Cardamom is known as one of the world’s most expensive spices. Cardamom essential oil is steam distilled from perfectly ripened seeds.
Aromatically, it is uplifting, refreshing and invigorating. It may be beneficial for clearing the mind and confusion and could bring you BLISS!
The body systems affected by cardamom are digestive and respiratory.*
Cardamom may help ease indigestion and maintain overall gastrointestinal health.*
It promotes clear breathing and maintains respiratory health.*
It’s a flavorful spice for cooking and baking for great Indian flavor.
You can take cardamom internally to help alleviate occasional feelings of stomach discomfort.*
Inhale for feelings of mental clarity.
Breathe in for a sense of openness and clear head.
This oil may deliver a cool sensation on the skin.
Cardamom blends well with other oils such as bergamot, cedarwood, cinnamon, clove, orange, rose and ylang ylang.
Not all essential oils are created equal. Taking oils internally requires having the purest oils and knowing how to use them. To obtain 100% Pure Certified Therapeutic Grade essential oils, CLICK HERE or fill out the form below for more information.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
I'm writing today on Alternative Medicinebecause it's something that can be used effectively for Self-Care. I don't know what I would do without people who approach medicine from the whole body perspective and not just from a symptomatic viewpoint. This article will outline what Alternative Medicine is and help you identify whether or not you need different options when it comes to your health care.
I don't have a particular story. I'm just someone who has embraced a wide variety of Self-Care tools and they have worked for me. Let's start by defining the term Alternative Medicine.
Alternative Medicine is any range of medical therapies that are not regarded as orthodox by the medical profession. Examples are herbalism, homeopathy and acupuncture. The more appropriate term used now is CAM or Complimentary and Alternative Medicine. There are 5 known categories of CAM therapies.
1. Alternative Medical Systems
Homeopathic and Naturopathic therapies developed apart from modern conventional Western medicine and have their own theories and practices. Eastern methods include Ayurveda (a sister practice to yoga) and Chinese Medicine.
2. Mind Body Therapy
Because the mind and body are woven together and intricately connected, many therapies seek to enhance the mind's capacity to affect bodily function and symptoms. Patient support groups and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy are two examples of CAM therapies. Yoga, meditation, prayer, hypnosis and art therapies such as music, dance and art are all considered mind-body healing tools.
3. Biologically Based Therapies
Often times it will be determined that food causes allergies and the diet is missing crucial elements. In these cases, a variety of herbs, special diets and supplements may be prescribed to help the body come back to homeostasis.
4. Manipulative and Body-Based Therapies
Have you ever been in a car accident and had whiplash? This is where a chiropractor or massage therapist might be needed. Rolfing is another body-based therapy that can help with structural integrity.
5. Energy Therapies
There are two types of energy therapies: Biofield and Bioelectromagnetic
Biofield – these are intended to affect energy fields surrounding and penetrating the human body. There's not a lot of science behind these therapies. Qi Gong, Reiki and Therapeutic Touch are considered the main biofield energy therapies.
Bioelectromagnetic – involve the unconventional use of electromagnetic fields, such as pulsed fields, magnetic fields or alternating current or direct current fields.
The Difference Between Complementary and Alternative Medicine: What's the difference?
Complementary and Alternative Medicine have often been lumped together; however, there is actually a difference between the two.
Complementary medicine refers to healing practices and products that work together with traditional medicine. One example might be a cancer patient receiving chemotherapy who may also undergo acupuncture or other therapies to help manage chemo side effects like nausea and vomiting.
Alternative medicine differs in that it is not used as a complement to, but rather as a substitute for traditional therapy. An example would be a cancer patient who decides against recommended chemotherapy and instead chooses to treat the disease with specific dietary changes.
A third type of medicine, Integrative Medicine, combines CAM with traditional Western therapies. I tend to go to doctors who practice IM because they aren't just symptom based. The aim of IM is to get to the root of a problem whether it's biological, emotional/mental/psychological or a combination of both. An example of both mental and physical would be discovering that heart palpatations were caused by mental anxiety.
An IM doctor will look at your whole system and during your first visit, they might schedule you for an hour to get your history and ask you about your lifestyle. The downside is that it's typically expensive for your first visit and IMs aren't usually covered by insurance. I go to an IM for my hormone regulation versus my OB/GYN. The reason is because my IM is super well-versed in how hormones work in the body and she can test and discover how my hormones work in particular. She will not prescribe synthetic hormones or any kind of prescription drug that might affect the brain such as anti-depressants. My OB/GYN is willing to prescribe a medicine that could affect the brain and my IM is not willing to do that, so I prefer the more natural route.
But when I have a cough I can't get rid of, I head over to my regular MD, because the office will get me in quickly, it's covered by insurance and I can get meds right away if I need them. The IM doesn't work as quickly because they are more preventative in nature – not so much emergency physicians.
Chiropractic, Rolfing, Acupuncture and Massage have all benefited me and so many other people. The key to getting effective treatment is to get a referral from a friend, a doctor or someone whose opinion you trust. There are some incompetent medical professionals out there so be alert. When you hear the word, "Quack", it means they are not practicing with great skill and may be unethical.
Whether or not you choose to use CAM or Internal Medicine as a complement to your current medical care, you should know about the available options out there. One way to know if you should try CAM or IM is if all conventional methods have failed for an issue you've been dealing with. Sometimes a Naturopathic Physician can hone right in on the problem and help you heal quickly.
Again, I highly recommend getting a referral from someone you trust before using alternative therapies. Keep in mind that not all therapies work for all people. Where acupuncture might help one person with a frozen shoulder, another might need physical therapy. Sometimes you have to try several different therapies to find the one that works for you.
For good self-care, you should open your mind to Complementary and Alternative Medicine as it just might be the solution to one of your health care concerns.
Share your opinions about CAM and IM in the comment section below!
You Might Be Surprised At What This Ancient Healing Art Can Do by Dr. Bruce Eichelberger
"Your body knows how to heal… it just needs the proper reminder of how." ~ Dr. Bruce Eichelberger
For thousands of years, the Chinese have known acupuncture works.
Now, modern research shows how. These studies come from Johns Hopkins. They have found ways acupuncture creates change in the body. Here is a quick summary of their findings.
Acupuncture:
Triggers electromagnetic signals. Acupuncture points are strategic conductors of electromagnetic signals. Stimulating them enables electromagnetic signals to be relayed at greater-than-normal rates. These signals can start the flow of pain-killing biochemicals, such as endorphins. They can also release immune system cells to specific body sites.
Activates the body's natural pain killers. Acupuncture releases opioids. These are naturally-occurring chemicals in the brain that reduce pain. They can also induce sleep. These chemicals are part of acupuncture's pain-relieving effects.
Stimulates of the hypothalamus. This part of the brain controls many body functions. Among them:
Hormone balance
Temperature regulation
Basic functions like thirst, hunger, sleep, mood and sex drive
Metabolic balance
Stimulates the pituitary gland. This is often called the "master gland." It supplies some of the body's most crucial hormones. These hormones regulate many aspects of your body, including:
Growth hormone
Thyroid function
Sex hormones
Blood pressure
Energy metabolism
Alters brain chemistry. Acupuncture changes brain chemistry in a positive way. It changes the release of neurotransmitters. These are brain substances that stimulate or inhibit nerve impulses. It also changes neurohormones. These are natural brain chemicals that can change the structure or activity of organs.
As you can see, there is more to acupuncture than most people think. These studies show the physiological effects it triggers. But of course there is also more to it.
In fact, Classical Five Element Acupuncture is famous for working at multiple levels. Of course it helps the body function better. But it also improves emotional balance and mental balance. I've even seen it be a catalyst for important spiritual growth.
So when you think of acupuncture, don't just think of pain relief. There is so much more it can help.
Dr. Bruce Eichelberger is the founder and producer of Alternative Medicine Blog "Balance Point": http://www.balancepointblog.com/
No one wants to hear they have been diagnosed with Muscular Sclerosis. Jennifer Martin decided early on that she was going to take the positive route and research all the best ways to care for her self!Listen to this interview and find out what she suggests YOU do if you have recently been diagnosed with MS or even if you have been challenged with some other illness life change. She finds plenty of ways to experience bliss in spite of her circumstances. You can too!
Jennifer Martin became interested in Mindfulness over twelve years ago after being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. A lifetime believer in the power of the mind/body connection and their natural ability to heal themselves, she was confident that if she could shift her relationship to stress she could improve her overall wellness. After graduating from Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction program and experiencing the many benefits in her own personal life, she became passionate about Mindfulness and sharing it with others. Jennifer graduated from the Institute of Life Coach Training and is a certified Life Coach specializing in women’s health and wellness. After enjoying the benefits o A Mindfulness Life Center in Scottsdale as a member, she began working there teaching mindfulness meditation and an 8-week series that is an Introduction to Mindfulness for Stress Reduction so that others could also learn to experience the benefits of Mindfulness in their own lives.
Jennifer grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut and relocated to Arizona five years ago with her husband, their two teenage daughters, and their two miniature dachshunds. She graduated from the University of Vermont with a BS degree in Fashion Merchandising and then worked in corporate sales for ten years for two Fortune 500 companies before leaving the corporate world to raise their two daughters. She graduated as a certified Life Coach from The Institute of Life Coach Training specializing in women’s health and wellness. Currently a Mindfulness instructor at A Mindfulness Life Center in Scottsdale, AZ.
In this audio interview (click the screen below), Bliss Buddy Guest Roseann Zaft explains how you can begin to lose weight, prevent serious disease and get healthier by eliminating sugar from your diet. Towards the end of the interview she gives us 7 tips to help us get started and it's not that hard!
Roseann is the Owner of LIVEFIT which is a holistic health coaching business. She is a board certified Holistic Health and Nutrition Coach, and a member of the American Association of Drugless Practitioners (AADP). She is also a Certified Fitness Trainer and Yoga Therapist. Her lust for life is infectious and inspiring, and for her clients she combines wellness expertise with loving kindness.
Roseann works with busy women and men helping them to find solutions to balance fitness and nutrition so that they can live fit. Together they create successful strategies for health, happiness and harmony in all areas of life. For 17 yrs. she has specialized in helping people overcome their fitness and health challenges through increasing endurance, flexibility, power, mobility, stability, and strength in their body while improving their confidence and commitment to living a healthier life.
Through educational programs and 1-1 coaching, Roseann helps clients find a deeper understanding of how their body works and how to feed it for optimal energy to heal their bodies from the inside out.
Roseann is trained and certified in numerous modalities which you can read about on her website at www.roseannzaft.com.
Nutrition and Fitness expert Michele Rusinko shares why we women tend to accumulate belly fat and what we can do to tone it way down. Listen to our interview below by clicking on the pretty picture.
Michele Rusinko, inspired by her own healthy transformation, studied at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and became a board-certified integrative nutrition health coach. Her passion for cooking and recipe developing led her to perform healthy cooking demos at Whole Foods Markets, Scottsdale resorts and other local Phoenix area venues. Michele is also a passionate speaker on wellness and is an ACE-certified personal trainer.
In late 2013, she published her first book, “Simply Seasonal: a Simple Guide to Eating Delicious and Nutritious Food” after Dr. Mark Hyman released two of her recipes in his book “The Blood Sugar Solution Cookbook”. Previously, Michele had a career in consumer product sales and marketing, traveling extensively and visiting all 50 U.S. states and 25 countries. Her philosophy is simple – making it easy to make good choices – and her mission is to change people’s lives for the better.
The Oil of Clarity
