My Introduction to Natural Healing: Wow!
Healthy shop in Bhaktapur in Nepal
This blog post is reproduced from Chapter 5 of my book, Menu For A Spiritual Revolution: Health Harmony & Happiness.
You can listen to the Preface and read Chapter 1 by clicking on this sentence.
My Introduction to Natural Healing
A big big change to my life began in 2008. I was 44. I became acquainted with my own body…
While I had extensively explored politics, philosophy, spirituality, and all matters relating to human psychology, the mind and the soul, and their inner workings, for whatever reason it had never occurred to me to explore the inner workings of the body that housed them both. I was absolutely ignorant of the very thing which carried me and my life. Furthermore, I was pretty ignorant of how physical stress could impact negatively on my mind.
Physical pain, one time too many, made me change. For two or three years my body had been struggling with back pain, muscle problems and other associated ‘tensions’. Doctors and treatments and pills were beginning to creep into my life.
When I look back now, I’m astounded that I neglected to take good care of my body. Not only that, but I had, frankly speaking, hammered my body with beer for over two decades, and, at this time, was still unable to quit my part-time smoking habit. However, not taking care of one’s body is commonplace in most countries, and again I shall put it down to our skewed education system. It seems we treat our bodies like a garbage dump instead of the temple we ought to. After all, it carries us in our life, and such mistreatment is unlikely to end well. But here’s something one can only learn by oneself: a bad diet and harmful habits don’t punish you today, only at some point in the future. We think we are well, but we are brewing up trouble… we accumulate problems in the background, out of our sight, and then one day bam, pain, or worse arrives. Lack of information and understanding is the culprit. As always!
For a good two decades of adult life I’d enjoyed pretty good health - barely taken a pill in nigh on 40 years - and I’d led a very happy, rewarding life, much of it in Thailand. I used to covet good sleep, drink lots of water, and generally be good at avoiding mental stress, but these were the only things I proactively did in relation to my health. Until I took up golf in the late 90s, I basically did no exercise, although I do like to walk.
My diet in England had been woeful and I recall getting colds or the flu two or three times a year. It got much better in Thailand due to their focus on using fresh produce, plenty of herbs and spices, and all is available at markets on almost every corner of the nation. It was super cheap to eat out, and that’s what I did all the time. Interestingly, I only got a cold once that I recall in the entire decade of the 90s while living and working in Bangkok. Undoubtedly I was living a very happy life.
But back to 2008, and the years of my free-wheeling life were clearly ending, for I had become a target of my own dietary and lifestyle choices. My bullet-proof youth was over!
One or two warnings had crossed my bows in my late 30s, but upon getting better I paid little attention. However, now was different. My primary health complaint was lower back pain, which was striking me more and more often, most especially in the middle of the night when I would wake up with the pain. I could only get relief from the pain by sitting up, but then I struggled to get back to sleep. I think losing my precious sleep was what finally pushed me into action, good sleep being one of my few efforts to be healthy. My body was undoubtedly too tense and rigid, and I think this affected my mental and emotional outlook on life too.
At times I might have been bending over cleaning my teeth, washing the dishes or something innocuous, and my waist and lower back would suddenly seize up and convulse me in agony! One morning I resolved to myself that I needed to pay a visit to the hospital to get medical help.
An x-ray revealed no physical problem with my back, which I thought was good news, and after consulting with a doctor, a physio, a back specialist, a herbalist and other assorted avenues over the next few weeks, nothing and nobody could help alleviate the problem. My logical thinking told me that if there was no physical deformity there must be a solution somewhere.
As I was trying to work out my next move, I suddenly recalled an article I had read in the Bangkok Post, which was so interesting at the time I had cut it out and kept it. I managed to dig it up and reread it. It was an introduction to the health system of Ayurveda from India, and reading it got me excited. I sensed it would lead me to answers and a solution to my back hassles.
I did a search on the net and found three Ayurveda places in town; two were at five-star resorts and charging exorbitant prices for the financial means of a teacher, but the third one, in the old part of town, looked promising so I rang and booked an appointment.
On the 31st of October, at 5pm, I turned up at the Ayurveda Centre for my appointment. Revelations galore were about to unleash themselves upon me.
First thing I noticed was a lovely tropical garden, and upon entering the reception area I sensed a serene vibration to the place. The scent was good, not those sanitised smells you get in hospitals, it sort of felt like a home, and I was greeted by a smiling elder lady. I was given some kind of herbal drink and details were taken. The energy felt good, and I felt calm. So far so good.
Presently, two other younger ladies dressed in traditional northern Thailand style clothing beckoned me into a room. There, on a table, I saw a small machine which immediately provoked curiosity in me. Looking at it as I sat down next to it, I saw it had a dial ranging from 0 to 100 and a needle resting at zero. Out of it came two wires, one with a sort of copper rod which I had to hold in my left hand, and at the end of the other wire was a sort of metal pen-shaped thing. One assistant would then push this pen thing against the bottom of each finger and thumb of my right hand, on both sides, and then the same again on my toes of my right foot. This gave them 20 readings of my body. Each time the pen thing touched my skin it would provoke the needle into action and the other lady would note down each score. From memory, only two readings failed to reach 100, and for most of them the needle rapidly flew to the 100 mark, making a sort of screeching noise. I deduced 100 to be not a good score. I could see on the form where they recorded my measurements, different parts of the body listed, such as my liver, kidneys, stomach, nervous system, heart, blood, lymph and other parts I can’t recall.
Now, I’d never come across any such machine in my life, nor knew of the existence of such things, but I was very interested to learn that a machine could measure the state of various parts of my body. I could not yet trust it, because it might be some gimmick, but I was curious for sure; I was good at physics at school and have a rather scientific bent to my mind.
I was led back to my original seat to wait for the lady doctor, and I contemplated upon this machine and its readings for me.
Shortly, one of the assistants led me into another room which was airy and nicely cool within the tropical heat, made so by a slowly whirring ceiling fan. It had one wall covered in books, and in the middle of the room was a rather large table. Sitting behind it was a smiling lady who was a bit older than me perhaps. She bid me to sit down. She had a kind face and a most serene manner which made me immediately feel super calm, and behind her was a large window revealing the beautiful tropical garden. Still smiling, she asked me to tell her a bit about myself. Now this was a surprise! ‘Normal’ doctors don’t ask things like this.
Well, already I was fully at ease before we’d even got started.
I told her I was a teacher at one of the universities in town, and told her about my time in Thailand, how much I loved my life over here, that I was soon to get married, and a few other things, and only then did she ask me what my health complaint was. I told her about my back problems, that an x-ray had shown it was physically fine, and that I suspected my beer drinking might be causing my hassles, but it seemed to me she wasn’t really concerned with my back or the beer. She looked at my 20 readings and I joked that I thought 100 was not a good score. I was right, and the nub of it was that this machine had revealed to her that my whole body was overheated, all the organs were being overworked, and my immune system was struggling.
She talked about many things, including giving me a basic introduction to Ayurveda and the three different body types (doshas), and that my type was prone to overheating and inflammation. She also talked about different diets for blood types, and about acid- and alkaline-forming foods. Lots of her talk was about diet. This was the first time in my life that I’d really been told about a direct link between diet and health. She mentioned the importance of sleep and a few other routines one should follow to promote good health. Everything she said was about promoting good health and preventing ill-health. Nothing was mentioned about my back! But from our chat it was clear she was focusing on my whole body, not any one part of it.
All this stuff about food and developing healthy habits was brand new to me, and a source of serious interest right away because I love learning new stuff. She was an amazing lady, speaking calmly with a lovely smile and, in my estimation, with great authority about health matters, and with that wonderful greenery outside her window and the sweet sound of birdsong, I almost felt like she was healing me as I was sat there. I felt super peaceful in that room with her, and over the hour I was with her she made me more and more optimistic I would be able to heal my long-standing back issues, explaining why and how we get ill. I’m into stuff like that, I’m always looking for causes of things as the means to a solution.
This was my first experience of speaking with a health professional who spoke about root causes of ailments, how the body worked in a holistic manner, and about the very concept of health itself - what a strange thing in this human world of ours! And very much so back in 2008. In fact, my whole time there was all based on this - hitherto revolutionary - concept of health and how, with her guidance, I was going to get it back. It generated in me a tangible anticipation and a feeling of positive energy, and she wasn’t giving me a single pill, hooray!
I asked her about the machine and she said it was a bio-energetics machine she had got from Germany. In fact, I asked her lots of questions because she seemed to me the source of so much useful information. She patiently and willingly answered them, clearly explaining things to me. She gave me several sheets of paper with various bits of information pertaining to foods that complemented or antagonised my blood type, charts of acid- and alkaline-forming foods, and a list of healthy habits to build into my lifestyle for my specific Ayurveda constitution type. My ‘treatment’ was a mix of two spices (looking back I think turmeric was one of them), to eat over 60% alkaline-forming foods, and to avoid the ‘bad’ foods for my blood type, which mostly speaking meant all dairy foods, pork, white sugar and foods with sugar in them, processed foods, and one or two others. But in essence no dramatic change to my diet, although cheese and bacon would be two big losses for me, as would my shredded wheat with milk and sugar for breakfast. Oh, coffee had to go too, and I drank lots of that, but it would be revolting without sugar and milk. I also would think nothing of eating a whole big bag of crisps/chips before dinner with some pre-dinner beers, and that was now out due to them being processed foods.
One of the healthy habits she strongly suggested I include was to get to bed for 10pm. She also said I should make sure I don’t get frustrated, impatient or angry with my girlfriend, or anybody for that matter.
This was not your usual visit to a doctor: in and out as if on a production line, you’ve got an ‘-itis’, here take these pills and see if you get better, thank you and goodbye. What a difference.
She booked another appointment to see me again in two weeks. I asked her if I could continue to drink beer, and she said a few would be no big problem, but I don’t think she understood how many beers an Englishman can drink, and in any case, I wanted to follow her diet properly and to test out this machine in two weeks time, and didn’t want the beer messing up the readings, so I resolved to drink no booze until I saw her again.
I emerged out of her centre and into the twilight of the evening, my head buzzing with all this new information and understanding, climbed into my car and drove home, noticing a bit of a stupid grin on my face. I could not wait to get started.
As I drove home the only problem I could foresee was going to be my decision to not drink beer. It was Monday, and I knew I could fairly easily get by without until Friday, but the weekend was a different matter. Friday nights were pool league nights and going to the pub and not drinking beer, in those days, was surely impossible for me. I thus resolved to disappear from town after work on Friday and go to my favourite getaway up and over the mountains to another valley and small town for the weekend. I got home and told my wife about everything and that I would have to go away on my own for the weekend.
~~~~~
Well, dear reader, my optimism proved well-founded indeed! By Thursday morning I had now had a full night’s sleep without waking up to any back pain and, furthermore, I now realised from this rather strange, more flexible, alive version of my body, that I had got used to various other niggles and tensions because they had gone too. I also felt clear-headed, energetic and rather joyful. It felt like a miracle! Rewards coming to me so quickly.
The next day after work, I headed off on the three-hour journey to my favourite resort and favourite place in the whole of northern Thailand. My pool team would have to do without me!
I had a super healthy and tasty dinner at the resort, as always, cooked up by owner Orn, using ingredients from their garden. Her food was always to die for, and in my super healthy week it now seemed entirely appropriate. I wondered to myself when I had last gone a Friday evening without beer. I was unable to determine the answer. I went to bed early and slept beautifully.
After a super healthy and tasty breakfast in the garden, I walked into town through the paddy fields, about half an hour or so. I was feeling on top of the world, all this grand food and even grander tropical nature, and with a body that was flying with zest, and a new quest filling my mind.
Now, walking along the bottom road of the town, which is set against the river, I came across a familiar sight which in the past I always simply walked on by. It was called The Good Life and Herbal restaurant, and previously, so I thought, it had nothing to offer me… what did I want with herbal drinks, I used to think somewhat derisively, beer was my tipple, beer gave me the good life. (Oh, how we can be so shaped by our set perspectives.)
But on this occasion as I got adjacent to it, I found that my body, by its own accord, turned left and I found myself entering this strange sanctum. My mind barely had a chance to imagine what I might find, but my body just took me in there.
I didn’t emerge until nearly dinner time.
What an Aladdin’s cave of foods, drinks, brews, potions, powders, herbs, plants and books it was! Just as its name suggested. It was a sort of bohemian design inside with chairs hanging from the roof, big shared tables to sit at, hundreds of books all related it seemed to health, nutrition and travel, and it sort of felt like somebody’s large living room. Nice sweet herbal smells and home cooking permeated the place. The menu was packed with all kinds of healthy food options, and full of information. It also revealed dozens of different teas - black teas, green teas, white teas, oolongs - kefir and kombucha, which I’d never heard of, and other assorted concoctions. I saw lots of grass growing which turned out to be wheatgrass for making wheatgrass juice. Several people were in the restaurant and all clearly enjoying life.
I had never been anywhere like this and it was a heaven and a haven.
I ordered a vegetarian meal and the kombucha recommended to me by a chap in there, and dug into the books. I’m a book lover and knowledge junkie, and here were lots of books full of information on health and diet and so on. What I was reading in my skimming and scanning of several books was blowing my brain wide open. I was nearly a week into my own health journey, miracles were taking place in my body, and suddenly, here I was in a temple of health and good fun, with several other happy people in there, all looking the picture of good health and vitality. I got talking with some of them, mostly Americans, and I told them about my story, and my new efforts to live in a healthy manner. They were very generous with their time and patient explanations, and answers to all my questions. As with the books, what they had to say to me was super interesting.
I think the universe pushed me into that wonderful place that afternoon. I go back every time I’m in the town now.
I made lots of notes from the books I was looking at, agog at all the health information relating to diet and nutrition. This was not in mainstream media and had not been in any topic of conversation that I had ever known.
My head was really spinning now, what a week this had been. The next day I went right back to the health cave, and into those books again. A switch had gone off inside me, for sure. I do research in my job, am trained at it, and I do it very well. I had a new topic of interest to research, and I just could not get enough of it that weekend: diet and promoting good health.
~~~~~
The following Friday I went out to the pub to play my pool league match and didn’t have a single beer, it had now been 12 days and my momentum carried me through the evening without incident. I woke up early on Saturday morning feeling refreshed like never before on a Saturday morning.
On Monday I went back for my follow-up appointment. It was as if I’d had a body transplant since my previous visit, a man of verve, vim and vigour I was! My mind felt razor sharp and in fine spirits. No backaches, a full night’s sleep each night, a flexible body, all bloody marvellous it was. How good life was!
The same two girls happily greeted me to put me on the machine again to measure my readings a second time. More miracles unfolded. I keenly watched the needle for each reading and guess what - just one reading went up to the 100 and it did so without any screeching sounds, while all the others were in the sort of 50-70 range. That did it for me, this machine was the real thing. Due to my teaching work at postgraduate level, which requires of me a scrupulous approach to avoid making any wrongful claims without supporting evidence, and my natural desire to see things in action for myself so I can speak from personal first-hand experience, I was overjoyed to see the machine was clearly a quite brilliant diagnostic tool for health problems. Why did they not have such machines in all hospitals I wondered.
It turned out my sole 100 reading was for my liver, and the lady doctor said the liver takes much longer to rejuvenate itself. But just two weeks of dietary changes, and I clearly had a body brimming with inner health.
And so thus began a new phase to my life, proactively seeking out healthy ways of living. It was a heady adventure for me, full of discoveries, and still is.
Since that final day of October 2008, and ongoing, I’ve done thousands upon thousands of hours of research into nutrition, healthcare modalities, ‘alternative’ natural medicines and treatments, the pharmaceutical and food corporations (it’s hard to speak neutrally about them) and how they literally create ill-health in us citizens. I prefer books to the internet and have a whole library of them now, but I do also find many good quality websites. I’ve kept food diaries to investigate the links between foods and feelings in my own body, I’ve studied reiki, tai chi, and craniosacral therapy courses, done yoga programs, been to yoga festivals and investigated all kinds of healthy pursuits. Some I find not my cup of tea, many I really enjoy.
My very favourite research subject is Ayurveda and I have a good dozen books on this ancient but thoroughly modern and effective health care system. This puts your health care into your own hands. I devote a whole chapter to it later on.
I adopted a default diet from those early steps of mine, which I follow at home, but when I travel I’m not fussy and will generally eat what comes my way. In keeping my food diaries I have clearly seen for myself how diet can literally turn on and off my health. The link is undeniable to me, and of course there’s a whole industry out there on it all nowadays. I didn’t eat any dairy foods for about seven years, except for when I visited England or Australia, and I could always notice a downturn in my body’s wellbeing after those trips. I could write a whole book on my experiences, but that’s for another day.
I’ve increasingly investigated the link between thought and all mind activity and physiological responses, and I know very well that negative thoughts and patterns can impact negatively on our physical health.
All this time I’ve been battling with the beer, but the big victory is that when I do have some, I don’t drink a lot. I successfully got rid of cigarettes a few years ago, and all in all, I do a good job of living in a healthy manner without being obsessive (perhaps in the early years I was a bit, but that was due to my tremendous excitement at learning how we can be in charge of our own health). I love eating healthy foods, and my focus is on whole foods. I never did eat fast foods and junk foods out of protest at these corporations and the damage they do to our planet. Out of ease I still eat a little meat, but wouldn’t care if I never had any again. I do love eggs though, and won’t give them up. I drink coffee again, with a bit of milk, but the thought of sugar in it is ghastly! Northern Thailand now grows outstanding coffees, and I enjoy a cup most days.
I will be the first to run straight back to the pub lifestyle and die early with a painful back if I ever find the healthy stuff boring or that it’s taking the fun out of my life, but it does the opposite. I find good health in my body a brilliant basis for fully enjoying life now that I’m no longer protected by my youthful years. The amazing thing is how a happy, healthy body impacts so positively on my mental outlook on life. I also began to notice I became sharper in my teaching, and teaching topic matter like psycholinguistics, how the brain works, and how to do action research to my teacher students needs me to be on my cognitive toes.
This book was born out of all this research. For years I had focused my attention on learning about our mind, yet now, finally, I had put the body into the mix. Now I had all the pieces of the puzzle, and just had to put them together. Back doing my hammock time a few years ago I hit upon a formula for who we are as individuals and a framework for understanding how life works… my trusty hammock strung up in beautiful nature always delivers! I think you’ll love this formula and framework for life, and it neatly encapsulates the holistic and ‘wholistic’ nature of life.
My formula is ‘3DH5DL’ and comes in the Main Courses section. The next chapter closes out this first section of the book, and gives you several short bursts of ideas and some good food for thought.
We then head into the main section of the book where I want to share my understandings of our body, and the mind and soul it contains. It is also a call to you, fellow citizen, to help our world by creating demand for whole foods and cleaner food production. Healthy food leads to a happy mind, leads to a desire for more healthy foods, leads to the dropping of harmful stuff, less stress, and bam, before we know it, we’re in a virtuous cycle where life keeps on giving to us. Healthy people will demand a healthy planet, because they know how both are intimately linked.
