Reaching Theta Brainwaves
Sound healing sessions with gongs bring you into a deep rest where you reach a theta brainwaves state. Theta brainwaves occur during R.E.M. sleep, active dreaming and meditation. This is a deeply relaxed state where healing takes place with more ease.

Gong Meditation at the Stram Center
The experience of a gong meditation is like no other. You begin by laying comfortably on the floor while the musicians are playing singing bowls. Then after several minutes of being given information on what to expect as well as guided meditation, the gongs begin to sound.

On Saturday, April 21, The Stram Center held a Gong Meditation.  The effect of the penetrating yet gentle vibrations, in my experience, was like being on a sailboat, anchored in lightly rolling waves.  Then as if my physical body wasn’t even a barrier to the vibrations of the sound, I had a sense of these pleasant, yet at the same time powerful, waves within my body. All this and I am completely still.

My mind was still as well. Thoughts and feelings that popped up became irrelevant compared to the amazement of the sound emanating from the gongs. Some people expressed afterwards that the gong meditation was “easier” than a  seated guided meditation. The rushing  thoughts we try to let go of is washed away so smoothly and effortlessly by the gong vibrations, leaving you  with a stilled mind.   There were 5 gongs in total, tuned perfectly.

The space held by the 25 participants felt solid, supportive, compassionate. It was truly a  heart opening and deeply healing evening. Please come to our next Gong Meditation and see what the power of sound can do for you. We will also be offering gong meditation in community acupuncture sessions. Check our schedule soon.

Everyday it seems we are reading about some news or study presenting evidence that our mind is connected to our health. Our thoughts effect how we feel, and how healthy we are. Do you dwell on negative thoughts or do have a positive outlook?
Just like electricity, our thoughts have a positive (+) and negative (-) energy. Both effect our health and the people around us. Changing how you think may seem like an impossible task, but all it requires is some dedication. A regular routine of meditation can in fact, grow new neural pathways in the brain, and even change our DNA.
Uncluttering the mind is essential for realizing stress and good health.
The Stram Center offers free guided meditation every Wednesday evening at 7:30 PM.
Drop in, maybe you will begin to change your Mind.

The openness of childhood

Did you grow up believing in magic, magical places, and beings?

Did the world seem like a place full of magic, wonder, a place where anything could happen, a world where anything is possible?

Living in the “Real(?)” world

Somewhere on the path of growing into mature functioning adults, we stop believing the world is place of wonder. For some of us the world becomes mundane, a struggle or a place full of dangers we need to manage or control.
Remember the first time you realized no santa, no tooth fairy, Easter bunny or unicorns.
No magic.

Magical vs. Mundane

Yet, how else can we explain the wonder of the simple act of breathing, seemingly inhaling nothing and animating your entire body, from nothing comes something. Billions of neurons firing through your brain connecting thoughts, feelings, emotions and memories. The intelligence that tells every cell to divide and multiply, creating you and the world around you. Intelligence that creates stars, planets, universes and galaxies. Quantum Mechanics tells us that through our attention, we create our reality. Not only is magic at play all round us, we are that magic.

So next time you find yourself wondering if there really is any magic in this world, think of the mythical unicorn, a one of a kind, magical creature.

You my friend are that unicorn.
Isn’t it time you galloped though magical fields?

Allow Change

Ever try to capture a moment and put it in a bottle, or try to stop the seasons from changing? It just can’t be done. The simple truth is that everything of this world is subject to change. Change is the only constant. You are subject to change. Your body changes, your circumstances change. You are quite literally not the same person you were a year ago, physically, emotionally or in your life circumstances. With all this change we have the choice of moving with the flow of change or resisting it.

Letting attachment go

To allow change requires letting go. Letting go of our attachments of wanting things to stay the same. Letting go of our mental constructs of how we believe things should be. Our homes, automobiles, lifestyles, even our loved ones. We want them to stay the same. We create memories, positive impressions of events in space and time. We personalize them and identify ourselves with these past impressions. We come to believe that these past impressions are somehow better than whatever is happening now.

Learn to Trust

Change can be scary and the uncertainty of unknown outcomes in our life can be frightening. Now imagine letting go of the fear of the unknown. Letting the change flow, letting life become a joyous celebration of change. No fear, no attachment to a past that is gone forever. Honor the moment, the memory of it, by letting it go. Think of how much energy it takes to hold up all these attachments, beliefs. Imagine having all that energy at your disposal. Imagine letting things be as they are and letting the change just flow. Imagine then becoming the change that moves through your life. Consider your relationships, do you put those closest to you in a holding pattern, not wanting them to change? Imagine all the energy you would have to place somewhere creative, somewhere loving. Imagine how would it change your life, change the world, by becoming the change.

Maybe all it really takes is letting go.

Having a baby requires preparation.  Whether it’s painting the nursery, adding extra house chores, organizing the crib, clothing, bottles, getting those doctor’s and hair appointments in, there is quite a bit of preparatory action that goes into readying oneself and family for the arrival of the new baby (or babies!). 

Aside from taking childbirth classes such as Lamaze, Bradley method, etc. finding the time to physically, mentally and emotionally fortify oneself before delivery is quite helpful. Acupuncture is a modality to look to during this exciting time.

Receiving acupuncture treatments weekly for 6 weeks before anticipated delivery is beneficial in several ways.  Often women may be anxious or fearful of the process of labor and the birth.  Acupuncture serves as a refuge- a time and space to deeply clear the mind.  It releases endorphins which facilitate relaxation and ease physical discomfort as well.  There are specific acupuncture points used to prepare the uterus for labor.  In the case of breech presentation acupuncture and moxabustion are commonly used to turn the baby’s head downwards.  Acupuncture has also been used to facilitate prolonged or difficult labors.  Along with other holistic therapies, women may also use acupuncture to encourage labor to begin if the baby is past due.

The holiday season has become synonymous with abundance, starting with the festive meal of Thanksgiving, the many gifts of Christmas, and the lavish celebration of New Year Eve. All of these are certainly forms of abundance. But, without the abundance that resides within, all material forms that we manifest in our lives are meaningless.
During these festive seasons, take a moment to look within and ask yourself; what does abundance mean to me? Is it in the form of family, relationships, in the form of love, or does it simply reside in how much we possess? Material abundance can mask a deeper feeling of scarcity, that without material wealth we are venerable and weak. We need to gather things around us to make us feel complete, to show others we are as good, or better. Once we have gathered what we want, we need to protect it, keep it safe. We buy into the belief of ownership and become attached.

Abundance is a form of energy and like all energy must move or it will create sickness in mind or body. When we become attached, we try to ignore it, or deny that this law applies. One way to keep abundance in your life and allow it to move at the same time is the act of charity, to give. Give some of that abundance you’ve stored up away and create room for more. The more you are attached to it, the more energy you will move, the bigger the space you create for more in your life. As children we concern ourselves with what we will get. As adults we grow into the realization, it’s really about what we give. That is the spirit of the season, the lesson of Karma, and the law of abundance.

Have a happy and  healthy  holiday season!

The seasons are shifting and more change is on the horizon. To resist change is to invite suffering, to surrender to change is to open ourselves to endless possibility.
Change comes from within and the ground has been worked, and the seeds are always being harvested in the now. Our yoga mats are out and the meditation is moving into deep silence. The forward motion of our internal change continues, just as the summer becomes the fall.
   See you on the mat.
             Jai,
   Jim Whiting

We can eat all of the healthy food we want; we can exercise until our feet drop off; we can do all of the right things to have us live a full healthy life but if we do not do this one thing, we are bound to live life at half throttle…..This one thing is often the last thing we think of- maybe  many of us never think of it.

It is called mastering oneself. We are either dictated by our circumstances and allow each thought of our mind to throw us off balance or we are in the moment watching ourselves and creating on a momemt to moment basis who we are going to be just because we say so, not because of any outside source.

Many illnesses breed from the negative thoughts that trample on the possibility of a great life.  Meditation, yoga, mindfulness, art: these are all tools in the belt for supporting us in being the great beings that we already are but maybe have temporarily forgotten. The only way to start living the life you truly want is to start taking action. Start today. Start right now. 

Here’s to living a full, happy and healthy life!