Although I’ve been acutely aware of the limitations in the knowledge of modern medicine, I somehow assumed that the prevalent description of ideal posture was true. I thought that certainly we at least know that! I could understand that the body is extremely complex chemically and how a lot about how the body functions could still elude us. But body mechanics — wasn’t that pretty straightforward? Surprisingly, no.

Experts actually don’t agree even on what ideal posture is. Most of them — from physical therapists to yoga and Pilates instructors — are pretty much in agreement. But there are those whose opinions differ, and I am finding that those differences in opinion are making all the difference to me.

A book by Esther Gokhale has convinced me that the ideal posture does not include the “tucked” or “neutral” pelvis and the supposedly natural S-curve that most people recommend. In fact, she makes a very convincing argument for holding the pelvis in an “anteverted” position, and for the superiority of a back that is relatively straight above the lower lumbar curve. She backs up these convictions logically and through reference to an amazing collection of pictures of the posture of people in other cultures and times in history, as well as the posture of toddlers whose natural body positions and movement have not yet been conditioned by the culture around them.

I was really ready to hear this alternative approach. Not only had I concluded that I would find some answers in seeing the posture and body movements of people in other, more “natural” or traditional cultures, but I had found through trial and error that anteverting my pelvis through tightening my gluts made my back a lot more comfortable. In fact, once I’d become convinced by Esther’s book, 8 Steps to a Pain Free Back, I abandoned the tucking of my pelvis recommended by my physical therapist to let it tilt into the anteverted position. And since doing that and making a few other adjustments from what I had learned in her book, my low back pain is almost completely gone.

I must confess that I haven’t even done the 8 lessons in the book yet, and I am preparing to do so. I promise to report back on the results. But I couldn’t resist sharing Esther’s ideas with you now. Before you start to invest time, energy and money into a program for your back, I highly recommend that you at least look into this alternative approach. It could make all the difference!

Here is a link to an article by Gokhale — 10 Myths about Posture:
pdf version
html version

See Esther Gokhale on YouTube.

And, last but not least, a link to Esther’s website: egwellness.com Esther has recently started a forum and is very generous in taking time to respond to posts and answer questions.

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I’ve wanted for the longest time to write about the connection between our health as individuals and the health of the whole world. Now that I’ve seen The Story of Stuff, I don’t have to try to write about this complex and important question. I can just urge you to watch this 20 minute video (free at this link) and see the essence of how our consumer culture works and the impact of its unsustainable and toxic practices. Not only does it affect individual health (though environment toxins, for example), it puts the health of the entire planet in a very precarious state.

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When I first heard about The Story of Stuff, I wasn’t sure I wanted to see it. I didn’t want to see a doom and gloom video that would only serve to depress me. But The Story of Stuff is not at all depressing — alarming, yes, but not depressing. It’s worth seeing for so many reasons. It presents facts and information in such clear terms. It ingeniously summarizes the history and current state of our consumer culture in such a clear, compelling way. It is clever, creative and actually entertaining to watch. After watching the video, you can click through to 10 steps you can take. It’s energizing and inspiring to see what we can actually do to change this situation. And my sense is that taking these steps will be an essential part of a true and lasting economic recovery.

Deciding who to listen to when it comes to diet, exercise, treatment choices, etc. can be confusing at best. Currently I have been reading about solutions for chronic back pain. Each book I read enthusiastically promotes its ideas, with lots of impressive testimonials to boot. As I read many of the books, I find myself thinking — oh yes this makes so much sense, this is the final answer. And yet, many of them disagree on even the most fundamental recommendations. Any suggestion, from how the pelvis should be tilted to whether back pain is related to physical abnormalities or stress, will have an opposing view.

I’m finding in my own healing journey that I learn a little bit of value from each book I read and every therapist I see, even if it is what doesn’t make sense for me. Every idea can trigger an insight for me, as I put together what works for me. It’s ultimately my own insights and observations about what works for me that I’ve come to rely on. How many times has a recommendation for health been made by a major authority, only later to be withdrawn as faulty? How many times have you followed a piece of advice simply because it came from an “authority”, only to later realize it wasn’t helpful at all, maybe even quite the opposite of helpful. I feel it’s vital that we view everything in the light of common sense and our own intuition. The best advice comes from what our bodies tell us, our inner knowing and testing things out for ourselves. At the very least, if someone says “always do this”, “never do that”, “eat this”, “don’t eat that”, etc., actively search out the opposing viewpoint and weigh the options for yourself.

Perhaps conflicting viewpoints are most obvious when it comes to diet. You can find an overwhelming number of conflicting theories and recommendations about food. Some say eat only raw food, others say eat only cooked food. Some say a food is wonderful for you that someone else says is toxic to eat. I’ve been very interested in Ayurveda for years. Ayurveda contains an extensive list of what foods are good for what types of people (which is a big improvement over recommending the same foods for everyone as is done in most systems). Many of these recommendations are consistent among Ayurvedic experts, but even there you can find differing viewpoints.

I always get a chuckle when I remember how someone reconciled opposing viewpoints about whether to eat tomatoes and/or potatoes. One vaidya (Ayurvedic physician) said eat potatoes but don’t eat tomatoes. Another said eat tomatoes but don’t eat potatoes. Someone made an amusing remark — my conclusion is that I can eat both tomatoes and potatoes to my heart’s content! Someone else would have avoided both “just in case”. The ultimate test, of course, would be to see how your own body responds to eating both. And always, moderation goes a long way to negate the possibility of eating the wrong thing. “Eat a little of everything” might be the best advice if you are unsure.

To say that we must be our own authority on our health doesn’t mean not to consult experts. But it does mean to ask questions, educate ourselves about what they are recommending, listen to alternative viewpoints, and ultimately make the decision what makes the most sense for us.

Since I feel that I need to be my own authority, I feel it’s important to develop certain skills. I spend time learning about anatomy and how my body works, noticing the sensations and signals my body sends me, observing how my emotions affect my body, and being thoughtful about the choices I make. I spend time clarifying my values and what is important to me. Being my own authority means being willing to rely on my own common sense and intuition in spite of what the outcome will be. There are never any guarantees for outcomes in life, but we can make sure that we make the best decisions possible and that we honor ourselves and our own inner knowing in the process.

I remember once giving a stress management seminar to a busy staff and spending at least half an hour talking about the need to visit the bathroom when nature calls. Almost everyone admitted to feeling too busy to stop what they were doing to go to the bathroom, take a drink of water, stretch their bodies. Sometimes people were so absorbed in what they were doing that they didn’t even notice the signals of hunger and thirst. When they were aware of them, they couldn’t tear themselves away from what they were doing to take the necessary break. Some even felt guilty about taking the time away from their desk.

How often do you ignore basic needs? Do you rest when you are tired? Do you get as much sleep as you need? Do you eat when you are hungry, and stop eating when you’ve had enough? Do you drink when you are thirsty? Do you even notice? Our bodies tell us what they need to be balanced. Our job is to listen.

We can go a lot further than paying attention to these most basic needs. The need for sleep can be a “loud” signal from the body, but we can start to notice “softer” cues that our bodies give us as well. As we increase the awareness of our body’s signals, we get a lot of valuable information about how to keep it in balance.

The more we can perceive about what is going on in our bodies and emotions, the better. If you start to notice more subtle messages from your body, you can become aware of an imbalance before it manifests in a disease. You can notice when you begin to get tired and take a meditation break or a catnap. You can feel discomfort in your body before it screams in pain from a repetitive motion injury. You can notice things early and nip problems in the bud.

Of course, awareness is only the first step. Once you are aware of what your body is telling you, you need to follow through the action to bring it in balance. It can be difficult to form this habit. You may feel you don’t have the time, but in the long run a little time and attention here and there to care for your body can help avoid spending a lot of time having to heal something, not to mention avoiding unnecessary pain.

We created the Body Awareness Meditation specifically to help develop awareness of the body’s signals. It helps you to slow down tune in to your body, so that you can be sensitive to your body’s needs. Even beyond that, it is relaxing and grounding. Listening to the body isn’t just a way to avoid future pain. Much of life’s pleasure comes through the body. The sense of connection with the body is satisfying and worth cultivating for its own sake. Start paying attention to your body. It will thank you for it!

Where do all these contradictions and paradoxes leave us? We aren’t left with easy answers, but if we are at least able to start by acknowledging what actually happens with healing rather than believe the spin that gets put on it, we at least have a chance of finding some useful answers.

There is a lot of talk now about transparency in government. We need to know what is actually going on, how things are being done, where they money is being spent and so on if we are going to be able to participate in shaping our futures. I think transparency when it comes to healing is also important. A recent comment on the website really struck me and made me want to address this issue.

Michele wrote:

“Why am I not experiencing Reiki as profoundly as EVERY publication describes, and why is there NOTHING on the internet or in books about Reiki difficulties?” 

You can read Michele’s full comment and my reply here. Discussions about the challenges healers face and the varied outcomes they have do happen in some classes. They sometimes go on between students and their teachers or mentors of healing. But it’s true, you don’t see much about this in books or on the internet. My sense is that this is because most of what you read is by someone who is promoting a particular healing system or their own products and services. Of course, the only testimonials displayed are about the successes, not the “failures”. (Actually I don’t think there are failures in healing, but that’s a discussion for another time.) To some extent, those who make money as healers have an investment in keeping a mystique around healing, the idea that there’s some magic that can work every time. They may even do this unconsciously, selectively remembering the best outcomes and ignoring or explaining away the others. Whether conscious or unconscious, much of what you read about healing has a definite spin.

I feel it would be of great value to have more transparency in holistic and alternative healing. Although I feel the scientific method has its limitations in the realm of healing, it seems like science helps to keep the medical profession more “real”. You don’t see MDs advertising with testimonials to their cures. I think transparency might go a long way in helping us to be more mature and wise in the way we approach healing. That may not mean we subject everything to scientific research, but it would mean that we speak openly and truthfully about the outcomes we have actually observed. It would also mean that we look more deeply at what we mean by healing.

Of course, true transparency would change the face of marketing. Look at what it has done to commercials for drugs. After the lovely promise of a good night’s sleep or pain free joints, comes a long list of possible side effects. Although an ad for Reiki or an energy healer would not really need a list of side effects, it could include information about the different forms healing may take and reference to the inability to predict outcomes. 

Often when people are attracted to becoming healers, it’s with unrealistic expectations. Unfortunately this can lead to disappointment and giving up on a path that could prove really rewarding. Because Michele’s experience didn’t match the descriptions she’d heard, she said:

“This makes me feel like I am not worthy to do Reiki, although I REALLY want to share it with others in a way that is truly helpful to them.”

My feeling is that if someone has the desire and intention to offer healing and does so in the right way, only good can come of it. It can nourish both the healer and the person seeking to be healed. Even the failure to achieve a desired result is a step along the way. Healing is always possible, even when it is not what we had hoped. It may just take a different form. 

In the interests of exploring this more, and creating a place to discuss difficulties with healing and questions, I’ve created a Healers’ Corner page. I’d love to hear from healers about their views, experiences and questions about being a healer.

I’ve already written about Seven Essentials of Self-Healing. Today’s post is the first in a series in which I’ll go into detail about each of the essentials, or as I am now calling them “secrets”. Of course, I’m calling them secrets here to get your attention, but also because they fit an intriguing definition of secret “known or shared only by the initiated”. The initiation required is a kind of self-initiation. These aren’t secrets that are kept hidden by a master who will impart them to you when you meet the proper requirements. Rather, they are insights available when you pay attention to yourself, to your own inner master. And that master is your own intuition.

As you become aware of these “secrets”, they will seem quite obvious and make complete sense. In fact, you may find yourself saying “oh I knew that all along”. You may have heard some of these secrets many times over, but you haven’t really heard the secret, nor do you really know it, until you’ve discovered it as real for yourself. In fact, the first of the seven secrets is self-awareness. Self-awareness comes from paying attention. When we begin to pay attention to what is actually happening in our bodies, minds and emotions, a huge opportunity for self-healing opens up.

I’ll leave you with that thought. One of the most important steps you can take to promote self-healing is to pay attention to yourself — what is going on with your body, your emotions, your thoughts. More on that soon!

President Elect Obama and Senator Daschle say they are both committed to health care reform that comes from the ground up — hence this call for community discussions.

To read more, sign up to lead a discussion and download a Moderator’s Guide, visit this link.

I came away from my first visit with the physical therapist (Dawn) with a clearer understanding of what was going on with my back, and most importantly, what to do about it than I’d ever had. I’d picked up bits and pieces of information here and there in the past and understood quite a lot about the spine, nerves, muscles, etc. I knew about the benefits of stretching, and stretching had made a big difference for me. But the session with Dawn made everything fall into place.

I’d had various evaluations before, but Dawn’s seemed more comprehensive. She seemed to hone it on exactly what was happening with my back. She evaluated areas of weakness, muscles that needed stretching and others that needed strengthening. Above all, she communicated what she found in such clear terms and gave me stretches and exercises that are very specific to my back and spine (which has a mild scoliosis). 

Even though I’ve had an understanding of proper body mechanics and posture in the past, Dawn was able to help me experience it in my own body. She helped me to feel in no uncertain terms what “neutral” is for my spine (with the lumbar area neither too concave or too flexed). She watched me do every stretch and exercise making sure I was doing it properly.

I walked out of the session feeling that I was given what I needed in terms of understanding the situation with my back and a clear plan of action to follow. Because Dawn explained everything so clearly and her instructions made such perfect sense as remedies for my problem, I’ve been highly motivated to follow them.

Finally, what made the session with Dawn so valuable is that is was completely geared to my own self-care. Although physical therapists do provide treatments through manipulation and other means, Dawn’s focus was to show me what I needed to do to get stronger. I’ve long ago become disillusioned with repeated trips to practitioners like chiropractors who would make an adjustment which would then go out and required re-adjustment a short time later. The most valuable thing a practitioner can give us is knowledge of how to take care of ourselves. 

Of course, only time will tell what impact this will have for me. The most important ingredient in achieving a healthier back will be my follow through, and this is true of any healing program. It’s our own self-care that brings success. 

When I’ve had a kind of “breakthrough” session like this, I always have to ask the question as to whether it happened because the practitioner had the right training and skills or whether I was simply ready to more forward. Certainly the many experiences of the past and what I’d learned from them, as well as various ways in which I’ve grown, created a readiness to take a leap forward. Perhaps some other kind of practitioner could have done it for me. But given the experience of my friends with PTs and my experience with Dawn, I’d encourage anyone with back (or knee or neck) problems to give physical therapy a try.

Meditation Oasis  If you are looking for our Meditation Oasis podcast or our Meditation Pages, you can find them on our new Meditation Oasis website.  You’ll find new features along with the previous content.

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Of course, we all respond to different healers, and a someone who is a healer for me might not be a healer for you. It also depends on our receptivity at the time we see someone, as well as factors too complicated and mysterious to fully uncover which have to do with why something heals when it does. Nevertheless, this acupuncturist was definitely a healer for me. As I left his office, I thought “this is a true healer” and started to think about the qualities that make for a good healer and positive healing experience. Since I’ve heard other people in my area call him a healer as well, I felt it was worth exploring the qualities that are present in an effective healer.

Here are some of the things I came up with, and I’d be interesting in what others might add to the list:

• Is non-judgmental. I felt completely accepted and did not feel like I was being judged in any way.
• Makes life-supporting, positive statements. He spoke of his findings in positive terms. For example, he might say “your core issue is with this chakra and I’ll give that some attention”, rather than “this chakra is clogged up and blocked”. None of his statements created a sense of alarm or fear or discouragement. He never made me feel “broken” in any way.
• Is supportive without being emotionally reactive.
• Cares without being emotionally involved.
• Is self-confident and yet humble.
• Creates a sense of safety and trust.
• Works in partnership with you. Honors your thoughts and perceptions.
• Is not attached to the outcome of the work.
• Is open to questions.
• Listens deeply.

As I wrote this list, I realized how difficult it is to describe exactly what makes someone a good healer. There is a quality of “presence” that is impossible to describe. Something about them invokes a “healing response” in you. Perhaps the best way to identify a true healer is to tune into how you respond to someone. Healing is much more likely to happen if the healer makes you feel relaxed and safe, so that you are open and receptive to their treatments.

I’m also struck by the fact that I never mentioned this healer’s expertise in acupuncture. He is obviously very skilled both in acupuncture and energy therapy (he used hands-on energy healing as well as acupuncture). My sense is that while technical skill is very important, in many cases it will be useless if the healer’s personality does not allow you to be receptive.