KEEP YOUR BLOOD SUGAR BALANCE

Its easy in a detox to end up living on carbohydrates. This is not great for keeping your blood sugar balanced, and if thats out of whack then so will your energy levels and mood. Its simple to prevent this by making sure you get protein and oils into your meals.

For example nuts and seeds with your breakfast - In the UK we have a brand called Linwoods that sell packets of mixed ground nuts and seeds. I’m totally in love with the Flax, almond, brazil, walnut, CoQ10 one. Yummmy. I add a heaped desert spoon to my homemade muesli along with another of shelled hemp seed. To see the whole recipe take a look at the recipe page on the website. Nuts and seeds are great as the provide protein and healthy oils together.

At other meals, again get both protein in there. For example: Salad for lunch. Be liberal with the EV Olive oil and/or Hemp Oil. Protein sources - avocado, humus. fish….

You get the picture?

SEPTEMBER DETOX - 2010

Well its that time again. This equinox detox will run from September 8 till September 29. It’s going to a pretty powerful one because the full moon and the equinox fall on the same day - September 23! So watch out! Lots of potential for movement.

I’m going to be away for the later part of this detox period so I’m going to take a bit of a back seat this time. I’ll write a few blogs and am happy to answer questions. There is loads of information on the website so if you are going to do the detox this time its worth having a read again.

http://www.equinoxdetox.com

I’m taking a trip to LA attending The Longevity Conference as a volunteer. I hope to learn lots to bring to Equinox Detox next time! If you want to check out the conference here’s the link.

http://www.thelongevitynowconference.com/

Thats all for now.

Good luck and Best wishes

Georgie

Till next time

Hey folks

Well as this detox period draws to a close I hope that you are all looking forward to a fun filled summer (or winter).

I don’t know about all of you but this detox has been quite hard for me, mainly because I have need a heck of a lot of sleep! Anyway, I’m feeling pretty good for it and ready to get back into party mode! Bring it on!

With best wishes

Till next time

Georgie

PS. The next detox will be in september. It's going to be a powerful one as the equinox and full moon fall on the same day!

My healing & the 5 Elements

I would like to share with you a few brief experiences of what I consider my healing journey (it's an on going process), from the aspect of the 5 elements. I hope this may help you see more of what is happening with your own journey and maybe you would like to share yours too!

When I look back now I see how I started out my teen and adult life very much out of balance, especially in the water element (which tends to get thrown out of balance if anything else is out). My wardrobe was almost exclusively blue and black. I barely considered wearing other colours. And I was afraid of so many things - being hurt in love and trying new things for example.

Then when I started working on healing myself the colour green came into my life. I have a lovely green woolen sweeter that I used to wear all the time, but for some reason I haven’t worn it now for about 6 months. For a number of years I experienced a lot of anger. Anger at myself, lashing out at others, irritability! Oh my god!

Anyway, I think that finally I’ve found some balance in the element of wood. Which I can tell you is a relief! I feel freed from the destructive force of my own anger. Wow, what a wonderful feeling!

With every detox there seems to be a theme that my body is working on and this time it's the fire element. I’ve spent the last week wearing red, red, red, I even found myself buying a red cardigan. I’ve also found it impossible to stay awake after 9pm - triple heater time. I observe this in retrospect, having re-read Dianne Conelly’s book click here to find it on amazon. Now I have been observing in myself over a couple of years that I am/was one of those women that suffer the cold terribly and I have worked out that this is closely connected with my digestion. When I eat wheat my digestion slows down. My energy levels drop like a stone, I get terribly lethargic. And I feel cold, my central heating system does not working properly. Now I’m not saying that wheat is the cause of this. The wheat (for me) is what causes my digestion to slow down. The small intestine is like your internal furnace and when I eat bread it's like throwing a load of damp leaves on the fire.

So last week when I found myself obsessed with the colour red (this obsession has passed already by the way), I also had a line of sores behind both ears. This was really painful for a few days. I had been thinking I must just look on my meridian charts to see if an energy line runs down there. And last night I finally had a look. One does, and it's in the fire element - the meridian of the triple heater - the body's central heating system. Now I’m not sure what my body has done, but I know that some resolution of an imbalance has been corrected. I also know if I stay away from wheat most of the time I don’t suffer like I used to from the cold.

How wonderful our bodies are if you give them time and space to sort things out naturally.

WATER

Has a force and a power, a rhythm and a cycle. The human body is 78% water. Brittleness of joints; excess or deficiency of perspiration, thirst and urination; The lack of flow in thoughts and emotions; feelings and fears - being overwhelmed, worry and anxiety, depression, inability to cope and fear of change all indicate an imbalance in water.

Keywords in the water element - Fluidity and flow.

Colour: Blue and Black.

Season: Winter

Organs: Kidneys and Bladder. The Kidneys are the storehouse of the vital essence (life force) and the gateway to the stomach. Lethargy = lack of vital essence. The kidneys allow the stomach to do its job by providing the fluidity and passage of the vital essence. Problems with body fluids = imbalance. The bladder - flexible enough to contain a lot or a little fluid, it is therefore very adaptable.

Time: Kidney: 3PM - 5PM. Bladder: 5PM - 7PM. Feeling better or worse at these times may indicate an imbalance.

Taste: Salty

Orifice: Genitals, urethra and anus

Sense organ: Ears - sense of hearing rather that orifice (fire). Vertigo, dizziness, loss of equilibrium and balance, noises/tinnitus all indicate a water imbalance.

Fluid secretion: Saliva

Emotion: Fear

Sound: Groaning and moaning

Parts of Body Governed: Bones and Brain

External physical manifestation: Head hair.

Power: Capacity to create trembling

Taken from Traditional Acupuncture : Law of the 5 Elements by Dianne M Connelly Phd

METAL

Metal ores are the intensity of the earth - substance, strength and structure. Metal reinforces structures. All routes of communication depend on metal. Metal conducts electricity. The networks of the body, the structure of being able to take in food and air; assimilation and utilization of fuel and the letting go of unnecessary things - these are aspects of metal.

Problems with structure and strength within the body mind are often to do with metal imbalance. Rheumatic pain, degeneration or rigidity of the vertebral column, special kinds of headaches, trembling spasms in the throat, esophagus, limbs, certain kinds of paralysis, debilitating diseases, lack of emotional strength and incoherent speech may occur with a metal imbalance.

Colour: White

Season: Autumn

Organs: The Lungs and Colon . The lungs are the receiver of pure chi. Breathing is one of the main ways we replenish our energy, essential to every body to function. We breathe emotionally as well as physically. The Colon is the bin collector, the drainer of dregs, the storer and eliminator of waste. Feeling bloated, swollen, constipated, and stopped up emotionally; bad acne, boils, headaches, a stuffy nose and nasal allergies all point to colon mal-function.

Time: Lungs: 3AM - 5AM, Colon : 5AM - 7AM. Feeling better or worse at these times may indicate an imbalance.

Taste: Spicy and pungent.

Orifice & Sense organ: Nose

Fluid secretion: Mucous

Emotion: Grief

Sound: Weeping

Parts of Body Governed: Skin and hair. Skin is considered to be the 3rd lung. Skin reflects the condition of the lungs and ability to breathe. Eczema, psoriasis & rashes = imbalance directly related to lungs.

External physical manifestation: Skin and body hair.

Power: Capacity to cough

Taken from Traditional Acupuncture: The Law of the 5 Elements by Dianne M. Connelly Phd

EARTH

The ground beneath our feet, from where we get nourishment and fertility, the giver of all life. Earth is special as its the source of all other elements. To be in balance with earth is to be grounded, balanced, connected, centered in oneself, being at home with oneself. It governs the cycles of life - breathing, sleep, menstrual flow, thought flow. Ulcers, anorexia, indigestion, obesity, vomiting abdominal edema (swelling), hyperacidity and epigastric pain spasms are signs of earth in distress. Nervousness, flightiness, instability, loss of balance, feeling unearthed, disconnected, alone = earth in distress. A person who talks about “I” a lot is asking for someone to pay attention to earth. Many weight problems come from a bad distribution of energy in earth. Sterility, problems conceiving, in birth - earth is not prepared and nourished properly.

Colour: Yellow. A love or hate of the colour = imbalance

Season: Late Summer

Organs: Stomach, Spleen (and Pancreas). The stomach is the official of rotting and ripening. It receives and integrates nourishment passing it to the spleen. If this function is sick whatever is taken in - physically or mentally, will not be utilized properly. Lethargy, weakness and debilitation may indicates low energy in earth and therefore all 5 elements. Many digestive problems are associated with an earth imbalance. The Spleen (and pancreas) is spoken of as the distributor of secretions. Imbalances might show as deadness of feeling, mal co-ordination in the system, lack of proper sexual function.

Time: Stomach: 7AM - 9AM, Spleen: 9AM - 11AM. Take breakfast before 9, then the spleen can distribute to the 4 corners of earth.

Taste: Sweet

Orifice: Mouth (and throat). Poor breathing habits can be a cause of bad health just as a poor diet can. The lips show clearly the state of the energy with the stomach and spleen.

Fluid Secretion: Saliva. Too much or too little, problems swallowing point to earth.

Emotion: Sympathy and compassion. A person who can’t receive sympathy or who asks for it constantly are both stuck and do not flow easily in and out of the emotion. Harder to spot is the over compassionate person - look for problems in others, not a natural flow either.

Sound: Singing

Power: Capacity to belch. A lack or excess belching = an imbalance in earth.

Taken from Traditional Acupuncture - The law of the 5 elements by Dianne M. Connelly, PhD

FIRE

Warmth and light, dynamic and moving, vibrant and lively. It represents love. Emotional and physical coldness, sexual frigidity, poor circulation (cold extremities), hemorrhoids, varicose veins, painful joints (hot), hot flushes, heart burn, digestive problems, fevers and feeling parched are all indicators or an imbalance in the fire element.

Colour: Red. Grey is the flip side. A love or loathing of either colour shows an imbalance in the fire element. Red is the colour of joy.

Season: Summer

Organs: Heart, Small Intestine, Circulation Sex and The Triple Heater. The heart is the supreme controller, sickness in the heart creates inner panic. The small intestine is the great separator of pure from impure. This can be seen metaphorically in other things - emotional confusion or hearing difficulties for example, can be seen as an inability to separate pure from impure. Circulation Sex - not an organ as such, controls blood flow and sexual secretions, it guards the heart and controls vitality and nourishment via the blood vessels. It governs the pulse of life. The Triple Heater is the sister function of Circulation sex. Again not an organ but rather all organs are guarded by it. It is the central heating system of body.

Time: Heart: 11AM - 1PM, Small Intestine: 1PM - 3PM, Circulation Sex: 7PM - 9PM, Triple Heater: 9PM - 11PM. If you feel better or worse, or can’t sleep at these times, it may show an imbalance.

Taste: Bitter

Orifice: Ears - sorter of sounds

Sense organ: Tongue. Many speech patterns and impediments like stuttering, slurring are symptoms of a fire imbalance.

Emotion: Joy and happiness.

Sound: Laughter

Parts of Body Governed: The blood vessels. Varicose veins, cold extremities, hardening arteries = imbalance in fire.

External physical manifestation: Facial Complexion. Texture and quality of the skin.

Taken from Traditional Acupuncture, the law of the 5 elements by Dianne M. Connelly, PhD

The Chinese 5 Elements - WOOD

The basis of all chinese medicine (acupuncture or herbal medicine) is the theory of the 5 elements. From my point of view as a nutritional therapist it is a wonderful diagnostic aid, that really helps me work holistically. It is complex system because everything is interconnected, but I think it is interesting and useful to understand the basic principles.

The 5 elements are aspects of each of us and ideally will be in balance. But when one area goes out of balance then it can send others out to. Each element has a colour, season, organs, time, taste, emotion and other things associated with it. So it can help us to see where we are out of balance and what parts of our body need help.

WOOD

Think of a tree, is it flourishing and healthy. Is it flexible in the wind or do its limbs break easily, or is it uprooted easily (dizziness, vertigo, easily confused, can’t create roots for oneself). If the tree stops growing - gnarled limbs (arthritis). stunted thoughts and emotions. If the tree doesn’t get enough nourishment or sunlight - limbs will weaken and stiffen, vitality will be lost.

Colour: Green. Do you love the colour and wear it a lot or maybe you loathe it. Either extreme shows an imbalance in wood

Season: Spring

Organs: Liver and Gall Bladder. Liver = the planner. Gall Bladder = the decision maker. Migraines or headaches behind the eyes can be due to the liver out of balance, a fuzzy head, can’t think, or plan. A difficulty making decisions = gall bladder imbalance.

Time: Gallbladder 11pm - 1am. Liver 1am - 3am. If you feel better or worse, or can’t sleep at these times, it may show an imbalance.

Taste: Sour

Orifice: Eyes

Sense organ: Eyes

Emotion: Anger. Excess anger or a complete lack of anger. Feeling stuck, unable to escape your anger, irritable, on edge, angry with oneself for no reason, frustrated, inner-conflict = wood imbalance.

Sound: Shouting

Parts of Body Governed: Muscles and Sinews. Tendons and ligaments. How flexible are you?

External physical manifestation: Nails. Split, peeling, crack, etc. tells us there’s a problems with the wood element.

Taken from Traditional Acupuncture; The Law of the Five Elements by Dianne M. Connelly, Ph.D.

Blogs

Good morning everyone.

Sorry for the lack of blogging support! Will be more frequent from now on. Been struggling a bit myself from over doing it - in life generally that is not the detox. Anyway, I’ve been getting plenty of sleep and I've got my bounce back now! Personally the detox is going well. I’m learning things about myself as I do every time and the more I learn the more I marvel at the power of nature if its allowed to do its thing. I also marvel at the wisdom of chinese medical philosophy through which I gain a deeper and deeper understanding of myself and where my imbalances are. I have talked about this philosophy before in the blog, but would like to share it in more detail with you all. So I’m going to run a series of 5 blogs on the subject. The 5 blogs will cover the 5 elements - Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. This, the foundation chinese medicine seems, at first, rather poetic, but the more I get the know and understanding it, the more I am amazed at the wisdom of it, as I see its truth told over and over in myself and other people.

So, thats coming very soon. I’m also going to write a blog on the subject of EFA’s - Essential Fatty Acids. The whole omega 3 and 6 thing. Important to detoxing but more so to life in general. A good one for everyone to know about if you’re detoxing or just observing.

Hope all is well in the world with you!

What Detox Means to me

When I tell people that I’m on a detox for a month and they ask and I tell them what that entails, the reaction is often one of horror. “What’s there left to eat!”, “Oh, I couldn’t go that long without a drink”, etc. Which always takes me slightly by surprise because the detox to me is not a sufferance in anyway. Its more like a holiday for the body and mind from normal living, one that I’ve come to look forward.

However when I look back on my journey to feeling that way about detoxing, its been a fairly long winding road. The first time I decided to do a detox like this, it coincided with a family reunion over easter week. Thankfully I start the detox before the family arrived because after 2 days I was in bed with a fever (shows what a toxic state I used to be in!) The fever was short lived but started the detox process off to a flying start. I was managing my symptoms of swollen glands and headaches okay, but then the food and alcohol started flowing and I felt it would be rude to constantly say no. It turned into a fascinating experiment. Every time I ate some meat for example, or had half a glass of wine, my symptoms would flare up pretty much straight away. This carried on for the next 2 weeks. Then. as suddenly as it had started, it was over. My body said “thanks very much I’m done now”, I felt great and what’s more got told how well I looked all the time.

Since that first time I’ve never again had a fever, but each time I get more and more of a feel for what my body is trying to do. I know when it goes into detox mode and its got easier and easier to just go with it. In fact it feels fantastic to just go with it. Learning to say an unwavering but graciously no to peoples offers of things my body is not in the right state to take on board has made life easier and filled me with greater self respect.

The message I really want to convey here is, how important it is to find your own road. Its impossible for me to tell you how long you should detox for as everyone is different; its your body that is going to determine when its done. This detox is not about anyone cracking a whip or you feeling like you need to punishing yourself. Its a more (how can I put this), organic learning experience. Its about developing a healthy relationship with your body. A relationship based on understanding, co-operation and mutual respect between mind and body.

So, as I always say do this your way. And don’t try and do more than you can - there is always next time to take the next step.

With love & hug

Georgie

March 2010 Detox Dates

Hi Folks

Welcome to the first week of equinox detox. For those of you that have just joined this is what’s going on dates wise:

In my experience it is more beneficial to do the detox for a longer period. So I've opening up the options.

If you want to go the whole hog then the dates are March 1 to March 30. Thats full moon to full moon with the equinox on the 20th.

If thats too long then March 8 - March 30.

And if thats too long then March 8 - March 22.

And if thats too regimented then just go with the flow and listen to your body. See what its telling you.