I have to say it was a real red-letter day for me when I learned my anti-aging audio book was chosen for a GOLD Nautilus Book Award. When the awards committee chair invited me to New York for the Award Announcements, another blessing fell into my lap. I’d already booked my flight to New Jersey to attend a family wedding – taking place just a few days before they wanted me at Book Expo America at the Jacob Javits Center in NYC. The timing was perfect! Synchronicity strikes again!
There’s more to this timing story, but first let me tell you a bit about the Nautilus Book Awards. This award recognizes books, audio books and e-books that promote spiritual growth, conscious living and positive social change and, at the same time, stimulate the imagination and offer readers new possibilities for a better life and a better world.
The Nautilus Book Awards Silver and Gold Winners are selected in a unique three-tier judging process by experienced teams of book reviewers, librarians, authors, editors, book store owners and leaders in the publishing industry. They are charged with looking for “distinguished literary and heartfelt contributions to spiritual growth, conscious living, high-level wellness, green values, responsible leadership and positive social change.”
A short list of some of the other authors who have received a GOLD Nautilus Book Award includes Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra, Carolyn Myss and Eckert Tolle, and I’m honored to be included in such a group.
Funny how things work. When the Nautilus Award folks contacted me to say my 3-CD audio book was nominated, I was knee-deep into designing a new cover for it – and giving it a new TITLE! Why? It was an inspiration that came to me when I completed my morning meditation one day – that the original title, “The Secret Method for Growing Younger”, just didn’t feel quite right. “THINK and GROW YOUNG – Powerful Steps to Create a Life of Joy” seems to have just the right vibration or frequency or whatever you call it.
I immediately asked the Nautilus committee if the change in title and packaging would affect my consideration for the award and found it would not. Whew! It did spur me to speed up the production process, however – all in all, a good thing!
So with lovely new, eco-friendly packaging (no plastic!) for the second edition of the audio book, it occurred to me that I still had an inventory of the original version – both in audio and soft cover print. Now, with new, improved covers and better title, what should I do with the old title/old cover books? The answer came: offer all of you a big discount – and hold a huge Inventory Reduction Sale!
To celebrate my Gold Nautilus Book Award, I am offeringall the earlier editions with the title The Secret Method for Growing Younger at 50% off! The content is the same, and I’m thinking perhaps the sale prices will encourage my readers to stock up for gift-giving. And…trite but true: supplies are limited.
Whether you’re reading – or listening to me read – Think and Grow Young or The Secret Method for Growing Younger, the anti-aging message is the same – and it’s the message I so want to get out to the world: we CAN reverse aging and grow younger – in our minds, spirits and bodies. I hope you’ll help me spread the word.
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
Researchers at Harvard-affiliated medical centers recently published remarkable anti-aging results of a study using gene therapy that reversed aging — on mice!
That’s right, in the study they saw the total reversal of age-related problems, including decreased brain function which returned to normal and failing organs that started working well again. Even fur on the mice that had turned gray was restored to dark fur. (See link to ABC News story at bottom.)
I find this so exciting! The researchers didn’t expect such dramatic anti-aging results, results that went way beyond slowing the signs of aging to actually reversing it — which is what I call growing younger!
What did they do to cause the mice to grow younger? They lengthened their telomeres.
You haven’t heard of telomeres? Let’s back up for a second and define some things. DNA is held within the chromosomes and each chromosome has a protective cap at the ends — called a telomere. It’s sort of like the tip of a shoelace which keeps the shoelace from unraveling.
Throughout life, these protective caps get shorter and shorter — and eventually they become too short to protect the DNA. At this point cellular damage begins to occur, leading to malfunction in crucial organs like the brain, heart, liver, and pancreas.
Muscle loss also occurs, and eventually extreme weakness and frailty happen. In other words, when the telomeres get short enough, the deterioration of old age occurs.
In this study, researchers boosted the cellular levels of telomerase, enzymes that lengthen telomeres, in the mice — and saw the signs of aging reversed. In measureable ways, the mice grew younger!
The next big question is: Can they do the same for people?
They’re certainly hopeful and are conducting more animal studies which will undoubtedly lead to research with people. In the case of humans, each cell holds 23 pair of chromosomes, each with telomeres at the strand ends.
Prior research has already established that shorter telomeres are associated with age-related diseases such as heart disease and Alzheimer’s. The exciting news about this study is the fact that boosting cellular levels of telomerases resulted in a significant reversal of the detrimental signs of aging.
Dr. Ronald DiPinho, a geneticist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, and co-author of the study results, said he thinks this research has identified the core pathway explaining many different theories of aging.
Now, as exciting as this is, we don’t want to sit on our laurels and wait — we want to do everything we can right now to grow younger!
Lifestyle factors may matter just as much! Dr. Dean Ornish, researcher at the University of California San Francisco, conducted a study several years ago with volunteers (people!) who agreed to follow a low-fat diet, exercise regularly and use relaxation techniques.
These lifestyle changes increased the volunteers’ levels of telomerase – hence postponing the time when the telomeres could no longer protect the cells from damage.
My diet is not so low-fat if you count all the coconut oil I consume — which is very healthy for you so I’m sure that’s good. But I DO exercise every day and the relaxation technique I use is twice daily half-hour meditation. Those are just a few of the “grow young” techniques that are working for me so I expect my telomeres are doing a good job protecting my cells.
If you need scientific anti-aging evidence to believe it’s possible to reverse aging, you’ve got it in the studies I mentioned. Keep in mind, however, that when you allow the belief that you CAN grow younger, you’ve taken a significant step toward making it happen. Now let’s celebrate! Walk, exercise, drink lots of pure water, observe your thoughts, pray, meditate and eat less — so we can grow younger together!
If you have an anti-aging tip, we’d love to hear from you. Please share it with our community by clicking Comment below. Thanks!
This anti-aging tip is one your skin will love. It’s about a supplement you probably haven’t heard of yet: Omega 7.
The anti-aging benefits of Omega 7 are beginning to be touted by scientists for its ability to help control free radicals. But that’s not all! Omega 7 also contains dozens of phyto-nutrients that nourish the skin.
That’s why Omega 7 has become part of my anti-aging daily routine and is one nutrient you should consider if you want your skin to look and feel younger.
I’m sure you’ve heard of the health benefits of Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) Omega 3, 6 and 9, but have you heard of Omega 7? Most people haven’t but those on the leading edge of nutritional science and anti-aging therapies are re-discovering what was known in ancient times in Greek and Tibetan herbal medicine.
Your body cannot make EFAs so you need to get them from food or supplements. The best source for Omega 7 is oil from the Sea Buckthorn plant.
While the benefits of Sea Buckthorn on the body’s largest organ, the skin, have been widely documented in ancient texts, Sea Buckthorn oil also has an extensive history of traditional use to promote digestive and mucous membrane health. Another major anti-aging effect of Sea Buckthorn in ancient times was relief of menopausal vaginal dryness.
Today scientists are touting Omega 7 for its anti-aging benefits primarily since it helps control free radicals and contains dozens of skin-nourishing phyto-nutrients, including full spectrum Vitamin E, well known for healing and repairing skin tissue.
Besides the other vitamin/herbal supplements in my daily anti-aging regimen, I also take one or two Omega 7 capsules each day. Talk it over with your healthcare provider – perhaps it’s right for you too, but don’t take it if you’re pregnant (or planning to be) or nursing.
So, if you seriously want to have more youthful skin, you can! Consider taking an Omega 7 supplement each day and apply my castor oil home remedy morning and evening for healthy, young skin. Want a copy of my castor oil home remedy? Just write to me at ellen@best-anti-aging-tips.com
If you have an anti-aging tip, we’d love to hear from you. Please share it with our Best Anti-Aging Tips Community by clicking Comment below. Thanks!
Anti-aging is not just about taking action steps after your 30th birthday.
A 40-year scientific study released findings which show that the stereotypes teenagers and young adults have of older people – positive or negative – can actually predict their own aging. This is just one more research study that proves how powerful our thoughts and words are.
Most of us have had subjective experiences to support the fact that what we think will happen – what we strongly EXPECT to happen – will happen.
Well, now another scientific study is backing up what our instincts tell us. The truth of just how powerful our thoughts are in determining our future is illustrated in the results of a major study by the Yale School of Public Health. Researchers found that age stereotypes acquired in childhood and young adulthood were carried over into old age and had far-reaching effects.
The 40-year study, published in Psychological Science, found that younger people with strong negative stereotypes about the elderly are more likely to experience strokes, heart attacks and other heart problems when they grow older than those who had positive images of the elderly.
“Someday you’re going to be old,” we’ve admonished teenagers and youngsters who have ridiculed elderly people and expressed a lack of compassion for their seeming helplessness. And it warmed our hearts when we watched other young people share love with elders and delight in their company.
Little did we know that their stereotypes about old people would have an effect on young people’s own lives when they got older! Yet that’s what this major study has found.
Becca R. Levy, PhD, is the study’s lead author and associate professor of epidemiology and psychology at the Yale School of Public Health. “The findings suggest that efforts to reduce the negative age stereotypes of younger individuals could provide them with better health when they reach the age of those they had been previously targeting with these stereotypes,” Levy said in a news article written by Michael Greenwood.
This study is a good reminder that we can serve not only ourselves but our kids, grandkids and great-grandkids by engendering in them compassionate understanding of the limitations of others – young or old.
When grandpa visits and is grouchy, encourage those youngsters in the family to override that grouchiness with kindness and humor.
You know, emotions are catching – and instead of allowing grandpa’s grumpiness to spread to everyone in the family, create a stronger emotion – one of love, joy and understanding. Let grandpa catch this better-feeling emotion.
Demonstrate for those who’re younger how they can bring the emotional energy up instead of allowing grandpa’s emotional state to bring them down. Realizing they can make grandpa smile will make them feel good about themselves as well as empowered.
Another way we can serve those younger is to BE the example of adding years without sacrificing our vitality, curiosity and enthusiasm.
If we just step over those age labels like they’re not there, we can imprint a healthier image of what it looks like to be over 50 or 80 or heck, 100! We can prevent those detrimental stereotypes from forming, and pave the way for the generations coming behind us to add years without strokes and heart attacks.
Scientific studies continue to prove that thoughts, beliefs and expectations are extremely powerful influences on what takes shape in our lives. This is just one more reason to replace negative thought habits with thoughts that inspire, encourage and bring joy.
Share with us your experiences that proved your thoughts, beliefs and expectations affected your life – or anti-aging tips that work for you. We can all learn from each other. Just Click to Comment. And thanks!
The major part of “Can Meditation Make You Younger?” which appeared in Lifestyle You, the online site of an Australian TV channel and magazine, focuses on studies by scientists and healthcare practitioners investigating the anti-aging benefits of meditation.
I’m honored to tell you I was interviewed for this article because meditation is part of my grow younger process, but the most fascinating part of the article is what these others have to say.
The author, Dana Mrkich of Sydney, discovered my website and spent several days in Taos NM interviewing me while she was on a trip to America’s southwest.
What a delightful gift it was to get to know Dana: she is a treasure! Dana is not only an author, radio host. teacher and counselor, she’s also a talented energy intuitive. Visit her website atwww.danamrkich.com. And please comment below. I’d love to hear from you.
Can Meditation Make You Younger?
By Dana Mrkich, Sydney, Australia
Reprinted with permission from LifeStyle You, the online service of LifeStyle You Channel.
Move over expensive creams and painful surgeries. Did you know that regular meditation can make you look and feel 20 years younger, increase health and longevity and prevent brain-deterioration, dramatically changing what we previously thought were inevitable processes?
This natural – and free – practice is rapidly rising as a powerful alternative to the multi-billion dollar anti-aging industry, with experts and studies revealing that the effects go beyond feeling calm and peaceful for a few minutes.
Real life story
Author of The Secret Method for Growing Younger Ellen Wood looks nowhere near her biological age. “Even though I have more than 74 years under my belt, I have more energy, stamina, flexibility, and vitality than even 30 years ago. My body is stronger and my mind much clearer and sharper.”
Ellen credits daily meditation as being one of the key factors in her ‘growing younger’ program. “Growing younger starts with the mind. It doesn’t matter how many exercises you do, or how healthy your diet or the amount of restful sleep, growing younger won’t happen unless your mind can access that joyful place within that releases stress and promotes happy cells. Meditation as a daily habit takes me to that place.”
According to Professor and Doctor of Raphaology Medicine, Morning Spirit Wolf, also a practitioner of Herbal and Nutritional Medicine, meditation allows you to literally step out of time because it taps into the pineal gland of the brain. “Pineal function, a little known gland, produces hormones that regulate bio-rhythms, immunity, perception, and aging.”
The benefits of meditation
The impact of meditation on aging, particularly the aging brain, has been a topic of research for many years for Dr. Dharma Singh Khalsa, the founding president and medical director of the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation in Arizona.
“Our research reveals that meditation lowers the stress chemical in the blood called cortisol. Cortisol kills brain cells and leads to cognitive decline. Our research also shows that our simple 12 minute daily meditation called Kirtan Kriya enhances brain blood flow in critical areas of the brain and reverses memory loss.”
Dr Khalsa also explains how meditation can increase our longevity and decrease our overall aging process. “Meditation lowers blood pressure and other markers of aging including MVO2 or oxygen demand. It enhances psychological well-being, perhaps the most significant determinate of telomere length (telomeres are the end cap of our DNA), which is a very important marker of aging and longevity: longer telomeres = less illness and longer life.”
Building healthy cells
Occupational Therapy Practitioner and Host of television show Functional Fitness Suzanne Andrews uses meditation in her treatments with clients, saying that meditation is an important part of healthy cell function, and that our cells ultimately determine everything about the way we look and feel.
“Meditation when combined with diaphragmatic breathing increases oxygen intake which increases blood flow. There are 1 billion oxygen molecules in 1 red blood cell – very important because blood nourishes all of your body systems cells. Adults come with a total number of 100 trillion cells. Each of these cells is an important life form that depends on oxygen and blood to transport nutrients, gases, wastes, and hormones.
Meditation helps our cells work better as a system because a cell is a system of parts that help it to work. Like a watch, if one part breaks down, the whole watch stops keeping time. So too, our cells age when one part breaks down. Keeping our cells healthy slows down the aging process.”
Meditation and fertility
Essentially, meditation is a key way of taking charge of your own health, looks and longevity. Acupuncturist Janet Humphrey is the founder of New York’s Giving Nature Center, and uses acupuncture needles to induce a state of meditation.
“This state restores the body’s optimum functioning and harmonious nervous system function, benefiting our organs, skin and circulation. It helps issues including insomnia, anxiety, depression, ulcers, digestive disorders, menstrual and fertility issues. Cells are receiving the healthy nutrients that they need. When they are well nourished they can work at their best. Once people experience this through acupuncture, they want to maintain it – so I recommend meditation so they aren’t dependant.”
The brilliance of meditation is that it is simple to do, and accessible to everyone.
This anti-aging action step is one of the most profound ways to grow younger.
If you possibly can, please cut way down on this stuff because it can cause wrinkles, inflammation, depression and a whole host of harmful effects on the cells of your body. My anti-aging physician, Terry Grossman M.D., told me to read labels and limit myself to 15 grams a day.
But remember, growing younger is about joy – so don’t go overboard.
“I’m going to stop eating sugar-coated donuts. I’m going to stop eating sugar-coated donuts. I’m going to stop eating sugar-coated donuts.”
Ever repeat something like this to yourself? If you resolved to have a healthier body and mind by changing your diet, that’s great.
However, if you’ve been stating your intention in this way, you may get the opposite result and here’s why. In order to change our habits, we need to get both the conscious and subconscious mind on board — and the words we choose are powerful!
When setting intentions, saying affirmations or just repeating something to keep it in focus, be aware that your subconscious mind doesn’t hear the word “stop” or “not.”
So by saying “I’m going to stop eating sugar-coated donuts,” your subconscious mind absorbs “eating sugar-coated donuts” and sets up images of glorious goodies that taste delicious but often have empty calories or artery-clogging fat and too much sugar.
By phrasing your affirmation with a negative, you’re creating a conflict between what your conscious mind and subconscious mind are “seeing.” Since it’s the subconscious that runs the body, your result is likely to be extra pounds and a feeling of defeat when your intention was to eat healthy, look good and feel good.
Here’s what happens: your mind takes words and translates them into pictures. When you read a novel, you’re not just reading combinations of letters on a page; your mind actually makes mental pictures from the words. And when a comedian tells a story, the audience “gets it” by transforming ideas being told into humorous images that make them laugh.
To illustrate what I mean, let’s test your inner vision. Try NOT to think of an elephant balancing on one foot wearing a red dress with white polka dots.
Can’t do it, right? Your mind will automatically visualize that silly-dressed elephant even though you understood that you were NOT to visualize it.
To make your intentions powerful and to support healthy, youthful goals, write and say exactly what you are intending. “I eat healthy, nourishing food. My skin is smooth and firm. My body is strong and buff.” (Women can add, “with curves in all the right places.”)
Say it in the present tense with emotion as if it’s already so. Your subconscious mind doesn’t know the difference between real and imagined and you can justfake it til you feel it.
It’s important to use the present tense in affirmations – not the future tense. If, for example, you focus on what you want with an affirmation such as “I am going to eat nourishing food and become healthy and strong,” you’re not creating that in the present; you’re creating a continuing state of “going to” that will always remain in the future.
Saying affirmations is one of the great aids in creating the life you want, and yes, you can even use affirmations to help you grow younger. They work for me — I AM growing younger and affirmations are part of my daily practices
Start with one small part of a younger, healthier you; for example, having a clear, sharp mind. Then compose a strong, short affirmation that expresses an aspect of a clear, sharp mind as if it’s already true, such as, “I have an excellent memory.”
Write that statement on index cards and put them in different rooms of your house and say the affirmation — out loud if that works for you — whenever you see it.
You’ll also want to catch yourself whenever old programming surfaces and you say things like, “I keep forgetting where I put my glasses,” but that’s another action step in the grow younger process we’ll explore in another article.
Two of my favorite affirmations for overall youthfulness are “Thank God I’m young and healthy,” and “It’s a good thing I’m young and healthy” and I have those on cards in my kitchen, bedroom, office and car. These are common expressions you can say with a little bit of attitude and a lift of your head – just like you might say, “It’s a good thing I’m here or we’d never get this show on the road.”
How about starting today to get your show on the road to youthfulness? Start with affirmations on cards and keep in mind the most important part: have FUN creating a new, happier, younger you.
Comment below to share your favorite affirmations for growing younger. I’d love to hear from you.
A remarkable man, Jack LaLanne, left the planet recently at age 96 in the way we’d all like to do – healthy and active right up to the end.
It reminded me of a central theme in Dr. Terry Grossman’s lectures. Terry Grossman is an MD specializing in longevity medicine and he’s my anti-aging physician. Dr. Grossman and futurist Ray Kurzweil co-authored the book, “Transcend,” a comprehensive guide to staying healthy and living life to the fullest.
Dr. Grossman says we can live a healthy, active, sexy life right up to the end and he calls it ‘squaring the curve.’
He’s referring to the downward curve on most health graphs that begins about age 30, when the average person begins to lose some degree of strength, stamina, flexibility and energy.
Most such graphs show a steady line that begins to curve down and continues that way for decades until death. But Dr. Grossman says we can work on squaring the curve and keep that line level until the time when we die and it makes a sudden turn downward.
That’s exactly what Jack LaLanne did. Known as the ‘Godfather of Fitness,’ LaLanne squared the curve just like we’d all like to do. He lived a healthy, active life and then died a month ago of pneumonia at the age of 96 after a brief illness.
LaLanne had said more than once, “People don’t die of old age. They die of inactivity.” And the wonderful thing about his legacy is that he lived true to his beliefs and convictions, and never stopped living a full and active life. He continued to exercise daily well into his 90s.
Some of us who are old enough remember his TV show that began in the ‘50s and aired until 1985.
We also remember his trademark tight-fitting jumpsuit and his enthusiasm for exercise and fitness. I can still picture him doing jumping jacks – on black and white TV.
His determination to become fit grew out of a desperate attempt to curtail his addiction to sugar and relieve the suffering from terrible headaches, mood swings and depression.
After hearing a lecture by Paul Bragg about the health benefits of exercise and eating unprocessed foods, the young LaLanne swore off white flour, sugar and most fat and began eating more fruits and vegetables. By age 15, he had built a backyard gym of climbing ropes, chin-up bars, sit-up machines and weights.
Even if you’ve never heard of LaLanne, his ground-breaking work in body-building and strength training for extended health, as well as his nutritional guidelines, influenced the entire health and wellness awareness of the past 60 years.
Jack was definitely a trail-blazer way ahead of his time in the area of health and fitness. We’ve all benefited from his commitment to helping others build positive habits and live long, healthy and happy lives.
Yes, Jack LaLanne squared the curve and you can too. Think about it! Why waste away when you can use body, mind and spirit action steps to stay vital, interested and active until it’s time to go?
I’ve spent the past 7 years discovering and practicing these steps and have completely turned my life around. I can honestly say at age 74 that I have the stamina, energy and enthusiasm I had in my 20s and 30s! A major part of my daily exercise routine is the Five Tibetan Rites. You can watch a demonstration on how to do them at http://www.howtogrowyounger.com/p/tror.html
I send a grateful salute to Jack LaLanne for paving the way to health consciousness since the 1930s – and want to honor him for showing us how to live with strength and vigor until it’s time to leave. Growing younger isn’t about living forever – it’s about living and leaving like Jack LaLanne.
Click to Comment at the bottom and tell us any memories you might have about this fitness legend who had a positive influence on several generations.
Here’s an anti-aging and anti-itching home remedy that makes your skin healthy and relieves the itchies in cold, dry weather. It’s part of my program for growing younger and it won’t cost an arm and a leg.
We’ve been experiencing Himalayan-type cold here in Taos, New Mexico, that makes you want to just curl up in bed with the covers over your head until spring.
But then it’s hard to sleep when the itching all over your body caused by dryness in cold weather feels like microscopic crawly things chomping on you.
Cold, dry weather can cause itching, increase wrinkles and damage your skin. The good news is, you can protect your skin with a low-cost home remedy I’ve been using for seven years that works wonders! It’s part of my program for growing younger and it’s amazing what it does for your skin – in any season!
Ellen Wood’s Castor Oil Home Remedy for Healthy, Young Skin
Go to your local health food or herb store and buy an 8 oz. bottle of castor oil and a tiny bottle each of Frankincense and Lavender Essential Oil – all excellent for your skin. Make sure the castor oil bottle has a screw-on cap with a spout that lifts up to pour.
Pour about 2 ounces of the castor oil into an extra bottle or jar to save for adding as needed.
Add 2 ounces of water to the 6 ounces of castor oil. Add 2 to 4 drops each of Frankincense and Lavender.
Shake, lift the spout and pour some into your hands and spread all over your face.
Close the spout and shake again. Then begin spreading it all over your body. Shake frequently between pours. Add more water if it gets too thick or more castor oil if it’s too watery.
As you rub this yummy oil all over, say ‘thank you’ to each part of your body – for carrying you around, allowing you to touch and hold things, for keepin’ on even when you don’t give it enough attention or rest.
Can’t reach your back? Go to the hardware store and get a paint sponge on a stick. Gently pour the oil mixture on the sponge and spread it on your back. Then insert the sponge end into a plastic baggie for use the next day. Actually, I find it quicker to use the sponge to apply the oil everywhere except my face and feet, where I just use my hands.
Kids’ Faces Need Protection Too
When I was a little kid growing up in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, I remember being so excited about going outside to play in the snow.
There we were, my sister and brother and I, dressed in layers of long johns, leggings, sweaters, scarves – two pair of socks inside boots we called goulashes – then a hat covering our head, forehead and ears; hooded jacket; mittens and another scarf wrapped around our neck and chin.
“Stand still,” my mother would tell her three little mummies, who were wondering if they’d be able to bend over to make a snowball, while she anointed the only visible part of each of us with Vaseline – slathering it over little cheeks, noses and lips.
Vaseline seemed to work in those days – and I slathered it on my kids too – but today we’ve re-discovered the healthy benefits of castor oil for the skin, so go ahead and anoint your kids, too, with my castor oil home remedy.
Do you have a home remedy that’s good for your skin? Comment below and share it with all of us. We’d love to hear from you.
Summer’s second novel, “Wrecker” makes its debut on February 15 and the advance acclaims are pouring in.
Because Summer won the largest grant in the U.S. for a female artist, a top New York literary agent came to her and I still remember the day she told me Dan sold it to a publisher.
Me: Fantastic! Which publisher? (I knew some big ones were considering it.)
Summer: Bloomsbury.
Me: Uh… I never heard of them.
Summer: Ma, ever hear of “Harry Potter”?
Well, who hasn’t! Bloomsbury bought the U.S. rights (debuts in February) and the U.K. rights (debuts in August) so she has a New York editor and a London editor.
And Yippee! Book of the Month Club recently bought book club rights to “Wrecker.” Summer’s editor was especially delighted because BOMC rarely selects fiction anymore.
One of the stars in it is Summer’s dog Bosco. I hope all this attention doesn’t go to his head and change his sweet disposition – he’s staying with me while Summer launches “Wrecker” starting in Santa Fe on February 18, then Taos on Feb. 19 and Albuquerque on Feb. 20. Then she’s off to northern California and the Pacific northwest – http://summerwoodwrites.com/Events
You can preorder WRECKER here: Wrecker: A Novel
if you’d like your own copy, or encourage your local library to get one to share. Rope in your book club and Summer will be happy to dial in to chat with you.
Publishers Weekly calls it “an affecting novel… Wood succeeds with surefooted prose; a lush, earthy California backdrop; and a sensitive story of nurturing and family.”
Here’s a Book Browse advance review by Cheri W., Grand Rapids, MN, “This was a page-turner from the opening of the book until the ending… One of the most ‘happy’ books I have read in a long time. Highly recommend it to anyone who needs a burst of brightness in their day!”
Thank you for reading this and sharing my blissful time. I’m so grateful for all my kids and their talents and grateful to you for letting me share this good news with you. Please pass this along to everyone you know.
Got the heebie-jeebies from too much happening while you’re making other plans?
Or is your brain fried from figuring out how to rob Peter to pay Paul?
Or is your blood boiling from family squabbling?
Or do you just have the plain old blues?
Well, you can do something about it. YOU control what you allow into your mind.
Want more joy? Then choose it! Here’s how:
Feel the emotion that’s inside you as strongly as you can. For example, are you angry? Then FEEL that anger – stronger, stronger. But here’s the trick: do not think about what caused it. Just feel the emotion. Let your mind go to the feeling in your gut or your head but don’t give space in your mind to the thought of what caused you to feel that way.
Lie down (it’s okay to sit or stand if you prefer) for one minute of deep breathing.
Put your hand on your tummy. Inhale, fill your tummy with air and watch your hand rise as you take a good deep breath. Then exhale completely and feel your hand lower.
When you’re inhaling, tell yourself that Love and Joy are coming into your body. Feel your cells waking up. Then exhale Love and Joy out to the world. That’s it! Just do this for one minute.
“It’s as natural as breathing,” is a common expression and we take about 20,000 breaths a day so it may seem silly to give instructions for breathing – even deep breathing. But sometimes we think we’re taking a deep breath and instead we do the exact opposite: we suck in our belly and raise our shoulders.
Keep in mind that deep breathing is not recommended for people suffering from “panic disorder” or “agoraphobia,” an illness in which people fear having a panic attack in a place where they can’t get help. I’m recommending deep breathing for when you’re “stressed out,” which most of us feel from time to time when life’s challenges overwhelm us.
When you’re stressed out, your breath is shallow and you don’t give your cells enough oxygen and you don’t release enough carbon dioxide. Shallow breathing contributes to the progressive deterioration of your body and mind – what we call “growing old.”
Remember that stress is the number one aging factor. In order to grow younger, become aware when you’re stressed out and take a minute to do some deep breathing.
And while you’re at it, change those heebie-jeebieing, angry or blue thoughts. Think of all the things you’re grateful for. Proper breathing and expressing gratitude can deeply influence your health, happiness and spiritual development – and bring more joy to your life and to the whole world!
A PRIZE FOR THE BEST BLOG POST:
Post a comment at the bottom of my blogand you could be the winner of two prizes for the best comment. The prizes are a digital copy of my book and myAffirmations to Grow Younger MP3 (which you can burn onto a CD.) You can comment on the tip I give in my blog and how it worked for you (or how you made it better!) Or share a different tip for growing younger that works for you. Thanks.
“Just a waste of my time,” I remember thinking while waiting my turn for a mammogram in Dr. Ira Berger’s office. I had brought my briefcase and had work spread on my lap, but spending time driving the 97-mile round trip from my home office to the radiologist’s was an unproductive part of my day.
It was 1992 and I had been getting annual mammograms for more than 10 years – ever since I turned 45. But I felt I had better things to do with my time, especially since no one in my family had ever had breast cancer, or cancer of any kind.
I had a new job working as a consultant for a company headquartered in Pennsylvania, and I wanted to succeed beyond their wildest expectations. My world had recently been shaken at the roots when my brilliant career as a marketing and sales director ended in a lay-off following a merger.
Even though I had finished with standing in the unemployment line, the shame of that weekly ordeal lingered in my memory. Each week the line had moved agonizingly slow while I glanced without making eye contact at the gray, cheerless faces and realized mine probably looked the same.
At least I was still alive. The extreme stress of the last months on the job following the merger took the lives of two of my colleagues. I needed outstanding success in this new position to resurrect my shattered ego and calm my shredded nerves.
And then I got the news: the mammogram showed a tiny mark on my right breast, a spec of a growth that needed to be removed. After a quickly-arranged meeting with a surgeon, a lumpectomy was performed.
It was after I was told, “It’s breast cancer,” that I realized I was being given a wake-up call. Oh yes, I definitely needed to change my life. Time with family and friends, even my daily prayers and meditation, had gone by the wayside after rumors about the merger turned into a nightmarish reality.
And so, even before the surgeon removed all the lymph nodes under my right arm (negative, thank goodness), I took a good hard look at my life and decided to make changes. Succeeding in my career would no longer take first place in my life. Communication with my spiritual source and giving attention to my family and friends would be my top priorities.
Being told you have breast cancer is a scary thing. I downplayed it to my kids (who were in their 20s and 30s) and told only one close friend. No one at my new consulting job knew since I worked at home and used lunchtime to drive myself to radiation treatments every day for six weeks.
If only I could have seen the future! I would have rejoiced when I was laid off knowing that a far better job was in store for me. The consulting position turned out to be with the best company in the world – a kind, caring boss; much, much more money; colleagues who loved their work; and I got to work at home. Instead, I allowed the circumstances to throw me into fear and lost my spiritual center.
As is often the case, what appears at first to be a catastrophe turned out to be a valuable wake-up call. Just as losing my job was a blessing in disguise, the breast cancer turned out to be a blessing too. I am very grateful for the changes it brought to my life.
Now when confronted with a challenge, I’m back to trusting and remembering to say: “Something good will come of this.” And it ALWAYSdoes. I just need to expect it and watch for it.
After 18 years I can definitely say I’m cured of breast cancer. There’s just one last thing I must do to complete that phase of my life, and that is to break my silence and encourage every woman to get her annual mammogram or breast ultrasound. It was a routine mammogram and an incredibly gifted radiologist that possibly saved my life. By writing this article and sharing my story, if just one of you reading about my experience decides to get regular screenings, then I can say: “Something ELSE good has come of this.”
What do you think about annual breast screenings? Let us hear from you by giving your opinion in the section below. Just Click to Comment.
I hear it all the time. A friend is telling me something and before she finishes, there’s a pause. She might clear her throat and crinkle her eyebrows. Then she says, “Oh dear, another senior moment.”
Usually the person is over 50 – but lately I’ve been hearing it even from men and women in their 40s.
I have no idea who started that saying, “senior moment.” It may have been funny the first ten times but now it’s in the mainstream of our language and it’s no laughing matter.
Although it seems harmless, when we say “senior moment,” we’re reinforcing and accepting a belief about our own aging. We’re actually saying that we’re losing mental ability and that we accept it.
Realize that having your mind momentarily go blank happens to everyone. Often it’s because your brain is full of various things that are vying for your attention. If you feel the need to fill the silence gap, just mention that you have so many exciting things to tell and they’re all coming to the front of your mind at once.
Our words are very powerful, whether we’re saying them out loud or silently as thoughts. Your words program your subconscious mind and your subconscious mind programs your biology. Recent studies in neuroscience and cell biology show this to be true.
It’s important to stop “telling” your subconscious that you accept the belief that loss of mental ability is natural as you age. Become conscious of what you are saying and thinking, and make it a habit to catch yourself before you utter the words, “senior moment.” If they slip out occasionally, that’s okay. Just start again to erase those two words from your vocabulary.
And here’s a way to program your brain with positive words: whenever you’re telling someone something and the next thought seems to disappear, mentally say, “I have a clear, sharp mind,” before continuing. Say it often enough and your brain will take the command and run with it.
You CAN affect your health by choosing positive and affirming thoughts!
Joy and Blessings!
Ellen Wood – Your Grow Young Guide
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
I think I’m addicted to it. I use it on everything (almost) and I buy it by the quart. I’m referring to Bragg Liquid Aminos. It’s incredibly yummy and GOOD for you – very good for you. Best of all, it helps you grow younger.
Just recently I started reading Bragg Healthy Lifestyle, 33rd Edition: Vital Living to 120! by Patricia Bragg, N.D., Ph.D., and Paul C. Bragg, ND, Ph.D. Paul Bragg is considered the father of the health food movement in America; opened the first health food store; and originated Radio Health Programs in the 1920s. Patricia Bragg has followed in her father’s footsteps and continues the crusade for healthy living.
Amino acids are critically important to life and health – crucial for growth, maintenance and repair of the human body as they’re involved in the formation of muscle and tissue proteins, skin, hair, nails and enzymes. If you want to know about the technical aspects of Amino Acids and what they do for your body, go to www.bragg.com or Google “amino acids” and read to your heart’s content. My purpose in writing about Bragg Liquid Aminos is to share with you ways that I use it in preparing a couple of my delicious, nutritious meals.
Salad Dressing: When mixing oil and vinegar, add flavor and health benefits with a splash of Bragg Liquid Aminos and (if you’re not planning on kissing someone new) put some chopped up garlic in it. YUM! It was almost 25 years ago when my second husband, Jacques Duvoisin, became famous in our town for his salad dressing. Guests would practically beg him for his secret but he wouldn’t tell. Then one year when we went to a Christmas dinner party at the home of some friends, Jacques brought each couple a gift he wrapped himself: a small bottle of Bragg Liquid Aminos – the secret ingredient in his salad dressing.
Breakfast Scrambed Egg, Quinoa and Veggies: I eat a variation of this most mornings. Soak quinoa overnight (enough for a few days), then next morning rinse and drain. Be sure to drain in a strainer with SMALL holes – I lost most of it the first time by using a spaghetti colander. Then put fresh water in – about 1 ½ cups water to 1 cup of quinoa – and cook until water is absorbed, about 8 to 10 minutes. (You need less than 2 to 1 water to grain when it’s been soaked.)
Cut up some veggies – broccoli and asparagus are my favorites – and braise them in a frying pan in coconut oil. (Sure, olive oil is okay but coconut oil is better.) Add the quinoa, then mix up a raw egg or two with a fork and pour the mixture on top, grind in some pepper and moosh it all around. Then add some Bragg. (Why am I the only one who doesn’t call it Braggs?) It has a salty taste so don’t add extra salt – and if you’re on a salt-restricted diet, be aware that ½ tsp of Bragg has 160 mg of sodium. But it also has all those good liquid amino acids.
Before I even start making my breakfast, I put the kettle of water on for my morning drink:
Bragg Raw Apple Cider Vinegar and Stevia: When the kettle makes a shooshing noise like it’s almost ready to boil, turn it off and pour it into a quart thermos. Then shake the bottle of Apple Cider Vinegar to mix the “mother” that settles at the bottom and pour about 2 TBSs into the thermos. Next, add 2 drops of Stevia, the natural sweetener that has a negligible effect on blood glucose. Or you can add honey if you prefer. I drink this throughout the morning.
There are many more tasty ways to use Bragg Liquid Aminos and in so doing, make your meals a bit healthier. If you come up with something yummy, I’d love to hear from you. There’s nothing quite as satisfying as discovering new ways to add a bit of splash to a healthy diet. Please Comment below and share with us your ideas for making healthy food tasty.
Joy and Blessings!
Ellen – Your Grow Young Guide
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
Ah, November. It’s the month when winter gets serious, delighting skiers and little kids. It’s the time to put the thick, groovy, grab-the-road tires on my car and it’s when I celebrate my magical day! Nov. 18th is my birthday.
That day I’ll get to blow out some candles and grin from ear to ear while my family sings to me. Then I’ll read aloud their hilarious birthday cards while they laugh so hard they have to hold their tummies, and happy tears squeeze from the corners of their eyes. Yes, November 18 is the magical day I was born 74 years ago.
Notice I didn’t say: “I will be 74,” or “I am 74.”
That’s because “I am” is a very powerful phrase and so is “I will be,” and I have no intention of using powerful words to reinforce the images we have of someone 74 years old.
I am ageless and timeless. Inside I’m 25 years old and I intend to remain 25 – possibly forever since that sounds like a really long time.
And that leads me to a conversation I had recently with a friend. She told me she was turning 49 in a few days and said it bothered her to tell her age because she notices people’s reactions. She said they seem to change how they see her and she can almost hear the “click-click-click” of their minds calculating which side of the hill she’s on.
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I must tell you that she’s gorgeous and has a body with curves in all the right places. But I understand how she feels.
Many of us have similar feelings about our age because our society has been handicapped by the ideas and beliefs about aging we’ve inherited from previous generations. Most of us have the notion that aging means we’re deteriorating and there’s no way we can avoid it. We’ve piled up images of how it looks and feels to add years and what a person will look like at milestone ages.
Before I began my program for growing younger five years ago, I believed 70 was old. Heck, I believed 65 was old and to prove it to myself, I noticed my mind slipping when I was nearing my mid-60s. Alzheimer’s! I told myself, just like my mother. But the mind/spirit teachings I learned through the decades snapped into place and prompted a whole new, younger life for me.
So – what do you do if someone asks your age and you don’t want to tell them? Just say, “I am ageless and timeless.” You can put a mysterious, Mona-Lisa smile on your face and leave them wondering.
Then when you’re alone, get into the habit of saying out loud, “It’s a good thing I’m young and healthy,” or “Thank God I’m young and healthy.” Write the one you prefer on cards and put them where you’ll see them. Say it often enough, with a joyful thrill of emotion, and your subconscious mind will believe it – and then you’re on your way to a younger you. Birthdays will be fun times again!
Share your comment below about a birthday or a tip for growing younger. We love hearing from you!
How does a young man working for a mobile phone store in Wales end up as a globally-recognized operatic tenor whose first CD sold more than two million copies?
How does a young woman who lost her sister to breast cancer create a multi-billion-dollar organization, the largest non-profit source of funds dedicated to fighting breast cancer in the world?
They dared to dream.
Henry Ford is often quoted as saying, “If you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.”
Every creation – from the Peace Corps to the pyramid at Cheops to the worldwide web – began as an idea, a dream.
What is your dream? We can get so used to taking work home while we’re climbing the corporate ladder,
allowing day-to-day responsibilities to use up our time and energy, watching mind-numbing TV to unwind – that we lose touch with our dreams. So here’s the question:
What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?
That’s a pretty hefty question and one I happened to read on a paperweight a long time ago. You never know how guidance will appear!
Here’s what I dared to dream: that I could stop aging and grow younger. Sound like a pipe dream? Actually, it’s not. Once I was clear about what I wanted and set my intention, all kinds of ideas and inspiration started coming to me. I started working with the Law of Attraction using techniques I’d applied in other areas of my life to attract what I wanted – like more income, less stress, happier relationships.
The Law of Attraction is simply a universal law – sort of like gravity – that works all the time. It means that the energy you put out is the energy you attract. Ever notice how when you get all depressed and pessimistic, bad things keep happening? Even if they’re small things like: you spill coffee on your clothes when you’re running late or you finally get the parking spot at the mall and discover you left your wallet at home.
On the other hand, can you remember a time when you were happy and feeling good, and everything just fell into place? You were craving spinach quiche and got the very last piece; the impossible-to-reach person actually answered the phone; that missing favorite scarf resurfaced in your closet. Amazing how it works! Your energy attracted “like” energy.
Working deliberately with the Law of Attraction is a powerful way to turn your dreams into reality. Once I got clear on my dream I began saying “Thank God I’m young and healthy,” and “It’s a good thing I’m young and healthy,” over and over, especially whenever I came across the slips of paper I had scattered around the house as reminders.
I said a lot of other affirmations too, and explored my thoughts and beliefs to see what kind of conditioning I had about how it looks and feels to be old. Observing my thoughts and words became a consistent habit to stop any negative programming about aging as it was happening – even in mid-sentence; for example, “uh oh, I’m having another senior mo….” Now it’s rare for anything negative about aging or my future to escape my lips.
Books about reversing typical aging processes seemed to almost magically appear, and I meditated. All kinds of information started showing up around me and in my meditations that helped me develop a set of practices and techniques that worked!
That’s right. I dared to dream of growing younger and actually did it. I’m still growing younger, and I’m having a lot of fun sharing what I’ve discovered with others. I’m certainly not the only person who looked into the future that seemed to be predictable – with nursing homes, dementia, loss of motor control – and recoiled. If I had accepted all the prevailing views, I would have believed that future was unavoidable. My mother wasted away with Alzheimer’s Disease so wasn’t that to be my fate as well?
No, thank you. I dared to dream a different future into reality.
Maybe you would like to join me.
What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail? Open up to the possibility – dare to dream. Go further than that: once you know what your dream is, back up your desire with passion and strong emotion and expect it to happen! Then watch for the clues the Universe will send you. It’s a beautiful kind of magic that changes what we used to think was impossible to the possible. You CAN make your dreams come true.
Please comment below to share what you would do if you knew you couldn’t fail. Thanks!
Here are more tips for your skin. After your bath or shower, lightly blot your body with a towel. Then while your skin is still damp, use the same upward strokes as for dry brushing – always towards your heart – to apply your moisturizer. Water is the most precious gift for your skin and moisturizing before you’re completely dry hydrates by sealing the water into your skin.
There are many types of skin creams, oils and lotions on the market. Some show before and after photos that look too good to be true – and they usually are. I must confess that a couple of times I’ve given in to the temptation to try some “miracle” cream that cost a king’s ransom and promised to remove wrinkles and give me youthful skin. Luckily they had money-back guarantees because so far, none of those worked.
You may need to try a few different products in order to find the moisturizer that works best for your skin type. Look at the ingredients listing to find an oil, lotion or cream that contains only natural ingredients without preservatives or other chemicals which are often included to add color, scent and/or change consistency. Pure vegetable oils that are absorbed easily and hold moisture in the skin include sesame oil, olive oil and coconut oil.
However, there are creams and oils I’ve found that are excellent moisturizers and help keep your skin youthful-looking.
One is shea butter. Not shea butter mixed with other ingredients. It needs to be 100% unrefined shea butter. It comes from the nut of the shea tree that grows wild in the dry savannah belt of West Africa. Shea butter contains remarkable healing properties, is a superior moisturizer and is so natural you could eat it. You need to rub it between your palms to liquefy it before smoothing it on your face and body. It’s excellent for keeping your fingernails from splitting and cracking and it takes just seconds to dig your nails into a small container of shea butter. Do this several times a day, particularly after you have your hands in water.
If you have dry skin, castor oil is another excellent moisturizer. I mix 2/3 castor oil and 1/3 water in an 8-oz. bottle. Add frankincense and sandalwood – a few drops of each. Both of these essential oils are tonics for the skin and help rejuvenate aging skin, and the castor oil mixture applies easily and quickly. The downside? Castor oil can stain sheets so consider wearing long-sleeved pajamas to bed.
Keep in mind that your skin is absorbent and whatever you put on it is absorbed into your body, which is one very good reason to steer clear of chemicals – even if the product containing them smells and feels good. How you treat your skin is another way you can show that you love and appreciate the body that houses your spirit.
In my next blog, I’ll give you more tips for your skin but if you have some you’re willing to share, please comment below. Thanks!
What organ? The one with the largest surface area – your skin!
Aren’t we lucky as human beings to have skin? And to have it feel so good when it’s stroked and petted and rubbed and caressed? Spirit knew what it was doing when it covered the human body with skin and gave us the pleasures of touch.
Of course, we also think of skin as the stuff that keeps our organs from falling out of our bodies, but in reality skin is an organ.
It has many functions in helping maintain a healthy body. It protects our flesh from infections and eliminates toxins. Skin is the largest of our four major elimination organs; the others are the digestive tract, kidneys and lungs.
Your skin expels substances that are not good for you through your pores and skin cells. Shedding 30,000 to 40,000 dead cells every minute, your skin is not only constantly renewing itself, it’s excreting toxins and other wastes through sweat, almost two pounds a day if you’re like most people! Skin takes in oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. It also absorbs sunlight fueling the electromagnetic energy that runs your body.
What would happen if your skin couldn’t breathe? You’d die. Remember the film Goldfinger? The bad guy murdered by painting a living body with gold, which cut off the body’s ability to breathe. (Don’t try this at home.)
In truth, your skin is a most valuable gift – one that clearly mirrors your inner state. Treat it well and with gratitude. You can make a huge difference in your health, your looks and your consciousness by tending to your skin and other elimination organs, making sure they’re functioning well. These are your built-in cleaning systems.
Along with regular physical activity, eating and thinking right, getting sensible sun, and drinking plenty of pure water, one of the best ways to have your body grow younger is to detoxify it. Although this happens automatically on a daily basis, it is vital that you have a regular program of good skin and digestive tract hygiene to keep your elimination organs from malfunctioning.
For the skin, I recommend a daily program of dry brushing which helps you shed dead skin cells and also stimulates circulation and your lymph system. For instructions on how to properly and safely dry brush your skin, watch my youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3NgdZoSC5o
For the digestive tract, I suggest a good cleanse. Here’s a source I highly recommend for learning about good digestive tract hygiene: Curing the Cause & Preventing Disease
Too often we take our skin for granted or only focus on it as a cosmetic feature. In reality, your skin is not only a major part of your appearance, it’s also a significant organ supporting your health and well-being. Like every other part of your body, your skin will flourish with a little TLC. Take a tip from me – if you want to grow younger, take care of your skin – from your scalp to your toes, and enjoy it while you do!
In my next blog, I’ll give you more tips for your skin but if you have some you’re willing to share, please comment below. Thanks!
Joy and Blessings,
Ellen, Your Grow Young Guide
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
There’s a light dusting of snow on Taos Mountain and this very warm day has turned quite chilly as the sun begins to set. From my car window I see no-neck people with their collars turned up and shoulders slightly hunched against the wind. It’s sleeveless weather during the day but the temperature plunges 50 degrees by dark in this high-elevation town, and many of those still outside are caught underdressed even though they know it happens every day this time of year. I park the car, step outside and whoosh! – the wind has its own design in mind for my hair.
I used to lament my thin hair but since I’ve been practicing age-reversing techniques I’ve changed how I feel about my hair – and every other part of my body. I know that loving who I am and how I look and feel right now is an essential part of this process. And I know that what I think and believe about who I am determines how I look and feel.
Here’s why: our thoughts and beliefs create energy, which influences matter – since at the most basic level, matter IS energy. This may be difficult to accept, but there is hard science that helps us understand all this. It’s quantum physics, which is the study of the building blocks of the universe. Your body is made up of tissue and organs and bone, which are made up of cells, which are made up of molecules. The molecules are composed of atoms, which are composed of sub-atomic particles such as electrons.
I say “particles” but the sub-atomic world, which is the world of quantum physics, is not made up of sub-atomic “particles” in the same way a speck of dirt is a particle. These sub-atomic particles are energy. This energy exists as a wave, until you observe it – and then it becomes a particle. But if you stop observing this energy, it becomes a wave again.
So it’s your observation, your attention, your intention, that creates what you see around you. This is a participatory universe, in which your consciousness participates in the creation of everything.
If you can manage to love who you are and how you look right now, then youthfulness will come to you far more quickly. But if you can’t truly love yourself, “fake it ’til you feel it.” Instead of criticizing your hair, your skin, your legs, your butt, occupy your conscious mind with words of love. You’ll be amazed at the difference it will make after this becomes a habit.
Talk to your body. Here’s an example of how I talk to parts of my body, “I love you, legs. Thank you for carrying me around. Thank you for getting me up and down stairs without my having to consciously think about it.” Try it. Do it while you’re bathing, or spreading lotion on your body, if that seems a more appropriate way to begin.
But don’t stop at your body: say “I love you” frequently. When I wake up in the morning, I look out the window and say, “I love you, mountains.” Do they hear me? I don’t know. What I DO know is that it makes me feel good and creates the thrilling emotion of love inside my being – so why not say it?
As I write this, I am saying “I love you,” to you, my blog reader. I hope you can feel it.
What are the thought patterns you’d like to change? What techniques are working for you? Please comment below and share!
Joy and Blessings!
Ellen – Your Grow Young Guide
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
I want to share with you a big secret for growing younger AND for making your whole life more joyful. It is: Love yourself exactly as you are.
Oh, I can hear your thoughts: wait a minute. I thought this was about growing younger. How can I love myself exactly as I am AND want to grow younger?
Sounds like a contradiction, right? Actually, it’s not. If you dislike the way you look or feel right now, that causes stress which is the number one aging factor. Besides, you’ll just get more of the same of what you’re focusing on: looks you don’t like and aches and pains you don’t want.
But here’s the important part as to why it’s not a contradiction: GROWING YOUNGER IS AN ACT OF CREATION.
Ponder this: We are here on Earth to create. That’s what Life is. Life is creation. We’re creating all day long – moment to moment we’re creating our lives.
Almost all of the time we’re not even consciously aware that we’re creating. For example, every day 300 billion cells in your body die and you create new ones without your conscious direction. And almost all of the time your thoughts and beliefs and memories are influencing what you’re creating.
But every once in awhile, you’re creating and it’s inspired. Have you noticed how fired up you feel when you’re being stimulated by true creativity?
The ideas just flow, whether you’re writing a novel or a sales proposal. You might be making something with your hands, and you feel the beauty happening – whether it’s a piece of pottery, a painting or a gourmet meal.
And that feeling – that emotion – feels so good. It sends ripples of joy through you.
We call it inspiration. It’s not coming from your rational mind – it’s a gift from Life with a capital L.
When you’re creating something and it’s inspired, you feel good and you’re focusing on what it is you’re creating. Not on the lump of clay in your hands – not on the paints on your pallet – not on the ingredients in that special stew you’re concocting.
You’re often not even thinking. You’re just receiving – receiving inspiration.
Well, it’s the same with growing younger. That too is an act of creation and you need to feel good and focus on the youthfulness you’re creating and be open to receiving inspiration to take you to that next step.
Here’s another example: Suppose you bought a house – one that had been neglected and has a yard full of weeds. Shortly after moving in, you go to the nursery and bring home flower seedlings. If you’re like most people, you won’t think: Oh, I hate this yard. It’s so ugly. No, you’re going to feel a thrill of creation as you decide which patch of earth to start on. You kneel down and pull out the weeds, turn over the soil, dig some holes, put the seedlings in, cover the roots with earth and pat around each one with both hands.
And you love the feeling of creating your beautiful garden. In fact, you love your beautiful garden ALREADY even though most of it is still full of weeds.
Think of yourself as a garden you’re creating. Love yourself just as you are, as you plant the seeds of a more magnificent you.
If you have an example of inspired creativity, please share it with our online community by commenting below.
First, cut this out and put it on your refrigerator with some magnets:
SIGNS OF A STROKE – SAVE A LIFE!
Tell the person:
S “Smile.”
T “Talk to me. Say, ‘Mary had a little lamb.’”
R “Raise both arms.”
O “Open your mouth and stick out your tongue.”
Then you:
K Kall 911 if the person has trouble with any ONE of these.
E Educate others on these signs.
I’ve received a forwarded email several times in the past few years about how to tell if someone is having a stroke. Usually I just delete those emails that are circling the planet but occasionally I’ll open them for some important message or a good belly laugh. Don’t count on me though, to forward it to seven or nine or however many friends.
The one I looked at today was one of the important ones — ways to identify a stroke and save lives. And AGAIN I printed it out because I hadn’t memorized it any of the other times I’d read it.
But it’s four pages (!) – not a short, concise thing I can put on my refrigerator. Whoever wrote it made a valiant attempt to make it easy for us to memorize by having us remember the first three letters of STROKE. Then I got the idea to use ALL the letters and to share it with my readers.
A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within three hours, he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke…TOTALLY. The trick is recognizing the signs of a stroke and then getting the patient medically cared for within three hours, which rarely happens. Oftentimes a stroke victim will say they just had a dizzy spell or tripped on something. It takes fast action by someone who knows the signs of a stroke.
If someone falls and seems somewhat disoriented or a bit shaken up, use these tips immediately. Look for slurred speech and weak muscles. When they stick out their tongue, if it’s crooked or goes to one side, that also indicates a stroke.
Yeah, so I can’t spell – but Kall 911 gets the point across.
Growing younger means living a long, long time and having a strong, healthy body and clear, sharp mind until the day you leave this planet. Know how to recognize the signs of a stroke and you may be able to save a life and help someone avoid serious brain damage. Pass it on.
You’ve heard about all the wonderful benefits you get from meditating daily.
Well, here are the TOP 10 things you CAN’T do once it’s a daily habit:
You CAN’T squash bugs anymore. You automatically grab the clear plastic cup and postcard for their trip outdoors. And a big, clear plastic cup descends from the heavens and makes you spend more time in nature too.
You CAN’T worry that you might outlive your money or break a hip or get Alzheimer’s because meditation jams up the worry works in your brain.
You CAN’T eat a steady diet of junk food because your expanded awareness makes you crave healthy, delicious food. On the other hand, meditation keeps you from being anal about it and lets you eat a cholesterol-laden, juicy cheeseburger once in awhile – without guilt.
You CAN’T be grumpy no matter how hard you try. Silly? Yes. But grouchy and grumpy can’t stand that bliss and they’re out of there.
You CAN’T say, “Not tonight, dear. I have a headache,” because meditation keeps your libido from finding out what they say about hormones after menopause.
You CAN’T hold a grudge because meditation makes everyone a mirror for what you need to examine inside yourself.
You CAN’T yell “Turn down that rock ‘n roll!” to your grandson because your feet are already dancing.
You CAN’T be a couch potato in front of the TV for hours because meditation makes your creative juices explode and you can hardly keep your pen or paintbrush moving fast enough.
You CAN’T feel lonely or isolated, even if your partner divorced you or died, because meditation makes you feel whole and complete within yourself. Besides, you get the feeling there’s a spirit buddy always hanging around who really cares about you.
And you CAN’T grow old because all the cells in your body are just too darned happy.
Love and Joy!
Ellen
C’mon. You know you have some good ones in your head. Post them here and let us all have a good belly laugh or something profound to ponder.
I have exciting news for you – two things have happened recently but I’ve been away (my son’s wedding and a spiritual retreat) and haven’t had a chance to tell you about them.
First – one of the world’s top anti-aging physicians, Dr. Terry Grossman, and I are going to be co-presenters at a 4-hour event: How To Be Young & Joyful At Any Age.
I am thrilled to be working with Dr. Grossman and excited about the medical science he brings to my favorite topic – growing younger!
Let me introduce him to you: Dr. Grossman was a rural family doctor for 15 years in the Rocky Mountains where he began researching and incorporating alternative treatments in his practice. In 1994 he moved to Denver and opened Frontier Medical Institute with a goal of focusing on nutritional medicine for the treatment and prevention of chronic diseases. Today, it’s one of the largest integrative nutritional medicine centers in the country.
Founder and medical director of Grossman Wellness Center in Golden, CO., he is a diplomate of the American Board of Chelation Therapy, a member of the American Academy for Advancement Medicine, and The American Academy of Anti–Aging.
What more can I say?
I think we’re a pretty dynamic duo and hope everybody will join us at one of the three events scheduled In August and September. If you would like to learn how to be young and joyful at any age, I’ll see you there.
For more info and to buy tickets, go to www.newvisionmgmt.com or call 1-866-55TICKETS.
Aug. 8 – VAIL, Colorado 1:30-5:30 Vail Cascade Resort
Aug. 21 – ASPEN, Colorado 1:30-5:30 Aspen Meadows Resort
Sept. 2 - TELLURIDE, Colorado 5:30-9:30 Michael D. Palm Theatre
Please forward this along to anyone you know in Colorado, or anyplace else!
I have lots more to tell you about Terry and our collaboration, but I’m running out the door for a business trip. (to be continued…)
Second — You know I recently spoke in Nevada (near Reno). Well, the person who set up that talk just emailed to tell me one of the attendees wants to form a group in their area to meditate and talk about aging and personal growth issues. Yes!! That’s what it’s all about: spreading the word that we can focus our minds, change our thought habits, develop more empowering mind/body/spirit practices and grow younger!
If any of you would also like to get a local group going, leave a comment and perhaps we’ll get a brainstorm going and share ideas. Wouldn’t that be fun!
“Hey, Ellen,” a friend called to me from two check-out counters away in the supermarket, “did you see the story in TIME magazine?”
He wasn’t the only one asking me if I’d seen the issue a few months ago about epigenetics called “Why Genes Aren’t Destiny.” They were all aware that in my talks I tell about the latest scientific findings in epigenetics that prove beliefs and thoughts affect how the body changes with age. And I always quote the first scientist to share his research findings on epigenetics, the internationally recognized cell biologist, Dr. Bruce Lipton.
Imagine my surprise – then dismay, then outrage – when Dr. Lipton wasn’t even mentioned in the article! It was 1985 when Dr. Lipton introduced the notion of perception influencing genes. He was considered a radical weirdo in the science community at that time and in his “Wisdom of Your Cells” he tells the story of speaking to an audience of scientists about his discovery that the mind can turn our genes on and off. Their reaction to his research findings? Scoffing would be putting it mildly.
Yet today, 25 years later, TIME magazine is publishing the evidence of other scientists’ findings in this new field of epigenetics and ignoring Bruce Lipton’s decades of research and breakthrough findings.
I must say that although there’s not even a nod to Dr. Lipton (or Larry Dossey, award-winning MD and bestselling author of a dozen books on mind/body medicine), the article is quite interesting. It explains how your environment and your choices can influence your genetic code – and that of your kids.
The TIME article by John Cloud states, “There’s evidence that lifestyle choices like smoking and eating too much can change the epigenetic marks atop your DNA in ways that cause the genes for obesity to express themselves too strongly and the genes for longevity to express themselves too weakly. We all know that you can truncate your own life if you smoke or overeat, but it’s becoming clear that those same bad behaviors can also predispose your kids – before they are even conceived – to disease and early death.”
Environment and lifestyle choices also strongly impact how you age. Hang out with people who see themselves as old and always give you an organ recital if you ask how they are, and it will influence your thinking – and your body’s cells.
How you eat, exercise, take care of your skin and your attitude towards life (this means more than seeing the glass as half full – it’s about joy!) are all factors in whether you’ll live a long, healthy, active life or progressively deteriorate and die prematurely.
In his book “The Biology of Belief” Lipton shows that genes and DNA do not control our biology; that instead DNA is controlled by signals from outside the cell, including the energetic messages emanating from our positive and negative thoughts. This is great news! It means you can affect your biology with your thoughts and beliefs – and reverse aging!
I wanted to be able to listen to Dr. Lipton while I drive so I got his CD set, “The Wisdom of Your Cells,” which is excellent.
I can also highly recommend “The Science of Miracles” by Gregg Braden – he tells of fascinating scientific discoveries!
It’s never too late to start growing younger so start your journey to a younger you today. And when you have a minute, send an email to Dr. Lipton (bruce@brucelipton.com). Thank him for not only sharing with the world his research into epigenetics years before it was “cool” but, more importantly, for teaching us how to use the new science to create and maintain a “new,” happy, healthy life.
CONSUMER NOTICE: In my articles and blogs there may be affiliate links. That means if you buy something from a link in this email or based on my recommendation, either expressed or implied, I may get paid an affiliate commission. It’s a win-win situation!
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by Patricia Bragg, N.D., Ph.D., and Paul C. Bragg, ND, Ph.D. Paul Bragg is considered the father of the health food movement in America; opened the first health food store; and originated Radio Health Programs in the 1920s. Patricia Bragg has followed in her father’s footsteps and continues the crusade for healthy living.
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