You may have heard the saying, “Laugh till it heals.” Current research agrees; laughter is considered a form of medicine. And it is a sharp gift that can cut through fear. During these stressful times of facing a buggy-man named COVID-19, it may be time to use this gift as a blessed weapon because laughter… Read more »
Surely, you’ve heard of the Freshman Fifteen. Now the term ‘Quarantine Fifteen’ has been coined for the weight one may gain during the COVID-19 pandemic while staying cooped up inside without much to do except, well, eat. While gyms and group fitness classes have been closed or canceled for the foreseeable future, there’s no reason… Read more »
As I write this, we are in the midst of unprecedented times, coming to grips with the idea that the world, as we knew it, is changing daily due to the coronavirus pandemic. Life seems surreal as if watching a futuristic science fiction movie, yet we are the stars. With all the doom and gloom… Read more »
With February (“love and heart month”) behind us, that time when you give a little more – flowers, cards, gifts or an “I love you” to that special someone – have you ever taken a step back to ask, “What if I gave as much love to myself as I give to others?” Well, that… Read more »
Chi self-massage is a Taoist concept originating back thousands of years. I was first introduced to the practice when studying at the Taoist Institute and taught to do chi self-massage before getting out of bed in the morning. The idea is to cultivate “chi,” or energy, using breathing, visualizations and movement to direct life force… Read more »
What does your typical day look like? You work, shop for groceries, run errands, attend appointments and scheduled events. Life is busy. But when you look back at the bigger picture – your entire life – what happy thoughts comes to mind? Those special memories, maybe only a minute in a lifetime of thousands, stand… Read more »
The law of attraction, put simply, is the ability to attract into our lives that on which we are focusing. It is a universal law that affects everyone regardless of age, race, nationality or religion. It responds to vibrational power of our thoughts, beliefs and words and then materializes them into our reality. Simply put,… Read more »
2020 is here: out with the old and in with the new! Now is the time to release negativity and stale energies from the past, replacing them with positive, healthy and life-affirming new energy. One way to achieve this result is through the adoption of new rituals that support health and improve wellbeing. One such… Read more »
As I write this column, I’m sick at home. It is a rare day that I don’t push through and go to work, but as I continued to chill and sweat through the night, I knew I had to cancel my clinic day and just stay in bed. This doesn’t sound newsworthy but hear me… Read more »
It was a quaint little restaurant on a balmy desert night – just the two of them, she a writer, he a musician, together conversing in a syncopated rhythm of their own making. Their wine glasses clink and he proposes a toast, “hip-hip, chin-chin.” They laugh at the funny Italian cheer and are reminded that… Read more »
It’s that time of year when many people review and plan how to create optimal health in their daily lives. My question is, “Do you have a personal practice or routine that serves and supports you?” Having come from a sports science and fitness background, I came across many people who were 23-hour couch potatoes.… Read more »
Time…We can’t stop the clock, but if we recognize that a moment passed is a moment gone forever, we might want to make different choices about how we spend it. Money, a good name, and even health can be regained, but a tick of the clock can never be retrieved. Is that why the present… Read more »
Ringing in the New Year always sparks reflection on a new beginning and enthusiastic goals for the year ahead. Whether it be personal growth, must do experiences, or starting a new way of eating, we plan by jotting it down on paper, making a visual board, or telling someone our desires to be held accountable.… Read more »
There are multitudes of ways to exercise nowadays. New innovations appear in our local fitness facilities to keep us entertained while keeping us healthy, yet we often revert back to the time-honored ways of exercising and workouts of the past become current trends once again. The trampoline, otherwise known as the rebounder, is an example… Read more »
Think of those times in your life when you were alone doing something you love; those times you remember being filled with nothing but sheer joy…maybe immersing yourself in a hobby, creating something new, walking through a serene landscape or simply sitting in silence. How did you feel? Most likely, you weren’t thinking about your… Read more »
I looked down at my toes as I lay in the restorative yoga pose and noticed one pant-leg pulled up on my shorter leg, accentuating the way I was born. My right leg is an inch shorter than my left leg and so my body has compensated. My back curves to balance above uneven hips.… Read more »
For most of us eating is a pleasurable experience, but for some it is a double-edged sword that leads down a path of emotional cues, cravings and bad choices. In previous issues of Desert Health, I discussed the neurotransmitter dopamine and how it drives us toward foods and substances to fulfill pleasure to get us… Read more »
As a wellness director, I conduct an ongoing personal and professional search for the most current trends of effective remedies in the marketplace. During a recent meeting of wellness professionals in the Coachella Valley, we discussed the topics of achieving radiant health by using structured water and vibrational therapy. These were intriguing topics featuring a… Read more »
Many of us have heard the advice that, when making changes in our behavior, we should make a small change at first, establish it and see how it works for you. It got me thinking about how our yoga and meditation practices are ongoing. We make our way to the mat and see what happens.… Read more »
There is something deeply meditative in hearing the rustle of the leaves of a tree, in watching a hummingbird kiss the petals of a flower, or in kneeling in a garden when planting spring bulbs. All of us have found ourselves calmed, reinvigorated and inspired both in mind and spirit by the desert colors at… Read more »
