Natural Awakenings Fort Myers/Naples March 2021

E E HEALTHY LIVING FR

HEALTHY

PLANET

FOOD & NUTRITION SPECIAL EDITION

REGENERATIVE FARMING ALL ABOUT CBD PSYCHEDELIC MEDICINE COUNTERTOP GARDENING March 2021 | Collier/Lee Edition

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March 2021

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prOFIcIeNt IN traDItIONal cHINese MeDIcINe & WesterN MeDIcINe

liu’s aCupuNCtuRe CeNteR

• • • • •

pain Management paralysis restoration Infertility Mental Health Immunity adjustment

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HEALTHY LIVING HEALTHY PLANET

COLLIER / LEE EDITION Publisher Sharon Bruckman Editors Linda Sechrist Martin Miron Randy Kambic Sara Peterson Design & Production C. Michele Rose Lisa Avery Contributing Writers Linda Sechrist Sandra Yeyati Sales & Marketing Christine Miller Lisa Doyle-Mitchell Accounting Amie Delozier Website Kristy Mayer

CONTACT US 4851 Tamiami Trail N., Ste. 200 Naples, FL 34103 Ph: 239-434-9392 • Fax: 239-434-9513 swfl.NaturalAwakenings.com SUBSCRIPTIONS Subscriptions are available by sending $28 (for 12 issues) to the above address.

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Although some parts of this publication may be reproduced and reprinted, we require that prior permission be obtained in writing.

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Check with a healthcare professional regarding the appropriate use of any treatment.

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IN PerSoN or remoTe APPoINTmeNTS AvAIlABle!

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Lisa DoyLe - MitcheLL • Certified Biofeedback Specialist by the Natural Therapies Certification Board #5771

letter from publisher

Why Dirt Matters

In a perfect world, every meal would be organic, locally-sourced and as unspoiled and delicious as possible. Most of it might come from our own backyard plantings, a local community garden or through a personal relationship with an organic farmer.

According to the National Gardening Association, 22 million new gardens were planted in the United States since the pandemic began. We are coming to understand that the more connected we are to our food sources, the healthier we become.

Eliminating the intensive farming practices of “big agriculture” that maximize yields and profits, disrupt natural habitants, pollute the environment and deplete our soil would be a huge step forward to healthier eating and a healthier planet.

In this month’s feature story, “The Promise of Regenerative Organic Farming,” Sandra Yeyati describes farming and grazing practices that reverse climate change by rebuilding soil and increasing carbon drawdown, improving the water cycle and ultimately, growing healthier food (page 28).

Thanks to progressive organizations like the Rodale Institute—a pioneer of the organic food movement for the past 70-plus years—we are making headway. In our exclusive interview with Chief Impact Officer Jeff Tkach, we learn about an emerging concept called regenerative healthcare (page 31).

Rodale is focused on bringing farmers and healthcare professionals together to embrace a prevention-based approach to human and environmental health. Can you imagine the improved health of the world if we quit supporting some the worst practices in health care, stopped growing food full of chemicals and pesticides and put an end to those scary, experimental genetically modified organisms full of toxic Round-Up grown in lifeless soil? Let’s dedicate all of our fields and gardens to growing organic food that supports our health and environment instead.

If you are starting to get excited about growing more of your own food at home, why not start right in your kitchen? I’ve been sprouting seeds for years, as well as growing wheatgrass, microgreens and one of my favorites: sunflower seeds. Did you know that when you sprout a seed, the nutritional value increases tremendously? Check out “Indoor Edible Gardening” on page 24 for inspiration.

I don’t think I’ve ever appreciated living in Southwest Florida these past 40 years more than I have since the COVID-19 pandemic hit a year ago. I feel blessed to be able to get out and enjoy a sunset walk on the beach where things seem “almost” normal.

If you are new to our area, welcome! We’re glad you picked up this copy of Natural Awakenings. Be sure to visit our website at SWFL.NaturalAwakenings.com, where you’ll find our updated Healthy Dining Guide, archived features and so much more from our 26 years of publishing in Southwest Florida.

Stay Healthy,

239.851.4729

www.BlueStarBioFeedback.com Follow us!

@bluestarbiofeedback.com 8

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Sharon Bruckman, Publisher

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Natural Awakenings is a family of 55-plus healthy living magazines celebrating 26 years of providing the communities we serve with the tools and resources we all need to lead healthier lives on a healthy planet.

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Contents 24 INDOOR EDIBLE

36

GARDENING

Grow Veggies, Sprouts and Microgreens Year-Round

28 DOWN TO EARTH The Promise of Regenerative Organic Farming

31 JEFF TKACH

on Regenerative Healthcare

36 ON A ROLL

38

Foam Rollers Ease Pain and Workout Recovery

38 HEMP-DERIVED CANNABIDIOL

A Primer on the Latest Research

40 THE HEALING POTENTIAL

OF PSYCHEDELIC MEDICINES

Promising Studies on Stress Disorder, Depression and Addiction

44 HEALING FROM GRIEF Four Ways to Find Peace

ADVERTISING & SUBMISSIONS HOW TO ADVERTISE

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EDITORIAL SUBMISSIONS

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48

46 GETTING PREGNANT

Lifestyle Strategies to Boost Fertility

48 CANINE OBESITY When Doggies Need Diets

DEPARTMENTS 10 news briefs 14 event spotlight 15 reader spotlight 16 health briefs 17 global brief 18 therapy briefs 20 community spotlight 24 concious eating 31 wise words

34 36 38 40 42 44 46 50 53 55

spa spotlight fit body green living healing ways business spotlight inspiration healthy kids calendar resource guide classifieds March 2021

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news briefs

Special Cannabidiol Skincare Offer from Hempra Box

S Salt Therapy Grotto Provides Special Offer

S

alt Therapy Grotto, in Naples, is providing a special way for both adults and children to increase their experiences of their salt cave. Those that purchase one halotherapy session will get another one for free for throughout March.

Salt therapy may improve conditions like coughing, cystic fibrosis, emphysema, hay fever, pharyngitis, pneumonia, allergies, asthma, respiratory infections, bronchitis and more.

The business also provides a full-spectrum infrared sauna that can help remove toxins, relieve muscle and joint pain and stiffness, reduce stress and fatigue, improve the immune system, increase cellulite production and enhance weight loss via burning calories and increasing rate of metabolism.

Red light therapy, another non-invasive rejuvenation treatment provided, can improve skin condition and appearance and radiance—including reducing scars, evening out pigmentation, reducing wrinkles and fine lines, and firming and toning skin— by stimulating collagen production.

Location: 3443 Pine Ridge Rd., Ste. 102, in Cambridge Square. For more information or to make an appointment, call 239-598-0990 or visit SaltTherapyGrotto.com. See ad, back cover.

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kincare regimens that include cannabidiol (CBD) provide anti-aging, antibacterial, antioxidant and other health benefits. To make the treatments easier and more affordable, Stacy Roberts, founder and CEO of Naplesbased Hempra Box, is offering a free CBD ageless sheet mask with the purchase of any box of her premium hempderived CBD products.

“I have used CBD skin care in all of my professional services,” says the licensed esthetician in both Florida and Colorado. “CBD is anti-aging by enhancing the skin’s ability to perform a healthy skin cell turnover rate; contains antibacterial properties that can aid in the healing and help prevent the spread of acne; and is packed with antioxidants to provide protection against the damaging effects from environmental free radicals. It’s a key ingredient in modern skincare that is here to stay, and will surely become a common ingredient in most beauty products.”

Hempra Box provides a full line of CBD skincare and beauty products such as CBD-infused lip gloss.

For more information or to take advantage of the offer, call 239-778-8738 or visit Hempra.com and use promo code LOCAL21. See ad, page 23.

Yogita Yoga Boutique Opens in Bonita Springs

T

he mother/ daughter team of Joyce and Sidnie Sharp, both Yoga Alliancecertified instructors, recently opened a new yoga studio and boutique in Bonita Springs. Yogita Yoga Boutique, located at 12870 Trade Way Four, Suite 110, is celebrating by offering two different new-member specials for area residents—two weeks of unlimited use of the facility for $50 and $10 for the first class.

They offer a wide variety of yoga classes, both in-studio and virtually, with private sessions available. Social distancing guidelines are being followed at the facility. An assortment of clothing, accessories and gifts are offered in the boutique area.

For more information, to become a member or register for classes, call 239-908-3572, email Joyce@ YogitaYogaBoutique.com or visit YogitaYogaBoutique.com. See ad, page 14.

Trias Offers Free Phone Consultations

D

r. Michelle Trias, a naturopathic consultant with MyNaturoWellness, in Bonita Springs, is offering free 15-minute phone consultations to discuss clients’ unique health needs to start feeling better. Her advice can be particularly helpful to those struggling with digestive issues including bloating, chronic skin conditions, allergies, excessive weight, heartburn, acid reflux and yeast infections.

“At MyNaturoWellness, we believe in the power of natural foods and herbs to facilitate in the healing process,” she says. “We are ready to help you on your journey to health and wellness. We will coach you each step of the way to ensure your success.”

Dr. Michelle Trias

Location: 24850 Burnt Pine Dr., Ste. 2. For more information or to make an appointment, call 239-579-3846, email DrMichelle@MyNaturoWellness. com or visit MyNaturoWellness.com. See ad, page 26. See article, page 32.

New Esthetician at Organic Skincare & Bodyworx

E

sthetician Kayla Rodriguez joined the staff at Organic Skincare & Bodyworx, in Naples, in January. She was mentored through her teen years into her career today by a master aromatherapist and an organic cosmetic formulation specialist and also studied holistic spa therapy at the Aveda Institute.

“Her passion for attending to client’ skin ailments through organic skin therapy pushes her to create a deep, healing experience in her treatment room,” says owner Jayne Koedding.

Location: 13240 Tamiami Tr. N., Ste. 207. For more information or to make an appointment, call 239-514-4494. See ad, page 3.

Kayla Rodriguez

March 2021

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news briefs

Sechrist McGlasson Becomes Licensed Insurance Agent

Y

vette Sechrist McGlasson, a certified functional medicine health and wellness coach and owner of Naplesbased Escape Hatch 2 Wellness, has added Yvette Sechrist licensed insurance McGlasson agent to her menu of services. “I understand that health insurance coverage is critical,” she says. “As a licensed insurance agent through USHealth, a UnitedHealthCare company, I’m deeply committed to helping my clients.

Individuals worry about paying too much or believe they can’t afford it, which is why they need to know about their options. I open their eyes and customize plans that fit their unique needs and budget.”

Escape Hatch 2 Wellness offers health and wellness coaching, customized Ayurvedic dosha yoga classes and personalized mindfulness practices. “Everything I do is inspired by self-empowerment, so my clients recognize that their health and wellness is in their hands. I’m simply their experienced tour guide,” advises Sechrist McGlasson, a 200-hour registered yoga teacher, whose explorations of wellness options are free with a no obligation quote.

For more information, call 239-326-2060 or visit USHAgent.com/YvetteSechrist or EscapeHatch2Wellness.com. See ad, page 41.

Acupuncture Center of Naples CUSTOM PRESCRIPTION HERBAL MEDICINE for all your health concerns Dr. Cen has more than 25 years experience in Acupuncture & Chinese Herbal Medicine.

Arthritis • Chronic Pain • Injuries • Insomnia • Stress Menopause • Stroke Recovery • Shingles • Anxiety Migraines • Fibromyalgia • Well-being • Bell’s Palsy & More 5683 Naples Boulevard • Naples, FL 34109 Dr.Xiu Qiong Cen A.P., D.O.M Licensed Acupuncture Physician

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239-513-9232

www.AcupunctureCenterOfNaples.com swfl.NaturalAwakenings.com

Spirit Festival at Unity Church of Naples

G

oddess I AM, the Naples-based conscious-living store, will co-host a major, multifaceted Spirit Festival with Unity Church of Naples from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on March 27 on their beautiful grounds. The event, featuring many of the area’s most experienced psychics, healers, spiritual teachers and practitioners, will invite attendees to join healing demonstrations and meditations, engage

with readers and healers, and listen to talks on such topics as smudging, crystals and more. Local vendors will offer their unique creations.

Masks will be required by all participants of the family-friendly event and social distancing will be followed. No pets are allowed.

Cost: $5 admission; readers/healers will charge individually for their sessions. Location: 2000 Unity Way. For more information, call Goddess I AM at 239-228-6949 or visit GoddessIAM.com. See ad, page 49.

Lotus Blossom Clinic Offers Special Discount

T

here’s a more affordable way for those looking to reduce their chronic and acute pain along with feelings of stress and anxiety this month. The Lotus Blossom Clinic, in Fort Myers, is offering 50 percent off on acuDeb and Dr. Dave Martin (L) puncture, massage and other and Vickie Gelardi (R) healthful treatments for new patients in March.

Dr. David Martín, doctor of Oriental medicine, Deb Martín, holistic health consultant, natural health researcher and reiki master, and Vickie Gelardi, medicinal foods consultant, are among the many practitioners that can treat and consult on dealing with diseases, provide advice on healing foods, the use of medicinal mushrooms and many other natural health and healing modalities.

The practice, which will maintain a booth at the virtual Holistic Wellness Summit on March 27, is following all pandemic health guidelines and protocols, including using HEPA filters, sanitizing and masks.

Location: 6710 Winkler Rd., Ste. 2 and 3. For more information or to make an appointment, call 239-277-1399 or visit LotusBlossomClinic.com. See ad, page 35.

Wellness Festival in the Park Set for April

T

he Crohn’s Charity Service Foundation and the city of Bonita Springs will co-present the first Wellness Festival in the Park from noon to 9 p.m. on both April 9 and 10, at Riverside Park, in Bonita Springs. Attendees on Friday will be able to meet doctors to learn about ways to treat Crohn’s and other diseases and engage CBD dispensaries, while the following day will feature a Wellness Celebration.

There will also be local businesses, live reggae music, food trucks, CBD booths, educational speakers on CBD edibles, liquid and other forms, a children’s play area and more.

Free admission. Location: Old U.S. 41 Rd. For more information, including opportunities for becoming a co-sponsor or vendor, call 239-200-7214. See ad, page 17.

March 2021

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Online Workshops On

event spotlight

Happiness!

One FREE Online Session

Holistic Wellness Summit Goes Online

U Learn, Be Inspired & Transform

Make Positive Changes in 2021 Lulu Carter

Expert in the Science of Happiness Online Sessions - Workshops 239.290.7008

www.happinessbeyondborders.com

o i d u t S a New Yongd Boutique a Let’s connect and practice yoga together.

Shop for all your yoga supplies and gifts.

We offer a variety socially-distanced yoga classes for all levels in studio, virtual classes, private, semi-private, and group private available.

Come check us out in Bonita Springs.

yogitayogaboutique.com Check out our website for schedule and information.

Stop by or give us a call.

239-908-3572 12870 Trade Way Four #110 Bonita Springs FL 34135 14

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sing new online advances for showcasing events borne of these pandemic times, In2uitive Wisdom Productions will present the 2021 virtual Holistic Wellness Summit from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on March 27. After several postponements in a live gathering format, the event will apply an online technology that showcases a simulated exhibit floor, main stage activities and the featured Conscious Kids Creative Studio for children to learn and have fun.

The summit, illuminating the worlds of holistic, natural, eco and socially conscious living, features panel discussions covering many health and wellness topics; movement demonstrations; yoga and qigong classes; a keynote address by Camille Leon, founder of the Holistic Chamber of Commerce; and those of 25-plus presenters, 45 virtual exhibitors from our area, nationwide and Europe, and more than 15 children’s teachers providing storytime sessions, children’s yoga and arts and crafts. There will also be a mega-raffle featuring valuable products and services.

Event sponsors are Natural Awakenings magazine, the Holistic Chamber of Commerce, Muscle Tuners International, Inc, Momma’s Chiropractic, Cloud 9 Float Spa & Wellness, New Vision Learn Center and Edison National Bank.

Simmit organizer Lainie Sevante Wulkan, global online director for the Holistic Chamber of Commerce Worldwide and former president of the Fort Myers, Cape Coral and founding Naples chapters, says, “This is a true ‘pivot with passion’ in the age of COVID-19. With essential tools and healthy options offered at the summit, attendees will enjoy how to eat better, deal with anxiety and other healthy concerns, build immunity, conscious parenting and many challenges that the pandemic has brought. Guests can enjoy having adults on one computer, phone or tablet while children are safely enjoying the kid’s room from another.

There will be many resources, solutions and natural options that are priceless for the health and well-being of the entire family.”

Cost: $25 early bird registration (before Mar. 10) for one computer, $30 early bird (before Mar. 10) for registration and a raffle ticket(s) or $30 early bird registration early bird registration for two computers, one for an adult and one for children to enjoy the private Conscious Kid’s Creative Studio. Attendance includes a digital tote bag from sponsors and select exhibitors with discounts and freebies.

For more information or to preregister, visit HolisticWellnessSummit.com. See ad, page 21.

reader spotlight

Rob Moher

Naples, Florida Work: President and CEO, Conservancy of Southwest Florida.

Proudest Achievement: Maintaining my relationship with my now wife, who I met 26 years ago when I was working in Czechoslovakia and she in the Bahamas.

Expectations for the future: To watch my daughter become a successful musician and getting to see her perform from front row seats!

Favorite websites: Conservancy.org, Ewe.org (Environmental Working Group).

Local or global causes supported: Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special Needs, Southwest Florida Music Education Center, Conservancy of Southwest Florida.

Favorite thing about Natural Awakenings: Inspiring quotes and stories each month that broaden my perspective of the world.

Most frequented healthy food restaurant: True Foods Kitchen.

How you invest in your community: I have created a new nonprofit organization, Southwest Florida Music Education Center, to create new opportunities for high school and college level students to learn how to collaborate across disciplines and instruments, as well as compose original content and share this with the world. We also seek to create new avenues for students with learning differences to fully participate and realize musical aspirations.

Favorite inspirational quote: “If music be the food of love, play on!” ~William Shakespeare.

What you are doing to be the change you want to see in the world: I am trying to keep my ego in check at all times and to be clear regarding setting my intentions on a daily basis in all that I do.

March 2021

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health briefs

Getting an MRI or CT scan is typically not a relaxing experience, and patient discomfort, anxiety or agitation can affect the quality of the image. Taking note of businesses that use lighting to create a mood, researchers from Pepperdine University demonstrated that patient unease in imaging centers can be modified with the use of colored LED lights. In a pilot study involving 35 subjects, 43 percent found blue lighting most relaxing, while 31 percent preferred yellow. The least relaxing lighting color was red, according to 69 percent of participants, followed by yellow (17 percent) and green (11 percent).

Each subject was given a handheld device to set the hue, intensity and brightness of lighting, and most chose blue. No patient preferred the standard bright, white lighting of healthcare environments.

“When given the opportunity to change a single aspect of the environmental or imaging facility experience, patients feel much more in control of the otherwise unfamiliar and uncomfortable setting,” write the authors in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.

Ginger root (Zingiber officinale), used historically in traditional medicine to treat indigestion and nausea, may also help people with Type 2 diabetes, suggests a new study from Brazil. Researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind study of 103 people with Type 2 diabetes that were taking medications.

Those taking 1.2 grams of ginger powder for 90 days experienced a significant drop in the level of fasting blood sugar, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol compared to those taking a placebo.

Use Green Tea Extract and Curcumin to Ward Off Oral Cancer Early signs of oral cancer can include white patches, sores and lumps inside the mouth, biomarkers known collectively as oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD). To see if two natural chemopreventive agents—green tea extract and curcumin—could reverse these conditions, researchers in India tested 60 people with OPMD, splitting them into three groups. One group was given 400 milligrams (mg) of green tea extract in a capsule, as well as a gel; a second group was given 475 mg of curcumin; and the third received a combination of the first two treatments. After 12 weeks, researchers found that the supplementation had significantly reduced OPMD biomarkers in all three groups, with particularly strong results in the combination group, suggesting a synergistic effect.

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pixabay/Pexels.com

Use Colored LED Lights to Relax

Try Ginger to Lower Diabetes Markers

global brief

Fishy Business

pyvovarova yevheniia/Unsplash.com

Saving Coral Reefs Worldwide

The International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) has urged governments to take action to save the planet’s remaining coral reefs and their attendant fish populations, because collective human impacts are leaving fewer places untouched, with only 15 percent of the Earth’s land mass formally protected and global biodiversity declining at an unprecedented rate. To that end, a new online data platform, MERMAID (DataMermaid. org) helps scientists and management officials collect, organize and disseminate data on reef fish biomass and diversity, as well as the cover of hard corals, fleshy algae and other benthic groups—all identified

by ICRI as key indicators of coral reef health, integrity and function.

The newly published 5th Global Biodiversity Outlook and other sources endorsed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services clearly indicate that governments are failing to meet existing global targets for biodiversity and that critical ecosystems like coral reefs will be altered to the point that the biodiversity they harbor, and the services they provide, will be irreparably damaged. Currently, only 2.5 percent of the world’s reefs are being actively protected.

March 2021

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ACUPUNCTURE

FACELIFT

A safe, effective, non-surgical procedure for facial rejuvenation and muscle toning.

Stimulates and exercises the underlying facial muscles, creating a subtle, visible, contouring lift to firm and tighten the face and neck.

Reduces lines and wrinkles.

No scarring.

Support the Immune System with Manual Lymphatic Drainage

S

Terri Evans DOM, AP

Doctor of Oriental Medicine Esthetician

Specializing in Healthy Aging Since 1991

430-6800

11983 Tamiami Tr N. 100A • Naples

TAEHealthyAging.com

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ometimes referred to as the body’s garbage collector, the lymph system consists primarily of lymph fluid and lymphatic vessels, nodes and nodules.

Contributing to the maintenance of healthy body tissue, a well-functioning lymph system plays an important role in our immune response.

While the circulatory system is largely responsible for delivering nutrients from digested foods and oxygen from inhaled air to the body’s cells, the lymphatic system’s role is equally significant, removing toxins, bacteria, cholesterol and cell waste. Many immune processes occur within the lymph nodes, and when lymphatic vessels are not functioning at their optimum due to blockage, the immune system becomes less able to defend against viruses, fungi or bacteria.

Congested, damaged or severed lymphatic pathways allow fluids and proteins to build up in connective tissue, which can lead to congestion and swelling, as well as cell and tissue abnormalities. When this occurs, the lymphatic system transports the damaged cells, inflammatory products and toxins away from the area, thus aiding recovery. The quicker this response by the lymphatic system, the faster healing occurs. This is where manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) can make a difference.

A gentle technique that employs light pumping movements along the lymphatic pathways, MLD targets the lymph nodes and vessels. It can improve the functioning of the immune system by increasing lymphocyte, or white blood cell, production to help fight infection and foreign bodies.

Unlike the heart, which drives blood through the body’s circulatory system, the lymph system lacks such a pump and can become sluggish. The gentle MLD movements, as well as exercise, help to move lymph and improve flow of the fluid through the nodes, where it is filtered and purified.

MLD is especially helpful in reducing fluid retention and draining a range of edemas (swellings) that are caused through mechanical failure of the lymphatic system or the surgical removal of lymph nodes as a treatment for breast cancer. The treatment also helps with ailments such as allergies, headaches, sinusitis, low energy and frequent infections.

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For more information about manual lymphatic drainage, call the Mandala Spa inside the Bayfront Hotel, located at 1221 Fifth Ave. S., in Naples, at 239-571-9880. See ad, page 42.

Sp

ec

ia

Assessment & First session

therapy briefs

GarY Kalman

Full-time Certified Personal Trainer since 2005

www.weightbefit.com

Many immune processes occur within the lymph nodes, and when lymphatic vessels are not functioning at their optimum due to blockage, the immune system becomes less able to defend against viruses, fungi or bacteria.

gmkalman@gmail.com • 201-923-5520

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Shirodhara for Stress Relief

by Christina Carlin

A

ccording to The American Institute of Stress, it is estimated that 75 to 90 percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stressrelated problems.

The myriad immediate and automatic responses associated with stress such as elevated heart rate, blood pressure and blood sugar contribute to hypertension, strokes, heart attacks, diabetes and ulcers, as well as neck or low back pain. Labeled “diseases of civilization”, these health issues can be mitigated by learning to invoke the relaxation response, which directly counteracts stress by reversing its physical equivalents. A single one-hour session of shirodhara treatment may potentially invoke such a powerful relaxation response that the effects of stress can be alleviated for hours or even days.

A form of Ayurvedic bodywork, shirodhara is an ancient and powerful tool for bringing body, mind and consciousness into harmonious balance. While the majority of various massage therapies primarily work on the physical level, Ayurvedic treatments have a long history of facilitating the multiple layers of physical health, emotional well-being and soul connection.

During shirodhara, a stream of warm, herbalized oil is gently poured onto an energy point on the forehead, activating the brain to transition from hyper-alert beta waves into the deeply relaxing alpha

wave pattern.

This evokes the energy-saving parasympathetic nervous system response, which helps the body to relax muscles and slow the heart and respiratory rate. The flow of oil pour lasts for approximately 30 minutes, reducing anxiety and inducing mental clarity and tranquility. The treatment also stimulates vital points all around the head, improving blood circulation in the brain due to the vasodilatation of all the blood vessels.

Shirodhara therapy sessions can help awaken intuition and the gentle recalling of events buried in the past, enabling a retroperspective previously inaccessible. This can lead to the resolution of past emotional issues and a deeper, clearer level of understanding. It also reduces the level of stress hormones such as adrenaline and noradrenaline, and thus relaxes the mind, helping to relieve stress and tension. It can also help in alleviating psychosomatic ailments such as tension, depression and anxiety.

Shirodhara is best done in the morning or in the evening in order to achieve maximum results.

Christina Carlin is a licensed massage therapist, Ayurvedic practitioner and owner of Ayurveda Massage & Yoga Institute, located at 501 Goodlette Rd. N., Ste. A-107. For more information, call 239-450-6903. See ad, page 6.

A single one-hour session of shirodhara treatment may potentially invoke such a powerful relaxation response that the effects of stress can be alleviated for hours or even days.

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community spotlight

APRIL

Coming Next Month Climate Change Health Impacts Plus: Healthy Home

To advertise or participate in our next issue, call 239-272-8155 20

Collier/Lee Counties

Synchronicity is the Watchword for Mary Baron

by Linda Sechrist

It’s not enough to be in the right place at the right time.

You have to be the right person in the right place at the right time. ~T. Harv Eker

M

ary M. Baron, was time for a change. I went back to school to be the newest a nurse. I had two great member of aunts who were nurses, Thornburg Pediatrics which may have been my staff, in Naples, was inspiration,” says Baron, definitely the right person who began her career in with all the right qualifinursing in the children’s cations, in the right place cardiac intensive care and at exactly the right unit of Boston Children’s time. Baron, who moved Mary M. Baron Hospital, one of the best to Naples in 2014, was hospitals in the world. already familiar with Dr. Brian Thornburg, her daughter’s pediatrician. “Because nursAfter moving to Florida, Baron’s entreing provides a holistic view of medicine, I preneurial spirit kicked in. With a head prefer that Sophia has a pediatrician with for business and a heart for health care, a more integrative approach to medicine.

Baron and her sister Charlene created It’s why I chose Dr. Thornburg. He listens, Inner Strength RN Health Advocates. he cares, and his family perspective on “As care coordinators, we help people to pediatrics takes into consideration not just find resources such as doctors, informathe patient, but also their family and their tion about their treatments and lifestyle home environment,” explains Baron. enrichment,” she says. The business conBaron did her homework before moving tinues to be successful, which is why the from Waltham, Massachusetts, to Naples sisters hired another nurse so that Baron in order to live closer to her parents and can step back from day-to-day operations enjoy warmer weather. When she began after June when she begins working as a interacting professionally with Thornburg, nurse practitioner at Thornburg’s conher right circumstances couldn’t have been cierge practice. more advantageous. “I was a Florida Gulf Speaking from personal experience, Coast University nurse practitioner student Baron advises, “No matter our age, working on my pediatric rotations in order throughout our adult lives, if we are open to earn my doctorate of nursing degree,” to new things, opportunities show up. We advises Baron, who previously received her have to trust that when they do, if we are in bachelor’s degree in nursing from Johns the right place at right time it all comes toHopkins University, in Maryland. gether like it did for me. We can’t take such Baron’s first career while living in Mas- synchronicity or serendipity for granted.” sachusetts was that of a certified public accountant. “While being an accountant Thornburg Pediatrics is located at 5500 was a great experience and I made a Bryson Dr., Ste. 301, in Naples. For more lot of friends and got to travel, when I information, call 239-348-7337 or visit sensed a calling to health care, I knew it ThornburgPediatrics.com. See ad, page 23.

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March 2021

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Local Organic Landscaping and Composting Solutions

by Lisa Marlene

R

ecycling yard waste rather than putting it in the trash not only transforms twigs, leaves, grass clippings and palm fronds into valuable compost, saving precious landfill space, it also offers local homeowners and commercial business owners an opportunity to contribute to a climate solution from their own backyard, because composting reduces the amount of methane released into the atmosphere. Considered a greenhouse gas, methane is emitted during the decomposition of organic matter. It enters the atmosphere and eventually combines with oxygen to produce more carbon dioxide.

Composting, which involves the biodegradation of organic waste to humus, has the potential to lengthen the lifespan of a landfill by diverting approximately 25 percent of the waste stream. An estimated 15 percent of the total waste stream is yard waste. Recycling yard waste back into the soil is considered the most environmentally sound and economically viable management strategy.

An easy way to recycle yard waste, composting can be done onsite by an environmentally friendly landscaping business or a local composting yard waste collection program such as those offered by Lee and Collier counties.

Holistic concierge Pediatric care

Thornburg Pediatrics is happy to announce the addition of ~ Mary M. Baron ~ Another method for processing yard waste is chipping brush into small fragments that biodegrade rapidly. Typically, a wood chipper reduces the brush and other yard debris to mulch that can be used in landscape applications. Mulching mowers also recycle plant and wood fiber into the soil.

“Homeowners and businesses that use organic landscaping services such as those provided by MPV Organic Lawn Care that not only treat landscapes with non-toxic fertilizers and mulches onsite are also helping to reduce the nutrient load of fertilizers and pesticides in runoff water during heavy rains. Additionally, their contribution to the climate solution reduces emissions because they are not buying mulch which has been transported from a long distance,” says Ana Puszkin-Chevlin, Ph.D., regional director of Growing Climate Solutions: Path to Positive SWFL (GrowingClimateSolutions.org), network of local organizations, citizens and leaders located in Naples.

Manuel Valdez, owner of MPV Organic Lawn Care, located at 5416 Carlton St., in Naples, provides free, organic mulch with landscaping services. For more information, call 239-234-9299 or visit MPVLandg.com.

See ad, page 35.

Joining Thornburg Pediatrics in June, Mary will complete her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Florida Gulf Coast University and board certification as a Family Nurse Practitioner in May. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in nursing from Johns Hopkins University.

Mary has 17+ years experience in healthcare, including 10 years at Boston Children’s Hospital.

As the mother of a 10-year-old girl, she embraces a holistic view of health and wellness. Mary Baron will be a nice addition to the Thornburg Pediatrics team.

We are very excited to have her on staff.

Hi, I’m Dr. Brian Thornburg.

My concierge practice combines western allopathic medicine with functional healthcare.

I’m available 24/7 to my patients and deliver what you need, when you need it.

Contact me today to discuss how my practice can serve your family.

Here to heal, on your terms.

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conscious eating

Indoor Edible Gardening Grow Veggies, Sprouts and Microgreens Year-Round

by April Thompson

T

trellis for vining plants like cucumbers, wiring it up with screw eyes.

Mini-Greens, Major Nutrients

Many health-conscious gardeners are drawn to sprouts and microgreens for their nutritional benefits, as they contain as much as 40 times the nutrients as their full-grown counterparts. Sprouts can easily be grown with or without soil, and are eaten before the first tiny cotyledon leaves emerge, whereas microgreens are harvested later, often just before or after the first true leaves, the second pair, pop up.

“Sprouted greens grown at home are the freshest food you’ll ever eat. Being able to grow your own salads is also a lot of fun in the winter, to see the wonderful colors growing on your shelf,” says Peter Burke,

shintartanya/AdobeStock.com

here’s no need to wait until the last frost date to sow a kitchen garden. Impatient gardeners or those without outdoor space can grow almost anything indoors with a little light and creativity.

“You can start many edible plants from seed on a sunny windowsill, even in late winter.

You’ll be surprised how quickly everything germinates this time of year,” says Zia Allaway, the British author of Indoor Edible Garden: Creative Ways to Grow Herbs, Fruits, and Vegetables in Your Home.

Herbs, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers are among the many foods that can be easily grown from seed indoors, according to Allaway. Many fruiting plants that are not self-pollinating, such as cucumbers, need a boost from hand pollination if growing them indoors. Allaway adds, “When growing any plants on a windowsill, rotate them periodically so they grow evenly, as they will turn toward the light.”

While crops like garlic, beets and carrots won’t reach maturity indoors, they can still be grown inside for their tasty, nutritious leaves. To grow garlic shoots, for example, remove the papery outer case and submerge the flat end of a garlic bulb in a container of water, leaving the top exposed to air. Within a few weeks, garlicky-flavored shoots will sprout up that can be harvested and used like chives, advises Allaway.

To maximize space, she suggests growing plants vertically, perhaps by hanging bushy herbs or trailing plants in a window basket. She has also used interior walls to erect a

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the Calais, Vermont, author of Year-Round Indoor Salad Gardening: How to Grow Nutrient-Dense, Soil-Sprouted Greens in Less Than 10 Days.

Burke’s tried and true method is to plant a small amount of seed every day from a mix of sunflower, peas, radish, buckwheat and brassicas like broccoli or kohlrabi, providing a steady supply of his family’s daily dose of greens. While some gardeners grow sprouts or microgreens directly on paper towels or coconut coir, Burke prefers using a storebought, germination soil mix, spread up to two inches deep in reusable trays, watered once a day and grown without artificial light.

Many seeds commonly found in the home pantry can be turned into sprouts and shoots, says Lina Wallentinson, the Swedish author of Sprouts, Shoots and Microgreens: Tiny Plants to Grow and Eat in Your Kitchen.

“Mustard seeds from the spice shelf, whole lentils in all colors, chickpeas and yellow peas can all be easily grown for sprouts and shoots without any special equipment,” she says.

Seeds can be put into wide-mouthed jars, soaked overnight, and then drained and rinsed two to three times a day. Germination of seeds into sprouts, from mung beans to quinoa, can typically take less than 24 hours with this method.

Sprouts and microgreens make great toppers for salads, soups, sandwiches or smoothies, and they can also be cooked.

“Newly sprouted mung and lentil seeds with a short ‘tail’ are perfect to flash-fry and season with soy, chili and a little sesame oil as an alternative to rice or pasta,” says Wallentinson. “Sprouts are also nice to bake with. Like seeds and nuts, they give a good little chew in all kind of breads.”

Whether growing sprouts, microgreens or full-sized plants, Allaway advises home gardeners to make drainage holes at the bottom of the containers to avoid overwatering. “It’s better to underwater than overwater a plant, because once it starts to rot, it’s game over. There is also research showing that a little stress from occasional underwatering can trigger the plant to produce more phytochemicals, which are nutritionally beneficial,” she says.

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ARE YOU SUFFERING WITH CHRONIC ILLNESS, PAIN, HEADACHES, BLOATING, SKIN ISSUES OR FATIGUE?

“

Before I started working with Dr. Michelle I was bloated, waking up several times in the night, over-weight and tired. In just a few short months I am now 15 lbs lighter, not bloated, sleeping like a baby, and my energy is unreal. The inflammation in my body is gone and so are all the aches and pains.

Tasty, Sprout-Inspired Recipes Noodle Soup with Coconut, Sprouts and Shoots This soup is a favorite in our home. Simple to make, it’s warming thanks to just the right amount of bite from the chili.

YIELD: 4 SERVINGS 1 8¾ oz pack of noodles 1 Tbsp canola oil 1 carrot 2 tsp red curry paste Canola oil, for frying 1 13½ oz can coconut milk 1 tsp tomato purée 2 Tbsp fish sauce (or Japanese soy sauce) 1 vegetable stock cube 1 tsp sugar 1¼ cups water 2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice 1 red bell pepper About 7 oz mung bean sprouts Pea and radish shoots, for garnish

”

~ Linda- Tampa

Prepare the noodles according to the instructions on the package. Drain off the water, and mix the noodles with the oil.

Peel and thinly slice the carrot. In a saucepan, cook the curry paste and carrot in some oil for about 1 minute.

Add in the coconut milk, tomato purée, fish sauce, stock cube, sugar and water, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add in the lime juice.

Halve, seed and julienne the bell pepper; add it to the soup. Divide the noodles between the bowls, add the soup and sprinkle with sprouts and shoots.

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Collier/Lee Counties

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Healthy Home Plus: Climate Change Health Impacts

Green Smoothie Bowl Here’s a recipe that contains both sprouts and shoots. The buckwheat provides a little extra satiety. Top the bowl with some poppy seeds, grated coconut, nuts and berries.

YIELD: 2 BOWLS Approx. 1¼ cup mild, tender shoots such as broccoli, chia, pea or sunflower 2 frozen bananas 3½ oz frozen mango, diced 2 Tbsp buckwheat sprouts 6¾ oz mild plain yogurt (3 percent) or coconut or almond milk Hemp hearts, poppy seeds, grated coconut, nuts and frozen red and/or black currants, for topping Blend shoots, bananas, mango, sprouted buckwheat and yogurt until smooth using a countertop or immersion blender.

Pour into bowls and top with hemp hearts, poppy seeds, nuts, coconut and berries.

Sprouted Hummus Every Middle Eastern family has their own recipe for hummus. Naturally, there has to be a sprouted version of it, too. With a jar of hummus in the refrigerator, I can always cobble together some kind of dish for lunch or dinner.

Yield: ABOUT 6.75 FLUID OZ (NEARLY 1 CUP) 7 oz sprouted chickpeas (or yellow peas) 1 garlic clove 2 Tbsp tahini 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice ½ tsp sambal oelek ½ tsp cumin ½ tsp salt 4 Tbsp olive oil Put the sprouted peas in a small saucepan and cover them with water.

Bring the water to a boil and cook the peas for 10 minutes. Pour off the water.

Peel and finely chop the garlic. Mix the peas in a food processor or with an immersion blender, along with the garlic, tahini, lemon juice, sambal oelek, cumin, salt and oil. Dilute with some water if the hummus seems too thick.

Option: Turmeric adds a nice yellow color to hummus. But sample the hummus as you add it in—some enjoy the taste of turmeric, others less so. Start with ½ teaspoon per recipe.

Recipes excerpted from Sprouts, Shoots & Microgreens: Tiny Plants to Grow and Eat in Your Home Kitchen, by Lina Wallentinson. Photography by Lennart Weibull.

Natural Awakenings recommends using organic, non-GMO (genetically modified) and non-bromated ingredients whenever possible.

March 2021

27

DOWN TO EARTH The Promise of Regenerative Organic Farming

by Sandra Yeyati

W

pixdeluxe/GettyImages.com

ith its dependence on chemical pesticides and fertilizers, heavy tilling techniques, concentrated animal feeding practices and mono-crops—all designed to maximize yields—conventional farming has come at a great cost. “Conventional intensive farming practices have significant negative consequences for the land and surrounding ecosystems,” says Richard Teague, Texas A&M professor of Ecosystem Science and Management. “By disrupting the natural function of these habitats, the valuable ecosystem services they provide are compromised.”

The way we’re growing food now is not sustainable. “According to the United Nations, we only have 60 harvests left before our soil is completely depleted. Years of conventional industrial agriculture have drained the soil dry of all of the organic matter, all the microbes, that microbiome that brings nutrients to our plants and to our planet as a whole,” says Margaret Wilson, content creation and media relations specialist at the Rodale Institute.

The UN also reported last year that agriculture and forestry were responsible for nearly a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions. “Agriculture is a climate-intensive process and conventional practices make that even worse because they’re fossil fuel-intensive,” Wilson says. “They require a lot of machinery to plow fields and distribute pesticides. Fertilizers 28

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are fossil fuel-based. Tillage is a huge part of conventional agriculture, where you’re turning the soil over, and that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.”

One third of the world’s land surface is considered desert, and according to Judith D. Schwartz, the Vermont author of The Reindeer Chronicles and Cows Save the Planet, most deserts are manmade. “If we look historically, we learn that most deserts

were once thriving grasslands or some other kind of ecosystem and became deserts after hundreds of years of poor grazing management or farming that was no longer putting nutrients back into the soil.”

The good news is that deserts can be brought back to life. In the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, where much of the land is degraded, ingenious ranchers have figured out a way to support healthy animals and plant biodiversity. “The ranchers were earning money by managing the livestock holistically in a way that was reviving the ecological function of these lands, so there were thick grasses, birds and butterflies flourishing right next to land that looked horrible—absolute deserts with a lot of erosion, the soil so depleted that it couldn’t hold water,” recalls Schwartz, who visited the area.

Regenerative organic farming holds great promise to rebuild soil, draw carbon from the atmosphere and ultimately grow healthier food. “When you take out the pesticides, fertilizers and intensive tilling, our farming systems trial concluded that regenerative organic agriculture uses 45 percent fewer fossil fuels and releases 40 percent fewer carbon emissions than conventional practices,” Wilson says, adding that a recent Rodale Institute white paper postulated that by transitioning all global crop and pastureland to regenerative management, we could sequester 100 percent of annual carbon dioxide emissions.

As the founder of the Rodale Institute, J.I. Rodale, said, “Healthy soil equals healthy food equals healthy people.” Soil restoration is job one, and we know how to do this. “The goal of regenerative farming is to farm and ranch in nature’s image,” says Gabe Brown, a North Dakota farmer and author of Dirt to Soil. He offers the following six principles to create a thriving, regenerating agricultural ecosystem:

1 2

Context: “There’s a reason bananas do not grow in North Dakota. They don’t fit the context, whereas more spring wheat is grown in North Dakota than anywhere else.

You have to farm and ranch in your context.”

The least amount of mechanical and chemical disturbance possible: “Nature tills with earthworms and burrowing rodents, but it certainly doesn’t till the soil like we do in farming or even in gardening. Tilling is the worst thing you can do if you want to raise nutrient-dense food. Nature aerates the soil with the use of living plants and soil aggregates. Those soil aggregates will only last about four weeks, then new ones need to be formed, and the only way to form them is by not tilling and allowing biology and fungi to secrete substances that help bind sand, silt and clay to form soil aggregates.”

3

4

Armor on the soil: “Nature always tries to cover the soil, whether it be leaves in a forest or decaying plants in a pasture or field. Nature does not like bare soil.”

Diversity: “Where in nature do you see a monoculture? Usually only where man put it or man’s actions have driven it to be a monoculture. Nature is very diverse, so hundreds of different grasses, legumes all growing in harmony. We’ve gotten away from that.

Now we plant monocultures. That’s not the way nature functions.”

5

6

Livestock and insect integration: “Nature does not function properly without animals. Too many people think we have to remove the animals from the landscape.

That’s the worst thing you can do. What’s going to pollinate the plants? The way our rich soils were formed was with large herds of ruminants, grazing the plants. That plant, once grazed, starts sloughing off root exudates to attract biology, to regrow, and then that plant is able to cycle more carbon out of the atmosphere.”

sanjeri/GettyImages.com

A living root being in the soil as long as possible throughout the year: “I go out in the spring here in North Dakota, and you’ve got crocuses coming up through the snow. That’s nature’s way of trying to take the solar energy and all of these compounds out of the atmosphere, and through photosynthesis convert it into carbon to feed soil biology.”

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adolfo felix/Unsplash.com

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Brown waxes poetic when he talks about the amazing results of regenerative farming. “Healthy soil looks like dark chocolate cake.

It’s full of pore spaces. Healthy soil is dark because of the amount of carbon in it. It smells good, whereas unhealthy soil is very compacted. There’s no pore spaces. Water cannot infiltrate into it. It’s a dull, pale color. You can see it, you can smell it, you can feel it.”

According to Wilson, the Rodale Institute is poised to help farmers adopt these principles and make them profitable. “People say regenerative organic isn’t scalable, but through our farming systems trial, we’re proving that you can do this on a large scale.

It might require customization, but that’s why we’re investing so much in providing support and research to farmers to help them navigate that, and we’re seeing that scalability is not a barrier to implementation because so many big companies like Dr. Bronner’s and Patagonia are starting to implement these practices because people are demanding it. The market finds a way to make it doable and as long as we keep up our consumer education and show people that this is a benefit to everybody, I think large-scale farmers and corporations that buy their products will respond.”

Last year, Graham Christensen’s father gave him and his brother full control of a 750-acre farm in Oakland, Nebraska, that has been in the family since 1867. Over the decades, the farm has seen many changes, but the biggest transformation is still to come, as the brothers eagerly transition their once conventional operation into a regenerative organic one.

The family began to incorporate a few innovations 12 years ago when they stopped tilling the land and adopted solar energy, but this year they’ll take bolder steps to eliminate their dependence on GMO seeds and chemical fertilizers and pesticides which over the years have reduced organic matter levels in the soil and led to increased and unhealthy nutrient levels in their waterways.

“For the first time, we’ll be cover-cropping 612 acres and expanding habitats for wildlife, especially in some riparian areas, so we can get more roots in the soil and have better filtration and cleaner water,” Christensen explains. “We’re going to produce nutrients by building a biodiverse ecosystem and we’re incorporating animal grazing systems to help us fertilize naturally rather than having to add synthetics like nitrogen and phosphorus.”

They have planted a 100-tree hazelnut orchard that they hope to expand as a tree crop. “That’s going to help us stop soil erosion, store more carbon in the ground, produce another form of income and also be able to fit right into our cropping system, virtually taking out no extra land; just creating a higher layer, so now we’re farming higher in the air.”

The transition is not without its risks, Christensen adds. “Farms like ours have been heavily subsidized by the federal government to ship our grain to other countries. What we’re trying to do now is produce more small grains and hazelnuts for a regional market and reintroduce livestock to the land—not in confinement—so we can focus more on feeding people in our local community and in Omaha or Lincoln or Kansas City or Des Moines.”

Sandra Yeyati, J.D., is a professional writer, living in Naples, Florida. Reach her at SandraYeyati@gmail.com.

wise words

Jeff Tkach on Regenerative Healthcare

by Patricia Trenchak

F

or over 70 years, Rodale Institute— a pioneer of the organic food movement—has championed the concept of farming without herbicides and pesticides by funding and supporting scientific studies and education. Now entering his fifth year with Rodale Institute, Chief Impact Officer Jeff Tkach is committed to upholding the legacy of the Institute’s founder, J.I. Rodale, who believed that healthy soil equals healthy food equals healthy people. According to Tkach, farmers and healthcare professionals need to embrace a prevention-based approach to human and environmental health, and Rodale Institute is here to bridge the gap between these two industries by unlocking the transformational power of regenerative healthcare.

How did your personal journey lead you to explore regenerative healthcare?

In 2016, I experienced a tremendous health collapse in my own life. I went through six conventional medical doctors and $50,000 in medical bills. I had been a highperforming businessperson up until that point, and found myself on medical leave, bedridden and unable to work. I sought out a doctor who practiced something called functional medicine, which focuses on finding the root of whatever caused the breakdown in health. After numerous

tests, it was discovered that I had chronic Lyme disease. The doctor explained that there was nothing he could prescribe that was going to instantly make me better.

Through my work with him, I had to look at my body as a whole system and came to realize that food is medicine. Ultimately, alternative modalities like acupuncture and IV [intravenous] therapy, as well as food healed me.

What is regenerative healthcare?

It is a system in which farming and healthcare work together focused on a prevention-based approach to human and environmental health. Instead of using toxic chemicals to farm, regenerative healthcare aims to prevent disease through an organic, plant-based, whole-foods diet.

Regenerative healthcare begins on farms that work in harmony with nature. At Rodale Institute, we see ourselves as a human health organization, not an agricultural organization. We use agriculture as a tool to promote human health. Our goal is to build the first brick and mortar facility in the world, called the Regenerative Health Institute, that will connect medical doctors and farmers. The facility will be a 333acre certified organic farm in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, that will provide innovative research on the links between farming and human health. We’re going to be doing scientific research that demonstrates the

link between soil health and the health of people, and we’re going to educate and train tomorrow’s doctors to become more literate in agriculture and to understand how they can use food as medicine.

How can we harness the power of regenerative organic farming to foster good health?

The current mode of farming is systemically broken, and farmers need to move in a healthier direction. The science is showing that elements in pesticides and herbicides are known carcinogens that are wreaking havoc on our immune systems. They are ubiquitous in our air and drinking water.

Farmers are no longer able to control where those chemicals land. They’re leaching into our groundwater, killing the life in the soil and causing major soil erosion.

Ultimately, they’re causing imbalances in nature of mass proportion.

How can you convince people to adopt organic and consider food as medicine?

We need to encourage people to get to know a farmer. There are incredible regenerative organic farmers in our own communities that oftentimes don’t have access to mainstream markets. During the pandemic, we saw a major increase in sales directly from farms to consumers. When the supply chains in the grocery stores broke down, we turned to farmers. That’s profound. As a result of the pandemic, 22 million new gardens were planted in the United States, according to the National Gardening Association. We need to keep that going. It’s very exciting to be a part of this movement as people around the world come to understand the importance of food as medicine. I truly believe that regenerative healthcare is the key to healing our planet.

For more information, visit RodaleInstitute.org.

Patricia Trenchak writes for KnoWEwell, a Regenerative Whole Health Community platform and a collaborative partner of Natural Awakenings Publishing Corp. See ad on page 4.

March 2021

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P

erhaps due to the growing popularity and media coverage of DNA testing, health professionals are beginning to notice a more frequent response from clients that receive a diagnosis of a common health challenge such as heart disease, diabetes and arthritis. The retort, “Oh, that’s genetic. It runs in my family,” is frequently accompanied by a sense of defeat based on an outdated concept that nothing can be done about the body and genetic makeup we are born with.

While it is true that we cannot change our genes and family history, it is now known that we can overcome our genetic predisposition with the right supplements, lifestyle habits and environment. Research such as that being conducted by The Resilience Project (ResilienceProMichelle Trias, Ph.D. ject.com) aims to discover why some people are more able than others to override genetic markers and overcome challenges to their health, escaping diseases. Scientists anticipate that finding and studying resilient individuals could pave the way to new insights about health, better disease prevention strategies and new treatments.

Research into the understanding of the cell’s information processing systems by Dr. Bruce Lipton, Ph.D., a stem cell biologist and bestselling author of The Biology of Belief, led to the science of epigenetics and his discovery that we are not victims of our genetics, but rather the masters. Lipton frequently reminds his audience in his Gaia.com series, “Inner Evolution: Empowered Genetics” that genes are not selfactualizing, meaning that they aren’t capable of controlling their own activity. In this groundbreaking series, he explains that we are not our genes and that our genetic expression is directly determined by our environment and more importantly, our perception of that environment.

Locally, Michelle Trias, Ph.D., a naturopathic consultant and owner of My Naturo Wellness, in Bonita Springs, offers an example. “I may have a history of diabetes in my family on both my mother and father’s side. My genes ‘may’ predispose me to improper sugar handling, but that is not the end of it. The PEMT [phosphatidylethanolamine Nmethyltransferase] gene is an overlooked player in fat and glucose metabolism. Specific genetic variants correlate with obesity and diabetes, but they also have a positive side with regard to metabolic health. PEMT produces phosphatidylcholine and choline, which are essential for fat metabolism. High PEMT activity protects the liver, but plays a role in obesity and insulin resistance,” says the graduate of New Eden School of Natural Health & Herbal Studies, in South Bend, Indiana.

“Understanding your genes can unlock the necessary information for you to make decisions that improve your health. Your genes do not have to be the end of your story. You get to write it by making positive choices and working with your body to maximize your health. Armed with information through DNA testing, we can understand the key expression of our genetic traits and the best way via lifestyle and diet that disease can be avoided,” advises Trias, who uses DNA testing to help her clients.

For more information or to make an appointment, call 239-579-3846 or visit MyNaturoWellness.com. See ad, page 26.

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arol Jackson, to draw attention the author to them,” explains of Color Me Murphy, who Beautiful: Discover agrees with JackYour Natural Beauty son that skin tone Through Color, is also a deciding has helped women factor for the best around the world hair color. to enhance their Murphy offers appearance. Widely an analogy. “A distributed and former interior translated into 17 designer that was Betty Ann Murphy languages, 25 mila client told me, lion copies of the ‘When I walk book have been sold since 1980, into a room, I want to think, popularizing a seasonal color anal- “Oh what a beautiful room,” not ysis that women still use to deterwhat a beautiful coffee table.”’ mine the right colors to improve This means that people are more the appearance of their facial skin attractive when their hair color, tone. While Jackson focused on makeup and clothes are all within makeup colors to flatter the face, the same color palette.” Murphy local hair stylist and color special- says her heart sings every time ist Betty Ann Murphy, owner of a client leaves her salon with a Studio 37, in Naples, focuses on parting remark of, “I feel like a flattering makeovers that include whole new person.” hair color and her own brand of She says, “With the pandemic hairstyle science that creates a dragging on longer than anyone beautiful frame to any face. anticipated, women are looking Murphy’s Facial Symmetry for a lift. Things such as a new Analysis takes into consideration stylish hairstyle, vibrant color, measurements from the eyes to highlights, or extra special conthe hairline, eyebrows to bottom ditioning treatment, that makes of nose and nose to chin: three the hair shine, can provide a lastequal thirds. “Symmetry is based ing lift.” on balance. In general, everyone’s Studio 37 is located at 501 Goodlette best feature is the eyes, considRd. N., in Naples. For more inforered as the mirrors of the soul. mation or to make an appointment, Our personalities come out in call 239-263-5434. See ad, page 47. our eyes, so it’s natural to want

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ON A ROLL

Foam Rollers Ease Pain and Workout Recovery

justlife/AdobeStock.com

by Marlaina Donato

v.j.matthew/AdobeStock.com

fit body

F

oam rolling— rolling parts of the body on top of a lightweight foam cylinder—targets trigger points or painful knots in muscles and is a valuable tool for reducing chronic pain and enhancing workout recovery. From sciatica to pelvic floor dysfunction, there is a foam roller for almost every condition, including low- to high-density, heated and textured types for massage-like benefits.

Research during the past several years shows that using foam rollers before or after exercise quells fatigue, improves joint mobility, lowers risk of injury and eases muscle soreness. Its effectiveness is attributed to the activation of the central nervous system resulting in better circulation and reduced inflammation.

“Foam rollers are used to relieve tension in the fascia (connective tissue), ‘roll’ out sore muscles and provide a soothing, self-controlled, soft-tissue massage,” says Amber Kivett, owner of Kivett Kinetic Solutions, in Monrovia, Indiana. “They can 36

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also be used for proprioception, balance, flexibility, core stability training and most importantly, natural pain relief.”

Freeing the Body Fascia, the body’s all-pervasive connective tissue, tightens like an invisible net from injury and other stresses and can adhere to the underlying muscles, creating pain and restriction. “Foam rolling has the power to change and realign the 12 fascial lines responsible for human movement and support,” says Kivett. “Those same fascial lines also sense and transmit pain and emotion far greater than any nerve or muscle and respond well to foam rolling. There’s an emotional and spiritual release in the body when fascia is compressed and released. That response facilitates a structural change to human alignment and an immediate change in pain levels for all types and causes of pain.”

Foam rollers offer an opportunity for self-care, according to Los Angeles fitness trainer Ashley Borden. “Foam rolling is one of the best ways to troubleshoot your own body, keep it healthy and mobile. Us-

swfl.NaturalAwakenings.com

ing an inexpensive tool like a foam roller not only feels good, but it also connects you to your body. Foam rolling the entire body encourages circulation and an immediate feeling of relief afterwards. My clients who don’t like to work out are usually surprised how good they feel post-rollout and feel encouraged to do more.” She cites research that shows that a dynamic warm-up, paired with the use of foam rollers before and after workouts, amplifies recovery and aids in the repair of muscular micro-tears.

For Rafal Augustynowicz, founder of TeamRAF Fitness, in Kent, England, it’s about counteracting lifestyle stresses. “The foam roller is a beautiful and great tool, especially in the 21st century, when we sit too many hours. It is a great tool to get our mobility and our posture back to normal.”

Recovery, Joint Pain and Sciatica Gently rolling targeted muscles below and above specific joints can help to resolve certain types of pain, including in the knee.

“Many times, when a person has pain in the knee, it’s more than likely they have

tight muscles elsewhere—calves, inner thighs, hip flexors or glutes—and the pain shows up in the knee,” says Augustynowicz. “Foam rolling and using a massage ball have saved me many times when I had a lot of problems with my back, neck, hip and a dislocated shoulder.”

The practice can help ease sciatica, a sometimes-excruciating condition. “Most cases of sciatic pain are caused by tight muscles deep in the buttocks, including the piriformis muscle,” says Kivett. “The sciatic nerve travels through the piriformis, so if it’s tight, it will cause a sensation similar to that of sciatica nerve pain. A foam roller can be used along the back, throughout the buttocks and the legs to relieve tension, soften tissues and calm the nervous system for instant pain relief.”

Kivett, who was introduced to foam rollers during intensive physical therapy after a life-altering accident, found them to be a way to recover from severe fibromyalgia pain. “My nerves were hypersensitive from the injuries, and I used foam rolling to reboot the ‘software’ in my brain, which allowed me to engage in recovering.”

Foam rolling is an all-around boon, Borden highlights. “The immediate relief, the muscle definition, the decrease in cellulite, all of these are added benefits.”

Marlaina Donato is an author and composer. Connect at AutumnEmbersMusic.com.

MORE ADVICE FROM THE EXPERTS WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE A ROLL

Amber Kivett: Ideally, it’s best to perform foam rolling right after a light warm-up for five to 10 minutes to increase circulation to the muscles and decrease tension and stiffness.

If there is extra time, do a quick three to five minutes of foam rolling after a workout, but preferably after you’ve done your cool-down or some walking. You don’t have to foam-roll the entire body post-workout; just do a quick “scan” of areas that are more sensitive or painful.

For those with high levels of pain, fibromyalgia, MS, autoimmune conditions or an acute injury, I would recommend buying a low-density, soft, foam roller or [one] that vibrates, because soft and/or vibrating foam rollers are gentle to fragile areas.

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Ashley Borden: Foam rolling is a valuable tool for the senior population to improve overall body tightness and circulation. Assistance is needed if you have a hard time getting up and down. I would also suggest a non-slip yoga mat and using the softest foam roller first to gauge the pressure. If you feel like you have to hold your breath when you are foam rolling, the surface is too hard.

Rafal Augustynowicz: Never use foam rollers on bones, joints, the spine or armpits; only on the muscle/flesh. Be informed to avoid arteries, etc. If it hurts too much, it’s probably not right. Watch tutorials or go to a professional.

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green living

Hemp-Derived Cannabidiol A Primer on the Latest Research

by Sandra Yeyati

E

ver since the Farm Bill of 2018 legalized the commercial production of hemp, U.S. sales of cannabidiol (CBD) have exploded onto the scene with hundreds, perhaps thousands, of vendors popping up around the country. CBD, a cannabinoid, is abundant in the hemp flower. “By law, hemp is defined as a variety of cannabis plant that has less than 0.3 percent THC, the psychoactive cannabinoid that induces a high,” says Shannon Livingston, a cannabis consultant for Florida Gulf Coast University, in Fort Myers.

Proven Benefits of CBD: “The enthusiasm for CBD is soaring above the actual scientific evidence,” says Peter Grinspoon, M.D., a leading medical cannabis expert and primary care physician at Massachusetts General Hospital. “What’s known is that it helps with childhood epilepsy, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a CBD drug for that. It is believed, and there’s good animal data and some human data to suggest, that CBD helps with chronic pain, insomnia and anxiety.”

kostrez/AdobeStock.com

Anxiety Under Study: A clinical trial examining a high-CBD, low-THC (the psychoactive component) sublingual custom formulation for patients with moderate to severe anxiety is being conducted by Staci Gruber, Ph.D., director of Marijuana Investigations for Neuroscientific Discovery at McLean Hospital, in Belmont, Massachusetts, and associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. “In the open label phase of this study, we’ve seen a rather dramatic and precipitous drop in symptoms of anxiety and depression after four weeks of treatment. We’ll see if this holds in the doubleblind phase, which is underway now,” she explains.

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Entourage Effect: Gruber notes that this customized formulation is a full-spectrum, whole-plant formula, saying, “You often seem to get a bigger bang for the buck using a full-spectrum or broad-spectrum (whole plant minus THC) product, rather than just a single extracted compound.” The process she’s describing is called the entourage

effect—an assumption that all elements of the cannabis plant, working together, are most effective. “I believe there’s a significant role for terpenoids, flavonoids and other cannabinoid constituents of the plant, in addition to the big two (THC and CBD), and I have a grant to look at that very question,” she says.

How to Start CBD: Experts agree that the best approach is to start low and go slow.

“With experimentation, the patient will know what works for them,” Grinspoon says. “When CBD doesn’t work with my patients, the next step is to add a little bit of medical cannabis; it often takes a very little dose to help them with their sleep or their chronic pain.” Medical marijuana has been legalized in 36 states and the District of Columbia.

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Route of Administration: “When you smoke or vape, it’s an almost immediate onset, which is helpful for breakthrough pain, nausea and anything you want to treat immediately, but the effect is very short-lived,” Livingston explains. “For chronic pain, you might take a capsule or the patch that will last six to eight hours. If you want to fall asleep, a sublingual will work. For a skin condition, you might rub an oil on your skin. It’s really about the time of onset, how long you need it to last and what you’re treating.”

Ensuring Quality Control: “Choose CBD providers that are certified for good manufacturing practices; conduct batch-specific, third-party testing on all of their products; and provide certificates of analysis directly from those labs. These tests can detect the presence of heavy metals, bacterial or microbial life, mycotoxins and pesticides, and also provide cannabinoid potency and terpene profiles,” says Grace Kaucic, senior communications and content manager at Bluebird Botanicals, a CBD company in Louisville, Colorado.

Our Built-In Cannabinoids: In the mid-1990s, researchers discovered the endocannabinoid system of receptors and neurotransmitters throughout the body, which uses cannabinoids that our own bodies produce. “This system is believed to control homeostasis, the body’s ability to regulate itself and maintain normal functioning,” Grinspoon says, adding that he believes this system will become central to medicine over the next few years as more research is conducted.

Research is Ongoing: “It’s an incredibly exciting time for cannabis science,” Gruber says.

“There’s every reason to be optimistic about the potential of harnessing and exploiting the benefits of cannabis and cannabinoids in ways that may still surprise us, but to be cautiously optimistic.

It is not a panacea. It will never be one-size-fits-all.”

Sandra Yeyati, J.D., is a professional writer, living in Naples, Florida. Reach her at SandraYeyati@gmail.com.

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March 2021

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healing ways

The Healing Potential of Psychedelic Medicines

Research Breaks New Ground

Promising Studies on Stress Disorder, Depression and Addiction

cendeced/AdobeStock.com

by Linda Sechrist

F

or more than 30 years, intersections of the human and natural world—our plates, farms and gardens—have been of interest to author Michael Pollan, who recently added the mind as another significant association in his latest book, How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression and Transcendence.

Pollan’s interest was sparked by two articles. The first, a New York Times story, “Hallucinogens Have Doctors Tuning In Again,” details how researchers from Johns Hopkins, the University of Arizona, Harvard, New York University (NYU), the University of California/ Los Angeles and other institutions had been giving doses of psilocybin—the psychoactive compound in certain mushrooms—to terminal cancer patients as a way to help them deal with their “existential distress” at the approach of death. The second, a peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Psychopharmacology by Johns Hopkins researchers, was entitled “Psilocybin Can Occasion Mystical-Type Experiences Having Substantial and Sustained Personal Meaning and Spiritual Significance.” Pollan turned his journalistic skills to researching the potential of psychedelics to actually heal the mind and treat mental and behavioral disorders, and the book that resulted became a number one New York Times bestseller.

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Much of the research for studying psychedelic medicine has been supported by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). The 35-yearold Santa Cruz, California, nonprofit is currently backing research into psychoactive methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), also referred to as ecstasy, which produces effects resembling stimulants and psychedelics, as well as a feeling of connectedness. It plans to publish the full results of phase three clinical trials for MDMA-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 2022, the final stage before seeking U.S. Food & Drug Administration approval for its use as a prescription treatment.

MAPS founder and Executive Director Rick Doblin, Ph.D., who spent 30 years studying how psychedelics might help heal trauma and mental illness, was trained and mentored

by Stanislav Grof, M.D. A renowned psychiatrist with more than 60 years of experience researching non-ordinary states of consciousness, Grof proposes that psychedelics are to the study of the mind what microscopes are to biology and the telescope is to astronomy.

When used wisely, he suggests, they can heal, inspire and perhaps save us.

Researchers have found that psychedelics reduce activity in the brain’s default mode network that creates our sense of self—the equivalent of our ego—filtering all incoming information according to personal needs and priorities. When activity is reduced in the default mode network, the ego shifts from the foreground to the background, allowing us to see that we’re part of a larger field of awareness. This can be among an individual’s most important experiences, allowing for feelings of connectedness, altruism and acceptance of death.

Psychedelics as Treatment

Since 2010, in addition to treating PTSD, MDMA has shown positive results for depression, social anxiety in autistic adults and anxiety associated with a life-threatening illness. Johns Hopkins and NYU research

Johns Hopkins and NYU research has demonstrated how psilocybin can help with treatment-resistant depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety and addiction. has demonstrated how psilocybin can help with treatment-resistant depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety and addiction.

Both MDMA and psilocybin have been studied as adjuncts or catalysts to psychotherapy rather than as standalone treatments.

Jennifer Phelps, M.D., who teaches for the Center for MindBody Medicine, in Washington, D.C., and practices family and integrative medicine in Georgetown, Connecticut, says that psilocybin can transform a terminally ill individual’s quality of life for the remainder of their time. “This compassionate use can presently only be prescribed by a physician with the required license issued by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Presently, LSD, MDMA and psilocybin can only be prescribed for research,” she says.

Charley Wininger, a Brooklyn-based psychotherapist, authored Listening to Ecstasy: The Transformative Power of MDMA after experiencing its positive effects on his marriage and psyche. “For those who experiment responsibly, psychedelics can open their lives up to spiritual growth and transformation. It’s a way to learn about how connected we are to each other, to the natural world and to the world at large. When you experience this level of connection, you and your worldview are transformed,” he says.

“MDMA helped me with the aging process. I keep growing and exploring consciousness in an unconventional way,” he adds, enthusing that psychedelics can be a unique, life-enhancing opportunity for healthy people across their entire adult lifespan.

Wininger explains that MDMA floods the body with serotonin and oxytocin, creating a sense of safety and well-being. “It’s best to do it with a trained psychotherapist or sitter, so that if any trauma surfaces, it can be relieved with a sense of safety. While individuals report that their relationship to trauma is altered permanently, integration groups give them opportunities to share and anchor their experiences.”

mindfulness-based coaching and mentorships to integrate psychedelics with life, education and a related career. “Having a guide, preparation coach or therapist is good,” he says. “For the transformation to be lasting, preparation work is needed. Answering questions such as—Why are you here? What are your expectations? And what makes you feel safe and comfortable?—helps to build rapport with a guide that can help you form a simple, powerful intention beforehand.

“Personal growth work is invaluable to psychonauts,” says Shankin, who offers podcast interviews on TamIntegration.com, as well as replays of a 2019 Psilocybin Summit in which notable speakers explore the facets of psilocybin mushrooms and methods for creating ceremony and holding a safe space. Also discussed are traditional and indigenous use, as well as efforts to change public policy so that individuals can legally have access to psychedelic medicine.

The Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research at the California Institute of Integral Studies also educates the public about psychedelic medicines and trains psychotherapists to work in the expanding field of psychedelic studies. Its online programs inform the general public via podcasts about conscious medicine and the future of psychedelic-assisted therapy, which appears promising in light of the recent decriminalization of psilocybin in Oakland, Denver and Washington, D.C. Linda Sechrist is a senior staff writer for Natural Awakenings.

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- inside • - the Bayfront Inn Hotel, in Mandala Spa, located Naples, provides customized self-care therapies for the body and facewww.naplesmandalaspa.com in a luxurious setting.

Lymphatic massage is very beneficial for post-viral fatigue and post-surgical swelling, particularly for individuals that have had lymph nodes removed or chronic lymph conditions. This anticellulite therapy stimulates stagnated lymph movement that may be due to a lack of muscle contractions during recovery from surgery. It is also boosts metabolism, improves digestion, relaxes the body and is an excellent immune support.

Deep tissue massage uses sustained pressure, with slow, deep strokes targeting the inner layers of muscles and connective tissues. It helps to break up scar tissue that forms following an injury and reduces tension in muscle and tissue.

Therapeutic massage is a classic stress-relieving massage with long, flowing strokes that reduce tension, increase circulation and induce relaxation.

Reflexology focuses on pressure points in the feet that are massaged to stimulate circulation and deep relaxation throughout the body.

A customized facial meets the skin’s specific needs using a personalized combination of different equipment. This traditional, deep-cleansing facial encourages detoxification and addresses any skin concerns.

Dermaplaning gently exfoliates dead skin cells and removes the fine vellus facial hair (peach fuzz). It also restores a more even skin tone for a smoother complexion, and is an excellent add-on service to any facial.

A deep cleansing facial rids the skin of unwanted buildup of oil, toxins, dirt, bacteria and all skin cell debris. This facial cleans, massages, exfoliates, extracts, steams and significantly hydrates the skin.

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Create A Daily Eating Window

Healthline.com lists 10 evidence-based benefits of intermittent fasting—increased cellular repair, increased fat burning, reduced insulin resistance and reduced inflammation.

Choosing any nine-hour window within a 24-hour period as an “eating window” naturally creates a 15-hour period where the body is not required to digest food, leaving it to do other regenerative tasks.

This nine-hour eating window can change based on the needs of the day. For example, a dinner with friends that ends at 9 p.m. means adding 15 hours until eating another meal until at least noon the next day. Making sure to eat a couple of good meals and snacks within the eating window helps to avoid experiencing hunger during this regenerative period.

Supplement With Two Key Basics

Much conclusive evidence exists for lowering the incidence of disease with adequate (40 to 60 nanograms/milliliter) blood levels of vitamin D. An estimated 42 percent of Americans are deficient.

Because vitamins A and K are cofactors for the absorption of D, combination remedies with vitamins A, D and K are best.

Magnesium is another key supplement. An estimated 75 percent of individuals are deficient in magnesium, involved in more than 600 metabolic and biochemical processes. It is also an essential nutrient for the electrical activity of the heart. Dissolving magnesium powder in a glass of water in the evening ensures sufficient magnesium intake and helps to relax the body for a good night’s sleep.

Three Health Hacks

by Sue Mahany

D

uring the pandemic, the most common health tips have been on eating right, exercising, reducing stress and getting enough sleep, all of which support the immune system. Not commonly mentioned are three health hacks that can provide significant returns with a relatively small investment and little effort.

Sue Mahany is the owner of Spark Health Technologies, located at 11983 N. Tamiami Tr., Ste. 150, in Naples. The wellness center has a HOCATT ozone sauna, BEMER microcirculation mat, and hydrogen technologies. For appointments and more information, call 802752-6342 or visit SparkHealthTechnologies.com. See ad, page 42.

Drink Hydrogen Water

New to the wellness scene, hydrogen water has been called the “the best antioxidant out there” by Dr. Joseph Mercola, author and wellness game-changer. As the smallest molecule, hydrogen penetrates cell walls and the blood-brain barrier. It also has the unique property of selectively neutralizing damaging byproducts of oxidation without damaging the helpful byproducts.

Create hydrogen water once a day by dropping a tablet of molecular hydrogen in room-temperature water and wait for it to dissolve. Drink it immediately. Because hydrogen reduces inflammation and oxidation, it directly addresses the two leading causes of aging. Hydrogen tablets can be found on Mercola.com for approximately $1 each.

March 2021

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inspiration

W

hen I was 13, my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. At 15, I was at her graveside, navigating my first experience with the other side of love: loss. Ten years later, my beloved and only brother died tragically as a result of PTSD and untreated addiction. In a word: suicide. Where my mom’s death silenced me, my brother’s death pushed me into a deep pursuit of healing.

In the nine years since then, I have committed to discovering the light side of grief, to identifying and embracing the invitations that lay within its deep layers. What I’ve come to learn is that grieving is actually a renewal state—a cycle of releasing and reconnecting. The tears and sadness are, quite literally, just a more fluid connection to love. These are the four invitations I’ve found within the grief:

HEALING FROM GRIEF Four Ways to Find Peace

by Jasmin Jenkins

1

The invitation to pause

When someone we love dies, our whole world changes in an instant and forever. And with this disruption, there is an opportunity for sacred inquiry that arrives as we pause and honor the absence of our loved one: the impressions they made on our lives, what we will miss about them, how we will continue to celebrate their lives and what their story taught us.

2

The invitation to connect with our breath

With the intensity of emotions surrounding loss, breath can serve as our anchor. Simply remembering to close our eyes and breathe allows us to stay grounded in our body, mind and spirit.

In the TED talk “Breathe to Heal,” Max Strom explains how certain patterns of breathing can actually change how we feel.

3

The invitation to feel

Elizabeth Kübler–Ross taught us about the five stages of grief, but since everyone’s story and process is so unique, there is ultimately no linear order of the stages. If an emotion arises, allow for it. Feelings, after all, are just information about the state of our heart. The more we can give ourselves permission to be with where we are in our grief, the more at peace we will be in our process.

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The invitation to heal

Healing is a verb requiring action and commitment. We have to allow for the pain to heal, also remembering that in doing so, we must keep our hearts open. We have to ask for help when healing, because most of us can’t heal in isolation. Therapists who specialize in grief, online grief courses, bodywork and support groups can help us move forward.

Zen Buddhism reminds us that the obstacle is the path. By exploring these invitations, we arrive at the truth that grief is actually a sacred pathway into a deeper connection within our hearts.

Jasmin Jenkins is a Los Angeles-based integrative grief guide and the founder of Fall Up, which supports people navigating the spectrum of grief. Learn more at WeFallUp.com.

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healthy kids

Getting Pregnant Lifestyle Strategies to Boost Fertility

by Ronica O’Hara

More than 7 million American women face one of life’s deepest heartbreaks: They want a newborn in their arms, but their bodies are not cooperating.

Happily, the growing use of natural approaches like healthier diets, supplements and acupuncture is changing that outcome for many.

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Egg Matters

A healthy pregnancy depends on a healthy egg. Chromosomal abnormalities severely hamper fertilization and account for more than half of first-trimester miscarriages. Yet, contrary to common belief, egg quality is not determined solely by a woman’s age: it can be highly influenced by her lifestyle choices and nutrients in the three-month window before an egg is fertilized, Fett advises. Based on the latest research, she offers the following recommendations for women trying to conceive naturally or through such means as in vitro fertilization (IVF): Detox the diet. To manage critically important blood sugar and insulin levels, eat low-glycemic, nutrient-rich foods and avoid sugar, caffeine and alcohol. An organic, largely plant- and fish-based Mediterranean diet boosts fertility. Dutch researchers found that women following this diet before an IVF cycle had a 40 percent higher chance of becoming pregnant.

Supplement correctly. Take a prenatal vitamin, vitamins C and E, ubiquinol and melatonin. For women with diagnosed low ovarian reserve, consider carefully dosed DHEA.

sergmakssmol/Adobestock.com

W

hen Rebecca Fett was told at age 26 that she had “incredibly low odds” of being able to conceive with her own eggs, she used her biochemistry and genetics training to plunge into research on egg quality and fertility. By taking targeted supplements, upgrading her diet and detoxing her house of harmful chemicals, the result was not only two healthy baby boys, but a book entitled It Starts with the Egg: How the Science of Egg Quality Can Help You Get Pregnant Naturally, Prevent Miscarriage, and Improve Your Odds in IV. It sells at the fast clip of about 600 copies a week, showing that even amidst the traumas of the pandemic, couples fervently want to bear children. Some doula groups on the East Coast report a 30 percent rise in early 2021 births, and sperm banks are running so low that sperm from a handsome new donor posted online can be bought out within hours, reports The New York Times. “There is nothing more hopeful than the creation of a new life,” says Randine Lewis, who used acupuncture and Chinese herbs to enable a hard-won pregnancy and then wrote The Infertility Cure: The Ancient Chinese Wellness Program for Getting Pregnant and Having Healthy Babies.

Detox the house. The Bisphenol A (BPA) in many household items and the phthalates in most scented products are endocrine disrupters that increase the risk of infertility and miscarriages, numerous studies show. Exchange plastic storage containers and water bottles for glass or stainless steel ones. Steer clear of fast food and processed food. Buy milk, oil, drinks and condiments in glass bottles rather than plastic ones. In the bathroom, toss hairspray, perfume and nail polish, and be wary of scented skin care products, air fresheners and detergents. Use non-toxic cleaning products.

An Eastern Perspective

wheatgrass, vitamin B6, CoQ10 and folic acid are often useful.

Herbs: Specific herbal concoctions and powders can target imbalances and deficiencies at key points in the menstrual cycle.

Stress-busters: Qigong breathing lowers stress, and nightly warm foot soaks increase blood flow to the pelvic organs.

“As we live more harmoniously, our fertility improves,” says Lewis. “It is vastly wise and responds to how we live, think, act and relate.”

Natural health writer Ronica O’Hara can be contacted at OHaraRonica@gmail.com.

Taking a different tack, “Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) does not focus on forcing maximum egg production,” says Lewis. “We improve the quality and receptivity of the entire body, mind and spirit, and the reproductive physiology responds.”

TCM involves identifying imbalances in the body that are creating obstacles to pregnancy and then using acupuncture, herbs and diet to restore full health. Diagnosis is typically done by an acupuncturist or Chinese medicine doctor. (To find one locally, Lewis suggests asking pointedly, “How many cases of infertility have you been successful in resolving?”)

According to Lewis, self-diagnosis can also work. For example, sore breasts and irritability during ovulation can signify liver qi stagnation, and can be relieved by massaging certain acupressure points, taking black cohosh and meditating or doing yoga. General TCM strategies include:

Although researchers have long focused on female infertility, studies now show that for 40 percent of infertile couples, the problem lies in male sperm that is too sparse, slow, damaged or misshapen. Many of the strategies that improve egg quality also improve sperm quality, researchers are learning.

This includes a healthier diet with more antioxidants, supplements that include a multivitamin and ubiquinol, detoxing the home and workplace of chemicals, cutting out smoking and lowering or stopping alcohol use. Other strategies include:

Acupuncture: Regular treatments “can stimulate the body’s hormonal system to do what it is supposed to: secrete the right hormones at the right time in a woman’s cycle,” says Lewis. Self-administered acupressure also works.

 Keeping cell phones out of side pockets. A Cleveland Clinic study found that pocketing cellphones more than four hours daily reduces sperm count, motility and viability.

Diet: Choose organic foods and hormonefree meats, and eat veggies cooked rather than raw. Nix caffeine, nicotine and alcohol.

Supplements: Besides a high-potency, multivitamin-mineral complex, such nutrients as bee pollen, blue-green algae,

Guys and Infertility

 Acupuncture to improve the concentration, volume and motility of sperm.  Tossing lubricants with ingredients like petroleum, propylene glycol, glycerin, parabens, silicone and Nonoxynol-9 that hamper sperm movement and viability.

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 Wearing boxer shorts instead of briefs and forgoing hot tubs to keep testes temperatures low for sperm production.  Exercising just enough. Studies show that men who exercise regularly, but not too extremely, have higher testosterone levels and better semen quality.

bam0309@gmail.com 501 Goodlette Road, Suite B-104 Naples, FL 34102 March 2021

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natural pet

CANINE OBESITY When Doggies Need Diets

by Julie Peterson

A

year ago, Leroy became exhausted lifting his furry head. Today, he has energy to run, chase and play, thanks to his owner helping the 11-year-old Shiba Inu lose 14 pounds. Leroy was adopted last May by Peter Nguyen, a facilities coordinator in Bellevue, Washington. Back then, Leroy weighed 56.4 pounds—twice the recommended weight. Nguyen found a holistic veterinarian to provide an integrative support plan to remove him from danger.

Overweight dogs are at risk for joint problems, cancer, diabetes, kidney disease and more. According to a 2018 survey by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention (APOP), 55.8 percent of dogs (about 50 million) in the U.S. are either overweight or obese. The APOP also reports that most of the owners of these dogs don’t realize or are in denial about this important fact.

Determining Appropriate Weight

“A dog that is a perfect weight, you can feel the ribs, but not see them. And you have an abdominal tuck when you look from the side. From above, right in front of the hips, you can see the waistline,” says Leroy’s veterinarian, Jackie Sehn, at Mercy Vet, in Mercer Island, Washington. She points out that the dog must be touched to feel the amount of fat, especially in long-coat breeds.

This evaluation can be done at home using the online Body Condition Score chart at PetObesityPrevention.org. The American Kennel Club also has a weight chart for dozens of breeds that can help determine an initial goal weight, although ideal weight can vary among individual dogs.

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Doggy Diets

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Debbie Hensel, who fosters dogs, took in a morbidly obese 13-year-old Chocolate Labrador for the Mr. Mo Project, in Cary, North Carolina. Under her care, the pet went from 108 to 81 pounds within nine months. “Since Bruce was an older dog and overweight, the first thing we did was start him on a joint supplement with turmeric and a prescription diet food. In the beginning, I withheld some of his food and used it as treats throughout the day,” says Hensel. Every four to six weeks, Hensel decreased Bruce’s food intake.

She also divided up portions to feed him four times per day to help him feel full. “Portion control is important,” agrees

Nguyen. “Leroy has a habit of wanting to eat more. I think he has a hard time knowing how much food he really needs.”

But the problem isn’t just eating too much.

Pet owners are often feeding the wrong foods. “It is the quality sometimes more than quantity. Health doesn’t come from processed food,” says Sehn, adding that most dry kibble is essentially overprocessed junk food that lacks nutrients and contains fillers.

Fortunately, refrigerated and frozen dog food has made it easier to feed organic, fresh, nutritionally balanced, raw food which is based on a dog’s ancestral diet.

Raw food is also available dehydrated.

Treats, if included, should satisfy the chewing instinct without adding many calories.

Sehn recommends dehydrated chicken or duck feet, tendons and healthy jerkies.

“Switching to a raw diet helped with Leroy’s weight, but I had no idea it would have so many other benefits,” Nguyen says.

“I noticed that his coat was getting a lot softer and he smelled a lot better.”

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Ease into Exercise

“Bruce sounded like an elephant falling when he laid down and he couldn’t stand for long,” says Hensel. Indeed, exercise can overburden the heart and joints of an obese dog. At first, Leroy and Bruce both had a hard time just getting up off the floor, so losing weight first was crucial.

As the weight began to come off, they both became more engaged and stamina slowly increased. Hensel started by walking around in the backyard and letting Bruce follow. Their initial walks were to the end of the block. They would stop and rest before going back home. “As he lost weight and his strength improved, our walks got longer,” says Hensel.

Weight loss must be a healthy process.

“Breaking down excess fat takes time,” says Sehn, adding that losing too fast results in muscle loss. Patience and time are key.

“I think Bruce just needed less food and someone that wanted to do things with him,” says Hensel, who has adopted Bruce as her “forever foster dog”.

Julie Peterson writes about health and environmental issues. Reach out at JuliePeterson2222@gmail.com.

Healing Artisan Jewelry Sage & Incense Aura Photos Crystals Readings/Healing Inspirational Gifts (239) 228-6949 600 Goodlette Road N. Naples FL 34102

Classes & Events Psychic Development 2 Monthly Psychic Fairs Goddess Gatherings Energy Healings

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calendar of events The events described in this section were scheduled to take place at the time we went to press. Please check ahead to confirm their status.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3 Wisdom Wednesdays – 6-7pm. With Beth BrownRinella and Marvin Dragonclaw. Weekly healing meditation followed by a talk on a variety of spiritual and metaphysical topics. An evening of learning and participation for clientele. $15. Goddess I AM, 600 Goodlette Rd N, Naples. 228-6949.

GoddessIAM.com.

FRIDAY, MARCH 12 Psychic Fair – 5-8pm. Mini-readings with some of Naples’ most experienced psychics and healers.

Services include mediumship, tarot, reiki, angel, past-life, chakra balancing, intuitive, body scanning, oracle and more. $30/20 minutes. Goddess I AM, 600 Goodlette Rd N, Naples. 228-6949.

GoddessIAM.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 13 Food as Medicine Class – 1:30-4:30pm. Join Dr. David Martín, Deb, and Vickie for this popular, medicinal foods sampling class based on the Conquering Any Disease High Phytochemical Food Healing System, by Jeff Primack. Learn which foods are scientifically proven to help reverse illness and disease and create radiant health! Held in a large room, social distancing, masks, HEPA filters. $35.

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SWFL Community Drum Circle – 6-8pm. Drummers of all nations and spectators are welcome to attend for community drumming, dancing, hula-hooping and self-expression. Family-friendly.

BYO chair. Handicap access. Check Facebook for updates. Free. Cambier Park, 755 8th Ave S, Naples. Facebook group: SWFL Community Drum Circle.

plan ahead

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10 Active Hope in Difficult Times: Moving from Despair to Empowerment – Mar 10-12. 9am-noon.

An online workshop sponsored by TOGETHER – A Way Forward, an island of interfaith environmental initiative on Sanibel and Captiva Islands. The journey will comprise a spiral in four parts: Coming from Gratitude, Honoring Our Pain for the World, Seeing with Fresh Eyes and Going Forth. Each part will offer the possibility to unfold experiences for hearts, minds, spirits and bodies. The practices include shared rituals, guided meditation, small groups, songs, and poetry. The workshop will take place on Zoom, and there will be structured time away from the screen to write, reflect or be outdoors. $45 or $15/students (scholarships available). Register: ActiveHopeTogether.bpt.me.

mindfulness practices and learn healthy lifestyle options all in one day for the entire family from the comfort of your home. $25-$30.

HolisticWellnessSummit.com. See ad on page 21 and article on page 14.

FRIDAY, APRIL 2 Reservations and pre-payment required: 277-1399. $35. Lotus Blossom Clinic, LLC, 6710 Winkler Rd, Ste 2-3, Ft Myers.

SWFL Community Drum Circle – 6-8pm. Also 3/27. Drummers of all nations and spectators are welcome to attend for community drumming, dancing, hula-hooping and self-expression. Family-friendly. BYO chair. Handicap access. Check Facebook for updates. Free. Cambier Park, 755 8th Ave S, Naples. Facebook group: SWFL Community Drum Circle.

SUNDAY, MARCH 14 Light Code Activations – 9-10:30am. Join for channeled energy, activations and messages. These activations can be shortcuts to ease and grace, healing and prosperity. $22. Goddess I AM, 600 Goodlette Rd N, Naples. 228-6949. GoddessIAM.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 20 Psychic Fair – 11am-4pm. Mini-readings with some of Naples’ most experienced psychics and healers. Services include mediumship, tarot, reiki, angel, past-life, chakra balancing, intuitive, body scanning, oracle and more. $30/20 minutes. Goddess I AM, 600 Goodlette Rd N, Naples. 228-6949.

GoddessIAM.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 27 Holistic Wellness Summit 2021 – 10am-5pm.

Increase your holistic awareness, deepen your

swfl.NaturalAwakenings.com

Usui/Holy Fire Reiki Master Class – Apr 2-4.

6-9pm, Fri; 10am-6pm, Sat-Sun. Join reiki master teacher Pattie Carney for an in-depth weekend of reiki master training. Available online and in person.

Social distancing, HEPA filter, masks. $235 includes manual. Lotus Blossom Clinic, LLC, 6710 Winkler Rd, Ste 2-3, Ft Myers. Register: 277-1399 or Pattie@pcarney.net.

MONDAY, APRIL 5 Virtual Florida Food Waste Prevention Week – Apr 5-9. Join for a dynamic and comprehensive week filled with special activities and events designed to raise awareness and inspire behavior change to reduce food waste at home, work and in our communities. Reducing food waste is an important strategy in climate change mitigation and environmental conservation.

Info: SaveTheFoodfl.com.

SATURDAY, APRIL 9 Wellness Festival in the Park – Apr 9-10. Noon9pm. Co-presented by The Crohn’s Charity Service Foundation and the city of Bonita Springs. Attendees on Friday will be able to meet doctors to learn about ways to treat Crohn’s and other diseases and engage CBD dispensaries, The following day will feature a Wellness Celebration, plus local businesses, live reggae music, food trucks, CBD booths, educational speakers on CBD edibles, liquid and other forms, a children’s play area and more. Free admission. Riverside Park, Old U.S. 41 Rd, Bonita Springs. Info: 200-7214. See news brief on page 17 and ad and page 13.

ongoing events

daily Recorded Phone Readings – 10am. Phone sessions to connect with a seasoned, professional, spiritual advisor to help navigate through personal challenges. $40-$95. The Mystical Moon, 8890 Salrose Ln, Ste 107, Ft Myers. TheMysticalMoon.com.

sunday Virtual Gentle Yoga – 8-8:30am. With Rita. Enjoy 30 minutes of gentle yoga from the comfort of your living space. All ages and levels. $7. Register: Bit.ly/yogarita111.

Learn Access Bars and Become a Practitioner – 9am-5pm. 3rd Sun. Become a Certified Practitioner in one day. Learn the 32 points on the head that when gently touched releases thoughts, feelings and emotions that keep us blocked. Class includes: book, three head charts, giving two and receiving two sessions. $350. Access Holistic Healing and Hypnosis, 9853 Tamiami Tr N, Ste 215, Naples. 776-2211. AccessHolisticHealing. com/access-bars.

Usui/Holy Fire Reiki I & II Workshop – 10am5pm. In-person and online with Pattie Carney, Usui/Holy Fire III Reiki Master and teacher. Social distancing, HEPA filter, masks. $190 includes manual. Lotus Blossom Clinic, LLC, 6710 Winkler Rd, Ste 2-3, Ft Myers. Register: 277-1399. Pattie@ pcarney.net.

over and helps you develop your own abilities in multi-dimensional communication. $30/ class or $100/4-classes. Register: 270-1876, SpiritualCoach@hotmail.com.

Gentle Flow Class – 7-8pm. With Megan. In studio and virtual. Love Yoga Center, 4949 Tamiami Tr N, Naples. Preregistration required: 692-9747.

LoveYogaCenter.com.

Sunset Slowdown – 7-8pm. With Jen. Virtual only. Hosted by Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

friday

wednesday Virtual Vinyasa Flow – 7-8am. With Ottilia. Hosted by Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

Virtual Chi Yoga – 4-5pm. With Sue. Hosted by Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: 6929747. LoveYogaCenter.com.

The Path of Being Gifts & Books – Thru Apr. 8am1pm. Find lovely items such as crystals, candles, bath bombs, bath salts and gift ideas. Beach Baptist Church, 130 Connecticut St, Ft Myers Bch. 437-5141 or ThePathOfBeing.com.

Virtual Yoga with Love and Mat – 9-10:15am.

With Kandy Love via Zoom. Props: mat, two blocks, two or three blankets, yoga belt (or strap), chair, wall nearby. Free/donation. Info/register: YoginiKandy62@gmail.com.

thursday

Virtual Yoga Basics – 11am-noon. With Diana.

Virtual only. Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

The Path of Being Gifts & Books – Thru Apr. 8am1pm. Find lovely items such as crystals, candles, bath bombs, bath salts and gift ideas. Santini Plaza, 7205 Estero Blvd. 437-5141 or ThePathOfBeing.com.

Gentle Flow – 4-5pm. With Heather. In studio and virtual. Hosted by Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

Crystal Bowl Meditation – 6:45-7:45pm. In person with Jenny Hong. Participants will comfortably lie down or sit while the frequencies reverberate throughout the body, promoting deep relaxation and healing on all levels. Physical distancing and face masks required. $15. Lotus Blossom Clinic, LLC, 6710 Winkler Rd, Ste 2-3, Ft Myers. 277-1399. Preregister: JennyLotusBlossom@gmail.com. LotusBlossomClinic. com/events.

saturday SWFL Community Drum Circle – 6-8pm. 2nd & 4th Sat. Drummers of all nations and spectators are welcome to attend for community drumming, dancing, hula-hooping and self-expression. Family friendly.

BYO chair. Handicap access. Check Facebook for updates. Free. Cambier Park, 755 8th Ave S, Naples.

Facebook group: SWFL Community Drum Circle.

Drum and Dance Circle – 6:30-9pm. Drummers, dancers, jugglers, everyone welcome. BYO chair and instrument or come just to enjoy. Social distancing and face masks encouraged. Check for updates on Facebook page: Fort Myers Drum Circle. Free.

Downtown Library, Ft Myers. Facebook.com/ groups/fortmyersdrumcircle.

monday Virtual Community Flow – 6-7am. With Debby.

Virtual only. Hosted by Love Yoga Center. Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

Self-Care Gentle Yoga – 10:45-11:45am. With Ottilia, Virtual only. Hosted by Love Yoga Center.

Preregistration required: LoveYogaCenter.com.

tuesday Tai Chi – 11am-noon. With Hector. In studio only.

Love Yoga Center, 4949 Tamiami Tr N, Naples. Preregistration required: 692-9747. LoveYogaCenter.com.

Reiki Share with Chat Rooms – 6:30-8pm. 1st Tues. Join for monthly reiki share online using distance reiki. Begins with a Holy Fire meditation and then chat rooms for the private sessions.

Free. Register by email to receive the Zoom link: Pattie@pcarney.net.

To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. ~Audrey Hepburn

Multi-Dimensional Healing Group – 6:308pm on Zoom. Connecting and healing with spirit guides and loved ones in spirit. Mediumship master Patti Wilson facilitates therapeutic conversations with loved ones that have crossed

March 2021

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CELEBRATING 27 years in THE business of

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community resource guide

STUART WRIGHT, ND

Connecting you to the leaders in natural health care and green living in our community. To find out how you can be included in the Community Resource Guide email NAadvertising@naturalawakeningsmag.com to request our media kit.

ACUPUNCTURE

BIOFEEDBACK

ACUPUNCTURE CENTER OF NAPLES

WHOLELISTIC SOL WITH NIKKI RENEE

Dr. Xiu Qiong Cen, AP, OMD (China) 5683 Naples Blvd, Naples 34109 P: 239-513-9232 • F: 239-513-9293 DrCenAcupuncture@gmail.com

Licensed acupuncture physician with 28 years experience in acupuncture and Chinese medicine.

Experienced in pain management, women’s health, insomnia, migraines, digestion issues and much more. See ad, page 12.

LOTUS BLOSSOM CLINIC

Acupuncture – Oriental Medicine David Martin, AP, DOM Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Estero, Bonita 239-277-1399 • LotusBlossomClinic.com Offering acupuncture treatment to U.S. Veterans at no out-ofpocket cost. Requires referral thru a V.A. doctor. Dr. David Martin, AP, treats pain, other chronic conditions and PTSD using acupuncture, e-stim, cold laser, acupressure and Chinese medical massage.

See ad, page 35.

PHYLLIS C. WEBER, AP

Acupuncture/Oriental Medicine 6249 Presidential Ct, Ste E, Ft Myers 33919 239-841-6611 • GulfCoastAcupuncture.com Specializing in pain, chronic disorders, overall wellness, allergy treatments (NAET) and kinesiology.

Acupuncture stimulates the body’s ability to heal all on its own! AP771.

975 Imperial Golf Course Blvd, Ste 114, Naples 34110 • 305-699-4834

Board-certified biofeedback technician specializing in raising your total body’s vibration, Neuro Emotional Transformations, stress, PTSD and chronic disorders. Begin your personalized wellness journey today.

BODYWORK ART OF HOLISTIC MASSAGE Est. 1991 Alvina Quatrano, LMT FL MA 50896 For Info or Appt: 732-266-5276 AOHMassage.com

Remote sessions by donation during COVID-19 call or Zoom.

Zero Balancing, Process Acupressure, Reiki. Webinar classes all discounted; call for registration. Reflexology, SEVA Stress Release, Insomnia, MT’s get CEs. Free self-massage video at AOHMassage.com.

PAULA TERRY, LMT

239-821-3088, by appt. (Collier & Lee) Trained at the Upledger Institute, Paula utilizes CranioSacral Therapy combined with Heart-Centered Therapy, Somato Emotional Release™, Lymphatic Drainage, love and nurturement to foster the healing your body needs. Doula services.

MA35358.

THERAPY ON THE GULF

AYURVEDA CHRISTINA CARLIN, AYURVEDIC PRACTITIONER

Ayurveda Clinic, Massage & Yoga Therapy 501 Goodlette-Frank Rd N, Ste A107, Naples 34102 • 239-450-6903 Practicing holistic medicine since 1987. Professional Member of the National Ayurvedic Medical Association, specializing in highly personalized Ayurvedic treatments and lifestyle consultations, Massage and individual Yoga sessions for chronic and acute problems. Pancha Karma, Shirodhara and skin care. Ayurveda and Yoga Study program available. MA0023929, MM0008584, FB0716888. See ad, page 6.

Anthony F. Hansen, LMT, MFR, CST, ML,D/CDP 824 Anchor Rode Dr, Naples 34103 239-262-8722 Tony is celebrating his 20th year as a therapist. He practices myofascial release, cranial sacral therapy and is a certified lymphedema therapist.

Free infra-red sauna. MA32797 MM21480.

Certified Advanced Rolfer Advanced Cranial Therapist Advanced Visceral Therapist Certified Movement Educator Naturopathic Wellness Consulting

By Appointment: 239-272-6443 Over 30 years excelling in quick pain relief. Specializing in back pain, structural integration & alignment, all joint-pain-related issues, mobility improvement, sports injuries, non-chiropractic spinal release. MA36890.

CHIROPRACTOR NETWORK CHIROPRACTOR Dr. Michele Pelletiere 3411 Bonita Beach Rd, Ste 302, Bonita Springs • 239-949-1222

N.S.A. Practitioner level III. “Healing waves” release tension throughout the body, increasing wellness and quality of life, promoting new strategies for a healthy spine and nervous system.

COLON THERAPY RB INSTITUTE, INC.

C. Robyn Berry, LMT, CRR, CCT, CLDT 13550 Reflections Pkwy, 5-502 & 5-503, Ft Myers • 239-939-4646 • RobynBerry.com Since 1994, gravity-enclosed UV/ Oxygen/Ozone sterilized medicalgrade water colonics, therapeutic, relaxing, chair, sports, prenatal massage, Craniosacral/SER, Heart Centered therapy, manual lymph drainage & XP2 System, visceral manipulation, HALO Photonic Blue-Violet Laser Botanical System, Asyra/Quest4 MSA Bio Meridian Stress Analysis, ear candling, Lakota YLEO Raindrop Therapy, Tuning Fork/Crystal/Bowls Therapy, reflexology, MPS, cupping, ozone steam cabinet and applied ozone therapies, infrared sauna, ionic foot detox by AMD, BEMER sessions, Power Plate, Hyperbaric Chamber, PER 2000 PEMF and notary. MM7376. See ads, pages 37 and 41.

DENTAL HEALTH ROGER J. PINT, MPH, DMD

9200 Bonita Beach Rd, Ste 111 Bonita Springs, 34135 • 239-676-8730 BonitaDentalStudio.com Dr. Pint can join your health journey and play a role in minimizing toxicity; this includes protection while removing dental materials plus consultation. All X-rays are digital and minimal. See ad, page 22.

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DENTISTRY

HEALTHY DINING

LASER DENTISTRY

Mark Corke, DDS 1550 Matthew Dr, Ft Myers 33907 239-936-5442 • FortMyersLaserDentist.com Dr. Corke enjoys working with holistic patients and practitioners on the journey to wellness. His practice “gets it” and is worth the trip to Fort Myers to experience his many services. From dental lasers to ozone he has many tools and a sympathetic ear. See ad, page 25.

FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE NAPLES CENTER FOR FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE

Eduardo Maristany, MD 800 Goodlette Rd N, Ste 270, Naples 34102 239-649-7400 • NaplesCFM.com Eduardo Maristany, M.D. is a board-certified internal medicine physician trained in functional/integrative medicine, genomic interpretation, and anti-aging. Dr. Maristany incorporates genomic intelligence and cutting-edge tools to provide his patients with comprehensive genetic health risks and benefits, and a personalized health plan for optimal wellness. See ad, page 55.

NAPLES CENTER FOR FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE

Carol L. Roberts, MD 800 Goodlette Rd N, Ste 270, Naples 34102 239-649-7400 • NaplesCFM.com Carol L. Roberts, M.D. has practiced functional/integrative/holistic medicine for 25 years. She provides patients with testing to uncover causes of chronic illness, guidance in resolving health issues and education to assist the patient in her own healing. She is Medical Director at the Naples Center for Functional Medicine, formerly the Hughes Center. See ad, page 55.

ZORAYDA “JIJI” TORRES, MD, ABIHM, IFMCP

Internal Medicine, Functional Medicine Office: 239-444-5636 • UpstreamMD.com Dr. Torres is a board-certified internist with over 17 years of experience and knows the limitations of conventional internal medicine. She is among the few Certified Practitioner M.D.s, trained by the Institute For Functional Medicine. See ad, page 12.

FOOD & THOUGHT ORGANIC FARM MARKET & CAFÉ

2132 Tamiami Trl N, Naples 239-213-2222 • FoodAndThought.com Open Mon-Sat 7am-8pm.

Florida’s only 100% organic market and café. Fresh produce delivered daily. Homemade breakfast, lunch and dinner. See ad, page 10.

HOLISTIC CENTER EYES WIDE OPEN

239-948-9444 • SilviaCasabianca.com Neuroscience-based, holistic counseling (via televideo) to help you regulate emotions, cope with change, stress, depression or anxiety.

Empathic parenting guidance. Sliding scale. Online CEUs for health professionals. Call for further information.

LIFE COACH LULU CARTER

Top Expert in Science of Happiness Positive Pyschologist Coach – 30 Years of Experience Chief Happiness Officer/President of House of Gaia 239-290-7008 • Lulu@HouseOfGaia.org HappinessBeyondBorders.com HouseOfGaia.org Ready for positive changes in your life in 2021? First session is free – call to schedule. Private sessions on-line, affordable packages. Get inspired, learn, transform and be happy! English, Spanish and Portuguese. See ad, page 14.

NATURAL & ORGANIC MARKET ADA’S NATURAL MARKET

7070 College Pkwy, Ft Myers 33907 Mon-Sat: 9am-8pm, Sun: 9am-7pm Ph: 239-939-9600 • Fax: 239-288-6210 AdasMarket.com Natural and organic produce and grocery items. Vitamins and supplements. Organic juice and smoothie bar. New Green Leaf Café. Market-prepared foods.

1000s of gluten-free items. See ad, page 33.

Promise me you’ll always remember — you’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem and smarter than you think. ~Christopher Robin from Winnie the Pooh 54

Collier/Lee Counties

swfl.NaturalAwakenings.com

NATURAL AND ORGANIC PRODUCTS ANATTA

447 Broadway, Ste 204 New York City, NY 10013 347-762-1268 • AnattaMarket.com Anatta is a global online marketplace for natural, organic and raw products from farmers worldwide.

The newly-formed company’s products include a variety of essential oils and waters, and its unique business model eliminates overhead costs by connecting customers directly with farmers.

NUTRITION D-SIGNED NUTRITION, LLC

Dee Harris, RDN, LDN, CDE Bonita Bay Executive Center 3531 Bonita Bay Blvd, Ste 300, Bonita Sprgs 239-676-5249 • D-SignedNutrition.com Nutrition is our lifeblood. Healing with food starts with a personalized plan to address inflammation, nutrient insufficiencies, toxic burden and imbalances in the body.

See ad, page 49.

MARCY HESS, BS

501 Goodlette Rd N, Ste C208, Naples 239-231-6028 ThePerfect10Strength@gmail.com Looking and feeling strong and healthy is the first reason for working with a nutrition coach.

Let me help you get back on track for life without dieting! See ad, page 37.

YOGA MEREDITH MUSICK, LMT, E-RYT 2000 239-269-8846

Master Yoga Teacher and massage therapist with 28 years experience, serving Naples since 1999. Sun-damaged skin repair clinician, Hawaiian Lomi Lomi massage, sports and neuromuscular therapy, cranio facial and TMJ relief, heal injuries. Improve posture: alignmentbased yoga and posture classes.

classifieds Fee for classifieds is a minimum charge of $25 for up to the first 20 words and $1 for each additional word. Must be pre-paid. Email listing, include billing contact info, by 10th of month prior to publication to: NAClassifieds@ NaturalAwakenings.com.

FOR RENT LUXURY TREATMENT ROOM/OFFICE – In professional and wellness center. $420/ month all inclusive. Perfect for massage, acupuncture, aesthetics or similar. Vicinity of 41 and Pine Ridge. 239-398-5578.

SERVICES SOUNDS OF CELEBRATIONS & HEALING – By JamesSteven Farnsworth. The Fiddle Flowers Fiddle Gram. Gift of 12 beautiful roses in a vase and gift card, plus a lovely mini concert of violin/fiddle music.

Special intro price: $55 local delivery. Additional services: Artistic Violin Performance: weddings and all special events. The Healing Violin: Transformative Sound therapy for the elderly and those affected by physical and mental disabilities. Graceful-Passages: Funerals and End of Life Celebrations. Call/ text: 510-292-7786, JsfViolin@gmail.com.

TheHealingViolin.com.

Promote your special service, class or event in our print and online calendar. Easy to use!

Affordable options. Visit swfl.naturalawakenings. com/pages/calendarlistings.

change can do you good Join the Natural Awakenings Franchise Family

For more info, visit: NaturalAwakenings.com March 2021

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