Bodhimed

Sometimes the signposts that re-direct our lives come in unexpected ways.  We always have a choice – to acknowledge and follow those signs, or to ignore them because they don’t fit in with our “plan.”  Especially when it comes to discovering our ultimate purpose in life, it’s never too early to pay attention and change the game plan.

Why wait until you’ve spent 30 years in the wrong job to discover what the universe has been trying to tell you?

I truly believe that we’re constantly being sent messages to guide us on our path, and we just have to look for them to know what our path is.

Sometimes these signs come in disguised packages.

One of the things I’m most grateful for in my life is that I discovered Ayurveda when I was 22 years old.  Though I had planned to do community development work in South Africa, my life took a turn when I became introduced to Ayurveda  through The Yoga of Herbs by Dr. Vasant Lad.

Here’s the juicy story:

It struck me this morning that Botox is one of those things that exemplifies American culture's determination to "band-aid" an imbalance rather than treat the root of the problem.  We do it with everything, whether it's foreign relations, cleaning up the environment, or medicating kids with behavioral disorders. Outside of an emergency, long lasting solutions to any problem require addressing the root cause.  This is the traditional approach to medicine in the Chinese and Ayurvedic traditions.  Symptoms are treated by discerning the root cause and working to rectify that.  Even in Europe, people have a broader perspective, and they approach a healthy diet and lifestyle as the best anti-aging medicine.  The Italian homeopathic skin care program I've been writing about represents this different way of approaching health. Its "physiological regulating" method treats aging skin at the source - stimulating our own cells to initiate long-lasting repair.

 As I've mentioned before, I am 100% supportive of women doing whatever makes them feel good about themselves.  That's why I'm so excited about this different paradigm of skin care that nourishes beauty from within. The benefits of this medicine don't come at a price, so you can really feel good about using it.  The lessening of wrinkles and the improvement in skin tone result from the liver, lymph, and skin matrix becoming cleaner and healthier!

There is an ancient Ayurvedic saying that a true medicine is that which heals one problem without creating another.  How many examples of that can we find in American culture?  Negative side effects are tolerated by the FDA as being standard for pharmaceutical drugs.  Our government tries to establish peace by making war.  Dermatologists prescribe cortisone cream for a rash rather than figuring out what's causing the rash.  It's all very short-sighted.  As if there's no other way.

There is another way.  It just takes a little more discernment and self-responsiblity.  This is not a novel idea - they've been doing it this way in other cultures for thousands of years.  The good news is that Americans are turning more and more to natural, sustainable solutions.  Anti-aging skin care from within is but one manifestation of this trend.  Stay tuned for more news from the cutting edge of healthier skin!

 Three weeks ago I began a journey to wipe years of sun damage and aging off of my face.  A girlfriend let me in on a little secret, which apparently Italian and French women all know, and I jumped on it.  "Innovative Italian homeopathic skin injections" was all she needed to say.  I flew to the training, got my supplies and and am now well into the skin "drainage" preparatory program. Now that I'm trained to administer the injection program and am reaping the benefits of facial mesotherapy myself, I'll be blogging regularly about the amazing results and changes I'm noticing.

I'm not one to be obsessed with each and every wrinkle, but I do look in the mirror and notice fine lines, dark spots and other signs of aging.  At 42 I know my natural production of collagen and elastin needs help, so I regularly spend too much money on my favorite, organic, anti-aging cleansers and moisturizers.  I'm definitely guilty of being on the lookout for the next best thing when it comes to being healthier and looking younger.  But I insist on doing things naturally, so you won't see me at the Botox clinic.  I understand why women go for it, and let me say that I am 100% behind anything that makes a girl feel better about herself.

The art of reading omens is often considered the domain of shamans and fortune tellers. But the ancient science of Ayurveda teaches that understanding omens is possible for everyone; it simply requires that we open our heart and mind to the non-verbal communication from nature that has existed since humans evolved.  In a recent class with the great Ayurvedic teacher, doctor and author Robert Svoboda, he explained how to perceive, without our externalized senses, the shadow cast by a coming event before its arrival.

The Beginning Foretells The Future

In Ayurvedic astrology, the astrologer looks at a person's natal (birth) chart to forecast tendencies and occurrences during their life.  In the same way, it is important to pay attention to what happens at the beginning of an endeavor because it indicates what will happen throughout.  So when you are trying to make an important decision, or are contemplating a significant question, you can observe the non-verbal signs present in nature at that time to help you figure out the wisest course of action.