Self Heal – Page 2 – Traditionally Empowered Healing LLC

Blog, Caring for others, Castor oil, Commitment to self, Energy Healing, energy work, healing, Nervous systen, Nourishment, Parasympathetic, Self Heal, Self Love

What If Our Own Words Were Not Empty?

January 21, 2025January 23, 2025 Anat Shlagman Traditional Naturopath

How often are we frustrated as we realize words that we have been told came without any foundation behind them? How often are we promised something, only to discover that it has been just a maybe? How often do we offer empty words ourselves?

Empty words come from a place where a commitment is not being honored. Historically, honoring commitments have been highly valued but somehow through the years it lost its prestige and became the first thing to compromise about. As appealing as it may sound to drop a commitment and be free to do everything we want, my own experience led me to believe that this compromise will take a toll on our emotional and mental states which in turn may evolve into a physical health issue.

What if this toll is too heavy for us to carry? Would there be a way for us to stay committed and follow our own values in a world that does not respect any? Since my personal view is that we should never let anyone’s behavior change our owns, I would like to share here my way to honor commitments and values in a world that would not do so.

First, we have to survey the strength of our internal commitments to our own selves before we can learn how to stand by our commitments to others, offering credible words and not just empty ones.

Then, we have to bring to our awareness that a promise we make to ourselves is as equally important as a promise we make to another person. Many times, we tend to regard ourselves as invisible, and then, EVERYTHING becomes more important than our word to ourselves: If we are tired and decide to rest but a friend calls to ask for a favor, we will be rushing to fulfil it as we are still on the phone; or if we made up our minds to stop eating junk food but are invited out for a pizza or ice cream then we quickly drop our intention.

For me, when I do not stand by my own word, I interpret this as being dishonest with myself. Living in a constant habit of being dishonest with myself makes it is impossible for me to change my habits towards others – offering sincere words when I have no idea what this really means.

Dishonesty, whether it comes from a survival need, or has been demonstrated by our surroundings as the only way to behave, creates a conflict within our internal environment which carries a great toll on our bodies. This toll often tends to manifest in a physical way – a rash, an ache, some weight gain, some digestive issues, some auto immune issues or many other deeper issues.

We might not be aware that we are being dishonest to ourselves, especially if this is the way we have been conducting our lives throughout our years. Thus, we might not even know that we are creating an internal conflict. The best test to reveal our honesty is to take a moment to observe our commitment to our own words – simple observation without judgement. If we discover signs of dishonesty to our own selves, maybe it is the time to do something different than we did before. Repeating the same actions will always bring the same results, so why not surprise our brain with a new way of thinking? Keeping these surprises small is the key for their success. Some simple examples are listed below. The examples are endless!! Please do not limit yourself to these only, just use them as a starting point:

Nourishment – committing to eating one nourishing dish every day, regardless to what we eat throughout the day (my go-to would be chicken soup/bone broth).
Sleep – committing to going to sleep five minutes earlier than we usually do every day.
Movement – committing to parking our car one parking spot further than we usually do when we are out.
Energy work – committing to saying one kind thing about us every morning
(my go-to would be: “I am awesome!!”).
Bodywork – committing to laying our hands on our feet for one minute every day. A simple hold! The heat of our hands will draw the blood to our feet and will operate the reflexes.
New experiences – committing to making one cup of herbal tea in the morning or in the evening (my go-to would be Calendula – calendula officinalis).
Breathe – committing to taking one deep breath every day (can put notes in the car or on the mirror as reminders).
Exploring our range of emotions – committing to listening to our body before we make a commitment in order to understand how we feel about that commitment. If we whole heartedly want to engage in a certain activity, then a commitment is definitely in order. But if we don’t really want to do it and feel guilted into it, then it is time to explore our range of emotions and allow our heart to make the decision if to commit.

Can a Castor oil pack on our abdomen assist in this process? No doubt about it!
A castor pack on the abdomen will be a spectacular pathway to our brain, as it has the ability to shift our nervous system into the parasympathetic state, which is the deepest relaxed state of our body. And once we are experiencing the parasympathetic state – our perception of everything we encounter becomes more sincere.

Of course, a castor oil pack is a commitment as well…. 😉

The secret to learn how to commit to ourselves is by making small meaningful and intentional commitments which we won’t need to break. Nothing extravagant! Nothing to show! Just opening a communication line within us in order to build a trust in our own selves. This will make us visible. Once we are visible, we will not be able to ignore our genuine promises to self and slowly begin honoring them.

When a heartfelt commitment comes from a deep intention to follow through, it will not encounter any internal conflict and will never lead us into a thought of breaking that commitment. This will allow our physical issues to settle down and heal. As we heal, we will learn to establish the habit of honoring our own word to our own selves, simply because we love the way a healthy body feels. We will not be able to go back to dishonesty once we discover what it is doing to us. This will lead us to the understanding that our word, whether promised to self or to others, must come from an earnest desire to commit. And when a word comes from a deep honest intention to fulfil it, it will never be empty, no matter to whom it is addressed.

Blog, Caring for others, Castor oil, healing, Nourishment, Self Heal, Self Love

Don’t Waste Your Money

June 2, 2024 Anat Shlagman Traditional Naturopath

“Don’t waste your money”, said the orthopedic surgeon, coming out of my son’s ACL & meniscus repair surgery, answering my question whether there are any contraindications for massaging his knee or leg. Humbled, I asked, “what if he does it himself?” and was dismissed with the statement that no one does it.

Realizing that he might not be aware of any benefits simply because he believes that nobody does it, I smiled and thanked him for everything he did and granted myself the permission to follow my beliefs.

In 2017, I completed 800 hours of massage classes in order to obtain my license to touch. In the advanced medical massage class, we had to present 2 projects, showing progress with the volunteers’ condition following the massage treatment.

A friend, who suffered of numerous medical issues, many of whom are contraindicated for massage, but in deep need of healing, volunteered to one of these projects. We mutually agreed to follow all the rules, as otherwise it would be a life-threatening situation.

With much fear and anxiety, as it was my first time working with someone experiencing a life-threatening condition, I allowed myself to touch, understanding that while there are some conditions that massage is contraindicated, Touch never is!!!!

Human touch is unreplaceable. Human touch cannot be substituted with any medication or procedure or imaging or a vitamin IV. Human touch is a crucial component in our healing. Human touch does not have to come from an external source – it can be applied to your own tissue by your own self.
Regardless to the popular modern codes that it is unacceptable to touch anyone and definitely our own selves.

Needless to say, the progress of my friend was beyond every expectation, as many issues improved without even addressing them!!

Fast forward to my son’s knee story, I applied my understanding of human touch to his knee every day from the moment we arrived home, until he headed back to his own house 2 months later.

At his first post operation follow up visit, two weeks from surgery, he was the only one among the many patients waiting in the large waiting room (young and old), who was able to quickly hop towards the PA calling his name. She was surprised to see how fast and pain free he moved (no narcotic meds involved along the process!) and asked him what he was doing.

Happy to share all our work at home, I offered to tell her if she’s willing to listen. She politely smiled and left the room.

My son’s progress has been phenomenal. Touch was an imperial component, along with nourishment, physical therapy, and allowing himself the time that was needed for healing, even when we discovered post operation that longer healing time is required due to the severe nature of his injury.

The orthopedic surgeon was very pleased with the recovery, but never once asked what is done at home for it. Indeed, many credits are due to his skills for conducting this complicated surgery meticulously. With that, many of us might not be aware that a lot should be done afterwards at home to progress the healing. The written post operation care instructions cover very important care to eliminate complications, but do not extend to a whole healing experience. There is so much more that can be done to help your body heal.

Yes, “don’t waste your money” is a great advice! Yet, it is our responsibility to decide what brings us value and what is just a waste. Even when an opinion comes from a respected source, we still have the right to take it as an opinion only.

Our thoughts, knowledge and understanding of our own body are as important as anyone’s thoughts and knowledge. If you struggle with allowing your thoughts to count, try a castor pack!! You will be astounded to discover how relaxing your nervous system and getting yourself out of the “war zone” into a peaceful mode can shift your perception of yourself and/or your situation.
I am always here to listen and to teach everyone who wishes to learn how to create the right environment for whole healing.

May we all have the courage to use as many resources as we need to allow our body to heal itself regardless to the thoughts and perceptions of others.

Blog, Caring for others, Nourishment, Self Heal, Self Love

Mica’s Magic Pot – My Mom’s Legendary Recipe of Our Family’s Chicken Soup

September 11, 2023August 24, 2025 Anat Shlagman Traditional Naturopath

My mom owns a Magic Pot. She did not buy it magical at all but turned it that way with her enormous loving intention to nourish everyone around her. If you have been privileged to eat one of my mom’s meals, you know that this soup is just the appetizer of a 1000-course meal. No one leaves my parent’s house hungry! FOR WEEKS AFTER….

And no, my mom’s pot is not the one that may have popped into your mind reading the title of this blog, even though it might be the ultimate answer for your joints….

Beyond the fact that this is probably the best chicken soup you ever ate in your life, my mom can make the soup in this pot last 7 days – regardless to how many people eat it or how many servings they take per day! Just like the Chanukah’s miracle of the little pot of oil that lasted 8 days… Only here we have a nicely sized pot of pure Gold!

I wish I had my mom’s patience to prepare it the way she does, but I don’t. That’s why I will add my altogether-in-the-pot-just-add-water-and-boil version of my mom’s soup.
If you have the pot and the patience – by all means – follow her steps! It will turn out great!! Especially since you will not have the real legend to compare………….

This famous chicken soup has been prepared in my mom’s family for many generations. Living in Romania, the soup survived through wars, famine, communism and many other unimaginable inhumane actions. As kids, in Romania and later in Israel, we ate it every day without having any idea how beneficial it is. Starting my own family, I kept the tradition, again clueless – automatically doing what intuitively felt that I need to do to care for my family.

It took me almost 40 years to appreciate the gift my mom gave me! And for over 10 years now, I have been preaching it in my practice (could there be a better companion to the Castor oil Packs than a chicken soup???). I went through many versions of the soup until I finally reached the one we all love. Truth is that it doesn’t matter how you make it, as long as it contains real ingredients and not artificial flavored powders. Herbs are awesome in any shape. Powdered artificial flavors are not!

There are so many reasons to eat this soup daily! Beginning with its fats which nourish your nervous system – calming down the fight-or-flight response. Continuing with its gelatin which calms digestive disorders, and its collagen which protects your joints (again, the ones that hold you, not the ones you hold), ligaments, skin, and its minerals and its nourishing properties for basically everything you could ever imagine!!

We also cannot ignore our Jewish connection, as Sally Fallon best describes in her book, Nourishing Traditions:

The 12th century physician Moses Maimonides prescribed chicken broth as a treatment for colds and asthma. Modern research has confirmed that broth helps prevent and mitigate infectious diseases. The wise food provider, who uses gelatin-rich broth on a daily or frequent basis, provides continuous protection from many health problems.
Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

Whoa! If it was me – I would eat and feed everyone around me every day!!! Oh, wait. I already do it!!! All thanks to my mom’s teachings with her own actions.

You can choose to start your own tradition, or you can choose not to. The choice is yours. I can only give you the tools by diving straight to the secret of preparing this magic gold, as revealed by my mom, Marcela (Mica) Haimberg. Picture credits to my mom as well!!

Ingredients:
1 Chicken – cut (preferably organic, free range)
1 bulb of Garlic – peeled
15-20 Carrots – whole. If organic -no need to peel.
1 onion – whole, peeled
1 bell pepper – cut and deseeded
1 celery root (peeled and sliced) + stalks & leaves (if available)
1-2 parsley roots – peeled and cleaned
2-3 celery stalks
1-2 bunches of parsley
1-2 bunches of dill
Salt, pepper to taste
Water to top the pot

Setting everything in the pot in the following order:

Cutting the chicken and placing the pieces at the bottom of the pot

Now that everything is in the pot:
Add salt & pepper, top with water (my mom adds boiling water) and bring to a boil. Spoon any spume that accumulates at the top, lower the heat and simmer for 4 hours.
strain and enjoy!

My version is much less structured:
I use a bigger pot -16 qt, as I cannot replicate my mom’s 7-day magic in a smaller one.
In order to accommodate this change, I use 2 whole chickens (not cut!!). Many times, I will use one chicken and add feet or knuckle bones (grass-fed beef) or chicken backs & throats.
Also, many times I do not have the vegetables at home when I need to make the soup, so I start it with the meats only and add the veggies the next day, spooning any accumulated spume.
I put all the ingredients above in the pot, add some cayenne, salt and pepper (sometimes also nettle, chaga, turmeric root, burdock root) and simmer for 2-3 days – turning the heat off when I sleep or am out of the house and on again when I am back.
This version creates more of a bone broth, rather than a traditional chicken soup.

Last but never least – these are my lovely parents – a rare species of hard-working caring people, who can make everything possible without anyone noticing the long and exhausting labor behind the scenes – Mica and Solo Haimberg:

My parents love to travel the whole world, but at the moment they arrive home, you can be sure that my mom’s pot is already bobbling with magic!!!

Blog, Self Heal, Self Love

The Wild-Card Theory

April 11, 2023January 31, 2026 Anat Shlagman Traditional Naturopath

We are all too familiar with seeing our friends and/or family members and/or ourselves becoming ill or suffering from a certain condition that every statistics you find about it are extremely gloomy, leaving everyone in a deep despair with no real hope to elevate yours or your loved ones’ spirits. Could there be a way to make things different? Could there be a way to bypass these dreadful statistics?

What if there was something that can be done? What if this something has no way to predict its results? What if this something was just a surreal idea such as The Wild-Card Theory?

According to Merrian-Webster dictionary, the definition of a wild card is an unknown or unpredictable factor. Britannica explains it as a person or a thing that could affect a situation in a way that cannot be foreseen. Dictionary.com offers that it is a card having its value decided by the wishes of the players.

Let’s see where all these definitions can take us:

The Wild-Card Theory is based on my assumption about the population who participates in the statistical studies (This is my own personal view and I do apologize ahead to anyone whom this may cause any discomfort). My assumption is that the majority of this population have lived a certain lifestyle and reached a certain outcome which requires now a medical care. As these people seek medical attention, they try their best to maintain their old lifestyle as much as possible within minimal changes, except of some adjustments to accommodate treatments, interventions and medications before or after work and through weekends or vacations. This way is convenient as it provides the comfort of something familiar and does not require any mental or physical or emotional efforts. Just requires following accepted rules and instructions, which eventually lead to a predicted promised outcome, registered as statistics.

But what if you want to do one thing that is different from what you have done before? You might find yourself becoming unpredictable as you deviate out of the predicted statistics. You might become a Wild-Card which can turn in any direction. This situation might not be so comfortable, as there are more unknown factors to it than known ones, and the fact, that any situation might not be worse than the gloomy prediction, is not too comforting as there is no way to scientifically prove it. This situation might also not be supported by those around you, as it is not familiar to anyone and might be perceived as unsafe. There are so many opportunities for discouragement, making this deviation pretty unwelcoming.

Also, Wild-Cards cannot be registered in any statistics since there are too many variants to consider. There is no such thing as “one change fits all”. Each person comes from a different background and has their own unique way of thinking. There are not enough similar features to compare, making this another opportunity for discouragement, as you will probably be on your own, without a solid scientific support.

But what if just for a moment, you allow yourself to imagine? What if just for a moment you allow yourself to imagine choosing to do one thing that you really want to do even though everyone around has convinced you that it is nonsense? What if just for a moment you allow yourself to imagine choosing to eat one different thing that you really like even though everyone around has convinced you that it will be too weird to eat it? What if just for a moment you allow yourself to imagine choosing to express one feeling that resonates with you even though everyone around has convinced you that it is better to suppress your feelings?

What if just for a moment you allow yourself to imagine choosing to spend your time only with the people who have the mental-emotional-physical capacity to walk by your side and unconditionally hold your hand through every decision you make?

What if you take another moment and you allow your imagination to go wild – imagining yourself daring to do two of these things. or three. or more… Would you dare to imagine that???

It might become truly astounding!!!!!!

Yes, Wild-Cards might be able to create miracles. But these miracles are not granted for free. These miracles are brought to life by a meticulous and persistent work. These miracles are brought to life by taking the time to do something different. These miracles are brought to life by taking the time to understand the reason for doing the things you do, and the way they serve you. These miracles are brought to life by taking the time to learn about different approaches in every area of life. And mainly, these miracles are brought to life by allowing yourself to listen to your own body and tend to its needs.

Some people might wonder if it’s too late to make a change. Every change requires an energy investment. While being physically & emotionally & mentally burdened, it might be more challenging to find the energy to make a change, as opposed to the ease of keeping your old habits. What if this is too late and the change will not really make a difference? Why even bother?
I find it hard to believe that a difference won’t be created. Every minor shift has an effect. While you might be hoping for a grand transformation, the shift might be manifested in one little thing only: the way you perceive or react to events. Shouldn’t that be enough? As you slowly start shifting how you view and approach any event that crosses your way, you may find that bigger changes begin to manifest, such as, your priorities might change, leading to different decisions or actions.

When would it be too late? My personal thinking is that as long as you are the one crying for your own problems, it is not too late to make any changes. However, when others cry for your problems and start calling you “the late” without even knowing what you are late for, then you might probably be too late…

So, if you are still reading my article up to this point, you are definitely not late;)

But why would you even bother to become a Wild-Card? Truth to be said, if you like what your statistics predict then you should follow the recommended regiment and be happy with it. If you don’t like the prediction – check within yourself how tirelessly and persistently are you willing to work in order to deviate from it. Once you are ready to do everything in your power in order to make a change, you are welcome to follow my thoughts how to get you started. Then, feel free to make any adjustments following your body’s needs (and you can find more elaboration in my article The Art of Healing Yourself).

First and foremost, your nervous system must relax. There is no way to get out of your automatic mode while your body is wired for survival. Once nervous system is relaxed, the allocation of your body’s energy “budget” will be different – there will be time and resources to detect and correct what’s needed. The best way I can offer would be castor oil packs. Of course, there are millions of other ways to do it, but the combination of touch and stillness brings astonishing results (along with many other benefits, for example, softening your diaphragm to allow more room for your lungs to expand, bringing more oxygen into your body).

Once your nervous system is relaxed, it might be the time to observe your nourishment. Nourishment means supplying your cells with the materials they need in order to function in their most efficient way. How can you nourish your body? By eating real food. Food that was not processed or changed by human hand. Food that existed here for thousands of years and is not new. Food that your grandparents will recognize when you take them shopping – ask them which foods they ate as kids and learn from them. These foods probably have been protecting them from what they are eating now. Real food is not about being vegetarian, or vegan, or paleo, or follow a certain diet. It is about eating a product that your cells recognize and can utilize, and not replacing it with something containing harmful ingredients. Some examples (but not limited to) of real food could be Fruits (preferably organic), vegetables (preferably organic), grass-fed / organic meats, Free range chicken /eggs / chicken soup/bone broth/roots soup, avocado, full fat grass-fed dairy / butter….

Now that your nervous system is relaxed and your body is nourished, it is time to nourish your soul by opening your heart and mind to find and follow your deepest desires. Is there anything you wish to learn, or to see, or to do? Is there anywhere you wish to be? You might find that you are limiting yourself due to material necessities – money, time, physical location. While these are real obstacles on your way to make your wishes come true, they should not stop you from dreaming. Because the only thing that can make your deepest wishes come true is finding the courage to dream or visualize them. And dreaming can take place only when your survival needs are met, meaning you are not in “war zone” anymore. If you’d like, you can read more about it in my article What Does it Take to Follow Our Dreams?

The Wild-Card Theory is not a quick magic solution to conditions which have been building in your body for many years. It is a process that requires your physical-mental-emotional commitment and is meant to bring awareness to a very basic rule: if you want to achieve different outcomes, you must do something different than what you did before. As simple of a statement this would be, it does require a strong will-power to carry it out. Finding your will-power depends on your intentions only:

Do you want to deviate from the statistics?
Are you willing to invest your time and energies to do something different?
Are you committed to reordering your whole world – emotionally, physically and mentally?

Becoming a Wild-Card would probably be one of the most challenging actions you would ever take in your life:

Dealing with uncertainty in a world that is already shaken.
Adjusting to changes that are not always comfortable or comforting.
Learning new habits which might not always be welcomed by your surroundings.
Accepting emotional expressions as part of your life, as embarrassing as they might be.
Supporting yourself by doing what feels right for you regardless to the responses of others.
Allowing yourself to dream and to hope while not allowing any perceived imperfections to limit your imagination.
Accepting the Feeling of loneliness until you find the courage to surround yourself only with the people who have the emotional-mental-physical capacity to walk by your side.
Discovering how the forgotten self-love and kindness-to-self allow you to prioritize what really matters, even when no-one around you can demonstrate it.

And the list goes on and on, completed by those who were and are Wild-Cards.

Is it worth it? It’s only for you to decide! You are the only one who is responsible for your actions and for the consequences of your actions. Every decision you make should be one that you whole heartedly can live by.

At any time, if you need my help, you know where to find me. My sessions and workshops are designed to fit each person’s individual situation, working to encourage minor (almost invisible) changes in one’s life, which have been showing an amazing long-lasting healing effect with many.

The highest forms of love are inevitably totally free choices and not acts of conformity.
M. Scott Peck, MD – The Road Less Traveled

Blog, Castor oil, healing, Nourishment, Reflexology, Self Heal, Self Love

Would You Allow 2023 To Become The Year About You?

November 11, 2022September 7, 2024 Anat Shlagman Traditional Naturopath

The people who change the world around them – for themselves, their companies, communities, and families – rarely act from a sense of obligation. In fact, the people who act as leaders almost always act from a sense of incredible opportunity. They don’t interact with the world around them because they have to. They do so because they want to.
Mark Sanborn: You don’t need a title to be a leader

Once upon a time, there was nothing.

Then came covid..

Then, 2020 became the year about a pandemic. 2021 became the year about living with a pandemic. 2022 became the year about getting out of a pandemic. What if 2023 does not become part of this sequence? What if, in your own little world, 2023 does not become another year about a worldly intense event? What if, in your own little world, you allow 2023 to become the year about you? About your own internal process, about your own internal growth, about your own internal healing? Just in your own little world, regardless of any event happening in the universe?

Would you allow 2023 to become the year about you?

It is so easy to get distracted with a worldly disaster and become engaged with matters which are not really yours, staying away from your own internal heavier issues which await to be tended by you. Easy, but not very effective, as these issues will never disappear, and as they linger, they might create bigger problems. And yet, why would you bother with something that is not causing you too much trouble at this moment? Why would you get out of your comfort zone when you are not facing anything that is life threatening yet? Why would you tend to your own little world when so many other important things are happening in the universe?

The simple, but not always popular answer would be, because you have the choice to do so. You can choose to do what works for you. You can choose to allow or not to allow anything to enter or not to enter your life. But how can you know what is the thing that would promote your highest good? How can you know that what you’re doing now is or is not the best choice for you at this moment?

To gain this knowledge you might need to slow down and maybe take a little break…

Slowing down and taking a brake can provide an opportunity to allow yourself to make observations about how your life evolves. When observations are not accompanied by judgment, they become assessments.

What can you assess? Here are some examples as a starter:

Starting with the Physical aspect. Is everything ok here?

Do I have the energy for all the activities I want to do?
Do I feel any discomfort anywhere in my body?
Do I find time to move through the day?
Do I find time to relax through the day?
Do I feel nourished?

Continue with the Mental aspect. Is everything ok here?

Do I know why I am doing every activity I do?
Do I want to do all the activities I do?
Am I running in circles? Do I feel that everything will always be the same and nothing will ever change?
Do I feel that I am being heard? Do I want to be heard?
Do I listen to my own advice? Do I follow it?
Do I feel more committed to others than I am to myself?
Do I feel the need to be in control all the time?

Then, checking in with the Emotional aspect. Is everything ok here?

Do I like all the activities I do? How do I feel about them?
Do I make my decisions out of obligation to others, feeling that I might hurt others if I say no?
Do I feel that I am being led into a place that I don’t necessary want to be in?
Do I wake up in the morning eager to start my day?
Do I feel appreciated (by me, spouse, siblings, parents, friends…)?
Do I feel cared for (by me, spouse, siblings, parents, friends…)?
Do I feel fear or anxiety of what is beyond my control?

What if you discover that one or more of the issues you have assessed are not exactly to your liking? Would you be willing to do something to make the issue/s be different? If you would, then no major acts are needed. Starting with a minor shift in your thinking – appreciating the opportunity to set an intention to create a change. Then everything opens up – you will become aware that you have the choice to do whatever serves you best.

Now, where can you start this shift?

Starting with the most basic action – Breathing. There is no doubt in my mind that you are constantly breathing. However, is your breathing slow and deep, feeding your relaxed state of your autonomic nervous system, or is it fast and shallow, feeding your survival mode? If you are not sure, you can take a glance at your lung reflex in your feet. The lung reflex is located on the balls of your feet and can be a great indicator to the state of your lungs:

Is the reflex small?
Your breathing might be shallow.
Is the reflex high – hogging the base of your toes?
Your lungs might be hogging your throat to a point you feel suffocating most of the time.
Is the reflex swollen?
Your lungs might be filled with unprocessed events which patiently wait for an opportunity to be processed.
Is the reflex tender?
Your lungs might be calling out for help.

So much information can be gathered from one little spot in your feet. If your lung reflex shows one or more of the above, you might want to check for tightness in your diaphragm, which is a primary muscle in your breathing. Put your fingers beneath your last rib, just above your belly, and feel what is happening there.

Is your diaphragm muscle tight? Is it tender?

Why would your diaphragm tighten?
Maybe as a result of a long habit of shallow breathing which leads to a minimal use of the muscle? Or maybe as a result of constant stress which keeps the muscle tight? Whatever the reason is, when your diaphragm is tight, your lungs may feel “caged” and may have a hard time expanding to their fullest capacity. Releasing the diaphragm will accommodate space for your lungs to expand, allowing your breathing to deepen and slow down.

How can you release your diaphragm?

Surprisingly enough, a Castor pack can do wonders. Applying the castor pack on your abdomen (see instructions here), conveniently touching your diaphragm (just below your ribs), the heat and the oil will soften the tissue. In addition, castor packs have the amazing power to bring your central nervous system to its relaxed state. This is explained in my article: “The real reason I love castor oil packs“.
Yes, a castor pack might be messy. Yes, it might be another chore in your busy day. And yes, it is probably outdated and not very popular. But IT WORKS!!!

My adventures with castor packs began in 2011, when we were forced by a school assignment at the naturopathic school to do them at home. No matter how much we read about the benefits of the castor packs or how many testimonials we heard, none of us was willing to try them! Who is crazy enough to go to sleep with a sticky oil on their belly, messing up all the sheets/cloths/floors? And thus, it turned into a graded assignment, to propel us to try the packs.

Feeling obligated, I reluctantly went to sleep with a castor pack. To my astonishment, the next morning I woke up feeling rested, happy, and ready to start the day!! Then I saw Amit slowly dragging himself down the stairs looking as if he did not sleep for a whole week. I asked him what happened, and he could not believe that I didn’t hear anything from the busy commotion of the kids through the night. We have 3 kids, and sure enough they were very young back then, but by his description, it sounded like we had 100 of them that night!!!

At that moment, my school assignment turned from an obligation into an incredible opportunity! The only thing I could think of was that I have to remember to put another castor oil pack that night!!!! Because this was the most accurate reflection of how we both looked and felt like every morning heading down the stairs. Grabbing this opportunity to witness the difference between a restful night sleep and a hectic one, I immediately ordered hot water bottles and oil for all of us, and peace came to our nights. Or so I think… As I keep doing the packs almost daily since, and do not hear a thing;)

Back to your breathing – When you slow and deepen your breath, your brain understands that “war is over” and that there is time now to breath. Then, your nervous system can shift to its parasympathetic state, where it can allocate resources to detect and correct what needs some adjustment in your body. Would a simple routine as a castor oil pack worth a try to enhance your breathing? It’s only for you to decide.

Now that you can breathe, you might want to assess how well-nourished you are. Nourishment means that every cell in your body gets the materials it needs for its most efficient function. Nourishment is not about a certain trendy diet. It is about eating real food, at least in one of your daily meals. Real food has not been processed or changed by human hand. Real food has been around for thousands of years and is not new. This type of food is familiar to your cells, and they know how to process and use it. Some examples of real food could be Fruits (preferably organic), vegetables (preferably organic), grass-fed / organic meats, Free range chicken /eggs, chicken soup/bone broth, pickles, sauerkraut, avocado, full fat grass-fed dairy / butter….

If you feel that today your plate does not include real foods – DO NOT ELIMINATE A THING! If you’d like, you can start ADDING nourishing foods – maybe a bone broth or a root vegetable soup – and eat it before you eat what you regularly eat. Allow your body to get accustomed again to the tastes of real foods, and soon enough, your body will not carve what you were used to eat.

When your body is nourished, it can release the need to be in survival mode. You will then feel relaxed and secured. You will not feel hungry, and cravings will lessen.

Once you can breathe and nourish your cells, you might want to take a walk outside. Walking in nature has a meditative effect on your brain. Studies show that walking in the nature can boost your immune system and lessen your anxieties and stress. As a physical activity it improves circulation and lymphatic functions. Being surrounded by nature activates all your senses and revives your creativity.

Maybe you can take another assessment while you walk. Maybe now you are able to contemplate the assessment questions with deeper answers. Maybe now you are able to remove yourself a bit further from your situation and get a wider view of what is happening in your own little world. Again, allow yourself to be just an observer. If you encounter the need for judgment – slow down again and check if there is a way you can turn any unliked event into an opportunity. Maybe now, that you have more insight into your internal world, you can set your intention to elevate this found opportunity for your own growth and healing.

If you cannot do it at this moment – it’s OK! The understanding that any obligation or unliked event has the potential to turn into an opportunity can create a major shift by itself. And this shift might inspire you to allow 2023 to be the year about you.

And if you need any help in your process, you are always invited for a session with me. In my Initial session you will receive a wide understanding about what is happening in your body – physically, emotionally and mentally – and most important, we will discuss what you can do at home to promote your own health and healing. Because it does not matter how big is the miracle that can be created in a one-hour session, as it is just a fraction of the miracles you can create in the rest of the twenty-three!

To a Happy, Healthy, Full of Opportunities New Year,
and Cheers to Allowing This New Year To Be All About You!!!