Ginger Pear & Pumpkin Soup with Coriander Pesto

 This recipe is a velvety celebration of autumn. Ginger is highly revered as a 'universal medicine' in ayuveda, according to Rosalie de la Foret in her book gorgeous book 'Alchemy of Herbs.'  The immune boosting and anti-inflammatory properties inspired this recipe but ginger is quite good in pregnancy nausea and motion sickness, and helps remedy a fever by dilating the blood vessels. The Ras el hanout offers quite a bit of anti-inflammatory and circulatory stimulant properties as well. This is truly a soup to warm, nourish, and revitalise. The coriander has an affinity for toxic heavy metals and will bond to them and carry them right out of your body.  

• a good chunk of Pumpkin, diced
• 1 Brown Onion
• 2 Garlic cloves
• 4 cm knob of ginger
• 1 Pear, peeled, cored, chopped
• 1 litre bone broth/vegie stock
• 1 ras el hanout
• 2 bunches Coriander
• a couple of glugs of olive oil
• 1 lime
• ½ handful almonds

Preheat the oven to about 190℃. Spread the pumpkin out on a baking tray. Add 1 - 2 tbsp olive oil. Stir to smother the pumpkin in oil completely and season with some pink sea salt. Roast for 30 minutes.

Once the pumpkin is in the oven chop your garlic and onion and add some more olive oil to a pot on the stove. Heat to medium and add the onion. The longer you let the onion simmer the more delicious it will be, so brown for a minimum of 5 minutes but for as long as 25. Once you're satisfied with your simmered onions add the ginger, garlic and Ras el hanout and stir until fragrant.

Add the stock and the pear and bring to a strong simmer. Add in the pumpkin hot from the oven, remove your pot from the heat and blend until smooth. I like to use a stick blender because the process of transferring hot liquids into a blender makes me nervous.

Serve with a dollop of Coriander pesto

Coriander Pesto

Add Coriander, almonds, olive oil and a good pinch of salt to a food processor.  A mini one will be fine if you have one of those and blend. You could also use a mortar and pestle. Grind or blend into a chunky paste.

Frankincense comes in herbal form too!

Anyone who is into essential oils loves their frankincense. Did you know frankincense is derived from the Boswellia tree and is also available to take as a herbal tincture or in dried tablet form?

Boswellia serrata  is a wonderful anti-inflammatory treatment for arthritis, improved asthma symptoms in 70% of trial participants and is beneficial in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Several trials also show promising results for enhancing brain function after significant brain injury  and reducing swelling on the brain after radiotherapy treatment for tumors.

The beneficial effect of Boswellia in treating brain inflammation suggests another possible benefit in conditions such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, impulse control disorders, autism, Alzheimers disease and schizophrenia. More research is required in this area.

The wonderful Boswellia is available in herbal tincture and in dried tablet form from a accredited naturopath/herbalist near you.

Healthy Chakras Change Lives

I’m a huge fan of the School of the Modern Mystic. In fact, I believe this is the number one practice that has helped keep me sane and on the right path as I navigate through this unknown territory that is life. This time last year I was home with a three month old baby, adjusting to my new life as a mother. Prior to childbirth I had a solid meditation practice that involved a walk to my back studio upon awakening every morning and time spent in front of my altar complete with candles, music and tarot readings.

The practice of shiatsu kept my intuitive muscles well flexed and I felt easily in tune with my inner self.

Life with a beautiful baby was different. I would still read cards, but I’d do it on the floor next to my gorgeous new girl. Meditation was rare, if not non-existent. My husband worked a lot and it was difficult getting regular time to myself. I felt like my intuition was becoming weaker from lack of practice. I needed something to change.

And then one day I felt strong guidance to to open an email and read it all the way through. Down the bottom was a link to Belinda Davidsons School of The Modern Mystic. I was intrigued. What I found at the other end of the link was exactly what I needed. A six month online intensive focusing on chakric health. Belinda Davidson strongly expressed the message ‘when your chakras are working properly, everything in your life is working properly’

I thought back to a time when at 20 years old I was cleaning holiday studios in return for accomodation in Byron Bay. The owner of the studios gave me a book on chakras and said, 'here I think you’ll like this.' It was a large A4 size book complete with photographic images of yoga poses that help activate and align each chakra. I added the poses to a morning practice with a chakra clearing meditation. The rest of the year unfolded a sequence of life events that were incredible and special. Talents I never knew I had were revealed to me, I was blessed with abundance and love over and over again, and found the romantic love of my life before the year was out. Read more about this here.  Although at the time it hadn’t occurred to me that my meditation practice could have set the scene for all this wonderfulness, but thinking back I certainly couldn’t disprove  the connection Belinda Davidson was drawing between chakric health and general awesomeness.

So skipping from 2004 to late 2015, babe in arms, I intuitively felt this course was exactly what I needed. It would provide motivation to meditate daily and keep my spiritual health in check as well as an online community of like minded souls.

After a quick consultation with my higher self I signed up immediately and have not regretted it once.

The person I am before a full chakric cleanse and the person I am after are different people. The former is tired, cranky and more prone to thinking negative thoughts. The latter is light, airy and joyous, with space in my mind to keep focused on what’s important.

The most immediate result I found was that I was so much calmer, so much happier with each moment , rather then resisting the baby that would not let me put her down or keep me awake at night there was space and acceptance. I was relaxed.  The school of the modern mystic made being a mum to a demanding little baby so much easier.

Motherhood is the challenge I was facing at the time, and still, it consumes my life, but working on your chakras will help you no matter where you’re at at right now. Whatever’s going on for you at the moment, working on your chakras will make it better.

Yes I already knew about the chakras, what colours they were, and roughly what each of them did. There’s always more to learn however. I’ve learnt so much more about myself in this course.  I’m still learning, feeling, sensing. There’s so much information available about each one.Your inner world is not the only thing that changes with this work, it’s very much the beginning of a whole life transformation. From your external environment, financial situation, the work  you do and the level of happiness you find with that work.

My home has transformed more and more into exactly what I want it to be, I’ve found inner strength I didn’t know I had, old patterns and chronic disappointments reveal themselves in a new light and though challenging, I can see real change is possible and even what needs to be done to achieve my greatest vision for myself and my life. Pure potential has revealed itself. It’s wonderful and I want to share it with you.

Sure there are still challenges. Things change, babies grow into toddlers, Life is fluid, as it should be. I can’t always get my chakra cleanse done. But when I do I feel the difference, it’s tangible. And I count my blessings.

Much love, Libby.

These two books tidied my house and changed my life.

Marie Kondo has helped me tidy up my act. I’m naturally quite a messy person. I’m a maximalist. I like lots of visual stimulation and pretty things. I also love ease. It needs to be easy. I aspire to keep a beautiful living space, don’t we all? Finding the balance between ease and clean is an art in itself. An art I’ve had to learn and practice.

As a youth I would throw my clothes in a pile on the floor, choosing my days outfit from the heap.

Since moving out of home I’ve learnt to keep my clothes in a wardrobe. I’m a visual person and am super conscious to keep only pretty things on display. Though outwardly there is an appearance of togetherness and order inside my cupboards was a different story. Tops kind of folded...more rolled... definitely not neatly thrown in my bedroom drawers. My tea towels shared space with some random other unnecessary items that made it impossible for the tea towels to lay flat. My linen cupboard- ugh. The bathroom cabinet was a jumbled mess of cosmetics and cleaning products.

Not anymore, things have changed around here. I’ve never been so neat in my life. My home feels spacious and roomy and clean. It breathes. It feels Zen.

I have a small collection of books dedicated to household organisation; all of them had their useful insights, and enhanced my homemaking abilities in some way.  But I feel it is Marie Kondo's 'The life changing magic of tidying up’ and her new release ‘Spark Joy’ that are truly transformative. She has done the trick of altering my behavior, and therefore my home. The joy I feel living in this space is now enhanced exponentially.

I have transformed, because now I fold things, and store them standing upright. I thought I was terrible at folding, but really I just hadn’t learnt properly. Konmari, as she is known by her clients, wrote that I just need to find the inner rectangle of each item of clothing, like a monk looks at a piece of stone and sees the Buddha statue within it all clicked. Now I enthusiastically fold my families clothing, in search of the inner rectangle, and the result is absolute tidiness. It’s been five weeks since I put my wardrobe in order and I’m still folding strong. The neat folded version of my drawers is so much better then the messy half-folded way they used to be that I am motivated to continue folding. Getting dressed is an absolute pleasure.

Konmari’s  method is unique because you start on categories of things rather then the place where they are kept. So you start by doing all your clothes, and then all of your books, all paper etcetera. The key is to only keep things that spark joy.  She also makes great suggestions on how to store the things you keep so they look nice and tidy.

To begin with I was bewildered and overwhelmed with the volume of things I own. In truth I actually read most of Marie Kondo’s first book about a year ago but didn’t finish it, although I was enjoying it immensely. It was my way of procrastinating on tidying.

It was only after I started reading her second book ‘Spark Joy’ a few weeks ago that I was re-inspired to read her first again and get stuck into it.  I was apprehensive at the workload ahead to begin but after the first day I’d reorganised my wardrobe and was so delighted with the results that I moved through Evie's wardrobe and tidied Andy’s space too.

I moved onto books with enthusiasm transforming my bookshelves into colour coded creations full of joy, and fattened up my wallet by selling what I didn’t keep. I was hooked. I cancelled appointments and social dates. I got into my office space, the bathroom. I went all throughout the kitchen, I got rid of nick knacks and rusted bakeware that were just hanging around, not being particularly joyful. Appliances that used to sit on the counter now sit in the cupboard.

The results are so satisfyingly organised.  Every item that I own now has it’s own place,  and my home as neat as a pin. Because I can now fold, I’m not scared of laundry anymore. I do all the laundry. My laundry baskets are empty.

I didn’t realise before how much my messy storage spaces was draining my energy. The clutter was creating extra guilt. You know that guilt, the guilt that seems to follow every mother around like a small child.

Last night, after a particularly stressful afternoon with a tired and teething baby I walked past the laundry all washed and drying. I smiled with pride and said to myself “you’re awesome.” It was one winning moment amongst a group of stressful moments. I felt on top of it and in control. In that moment all the time spent folding was worthwhile.

A conception story ... make the healthiest baby you possibly can

I met my partner at the age of 20, we were drawn to each other like magnets. He moved in with me after four weeks, we were married in three and a half years. Nine years later we’d bought our first house.  

At the time I got married, at 24, I figured I’d want a baby when I was 26. But 26 came and I was far from wanting a baby, and so was Andy.

27, no, still not feeling it. I was having way too much fun, and studying. 28, Babies were far from my mind, I could smell the end of a four-year naturopath degree. 29, we bought a house, I graduated. Babies felt somewhat closer, but I still wanted to get my naturopath feet wet, dip my toes in. Practice my skills. And then I turned 30. It was well and truly time.

I went to a 4 day pregnancy conference just for naturopaths. All about care during pregnancy, all the ways we can help our clients as a health care provider. They drummed into me a four month preconception program is ideal.

Nurture your eggs and your partners sperm, make the healthiest baby possible by getting your body and hormones in perfect working order.

Get rid of toxins, bad habits, anything that’s not whole and pure.

Go to yoga,

meditate,

Exercise,

Eat like a health queen.

First there was a detox. I started a six week detox on my own accord. I cut out all that was bad for me, but I kept losing motivation, falling of the wagon. I also had my inner party girl begging to be let out for a last hoorah before motherhood began, to kick up my heels and celebrate my freedom and youth. I got my 23-year-old sister over from Victoria to stay with me for a week so I could pretend to be 23 again. It was awesome.

She came and went, and I knew I had to get serious, and I couldn’t do it on my own. I didn’t want to waste any more time. I enlisted the help of Naturopath Cassandra Boylen, to set me on my path. Having her to hold me accountable was exactly what I needed.

She put me on some detox herbs and supplements. She gave me a diet plan, recipe ideas. I did swimmingly, much better then I was doing as a solo detoxer.

I did have one or two ‘educated’ slip ups, a couple of glasses of champagne on week four for a friend’s birthday. Its what you do most of the time that counts.

I was also taking supplements including probiotics, an antenatal multivitamin. I took Iron and vitamin D supplements after a blood test came back low.

The idea was to get my body in as prime condition for conceiving a beautiful healthy child. All nutrients topped up, hormones primed and ready to go. I also began eating meat after 11 years of vegetarianism. This is because good grass fed meat is packed with all the key nutrients you need for baby making, including B6, B12, zinc, Iron, essential fatty acids, saturated fats and high quality protein. And my iron levels were already on the low side. I intuitively felt that if my body was getting everything it needed, then baby making would be a breeze.

I was healthy in the first place. I could have been exercising a little more, but I’d been a diligent exerciser for most of my twenties. I’d been a super healthy eater for years. My one foible is that I’d regularly indulged in too much wine, and this was one of the major reasons I wanted the detox and preconception care. I wanted to heal as much damage as possible.

In order to make a baby you need a reproductive system that does what it's supposed to. I’ve been fortunate in that my reproductive system has always been reasonably balanced. I hadn’t taken any pharmaceutical contraception since I was 22, preferring to use natural contraception instead (ie I tracked my cycle and avoided sperm while ovulating). I’d noticed since turning 29 my cycle had lengthened by a day or two, and often I experienced a 29 or even 30 day cycle. This bothered me a bit as it meant things had changed, and were not as they were in younger years.

There's plenty that can be done with reproductive disorders such as PCOS and endometriosis. Please don't despair if you experience these or other reproductive issues, be proactive, think positive and please speak to a health care provider to get help.

Once or twice a year I would get crippling menstrual cramps or bouts of pre-menstrual depression, but I noticed these often followed a particularly boozy – coffee filled month. But mostly, my cycle was regular and dependable, an old friend.

I tried to get Andy on board with the preconception too. He’s not a big drinker, he eat’s reasonably well and has long given up smoking. However he is 46 years old (to my 30 years at the time of conception) and has a stressful job. I got him some special healthy sperm supplements, and nag as I might he didn’t take them.

When and if we go for round two the healthy sperm supplements will be non-negotiable however. Having the healthiest child possible is a no-brainer, why would’t you do everything possible to give your bubba the best start?

In my pre-conception phase I treated my body mostly like the temple it deserved to be. No one is perfect all the time, and it’s no use beating your self up for the odd mishap.

Truth be told, I didn’t manage to last the four months of preconception care. I was about at the three-month mark and I spent the week leading up to ovulation with an aching overwhelming urge to try for a baby. So we did, and little Evie (yes I named my unborn child when she was at about 8 weeks gestation) was conceived the first time we tried. She was meant to be, it was her perfect time to come into existence.

And there she was, just like that.     

baby evie at 12 weeks

It’s hard to know how much the preconception care helped, because we had never tried for a baby before, so I have nothing to compare it to. What is definite is that we had absolutely no trouble conceiving a perfectly formed child, and for this I am unendingly indescribably grateful.

I feel the pre-conception preparation invited a healthy pregnancy not only physically but spiritually and mentally. All of these aspects are important for welcoming a new little being into your life.

It also brought me piece of mind, knowing I did my best to give my baby a nourishing environment in which to implant and grow.

The key health points to take away from my preconception experience are

• Know your body. Understand your cycle and recognise when you’re ovulating. Ideally sperm should be ‘introduced’ about a day before you ovulate.

• Your body is a temple, a healthy age-appropriate body will happily reproduce… You are biologically wired to reproduce. So relax and give your body what it needs. A naturopath can assess your diet and arrange testing to correct any nutritional deficiencies.

• A pre-conception care program gives you solid guidelines to get into tip-top shape for conceiving. This is important for everyone but especially important if you have a history of food intolerances, IBS, auto-immune disease, and hormonal or reproductive imbalance.

• It takes two to make a baby, so two people should be engaging in pre-conception care to ensure the best start.

Photo credit: Hannah Jones of Keeper Creative

Pregnant: The difference between sexy & beautiful

I’ve never been so in awe of my body and also so shocked by it. I’ve never felt so much like an animal. Especially anticipating in another 19 weeks or so I will birth this bubba and feed her from my now more-then-ample breasts.  

I giggle with glee at seeing my bump enlarge week after week, a smile that becomes a little stretched out of shape as I catch site of my thighs that now rub together and the butt that won’t quit (getting bigger).

There’s a few things going on here, cravings for carbs and cheese aside. My capacity for exercise has reduced, a desire for rich, fatty and nutritious foods has increased.

My hormones are padding my body out, gearing it up for the many breast milk feeds that are destined for the future.

Breastfeeding can take 2000kj a day, with that in the pipeline I’m not surprised my body is becoming super efficient at storing fat. I’m just like that. Any periods of excessive exercise are usually coupled with weight gain for me rather then loss.

A few weeks ago I read a blog written by an anonymous father-to-be, who expressed, quite bluntly, that his ‘previously 10/10 wife’ who was now 6 months pregnant was not sexy at all. She was a zero, a turn-off. He couldn’t bring himself to make love to her, even though she was super horny (a pregnancy thing) and wanted him.

He then went on to talk about how her growing belly reminded him of his own personal anxieties about becoming a father. His disgust for his wife’s body was way more about him then it was about her.

Whatever ‘Man,’ I read this just two days after my husband left for a two week trip. Had he been coming home that evening, I would devised ways and means to coax whatever reassurance I could out of him. But he wasn’t here, nor was I going to see him for two weeks.

“Thanks Mamamia for posting this” I commented, “Participate in the denigration of the self esteem of your target audience why don’t you. “

The next day the words of the article still haunted me. I didn’t want to become repulsive for making this gorgeous, perfect, gift-from-God soul baby, who is an absolute treasure to the both of us. Who I already love so much it scares me.

I don’t want to lose my attractiveness. I’m a young woman. Who wants to be un-sexy?

I checked out my reflection often in the days that followed. I began to realise, Pregnant bodies aren’t, technically, sexy. It’s true, there’s no biological requirement for a pregnant women to be sexy, she can’t get any more pregnant then she already is.

What’s the point?

And further more, I don’t want to appear sexy to any man right now, (apart from my soul mate husband). I have no interest in having another man anywhere near me, I’m sure this is another biological mechanism for protecting my baby.

I became at peace with my inner struggle. I decided it’s okay to not be sexy. I’m okay with that. I’m growing a baby, and that’s where my energy needs to be. I can be sexy again after the baby’s born with breastfeeding, gentle exercise and a healthy diet. And time.

Then my husband came home from his trip.

I didn’t ask him directly, but I can tell from our conversations and the way he feasts his eyes on this protruding womb of mine….

He is just as excited at my growing belly and milkmaid breasts as I am. More than excited, he is absolutely enamored with his unborn child.

This morning I got dressed to take the dog for a walk down by the beach. I put on a singlet top that no longer quite covers my abdomen, with bump just slightly sticking out from under the fabric.

Is this a bad look? I asked him. He said, ‘I don’t think pregnancy is a bad look. It’s let it all hang out, It’s ‘I’m pregnant and I’ve got a flower in my hair, and I’m growing another little flower in my body’ “

His very sincere way of saying pregnancy is beautiful. It made me smile.

He’s so in love with his baby girl, he’s totally embracing all the change that comes with it, all the changes that happen to me. And I am too, and this is how it should be.

Follow your heart and everything gets better

  If you told me two weeks ago my life would take this twist I wouldn't have believed you.

A couple of weeks ago I was reflecting on the spring equinox as a time for releasing the old and letting go of what no longer serves you. I didn’t expect the old to release quite so quickly and in such an unintentional manner.

Through a sequence of happenings that began on the day of the spring equinox, the celebration of new life,  it became obvious a position I thought I needed didn’t truly reflect how I wanted to feel or the lifestyle I wanted to lead.

Nature shifted, the planets aligned, the stormy weather began.

I realised, after several days of deliberation and meditating with a monkey mind, that I wasn’t being true to myself or what I truly wanted.

So, with my soul purpose to help our community heal close to my heart,

I chose to take a leap into spaciousness.

My gut was telling me go, to follow the beat of my own drum and practice Shiatsu and Naturopathy in a way that truly serves my clients and makes my heart sing.

To write that I wasn’t bummed out would be a lie. I was completely bummed out that the path I'd been walking had come to somewhat of a stand still. But this didn't last long, and the beautiful, gentle sunshine weather this week helps affirm my intuition that I've course corrected in the right direction. My happy heart leaves me secure in knowing I’ve definitely made the right choice. The support and encouragement from my friends and family have been outstanding.

Change is necessary for improvement.

On the other side of my amicable resignation meeting is freedom, and the knowledge that my practice is once again entirely in my hands. This is both daunting and exhilarating.

Divine timing reaches a graceful and loving hand,

and I find, like always, the universe provides. The week when things were looking chaotic and totalled, not one but two amazing opportunities present them selves. Yes the universe definitely has my back.

My wind chimes sing under the olive tree. My garden grows green, my clients show up, and I go about being my own boss once more.

It’s scary leaving a comfortable position into the unknown. At the age of 24 I first received guidance through my meditation practice to leave an office job and practise shiatsu full time.

I ignored my gut and stayed with the job. I was fearful, and studying, and things felt uncertain.

Eventually I did follow that guidance, albeit 5 years later, and took the leap into self employment. Since then my life has been a sequence of miracles and self-discovery. Everything career wise, heck everything life-wise is WAY better, even if the pay is yet to catch up.

I often wonder what would have happened, where I’d be now, if I’d taken that leap at 24 rather then at 29.

Time is our most precious commodity and we can’t afford to waste it on unsatisfactory living.

So yes, I’m a seasoned job leaver, love seeker. Sharing my story, and hoping you too will follow your heart.

Moon musings + 6 ways to heal through letting go

This weeks full moon on the 9/9 was a weird one. I was bringing up old energy from the past all over the place. There were vivid dreams that involved old boyfriends, unrequited love and resurfaced childhood emotional-neediness. Stuff came up that I thought I had resolved years ago.  

Old destructive habits reared their ugly head and I ended up with an acute stomach condition that started on Saturday afternoon. I thought it more then coincidental that I was having issues with my stomach- the meridian of earth and nurturing-  while simultaneously feeling emotional pain for a lack of nurturing (that old unresolved emotional neediness I touched on in the last paragraph).

I’m not really an astrology gal though I do occasionally enjoy the musings of astrologer Anne Ortelee. She wrote Saturn’s prescence in Scorpio will throw us back to between the ages of 16 – 23 for the week leading up to the full moon.

Yep, this is where I went, back to my 16 year old self with emotional angst, and I even had a strange craving for playing video games, something I haven't done since my teens.

 Yes I felt I had digressed.

In search for answers I looked to the moon mavens I usually confer for comments on the lunar cycles, but they both have been silent this full moon. They weren't the only ones, I’ve been pretty damn silent myself.

The weather went absolute gang-busters all over Perth, wild winds and bucket loads of rain descending down on us, shaking us and confining us indoors hoping the windows don’t break in and the roof doesn’t blow off.

My sickness stirred and grumbled in my tummy for a few days, building. It felt my large intestine was inflamed and red sore. The wind battered and howled outside as did the wind inside. Whoa man.

I’m not going to share the finer details of my food poisoning incident, trust me, you don’t want to hear it. But eventually after a couple of day of stirring, growling and causing pain, I literally let everything go. I purged, I cleansed, I slept, and then I was healed.

The night of the full moon itself went by almost without notice. A thick cloud covering hid if from view.  It was apparently completely full at 9:39am, when it was daylight and blocked from vision by the rotation of the Earth .

Out of sight out of mind, no one has mentioned the moon to me this week. I think about this time the words drained, spacey and withdrawn come to mind. I even forgot to put crystals out, I watched a webinar  that went late and went to bed.

The following morning I rose and gathered my rocks and jewellery, placing them in the garden bed with intentions of cleansing. Ready to take responsibility for myself once more.

I’m a big believer that each new experience brings with it an opportunity for growth.

My emotional drama and my physical illness heighten the importance of a letting go, letting go of emotional crap that comes up and threatens our productivity and success, because lets face it, it’s just not worth dwelling in a place of zero creation and stagnant growth.

So recognise your troubles, the ones that hold you back, and let them go. The full moon is the perfect time to let go of unnecessary baggage, habits that no longer serve you, and beliefs that keep you stuck.

Let go so you can move ahead

Physically expressing your intention to let go of an emotional pain or memory that you no longer need to hold on to through ritual is one of the most powerful thing you do to begin your healing journey.

I was going all gung-ho at writing my own releasing rituals when I realised the gorgeous Karina Ladet (she pops up a lot for me lately, I think she’s becoming a muse) had already listed some gorgeous releasing rituals in her 7 days to a more intuitive you course and sent them to me this very week. This list combines my releasing rituals with Karinas because her's are so good.

• Sweat it out, go nuts on the punching bag, go for a jog, whatever form of exercise you love to do, move through the movement and forward into life.

• Write it out, write a letter about what it is you don’t need and don’t want, and tear it up, burn it, throw it into the sea. Release.

• Meditate: Visualise yourself is a beautiful forest (I love this visual) all the trees and birds are in support of you, it is a very loving place. You come to a circular clearing and a flower meadow. In the centre there is a fire contained in a sizeable circular stone fire pit, with golden symbols engraved in the stone. You understand that this is a very cleansing fire. You then take your burden, which is in a dark bulky sack, it feels heavy, and drags you down. You gather your strength and heave it from your heart into the fire. You feel strong, and light. You watch the sack transform into ash and smoke, the smoke twirls into the air, the sack is no more. You are light and free. You take a moment to feel gratitude for all of your blessings, all of your loved ones, and your comfortable home. You then become aware of a drumming circle and tribal dance. It’s time to celebrate. You join in and dance to the beat of the drum, feeling complete freedom, love and support.

• Ask your guardian angels/God/Jesus/Buddha/idol of choice to take it away and dispose of it (that easy hey)

• Find a stone, pebble, or a piece of wood. Hold the stone (or whatever) and visualise you need to let go of, breathe it into the stone and ask the stone to carry it away. Toss the stone over a cliff/into the river/out the car window, wherever you feel is best.

• Go for a swim in the ocean and imagine your sorrow washing away with the cleansing waters

The full moon is a time to let go of your shit. LET IT GO. Even though the day may have passed this month, the waning moon is a closing energy, a winding down and releasing to make way for the new moon two weeks later, where everything begins afresh.

Shiatsu Massage and Flower Essences are a wonderful tools for releasing and overcoming fears and emotions. And so is talking through stuff, and balancing your hormones. I’m available for Shiatsu massage and Naturopath appointments and I love to help. Give me a holler.

What's causing your Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)?

I want  to talk about some of my least favorite things. Stomach pain, flatulence, bloating, the runs, and constipation. Does this sound like you?

Irritable bowel syndrome is a really common, in fact it's the most common condition I see as a naturopath. However there's no simple solution. Everyone is different and what’s causing your trouble may not be the same as your friend.

Numerous theories abound as to what may be causing your digestive upset. I’m going to cover the most researched hypotheses right here.

Excessive Stress

Your brain is in communication with your digestive system via a few different pathways in your nervous system.

The parasympathetic nervous system is known as ‘the rest and digest’ nervous system. This is switched on when you feel relaxed and there is no danger. Conversely the sympathetic nervous system is your ‘fight and fright.’ When you’re feeling stressed this will be switched on.

When you’re in stress mode, your body switches on your brain and muscles and turns off your digestive system. This is because digesting the food you just ate is the last thing you need to be doing when you’re in danger. No you need to be running away and figuring out how to outsmart the threat.

If you’re chronically stressed, this has an ongoing negative impact on your gut, where food in not digested properly causing pain and discomfort. You’ll also be missing out on the nutrients in your food because you won’t be absorbing them properly.

Altered Serotonin Signalling

You may have heard of this neurotransmitter that often has feelings such as happiness and joy attributed to its actions. Did you know much of your bodies serotonin is actually manufactured in the gut? 95% of body stores are found in the digestive system. Serotonin has a major action on your gut motility – that is how well your digestive system passes food from one end to the other.

Researchers have found an excessive level of serotonin is likely to cause diarrhoea whereas too little tends to cause constipation.

Visceral Hypersensitivity

Do you have an awareness of your digestive function? People with IBS tend to have a painful awareness of the stomach, small intestines and large intestines. Increased hypersensitivity has been associated with lower levels of serotonin.

Infection

After a severe bout of gastroenteritis the upset to your happy commune of gut bacteria may be enough to completely through the balance out of whack and IBS symptoms ensue. The harsher the infection, the more likely you will develop post-infection IBS. Other risk factors include depression, being female, longer duration of illness and fever.

Alterations in Gut Flora

Gut flora is commonly altered in incidences of IBS. This can be caused by antibiotic use, poor diet, the contraceptive pill, stress, and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Alterations in gut flora can eventually lead to overgrowth of the wrong kinds of gut bugs leading to poor immune defence and less production of short chain fatty acids. These short chain acids help water absorption and also feed the good bacteria. They are crucial to good gut health.

Bacteria who are good in one place can be bad in another. Sometimes they start colonising in places they shouldn’t, such as your small intestine. Small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) is found in 50% of IBS cases.

Possible causes for SIBO include gastrointestinal surgery, proton pump inhibitors (medications for indigestion such as Omneprazole), immune insufficiency and malnutrition.

SIBO has been associated with medical conditions such as depression, acromegaly, diverticulitis and interstitial cystitis, cystic fibrosis and fibromyalgia.

Food Hypersensitivity and Intolerance

Do your symptoms get worse after you eat certain foods? Some food intolerances may be because you lack an enzyme required to break the food down. For example you may lack lactase required to break down lactose, a milk sugar found in dairy. Others might be because your body can’t transport that kind of food molecule effectively. Basically in some way shape or form, your body is just not equipped to deal with that food.

When you do eat one of these foods you can’t handle, your intestinal wall becomes inflamed. This inflammation causes further sensitivity and creates even more intolerance.  Food you were able to eat as a teenager is suddenly making you feel very under the weather.

The good news is, you may be able to recover from most of your intolerances once the daddy of all intolerances (milk, fruit, wheat, soy whatever it is for you) is removed from your diet).

If you regularly suffer digestive discomfort I’m sure you might have an idea or two about what might be contributing to your symptoms, especially after reading the above. Once we figure out the source of your discomfort we can go about treating you as quickly and as effectively as possible.

Naturopaths are great at treating gut problems. We have an arsenal of gut soothing herbs, intestinal wall repairing nutrients, and can offer support and direction in your dietary choices. You don’t have to live your life afraid to go out in case you suffer a flare up/make a lot of smelly gas/feel bloated and disgusting.

If you’re a Perth local  please make an appointment here I’d love to help you.

I wish you peaceful meals

References

Sheppach W, 1994, GUT an International Journal of Gastroentology and Hepatology Effects of Short Chain Fatty Acids on Gut Morphology and Function.

Hectman L 2012, Clinical Naturopathic Medicine, Churchill Livingstone Elsevier

Gorgeous photo credit to artist Camila Carlow, isn't it amazing? A floral digestive system. I love x

My Herkimer Diamond Heart. A crystal gift from my spirit guides.

I’m at the beach with a new glimmering Herkimer Diamond around my neck. It's lifting my energy and inspiring me with endless possibilities. As if I'm on some kind of spiritual speed except it’s completely clean with only the high and no low.  

I put this piece on layby after being strongly guided by my magical massage hands to take it home with me. This is going to sound a little weird but let me explain. When giving shiatsu massage I tune into an almost unconscious intuitive inner-knowing where my hands seek out the tight spots, knead away the knots, and soothe and balance energy practically all by themselves. I release overall control of the movement and let my hands lead the way to peace and release.

I tune into this same inner compass …I guess you call it a kind of physical intuition, when I need to make a big decision.

For example when deciding whether I should buy something …such as a stunning Herkimer Diamond Quartz, I’ll hold the object in my hand in front of my chest. If my inner goddess wants me to buy the object (read because this thing will somehow bring me joy or enhance the evolution of my soul) my hand will move the object toward my heart. If it makes no difference or is not going to really be much value my hand will put the object back on the shelf, or move it away. I also have a yes/no system for questions that cannot be held (such as should I buy this house, should I take this job) . For yes my hand moves to the right, for no I move to the left. No need for a pendulum here. I find the powers that be generally want you to enjoy yourself, and there’s no need to deny yourself an amazing dress or a fab piece of furniture if it’s going to bring joy and beauty into your life.

Anyway back to the Herkimer Diamond. My strong inner compass loved this thing. My eyes found it a visual delight, my heart was swooning, but did my brain love the price? Not so much.

Before putting it on layby I wondered if I would have and afternoon of guilty buyers remorse and a wave of budget anxiety washed over me. However another hold in front of my heart opposite the cash register affirmed I was onto a good wicket.

Once home, memories of this stunning crystal beauty infiltrated my thoughts.

Opens to creativity....... aligns healer with patient..... heightens clarity and clairvoyance....

were some of the gems listed as her properties in Judy Halls Crystal Bible. Far from feeling guilty I was ecstatic. Layby would not suffice.

The next day I brought it home, cleansed it in water, left it in the sun next to my calendula plant with beautiful yellow flowers for a couple of hours.

After I time I felt ‘guided’ to complete another of Karina Ladet's Spirit Guide meditations (check out what happened in the last one here) feeling now was the perfect time to do a meditation I’d been meaning to do for a couple of weeks. A guided meditation was the perfect way to attune myself to this gorgeous new rock.

Anyway within this meditation I’m communicating with my guides (which was amazing and a whole other story) and Karina instructed me to hold out my hands to and ask my guide if there is a gift for me.

Here’s the thing, I was already holding the Herkimer Diamond and so with a smile on my face held up my hands, crystal included and felt a gorgeous blessing wash over me and my crystal.

I feel like the crystal was the gift divinely sent to spend some time with me. I feel like this crystal chose me, a rare once in a lifetime piece that comes along just at the right time to guide me to the next level of my journey. The last time I had a such strong pull to buy a crystal was my flourite wand that woke up my intuition and led me to massage 10 years ago.

Since this first and favourite fluorite came into my life I’ve collected various crystals over the years, all beautiful in their own right. This one, though, this Herkimer Diamond, feels like an absolute game changer. I wear it, I hold it, my heart opens and rushes of excitement course through my veins, my future full of possibility.

After the meditation I was finally ready to string my new Herkimer onto the new silver chain and hang it around my neck. Leading me to the beach, border collie at my side, pen and notebook in hand, setting sun and a giant smile on my face.

As I write I get a message coming through, from my wonderful supportive spirit guides. “Wear it well Libby, beautiful child of love.” How nice is that? Amazing.

I get this spirit guide crystal story will be worlds away from the experience and beliefs of some. This contact with the spiritual realm is far removed from everyday mundane. It's certainly not run of the mill for me, it takes practice, daily meditation, good food and honoring my intuition to get to this level of trust. Sure it occurs to me that I may be cray-cray, that I'm making it up, and it's all in my head. But these thoughts feel like nasty, clammy closed in fear whereas my meditative mindset  fills my being with expansive love.

When you pay attention to your soul, when you trust your intuition, wonderful, wonderful things will happen. You are loved, you are special, and you are here to shine your light.

Do you have a special rock? One that you just adore, makes you feel good, looks divine? I’d love to hear about it. Tell me in the comments on the facebook feed.

Blessed Be

References:

Karina Ladet www.karinaladet.com

Hall, Judy, 2003,  The Crystal Bible, Godsfield

Are you low in Iron? Quick Quiz + what all the fuss is about.

So what's the big deal anyway?

You need iron to produce red blood cells. These deliver the most essential nutrient of them all, oxygen to all the cells of your body.

Low iron left unchecked and untreated can develop into iron deficiency anaemia, this is where you may notice symptoms of fatigue, weakness, pale skin and shortness of breath.

On top of this, iron levels affect cellular energy production, hormone production and detoxification pathways. If your levels are low your going to be feeling under the weather...all the time. 

Iron is absolutely crucial for periods of growth, especially pregnancy, teenagers and for children six months to four years of age. If iron levels aren’t up to scratch in these special times, you might see suboptimal growth and development.

Do you have low iron? Read through these questions and take note of how many yes’s you have.

1. Do you feel tired or fatigued?

2. Do you feel weak?

3. Do your skin, nails or gums look pale of feel cold?

4. Do you get short of breath or breathe rapidly?

5. Do you get dizzy or lightheaded?

6. Is it difficult to concentrate?

7. Does your pulse race?

8. Do you have heart palpitations (are you conscious of your heart beat often?)

9. Is your menstrual cycle irregular

10. Do you have numbness or coldness in your hands and feet

11. Do you have Restless Legs that keep you up at night?

12. Are you irritable and grumpy?

13. Do you feel sad or depressed?

14. Do you suffer from recurring infections or colds?

15. Is you have haemoglobin levels less then 130 – 170 g/l for adult males and 120 – 150 g/l for adult females (you’ll get this in a blood test)

16. Have you ever been diagnosed with anaemia?

If you answered yes to five or more of these questions, you may have an underlying iron deficiency. We'll have to test you to be sure. It's important not to commence iron supplementation without consulting a health professional. I highly recommend you discuss this with your naturopath so we can further evaluate your iron status, and set you on the path to wellness.

You need to be especially vigilant if you're

• pregnant
• an athlete
• a teenager
• have a digestive problem that affects nutrient absorption
• vegetarian or vegan
• have recently lost a lot of blood or continuously lose blood

If you're a sandgroper and worried about your iron please drop into the Fremantle Markets and speak to a qualified Naturopath at the NatMed stall on the weekend. Otherwise contact the lovely reception girls at NatMed 9339 1999 and make an appointment.

Look after yourself

References: Hectman L, Hywood A, Newton T, Integria Pregnancy Intensive Handouts, Eagle 2014.

Why your goldfish can teach you how to eat + Winter foods

The discovery of hundreds of happy little mosquito larvae wriggling around in my backyard pond caused me substantial alarm. To counteract this direct threat to backyard safety and comfort I brought home 5 sweet and beautiful little goldfish. I had gone to the aquarium store with the mind to get some of these mosquito-eating machines, not really considering that they would become part of the family, but once they were bagged up and looking at me adorably through the clear plastic goldfish bag, my heart filled with warmth and opened up for new pet-love, they had me 100%. I gently placed their aquarium bags in the water, praying they would survive, gradually adding pond water to their plastic bag to acclimatise them as the hours passed. They were psyched to be there, they could see all the wrigglers floating around freely available and were keen to start eating.

This morning I was thrilled to find them still living and I let them fully integrate into the water. They were cautious at first, but I can see it is a goldfish paradise for them, complete with live food to chase, plenty of natural sunlight,  and aquatic plants to hide amongst and chew. Inside that pond they are 100% free to be themselves and express their personalities fully, I'm happy for them. They bring mega positive feng shui vibes through the back yard …I’ll take a goldfish pond over a mosquito farm any day.

I’d been concerned for their survival due to the reputation goldfish have for kicking the bucket. They’re sensitive little beings. I’m also aware that often a goldfish may be brought home and added to a bowl, or tank, perhaps with no plants, no one else to play with and a set feeding time each night, quite unnatural for a fish, who likes to swim all day nibbling at pleasure and weaving through flora. If I was suddenly placed in a sterile boring unnatural environment, far removed from my internal yearnings, I might just die too.

These days of artificial light and artificial sweeteners and even artificial grass have us living further away from our forest dwelling ancestors then ever. We make our goldfish live in environments like ours. We give them a sterile house, artificial food and electric lights and wonder why they don’t thrive.

All night  entertainment from computers and tv, and shift style work schedules force us out of natural cycles. Is it really surprising that many of us feel out of touch with our own bodies?

Since the event of electricity in homes and the massive technological advances in the decades following, depression and mental illness have risen exponentially while male sperm counts have dropped by over 50%. Experts are pointing the finger at man-made chemical contamination and sedentary lifestyle as the major culprits (Sharpe, 2000) We’re unhappy and it seems our ability to reproduce healthily is suffering.

There’s plenty we can do to get back into nature, or feel ‘Earthed’ as I like to call it. One of the easiest and simplest ways to get in tune is with your food. Within the Eastern medicine and the Shiatsu world, eating with the seasons is vital for a vibrant circulation of body chi and good health.

When we consider mental illness such as depression is accompanied with disconnection from nature, eating with the seasons may have humongous positive impact.

Consciously eating in line with natural Earth rhythm is a great way to connect with your intuition and improve connection to nature. Eating whole natural, seasonal and locally produced foods prepared at home feels healthy, supports your community, is budget friendly and great for the environment too. Sounds like a recipe for good karma and happiness to me. Below is a list of winter produce in season for WA, add a few to your shopping list this week. If you read this from afar, google seasonal produce in your area to stay in the loop.

I’ll be sharing some wonderful winter warmer meal creations on the blog, so keep an eye out.

Winter blessings for you my friend x

Love Lib

The number one best detox weapon EVER!

I should be able to put myself on a detox right? After all I’m a fully qualified professional. I have more then enough knowledge to take myself through the ins and outs of a piddly little detox. How can anyone possibly know what I need more then me? I’ve actually been attempting self imposed detox for years and I have a metallic silver detox ‘journal’ to prove it.

Let's revisit some of these detox attempts shall we?

24 January 2010

As I wear these now rather tight pants, the same work pants I’ve owned since I was 21 that are feeling a little pulled across the backside, I contemplate the rather bizarre rocky road craving I just indulged. The remainder of the package is hidden safely at the back of the pantry top shelf, out of sight.

On one hand I’ve just read a book about macrobiotic veganism and am inspired to increase vegan meals, on the other hand since Friday I’ve shamelessly cracked 2 beers, 1 Jim Beam and coke (?!...I never drink that stuff) and about 3 glasses of wine. I also helped Andy through his Myalup service station hot chips and corn chips with salsa and guacamole both Saturday and Sunday. Why this self-destruction I wonder? I’m sure my sugar cravings are directly related to the alcohol consumption

2 Jan 2011

December was like a month of endless pleasure and indulgence. It’s time for detox once more.

21 October 2012

My Detox Intentions: – I will be more beautiful then ever turning 30. I eat well, in small portions of amazing food. My body is strong. I love to exercise. I’m toned. I look great in those Current Elliott skinnies. Other people respect me because I respect myself.

There have been times when I’ve come up detox trumps, with mega energy, sparkly whites in my eyes, looser clothes, soft lustrous hair, glowing radiant skin. It was great, and when I look back on it, those times were helped because I had a support system, I had detox companions to hold me accountable, and we talked about our experiences, our cravings and our successes to cheer each other on.

Back to present day I’m well a truly due once again for a good detox and regeneration. My own rules and plans just havn’t been cutting it. I don’t listen to myself enough. Especially not in the long term. If it’s just me to answer to, I might just let those slip ups slide.

Well I tell you I’m sick of failing, I don’t want to find myself still drinking coffee in three weeks, when I’m supposed to be detoxed by then, like history repeating. Real change starts with the individual, but support and encouragement get results.

Having a professional take you through the detox process and the very act of making a time for appointments as well as a financial exchange is a powerful deed. It cements commitment. And further to this, chatting to a health coach about your goals achieves clarity about what you actually want. With a pro you get measurable results, such as live blood analysis, gut bacteria testing and acid/alkaline balance.

Lets face it, it’s embarrassing to admit failure to anyone, especially after promising them and ourselves from the bottom of our hearts we’ll do otherwise. It’s called social accountability and it goes a long way towards measurable results and long lasting success, especially among women.

This is why I’ve enlisted the support of an experienced naturopath, the wonderful Cassandra Boylen of Cassandra Boylen Naturopathy, for my detox this time round. It’s the real shebang, six weeks of alkaline foods, liver nourishment and gut repair to have me radiating health and rainbows from the inside out, and you know what, I can’t wait. I’m excited about herbal tea in the morning instead of coffee, I’m excited about morning yoga and fab skin.

More then anything else, I’m excited about regular sessions with my naturopath to chat about ins and outs, ups and downs, my emotional detox response, cravings, daily successes and miniature failures. I want encouragement combined with professional health care. I’m forgiving myself for not being little miss perfect naturopath with a goody goody green-ness track record, because I’m not. I’m human and I want to achieve my health goals. I realise my value, and future are totally worth the investment of a pro to help me with my detox commitment.

So there you have it, why evens pro’s need other pros to lean on (cue The Beatles song of the same name). If you want to detox yourself, get rid of hassled sugar cravings, bacterial overgrowth, troubled digestion, regain your energy and feel bliss, give me a call, we’ll book you in for a detox intro sesh.

Green Smoothie Goodness to ya

Love Lib

How I gained and lost 25kg. And then put some on again.

After smashing on 10kg when I was 12 and then another 10 kilo when I was 13, I was horrified with my reflection. I spent the next few years of teenager-hood depriving myself during the school week and then bingeing on Friday night. A whole packet of Caramel Crowns and I were good friends. My giant butt and I were not good friends. The boys at school used to call me stumps.

When I was 15 I started to explore my spirituality. I did a magic spell to lose weight. It involved chopping up bay leaves into little tiny pieces, breathing my intention to lose weight over them, and blowing them to the four corners. Afterwards I went inside and fixed myself some toast, like usual, with Grandpas homemade Jam. I had a bite, and for the first time, realised I wasn’t hungry enough to finish it. I learnt how to tune into by body and listen. I could taste the density of all foods I made and whether or not my body needed it or not. Every bite of a chocolate bar tasted like fatty calories, and white rice felt, well, empty.

Thats me in the white, age 16, 75kg

My eating habits changed. I started to eat regular sensible meals. I was still tortured by my heavyset body, and longed for a boy to find me attractive. Slowly though, with sensible and natural eating I had lost 10kg or so by the time I turned 17 and when I turned 18, I had lost the other 10. I was 162cm and 53kg. In the end the weightless was pretty much effortless.. I hadn’t even kept a regular exercise routine. I had been walking long distances pretty much daily as I didn’t yet have a license. God bless 17 year old metabolism! Plenty of boys found me attractive.

The next 6 years after leaving high school were a breeze - well in the weight control sense anyway.

On an 18 year old roadtrip wth my bestie Kat

This entire time my relationship with food was effortless and I remained slight, though I must say being a cigarette smoking vegan might have had something to do with it. A bad habit I’m grateful to see the end of.

Age 22 at Yallingup, 54kg

I moved to Perth with my boyfriend. Andrew and I adopted a puppy-child named Jim, and we lived a very happy little family life. I was thrilled to fulfill my call to massage by studying Shiatsu Therapy during the evenings,  as I worked an office job to pay the rent. Andy and I married in Lorne Victoria (near my place of birth). The day was perfect. I had no body hang-ups and in fact, I had consciously tried to put on a little weight before the wedding so my boobs would look good in my dress . This plan went out the window when I pretty much forgot to eat for the week prior to the big day, running on adrenaline.

Andy and Me on our honeymoon in NZ

Something changed after the wedding. I was 24, suffocating in my corporate job and eager to study for a career that I actually wanted. My husband was at a crossroads in his professional life, and on the verge of setting up his own business…but not sure if that was what he really wanted at the time. Things were uncertain. You know, they say the first year of marriage is the hardest, and I began to diet.

I wasn’t even overweight by any measure, but I could definitely be thinner, and I absolutely hated my legs, chubby little legs that they are (I say that with love). I severely restricted calories and would sit on the bus hungry and miserable comparing myself with all the girls on St Georges Terrace.

Then one day, I got sick of being hungry and just started to eat again. This was the first yo yo of my twenties. Loving being a new wife, I developed a huge love of cooking and especially baking. Within a few months I’d regained all weight I had shed earlier and added on a kg or two. I’d started an exercise routine, jogging in the park and on the beach with my dog. But even with the exercise I still put on weight. The running made me hungrier and served as a mental excuse to eat more then usual. This kind of behaviour went on for a few years, my diets, though healthy and nutritionally sound, were coupled with extreme sessions at the gym and calorie counting. I’d successfully get into my skinny jeans and celebrate regularly with champagne and raw desserts....continuously for several months. Whoops now the jeans don't fit, and I'd actually put on a little extra. Repeat.

Everything changed in the weeks leading up to my 29th birthday. I was ridiculously fit, and time-consumingly counting every calorie. I'd lost 5kg within the previous two months and should have been feeling amazing. Suddenly a horrible and nightmarish trauma for my family back at home and a separate personal trauma for me in Perth hit in the same week, and on the cusp of leaving my security blanket job. I was shocked, devastated and gutted all at the same time. I realised I had been chasing a grueling illusion. A banging bod doesn't solve all your problems. My hot bod wasn't going to make my life awesome, it's just a hot bod. Sure, it helps, but it certainly doesn't make you happy.

The months following my gym attendance ...just....dropped....off. I had been a get-up-a-5.30-and-go-every-morning kind of girl. I used to proudly declare I would work out two hours a day if I had the time, but I just didn't care anymore. The motivation was gone. I started yoga, and enjoying leisurely walks rather then runs. I ate whatever I felt like, I put on 8kg.

It's been nearly 16 months since that traumatic December. At first, when my exercise motivation stopped, I thought it would come back "I'll get back into it," but then days, turned into weeks, turned into months, turned into a year.  Though there have been a few moments when I felt bigger then I wanted to be, I feel I've slowly made peace with my pants. Maybe its helped by my age, 30 now, maybe by the security in my romantic relationship, but if anything good came out of that traumatic time in my life it's that I now have a new kind of body comfort, a healthy, curvy, feminine shaped body comfort that won't compare myself to others or stress over not looking like Miranda Kerr. It feels cruisy, easy, free,  just how I like it.

I've actually been revisiting the gym recently, out of a want to maintain muscle mass, enhance my circulation, clear my mind and keep my skin young. There's no guilt for missing a day, or even for leaving early. I'm giving myself some loving kindness, and my resultant peace of mind speaks volumes.

You are absolutely gorgeous, no matter what your size, and you completely deserve some loving kindness too. Love the one you're with.. ....I'm talking about your body honey!. If you feel drawn to chat with a professional about your body love goals, don't hesitate to drop me a line or pick up the phone.

Happy Avocados and Mega Melons

Love Lib

Me, being curvy, 63kg

My wonderful reiki-healing friend Anyes and I on on my 30th birthday

So what's a naturopath anyway?

Are you a little shady on what a naturopath actually does? My mother never took me to see an alternative healthcare practitioner of any sort. If I hadn’t become so fascinated in nutrition I may never have found out. Now I’m super passionate about naturopathic medicine as a well rounded, affordable and effective health care with real value for everyone in our community. To put it simply, a naturopath uses herbal and nutritional science to get you healthy, and ideally, Super healthy. We see you for about an hour or maybe two, depending on the practitioner. We have a good long chat, we look at your blood, we put you on a fancy machine and give you a health scan. We look into your eyes with our iridology torch, We’ll talk about your diet, your lifestyle, and then we discuss nutritional, herbal solutions that are chosen based on your individuality to help you and your body gently heal and reach optimum health.

So does herbal medicine actually work?

Yes herbal medicine absolutely works and is a wonderful tool for helping the body to heal. There are thousands of studies proving herbal medicines are effective in many different conditions. Plant medicine is 100% natural and organic, just like you are. Our bodies have a natural affinity for naturally occurring compounds, be they nutritional or medicinal. Just think about how good you feel after a vitality giving green juice compared to an artificially coloured, flavoured and sugared up refreshment. Your body can assimilate the goodness in an earth created product much easier.

Naturopaths and Doctors

Modern naturopathy combines evidence based science and modern testing techniques with traditional knowledge and health care.  Naturopaths help you heal and repair back to a level of optimum health.

Your naturopath may refer you back to your doctor for testing and diagnosis of a suspected condition. Once diagnosed, we will work with you and your doctor to give you the best well rounded health care possible.

Gentle nurturing to help your body heal itself

Naturopaths are trained to help you with any medical condition, and treat based on the whole person, rather then individual symptoms. Naturopaths great for dealing with chronic conditions such as allergies and auto-immune disease. The aim of naturopathic medicine is to get to the source of the problem and heal you from the inside out.

Case Study: Sally has eczema on her hand

Sally goes to her GP with eczema who prescribes her a corticosteroid cream, a potent anti-inflammatory to make the symptoms go away. It works quickly and her skin clears. However once she stops using that cream Sally’s eczema comes back. She is frustrated and feels like she’s going round in circles. Sally doesn’t want to use the cream long term because she knows continual use of topical steroids thins the skin, weakens the bodies innate ability to heal, and also may interrupt her natural hormonal balance.

Whole Body Healing

Sally see’s her naturopath and is prescribed a herbal anti-inflammatory cream to protect the inflamed skin and lessen symptoms, without any side effects. Her naturopath takes a full health and diet check, and identifies possible lifestyle factors that may be contributing to her skin condition. Together Sally and her naturopath eliminate irritants from the diet, and treat Sally’s digestive system and detoxification pathways. After 6 weeks the eczema has healed on its own, and after 12 weeks Sally is able to reintroduce some of the irritant foods with no re-occurrence of symptoms. Sally also has lost a little weight, is sleeping better and has more energy

Naturopaths have Science Degrees

It takes four years study in a full time science degree to graduate as a degree qualified naturopath.

Time to talk:

A consult with your naturopath takes an hour initially, and an average of 30 – 50 minutes for each consult thereafter. These long consults are an opportunity to really explore your health and lifestyle thoroughly and identify ways and means to improve your experience of living. Your health is important and often the value of having someone to really listen to you rather then rush you out the door can be priceless. The act of talking and being heard is often quite healing in itself. A naturopath gives you the benefit of being heard by a scientifically trained expert in herbal and nutritional medicine, who can really give you solid strategies for achieving your health goals.

Are you feeling a little more informed now? Can you see the benefits of seeing a naturopath? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Tell me your naturopath story, or put down any concerns or questions you might have regarding seeing a naturopath and I’ll do my best to nut it out with you.

Healthily Yours

Libby

Turn him on! Fertility Slow Cooked Beef Ras el hanout.

I made the sexiest, most fertility enhancing slow cooked beef ras el hanout last night. Sure to start a fire in any mans heart (or pants). If your man comes home to find this in the oven (or slow cooker), he’ll be more then willing to settle down and start a family. And if he’s already committed, this certainly confirms he’s made the right decision.

What makes it a fertility masterpiece you ask?

The ‘meat’ is extremely high in fertility essentials, zinc, iron, B vitamins and plentiful in protein. Nutients so so important for powering healthy sperm and supporting the growth of new cells.

But the real magic, I believe, lies in the spice mix. North African ‘Ras el hanout’ translates into “head of the shop” meaning it’s a mixture of the best spices there is to offer. As I put this together last night, I found the spices remarkably stimulating and sensuous. So when I did a bit of research I was pleased to find that Ras el hanout traditionally contained a powerful aphrodisiac called Catharides, made out of the Spanish fly (yes you read that right, an insect) an ingredient banned in the 90s. In fact, according to my friend Wikipedia, Henry IV was said to consume spanish fly to aid erection, at risk of his own good health, like insect Viagra. Caesers wife once stirred Catherides powder into the dinner of her politically powerful guests in the hope of encouraging them into behavior she could later black-mail them with. What a bitch.

History aside, even without crushed Spanish fly, the ingredients of Ras El Hanout are a circulatory stimulating, blood flow enhancing, anti-inflammatory, feel good shebang of love you long time.

You can buy ready made preparations of Ras el hanout from gourmet supermarkets and possibly your local farmers market, but I made my mix with the spices in my cupboard.

If you make your Ras el Hanout at home, and I recommend you do, read through the properties below as you add the spices. Focusing intention on your spices as you add them and mix them together makes a much more effective and romantically spicy mix, don’t ask me why, it just does.

Ras el hanout

Ingredients ½ tsp each of ground cloves and cayenne pepper.

Cloves are warming and grounding, with phenomenal levels of fertility essential nutrient manganese, cayenne pepper is a circulatory stimulant and has an excitatory energy about it, spice it up and get things moving! 2 tsp each allspice, ground cumin, ground ginger, ground turmeric, freshly ground black pepper (I used an Australia Bush Pepper blend) and ground cardamom.

Allspice aka pimento is traditionally associated with prosperity, ground cumin contains coumarone, an anti-inflammatory, likewise, Turmeric is the best source of coumarone available, a potent healer. Ginger is a great energy and circulatory stimulant, as well as a digestive tonic and an overall wellness warrior. Black pepper is anti-cancer and has an overall spicy energy while cardamom is antioxidant and very much a love and success herb.

  3 tsp each of ground cinnamon and ground coriander.

Cinnamon is a blood sugar balancer but is also quite sweet and dare I say it feminine in energy, sure to make you sparkle in your mans eye. It’s anti-inflammatory and is soothing on the digestive system, great for digestive conditions. Ground coriander is a great source of minerals as well as being delicious and fragrant.

1 ½ tbsp. of freshly grated nutmeg.

Nutmeg has long been associated with good health, and in Elizabethan times was believed to ward off the plague. Today we know nutmeg has a high essential oil content, with anti microbial, antioxidant and immune protective effects.

Add all spices together and mix. Store in a jar, preferably with a beautiful label you have created yourself.

Slow-Cooked Beef with Ras el hanout

Inspired by a recipe by the Sydney Monday Morning Cooking Club featured in their recent book “A Feast Goes On” and published in the May 2014 issue of Delicious magazine

Serves 2 – 4 (my husband ate enough for two easily, and perhaps 3)

500g organic grass fed steak, like chuck or rump, diced into 2.5cm pieces with gratefulness to the cow for providing nourishment (or for a vegan version, you could use tempeh, but I can’t promise the man catching properties will be the same…of course there’s always exceptions, you know your man better then I do)

1 onion 2 garlic cloves 2 tsp ras el hanout spice mix 2 small red chillies sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste 1 tin of tomatoes + 1 big tomato OR use 4 – 5 big tomatoes ½ a preserved lemon rind, chopped finely, discard pith and pulp (optional) 2 tsp honey coriander parsley

1. For the slow version preheat oven to 140°C. For the quick preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. Get out your favourite, most home-cookin casserole dish

3. Place the beef in the casserole dish, and add all the rest of the ingredients, bar the fresh herbs.

4. Mix it up, visualising happy husbands and happy tummies, love and connection

5. Place in the oven for 3 hours for slow cooked version. I’d run out of time for slow cooking, and so I turned up the heat and popped this in the oven at 180, set my timer for 2 hours, and went down my garden path to give a Shiatsu massage. Meanwhile, my husband Andy came home and following his nose to the oven, found the dish, which he described as ‘nourishing goodness,’ and decided it was ready to eat after an hour and a half cooking time, as I found him with a giant bowl and rye toast when I walked in the door.

I served it up with the fresh herbs on top, steamed sweet potato, a tahini, tamari sauce and some lightly stir fried broccoli with red capsicum. The vegetables complimented the fertility powers of the Ras el hanout perfectly, but that’s another blog post.

Andy then showered me with affection for the remainder of the night, grateful for such a wonderful meal. I lapped it up like a princess, charmed by his positive reaction and delicious results.

I’d love to hear about your sexy cooking efforts. If you have a story to share please tell me about it below.

Take care my lovelies,

In wellness, Lib.

Sexy fertility enhancing beef ras el hanout sure to make a man fall in love with you

Healing Chicken Soup

Yesterday only hours after boasting about my ‘immune system of steel' my husband Andrew, I fell ill with headache and fever. I was straight home to bed were I stayed for hours, I downed immune boosting herbs, anti-viral essential oils, vitamin c and zinc, I was making myself ginger lemon tea and swallowing garlic cloves whole. I managed to muster up the strength to cook myself a healing whole chicken soup, and today after plenty of rest, I feel like I’m in convalescence, I managed to stop this monster in it’s tracks.  

A soup made with the whole chicken, provides proteins essential for the production of immune cells, and all the wonderful minerals from the bones are leached into the broth providing zinc, magnesium, calcium, and Vit D just to mention a few. Only recently have a started eating meat after 13 years as a vegetarian, and sometimes vegan. I ate my soup yesterday with gratitude reverence for the chicken, and all of the life giving and healing vitality it bestowed. I beleive yy intention of healing while I prepared and ate this dish played just an important role in my quick recovery as the nourishing ingredients themselves.

Here is my recipe adapted from Perth author Jude Bleureu's “Healing Chicken Soup in her amazing book Wholefood.

Healing Chicken Noodle Soup

Okay first of all this works best if you have a really big soup pot, like a proper stock pot. I don’t have one of these and tried making my soup with a le crusset casserole dish. It worked but it was a tight squeeze, and I made a bit of a mess.

I whole organic free range chicken 2 medium sized brwn onions or a large brown onion 3 stalks of celery 3 carrots a few sprigs of fresh thyme 6-8 sage leaves 2 sprigs fresh oregano 1 corn cob, kernals removed and reserved 3-4 garlic cloves 1 tsp apple cider vinegar 2 bay leaves sea salt black pepper 2 handfuls of flat leaf Italian parsley 8 dried shitake mushrooms two handfuls of noodles, soba noodles, vermicelli egg noodles, or whatever noodles you acquire

1. Place your large soup pot over a low heat and place the whole chicken inside. IF therese is skin on the chicken the fat will serve to cook the vegetables, but you can add some olive oil to help the cooking process along.

2. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and gently sizzle. Add the thyme, sage and oregano, and then the corn and the corn cob, garlic, ginger and half the parsley. Add the stock, the shitake mushrooms and the bay leaves. Cook for one hour.

3. Lift the chicken out of the liquid and remove the flesh. I used a pair of tongs, and a fork to get this job done. Also take out the shitake mushrooms and slice them up nice and small. Add the bones and mushrooms back into the broth and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.

4. Remove the bones and the corn cob, and check soup for consistency and flavour. Add the noodles. Add more herbs if you like, some extra salt as required or some tamari. When the noodles are cooked through the soup is ready.

Happy Wellness

Why Shiatsu?

I give shiatsu purely and simply because I discovered I had a gift for it. Actually, that's not quite right, I didn't so much 'discover' my gift, as I was not looking for it, it was more that my gift came up to me one day and 'healed' me in the face.

The universe works in funny ways, at the age of 20 I found myself quite accidentally, but very happily living out of a tent on a beautiful bush property just meters from the northern NSW coast. Wondering down the street of nearby Byron Bay one day I happened upon a street stall selling crystals. Without any prior experience in crystals and very little money I found myself attracted to a particular flourite crystal cut into a long cylindrical shape with a point on one end. This stone is beautiful, a transparent green and purple glassy like crystal, smooth, powerful and of the heart chakra. This crystal showed me how to heal by conducting and moving energy. It guided me, my intuition tuned into this rock, and it absolutely blew me away.

I then found myself giving massages. It was like the crystal opened up the door to an inner wisdom, a knowing. People tend to be weirded out at the prospect of a crystal healing (a what?) but are very open to have someone physically manipulate their muscles. I had no massage training and no prior experience but somehow I knew how to run through a massage routine and relieve stress and strain. Even more incredible is that I met certain people who would seek massage from me and pay me for it. This was not something I had to look hard for, they came to me. I guess the moral of the story is that I tuned into the universal healing flow of love that allows us to heal.

Libby is a damn good shiatsu massage therapist.This is the crystal that inspired her healing path.

I have since completed formal massage training with a diploma in Shiatsu, thereby gaining an understanding of Traditional Chinese Medicine. After a couple of years I had developed a passsion for discovering the biological science behind our wonderful bodies and took up Biomedical Science and the University of Notre Dame. I completed a semester, studying hard while at the same time developing a relentless obsession with healthy food and new recipes. I decided to look into nutrition and found myself drawn to the nature cure promise of Naturopathy. Five years later I'm a naturopath who absolutly  love's to practice Shiatsu. There is a therapeutic elegance in the simplicity of a massage.

My massage studio is not a clinic, it's a true escape from the outside world. Some clients feel like it's an alternate universe. I think of it as a more a medititative haven. However you see it, once your inside there's nothing to do but release stress, pain, and worries.

It's Joy Time. 5 tips for Harmony in the Heat.

  Feeling a bit hot lately? Thank heavens for the air-con in my Shiatsu Studio! I remember one time long ago, I was with my Bestie and sweltering in 47° C at a New Years festival somewhere very far inland, close to the Victoria-NSW border. I’d noticed all these people walking around covered head to toe is dry cracked mud and nothing else (hey, it was Confest) and was quite perplexed at the reasoning behind this mud skin. We happened upon a giant rubber tyre tube and giddy with excitement launched ourselves into the bush creek that circled the festival. We drifted slowly with the current and then suddenly, there it was…. the mud bath. A big 3m diameter hole completely filled with gooey, slippery, dark grey, slightly smelly mud. My Bestie looked at me with a glimmer in her eye “let’s do it.” Oh my God here goes. I shut my eyes and started to wade. It was so cool in there. It was a muddy heaven in contrast to the relentless dry heat that beat on us from all places that weren’t filled with mud. With that mud on our skin we stayed cool for at least an hour, a very efficient cooling method by any camping measure.

But Alas, it’s not always practical to just have a mud bath and walk around practically nude. These days when the Perth mercury rises above 35 every single day we are well and truly in the throes of the fire element. Tuning into your body and flowing with the season is vital to maintaining inner balance and harmony.

The fire element is directly related to your heart meridian. Your sense of joy and happy spirit are dependent on the state of your fire element. Such weather extremes can easily throw you off kilter causing excess and have you wishing away your summer days. Here are some tips for keep your chi flowing freely and have you thriving in the heat.

1. Eat a rainbow of bright summery fruits and vegetables and get your chef on by creating gorgeous meals. Cold foods are indeed delightful in these conditions however too many cold foods cause contraction, hold in heat and sweat, and interfere with digestion. Ice cream and heaps of iced drinks are therefore not the best choice (I’m sorry). Instead lightly cook your food in high heat quickly, and season with pungent flavours such as ginger, garlic, horseradish, black pepper and cayenne. Hot food and drinks, and I’m talking about both temp hot and spicy hot here, induce sudden sweating and therefore have a cooling effect on the body.

2. The best foods to cool summer heat are apples, lemons, watermelons, limes and cucumbers. Try for a cooling atmosphere when you eat, like on the deck or a picnic in the shade. Enjoy with loved ones.

3. Heavy foods such as meats, eggs and an excess of nuts, seeds and grains cause sluggishness on a hot day. When you think about it salads, fruits, a little seafood and dare I say it tofu are way more appetising in extreme heat. When we don’t pay attention to our bodies it’s easy to habitually eat the same old menu, and feel worse off for it.

4. Plan a little holiday. Soon. Summer time is a time for outward activity and expansion. Getting out and doing something new is completely in sync with the energy of Summer. This is joy time. The health of your joy emotion is directly related to the state of your fire element. Any disbalance in this area means a disbalance of joy. So get on with it, action something that makes your heart sing!

5. Get up early and go outside. Reach your arms up and say hello to the sun. Outdoor early morning yoga, runs on the beach, Qi Gong in the park. These are all perfect ways to say hello to the day and keep your fire element happy. Summer is a very yang time, and the Sun is the most yang of all. To quote Paul Pitchford “Summer is a period of luxurious growth. Reach to the sun for nourishment to flourish.” Nothing like a little Vitamin D to nourish you and make you strong, just get under cover before the UV rays start to burn.

Happy harmony seeking my friends. I wish you many happy spirit summers and tremendous joy.

Shiatsu is a Japanese massage that brings your energy back into balance. So if the summer has already got to you, please don’t hesitate to see me! I’d love to help you out.

Love Lib

References Paul Pitchford, Healing with Whole Foods, 2002.

Missing meditation? Here's what you're missing out on.

I love being in sync. I find if I really tune in and listen to my inner voice everything starts going right for me. A few weeks ago I was completely in the zone. I was cruising around being guided by my inner goddess and everything was rocking. I was waking up with giant pushes to sign up for a photography course, do the health coaching course with Institute of Integrative Nutrition, be a Naturopath, practise Shiatsu, go to Melbourne for a writing conference, I was literally in 100 places at once. I can handle it.   I was organising all this amidst moving house to South Fremantle, and what a gorgeous sanctuary it is. Hot backyard bath, and incredible vegie garden, a sacred meditation and healing space, beautiful high ceilings and ornate details. It’s like a holiday hideaway at home.

But there was just one thing….I was missing meditation.  With the busy-ness of the move my meditation space was packed away and then not set up for a couple of weeks.

This is a story of a girl who does too much. The Friday before last I woke up, relieved to have a day at home. I had a photography course at 9.30, and was on my way for an early start, I found myself at the parking meter and realised I had left my wallet at home. 'Why did I do this to myself?' I wondered. I went back to retrieve it and thankfully I was only a few minutes late. Later on I looked in my diary and found I had completely missed an important appointment for the online course I'm doing. I was so excited about this course I found it unbelievable that I had simply forgot about this first call. Hmmm things were not going so well.

I was reminded of a lecture I heard the other day about synchronicity. It seems that when you follow your own inner guidance and honour yourself, you find that you are in the right place at the right time. Consequently ignoring your own inner voice finds you in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was experiencing this first hand. Things were not going so smoothly and I was feeling awkward, tired and full of bad habits.

I had spent the morning rushing rushing, not quite meeting my appointments, not quite having the right kind of camera for the photography course (though definitely good enough). I was hurrying home to be prepared for a phone interview about Shiatsu with the Mind, Body Spirit section for the Tuesday West Australian. I had been careless enough to schedule it at the exact time the photography class ends …. not giving myself a chance to properly complete one thing or prepare for the other. Had I just sat and listened that morning…. listened to my phone messages that is, I would have received the message that the journalist was ill and wanted to reschedule for the next week.

How different my morning would have been had I received this piece of information, how unrushed, how complete. Had I taken my time to respond to what was directly in front of me, checked my date book, clued in to all the cues, how effective I could have been. But most importantly, I would have enjoyed myself a hell of a lot more. Now thank my lucky stars I had another chance to get it right. Slow down, relax, meditate :-)

My meditation space is now beautifully set up and reverently peaceful. It sits at the south end of the shiatsu room, holding crystals, candles and pretty images of peace. It’s like heaven in a garden studio and I love it!

Sitting in stillness is paramount in helping me stay on the right path, get more done and my most important task...do my best to be of service in the name of all things good.

Whats your favourite way of slowing down and chilling out? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.

Much love

Lib x