Category — 03 - Specific Regimen Practices

The Gokhale Method (pronounced go-clay)

Often the most powerful changes we can make are the most simple. Esther Gokhale, a biochemist, acupuncturist and yoga teacher, studied the habits and posture of native and ancient people to discover how we can move with the same strength and pain-free ease.

Manual labor in traditional cultures, past and present, doesn’t result in the kinds of back problems that we have with our western, modern lifestyle. To me, this is a fascinating thought, and it makes so much sense to learn about what traditional people naturally do that’s actually very different from what we’re taught about posture.

Esther’s method focuses on the position of the pelvis, which she says should not be tucked under as we’re told. She observed ancient Greek statues, ancient Indian figures, native people, and modern young kids before they’ve started school – they all have less spinal curve than we see in modern adults, and the rear end really in the rear! Also, the cervical curve is relatively flat.

Alexander technique is another excellent method for improving posture, but that focuses on the upper body. Esther’s method focuses more on the position of the pelvis, as this is where we ground ourselves, and then it’s easier to adjust the upper body from there. She says that we can learn to adjust our posture in ways that elongate the spine and take pressure off the discs, bringing great relief for many kinds of back problems.

And her method doesn’t take years of training, but can be learned in her workshops or even from her book. I began feeling better already just from watching her 1-hour presentation on youtube.

Again – most of what we’re taught about posture is wrong, and what a refreshing experience to discover some very simple adjustments we can do ourselves that can make a difference!

Watch a wonderful 1-hr presentation given by Esther to Google employees.

Gokhale Method website

Water, Salt and Hydration

We all know that water is essential to life and that we’re supposed to drink up. But our need for hydration has new meaning when we look beyond biochemical processes to the biophysical function of water. We usually think of hydration as a matter of drinking enough quantity of water, and assume that everyone absorbs this essential substance in the same way. But there’s a lot more to the story.

Dr. Batmanghelidj, author of “Your Body’s Many Cries for Water,” says that the root cause of most chronic health problems is chronic dehydration. Of course it’s not quite that simple, but it does makes sense that we should pay closer attention to what it really takes to get ourselves hydrated.

Hydration on the cellular level is a matter of transfering hydrogen into the cell, and hydrogen transfer is the function of the essential life energy called orgone. This is the special function of water, which is different from the solvent function by which it dissolves and flushes toxins out of the cell. Hydration itself regulates all functions of the body, and water is not just a mechanical carrier for regulatory substances.

Water that has a high orgone content could be called “living” water, such as artesian well water like Fiji water. Artesisan spring water is water that bubbles up, which means that it’s gone through a long compression process and is now “mature,” containing levity forces which are necessary for consciousness. It’s low in minerals as water should be, and high in orgone.

You could assay a living water biochemically and find it to be very similar to other forms of purified or spring water. But biophysically it’s very different. Biophysics is about true function, beyond the biochemical constituents or processes. The living water will enhance the function of cellular hydration because of its crystalline structure. Processed water such as tap water lacks this crystalline structure. This means that you could drink large quantities of tap water and still not be hydrated!

WHAT IS SOLÉ

Solé is a 26% concentration of salt in water. When natural crystal salt, such as Himalayan crystal salt is dissolved in water, the water will naturally come to that saturation point, and that’s the solé. Water and salt represent the basic polarity of the two primordial forces of the universe - the radial, nether or earth forces; and the spherical, upper or cosmic forces.

This is the polarity that generates life - it’s the constant pulsation of compression and expansion that animates the universe. Wilhelm Reich was the first scientist to demonstrate this pulsatory nature of the universe.

This is so significant, because we can’t get too far without the pulsation of the universe! It’s this salt-water polarity represented by the solé solution which carries information for all life functions - the nether vegetative functions as well as the upper consciousness functions, which “marry” to create life.

Solé represents superconsciousness in that the crystal salt is merged in oneness with the water - the two resonate as one and yet the salt retains its own identity (individual freedom) when the water evaporates. Then on the cellular level, the solé facilitates hydrogen transfer to the cell, which releases electrons and is the basis of all organic energy systems.

DEHYDRATION

In the face of dehydration, which the body perceives as a crisis, it manifests many symptoms that are really signs of dehydration, well before we become aware of needing water via thirst or dry mouth. In other words, the body is crying for water before we even have overt signals. If you’re thirsty, you’re already dehydrated.

Even in the midst of an abundance of water, it’s “water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” On a cellular level, the organism becomes armored against receiving the abundance, and can’t become hydrated. It’s a bit like we become shy in love if we’ve been rejected before, and we’re a little defensive and not so quick to open up again. The cellular stress then causes more dehydration in a vicious cycle, as the condition of dehydration itself uses up water.

This stressful situation is like a biological trauma which triggers disease, as the German physician Ryke Geerd Hamer discovered. So dehydration on the psychic level as well as on the somatic level - dryness of thought and rigid attitudes - can lead to disease, especially diseases which have to do with a poverty mentality and suppression of the generative power of the life force.

Chronic dehydration then weakens the generative power, and so it can be carried to offspring, who inherit this dryness in the form of the Psoric miasm. (The chronic miasms are the inherited predispositions to disease, which we’re all born with.) Dr. Hahnemann discovered that the essence of Psora is dryness and deficiency. We call this a kind of “glass half empty” or poverty mentality. And Dr. Reich taught that dryness resulted in a contraction, shrinking or damming up of the life force leading to disease, which he called “shrinking biopathy.”

So there is plenty of research about the dangers of chronic dehydration, and much of what people are suffering from when they go to the doctor is dehydration. Yet the doctor gives drugs to suppress the symptoms, many of which are just the body’s “many cries for water.”

NOT ALL SALT IS CREATED EQUAL

The best quality salt is natural crystal salt, such as Himalayan crystal salt. We all need salt - it’s just the poor quality table salt that causes many imbalances and should be avoided. But crystal salt is well tolerated by most people, even those who think they need a “low-sodium” diet. (Try buying low sodium foods and adding your own crystal salt!)

Table salt is refined sodium chloride, biophysically “dead,” acid-forming and dehydrating, and toxic because of other additives.

Sea salt from the oceans may contain pollutants, and although it has a crystal structure to some degree, it’s not the superior crystalline structure that crystal salt has. The nutritive elements remain on the surface of the structure and aren’t integrated into the crystalline structure. And actually, what’s sold as sea salt and hyped as such a healthy alternative to table salt, is pure white, which means that it’s been refined, so it’s not much better than table salt.

Rock salt is the original form of salt that has not become “mature,” has not developed a crystalline structure, and so the minerals can’t be properly absorbed.

Crystal salt has been sufficiently compressed so that the minerals are ionic, and the crystalline structure has become matured, which allows the minerals to be absorbed.

WATER, NOT BEVERAGES

Beverages are drinks that contain 50 or higher TDS (total dissolved solids), even herbs teas which seem so innocuous but really aren’t hydrating. When TDS is high, hydrogen and electrons are bound up, and can’t be released to the cells. So for each beverage taken, even if the beverage is nutritious, an additional glass of water is needed in order to maintain hydration.

Water should contain high orgone energy as artesian water does, but it’s not always easy to find. Fiji water is good, but bottled waters aren’t ideal because of the plastic containers. Good options are filtered water, ideally non-fluoridated, and then re-energized by placing it on a small orgone generator. Or even just put a few quartz crystals into the container and let it sit.

A good system for energizing water is the Revitalizer.

Some people advocate exposing drinking water to sunlight - not a good idea. The best quality water comes directly from the ground, a very dark place!

HOW MUCH DO WE NEED?

Depending on the person’s level of activity and other individual factors including disease issues, each person needs roughly 1/2 ounce of water per pound of body weight, daily. Divide body weight in half, and that’s the number of ounces per day.

BEYOND THE GLASS OF WATER

The deeper issue of hydration takes us to the mental/emotional realm, where we need to look at how we become armored on deeper levels of our being and can’t take in the “juices” of life. We know when we read something that’s dry and lifeless, it’s not physically dry, of course, but the phenomenon of dryness is there. It’s lacking the kind of moist warmth that’s characteristic of love and life.

When people are “dry” in this way, they become resistant to and unable to take in the living water of life energy. And they become dehydrated on the cellular level, because what’s going on at the physical level is the reflection of what’s going on at the psychic level.

Sometimes they can’t get hydrated no matter how much living water they drink, and that’s because the psychic level needs to get hydrated in order for the cells to become receptive to the water they need. But also by continuing to drink living water and exposing the cells to the water they need, that helps open up the pathways for the resistance to free up and for the organism to accept the loving energy of water.

Getting hydrated often involves working through emotional issues in various ways - through Medicine (the Heilkunst system), which destroys the blockages that impede energy flow and lead to emotional armorming, and through Regimen, by processing the emotional content that was unconscious before, as it comes up, in a way that releases the false beliefs and fears that aren’t part of who we really are.

The process of remediation and soul/spiritual development is about becoming wet! We let go to dissolve ourselves in the living waters of life. And yet we keep our individuality, our consciousness intact. This pulsatory function of dissolving and emerging, dying and living - it’s the movement of life. Think about that next time you drink a glass of water!

Recommended Reading:
Water and Salt: The Essence of Life, by Dr. Barbara Hendel
Your Body’s Many Cries for Water, by Dr. Batmanghelidj

NEW!

The most comprehensive Q&A
on OIL PULLING available.
In e-book format, to download immediately after ordering.

Click the blue box below for ordering info.

Description: A Practical Guide to Oil Pulling for Oral Health, by Karen Robinson DynNC, includes a wealth of information about many related methods for natural care of teeth and gums, detoxification, etc. Oil pulling has risen from an obscure, ancient Ayurvedic technique to a powerful and effective modern method for restoring and maintaining oral health. It’s inexpensive and easy, using simple items that are available everywhere. 27 pages.

I just want to thank you for such a great little booklet on Oil Pulling. It’s just the perfect size for those who are not readers or into the Holistic reading (like my hubby). It was very well written and organized. It is fantastic starting point for those who are uninitiated. For those who have been introduced to Oil Pulling, it is a great reference guide and answers the many questions (and more) that arise from this venture…Great Work, Really Appreciated and Thank You.
-Elizabeth from Montreal

______________________________________________

Here are some simple instructions to get you started. The ebook above contains more detailed information and answers to a multitude of questions about OP.

BUY:

• Unrefined, cold-pressed sesame or sunflower oil (sunflower has less taste, but some people like the taste of sesame), or virgin coconut oil
• Unscented pure vegetable oil soap (without added glycerin). There are a few options:

1. A pure vegetable oil bar soap. You can use any you like, but it can be difficult to find pure soaps without toxic ingredients. Diane from Peace Soap makes wonderful homemade soaps for all purposes, but her spearmint-citrus flavor in particular is made with food grade essential oil and is perfect for brushing teeth with.
2. Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap (peppermint is good), although that tends to drip off the toothbrush. More options are described in the book.

• Recommended but optional: Unrefined salt like Real Salt, Celtic Salt or Himalayan Crystal salt

First thing in the morning on an empty stomach is best to do OP, but if another time works better for you, that’s fine.  Take about 1 tablespoon of oil in the mouth, and swish it through the teeth gently, not vigorously, in a comfortable way, for 10-15 minutes. Don’t simply swish side to side, but back and forth in the way you might do with mouthwash.

If you have the urge to swallow, exhale slowly (through the nose!) and continue breathing slowly until the urge passes. If you really need to swallow, go ahead and swallow just from the back of the throat, keeping the oil in the front of your mouth.

If it becomes too unpleasant, spit out and try again another day. It can be a bit unpleasant at first when you’re not used to it, but soon won’t be bothersome at all, just like brushing your teeth.

When the oil has become saturated with the toxins it has pulled out, it will become somewhat whitish and a thinner, milky consistency, depending on the type of oil used.  Each time you oil pull, it can take a different amount of time to get to that point, so 15 minutes is a general rule of thumb, but you can experiment with this.

Spit the oil out, then rinse the mouth with warm salt water. Salt water rinsing isn’t absolutely necessary, but is very helpful.

Then brush teeth very thoroughly with soap. If using bar soap, swipe the brush across the bar and then rinse the bar to keep it clean. Brushing with soap doesn’t taste bad at all - toothpaste foams up in the mouth even more than a little soap does, so we’re really used to the foaming feeling. (Do NOT use toothpaste!)

If you want a stronger flavor for brushing, you can add a drop of food grade essential oils to the brush, such as “Tooth and Gum Elixir” from Uncle Harry’s.

You can do the oil pulling every morning if you like. Because it can be detoxifying, you might want to take a break sometimes. There’s no rule about frequency - judge according to your body’s own signals.

I highly recommend that people who want to maximize their health-promoting regimen and minimize the adverse effects, receive individualized guidance. The one-size-fits-all world of natural health marketing promotes a lot of confusion, which I can help sort out. See my nutrition and natural health counseling website at
Dynamic Regimen and Nutrition Counseling

Which technique is best?

Q: I’m wondering what makes EFT more effective than the 5 Healing Sounds or Fusion techniques? ( if you believe it is)..

A: Well, the way I would answer that is to go into a bit about what makes any one treatment more effective than another.. To sum it up quickly, EFT and many hypnotherapy methods works on the Law of Similars, while healing sounds work on the Law of Opposites. It depends on what the nature of the problem is, as to which law you need to work with to get the best results.

Very often when someone is using a particular healing method and it’s not helping, it’s because the real root of the problem is in a different jurisdiction. It’s sort of like if you’re prosecuting a crime, but you’re in the wrong jurisdiction, then you don’t get the results you need.

That’s why the world of natural healing is so hit-or-miss — we try to throw different techniques at the problem, according to the ones we like or have an affinity for, or the ones that others got good results with. But if one person has anxiety, for example, it could be due to a magnesium deficiency, and that would call for the law of opposites to be applied (provide the missing nutrient). Then that would be enough for them.

And someone else could have anxiety that’s due to a different kind of disturbance of the life force, which requires the law of similars to correct it. They might also benefit from magnesium supplementation, but that might not be enough to solve the problem, because the problem is rooted in a different realm. So the key is really to understand the nature of the problem beyond the description of symptoms.

Chinese medicine understands precise patterns of imbalance, and deals with the law of opposites. Although it goes very deeply into that realm, often the law of similars needs to be applied as well. (Dr. Hahnemann taught how to do this very precisely).

Now, maybe it would be interesting to try doing EFT tapping while doing the Healing Sounds simultaneously, and see what happens! I also think EFT is an elegant alternative to EMDR, and can basically replace it. Other hypnotherapy methods can be useful too, but EFT can’t be beat for portability and price! TAT is also great.