Clearing out the Funk

Living in Southern Alberta we get winter! And when we get winter, we GET winter! We find ourselves staying inside longer and avoiding the healing power of the outdoors. This often leads to, what I like to call "Steeping in a cloud of funk". As a Reiki Master, sometimes it is not feasible to simply open a window after a session where a lot of clearing has occurred. Windows tend to freeze shut when it is minus 30. So what do we do? I will take a quick moment and set my intention. Intention is always the key. Simply washing my hands with the intention that the negative energy is being washed away is often enough. A little sage and a prayer in my space afterwards is just as effective. I have some very special blankets that I keep on my healing table, I like to take those out and hang them on the line. Yes even when it is minus 30! If that is not an option, set them on fluff in the drier for a few minutes. Fresh air is by far the best remedy for clearing away your funk. I would suggest that even in your home, leave the front door open for a couple of extra seconds as you set your things down inside, turn your bathroom fan on if you live in an apartment and leaving your door open isn't ideal. Every time you have a shower picture that negativity leaving you and fill your space with loving light. Your intention is the key and it is available to everyone! The more you allow yourself to tune into what is yours and what is simply trapped funk, the easier it is to release it and the easier it becomes to honor yourself! For that it what all healing starts with. The honoring of ourselves. Perfect and whole just as we are. One Earth. :)

Cleaner home means a Clearer Ohm...

Trying to clean your house can be a daunting chore, especially when you are aiming to be green about the whole process. When I first started on this journey it was a bit confusing. There I stood in the cleaning isle of the store looking for better alternatives and realized every 'green' item I looked at did NOT give me a list of ingredients. It then dawned on me the power of labeling and misconception. Even when I would go to our lovely Natural shops, when I would read the fine print of ingredients there was a falsity in the label. We, as a society have come to just accept that if it says 'Green' or 'Natural' or even has a green coloured label with pretty nature scenes that yep, it must be okay because industry wouldn't mislead us. Pooh!! I was fortunate enough to have found a lovely product quite soon on my journey. Liquid Castille Soap. WOWZA! For under $20 I had a half liter of soap that would do whatever I needed and all it required was some dilution with water and some Tea Tree oil. Tea Tree is a natural disinfectant with anti fungal properties as well it has a hundred of other uses. Quite literally it is a staple in my home. My cleaning supply bill went from roughly $50-$100 a month (6 years ago) to less than $50 every 2-3 months! Of course I was so enamored by it I just had to figure out a way to make this little cleaning wonder....and even though the process takes me 2 days it is so very worth it! 1 batch will yield me 8-10 950 ml jars of soap. 2 jars will do me at least 1 month! 1 month of; Shampoo for 4, floors, dishes, laundry, and bathrooms for 4! 2 of my 4 are kids! Yes I said shampoo! The trick is in the dilution. For shampoo I do roughly a 2 part soap 1 part water mix. Sometimes I will reduce it a little more if it feels too drying. I warn you though, if you are shampooing with this for the first time, it will take 2-3 washes for your hair to feel clean. Regular shampoo has a lot of junky residue that is left on you hair to make it feel manageable, so it takes a bit clean that off. Another little benefit is you kind of have to take care of your diet and water intake. Because it rinses clean and doesn't leave a build up of stuff on your hair, you are unable to hide behind it and with me I notice if I haven't been hydrating myself my hair feels dry and frizzy! With liquid castille soap I went from having a cupboard under the kitchen and bathroom sink full of cleaning products for my home and body to 1 bottle of liquid soap. Add in a bottle of vinegar and a box of baking soda I am unstoppable! My home is clean and fresh. I am also free from worrying if I am harming the Environment or my family (fur babies included) in my quest for a clean home. Loving the Earth doesn't mean I have to settle for dingy, it simply means I have to be more mindful of my everyday processes.I have learned to make sure I look beyond the colourful label and read the fine print. Because in the end a clean home means nothing if the Earth it sits on is dead. I may only be one person, a small wee drop in the puddle, but I am another drop added to many that will be the waves of change! 'When we relearn to love ourselves, we can obtain and change anything!' One Earth.

Eczema

I get alot of questions regarding eczema and if natural soaps will help. Well of course it will! Eczema is the body's way of telling you that there is something in the environment that is not agreeing with you. It could be food related. Most of us,whether we wish to acknowledge it or not, can not handle the junk in our processed foods. From MSG (not usually labelled MSG) to sodium, sugar, and all the other stuff you need a degree to pronounce and create. There are external irritants such as pesticides, laundry detergent, fabric softener, soaps, lotions and then there are triggers such as stress and anxiety and let's not forget the way antibiotics strip away our natural immune system. I have 2 children and all of these factors have had a hand developing their eczema. What a journey! One thing I have learned is pay attention! There will always be a pattern with flare ups. One great way to deal and reduce the flare ups is Probiotics. They restore the natural flora in our systems that help our bodies deal with such stresses. It rebuilds our immune systems. Along with these cleaning up our diet to include more fresh produce and real foods is essential. It is all related. And let us not forget that what you put on your body is just as vital as what we put in our body. Our lovely skin is our largest organ and our biggest clue to what is going on with us. Your biggest defense is to read the labels!! Not the dietary mumbo jumbo, I mean READ the ingredients! Just because the label says Organic or Natural does not mean that it is. It is one of society's biggest cons because industry will stop at nothing to make their money including misleading labels. Seem daunting? It doesn't have to be. Find a local soaper, buy food from your farmers markets or grow your own. It starts will small steps, but even the smallest of steps will make a huge difference. Industry won't notice your not buying their products, but your body sure as heck will! My general rule of thumb is if it has a commercial it probably isn't that good for you. One Earth.