When I booked my cabin for my recent cruise to New Zealand, I knew it was listed as an “obstructed view.” I was travelling with a group of friends and this was the only way to get our cabins close together.
But once in my room and opening the curtains, I realised the obstruction was only partial. Beyond it was an expansive ocean view. This reminded me of something I often see in my clinic.
When people are stressed or overwhelmed, it can feel like everything is blocked. Their vision can narrow and they develop a kind of “tunnel vision,” focussing on the negative and discounting the positives.
But when we calm the nervous system and release accumulated tension, people often discover that the view was never completely obstructed and there is actually something really beautiful beyond.
Sometimes the possibilities were there all along, just waiting to be noticed.
Do you need help to see the possibilities in your life? Contact me to organise your free 15 minute consultation to discuss how I can help you.
Norfolk is a beautiful little gem of an island in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean, approx. halfway between Australia and New Zealand, 1600km northeast of Sydney.
Extremely remote, Norfolk Island territory includes the much smaller and uninhabited Nepean and Phillip Islands which can be easily seen from the original Kingston settlement (see photo below).
In order to maintain its pristine natural beauty and the health and safety of its inhabitants, limits and boundaries have long been put in place.
With its isolation, sea and air transport is relied upon for vital supplies including vehicles and white goods.
Because of its rugged coastline, large ships cannot dock at Norfolk, they have to anchor about a kilometre offshore (see photo of the pier below).
Cargo is then unloaded at sea and taken ashore via small boats or “lighters.”
Originally used as whaling boats, over the years they have evolved and have been widened to carry heavy cargo (see photos below)
This means that bad weather has a huge impact on supplies and there are times when Norfolk runs out of certain foods and items.
This has led to the implementation of boundaries to protect the island and it’s inhabitants.
Norfolk used to be a popular port of call for cruise ships until the negative impact of 3,000 passengers flooding onto the island took it’s toll on the infrastructure and so boundaries have now been put in place and cruise ships no longer visit.
Now tourists only arrive by air, with numbers limited and closely monitored.
Here’s the interesting thing, there are lessons we can learn from Norfolk to protect our own health and wellness.
Many people are stretched to the limit, on the verge of burnout.
The demands and busyness of modern day life, without implementing boundaries and support can cause chronic stress, anxiety, pain and overwhelm.
Protection and preservation of our precious energy and resources are needed for continued health and wellbeing.
For the past 25 years, I’ve helped thousands of clients with pain, stress, anxiety, boundaries and overwhelm.
I can work with you on-line so that you get the help you need from the convenience of being at home.
You don’t need to suffer, email me if you’d like to discuss how I can assist you to change your life!
I love horses and one of my favourite things on Norfolk was visiting a farm where we saw a beautiful 3 year old “Shire” horse being trained to eventually pull a buggy.
Born on the island, this horse, 18 hands tall, was being gently and patiently trained to fully trust his owner first.
There was no rush with his development. It may still take another 6 months before this young horse will start pulling the buggy.
But that is ok because supporting a good temperament and well-being is the top priority. Shire horses typically have longevity on their side, living to approx. 40 years old and quality of life for his animals was a top concern of this young farmer.
Patience! This is also required for people, when turning around or recovering from injury or a chronic health issue.
Your body and mind will heal at its own speed when you support it with the right therapies such as Advanced Bowen, Hypnotherapy and TimeLine Therapy; decreasing stress and toxins in your environment; improve nutrition and drink quality water etc.
It can be done and you don’t have to suffer!
I can help you with all those things. Reach out to me if you need assistance.
Contact me here to arrange your free 15 minute chat to see how I can help.
Life can be hectic and most of us are busy with work and family etc. which can contribute to stress, anxiety and overwhelm.
In helping clients in clinic and online deal with those challenges, I also teach resilience, relaxation and self-care.
I personally relax by travelling and learning new things. Recently I spent a week on Norfolk Island and here are some things I noticed there.
Resilience! Life at Norfolk over 230 years ago in the convict settlement days was extremely harsh and tough.
You had to dig deep and fight for your survival… only the resilient survived.
And sometimes even the weather worked against you like when the supply ship, Sirius, in stormy seas got wrecked on the reef in 1790.
However the people on Norfolk adjusted, persisted, used the tools they had and didn’t give up. Now it’s a thriving and beautiful family community.
Our health can also be like that. Sometimes things are really tough and life gets “stormy”. Being resilient, trying new things and never giving up helps us survive and thrive!
If you need to turn around your health or would like strengthen your mindset and resilience, I can help. Reach out.
You can contact me here to arrange your free 15 minute chat to discover more.
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.
We have all heard the saying, “move it or lose it” and it could not be more true!
Movement is a vital part of our overall health and wellness. As humans we are part of the animal kingdom and are made to move – in all directions, every day.
We were not designed to sit all day at a computer desk, be in a car driving around for hours or working a 12-hour shift in a mining truck etc. We are biped with long legs and arms for a reason – we are made to walk, run, jog, dance, stretch, climb and reach.
Our anatomy and physiology is such that if we don’t constantly move, our muscles and joints do physically become stiff and our fascia (connective tissue or membranes that surround line and separate our muscles, stabilises our bodies etc.) will actually start to fuse together and then limit our mobility.
Do you struggle with movement?
Seeing a structural therapist to correct your posture and body alignment should make movement, stretching and exercise easier for you.
If pain has kept you sedentary, then any movement is valuable. Even if you are chair bound there will still be parts of your body you can move. If you can’t move yourself, get someone to assist you.
Moving and stretching usually feels good, sometimes initially there is a little discomfort but never stretch into pain. Treat yourself with love and respect and most importantly don’t give up, your goal is to keep moving.
The benefits of movement
improves your cardiac health, gets your heart pumping and improves circulation
improves your breathing and lung function
strengthens your muscles and joints and helps with balance and preventing falls
improves flexibility, movement and will enable you to do everyday tasks more easily
helps maintain bone density
increased blood and lymphatic flow helps improve skin elasticity and healing
helps you feel better, relieves stress and you will feel a sense of accomplishment
you will look and feel younger with increased energy and stamina
It’s also important to protect yourself if you are getting help with your stretches and exercises – do not allow anyone to test or push you into pain. Numerous clients have come to clinic because they have over-stretched, hurt themselves in a too vigorous exercise routine or their pain has been inflamed in the process of being tested and diagnosed. You need to be honest with your health professionals and let them know when something is increasing your pain.
So the truth is that a movement program takes effort and commitment, however the benefits are immeasurable and the alternative is very scary. Getting started may not be easy but you just have to do it if you want to relieve your pain long term.
What do you do for movement? Do you need to be doing more?
If you need help to get your body moving better, please get in touch and book a Bowen Therapy session!
