Northern Reflections on Health

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Refuge from domestic abuse

June 7, 2017 By Wendy Margolese Leave a Comment

freedom from domestic abuseMy latest article published in the Christian Science Monitor.

A few years ago, a friend of mine needed refuge from domestic abuse. She’d had the courage to leave the imprisoning situation that had become untenable, but now she was looking to actually heal the fear and hurt.

Emma, who doesn’t want her real name used, had been a student of the Bible for most of her life. It felt natural for her to turn to some of the scriptural stories of people released from prisons – some physical, some mental – who had been helped and healed. One verse that meant a lot to her was from the prophet Isaiah: “As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you” (66:13, Common English Bible).

Emma said she was also inspired by the idea that we are all made in God’s spiritual image, and by the promise that everything in creation (including her) was “very good” (Genesis 1:31). She began to glimpse that her identity was not worthless, as she’d been led to believe, but that she was the actual spiritual creation of God, which the Divine saw as “very good”!

This helped her gain a deep sense of being loved, that she was not alone, and that she was cared for. The comforting idea of God’s Mother-love began to feel very real to her. She found it also in the writings of Mary Baker Eddy, the discoverer of Christian Science and founder of this news organization, who wrote, “Father-Mother is the name for Deity, which indicates His tender relationship to His spiritual creation” (“Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” p. 332). This gave her a very natural sense of being embraced by divine Love.

Emma found a deeper sense of worth and freedom from fear, which has continued to this day.

God’s comforting, healing presence is here at all times, for everyone. The light of divine Love leads to comfort and safety.

Sexual Abuse – reclaim a pure and blameless identity

January 15, 2015 By Wendy Margolese 4 Comments

Reclaim your identity after a traumatic event - hope and healing
Reclaim your identity after a traumatic event – hope and healing

The accusing headlines of sexual abuse leave no one out – celebrity, clergy, government official and student. The accusers range from anonymous to outspoken. Is it possible to not only forgive the perpetrator but also find healing from life-crippling feelings of violation?

Rape and sexual assault are traumatic experiences that interrupt lives at home, at work, and at school, and affect relationships with friends, family, and co- workers. It requires alertness and compassion from those in authority when such situations occur.

But zero tolerance for such heinous acts does not exclude forgiveness and healing.

Continue Reading

Anorexia or Obesity – facing the fear factor

July 30, 2013 By Leave a Comment

©GlowImages
©GlowImages

70 million people worldwide struggle with an eating disorder.  Psychiatrists and researchers frequently say that eating disorders – whether anorexia or obesity – are often expression of – and a means of coping with – deeper problems. Understanding, and treating, those deeper problems are crucial to addressing the impact these health issues have on individuals and public health systems.

 Obesity

Canadian waistlines are expanding.  A quarter of our population weighs in as not just overweight, but as obese.  Last month the American Medical Association deemed obesity a disease.  The Canadian Medical Association says while it doesn’t officially label obesity a disease, it is recognized in the medical community as such.

Obesity is associated with a variety of diseases, including Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers.  The effects of obesity cost the Canadian economy a staggering $4.6 billion annually.

It’s not like we aren’t trying to lose the weight.  Decima Research shows forty-two percent of adults polled spend more than $500 annually on their weight-loss efforts – things like gym fees and diet supplements.

A survey by the Heart and Stroke Foundation shows that two-thirds of Canadians have tried losing weight in the past five years, but the vast majority has failed to keep it off.  Dr. Marci di Buono, director of research at the Foundation, says that obesity remains one of the leading public-health concerns.

If obesity is soon to be considered a disease, does this mean people no longer need to take personal responsibility for their weight?  “I suffer from a disease, ergo I am obese and somebody else – like my doctor or a drug – has to change that?” How will that impact the increase or decrease of obesity and their impact on the public health costs?

Mayor Michael Bloomberg (of New York City), long a supporter of healthy living, encourages New Yorkers to bike to work and to take the stairs.  He has even tried to outlaw large-size sugary drinks – but failed, as his legislature, for one thing, didn’t like the idea of removing people’s responsibility for their choices.

Anorexia

Is anorexia nervosa the evil twin of obesity?  If obesity is being grossly overweight, anorexia is thinking you are fat or a fear of becoming obese.  Anorexia and bulimia nervosa are the most common eating disorders in North America. They are considered a consequence of society’s emphasis and preoccupation with thinness.  Severe anorexia leads to chronic malnutrition, which has damaging effects on the body – it can be fatal.

Facing the Fear

Dr. Carolyn Ross is a physician who has pioneered an integrative approach to healing food and body image issues, and addictions.  She is also an author and public speaker about the powerful role that a mind/body/spirit approach plays in healing, particularly in this area of her expertise – eating disorders.  She recognizes that the whole person needs to be taken into account and that the body, mind and spirit have the ability to work together to heal.

“We try to shift the patient’s relationship with food from one of fear and control to one that is positive and life-affirming,” says Dr. Ross. “Cultivating mindfulness in every area, especially regarding food, helps patients discover that food is a restorative element. Food nourishes us so that we can go nourish others.”

If the relationship with food is rooted in fear – fear of not having enough – thus overeating or the fear of too much – thus under eating – then facing the fear may be the first step to change and freedom.

One ageless source for healthy thinking, the Bible, encourages us to shift our view away from fear, and to find a sense of trust in the divine that supports our efforts to make all kinds of healthy changes in our lifestyle. One passage says: Don’t be afraid, because I am with you. Don’t be intimidated; I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will support you with my victorious right hand.– Isaiah 41:10.

 Many programs that treat addictions, such as obesity, bulimia and anorexia, have found that when patients tap into – and relinquish the problem to – a divine power, results are quicker and more lasting.

 

 

Let Your Smartphone Help You Relax

July 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The technology paradox: it allows us to be connected 24/7 which increases our overload and states of stress – but it can now also be used to disconnect us and bring us to a balanced state of mind and body. 

Is a Smartphone app the answer?  Can it gauge the state of your mind and then give you the steps to realign your body, mind and spirit to a place of calm and comfort?

The Huffington Post has announced a new product to launch this month according to Arianna Huffington, Editor-in-Chief.  It is an app called “GPS for the Soul”.

‘The philosophy behind it is based on two truths about human beings. First, that we all have within us a centered place of wisdom, harmony, and balance. This truth is embraced by a vast range of the world’s religions…….The second truth is that we’re all going to veer away from that place, again and again and again. That’s the nature of life. In fact, we may be off-course more often than we are on-course.’Continue Reading

Wendy Margolese

Wendy_Margolese

I was born and raised in a small Northern Ontario mining town. You can never take the warmth of the North out of a girl’s heart. So, I would like to take this opportunity to share heartfelt thoughts with you about a topic important to each of us – our health and well-being. Visit my About page to learn more.

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