The Rise of Superman

The Rise of Superman By Steve Kotler

What an unbelievable book! Well written pulling me to the edge of my seat every time I opened it. There is something I love deeply about adventure sports. I love to ski, a daredevil I am not.  Which may strike you as odd that I love this book as much as I do. If you’re an adrenaline junkie in any form, this book is easily addictive. As Steve describes Danny Way’s jump off the China Wall or how a surfer can “know in flow” what to do at the last second to save him from certain death and one wrong move, this book is for you. Throughout the book he tell athlete after athlete that musters up the inner strength, the mental control, the emotional cam in flow to do what has never been done before. To break barriers that most would say is impossible. Crazy. Completely stupid. The underlining message throughout the book, in every story is taking a closer look to see how “flow” is possible in our everyday life. There is such a powerhouse message in this. To tap into flow is to push our mental boundaries of imagination, to look into history at those that came before us and learn from them. To then “stand on the shoulders of giants” (as I have written before in a previous blog several years ago after CFMT testing) and launch ourselves, our fields, and (for me) our faith FAR past what we imagine is possible. To imagine ourselves there is to see it, dream it, and watch it happen. 

That’s where I will leave you with this thought. In the book, Steve addresses that certain athletes have to have a “zone” where faith cannot enter. That sole focus must happen to channel you into the zone so far that you are committed to the task, the feat, the abyss in a sense and for faith to enter that is just shear distraction. (If you know me, hang with me!) I would have to agree. Faith is what centers you first. It is something that you have done business with far beyond entering this kind of zone. It is something you have squared away and know where you stand with God and daily you are working your faith out with fear and trembling.  Faith, for me, is what fuels that zone. I’ve done the mental, spiritual, emotional business because to bring that in once your attempting to enter the zone or flow would be just that. Distracting. It makes you second guess. Instead of KNOWING that you enter the zone with God, business taken care of, faith grounded, you don’t have to second guess that entering your zone. You can just let it FLOW. And here’s the greater challenge still. Knowing that you are squared away with God, planted and rooted in HIM, who tells us daily that with HIM NOTHING is IMPOSSIBLE. This should be your new zone. You now enter flow with more than your ability and yourself. You enter with the Holy Spirit. And if that does not launch you into spiritual flow and your zone, I don’t know what else would. Because that is a supernatural power source. Plugged into Him, letting Him release your true ability and flow….now that is tapping into the realm of ALL things possible. That’s the kind of daily flow I want to live. Knowing that God is building something bigger and better and I just have to be a focused, disciplined, willing vessel to fall into a zone where I can be used to level far above my ability! Anything IS possible.

The Core: Armor of God Study

If you are looking for a great bible study to do, I would strongly encourage you to look into the Armor of God Study by Priscilla Shirer. It is only the beginning of week 2 and WOW. The particular study has MY name, my number, my principles, my sayings....ALL over it. Why you ask?

I am a physical therapist. No not the standard definition you find if you googled it. I am a manual therapist. A functional manual therapist with training through IPA so this has my particular name in a very, very specific way. I was blessed enough to complete fellowship training in Steamboat last year with this incredible group of therapist. The core is only a part of the discussion, but one near and dear to my heart. Her week 2 Day 1 title is STRENGTHEN YOUR CORE.

Yes. You have my FULL and undivided attention. I love her spin on the core but I have to say. I have so much more to add after reading the jumping off point!!  First let's review the verses in Ephesians again before we dive into a full on explanation of your physical and spiritual CORE.

Ephesians 6:10-14 (emphasis is mine)
10 Finally, BE STRONG in the Lord and in the STRENGTH of His might.

11 Put on the FULL armor of God, so that you will be able to STAND FIRM against the schemes of the devil

12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places

13 Therefore, TAKE UP the full armor of God, so that you will be able to RESIST in the evil day, and having done everything, TO STAND FIRM

14 STAND FIRM therefore, having girded your loins with TRUTH, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness



Here what you have to understand about the core. What do you think of when you hear "core"? Just as a word--- the root, the center, what are you made of. Yep. Now think core strength. I have news for you. If you said abdominals are your core you are ~1/4 right if we keep it simple. The core is made of the diaphragm (roof), abdominals- the deepest being the transverse abdominus) wrapping and blending around to the multifidi (segmental spinal stabilizers) that insert along the spine (the cylinder or sidewalls), and the pelvic floor (as well, the floor). This group should fire together to make you stable, so that you can have balance through the vertebral column (spine), in order to be strong first through your skeletal frame.  ALIGN. BE STRONG. STAND FIRM.

What else do you think of when you think of standing firm? How much firmer would you stand first knowing and remembering  WHO YOU ARE IN CHRIST?  First we must align ourselves, our spine, and at the root- our heart with HIM. I love that verses 10-13 are really the PEP TALK. This is our reminder that we are strong in the Lord. His strength, His might. NOT ours. But as I read those verses it also reminds me WHOSE I AM and WHO is at my core. And that makes me take a taller, stronger posture. It makes me align upright.  When told to be strong and stand firm, the last posture I take is slumped, forward shoulders in a crumpled position.  (I would continue to crumple if ANYTHING came at me if I sit or stand that way!) It reminds me to find my center of myself, God who is at my core and yes through my PHYSICAL posture where I know my stance, my spine, my posture is in the best alignment possible that I can find on my own to be strong.

This is interesting. So as a therapist I correct and help people find a better posture within their own body to decrease stresses, pain, and to find their core strength again. Watching someone correct their posture and feeling me correct my own, I still know that I can correct something, if only I have another set of eyes. If a mirror or reflection for me to see what still looks off or what could still be lined up straighter.) Someone to tell me where the weaknesses still lie in my stance and spine and the subtle (or large) changes that I can make within my frame to strengthen and stand more firm and not collapse.  Because here's why. The last thing anyone wants to do is not know an area of weakness if someone else (or spiritually if the Lord and other believers) could have pointed it out. We would DO something about it hopefully. The test comes when something comes at you and bumps your confidence or your physical frame. The last thing I want to do is to BUCKLE where I don't know I'm weak. I want to align. I want to withstand the bumps.

I use a test called the Vertical Compression test to first check physical vertebral or body/frame alignment. By pressing gently, progressively down through the shoulder girdles from above, I can start to tell where someone is weak and where they may buckle under stresses and daily loads. It also teaches us that with good alignment our frame and posture is able to withstand some pressure because we are ready to resist some of the forces. Now slump and do the same test when you are not ready and you will crumple under the pressure and see how weak you are (potential in multiple places) when you are not ready and not standing firm.  Stand up straight again.

Picture yourself in a crowd walking against the flow of people. What happens when we start to move forward against the flow if we are floppy vs standing strong, pressing into the flow giving purpose to our steps like we intend to hold our ground and move forward. If we start taking bumps and hits from all directions we eventually get tired of being pushed around and something in our core decides to work a little harder so we can hold our position, our ground and continue pressing in. You are feeling the core engage where muscles starting syncing and working together to keep you strong from the inside out. This is much like the Lumbar Protective Mechanism I use to test core response from front to back, back to front, and multiple diagonals. (Sound familiar went you feel like things are coming at you from all directions?) What is the initial response? Does your core come on? Do you have the muscles that are responsive if you get bumped or do they protect you at all? Are the delayed and Do they take a second to figure out...I'm being pushed, I should start working if I want to remain stable and hold my ground. Or Do they come on quick and last a total of 2 seconds before the inevitable collapse happens where the spine buckles or rotates or shears under the resistance or load. Do you get my picture???    :)

So for me as I read the study and she stressed the core so much, I have to say, yep that sounds right. But wait! First we are told to first BE STRONG and in the STRENGTH of the Lord. It's your pep talk to Stand UP straight and prepare yourself. Be ready. Know your CORE. Have a core. Let the things of God be your center and core. But within your physical frame and posture, you feel yourself STAND FIRM. Things start to align. You start to take a stance that has no intention of losing your footing and leave you staggering to the sides. You center yourself. Your core can work for you here BEST. When you Take the POSTURE that is going to WORK. It makes you stronger because you are LINED UP FIRST. You are ready for the bumps and shoves and pushes that will challenge you but it makes for a stronger CORE in the long run. It builds stability, awareness, endurance, balance, and RESISTANCE to being tossed around. And we don't just want to be strong where we are strong. We want to be strong where we are weak too. HOLD YOUR FRAME. BE STRONG. STAND FIRM.

Now that you're ready. Put on your armor. You have found your core. And that, I point out, is a posture and frame that found the core, feels it working and growing stronger and WILL NOT buckle under the weight of your ARMOR you are about to put on. The first piece this week was the belt of truth. Gird your loins. A belt of Roman solider day fashion was no joke. It was huge. And heavy. It is the perfect weighted resistance to strengthen the core more. To further add stability to the core. But I have to point out here one vital detail that is worth stressing. Prayer activates the armor. But if you lose your footing and your frame starts to crumple under the weight of the armor.......do you get my drift? Your core in God's truth, God's word must remain strong. HOLD YOUR FRAME. STAND FIRM. Be ready for the weight and do not crumple. Do not fear. Stand firm. Every single piece of armor has a purpose, but never, never, never forget WHOSE you are and WHO activates the armor to give it power. HOLD your ground. HOLD your posture. Find your CORE. Make it stronger. Build your strength, stability, endurance, balance through resistance. And resistance usually comes with pressing in or holding a weight or being resisted. Hmmm.. The heavy belt of truth! Root yourself in His word so that you know the TRUTH and that strengthens you further.

My last point. And it is a good one. Anyone knows that has done resistance training that there comes a time to bump up the reps, add more weight, or hold it longer.  We will talk in planks. Plank holds, table tops. You feel it already and I only typed the word! Hold it 5 and your a champ, hold it 10- oh please, hold it 20, no 30 and oh my goodness I'm shaking through this. No I won't give up. I'm going to press in and hold it through. And now I just might make that minute, 2! Yep, got it. SHAKE. In whatever forms that comes in. Shake because you're scared. Shake because it's just flat hard to hold your pooped out posture and frame and that core needs some work. Shake because that simply what it is going to take. To build endurance. To strengthen through and through. To find your stability needs a little beefing up. You need to find the true depth of core and develop a stronger layer of muscle. Because you had no idea that even after all that strengthening you were still weak in that ONE spot, at that ONE level OR that you had developed such bad habits that you had no idea you were doing that were masking real strength!! SHAKE AWAY. Build it up. Because the beauty of shaking is that there is one glorious moment. You are recruiting and turning on MORE MUSCLE!! Where you feel the burn, you feel the tremble but you keep holding if you can. Stick to the plan. Come back to it daily. Shake, shake, shake away. And suddenly you feel something in your core click together. Like it has all just become ONE AGAIN and it is working together and it suddenly just got a little bit easier. You're stronger now. You move as one connected unit!
Don't quit. Bump it up. Shake, keep working. God is not done with you yet. I'll be right there with you, strengthening and pressing in and pressing on. Shaking my way to develop more muscle, better muscle, where I'm weak...to be strong before I put that armor on. He's got something REALLY REALLY good for us. But let's tell the Truth and get back to the core of Him so we can really get somewhere. Flex those spiritual muscles this week. Somebody else is shaking in his boots. Make Him run. He does not have what it takes. He has already lost the battle because the Victory has already been claimed.
WOO-HOO! Be strong. Stand firm sister. I want some new muscles to show of God's Strength. This is going to be so worth it!

#ArmorOfGodStudy

What a year! Once again it flew and here I am again at another New Year's! I'm always so thankful to sit at home and reflect over the last year. Last New Year's we spent the final countdown with Kirk & Tracy dancing it up at Aurum in Steamboat. I'm definitely missing the atomsphere, the cold, the snow, the eats, and just that town!! It is a very very special place. I'm thankful to be where we are now, but there is no replacing Steamboat for me. One day I will go back. It is in my blood, I've got the bug and there's no curing a mountain draw except to return. So much of my heart stayed there, but I'm thankful for the many things we have in Texas again also.

Being near family has been so fun. We have all enjoyed being closer and seeing everyone more often. We love our new home and sweet puppy Blue.  He was the perfect addition as we made our transition back to Texas.

There's so much stacked already for 2016! So many things to do yet again and things that pull my heart back to the books, to courses, to serve, to write, to draw, to sing, to simply love having the time again to hang out with my kids, my family more and more and watch them grow in their loves.

Here's my list so far. I love writing it down. I love praying over what I hope the year brings and seeing where the Lord ultimately leads and allows me to do.  One thing is for sure. I have to buy a bike.....I'm going crazy here because I liked the outdoors of Steamboat WAY too much to be cooped up!

APTA- SOWH committee
Lab assist SOWH courses
IPA assignments
Start a residency program :)
Draw again!
Kids- Dance and musical theatre
Buy a bike (a real one)
Get involved in a women's bible study
Go hunting/shooting/targets more
Visit family: Tulia, Dallas, Portland maybe?!
Visit: Steamboat/ski/hike
Visit: Tracy in Raleigh :)
Vacation: Coast/Beach; deep sea fishing

Things I plan on enjoying in this area:
Riverwalk
State Park
Perini's!
The Mill
Antique Stores/art/Grace Museum
The country and outdoors
Concerts

To do:
basement or cellar! (I hate this weather!)
teach Reece to sew/craft
Cale: build a car
have a garage sale
get rid of junk- see my 40 bags in 40 days post!
Purge my stinking closet. Good grief!
READ!!! For fun, for work, for me!  :) :) :)

Just getting started y'all and that is the fun of it!!
Happy 2016!! Pray your way into it. There's no better way to celebrate the time He's given us on earth and there's no better way to dedicate it back to HIM! Happy NYE!

Much Ado about red cups

So after an incredible osteopathic manipulation course in Chicago I wake up to Facebook letting me know all about the red cup controversy. What did I miss? What are all the crazy posts about? Red cups. Orphans. Guys wigging out in their car about the cup. I'm lost in the sea of posts. Summary: Really nothing. Most of us apparently are coming to that. Just one more post going viral and well....nothing.  There are some things that should not surprise us. A world that is cutting Christmas out should not. Jesus still came to a world that was not ready for Him and had no idea He was coming to welcome Him. If prayer is being continuously cut from school and government, what shocks us about a plain red cup. It is not about cramming Jesus into the world and getting mad when it does not accept the things of Him and start to cut things of Him out. It does not mean that much to world.  It is precious to the Christian because we know Him personally. We understand what He did for us. We have to be Jesus.  And Lord help us everyday to be the representation we should be. To think if all the post went viral about that instead of about cups.

Symbols that are near and dear mean something to us. They define what we believe in. We set them throughout our home, our space, and life to remind us and charge us on. But they are not the thing that we believe in. They are not the being. They are not Jesus in the flesh. Reminders yes. The thing we should discuss so passionately more than Him, no. He would tell us the same if He were here. Such petty discussion over things about me when I'm right here. You talk about things about me and fight over them but I'm lost in the process. It's really throughout the Bible. Read it for yourself. Dive deep into the stories that make you flip back to the cover and say, "Wow I had to check the cover twice.  Didn't know that was in there."

The symbol is in our life.  Whether it's on fb or not. Disconnect from the world for a moment. That's really my purpose in writing this. I'm bothered by the excessive number of likes or shares that happen everyday. I'm an addict over it some days. There's some really good stuff out there too. Sometimes I share just so I can find it and read it again later because it hits home. I love writing whether anyone reads it or not. Writing means it mattered enough to sort it out, even if it was just for me. It really has more to do with God and myself. If it benefits anyone, awesome. If not, no worries. Writing also shows an intention. Whether it is to go deeper or fully think through thoughts over something, it is important because writing for some is the next level of where God is taking you as He teaches you. Here's my most recent eye opener.

My trip to Chicago was awesome. Got to see many old friends and work with amazing therapist and be taught by a leader in the field of manipulation. Set in a city. From the stink of the streets, to the L, to the grub that Chicago is famous for, I walked away with this. People live in the streets. Under cardboard, snatching blankets, playing music in the stations, trying to survive. They all have a story. They are people that God loves too. I've been to multiple cities and multiple subways and systems but this one stuck. They were right there along the sidewalks, the street a concrete barrier away, each with their own space saved. It hit hardest last night when I missed a connecting flight and got stuck in DFW. Inconvient and out of pocket with no bag. Just my backpack. None of my stuff. The clothes on my back. It gave me a feeling that reminded me of the people in the streets for a moment and suddenly all my out of pocket seemed minuscule. Because it was. There is nothing that I wasn't getting back by morning. Inconvenient yes. Nothing I couldn't change by walking in a store to buy what I needed or ask the hotel that was comped by the airline. Thankful for a shower and bed to sleep. Warm. Inside. Safe. All the things that some people go everyday without just surviving one more day. It broke my heart to walk by them in the streets as they slept and realize it's growing colder. People freeze in the street, alone.

So post on your page because you have one. Drink out of your red cup. I have one too.  It's a cup.  It's a cup that someone else might be grateful to get no matter where it is from or what is on it. Save your money. Further the kingdom. Pass it on when you can. Pray for the lost and homeless and broken. Pray that you do not become hardened. The largest cities where people walk and don't hop in their car and little world are great reminders that there is a much bigger world out there. Sure I felt the momentary discomfort but I'm so grateful for all my blessings and how the Lord blesses me with the people I know. I learned more on this trip than most simply as a whole. Rushing back to catch the train I realized that I had no ticket downtown and had no clue where to buy one.  (I'm usually on top of this!) A total stranger, a dad with 2 kids, let a friend and I through.  Wanted nothing in return and would not take what I offered him.  He said to pass it on to someone on the street. He got it. Hard working, earned his dollar, but never forgets the one with less. Neither should I. Shame on me just because I live where driving by is easier than walking by.

No one cares about the cups. Fill your pages with anything besides the nonsense we get ourselves into over our "intellectual" discussion about cups and our other "stuff" that does not deserve a spotlight. Let your cup runneth over into the lives around you.  And into anyone the Lord places even momentarily in your path. Spread the red. Let this plain red cup with a circle in the middle simply be another avenue that you share the blood of Jesus if given the chance over coffee or offering a cup of warmth on the street. Yes I'm taking the cup conversation to a level I can tolerate. Yes the beautiful crimson blood of Jesus.  (Yes when the red cup is gone and we get hung on the white cup for other reasons, let it be the beautiful reminder of the how His blood washed us white as snow.)  The circle nailed to the hands and feet. It just about perspective and seeing it all through the eyes of Jesus. Even if it is through a cup.

Psalm 24:1 The earth is the Lord's and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

Now looking at it that way......nothing is left off the cup. We don't need the words. Or a symbol. Or even the brand or name. Everything comes full circle whether it's the circle on the side walls to the base that holds the contents, to the top that provides and spills out if we let it.  A circle. Three in one. An eternal circle that holds life. A cup in any form usually set the stage to intentionally encounter the Lord for me. Quite time, devotional, coffee with friends, offering a cup of water for the thirsty. God always provides a way to share even in the midst of completely ridiculous arguments if we will simply bring it back to Him and not our hang ups.  It's not about OUR version, it's about HIM. That's the gospel.
Spread the red. Love deeply. Because He first loved us.

Food for Thought

There's a lot of information out there. There's even more products that we are told everyday we have to have and we cannot go on without them. Daily I'm bombarded with information from my email, Facebook, computer, and other sources. There's even more confusion over what we should be doing over what we should stop doing. Good grief! Is anyone else ready to throw up their hands and have a clear head like I am?!

I appreciate good information like the next person. Frankly, my patients expect it and should. It is something that deserves clarity to say do this, not that. To know your sources and all the information out there. But then realize that good information stands firm and sometimes simple. Not a quickly written article or update that some magazine or even newspaper decides to type. Research is worth reading for yourself. Remembering what is truly good for our body and minds is essential. In reality I find myself remembering that foods have been around forever. Don't get me started on all the info about varying diets, plant research/agronomy breeding then and now.  That's another conversation entirely. What I can tell you is that lets remember a few things. From something as basic as inflammation whether it is in your gut, your knee, or a cut, IT exists. Sometimes we see this rampant in different forms. An infected cut: redness, warmth, and inflammation is easy to spot.  To stomach ulcers, IBS, diverticulitis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's --disease that "hides" within the gut to grace us with their often unwelcome timing into our daily lives. And then a knee. Whether it is the quite knee that catches here and there or the swollen, painful knee that screams with every step, it is one we are less likely to momentarily forget, because after all, how could we?! When we walk it hurts, when we sit it hurts. It hates to walk, but it aches to stop. What must we do?

From all my readings since my personal journey began in 2011, here is what I came to on my own, but I think rings pretty true in general if you go looking through the research and books available. Listen to your body. Think of it this way. We are all different creatures. We know this by what we are allergic to, what medications we tolerate better (or not at all), what foods make our mouth itch when no allergy test showed a thing, to environmental allergies. Everyone has one. Some of us may have seen the reactions sharing this in our circles, families, with our physicians and colleagues.  "Really? That's weird. That's not supposed to happen." Or the blank stare and silence.  Let me clarify one thing. Silence may be an answer because you don't know what to say, but really you are leaving it to the internet with silence. People are scared. They want answers. Honest answers. Something. Anything. Even- I don't know, but we can look it up. Because otherwise this is what adds to the Search.

Searching begins when you start reading and educating yourself. It starts with faith and a refusal to succumb to the card you are dealt. It is a deep knowing within your being that you are made for more than this. And knowing that people have gotten sick forever. Some die. But some get well. And so we search. It's what leads some of us to pursue careers or research things to find out the why and How come, and of course feed the drive to figure it out.

Here is what I know:
Inflammation is bad. It is a breeding ground for bad things. Whether this is a starved cell that multiplies or a genetic flip-switch for the disease that your mom and grandmother had (that you knew you would get one day), we can be sure of this in some cases. You are what you eat. Processed. Sugar. Junk food epidemic.  You might be eating good now but shocked to realize that you are now paying for your raising, your high school after school snacks, or  (let's all be real) all the amazing food you had in college. If you are tired of hearing fibro, chronic fatigue, allergies that you never knew you had, and the list goes on I urge you to go on a health quest of your own. Stop the madness. Take back your health. Exercise. Walk. Jog, Run even. But do something.  Swim even. But exercise for the health of your heart and brain. Pump that blood, spread that oxygen like crazy through every single artery and vein that the Good Lord gave you. Take back your life. Starve the bad cells- whatever form they come in. Stop worrying about the free radicals that damage your hair and worry about the ones on the inside that really matter more! Bad thoughts, depression, mood swings, cancer, stomach upset.........Starve the bad cells. Build good ones. Supply the ones that are mending. Take the bad ones back. Cut your sugar in 1/2 immediately. Cut it totally if you have the guts! Experience your body detoxing while you do it. It may take days, weeks, and yes for some bodies it can take 6 months to notice.  But consider this. As you feed your body the good and healthy, non-processed, low sugar (no sugar), and more water, what is it going to hurt? What have you got to lose besides your cravings, a little energy (only to find your real MOJO), and beat your exhaustion, fatigue, brain fog, after meal sleepiness, joint ache, etc for good. And WAIT FOR IT. What have you got to lose besides your unhealthy lifestyle that is screaming for a change anyway. Your body is screaming at you in some way? What is it telling you? I ache all the time. I'm stressed. I'm tired. I'm really tired. I'm a mess. I'm overloaded. I have no idea what's going on?  Is this my body, I thought I had a different one and woke up with this one day.
Cut things out. Give your body back the anti-oxidants that it needs. Boost yourself with strong anti-inflammatories found in cherries and pineapple. Read about ginger, turmeric, arnica (caution). Find it in your foods. Use your spices. Care about your meals. Put something good in your body. Let that not replace your medications but treat your food like the medicine that it can be if we start putting GOOD in.  And hey, if it replaces your medication then so be it, in some forms. Be smart about it.  If you finding yourself not needing it anymore, discuss that with your doctor. Talk about how much better your stomach or joints feel off the meds if you notice that. Too many cases are unreported where someone stops taking medications they are prescribed because of an intolerance or side effect.  Most people move on to other forms of seeking other answers once medications fail. Tell your doctor, but don't assume they don't need to know what did and did not work in your case. Talk to them. Yes I have my story, but that's another time. I take what I have to. I get off what I can. I cannot tolerate steroids well and I do not need something for my skin daily now since it wasn't working anyway. There are certain things some of us HAVE to take. My real question is how many GI, painful joint/back, ache and pain could we treat if we ate better and did not continue to flood our very cells, tissues, systems with things that make it grouchier instead of happier.  It is with the intention to pay attention and NOTICE that we start to be our own detective and be in tune to our bodies on another level. (I know this does not work for the microwave generation that wants better, faster, stronger, longer, higher, smarter  RIGHT NOW or yesterday AND then does not want to wait for anything or work for it. Since when do I have to lift a single finger to feel better?! News flash, you're not 5 anymore. It really did not work when you were 5 either. If you fell off your bike, you got back up again.)

(Here's some homework. Go look up per year how many people report to the ER with stomach pain alone. That are later hospitalized with some type of intestinal tract bleed. Then look up deaths per year due to chronic addiction to pain pills. Then look up the death rate for GI bleeds per year. Consider that many go unreported or ever make the connection early enough to be treated. See the connection yet. Yes. You cannot flood a system treating one thing for "inflammation" and pain without tearing something else up long term. It just does not work.)

Here's what I've observed within myself. I have allergies. Environmental all my life. Seasonal yes. Plant almost everything (kidding but really it seems like it). Foods- yes. Latex yes. My body does not handle medication well. I don't need much, but you would know that checking the weight/dose chart on occasion. I have been gluten free for 1.5+ years. It was a journey. Fairly desperate and innocent. I found what my body really hates is too much dairy. Specifically Greek yogurt (which almost killed me to part with) and of course regular yogurt. I found the dairy out trying to clear my body and skin or a long line of reactions post thyroid. The signs had been there for eczema, but not in raging form. In the, "oh yeah my skin's a little irritated and its no big deal. I'm rubbing a cream on it kind of way." Dairy was the key to my eczema and clear skin without medications or magic creams. Things helped topically, but really I cut out what my gut was spitting out on my skin. The skin is a window to what really may be going on in the gut on a deeper level. My body simply forced me to finally listen if I wanted it back.
Gluten. Yes gluten. Sob sob. I did not go here because of upset stomach (although I did have this too). I read Grain Brain while everyone else read Wheat Belly. And the light bulb was permanently switched on. Wow. Really? Giving up gluten might be a way of taking my brain back. And not giving into daily fatigue and brain fog for me. Again, everyone is different!! For me, after 2 weeks gluten free I was free of my post lunch slumber state from 2-3pm everyday. I no longer had to unwillingly be not sharp from 2-3 but rather WITH IT without caffeine to charge my afternoon. Yes. I know. WHY did it have to be gluten?! But really, it was worth it.  For work and patients I have to be super human. For my family and self I have to be more than that. And yes, I stayed off gluten because for me it made a difference that was worth parting with. I took my stomach back, body back, and brain back! I've cheated and paid for it a time or two and I'm reminded that my body just does not love it and really does not need it. My sugar spikes throughout the day are controlled better off of it. No I'm not diabetic. (One point Grain Brain makes is speaks to what we normally find gluten in. Breads, sugar sweets, pastas, etc that really drive a blood sugar spike in us. That's why it's called a crash after we eat like that. Our blood sugar may be crashing or dropping. Everyone is different but for me it's healthier to have a controlled level that isn't silently killing my brain cells due to the constant spike/crash relationship. Yes Grain Brain.  Brain Maker is also quite good too!)

Listen to all the little version of inflammation in your body. Don't get crazy. But listen. And then start to wonder, ask questions, and research. Ask your doctor. A great GI doctor is one that once said to me, "Healing starts in the gut. We have to listen to the signals and make a change. Healing can happen from the inside out. You have more power than you think. We will do medicine if we must but first try changing your diet." Inflammation happens. He knew it. The GI tract is the largest organ besides the skin. There's lots of miles in there. What are you putting in yours?

Healthy Brain. Happy Life. Happy Body. Happy Engaged Mind. That can now engage my body into what I need to do. To live, to work, to exercise, to thrive! There's all sort of things that we can take. Yes I use and found some great uses for essential oils along my journey. Most were topical with my skin. Others I've found compare to some wound care products available, but have faster results. But those are for me and my family personally and not to share on this particular blog. Some other supplements are very very good. And natural and high dose form of what we find in foods stuffed with vitamins, mineral, and antioxidants. It's hard and the struggle is real, but it is worth choosing better things to put in our bodies to get a different result for a better outcome long-term. Stop starving yourself of the things your body needs. Stop feeding inflammation with sugar and junk expecting a different result.  You just gave your energy to the Snickers bar that made you momentarily stop acting like Madonna and Marsha(I know the commercial are cute).  Find your balance. Make a list of what you know you can cut. Give something up and replace it with something good. Get to reading. Plan your meals and have a date with your kitchen. Buy an apron and have fun! Exercise so your blood is pumping supplying that brain to all parts so you can engage in thoughts and make better choices for your life. It's yours. No one else can do it for you. It's time make a change! Inflammation is not a game.  It's running it's course. However rampant or quite that may be. Change the game and read it for yourself. This is taking YOU back.

Postures

In honor of mother's day and inspired by a recent sermon by Jay Wright at Anchor Way, here's to the Postures in life.

"Sit up straight!" How many times have we each heard that throughout our life, likely first from our mothers. To which our body response was to throw our shoulders back, lifting our head, never suspecting that this very "correction" was actually throwing the "sit up straight" posture into our Lower thoracic and lumbar spine. (Thus, began the pain cycle later in life!)  Yep, but that's the SIT UP STRAIGHT, that we all know too well. Thankfully from my first day of PT school, Dr. Bob (CFMT) taught us all how to sit correctly over our sit bones, neutral lumbar spine, ribcage aligned over pelvis, and how to correct the shoulder girdle position so as NOT to throw it into our lower back and subsequently continue the degenerative process we find ourselves in otherwise. By the end of his description and our own postural correction experience, it was clear to me that we cannot correct our physical posture unless someone teaches us HOW. How to find our sit bones, what neutral lumbar spine feels like instead of the lordotic curve that marketing has taught us all to often to buy the "roll" to make finding your posture easy. Yeah right! Really?! Are any of us the "one size fits all"?  No, each posture is different and deserves its own experience to be taught how to break the vicious cycle of what Bad postures can do to our bodies and mind and yes our hearts. Sadly some of the postures we see my reflect the heart and hurt more than we think. Here's just a few examples that we have all seen:

Several weeks ago our pastor, Jay, gave an outstanding sermon on posture. He had my attention immediately. He spoke about the postures that affect us and the postures that are present throughout the Bible. WOW! What a great topic for me! I am nerd enough to love that! So throughout these last few weeks, I've had this on my mind. POSTURES. POSTURE. How we hold ourselves. How we choose to correct it....or not. How we hold ourselves before the Lord.

Throughout the Bible there are many postures. Face-down. Child's pose prayer position, palms to ground. Kneeling with elbows tucked in, forehead on our hands. Tall kneeling leaning on a bench. Seated, head bowed, elbows supported, hands clasped on knees. Standing quietly. Standing with arms raised. Supine. And there's more to the list, I'm sure. There are so many appropriate postures that respond to God. Praying to request, to ask, to beg, coming in desperation, coming in thankfulness, bringing our praise.

My proposal this Mother's Day is to spread the Postures of Praise. Spread how we want our kids to see us. How we want them to grow into the confident people in who the Lord made them. (I know WHOSE I AM.)  Postures of reverence toward the Lord and how to respect His Name and what is His. The earth is the Lord's and everything in it, the earth and all who deal in it. Psalm 24:1.  Praise postures could be taken at face value. Standing singing to music or sitting. Hands folded in front, one hand up, or both. No matter. It should reflect the true heart of the worshipper.  Many times our outward postures may reflect our heart. Depressed, defeated, unsure, arrogant, ego, pride, distracted, fractured, focused, or passionate. Intensity can be communicated in lots of different ways, but especially through how we hold ourselves. Through our postures.

My proposal is to really look inward so we can demonstrate Him outward. As moms, we are busy, crazy, list-makers, forgetful, cooks, employees, and children of God. Let's take a look within ourselves so we can outwardly "carry" ourselves differently and communicate that NO MATTER WHAT and WHAT PHASE of life we can show these beautiful children we are mother's to, how to carry themselves and HOW to have a LIFE POSTURE of PRAISE. Part of my joy is getting to assist people in seeing how their present posture affects their spine and whole body.  Let's make sure that as mother's we teach a good physical posture.  (If you don't know where to start, take them to a physical therapist.) That we encourage communication and time for these children to express themselves. SO THAT, these beautiful kids can carry themselves and stand TALL on our shoulders. TO know that from our posture, we are confident of our King! To look to us when they are down and take on the postures described in the Bible when they present their request to God. To know that KNOW MATTER WHAT, they can stand from these postures TALL in alignment. They can lift their head up and their eyes to the heaven knowing that they serve a BIG, GREAT GOD.

I want my kids to know how to correct their physical posture and who they can take their matters of the heart to. To me of course. BUT TO the ONLY ONE who is capable of loving us with an everlasting love, who made us, and knew us before we were born. To the wonderful, beautiful counselor, and Savior!  Let's teach our children about Postures of Praise!! Start with the physical and it will be a great avenue to talk to them about God.

Thank you for making me a MOM. They are my precious gifts entrusted to me and bring me JOY every single day! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to each of the amazing ladies in my life!

Building and Shaping

Whether we are building individuals or shaping how they think or model our behavior, it is vital that we be intentional in what we do. Things do not happen by chance. Whether we intend to build or shape those around us or not, we do. Without even thinking. It could be through thoughtless words heard in a hallway or words that have succumb to fatigue and mediocre behavior, but regardless of the WHYS we fail to see the WHAT  behind some of our very poorly thought out words. (What consequence?)  It may be words of convenience or because it is easier to just say nothing but I think there were several instances this week that got me thinking. Maybe it was the gorgeous drive today to Meeker to Jody's basketball tournament. God tends to water my thoughts best and reveal himself to me on an amazing worship-filled drive. Either way, I was thinking about BUILDING and SHAPING today.  As a therapist, I help others by shaping: either through soft tissue mobilization and getting the tissues moving or mobilizing or manipulating the joints to allow the patient to have unrestricted motion. SHAPING them in way back to the life they love. There's nothing about that that I take lightly. Would I have moved my family, sold my house, left my friends and awesome job, said goodbye to family for longer than I wanted if I didn't believe that there's something about what I do that can shape people back into better health and better life?!

Building individuals back probably got me more than the shaping. Because clay can be shaped and shaped and molded much like God does with us, building takes us to a new dimension about stacking and bulking and adding more. Building muscle, building strength and endurance. Building patience. Building stronger students, skiers, individuals, players, people. It does not matter what you do....YOU fill in the blank for how you build people. BUT again, building and shaping does not happen by accident. It also does not happen by intention either. It can happen when there's no effort or thought or action or goal toward it.

Take children. They are placed in environments throughout the world and watch what happens. Think home to home, school to school, classroom to classroom. There is a lot of building and shaping of lives that saddens me. Where there is no intention. NO thought, no effort toward building individuals out of those children who can stand on their own. Have a thought in their brain toward another person and not just Self.  Where we teach them the difference between good, bad, right, wrong, and that the difference matters. On another scale, that God deserves our best. Not our last. Not our leftovers. And that if all the idols, and movie stars, musicians, speakers, mentors, teachers, and friends around us are building and shaping us then no wonder we have a problem. A problem of identity, a problem of WHO starts to shape our thoughts and how we weigh things in life. Heaven help us if our children are left to that. Jody always tells me (and I echo this prayer) that he prays that our children know how to stand on their own two feet even if they are standing alone. That they know the difference between right and wrong and what God wants and that they DO the right thing that they know to do. Even if they stand alone. That's a scary thought to be alone in this world for most people. But I pray that they have a God given confidence that when they stand with HIM that there is nothing and no one in the world that could compare to that. I pray they know this as I did growing up. I was an only child and knew the sweetness of being alone with God for a long time. Not in a sad way at all. A true sweetness. I'm comfortable in my skin. I'm okay with quite. I'm good with listening to Him. Be Still and know that He is God. I've also known it in lonliness that I care not to recap now. I have had the sweet presence of God keep me company and be my best friend for the longest time and in my biggest moments in life. There's one as I describe this that stands out to me. Maybe it's because my 10th wedding anniversary is next week. It was my wedding day. Circumstances were not perfect surrounding our wedding. It was still such a happy, wonderful, exciting time! Without giving too many details, after my parent's divorce it was awkward for a time. Dad gave his blessing to Jody and I. On that day I'm sad to say that my dad did not show to walk me down, but I had told him that either way I loved him and nothing would change that. There was not a lonliness that day at all. There was the sweetest presence of God that I have ever felt. There was a lone body walking down the aisle that day, but there was a heart full knowing that my Lord and Savior was walking me as He always had to the man I had prayed for for the longest time. In all my alone moments in life, God had heard my prayer, knew me better than I knew myself, answered me in a way that I had not even vocalized out loud to even Him. (That's when you KNOW that it is God alone!)   There was a sweetness of knowing that God was always enough and NO person could even be perfect enough to give me what only God could.

Building and Shaping. Building character. Shaping integrity. Developing people. Raising our children. That's what we get to do. I pray my kids know to never be afraid of being alone. I pray that the softness I see in Reece would never be her fault but the very tenderness that God uses to speak to her. That the toughness in Cale will be an avenue for God to show him that he will always need a Savior who is stronger and mightier.  So whether we are building blocks, linkin' log cabins, lego towers, building blanket forts, shaping a little's girl hair or piper cleaner craft,  shaping clay or snow, building basketball skills, or shaping individuals around us, let us do it with drive and determination.

Closing thought:
After reading the above it still strikes me that some are still ignorant enough to think that they have shaped no one. Some have shaped many and are even tired of trying. Remember that it happens either way good or bad, intentional or not. We shape people. Are you worth following, modeling, listening to? How would your words sound coming out of another person's mouth? What effects would they have? Would they be bitter words or encouraging words or actions? Would you be in good shape or bad shape? How have you built others up this week? And if you're too tired to try maybe that's the point where Jesus has left you to ask, Are you done yet? Are you going to let me do it through you now? Let me shine.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
Do not let the devil put out your light or back in a corner or underneath others around you. SHINE. You have a purpose. You have a way to build and shape those around you like no one else can.

Verses that Inspired this:
James 1:17
Matt 5:13
Matt 5:14