Internal versus External Healing

Some years ago I stumbled upon the writings of a researcher, Kelly A. Turner, Ph.D., who wrote her dissertation on what she calls “Radical Remission”, which is a cancer remission that occurs either without conventional medical treatment, after conventional treatment has failed to work, or when conventional and complementary methods are used in conjunction to overcome a dire prognosis. From her research she found 75 factors could account for the healing. Nine of these factors occurred with the greatest frequency.

I was fascinated to discover that her findings and the 9 contributing factors to radical remission from cancer were very similar to the journey of transformation that I had been taking my clients on, whether or not they were undergoing cancer treatment or at another one of life’s crossroads. It seems that there is a universality of these factors that can help you transform holistically.

The research touched upon what I would described as the difference between “external” healing and “internal” healing, as described by Barbara Brennan. This something I work with in my practice with people successfully going into remission from cancer, healing other difficult illness or just going through a difficult situation in life.

Food, exercise, and herbs and supplements are external healing. They can certainly be preventative, certainly keep symptoms at bay and even cure illnesses at times, as long as you continue with your regime. Unfortunately, they often reach their limit, if you have not gone through “internal” healing.

There is quite a lot of interest in prevention as well, whether against cancer or any other serious dis-ease that is affecting millions worldwide or simply the anti-aging movement. I personally like to consider my list of factors to be just that, PREVENTION, which means it is never too late (or too early) to consider implementing some of the below factors into your life. They may have contributed to radical remission in Kelly Turner’s research, but they may also help you avoid a serious health challenge. The first 9 factors are the same as you find in her work, and the last 3 are additional ones that I find to be just as important.

12 Factors for Prevention and Radical Transformation

1. Radically changing your diet

We all know the drill: You are not feeling well? Maybe you should eliminate gluten, reduce sugar, replace dairy with non-dairy substitutes, stop eating meat, only buy organic, become a vegetarian, go vegan… But, rather than accepting a new fad or even following medical research, consider that “radically changing your diet” is telling you that you should consider listening to your body and asking yourself whether you believe that your food intake reflects positive self-care. Personally, I am a strong proponent of giving your body the healing self-care of a fast on a regular, but not too frequent, basis and increasing your intake of alkalinizing and anti-inflammatory foods. Of course, I also happen to like the taste of most of these foods, which brings me to another important point… pleasure versus guilt. If you change your diet out of guilt and deny yourself sensorial pleasure, you might be doing more harm than good. So, any radical change of your diet coming from self-care and self-love will be far more effective.

2. Taking control of your health

One of the most educational experiences I had about 10 years ago was during an Anatomy & Physiology Course that I did for my certification in Switzerland as a Complementary & Alternative Medicine Practitioner. Of course, it was educational, in that I learned a lot about our bodies’ structures and functions. But what made the greatest impression on me was how I started to think differently about my own body’s function and how I could not understand why this education was not required for every teenager in high school. I remember taking Advanced Biology myself, but it was not a class that prepared me to take control of my health. If we are kept in ignorance about the most basic functionality of our bodies, how can we take control of our health? We do not learn to develop our inner authority to know when something is not right with our bodies. We simply put our trust in the external authority of the medical establishment, and sometimes this works against.

3. Using herbs and supplements

In Nature, there appears to be a solution for nearly every health challenge. This information and knowledge has to a large extent been forgotten or at least it is certainly not mainstream. I would encourage you to trust a qualified Naturopath, Nutritionist or Herbalist to test for deficiencies and to supplement as long there are no contraindications with any prescribed medications.

4. Following your intuition

This can be a wild card, because many people have spent years denying any and all intuition or gut feelings they have had. At the same time, many of my clients have confided in me that they “just knew” and were then later proved to be correct to follow their intuition, especially related to their own body. I can only recommend to reconnect with your intuition. It is really a wise part of you that has mostly been forgotten about. The good news is that you will always have it on hand.

5. Releasing suppressed emotions

It is my experience that many people are suppressing their emotions and not expressing their emotions. They do not allow themselves the right to simply feel and do not allow themselves to be uncomfortable with these emotions. This suppression leads to blocked energy and certainly not a whole lot of embodied pleasure. Blocked energy is stagnate in the human energy field and creates an environment conducive to the creation of dis-ease.

6. Increasing positive emotions

I am a fervent proponent of creating and increasing the amount of positive emotions in order to assist in healing and, naturally, for prevention as well. As we get further and further away from childhood, we lose touch with our ability to feel the joy that comes from simply being alive as a human being on Earth. Our only option is to use our adult ego to start to choose to create positive experiences to enable positive emotions. The higher vibrations of positive emotions are simply good for us.

7. Embracing social support

Spiritual connection means different things to different people. And, it should, because we are all unique. The essence of it is really feeling your connection to something or someone beyond yourself. It may be to Nature or to God or to the Universal Energy Field. It really doesn’t matter. It is most certainly about finding your own personal connection, independent to anything that you were taught from external authorities. It is more about an intimate connection that only you know for yourself, whatever that may be.

9. Having strong reasons for living (Life purpose!)

We are strong and powerful and can achieve amazing things with a strong intention. So, having a strong reason or many reasons for living and discovering your life purpose or life purposes can lead to extraordinary creations and manifestation of health and well-being. If you are interested in prevention, it seems that this would be a rewarding route to explore for yourself.

10. Remaining curious

The ability of our minds and the power of our thoughts is incredible. Unfortunately, what is happening most of the time is a relentless stream of judgment, especially self-judgment. I find that the best was to eliminate judgment is to use the mantra: Remain curious or stay curious, as has been famously stated before. No matter what thoughts arise, imagine what life would be like if it were possible to suspend all judgment.

11. Increasing flow

This is of course connected to our great inspiration of the Flow movement. As our subtle energy needs flow, so, too, do our entire lives from our belief systems down to our physical bodies. It is time to release rigidity and embrace all that Flow represents.

12. Maintaining balance

Our entire physical existence is essentially grounded in maintaining balance — from the single-celled organism to the most complex systems. And, I find that we do not often enough check in with ourselves to see if we feel in balance or which aspect of our lives is somehow out of balance. Consider feeling into your physical, emotional, mental, and relational aspects of yourself on a regular basis and self-correcting for any perceived imbalances.

The Radical Remission Project was born out of Kelly A. Turner, PhD’s dissertation research on Radical Remission (RR). As Dr. Turner began to research RR as part of her PhD from the University of California at Berkeley, she realized that the opinions of two groups of people were typically missing from the 1,000+ cases of RR published in medical journals – 1) the survivors themselves, and 2) alternative healers. Because conventional medical doctors do not currently have an explanation for why RR’s occur, Dr. Turner decided to ask these two ignored groups what they thought could lead to a Radical Remission. Her dissertation research involved a year-long trip around the world during which she traveled to 10 different countries in order to interview 20 Radical Remission survivors and 50 alternative healers about their techniques for healing cancer.

Since then, her research has continued, and Dr. Turner has now analyzed over 1,500 cases of Radical Remission. There is also currently a pilot study that has been launched at Harvard University, approved by the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health Institutional Review Board, to study the Radical Remission work.

Being at a Crossroad

How do you feel when you get up in the morning? Are you energized and excited? Or do you feel tired, exhausted, and find it difficult to drag yourself out of bed? Are your thoughts and worries keeping you up at night, and making you anxious for what the day will bring? Do you worry about what other people think of you? Do you feel that you cannot trust yourself? Do you feel stuck?

If you experience any of these things, perhaps you are at a crossroads in your life. They are a normal part of life and can lead us to new adventures, if we learn to recognize them and know what to do.

SpiritFlow Spacetime

An integral part of the journey to embrace exciting new and energizing adventures is to really understand your passions and your values. When you go through a process of self discovery, learning to connect the dots of what brought you to this moment in time, you will uncover what I call your SpiritFlow Spacetime. These are the spaces in which you feel radically alive, full of joy and enthusiasm. These are times when doors opened easier for you. These are the Spacetime experiences that had effortless, time-standing-still aspects that enabled your innate self to emerge and shine its light.

Your own personal SpiritFlow Spacetime experiences give you insight into what your unique gifts and positive qualities are. It helps you find direction and life purpose and ultimately leads to a feeling of fulfillment. We often have a tendency to focus on what we are not good at. According to research, as children, not many of us received enough positive mirroring to enable us to appreciate our unique selves. As you build on your strengths and start to align yourself, the energies of the Universe often align with you and you may experience increased synchronicity with meeting people and receiving offers and opportunities.

When crossroads show up, you can practice some simple tools to help you decide which direction to choose or which door to open. It can become an amazing journey of self discovery and transformation. You will learn to trust yourself again, relying on both your analytical mind and intuitive one. You will rediscover your values and honor them in all aspects of your everyday living. You will bring your unique gifts into the world, creating your own path and leaving a shining trail behind you.

 

Here are 7 signs that you may be at a crossroads in your life:

1. You have low energy and are often tired

2. Your emotions are strong and change quickly

3. You find it difficult to make decisions or hold onto judgmental thinking

4. You don’t feel passionate about your life and experience difficult relationships

5. You do not trust yourself or the Universe

6. You cannot see the path forward for yourself today or for next year

7. You do not feel a connection to your inner wisdom

In order to start to do something about being at one of life’s crossing, there are some tools and techniques that I have used to create new paths in my life. I hope that you find some wisdom in them and that they help empower you it forge your own new path in your life, and, of course, leave a brilliant, shining trail.

1. Your Body: Your body has an incredible wisdom and speaks loudly to us when you are not on your unique path. What is your body telling you? Listen to it. What do you need to know?

2. Emotions: Your emotions are an excellent indicator of what is working for you and what is not. What are they telling you? Listen to them. What is it that you need to know?

3. Thoughts: Your thoughts create your reality. Identify when your self-talk is positive, neutral or negative. How much time do you spend in the each space? Investigate your unique gifts and strengths, things about yourself that are positive. Remind yourself of these positive qualities and further use and develop them.

4. Self-Care: When you find yourself at life’s crossroads, it is of the utmost importance to devote more time and energy to your self-care. Reflect on your values, what is truly important to you. Remember self-care starts with knowing, honoring and loving ourself and our values. Self-love creates balance within and ultimately with others.

5. SpiritFlow Spacetime: Look back, remember and rediscover the special moments, places, and experiences that created a feeling of radical aliveness. This spacetime is when you are at your very best. You have full trust in yourself and the Universe. What were you experiencing, doing, being? Who was with you? What impact did it have on you? What impact did it have on your world?

6. Vision: When you connect to your inner vision or intuition and start making decisions from this space, you can effortlessly move forward on a path that is right for you. Take small action steps that are in alignment with self-care and your SpiritFlow Spacetime. You will gain clarity as opportunities synchronistically arrive that are in line with both your spacetime experience and your values. Then it is time to walk on this path that you are manifesting.

And, finally

7. Guidance: Asking for guidance and help is a sign of courage. Take a risk and reach out to show your trust in yourself and in the Universe. You will be exercising your self-expression and listening capabilities. You will be building trust in relationships. You will create clarity where there has been fog. You will leave the crossroad behind you and create a path that leaves a shiny, new, inspiring trail.

One of the major crossroads in my life was when I changed my professional orientation. Before it became clear, my body, my emotions, and my thoughts were all speaking to me. I asked for and received guidance both externally from holistic professionals and internally, re-learning how I could connect to my inner wisdom. And, then I had a profound Spacetime experience that led me to rediscover my innate gifts as a healer and teacher, which created a radical aliveness within me, and I knew instantly the direction I would go.

Find out if SpiritFlow Services are for you.

 

 

Nature is Healing

Did you know that in the US, Canada, Scandinavia and Scotland, doctors have started to prescribe Nature at times instead of medical drugs? Within integrative health care in the US, prescribing time in Nature is now used as a way of treating a range of conditions including high blood pressure, anxiety and depression. This is fantastic news that this movement is growing!

Since ancient times, the healing powers of Nature has been acknowledged and used to help people. In order to develop, create, evolve and be healthy, we need to be connected to Nature. Spending time in Nature is often not enough. We need to do this in a way that invites healing interactions. There is a long tradition of this in cultures throughout the world. It’s not just about healing people. It includes healing for the land, river, desert, animals and plants. There are many different healing activities that can be incorporated into a walk in Nature. An activity is likely to be healing for you when it makes room for embodied listening, for stillness and grounded presence, and for sensorial exploration through all 7 of our senses.

Sedona is Sacred

Sedona, as a sacred place, is intended to reconnect people with nature. It helps us find perspective, balance and to renew ourselves. Have you every considered Nature as a Sanctuary, a place of refuge, a place of connecting to your own spirituality among the heart of creation?

I am in awe when I look at mountains, whether they are the snow-capped Swiss Alps or the sun-kissed red rocks of Arizona. Going into the wilderness to find sanctuary expands your connection to your sacred self. Finding Nature as Sanctuary provides an opportunity to listen to our own hearts, to remember how much we want to be alive, and to contemplate the love that binds us all together. In times of uncertainty and fear, it can be very easy to forget our connectedness to each other and to the Earth. We recoil from the news, our projections of the polarizing “others” and the world in an attempt to numb ourselves. These are the times when the spirit and the heart of Nature is needed most.

Spirit Flow Nature as Sanctuary experiences are not done with the primary goal of physical exercise. It is not something to rush through. It requires mindfully moving through the landscape in ways that cultivate presence, opening of all of your senses, and actively communicating with the land and the energy of the land. This gives Nature access to our physical, emotional, mental, relational, and spiritual being. As we do this we begin to perceive ourselves, our minds and our hearts, in a more profound way. Messages from within and without begin to penetrate into our awareness and being even more deeply.

Nature as Sanctuary experiences is best seen as a practice, not a one-time event. Developing a meaningful relationship with nature occurs over time, and is deepened by returning again and again throughout the natural cycles of the seasons. It is a deeply relational practice, in which the relationship itself becomes a field of healing and a source of joyful wellbeing. Like energy healing, meditation, yoga, prayer, working out, Nature as Sanctuary is a practice and is best to learn it from a qualified guide.​