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Detox Programs – get your mojo back after the festive season

detox progam brisbane

After the Festive Season, many of us feel sluggish and like we need a good detox. So what is detoxification?

A professional detox program will help you to:

  • banish bloating
  • beat brain fog
  • drop a few kgs
  • learn how to cook clean, nutritious meals
  • boost your energy

 Read on for our Discount Offer for our  2015 Summer Detox

There’s a lot of fad detox programs out there which can cause stress on the body, so it’s important to make sure you detox right.

Detoxification is something our bodies do daily – via our sweat, urine, bowels and breath. It’s the body’s way of getting rid of toxins so they don’t store in our tissues.

If we over indulge, eg too much alcohol, fatty food, sugar, medications, lack of sleep, sitting all day for work, lack of fresh air and exercise, our detox pathways can become sluggish. They still work, but not at their peak function. Our gut bugs can become out of balance, with the ones that cause bloating and tiredness in high numbers and the ones that support our immune function and gut health at lower numbers.

At Vibe, our Naturopaths and Nutritionists have 2 & 4 week detox programs tailored to suit your needs. Continue reading “Detox Programs — get your mojo back after the festive season”

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“What’s Stress Got To Do With It?” Wellness Workshop

 

What we talked about at the Stress Wellness Workshop

STRESS – a common word that is so misunderstood and frequently under rated. Our September Wellness Workshop was called ‘What’s stress got to do with it’. This was so very tongue-in-cheek because I know that the stress hormone, cortisol, is frequently the underlying issue with the range of conditions I have the good fortune to work with. So why do so many people ignore their stress response? When are we going to start taking stress seriously? And how do you know if stress is an issue for you?

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Endometriosis and Naturopathy

 

  •  Do you suffer from excruciating period pain?
  • Does it prevent you from getting out of bed, or attending work or school?
  • Do you suffer from irregular or prolonged periods or bleeding?
  • Do you experience mid cycle pain and/or bleeding?
  • Do you suffer from digestive discomfort, bloating, constipation or diarrhoea of a cyclical nature?
  • Is sex painful?
  • Do you often feel fatigued and lack energy?
  • Does PMS affect your day to day life and/or relationships?

Continue reading “Endometriosis and Naturopathy”

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Thyroid Wellness Workshop

 

What we talked about at the Thyroid Wellness Workshop

The Vibe team is dedicated to helping you be your best. One way is through sharing what we know about health with you at our fortnightly Wellness Workshops. We believe the more you know about your body and what makes it tick, the better you can be. In August I ran a workshop that focused on the ins-and-outs of thyroid health. We all had a great time and l loved all the questions that came my way. Here’s a snapshot of what we talked about.

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IBS pain relief discovery

 

This study demonstrates yet more evidence of the elegant complexity that underlies our mind-gut-immune system links.

If you suffer from IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and pain, then you and your healthcare providers may need to “think outside the box” of usual oral medications to treat your pain.

Our practitioners at VIBE can help with those other useful pain-relieving modalities like acupuncture, massage, osteopathy (i.e. clinical pilates and other exercise-related therapies).

 

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Herbal medicine to reduce pain – a Naturopathic approach

 

Any type of pain is ….a pain! But we need to remember that pain is your body’s way of telling you something isn’t right. By listening to your body and addressing the cause as well as the symptom, you can create a plan to manage or combat lower back pain efficiently and effectively.

A Naturopathic approach to managing back pain includes a combination of herbs, nutritional and lifestyle strategies to reduce the inflammation which leads to the pain and improve the strength, structure and function of bones, muscles, nerves and ligaments.

Not only do we need to take into account the physical factors involved, but also how the condition can affect you emotionally and mentally; as well as how it affects your ability to move, work and play. One study on back pain followed 100 people over a course of four years. The study reported that participants who scored low on the psychological tests were three times more likely to experience back pain by the end of the four years.

My top 3 herbs for pain:

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How Digestion and the Gut influences your mood

The gut and brain talk and sometimes it’s not pretty

For years Naturopaths have talked of the gut-brain connection. How the health of the gut health will influence mood and mood will influence the gut.

With the increase in research into the interplay between humans and bugs – the human microbiome – comes some really exciting findings that back this traditional concept.

Though more research is required to get all health care professionals on board, it may not surprise you that many people have made this connection for themselves. They work to set their gut and mind up to talk nicely to each other for happiness and best of health.

 The balance of the bugs

It is said that our body has 10 times the number of bugs than human cells and 150 times as many genes – wow that’s a lot of bugs. Now before you start scratching and head for the shower, know that when the bugs play nicely together they support our health in a wide range of ways. It is only when the bugs are out of balance that things go array, including negatively impacting your mood.

Research has shown the link between the overgrowth of specific bugs and an increased prevalence of anxiety, an increased sensitivity to pain, memory dysfunction, autism, IBS – irritable bowel syndrome – and IBD – more serious inflammatory bowel diseases such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. This list melds both conditions of the mind and of the gut and supports the gut-brain link.

Make a happy gut home to support your mood

If it’s not just about the bugs,  but the balance of the bugs in the gut that’s important.  Here’s what can you do to make a happy, balanced bug home.

Continue reading “How Digestion and the Gut influences your mood”

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Immune boosting foods

Coming up to the winter season, it is important to strengthen your immune system to become resilient to external invasion from colds and flu’s. Your lifestyle may also be contributing to a weakened immune system, including the following:

  • Unbalanced diet
  • Poor environment
  • Poor sleep
  • Congested lymphatic system
  • Long-term stress and extreme psychological stress
  • Impaired intestinal micro-flora balance (digestive issues)
  • Long term strenuous physical exercise
  • Lack of exercise
  • Overuse of drugs, including alcohol and smoking

Your immune system in an amazingly complex system that has the ability to protect your body from external invaders. It is comprised of organs including the thymus, spleen and lymph nodes as well as tissues and cells (including white blood cells.) As a Naturopath, I educate my clients about the amazing foods and herbs that natures provides us with to boost our immunity and reduce our risk of getting sick. Also, if you do get sick, these tips will help you get better faster.

Helpful foods include:

Bioflavonoid  rich foods – cabbage, green peppers, parsley, carrots, broccoli, turnips, parsnips, horseradish, garlic, lemon juice, grapefruit, most fruits.

Avoid the following foods:

Refined sweet foods, salty foods, excess dairy, eggs or other mucous forming foods (Pitchford 2002, p. 69-70)

Immune Boosting Foods

Using food as medicine is a powerful way to support your immunity during winter.  When your immune system is functioning well it reduces the chances of developing a cold or infection as well as reducing the length and severity of time that it take you to recover.

As well as eating more of these foods it is important to remember that you give your body time to rest, this means that you have time out and reduce stress (as much as possible!) to rest and ensure that you enough sleep. And of course drink lots of room temperature/warm water. Gargle with warm salt water for sore throat.

Having easier to digest foods such as stews, casseroles and congees (or any meal where all the ingredients are cooked in the one pot) means there is less strain on the digestive system and the nutrients in the food are absorbed by the body more effectively. Plain steamed rice and boiled eggs are also useful.

Vitamin C containing foods Continue reading “Immune boosting foods”

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How to get the most out of your Remedial Massage at Vibe Natural Health in Brisbane

Top 5 things you can do to get the most out of your remedial massage

1. Focus on your breathing during your massage

During your massage, remember to breathe. Taking slow, deep breaths deep into your ribs will help to relax you and aid your muscles to release under the firm pressure used during a remedial massage. During remedial massage, trigger points and firm pressure can be used to get tight muscles and knots to relax. People often hold their breath or contract their muscles when sore spots are found during a massage. Never tell yourself to “handle the pressure” as this can lead to you feeling anxious or in pain. Let your therapist know if the pressure is too strong so a good balance can be found to help the muscle to release, without causing pain for you. Connecting to your breath helps you release tension.
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