Dr. Mischa Grieder, ND

Different binders work best for different toxins. Zeolite clay is a great binder for heavy metals, BPA, pesticides, and the mycotoxins aflatoxin, ochratoxin A, gliotoxin, and zearalenone. Find a source of zeolite that’s tested for purity, as some clays contain contaminants. Zeolite can be taken mixed with water, and doesn’t even taste all that bad!

Most of us already know that a meditation practice is helpful for managing stress. A 2017 review in Advanced Mind Body Medicine takes it a step further, stating that by regulating the stress response, meditation can help to suppress chronic inflammation states and maintain a healthy gut barrier. Anyone looking to improve their health could benefit from both, especially those healing complex chronic disease. Here’s the link to the study if you’re interested:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29306937/DrG

Happy Labor Day! We wish you a long, relaxing weekend filled with friends, family, and self-care.

Regular nutritional IV infusions can support healing complex chronic illness in a variety of ways. Nutritional IVs deliver essential nutrients directly to the bloodstream, bypassing digestion, where absorption is often compromised. These infusions may boost your strength and vitality across systems, and speed your body’s ability to self-heal. Message us with questions!

To all those parenting kids with Lyme, we honor your strength, courage, and perseverance in the face of this largely misunderstood disease. Parenting kids with Lyme can be extremely difficult emotionally and financially. It’s easy to feel as though you’re alone out there, as mainstream medicine offers little support. We see you and all the hard work you do to protect and heal your kids. You are heroes.

Western black-legged nymphal ticks are the most common vector for Lyme disease here in California. As a hiker, I usually assume these ticks are most densely packed into leaf piles and brush. However, a recent study (Hacker, 2021) points to other areas to look out for - specifically rocks, logs and tree trunks.

Make sure to wear your boots, leggings, or tuck your pants into your shoes. Safety over fashion when it comes to nymph ticks, as they are only the size of a poppyseed.

To read the study please click on the link below:

https://academic.oup.com/jme/article/58/4/1880/6226965

When researchers examined neurons in the prefrontal cortex of mice exposed to long-term stress, they found there was an increased loss of and decreased formation of dendritic spines in prefrontal cortex of their brain. Ketamine restored activity of prefrontal neural circuits and led to formation of new dendritic spines.

To read more, please visit:

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/how-ketamine-relieves-symptoms-depression

To read the full article:

https://www.dovepress.com/dermatological-and-genital-manifestations-of-lyme-disease-including-mo-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-CCID

Graphics:

https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/signs_symptoms/index.html

Today we pause to celebrate, remember and support the feminine. You are seen. We are grateful.

If we missed anyone, please help us and comment below 💚

Did a tick bite you? I know our first instinct is to panic, but try to safely remove it, identify it if you can, and save it for testing. Regardless, call our office or contact a Lyme literate doctor or practitioner. Lyme literate practitioners are trained by ILADS (international Lyme and associated diseases society) on proper protocols and testing.

In honor of May Lyme disease awareness month, I’ve made a short tick quiz. Use it to simply get familiar with some of the markings. Might help one day 💚

Photos from https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/tickbornediseases/tickID.html

Interesting study. For more information, please access links below.

https://news.yale.edu/2020/11/11/yale-scientists-identify-protein-protects-against-lyme-disease

https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1009030

T cell are very important to our immune system. Good sleep strengthens our immunity. One mechanism is by enhancing the ability of T cells to stick to infected or sick cells and destroy them.

Talk to me about your sleep patterns during our visit. There are many ways to tackle these issues.

Study:

https://rupress.org/jem/article/216/3/517/120367/G-s-coupled-receptor-signaling-and-sleep-regulate

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/how-sleep-bolsters-your-immune-system

Ticks that carry disease are thought to reside primarily in wooded areas. A new study published April 2021 shows this isn’t necessarily true. The research points to the vegetation growing near beaches or coastal trails in Northern California as tick hotspots. Researchers said they weren’t expecting to find many ticks, “but we found heaps of ticks in big numbers. And they’re infected with diseases.”

For more information, visit www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/04/25/ticks-lyme-beaches/

Or to read the original study:

https://aem.asm.org/content/early/2021/04/15/AEM.00319-21

You are enough.

Reminder - There are approximately 476,000 new cases of Lyme disease per year in the US. It has also been found in 80 countries worldwide. If you do not have Lyme disease, you likely know someone directly or indirectly who has been diagnosed. For some, acute infection resolves and life continues on. Others experience suffering on a spectrum, from mild discomfort to life-altering consequences.

If you know someone with Lyme disease, send them some love today. Let them know you are listening, and you care.

Repost

“Earlier in 2020 I got an email from a yoga studio that said “We can’t meditate our way out of this”. I thought to myself, why would anyone (especially a yoga community) use meditation to “meditate their way out of” anything. Meditation is the very thing that allows us to go into the challenges of life. And for many of us, there has never been a greater invitation to lean into challenge than 2020. The waves of change have not stopped- and they continue to beat against the shores of our sacral chakras, breaking through blocks, reshaping and redefining our inner landscapes, while pulling what no longer serves out to sea. I can’t imagine how anyone survived this process without some form of meditation. Not because its a “way out” but because it’s a life vest in turbulent waters. ⁣
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The shadow of the sacral chakra IS the drive to run away from discomfort. It’s the reason we turn away from the ugliest injustices and the cruelest human behavior. It’s also the thing that drives us toward the quick fixs- the sweet taste of sugar, the sedation of alcohol, the euphoria of s*x, the high of drugs … But the pleasure fades and there you are again- unsatisfied. This is why meditation is medicine for the sacral. It teaches us about equanimity. It teaches us to be still as the desire for pleasure and the aversion to discomfort arise. It teaches us to PAUSE before we react so we can actually perceive the true nature of our instincts- they are impermanent. ⁣
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Practicing meditation does not REPLACE the responsibility to take action. It allows you to choose response over reaction- and then rather than being driven by a fleeting emotion (like FEAR- the emotional mascot of 2020), we can act thoughtfully with integrity. ⁣
⁣
Meditation is not a tool to cultivate denial or avoidance. It’s not a means to get you OUT of any situation. It’s a tool to cultivate awareness and presence so that you can stay IN any situation regardless of how unbearable it is. Give me a 👋 if you have a meditation practice and share below how it’s helped you in 2020 and 2021!”

For more information on Seven Senses and Dr. Erica Matluck, visit:

www.experiencesevensenses.com⁣

I am honored that my dear soul brother, Loten Dahortsang, who joined our family in Switzerland when he was 13 years old, shares a meditation with us today. Anapanasati is the root meditation of mindfulness, and a core practice in Buddhism.

To access the full Anapanasati meditation that Loten led in a live group setting in Croatia, please visit:

https://youtu.be/L9klzX-jlhY

Loten Dahortsang, born 1968 in Lhasa, Tibet, is a meditation and yoga teacher that has been trained by renowned teachers in Tibetan monasteries in India and Switzerland since he was 13 years old. Loten Dahortsang teaches meditation and yoga in Buddhist centers in Europe and lives in Zurich.

Thank you for sharing with us today, Loten.

https://www.facebook.com/dahortsang.loten

http://www.lotendahortsang.ch

http://www.tibet-institut.ch

https://youtu.be/SRwAm7xYLfw

Loten Dahortsang Anapanasati Meditation Loten Dahortsang Anapanasati Meditation - english version

Today Shona Curley, Founder of Red Kite Meditations, joins us to share a restorative yoga exercise.

“Try using a yoga sandbag on your upper spine to deepen and support any forward bend. For this one I’m sitting on a bosu, but you can also sit on a few pillows or a yoga block. The sandbag will increase the stretch, and it also gives you something to breathe into - helping to open the diaphragm and soften back extensor muscles that are often tight and sore. Stay for at least 90 seconds to let your fascia release.”

In addition to Red Kite Meditations, Shona co-owns Hasti Pilates studio, specializing in rehabilitation and pain management. She has been teaching pilates for 22 years with a focus on chronic pain. Since her own diagnosis with Lyme disease in 2017, she’s also been working with clients with Lyme, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue.

www.hastipilates.com


For more brain, body and energy healing for chronic illness, follow Shona:


Or visit
www.redkitemeditations.com - a site dedicated to natural healing for chronic illness.

Tiba Ganesh is a yoga instructor and grad student that joins us today with healing words from her own journey.

Her yoga practice has a strong focus on foundation and alignment; she believes anyone can benefit from this practice. It begins with removing expectations - and using the body you currently have. With 8+ experience teaching to clients with chronic ailments and pain, she is well versed in adapting to constitutional challenges - and thrives on being able to shift your mindset to create sustainable change.

—>
“how many times do we need to be reminded - to love what we have? how many times will we stop wishing - for our grass to be greener?

for years, i’ve been mulling on this concept. how can i create a new aspect of wellness: one where we begin each day, with new possibility. where we forage for answers amongst our community, nature, and food. it’s always been right here.

embodhi this house.

embody your passion, spirit, mind and body to harness strength you never knew you had.
empower yourself through education and then educate through our experiences. because “today is the first day of the rest of your life”

these past 15 months have been incredibly painful, as i search for answers to help my ailing body. i had no idea where to even begin, but in march, i began to connect the dots - with the help of a neurologist chiropractor, and my community of doctors and acupuncturists by my side. after extensive testing, and heavy blood work - we’re still not sure what’s going on. all we know is, i have at least two autoimmune diseases — and we’re doing all we can to figure out what is causing my body to attack itself.

in the meantime, what i can do - is fight. with anti-inflammatory foods, with therapeutic yoga, with meditation, breath work, and cognitive behavioral therapy.

i realize i have all the tools i need.
and my body is a champion of challenges- so this too shall be overcome.

let me be proof that you don’t have to let a chronic disease take over your life.

take action and be in charge of your diet, your mindset, and the people who directly affect you. and let us help you along the way.

COMING SOON:
www.embodhihouse.com

Dr. Rachele Lam offers us a Traditional Chinese Medical (TCM) approach to nutrition. Faced with a series of crippling, stress-related health issues, she once turned to TCM and acupuncture to heal and ground herself. She regained a sense of calm and clarity that allowed her to thrive in all facets of her life. Now her healing practice centers around women’s health, skin, sleep, pain, digestive issues, stress, and fertility. Rachele sees patients at her acupuncture studio in Potrero Hill and online.

https://www.fountynacupuncture.com/

From :

“Springtime Foods // nutrition for your Liver (featuring my favorite: grapefruit!)
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Our bodies reflect and respond to the natural cycles of our environment, which is why it's important to eat with the seasons🍃. Think of why you might crave ice cold 🍉watermelon in the summer, or a hot ginger tea🍵 in the winter.
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Spring is when the energy starts flowing again, longer hours of sun, blooming flowers🌷. Energy awakens after a cold and withdrawn winter. Think of bears 🐻coming out of hibernation. We want to get things moving!
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In Chinese medicine, the Liver is responsible for spreading and moving the qi in the body, so foods eaten in the spring are focused on assisting the Liver. Pungent foods, spices and herbs like onion, mustard greens, turmeric, basil, bay leaf help stimulate the Liver. Raw foods like sprouted grains, beans and seeds, fresh 🥒veggies and fruits🍊, also help stimulate Liver energy flow. If you're feeling extra stuck (Liver qi stagnation), maybe a bit irritable and restless, try some bitter and sour foods! These flavors help prevent qi from getting stuck in the body.
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Grapefruit is one of my favorites and I've been waking up to one every morning. They are great for strengthening digestion and circulating qi in the body. The peel also has medicinal properties and can be made into a tea to help with digestion, and also resolve mucus conditions of the lungs.”

For more nutritional and health tips on TCM & acupuncture follow Rachele:
acupuncture

“Just as food causes chronic disease, it can be the most powerful cure”
- Hipprocrates

This reflects the mindset of our Wednesday holistic nutritional consultant, Geri Araus, offering helpful tips on supporting the gut brain axis through food choices. She healed her own Ulcerative Colitis, has been in remission for 12 years, and now serves others by helping them bring balance to the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual areas of their lives.

https://www.geriaraus.com

“I incorporate nutrition and diet with stress management tools, lifestyle and supplements.

I help men and women find the root cause of their digestive issues, such as: IBS, GERD, Indigestion, Colitis/Crohn's, and then go on formulate a plan to resolve and repair the gut. My goal is for you to be free from pain and discomfort to be able to live a healthy vibrant life.

My mission and passion is to educate, guide and empower you on your holistic health journey with non-judgement. I am here to meet you where you’re at!”

Check out her 8 Week Gut Healing Program: https://www.geriaraus.com/coaching

Or follow her for more inspiration, education and nutritional tips:nutrition

“The gut-brain axis (GBA) consists of bidirectional communication between the central and the enteric nervous system, linking emotional and cognitive centers of the brain with peripheral intestinal functions.

This list I have provided will support healthy gut / brain functions like (digestion, metabolism, immune function, mental health and much more).”

Welcome Michelle McKeon! You may recognize her name from as the Clinical Nutritionist who specializes in environmental toxins, tick-borne infections, gut dysbiosis, and inflammatory conditions. Today she offers do’s and don’ts on eating when on a Lyme diet.

“Michelle is the founder of Lyme and Cancer Services (LCS), widely known for their work with hyperthermic treatments for lyme and cancer patients. She has authored two books, writes articles for health magazines, often interviews on podcasts, other media, and at events to share her own personal story of overcoming Lyme and making a career as a leading Lyme specialist through nutrition and hyperthermic therapies. Her dynamic combination of personal, professional, and educational experiences has created a foundation to effectively support people in becoming their optimal selves: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.”

https://lymeandcancerservices.com

DO:
✔️ Eat foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids to help with cell membrane repair
✔️Shop organic to decrease consumption of highly sprayed fruits and veggies
✔️Watch out for BPA canned foods, as BPA is a hormone disruptor
✔️Drink at least 2L of water daily

DON'T:
✖️Consume foods that are high in sugar
✖️Purchase foods that are highly processed
✖️Eat foods that could add inflammation (often foods containing dairy and gluten)
✖️Consume fish that may be high in heavy metals (healthier options are farmed catfish, Atlantic cod, Salman, and Rainbow trout)

Learn more about Lyme, cancer, environmental toxins, hyperthermia treatment, and nutrition with Michelle McKeon, president of LCS and head of LifeSpan medicine’s Lyme Nutrition programs.

Our Monday guest is Dr. Beverley Rider, a functional nutritionist and histamine expert. She works particularly with clients who suffer from Histamine Intolerance (HIT), Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), and migraines. She also runs “Histamine Bootcamps.” Link below.

www.rider4health.org

Today provides helpful substitutions for low histamine foods that are also high in vitamin C.

It is important “to eat vitamin C on a daily basis, since our bodies don't naturally produce it. This can be tricky, when you're trying to eat low histamine.

🍒 Many foods high in Vitamin C also have histamine

🍒 Citrus Fruits, for example, may liberate (free up) histamine in the body, causing even more trouble

🍒 Dried foods are not recommended on a low histamine diet - fresh foods are best!

🍒 Vitamin C can be taken in supplement form or preferably, eaten as fresh foods

🍒 Camu camu powder is histamine friendly & extremely high in vitamin C. It can be added to smoothies!

What is your favourite low histamine swap from this list?”

Follow for more helpful and supportive information!

And stay tuned for more educational posts from nutritionists this week.