Sunshine Coast, QLD
30th August – 5th September, 2009

The next Embracing Life! Retreat for 2009 is being held on the Sunshine Coast of QLD at the beautiful Nirvana Luxor Resort, the venue where we have now held a few wonderful retreats.

With Nirvana being only a small boutique resort, I am deliberately keeping this event to only 13 guests, for a more personalised retreat experience. The resort has superior facilities with a dazzling heated pool for swimming and lazing by, plunge pools, stunning gardens, and is only a short walk to the beach with boardwalks through the natural bushland – giving us everything we need for a fantastic week together.

Nirvana’s accommodation will be in either a three bedroom – two bathroom apartment; or two bedroom – two bathroom spacious apartments, where everyone will enjoy their own private room with shared living areas.

This resort is very easy to get to – you can fly into either Brisbane or Maroochydore (Sunshine Coast) Airport, and a shuttle bus can be arranged to pick you up and drop you at Nirvana’s door.

To book your place for the September luxury Embracing Life! Retreat at this lovely Coolum Beach resort, just click below and it will take you to a page where there are two different payment options. The first one is payment in full and the second is a payment option of three part payments thirty days apart each.

“I thought my lifestyle was healthy and balanced until spending a week with Leisa at the Embracing Life! Retreat at Uki. I have been inspired, motivated and educated to eat more raw foods. Her attention to detail was impeccable and I have come away feeling nurtured and energised. My experience here has been life changing!! Anyone wishing to improve mind, body and spirit can not afford to miss her next retreat. I will be back next year!”  Sue P, Sydney, NSW

And there are also some wonderful photo’s from the past retreats at www.embracinghealth.com.au/retreat-pics  Be sure to check them out!

I know the value that you will receive from your Embracing Life! Retreat, will be life-changing and a week that you will treasure.

I love what I do, and I hope that you take the opportunity to share some time with us.

Leisa

One of the points that Dr. Fred Bisci emphasised during his lectures in Australia, was the importance of rest when it comes to healing.  He talked about how during water fasting, one should lay down with closed eyes as much as possible, to conserve energy and retain that energy within for healing purposes.

In my recent post “Healing Without Medication“,  I talked about how my partner William dealt with an acute condition, and how rest was an essential part of recovery.

In my own way, I have been learning this lesson very well over the past month, with amazing results.

As many of my regular readers are aware, I have suffered from some very serious adrenal and thyroid issues in the past that I have been working on healing for quite some time.  Although I had healed myself  to the point of being really well, I was still taking some natural thyroid replacement hormone, which I have been taking for several years now. 

My goal has been to wean myself off this hormone and have my thyroid function normally again – something that  many doctors and health practitioners say is impossible after taking supplemental hormone for many years.  However, I do believe that the body can heal itself given the right tools and environment.

In addition to doing a lot of detoxing, my raw food diet, superfoods and green smoothies – I recently started with iodine therapy in amounts that are much higher than I had previously taken.  Combined with some intensive herbal medicine, I slowly weaned myself off my thyroid hormone and completely stopped it over a month ago.

The timing of doing this was important too.  I had finished running retreats for a couple of months and had planned to mainly just work at home during this time so that if I did get any negative symptoms, I had no pressing demands and could rest if needed.  And I feel that this has been a crucial part of being able wean off successfully.

I did have a couple of weeks of “adjusting” to not taking the thyroid hormone, but being able to just rest through it and know that I didn’t have to leave the house with big swollen eyes, and 7kg of extra fluid, made it possible!  Having the time to just rest was such a gift and something that we rarely get the opportunity to do in this crazy, busy life we have created.

Rest is such an incredibly important healing tool, and I now have a greater understanding of exactly how much impact it can have.  Without being able to really, truly, rest – I don’t think I would have been able to do what I have now done – which is to successfully wean off thyroid hormone and be completely well.

It is still early days, but I am currently symptom free and feeling absolutely fantastic!  

I know that not everyone is in the position to stop work and just rest to get well, but please don’t overlook this vital tool in the healing process.

Leisa

There is a great little cafe that has opened at Coolangatta, QLD where William and I enjoyed a fantastic meal at this week.

It is called One World Love Cafe and serves healthy organic 100% vegan food.  They do have cooked food as well as a comprehensive raw menu, and offer lots of gluten free meals all made with high quality ingredients.

We enjoyed a large juice to start, the most AMAZING raw avocado & broccoli soup, then because it was freezing cold – I had a lentil chutney stew that was out of this world!  I can highly recommend this great cafe as a somewhere to enjoy a health meal out.

Leisa

I was so sad this week to learn of the death of Michael Jackson at just 50 years of age.  Even though I haven’t followed his career or music for many years – at the height of his success in the eighties, I was a teenager and a HUGE Michael Jackson fan.

I had posters of him all over my bedroom, I had his records (isn’t that showing my age, lol) and knew every word to every song.  Michael Jackson’s music was the soundtrack to my teenage years and brings back some wonderful memories.

What happened to Michael, from all reports, was a long-term abuse of prescription drugs leading to chronic ill-health and degeneration, culminating in heart failure.

I think this is one of the saddest cases of abuse by the medical profession and highlights the absolute criminality of the whole medical and pharmaceutical industry.  When one of the most successful, talented and wealthiest men in the world cannot get genuine help and is only fed a cocktail of drugs to “alleviate” his symptoms – something is very, very wrong with the world.

This is why the monopoly of medicine over health care causes such incredible harm to people.  Alternatives to medications are vilified in the media, natural medicine is labelled “unscientific”, and the ability of the body to heal with simple foods is not taught and goes unknown by the general population.

Michael Jackson obviously had psychological issues that it is claimed stemmed from abuse as a child.  But rather than address those issues with healing techniques such as counselling, EFT, NLP, bio-feedback, spiritual healing etc and going on his own journey of healing and becoming whole; he chose to change his face as a way of coping.  Likely he was given psychiatric medication as well and this would not have helped to resolve his issues.

Had he chosen natural remedies, a diet of whole fresh foods, superfoods, herbs and regular detoxification and cleansing, I believe that Michael Jackson could have avoided the horrors of prescription medicine addiction and the subsequent deterioration and early death that he suffered.  The people advising him on his health should be charged with murder, because that is what this is, and it happens every day in the medical profession.

Heath Ledger was also killed by “safe” medications; Farrah Fawcett is another that suffered at the hands of Western medical treatment for cancer; Patrick Swayze is also putting his life in the hands of the oncologists and experimental chemotherapy; I believe Britney Spears’ melt-down was very likely preventable with the right nutrition and guidance; and Oprah Winfrey is obviously suffering from a thyroid disorder that has never been treated properly.

If all the money in the world and the very best “medical treatment” cannot make you well, then I think this shows that the medical model is fatally flawed and that it needs to be abandoned.

There are answers – but they come in the form of personal responsibility for your own health – and seeking knowledge from the realm of the natural world.  Not a magic pill, potion or powder – but an understanding that whole food, good quality water, sunlight, rest, exercise, stress management and a positive outlook on life have more healing power in them than ANY medication the pharmaceutical world could offer.

Leisa

Has anyone else had those funny little round balls of light show up in their photographs?

I have been noticing these little anomalies showing up at different times, and of course put it down to dust, a trick of the light, the flash, or some other camera issue – however I have had a few photo’s with orbs in them, that really don’t seem to be any type of error.

           The above photographs were taken in the Temple at the Universal Peace Centre at retreats earlier this year, and there were a whole host of photo’s with these little lights showing up.  Seeing as it is such a spiritual place, I would prefer to think that they are little spirit guides showing up on camera, but other people may have alternative explanations for them

When these next photo’s were taken, Dr Fred, Dr. Rory and I were hiking in Springbrook National Park and I took some photo’s right next to a huge waterfall.  These photo’s were taken only seconds apart, yet in the one of Dr. Fred by himself there are orbs everywhere!  I did take several photographs at this spot and only the ones of Dr. Fred alone show any orbs….  Trick of the light?  Droplets of water?  Change in the direction of the wind to blow the droplets across the camera???  Hhhhmmm….

There are many books being released now on this phenomenon, and I can’t say I have read any as yet – but if anyone else has, or has their own orb stories or opinion on what orbs are, be sure to post a comment!

Leisa

Magnesium is one of those beautiful healing minerals that is largely ignored by the medical profession, but is absolutely essential to good health.  Luckily for us, magnesium is found in plentiful quantities in a raw food diet – especially in green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, some fruits, avocados and of course raw cacao powder!  Here are 10 facts (out of 1000’s) you should know about magnesium:

1.  Magnesium is the mineral of rejuvenation, and prevents the calcification of our organs and tissues that is characteristic of the old-age related degeneration of our body.

2.  Magnesium deficiency contributes to an exaggerated response to immune stress and oxidative stress is the consequence of the inflammatory response.

3.  Prolonged use of magnesium will prevent chronic complications of diabetes.

4.  Evidence is mounting that deficient levels of magnesium contribute to the heavy metal deposition in the brain that precedes Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease.

5.  When a doctor’s patient dies of influenza, it is not the virus that is deadly, but the patient’s compromised immune system due to chronic, long-standing deficiencies of vitamin C and magnesium intake, combined with the drugs and vaccines that doctors use that send old and young alike to their graves.

6.  Cholesterol cannot be synthesized without magnesium and cholesterol is a vital component of hormones.

7.  Women who suffer from premature menopause, or an early failure of the ovaries report that magnesium often helps fight the crashing fatigue that often comes at the beginning of premature or early menopause by boosting energy levels.

8.  Diuretics help flush magnesium as well as potassium from the body. The resulting magnesium deficiency hinders potassium use by the cells. Magnesium deficiency keeps people from replenishing potassium.

9.  Magnesium treatment has been repeatedly shown to reduce the incidence of both temporary and permanent noise-induced hearing loss and supplementation is now being found to significantly improve acute onset hearing loss.

10.  All physiological processes deteriorate in the face of magnesium deficiency vastly accelerating the aging process and hastening the onset of death.

For more information see: http://www.phaelos.com/transdermal.html and check out the Green Smoothie Lesson for an easy way to get plenty of magnesium into your diet.

Leisa

Four Benefits from Adding Raw Olives into Your Diet   
Written by Matt Monarch    

(NaturalNews) Truly raw olives can be a little hard to come by, though the processed and heated kind are found everywhere. This doesn`t help those of us on a raw food diet very much, as the heated kind can wreak havoc on a body that is accustomed to eating raw. So should you make the effort to procure the raw kind? Is it worth it? Decide for yourself…here are some benefits which the inclusion of raw olives into your diet can bring to you.

The taste factor
Firstly, adding olives to a salad, with a few Italian herbs, can make what was a simple tomato and lettuce salad into a really tasty meal. If you are having people over for dinner who do not subscribe to the raw lifestyle, the addition of olives will go down very well. As most people are accustomed to strong flavors, they might find a more simple salad boring. Also, olives make excellent raw snacks; because of their high oil content they are very satiating and make great substitute for traditional `movie` snack foods such as popcorn and potato chips.

Good fat
Olives have a high fat content. Most people are now over the idea that all fat is bad, and that fat leads to flab (no rhyme intended). We know now that there are good and bad fats, and olives have plenty of the good ones, as they have a high content of monounsaturated fats. These types of fats are quite stable, meaning that they provide good protection for our body. They are not as easily damaged as polyunsaturated fats, and so, if we have them in our cells, we are better protected. People of the Mediterranean countries are thought to be as healthy as they are due to their high consumption of olive oil.

Weight loss
Studies have shown that the consumption of foods high in monounsaturated fats may lead to weight loss. This could be due to its satiating affects, just a handful of olives will ward off hunger, or it may also be that these fats increase the metabolism. Furthermore, other studies have shown that monounsaturated fats, such as those found in olives, can decrease the amount of fat held around the stomach area, when compared to diets high in carbohydrates.

Excellent source of Vitamin E
Olives have high levels of Vitamin E, in fact, a cup of olives will give you twenty percent of your recommended daily amount. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant which neutralizes free radicals in the body. Tests have shown that Vitamin E may protect the body against cardiovascular disease and it may also enhance the immune system.

Olives make excellent snacks, and they also really make a salad a lot more interesting. Another favorite is olive tapenade, which makes a delicious dip for chopped vegetables.

About the author
Matt Monarch has been on a 100% Raw Vegan Diet since 1999; he eats only raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, and seaweeds. He is currently the owner of three different health-promoting websites.

Article reprinted from Naturalnews.com

Leisa

My partner William and I have a very different view on healing and what the body is capable of; as compared to most people.  Even those with an interest in, and some knowledge of natural healing, rarely trust the process of healing which isn’t always pleasant.

As an example, just last week William had an abscess develop around his tooth.  In the past, William had a lot of trouble with his teeth, and even though he hasn’t had any new problems for quite some time – there are residual effects from the work he has had done.  There was a crack in a tooth from a filling that had fallen out, and an abscess developed.

As well as swelling around the tooth and enormous pain, William developed quite a high fever and was a very sick man.  Many people at this point would run to the dentist or doctor and take antibiotics to contain the infection – but if we remember that antibiotics should only be used in life and death situations, then we look for alternatives first.

So, I made up a poultice of Bentonite clay, ground cloves, iodine and cayenne pepper, and packed that around the tooth and gums where the infection was.  We used immune stimulating herbs, garlic which is one of the best natural antibiotics available, and regular hot Epsom Salts baths.  When the poultice came off, we alternated mouth rinses of iodine and strong citrus seed extract and also packed sliced garlic along the gum line.  He didn’t eat at all, and just had juices and green smoothies.

And William spent a few days in bed resting with a high fever.  After about three days the worst had passed and he was on his way to a full recovery.  That’s not to say that he won’t have the tooth looked at and repaired, but given the right tools and environment, the body CAN heal itself.

We have been taught to fear our bodies, to be scared of what might happen if don’t we address the symptoms of illness immediately.  Horror stories of brain injury from fever, infections becoming systemic and developing into septicaemia, and kidney and liver damage are common.

But with the right practitioner guiding you through it, healing doesn’t have to develop into a horror story.  It is not pleasant, and you do need to be able to take the time to stay in bed and let the body do it’s job – but with the right support it is amazing what can happen.

So often we live such busy lives that taking the time to heal properly isn’t an option.  We have jobs we may lose if we take time off; children to look after, activities we are involved in – which is why many turn to medications which suppress the symptoms quickly and allow us to continue on with our lives as if nothing much was wrong.  But eventually that weakens our system and our health degrades.

If we can manage to allow ourselves the time to heal, then we reap the benefits in improved immunity and a healthier body in the long term.

Healing without medication – it’s our choice

Leisa

I have a lovely friend in WA, Tess, whom I first met when she was a guest at the health retreat I once worked at; and she has now joined me at two of my own Embracing Life! Six Day Detox, Healing and Raw Food Retreats.

Tess is an absolute delight to have as a guest at the retreats, and at the end of our last retreat in May she wrote a wonderful poem and recited it with enormous flair for all the guests.  With her permission I am sharing her poetic artistry with the world

Well we’re almost there, we’ve seen it through
the detox we’ve done – evacuation too!
Our thanks to Leisa and her terrific crew,
And let’s say thanks to you, you & you.

So what do we do? And were do we go?
Return to our homes, to face the woes?
Back to work, yup, that’s how it goes!
But wait, there’s more! The light’s gone on…

We’re Leisa trained; we’re clean, we’re bright
Aim high my friends; you know I’m right
Go the raw way, for your bodies & souls
Good luck, best wishes, as you aim for your goals!

 Leisa

I love the field of epigenetics – it sounds complicated – but it is the field of study looking at changes of gene expression that occur without the underlying DNA changing.

Today’s catch-cry for absolving ourselves from responsibility for our illnesses is “It’s genetic – I have a genetic predisposition to X disease – so it’s not my fault”.  Soon though, I have the feeling that we won’t be able to use that excuse, as research goes deeper into the environmental stimuli that affect whether a gene expresses itself in a positive or negative (disease creating) manner.

When we speak of environment – we mean things like the food we eat, the toxins we are exposed to AND the thoughts we think.  Pretty powerful stuff to think that our lifestyles have such an impact on our genetics.

Bruce Lipton is one who has done some brilliant work in this area and is at the forefront of epigenetic research – I reviewed his book “The Biology of Belief” in my latest Membership Magazine and will be interviewing him for the Members later this year.  This paper below, however gives a wonderful insight into this amazing field of study:

“Back in 2000, Randy Jirtle, a professor of radiation oncology at Duke University, and his postdoctoral student Robert Waterland designed a groundbreaking genetic experiment that was simplicity itself. They started with pairs of fat yellow mice known to scientists as agouti mice, so called because they carry a particular gene—the agouti gene—that in addition to making the rodents ravenous and yellow renders them prone to cancer and diabetes. Jirtle and Waterland set about to see if they could change the unfortunate genetic legacy of these little creatures.

Typically, when agouti mice breed, most of the offspring are identical to the parents: just as yellow, fat as pincushions, and susceptible to life-shortening disease. The parent mice in Jirtle and Waterland’s experiment, however, produced a majority of offspring that looked altogether different. These young mice were slender and mousy brown. Moreover, they did not display their parents’ susceptibility to cancer and diabetes and lived to a spry old age. The effects of the agouti gene had been virtually erased.

Remarkably, the researchers effected this transformation without altering a single letter of the mouse’s DNA. Their approach instead was radically straightforward—they changed the moms’ diet. Starting just before conception, Jirtle and Waterland fed a test group of mother mice a diet rich in methyl donors, small chemical clusters that can attach to a gene and turn it off. These molecules are common in the environment and are found in many foods, including onions, garlic, beets, and in the food supplements often given to pregnant women. After being consumed by the mothers, the methyl donors worked their way into the developing embryos’ chromosomes and onto the critical agouti gene. The mothers passed along the agouti gene to their children intact, but thanks to their methyl-rich pregnancy diet, they had added to the gene a chemical switch that dimmed the gene’s deleterious effects.”

You can read the full article here:

Leisa