So you finished a chapter of healing with us, now what?

Most people understand how to follow our instructions during therapy. It is after a chapter of therapy is done that they enter a state of "Limbo" where the rules can appear unclear. Allow me to suggest a few tips for this stage:

1st thing - don't forget we are here :)

Whether you find yourself dealing with more of the same health issues or a new symptom: Talk to us ASAP. Don't wait "a few weeks" to see if it goes away... Small symptoms (And especially new ones) tend to be much easier to heal earlier rather than later.

Don't stop our recommendations without first talking to us.

Unlike many drugs, stopping most natural therapies will not cause harsh symptoms but that doesn't mean there isn't a "right" and "wrong" way to do it. Also, not all therapies need be stopped once you are well. Prevention is a very good idea. Talk to us and we will help you maintain good preventative measures. Not all you got from us during therapy need be used on the long run and some things are not used for active phases but are great for prevention.

Technical updates

If you have a new email (!), phone number, address, online kupat holim code, child (Mazal Tov!), or have gone through any other major change, its probably a good idea to update us. In this way we can remain effectively at your service in the future.

Long term followup

If you are suffering an illness that has yet to heal or is in remission and are taking a break from our therapy, Don't wait too long for the next appointment. If more then a month goes by the time it will take to get us up to speed will leave little time for new suggestions and therapy and advancement will be slower.

Qi Gong sessions

If you are in an on-going therapy in the present you are welcome to join us for our Qi Gong sessions (+ Breathing exercises and meditation) for FREE. If you are not in therapy at the present you are still welcome to join us for a symbolic fee.

Seasonal sessions

If you are done healing what you came to us for and have ended this chapter - don't disappear till you need us again. Coming once to twice a year for seasonal checkups will keep us in the loop with your life events and changing health so we can better intervene if your health drops and practice prevention where possible and help you stay healthy. It is also an opportunity to work on bad habits one at a time over time.

Time as a factor in health

“Time is the great healer”

How long will it take me to get better? Why isn’t my health better already? Is there such a thing as instant healing? Why should I go through a long process when a pill can relieve my distress in an hour?

I don’t remember how many times I have already heard these and similar questions from my patients over the past 25 years of my practice. It is clear to me that time is a loaded issue and this is the reason I decided to write about it. My purpose is to promote a shift in attitude in regards to time in health. I recall a patient that came to me with a complex matter many years ago. It was to be her first acupuncture session and so I decided to treat her for one of the many issues only and with one needle so as to make it less challenging for her. A week later she came for her second appointment only to say thank you. Her health was all fine… For me it was a pleasant shock. I was happy for her of course and maybe someday I will be old enough and experienced enough to repeat that success. In the mean time I understand that often it is unrealistic and at times even wrong for the process to be this fast – lessons need time to be learned more often than not.

So what do I want to say about time?

I shall start with prevention – after all, a minute of prevention can save hours and days of healing.

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I don’t have time to prepare breakfasts. I have no time for sports. I cannot find time for a massage once a week. I don’t have time for meditations or breathing exercises…

The above sentences represent a central question in preventative medicine: “How do we cope with the idea that we have no time to spare in modern times when contemplating preventative habits?”. The first thing we need to establish is the understanding that there is no such thing as “no time”. We have 24 hours every day and the right question is how do we use up our time wisely? It's all about priorities. It’s not always simple to reorganize our priorities but it is often a crucial step for the process of change.

Another important factor: With every passing year our body becomes less and less forgiving towards our mistakes. It becomes more evident the older we get. When young people go out on the town and go to sleep very late the worst they feel is tired the day after. At the age of 40+ it might wreck the next day. At 50 it could take a few days to recover. There is a beautiful lesson to be learned here – our body expects us to be wiser as we age – and show it by making wiser choices J. It is also less forgiving.

In an age of a fast pace race after money, preventative medicine is confronted with a major obstacle. It is very hard to quantify. In the field of insurance it is calculated but out of the assumption that people don’t change. Understanding that where there is a will there is a way, a challenge of mine is to get the message through that preventative medicine is good for the economics. Maybe when people realize there is a lot of money in health they will start investing in health daily… It is very simple to understand the role of exercise or nutrition in prevention. Everyone knows ample rest is crucial for healthy functioning in every aspect of life. Tomorrow it can never happen. If it is important it has to start today. Right now. In prevention time is a vicious foe. You delay for a moment and by then it hurts.

It is time to start acting on what you know and believe that can prevent you from becoming sick. If you are not sure about something or what is best to do come and let’s talk about it. Today is the best time to start. Right now!

Next let’s talk about time and acute diseases

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I don’t have time to take a day off in bed. Work will not wait. My students expect me in class. It is not that bad, I will drag along for a few days and it will blow over. I have plans for this weekend, I can’t just cancel it all and rest.

Acute diseases are short lived, usually dramatic in nature and tend to blow over even without meaningful assistance. They usually behave this way due to us having a reasonable level of vitality. If not it would quickly turn chronic. These diseases are only slightly challenging timewise. They are short and so require only a few days of cooperation on the patients’ part. Weeks at worst case. Despite this, most people rush out and seek the easy way out. A quick fix / pill for their illness. Usually pricy in terms of health. What is our body asking of us? Is it so much to ask that we take a break for a day? A week? A little tender loving care?

I have seen many cases where a neglected or mistreated acute disease – where all the body needed was a little rest or such, gets complicated by lack of cooperation and deteriorates into a more complicated disease. When the body is clearly asking for attention it is important and wise to comply.

A day or two invested in health can save many more in disease.

And if we already deteriorated?

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I am tired of constantly taking care of my health. It is hard for me to be so busy mostly with my health – I have no time for life itself. I have been sick for so long, when will it end? How long have I got?

In degenerative and chronic diseases (Longer and usually more complicated by nature) time becomes a much heavier issue. Especially when the disease gets worst with time.

Time spent talking and not advancing, tires. Time well spent, often bringing the rewards of improvement, uplifts. Knowing how to translate the process of illness and health correctly will most often make the difference above (Learning to recognize the positivity of some signs that could be misconstrued as setbacks but are really positive on the long run are one example – such as the positive meaning of raising a high fever as a sign of high vitality in children). Sometimes taking a pause from therapy can mean deterioration and at other times much needed rest can help the process along. Time in chronic illness management can be both a hindrance and a great tool – it’s all about how well you understand time in the bigger picture.

There are varied techniques for working with the toll of time – including them in long healing processes is crucial. It is very possible and realistic to cope with the experience of time during therapy and the right translation can make all the difference in the world.

Predicting what time will bring – now that is much more difficult. Answering the question “How long the treatment will take” requires a prophetic ability… Knowing how long a patient has left to live? Not among my talents… (And it has been proven that such knowledge can be a self-fulfilling prophecy). Knowing how to cope with these questions is a whole different ballgame. Learning to live in the here-and-now can be very helpful (one technique) especially with the “how long do I have left” question. This perspective helps teach the value of the moment and thus promotes a positive pro-active attitude to help us get to the next “now” as best we can. The right philosophical outlook can change the very fear of death. Fear is one of the strongest time-stress factors. The budhistic philosophy, for example, sees the end of a life as the beginning of another (Re-incarnations) and thus the fear of death is greatly reduced. Another wonderful philosophy is the one Ekhart Tole teaches in his book “The Power of Now”. A life focused on the here and now allows much better coping with life as a whole and especially disease.

There are several more time related conflicts we can talk about:

1. How many treatments do I need in order to heal?

2. How about instant healing treatments? What value and what dangers do they offer?

3. What could possibly be bad about instant relief from discomforts and symptoms? (Mind you, I’m not talking here about making an illness go away instantly, only the symptoms), what benefits can there be here?

4. Treatment frequency – the rights, wrongs and maybes in planning a therapeutic plan.

I will talk of these issues and more in a future article

Who am I?

The internal and external factors which form and define us and the freedom to truly be ourselves

In seeking purpose I often come across people who find it hard to define who they are. What is their role in this world? What were they meant to do? Identifying the essence goes through a fascinating journey but often gets stuck at that very basic question. When one can't identify one's own essential being, it leaves a vacuum hard to fill. In this article I will address that question regarding the influencing factors.

If you were born in a faraway land and raised by a herd of wolves – how would you be different from today? Would you have reached the same values? Profession? Family? Obviously, it is hard to answer that question or even imagine a life beginning like that although there are such stories. Moreover, it is hard to identify all the factors that influenced our identity over the years in a way that we could imagine being without them.

In this article I would like to review the most meaningful factors and examine them from a spiritual perspective, one that relates to the fact that our deepest essence is that of a soul and therefore arrives profoundly formed even before we are born, from previous lifetimes.

First, the more familiar factors:

Parents, family and friends – the major influence on our identity comes from the adults who raised us, normally our parents. To an extent they are the deepest role models. Quite often people find themselves acting "just like their parents", usually to their disappointment. Many youngsters promise themselves they won't grow up to be like their parents, and they often go as far away as they can in areas in which they were revolted by their parents' behavior, only to find themselves unconsciously acting just as they promised themselves they never would.

The rest of the family's influence is usually less dominant in the early stages of life, but growing up, siblings and other close relatives play a significant role. We turn them into a source either of imitation or of endless clashes and thus factors that mold us by fire.

Childhood friends often have a very strong influence. During adolescence it is sometimes even stronger than that of our parents. Since at this stage of life they might not be any more aware of their essence and role in life than we are, their impact can be random and often very confusing.

Teachers throughout life can add depth and inspiration when we come across such teachers.

Social norms have a very strong impact on us even indirectly. Some professions lost much of their prestige like teaching (important or not – this is a stigma educators are fighting now-a-days). Many teachers naturally deny this fact. Another profession suffering from being "non-profitable" is art. On the other hand, professions which suffered from a low image just a century ago, such as surgery, became very popular. Choosing the path should reflect our being, especially if we want to succeed and even more so if we wish to enjoy our occupation. It turns out that people define themselves by socio-economical needs rather than by their true essence.

Despite all these factors, it is clear that they are not all it takes. For instance, it is known that twins growing up in the same environment with the same parents and social circles can still turn out very different. It seems as though the missing link is much more significant in our self-definition than all of the external factors put together. When we think of ourselves we have a "feeling" of something being just right for us. Many times it is not in our conscious knowledge, in which case it is a feeling of some unseen destiny. Sometimes it is discovered spontaneously and sometimes with the help of a mentor. Either way we can thus get much more clarity as to the important question of "Who am I?"

Without dealing with how to find the answer to this question, in this article I'd like to ask a much more basic one: what is this unseen factor which enables us such knowledge?

Believers would define it as the soul, that same component in us which is part of the Divine Whole. Atheists usually have a hard time accepting the possibility of such a factor even existing. In spiritual circles, the idea of the soul is taken seriously, not necessarily in a religious way. My experience in life enabled me to open many windows to the soul I am. I've experienced things considered "esoteric" in a way I could no longer rule them out. They left me with the understanding that there is a certain layer in us which came to this world ready-made and not just as raw material. Among those I shall mention a few which many might have experienced but may not have bothered to deepen their understanding of the experience:

1. When my first child was 5 minutes old, I looked in his eyes and the depth reflecting from them was great. Even then they had that look asking "Where have you been?" (The fact that I ran all the way to the nursery trying to catch up with the nurses, didn’t spare me that look…). As soon as he grabbed onto the finger I held out to him, he relaxed.
2. When he grew up and his sisters were born, we saw how each one of our children expressed abilities in different areas. They were exposed to the same toys more or less and the same parents (more or less J after all, time leaves us slightly changed with each passing day) and yet their abilities were very different from one another.
3. My personal experience with past lifetimes turned a "weird" area into part of my occupation. It was "too true to argue with" – even for a rational type like me.

One way or another I came to a realization which is common in spiritual teachings, and that is that our existence here occurs in a number of dimensions, one of them being physical and another spiritual (there are more but not for this article). The spiritual dimension, AKA the soul, is the "I" we all identify with when we do what's really important for us and for the world from an inspired place.

In the coming articles I will address different meanings of this understanding as well as techniques which enable us to make use of this information in order to recruit these dimensions for a fuller, healthier and happier life.

Inflammation in Holistic Eyes

There is a great gap between Allopathic and Holistic approaches to inflammation. Since most of us grew up with conventional medicine, it seems important to open your eyes to the Natural view-point so you can choose your approach in such a common situation.

Conventional definition:
 "Inflammation is an immune reaction to wounds, certain irritations and toxic invaders such as viruses, bacteria or fungi."

The holistic definition is somewhat different. Inflammation is a process initiated by the body to serve its needs. Indeed sometimes an inflammation can lose control and risk our lives but in most cases it doesn't.
 The idea in treating inflammation holistically is to monitor it and make sure it is not life-threatening but by no means to supress it or stop it before it reaches its goal.

If it is a short or one-time non-violent inflammation like a light eye sore, usually easing the symptoms can suffice. The problem begins when it is more severe, long-lasting or recurrent. In such cases we deal with a situation which requires deep inquiry and treatment in order to help the body finish its task and break the inflammatory cycle.

In order to understand how we do this in Natural Medicine, here is some useful information regarding inflammation, from a Naturopathic perspective:

1. Usually inflammation flourishes in acidic tissue environment. Not the extreme acidity like in the stomach while digesting protein, but rather a slight change in acidity in the body tissues.
2. The body uses several materials in order to limit the activity of the inflammation it creates. Among these are vitamin C, vitamin A and zinc. Lack in one or more of them can make it hard for the body to complete the job and/or to heal the tissues afterwards.
3. In inflammation, like in all life processes in life, the engine behind the body's work is our life force. If we are vital enough, these processes work better, and if we are tired and worn, body systems don't function that well. According to Naturopathic approach, the difference between an acute disease (short, powerful and efficient) and a chronic disease (longer lasting, less effective and often doesn't end without help) is due to the person's vitality. One who is not vital enough to end the inflammation will stay with it until vitality is restored.

From these three points come a few simple and very helpful recommendations:

1. Increase plant-source foods (preferably organic since most of the pesticides are very acidic) and decrease animal foods. Veganism or vegetarianism is not always required for healing but it can definitely help ease and shorten suffering from long or severe inflammations.
2. Stress management can help a lot in improving the body's abilities and thus shortens inflammation processes accordingly.
3. Natural dietary supplements, adjusted by a professional naturopath or holistic nutritionist according to personal needs, are highly recommended.
4. Sufficient rest is highly vital for our health, so get enough sleep (around 8 hours a night, preferably starting at 10pm or no later than 11pm), and do not test your body's limits by spending too much energy over a long period of time.

Shifting - Moving out of stuckness

Everyone knows what it's like to be stuck. To be addicted or just repeating the same mistakes over and over again… To be in an unhealthy habit, and keep it never-the-less.

The challenge is obvious – how do we move out of this stuckness?

Whether the reason for this was illness, a bad situation in life or just tiredness the basic answer is the same: Choose the right move and do it. Alone this will not work but acting on something we consider of value helps greatly. Choose something that will make you feel happy and is meaningful in your eyes.

To this we must add a few tools to make it work:

1. Meditation: The common denominator of all the stuckness examples above is the circular vibe of addiction. Even repeated mistakes have this scent. The strongest tool for shifting out of this addictive vibe is quiet meditation. The Chinese have a saying that a weak spleen is the source of all addictions and that over thinking weakens the spleen. The best spleen tonifying technique is meditation. My favorite method is Zen style sitting meditation. Practicing this daily for as long as it takes to feel some shifting in mindset is crucial (This can take a few minutes for most people but may take longer some days or for others).
2. Creative work: Whether as your meaningful activity or in addition to it, creativity can do wonders for shifting your vibe. You don’t want to be focused on show art that needs to stand up to any standards, just personal creativity.
3. Physical exercise: Both for the brain chemicals and for distressing as well as to simply clear the mind – nothing works like sports.
4. De-stressing: I cannot stress this enough ;)
5. Focused work on the issue itself: If this is a relationship issue then the relationship itself will need work on your own as well as with your partner. If this is an addiction then clearing the addictive habit requires some focused work (With correlated habits, social addiction etc.). Health issues need treatment obviously and mistake… Well repeated mistakes are obviously something to ponder but just not too much or you will weaken your spleen… There is a Bach flower remedy for those who keep repeating the same mistakes.

Another point to consider in all this is the value of a mentor during shifts. Someone that can look at the issue with you and reflect for you. Give you working tools or just go through the process above with you, meditating together, helping you heal or talking with both sides of the relationship.

Good luck with your shift and you are welcome to talk to me if you need :)

Winter is coming

It seems the weather has gone mad. At least here in Israel the climate changes are rather clear. For a change winter has come to Israel fully blown and clear (+ extra rough winds and storms).

I am quite sure you all make a point of preparing your car for winter.

How about your body?

Here is a collection of tips for a healthy winter:

1. Whether you are already taking Zinc and vitamin C or not – if you haven’t tested their levels recently (Using the urine C test and Zinc taste tally) now is a good time to do so. During changes in weather and especially winter the body uses up greater amounts of both to boost the immune system. If low taking them regularly may be prudent.
2. It’s soup season! Now is the time to take out all those warming spices (Cinnamon bark, Black pepper, cardamom, Dry ginger etc.) alongside the sweat inducers (Fresh ginger, mint leaves and cinnamon twigs) together they form a wonderfully tasty preventative measure for the flu season.
3. Cold induced rigidity reduces blood flow and with it the immune system. Engaging in sports (Especially Qi Gong the Qi mover) warms the body nicely.
4. Using massage to soften the cold stiffness is also useful and very fun. Adding warming aromatic oils makes the massage even more effective.
5. Keeping your home aired out – including the bedrooms, is very important in winter (Challenging during very cold days and night) – stale air does little good and much bad to our health… Long term might introduce mold and that is very unhealthy.
6. Other tools worth keeping handy during winter: Zinc lozenges for that sore throat and our Chinese winter formula for all mild illnesses of winter (Always keep one in your freezer for a rainy day)
7. Are you one of those that tend to get sick several times during a winter? Come in for an appointment and we will work on prevention (Food, rest, supplements, herbs and the cherry on top: moxa. This Chinese tool involves burning Chinese mugwart over Chinese acupuncture points and/or needles. It is a very effective Immune system booster among other benefits).

We wish you a pleasant, rainy and most of all healthy winter

Love in a Spiritual Mirror

What is Love?

The common approach is that Love is the only real magic in this world. It is the spark that occurs between people who chose to come close to each other or are blood-related. It is the glue connecting spouses or family members. It is also common to think that Love is a kind of trading coin… We say "I grant her love" and thus actually create one of the most painful human assumptions – without others we can't have love. Self-love is often judged as "Narcissism" (excess self love which comes at others' expense).

Nowadays it is understood that Love grows the more it is "given"' and that it is possible to love several people in our lives (usually meaning many family members and one lover, or more one after the other).

What I want to share with you today is a spiritual perspective which changes the rules of the game. From my experience but also from ancient traditions, there is another truth which has a great influence on our love life.

First insight:

The soul is made of Love. Love is our basic essence. To say that we lack love is like a fish in water saying that it feels dry…

Second insight:

Love cannot be “given”. If love is our essence and “What we are made of”, it is not really something we can give to another.

Third insight:

When we are connected to our loving essence we create an inspirational field of love around us. Anyone who enters our field will feel our love though it and will be inspired to connect to his or her own loving essence. In other words: When we feel we are sharing love it is true to say we are inspiring or inspired by love.

Forth insight:

When we feel loved “Our heart expands”. This familiar sensation reflects a fascinating truth – our heart organ may stay the same size but our heart sensation expands on the spiritual level and with it the direct channel to our loving essence (which is our spiritual body). The more we love, the more our heart widens and can contain more of our essence AKA love. At the same time we become a growing source of inspiration of love and become more sensitive to receive love inspiration by others.

Fifth insight:

Since the only kind of love we can contain is ours and is a piece of our soul, we need no one else in our lives in order to feel and be filled with love and until we can fully comprehend this we will be dependent on others. This does not mean we don’t need anyone in our lives or that we are better off alone. Mutual loving inspirations (Falling in love) raises our capacity for experiencing love and that is why together is stronger. It can also be more fun. Sharing a loving life empowers them.

More to come…

I would love to hear your opinions and reflections on this article