Positive News & Interviews

VISION – My editor, Patrick, once said to me, “You don’t need eyes to have vision.” A visionary is a being who holds the IMAGE of where he or she wants to go, no matter what. At present, a collective vision is emerging from consciousness as to where we are heading. LIFE flows and we observe, and HARMONY arises when we choose to flow with it. Accept everything that comes your way. Complain not at all. Simply keep your vision. We are blessed in this, our Spring issue, to have two visionaries featured, GREGG BRADEN and JACQUE FRESCO. They share their vision with humanity. The beauty is, we can all have separate visions, and we all do, yet within the whole, a common vision emerges. The expression “Think outside the box” is no longer relevant. There is no BOX anymore. We are ready to use our individual power to step into a new REALITY, a new version of how we would like things to be. CHOOSE not to describe it. Simply feel it. It’s coming.
PAUL CONGDON, Publisher

By Patrick Bridgeman

I touched on the subject of relationships in my last article, The Meaning of Life.  Writing that article now seems like a walk in the park compared to trying to explain what I’m completely immersed in in every moment of my life, yet may never fully understand in all of my lifetimes put together: Relationships.

I do know one thing: my wife is my Guru.  I didn’t realise it until well into our relationship but she was the catalyst for most of the issues that came up in me for healing.  That’s a nice way of putting it, compared to the words I used to describe her part in my process at the times they were occurring.

I do love her, and it was after a good friend of mine told me that having that kind of a relationship was more of a blessing than a curse (especially as we are so good at communicating our truth to each other that it always leads to a healing) that I decided to ask her to marry me.

We’re still “helping” each other to bring our issues to light (mental, physical and energetic blockages that seem ready to be cleared) and we’re getting better at recognising when something is my issue or hers or both of ours.  And if we don’t manage to clear an issue properly the first time it shows up, it’s always willing to show up again and again and again until we finally get it.

Recently while we were on holiday, Evi (my wife) became ill, which I found frustrating.  Then after wallowing in those feelings for a while, I became ill, which made me angry.  Then I became even more ill, which was when I noticed the pattern that was developing.  The more negative my thoughts and emotions were, the more physically ill my body became.

That was a lesson I thought I’d learned long ago.  I guess not.

I’m still learning that the outside world of people and things is a reflection of our inner world of beliefs and perceptions.  Seek and ye shall find.  Ask and it is given.  Whatever you focus on, you’ll attract into your life in one form or another.

I’ve found that I also play a part in other people’s healing and issues.  Sometimes I find myself behaving in a way that doesn’t so much feel like “me” as what the person I’m interacting with expects me to be, as if their beliefs draw out certain aspects of my personality more than others.  They storm off feeling justified that what they believe about the world is true and I’m left standing there wondering what just happened.

I learned a big lesson about others being a mirror of ourselves recently when I got so annoyed at a friend’s behaviour that I wrote down every single thing that I thought he’d done “wrong” and emailed it to him.  Needless to say, he saw the situation differently, but whose truth was the true truth?  Is there such a thing?  Does it really matter?

As the situation progressed, I noticed that a lot of what I was criticising him about was actually behaviour that I myself exhibited in one form or another at one time or another, and the reason it annoyed me so much to see it in him was because I still hadn’t made peace with it in myself.  What a revelation!  It opened a valve and released so much pressure from my mind and my life.

Part of me wishes it didn’t have to happen the way that it did, but sometimes I don’t get the subtle hints.

One thing is for sure, you can’t control how someone else will feel when you do what you do, so you may as well go with your heart’s desire and take comfort in the fact that you’re being true to yourself.  If you do that, then others will respond in a way that brings you closer to your goal, even if it doesn’t appear that way at the time.

God (or whatever you want to call it) works in mysterious, wonderful ways; and you are God.  So, when it all comes down to it, your relationship with yourself is the most important one of all as that is the foundation for all of the other relationships in your world.

Me, Myself and I: the relationship between Mind, Body and Spirit.  It’s such a big topic it requires a whole article to itself.

For now, I’ll simply say, look to yourself when trying to find the answers as to why your world is the way it is, why your relationships are the way they are and who’s going to help you to make them even better.  We all live in our own little world as we all have a unique view of the world, an interpretation of events based on our beliefs (beliefs that affect manifestations that affirm beliefs and on and on and on).

You’re wonderful and I know you’re doing your best.

Life is here to be shared, that’s why there are so many of us.  Sometimes we forget that we’re all One having fun with the many manifestations of what we are.

Who do you want to be in your relationships with others?  It’s something to decide with each person in each moment.  It’s not hard, but it may seem complicated.  Love knows what to do in every moment, so if you live from love, from your heart and head combined, you can have it all for all to enjoy.

www.patrickbrigeman.com

By Seamus Quinn and Kathryn Duffy

In 1995, Kathryn Duffy started up “Inches Slimming Clinic” in Galway, encouraging men in Ireland to do something about excess weight gain. It was a ground breaking evolution in the industry, affording men a comfortable environment to shed their excess weight with masculine dignity.

All was going well, but then she noticed her clients’ weight starting to plateau. Luckily, that was also when a solution accidentally and fortuitously presented itself. Kathryn discovered the NuTron food intolerance test. This test identified foods that the body attacks creating inflammation which in turn results in weight gain and many inflammatory conditions such as Arthritis, Asthma, IBS, Migraine, etc.

The result was fantastic. Trying it herself, she lost weight instantly while eating as much as she wanted of specific foods for her body.  “It was especially great for me because I’m terrible at calorie counting,” admits Kathryn. “I like to eat as much as I like.” Her overall health and energy levels also improved significantly, so she decided to base her clinic around combining this test with electronic muscle stimulation and toning.

Kathryn’s little business was ticking away nicely all that year and was quickly becoming the place for men to visit for help in losing weight. Then, in Dec 1995, disaster seemed to have struck when her clinic disappeared overnight due to a gas explosion.

That did not deter her, in fact the opposite! Within a year and a half, Kathryn had rebuilt her clinic in Galway and opened two more in conjunction with setting up 21 franchisees, and this was all due to word of Mouth.

Five years later, 82,000 clients had successfully gone through the programme. However, Kathryn’s own life had lost its balance and the stress and pressure of running such a large successful company took its toll on her health. On the 25th of May 1999, Kathryn was admitted to hospital with a Pulmonary Embolism (clot in the lung). This was followed six months later by two bleeds in the brain, stroke, brain surgery and losing the use of her right side.

After she was diagnosed, all she could think about was her three small children at home. Who would rear them? Kathryn’s eldest brother had died a few years earlier from a brain haemorrhage so she knew what may be ahead of her. Immediately after that, the priest came to anoint her and it was then that Kathryn felt she was in serious trouble. Her life was hanging in the balance.

A few days prior to that, she was visited by her friend Gerry who brought a Padre Pio relic and blessed her and everyone else in the high intensity ward.

Before the brain surgery took place, her doctor told her husband Paul that she only had a 10% chance of survival. He also said that if Kathryn did survive, she would be in rehabilitation afterwards learning how to walk, talk and basically do everything again.

She has no doubt that Padre Pio intervened, because she was at home eight days later, walking, talking and ringing in the millennium surrounded by her precious family. She also believes that it happened for a reason and that everyone needs a little shake up now and again to help us appreciate what is here in front of us – a wonderful life. Kathryn learned to make the most of every day since.

For the following three years Kathryn recuperated and learned a very valuable lesson, that “your health is your wealth”. Since then Kathryn has taken control and responsibility of her own and her family’s health. She feels that you and only you are responsible for your health. Not your doctor or consultant; you!

Over a period of six years she has created her own wellness home in Galway. She says, “In it we breathe mountain fresh air, bathe and drink clean living spring well water, and sleep in beds that gently detoxify, heal and rejuvenate our bodies.”

In February this year, Kathryn received a phone call from her good friend Fionnuala, enquiring as to where the NuTron diet was now because two of her friends wanted to do it. This rekindled Kathryn’s love for NuTron and with a lot of help from Fionnuala, Kathryn restarted her old business and renamed it NuTron Advanced.

Kathryn’s vision for the future is that because of the positive results of both old and new clients through the NuTron Advanced program, lots more people will learn how to take responsibility for their health and wellness and enjoy the natural energy and wellbeing that we were designed for.

For more info, call 091470308 or visit www.nutronadvanced.com

By Avril Ivory

Trainee naturopaths and nutritional therapists at the College of Naturopathic Medicine have noticed an increase in patients attending clinics who are on the go all the time and who think that they are not sick, are often very tired and report feeling out of balance.

The world is changing very quickly, from climate change to a restructuring of the world economy. It is more important than ever for us to be on top of the world in terms of our health and wellbeing.

Many people are very busy and pushing themselves towards optimal productivity. Sometimes, taking a step back to nurture ourselves leads to greater productivity in the long run. How do we do this?

It is a crucial time to have a positive perception. “Nothing is either good nor bad only thinking makes it so.” Our perceptions are mediated by our sense of wellbeing, if we are in balance physiologically we see the world in a more positive way.

The basics are easy: drink more water, get more exercise (increase endorphins), get more sleep, make yourself important, respond to your own inner wisdom, stay connected to nature, pursue a hobby or passion and surround yourself with good friends. On a deeper lever, however, there are three crucial points to address as a basis for physiological wellbeing.  Ensure that your adrenal glands are not overworked, ensure that your serotonin levels are adequate and keep your blood sugars in balance.

ADRENAL GLANDS:

A car rushes out of a laneway, narrowly missing you. Your heart rate increases, you break into a sweat, there is a rush of blood to your head… We all recognise this experience of releasing adrenaline. It is an adaptive function, a clever mechanism to help us mobilise glucose to remove ourselves from a dangerous situation, e.g. a bear in the woods.

However, for many people this adrenal response is happening too often and too quickly and is exhausting the adrenal gland. Instead of a bear in the woods, it is happening in response to a missed bill or a mortgage repayment or a productivity deadline or even something as simple as a traffic jam. It is causing the body to remain on high alert.

Symptoms of too much cortisol / adrenaline being released in the body include feelings of anxiety, difficulty relaxing, difficulty ‘switching off’ and often disrupted sleep.

The adrenal glands respond wonderfully well to relaxation techniques and deep breathing. The first and most important step is to track your baseline, sometimes the stress response has become so habitual that we don’t even know we are releasing cortisol. Do something that really relaxes you (if necessary have acupuncture or visit a herbalist), hold on to that feeling of relaxation to help identify when you’re moving too far away from that baseline. Identify all the activities that bring you back to that feeling of relaxation and make sure you build some of these into everyday life.

When you have done this, make the following changes: avoid stimulants, sugars and refined processed foods; increase foods with a low glycemic load, e.g. fruit, vegetables, whole grains and legumes. From your health food store, purchase a good Multivitamin and Multimineral, a Vitamin B complex, and ask for a herbal mix that might contain nervines such as Passionflower, Skullcap or Valerian.

BLOOD SUGAR:

If you have been responding to life’s obstacles with an overactive adrenal gland, it is likely that you might be slightly dysglycemic. This means that your blood sugar system might be having dips and peaks.

Signs of dysglycemia include difficulty concentrating, mood swings, anger and irritability and craving sweet foods.

We feel abundantly better and more able to cope with the world with a stable blood sugar system. If your blood sugars are out of balance, follow all the same recommendations as above but add some essential fatty acids to your regimen. They are wonderful in helping to balance the system. Also eat two apples per day to ensure enough fibre. Fibre stabilises blood sugars. Good sources include legumes, oats, nuts, seeds, pears and vegetables.

Avoid caffeinated tea, coffee and cigarettes; all of which can cause both an adrenal response and a huge blood sugar fluctuation. Take frequent exercise (ideally every day): weight bearing and cardiovascular. Weight bearing exercises in particular affect our glucose tolerance factor, so even lifting gentle weights can keep our blood sugars in check for up to 48 hours. They can also bring out the warrior in us and ground our energies, giving us a stable base to work from and keeping our minds in balance.

SEROTONIN LEVELS:

Serotonin is a happy neurotransmitter that plays a major role in transmitting messages in the nervous system. When it is plentiful, we feel wonderful about the world, even if it is posing challenges. Our stores of serotonin can run low particularly if over a period of time our cortisol levels have been elevated, our blood sugars swinging and our gut function disturbed.

Signs of low serotonin include feeling overwhelmed, lowered mood, insomnia, lack of motivation and feeling that we are not good enough.

Serotonin is naturally produced by the body from the amino acid tryptophan. The tryptophan is converted into serotonin, but in order for the conversion to take place we need to be eating really well; ideally a diet which is nutrient dense and full of high life-force foods.  We also need to make sure our gut function is good by including lots of prebiotics (garlic, onions, etc.) and probiotics and avoiding high sugar and high fat foods.

With good gut function and by following all the recommendations above, and by including plenty of tryptophan rich foods in our daily diet (turkey, chicken, avocado, banana, milk, tomato, chocolate, pineapple and plums) our serotonin will be optimal.

All our systems our inter-related. The adrenals affect the blood sugar metabolism and gut function which affect brain chemistry. When these systems are in balance we feel poised to take on the obstacles of the times we live in, and indeed because we are positive and energised we help to make a better world. In a season of gifts, the best gift we can give to ourselves is to honour and support our physiology.

Avril Ivory (M.Sc.Dip.nat) is a naturopath and health psychologist.
She is the Academic Director of the College of Naturopathic Medicine in Ireland.

CNM run free and reduced rate clinics in the city centre and in Dun Laoghaire. If you would like to be a patient at a clinic, contact Eileen on 012353094.

NEW CNM SHORT COURSE:

The College of Naturopathic Medicine is offering a 12-week evening course on ‘Nutrition for Everyday Living’ starting on Tuesday 2nd Feb 2010 in Griffith College, Dublin.

For bookings for the talk or information on any of our courses, call 012353094, email dublininfo@naturopathy-ireland.com or see www.naturopathy.ie

By Damien Wynne and Janine Thorp

The Wynne and Thorp Technique is an exciting new means of healing that can access information and knowledge at levels that have up until now been out of reach for most of us here on Earth. This technique can shift consciousness and reality, and helps people to clear blocks that are knocking them off their true path, and to reach and bring in their full potential here on Earth.

Damien Wynne and Janine Thorp first began channelling together about 5 years ago in Ireland, making channelled essences and developing the skills for grounding high vibration energies and making those energies available to both themselves and to others. As they worked with many different and highly evolved intelligences, they were taught how to clear their channels to allow a broader band of high vibration energy to assist here on Earth, and were also taught points of access in the body so that these intelligences can work with other people to help them to become clear and to fulfil the dream their soul had when it decided to come to Earth as a soul with a physical body. These teachings formed a unique and highly intelligent method that works beautifully and efficiently with both individuals and groups, and can be taught and passed on to those who would like to work with it and are connected with the energy.

These points are located on all parts of the body, each one holding the connection for specific energy to shift within the energy-field of the recipient. Such as, on the head there are points that give access to cellular memory, and to the DNA that holds the blueprint for thought patterns, family emotional patterns and physical weaknesses and strengths. There are also points near the eyes for clearing one’s vision and for clearing blocks around seeing on every level. On the chest are access points to deep clearing around heart issues. Even issues that are tucked away and well hidden can be released and cleared, leaving room for more heart-based relationships to come into the person’s life.

At the feet, information is held relating to the entire life of the client. Blocks from the genetic history of the parents, and from conception and until the present day can be let go of, significantly freeing up the energy that is available to them, allowing them to move forward and to be more free to live their life according to how they chose, rather than it being dictated by the past. Energy from the soul can be assisted to ground by other points at the feet. Patterns of abuse and self harm are locked into structures within the field of energy, and can be cleared by working with points on the back and on the stomach. Other people’s energies that have been accepted as one’s own can also be easily released, and healing around the reasons why they were accepted in the first place can come in, empowering the person to stand more fully in their space, owning their own energy and vitality. By working with points on the hands, relationships with people, family, money, health and basically every area of life can be cleared so that relationships with these areas can in future be positive and life-enhancing. Past-life healing and healing of experiences in other dimensions can also significantly help free a person to be centred within their own energy.

Clearing our energy so powerfully in this way has a significant effect on more than just ourselves – our whole world can change. This positive energy spreads out into our families, into our homes and our work, and out into the world all around us. Those who have worked with this technique are being asked what they have been doing to make such a difference. What they have done is to reach up, bring in their true energy, and then grab the opportunities that have been presenting themselves more and more clearly and more and more frequently. With their blocks dissolving, they can flow through life with so much more lightness and ease, able to manifest and create the life that is theirs for the choosing.

Universe Intelligences created this technique, and as we work with it and clear ourselves, we become more attuned to the flow of Universal energies, and able to stay in our centre as we move through the shifts and expansions that are happening with ever greater speed and intensity. We can ground light and information from the Universe via our soul, making our evolution and the evolution of the world, a much more smooth and beautiful experience.

Janine and Damien hold channelled workshops for clearing and for teaching, as well as working with individuals. They have been working in Europe and will be bringing the technique worldwide. For further information, please visit www.wynneandthorptechnique.com