Here is my latest interview on CFRU radio. We talked about acupuncture and covered some of the questions people have about it.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people out there claiming to give psychic advice in a dishonest way.

Notice that I say “claiming to give psychic advice”. I believe that everyone has some psychic ability, so even if the person is not “for real’ they may get things right without even knowing it. All of us can see through the veils a little bit here and there. Some of us are gifted with being aware of that ability since childhood, and some of us have to work harder to find and develop it.

The sad truth is, there are many scammers out there who just want your money, and do not even believe in what there are doing. They have simply learned how to bluff their way through readings.

There are a few precautions you can take to try not to get scammed.

• Go by word of mouth. Try to find someone who has already seen this person and believes in them.
• If you cannot find someone who has had a reading with the person, at least try to get a look at a picture of them, and find some testimonials.
• Find a way to speak with or communicate with the person before the reading. Especially, if you are getting an on-line reading. If you cannot get an answer by email or phone before paying for the reading, then you may not even be dealing with a real person. Have they addressed you by name in the email, and responded to any questions you had about setting up the reading? If not, you may be getting a computer generated or standard reading. The exact same reading may be sent out to hundreds of people.
• Does this person seem genuinely interested in helping others, or are they just trying to sell you a reading. Many psychics (or in my opinion, the better ones) do some kind of charity or healing work.
• Are they using high pressure sales tactics? I’ll tell you right now,that the good ones don’t need to use pressure to get you to come for a reading. You will be attracted to them if you are meant to hear the guidance they have to offer. The universe directs us to the people we need in our lives. I believe if someone is not really attracted to have a reading with me, then I should not read for them. I have worked psychic fairs, and when I was asked questions about other psychics that I was working near I would be happy to answer them. I may even recommend a reading with one of my “competitors”. They may make a better connection with someone else, or perhaps the time is just not right for the two of us to work together. Someone who is truly guided by spirit will help you to find what is right for you, not what is for their own benefit.
• Once you are into the reading, there will be some clues about whether or not this person is for real. For example, a psychic may start telling you about your personality, or the personalities of those close to you. They may also tell you about things that have happened in the past. This is not a way of taking up time in the reading. This is how the connection is formed between yourself and the reader. It also gives you a valuable tool in knowing if the psychic is picking up on you and your situation. If they are able to tell you about things that have happened in the past, or about things that are happening now, they are most likely authentic. If they only speak of things in the future, and theoretical things, (for instance only focusing on past lives) they may be faking. One of my mentors used to say,” If I can’t see where you have been, how can I see where you’re going?”
• Ask them how often they recommend you get a reading. If they answer every week or even once a month, they are probably more interested in your money than they are in you. Anyone who tries to bring you back so frequently is most likely hoping that you will become dependant on psychic advice to plan your life. This is not a healthy thing. Psychic guidance is just that. Guidance. It is intended to help you get back on your feet and make your own decisions. If you are using it to make your day to day decisions you are letting someone else control your life and your bank account. I would recommend a minimum of 3 to 6 months between readings, and will sometimes even refuse to read for a person if I feel they are becoming too dependant.

These are just a few things off the top of my head that I hope will be helpful. I would love to further the discussion….

Just read a great article posted on facebook by homeopath Heather Caruso.

Weight loss and healthy body weight  is  of course, a huge issue. Recent studies are showing that the over-focus on weight loss is causing more harm than good.

The article is a bit on the medical/techie side, but if you browse it and be sure to read the conclusion it sums it all up.  Weight Science: Evaluating the Evidence for a Paradigm Shift (Bacon and Aphramor Nutrition Journal 2011) examines how focusing only on weight loss and not on creating a healthy lifestyle can throw people into unhealthy cycles of weight loss and weight gain.

It explores eating disorders and other unhealthy cousins of our skinny obsessed society, and how losing weight can mess up the chemical balance of our bodies making us perhaps even more prone to diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Shockingly the study showed that in most cases, overweight people are actually  living longer than their thin counterparts, IF they have not engaged in a lot of dieting and given into the psychological stresses of being overweight.

I have had personal experiences with weight loss problems. I used to be a “weight cycler”. I had repeated cycles of weight loss and the weight would always creep back on. I damaged my digestive system and gall bladder as a result. I am still a little on the heavy side and think I would feel better a few pounds lighter, but in recent years I have intuitively shifted my focus to health and not just to weight. I eat well and exercise regularly and if the end result is weight loss it is basically a side-effect of my healthier lifestyle. The article refers to this as “Health at Every Size” (HAES)

I use acupuncture to aid in correcting the imbalances my former lifestyle has left me with and try not to stress out about my size. I still have questions about how being overweight places extra stress on the muscles and skeletal system, and how it makes people have more fatigue, but I am still so happy to see this topic being explored.

Have a healthy day!

I have been part of the Wellington Holistic Network for several years now. We have recently expanded to include Waterloo Region (renaming it to Wellington-Waterloo Holistic Network). It is a great networking site and we are pegging it as the source for professional practitioners in our area.

This will be a great way for the community to find reliable professional practitioners and it is an important avenue  for local practitioners to market their services. We will be actively recruiting members and marketing the network in the next few months. Take a look!

This is a truly amazing video of gratitude!

“There are no weekend box office charts for online videos. But if there were, at the top of nearly every list right now might well be a four-and-a-half-minute video called “Dancing.” In just a month since its online release, it has been viewed by more than ten million people. After 14 months of traveling in 42 countries, it’s the story of a guy named Matt doing the gratitude dance with a cast of thousands around the globe … from the streets of Mumbai to a rock formation in Ireland to a tulip field in Netherlands!”