As you may know, I was diagnosed with MS in my twenties and I overcame it with implementing a natural lifestyle and natural remedies. One of the key factors I credit to my recovery was eliminating diet soft drinks. What is the link between diet soft drinks and MS?
While I was researching how to heal, I came across Lady Cilento mentioning in her books the importance of a fresh food diet and staying away from sugar, soft drink etc. While I didn’t consume too much sugar, up to that point, I had been a big consumer of diet soft drinks. In those days consumers did not know of the potential dangers.
In high school it had become the ‘in thing’ to have a can of diet soft drink (or soda) for lunch, no food. Diet soft drinks were the new trendy beverages of choice in Australia at that time. So as teenage girls wanting to stay thin, we’d stand around in our lunch break (had no energy to do much else) slowly sipping our drink and chewing on the straws – we were so hungry!
My diet soft drink habit continued at university and was then supplemented with heavy coffee drinking, particularly at assignment and exam times. As well as overloading on saccharin, I had unknowingly become addicted to caffeine. Later when I finished university studies, I decided to wean myself off coffee even though it was then, and still now, totally socially acceptable to be a caffeine addict.
However going cold turkey was quite an unexpected and unpleasant experience.
I had excruciating migraines for three days and all over body aches, etc. Needless to say having gone through caffeine withdrawal once, I have a very healthy respect for its powerful addictive effects. I now mostly drink organic herbal teas or an occasional water-decaffeinated organic coffee and of course lots of filtered water.
But during that same period there was little information in Australia about the dangers of consuming artificial sweeteners and diet soft drinks, and so I continued to drink them until my MS diagnosis. However I then followed Lady Cilento’s writings and eliminated them completely from my diet.
Studies since then as noted in Sally Fallon’s book, Nourishing Traditions, have indicated that the sugar, artificial sweeteners and phosphoric acid, etc., in soft drinks can have a negative impact on bones and joints. Elaine Hollingsworth in Take Control of Your Health and Escape the Sickness Industry contends that artificial sweeteners are a major cause of MS. I strongly feel my recovery was greatly assisted by eliminating the consumption of diet soft drinks.
I had learned a lot from my research and had taken immediate action to have as many physical treatments I could manage and to clean up my diet plus supplementing with high quality vitamin C powder (with bioflavonoids). My focus and determination was very high and of course I was buoyed by a decrease in my MS symptoms from that first week of corrective treatments.
Do you notice any ill effects from drinking diet soft drinks and products with aspartame?
If you are looking for some healthy and holistic Mother’s Day gifts, I hope some of my favourite things will inspire you!
Goodness Me Subscription Box
I love my monthly box of healthy, nutritionist approved goodies! It’s a great chance to try out a range of products. Subscribe for monthly boxes or just get a one off! Great for the mums who are hard to buy for.
Gift Mum a luxury experience with this Mother’s Day Gift Box Set by Olieve. Set includes a hand cream, lip balm and body wash packaged inside a beautifully designed box set. No wrapping needed. 100% natural and made in Australia. Lavender and Rose Geranium scented.
Find relief and relaxation with this Acupressure Mat & Pillow. Each node connects with your back, neck and head with slight spiked like pressure to stimulate blood flow throughout the body. The result helps to relieve aches, pains and soreness. A gift idea to support a loved one!
Make your daily coffee trip a ritual experience with this Kim Wallace Ceramics, Dusk Takeaway Cup. Handcrafted in Noosa, Australia, this cup is made from Australian porcelain clay and speckled pink glaze. Comes with a non-toxic and BPA Free Silicone lid.
This bamboo makeup rounds holder is totally plastic free. Pair with Earths Tribe reusable cotton and hemp makeup rounds for a plastic free and reusable skincare routine.
For the plant-loving mums, this kit helps keep your houseplants happy and healthier without the guesswork. Delivered to you in a recyclable storage box, it’s everything mum needs to care for her plants through every season.
Absorb pure crystal energy in your very own crystal infused water.
Created to take with you everywhere you go for positively charged energy at work, home, yoga or when travelling. Glass bottle comes with protective sleeve & gift box.
A gorgeous hot or cold drink, this Sacred Love Rose Cacao Powder is designed to help soothe the mind, improve sleep and keep you feeling youthful. Perfect to add to smoothies, treats or as a latte. It’s organic, vegan and ethically sourced.
Gift the gift of wellness! I offer gift vouchers for all of my services – from Bowen Therapy to Reflexology or Hypnotherapy and Personal Breakthrough Sessions. Please email me to arrange.
The following lower back stretches may assist you with releasing tight muscles, improving flexibility and circulation in the back and legs which can then allow pressure to come off nerve pathways and pain levels to decrease.
If you have difficulty getting down and up off the floor, make sure you have a stool or chair (not on wheels) to assist you or someone nearby. When lying on the floor, you may need to cushion your spine by lying on a yoga mat or carpet. If needed you can use a small pillow or towel to support your head. If mobility is an issue, some of these stretches can be done on a firm bed or in a chair.
Starting out you might only be able to do one or two repetitions of a stretch, that’s fine. If you do these daily or even every second or third day, you’ll gradually build up to more repetitions and then you’ll be ready
Devoting full attention means no mobile phones or doing this while watching TV, etc. You want full focus on your body and what you are doing. Many people were injured initially by not being mindful or concentrating on what they were doing.
Breathe deeply as much as possible during these exercises. Belly or diaphragmatic breathing helps take your body out of ‘stress’ mode and will help you relax. Holding your breath too long may raise blood pressure.
Don’t do stretches cold. Warm up first by walking on the spot or doing gentle movement, having a warm shower or applying a heat pack on the problem area.
The following stretches and exercises are not for acute pain, recent accident or injury. See your doctor or health professional for advice in those cases. You can come back to these activities once you have moved past the emergency phase. And remember you do not have to do all of the following, choose which are relevant for you.
Floor (on Elbows): This gentle position can be a good way to start helping yourself at home. Lie flat on the floor on your stomach and relax your back. Once this position is comfortable, come up to lean and rest on your elbows (ideally directly under the shoulders). Relax in that position for a couple of minutes depending on your pain level. If resting on your elbows is too high at this stage, come down and rest your chin onto your hands. You can do this position several times during the day if you wish. To get up off the floor, consider tightening the stomach muscles to protect your lower back and move slowly.
Feet on Chair: Lie on your back on the floor and place your feet up onto a chair. Relax for up to ten minutes. Focus on breathing deeply and you have the option of slowly turning your head to one side, then the other, coming back to centre before relaxing. Hand option: palms up can help to open up the chest, shoulders and start to reverse round shouldered posture.
Floor Stretch: Lie on your back on the floor and gently stretch your arms above your head, breathing deeply. Stretch and elongate the body, from finger tips to toes. Slowly point and then flex the toes, gently relax.
Pelvic Tilts: Lie on your back, knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Stomach muscles tightened, gently curl your tailbone up and towards you, your lower back will tend to flatten on the floor. Hold for several seconds. Slowly lower your tailbone back to the floor and your spine to naturally curve. Continue for three to ten repetitions. These are small movements, gently rocking the tailbone.
Knee to Chest: Lie on your back on the floor and slowly bend your knees placing your feet flat on the floor. Adjust your hips and lower back so you feel comfortable. Gently stretch and lengthen your spine (from tailbone to the crown of your head) chin should be in a natural and neutral position. Bend one knee up to your chest and grab your knee/leg with two hands if possible. If that is too hard use a belt or towel. Hold the stretch as long as comfortable and then slowly release down onto the floor. When you start you may only be able to do the stretch for a couple of seconds, that’s OK. Remember to keep breathing. Bend the other knee towards your chest and repeat as above. If comfortable, you can repeat the stretch and alternate the knees. Option: you can also do this stretch with both knees together and hugging them into your chest. Option: if lower back or hip pain is not an issue, the resting or non-stretched leg can be fully extended to lie flat on the floor while the bent knee is brought to chest.
Lying Hamstring Stretch: Lie on your back, slowly bend your knees and place both feet flat on the floor. Adjust your hips and back for comfort. Bring one knee up towards your chest and grasp it with both hands. Slowly extend and straighten the knee so you can feel the stretch into the back of the leg. Hold your leg at the back of your thigh or you can use a band, belt or towel and hook it around the ball of your foot. Hold for 10–30 seconds. You can also flex the ankle slowly up and down while holding this position. Don’t forget to breathe! When you are ready to lower the leg, gently bend the knee first and then lower the leg to the floor. Repeat stretch with the other leg. Option: if it is too hard to get down onto the floor, you can do this seated in a chair or standing with foot elevated on a step.
Seated Hamstring Stretch: Seated on the floor, bend one knee and bring that foot near your body, keeping the knee as close to the floor as you can comfortably. Extend and straighten the other leg in front of you, foot flexed and toes up to the ceiling. Keeping your back as straight as possible, lean forward at the hips and toward the outstretched leg and foot. Use a band, belt or towel around the ball of the foot to hold the stretch (pointing the toes, lessens the stretch). Repeat stretch with the other leg. Sitting on a cushion or block to raise the hips may help with this stretch.
Floor Groin Stretch: Sit with feet facing each other and together, knees bent and comfortably low to the floor. The closer your feet to your body the more intense the stretch but work within your limits. Sitting on a cushion or block to raise the hips may help with this stretch. Option: can be done standing. Legs apart, bend one knee and lean to the side, to feel stretch in the other hip and groin.
Calf Stretch: May also assist with cramping and tight ankles. Standing a short distance away from a wall, gently lean forward and push against it with the leg you want to stretch behind you. Keep your heel of that back leg planted to the floor or as close as you can. You can adjust the angle of your foot by leaning further into the wall. The greater the angle of your ankle and foot, the more it stretches the lower leg.
Here’s my easy morning movement routine to get the body moving first thing.
The following exercises generally help with mobility, circulation, and lymphatic drainage and work the major muscle groups. They can be also done in the evening before bed to help release tension.
You don’t have to do all seven, you select the right exercises for you or ask your doctor or exercise health professional.
Watch the instructional video before starting the Super Seven Exercises!
1. Marching on the Spot: Start low impact, gently marching on the spot. It’s up to you how long and fast you march and how high you raise your feet. This can also be done between each exercise to keep moving.
2. Breathe and Shake: Stand with feet approximately hip width apart and knees slightly bent. Deep breath in and stretch your hands and arms up to the sky. As you exhale, shake out your hands above your head and then continue shaking them all the way down to your sides. Let your neck, shoulders, and hips and knees gently move and shake and move as they want. Do at least three times. Wonderful for your circulation and lymphatic system.
3. Side Steps: Start with small steps first to one side, then the other. As you warm up and get more fit you can make those steps bigger. When stronger and used to this activity, you may decide to bend your knees as you step out to the sides and use your arms.
4. Arm Swing: Start with feet shoulder width apart, shoulders relaxed and arms loosely by your side. Tighten your core or stomach muscles. Slowly turn to one side and let your arms flop and follow, then slowly turn to the other side. Gradually increase your speed of turning from side to side, letting the arms move and stay loose.
5. Shoulder Rotations and Side Neck Turns: Stand with feet apart. Stretch and lengthen through the spine (pull up through the back or crown of the head). Lift your shoulders gently up and then rotate backwards and bring shoulders down. Repeat and rotate backward up to ten times, then relax.
Relax, release and lower your shoulders, your head facing to the front. Slowly turn your head to one side towards the shoulder to your comfort level. Hold for three to ten seconds, and then slowly come back to centre. Repeat sequence with the other side. Ideally do this sequence at least three times.
6. Air punches: Standing balanced with feet apart, hands held up and closed into fists, punch upwards into the air above your head with one arm. Bring back to centre and then alternate with the other arm. You can also lower the arms and air punch directly to the front. May also help to relieve stress and over time extend the range of movement in the shoulders.
7. Air Squats or Chair Sit: Stand with your feet hip width apart, toes pointing slightly outward and tighten your stomach or core muscles. With a comfortably straight back and upright torso, your weight balanced on your heels, bend at the hips pushing your buttocks backwards and bending the knees like you are about to sit down. Lower to a comfortable and safe level for you, keeping your hips above knee level. Your knees over but not beyond your toes.
Return slowly to your starting position.If this is a new exercise for you, don’t go too deep too soon. Place a chair behind you and sit or squat down onto it. Aim to sit down and get up without using your arms, just the strength in your legs, hips and knees. Do squats slowly to your comfort level and build up the number gradually. If there is any discomfort, stop and seek professional guidance.
I would love to know how you go with the Morning Movement Routine. Let me know how it makes you feel!
If you need some inspiration for Christmas shopping with a focus on health and wellness, look no further! I have put together a list of some of my favourite products for you.
Water Filter
A good water filter is essential for good health! This one filters out all the nasties and then remineralises the water. Get it here.
Infrared Sauna Blanket
The benefits of a sauna in the convenience of your own home! These infrared sauna blankets are great for detoxing. It can help with stress, soothe muscles and improve sleep. Get it here.
Neck Heat Packs
Soothe sore muscles around the neck, shoulders and upper back with these wheat packs. They are handmade in Australia from all natural and organic materials. Get them here.
Microgreens Window Box
A unique and useful gift so you can harvest your own microgreens, year round from your windowsill! Microgreens are packed full of vital nutrients and make a tasty addition to meals. Get it here.
Toxin Free Tea
Did you know that tea can contain pesticides and teabags contain plastic? Switch to organic loose-leaf tea and use a stainless steel infuser. Get it here.
Biohackers Bundle
These science-backed wellness products are designed to enhance your sleep quality, boost productivity, and promote overall well-being. Block harmful blue light and emf radiation. Get it here.
Reusable Drink Bottles
Switch out toxic single use water bottles and coffee cups for safe, reusable versions! These are made from premium stainless steel and will not only help the planet, they will help your health! Get them here.
Non-Toxic Cookware
Ditch those toxic old non-stick pans and replace them with quality cookware that will last generations. Made in Australia from wrought iron , these are super safe to cook with and do not emit any toxins. Get them here.
Healthier Chocolate
When gifting chocolate, look for the very best quality, because we all need a treat! These Aussie made and owned chocolates are vegan, palm oil free, contain probiotics and are made with high quality, ethical, healthy ingredients. Get the gift box here.
I hope these wellness gift ideas have given you some inspiration for your Christmas shopping. Have a wonderful festive season!
Bowen Therapy continues to work after you have left the table. So what you do next is also important. Here are some things to consider for your Bowen Therapy after care.
You can enhance the effects of your Bowen Therapy session with the following advice:
Stay well hydrated. Drinking good quality water little and often will assist the healing work of Bowen Therapy and can assist in flushing out toxins.
Keep moving. Do not sit for long periods of time, get up and about and move around. I recommend moving every 30 minutes until bed time. Resting in bed and lying down is fine.
Let the Bowen do its work. Try to allow at least a week before another session or any other therapies or physical manipulation.
Go gently. Avoid strenuous movement and exercise for at least a couple of days after your treatment. Gentle, short walks are recommended.
Allow rest time. Some people may experience mild symptoms after their session as their body realigns and healing takes place.
Avoid extreme temperatures. Wait for 48 hours before applying hot or cold to your body. Hot showers, baths, saunas, heat packs or heat rubs and ice packs can interfere with the healing process. Magnets can also disrupt the process, so avoid bed underlays and body magnets.
Avoid crossing legs, knees, ankles or feet and carrying things unevenly for a few days. Retain good posture and alignment.
Please make a note of any differences in your pain, sleep, stress and emotions after your session to discuss at your next appointment.
I hope these Bowen Therapy after care tips help you get the most out of your Bowen session!
Want to try out Bowen? I am an Advanced Bowen Therapist with over 23 years experience helping people with pain and stress relief. I consult in Rockhampton and the Gold Coast. Get in touch to book. I would love to help you.
What do you do when pain medication doesn’t work for you? When you can’t get any relief? I know how this feels because it happened to me and I have to look for alternative solutions.
Those of us who have been in pain or those who are currently battling pain conditions know the personal and emotional costs.
I’m not anti-pharmaceutical or anti-pain medications. There are some great pain and life-saving medications. If they are working for you – thank goodness for them! It’s just that prescribed pain medications did not work for me in the past and so I had to ascertain the cause of my pain and then work to eliminate it at the source.
For the vast majority of people I come into contact in a clinic situation, pain medications are also not working for them and so many have been left in painful limbo. Sometimes those medications may have worked well initially but because the cause of the pain was not addressed, they lost their potency and good effect. Sometimes the side effects outweigh the benefits.
While pain meds are invaluable to handle pain in acute or emergency situations, for long-term chronic pain they can sometimes be temporary ‘band-aid’ solutions that may come with side effects and decreases in efficiency.
So if you do not want to be reliant on prescription medications forever, again it becomes important to deal with WHY you are getting pain and HOW you are going to fix it for the long term.
Of course everybody is different, medications and treatments that have worked for others with similar conditions cannot always be guaranteed to work for you. Different genetics, raised in diverse environments, having been exposed to unique combinations of chemicals and toxins, eating differently, having various personalities, emotional states and abilities to handle stress and disease etc. Likewise the therapies and techniques that worked for me and for my clients cannot be guaranteed but at least they are safe to try and will support your health in other ways.
The reality is that no one can give you a guarantee because people are wonderful, complex beings who can be massively unpredictable. Sometimes the only way to know whether something will work for you is to try, and if that doesn’t work try something else. Keep taking positive action and don’t get angry if your doctor, therapist, medication or supplement doesn’t work straight away for you. More time might be needed, maybe some fine-tuning or perhaps it’s not the right answer for you just now.
I know it can be hard (sometimes excruciatingly hard) but be grateful that you are learning along the way and it is important to keep moving forward. Take responsibility and realise that you have to do something different if you want different and positive results. If you become complacent and keep doing what you have always done, then chances are that you will keep getting the same results and the same pain!
When I was diagnosed with MS and orthodox medicine had no cure and no hope for me, I had to be determined (some called it stubborn) and try out things for myself and persist, keep going even when there was no hope. If I’d given up and prepared for my demise like my neurologist had advised me all those years ago, I would never have recovered, got married, had children and had a wonderful career helping people.
So if you are currently in a similar situation, my heart goes out to you but please whatever you do, don’t give up.
Patience and commitment are extremely important as usually the longer you’ve had a pain condition, the more time and effort it takes to turn it around. It’s a bit like the momentum of a runaway train. Once pain has become entrenched, it develops a momentum of its own which requires a lot of effort to firstly slow down the progression and then to gradually bring it to a stop.
It then takes another mighty effort to reverse the direction of that “pain train” and commence your healing journey. So be prepared to put in your best effort – this is the most important work you’ll ever do!
For more information on how I beat my pain, naturally, you can check out my book DRUG FREE PAIN RELIEF.
At the age of 22 I was diagnosed with MS (multiple sclerosis) and told that I would not be alive for my 23rd birthday!
I healed from MS with my own research and some ‘alternate’ therapies and remedies. The doctors were struck dumb at my recovery!
One aspect of my strategy for recovery was Citamin C. Read on to discover why I believe in the power of Vitamin C!
I actively did my own research about how to heal myself from MS, I was determined that I was going to overcome my prognosis. Luckily my university degree was in journalism which had given me solid research skills. I could also speed read and had the ability to go through large amounts of information to find the ‘treasure’ or important points.
Early on in my research, I was lucky to come across two small but so valuable books Lady Cilento on Vitamin and Mineral Deficiencies and The Cilento Way. Actually for all my library research, these books had belonged to my parents and were at home in my father’s office.
Lady Cilento was my earliest female inspiration. She was amongst the first female doctors in Australia and wrote many health and medical articles with her husband Sir Raphael ‘Ray’ Cilento from August 1929 for the then Brisbane Courier newspaper. So by the time I found Lady Cilento’s books she had been writing about health and vitamin supplements for more than 50 years!
These two books gave me the nutritional information that undoubtedly helped turn my health around. People now tend to think that healthy eating and taking vitamins and minerals is some new age thinking but it is mind blowing to me that in fact Lady Cilento and her colleagues and inspirations, such as Dr Linus Pauling (won the Nobel Prize twice), Dr Irwin Stone (author of The Healing Factor), Dr Frederick R Klenner (world authority on the clinical use of vitamin C) and Dr Robert F Cathart (famous orthopaedic surgeon) were using vitamins very successfully in their research, surgeries and clinics for multiple health conditions so many years ago.
Around the same time my MS symptoms had started to decrease as my body was brought back into proper alignment and balance, I started taking mega-doses of vitamin C powder with bioflavonoids (including hesperidin and rutin) because it was indicated in Lady Cilento’s books as being useful in fighting viral, bacterial and arthritic type conditions. The bioflavonoids were important to assist in the fast assimilation by the body.
Unlike many other animals and living things, humans (like monkeys, guinea pigs and fruit bats) do not manufacture their own vitamin C. It cannot be stored in the body and so it has to be consumed regularly in order to survive.
Lady Cilento writes: “Vitamin C is non-toxic, has no side effects, does not build up in the body and any surplus to the body’s needs quickly passes out in the urine …This vitamin protects the body by aiding the adrenal glands to produce cortisone, maintains the strength of all the ‘cementing’ substance between cells, stimulates production of antibodies against germs and the number and effectiveness of the white blood cell.“
The exact cause of MS is unknown (most likely there are multiple causes) but it is a degenerative disease of the central nervous system. The MS Society (UK) advises that the immune system, which normally fights infections and protects the body, starts attacking and damaging the coating or myelin around the nerve fibres creating lesions or plagues which then disrupts crucial signals and smooth functioning between the brain and the rest of the body. Damage to the actual nerves can occur as well as myelin loss and this can create a variety of symptoms which tend to increase over time. To this day there is no definitive cure.
So from my research, I knew that MS was neurological and was caused by problems in the myelin sheath and nerve conduction but since my doctors could not help me, I decided that I need to try to rebuild my myelin and strengthen my body through vitamin supplementation in addition to the important corrective bodywork.
Mega-doses of vitamin C were the corner stone of my personal attack on MS.
In his book Food as Medicine, Dr Earl Mindell advises:
“Vitamin C, which is water-soluble, is essential for the formation of collagen, the substance that binds together the cells of connective tissue. Collagen is necessary for the production and growth of new cells and tissues: it also prevent viruses from penetrating the cell membrane … it is especially important in the healing process.”
And of course in an ideal unpolluted, uncontaminated world with ready access to fresh raw food, not genetically modified, organically grown so not exposed to pesticides and other toxic chemicals, we should get all our vitamin needs from our food. But for most people today if you are not able to grow your own food (and a variety of it) then you might like to consider high quality, food-based natural supplements (less expensive synthetic supplements are cheap for a reason and can just expose you to more chemicals and toxins).
My decision back then to use vitamin C supplementation to help repair and support my body is also supported by other doctors now such as Dr Carole Hungerford, who in her book Good Health in the 21st Century writes about how vitamin C assists in the production of neuropeptides (neurotransmitters) and in the repair and synthesis of collagen amongst many other important body functions and uses.
During my research in 1985, I’d also found another interesting quote in The Cilento Way contending that “sodium ascorbate, or vitamin C, is the only antibiotic that will get rid of a virus.”
Because I had no way of knowing definitively what had caused my MS (and my doctors did not know either), I decided that this strategy might also help with the possibility of a viral contribution, so another reason to use vitamin C.
Within four months of bodywork, eating fresh food, no white sugar, soft drink or artificial sweeteners, taking vitamin C plus gradually getting back into exercise, yoga and meditation, every MS symptom disappeared and I was able to return to full-time work.
Years have passed and my good health continues to this day. I still use those strategies to maintain my health. Now I am a health warrior committed to helping others find natural solutions for their pain and suffering.
If you would like to read the whole story, I go into detail about how I beat MS (multiple sclerosis) in my book, Drug Free Pain Relief.
I recommend natural sources of Vitamin C. I love this powder made from certified organic ingredients. It’s Australia’s only entirely natural vitamin C supplement.
