"Christmas is real and about more than food and gifts. It
summons us to be present -- in thought, in spirit, or in
person -- to those whose bonds we share. It calls us to
reweave and renew the ties that bind us, and which, through
good and bad times, give value and meaning to our lives.
Christmas gives us momentary pause for recollection of past
pleasures, of hearty laughter, of hard-won trials and tests
of character, and of abiding memories of "the times of our
lives" and the people and events that shaped them. May your
Christmas be memorable and rewarding."
-Evelyn Unes Hansen
My warmest wishes to you and yours this blessed Holiday
season. I decided to include the following article about
Decorating with Spirit to help inspire us to create a spiritual
space within our home to help remind us of the deeper
significance of the beautiful decorations that surround us
this time of year. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I
did.
To your health, Dr. Couri
Decorate with Spirit: 5 Ways to Invite Peace Into Your
Home For the Holidays
Many of us are so overwhelmed by holiday pressures that we
miss out on the special moments that give meaning to this
time of year. Whatever your religious beliefs, set yourself up
for a more meaningful, peaceful holiday season by creating a
spiritual space within your home.
Make Way Feeling oppressed by holiday paraphernalia can make day-to-
day clutter even more intolerable than usual—and it can
distract you from the deeper significance of all those
decorations in the first place.
Do a major declutter of living areas before you start
decorating, and relocate or store redundant furniture (an extra
chair that’s just for show, a side table that gets in the way),
and consider donating unwanted items to places in need. Put
some collectibles away to create more tabletop space,
encourage more flow for conversation, and put more focus on
the holiday items that are most significant to you. A leaner,
less cluttered home is the ener-
getic balance to the holiday
chaos that’s about to descend.
Clear the Air Burning sage to cleanse a
home is an effective ritual that
has been used through the ages
to consecrate energies and allow the best future to unfold.
After cleaning your home, light the sage and imagine
negative energy leaving. Then fill up the space with visualiza-
tions of the authentic exchanges and heartfelt moments you
will share with your loved ones. State your intentions out
loud, such as, “This home is a place of divine peace and love
that enables us to feel the true essence of the season.” Or,
“This home enhances our family heritage and growing
traditions and brings us all closer to one another.”
Bring Nature In A University of Washington study found that just being able
to see elements of nature can induce relaxation and lower
your heart rate. “Interaction with the natural world is calming
and will make you feel subconsciously more at ease,” says
Kate Hanley, author of The Anytime, Anywhere Chill Guide.
“Get a real tree, hang clove-studded oranges as ornaments,
and put pinecones in a glass vase for centerpieces.” Use a
bowl of snow to chill party drinks, decorate with real holly
and poinsettias, and don’t forget the mistletoe—kissing
reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
Decorate with Intention As you bring out the decorations you’ve collected over the
years, take a minute to think about their true meaning. That
wreath is a symbol of eternal life. Hanukkah candles symbol-
ize the light of the creator in our lives. A decorated tree
represents growth and new beginnings. And don’t forget
angels. “You can connect more deeply to symbols of
angels by becoming aware of which ones really take your
breath away and make you pause and reflect,” says Lorna
Byrne, author of A Message of Hope from the Angels. “Ask your angels to fill your home with their love and guid-
ance.”
A note from Dr. Michele Couri: Decorate with Spirit
December 2013
6708 North Knoxville Avenue, Peoria, Illinois 309.692.6838 www.CouriCenter.com
“Restoring Health to Women’s Healthcare.”
Feeling whole and connected to the Earth and others takes effort, but
it is rewarding work. By bringing your focus outside of yourself, you
will learn to reach out to people and to the world around you in posi-
tive ways. Giving of yourself, from spending time with friends and
those in need to taking care of the environment or a companion ani-
mal, also promotes positive interaction.
Here are eight steps to help you get connected:
1. Nature and Earth. If you think of nature as a hostile force that
is separate from yourself, you will go through life unnecessarily afraid
and cut off from one of the great sources of spiritual nourishment.
Whether you connect with nature on wilderness trips or lunch breaks
in a city park, you can always slow down and observe the infinite
variety of her ways. One way to connect with nature is through plants:
gardening, collecting plants from the wild, growing cactuses and
flowering bulbs, and having unusual and useful plants in and around
the home can all help promote connectedness with nature. Plants can
enrich your daily life, bring comfort and joy, and remind you that
however you think of yourself, you are also part of the natural world.
2. Animals. Research shows that people who have pets have less
illness than people who do not. Pet owners also recover faster from
serious illness and tend to be happier. Ex-prisoners who form relation-
ships with pets have lower recidivism rates than those who do not.
While pets can and inevitably will bring owners great joy, they are a
responsibility: they demand a certain level of attention and care. How-
ever, the rewards that pets give in return are often too great to be
measured. Loving and caring for a pet is a great way to learn how to
love and care for other humans and nature.
3. Family. We are not meant to be alone - we are meant to be parts
of bigger families, bands, and tribes. Human beings want and need the
intimate support of a real family. Unfortunately, the nuclear family of
our modern society is contracted. It is hard not to look at the
"extended families" of some cultures with wistful longing, if not out-
right envy. Where I live, in southern Arizona, the Hispanic population
seems way ahead of the rest of us in providing for the needs of family.
In many Hispanic families the old people, even when infirm, continue
to be valued members and live at home. Don't settle for nuclear family
contraction. Extend!
4. Community. Community is the sense of living and working to-
gether for common goals. We are naturally communal beings and
derive great satisfaction from the experience of belonging to a group
with a common purpose. The strength and comfort of community
come from the principle that the whole is greater than the sum of its
parts. Our society often fails to provide for this need, and unless we
work to create community, it does not happen, or does so in unhealthy
ways. You can define community any way you want. It may be your
neighborhood, your sports team, your environmental action group,
your church, your social club. What makes it work is what you bring
to it and the role you let it play in your life. This kind of connected-
ness gives us the power to improve our lives and make the world a
better place.
5. Serving. Selfless service means giving of yourself to help others
with no thought of return. Many religious traditions extol the ideal of
selfless service as one of the great aids to dismantling the ego cage
and restructuring personality. Each day provides countless opportuni-
ties to practice putting others' interests ahead of your own, such as
giving of your time, energy and presence to reduce the suffering or
increase the happiness of others. The goal is not to acquire spiritual
merit, increase your chances of going to heaven, or earn the admira-
tion of the community. Instead, service is a way of acknowledging
that we are all one and that the happiness of each is connected to the
happiness of all. The more you can experience the interconnectedness
of all beings, the healthier you will be.
6. Loving. To love is to exper ience connection in its highest, purest
form. Humans tend to confuse loving with other feelings that take us
back into the world of separateness and fragmentation. Popular songs
today seem to be mostly about the joys and pains of romantic love,
not about loving as connection, which is something altogether differ-
ent. Learning to love takes practice and time, especially in a culture
that is focused so intensely on romantic love. In intimate relationships
that work, the in-love state is replaced by mutual loving. That can
happen only if both partners are mature and committed to a life to-
gether. Many people today have no idea what to do when they fall out
of love with their partners; they think it means there is no possibility
of continuing the relationship, which is why divorce rates are now so
high. Realizing that you have within you a limitless source of love
that can benefit everyone and everything will help you form the best
and strongest connections of your life.
7. Touching. Human beings need to touch and be touched. A great
deal of animal and human research shows that individuals deprived of
physical contact are insecure, poorly adjusted, and more prone to ill-
ness. Some cross-cultural research suggests that sexually repressed
and touch-deprived societies are much more given to violence. Our
own society, unfortunately, is in that category. Touching is an easy
connection to make because it feels so good. Please do more of it.
8. Higher powers. One reason the 12-step programs work as treat-
ments for addiction is that they encourage connection to a power
greater than yourself. It does not matter much how you conceive of
that higher power; what matters is the sense of connection to it. It can
be the father-god of the Old Testament, Jesus Christ, the Compassion-
ate Buddha, the Great Spirit, the Goddess, pure, undifferentiated Con-
sciousness, or simply the Mystery. You are free to choose the way
you conceive of the universe and your place in it. People who experi-
ence themselves as part of and supported by something larger than
themselves are less fearful and more healthy than people who view
the world through the bars of an ego cage, seeing the world as sepa-
rate from themselves, and as being disconnected.
Taken from http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00591/Eight-Ways-To-Connect.html
Honor Your Space Whether you take a quiet moment by yourself or join your
family to give thanks before a holiday meal at home, try to
include the environment itself in your prayers and
declarations of gratitude. Look at your home as its own
living entity, providing a setting for your memories and
serving as the steadfast protector that shelters you and your
family. By honoring your space you encourage goodwill and
gratitude within your home, inviting a deeper experience of
the holidays.
This article was written by Laura Benko. She is a Holistic Design Expert and her web-
site is www.laurabenko.com.
A note from Dr. Michele Couri continued...
8 Ways to Connect By Andrew Weil
Meet our staff: Dr. Michele Couri M.D., FACOG Doctor of Gynecology and Integrative Medicine
Hope Placher PA-C, MMS Physician Assistant
Susan F. Lang MS, APN, CNM, LCCE Advance Practice Nurse
Terry Polanin MS, APN, FNP-BC Nurse Practitioner
Leslie Rusch-Bayer BS, CPT Certified Personal Trainer
“Restoring Health to Women’s Healthcare.”
Proven to CHANGE your life in 15 weeks...
TLC™ is a disease reduction and prevention program used to
reduce or eliminate the effects of cardiometabolic diseases,
adrenal fatigue, gastrointestinal disorders, bone deficiencies,
and/or weight problems.
Make your appointment today!
Merry Christmas from the
Couri Center!
Use this coupon to receive double punches on your Couri Center
Rewards card during the month of December.
Coupon good 12/1/13-12/31/13
Sweet and Salty Chocolate Bark Recipe Prep Time: 5 min. Cooking Time: 25 min.
Ingredients
1 lb. (454 g) dark chocolate; 1 cup whole pecans; ½ cup dried cherries or cranberries, chopped; Sea salt to taste (optional) Preparation
1. Preheat your oven to 350 F. 2. Place the pecans on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. They’re done when they start to smell good:
take them out, and crush them with your hands or cut into chunks with a knife. 3. Chop the chocolate into pieces. 4. Melt the chocolate using a double boiler or directly in a saucepan over a medium heat, stirring constantly. 5. Pour the melted chocolate on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and spread it around with a spatula. 6. Sprinkle some sea salt evenly over the chocolate to taste. 7. Sprinkle the chopped pecans and chopped cherries evenly on top of the chocolate; you can apply some pressure to make
sure they stick to the chocolate. 8. Wait until the chocolate has cooled down, break into pieces, and serve. Recipe by paleodietlifestyle.com
Cold and flu season is upon us. If you recall, last month I discussed the immune boosting supplement - "WholeMune." I hope you have found it helpful! It has become a part of my daily routine. Did you know that most common etiology of the common cold is a virus? Antibiotics will NOT, I repeat, will NOT kill a
virus. They simply give us a false sense of security that we are doing something to rid our body of illness faster. This month, I would like to discuss another key supplement that should become a staple in your arsenal against
illness. It has been clinically proven to rev up the immune system to fight the virus. Viracid is to be utilized at the first signs of a cold. It provides a powerful combination of key nutrients and botanical extracts which provide immediate support for immune challenges. It will help your immune system squash the cold. Suggested dosing is 1-2 capsules per hour, while awake, until symptoms Improve. Here’s to a happy and healthy holiday season, Hope Placher PA-C, MMS
Spotlight Supplement: Viracid
Top Related