Simplify
SIMPLIFY
Between the rivers of urban traffic and the cool streams of paradise is a middle ground.
More is expected of people than ever before. Within the home, each person takes on multiple roles that were once spread out through the extended family – homemaker, breadwinner, parent, cook, head of household – stretching an individual to his or her limits. When stress reaches unbearable levels, we may entertain ideas of chucking it all and running off to Walden Pond or a Himalayan mountaintop where “wireless” means nothing to wire and the only cells are those that nature provided in the birds and the bees. This impulse to flee a changing world is nothing new, sages of the past from Plato to Confucius, have advised about returning to simplicity.
By taking a good look at one’s lifestyle and the conflicts that have arisen through one’s habits, some important but subtle shifts can be made that bring about a more simplified life. The repercussions making these changes extend from one’s inner spiritual life to interpersonal relationships to the global environment.
Spending a few minutes calming the mind and taking note of one’s emotions helps slow down complicated thinking that often creates negative reactions. Even trying for a few seconds a day – stopping and looking at how your mind is racing, judging, conceptualizing – and noticing the noise it creates, is a great beginning. Eventually seconds may become minutes and the chain reaction begins. By developing inner quiet and compassion, one’s relationships become less stormy. Making economic changes, introducing skillful management and reducing one’s cravings, slows down the frenzied cycle of consumption. In turn, consuming less means living lighter on the land which creates a balance in your environment both immediate and far reaching.
Sometimes trees need pruning in order to continue blossoming. Find the heavy boughs that are weighing down your life and give yourself a healthy trim, We cannot stop evolutionary and societal change, but if we are in complete control to change ourselves and when we do this, our relationship to everything around us begins to change.
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
Are Drugs Effective?
Are Drugs Effective?
A great book entitled “Pills That Don’t Work” lists over 120 ineffective drugs that have been on the market for at least 20 years.
The drugs detailed in the book were deemed to be ineffective 12 years ago by a panel of experts from all over the country. To date the FDA has not removed these drugs from the market. How dangerous are ineffective drugs? Dr. Wolfe says, “People don’t realize that pills can do as much damage as surgical operations. Surgery is always thought of as a more explicit kind of violence in terms of its ability to damage people. The adverse reactions to a lot of drugs are just as serious.” Dr. Wolfe estimates that 170 million prescriptions a year are for drugs that lack evidence of effectiveness. And the over-the-counter drug area is even worse. Some of the drugs he reports, “Actually prolong the healing process.”
In light of these findings, it behooves us all not only to carefully scrutinize the drugs that we may be taking, and also to seek alternative methods of achieving health.
Chiropractic is such a method.
The aim of Chiropractic is the proper functioning of all the organs and parts of the body. Yet, rather than depending on drugs to mask symptoms, Chiropractic enables the body to maximize its own curative abilities.
This is achieved by eliminating blockages to the spinal cord and nerves thereby allowing the nervous system to carry out the functions that it was designed for. It is a safe, natural health-care program that assists rather than hinders nature. It is a great path to wellness for a healthier & happier YOU!
-Arno
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
The Simple Truth
The Simple Truth
Most people go to the doctor because they think they have something they shouldn’t have and want to get rid of. But over the years, we chiropractors have come to understand that the problem when you aren’t feeling well is NOT that you have something you shouldn’t have and need to get rid of; the problem is really that you have LOST something you need to be healthy and happy. You see HEALTH (also called “EASE”) is your natural state! If you are experiencing anything other than ease, it is usually because you have simply LOST something that is necessary for you to maintain ease/health. Understanding this very simple truth will not only help you get the most out of your chiropractic care, it will also help you and your family to keep growing stronger and healthier for the rest of your lives!
Let’s begin helping you understand this by looking at how your body really works. There are three things you need to know in order to move consistently toward health, wellness and wholeness.
1) Every day, your body either gets a little stronger or a little weaker.
2) In order to get stronger instead of weaker each day, you must have a clear neurological CONNECTION between your brain and your body.
3) In order to have a clear connection between your brain and your body and keep growing stronger every day, your spine must be properly aligned and functioning normally (because of the intimate connections between your spine and nerve system).
If you understand these three things, you can also understand that if you lose normal alignment or function in your spine, you will also partially lose the CONNECTION between your brain and your body. This is very important because without proper communication, you lose the ability to purposefully ORGANIZE all of the various parts of your body to work together harmoniously and with EASE. In other words, you get a little weaker rather than stronger each day and you gradually LOSE your natural state of health/ease.
Chiropractic has only ONE GOAL, which can be summed up in what we call “The 3 R’s.” Our goal is to;
1) Help Restore and maintain alignment and function in your spine, in order to…
2) Re-establish and maintain the neurological CONNECTIONS between your brain and your body, so that…
3) You can Resume purposefully ORGANIZING all of the parts of your body to work harmoniously together and consistently grow stronger and healthier every day.
And, as you continue growing stronger and healthier every day, you will move consistently from wherever you are right now toward first regaining your natural state of health (EASE), and then keep on moving toward wellness and ultimately into what we call wholeness.
So as we said before, the problem is NOT that you have something you shouldn’t have and need to get rid of; the problem is that you have LOST something you need to be healthy and happy. HEALTH is your natural state, and if you are experiencing anything other than ease, it is usually because you have LOST your CONNECTION…and our job is very simply…to help you get it back and keep it for Life!
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
Birth in LIFE
Birth in LIFE
Contracting Before Expanding
This past week we had one of the most amazing experiences of our Life with the birth of our son Jaidyn Sol Merlo. On so many levels it is metaphoric for many aspects of life. Thru the birth of our son my wife experienced her uterus go in contraction which created intense pain, but it is the body’s innate wisdom to go into expansion & productively move our baby to its goal of experiencing this amazing world we live in. There are many other examples of the contraction-expansion that occurs for ex: the heart & blood vessels to pump blood thru the body, lungs to circulate oxygen to every tissue, intestines to absorb & move nutrients for the body etc.
Sometimes our lives contract before they expand. We may be working hard on ourselves physically, doing good in the world, following our dreams, and wondering why we may face some constrictions – emotionally, physically & spiritually etc. Perhaps we can feel as if we’ve lost our spirituality and are stuck in a dark room with no windows. We may be confused and discouraged by what appears to be a lack of progress. But sometimes this is the way things work. Like a caterpillar that confines itself to a tiny cocoon before it grows wings and flies, we are experiencing the darkness before the dawn. The butterfly must experience this contraction to be able to fly & use its wings.
When things feel tight, it’s easy to panic or want to act in some way to ease the feeling of constriction. We might also spin our wheels mentally, trying to understand why things are the way they are. However, there is nothing we need to do at this time other than to be patient and persevering. We can cling to the awareness that we are processing the shift from one stage to another, and the more we surrender to the experience, the more quickly we will move through the tightness into the opening on the other side. Just like a baby making its way down the birth canal, we may feel squeezed and pushed and very uncomfortable, but if we remember that we are on our way to being born into a new reality, we will find the strength to carry on.
Even as we endure the contractions, we can find peace within ourselves if we remember to trust in life’s processes. We can look to the natural world for inspiration as we see that all beings surrender to the process of being born. In that surrender, and in the center of our own hearts, was my wife’s willingness to trust in the unknown as our son made his way through the opening to experience his life
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
In With the New
Spring Cleaning
As the last vestiges of winter depart, all of nature enters into a lively and animated state of renewal. In the springtime, earth’s life energy is awakened from dormancy, and the cycle of life starts anew. We have the ability to sense this change taking place even before the seasonal flora around us blooms before our eyes. It is natural, therefore, that during spring many of us begin to feel the urge to clear away the clutter that has accumulated while we’ve enjoyed being sequestered in our winter nests. Now is the time to let the fresh breezes cleanse the energy in our homes.
Spring cleaning is traditionally a way to welcome a new season—one in which we open our doors and windows to let visitors and the sunshine in. It is also a way to remove stagnant energy from our homes in order to prepare our personal space for the positive, verdant energy of spring and summer. As you sweep away the dust and clutter that has blocked the flow of energy in your home, you inevitably sweep away some of the issues that may have been blocking you in your life. Intention is important, so before you begin cleaning, ask yourself what needs to be cleansed, what can be discarded, and how you can make your home a reflection of your best self. Then, gather your tools and supplies around you—vinegar mixed with water makes a wonderful natural cleanser, and putting everything you need in a bucket with a handle will make it easier to move your supplies around your home. Once you’ve begun spring cleaning, you may find that with each piece of clutter you discard and each item that you clean you begin feel increasingly energized. Divesting yourself of unnecessary possessions can help you regain clarity of mind while cleaning your windows can help you refocus your vision. As you clean, invite healing and vital energy into your home and heart.
When you’ve cleaned your home from top to bottom, create a floral arrangement with flowers from your garden, or buy a new plant at a farmer’s market. You may notice that your home feels newer, and brighter and full of new fresh energy. You also feel reawakened, rejuvenated, and alive. By cleansing your home, you can harness the vivacity and vigor of spring.
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
Finding Peace Within
Finding Peace Within
Most people agree that a more peaceful world would be an ideal situation for all living creatures. However, we often seem stumped as to how to bring this ideal situation into being. If we are to have true peace in this world, each one of us must find it in ourselves first. If we don’t like ourselves, for example, we probably won’t like those around us. If we are in a constant state of inner conflict, then we will probably manifest conflict in the world. If we have fighting within our families, there can be no peace in the world. We must shine the light of inquiry on our internal struggles, because this is the only place we can really create change.
When we initiate the process of looking inside ourselves for the meaning of peace, we will begin to understand why it has always been so difficult to come by. This in itself will enable us to be compassionate toward the many people in the world who find themselves caught up in conflicts both personal and universal. We may have an experience of peace that we can call up in ourselves to remind us of what we want to create, but if we are human we will also feel the pull in the opposite direction—the desire to defend ourselves, to keep what we feel belongs to us, to protect our loved ones and our cherished ideals, and the anger we feel when threatened. This awareness is important because we cannot truly know peace until we understand the many tendencies and passions that threaten our ability to find it. Peace necessarily includes, even as it transcends, all of our primal energy, much of which has been expressed in ways that contradict peace.
Being at peace with ourselves is not about denying or rejecting any part of ourselves. On the contrary, in order to be at peace we must be willing and able to hold ourselves, in all our complexity, in a full embrace that excludes nothing. This is perhaps the most difficult part for many of us, because we want so much to disown the negative aspects of our humanity. Ironically, though, true peace begins with a willingness to take responsibility for our humanity so that we might ultimately transform it in the light of our love.
Voted BEST San Diego Chiropractor!
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