thank you tucson.

This has been an extraordinary month of healing, learning, friendship, community, love, patience, compassion, growth, inspiration, happiness, health and so much more! I am incredibly grateful for this experience and know that I am walking away as a stronger and more wholesome being. My heart will always smile when I think of Tucson...thank you, thank you, thank you! I know in my heart I will be back!

trying on vegan.

For the past month in Tucson I've experimented with being vegan. I've always thought it would be a fun challenge to try, but for some reason never did...perhaps because of time, lack of energy, and my love for cheese. Since I've been here, I keep hearing repeatedly about the link of illness with the consumption of animal products--totally makes sense to me. So, I thought I would give it a try. It's not as hard as I thought it would be ONCE I found a milk replacement for my morning cha :) An eye-opening observation I've made is that there's a sprinkle of cheese on so many dishes here in the states. I never realized how much cheese we all consume until I started saying "please hold the cheese" and yes I even did this at mexican restaurants. I will say, I feel more energetic and less weighed down...didn't even realize I felt that way before. Will I continue being vegan? I'd like to...it's already so difficult being vegetarian in the south, now let's see what being vegan will do!

equine therapy.

Today we spent the afternoon at a local neurosurgeon's home/ranch learning about equine therapy. It was so wonderful to spend time outside learning in the sun with the view of the mountains as a backdrop. I had forgotten how beautiful horses are and how their simple presence is so calming. Equine therapy is not about riding horses or horse care for that matter, it's a process through which individuals learn about themselves, others, and their environment. It is used most often in children with autism, ADD and adults with anxiety, PTSD to give you an idea. We observed how horses responded to our different energetic fields in various circumstances, it was really interesting and a great reminder of our energetic power. The horse simply mirrors the person that is with them. For instance, a horse may become fearful if someone is aggressive. A lot of this is due to the fact that horses are prey animal and are always on the lookout for predators. Horses can really teach us the practice of 'letting go'. I think animals in general can teach us so much if we're willing...

a full day.

yesterday was a full day. I spent the morning at the home of a behavioral nutritionist. It was awesome. The essence of our conversation, which I believe we all know, but often forget...is to eat in season and to eat as close from the earth as possible. I tasted vegetables and grains I had not heard of before, it was so exciting. Then we had a chance to explore her kitchen and create our own stir-fry from whatever ingredients we wanted...I do have to say our creation was absolutely delicious. Then I spent the afternoon learning about Hoʻoponopono which is an ancient Hawaiian practice of returning one's body to a state of balance via forgiveness and reconciliation. The belief is that a person's illness is related to the relationship in one's family including ancestors. Then I spent the evening in a energy healing session, which was an interesting an experience.

I feel like I've been in a meditative state most of my time here in Tucson. I'm sure it has a lot to do with the energy of this place, the people I am surrounded by, and the material I am learning. I'd like to leave you with a suggestion...if you do one thing today, just notice your breath. Notice how it changes with your activity & your mind and how simply bringing your awareness to the breath you slow down...it's an insightful activity :)

happy valentine's day!

this is right in line with all that I am learning...

"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." - Rumi

I hope your day is surrounded by love :)

my own healing.

buddha amongst the mountains...

day 14. I'm at the half way point in my month long elective. What an extraordinary experience this has been. I remember the first day when our director mentioned that we would experience our own healing this month. I wasn't really sure what she was talking about until now. I have experienced so many different forms of healing since I've been here, how could I not begin my own healing? Especially in light of the fact that I am towards the end of a long 7 year training, there's much physical, mental, spiritual, and even soul-level exhaustion. I am becoming aware of the "blocks" in my own life and I can only describe this as unpleasantly awesome. One must embrace, surrender, and forgive their own humanity in order to completely heal. Only after one heals themselves can they then begin to heal others...a very profound realization. From my own healing, I have now come to a place of creating a context beyond my own self...what this means to me is that my life is no longer about me, but something greater...come what may.

shamanic journey.

day 11. for those of you who know me well, you will enjoy this story! A shaman has many definitions. Of the many I have come across, the one I like most is: "one who sees in the dark"...

Today we went on a shamanic journey, led by a retired gastroenterologist. Sage was burned, the essence is suppose to clear the space. We all laid on our backs with a light cloth covering our eyes to truly create darkness. We began our journey while listening to the rhythmic beats of the drum, which is suppose to aid in shifting our awareness. The intention of our journey was to retrieve our power animal. The belief is that everyone has a power animal, an animal spirit that resides in us giving both power and protection against illness.

I'll share a few details of my journey to give you an idea. I began in the lush jungles of some place I imagine was South America. I moved through pushing the lush greenery to the side and then fell down a hole. I landed in darkness, but could feel the earth under my feet. The first animal I saw was a chimpanzee. Absolutely beautiful and endearing. As much as I love chimps, I just knew I had found my power animal. But within moments, the chimpanzee left. I wanted it to come back and stay. I next saw an elephant and thought this would be a lovely power animal, so strong and powerful. But the elephant too quickly left. I next saw a tiger who only stayed for a brief moment and then to my surprise I saw a cobra! Yes a snake and it didn't leave. I had some trouble breathing initially, but then when I realized the snake was indeed my power animal, I embraced it and we went on a journey together. The irony is that I am petrified of snakes. The mere thought gives me palpitations and anxiety. The fear is so profound that I avoid hiking because of the possibility of encountering a snake. I dream and fear of snakes all the time. It's almost unbelievable, but then not really that the snake is my power animal. Do you get it? It's amazing to me. The snake symbolizes transformation and healing. So after my experience, I do have less fear of snakes and actually hold reverence for the animal...I suppose time will tell if my fear has truly vanished...what an experience!

sweat lodge.

preparing the lodge. can you believe 20 of us were in here sweating together?

dropping off what no longer serves us.

about to enter the lodge...little did I know
how difficult this was going to be.

day 9. yesterday was a day packed with many experiences. I started the day with a vigorous vinyasa yoga class. It was the perfect way to begin the day...I felt focused and grounded. The morning was spent learning about breast health and the role of thermal imaging. Before yesterday, I had only vaguely heard of thermal imaging. I will say it has tweaked an interest and may be a great tool in the line of prevention though I do still want to read a few articles before I solidfy my opionion. Stay tuned all my lady friends :)

The afternoon was spent at the home of a retired Gastroenterologist who practices energy medicine. His home was absolutely beautiful, called 'the land of dreams'. He had a labyrinth meditation and a view like no other. We experienced and practiced energy medicine ourselves. It was very neat, I'm still processing.

In the evening, we went to a sweat lodge, which is a purification ceremony celebrated by many Native Americans. The purpose is to cleanse the body, mind, and spirit through the use of hot stones, water, and sacred space. The ceremony takes place in a hut with an infrastructure made from sticks covered with fabric. Stones are heated in an external fire and then placed in a central pit in the ground of the lodge. Everyone who participates helps with the preparation of the lodge and altar. We made prayer ties symbolizing our inner prayers in physical form by placing a pinch of tobacco in the center of a colored cloth representing our prayer and tied it to a string. White = Compassion. Black = Courage. Red = Strength. Yellow = Intuition/Guidance. The ceremony lasted until 1 am! I have never experienced anything like this before. The ceremony was intense. I was drenched with sweat and could hardly breathe from the steam that was created from the water. It was the most uncomfortable feeling. I was fighting with my claustrophobia, but somehow I made it through the experience and it felt incredible...I felt free.

energy extravaganza!

day 8. We learned about energy and the various forms of energy healing: qi gong, rolfing, shiatsu, craniosacral therapy, reiki, zero balance, bio touch, reflexology to name a few and then experienced them for ourselves from local practioners :) what a day! I'm still trying to take it all in...

I'll leave you with something I learned from all my experiences today...the interaction between two people starts long before you physically meet. With this in mind, be aware of what you bring to that interaction...what could our lives be like if we lived with this kind intention?

photos from tucson-week 1.

mi casa in tucson.

the view looking to the right from my front door, just lovely.

such a cute stove...it has buttons you push for the heat, totally old school :)

view from a stop light. i love that all of tucson is surrounded by mountains, it's absolutely beautiful. imagine a view like this any direction you gaze...

finds from the gem show...who knows what will be created from these!

my first weekend in tucson.

day 6&7. It's hard to believe that a week has already passed by. In some ways, it feels like time is moving rather fast, but at the same time it also feels like all I have is time :) I spent my Saturday afternoon learning about teas from a Chinese scholar, which was very insightful and has ultimately tweaked a new interest to learn more perhaps on a deeper level so that I might can add this to my 'toolbox' of healing. I had a much needed massage followed by an exploration of the gem show that is a yearly gathering in Tucson. I'm not sure I understand the purpose of it, but it's great fun to see all the colorful stones & gems. To give you an idea, vendors from all over set up house at hotels throughout Tucson. It's the oddest thing, they convert hotel rooms into show rooms. It can be an extremely overwhelming experience because of the magnitude of items displayed, but still worth the experience. I ended the evening enjoying a delightful & healthy meal made by a new, dear friend with the company of the lady she is living with. It was wonderful and the conversation was superb. We watched 'forks over knives' (thanks @ ravi), which you should definitely watch if you haven't already!

Today, I am going to spend my Sunday experiencing a community energy healing session followed by a return to the gem show with friends and then reading/researching about all the interesting things I am learning (I'm so excited!) with whatever time I have left of the day. Stay tuned for a photo re-cap of the week later today!

the most perfect day.

day 4. Our day began with a "clearing" chi qong exercise followed by the healing meditation. I wonder what life would be like if we started every day this way. We all felt so relaxed and centered. We had an interesting lecture on personal wellness and did a brillant exercise I want to share. We were asked the question "what would you do just for yourself if you had": a) < 5 min, b) < 30 min, c) < 1 hr, d) < 2hr, e) half a day, and f) a whole day? The point that was trying to be made was that you can create a "vacation" anytime you want. We all shared what we would do with that time, mine include: < 5 min = make cha; < 30 min = call a friend/family member; < 1hr = cook a meal; < 2 hr = go to a yoga class; half a day = diy project; a whole day = have a gathering with friends. Then to our suprise our teacher informed us that there was no "next" lecture and that we had 2 hours off to do anything we wanted, like a vacation. Wow. I was blown away. Brillant exercise, right? I thought so. Two of the many incredibly amazing people I have met, spent that time getting manicures/pedicures while sipping on fresh carrot juice :) followed by a yoga class. It was perfect. Again, just when I thought the day could get no better, it did. We all met at a friend's place to gather before dinner. He lives in a traditional adobe style home...when you walk in the front door, it's what I imagine walking into heaven must be like. It's breathtakingly beautiful. There's greenery everywhere and the house is so well connected to the outdoors it gives me chills. I will certainly take pictures my next visit so you can get a glimpse, it really is amazing. We ended the evening eating tapas from a lovely spanish restaurant...this has been a mind-blowingly awesome experience and it's only day 4 :)

tuscon = best kept secret.

day 3. We began our morning with a chi gong exercise, toe tapping, while listening to the sounds of drums...what a unique start to our day.
It was followed by a healing meditation and then yoga, which made me smile (and I haven't stopped since). I absolutely love yoga and all the benefits that come from it. I was reminded of a simple truth today, "without the breath, there is no yoga". The breath is everything.

Just when I thought the day could not get any better we began a discussion on medical intuition. Really? I can hardly contain my excitement! Everything I am learning is so in line with my thinking it seems unreal. I have always felt "different" for my perspectives when amongst my colleagues, but now I feel like I have been united with a community of similar views. See, I have a vision for my integrative practice and it's the type of vision they are promoting here...it's incredible!

We talked about the unique relationship between a physician and a patient. I can't tell you how hard my heart has become over the past 7 years of my medical training. It's a result of many things, one I believe is from time constraints and being told repeatedly that I'm too sensitive. Here they encourage authenticity and really connecting with patients, born from a wholistic mindset. It reminds me of why I choose to pursue medicine...everyday I get the feeling of "chills", it's awesome. Lastly, we talked about using nutrition to bring the body back to a state of health...a topic I find absolutely fascinating and will certainly return to.

I'll leave you with this, each moment brings an opportunity for something new...what new experience will you have today?