Let’s start with a brief definition of what gluten is. According to Wikipedia, gluten is latin for glue. It’s the composite of two proteins called gliadin and glutenin. These exist conjoined with starch and endosperms of some grass related grains such as wheat, rye, and barley. Gliadin and glutenin comprise about 80% of the protein contained in the seed and it can be an important source of nutritional protein. Some of us cannot physically handle these proteins, causing many health problems and sensitivities.

There are 3 categories of gluten intolerance: Celiac disease, non-Celiac gluten sensitivity, and wheat allergy. I will touch briefly on these and then talk a little about how to recognize what’s going on and then about what you can do. The solution is very simple.

Celiac disease is a severe form of gluten intolerance that can have devastating consequences. This is an auto-immune response characterized by the release of very aggressive antibodies which attack the small bowel. These antibodies will ultimately destroy the absorptive abilities of the villi, the part of the small intestines that is responsible for nutrient absorption from food. As the Celiac is less and less able to absorb nutrients, the body suffers immensely, resulting in other more serious diseases. Leaky gut syndrome is a condition that allows for the escape of undigested gluten from the intestine directly into the bloodstream.

People suffering from non-Celiac gluten sensitivity experience very similar symptoms as Celiac disease but there is no evidence of the antibodies.  A wheat allergy may be manifested as immediate, diffuse symptoms ranging from a complete loss of energy to dry mouth, depression, hives or pain.

Personally, I think a good rule of thumb, after seeing your health care practitioner, is to always suspect a gluten problem if you are having any unexplained or diffuse symptoms. There is no magic bullet for this one. In the case of Celiac, you’re going to have to give up gluten in all it’s forms, whether it’s bread, food additives, or meat substitutes made from gluten. In the case of gluten sensitivities and wheat allergies, you can figure this one out through a process of elimination. Without being too radical and demanding of yourself, just simply stop eating bread in all it’s forms for 3 weeks. You’ll also want to avoid eating any processed foods which translates into anything that comes in a box. If it comes in a box, don’t eat it. Stick to a diet consisting of fresh whole foods, fruits and vegetables.  If you feel better after 3 weeks, guess what?

If it turns out you have a gluten issue, with the exception of Celiac, you have some choices. You can stop eating bread and gluten in all its forms, or you can see a practitioner who uses the techniques of Allergy Antidotes, or NAET (Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique). These techniques can be very effective in reducing or eliminating your allergic reactions to gluten. However, there is also a good chance that you will just need to stop eating it altogether, depending on your response to these techniques.

When I told a friend of mine about the gluten issue, it was the first he’d ever heard of the problem and he was very reluctant to give up bread. Who wants to do that? It’s soooo good. Right? After a few more conversations about it, he decided to give it a try. After only 3 days he started telling me about how giving up wheat and bread has absolutely changed his life. For him, the sensitivity was manifested through frequent and severe mood swings which were eliminated almost immediately. It makes me wonder how many diagnosed with bipolar disorder, could eliminate their problem simply by giving up bread. Can you imagine?

In a future post, we’ll talk about how gluten and other food allergies contribute to weight gain. Eliminating the offending foods or resolving our reactions to them, along with addressing emotional eating, delivers a 1-2 punch where obesity doesn’t stand a chance.

As you know, I’ve decided to devote my entire practice to weight loss through addressing the whys of eating and the emotional attachments to food. Without these things in place, no diet can provide for long term results. There are some excellent eating plans out there but the truth is that most people, up to 95%, gain the weight back plus, within 5 years. Theories abound as to the reasons for this, and through Health Energetics and adequate coaching, permanent weight loss can be achieved.

I will be putting together a team of health care practitioners to address all aspects of  losing weight. As well as Health Energetics, this team will include a naturopath, acupuncturist, and a healing intuitive. This way, all the physical aspects as well as the psychospiritual, will be addressed, increasing the chances of success.

I’m still interested in working with those who are upwards of 100 pounds over weight, awaiting bariatric (weight loss) surgery, or trying to qualify. Through this work, I hope to assist those who believe there are no other alternatives but this drastic measure, to see the hope and success that awaits them.

One thing I’ve learned along the way is that change is never complete. The road to emotional health is an ongoing one with no sense of arrival, no sense of destination. At the risk of sounding cliche’, it’s not about the destination. It’s about the journey and once we are on the road, that journey reveals in us the things we always knew, or didn’t know, were there.  They are always waiting for someone to come along and just rub the lamp. It’s like being on a road trip and watching the scenery change along the way, never really knowing for sure just where something came from. It’s just there. All of a sudden that mountain is revealed to you. You know,the one you didn’t see moments ago. As we progress on the road, those things that are revealed to us give us an opportunity to grow and that growth happens when we meet the mountain head on.

I’ve made a decision about the direction of my practice, and after much deliberation, I’m devoting all my work to weight loss. Obesity is rapidly becoming the most serious threat to the health of Americans and if I can make a difference in that, then I’ll have accomplished what I set out to do. The consequences of obesity have become more pressing than those of smoking. Weather it’s 20 pounds or 100, you’re at serious risk.

It’s almost never about the food but rather the emotional drivers behind why we eat. People eat for many reasons besides hunger and with EFT those reasons can be addressed and eliminated. All the self-talk and sabotage, the shame, guilt, and disappointment, can be released through this amazing technique.

Watch for upcoming workshops. As soon as I’m moved into my new space, I’ll be sending out an e-newsletter with events and dates. Finally, a method to help you lose the weight once and for all.

As of June 1st I will be moving out of my current office but to date, have no permanent office home. I’m confident the universe will provide for this one as it has for all others. I have my sights on one place in particular so we’ll see how that pans out. In the meantime, my borrowing Benefits and all other  workshops are on hold until I am able to establish a regular, consistent meeting place to have them.

Watch for my next newsletter which will have a blurb in it about my progress with this and the reestablishment of my workshops. Happy Tapping everyone.

On April 24th and May 1st, I will be presenting a smoking cessation workshop from 10am-12noon each day, at which time I hope to assist participants to uncover the emotional drivers that compel them to smoke. Smoking is a very powerful addiction and compounded by the physical dependence, the emotional issues of addiction only serve to tighten the vice. The cravings,  and the need to soothe, can be eliminated in a few short minutes with EFT.

Join us and you will eliminate this most troubling habit once and for all.

The purpose of the workshop was Effective Weight Loss with EFT. We addressed everything from cravings to the ability to see oneself at their ideal body weight. Many breakthroughs occurred and throughout the course of the workshop, it was revealed that it’s rarely, or almost never, about the food, but rather the emotional drivers and underlying issues that compel one to eat.

There was no structure, and no agenda. Everyone just showed up in whatever way they needed to and it all went from there. Everything from past hurt with our parents (trauma) to the need to be a rock for everyone but ourselves. The issues around food are often deep and pervasive. The great thing about this technique, though there were some tears, is that there don’t have to be any tears. It’s not important to re-traumatize for resolution and as I continue to grow in my delivery of EFT, I realize this more everyday.

Upcoming workshops will include Love, Smoking Cessation, Spring Allergies, Financial Devastation from Medical Bills, and Stress Management. I’m also putting together a workshop for men on how to get past the blocks that hold us back in many aspects of our lives, including unfulfilled goals.  I will also be doing a workshop for small business owners on releasing the blocks that prevent us from realizing our full potential as business people. Watch for dates on here and in my e-newsletter.

In the meantime, always know that you are loved and that the One Source will always give you everything you need. EFT and meridian tapping techniques are just a few of the gifts we have been given to help us realize our full potential as actualized human beings. Keep tapping.

The mortality rate of bariatric surgery seems small at 1%. Well, that’s what they tell us it is anyway. But, when you think about the thousands who have had this surgery, 1% turns out to be an awful lot of deaths. 20% of those who undergo a bypass or lap band procedure, will require additional surgery to repair complications.  The list includes hernias, abdominal abscesses, and gastrointestinal leaks. 30% will go on to develop nutritional deficiencies such as anemia and osteoporosis. Nutritional deficiencies usually occur because of a development of certain food intolerances to red meat, dairy, and other products.

We are addicted to food and other things for many reasons but to those for whom food is the “drug of choice” there is an even bigger challenge because unlike other forms of substance abuse, we have to eat. We are dependent on food for survival. This is where the “whys” of eating come into play. There are many reasons why and most of them are not even remotely related to food or hunger. It’s almost never about the food. Often they are more about feelings. Anger, anxiety, frustration, deprivation, and boredom are just a few. Some even eat as a result of family patterns. How many of us as children were told “There are people starving in China who would be very happy to have that.”

If you’re considering bariatric surgery or you are currently in the waiting period where you are required to lose 10% of your body weight to qualify, there may be other methods to help. EFT can be a powerful adjunct to conventional treatments. Explore the whys of eating, eliminate those things that trigger you to eat, and you will lose the weight. One technique of particular importance is TAT (Tapas Acupuncture Technique). This technique has shown promising results for maintaining weight loss in the Type II diabetes population with research funded by NIH through Kaiser Permanente. You can read more about this at www.TATLife.com. Consider the alternatives and you may ultimately find that you don’t need surgery.

As an energy interventionist I sometimes lose site of  why I love this work so much and believe that everyone should not only be aware of it but that it’s appropriate for everyone to do in all instances. I’m beginning to realize that it may not be the case and the last thing I want to be is an energy work evangelist and alienate my friends and acquaintances.

Recently, I and the rest of the nurses at my current job, were working under threat of lay offs. The threat was ever present and was in our faces everyday we were there. Management thought they were helping by keeping us informed but in reality, what they were doing was keeping us in the dark and creating mass panic in the ranks. While we knew something was up, we could never put our fingers on anything and day after day we would trudge the floors, knowing that at any minute any of us could be rendered jobless. We mustered our courage and grumbled amongst ourselves in hopes of comforting one another, somehow.

On that fateful day when some of our co-workers were getting the ax, we were stewing in the simmering juices of the unknown. At one point, one of the nurses was verbalizing her angst and the fact that she was allowing the situation to make her physically ill. She was experiencing nausea and upset since the night before and continued lamenting her grief, even into the hours following the layoffs. When I mentioned to her that I had given her a tool to use in such situations, the only way she knew how to respond was to verbally attack me, likely because I failed to validate her response to the situation.

Sometimes, in the midst of grief, people don’t want to hear that there is a way out. Instead they choose to be where they are, no matter the consequences. If we let go of those things that we have in the moment, we cannot possibly know how else to respond. Can we? Grief has it’s purpose and perhaps it’s unhealthy to let go of it at a time when we are really needing to process. The key I believe, is to feel what we need to at the time and later release the triggers.

I’m finding more and more that at times, some will interpret your offer to help in a different way than you originally intended. My lesson I believe, is not to control my passion for the work, but rather my zeal and a resultant need to help. Maybe for me it’s about allowing and observing because only when I do that can I know when the time is right. Then I can hope that those in need can experience the allowing as well.

As one who has been dealing with seasonal asthma myself for nearly 18 years, I am plagued by it twice a year, every year. But, there seems to be no rhyme nor reason as to the times when it’s going to hit. One year it even skipped a season, something I have never been able to explain and something that hasn’t happened since.

Typically, the onset is gradual over the course of a week or two and results in an incessant cough that can last up to 6 weeks. Initially, I was placed on the inhalers, albuterol and Flovent, which gave me little relief. After 3 months of use, I was getting an hour of relief at best with the albuterol and I just didn’t think the side effects were worth it. I stopped the medications. At that time, I didn’t want to start other medications because they are only more powerful and toxic and the relief is marginal.

I was told by another physician that I had what was known as a cough variant form of asthma. There was little to no mucus production, and no wheezing or other symptoms typically associated with asthma. I did have some tightness in my chest but it was something that I gradually learned to live with. After 18 years I decided I didn’t want to live with it anymore and began to take matters into my own hands. Last year I started NAET treatments and though I don’t have complete resolution, I’m willing to keep trying. There is something very different about the way the asthma behaves that I can’t help but notice the difference. Instead of a 2 week onset until full symptoms are experienced, I’m having a more gradual onset this season. It’s been nearly 6 weeks and I’m still not feeling the full progression. The full-blown hack has not yet manifested itself. There is an occasional cough but for the most part, this is nothing like what I’m used to.

Another technique similar to NAET is Allergy Antidotes. This modality, and the one I practice, employs several meridian therapies and is more robust than NAET alone. If you would like to explore the possibilities with me, give me a call or schedule an evaluation. The work is safe, noninvasive, and fun.

As a matter of determination, I’m going to get past this and I’m considering adding grief work to the mix. There is an enormous emotional component with asthma and I personally know of one person who has found complete relief of her asthma symptoms through grief work.

I guess the message here is that we don’t have to be bound by chemicals that for so many of us, don’t work. For others, there is a serious need for medication which can be continued while doing other things to aid relief. So, I would never encourage anyone to stop their preventive or reliever meds without first consulting their physician. There are a multitude of modalities available if we just look for them. What works for some may not work for others. Some people get relief with acupuncture, others with homeopathy. The point to this is that we can’t give up after trying just one modality and we just have to persevere until we find the one that works for us. I can assure you that it’s out there and I will pursue it to resolution.

The exponential increase in allergies and asthma in the US is staggering. Some need convention, others don’t. Work proactively and stop depending on someone to “fix” it. By searching for and  finding the core problem, we set ourselves on the journey to healing. The path isn’t as long as we might think and with a little persistence, we can surely reach the end.

The size of the cat dander particles is extremely small and is inhaled deep into the lungs. It is therefore a common trigger to allergic asthma. Cat owners who are allergic to cats are more prone to the development of asthma symptoms.

Do you have to get rid of your beloved pet in order to be free of the allergy? If you listen to conventional medicine that is likely the first thing you will hear. After you hear that bit of disheartening news, they might tell you about allergy shots.

Allergy Immunotherapy (allergy shots) is a treatment option that helps to re-train your immune system so that you won’t over-react to the benign substances in cat hair.

Clinical studies have shown that a proper course of treatment with allergy shots can result in significant relief in as little as 3 months, but a longer duration of treatment is generally required to develop a tolerance to the allergen (in this case, cats). In some people, allergy shots that are are maintained for 3-5 years appears to offer long-term relief. In fact, allergy shots have the potential to cure your allergy since they target the basic allergic mechanism of your disease. Most medications that you are familiar with (prescription or over the counter) only target the symptoms and thus provide temporary relief (claritin, zyrtec, benadryl, nasonex, etc). When you suspend treatment with these medications your allergic reactions are likely to return.

An important question to ask your allergist is whether the maintenance dose being prescribed in your shot(s) is in line with what has been shown to be effective in clinical studies. Several large organizations of leading allergists have endorsed dosing guidelines for immnuotherapy for common allergens like cat hair. Your allergist should be following these guidelines to help ensure you are receiving the most effective treatment possible.

Are there other alternatives available for treatment? Yes. Many of these completely noninvasive techniques are based on acupuncture and referred to as meridian therapies. These techniques include Emotional Freedom Techniques or  EFT, Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique or NAET, Allergy Antidotes, and Tapas Acupressure Technique or TAT, all of which are highly effective at eliminating allergic response.

Once the specific allergy is identified, these various techniques employ acupressure to eliminate the allergic response. You may get complete resolution of the symptoms with these techniques alone and for those already taking allergy shots, the treatment will be greatly enhanced with the possibility of reducing the duration of the shots.