Recently, I had a couple of wisdom teeth extracted. Admittedly, it was an uncomplicated procedure as far as these things go but I was amazed and delighted with the speed of my recovery. After a couple of days, I felt fully healed and experienced barely any pain throughout.

As I contemplated and expressed gratitude for this good fortune, I realized there were definitely some things that helped speed along and ensure a fantastic recovery. I would like to share them here with you in the hopes that you might find them useful too. In no particular order:

Daily meditation and prayer: we may hear a lot these days about the value of this practice and there is good reason for it! Given our busy lives lived within chaotic and noisy cities, it is absolutely vital to create a quiet, centering space within. The more I practice this, the quicker and easier am I able to access the calm within even the most stressful times, thereby easing any tension and anxiety.  Prayer is a relatively new addition for me and I like to end my meditations with a short wish that I may meet all that is coming my way with dignity and grace; that I am able to surrender to the things I cannot change.  That I accept and trust.

In the weeks before my appointment, I also added some affirmations specifically directed towards my procedure. In the meditative state is where I employed them and they ran along the lines of: I am a terrific healer. I heal quickly and well. (Visualizations, too,  work wonders if you are a visual type.)

Support: I found it invaluable to know and understand the type of support I would need in the lead up to the procedure, the duration, and the recovery period. Then I ensured that I asked for it.  For me, this meant having a knowledgeable and gentle dentist (a huge, huge thanks to Dr. Kevin Kliman and staff) whom I trusted and knew respected my anxiety issues around dental care. It also meant having a loved one come with me to my appointment, wait for me,  greet me with loving arms when it was over, and help me home (then make me mashed potatoes for dinner because it was pretty much all I could eat).

It also made me feel better to talk about my impending procedure because I felt nervous about it and talking helps me. It allowed me to commiserate and receive words of support and counsel from those who had already been through such a thing. It helped me feel less alone.

For all of us, support means something different but ultimately the important thing is to articulate to yourself what it is exactly that you need. Then, ask for it! If we carry unspoken expectations, we’re bound to be disappointed. Better to connect and discover what you need and then find the help. Most of us are delighted to help, but we just need to know how.

Plan ahead for rest: we push ourselves very hard and often get caught in a mindset that we have to do everything ourselves. The world won’t fall apart if we plan for an extra day or two of rest, even if we think we’re feeling okay to continue on as before. I found it very helpful to know I had an extra couple of days blocked off to heal; it eased any anxiety I may have nursed about having to go back to work when I wasn’t quite ready. We can’t heal fully and properly if we’re stressing out about what needs to get done.

Last, but certainly not least, I call this – Demonstrating Love and Respect for Self through good nutrition and proactive self-care. We all know that we need to eat well to feel well. Before my dental procedure, I made an extra special effort to ensure my diet had a lot of antioxidants, and vitamin and mineral rich food (i.e. lots of fruits and veggies). But it was also invaluable to be on a regimen of holistic -care. For me, this consisted primarily of regular Network Spinal Analysis entrainments and acupuncture. It is unfortunately all too common that we come in for care only when we aren’t feeling well. When we wait only for those times, it’s much tougher to get to feeling better. I have found that regular care as a matter of course, throughout life as I’m feeling well and fine, keeps me running at my optimal best – physically, emotionally and spiritually. This allows me to stay healthy while others around fall sick, to heal and bounce back from any necessary medical procedures, and to recover from the most difficult losses and challenges that are an inevitable part of being alive.

Actually, there’s one more thing. Expressing Gratitude. There is always something to be grateful for (advanced dentistry, amazing & supportive people, the opportunity to learn and grow, etc.). Thank you for reading and I hope that your paths to healing and recovery are filled with ease, grace, and comfort.

Do you have any tips for optimal recovery? I would love to hear them.

During the wintery season, we find good reason to celebrate love and to warm our hearts.  We can truly appreciate the grace of loved ones and all that we are so blessed to have in our lives.  Maybe it’s because of the cold and our bodies simply need some nurturing, but it gives us time to devote to showing our love and affection.  

So celebrate this month of love with your family and friends, enjoying their company and sharing your true self.  Sending all of you love and good energy from Source Centre so that your heart may bloom in bliss.  

For the month of February, refer a friend or family member for chiropractic care at Source Centre. When they come in for their appointment, we will give you a complimentary chiropractic session. It’s our way of saying Thank You for sharing health and wellness this February!

Complimentary sessions available to current Source Centre Practice Members. Applies to new referrals only.

We at Source Centre are opening our doors to you at our Open House this Thursday, February 2 from 10am – 8pm. You may recall that we recently moved to our new locationon 202-326 Adelaide Street W. And now, a few months later, we are celebrating our larger space, added health services and expanded hours. More than ever before, we are here for your health and wellness needs.

All day at the Open House will be raffle prizes, massages, posture checks and health talks. We’re featuring the following health talks at our Open House:

• Somato Respiratory Integration with Dr. Sue Sutherland, Chiropractor at 2:00pm
• Crane Qi Gong Demonstration with Alain Richard at 3:00pm
• Boost Your Energy with Dr. Tara Andresen, Naturopath at 6:30pm
• Tuning into Brain Wave Frequencies with Dr. Rashida, Osteopath at 7:00pm
• What You Didn’t Know About Chiropractic with Dr. Leo Quan, Chiropractor and Dr. Anita Rajan, Chiropractor at 7:30pm.
   
• And all day, we will have  raffle prizes, free mini-massages, posture checks, snacks and refreshments.

Please visit this page for more information about all our special events.

As you continue, you look back at the people inside sipping their lattes and americanos and think  you too would like a pick-me-up. You feel relaxed, maybe too relaxed to be going back to the office.

Suddenly, as you feel a  wave of sound and pressure at your face. The hairs on your neck stand on end, your muscles tense, and your breath comes to a screeching halt. A truck rounding the intersection nearly collided with you, but thank goodness you are safe from harm. Still, the panic and anxiety could linger for minutes or hours, even longer.

Perhaps it just makes sense that a stressful circumstance can leave our bodies and minds feeling stressed. And conversely, that a relaxing environment can bring us peace and tranquility. Have you ever wondered though, how this actually works? Ever wonder how some people stay calm under fire or others suffer from constant tension without rhyme or reason?

The key link between external stressors and the the sensation of stress is quite simple, synchronization. Synchronization as a general phenomenon takes places in every imaginable circumstance and the examples are limitless. Slow your breath and so too will your heartbeat. Dim the lights and feel the drowsiness take over. Hear the music and notice yourself sing, hum or whistle to the tune, or your body sway to the rhythm.  As Dean (played by Ryan Gosling) says in Blue Valentine,

The need to move and sing is our body’s need to synchronize.

What makes synchronization possible is our nervous system.  Made of 75 km of nerves originating from the spine for communication between the brain and all the tissues and organs of the body, and 2.5 million miles of wiring in the brain alone, our nervous system is extremely capable of perceiving and adapting to our ever-changing environment. The sight or smell of food causing our mouths to water and the faintest illumination at night causing our alertness to increase are two well-known examples. But did you know that a light touch from a Network Spinal Analysis (NSA) practitioner can help our body lighten the tension in our muscles, joints and other tissues? With Network Spinal Analysis, wide ranging health benefits are possible – including greater physical health, emotional well-being, and ability to handle stress. Synchronization is at the core of NSA and it all starts with a gentle touch.

Want to learn more about how NSA can help you? Talk to an NSA practitioner today.

Dr. Leo Quan

Discover Network Spinal Analysis in person at the following workshops:

[Image: photostock/freedigitalimages.net]

With the start of a new year, it is a great time for some health and wellness resolutions!  Our team at Source Centre has decided to do a monthly fitness challenge where we choose a specific workout and try to incorporate that activity into our schedules as many times as we can.  For our January challenge, we are going to start with Zumba fitness.

Zumba is a Latin-inspired, exhilarating, easy-to-follow, calorie-burning, dance fitness-party™. It blends vibrant international music with catchy steps to form a ‘fitness-party’ that’s moving millions of people towards joy and health.  Zumba began in 2001, and has since grown to become the world’s largest dance-fitness program with people of all shapes, sizes and ages participating.

Zumba has its origins in Colombia, where a fitness instructor named Alberto Perez was in a rush to teach an aerobics class and forgot his usual music. Instead, he improvised by using his own mix of music that he had in his backpack (salsa and merengue). Spontaneously he created a new kind of dance-fitness, one that focused on letting the music move you (instead of counting reps over the music). An electrifying energy filled the room and people couldn’t stop smiling. His class loved it! On that day, a new fitness concept was born, the Zumba^® fitness-party.

Zumba is taught in gyms and studios all over the world to numerous fitness enthusiasts. It recently even became offered in the video gaming platform! As the Zumba program continues to evolve, its growth has deepened in the commitment to providing accessible fitness to all, with the pure joy of a party.

The Zumba goal is to spread the philosophy of health and happiness and of loving everything you do, especially your workout.  We here at Source Centre want to share that philosophy too!

To find a Zumba class near you, check the following website for locations: 

http://www.zumba.com/en-US/parties/search/

We will be planning a day to do a Zumba class together, so come join us!  We will keep you posted!!

Chiropractic adjustments and mobilizations to the articulations (spinal and extremity) help restore optimal movement and maintain alignment of the joints.  Keeping proper movement of the joints intact is very important, especially with so many stressors that we encounter everyday. Chiropractic adjustments help to keep joints in motion, relieve compression of the nerves and reduce muscle tension.  A nervous system that has no interference can work maximally and allow proper signals to be conducted throughout the body, leading to health and wellness.

My approach to gentle chiropractic care includes the following therapies:

Manual adjustments to the joints. I palpate to feel if there are restrictions along the vertebrae of the spine. I then apply a controlled precise movement with gentle pressure along the joint in coordination with your breath to help release the misalignment. If at any time there is discomfort, I ask you to let me know, as there are many modifications that I can make to release a joint fixation. The process is to help relax your system, not to cause any more tension. 

Soft tissue therapy to the muscles. I use trigger point therapy and myofascial release techniques to help reduce any muscle tension knots that have developed due to buildup of toxins, adhesions or scar tissue. Heat therapy helps to relax and elongate your muscles, and feels so soothing! I will guide you through breathing techniques to facilitate the release of these tender points in the myofascial connective tissue.

To top it off, you will learn range of motion and muscle stretching/strengthening exercises to help sustain the release and effectiveness of your chiropractic sessions. I promise that the exercises I recommend are totally do-able and easy to incorporate into your daily routine. I want to help you learn to use the tools to keep your body healthy! That is my goal for your wellness.

Gentle chiropractic can help keep your nervous system healthy. Be active and stay proactive!

Dr. Anita Rajan

Holiday Food Drive Details here >>>

At Source Centre, you may have noticed that we love to talk about food and gratitude. They are rather complementary. Healthy, wholesome food nourishes and sustains us. It is key to allowing our bodies, and therefore our minds and spirits, to operate to their full, amazing capacity. We are grateful everyday for the food we have to eat, as it becomes a part of our being. In these colder months and as the holidays approach, it’s easy to cultivate a sense of appreciation for a hot meal that fills and warms the body with the marvelous bounty of nature. From this place of deep gratitude follows our desire to extend and share that bounty.

It is in this spirit that we embarked on a food drive this 2011/12 holiday season in support of Second Harvest. For the past 26 years, Second Harvest has been picking up donations of excess food, which would otherwise go to waste, and delivering that food to 216 community agencies in Toronto. Second Harvest delivers food to social service agencies that serve a wide variety of people in need; children in breakfast programs, women fleeing domestic abuse, newcomers to Canada, homeless people, those struggling with addiction, seniors on fixed incomes, those facing mental illness, those affected by the recession and many others who have fallen on hard times.

During the holiday season, even as the news bombarded us incessantly with all the challenges and troubles in our world, YOU CAN and YOU DID help make a difference. The simple and wholesome act of sharing food benefits all. Your food contributions at Source Centre brought our food bin to overflowing with over 850lbs of food, enough to feed 850 people. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

With love and gratitude,
The Source Centre Team.

As the seasons change and we look back to reminisce over the year, we realize how quickly time can pass by and leave us wondering how we spent our days and what we accomplished. This is precisely why it is so important to have intentions to help us keep on track of our life goals.

When you live with intention, daily happenings take on special meaning. Thinking positive thoughts and living in the present moment allow clear focus and create awareness within yourself. You can truly savor the moment. Becoming conscious about your thoughts will shift your thinking and create understanding in your heart. Always remember to enjoy the moment, as all these moments add up to the happiness in your life.

When you act with good intentions, you are building good karma. There’s a radiant glow in your being and any dream is possible! It is so important to realize that your thoughts and words CAN change the way you feel and how you lead your life. When you focus your mind with a specific intent, you can achieve so much more. People notice your clarity and are so attracted to being around your positive aura and energy.

So I challenge you to set your intention today and give it your full attention. Write it down and return to it throughout the day and see what happens.  It will only take a minute to set your intention.  Staying aware of it will take a little more effort!

For example:  My intention today is to enjoy the beauty surrounding me…  I will do this by taking a walk in the park, gazing out of the window at work, watching the leaves fall from the trees, allowing the sun’s rays or rain drops to kiss my skin while outside.

Go ahead, try it!  MY INTENTION TODAY IS……………

Notice if you feel a change in your awareness and thoughts. The more conscious we are in our interactions, starting with our thoughts, the more we can make change in our lives, however big or small. Being mindful and attentive is the best way to live your life’s full intent.

 By Dr. Anita Rajan

What are people saying about intention and mindfulness?

http://www.intent.com/

http://www.yogajournal.com/wisdom/926

We are pleased to welcome you to our spacious new centre at 326 Adelaide Street West, Suite 202. We are right around the corner from our former location at Peter Street. Our phone number and email address remain the same. We look forward to being able to serve you better in our new location. See you soon!

View 326 Adelaide St W in a larger map