Alternatives to Refined Sugar

http://chriskresser.com/does-it-matter-if-a-sweetener-is-natural

ACUPUNCTURE POST FAILED IVF & IUI

If you have been thru numerous IVF's or IUI's then consider acupuncture and herbs as way to help your body replenish your blood, yin and fluids, Qi and yang that often become depleted by the medications used in these protocols. They pump you, up but leave your qi, blood, yin/yang depleted as the drugs recruit more follicles and ones that normally are not fit for fertilization.  In a normal cycle a woman would only produce one good follicle but with the additonal Follicle Stimulation Medication(FSH) along with your own body's production of FHS the attempt is to get many more, 10 to 15.

Then too, there is the stress and the sadness of failed attempts. Acupuncture can help your body and mind relax to deal with both of these. Most imbalances in the body are emotionally connected because we tense up and contract and the emotion gets locked in somewhere in the body.  This impedes blood flow to the tissues, muscles and most importantly here the pelvic region.
Most couples think of acupuncture to help them become pregnant either naturally or in combination with an IVF or IUI cycle but fail to realize the importance of it for it's own sake of healing and relaxing to help put you back in balance. Once balanced conception will more likely occur without IVF/IUI or with it. 

Come in and recieve $10 off your next visit or herb by mentioning you got this e-mail or message on my facebook page or on my blog here.

LET'S GET TO WORK AND PLANT SOME SEEDS....

GROW A HEALTHY GARDEN = HEALTHY SEEDS OR EGGS. TILL THE SOIL=ACUPUNCTURE/HERBS/DIET TO CLEAR OBSTRUCTIONS, MOVE THE BLOOD, FEED FERTILE TISSUE=PREGNANT=HEALTHY BABY!

SRPING, A TIME TO REPLENISH YIN & ESSENCE, SO YANG THRIVES

Nourishing the Yin in our bodies takes much more time than nourishing the Yang. The Yin correlates with the fluids and blood in our bodies and everyday gets depleted as we age. So when women or men come to me, inevitably along with the constitutional pattern, just by virtue of an inability to conceive, there is an underlying Kidney Essence and Yin deficiency, despite any Liver/Spleen deficiency or Kidney Yang or Qi deficiencies. This takes time to nourish, and fertility drugs, drugs in general, lack of sleep, intake of processed, quick foods, or lack of fresh foods, stress, overwork, working out too hard or much, all deplete the Yin first! You get dehydrated more, wound up, brain fog, blood sugar imbalances, irritable, low libido, dark circles under eyes, dry eyes, night sweats, insomnia, lack of appetite, afraid, vaginal dryness, premature greying of hair. Sound familiar? In our society today we all want quick, that is not how your body got to this place to begin with, it took years. So I ask you to give yourself time to heal, then the body like a garden regenerates, is not so prone to weeds growing in it like fibroids, or cysts or endometriosis.  When the Yin and the blood are nourished, the Qi moves. Because blood is the mother of Qi and if it ain't healthy then the Qi gets stuck and then you have a double wammy of a problem with obstructions like I just mentioned. So when a woman tells me I will come in for acupuncture when I start trying to conceive again......I think boy this is going to be a "Rush Order" and I am not a "Fast Food" Biz. SPRING IS THE TIME TO CULTIVATE, BUT TILL THE SOIL, WATER, FEED IT, THEN PLANT THE SEEDS!!! Make sense? New Moon day to begin!

Personal Labs

http://www.personalabs.com/

More and more people are beginning to take charge of their own health to become and stay healthier. I think this is indicative of that.

Online Blood Testing | STD Testing | Blood Testing Labs | Health Tests
www.personalabs.com
Order blood tests online or by calling Personalabs at ... 1(888)438-5227 ... Confidential and affordable... blood testing for pregnancy, STDs, heart disease...

No need for a Doctor's script, you request your own test and take it to a lab corp. Simple as that.

Mothers

To all my Mother's out there along with the ones soon to be and those preparing their bodies to plant the seeds and those that become Mother's to the world. Blessings. The Earth is our mother too.

Yummy Paleo Banana Bread!

I made this bread this weekend and I have to say it really tasted great, moist, rich and who would have ever thunk not even any honey or maple syrup just the sweetness from the bananas! However, you can add a little homemade whipped cream to top it off, made only with a little maple syrup of course. I have been giving slices away so not much left.

BEST PALEO BANANA BREAD EVER
The worst compliment you can get as a chef is "Ooo that tastes so healthy!" That usually means "That tastes bland and I hate it. You suck."

You won't get that awful response here. This looks, smells and tastes like the real banana bread you grew up eating. It would make a wonderful Valentine's day treat, whether with whipped cream for dessert or smeared with butter for breakfast. I plan on making mini loaves for Christmas gifts next year.

All the sweetness in this bread comes from the bananas. There is no honey, no maple syrup, nothing.

I added flax meal for Omega-3's, pecans because they're delicious and cinnamon because it is soul-warming. I use butter because it's awesome, but if you'd rather sub coconut oil, you can. You could exchange walnuts, chocolate or whatever you like in banana bread, but I highly recommend this exact combination.

This combination of arrowroot starch (flour), almond flour and coconut flour creates the best bread texture I've ever used while keeping it gluten free. It would fool a breadmaker. It is moist and held together perfectly (not crumbly and dry as many paleo breads are).

I am very proud of the way this turned out. I sincerely hope you enjoy this recipe as I did.

The Perfect Paleo Banana Bread
3 ripe bananas
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, melted
3 large eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup arrowroot starch
2 Tablespoons flax meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350º. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper or grease with butter. In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a potato masher or a large whisk. Mash them up really well. Whisk in the butter, eggs and vanilla, combining very well. In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients, except the pecans. Make sure you break up all the flours (coconut flour tends to be especially clumpy). Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a rubber spatula to combine. Stir in the pecans. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 55 minutes, until golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.