Survival Techniques
Photo by Giuseppe Milo “Running in the city, Chinatown, San Francisco” https://flic.kr/p/r4s28o
I hit the ground running at 6:30 a.m. this Monday morning. At the time I’m penning this, the Ottawa Bus Strike is in it’s 5oth something day which means Jeff and I are adding about 3.5 to 4 hours of driving per day on the weeks that the children are living with us. If they weren’t part-time with their Father, I would have already checked myself into Shady Acres, as there just aren’t enough homeopathic remedies to deal with this kind of stress.
At Christmas, when both the washer and dryer broke down in the same week (I even tried CPR to no avail), it temporarily sent us back into the world of the laundromat; in addition to the house’s water-pump freezing, and general heat issues in our home, it has turned into a tough little adventure for 2009. Sometimes having to reschedule at least 2 patients per day, the bus strike has indicated our income has decreased while our financial commitments have pretty much remained the same. So, of course, the first things to get shaved off the top are luxuries. Yeah, that means socializing, our wine-tasting club and even our weekly pub and a movie have been cut until further notice. I don’t know about you but after a busy week of being a working woman with a couple of hours extra driving every other day, I really like a nice little dinner, a small Guinness (high in vitamin B’s!), and a movie cuddled up next to my man. So to say the least, it has gotten a little stressful here at Arcanum Acres.
So what does a poor girl do, especially when she looks into the face of her patient who is generally looking for stress techniques for themselves. Well, the first thing is that there has to be less indiscretions when it comes to Regimen. I need to start my day with my Himalayan salts. This is a brine we may have told you about at one of the initial meetings we had. The salts come from a region on earth where there isn’t an ounce of pollution. This salt contains 89 minerals from the earth in its purest form which is easily absorbed by the body. It also helps to keep the pH levels within a slightly alkaline state and is very expansive to armored cells that may have become contracted due to dehydration, acidity, or many hours in the car.
Next, I make a shake from raw milk, a raw egg, a scoop of Dr. Mercola’s low-sugar whey shake mix, a tbsp. of my greens powder, some flax oil, and a scoop of Shaklee’s Citriboost, all in one vitamin and probiotic formula. I quickly pop my multi-vitamin, my omega oils, my cal. mag. and gulp down a tablespoon of Cod Liver Oil … yuck! I grab a mug of organic Earl Grey Cream made by Saponetta Divino, a litre of pure water, and away I go … hopefully with the kids in tow. Thankfully they made most of their lunches the night before. We do a picnic breakfast in the car en route.
If I don’t start with patients until 10:00 or 1:00 on one day, I will swim an hour at the local salt water pool or ski for 50 minutes on the trails behind our house. I also do Yamuna Ball Rolling twice per week and will either have a chiropractic adjustment by Dr. Guirguis or go for my bi-weekly massage. Amen!
I absolutely take Homeopathic remedies for stress including my emotional support for anger, grief, fear, guilt and resentment every day. I’ll also baste myself with rose oil (also from Saponetta Divino) at night for additional love and nurturing while I sleep. I will also add some Sepia if I have those feelings of living out of obligation and compliance instead of out of a bounty of love. I also use specific remedies to safely balance my hormones (including estrogen) to keep my sleep from getting out of whack.
I also see a couple of my own Heilkunst Practitioners regularly for Therapeutic Education and remediation as I’ve missed the boat a few times (imagine that!) and I have found myself riding the tide of belief. Believe me when I say that I need as much regimen, medicine and conscious de-armoring as the next person. I will also engage in Dr. Lowen’s Bio-Energetic Exercises, which I love , when I’m feeling blocked in a particular segment. There is a great one for the diaphragm that involves leaning over a bench and opening up the whole belly cavity for a flush of energy that will set me just right for hours, or even days afterwards.
Also, the best, top of the list stress technique that doesn’t cost a cent is still sex … blush, blush. The library has buckets of books on Kama Sutra (Cox), Tantric Sex (Richardson, Carellas/Sprinkle), and my all time favorite, The Multi-Orgasmic Couple (Chia/Abrams). If the descriptions don’t spice things up in the boudoir, the pictures sure as heck will. The Kama Sutra by Tracey Cox will surely delight and, oh yeah, the information is stellar and brilliantly delivered in a friendly accessible way. Believe me, I did read it after I devoured the pictures first. I caught Jeff blatantly peering over my shoulder a number of times, asking me, “how do they do that one?”
Next week, the bus strike promises to be over. I’ve learned a lot about myself during it’s mini-epoch of transit ruination that tried to romp through my quality of life. It will be interesting to see how effective my stress techniques have worked overall. I will know on the day I first see the whites of the OC Transpo bus driver’s eyes on route 69. If I am overcome with feelings to hug him or slap him, I’ll know I need to put my little head-lamp on and take an extra evening ski that night and maybe lure Jeff up early that night. Don’t get me started about our Mayor, as there may not be enough stress techniques, and besides a good slap might just do wonders.
Allison,
You are so great! Thanks for being so authentic.