrate the peels with a food dehydrator and then store them for about a year in a dry container. For consumption, one idea is to break up peels into smaller pieces and mix them with your favorite tea. This makes the tea taste great, but the downside to this approach is that heat destroys the enzymes. A better option is to place the peel strips into your coffee grinder and grind them into a powder (which won’t hurt the enzymes) and use to mix with your early morning smoothie. One rounded teaspoon will supply you with more organic vitamin C complex, rutin, hesperidin, and bioflavonoids than your body needs for the day, regardless of your size. And this homemade citrus peel powder mixed in your blender with some fresh organic apple juice tastes good too.

Check out these articles if you are looking for tips to boost your immune system, or heal from chemotherapy. Also, be sure to read up on Leaky Guts and Autoimmune Diseases.

Recommended Supplements:

• Total Nutrition Formula

Further Reading:

• Total Nutrition – Make your own Homemade Multivitamin and Mineral Formula
• Homemade Calcium and Magnesium
• Things You Should Know About Garlic – DIY, Recipes, Other Tips

Medicago Sativa, Pea family

Some folks would say “alfalfa is only fit for livestock,” but you might be surprised to discover that alfalfa was cultivated for medicinal purposes long before it was grown for fodder. Alfalfa has been used for centuries to treat jaundice, arthritis, muscle problems, and kidney disorders.

The Native Americans used it to promote blood clotting and to increase energy and bone strength. Alfalfa is also a well known remedy for intestinal difficulties and for easing menopause. Alfalfa is high in protein and calcium, as well as other minerals and B vitamins.  Alfalfa also contains vitamin C, vitamin E, and vitamin K.

Alfalfa Lore

The first mention of alfalfa was found in old text written by the emperor of China in 2939 BC. It’s botanical name ‘Medicago’ appears to derive from ancient Greece, but it was the Arabs who named it alfalfa meaning “father of all foods.” It was also Arabs who first fed it to horses to make them run faster.

Alfalfa Success Story

Chainsaw Roy, a friend of mine who lives down the road, continually tells me how great alfalfa is and how it saved his life. Roy is around seventy, clean shaven with a silver ponytai,l and is of German/Cherokee decent. He is a character who makes a living carving the purple heart cedar with his Sthil Chainsaw.

When Roy was in his late sixties his knees got so bad that he could hardly walk and his doctor told him that they were going to have to put disks and steel pins in his knees. He told the doctor to take a hike because he was sure the doctor had dollar signs in his eyes. On his way home, Roy had a change of heart. After struggling with such severe pain, to the point of not wanting to live anymore, Roy decided he was going to have to fire up his chainsaw and work through the pain to pay the expensive fees for the tests and appointments. He suffered through work for quite awhile, but then the day came when a stray Navajo wandered by and took up a conversation with Roy about alfalfa’s healing powers.  Roy started eating alfalfa and swears that his condition was gone almost immediately.  Years later Roy still carves and walks like his ancestors did, without any pain from what was a serious arthritic condition.

Alfalfa Flowers

Alfalfa flowers are purple and taste good but horse experts say that alfalfa must be cut before the flowers appear because it can create colic in horses.

Prices of Alfalfa Soar

Alfalfa is generally sold by the bale and can be gotten from most feed stores and pet shops, but alfalfa prices recently skyrocketed here in New Mexico.

A bale of premium quality alfalfa generally costs around $7 or $8 dollars but crop failures in Texas caused the alfalfa in NM to cost $22.50 per bale. Horses have to eat and there are lots of horses in Texas so NM alfalfa was in high demand.  My dad, Doc, randomly bought 30 bales for $210, which is odd because we do not have much livestock to speak of -one rabbit. He had me unload this trailer load of hay into the container and suddenly we were sitting on gold.  Only a few months later, Doc’s small investment is worth $675.

Should I Eat Alfalfa by the Bale?

An entire bale is too much for a human to consume. You could eat it, but I don’t recommend it. It’s almost all GMO now. Thank you Monsanto! Scumbags!!!  It’s not good for you. It’s not good medicine.  It’s just crap. It is best to grow your own alfalfa sprouts organically.  Many people don’t know that your typical store-bought container of sprouts for sandwiches and salads are Alfalfa sprouts.

Sprouting Alfalfa

Alfalfa seeds are really easy to come by. Most health food stores sell them in bulk for sprouting. A very cheap way to grow a mess of alfalfa is to buy an ounce or two of these seeds in the Organic Bulk section and scatter them in an area of your yard that has water, maybe where the water runs off a roof or by a garden hose leak. If you live in a place where it rains regularly (daily is best), then just throw them out into your yard or garden, and let nature do the rest.

It’s also easy to grow alfalfa sprouts in a jar as well.

Alfalfa Sprouts Health Benefits

Alfalfa Sprouts are a Good Source of Protein

One serving of alfalfa sprouts provides a gram of easily digestible and easy to assimilate plant-based protein. Remember, it’s not how much protein you eat, it’s how much you properly assimilate that counts.

Alfalfa Sprouts are High in Micronutrients

Alfalfa sprouts are a great source of several micronutrients. Alfalfa sprouts are a good source of vitamin K and B vitamins including riboflavin, niacin, folate, thiamin, pantothenic acid and B6. Alfalfa is also high in vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, calcium, and other minerals.

Alfalfa Sprouts are High in Fiber

Alfalfa sprouts are an excellent source of fiber. A 33-gram serving of alfalfa sprouts provides a gram of fiber, making alfalfa a good food for people suffering from constipation and other digestive issues.

Alfalfa and Weight Loss

At only 8 calories per serving, alfalfa is an ideal choice for people who trying to lose weight. Thanks to the fiber and protein, alfalfa is filling too.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is calling for a municipal ban on the sale of sugary drinks of greater than 16 ounces

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has banned smoking in New York City as well as Trans-fats in restaurants. He had forced chain restaurants to put calorie counts on menus, and he got sugary soft drinks out of city and school vending machines.

Now, with his continued efforts to curb obesity and lower the cost of health care in New York, Bloomberg is calling for a municipal ban on the sale of sugary drinks of greater than 16 ounces.

The ban applied defines the drinks to be barred that contain more than 25 calories per 8 ounces. This does not include diet sodas.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg spoke to MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell responding to the many critics of his extremely controversial big ban, “The idea is you tend to eat all of the food in the container. If it’s bigger, you eat more. If somebody put a smaller glass or plate or bowl in front of you, you would eat less.”

Even progressive liberal comedian-pundit John Stewart is clearly not a fan of the proposal.

The ban would outlaw the sale of sugary drinks 16 oz or more in restaurants and vending machines (including those at gas stations), but you would still be able to purchase large bottles at stores. And of course, the six pack will still be an option is well.

I have mixed emotions about this ban. Soda consumption is one of the most significant contributors of a wide range of disease.

(Image courtesy of The Daily Mail)

But personally, I would rather see our government attempt to educate people as opposed to controlling people. Most people are still unaware of not only of how much sugar is in soda, but also, how bad sugar really is for us. And I would also like to see artificially sweetened foods, including diet soda, banned. Also, as far as laws are concerned, I would much prefer restrictions placed on advertising such as those commercials that try to convince us that Sunny Delight is good for your kids, or that high fructose corn syrup is perfectly healthy “in moderation.”

What do you think of New York’s proposed ban on large sodas?

With a list of common detox diets and reasons to detoxify, and what you should consider before detoxifying.

A very thorough detox can be expensive and difficult, but with today’s lifestyle, detoxifying the body thoroughly is essential for good health. That said, people have a body that efficiently expels toxins effectively when they eat very well, exercise, sweat, and breathe heavily while exercising, drink lots of water, and stay away from medications. There are bound to be some chemicals in the body that will not be expelled on their own, and a thorough detox is still a good idea, but a healthy body always is detoxifying more toxins than it takes in and produces.

Why Detoxify?

Here are just a few indications that you need to detoxify:

• Headaches
• Skin issues
• Allergies (any and all)
• Muscle soreness (not from working out)
• Muscle Spasms
• Getting sick more than once every few years
• Sluggish and groggy waking up
• Vision loss
• Hair loss
• Body odor
• Yeast infections (athlete’s foot is a yeast infection, too)
• Arthritis
• Slow healing
• Digestive issues
• Cavities
• Trouble focusing
• Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
• Back pain
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Joint pain
• Kidney stones
• Canker sores
• You get the idea. Basically, any health problem means the body is toxic. There is only one disease, and that is cell malfunction. There are only two causes, nutrition deficiencies and toxicity. And the two go hand-in-hand.

Toxins are so easy to accumulate. Here is an incomplete list of commonplace items or substances that can cause harmful toxic chemical accumulation. Some may surprise you!

It’s amazing how toxic our modern lifestyle has become. The human body becomes overwhelmed. Our bile becomes toxic. Our blood becomes toxic and sluggish. But the way one feels after detoxification is truly an amazing feeling! So alert, energized, focused, successful, intelligent, and the list goes on. Our bodies are amazing, but they are really amazing when they are not being slowed down by crap. Living with a toxic is like driving a car that needed an oil change, a new air filter, and new spark plugs about 60,000 miles ago.

Common Detox Diets

There are a few detoxification diets that you’ve probably heard about. Below are some of the pros and cons with a few of the more well known detox diets and/or weight loss diets.

Cat Mutiny

I’ve been eating healthier than the average American for years and years. I stopped cooking processed foods thirty years ago when I realized the effect food colorings, preservatives, and additives had on my children’s ADHD and allergies. Eating better wasn’t good enough. Eating well, really well, took effort and discipline.

I struggled with my diet for years in an effort to battle auto-immune disease. I finally discovered what foods fed Candida and that I was sensitive to gluten. I’m sure I have celiac disease, but I have no intention of spending a few thousand dollars to confirm the diagnosis through conventional means. Why should I go through a biopsy when I know every time I eat gluten I break out in weeping sores and suffer from muscle and joint pain? Obviously gluten and I don’t get along.

So I’ve really cleaned up my diet. And because I eat so well and have eaten so well for so many years, processed foods and fast foods don’t taste good to me. The more I eat organic fresh fruits and veggies, the more anything else is second best—a far second. But this is only true because I don’t eat junk foods. The truth is, bad food and junk food, is truly addictive.

Recently our cats have reminded us how cheap bad foods crowd out the desire to eat well. We raised our cats on a clean, raw diet. Their typical fare was Bell and Evans ground turkey mixed with a little quinoa, spinach, carrots, eggs and eggshells, and a few other veggies thrown in. They loved it, so much so, we had to train them not to attack our hands as we lowered their bowls to the floor. Then they growled at one another and at us if we were stupid enough to try and pick the bowl back up.

But our indoor/outdoor kitties started eating junk food. We have a neighbor who feeds her cat regular kibble and leaves the bowl outside. So our cats have started eating out. And now, they have little interest in anything we try to feed them, even plain raw or cooked meat or fish. They sniff at their bowl and reject their food, going so far as to scratch the floor as if they could bury the offensive offering. So we bought a bag of organic kibble and they ate a little, then rushed outside to raid the neighbor’s bowl.

Now their health is suffering. Taz is chronically constipated. Both she and Jazz are copiously shedding for the first time in their lives. Obviously, an intervention is in order.

A recent study showed that rats fed a healthy diet and later fed junk food would rather starve than go back to eating a healthy diet.

This is such a reminder to us about the addictive nature of processed foods. If we give in to our children’s demands to eat fast foods, candy, sodas, and other junk foods—even as a rare treat, we are training their palates. We are toying with addiction. We are making food that is bad for them, deadly for them, a reward.

We deserve the best food. Our children deserve the best food. And so do our pets-100% of the time.

Watermelon

The cooling qualities of watermelon make it wonderful for a quick and easy summer detox staple. Add the delicious factor into the mix, and you’re sailing along with a warm weather cleansing trifecta! With positive effects on the kidney, bladder, heart, stomach, colon, and liver, watermelon works to cleanse (nearly) the entire body! According to traditional Chinese medicine, it cools the energetic channels in the body that are dominated by fire-making. It is therapeutically helpful in cases of urinary tract infections. for those who cannot tolerate high sugar foods, watermelon juice can be fermented (using the same cultures and process as kefir) into a refreshingly fizzy, sugar-free drink.

Sprouts

Sprouts are, literally, bursting with life. Sprouting is the natural process of transforming a dormant seed to a living seed. Grains, legumes, and other seeds that have been sprouted sport an impressive amount of precious enzymes, and aside from being important to digestion, enzymes play a role in the ongoing process of detoxification. Sprouts are rich in plant-based protein and are an excellent source of dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals. To top it all off, sprouts offer an easy way to keep fresh, inexpensive food in your home, year round.

Cucumber

Largely due to faddish, eye-covering cucumber pics strewn about nearly every magazine, few of us are a stranger to the cooling potential of cucumber. Chinese medicine believes that cucumber has a cleansing effect on the blood and clears internal heat from the body, which is helpful for inflammatory conditions…it also believes cucumbers have a soothing effect on the nerves and aid in the treatment of insomnia. While this cooling fruit’s thirst quenching nature makes it a great summer treat eaten alone, it is equally incredible juiced and/or infused into a pitcher of water- in the same way many people do with lemon or lime.

Aloe Vera

There is a reason that bottles of aloe vera gel line grocery store shelves every summer season. if you have ever sliced open an aloe leaf to slather it over a sunburn, you’re already familiar with its cooling savvy. Taken internally, aloe reduces heat and has intestinal stimulating abilities. for this reason, when used mindfully, it can be an effective treatment for constipation. While good quality, organic bottled aloe can be found, it is best fresh, scooped straight from the leaf, with all of its cooling constituents entirely intact.

Purslane

Ahhh…..purslane. ((Love!)) Purslane is a special plant~ rare in its qualities, but not in its findings. it is actually a very common and beneficial weed. What is extraordinarily brilliant about purslane is its omega 3 content- unusual for a land vegetable, as most omega 3 comes from oily fish and micro-algae. Like many of the other hot weather friendly foods, purslane is a contender when it comes to cooling inflammation in the body. it is a potent detoxifier and effectively dissipates internal heat. Make an omega 3 rich meal by adding a handful of purslane- fresh from the yard- into your favorite salad or smoothie.