If you woke up this morning, after ushering in the new year, and a small voice deep inside of you said this year things could be different, please know that I hear you.
That voice is important and deserves to be heard. As I sit here writing this, I'm taking a moment to shift my focus to all of you who may be reading these words. Those who are patients of mine & those of you I've connected with in some way by email. And I wish all of you a year filled with happiness & health. As I focus more intently, I feel the emotion that goes along with this. That emotion is one of caring. My heart says, "I feel that you matter." Along with that goes enormous gratitude that you have enabled me to do the work I love. In doing that work, I've learned that listening to those small, inner voices is the beginning of a shift. Yes, just listening. In a culture filled with doing, focused on goals, that encourages us to make new year's resolutions, simply listening is a rebellious act. I believe that just by listening things in our lives begin to change. When we listen, we begin the process of checking inwardly. And when we check inwardly, we can learn more about ourselves moment to moment, and we begin to hear the subtleties that are easy to miss. When it comes to healing, those subtleties are important because they help us discern what works well enough, what we need to act on & what we're willing to do to move forward. We've been conditioned to make new year's resolutions, but according to a Forbes poll, only 6% of these resolutions are in place after 12 months, with less than 75% of them lasting more than 6 months. No surprise that this same poll found that 66% of new year's resolutions have to do with food. So we make resolutions even though they are not a particularly good tool for making change. We can take another approach.
I'll be honest. Making changes around food is incredibly difficult. There is no one size fits all plan. Unless you're a food & health nerd like me, you may not have the information or tools to eat healthy. Food generally gives us immediate comfort. Losing weight, lowering blood pressure & cholesterol, reducing inflammation....these things all take time. What's also true is that 2 weeks of healthy eating can make you feel fabulous. In 3 months, you most likely would take off 5-10 pounds, lower your blood pressure & cholesterol & be free from pain. At this point, your new healthier changes become habits & you may find that you have changed your relationship to food. If you feel overwhelmed and are not sure where to begin or if you're trying to tune in & listen, but aren't getting clear signals, I'm here to help. I'm offering 3 ways to help you listen to what you're body needs when it comes to food. "New Year’s Food Reset" -- Sunday at Serenity Yoga Individual Nutritional Counseling -- Ongoing, online Yummy Healthy Food Group -- Beginning in February, online My approach to healthier eating is to provide some basic information & offer ways to incorporate this info into your life. Here's what Cheryl Sawyer shared,
I'm here to help you in this process. Whether it's by encouraging you in this email to slow down & check in, or it's doing a deeper dive into exploring & shifting your relationship to food & your health. With you on the journey... Bonnie
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What comes to mind when you think of food?
What comes to mind when you think of dieting? What comes to mind when you think of your weight? All of these are loaded questions with incredibly complex answers. But what if food, diet & weight became simpler? What if instead of focusing on weight, portion size & calories, you switched your focus? When I work with people around food habits, there are 4 aspects of eating that we focus on: 1) Accepting where you are right now with love & compassion. You’re doing the best you can in a busy, stressful world with big food companies spending billions of dollars to make you eat as many processed foods as possible. You’re ok just as you are! 2) Clarifying your nutrition & health goals. Yours, not someone else’s. Only you know what is most important in your life. 3) Finding your problem food area. Most people have one habit that derails their eating plan. Sometimes it’s having a few drinks at a local bar. Sometimes it’s a specific food, like chocolate, that they can’t seem to cut out. Sometimes, it’s stopping regularly at a particular fast-food place. Once you’re aware of the pitfalls you face, you can decide to make simple changes – diluting drinks with seltzer, having nuts & olives as snacks & finding convenient food shops with healthy choices. 4) Adding more vegetables to your diet. Food are packages that contain nutrients. Vegetables happen to be one of the healthiest packages around. With all the different diets, eating well can become complicated. The thing that everyone agrees on is that vegetables lead to better health. Why not start by adding to your diet the one food that there is consensus on, that can be purchased in most local supermarkets & that’s inexpensive & easy to prepare. With these aspects in mind, it’s easier to create a healthy eating plan. One that focuses on your goals, finds substitutes for problem eating & adds lots of veggies to your daily meals. In the New Year’s Food Reset, I’ll be reviewing these steps in greater detail. Then we’ll have some fun choosing foods & recipes that are delicious & nutritious as I share my favorite meals & cookbooks. It will be like creating a food vision board for 2025! Interested? Get information here Are you feeling a little stressed at this time of year?
I'm finding things are taking a little longer than planned, small problems are feeling magnified and I'm a bit more irritated than usual. All signs that I need to turn inward. Can you relate to this? I wrote a blog about 10 years ago about finding balance during this season that you might find helpful. It begins like this. "One of the great strengths of Eastern thought is its ability to allow for the existence of two opposing forces or ideas at the same time. With this in mind, I offer you some suggestions for maintaining balance throughout the holiday season. My suggestions embrace the notion that the yang side of the holidays – the parties, eating, gift-giving, decorations and commercialism – can be balanced by the yin side – the soul, the heart and the connections we have with ourselves, our memories and the people we care about. By slowing down a little and paying attention to our inner, yin side, we can find and create special meaning at this time of year. Here are some ideas to help you explore ways of doing this. These are only my ideas. Please take them, mutate them and transform them into your own...." Read the rest here If you're looking for other ways to take a breath, slow down & be present consider getting a 1/2 hour craniosacral therapy treatment, which uses gentle touch to settle and relax the nervous system. Until the end of the year, I'm offering a pay from the heart model. Pay $36-$60 for a 30 minute treatment. Schedule online using the link below or send me an email with times that might work for you. It's fine to gift this to someone you know. Simply purchase a gift card & have them get in touch with me. In the busyness of the season, we often forget to check in, be present and share the kindness and love that the holidays are truly about. Consider this a gentle reminder to focus on the things that are truly important. The rest will fall into place. Wishing you much peace, joy & contentment! Bonnie I'm sure that you've heard time and time again to eat more vegetables. It sounds so simple and might be if we lived in a world with vegetable stands instead of ice cream & hot dog stands!
Luckily, there are some easy ways to eat more veggies. One of my favorites is roasting vegetables. Just preheat your oven to 400 degrees, spread 1-2 TBS of olive oil or avocado oil on a baking sheet, and add your favorite veggies, chopped into bite-sized pieces. Listed below are approximate roasting times. It's important to stir the vegetables halfway through cooking time, so that they don't burn. Also, check to to see if they're done by testing with a fork or cooling a piece and biting into it. ~10-15 minutes: Asparagus, Bell Peppers, Bok Choy, Zucchini ~20-30 minutes: Broccoli, Cauliflower, Eggplant, Fennel, Onions, Mushrooms & Tomatoes ~25-35 minutes: Beets, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Potatoes, Winter Squash If you want to get a little fancier, try this roasted cauliflower recipe! Here's to good eating! Bonnie I hear time & time again from patients that as they begin to feel pain relief, they find they have so much more time & energy. Being pain-free allows them to sleep better at night, go back to exercising & be able to return to doing the things that they love.
The truth is pain, while often not serious, can sap energy and be difficult to manage because the brain is sending constant messages that something is wrong. Sadly, for most of us, no one has told us what to do to get relief. Cortisone & muscle relaxers offer temporary, and sometimes necessary relief. However, they don’t treat the underlying problem. To do this, it’s important to understand how pain develops and why it can persist long after our bodies have healed from an injury. We experience pain when special nerve endings called nociceptors detect harmful stimuli and send electrical signals to the central nervous system. There are 3 types of nociceptors that respond to three types of harmful stimuli:
Unfortunately, when pain goes on for a long time it causes the nervous system to be overly sensitized. All kinds of sensations are recognized as threats, creating a feedback loop that perpetuates pain even if there is nothing fundamentally wrong & no immediate danger. It’s not clear to many of my patients why this is happening, making the situation even more frustrating. And pain, unlike more serious diseases such as heart disease, kidney disease and cancer, is often unrelenting. Nerve endings continue to send signals to the brain, sometimes after the injury has healed. Ideally, we figure out what is causing the pain & with the help of acupuncture, craniosacral therapy & simple adjustments to posture, as well as some gentle movements, the body heals & the pain goes away. I see this happening over and over again. But honestly, particularly with chronic conditions, this takes time. What to do in the moment, when there is real discomfort? I recommend these strategies from the Mayo Clinic’s website 4(26.7%) :
Feel free to reach out to me for a free consultationif you are looking for a way to get pain relief. With you on your journey towards health! I was at a retreat this weekend, which was great, but honestly the food wasn’t so good.
I was eating minimally and a friend asked if I was a vegetarian. I responded that I wasn’t and that I didn’t follow any of the types of diets that we usually think of – vegan, paleo, pescetarian, etc… but that I’m thoughtful about what I eat. Someone who knew me well added that while most people eat for enjoyment and energy, I view food as medicine. When he said this, I had this deep aha moment. This is what I’ve been trying to convey when I say that we should eat to maximize nutrients and minimize process foods. Take a moment to think about this. Food truly is medicine. What grows around us enables us thrive and to stay healthy. When we take advantage of real food that we can easily incorporate into our diet, we are doing the work of healing. In study after study, people who eat real food and lots of vegetables have better health outcomes. I’ve been writing a lot about my Yummy Healthy Food Group. I think I’m so jazzed about it because I see the effect that nutritious eating has on my patients. There are those who see incredible results in a few visits because as they get acupuncture treatments, they are also changing their diets, losing weight and finding increased energy. Some patients make major changes, cutting out all processed and problematic foods. Other people make smaller shifts, adding more vegetables & cutting down on junk food. Both approaches lead to feelings of ease and empowerment. For some it means they can, with their doctor’s care, reduce the amount of medication they take. They also reduce their risk of diabetes, heart disease and pain due to inflammation. There are still some openings in Yummy Healthy Food Group. It starts on 9/25 and Monday will be the last day to sign up for the class. If you’re interested in finding out more about it, go to Yummy Healthy Food Group. You’ll be asked to fill out a form & schedule a free online consultation. Also, feel free to contact me by email or phone. This may be the moment for you to start making a change in your life. Don't pass it up. I used to eat on the run all the time. I’d grab a Kind Bar as I was leaving the house. Sometimes, I’d have my breakfast driving to an appointment. I’d find a few minutes in between seeing patients to gulp down lunch.
It’s easy to do and can seem efficient. Sometimes it may actually make sense. As a habit, it may become problematic. Here are some of the benefits of sitting down to meals, eating with friends and family & savoring our food. Enjoyment In addition to adding nutrients to our bodies, food is meant to be taste good & add to our sense of enjoyment. When we spend more time eating meals, we experience more pleasurable feelings. Bonding There are social benefits to eating with family and friends. No surprise that studies show we bond with people that we break bread with. Sharing food is one of the oldest and most enduring customs of humankind. Better Digestion We tend to eat faster when we eat on the run. When we take time to eat, food is more easily broken down with the help of digestive enzymes, leading to less adverse GI symptoms. We’ll absorb more nutrients and our food will be digested and metabolized more efficiently. Weight Loss When we eat slower, we give our bodies more time to reach the sensation of fullness. We’re more aware of when we are no longer hungry, which may make it easier to forego that second helping. Food Quality When we take time to plan or prepare a meal, we’re more likely to eat healthier foods. It’s easier to add greens and other veggies to our diet. Gratitude When we eat with others, we often comment on the taste of our food. We compliment the chefs and take notice of our favorite dishes. We build traditions around the foods we love & give thanks for them. You may think that this sounds great. Still, it may be difficult to embrace eating more slowly & setting aside times for regular meals. Here are some suggestions that can help:
Let nourishment be a pleasurable experience – one that’s available to all of us. If you find any of these suggestions to be helpful (or difficult) feel free to send me an email & share your experience. Here’s to healthier eating one bite at a time! It feels like summer flew by way to fast.
Fortunately, we have the weekend to try and relax a little, regroup & get ready for the fall season. And, we still have those amazing, local, newly harvested produce. It’s a great time to harvest veggies from your garden, get your weekly CSA farm share or stop at a local farm stand to enjoy the wonderful bounty of food we have in our area. Wondering how to turn this produce into yummy, delicious meals? Here are links to some of my favorite summer recipes. Summer in a Bowl A delicious salad that features both fruits & vegetables. Chicken with Peaches, Red Onion & Basil Nothing better than slicing perfectly ripe peaches & mixing them with olive oil, vinegar, red onions & fresh basil. Roasted Corn So easy & so delicious! Quinoa Tabouli A healthy grain mixed with tomatoes, parsley, cukes & olives. Cucumber & Peanut Salad I love the salty crunch with the cool cukes. There are other Yummy Healthy Food recipes on my Yummy Healthy Food blog. I welcome you to try one new healthy recipe as a small way to add nutrients to your diet. If you’re interested in exploring how to enjoy what you eat & eat healthier, there are a few openings in my Yummy Healthy Food Group that begins on September 25th. Happy Labor Day! Bonnie This may be counterintuitive but one of the most important reasons we all have trouble eating healthy, losing weight & feeling good about our bodies is that we have so many food choices ALL THE TIME.
A baby boomer like me remembers when you could only buy candy in an actual candy store, a drugstore and a supermarket. That was it. Now as we run errands, we constantly see all kinds of tempting foods – at clothing stores, gas stations, hardware stores & department stores. In supermarkets, we have access to every flavor of every cookie & candy. Sugar is addictive & other than calories, provides no nutritional value, no vitamins or minerals, no proteins & no fats. So why are we eating it? Simply put, it tastes good! Also, it’s readily available and it’s easy. The only thing you have to do to eat a candy bar is take off the wrapper. It requires no washing, chopping or cooking. During a busy day, when we’re hungry or grouchy or stressed out, we reach for this simple, pleasurable food. In the moment, we get a dopamine hit and we feel good. Occasionally, this is fine. But if we reach for a sugary treat often, over time this creates havoc in the body. Too much sugar has been linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and poor oral health. Yikes! Fortunately, there’s a way out of constant sugar cravings & blood sugar surges & drops. By substituting healthy snacks in place of sugar, we can free ourselves of this addictive cycle. Here are 2 ways to begin this process:
Let me know how these work for you. And, if you’re interested in doing a deeper dive into shifting into healthier eating patterns, there are still I few spots left in my Yummy Healthy Food Group that starts on September 25th. Find out how eating well for 90 days can change your life. Learn more here With you on the road to better health! Bonnie If you haven't seen me in awhile, I'm happy to report that I'm feeling great.
I'm fully recovered from my transplant surgery & feeling so very grateful -- to my donor, my medical team & everyone who supported me through this process. I thought there was a good chance that I would have to accept a new reality, one where I was in slow decline. That's not what happened. I feel stronger, have fewer symptoms & much less worry than I did before surgery. I expected to be on more medication, but I'm on less. I expected to feel weaker, but I feel strong. I expected to have to make peace with the inevitable aging process, but I'm not there yet. This experience has led me to believe more than ever in the power of healthy eating. What we put into our bodies has an enormous impact on how we feel. It took me a long time to understand the benefit of eating whole, unprocessed foods & longer to actually put it into practice. As a teenager, I was constantly dieting, obsessively weighing myself & eating unhealthy, low-fat foods. In my 20s, I threw out the scale & put on 20lbs -- a lot when you're 5 feet tall. Then, as I was studying acupuncture, I stopped eating sugar & overly processed foods, & started to focus on eating whole foods. During the past few years, as my chronic kidney disease progressed, I cut back on protein, which is hard on the kidneys, & began to incorporate an additional 3-4 servings of vegetables a day in my diet. This led to an aha moment. I realized that our bodies function most optimally when we eat a lot of vegetables. They provide so many of the nutrients that we need. And since they're low in calories, they can help us to lose weight. Our bodies also need proteins & fats & carbohydrates, but it is easy to build a way of eating around these things & add a salad or vegetable here or there. I found that I could flip this idea around. I now have vegetables at every meal. I cook a lot & these days I'm cooking more & more vegetables. I make vegetable soups, stir fries, roasted veggies, steamed veggies, veggie frittatas -- things that are inexpensive and easy to prepare. I realize how fortunate I have been & want to share what I've learned. I've created a Yummy Healthy Food Group that begins on September 25th. This offers support and weekly instructions on how to incorporate foods rich in nutrients into your diet. Do any of these apply to you?
Yummy Healthy Food teaches the principles of healthy eating without fad diets, counting calories or overly restrictive rules. You can get more information here. Want to get started on eating healthier? Here's one of my favorite recipes, zucchini with pumpkin seed soup. Let me know how you like it. Have questions? Just reply to this email. With you on the path to better health! Bonnie |
AuthorIn practice for over 20 years, Bonnie Diamond offers individualized, heart-centered care using a pain-free, Japanese style of acupuncture. Her work is influenced by her nine year struggle with and complete recovery from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Archives
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