ABUNDANT HEALTH WELLNESS.COM

May and June 2011

Reorganizational Healing

by Lexi Fisher D.C. 

 

 

Reorganizational Healing (ROH) is a model of health rather than a method or treatment.  It is a map that guides individuals to discover and incorporate the messages of their “symptoms, problems and life stressors as catalysts to take new and sustained action to create a more fulfilling and resilient life”1 to quote Dr. Donald Epstein, creator of this paradigm.  The intent of ROH is to bring about changes in individuals, helping them to find new resources within them selves.  With these new resources people begin to experience health challenges consciously, to shift their perspective and effect changes in their lives that bring about greater understanding and an increased ability to thrive under what used to be stressful circumstances.  Reorganizational Healing can be used by any discipline or treatment that is based on self assessment and encourages us to be aware of how we perceive our selves and our environment and how we chose to respond and make changes. 

 

 25 years of development, clinical practice, teaching and research of Network Spinal Analysis (NSA) has led Dr. Donnie Epstein develop Reorganizational Healing.  Thousands of people have attended Dr. Epstein’s transformational programs over the years and reported remarkable internal changes and shifts that have manifested as greater flexibility (physically, emotionally and mentally) and higher levels of wellbeing.  

 

 In 1999 Robert  Blanks, PhD conducted a study with 2,818 practice members (what “patients” are called who are under NSA care) from 160 offices in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Australia  to investigate  the life changing effects of Network Spinal Analysis.  Practice members completed an in depth self assessment that showed amazingly positive perceived change in all the domains of health that were assessed: the Muscular System, Respiratory, Cardiovascular, Digestive/Eliminative, Reproductive and Nervous Systems.  They reported more ease and peace when dealing with previously stressful situations and that they were making healthier life style choices.

 

Dr. Blank found the results were statically significant in size. The benefits of Network Spinal Analysis are evident from as early as 1–3 months under care and appeared to show continuing clinical improvements through out the duration of care, with no indication of a maximum clinical benefit. Network Spinal Analysis and Somato Respiratory Integration both utilize the Reorganizational Healing paradigm.  There are three elements of Reorganizational Healing: The Triad of Change (discussed in my Healthy Times article, July/ August  2009), The Four Seasons of Wellbeing and The Five Energetic Intelligences.  I will discuss them further in up coming articles. 

 

In his article: “Reorganizational Healing: A Health Change Model Whose Time Has Come” 2 Dr. Blanks defines “success in Reorganizational Healing is not about symptom relief. Rather, success is the ability of the patient to apply the elements of Reorganizational Healing to effect lifestyle and health behavioral change (e.g., smoking cessation, etc.) and to take the novel perspective, first articulated by Jobst and colleagues, that diseases can be viewed as indicators of what is going on in the individual’s life and in society (i.e., ‘‘Diseases of Meaning’’ and ‘‘Diseases as a Manifestation of Health’’), and thus be seen as a source of growth, understanding, and opportunity for greater awareness and as a catalyst for change.”

 

Health economist Paul Zane Pilzer, author of The Wellness Revolution, summarized the situation well: ‘‘The sickness business is reactive. Despite its enormous size, people become customers only when they are stricken by and react to a specific condition or complaint. . . . the wellness business is

proactive.  People voluntarily become customers—to feel healthier, to reduce the effects of aging, and to avoid becoming customers of the sickness business. Everyone wants to be a customer of this earlier-stage approach to health.’’

 

Dr. Blanks concludes in his discussion of Reorganizational Healing with this: “Moving forward, the real work begins once one makes the decision to shift focus from disease care to preventative care and, eventually, to reorganizational healing strategies.”

 

1. Donald Epstien et all “Reorganizational Healing: A Paradigm for the Advancement of Wellness, Behavior Change, Holistic Practice and Healing”

JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE

 VolUME 15, Number 5, 2009  pp. 475-487.

 

2.  Robert Blanks, PhD   Dept. Cell Biology and Anatomy 

“Reorganizational Healing: A Health Change Model Whose Time Has Come”

THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE

Volume 15, Number 5, 2009, pp. 461–464

 

 

 

March/April 2011

 Lexi Fisher D.C., Kelly Luvera H.H.P. and David Fischer C.Ped

 

Spring is here and as our weather gets nicer and nicer, more and more people want to spend their time outdoors.  As the desert blooms, we see a gorgeous multitude of wild flowers and luscious greenery.  And there’s no better place to enjoy these gifts than on our myriad of hiking trails. But, as our environment and activities change, our bodies can react in ways that take away from the joys of the experience—namely inflamed sinuses, runny noses, and sore feet. So, whether your body is already giving you these signals, or you want to make choices to ensure you get the most from your outdoor activities, here are some options to help maintain abundant health and wellness—pay attention to your nose and your feet!   

 

Let’s talk about your nose first.  One way we can help our body to adapt to the spring pollen and other particles carried by our March winds is with an Ayurvedic treatment called SAN, a treatment that uses herbal oils for a  thorough head, face, neck and shoulder massage.  This is then followed by an herbal steam treatment to the head and sinus, a hot compress treatment to the face and chest, and gentle herbal drops for the nasal passages.  The SAN brings clarity to the mind and relieves tension and congestion.  It has been known to also relieve insomnia, stress and migraines. This is a great treatment for our dry climate.

 

It is best to follow up the SAN treatment with self care:  use the Neti pot to irrigate the nasal passages with a salt water rinse, and then use Nasya oil to moisten them and help keep the tissues lubricated and healthy.  When the mucus layer in our nasal passages becomes dry and cracked, too thick or too thin, it cannot  protect us from dust, pollen, bacteria and other environmental irritants.  We can support our bodies production of this layer of mucus, which is one of our body’s first lines of defense against disease, with these techniques.  

 

OK!  What about your feet?  As you shake off those old dusty hiking shoes and hit the hiking trail you can put a little more spring into your step with custom orthodics.  Remember that heel pain (plantar fasciitis), or ache under the balls of your feet (metatarsalgia), or knee and lower back discomfort you experienced after a couple miles?  These are just a few symptoms of biomechanical misalignments in the foot and ankle complex.  Getting this myriad of bones and joints to maintain their proper positioning while walking is easy with the help of properly designed orthotics, custom made shoe inserts molded to casts of each individual foot. 

 

Todays orthotics can be made from firm, soft, or a combination of materials to provide the comfort and safety you deserve.  Wearing orthotics with accurately fitted footwear can ensure you fully enjoy your hiking and exercise.  Ask a pedorthist to evaluate your foot biomechanics to see if custom orthotics are right for you.  And like the song says:  “happy trails to you….”   

 

For more info re: SAN contact Kelly Luvera H.H.P. and custom orthodics contact David Fischer C.Ped at Abundant Health Wellness Center.

Helping your body adapt to seasonal changes

By Kelly Luvera and Dr. Lexi Fisher

Spring is here and our desert is gorgeous with the multitude of wild flowers after the abundance of rain we have had this winter. As our outer environment changes, our body and behavior need to shift as well to maintain our optimum health.  By listening to our body’s ever changing needs and making new choices that reflect the seasonal changes we can maintain abundant health and wellness through out the year.

One way we can assist our body adapting to the environment of spring pollen and our dry March winds is with a treatment called Shiroabhyanganasya or SAN.  The SAN is an ancient Ayurvedic treatment that uses herbal oils for a thorough head, face, neck and shoulder massage followed by an herbal steam treatment to the head and sinus, a hot compress treatment to the face and chest finishing with gentle herbal drops to the nasal passages.  The SAN brings clarity to the mind and can relieve tension and congestion.  It has been known to relieve insomnia, stress and migraines.  This is a wonderful treatment for our dry climate.

This time of year in the desert can become very drying to the body, not only the climate but also the use of heating in our homes and offices.  This can leave our sinuses vulnerable.  When the mucus layer in our nasal passages becomes dry and cracked, too thick or too thin and runny it cannot protect from the dust, pollen, bacteria and environmental irritants. 

We need to keep this layer of mucus that is one of our body’s first lines of defense against disease functioning properly.  By keeping the nasal passages cleansed with a salt water rinse and lubricated with oils it can help ward off sinus problems, colds, allergies and post-nasal drip.  It also counters the effect of environmental pollution.  After having a Shiroabhyanganasya you will be instructed how to use a Neti pot (to rinse the nasal passages) and nasya oil at home to continue to keep your nasal passages moist, clean and healthy all year round

 

Our Body’s Need for Water

Dr Lexi Fisher D.C.

 

Most people are chronically dehydrated after years of drinking an insufficient amount of water.  Many people choose caffeinated drinks, juices and sports drinks instead of water, because they are thinking “Fluids”.  When liquids have other things in them, juices, sugar, artificial flavors, colors, and or non-nutritive sweeteners our bodies consider them foods, or worse toxins, to be eliminated.  Drinking pure water is the single, simplest thing we can do to improve our level of wellbeing.

 

Bottom line, our body needs 1/2 our body weight (that is in pounds), converted into ounces, of water per day.  As and example, say you are 150 lbs, this means your body needs 75 ounces of pure water per day.  At first this may sound like a lot if you have been in the habit of not drinking water, but once you are drinking this volume you will be able to hear, or feel, your thirst reflex again.  And once you are a drinking your target amount of water you will truly feel and look better!

 

Our body requires adequate pure water, not just fluid, every day to be optimally healthy.  Humans can survive about 3 days with out liquid before beginning to become delirious.  The body is approximately 75% water while the brain is about 85%.   Water is not just the filler between the particles of the body.  It is a solvent, and a transporter of hormones, nutrients, red blood cells transporting oxygen, and the white blood cells of the immune system.  Sufficient water in the lymphatic system is the way the body rinses and cleanses itself.

 

Water is also within the cells, the intracellular fluid.  When the amount of water outside the cells, extracellular, is decreased the body will ration water inside the cells.  The wisdoms of the body will always sacrifice the less essential tissues to protect the vital organs first.  This is the body’s “drought management” in action, compensating for the lack of sufficient water.

 

As the body tries to conserve water, the waste products continue to accumulate. in the water solvent.  When concentrations reach a critical point, the dissolved particles, begin to form or precipitate out of solution.  Did you ever dissolve salt or sugar in water until it began to form or precipitate crystals?  The same thing occurs in our body…with a diminished volume of water the toxins can no longer be held in suspension.  The “crystals” that develop are deposited in the joints and tissues of the body.  This adaptive physiology leads to many conditions or diseases most ending in “itis”. 

 

Our thirst reflex is how our body signals us that we need more water.  If we do not heed the subtle cries we can feel tired, have dry mouth, difficulty focusing, a slight swelling in our fingers and toes, then, even hungry and, if this progresses further, often headachy.  If we continue to ignore our body’s need for water the rationing steps up with conserving water by reclaiming as much as possible through the colon.  You can guess what this does to our bowel movements.  The body will also hold onto water and we find the slightly swollen fingers and toes become edema in the ankles as histamine increases with the stress of dehydration.  Our kidneys are stressed as well by having to filter higher concentrations of dissolved wastes.

 

As we give our body the water it needs you will feel more energized.  Your colon functions better, you have an increased feeling of ease and flow in your joints. You will find that your skin, when it no longer has to compensate for the stressed colon by taking on more of the function of elimination, will appear more healthy and radiant.

 

Adding something is always easier for us than to stop or take away something.  If there is one thing you could do to increase your quality of wellbeing this summer it would be to become aware of your body’s need for water and give it all it needs.