LAB Meeting Monday April 14

If you can tear yourself away from beautiful weather outside, please join us in the nursery of Ada Bible Church at 8899 Cascade Rd SE, Ada, MI 49301 from 7-9ish for some tips on holistic living from Heather Hammond.

About Heather:

I am a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, which is affiliated with Columbia University and am a certified holistic health counselor through the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. I also hold a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis in education and theatre and a Michigan teacher’s certification in English.

I first became interested in the connection between food/lifestyle and health when I was 12. At that time, I had chronic upper respiratory illnesses that just wouldn’t kick the curb. Finally, after years of tests and allergy shots, a chiropractor suggested I go off dairy and stop drinking soda, and my illnesses cleared up almost entirely.

Since then, I have always been curious about how food affects my health – and have even seen patterns of my lifestyle choices affecting my health throughout the years. But, the most frustrating aspect to me when it came to health was weeding through the wealth of information out there that is available today – some of it contradictory.

Through working with my own health counselor and studying at the Institute, I have learned the importance of listening to my body above and beyond all the latest research. I am the healthiest I have ever been and attribute it all to the balance – both in my lifestyle and my food choices. I am passionate now about helping other people find that same kind of balance and health in their own lives.

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Brown rice is nice

Monday night’s LAB meeting was one of the best we’ve had. Brooke is so comfortable to listen to and chat with. She demonstrated a simple fried rice recipe in her electric wok. I don’t think the nursery has ever smelled so good! She shared great tips from where to find whole, real, organic foods (even at Meijer) to how to store them (Ball jars work great), recipes, and just a myriad of wellness tips.

Here are a few brown rice recipes Brooke shared with us that are healthy and easy to try. She recommends cooking a big pot of brown rice then keeping it in an airtight container in the fridge and using rice as you need it throughout the week.

1. Beans and Rice Mountain

• 1/2 C. cooked brown rice
• 1/2 C. canned or cooked black, kidney, or pinto beans
• 1/4 avocado, peeled and sliced
• 3 T. fresh tomato salsa
• 1-2 T. alfalfa sprouts
• 1 T. shredded cheese (optional)
• 1 egg, fried (optional)

Layer the ingredients in a heaping mount on plate and eat!

2. Breakfast Brown rice

• 1 C. cooked brown rice
• 1-1.5 C. milk or milk alternative
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 t. each cinnamon and nutmeg
• 1 T. almond slivers

Heat all ingredients in a small sauce pan over medium heat, stirring frequently. Once warmed through, garnish with raspberries and any additional milk desired. Sweeten with agave nectar or real maple syrup.

3. Fried Rice

• 2 T. olive oil
• 1 bunch scallions, sliced thinly
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 2 C. cooked and chilled brown rice
• 3 T. tamari (organic soy sauce)
• 1 C. frozen peas/carrots/beans
• 1-2 eggs, scrambled

Heat oil in large wok or skillet. Add onion and garlic and saute until fragrant. Add brown rice and half the tamari and stir fry until rice begins to brown/crisp. Add the veggies and fry from 2-3 more minutes. With a spatula, move the rice mixture to the sides of the wok. Pour the raw scrambled eggs into the center, mixing lightly while they cook to solid. Mix in with the rest of the rice mixture. Add the remaining tamari to taste.

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February 25–Healthy Cooking Demonstration

Brooke Sellers , MA, CHHC will be doing a healthy cooking demonstration. Learn about (and taste) some quick, mom-friendly kitchen tips that utilize whole, real food.

We meet in the nursery of Ada Bible Church at 8899 Cascade Rd SE, Ada, MI 49301 from 7-9ish. Come when you can and leave when you must. There is no fee and no need to register.

Meet our speaker, Brooke:
As a master’s level counselor, I spent hours working with people who were depressed, anxious, and out-of-sorts. To be honest, I was all of those things myself! I struggled with the disconnect between what I could offer to my clients as a mental health professional and the seemingly insignificant difference it made in their lives and my own. On the other hand, I wasn’t comfortable with the medical system’s contribution to the dis-ease crisis I was witnessing all around me.

Through three years of working under the mentoring of a brilliant naturopathic physician, Adrian den Boer, DC, ND, during graduate school and through my own research (I’m a borderline-obsessive reader and learner), I came to see that the solutions to people’s dis-ease are much more holistic. I could no longer rely on mere mental health counseling nor on traditional medical systems; there was need to see people in a larger context and to address their illness on multiple levels: physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational. Once I started implementing these holistic principles in my own life and in the lives of my clients, I started to see meaningful changes occur.

I am also a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition which is affiliated with Columbia University. At Integrative Nutrition, I have learned to synthesize all of these parts into a cohesive whole, making me uniquely equipped to empower people to move toward true wellness in their lives.

Holistic wellness is a way of life for me. It shows up in my whole foods cooking, the decisions I make about leisure time (walking, enjoying community, reading, traveling, and constantly growing), and who I am becoming. I believe that I can only take my clients as far as I myself have traveled. For this reason, I strive to walk my talk.

I love what I do! I have the best job that I can imagine possible. What makes it so great is that I am a daily witness to the personal transformation of my clients. I would love to play a part in your road to healing as well.

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My momma told me

Anybody else out there sick of being sick?

My mom told me when she had a cold or flu during the wintertime she’d go outside and breathe in great gulps of the freezing cold air. Her theory: germs and bacteria often thrive in warm, moist conditions, so freezing cold air will kill them dead.

If nothing else, getting outside for a few minutes a day and deep breathing in some non-recycled-by-the-heater air can’t hurt.

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Play

Eat Less, Play More

Remember when you were a child, and you got so wrapped up in playing, imagining or creating that you didn’t want to stop when it was time to eat? Do you remember leaving your meal half-finished to run off and continue playing? Children innately understand that food is secondary to what is most nutritious and primary in life: fun and play.As adults we seem to have lost our instinct to prioritize play. In our busy world, with its emphasis on work and responsibility, to be healthy and balanced we must work on more than just our bodies; we must feed our hearts, minds and spirits. Have you noticed that when your body, mind and spirit are engaged in a creative project or happy relationship, your reliance on food seems to decrease? Likewise, when you are unsatisfied with your relationships, your job or other areas of your life, you may depend on food to cheer, soothe or numb you. When your life is out of balance, no amount of food can feed you where you truly need nourishment. The food that we eat is very important for health and balance, but what really feeds us-a full and fulfilling life-doesn’t come on a plate. What is fun for you? What makes you light up? What excites you? Make time for it this week. Even if you don’t have much time for fun, try approaching a “serious” activity with an attitude of play. This can greatly reduce stress and anxiety and bring more pleasure to your day. Take your focus off food, try adding more fun into your life and watch the magic unfold. (from Integrative Nutrition)

Thanks for sharing this article, Heather.

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Monday, January 14 meeting

Come enjoy some hands-on, new-fangled art therapy. I like to call it “catharsis via collage”. We’ll provide the atmosphere, instruction, inspiration, and supplies for you to engage all of your senses and practice some relaxation and expression exercises.

Because scissors and glue are involved in one of our activities, we will have a grandmotherly-type care giver in the room next door to the nursery to entertain and care for any “mobile” little ones you need to bring with you.

We meet in the nursery of Ada Bible Church at 8899 Cascade Rd SE, Ada, MI 49301 each 2nd and 4th Monday from 7-9ish. Come when you can and leave when you must. Family, friends, and little ones are always welcome to attend with you.

There is no fee and no need to register, just come. We always provide a snack and bottled water and hope you can leave feeling encouraged to know that you are NOT alone in this sometimes-challenging-youngster phase and that there truly IS Life After Baby!

~Jenna & Diane
Jesus said, “…I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.” John 10:10b

What is Art Therapy?

Art Therapy uses the visual arts to communicate feelings that cannot be expressed by words alone. A person seeks to create images as a visual response to what goes on in their minds. Those images often come from the unconscious and hold important personal meaning. The images produced externalize and resolve internalized fears, conflicts and blocks.

The creative process and the reflection on the art help you express and understand feelings and patterns of behavior. You do not need any art experience. In a safe environment and using unconventional means of exploration, young children, adolescents and adults can use art therapy to work through conflict, grow by facing life’s challenges and accept themselves.

Art therapy improves self-awareness and self-esteem and is often very beneficial for people struggling with:

• Life transitions
• Relationship issues
• Addictions
• Co-dependency
• Depression
• Post-traumatic stress
• Eating disorder
• Grief and loss

How Did Art Therapy Begin?

Visual expression has been used for healing throughout history, but art therapy did not emerge as a distinct profession until the 1940s. In the early 20th century, psychiatrists became interested in the artwork created by their patients with mental illness. At around the same time, educators were discovering that children’s art expressions reflected developmental, emotional, and cognitive growth. By mid-century, hospitals, clinics, and rehabilitation centers increasingly began to include art therapy programs along with traditional “talk therapies,” underscoring the recognition that the creative process of art making enhanced recovery, health, and wellness. As a result, the profession of art therapy grew into an effective and important method of communication, assessment, and treatment with children and adults in a variety of settings. Currently, the field of art therapy has gained attention in health-care facilities throughout the United States and within psychiatry, psychology, counseling, education, and the arts.

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