I know that as I write this that I am not really following just the path of regimen and nutrition as I first suggested I would. As my blog progresses I have come to realize that it is pretty hard to simply talk about one aspect of who we are without addressing the other so-called body members. If you have read my book then you understand what I am talking about. If not then here is a brief summary;
we are composed of four body members, according to Rudolf Steiner - the physical/chemical body that is similar to all things visible to the eye, that which we can touch and experience in a physical way. Then we have an Etheric or life body, which is the body of fluids and energetic movement, the Etheric is the cosmic orgonotic energy which infuses everything with life energy, the source if you will for life at a basic level. These two make up our "Lower-Man" or earthly inherent being.
Then there is our Astral body which is our emotional, spiritual enlivening body of desires and aversions which is unique to every one of us. Last but not least we have our Ego, that essence of who we are as a true individual the "I" being. The I, or true self is the creator and keeper of our thoughts and beliefs about who we are. These two are what is called the "Upper-Man" or our Karmic/cosmic being.
Each of these body members follows their own unique laws and principles when falling in to or out of health. Keep these in mind since I will often refer to each body member when talking about health and healing and it would help if you understood them in some way!
Ok, so my inspiration for this blog was recent work with clients where I was helping them to understand the difference between their physical ailments that stem from a disruption merely at the physical level, such as say banging your leg on a solid object and having a large bruise (created in the physical by the etheric) and the pain (which is felt in the Astral body) that accompanies this. Or an ailment that stems from an emotional or mental belief that is blocked or repressed in some way that may be creating physical disturbances. These physical disturbances then must be recognized as simply being the messengers of this bigger message. For example, lets say that you are feeling unloved, and moody, like any thing could make you cry, have a pulsating headache with flushes of heat, feel thirsty a lot but don't really want to drink and are having some slight nausea and or dizziness. All of these symptoms relate to the same issue; the feeling of being unloved or abandoned. This generally comes from something in your life today that is stirring up this old belief pattern from childhood. If the original event was large enough or long enough and meant for you since it occurred, then it will have created an internal pattern and blockage in your etheric life force, that you now carry with you through out your life. It will "flare" at times either when you are at a point that you need to or are able to deal with it or when ever you are presented with a similar outward event that reminds you of it.
The problem I see most often is that we are so busy living our life NOT in the MOMENT, such as dwelling on past issues that we can't change or fretting about the future and where we need to go, that we are not attentive enough to ourselves to be aware of this underlying state that is affecting us.
But in order to be healthy free flowing individuals we need to be attentive to how we are feeling at all moments, so that we can be prepared to work through an old issues that may be blocking us from living always fully in the moment. I realize this is not an easy task but it is one that we all must learn. Once we are able to be fully attentive to ourselves at any time then we can be free!
Those of you who are still carrying a lot of old emotional baggage and unhealthy belief structures will probably need outside objective help in recognizing these issues. Some one to explain that those crazy physical symptoms like the ones I described above are due to a disruption of our soul(emotional) and spiritual(thoughts/beliefs) bodies, and need to be worked through properly in order to release them fully and for good.
One really good way to find out if you are struggling with an old belief or emotional blockage is to be attentive to your thoughts and emotions and when you are constantly being triggered emotionally by some one or some event and you feel like you have no control over these feelings, know that this is YOUR stuff being stirred up in order for you to be aware of it. Know that these feelings and thoughts are YOURS, and that the only way to eliminate them for good is to take ownership of them and do something to release them appropriately. Do some self work, by sitting and ruminating on what has come up, ask the universe for clarification and try to discover exactly what is triggering this state and what exactly the state is. Is it anger, fear, deep grief, lack of self worth, feeling devalued etc.
Remember even though it seems to be coming from outside and "at" you, the actual things you feel is yours and your choice to deal with.
Once we are able to recognize what our body is trying to tell us then we can work through the state using a number of different therapies. The one I employ the most is called Homotonic or Homeopathic remedies, because they are fast, efficient and do not create any "side-effects'. In other words a dynamic medicine that is in an energetic form that can be used according to a natural law, that will help our life force to overcome fully the emotional or mental state we are carrying. In the case I described above the remedy that would aptly fit that state is known as Pulsatilla. The remedy can also be prescribed for many other types of ailments and pathology but when looking for a remedy that best fits your state of mind this is going to be the one that helps you the most in removing the state fully and allowing you to resolve, overcome and move upward and onward with your life quickly. Also remember that potency is significant. I will discuss this in another blog.
I hope this helps you to understand a little bit of how to tell the difference between true physical disturbances or disturbances that come about due to mental or emotional issues that need to be worked through.
A small side note - Rudolf Steiner mapped out how long each body member takes to fully recover or get over something; The physical body takes roughly a whole year before it has completely resolved a major disturbance. The Etheric body takes roughly 30 days, the Astral or emotional body takes 7 days and our Ego or "I" being can over come a belief in just 24 hours, given the right support!
Thank you for taking the time to read this,
gratitude and blessings to you today.
Andrea
Friday, May 27, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Regimen and nutrition continued - typologies
During the early years of my journey in to finding true health for myself, I came across a body typology diet or lifestyle that was based on blood typing. What that means is that according to what blood type you are; A, B, AB or O plays a significant role in what foods work best with your blood type. Again, like the glandular typing I won't go in to huge detail since there is lots of information about this on the Internet or you can buy Peter D'Adamo book. However, the basic premise is that each blood type is a reflection of different inherent backgrounds and evolutions of humans from the time of the nomads [O blood type who are more protein/meat eaters], hunter gatherers [A blood type who are more vegetarian, low fat eaters], to today's more diverse combinations of ethnicities and most modern blood types B and AB which are more omnivorous and can handle a wide variety of food types.
For myself I am an O blood type which in it's basic form means that I am the oldest most common type, this type is designed to be more of a meat eater according to D'Adamo. What I have found though personally and professionally is that the blood type diet is a very small piece of the puzzle. Yes it does have significance in what types of food groups the individual should be eating for optimum health. However, it only applies for specific food groups. Such as for an O type being classified as a protein/meat eater tends to be very broad and not very specific. But if you add in metabolic typing to this you can individualize it much more and discover more specific foods within that group that are best suited to that individual. As an example say you are an O type but you have a very alkaline system and are a slow oxidative, in other words you may be a meat eater but your digestive system is not adequately set up with enough enzymes and acidity to break down the heavy protein in dark meat in to useable energy. Thus if you where to eat a large steak you would feel very slow and lethargic afterwards as your body tries diligently to figure out how to process this heavy protein. You would probably feel better on lighter meats or vegetable protein sources. Whereas the O blood type individuals with a higher metabolic rate, will be able to easily break down the heavier purines in dark meats and actually feel more energized after eating these food sources but less so after having only vegetable proteins.
I have also come across many A blood types that are supposed to be vegetarians, who are very fast high oxidative types, thus they process their foods rather quickly and need higher amounts of protein and minerals and fats in their diet. If these individuals choose to be vegetarians and do not get high protein sources daily or supplement with minerals and high B12, then they usually end up with significant degeneration especially in their bones, nails and hair.
So as you can see just choosing one type diet over another is not the way to true health. What we must do as individuals is look at all the different ways our own unique body works and eat according to how we know foods make us feel and function. In other words pay attention to your body it knows best!
Even our age plays a significant part of our nutritional makeup. As we age our metabolism naturally slows down. Unless you are running marathons at age 40 and up then your protein intake needs to decrease yearly. There simply is no growth going on and or body building, again unless you are an extreme athlete, thus you need to always be monitoring your food intake and energy levels to maintain your own health and equilibrium. No matter what blood type you are.
From here I would like you to go and do some personal research. Find out your blood type, do an online survey and discover your metabolic rate, find out how you react to certain foods, what works best for you and what does not. Remember it is YOUR body so take care of it, love it by taking ownership of it and treating as well as you would like to be treated. That is the only way to truly find out how to feed your body in order to have the optimal energy and weight for your physical structure. One of the best ways of course to do this is after finding out these two types that fit you best, stick to the diet suggestions, eliminate all the food sources that are not recommended for you and see how you feel after one month. If you haven't noticed any significant improvement it may be due to several factors.
A. Either you where already eating fairly close to your body type and didn't need to make significant changes. If this is so then you should normally have constant energy and mood most of the time.
B. You did not change your diet enough to get noticeable results. Quite often we have trouble truly letting go of certain food types that we have eaten all our life and we some how convince ourselves that its still ok to eat it. If your typology results have asked you to remove a certain food source give your self the opportunity to truly find out if you will feel better without it for at least a month.
Another way to find out if you are eating appropriately is to test your body Ph levels. Get yourself a Ph testing kit from a local drug store and every morning and evening test saliva and urine Ph. It should sit around 6.7. If it is not then you are not eating properly. continue to monitor this while you are making changes and once you get your diet properly adjusted for a continuous period of time your Ph should begin to normalize and stay consistent. When you body Ph is perfect then you will know that your body is functioning at its optimum. You will also not be susceptible to illnesses since bacteria and virus only resonate in a body which is deficient one way or another.
Remember it is ok to periodically eat things that are not good for you, provided you are consciously aware that is what you are doing and you only do it in small amounts and not all the time. Also be willing to pay the price if your health is not at its optimum when you eat these foods then you are going to feel the effects via sluggish digestion, possibly headaches, improper elimination, energy fluctuations and emotional imbalances.
Life is meant to be enjoyed but It will be much more enjoyable when you feel and look great for yourself as much as possible.
Live, love, laugh and eat according to your unique body mix of typologies!
Andrea
For myself I am an O blood type which in it's basic form means that I am the oldest most common type, this type is designed to be more of a meat eater according to D'Adamo. What I have found though personally and professionally is that the blood type diet is a very small piece of the puzzle. Yes it does have significance in what types of food groups the individual should be eating for optimum health. However, it only applies for specific food groups. Such as for an O type being classified as a protein/meat eater tends to be very broad and not very specific. But if you add in metabolic typing to this you can individualize it much more and discover more specific foods within that group that are best suited to that individual. As an example say you are an O type but you have a very alkaline system and are a slow oxidative, in other words you may be a meat eater but your digestive system is not adequately set up with enough enzymes and acidity to break down the heavy protein in dark meat in to useable energy. Thus if you where to eat a large steak you would feel very slow and lethargic afterwards as your body tries diligently to figure out how to process this heavy protein. You would probably feel better on lighter meats or vegetable protein sources. Whereas the O blood type individuals with a higher metabolic rate, will be able to easily break down the heavier purines in dark meats and actually feel more energized after eating these food sources but less so after having only vegetable proteins.
I have also come across many A blood types that are supposed to be vegetarians, who are very fast high oxidative types, thus they process their foods rather quickly and need higher amounts of protein and minerals and fats in their diet. If these individuals choose to be vegetarians and do not get high protein sources daily or supplement with minerals and high B12, then they usually end up with significant degeneration especially in their bones, nails and hair.
So as you can see just choosing one type diet over another is not the way to true health. What we must do as individuals is look at all the different ways our own unique body works and eat according to how we know foods make us feel and function. In other words pay attention to your body it knows best!
Even our age plays a significant part of our nutritional makeup. As we age our metabolism naturally slows down. Unless you are running marathons at age 40 and up then your protein intake needs to decrease yearly. There simply is no growth going on and or body building, again unless you are an extreme athlete, thus you need to always be monitoring your food intake and energy levels to maintain your own health and equilibrium. No matter what blood type you are.
From here I would like you to go and do some personal research. Find out your blood type, do an online survey and discover your metabolic rate, find out how you react to certain foods, what works best for you and what does not. Remember it is YOUR body so take care of it, love it by taking ownership of it and treating as well as you would like to be treated. That is the only way to truly find out how to feed your body in order to have the optimal energy and weight for your physical structure. One of the best ways of course to do this is after finding out these two types that fit you best, stick to the diet suggestions, eliminate all the food sources that are not recommended for you and see how you feel after one month. If you haven't noticed any significant improvement it may be due to several factors.
A. Either you where already eating fairly close to your body type and didn't need to make significant changes. If this is so then you should normally have constant energy and mood most of the time.
B. You did not change your diet enough to get noticeable results. Quite often we have trouble truly letting go of certain food types that we have eaten all our life and we some how convince ourselves that its still ok to eat it. If your typology results have asked you to remove a certain food source give your self the opportunity to truly find out if you will feel better without it for at least a month.
Another way to find out if you are eating appropriately is to test your body Ph levels. Get yourself a Ph testing kit from a local drug store and every morning and evening test saliva and urine Ph. It should sit around 6.7. If it is not then you are not eating properly. continue to monitor this while you are making changes and once you get your diet properly adjusted for a continuous period of time your Ph should begin to normalize and stay consistent. When you body Ph is perfect then you will know that your body is functioning at its optimum. You will also not be susceptible to illnesses since bacteria and virus only resonate in a body which is deficient one way or another.
Remember it is ok to periodically eat things that are not good for you, provided you are consciously aware that is what you are doing and you only do it in small amounts and not all the time. Also be willing to pay the price if your health is not at its optimum when you eat these foods then you are going to feel the effects via sluggish digestion, possibly headaches, improper elimination, energy fluctuations and emotional imbalances.
Life is meant to be enjoyed but It will be much more enjoyable when you feel and look great for yourself as much as possible.
Live, love, laugh and eat according to your unique body mix of typologies!
Andrea
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