It's the Celtic New Year!

Life is magical - so it begins!

Halloween 2014 

Summer Solstice - Mid Summer Celebration & Altar

The summer Solstice is nearly upon us - Saturday 21st June is the longest day of the year and considered to be Mid Summer (already!). It is also a solar celebration and what better way to celebrate then with beautiful blossoms of one of the most sacred trees in Ireland. 

The Elder tree, is in bloom late in May and early June with a profusion of white flowers which grow in clusters. It has long been used for its’ many known healing and medicinal properties (pain, inflammation, the bark is a mild laxative) as well as the delicious drinks made from a rapid fermenting process. 

Elder naturally contains many wild yeasts and can be fermented with little trouble in a few days into refreshing drinks that smell and taste distinctly like summer! I never add commercial yeast to anything and always get the most amazing tasting champagnes....

Elder flowers are also powerful immune boosters (berries and leaves are very high in Vitamin C as well) for both humans and animals with many people making and drinking Elder Cordials or a little stronger fizzy drink known as Elder Champagne (it will achieve about 2 to 3% alc.) in the early summer time. 

In the meantime, branches of the tree have been used as protective amulets and to make fairie wands. Altars usually have a piece of some of these sacred trees included especially at the summer solstice. The magical properties brought by this tree are thought to be prosperity, breaking spells, healing and protection. 

And so it goes!

If you are planning some kind of a Summer Solstice celebration (Litha) why not bring in Elder - flowers, leaves or a gift of a fallen branch from a tree - you can make this a central theme of your altar or just place on a table large enough to welcome the sun. 

And don't forget to make your Elder Cordial or buy some at the market in Skibbereen.

Happy Solstice Everyone!

April

Elder Flowers 

Post Viral Syndrome & Probiotics

Just wanted to catch you up on our fasting - we are still working away here - terrific insights every day - for the most part we are fasting for 3 to 5 days, then taking 2 or 3 days for food, increased exercise and all else!

Not sure what day we are on now (it all started on 30 April)….we took another 2 eating days over the bank holiday weekend and are now right back at the fasting again. Actually this is day 2 for me and the first day for the everyone else.

I am more determined then ever to see this through to the very end (whateverthatis?) because I feel I am finally seeing some results. However, I am not entirely certain I can explain them properly!

Except…..

Well, last week in the middle of my fasting all of my old Glandular Fever symptoms came on full force (cold sores, pain, stiffness, pain, joints aching, did I mention pain?). But before I go into that let me give you a bit of background here.

When I was 20 years old I got glandular fever, it put me out for a month or so – I was still weak, tired and unwell, but as I was self supporting (on my own since I am 17), I had no choice but to get back working and carry on.

So, that’s what I did. 

For the next 14 years or so – I worked, lived (or at least thought I did) and kept going as best I could even though my adrenals were shot, my thyroid was low and I often had little energy. I never resorted to meds, herbs, changes in diet and exercise kept me afloat.

But I did have my tonsils out at age 28 because they were the main source of the virus and my throat was always killing me. This gave me some measure of better health and I was able to get my life back a bit. 

Fast forward to the next decade;

Then I got cancer, had to sort that out (I did with food, water, exercise, sunshine and no chemicals) and have been making significant changes to my outlook ever since. But – after my last child was born, the glandular fever came back up again and never really settled down.

And I just couldn't seem to get to the bottom of it. No amount of exercise, herbs, vegan diet, cutting this out or that out seemed to make much of any difference. Everything bothered my digestion and it had no rhyme or reason to it. One day I could eat almonds and the next day they would cause bloating and pain!

That’s where the fasting came in. I had nipped it in the bud by dealing with the virus through herbal tea fasts, however, I was not killing the virus because my immune system was still under it’s control and as soon as the fast was over, it would all come back again.

Once I got far enough along in the fasting (years by this time) and started adding my own probiotics, then the game changed. And this is where I find myself right now a couple of years into this new type of fasting - with much more significant results. 

I think for the first time in 26 years my body is actually fighting/removing this virus. It could not do that previously because our immune system is gut mediated and there was just not ‘enough’ living in my gut, to gain the upper hand.

Now there is. 

Watch. Out. World. 

April

My fermented veggies are lovely! On my stall each week

Getting Started on Fasting....

**Talk on Fasting this Sunday at West Cork Hotel in Skibbereen, West Cork 

After my posts yesterday….I had quite a few questions and inquiries about fasting. So, I wanted to take a bit of time to answer the most important thing about getting on the road to better health; how to get started fasting.

Fasting, by the way, is one of my top 3 ways of all time, that have changed my life over the years and I highly recommend it to anyone. My other two are Oil pulling (extensive use of essential oils for healing inside and out) and deciding to be completely natural in my health & healing approach to all our physical, emotional, spiritual and energetic needs (read no drugs, no Night Shades & no chemicals).

My own personal journey with fasting started out officially in 2001 – when I embarked on a 72 hour water/herbal tea fast after doing 30 days intensive detox diet. I felt terrific after that initial experience and it was a game changer for me.

Since then, I consider fasting an integral part of any healthy lifestyle, weight loss, healing, cleansing, detox approach to eating, because our gut flora needs periods of food, feasting and fasting. That's right, you 'need' and benefit from periods of no food and have actually a digestive system geared for it.

It really is this simple.

So now, back to the topic at hand – how does one get started fasting?

Of course, the easiest and best way to get started is to pick a day and then just jump in! That’s basically what I did – I woke up one morning, said ‘enough of this’ and decided to fast again. I took in water, herbal teas, lemon juice and maple syrup, mainly, in those days.

However, you can also prepare yourself a little bit by doing several mini-fasts of 24 hours, then 48 hours, 72 hours and so forth. I’ve done those as well. Pre-planning Mondays for example, each week to give your system a break and only drink juices, smoothies, herbal teas or even water also works.

Remember, water (chemical free) is great!!! It is the single most nourishing liquid on this planet and yes, I have done water fasts….last year we did 30 days parasite cleanse on water (apparently the only real way to get rid of the nastiest ones). Grueling – but again, another huge shift for me, and something I am pleased to have done. 

Have I mentioned I did my Masters thesis for Exercise & Nutrition Science on the study of water?  (don't get me started on water LOL). We need water far more then we need food, that should tell you something really important right there - water heals, clears, cleans and shifts energy.  

To get started on your fast – follow these steps:

1. Pick a day but don’t over plan it, or make it that Tuesday, 3 weeks from tomorrow. Really, just jump in, where you are, with what you’ve got going on right now.

2. Pick up a couple of fasting helpers….I wish I knew all the little things that make fasting so much easier, years ago. I did it anyway, but now it’s that much better with my Rebel Juices (fermented probiotic drinks), immune boosting, detoxing and nourishing Herbal Tea Blends and Rebel Foods Tinctures.

3. Think about a goal/aim/purpose or reason why you need to fast and have that as an incentive. It could be something material such as a new iPad or a goal for your job, health, relationship, weight loss, writing – the lists are endless. Fasting heals inflammation rapidly by the way.

4. Get a journal and do some writing while you fast or have a project ready such as closets to be cleaned, an office to be sorted or something to keep you busy – you will have time & energy to do things like never before.

5. Fasting has a unique Spiritual element that can only be compared to being One with Nature, walking with gods and opening up inwardly like never before. Be prepared to get to know yourself on a whole new level. 

And that’s about it! The important thing here – is to fast while you are living your life, going on a ‘retreat’ from the world sounds lovely, but hardly practical. So carry on with your normal activities – we exercise, work, and do all the things that we normally do while fasting – only with a little more focus! LOL

Lastly, make no apologies for choosing to detox, heal and move forward with your life (I don’t feel the need to tell everyone I am fasting) nor do I explain my reasons if people comment in a negative way.  

I’m doing what I need to do. Moving right along….

April  

I was so impressed with fasting - I wrote a book about it! The Pagan Diet is about my life changing experiences 

It Doesn't Shift or Heal....Because It's Not Yours!

How much time have I spent working on myself over these last decades of my life….I have issues okay (don’t we all?!) and well, I like to take them out from time to time and dust them off (LOL, I think).....

Just to see how they are doing, because, to be honest, I have long felt as if I was going around in circles, thinking I had sorted through some huge emotional thing only to have it come back around a few weeks, months or years later.

Of course, our healing, like our energy source, is cyclical. We actually do move in spirals, patterns, responding to rhythms and cycles, in the exact same way nature does. 

Mother Earth runs through our veins too. 

But, getting back to healing our ‘beings’ – one golden rule of Energy Medicine has always been that we can only fix, change or heal - that which belongs only to us. If it’s not ours, we can’t do much of anything with it, except carry it around.

This used to actually be my life at one time. I had these ‘crosses to bear’ and would have believed certain things in my life had to be endured and it was just best for me to get on with it. 

Or basically, I thought I had to adjust my life, my hopes, desires and expectations in order to fit in a belief system that all I carried with me, was mine. So, I was left desperately trying to ‘fix’ many things that didn’t even belong to me.

But then over time (a long time) working with energy medicine and healing as I do – I have come to see how anything that doesn’t necessarily heal (within a reasonable period of time) is usually not ours and doesn’t belong there in the first place.

Let me explain….

Energy medicine is quite simple, really, something has come into our energy field, it doesn’t go out (because our defences are down?) so it attaches, then, it festers, and creates an energy block of some sort. 

This energy block can (and will eventually) result in some physical ailment when it has been around long enough or is triggered in some manner. We are aware of these, they have been apart of our bodies in some instances for lifetimes and for the most part, feel they belong.

These patterns and ailments often become so enmeshed within our own energy fields (they anchor in the central nervous tissues) it is difficult to know where we end and other’s stuff  begins. 

Next time you are attempting to sort through an old familiar issue that has been popping up for you from time to time…stop and do a physical check – is all of this even yours? Which part of this pattern might have been taken on from other generations or someone else’s drama?

You only have to answer for what is yours – and what you do about it. 

April

My Comfrey Cream made with my own West Cork grown comfrey - this stuff heals everything!

West Cork Health & Wellness Open Day - Bandon on 6th April

The next Open Day in Bandon is coming up soon! Plan to be there....I'll be giving a little talk on Medical Intuition @ 3pm on the day 

April Danann - Rebel Foods Market Stall will be in Bandon for the next Health & Wellness Open Day!
Come out to meet some world class therapists and sit in on a talk....It's all free! 

On Being A Medical Intuitive.....

April Danann –  A few comments 'On Being a Medical Intuitive'

Even after all of this time I still have to stop, take a deep breath and collect my thoughts whenever someone asks me what it’s like to be a Medical Intuitive or indeed even what an intuitive does or how I work.

But it has also come to my attention time and again, how – there is little or nothing about the fact that I am a Medical Intuitive on my market stall – perhaps there is only the results of what I do…..I create each of my products by hand, in tiny batches by following and carefully ‘listening’ to my intuition.

So, I thought I would put something down in words to help me sort this all out! LOL

Being an intuitive means that I have the ability to listen, to anything and  everything living (and dead, but that’s another post), but more specifically, listening to what our bodies are 'communicating' from systems, organs, tissues and cells; when I choose to tune in, and sometimes even when I don’t!

Being an intuitive for me is exactly like picking up on a specific frequency and then being able to understand exactly what is being said. (It's a little like a radio might work) And often hearing what is not being said or indeed what needs to be expressed and is not (does that make sense?).

However, when I do a reading I also hear, see, smell, taste, read and understand what a body is ‘saying’  forming spiritual, emotional and energetic components too. This can then all be put together into a formal report – the current state of the body or…..

What your body would like you to know right now. It comes together very easily for me because I have been aware of this ability since I was 3 years old (at least that's as far back as I can remember) and working professionally with it since I was 17. 

And I love what I do. It's because I am Intuitive I have taken my studies into the science of microbiology, food, nutrition and exercise - each of these are then combined into a base of knowledge I can draw upon with each reading I do. 

As I say on my card……

‘Your body’s voice is not loud, aggressive or pushy. It is gentle, subtle and soft like a whisper washing over you. It feels as if it has come up from somewhere very deep and has been pushed out into the spaces around you, for you to hear. Like a voice calling from very far away, it has an echo – this voice will persist, until you listen’.

April

Barley Cove Beach