Conscious Living Magazine Winter Issue 95

Australia’s Leading Magazine For Sustainable Healthy Living Established since 1989 Issue 95 Winter 2016

SYLVIA MARINA

REALISES HER ANCESTRAL DREAM

Music of Plant Consciousness Mobile Phones HORMONES & BREAST CANCER

Beech Bark MEDICINE FOR ARTHRITIS

After Death Communication RESOLVES GRIEF

Technology & Children IS YOUR CHILD AT RISK?

Community in Business Medical Cannabis HIGH ON HEALTH

Dr Sandra Cabot's Healthy Breast Cancer Prevention Guide

www.consciouslivingmagazine.com.au

Uplift your

Body • Mind • Spirit Experience Conscious Living Expo

Keynote Speakers Gail Thackray John Martin Anthony Grzelka Dr Sandra Cabot

November 4-6 Perth Convention Centre

Early Bird Tickets

On Sale Book Now

Over 120 Exhibitors, International Speakers, Psychic Mediums, Readings, Natural Therapies, Live Music, Sound Healing, FREE Workshops, Talks, Organic Food www.consciouslivingexpo.com.au

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EXPERIENCE MEDIUMSHIP AT ITS BEST! Anthony Grzelka – Australia’s Ghost Whisperer

Live at Perth’s Conscious Living Expo Sunday 6th November 12.30-2.30pm Perth Convention Centre In a live awe inspiring performance Anthony Grzelka will entertain AND enlighten, while at the same time having audiences questioning what they think about heaven and the afterlife. Anthony will answer questions about spirituality; give messages from loved ones passed and help with real life decisions. The moment Anthony opens the doors between this world and the next, anything can happen. Without fail the dearly departed will come through, each with a message of love or comfort for a loved-one in the audience. Pets too, are not shy in coming forward. Revelations given and predictions made throughout the event will take audiences on a spellbinding journey both emotionally and spiritually. Each connection made will be a step towards demystifying the spirit world and will leave audiences with one important message —

Anthony Grzelka stepped into the media’s

psychic spotlight over thirteen years ago and has rapidly risen to international acclaim earning him the title Australia's ‘Ghost Whisperer’. Endorsed

by America’s James Van Praagh the creator and executive producer of TV’s “Ghost Whisperer”, Anthony’s skill for connecting with and conveying messages from loved ones passed is simply astounding. Anthony has pioneered a method of communication he aptly refers to as “Soul Talking“ and his incredible success has led to a request from a team of USA doctors specializing in early onset Alzheimer’s, to spend time in the USA testing his Soul Talking technique. He has written three books; Medium Down Under, Life & Beyond: A

Medium’s Guide to Dealing with Life and Loss and Spooked

Spirit can and will communicate with the living!

EARLY BIRD TICKETS ON SALE BOOK NOW TO SECURE YOUR SEAT

From the Issue 95 Winter 2016

Hi Everyone

Publisher and Editor Patricia Hamilton patricia@consciousliving.net.au T: 08 9446 5883 Mobile 0418955396

Editors

We have all heard of people singing to their tomato plants who believe it makes them grow bigger and healthier.

Well now there is scientific proof that something is really happening. Read Miranda Munro’s article about how the new science of neurobiology is challenging our understanding of the plant kingdom. Next time you are in your garden you might give thought to how you connect to the trees and plants in your garden.

Co Editor Jacqueline Walker jacquie@consciousliving.net.au T: 08 9446 5883 Mobile 0427 277803 Assistant Editor Colleen Clay Colleen@consciousliving.net.au Exhibition & Advertising Sales National Patricia Hamilton patricia@consciousliving.net.au Tel (08) 9446 5883 mobile 0418 955396

Sylvia Marina ND, educator, author, and personal empowerment trainer shares her story – Discover more about this fascinating woman and how she realized her ancestral dream, from humble beginnings to international speaker and educator.

Subscriptions & Memberships Jacquie Walker subscribe2@consciousliving.net.au Contributing Writers: Dr Sandra Cabot, Simon Cairns, Colleen Clay, Linda Curriri, Sue Dempster, Wendy Dumaresq, Patricia Hamilton, Gary Jackson, Ali Jardine, Janet Mawdesley, Stuart Morick, Miranda Munro, Martin Oliver, Helen Parish, Cyrus Roussilhes, John Ross, Dr Sherrill Sellman, Claudio Silvano, Jacquie Walker Graphic Design Ailar Arak

Health in Focus: Is technology killing us? Are you concerned about how your children use technology and how much time they spend on their mobile phones and computers? Martin Oliver reports that research shows that the time children spend using technology may be linked to anxiety and depression. How are mobile phones and laptops affecting your health? How does electromagnetic energy (EMF’s) affect your hormones? Dr Sherrill Sellman’s article identifies growing concern that EMF’s may have links to breast cancer. Prevention is the best cure. Dr Sandra Cabot offers a way to create a prevention plan to keep your breasts healthy.

Beech Bark – learn more about this ancient remedy for arthritis. Linda Curreri shares her journey and how she treated her rheumatoid arthritis with positive results.

Images: Fotolia, Pexels

Discover the 5 Top Health products that Conscious Living recommends to you – these products have made a difference to our personal health.

Publisher Conscious Living Co-Creations Pty Ltd ATF the PH Trust ABN 30 064 748 794 103 Paramatta Road, Doubleview WA 6018 Tel 61 8 9446 5883 subscribe2@consciousliving.net.au www.consciouslivingmagazine.com.au

We hope that you will enjoy our winter warmers - recipes from Ali Jardine’s book “The Colour of Health - Food for Life” – delicious Cashew Cabbage dish and divine Blueberry Crumble for dessert.

Disclaimer The publisher and editor do not necessarily endorse the opinions expressed by individual writers or advertisers.

Editorial advice is nonspecific and readers are advised to seek professional advice for individual issues.

Enjoy reading.

Warm Regards

Patricia Hamilton & Jacquie Walker

Conscious Living Purpose To facilitate the expansion of consciousness and to co-create a world of harmony, love and wellbeing Copyright Conscious Living Magazine 2016 2 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE All rights reserved ISSN 10336826

ISSUE 95

WINTER 2016

CONTENTS

ISSUE 95 WINTER 2016

FEATURED 8 How Technology Affects Children Is There a Risk to Your Children’s Safety?

22 World Swings Towards Medical Cannabis: Undeniable Benefits, So Why the Controversy?

2 From the Editors – Patricia Hamilton and Jacquie Walker

CONSCIOUS PEOPLE 4 Sylvia Marina Realises Her Ancestral Dream – Report by Colleen Clay

CONSCIOUS PARENTING 8 How Technology Affects Children Is There a Risk to Your Children’s Safety?

CONSCIOUS FOOD 13 Healthy Colourful Winter Foods: Taste These Delicious Recipes Cashew Cabbage and Blueberry Crumble – Courtesy of Ali Jardine

CONSCIOUS HEALTH

Top 5 Health Products 15 Kangen Water 16 New Gut Supplement Restores Bowel Balance 17 Body Balance, Ultimate Beds, Chi Machine 18 Have You Heard of Pentosan Polysulphate?

A Medicine Made from Beech Bark 21 Adrenal Fatigue Leads to Burn Out – Stuart Morick 22 World Swings Towards Medical Cannabis – Martin Oliver

25 Keep Your Breasts Healthy – Sandra Cabot Outlines a Prevention Plan for You 27 How ‘High Tech’ Links Us to Cancer – Dr Sherrill Sellman Shares the Disturbing Findings in Latest Research 30 What Does Your Blood Tell You About Your Health?

Live Blood Analysis – Gary Jackson

CONSCIOUS EARTH 32 Small Birds Need Your Gardens in the City Landscape. How Does Your Garden Shape Up? –

By Sue Dempster 34 Learn from the Music of Plants – Miranda Munro 36 NEWS: Solar Panels for Renters – Martin Oliver

CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE 37 NEWS: Robin Hood Fund The World’s First Activist Hedge Fund 38 Enterprise as a Community – Wendy Dumaresq 42 Heart Conscious Business Hub Business Networking 44 Why Have an APP? – Cyrus Roussilhes 45 A New Constellation Therapy 46 Art Therapy Training

CONSCIOUS SPIRIT 47 Induced After Death Communication: Are you curious? – Helen Alaya Parish

CONSCIOUS ARTS 49 Book and Music Reviews – Jan Mawdesley 52 Memory Through Amber – Story by Claudio Silvano

Read More Articles Online Visit www.consciouslivingmagazine.com.au WINTER 2016

60 Final Word – John Ross – Master Networker

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CONSCIOUS PEOPLE

Sylvia Marina realises her ancestral dream

Western Australia based educator, author and personal empowerment trainer, Sylvia Marina ND, is in demand in the US, Russia, Asia, Spain, Denmark, Norway, the UK, New Zealand and Australia. – Colleen Clay reports.

D

riven to guide others to achieve the lives of their dreams, educator Sylvia Marina ND generously bestows knowledge and encouragement on all who come within her sphere.

In Australia and around the globe appreciative participants have benefited through her courses and workshops.

Now, more countries are requesting her presence, sometimes as a speaker and sometimes to teach.

The rare aura of gentle power and determination that Sylvia exudes is recognisable in two other influential women, Oprah Winfrey and the late US poet, writer, and civil rights activist Maya Angelou. Their African American ethnicity seems to have endowed them with their enviable strengths and talents. Similarly, could Sylvia’s Maori and Scottish ancestral heritage be at the heart of her success?

Sylvia was raised in NZ by an English family, first as a foster child and later adopted. She grew up among people with pale skin: her adoptive family, their church community, family friends and schoolmates.

Fostered while still an infant, it was many years before she located her biological mother and siblings.

BEING ‘DIFFERENT’

Living with her ‘white’ parents and siblings brought on a sense of confusion. She wondered about her different appearance, and puzzled over the way it was handled by her mother.

“When among fellow church goers, the impression my foster mother gave was that there was no difference

“FOSTERED WHILE STILL AN INFANT, IT WAS MANY YEARS BEFORE SYLVIA LOCATED HER BIOLOGICAL MOTHER AND SIBLINGS.” 4 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

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“TRANSFORMING DNA MEMORIES ‘TO WAKEN THE DREAMS OUR ANCESTORS DREAMT FOR US… OF MAKING THIS WORLD A BETTER PLACE… FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS’” between her children and me. Yet with other people, my mother would be sure to mention that I was not her ‘own’ child.

“In later years, my adoptive brother Brian and I had to laugh the first moment we realised our Mother was making sure no one would think she’d been naughty,” Sylvia said.

Brian was a major influence on Sylvia: he became her ‘Rock.

He encouraged her to be herself throughout her childhood, and while she grew into adulthood. They share an unbreakable sibling bond today.

AN INSTINCTIVE ‘KNOWING’

Having a ‘native’ sister was fascinating for Brian. She often displayed an instinctive ‘knowing’, which included a desire to eat raw fish. This request brought forth strong admonishments from their mother, who called it a ‘native’ meal, unfit for her household.

Another ‘knowing’ Sylvia experienced was ‘tickling fish’ in streams and creeks to catch them. In Scotland, this is known as ‘noodling’.

As well as being a successful noodler, for many years Sylvia had a recurring dream in which she was a schoolteacher and all her students had Scottish accents. Decades later, she found a Scottish uncle in her biological family tree, a member of the Cameron clan. And a Scottish female schoolteacher is among her ancestors.

Sylvia has traveled to Scotland to visit members of her family and remains in touch with them.

After discovering her Scottish and Maori heritage, Sylvia realised her desire to eat raw fish, her innate noodling skill and her dream of teaching Scottish students were WINTER 2016

ancestral memories in her DNA, carried through in the genetic makeup of her forbears.

LIFE WAS WHOLESOME

Throughout childhood, growing up in a rural area, there were adventures in nature to be enjoyed with Brian. Life was healthy and wholesome, although her foster family was struggling.

Some issues that marred her early years included being told by other children that she was a ‘Welfare kid’, and the government paid her foster parents to keep her. Another sadness was her foster mother’s anxiety and depression. Sylvia vowed to herself that one day she would find a ‘cure’ for her mother’s condition. She wanted her mother to be happy, to enjoy her life. At a profound level, this compassion has guided Sylvia to the work she does today.

Being so different in appearance from her siblings and classified as a Welfare kid, Sylvia wanted to be ‘white’. At bath time, particularly if her mother told her to “go and scrub yourself’ as an admonishment for getting grubby while playing outside, Sylvia would do just that: almost scrub her skin off, trying to wash away the dark tones of her skin, hoping white skin would emerge.

TEACHINGS OF ‘MR T’

When Sylvia left school and began an apprenticeship in a bakery, her first boss, a Mr T. taught her sound financial and business practices. There were life lessons, too, woven into their workdays.

Mr T. provided important insights, positive reinforcement and mentored Sylvia, paving the way to her future

successes. The wisdom of Mr T. continues to help light Sylvia’s way.

All of us have ancestral memories, and one of Sylvia’s workshops is Transforming DNA Memories. In this workshop, Kinesiology is used, in Sylvia’s words, “to waken the dreams our ancestors dreamt for us and continue their dream of making this world a better place for all of our future generations”.

It happens that I have attended this workshop, and have been deeply affected. Applying Kinesiology, I was taken back to the dreams of my childhood to the extent of feeling those same sensations I felt during a creative endeavour. The signal is to find a way to explore a talent that was left in dust in the rush of life. There is more, but this is Sylvia’s story.

TRAINED IN KINESIOLOGY

Becoming a ‘leader of leaders’ began in WA for Sylvia when she was completing her studies in Natural Medicine and Behavioural Science.

At this point, she was introduced to Kinesiology and the Touch for Health system. In WA, she was first trained in Kinesiology by a graduate Touch For Health instructor from Victoria, David Bridgeman.

This prompted her to sponsor a visit to WA by the late Dr John Thie, a US based chiropractor and trainer of the Touch for Health system. Here, Dr Thie taught Sylvia and other therapists his skill.

Others she sponsored to conduct trainings in WA included Dr Bruce Dewe of NZ and Gordon Stokes of the US. Dr Dewe and his wife Joan founded the International College of Professional Kinesiology Practice. They developed a four-year Kinesiology course, the first of its kind in the world.

Kinesiology fitted well with the path Sylvia was already on.

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CONSCIOUS PEOPLE Her interest in human health and wellbeing had begun in childhood, when she longed to find a way to help her adoptive mother ‘feel better’. Her first step onto this path was to train as a dietitian in NZ. After moving to WA, Sylvia worked as a hospital dietitian, and during this time she formed a strong interest in natural health care.

For several years she co-ordinated retreats for cancer patients held in WA by BALYA Cancer Self Help & Wellness Incorporated. Working alongside Doctors Ian Brighthope, Ivy Bullen and Jason Tan, she discovered the power of natural medicine, nutrition, meditation and behavioural science.

LIVING AUTHENTICALLY

Her joy in life is contagious yet never overwhelming. It is her passion to share with others what she knows about living joyfully and authentically.

Her list of activities and achievements speaks volumes about her thirst for knowledge and her tireless drive to share that knowledge with others.

In 1984, Sylvia opened the first kinesiology adult learning school in Perth. Since then, the workshops and courses she has designed include: ●● The Purpose & Vision Board Workshop – Reconnect To What You Really Want In Your Life ●● Getting The Love You Want – How To Use Your Emotional Energy ●● Public Speaking Training – Win Business, Keep Business And Build Better Relationships ●● ‘Speak Up’ Master Class – Become a Leader ●● Transforming DNA Memories – Resolving Past Issues and Awakening Your Intelligences ●● Return To Love – The Yin and Yang of Being You Her hands-on experience includes; ●● Conference Speaker, Natural Medicine, Behavioural Science, Wholistic Management, Physiognomy plus an additional 19 complementary methodologies. ●● Founder, Touch For Health Association of West Australia WA - changed to AKAWA, Australian Kinesiology Association of WA Inc. ●● Founding Member AKA, Australian Kinesiology Association Inc. ●● Honorary MC and Presenter, Balya Health Retreats for Cancer Patients & Carers in West Australia and Singapore - 6 years ●● Youth Swap (Students With A Purpose) and the I’m Special Program working with youth, 6 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

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building self esteem, social skills and life journey practicalities – 10 years Ambassador, International Grief Support Foundation Inc. Chair, Business SWAP WA. Chair, Business Women Today Inc. Chair, WA Marae Inc.

Her life continues to be packed full of activity, yet through the years she has found time to paint, draw and write books.

Books she has published so far are: ●● Wellspring – Finding The Source Within ●● In Love With Life – Soul Notes ●● Laugh With Life – A Practical Handbook to Managing Stress ●● Promises – Putting yourself Into The Heart of the Matter ●● 21 Life Lessons – Good Medicine and Sage Advice Sylvia expects her next book to be published in time for the Conscious Living Expo, November 4 to 6 this year. www.sylviamarina.com

ENABLING PEOPLE TO LIVE A LIFE FREE FROM EMOTIONAL PAIN AND TRAUMA • Resolve past issues • Discover your true purpose • Connect & awaken your intelligences • Build better relationships • Reconnect to what you really want in life • Become a leader

0412 198 612 www.sylviamarina.com n

Speaker

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Educator

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Author

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Expert in Human Behaviour

WINTER 2016

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Established since 1989 Issue 95 Winter 2016

Established since 1989

SPEAKING FROM THE HEART

SYLVIA MARINA

MARY LUCILLE BAKER

REALISES HER ANCESTRAL DREAM

The Purpose of Depression BLAKE BAUER

In The Raw RECIPES BY ROWENA JAYNE

Anthony Grzelka

Complementary Medicine

REALMS OF MEDIUMSHIP

REGULATION & RISKS

INTERVIEW WITH PATRICIA HAMILTON

The Search for Love

Mobile Phones HORMONES & BREAST CANCER

BEGINS WITH YOU

Mindfulness Meditation

Medical Cannabis

Year of the Yang Fire Monkey CLARICE CHAN

Issue 92

Issue 93

Technology & Children IS YOUR CHILD AT RISK?

Beech Bark MEDICINE FOR ARTHRITIS

LIBERATING INTELLIGENCE

HIGH ON HEALTH

After Death Communication RESOLVES GRIEF

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CONSCIOUS PARENTING

How Technology Affects Children

Our kids are firmly plugged into the Matrix: MARTIN OLIVER reveals why we should be concerned

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e are living in a world increasingly dominated by technology.

We once looked outwards to nature for much of our meaning and culture, but this has largely been replaced with content-free hyper-communication and media saturation. We are plugged into the matrix.

Our insatiable appetite for gadgets has become a social norm.

Entertainment, stimulation and instant gratification rule this screen-fixated world, where fear of missing out (often shortened to FoMo) is a key motivation.

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TECHNOLOGY ADDICTION AND POLLUTION

Despite arriving on the scene only a few years ago, smart phones are now widely considered indispensable, topping the addictive stakes because of their portability, interactive qualities, and habitforming game apps such as Candy

“YOUNG PEOPLE TODAY HAVE GROWN UP IMMERSED IN TECHNOLOGY… IT IS WORTH ASKING WHAT IS BEING LOST ALONG THE WAY”

ISSUE 95

Crush Saga. Tablets and pads are not far behind.

A separate issue is the major environmental impact associated with high-tech gadgets, including the use of environmentally damaging rare earth elements, and powerful greenhouse gases such as per fluorocarbons and nitrogen trifluoride.

Tech addicts are looking for regular dopamine hits in the brain’s pleasure and reward centres. Chinese researchers have found that Internet addiction produces neurological changes mirroring alcohol or cocaine dependency.

WINTER 2016

YOUNG PEOPLE AND DEVICES

Young people today have grown up immersed in technology. Alongside the advantages this has given them, it is worth asking what is being lost along the way, and whether children are missing out on childhoods.

Part of the issue is peer pressure.

Not owning a smart phone can lead to bullying and social ostracism. During the crucial teenage years, there is a strong desire to belong, and to avoid being left out of the electronic loop. Forget television, which was the cause of moral panic in the 1960s; young people are ignoring it in droves because it lacks the interactive features they crave.

Children are becoming hooked from a young age and the trend is showing no sign of slowing down. Teens and younger children are spending up to 75 per cent of their lives looking at a screen. In Japan, about 60 per cent of high school students were found to show strong signs of having a technology addiction. Hooked on neurochemicals, addicts become distressed and agitated when separated from their gadgets, and in young children this manifests as tantrums.

PRO VERSUS CON

Not everybody is concerned about the incursion of technology into the lives of young children. Discarding a holistic and well-rounded attitude to child development, a narrower focus on tech-oriented learning encourages an early start in the electronic world.

Typically, a collective belief is formed that the future will inevitably be digital, computerised, and highly competitive. Presenting this as a foregone conclusion contributes to the creation of a selffulfilling prophecy.

Many parents are worried that to de-emphasise technology in the child’s upbringing is to set him or her up for failure, and are inclined WINTER 2016

“BY THE AGE OF THREE SOME TODDLERS ARE SEARCHING THE NET VIA GOOGLE VOICE SPEECH RECOGNITION” to wean children onto screens at an inappropriately early age as a means of getting a head start.

For children aged four upwards, toys that teach them coding skills are entering the market. The UK government guidelines involve introducing children to computers between the ages of 22 to 36 months, against the urging of some British psychologists, such as Dr Aric Sigman.

In Australia, schools are getting children on the tech treadmill, with some requiring parents to buy an iPad at primary age.

A 2015 OECD report found that Australia has roughly double the average computer use in schools, at 58 minutes a day, and was the only country with more than one school computer per child. Worryingly, the report went on to correlate aboveaverage classroom computer time with ‘significantly poorer’ student performance, and named Australia as one of three countries that had experienced ‘significant declines’ in reading performance. Despite these findings, the Victorian Government still maintains an ‘iPads for Education’ web page.

RETARDED DEVELOPMENT

Parents who are tech-addicted are distracted from giving full attention to their children, which translates into less bonding and the risk of a touch deficit.

In one freakish tragic example, two parents in South Korea left their threemonth-old child to starve while they raised a ‘virtual’ child online.

Paediatric societies around the world are concerned about the risks that technological gadgets pose to child language development up to the

age of five. A broad consensus agrees on setting the following limits: ●● 0-2 years old - no usage ●● 3-5 years old - up to one hour per day ●● 6-18 years old - up to two hours per day But this advice is frequently being ignored. The website Geeks With Juniors promotes a list of the best apps for one-year-olds. By the age of two, most toddlers have accessed tablets or mobiles, and by three some are searching the Net via Google Voice speech recognition. In Canada, one in three children are entering school developmentally delayed.

Neuropsychiatrist Dr Manfred Spitzer has coined the term ‘digital dementia’, indicating a loss of cognitive abilities resulting from over-reliance on technological aids, coupled with an over-development of the left brain at the expense of the right, which risks dementia in later life. Excessive technology stunts social and emotional development, and has been correlated with a failure to recognise facial expressions. Young adults weaned on devices risk being less functional, with fewer skills than their predecessors.

NATURE DEFICIT DISORDER

Until a few decades ago, childhood commonly used be an outdoor existence, which included interactions with neighbourhood children, bonding, and plenty of exercise. Over the years, time spent in outdoor play has shrunk while screen time has continued to increase.

In 2015, the Oxford Junior Dictionary, a publication aimed at seven-yearolds, removed numerous words for

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CONSCIOUS PARENTING “EXPOSURE TO NATURE STIMULATES CHILD LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT IN WAYS OTHER ENVIRONMENTS CANNOT MATCH, AND PROVIDES A LONG LIST OF OTHER BENEFITS” plants and animals, to be replaced with technological terms such as ‘broadband’, ‘cut and paste’, and ‘analogue’. The editors were trying to be values-neutral, reflecting a weakening connection between young children and nature, but were also hastening the disconnection.

Where children are insulated from the wonder of the natural world, they are less likely to value it as adults.

Exposure to nature stimulates child learning and development in ways other environments cannot match, and provides a long list of other benefits.

Conversely, being removed from nature stunts development. Some educators have renamed ADHD as ‘nature deficit disorder’ and have observed that being in nature typically reverses the symptoms of ADHD.

Game developers openly discuss online how to design ‘compulsion loops’ in their games that prompt obsessive behaviour via a system of rewards. The most effective of these operate on multiple levels, with a mix of short- to long-term goals, and the prospect of a big prestigious payoff.

The violent quality of many games influences behaviour negatively in the short-term. A review by the American Psychological Association found ‘increases in aggressive behaviour, aggressive cognitions and aggressive affect, and decreases in prosocial behaviour, empathy and sensitivity to aggression”. In some cases, players carry elements of the game into the real world, referred to as Game Transfer Phenomena.

HOOKED ON GAMING

THE INTERNET OF THINGS AND COMPROMISED PRIVACY

Probably the most worrying youth technology addiction is video gaming, with boys most frequently affected.

According to US figures from 2009, eight per cent of children aged between eight and eighteen had a gaming addiction.

Particularly in countries such as China, Taiwan and South Korea, there have been tragic cases of addicted young people dying after days of non-stop gaming. Often a vicious cycle is set up, where a lack of social skills pushes boys further into games, which in turn results in further neglect of the social sphere.

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bear, in which a risk of hacking was identified earlier this year.

Similar, but creepier, is a Wi-Fi Barbie that records conversations with a child, which are then transmitted to the software company ToyTalk for ‘analysis’. In November 2015, an expert warned that the toy could be hacked and used for audio surveillance by strangers. Extracting valuable data from these devices for commercial purposes may be too attractive for corporations to resist, unless the practice is explicitly prohibited.

In the US, many parents are worried about their children’s welfare, and leaving a child under 18 unsupervised is considered neglect in some jurisdictions.

When the media is not reporting horrific crimes, it also promotes ‘smart’ GPS watches worn by children that enable parents to monitor their child’s location.

A CAN OF TECH WORMS

Screen addiction among young people is causing a plethora of other issues that are almost too numerous

Technophiles hold a vision of the world in which every object is capable of communicating using Wi-Fi radiofrequency radiation. This Internet of Things (IoT) would embed technology more deeply in our lives, whether we like it or not, taking tech addiction to a whole new level.

It sounds like a recipe for dystopian chaos, but the IoT vision is starting to be incorporated into ‘smart’ toys such as the Fisher Price interactive smart

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“AMONG TODAY’S YOUTH, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION, THE TOP TECH-RELATED MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES, ARE BEING LINKED TO LACK OF UNSTRUCTURED PLAY” to keep track of. This ‘can of tech worms’ includes: ●● Finding self-validation through maximising Facebook friends or Twitter followers. This behaviour can become obsessive. ●● Narcissism and self-absorption, exemplified in the selfie craze. ●● Media body size stereotypes leading young women to become anorexic in pursuit of a slim figure. ●● Cyber-bullying on social media, multiplying the effects of traditional bullying. ●● Constant distraction resulting in lack of focus and shortened attention spans. ●● Sleep deprivation, detracting from academic outcomes. ●● Gaming activities interfering with regular mealtimes and affecting eating habits. ●● Light from screens shortly before going to bed suppressing melatonin levels and causing insomnia. ●● Exposure to pornography. A survey of 10 to 17 year-olds found that WINTER 2016

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HEALTH IMPACTS

over the past year 42 per cent had viewed online porn, and most had not sought it out. Where children (or adults) are active users, there is a physiological need to obtain increasingly intense forms of pornography in order to get the dopamine ‘hit’.

Sharing of naked selfies via teen ‘sexting’, with a risk they may get circulated around the school and further afield.

Missing out on real-world opportunities such as hobbies, acquiring skills, travel, social connections and meeting a partner.

Diversion of attention from activism, and crunch issues such as climate change that will be affecting today’s young people in the years to come.

The risk of road accidents caused by driving while using a phone, or using a phone while crossing the road.

Anonymous messaging apps such as Kik, which can encourage ‘cyberstalking’.

Among today’s youth, incidence of anxiety and depression, the top tech-related mental health issues, are rising. The American Academy of Pediatrics links both to lack of unstructured play.

In gamers, stress and anxiety are the results of a fight-or-flight response linked to build-ups of the neurotransmitters adrenaline and cortisol. Technology addiction has strong links to ADHD, which is often addressed via a psychotropic medication such as Ritalin. A Canadian group, Moving to Learn, argues that the problem is being pinned on individuals when it should be seen as systemic.

Domination of children’s lives by technology has eroded downtime, and ended the luxury of a introspective space of solitude in which children reflect on their issues and get to know themselves.

Media influence causes children to grow up too fast, putting them in a space where it is no longer possible to be artless and unworldly, and instead pressuring them to be ‘smart’ in the tech-addicted sense of the word. A suppression of ‘intrinsic’ personal development values inevitably skews

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CONSCIOUS PARENTING priorities towards an unhealthier ‘extrinsic’ materialism.

Physical health risks include obesity, with one in four Australian children being either overweight or obese.

Too much time looking at screens causes short sightedness, unless it is balanced out by time spent in outdoor environments. Excessive screen time is linked to elevated blood pressure, with possible long-term effects on the cardiovascular system.

Alarmingly, in 2011, the New England Journal of Medicine wrote that members of the present young generation could be the first not to outlive their parents.

Radiofrequency radiation has been classified by the World Health Organisation as possibly carcinogenic, and children are at greater risk from mobile phones placed against the ear – because their brains are more absorbent. Concerns range from Wi-Fi routers in schools to wireless devices such as tablets and phones, and the spread of ‘smart’ toys.

FINDING A BALANCE

When children have boundaries, they feel more secure and less anxious.

Some suggestions include: ●● Limiting screen time from an early age, based on paediatric recommendations. ●● Setting up parental lock controls to filter children’s Internet access. ●● Knowing passwords, setting curfews, a ban on phones in the bedroom, and switching off the Wi-Fi at night. ●● Connecting up devices with a wired connection to avoid wireless radiation. ●● Parents modelling healthy behaviour by being sparing in their technology usage. ●● Encouraging children to find balance in their lives by spending time outdoors as a means of becoming more well-rounded and developing life skills. Cultivating a deeper set of values where stimulation and distraction take a subsidiary place. ●● Unplugging and going cold turkey as a family, an experience vividly described in Susan Mau hart’s book, The Winter

of Our Disconnect. Typically such a radical move is followed by disruption and dramas in the short term, but after an extended period families who go down this path usually feel their lives have greatly improved.

The high-tech future being presented to us as inevitable is severely impacting on our children before they are old enough to grasp what is happening to them. This trend is set to get worse unless we see a revolution in values where living offline and re-engaging with the real world becomes desirable once again.

Martin Oliver is a writer and researcher based in Lismore (Northern NSW).

RESOURCES Network for Internet Investigation and Research Australia – www.niira.org.au Moving to Learn – www.movingtolearn.ca Hooked on Games – www.hooked-on-games.com

CONSCIOUS FOOD

Healthy Colourful Winter Foods

Recipes from The Colour of Health-Food for Life Book by ALI JARDINE

CASHEW CABBAGE half a white cabbage 1 cupful of cashew nuts 2 tablespoons of coconut oil 2 tablespoons of turmeric

Pan fry the shredded cabbage with the coconut oil and turmeric (add more oil and turmeric if required) When partly cooked add the cashews and stir!

Don’t Overcook!

Keep the cabbage and nuts crunchy.

Enjoy!

Word from Ali: I have been using turmeric for many years and it has contributed towards the healing process of me no longer having Rheumatoid Arthritis and Fibromyalgia.

Turmeric also played a part in my weight loss of 25Kilos.

Turmeric workshops available, come and have fun and see what we do with turmeric.

Do you Suffer with any of these common ailments?

Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, Joint pain, Bloating, Acid reflux, Weight Issues, Skin rashes/Allergies/Acne, Intestinal discomfort.

If you want to make a difference to your health then this is the workshop for you. You don’t have to spend a fortune on supplements to feel good.

Basic natural foods are all that is needed. Find out why?

THE BENEFITS of TURMERIC WORKSHOP! • All natural medicinal health foods with amazing healing properties.

• A fun action packed workshop.

• Delicious medicinal recipes and remedies to be made.

THE COLOUR OF HEALTH-FOOD FOR LIFE

LOTS OF FUN The things that we can do with turmeric, the yummy recipes, the health benefits. Hands on, making delicious recipes and sampling the foods afterwards.

Location: Hillarys, WA Cost: $50 each – Bookings essential

Please call ALI JARDINE for next available workshop dates 0448516015 or visit www.ajwellness.com.au alison_jardine@hotmail.com www.facebook.com/thecolourofhealthfoodforlife WINTER 2016

CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95 13

CONSCIOUS FOOD BLUEBERRY CRUMBLE

Conscious Heart Connections (connecting singles, confidence building, matching you)

Are you single looking for love? Are you over online dating and pubs and clubs not your scene?

This may be for you. ●● We hold fun party style social events on a monthly basis with guest speakers. ●● We explore expansive ways to enhance your relationships. ●● Sometimes couples show up to get tips from our inspiring speakers.

Membership includes: A questionnaire, a 1-hour healing session, tips on dating and etiquette and lots more.

Would you be willing to take the risk to love again?

CRUMBLE MIX 1 cup of flour of choice 2 tablespoons of coconut oil 1 tablespoon of coconut sugar 1 cup of chopped nuts 2 teaspoons of cinnamon BLUE CASHEW CREAM 1 cup of cashew flour 1 cup of blueberries ½ cup of water ½ cup of coconut cream 1 tablespoon of maple syrup Blend together and depending on consistency add extra liquid if required.

Call me for a 20-minute Free consultation www.consciousheartconnections.com.au Mary Lucille Baker 0428 422 888 ml@consciousheartconnections.com 14 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

Rub the flour and coconut oil together, add the other ingredients and stir so it is all crumbly.

Put 3 cups of blueberries in an oven proof dish, layer crumble mix on top and cook in a moderate oven for about 45 mins.

ISSUE 95

The recipes from the COLOUR OF HEALTH-FOOD FOR LIFE, by ALI JARDINE, are all healing on the body, using natural foods that are high in Magnesium and nutrition.

WINTER 2016

EDITORS PICK TOP 5 HEALTH PRODUCTS

Changing your water could be the answer to TRUE health & Vitality According to gastroenterologist Dr Hironi Shinya, Kangen Water® is considered to be the very best drinking water because of its incomparable powers of hydration, detoxification and antioxidation.

Health Benefits include • Increased Hydration • Balance Body pH • Improved energy • Improved digestion and absorption of nutrients • Neutralise Free Radicals • Detoxify and more

Karolyn Zinetti B.H.Sc.Naturopath

I have had my Kangen Water R Ioniser for over 2 years and consider it to be the best investment in my health. I have noticed an improvement in energy, digestion and skin.

ASK ABOUT STARTING YOUR

FREE 21 DAY WATER TRIAL TODAY Available for Perth Customers only

Call on 08 9446 5883 or mob 0418955396 for more information.

Get your free Ebook – Enquire here

EDITORS PICK TOP 5 HEALTH PRODUCTS

New gut supplement restores bowel balance The diagnosis of the autoimmune disorder known as Chron’s Disease instantly brings to mind a lifetime of pain.

In Western Australia, Perth man Simon Cairns, the inventor of Ultimate Beds, was shattered when after a series of tests this diagnosis was handed to him. He was told it was incurable.

After previously watching his father’s losing battle with Ulcerative Colitis, Simon wanted to create a single product to maintain his health and to help restore the health of others more quickly and effectively.

He decided he would uncover nature’s healing secrets to achieve remission from the effects of this debilitating disease. He fulfilled his quest through a regime of appropriate health practices combined with supplementation.

Bowel Restore replaced his morning 10 plus supplement routine to just one or two scoops of his very own product. The ease of using one single product helped Simon stick to his healing journey. Now 8 years on, Simon enjoys great health and vitality and has helped many others achieve the same.

While devising his regime Simon realised many health problems affecting the Western World arise from disruption to bowel flora and fauna.

According to Simon, in the case of chronic constipation or inflammation the condition of intestinal dysbiosis was the most likely cause.

Simon concluded that a powerful combination of natural organic wholefoods to help correct this condition was urgently needed.

Nature’s ingredients used His solution was Bowel Restore, a supplement that he distributes and contains the following certified organic ingredients from nature: Psyllium Husk, Black Walnut Hulls, Hibiscus Rosella, Liquorice Root, Horsetail, Rosehip, Oat Straw, Slippery Elm Bark, Cascara Bark, Marshmallow Root, Ceylon Cinnamon Bark, Irish Moss, Yucca Root, Astragalus, Chlorella, Turmeric, Bladderwrack, Wormwood, Ashwaganda, Barberry, Dandelion, Meadowsweet, Skullcap, Aloe Ferox, Turkish Rhubarb, Mullein, Passionflower, Aloe Vera, Witch 16 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95

hazel, Paw Paw Leaf, Violet Leaf, Vanilla, Fennel Seed, Clove bud.

Bowel Restore is in dry powdered form and taken daily, mixed in water.

“Our intestinal tract needs to be in balance,” Simon said. “When healthy it contains many different strains of bacteria as well as fungal organisms that have various jobs to do in the human body.

“We now know that a healthy bacterial and fungal population in the bowel even supports emotional stability and brain function. This is also true for the immune system.

“With the correct balance of bowel flora and fauna, the problem of constipation should never occur. This also supports the immune system and helps avoid bowel cancer.”

Order online Click here or call 08 9446 5883 WINTER 2016

EDITORS PICK TOP 5 HEALTH PRODUCTS

Sea Vegetable Tonic Body Balance is an energy drink made from a blend of 9 sea vegetables and organically grown aloe vera. It contains nutrients which helps to strengthen the immune system and helps to balance the gut flora. In testimonials people attribute Body Balance with helping to relieve migraines and headaches, decrease food intolerances and allergies and stabilise blood pressure and cholesterol. Others have testified that taking body balance has helped then to deal with and clear emotional issues and addictions.

Body Balance assists the body to remove toxins and heavy metals, as well as supplying vital nutrients that are lacking. It does this in a form that the body will accept, right down to a cellular level.

For more information click here or call 08 9446 5883.

Healthy Sleep Mattresses Australian owned and manufactured Ultimate Bed’s mattresses are made from premium Australian foams with organic cotton covers. The Ultimate Bed is allergy and asthma friendly, free from latex, metal springs, polyester and toxic solvents.

The mattress is designed to promote perfect posture while you sleep and reduces pressure on the body. No more waking feeling too hot, No premature sagging or sleep impressioning. Enjoy a deep peaceful sleep that will leave your refreshed and rejuvenated and ready to step into your day with energy and vigour.

Ultimate Beds are affordable and can be custom made to your requirements. They are manufactured here in Perth.

To find out more click here and Get your Free Fitting.

Oxygenating Massage Machine

If you have problems with ●● Lack of exercise and bad circulation, ●● Tired and sore muscles, ●● Poor digestion, constipation ●● Nervousness, general pain and insomnia ●● Poor functioning of internal organs ●● Asthma and tracheal inflammation ●● Menstrual pains, anaemia ●● Other chronic conditions Then the Sun Ancon Oxygenating Massage is for you!

WINTER 2016

The Chi Machine has proven benefits for lymphoedema and weight management. It can help you lose weight and body fat, improve lymphatic drainage and reduce leg swelling. The Chi Machine helps with relaxation, concentration and meditation. You simply set the timer, lie down in a comfortable space where you will not be disturbed for the length of time nominated and allow the chi machine to do the rest. The vibration from right to left, gently massages your whole body from head to toe, leaving you relaxed and energised.

Click here for more information and get your Free 7 Day trial.

CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95 17

CONSCIOUS HEALTH BOOK EXCERPT: “A COMMENTARY ON A 50-YEAR-OLD MEDICINE, WHICH RAISES THE QUESTION: ‘WHY IS PENTOSAN POLYSULPHATE NOT A TREATMENT OPTION?’ ESSENTIAL READING CRAMMED WITH INFORMATION FOR THOSE DIAGNOSED WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS OR OSTEOARTHRITIS.“

Pentosan Polysulphate A Medicine Made From

Beech Bark

By LINDA CURRERI, Dunedin, New Zealand.

L

to source pentosan polysulphate. Her introduction to pentosan polysulphate was in May 1996, while on a visit to Australia. Here is how it all began.

inda Curreri had rheumatoid arthritis for 28 years, from 1974 at age 26. In 2001 her GP began treating her with muscular pentosan polysulphate injections.

TAPESTRY FOR JETHRO TULL

Over the following three years, blood tests showed conclusively that her rheumatoid factor had returned to a normal limit and no health anomalies were present.

Linda experienced not one adverse effect from this medicine. Her health is undeniably in very good shape.

However, the same cannot be said of her musculoskeletal system, which was severely damaged by the disease of arthritis.

Her book brings the many profound facts about this medicine from beech bark to our attention and includes an account of her efforts over four years 18 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

I had stitched what turned out to be an impressive tapestry of the 1978 Jethro Tull Heavy Horses album cover and decided to gift it to Tull. This was arranged with the NZ promoter but two weeks before their tour of New Zealand andAustralia, the groups flute wielding leader IanAnderson was rushed to hospital in Sydney with a leg thrombosis.

Their concerts were cancelled and there was disappointment all around. Jethro Tull in concert would have been a spectacular event and they would not receive the tapestry. My neighbour Jock Benfell said “Let’s go (to Australia) I’ll pay!”

Deal!

Three days later we flew to Sydney.

It turned out that Jock’s brother Brian, who was living in Melbourne, was an acquaintance of the Australian

ISSUE 95

promoter Paul Dainty, and so we headed there.

The superbly framed tapestry was fare-welled from Brian’s home on its journey to Ian Anderson who was convalescing in Sydney after successful treatment. He was delighted with it.

While staying with Brian and his family at their home at the Oaklands Hunt Club near Melbourne, Brian, the club’s Master of the Hunt, learned I had rheumatoid arthritis. The subject of medicine used by veterinarians to treat animals with arthritis was raised.

Brian handed me a leaflet about the medicine called Cartrophen (r/pentosan polysulphate and suggested I ask my doctor about it when I returned to NZ. Some months earlier Brian’s main mount, Grey, had suddenly developed lethargy and an inability to jump and was retired to pasture. A veterinarian member of the hunt club suggested to Brian that he inject Cartrophen into the muscles of his champion show jumper.

Brian did this and Grey “immediately became like a teenager running and jumping about the paddock.” That season Brian led the hunt on Grey.

When I returned to NZ I took Brian’s advice and contacted a rheumatologist about pentosan polysulphate.

WINTER 2016

“[FOUND] A NEGATIVE STANCE BY THE MEDICAL PROFESSION AND HEALTH OFFICIALS TOWARDS THIS SULPHATED SUGAR FROM BEECH BARK” This first enquiry became six years of research into the medicine. I read dictionaries of biology from cover to cover to understand the basic meaning of the complicated language which guards the approaches to the science and [I] questioned the disinterested, almost negative stance of the medical profession and health officials towards this sulphated sugar from beech bark.

Learning about pentosan polysulphate was exciting and alarming: if Ian Anderson had not fallen seriously ill in Sydney, my extraordinary adventure would not have happened…

PENTOSAN POLYSULPHATE – PHARMACOLOGY

A closer look at the multiple therapeutic effects (modes of action) of this medicine: 1. Supports and enhances the macromolecular bio-synthesis by chondrocytes of DNA, RNA, collagen, proteoglycans and extra-cellular matrix. Basically this means that pentosan helps our DNA to correctly produce the proteins, which make all of our connective tissues, every part of us.

2. S upports and enhances synovial lining cell synthesis of synovial fluid components, especially hyaluronic acid, which keep the fluid functioning optimally as a lubricant and protector of the cartilage surfaces. Ensures the primo maintenance of… joints.

3. I nhibits degrading enzymes and/ or mediators implicated in the degeneration of cartilage, extracellular matrix and synovial components. i.e. hyaluronidase, collagenase, metalloproteinases, cathespins, interleukin-1, tumour necrosis factor (TNF), PGE2. Very simply put, diseases and infections are stopped in their tracks.

WINTER 2016

4. Mobilises blood clots; blood flow and perfusion of joint tissues and subchondral bone is increased as a result. Fibrin, lipids and cholesterol deposits are also mobilised, [so] cannot build up. Cardio-vascular activity. Ensures optimal blood supply and circulation; prevents arteries from clogging up.

(NB: A copy of pentosan polysulphate pharmacology minus author’s comments can be found on page 64 of Linda’s full journal.)

Pentosan polysulphate acts on the underlying causes of disease, directly stimulating healing and repair. Ref: naturevet.com/ProductProfile

GERMAN ORIGINS

In Germany in 1947, Dr Wilhelm Benend synthesised a new medically active substance called sodium pentosan polysulphate. Two years later in 1949, Dr Benend established a small pharmaceutical company in the south of Munich called Bene-Arzneimittel GmbH. The enormous experience gained from the intensive research with sodium pentosan polysulphate led

to the development by this company of numerous finished medications that found large international acknowledgment. Sodium pentosan polysulphate quickly gained a huge reputation with physicians and patients due to its outstanding characteristics in a number of treatment areas. Over the counter preparations of pentosan polysulphate have been developed

by Bene-Arzneimittel GmbH as well as those requiring a prescription. Ref: www.bene-gmbh.de

WHAT IS PENTOSAN POLYSULPHATE?

Pentosan polysulphate is a sulphated sugar. It is a generic, water-soluble medicine made of the xylose sugar in beech bark. Pentosan is the polysaccharide of the monosaccharide pentose sugar. The negative sulphate groups enable pentosan to reach high concentrations in extra-cellular matrix, the defining feature of connective tissue.

Simply put, pentosan polysulphate is a sulphated carbohydrate. Ref # 50

IS PENTOSE SUGAR IMPORTANT?

Yes. Pentose sugar is unique. Unlike other carbohydrates i.e. glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose which are 6-carbon (hexose) sugars, pentose sugar is a 5-carbon molecule, which has a crucial role in human biology – pentose is the sugar component in DNA, our genetic code. Ref # 50 DNA is Deoxyribose-Nucleic Acid; deoxyribose is pentose sugar. If pentose sugar (D) is removed from DNA, only NA – nucleic acid - remains. This also applies to RNA. Ribose-Nucleic Acid; ribose is also pentose sugar. Ref # 50 Pentose is indeed a very important sugar.

HEALTHY DNA EQUALS HEALTHY BODY

DNA does much more than provide the traits we pass on to our offspring.

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ISSUE 95 19

CONSCIOUS HEALTH “… PENTOSE IS THE SUGAR COMPONENT IN DNA, OUR GENETIC CODE” It also provides the blueprint for essential functions such as the activity of specialised enzymes and the making of proteins that carry out all of our cellular, tissue, organ and bodily functions.

Damage to a cell’s DNA prevents proper function and can lead to cell death. Tissue damage arising from the death of many cells often causes impaired organ and bodily function, resulting in disease. DNA damage is known to occur following exposure to oxygen free radicals, ionising radiation, ultraviolet light, smoke, asbestos or silica dust, pesticides, disinfectants, dioxins and other chemicals. DNA damage can be repaired by any of a number of essential repair mechanisms found in our cells. Eating healthy food especially fruit and vegetables, enhances DNA repair processes and hence reduces the incidence of disease.

Ref: http://www.enzogenol.com

REPAIRS DNA DAMAGE

Pentosan polysulphate is a reagent (p30), which in chemical terms is a substance used in chemical synthesis and analysis. The prefix ‘re’ indicates the return to a previous condition, a withdrawal. Pentosan not only enhances DNA activity, it also repairs damaged DNA, returning it to an undamaged condition and hence health is restored, especially when given sooner rather than later.

PRIME STATUS OF PENTOSE SUGAR

It could be said that pentose sugar claims the prime status in human biology as it does after all define the nucleic acids that contain our genetic code. Without this sugar DNA and RNA do not exist! Neither do living organisms. Pentose sugar is without 20 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

question absolutely crucial for life to exist.

Pentosan polysulphate is a medical preparation of pentose sugar…

VETERINARY USE

Pentosan polysulphate (Cartrophen) is used by vets to treat animals that have osteoarthritis and other arthritic joint disorders.

Comments (below) on veterinary use speak for it, and include its use on Australian camels:

PENTOSAN FOR AUSTRALIAN CAMELS

Pentosan polysulphate is the most sophisticated approach to long-term management of osteoarthritis in camels. It is effective by both intramuscular and intra-articular injection.

Pentosan Equine(r), which contains sodium pentosan polysulphate, stimulates healing and repair, reversing the effects of osteoarthritis. Rather than simply cover up pain, pentosan polysulphate directly stimulates joint healing and repair.

Pentosan Equine will not cause kidney damage as seen with NSAID’s in camels. Ref 27: naturevet.com/ProductProfile In their 1992 patent US 5145841 using pentosan polysulphate, Peter Ghosh and David Cullis-Hill of Athropharm… [mention] that prolonged therapy with anti-inflammatory and cortico steroid drugs, which have been the treatments of choice for arthritis and other disorders for many decades, can lead to the breakdown and failure of connective tissues, particularly joint cartilage.

It is also explained how pentosan polysulphate prevents the growth factors of tumours… Pentosan polysulphate

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pharmacology… supports and enhances the macromolecular bio-synthesis by chondrocytes of DNA, RNA, collagen, proteoglycans and extra-cellular matrix.

The last paragraph of the 1992 US 5145841 [Athropharm] patent reads: ‘Although reference has been made to the utility of the invention in treating osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, other disease states that could be usefully treated include: bursitis, tendonitis, tendovaginitis, and related soft tissue inflammation; wounds and healing of burns; skin repair, acne and other dermatological acute disorders; topical application for superficial thrombosis, haematoma, ulcus crusis [leg vein ulcers], softening of scars; topical anti-viral and pancreatis, emphysema and bacterial invasion where excess proteolytic [destructive enzyme] activity occurs.’ Ref 9: www.freepatentsonline.com To read full coverage of Linda Curreri’s quest to have Pentosan Sulphate made available to New Zealanders, visit: www.naturalmedicine.net.nz/readersstories/pentosan-polysulphate-amedicine-made-from-beech-bark/ WINTER 2016

Adrenal Fatigue

Leads to

‘Burnout’

By STUART MORICK, Naturopath. BHSc (Nat), AdvDip (Nat), Member ANTA

D

o you suffer from lack of energy and feel tired all the time? Your adrenal glands might be behind it, causing a condition known as adrenal fatigue.

Your adrenal glands are located on the top of your kidneys. They produce hormones essential for life and wellbeing, including cortisol, adrenaline, aldosterone, DHEA and dopamine. These hormones interact with our immune system, nervous system and psyche. If the adrenals start to slow down, you can be adversely affected in many ways.

Western medicine generally classes adrenal fatigue as Addison’s disease, which is usually identified by symptoms including low blood pressure, extreme tiredness, muscle weakness, weight loss, mental confusion and skin discolouration (in some cases).

Essentially, a disease process is acting on your adrenals, causing them to reduce hormone output. Addison’s is usually diagnosed by various blood tests, scans and an injection

WINTER 2016

“THE USUAL ADRENAL FATIGUE INDICATORS ARE EXTREME TIREDNESS, LETHARGY AND FEELING HIGHLY UNMOTIVATED” of synthetic ACTH, a hormone that stimulates your adrenal glands.

FEELING HIGHLY UNMOTIVATED

In contrast, adrenal fatigue is milder, generally a state where you are not completely burnt out, but soon will be.

You will feel absolutely lousy and may exhibit some of the symptoms for Addison’s disease. The usual indicators are extreme tiredness, lethargy and feeling highly unmotivated. Importantly, there is usually no disease process affecting the adrenal glands. Rather, your adrenals have been pushed beyond their normal capable limits and are unable to produce the hormones you need at an adequate level.

IDENTIFYING ADRENAL FATIGUE

Adrenal fatigue may be identified by a salivary hormone test. Four saliva samples are taken at regular intervals throughout the day and the cortisol in the samples is measured, providing an overview of your adrenal glands’ daily output pattern.

If testing identifies a low daily cortisol pattern, your naturopath will develop a prescription, which may include an array of herbs and nutrients to help nourish your adrenals to a better state of health.

Nurturing your adrenal glands back to full health may take anywhere from six to twelve months, but sometimes even more time may be necessary.

It’s important to note that a number of other factors can also cause fatigue. For example, lack of energy may be caused by low vitamin B12, low iron, poor blood sugar control, lack of sleep, post viral fatigue, bacterial diseases such as Lyme disease, or an inadequate diet. A discussion with your naturopath will help identify the cause of your symptoms and set you on a journey to better health. www.purehealthandwellness.com.au

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CONSCIOUS HEALTH

World Swings Towards

Medical Cannabis MARTIN OLIVER uncovers it’s past, present and future

W

hile cannabis was formerly associated with hippies and the counterculture movement, mainstream public opinion has recent swung rapidly in favour of its therapeutic uses.

“FOR SEVERAL YOUNG AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN HAVING HUNDREDS OF EPILEPTIC SEIZURES A WEEK, HARRIED PARENTS HAVE FOUND THAT ONLY CANNABIS OIL WOULD HELP THEM”

Across the world, growing numbers of countries are passing laws to permit medical marijuana. Today there is a greater awareness that medical cannabis offers many health benefits, with minimal harmful side effects, and often without any psychoactive effects.

It is believed in China that a man named Shennong, translated as 'divine farmer', discovered the healing effects of marijuana around 2700BC. His treatments later appeared in the world's oldest pharmacopeia published in 1AD. Cannabis was known to many other ancient cultures, including the Ancient Egyptians (for haemorrhoids and 22 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

sore eyes), the Indians (for insomnia, headaches, gastrointestinal issues, and pain), and the Greeks (for earache.)

William Brooke O'Shaughnessy, an Irish doctor working in Calcutta during the 1830s, first researched the Indian use of therapeutic cannabis, and then introduced it into Western medicine.

From the middle of the 19th century until prohibition in the first half of the 20th century, cannabis appeared in a range of patent medicines.

In the early 1990s, researchers were excited to discover an endocannabinoid system in the human body. Receptors designed only for cannabis were located in the nervous and immune systems, raising the fascinating question of whether humans are physiologically designed for cannabis use.

ISSUE 95

HEALTH BENEFITS

For a range of health issues, scientific studies

are showing encouraging outcomes for medical cannabis. Some are pain conditions such as fibromyalgia, migraine, rheumatism and arthritis.

Others include cancer, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, epilepsy and autism. Numerous cancer patients use marijuana to curb nausea during chemotherapy.

In the main, epilepsy has brought medical marijuana to the attention of many Australians.

For several young Australian children having hundreds of epileptic seizures a week, harried parents have found that only cannabis oil would help them.

Favourable mainstream media coverage has highlighted the unfairness of penalising parents wanting to do what they have found alleviates their children’s epilepsy, and has pushed politicians to take steps towards legalisation.

Only the medical mainstream is being slow to accept the therapeutic value of cannabis, arguing a lack of quality studies, and is looking for more evidence before taking a stronger supportive position.

WINTER 2016

SELECTING THE RIGHT TYPE

Medical marijuana options include vaping (vapourisation by heating to below the temperature where smoke is produced), foods, juices, oil, therapeutic products, and smoking. Compared to smoking, vaping has the advantage of avoiding the irritating toxins such as polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons found in cannabis smoke.

Cannabis nerds point out that marijuana has more than 80 cannabinoids, and that with a few exceptions we do not fully understand how they operate. Best-known are THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), but others include a range of terpenoids and flavonoids.

It has been speculated that taking multiple cannabinoids has a beneficial synergistic effect.

The primary psychoactive ingredient of marijuana, THC, is found in most varieties in reasonably strong doses. Coming onto the radar more recently is CBD, and for lawmakers it has the advantage of a lack of intoxicating properties.

Both THC and CBD have medical benefits: THC is good for pain, nausea and inflammation, while CBD benefits psychosis, seizures and anxiety. A range of CBD-THC ratios can be adjusted by selectively breeding special varieties.

Proportions range from 18 parts of CBD to one of THC (18:1) to equal measures of 1:1. For most users, 4:1 is mildly psychoactive, and 1:1 has fairly marked psychoactive properties.

HEMP OIL

Don't be confused with the hempseed oil in the fridge at the local wholefood store. Therapeutic hemp oil is a very different liquid that is usually rich in CBD and low in THC, and is often referred to as 'CBD oil’. An exception is a variety known as Rick Simpson Oil or Phoenix Tears that tends to be high in THC. WINTER 2016

“VICTORIA IS PURSUING A GOAL OF BEING THE FIRST STATE TO ESTABLISH A CANNABIS OIL INDUSTRY BY 2017” While hemp oil remains illegal in Australia, except under an import scheme, anyone obtaining the domestically produced item on the unregulated black market needs to be aware that the CBD content is extremely variable, and there may be contaminants. Reports indicate that the cost is about $250 for a 15 to 25ml bottle. On his website, Rick Simpson states that the only way to produce something you can trust is to make it yourself. As this involves the use of high-proof alcohol as a solvent, it is wise to do it outdoors or a wellventilated space, following all of the necessary safety precautions.

VILLAINS OR HEROES?

In 2005, Dr. Andrew Katelaris became aware of the benefits of medical marijuana, and paid the price of being struck off the medical register in order to produce it in form of hemp oil.

As in a dodgy spy movie, Dr Katelaris processes it in a secret location hidden behind a wardrobe, and supplies it illegally. During the past few years, he has noticed encouragingly that the repetitive pattern of arrests and legal challenges has stopped.

Tony Bower from Mullaways Medical Cannabis near Kempsey continues to produce medical marijuana tincture illegally and free of charge to around 150 families who have supplied him with medical certificates. As with Katerlaris, most of his dealings involve families with epileptic children, and 15,000 people are on his waiting list. He has so far avoided being jailed, partly in recognition of the valuable benefits his products offer.

LEGAL STATUS

At the time of writing, medical marijuana is legal, or essentially legal, in 25 countries, including Australia.

Considering that the first country to legalise it was Canada, as recently as 2003, there has been a remarkable shift in attitude in a short time. On this issue, the leading progressive regions are North America, South America, and Western Europe.

It has also been legalised in 24 American states, and in late 2015 US federal legislation was passed that allows the states to pursue their medical marijuana policies without interference such as raids on medical marijuana dispensaries. Each American state has its own rules and a list of eligible medical conditions.

Australian politicians have been slow to give medical cannabis the green light, perhaps because they were wary of being accused of being 'soft on drugs' by the tabloid press. But public opinion is overwhelmingly positive, with a 2015 Roy Morgan poll indicating 91 per cent support. Legalisation occurred in February 2016, with advocates viewing this move as an important first step on a long road towards deciding on a framework and setting up an industry here.

Later in 2016, Queensland will be voting on a Bill to set up a doctor-based system involving prescriptions through select pharmacies, and is hopeful of bipartisan support. If successful, these would be Australia's most progressive laws. New South Wales is about to start trials of Epidiolex and CBDV for children with epilepsy, and Victoria is pursuing a goal of being the first state to establish a cannabis oil industry by 2017.

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ISSUE 95 23

CONSCIOUS HEALTH TOO SLOW COMING?

While NSW Health Minister Pru Goward recently stated that Epidiolex would be available within three years, critics see this type of progress as too little and too slow. Some question the use of trials when numerous countries have given medical marijuana the go-ahead.

Is it a delaying tactic?

Much of the pressure for legalisation is coming out of Nimbin, where medical marijuana is always a hot topic for discussion at the annual Mardi Grass festival. The Greens and the Nimbin Hemp Embassy support a liberal regime, where those who are medically eligible are permitted to grow small quantities of weed at home.

Currently the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) operates a Special Access Scheme (SAS), under which a few natural and synthetic cannabis products can be imported, but a lot of red tape is involved, including the need for support from a doctor. Compared to naturally derived products, users tend to find that synthetic alternatives have weaker therapeutic powers, possibly because they lack the full spectrum of marijuana cannabinoids.

More liberal laws would save affected families a lot of money.

Joelle Neville, of Perth, Western Australia, whose daughter is epileptic, was recently reported as paying a steep $180 a week for a product made by the US company Elixinol, imported under the SAS. Unfortunately she is financially unable to give her daughter the full dosage that could benefit her the most.

Legalisation of hemp oil would bring down the price a long way.

24 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

“AN AUSTRALIAN MOTHER OF AN EPILEPTIC DAUGHTER WAS RECENTLY REPORTED AS PAYING $180 A WEEK FOR A PRODUCT” THE PHARMA ANGLE

Medical cannabis has the advantage of avoiding the harmful long-term side effects often encountered with pharmaceuticals. Where legal, it is substituting some key pharmaceutical drugs for conditions such as depression, insomnia, ADHD, anxiety, and pain. According to a 2014 study in JAMA Internal Medicine, there has been a 25 per cent drop in opioid-related deaths in American states where medical marijuana is legal.

The pharmaceutical sector will lose out unless these billions of dollars are recouped through marijuana products, and an increasing number of players are positioning themselves for a slice of what looks like a very large pie.

One interested market leader is G. W. Pharmaceuticals in the UK, which produces Epidiolex, and Sativex for multiple sclerosis spasms.

However, patented products come with a high price tag that dwarfs the simpler home made unbranded alternative. This expense will have to be shouldered by a patient's family, or by the taxpayer if Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme status is approved.

Medical marijuana supporters such as Michael Balderstone from the Nimbin Hemp Embassy see a risk of medical marijuana being introduced into Australia in a controlled

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fashion, with only pharmaceutical products permitted.

MEDICAL CANNABIS AND ROADSIDE TESTING

Australian states are running roadside drug testing programs that sound like a good idea on the surface, but become problematic under close examination.

Unlike alcohol, where the blood alcohol measurements are scientifically based on the risk of impairment, roadside tests target a select group of three drugs including marijuana. They are tested to the most sensitive level possible, under a 'zero tolerance' regime that is incompatible with the growing availability of legal medical marijuana in Australia.

Despite a global push to roll out this type of testing program, Australia is so far the only country to have introduced it, which raises further questions about its appropriateness. This 'tough of drugs' strategy will have to change for medical marijuana to become more widely available here.

Martin Oliver is a writer and researcher based in Lismore (Northern NSW).

RESOURCES Dr. Andrew Katelaris www.drandrewkatelaris.com Mullaways Medical Cannabis

www.mullawaysmedicalcannabis.com.au

Rick Simpson Oil www.phoenixtears.ca Special Access Scheme www.tga.gov.au/access-unapprovedtherapeutic-goods-special-accessscheme

WINTER 2016

Keep Your Breasts

Healthy A prevention plan for you

By DR SANDRA CABOT MD and MARGARET JASINSKA ND, authors of The Breast Cancer Prevention Guide

Y

ou may be surprised to know that several nutrients, as well as lifestyle factors, can affect the health and appearance of your breast tissue.

The good news is there is a plan you can follow to keep your breasts healthy. ●● Have regular annual breast checks from your doctor and perform breast self-examination every two months – just after your menstrual bleeding has finished. ●● Avoid excess alcohol intake. ●● Include plenty of antioxidant rich foods in your diet, such as raw vegetables and their juices, raw fruits and white or green tea. ●● Include phyto-oestrogen rich foods in your diet such as nuts, seeds and legumes (beans, peas and lentils). Phyto-estrogens help protect oestrogen receptors in breast tissue from more powerful, harmful oestrogens. ●● Keep your weight in the healthy range and exercise regularly. ●● Minimise your exposure to toxic chemicals (pesticides, insecticides, solvents, glues, dyes, etc) and avoid heating food in plastic containers or plastic wraps.

Don’t drink hot beverages from WINTER 2016

Styrofoam cups. Install a water filter in your home. ●● Ensure you receive enough of the nutrients vital for supporting healthy breast tissue: vitamin D, iodine and selenium. ●● If you have lumpy breasts, it may be wise to avoid prolonged use of oral contraceptives, which contain synthetic oestrogens.

ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS FOR HEALTHY BREASTS Vitamin D Vitamin D is a hormone-like substance produced in the skin during exposure to sunlight. Its many vital functions in the body include strengthening bones and promoting a healthy immune system, which reduce your risk of cancer.

Vitamin D helps regulate cellular replication in a very important way.

Vitamin D helps cells to differentiate (become specialised), and inhibits cells from proliferating, or growing in an out of control way.

It is thought that these are the reasons why vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of various types of cancer, including breast, colon and prostate cancer.

Those most at risk of vitamin D deficiency include dark skinned people, women who practise veiling, people taking certain medications (such as antiepileptic drugs), and people who spend

“VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY INCREASES THE RISK OF VARIOUS TYPES OF CANCER” most of their time indoors. Sunscreen inhibits the manufacture of vitamin D. It’s healthy to get some regular exposure to the sun’s rays on uncovered skin; however prolonged sun exposure can be hazardous and vitamin D is found in only a few foods; therefore, supplementing with vitamin D may be the best option. Your body’s level of vitamin D can be accurately tested with a blood test.

Iodine Iodine is a trace mineral that has a number of important health promoting functions in the body. Eighty per cent of the iodine in your body is stored in your thyroid gland, where it is needed for the production of thyroid hormones. In women, a large amount of iodine is also stored in breast tissue.

Research has shown that iodine deficiency increases risk of fibrocystic breast disease. This is where the breasts become lumpy and painful, particularly before menstruation, when multiple cysts can be felt. Taking supplemental iodine helps resolve these symptoms for the majority of women.

Studies have also shown that iodine acts as an antioxidant in the breasts, protecting breast tissue from

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CONSCIOUS HEALTH free radical damage. In this way it “RESEARCH HAS SHOWN helps to protect breast tissue against WHEN WOMEN WITH THE cancerous changes.

BRCA1 GENE WERE GIVEN Worldwide, iodine deficiency is SUPPLEMENTAL SELENIUM an increasingly common problem.

Most of the world’s iodine is found in FOR THREE MONTHS, THEIR the oceans, although small amounts NUMBER OF CHROMOSOME are found in the soil. Many parts of BREAKS WAS REDUCED the world, particularly inland areas, TO NORMAL” have soils very deficient in iodine.

In the past five years studies have identified iodine deficiency as a common problem among that people living in adults, children and pregnant women. Your iodine level can areas with selenium be checked with a urine test. deficient soils and Seafood from the ocean (rather than farmed) is a source who have a low of iodine. Seaweeds (such as arame, wakame, kelp, nori and selenium intake, kombu) are excellent sources of iodine. have higher cancer Selenium mortality rates.

Selenium is a mineral that acts as a powerful antioxidant and Women who is a great protector and detoxifier in breast tissue. Selenium have the breast has been shown to stimulate apoptosis (cell death) in tumour cancer gene cells, and a low selenium status predicts a poorer outcome in (BRCA1 gene), a mutated gene, are known to have more those with certain cancers. Geographic studies have shown chromosome breaks (which can promote cancer) than women without this gene. Research has shown that when women with the BRCA1 gene were given supplemental selenium for three months, their number of chromosome breaks became reduced to normal.

Obtaining adequate selenium from diet alone can be difficult because few foods are a rich source of selenium.

Brazil nuts, crab and salmon provide some selenium, however using a selenium supplement can help ensure you are receiving optimal levels of this vital mineral.

REFERENCES Linus Pauling Institute Oregon State University Hansen CM, Binderup L, Hamberg KJ, Vitamin D and cancer: effects of 1,25(OH)2D3 and its analogues on growth control and tumorigenesis.

Front Biosci. 2001 6: D820-48.

The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 84, No. 2 821 Kowalska E et al., Increased Rates of Chromosomes Breakage in BRCA1 Carriers are Normalised by Oral Selenium Supplementation, Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention 2005

Dr Cabot is the Medical and Executive Director of the Australian Women’s Health Advisory Service. Dr Cabot has written several ground breaking books –Hormones – Don’t Let Them Ruin Your Life; The Body Shaping Diet; The Liver Cleansing Diet and more. Dr Cabot still has an active medical practices in Camden, Adelaide and Merimbula. www.cabothealth.com.au 26 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

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WINTER 2016

How ‘high-tech’ Links Us to Cancer Cell Phones, Hormones and Breast Cancer: Connect the Dots

By SHERRILL SELLMAN ND

H

ormones are powerful and pack a big wallop, considering the tiny amounts our endocrine glands produce. Even small hormonal fluctuations can create major physiological changes.

As profound orchestrators of all of life’s processes, maintaining hormonal balance is imperative for optimum health. When delicate hormonal balance and rhythms are altered, the body's ability to regulate fundamental systems goes haywire.

Our modern lifestyle poses many threats to optimal endocrine function. Stress, toxicity, poor quality

WINTER 2016

“A RARELY CONSIDERED HORMONE DISRUPTOR COMES FROM ELECTROMAGNETIC ENERGY FIELDS (EMFS)” food, lack of sleep, pharmaceutical medications are all known hormone disruptors.

A rarely considered hormone disruptor comes from electromagnetic energy fields generated from mobile phones, mobile phone towers, computers, routers, Wi-Fi and Smart Meters.

21ST CENTURY SMOG

Modern physics has confirmed that the human body is fundamentally a coherent, highly sensitive electrical system emanating its own electromagnetic field, known as a biofield.

All physical matter, including the Earth itself, radiates electromagnetic energy. The electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs) found within the natural world are harmonious with and supportive of life.

On the other hand, artificially created EMFs are 100 to 200 million times greater than what existed only two generations ago. Every minute of every day, whether awake or sleeping, we are exposed to these electromagnetic frequencies.

Continous interference with our natural energy fields from external sources of EMFs can eventually damage our own biofields, resulting in many physiological imbalances.

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CONSCIOUS HEALTH The most recent research has identified that exposure to EMFs causes significant oxidative stress resulting in free radical damage.

Unrelenting oxidative stress alters the DNA, resulting in cell mutation.

Such serious imbalances will also adversely impact hormone production, neurological processes and risk of cancers, including breast cancer.

Irrefutable evidence implicates oxidative stress to more rapid aging, elevated blood glucose levels, elevated lipid levels, high blood pressure, infertility, increased neuro-regulatory disturbances, and compromises the central nervous, cardiovascular and immune systems.

Scientist Robert O. Becker, MD, author of Cross Currents, The Perils of Electropollution, explains that our human bodies and immune systems are being adversely affected by man-made

“THE CONNECTION BETWEEN BREAST CANCER AND EMFS CONTINUES TO STRENGTHEN” electromagnetic fields, including, power lines, cell phones, radar, microwaves, satellites, ham radios, computers, video display terminals, electric appliances and Wi-Fi hot spots. He believes that radiation is correlated with increases in cancer, birth defects, depression, learning disabilities, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Alzheimer's disease and much more.

MELATONIN, BREAST CANCER AND EMFS

Perhaps the most serious consequence of EMF exposure is how it affects our hormonal systems.

The pineal gland is light sensitive, about the size of a pea and is located deep within the centre of the brain. It produces the hormone, melatonin.

Researchers are surprised at the extent of the processes controlled or influenced by melatonin: it regulates circadian rhythms, which govern our waking-sleep cycle, and it is a powerful destroyer of free radicals, thereby allowing DNA synthesis and cell division to occur.

Melatonin inhibits the release of oestrogen and suppresses the development of breast cancer. It also has the ability to increase the cytotoxicity of the immune system’s killer lymphocytes and counteract stress-induced immunosuppression.

Japan’s National Institute for Environmental Studies showed that breast cancer cells treated with melatonin would resume growing when exposed EMFs.

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28 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

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WINTER 2016

It was shown that EMFs disrupt the cells’ signaling system and internal communications network, which determines how cells respond to their environment. This mechanism has helped to explain why reduced melatonin levels caused

by EMFs contribute to a number of cancers, including breast cancer, prostate cancer, melanoma and ovarian malignancies.

Melatonin suppression occurs at frequencies not far above those of the common household ranges of 50 to 60 hertz. If we sleep next to a cell phone, cordless phone andor digital clock enough, continuous EMF exposures suppress nighttime melatonin production.

The connection between breast cancer and EMFs continues to strengthen. Boston University School of Public Health reported a 43 per cent increased risk in women with a high likelihood of occupational exposure to EMFs, such as those given off by mainframe computers.

A recent study focused on four women between the ages of 21 and 39 with invasive multi-focal breast cancer, who kept their phones in their bras for up to 10 hours a day for four years.

Imaging of their breasts revealed a clustering of multiple tumor foci in the part of the breast directly under where their cell phones touched their bodies.

MORE FEMALE AND MALE HORMONE DISRUPTION

Experimental physiologist, Charles Graham’s research found that magnetic fields had an effect on two other hormones: they increased oestrogen levels and reduced testosterone, a risk factor for testicular and prostate cancer.

He also found that EMFs may fit the definition of an endocrine disrupter better than many hormone-mimicking environmental pollutants. Magnetic

fields appear to elicit their effects by acting on and through hormones, rather than as hormones.

TAMOXIFEN AND EMFS

When exposed to EMFs, tamoxifen, the most popular drug given to prevent recurrence of breast cancer, lost its ability to halt the proliferation of cancer cells.

Neurotransmitters, a special class of hormones, include serotonin and dopamine.

Neurotransmitters play a major role in moods especially depression.

Evidence has now shown a connection with altered serotonin and dopamine levels with EMF exposure.

EMFs also increase the levels of adrenaline, the flight or fight hormone, released from the adrenals glands Chronic stress is detrimental to every anatomical system, including the reproductive system. Stress effects fertility and elevates blood pressure, which can lead to heart disease. Strokes and suppressed immune function. Even short EMF exposures could cause spikes in hormone levels.

WHAT ABOUT MOBILE PHONES? EMFs from our Smart phones penetrate directly into our brain,

breaking down the protective blood brain barrier, causing DNA damage, free radical production and even brain tumors. Since the master glands of the body are located in the brain, massive disturbances to the hormonal signaling capacities may be generated from continual mobile phone use.

Headsets can increase radiation exposure into the brain by as much as 300 per cent. Bluetooth technology is especially dangerous.

SOLUTIONS

Reducing exposure to EMFs as much as possible is essential. Turn off routers at night. Remove electrical devices, chargers and phones from near your head while sleeping.

Because of our high levels of exposure to electro-pollution, it is imperative to use proven technology that can prevent the DNA damage.

The proven technology I recommend and personally use on all my devices is available from GIA Wellness. The responsibility lies with each one of us to take proactive steps to protect our families, future generations and ourselves.

Dr. Sherrill Sellman ND is an author, health journalist, international lecture, and radio host. www.whatwomenmustknow.com

CONSCIOUS HEALTH

HEALTHCARE CRISIS Demands a Solution Researcher detects answer in agriculture

A

ustralia’s medical practitioners, healthcare institutions, state and federal governments, and the public realise the healthcare system is caught in a deepening crisis.

primarily focused on treatment and cure, a few individuals are focusing on Preventative Medicine.

To address the special needs of this new focus in preventative, wellness based Primary Health Care, we need new, innovative idea's that are scientifically and medically valid; tools designed to give practitioners the information they need to address the healthcare needs of patients.

It is now being recognised that new strategies in patient care are needed in order to address the increasing demand for healthcare services.

Additionally, while the demand for healthcare is increasing, in terms of financial and human resources, the cost of delivering these services is spiraling out of control.

Gone are the days when infectious diseases were the primary the cause of illness. Today we have a whole new genre of diseases, degenerative diseases, such as arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and more.

It is fortunate, however, that although orthodox medicine has

NUTRITIONAL AND METABOLIC PROFILING

As with many new and innovative ideas, researchers look to the past for inspiration. Such is the case with Nutritional and Metabolic Profiling.

Once again, agricultural research has led the way.

The Compton Metabolic Profile (CMP) was first introduced into agriculture in the early 1970s. The original intent of the CMP was to: ●● Monitor metabolic health of the herd (cows) in the study ●● Help identify metabolic problems and production disease ●● Identify metabolically superior cows.

In concert with this improved understanding of integrated transition metabolism (ITM) there has been improvement in technical methods to assess metabolic status and monitoring transition for cow health to disease risk.

In simple terms, Nutritional and Metabolic Profiling is a system that evaluates: a) Whether we are getting the correct balance of nutrients (substances) b) Whether our body is absorbing those nutrients (anabolism) c) Whether our body is metabolising (catabolism) those nutrients and using them to produce energy for cell growth and repair

PERTH-BASED NATUROPATH’S RESEARCH

In 2005 a research team led by Gary Jackson ND began to look at the correlation of disease progression in humans and nutritional and metabolic imbalances with the view to achieving the following goals: ●● Assess nutritional status of patients

“ASSESSING METABOLIC STATUS AND MONITORING TRANSITION FOR… HEALTH TO DISEASE RISK”

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“TWO YEAR CLINICAL RESEARCH STUDY AIMED AT… EARLY DETECTION OF DISEASE PROCESSES” ●● Identify disease conditions earlier that current methods ●● Identify potential risk of developing disease states ●● Look for potential causes of disease Based on the Compton team’s work, the researchers understood that evaluation of nutritional and metabolic processes was the cornerstone to developing a new screening tool.

The researchers discovered that by combining nutritional profiling, and metabolic profiling using defined parameters they could begin to assess prevalence of various sub-clinical metabolic states in the absence of obvious clinical symptoms.

They also discovered that specific blood morphologies that are either high or low relative to defined reference or cut point could predict potential for increased risk of experiencing specific or collective disease events.

The team concluded that broadbased nutritional and metabolic profiling can be used as a screening tool. Profile results need to be interpreted relative to nutrient imbalances as well as management and other factors.

Professor Denham Harman, MD, PhD, FACP, FAAA bio-gerontologist and Professor emeritus at the University of Nebraska Medical Center stated: “Ageing is now understood to be the culmination of oxidative damage which causes cells to fail.”

And Dr Bruce Aimes, of UC Berkley, concluded that “99 per cent of damage to DNA can be reversed through use of Anti-oxidants".

Additionally, from the US Surgeon General came the statement: “Nutritional Deficiency is responsible for 65 per cent of all degenerative disease."

As a Naturopath Gary's belief is that the primary cause of degenerative WINTER 2016

disease is oxidative damage. But how does the oxidative damage arise?

Gary had heard about the use of Live Blood Analysis as a means of identifying nutritional deficiencies and he knew that: ●● Blood controls the amount of water and the relative pH inside the body's cells. ●● Blood transports oxygen from the lungs to every cell in the body. ●● Blood carries the material of digestion from the Small Intestine to tissue and organs. ●● Blood is the carrier vehicle for enzymes. ●● Blood is the carrier vehicle for the chemicals of the Immune System. ●● The liver stores and filters the Blood to remove infectious agents. ●● Blood carries hormones from the endocrine glands. ●● Blood distributes the heat produced during cell metabolism. ●● Blood transports away the waste products of cell metabolism and delivers them to the lungs, kidneys and skin for elimination from the body.

Unfortunately, he found that most of the Live Blood Analysis systems in the market were poorly developed with little or no valid research to support them, and some practitioners were making unsustainable claims about what could and could not be seen. He wanted to uncover the truth.

Using only proven and substantiated medical and scientific principles, Gary developed a viable and clinically validated Nutritional and Metabolic Profiling system for use with humans know as the Jackson Metabolic Profile marketed under the brand ‘BloodScan’. The system has been available commercially since 2006

and is used by healthcare practitioners all over the world who share Gary's belief in the preventative approach to healthcare.

To date this nutritional and metabolic profiling system has been able to identify broad based changes in people that if left unattended would most likely lead down the path of disease states.

DETECTING DISEASE PROCESSES

Gary believes it is now time to focus attention on identifying specific disease process.

“To begin with, we want to engage in a two year clinical research study aimed at identifying specific markers that would provide an early detection of disease processes,” Gary said.

Initially, the goal is to look into diabetes and then heart disease.

“Secondly, we want to bring this screening to those who would normally not have access to preventative healthcare screening.

“My focus is on indigenous populations in remote areas where access to regular health care is limited.

My goal to provide free of charge the equipment and training to healthcare workers who operate in these area's.”

Funds will be needed to achieve this, therefore Gary has set up a crowd funding project through GoFundMe.com: www.gofundme.com/23ah5tg.

Gary Jackson ND is based at Rockingham, Western Australia. www.jackson-hs.com

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CONSCIOUS EARTH

SMALL Birds Need Your Garden

By SUE DEMPSTER, of Boxed Green, a West Australian eco initiative helping urban gardeners connect to the bush.

D

o you hear sweet soft chirping sounds outside your window? Do you see the quick flash of something moving in a tree? Do you see a small bird snatch an insect as it fly’s by?

Small birds are a missing element in home gardens. What is being experienced in many gardens today are big birds, noisy birds or flocks of birds.

There are various reasons for this but here I’m writing about small birds and how you can attract them to your garden.

What do you need to know about small birds?

Small birds love eating insects and they need water to drink and bathe in.

They collect their insects from the foliage of trees, from flowering plants and also as the insects fly around: they like catching insects on the wing.

Small birds also like hopping around on the ground. They do this to find small

twigs, soft things, like hair and leaves for their nests.

To feel safe, they need different levels and shapes of plants. Small birds are very cautious when flying from level to level, as they are concerned about cats and bigger birds. They know they are in most danger when they are on the ground.

Small birds begin their foraging from high branches, where they can check whether it is safe to go down to the next level, or whether they need to fly away to a safer place. They check each level for safety and their exploration covers small distances of about 20 metres.

A SAFE GARDEN FOR SMALL BIRDS

You can create a suitable environment that will attract small birds.

DIFFERENT HEIGHTS

Make sure you have an open branched tree in which small birds can forage for insects hiding behind the bark, and where they can feed on the nectar in the tree’s flowers.

Small birds like to fly down to medium sized shrubs, which are ideal for hiding or nesting in, and in which they will find insects.

PROTECTION AND ESCAPE ROUTES

A dense, prickly shrub will deter predators from attacking small birds, because they will not be able to penetrate it. Ensure that this shrub is not too far from a higher perch, or from water.

Lower shrubs can provide protection for small birds, especially if they are flowering, because this will attract insects.

Low shrubs, especially if they have open branches, make good landing perches on which the birds can scout around for safety before deciding where to fly to next.

FOOD

Flowering groundcovers are excellent places for insects, both day and night, and hence really suitable for small birds to feed from.

“SMALL BIRDS LIKE HOPPING AROUND ON THE GROUND… FINDING SMALL TWIGS, SOFT THINGS, LIKE HAIR AND LEAVES FOR THEIR NESTS”

“WORK TOWARDS CREATING A HABITAT THAT WILL ATTRACT SMALL BIRDS. THEIR FUTURE PRESENCE IN YOUR GARDEN WILL BE SUFFICIENT REWARD” Water is best placed in some sort of hanging container or standing alone.

Around one metre high is good, as this is low enough to not encourage the bigger birds and high enough for small birds to evade cats.

NESTING

Small, strappy plants are helpful, especially when old foliage has died, providing great material for nest building.

These plants are also great for creepy critters to hide in – for the birds to eat.

Hair, human or animal, appeals to birds. So when you clean your hairbrush throw the hair into the garden.

Allow open ground areas, as this will help small birds to forage around to find the twigs and leaf litter so they can build their nest in a shrub or tree.

PERCH

Finally, make sure you provide some sort of perch for small birds. This will give them a scouting post from which they can survey your garden to ascertain whether it is safe to fly lower or they need to retreat onto higher branches.

How can you work out whether your garden is small-bird friendly?

Have a look at your garden and see how many levels your plants create.

Start from five metres and come down to one metre: which level is missing?

What colours do you have in your garden?

Where is your water positioned? Do you have any for them?

Do they have a safe place to hide, entry and exit to visit your garden?

If you can see that your garden is lacking a few of these parts of your garden, start to plan your future planting and work towards creating a habitat that will attract small birds.

Their future presence in your garden will be sufficient reward.

WINTER 2016

FAQ’S

Q: What about birdseed, or other suitable food?

A: We recommend that you don’t put out birdseed to attract small birds. You will attract the bigger birds first and they will prevent the smaller birds from visiting your garden. Let the plants and the insects become the attraction for the small birds.

Q: Should I use sprays to kill my spiders and insects eating my other plants?

A: Our preference at Boxed Green is no.

The small birds a sensitive to chemicals and they see dead insects as an easy meal. The appearance of pest insects is caused by lack of other beneficial insects.

It is about learning how to attract the beneficial insects to your garden, which are the ones Boxed Green recommends.

Q: How do I keep cats from eating small birds?

A: Boxed Green supports good pet ownership. The time little birds are out the most is at dawn and dusk. These are the main times we recommend you to keep your cats indoors. We also recommend that you check with your council on Cat Policy in your neighborhood.

Q: How do I know that my garden is working for small birds?

A: You will start to see small insects flying around, you will hear different sweet, high-pitched bird songs, and you will see fewer bigger birds. This will take time. It took our small neighborhood bird 12 months to find us and now visits us regularly. We can’t always see him but we know he is there because he (or she) sings to us.

Q: We have lot of New Holland Honeyeaters and not lots of other little birds.

A: Small birds are normally quite timid and like to feel safe. The New Holland Honey-eaters are confident little

fellows: a little too confident at times, and become bossy and frighten other birds away. You can see them being bossy as they swoop and dart the birds away. The New Holland Honey-eaters like big flowers and lots of them, as they can stick their beaks in to get to the insects feeding on them, and they can lick the juice of the nectar. These days many park landscapes have lots of big flowers and lots of the same flowers planted in a mass. This again serves these bossy birds, but not the smaller birds. This is why we at Box Green are encouraging small bird refuges and appropriate planting for home gardens.

Sue Dempster’s vision is to see every garden, balcony and green space thrive through creating habitats for local insects.

Sue believes that every gardener has an opportunity to link their gardens with nature to value nature’s gifts. Boxed Green was created by Sue to be the vehicle to help achieve this vision. www.boxedgreen.com.au E: suedempster@boxedgreen.com.au Find us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BoxedGreenLimited

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CONSCIOUS EARTH

Learn from the

Music of PLANTS Know we are but one

By MIRANDA MUNRO, co-founder with Karl Akkerman of Western Australia’s Kyela Sound Therapy

T

he forest spreads before you: its palate of emerald, olive and slate mingles and blends to create a masterpiece of nature.

“PLANTS… PRODUCE NEUROTRANSMITTERS, LIKE DOPAMINE, SEROTONIN AND OTHER CHEMICALS THE HUMAN BRAIN USES TO SEND SIGNALS”

The soft warmth of the day blankets you in its comforting embrace, a gentle breeze wafts through you, the air resounds with a symphony of birdsong and the plants and trees shimmer in the light that dances through their leaves. The sensations are tangible, palatable and palpable; everything feels so alive.

It is here, in an instant, we all experience the pure uninterrupted energy of life and – if only for a moment – we ‘know’ we are connected.

Being ‘connected to all’ was once the domain of spiritual thought. But

recently, while braving the frontier of consciousness, the world of science has begun to realise it shares the same mother as esoteric thought. The new science of plant neurobiology has begun to demonstrate plant consciousness.

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THE SAME SENSE AS HUMANS

One scientist, Michael Pollan, explains that plants have the same senses as humans. Plants even go beyond this and can feel the presence of water; they can sense gravity and an obstruction in the path of their roots well before it is encountered.

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Pollan says: “They have ways of taking all the sensory data they gather in their everyday lives... [they] integrate it and then behave in an appropriate way in response.

And they do this without a brain, which, in a way, is what's incredible about it, because we automatically assume you need a brain to process information.

"You can put a plant out with a human anesthetic. They don't have nerve cells like humans, but they do have a system for sending electrical signals and even produce neurotransmitters, like dopamine, serotonin and other chemicals the human brain uses to send signals.”

We also assume that ears are needed in order to hear. Researchers at the Division of Plant Sciences at Missouri performed an experiment where they played a recording of a caterpillar eating a leaf. The listening plants reacted by producing WINTER 2016

defensive chemicals. When the researchers played sounds of nonthreatening insects, they did not trigger any response.

Dr Monica Gagliano is an Australian Research Council research fellow at The University of Western Australia's Centre for Evolutionary Biology. Dr Gagliano has performed experiments that have demonstrated that plants have memory.

Dr Gagliano and her team tested the mimosa pudica plant and discovered it can learn and remember equally as well as animals She concludes: “Plants may lack brains and neural tissues but they do possess a sophisticated calcium-based signal network in their cells similar to animals' memory processes.”

TREES COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER

A forest ecologist from the University of British Columbia, Dr Suzanne Simard, has shown how trees in a forest use the underground web of mycorrhizal fungi, which connects their roots, to exchange information and allows the trees to communicate with each other.

It may be as warnings against insect attack, or to feed carbon, nitrogen, and water to other trees lacking these nutrients.

Dr Simard’s research showed how older trees were using the network to nourish seedlings until they were mature enough to reach the light.

Dr Simard also discovered that one species would use this network to assist and aid another species when it needed nutrients. In this case it was an evergreen fir tree, which fed a deciduous tree when it had food to spare. This cooperative community behaviour creates a healthy and resilient forest. We humans could take a leaf out of their book.

A human community in the north of Italy, Darmanhur, lives and WINTER 2016

breathes the understanding of the connectedness between nature and humans.

Since the 1970s, members of this community have been researching communication with the plant world.

Recently they have developed an instrument that can transform the electromagnetic variations of the surface of the plants leaves and the roots in the soil to turn these variations into sounds. They call it ‘Music of the Plants’.

The instrument reads the electrical variations, which are then fed into a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), which can translate these impulses into sound.

The instrument has more than 100 different sounds through which the plant can express [itself]. Each plant, it seems, has a preference.

At first the plants play the scales, seemingly practising and becoming comfortable with their newfound expression. Even the humble houseplant can be trained to play in harmony, and across Europe musicians are playing concerts with trained plants.

The first time you hear plants play you will almost certainly experience an epiphany. It is overwhelming when you realise that plants can interact with you through music.

These sounds confirm the connectedness and consciousness of nature. We can now have a personal connection with nature, which should inspire us all to understand that nature is an integral part of who we are.

This understanding and acceptance is finally filtering through to some governments in the world.

In 2007 the Swiss Government issued a bill of rights for plants: it amended the law to include the protection and dignity of all living things.

“THE NEW SCIENCE OF PLANT NEUROBIOLOGY HAS BEGUN TO DEMONSTRATE PLANT CONSCIOUSNESS” NATURE GIVEN EQUAL RIGHTS TO HUMANS

In 2008 Ecuador officially declared plants and ecosystems as having rights.

The people of Ecuador voted to change their constitution to proclaim that nature has “the right to maintenance and regeneration of its vital cycles, structure, functions and evolutionary processes”.

Bolivia followed in 2010 and passed laws granting nature equal rights to humans.

Bolivia’s Law of Rights for Mother Earth reads: “Mother Earth has the right to exist, continue life cycles and be free from human alteration, the right to pure water and clean air, the right to equilibrium, the right not to be polluted or have cellular structures modified and the right not to be affected by development that could impact the balance of ecosystems.”

PLANTS ARE INTRINSIC TO ALL LIFE The reality is that without plants we would have no air to breath, no food to eat, there would be no life on the planet. Plants are intrinsic to all life. We could even say that plants could teach us about living in harmony and being in the here and now.

Co-founders of and the Kyela Vibrational Healing Centre, Miranda Munro and Karl Akkerman, will demonstrate the Music of the Plants in Perth, Western Australia, at the Conscious Living Expo 4-6 November 2016. You will have the unique opportunity to experience the moving and thought-provoking journey into the once silent world of plants. www.kyela.com.au

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CONSCIOUS EARTH

Landlords Gain With Digital Solar

By MARTIN OLIVER

A

ustralia leads the world with the highest concentration of properties with rooftop photovoltaic systems. But on the flipside, although fifteen per cent of homes benefit from solar, this shrinks to one per cent for rental properties.

Landlords have complained about a lack a financial incentive to go solar, given that there is no mechanism to recoup any of the investment, and tenants are put off by a general lack of options for panels that are removable and can be taken to the next dwelling.

Some online discussions over the past few years have focused on the possibility of a solar landlord putting the power bill into his or her name, and arranging a payment agreement with the tenants. This would have become problematic, as it would have legally made the landlord a retailer.

Now, for Australia's two million or so rental properties, these issues are no longer obstacles because of a solution created by the Melbourne start-up, Matter.

Matter’s Digital Solar initiative gives both parties a financial motivation to go down the solar route. Renters save an average of $300 a year, while landlords receive about $1500 a year.

Designed as a brokerage that facilitates solar deals, Matter’s Digital Solar could be considered part of the peer-to-peer economy alongside Uber and Airbnb.

SMART METERS MONITOR USAGE

If both parties are willing to go ahead, the landlord arranges installation of the panels, to which are added tiny smart meters for monitoring usage. Tenants receive a discount of up to 20 per cent on their electricity bill, which is paid directly to the landlord via Matter's processing system.

In this way, landlords run their panels like a 'micro-utility' that is sophisticated enough to handle feed-in tariffs and storage batteries.

Ongoing costs for the landlord are limited to a fee of $9 per property per month, and the expected payback time

is four to six years. Tenants also have the opportunity to track their own power usage in real time.

Digital Solar was launched in December 2015, initially in the Cairns area of Far North Queensland. Later in 2016, Matter intends to launch a service for residential blocks, extending its reach to take in another 400,000 dwellings.

Another possibility for long-term renters is to install solar panels on removable frames, in such a way that they can be added one at a time.

Some Australian solar installers such as Solazone in Melbourne and the Sunshine Coast offer this option.

Martin Oliver is a writer and researcher based in Lismore (Northern NSW).

RESOURCES Matter www.smartmatter.com

“DIGITAL SOLAR INITIATIVE… RENTERS SAVE AN AVERAGE $300 A YEAR, WHILE LANDLORDS RECEIVE ABOUT $1500 A YEAR” 36 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95

WINTER 2016

CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE

Robin Hood Prowls Wall Street

By MARTIN OLIVER

Hedge funds are typically large, low-regulation financial institutions available only to the ultra-rich. This pattern has been broken with the arrival of the world's first activist hedge fund, the Robin Hood Minor Asset Management Cooperative.

You won’t find Robin Hood’s head honchos puffing cigars on a luxury yacht. They are more likely to be engaged in creating open source online tools, and would describe their activities as 'hacking finance’.

Headquartered in Finland, it originated with a group of economics academics whose interests cross over into art, politics, and post-modern thinkers with radical ideas about the role of labour in society. Unpaid volunteers run its five offices in five different European countries, with the exception of a single paid employee.

It uses special share trading software, which after years of testing and tweaking led to the formation of the Robin Hood Coop in 2012. In its first trading year, it was the world's third most profitable hedge fund.

The trading software, described as a 'dynamic data mining algorithm', is known as Parasite. This follows the

“IN ITS FIRST YEAR OF TRADING, THIS ACTIVIST HEDGE FUND WAS THE WORLD'S THIRD MOST PROFITABLE…” WINTER 2016

most profitable Wall Street traders, and tracks their trading patterns. Where these traders act in unison, it replicates the trade.

PHILOSOPHER MICHEL SERRES

Based on the thought of contemporary French philosopher Michel Serres, the idea behind Parasite is to latch onto the body of the financial system, suck out private capital, and divert it into development of ‘the commons’.

Once used to describe shared land, today the concept of the commons has expanded to take in open-access cooperative structures.

A new strategy being rolled out is Shadow Parasite, which involves locating the worst stocks in the US and 'shorting' them: placing a bet that they will go down.

Assets under management are currently about 700,000 Euros (roughly AUD $1,070,000), and are not constrained by ethical screening.

Relatively high-risk and volatile, initially the Robin Hood fund significantly outperformed the S&P 500 Index, but has since fallen behind. Anyone can join online for E60 (AUD $92), which breaks down into of minimum of one E30 share plus an E30 membership fee. At the time of writing, however, the online joining facility is down and is about to be relaunched.

Its 919 members have a say in the running of the fund, and choose a split between the share of profits that they keep and what goes back in. Many members choose an equal 50/50 division. To make payments in currencies other than the Euro, one suggestion has been to bypass the banks by using services such as the peer-to-peer international money sending service Transferwise.

GRANTS FOR GRASSROOTS INITIATIVES

The fund makes grants to grassroots initiatives that are working to maximise their social leverage and have no existing funding streams. In 2015, donations totalling E15,000 (AUD $23,000) were made to three groups: ●● Casa Nuvem, a cultural centre working for citizens' rights in Rio de Janeiro. ●● P2P Foundation/Catalan Integral Cooperative, a cooperative umbrella group involved in creating alternative producer and consumer initiatives outside the capitalist system. ●● Radio Schizoanalytique/The Steki.

This Greek radio station is challenging an environmentally damaging gold mining project at Skouries, run by the Canadian company Eldorado Gold, and is promoting alternatives.

Never standing still, the Robin Hood Coop mutates and experiments, and is open to change and reinvention.

It is in the process of implementing a crypto-currency (a digital currency using encryption techniques) working with blockchain (a payment handling system pioneered by Bitcoin).

This was developed in partnership with the trading platform HitFin, and would be the first of its kind to be backed by an asset, namely shares.

It opens the door to numerous possibilities, detailed on the website, including self-replication in the form of small autonomous Robin Hood initiatives.

Martin Oliver is a writer and researcher based in Lismore (Northern NSW).

RESOURCE Robin Hood Coop www.robinhoodcoop.org

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CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE

Cultivate Community

WithinYour Business

By WENDY DUMARESQ B.Bus, Dip Med Herb, Ad.C. NFM

W

hat would the world be like if all businesses and organisations considered themselves to be operating as a community, rather than a specific 'entity', and treated their 'stakeholders' as ‘real people’?

This is beginning to happen, branching out from the Heart Conscious Business Hub group in Perth, who I view as leaders of the pack in this paradigm of inclusiveness.

Many years ago when I was studying for my first degree, which was in Business Administration, the focus was on all things practical and the economics of this. What I learned was important and provided a grounded way to start my working life.

ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

I was fortunate to have this education, but there was zero focus on building

“EMPLOYEES… WERE NOT RECOGNISED FOR THE MANY FINE QUALITIES THEY HAD TO OFFER” 38 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

communities within and external to an organisation that could be nurtured and nurturing.

Our organisational behaviour lectures centred on basic behavioural traits and how to identify and utilise the knowledge of these to have people 'comply' within an entity or role in the organisation.

The focus was on how to have people become more productive through having more understanding of human behaviour. That's all very fine, but even way back then in the dark ages of my youth it struck me as being a rather ruthless approach to life and the workplace.

It seemed to me that the workplace population was there primarily to be leached of their skills

ISSUE 95

and qualities for the greater good of the bottom line. Employees were not there because of they were highly talented and could enjoy their life more while being highly productive.

They were not recognised for the many fine qualities they had to offer.

There seemed to be no concept of nurturing intra-preneurs within the workplace.

A CONSTRICTING PARADIGM

I observed that the bottom line was more important than the community of humans serving it.

Recognising the constricting nature of this paradigm, from an early age I sought to be self-employed. I did not want to be part of something that felt so crushing to the soul.

WINTER 2016

Is this one of the reasons why you sought to strike out on your own and start your own enterprise? Were you determined to have some say in your work-life quality and your future? Did you decide you wanted be creative in the running of your enterprise, and be recognised for your attributes?

Recognising that my enterprise is a community unto itself has been incredibly beneficial for me as well as truly enjoyable. I consider each person I interact with as part of my enterprise community; they are never just ‘customers’ or ‘clients’, ‘widgets’ or ‘gadgets’. They have a life beyond my business; they have wants, needs, joys and challenges and in this they are just like me. My interaction with them is a two-way street: in assisting them, I light up my Heart Centre.

As a Heart Centred Entrepreneur you are already aware of the meaning of 'inclusion' at the deeper level, otherwise you would not be operating from the Heart Space as you do. You want to collaborate and co-create with others, to give and receive a boost to your motivation and inspiration, to help others achieve to their personal best.

To further develop this paradigm of your enterprise being a community I have listed a few 'ponder points' for you to work with.

RECOGNISE THE SUPPORT YOU GIVE

Take some time to think about these and what you arrive in your conclusion can greatly enhance your work life, success and personal satisfaction. Along the way you will recognise the huge array of support you have and give. That's very motivating and gives juice to your enterprising soul. These ponder points are summarised from my book Enterprise with Soul.

WINTER 2016

“WHO IS HELPING YOU MAINTAIN YOUR MORALE AND MOTIVATION?” ●● What does ‘community’ mean to you at a personal level? ●● Who is involved in your personal and social community such as family, friends, support groups, and voluntary groups? ●● What does community mean for your enterprise?

To elaborate further on this with regards to your enterprise you may like to be more specific and consider a few key questions such as: ●● Who does your team consist of internal to the enterprise? For example, paid team members, students on work experience, sales, personnel, administration, technical support, reception and cleaning. ●● Who does your team consist of as personal back up and support for your role within the enterprise?

For example, who is helping you maintain your morale and motivation?

The answer to this question may include family members or friends who give you moral support just when you need it. You may have a library of motivating books, audio=visual products or newsletters which you regularly refer to in order to keep you pumped up and inspired. You may have a business coach or advisor in a paid or voluntary capacity. You may like to extend your thinking to practitioners who you turn to for your health and wellbeing. ●● Who do you inspire or motivate?

Those you assist are also part of your community and you are part of theirs. Be broadminded when considering this question: think not just of your work but also about those you come in contact with every day.

●● Who is part of your team ‘external’ to the enterprise? For example, you may outsource work, use subcontractors or seek professional advice. All of these people are part of your business’ community.

Examples might be your accountant, lawyer, industry expert, business coach or mentor, production specialist, graphic or other design professionals, landscape and garden businesses, auto mechanics for fleet maintenance, builder or handyperson for maintenance, security organisation and IT experts.

Important ‘other organisations’ ●● Who do you regularly communicate with regarding your enterprise’s daily business? They may be postal workers, internet servers, banking personnel, technical advisors, caterers, neighbouring businesses or homes, florist, or those who keep an eye on your premises if you are away. This team of people or ‘other organisations’ is generally ‘ad hoc’ but important. ●● Who forms part of your enterprise community when it comes to products and services?

Your community members who are of utmost importance are those who buy your services and goods. Without them you would not have an enterprise. Treat them as your new best friends – always and from your heart space. People know straight away if it's not sincere. This can bring you and them much joy and long lasting relationships, at times enduring friendships and referrals.

HEART SONG MEDITATION

When we are in business, whether we are therapists or bookkeepers, the idea of facilitating this attitude every day may seem demanding. There are tools to help you and an important one is meditation. You can gain immense help through doing a short meditation each morning, focusing on your connection

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CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE with your heart space and your intention to work from your highest and best good with grace and ease.

In consultations and with groups, whether for health or enterprise development, I share my Heart Song Meditation, which is helpful for learning how operate from the Heart Space, and how to bring a higher guidance into this space to work with each day. ●● In business, there are times when we cannot help a client or customer with our own services or products.

In these situations, if you suggest someone who can, you will be demonstrating your heart centred attitude to business. Your client will think highly of you and you will feel good as well.

Many individuals I have consulted with are reluctant to pass on a referral to another business for fear of losing business. However, if we develop a co-operative rather than competitive

relationship with others in our industry it is beneficial to all.

Every interaction is important because you never know where it can lead. You will be surprised by who you form relationships with, so keep your heart space open to the concept of inclusiveness in your work community.

Interactions can become a daily delight. For example one, of my small businesses makes an eco-friendly wearable product, which solves an embarrassing problem for men and women. A long conversation with a senior gent, which we both enjoyed, resulted in a meeting with this delightful man because he and his doctor are delighted with the product and they want to discuss how they can help promote it to their communities.

When you have reached some conclusions about your community, who and what it consists of and how you can nurture and be nurtured by

“KEEP YOUR HEART SPACE OPEN TO THE CONCEPT OF INCLUSIVENESS IN YOUR WORK COMMUNITY” the great variety of individuals you associate with, it would be useful to ensure that you include this concept of the importance of each interaction in your enterprise plan.

Wendy Dumaresq’s books, Enterprise with Soul, and Radiant Women – Natural Healing for the Three Stages of Woman are available on line. www.radiantwomenbook.com. www.wendydumaresq.com E: info@radiant-women.com

Family is Forever. Lighthouse Portraits – remember everything!

Experience a family portrait session by triple nominated “Australia’s Top Wedding Photographer”, Cyrus Roussilhes.

AFFORDABLE You might think a Lighthouse experience would be pricey but not at all, Lighthouse prides itself on being affordable. Starting at $197 for a one hr session we also give you an A4 print as well.

Best of all the 1st time you order prints you’ll automatically qualify for half price from $19 ea.

SIGNATURE GIFT

The gifts keep coming, if you order at least 25 digital files we give you an amazing 10 image slideshow APP for your phone and tablets, at our expense.

Send the slideshow to anyone who’ll appreciate this gift.

REWARDS We’re also big on rewarding clients, each time for referral us both you and your friend will get an extra A4 print as a thank you. Refer us a wedding and the rewards become impressive!

Even digital files start from $19 ea depending on how many you pick.

Here’s our promise to you…

“Our Mission at Lighthouse is to be Your personal photographer for life.

By being in tune with what you really want.

This means fun, amazing & genuine imagery that you and your family will cherish forever…. At affordable pricing.”

40 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95

Download the Family is Forever APP now to connect, share and inspire.

WINTER 2016

CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE

HEART CONSCIOUS BUSINESS HUB 2016 DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR

The purpose of the Hub is to facilitate the delivery of education and training programs for heart centred professional development and business success, contributing to the wellbeing and sustainability of our planet.

The Heart Conscious Business Hub aims to align business and professional development with the uplifting of the global consciousness of humanity and the planet.

The objective is to create a global community of individuals who connect and collaborate with one another, sharing their expertise and knowledge and who are aligned with the core values and principles of HCB.

“IT PROVIDES A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR SMALL BUSINESSES TO SHARE AND LEARN FROM EACH OTHER”

THINK GLOBAL ACT LOCAL

AFFILIATE REFERRAL BENEFITS.

Each local Hub has a maximum of 50 members who meet on a monthly basis with Guest Speakers and Members who are involved in speaking, mentoring and sharing their ideas and collaborating on projects.

HCB is B2B oriented and espouses the core values of valuing each other, trust and heart centeredness. It is an umbrella organization for business entities which share the values of the Hub members.

MONTHLY MEET UPS

It is though connection and sharing with others that we birth ideas and create new pathways. When we share an idea we clarify and refine the concepts and strategies, becoming clearer about the outcome we desire.

The input of others is an essential element of success.

42 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

July 7 Connect Like a Coconut – The Spirit of Networking: John Ross Cross Promotion and Affiliate Referral Marketing – Grow your connections and your business will grow by itself with Cyrus Roussilhes

Members are encouraged to invite guests who can contribute and help to grow the local Hub community.

Members receive a 10% affiliate commission for referring a new member or referring a seminar participant.

PLATFORM TO PRESENT PUBLISH AND PROMOTE

Members have the opportunity to speak at Hub meetings. The Hub website is a platform to present and promote your professional development training courses Members receive access to publish blogs and articles on the Hub website. Members receive a business profile, logo and links to website, videos and products on the Hub Website.

Like us on Facebook @ Heart Conscious Business www.events.consciouslivingexpo.com.au

ISSUE 95

August 4 What audiences respond to – Tips for presenting talks, seminars and workshops – Dr Peter Dingle September 1 How to Successfully Showcase your Services & Products at an Expo and Trade show – Patricia Hamilton, founder/director of Conscious Living Expo and Magazine October 6 How to turn a health challenge into a successful business – The journey from sickness to success through innovation and design to distribution – Simon Cairns November 10 How to boost your business and manifest new opportunities – International Visionary and Healer – John Martin December 1 Inspired Vision – eliminate fear and overcome limiting beliefs, shining the light on peoples magnificence – Hament Chavda Venue Vivacious Living Centre 9A Riseley Square, Riseley St, Applecross WA WINTER 2016

Empowering Success for Heart Conscious Businesses See the Video and register for a FREE Business Development Consultation When you utilize the Heart Conscious Business Hub’s growing range of courses, conferences, and events your membership could save you hundreds of dollars.

You can also use your Membership to receive discounts on courses and services from our online Directory of Business Members. All the Member Discounts and Special Offers are publicised in the Member Section of the website and updates will be emailed to you every month in the eNewsletter.

Basic

VIP

VIP Premium

Save $10 on monthly Hub Meetings – with Keynote Speakers and Networking – Refreshments provided

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Present at the Hub and promote your training courses and workshops with a Speaker Profile on the Hub Website, Editorial about you and your business on the Hub website, in the Newsletter and Facebook promotion

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Snapshot Session – Goal Setting and Strategic Planning with Jacquie Walker

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Membership

Access to FREE Webinars and Business Training Resources

Event promotion in the Conscious Living Newsletter – Circulation 8,000

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12 month Advertising Package in 4 quarterly issues of Conscious Living digital magazine

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or $78 on a 4 month plan

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or $70 on a or $70 on a 6 month plan 12 month plan

Join Today www.events.consciouslivingexpo.com.au

CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE

Why have a business APP?

DO YOU KEEP SENDING THE SAME ATTACHMENTS AND INFO ALL THE TIME? DO YOUR CLIENTS ASK YOU THE SAME QUESTIONS OVER AND OVER AGAIN? Having an APP for your business can become a kind of automated customer service tool powered by your past clients and contacts, answering common FAQs with the press of a button. You can educate the masses and even help save lives with an APP that is useful in emergency situations.

CHEAPER AND MORE MEASURABLE DISTRIBUTION THAN TRADITIONAL PRINT ADVERTISING This new-age technology disrupts traditional marketing reach. If you have compelling stories and insights, your messages will go viral without ongoing effort from your business. It's advertising on autopilot-automated marketing. Yet you'll know exactly what messages from your APP are most shared and you can fine tune your APP for even greater success.

ACCESS THE POWER OF SHARING, NETWORKING AND REFERRALS If you make your APP indispensable, people can see that the information 44 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

you provide is really helpful so they will keep and share your APP . When they need your product or service your clients have already established enough trust to buy in. Your clients can become your ambassadors by distributing the APP to potential clients that you could not access.

An APP is a very efficient way to share virtual business cards when you are at BBQs and other social events. An APP’s messages can be distributed unlimited times and each share and view is free from charge.

Being ready to push out a quick point of contact at a moment’s notice when opportunity arises unexpectedly can mean the difference in making a sale.

10 COMPELLING REASONS

1. Quickest and most intuitive Attachment Sharer on the market.

2. Demonstrate Before and Afters.

3. Show off your best work/ Collections/Portfolio.

4. Educate prospects and customers on your message(s) or benefits etc.

5. Inspire with quotes or stir them with one or more Call to Actions.

6. Create an industry or networking directory with virtual business cards sharing and invitation to events card.

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CYRUS ROUSSILHES

7. Monthly updateable specials board and events and news.

8. Act as an offline, private Health and Safety APP. 9. Mining and business staff training tools and quick accident reporting feature.

10. Act as a basic affiliate distribution network.

FIVE WAYS TO SHARE YOUR APP

1. Share the overall APP, or part of the APP frequently on social media or private messaging.

2. Add the APP to your email signature.

3. Add the APP to your website, or even share select parts.

4. Include business referral partners (virtual business cards) as they will then be more likely to distribute your APP for you if they are included.

5. SMS or email the APP to all your clients to showing off your APP to potential clients. This also makes you look more professional.

To road test for yourself an APP, SMS "APP Sample" to Cyrus on 0411 166 034.

WINTER 2016

Transgenerational Healing Ground-breaking Trauma workshop with Casey Terry B.Psych and Marta Thorsheim of Totally Alive Trauma has the capacity to manifest in many ways in our psyche and our bodies.

Physical symptoms can indicate trauma – as well as unhealthy emotional states. Even the simplest frustrations and low self-esteem may be traced back to early experiences buried within the unconscious.

The process covered during a Transgenerational Healing Constellation workshop finds the connection and helps end an ongoing, progressive problem.

The Participant decides which issue she or he wants to deal with in relation to personal growth, psychological matters, or bodily symptoms or illnesses.

The Participant then chooses a Sentence of Intention, with the support of the facilitator.

This sentence becomes the framework for a process of resonance. For example, it may be: “I want to look at why my thyroid is not functioning well,” or “I want to look at why I struggle with relationships.” Or it can look more deeply into emotions.

Workshop Facilitator Marta Thorsheim said every word in your Sentence of Intention has the capacity to resonate with and recall suppressed emotions and memories belonging to you or your family biography. Marta explains this aspect in detail during the workshop.

HEAL A TRAUMA

The disconnected parts of ourselves are accessed by a ‘Representative’ you choose from the Workshop group. Your Representative stands in for aspects

of your life that you want to better understand. For example, you may want to connect with and heal a traumatic experience you were unable to process as a child.

Family entanglements (enmeshment) can be exposed – if you choose – revealing where you may be stuck in your life, or where you may be carrying generational trauma.

This powerful work allows you to reach places you have not previously been able to access.

Standing in as a Representative is like a private workshop only you experience.

The help it offers in identifying issues gives the opportunity for you to work on these in your own time, or as a Participant in another workshop.

Being a Representative is vital to this work and is of great benefit for your own consciousness.

To attend a Totally Alive FREE Lecture call 0414372362. www.totallyalive.com.au

Marta Thorsheim

Casey Terry

Marta Thorsheim, Founder of the Institute of Traumatology in Norway, is coming to Perth, Australia to facilitate a 2 day Constellation Trauma Healing Workshop with Casey Terry.

FREE LECTURE - Early Trauma & Trauma of Identity

Thursday 4th August 7.00pm to 9.00pm, Perth Australia Venue: Acro Yoga Center, 106 Marine Terrace, Fremantle During the free lecture you will learn the origin and principles of this very special work and how it unfolds in a group. Marta will talk about the essence of the work and understand how powerful and healing it can be for you.

NEW CONSTELLATION WORKSHOP - First Time in Australia!

Saturday 6th & Sunday 7th August 2016, 9.00am to 6.00pm, Perth Australia This workshop is designed to access past traumas and work with the unconscious intra-psychic splits (disconnected parts of yourself) that have shut down due to trauma or overwhelm. It is ground breaking work in early traumas, transgenerational traumas, identity and entanglement.

Bookings open now! Investment: $495 Participant, $365 Representative Venue: Bodhi Tree Bookshop Mt Hawthorn - Perth

To book or for further information email admin@totallyalive.com.au e admin@totallyalive.com.au tel +61 (0)414 372 362 For further information or to subscribe to our news: w totallyalive.com.au

WINTER 2016

CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

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CONSCIOUS EDUCATION & ENTERPRISE

TRAIN FOR A CAREER IN ART THERAPY Those of us who use art in therapy will attest to its remarkable power to heal.

Most humans are motivated to achieve a ‘feel good’ state. We seek out methods of regulating or improving our mood. Often this is a combination of cognitive and behavioural strategies done with full effort or concentration, in order to change a perceived uncomfortable state. Some people choose venting activities, some choose distraction

and others choose consciously uplifting methods.

Art allows for an individualised process that can be a venting, distracting or positively focused activity.

We also know that engaging in art making can reduce high blood pressure and self-reported stress levels as well as enhance perceptions of control. It is no surprise then that many people, at various times in their life, engage in art making at some level.

To book email soulheartmind8@gmail.com, call 0401 624 695 or go to www.soulheartmind.com.au

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Art Therapy enables a vivid imagining of a positive outcome and often gives great hope for the future.

ENHANCES QUALITY OF LIFE

For the Art Therapist, the most privileged experience is in witnessing the journey of a client, from the initial visual representations of darkness and despair, to the blossoming imagery of a positive outcome, even when circumstances have not yet or cannot be changed. Creating this positive imagery frequently enhances the client’s quality of life.

Much of the research into art as a mental health tool has so far focused on the outcomes of engagement, with positive results, and thus we have evidence to support the use of Art Therapy.

A prospective Art Therapist should be dedicated to making positive change on both an individual and societal level, and will emerge from training with the creative, interpersonal and therapeutic skills to do so.

IKON Institute is Australia’s largest provider of Art Therapy training and a leader in the delivery of Holistic Counselling qualifications. Visit www.ikoninstitute.edu.au to view the many courses on offer and graduates’ reviews.

WINTER 2016

CONSCIOUS SPIRIT

How After-Death Communication

Resolves Grief

By IADC® Therapist HELEN PARISH, BSW, Grad Dip SocWel, Grad Dip Human Services (Counselling).

I

nduced After Death Communication (IADC®) enables those suffering from grief over the loss of a loved one to reconnect with the deceased under the guidance of a trained therapist.

In 1995, in the US, Dr Allan Botkin discovered a way to help bereaved people have an after-death communication experience that resolved feelings of grief resulting from a death, to a degree that was previously not considered possible in the field of grief therapy.

The therapy is a consistently positive, loving and natural experience that most people are able to experience. After completing training in IADC®, therapists around the world have been inducing after death communication with many thousands of people wanting to experience a reconnection with a lost loved one.

“…I WONDERED IF I COULD ASK JOSH’S FORGIVENESS FOR MY ROLE IN HIS DEATH” WINTER 2016

Dr Botkin’s book Induced After Death Communication a Miraculous Therapy for Grief and Loss and The IADC® website induced-adc.com detail many early examples of Induced After Death Communication experiences. Beneath is a story of such an experience reproduced with permission from Dr Botkin’s IADC® site.

GRIEF RELIEF: VISITING THE DEAD – BY JULIA MOSSBRIDGE

‘A friend of mine died when I was in college, and I blamed myself. Josh was not sure he wanted to come to the dance I was ‘deejaying’ with his sister, but when I flirted a bit during a phone call he decided to make the drive. He never arrived at the dance – he was killed by a truck on the freeway. I had mentally tucked away this episode until I heard of a new technique that uses communication with the deceased as a way to heal unresolved grief.

I was pretty sure I didn’t have any residual grief about Josh’s death. If anything, I felt only guilt about the role I played in it. Nonetheless, I wondered if I could ask Josh’s forgiveness for my role in his death. So I called up the doctor who developed this technique,

Allan Botkin, who does his work in Lincolnshire, Illinois.

When I walked into Dr Botkin’s office… the first thing I saw was a twofoot long white stick with a blue marker cap on it. Now really, I thought, is this it?! A magic wand for seeing dead people? And Dr. Botkin… looked like he belonged at a softball game, giving tips to kids in an avuncular, arm-aroundthe-shoulder sort of way.

MODIFIED BIOFEEDBACK

Despite my misgivings, I sat down and listened to his description of ‘Induced After-Death Communication’, a therapy he’d developed by modifying a biofeedback technique in which the eyes quickly go back and forth.

The theory… is based on the observation that during rapid-eyemovement (REM) sleep, the brain is able to make associations and process information more quickly than during normal waking hours. Imitating REMs in the waking hours is believed to activate the same sort of speedy processing and associative leaps that were previously only attainable during dream states.

Drawing on the decades he spent at the Veteran’s Administration treating soldiers with severe grief and trauma, Dr Botkin explained that each client must be moved from the more superficial emotions – anger, guilt, and

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CONSCIOUS SPIRIT “INDUCED AFTER DEATH COMMUNICATION… INDUCED IN THOUSANDS OF CLIENTS RESULT IN DRAMATIC LIFE CHANGES… SUSTAINED LONG-TERM.”

shame – into the core sadness, which he believes is the root cause of the other emotions.

REALISTIC, JOYFUL, INNER VISION

Dr Botkin claimed that using his modified technique people could safely move through their sadness and release it. Further, about 70 per cent of his clients experienced after-death communication (ADC), reconnecting with the bereaved person in a realistic, joyful, inner vision.

As he described the methodology for me in his frank, no-frills way, every one of my intellectual bells went off to tell me that he was pulling my leg. At the same time, I had a strong gut feeling that said he was onto something. Being a good scientist, I trusted my gut. I let him do a short session with me, even though I told him I had no grief.

One minute later, after simply looking at the moving wand and listening to him gently ask me to get in touch with my grief, I was filled with images of my last fateful interaction with Josh. I watched some more waves of the magic wand and started to cry, seeing images of his death. As my sadness began to wane, I got in touch with a happy memory of Josh. Then I closed my eyes and actually had an ADC. 48 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

Simply, without pretense, I saw Josh walk out from behind a door.

My friend jumped around with his youthful enthusiasm, beaming at me. I felt great joy at the connection but I couldn’t tell whether I was making the whole thing up. He told me I wasn’t to blame and I believed him. Then I saw Josh playing with his sister’s dog. I didn’t know she had one.

We said good-bye and I opened my eyes, laughing.

The experience seemed too simple, too light. There were no trumpets, no bright tunnels, just a conversation with Josh.

Dr Botkin had mentioned that people are surprised by how ‘normal’ ADC seems; I certainly was. He also mentioned that neither the therapist nor the client has to believe in the validity of ADC for it to heal – grief is resolved through the reconnection, whether real or imagined.

Later, I found out that Josh’s sister’s dog had died, and it was the same breed as the one I had seen in my vision. Yet I still don’t know what’s real.

What I do know is that when I think of Josh, I no longer dwell on the images of me calling him or of his car getting hit. Instead, I see Josh walking toward me, laughing and playing with an angel dog. For now, this is the only kind of proof I need.’ (Copyright – Dr Alan Botkin; Julia Mossbridge.)

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Julia Mossbridge, a Chicago-based writer, is also a mother, cognitive neuroscientist, and author of Unfolding: The Perpetual Science of Your Soul’s Work.

In conclusion it doesn’t matter what you believe, what we believe, or even what ‘experiencers’ believe. The IADC® experiences we have induced in thousands of clients result in dramatic life changes that heal grief and trauma in a very short time and are sustained long-term.

The technique has worth because it works; and it doesn’t need the support of agreement about any belief system or theory concerning the source of the phenomenon to support it.

OFFERS TO ALLEVIATE SUFFERING

One conclusion is clear: the IADC® induction procedure offers the means to alleviate a great amount of human suffering. There is no greater pain in life than losing a child, a battlefield buddy, or a spouse of many years and then feeling disconnected, forever.

We lose a part of ourselves when we lose someone so important to us. Now, we can routinely heal this deep pain as well as anger, guilt, and the other emotions resulting from the loss.

Helen Parish, BSW, Grad Dip SocWel, Grad Dip Human Services (Counselling) www.induced-adc.com/australia WINTER 2016

BOOK REVIEWS

THE ECOLOGY OF THE SOUL

Author: Adrian Walker

Publisher: O-Books ISBN: 978-1-78279-850-7 www.o-books.com If you are seriously into making changes within your lifestyle, within yourself and the way you see the world about you, this is definitely the book for you.

Billed as a guide for the ‘real people in the real world’ it is a bit like a course to rediscovery, focusing on what Walkers considers the Seven Powers; those of ‘Nature, Creativity, Endurance, Love, Communication, Focus and Connection’, or in other words, ‘Soul Consciousness’ and how to get there.

Walker encourages you to aim for the highest possible result on the pathway to enlightenment but to remember that you are all too human.

USEFUL BELIEF

Author: Chris Helder

Publisher: Wiley ISBN: 978-0-7303-2742-4 www.wiley.com Chris Helder has put together a very useful little book, in size, not content, offering up the philosophy of ‘Useful Belief’ as verses Positive Thinking, because as he says, if all you get is lemons, making lemonade will not always solve the issue. There is a definite need to have another aspect to consider.

Powerful, positive, intriguing, informative and interesting the chapters are clearly set out with ‘Checklists’ at the end of each section which highlight the points presented and definitely offer up food for thought.

Deliberately kept as a small book, so that it can be read in one sitting, the words are simple, the effect powerful, the philosophy, life changing.

WINTER 2016

JANET MAWDESLEY

LEADING MINDFULLY

WITCHES AND WIZARDS

Publisher: Allen & Unwin ISBN: 9781925267044 www.allenandunwin.com.au

Publisher: Rockpool Publishing ISBN: 978-1-925017-44-1 www.rockpoolpublishing.com

Author: Amanda Sinclair

Author: Lucy Cavendish

Although titled Leading Mindfully this is a book about management and managing the increasing demands of modern life regardless of what you do for a job or career you will find Sinclair’s words inspirational and enjoyable.

The book is divided into three specific segments which deal with Leadership, Leading and Life/Living which is a simplistic way of breaking down what is enormous content, covering all aspects of Management and Leadership.

Sinclair encourages you to look at a different style of management which will produce good results, flow on to having a happy performing team and still allow you to cope well with the stress of modern Leadership requirements.

This is the first book in the Supernatural Series, with the content being as intriguing as it is informative and enjoyable.

Each of the chapters deals with a different time in history, each one as fascinating as the next. Stories have been told and retold, to try and help understand just what did happen and promote the deep and long held philosophies that underpin that of the craftsmanship that goes into being a Witch or Wizard, otherwise known as ‘cunning’ folk; the folk who acknowledge the ways of the earth, the seasons of the year, and the fundamental beliefs that there is a time for everything and for everything, a time.

MORE THAN HONEY

LIVING LIGHTLY: A JOURNEY THROUGH CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME (M.E.)

Author: Markus Imhoof & Claus Peter Lieckfeld Publisher: Greystone Books ISBN: 9781771640992 www.greystonebooks.com

Author: Jenny Light

There has been much research carried out on the plight of our little fuzzy, busy Bees worldwide and the findings are alarming, to put it mildly; the bee populations of the world are dying, not slowly, but rapidly and when you start to read, even just a little, it is perfectly understandable. Actually it is horrifying!

The answer lies in facing up to the effect and damage current methods of mass production of foods, the chemical usage and over stressing of bees has created, and a concerted effort made by all peoples to fix that which is most definitely, broken.

Publisher: Ayni Books ISBN: 978-1785251396 www.ayni-books.com There are books that find you when you need them the most and this is one of them. If you have ever suffered with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) or M.E. you will relate completely to Jenny’s story.

Whether you are a person who does too much or simply needs to learn how to take time out, to slow down a little, there is something within the pages of Jenny’s story that will reach out to you, help you along the way and encourage you along your pathway to bring peace and good health back into your life.

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JANET MAWDESLEY

MUSIC REVIEWS

AQUARIAN DREAM

DISTANT HORSEMAN

www.carmenrubino.com

www.timothywenzel.com

Carmen Rubino

Timothy Wenzel

The tapestry created in this composition offers something to everyone as it moves from mellow and gentle, the delicate sounds of nature being interwoven throughout the piece, to a rich full bodied sound changing tempo often, weaving a cloak to surround you which will take you to places in the mind that resonate.

Each track is in itself is a separate journey. As you listen to the overall theme, delicate, dainty segments come forth to entice you into listening a little bit closer.

Touching the soul the intriguing movements of classical composition take you into the genre of what could be termed musical freefall. Lovely!

LIGHTS OF LANIAKEA Kathy Sanborn

FLUTE FLIGHT

Sherry Finzer and Mark Holland

www.kathysanborn.com

www.sherryfinzer.com

Floating loosely through the ether without apparent shape or form the melodic notes of both the classic ‘silver’ flute and Native American flute combine to entice you into a world of sound which is designed to entice, temp and invite you to enter into a space of timelessness, once there to be enjoyed.

When you combine the undisputed talents of Sherry Finzer and Mark Holland each on their flute of choice, the music created is laced with a unique ambience which, if allowed, will reach deep into the psyche to sooth, heal and calm.

50 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

Wenzel has created another amazing journey with this latest release. When he openly states the basis behind the compositions is metaphoric and conceptual, as it is with a majority of his pieces, you know you are once again off on a journey that will, can and should, take you anywhere you choose to go.

Hauntingly beautiful the piano, overlayed with the demanding tones of the violin played by Josie Quick, immediately take you to a place or space where there is a great sense of nothingness, of empty , endless distances, of great, intense immensity; a time for reflection, rebirth, understanding.

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Sanborn considers she is more of songwriter than a singer but with her ability to change styles almost at a whim, coupled with her gentle, fluent use of vocals puts her up there with the best of them in the genre of world-fusion of the new age variety.

As you listen to the words gently melded into the music you will hear a recurrent theme of light, abundant love, a belief that someday people will stop the wars and work towards making the world a better place, coupled with a genuine desire to encourage people to move away from the darkness, into the healing light.

WINTER 2016

MUSIC REVIEWS

JANET MAWDESLEY

ADORE

ATLANTIS TRILOGY: BRAVE NEW WORLD

www.josephsullinger.com

www.robertslap.com

Joseph Sullinger

Joseph Sullinger has created a unique blend of classical and romantic guitar which allows each of the slightly ethereal pieces to flow gently into the soul in a style that is as timeless and pleasurable as the setting sun in the evening, the rhythmic ebb and flow of the ocean, the all-pervasive knowledge that music is the very essence of life.

Once you have entered the realms of Joseph Sullinger and his guitar you are moved into another time and space with the light and delicate rhythms of the guitar, entwined with the gentle strains of the violin, creating the deeply relaxing compositions of Adore.

Robert Slap

Close your eyes, clear your mind, allow yourself to drift slowly into space as if you are still tethered to this earth but are floating free. Gentle sounds permeate the mind, sounds couched in mystery, touched with magic as the various tones of flute and synthesiser woo you into a sense of infinity.

The compositions, a number taken and remastered from Slaps previous albums, Atlantis Crystal Chamber and Atlantis Healing Temple, have been blended into this new album offering timelessness in space and place, which creates an interesting listening experience as you discover another layer of what lies behind the sound journey into spaciousness, healing and peace.

ATMA BHAKTI Manish Vyas

New Earth Records www.newearthrecords.com The album has been carefully divided into separate components, that of Atma meaning ‘soul or divine’ which creates within itself a meditative atmosphere. Bhakti is the second section and means ‘devotion or worship’ with the final track being a Vedic Chant.

Created to an underlying tonal sequence the music can be used in a number of ways, such as with Yoga, as a guide into prayer or meditation or simply to have on in the background to help calm and ground, on days when something melodic can aid and help clear the mind and relax the body.

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WINTER 2016

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CONSCIOUS ARTS

Memory THROUGH AMBER

T

he black and yellow taxi pulled out onto the busy road and headed directly towards the sun, suspended like an enormous balloon in the hot, dust-smeared sky. The vapours above the city were so thick that Elsa could stare directly at it. Overpopulation and the resulting industrial pollution stole the sun’s incandescence and reduced its intensity to that of a vapid paper lantern.

It was Elsa’s first time in Delhi and she really wished that she wasn’t here, that she hadn’t been made to come. What she really wanted was to be back home, in Melbourne, dealing with all that was happening there; not here trying to navigate her way through this strange, crazy city and the alien culture that sustained it.

Anton, her manager, had cornered her just the week before.

“Oh Elsa, there you are. Look, I’m sorry to spring this on you at the last minute, but there’s a pharmaceutical conference in India in less than two weeks. Collin can’t take my place because he’s sick, and I can’t send Teresa,” he said, and pulled a regretful expression. “So I’m afraid it will have to be you. The paperwork is in the office. I’ll fast-track the visa for you - just leave your passport with Veronica, she’ll know what to do.”

“But Anton … I can’t! I’ve got a lot going on at the moment.

My dad’s really sick and …”

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Matthew is leaving me, she had wanted to scream at him.

Only what did he care about Matthew, it wasn’t as if they were even married or anything.

“Look, I’m really sorry, Elsa,” he pressed. He didn’t look all that sorry, just a tad apologetic at the very most – but his expression was suddenly full of subtext.

If you want any kind of future with Epsilon Industries, you will do what I ask you to.

Feeling cornered, Elsa sighed heavily.

“How long will I be gone for?”

“Just two weeks, that’s all. You’ll be back in no time.

A break away will do you good … oh, and by the way, the conference is in Jaipur, but I’d like you to first drop in at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences in Delhi and connect with Jason Strimel. He’s sort of like my Yank equivalent in the company. He’s there monitoring something or other. Please do convey to him how sorry I am that I can’t be there in person.”

Yeah right! So I’m the patsy …

—ooo— Elsa glared at the back of the taxi driver’s head as if he was on Anton’s payroll and all of this was somehow his fault, and she could get at least a measure of revenge by throwing mental darts in his direction.

The man had dark skin and dishevelled black hair and thick eyebrows that hung over his eyes like old fashioned shutters, ready to be pulled down at a moment’s notice against temperamental weather or grumpy foreign women. The eyes themselves were warm enough and engaging, but she could hardly believe how poor his grasp of English was. Yet he had WINTER 2016

faked it well enough when he and his mates had jostled her along with her luggage into his car, all the while repeating, “This taxi is best in Delhi for you, Madam! Best reliable taxi for your good self!”

She was actually grateful to be rescued from the overwhelming horde of other men contesting for her patronage. When she had given him her destination he had responded with such a convincing and enthusiastic “Yes Madam, directly there we are to be going now!” that she had let herself sink in the taxi’s rear seat with a sigh of relief.

It was only when they were well out of the airport grounds and truly embedded in dense that he had turned around and spoken again.

“Where Madam go, please?”

“I thought you said you knew where it was!”

“Yes, yes, Madam! Most certainly I know … but forget.” He slapped his forehead as if to chastise himself for being such a dullard. “Such easily I be forgetting! Where Madam go?”

“Oh for goodness’ … I need to get to the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences!”

She had to repeat that a number of times and all she got in response was the man’s idiotic grin and a weird head wobble that she couldn’t even begin to decipher. Eventually he asked her another, more direct question.

“Madam! What is address be?”

Fuming, she dug out her mobile and found the text message from Anton.

“Merrawlee … Bada-purr road in Pussviah,” she stammered.

After her third attempt she stopped trying to articulate what to her was unpronounceable and waited until a traffic light forced him to stop. She then shoved the phone in front of his face.

He squinted at the screen for a long moment and then proceeded to laugh in a wholly exaggerated and unconvincing way.

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“Ah - ha-ha-ha! Mehrauli-Badarpur Road in Puspvihar,” he said, the names rolling eloquently off his tongue, exasperating her even further. “Yes, yes, Madam. Ha-ha-ha!

Already I am knowing it, too well I am knowing it …”

He continued to laugh and mutter to himself for a while longer, until the traffic around him lurched forward again and the business of driving absorbed all of his attention.

Elsa, too, soon forgot her angst as the cab was plunged into mayhem.

Beyond the smeared cab windows, the world degenerated into a race of madmen, causing her to forget to breathe for long tracts of time. Cars, rickshaws, trucks and a million motorbikes vied for right of way. They danced, coming together briefly, merging momentarily into a river of metal and flesh, and then springing apart again. They raced staggeringly fast for a few heartbeats before grinding once more to a halt before the next obstruction.

Pedestrians and transport of all varieties materialized out of nowhere, hurtling across their path with a frequency that suggested that this was the norm here. Vehicles, people,

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CONSCIOUS ARTS gaudy truck lights and scenes of impending disaster flashed before her eyes amidst an incessant cacophony of hooters and blaring horns. Underscoring the external mayhem, the frenetic pulse of a Bollywood beat and the distorted voice of a female vocalist pumped from the car’s speakers.

One motorbike zipped up alongside the taxi, momentarily trapped there by the traffic’s tide. The pillion passenger turned slowly to look at her and she stared back at him. Suddenly, the man’s face flowered in a most open and disarming smile, one that felt so at odds with her inner state that she physically recoiled. She turned away without smiling back, too lost in her own distress to face any human kindness. Elsa closed her eyes.

Damn you, Anton, she thought. You’re going to pay for this.

One and a half hours later the driver announced that they had arrived.

She paid what he asked for, not caring if he overcharged her – Anton was going to foot every bill anyway – then, ignoring the man’s ranting, she pried the handle of her suitcase from his fingers and turned away, leaving him with his car, still talking gibberish at her receding back.

—ooo— The Institute seemed to belong to a very different world to the Delhi she had just traversed. The campus was lush with palm trees and other exotic vegetation; the buildings were old, but clean and well maintained. She found the reception, and the man at the desk stood up even as she stepped through the doors.

He came around the reception desk and bowed slightly.

“Welcome to Delhi, Miss Madison. We sent a car to pick you up from the airport, but the driver could not find you. He called us more than an hour ago, distraught by his failure.”

At least they made an effort.

“It’s okay,” she said, smiling tiredly. “I made it anyway.”

“So you did, but did you go somewhere else first? The ride from the airport is only half an hour at most …”

Elsa laughed.

“It looks like my taxi took the scenic route.”

But the other did not join in her laughter.

“In that case I must apologise for him. He took advantage of you being a foreigner. Did you notice his number by any chance?”

Elsa shook her head.

“I noticed lots of things, but no, that wasn’t one of them … but please, don’t worry. The same thing has been known to happen in Melbourne, so ...”

She shrugged resignedly.

The man smiled and nodded; he then reached for the phone sitting on his desk.

“I will arrange for someone to show you to your room.”

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—ooo— Elsa had to wait until the following morning to meet the man she had been sent here to intercept. She had just come down from her surprisingly comfortable room and was studying one of the breakfast buffet tables in some confusion when a man’s voice spoke behind her.

“The Indian breakfast is far superior to the continental, but I would stay well clear of the coffee if I were you.”

The accent was unmistakably American. She turned to find a man in his mid-thirties eyeing her with an air of quiet amusement. He had brown eyes, fair skin and the stubble on his cheek looked abrasive.

“They don’t do coffee in India,” he continued. “If you want any that’s half decent you will have to go to a five star hotel or a restaurant run by European expatriates. The chai of course is always superb.”

He was busy spreading a green paste on something that looked halfway between a pancake and a pizza base.

“I do recommend the idlis,” he continued, nodding towards some rounded white patties on the table in front of her. “But go easy on the sambar, it will strip layers off your stomach lining if you have too much …”

“You must be Jason Strimel,” she said with a returning smile.

He arched an eyebrow and his expression changed from amused to calculating.

“Are you trying to impress me? Well, you have succeeded … oh, wait, you must be …”

“Elsa,” she offered. “I’m Anton’s fill in.”

Jason cocked his head and pursed his lips.

“Anton’s fill in, is it? How delightfully undiplomatic!”

Elsa shrugged.

“I was not very impressed when he informed me that I had to come in his stead …”

Jason continued to load food onto his plate.

“This your first visit to India?”

Elsa told him it was as she picked up a plate and availed herself of the food, using his selections as a guide.

“And how does it feel so far?”

They carried their plates to a table and sat down.

“Well, I only arrived last night and all I did was drive around Delhi for almost two hours. After that I slept and now I’m here … so a bit early to say, really. The problem is, I didn’t really want to come.”

“Hmm, I gathered as much …” He chewed in silence for a while.

“May I ask you why?”

“Why what?” She had been following a different train of thought and no longer knew what he was referring to.

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“Why you didn’t want to come here,” he reminded her.

She chewed in turn and weighed the appropriateness of talking about such matters. In the end she shook her head.

“Actually, it’s not really so much that I didn’t want to come, it’s more like I didn’t want to leave.”

“Ah!” he replied, as if that explained everything.

Elsa realised she did not feel comfortable discussing personal matters with a stranger she had known for all of ten minutes.

“Let’s just say that I have a lot on my plate back home and I didn’t want anything getting in the way of decisions that I need to make.”

He nodded but did not press for more information, which was just as well because she had already decided not to divulge anything more. Elsa asked him about his research and they talked shop for a time and he seemed content with that.

Jason had come to Delhi to oversee the setup of a manufacturing lab for Epsilon Industries. Anton had called to inform him of the Jaipur conference and he had agreed that it held opportunities for the company that should not be missed. The lab job was done, Elsa had arrived, and even though the conference would not kick off for another few days, he saw no reason why they should not set out sooner rather than later. What did she think?

“Fine by me,” she said. “How long is the flight?”

Jason’s eyes smiled at her.

“Well, I thought driving might be a better idea …”

“Driving?” she asked, surprised, and her own smile faded as she recalled her drive from the airport.

“This is your first time in India. You will not get anything out of being here if all you do is jet-set from city to city. India is an amazing place. She has many gifts to offer, but you won’t necessarily find them in the cities.”

They finished eating and he poured them both a cup of chai and they went outside to sip it as they strolled around the compound.

“You’ve let on that you’re experiencing some problems back home … well, travelling can be a great way to gain clarity, and India … is truly remarkable. She has a way of working herself into your heart and cleaning out what is no longer needed …”

Her scepticism must have been clearly evident because he stopped short.

“But don’t take my word for it, find out for yourself. After all, that’s the only way we ever learn anything, isn’t it?”

“Is that what happened to you here? Have you … cleaned out your heart?”

He laughed.

“I asked for that, didn’t I?” Another spell of silence.

“I’m still finding it hard to say exactly what happened to me. Many Westerners have a hard time here; the poverty WINTER 2016

and the paradoxes can be very confronting and for some, this becomes unbearable, so visitors polarise rapidly – those who love her stay, and the others leave and don’t come back.

I come back at every single opportunity because I know that she has still more in store for me …”

He waved around himself.

“Her magic is everywhere, even here, in the cities. But she is harder to find here – there is too much decay, too many addictions and distractions. The true fiery, poignant heart of India is in the countryside – in the mountains and the rivers, in the villages and the thousands of temples, and most of all in the hearts of her people. That’s why you deserve a chance to experience her, and then you can make up your own mind which category you belong to …”

Elsa looked at him slantwise.

“I suspect I already know which category I belong to …”

Nothing she had seen so far had made her want to stay here one moment longer than necessary. She had no desire to go anywhere or visit anything, and now a near stranger was going to make her risk her life on a six hour car journey …

She sighed.

As if sensing her inner stance, Jason smiled. He made one of those little head wobbles that she had seen several Indians perform.

“Do not be worry, Madam! Your stay in India will be of the most very splendid and beneficial one! Of this I have the very highest of utmost certainty!”

His mimicry made her laugh, despite herself.

The following morning at dawn they met at the Institute gates, where a car waited for them.

Jason opened the boot and placed their luggage inside.

The driver, who had been tinkering under the bonnet, slammed it shut and walked around the back to assist them.

“This is Sajiv,” Jason introduced. “Whatever you think of his appearance, the truth is that he’s simply a Jedi master. I would not trust anyone else to take us anywhere. Driving in India is … an experience.”

Elsa shook Sajiv’s hand and he smiled at her.

There it was again, one of those incredible smiles. When people smiled here it was as if they allowed their soul to show through their eyes. Elsa found it beautiful but also slightly unsettling, as if the smile required something more from her in return.

They climbed on board and were soon weaving through the streets of Delhi.

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CONSCIOUS ARTS —ooo— The road to Jaipur was new and, for the most part, quite broad. But the three lanes of traffic in each direction soon began to seem inadequate as the congestion of traffic grew.

Sajiv’s skill became evident as he wove a fast but intricate path between the most disparate kinds of vehicles that Elsa had ever seen gathered in a single place.

She had no idea what manner of laws ruled the Indian highways, but seeing Sajiv weave his way past great colourful lorries balancing precarious loads, slow tractors, bullockdriven carts, camels and skinny horses pulling obscene loads, all she could do was shake her head in speechless wonder.

She nearly lost it when she discovered that the cause of one obstruction was two cows ruminating quietly, blocking two of the three lanes.

“Cows?!” she exclaimed, and Sajiv made a half turn to laugh at her indignation. “Are they mad? What are cows doing on the road?”

“Mad cows?” offered Jason with his exasperatingly calm smile.

Elsa just resorted to shaking her head again.

Sajiv sped up, slowed down, tooted his horn liberally and flashed his high beam as he took them on the ride of their lives. At one point they even passed a truck travelling in the opposite direction just off their side of the road.

Elsa could not understand how Jason could remain so calm in the wake of such mayhem.

“You don’t find all this frightening?”

He shook his head.

“At first, yes. Now I mostly find it extraordinary. I never tire of it.”

Not knowing how to respond, she said nothing.

—ooo— Eventually she dozed. Closing her eyes was mainly an attempt to avoid the constant tension of dealing with what was happening around them.

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When she woke up the first thing she noticed was a feeling of hunger. The second was that the landscape around them had given way to brown hills that were mostly denuded of trees. The third was that they were no longer on the highway.

They were driving on what, back in Australia, would have been dismissed as an outback track. The centre of the road was sealed, but only enough to allow one car to pass. So they drove in the middle of the road and pulled off into the dirt and dust only when they met a vehicle travelling in the opposite direction.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Still about an hour from Jaipur,” Jason admitted. “I’ve asked Sajiv to swing by Amber so you’ll get a glimpse of her before we get to the capital.”

Elsa turned towards him questioningly.

“I thought Delhi was the capital.”

“Of India, yes. But this is Rajasthan, and Jaipur is the capital of this state.”

She made an ‘ah’ expression and then yawned, blinking away the last remnants of torpor.

“Who’s Amber?”

Jason grinned.

“Not who, what. You’ll find out soon enough.”

She had to be content with that.

—ooo— Amber came into view as abruptly as a realisation.

One moment Sajiv was negotiating a lorry that had hemmed him in for some time and then as he shot out to pass the truck, she saw it.

She could not even have said in those first moments what it was that she was seeing. The apparition dominated the whole flank and crest of the hill some distance away to the left of the road. In between lay a deep gully and the surrounding land was stripped of most vegetation except for a dusting of grass that accentuated the ochre hues of the ancient structure rising, dream-like, out of the arid land.

Distantly she heard Jason instruct Sajiv to pull over.

When the car stopped, Elsa opened the door and climbed out.

The palace-fortress of Amber stood before her like a desert apparition.

And as she stared, she became aware of incomprehensible tears welling up in her eyes. She groped for support on the bonnet of the car as a stabbing pain pierced the middle of her chest and then a wail of devastation escaped from her throat.

Both Jason and Sajiv were immediately beside her.

WINTER 2016

“Elsa! What’s wrong? What’s the matter? Are you okay?”

All she could do was shake her head and continue to weep – with no reason, no cause and no sense.

“What is wrong? Elsa!”

Jason’s concern and the insistence in his voice made her turn away from Amber, but turning away from the sight of her pained Elsa even more. She gulped in a lungful of air and slowly the moment passed. The sobbing quieted by degrees and eventually it receded completely.

“I have no idea of what just happened,” she said. “I have never felt anything like this before.”

But even as she spoke the words she knew that they were not true. She had felt just this way once before, a long time ago ... and now the memory of that occasion returned to her.

She looked at Amber again, but the tide of sorrow that had risen on first contact had withdrawn, leaving the shore of her awareness a frayed wasteland, strewn with the debris of fragmented and half-remembered memories.

—ooo— The conference in Jaipur lasted five days and Elsa had to put the incident at Amber out of her mind. It was an effort of will to be present to something that suddenly seemed less than relevant, but she managed it. On the Friday afternoon, immediately after the closing ceremony, she sought Jason out.

“I have to go back there.”

He nodded, serious.

WINTER 2016

“I thought you might say something like that.”

“Can we go tomorrow?”

Jason shrugged as if she had cornered him.

“Nothing stopping us …”

Elsa sighed as if a burden had been lifted from her.

—ooo— The fortress was just a little over half an hour from Jaipur and they arrived well before the palace had even opened for the day. Elsa and Jason were the first to be admitted through the doors of the Moon Gate and into the broad first courtyard.

From there they climbed up the ancient stone steps that led to the Lion’s Gate, the main entrance. They walked in complete silence through pillared audience spaces and frescoed marble rooms, through verdant gardens teeming with monkeys, and past fountains and pools filled with clear, cool waters. They gazed at, and touched, the wonders of an age that belonged to a distant past.

Elsa wondered with a dull curiosity at her lack of response. Given the intensity of her first sighting, she had anticipated … something more than the emptiness she was now experiencing.

When they reached the Hall of Mirrors, she held her breath at the wonder of so much beauty. It was an exquisite room, carved to perfection and imbedded with mosaics made up of thousands of tiny mirrors and other shapes of coloured glass that, together, set the entire hall aglow with shimmering reflected light.

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CONSCIOUS ARTS But even here she did not find what she sought.

She walked slowly though the dazzling hall and left it with a vague feeling of disappointment.

They continued on, slowly passing through every space that was open to their scrutiny.

In this way they reached a place on the roof of the palace, and stepped into a rectangular chamber with intricate, perforated marble screens which served as walls.

Elsa approached it with cautious steps as if she was purposefully crossing the threshold between reality and dream. She came to a complete stop before one of the screens and then sank onto the floor alongside it without a single word.

She leaned her temple against the marble and closed her eyes.

“Elsa?”

She nodded in response, so Jason didn’t say anything more.

After a few moments she started talking.

“When I was just a slip of a girl of maybe ten or eleven I had a dream.”

Her eyes remained closed as she talked.

“Actually it was more a vision than a dream.”

She grew silent, but her eyes moved behind the closed eyelids as she revisited what she had seen back then.

“In the vision I was looking out a window, past a screen made of marble, just like this.”

She brushed it without opening her eyes, her hand tentative, as if it was so delicate it might break if she exerted any pressure.

“Down there, below me, were crowds of people whirling around in colourful garments, dancing and singing as they made their way up towards that broad flight of steps that leads up to the stone landing where we walked earlier. I remember everything so vividly: the ramparts beyond the stairs, the distinctive crenelations that adorned them and beyond it all, the slopes of the brown barren hills.”

She paused and opened her eyes, and gazed through the marble perforations.

“It was a festive celebration, full of gaiety and happiness and I was a part of it. Coloured powders were being thrown high into the air and their rainbow hues were strewn over the dancing and celebrating crowd. Their hair, their faces and their clothes were all streaked with colour.”

Elsa brought a hand up to her breast as if to protect her chest from something.

“Then there was a sudden change in the air. It was heralded by a distressed cry and quickly followed by a hesitation in the movement of the crowd. Then there were flashes of metal followed by screams of pain and terror. Blades were drawn 58 CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95

and the spray of coloured powders was replaced by the spray of blood. People tried to flee but their own numbers hindered them. Some fell over the walls, others jumped. They were being murdered, massacred, and I saw it. I saw it all. The women up here on the roof with me started screaming and then I was screaming too, because we all knew what was going to happen, that we were next … that we were about to die … ” Elsa’s breathing started to convulse and her limbs trembled; nevertheless she continued her account.

“The real horror was that we were all unarmed, the men too. It was a sacred festival and weapons were forbidden.

And that’s when someone made their bid for power. Through flagrant betrayal of tradition and of sacred trust …”

Her voice was lost in the convulsed spasms of too much grief and horror. Jason wrapped his arms around her and rocked her as she cried.

“Shh, shh …” he crooned over and over as he waited for the waves of her fear and grief to subside.

—ooo— Jason continued to cradle her in silence.

Eventually, when the intensity of her sobbing eased, Elsa looked at Jason. She squeezed his hand and slowly disengaged, began to distance herself from him.

Still he said nothing. The first words had to be hers.

She cleared her throat.

“I don’t know how I ever forgot that incident …” she said.

“How could I forget?”

Jason shook his head but maintained eye contact.

“It had been huge at the time; my mother was devastated with fear for me …”

She looked away and took a deep breath that quivered with the memory of her recent distress.

Suddenly she turned her gaze back to Jason.

“Why did you bring me here?”

He tilted his head and frowned questioningly.

“Before the conference, when we drove from Delhi, you asked Sajiv to swing by this place … why?”

Jason searched Elsa’s eyes. There was a shadow of accusation in the way she looked at him; a seed of doubt and uncertainty as if she was on the verge of uncovering a conspiracy.

He shrugged.

“It is a beautiful place. I just wanted you to see something beautiful.”

She nodded slowly, her eyes never straying from his.

“Because that was the moment I started to remember: when we stepped from the car. That’s when it all started to come back ... then, during the week I remembered other WINTER 2016

things, peripheral to the episode itself, but important things nonetheless. It was a terrible time for me because I was just a child; I did not understand what had happened, and I had no way of explaining it to myself let alone to anyone else. I remember my parents taking me to see someone … a child psychologist or a social worker – can’t remember which. They put me in one of those machines that measure electrical impulses in the brain and after that I’m sure they wanted to medicate me. I remember trying to eavesdrop on an argument between mum and dad. I remember dad’s voice saying ‘no, no, no’ over and over. He wouldn’t have a bar of it, but mum was so frightened – she must have seen the mess I was in, and was seriously considering it.”

Jason studied her face.

He could see that Elsa had two separate layers of distress interwoven. One was enmeshed with the mysterious experience that had somehow visited her. The other was the painful ripple of consequences that had devastated her world as a ten-year-old.

How do you reconcile something like that?

“You’re looking a lot better now,” he commented. “Is there anything else you wanted to do or see while we’re still here?”

She snorted her amusement at this.

“Why, haven’t you had enough?”

He smiled.

“Not my call,” he said, standing up slowly, massaging his legs as if they had cramped.

Elsa stood up as well and after a final glance around they left the beautiful, memory-riddled palace and made their way back to the car.

—ooo— “Do you think it was a past life?” he asked a while later, while Sajiv drove them back towards Delhi.

She looked at him, sceptical.

“Do you believe in stuff like that?”

He shrugged, and then shook his head.

“Not really. But one has to wonder. What about you?”

She shook her head slowly.

“Never gave it any thought, until now.”

—ooo— Four weeks later Jason Strimel was in his Mumbai office when his mobile rang. He glanced at it but didn’t recognise the number.

“Strimel,” he said.

“Jason?”

His answer came after a short delay.

WINTER 2016

“Elsa?”

“Yep.” “Hey, hi! So good to hear from you! How are you?”

Her tone sounded pleased at his response.

“I’m okay. Well, not entirely. My dad died while I was in India. I buried him last week …”

“Oh Elsa, I’m so sorry …”

“It’s okay, really. I’ve been doing a lot of crying and a lot of thinking, but you should be used to that … to the crying, I mean.”

Jason was not sure what to say next.

“Jason? Do you remember how you said that India has a way of wedging herself into some people’s hearts?”

Jason became very still.

“Yes, I remember.”

“Well, I think I’m one of those people …”

“Oh, really?” His lips had gone inexplicably dry.

“Yes. Like you said once, I don’t think she’s done with me either. Anyway, I’ve just booked a flight back to Delhi and I was wondering if you were interested in catching up?”

“Yes, of course. Absolutely! But what about your job back in Melbourne, have you taken some leave?”

“Yes, permanent leave. I told Anton that I had missed out on being by my father’s side when he passed, and that was the last thing I was going to miss for him or for Epsilon.”

“Wow! Good for you,” Jason replied. “Maybe we’ll have to take a look and see if Epsilon has a vacancy for someone like you here in India …”

Elsa laughed.

“That would be so funny!”

“So, how long are you going to stay this time?”

“Not sure ... I got a one-way ticket.”

Jason’s smile shone like the Indian sun.

Claudio Silvano is an author and a shamanic practitioner situated in Clifton Hills, Perth.

His writing focuses ma inly on spirituality and consciousness whilst still striving to entertain.

He is the author of the work of spiritual fantasy llliom, Daughter of Prophecy and Keys of Awakening (both available from www.claudiosilvano.net). He is currently writing the third book in the series entitled Into Forbidden Lands.

Claudio and his beautiful wife 5a offer a smorgasbord of wonderful events for those who are seeking awakening and liberation from the cycles of suffering that afflict so many.

Find out more about their healing services here www.sacredradiance.net or contact Claudio & Sa on 0403 699 479 - email: awake@sacredradiance.net CONSCIOUS LIVING MAGAZINE

ISSUE 95 59

FINAL WORD

Make Peace with the Past

by JOHN ROSS

Life can seem like a metaphor, and Life is a journey that can be long, hard and arduous. For most travellers, the accompanying baggage weighs us down with remorse for failures and mistakes as well as hurt, guilt and all the emotions associated with financial disasters and relationships that have not gone the distance. The net result drains your energy, removes the pleasure in being alive, holds you back from personal growth and halts you in your tracks.

The answer is to make peace with the past ... let it go ... and leave the emotional baggage at the check-in-desk. Here are a few simple steps to defeat the Emotional Baggage Monster: ●● Acknowledge and accept the emotions swirling about you. ●● Don’t blame yourself for what has happened m or how you feel. ●● Freely and willingly forgive all those who you feel need to be forgiven.

●● Accept that what you feel is perfectly understandable and normal. ●● Release deeply felt emotions that may have been suppressed over time. ●● Seek qualified counselling assistance. ●● Learn from the past – but welcome the future as a brand new page that you are turning. ●● When you have ditched your emotional baggage, you have earned the freedom to enjoy life in all its abundance, and follow your dreams.

The author of Old Masters Young Guns, John Ross (JR) Appleton, is a dyslexic, who refused to be down or be dumbed down. He is a man on a mission and has a passion for helping others. www.johnross.com.au https://youtu.be/fzmeI7QkekI https://youtu.be/NDmRvJVwRuA

VIDEO LINKS Are you Lucky? JR talks about Self Esteem

John Ross talks about his inspiration for his book: The Start of Young Guns

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