SWIHA Blog

“If you light a lantern for another it will also brighten your own way.”

Although these words were spoken more than 700 years ago by Nichiren Daishonin, a Buddhist monk, the same attitude is reflected within the 14 students who will be ordained in a special ceremony on Dec. 5, 2014 at 6:00 pm at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts (SWIHA) in Tempe, Arizona. This will be SWIHA’s biggest Spiritual Studies ordination to date.

The ordination will take place during SWIHA’s monthly Gifts and Graces event, held on the first Friday of every month. This event is complimentary and open to the public. Guests are invited to come for the event and stay after to experience complimentary sessions of energy work, spiritual coaching, toe reading and more.

The graduates are Sheila Taylor, Carol Valentino, Diana Claybaugh, Keta Baker, Kathryn Beauchamp, Carole Hewitt, Ronald Tobin, Michael McCaffrey, Lisa Pulce, Tammy Gordon, Brett Getrost, Jeff Cooke, Thalia Randolph and Marika Adams-Vangueety.

Although each graduate will follow a unique path with their ordination, a common thread runs through each one – a strong desire to use a spiritual path to light the way for others.

“I am passionate about the field of spiritual studies and believe it is one of the most important fields of study one can undertake,” said Michael McCaffrey in his essay for ordination into the Universal Brotherhood Movement.

By Janet Lee, Guest Blogger

It’s not Fall, Thanksgiving, or the holiday season without pumpkins! Pumpkins are healthy, tasty, and not to mention incredibly rich in vital antioxidants and vitamins!

The pumpkin, a plant that is actually a fast-growing vine, grows by creeping along the ground, similar to other vegetables and fruits such as cucumber, squash or cantaloupes. It is one of the most popular field crops cultivated around the world, including the USA at the commercial scale for its fruit and seeds.

Pumpkins, in general, are orange or yellow color. However, some varieties can be dark to pale green, brown, white, red and gray. Their color is largely influenced by yellow-orange pigments in their skin and pulp. Its thick rind is smooth with light, vertical ribs.

In structure, pumpkins are usually golden-yellow to orange in color, depending upon the poly-phenolic pigments in it. They have a hollow center, with numerous small, off-white colored seeds interspersed in a net like structure. Pumpkin seeds are a great source of protein, minerals, vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids.

With the biggest shopping day of the year right around the corner, many of us will be spending hours (or even days) walking from store to store and standing in long lines at the register. This type of extended standing and walking can wreak havoc on our legs, creating varicose veins, or worsening them in those who already have them.

If you notice ropey and bulging leg veins, achy calves or cramps at night, or swollen legs after standing for periods of time, varicose veins could be the culprit. Varicose veins are usually not too serious, but if ignored, can lead to other problems. However, there is a solution! Massage is a great tool to create comfort while relieving aching legs and swollen muscles.

Massage can be beneficial to those who experience varicose veins. It can decrease edema (excessive watery fluid that collects in the cavities or tissues of the body), increase venous outflow from the lower extremities, and improve muscle tone to normalize venous function.

The suitability of massage for a person with varicose veins will depend on their current medical condition, the cause and severity of the varicose veins, and the presence of swelling. Before pursuing massage, checking with a doctor is recommended, especially if the veins are a new development. Notify a medical professional if the varicose veins become painful, reddened, increase in warmth, or a new onset of swelling appears in the leg, as this may be a sign of more serious issues that require prompt treatment.

By Nancy Jackson, Online Exit and Placement Specialist

“Believe in yourself – you are capable of great accomplishments.”

That’s the message Pam McCulloch, a recent Southwest Institute of Healing Arts (SWIHA) graduate, wants to share with current and future SWIHA graduates. Pam took her own advice, and while still pursuing her online degree in SWIHA’s Associate of Occupational Studies Mind-Body Transformational Psychology Online program, she launched her business, Paradise Organics.Tender and organic fruit, herb, and vegetable starter plants is what Paradise Organics is all about, providing home gardeners with organic, non-GMO starters.

The Colorado based business teaches new gardeners how to get started in whatever growing space they have, even if it’s an apartment balcony.
As a full time gastro-intestinal tech assisting in outpatient surgeries, Pam was thrilled to add the role of self-employed urban farmer and business owner into her busy life. How did she make her urban farming business happen? She says she manifested it.

By KC Miller

Imagine a gate that connects the mysteries of the heavens to what we could manifest here on earth. Just the thought of such a portal sounds kind of Star Wars-like, doesn’t it? And yet, there is a potent ear point that has been written about as far back as 500 BC in a timeless book known as The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine, a compilation of acupuncture procedures that were practiced since ancient times.

This mysterious point is called ‘Shen Men’, which translates to ‘Spirit-Gate’. It is the point believed to connect heaven and earth, mind and body; it brings imbalance or disease to a restored balance and facilitates healing. It is one powerful point!

‘Shen Men’, also known as the ‘Heavenly Gate’, is located in the center upper third portion of the ear, situated at the apex of the triangular fossa. It is one of the most recognized auricular points and used in the treatment of a wide variety of conditions, including pain sedation, addiction abatement, and the reduction of physical and emotional inflammation. By stimulating this tiny pin-sized point, it is reported to bring heavenly energy into the body for healing. Many practitioners and teachers believe we can actually heighten our spirituality just by taking three to five slow, deep breathes while activating this ear point a few times a day!

by KC Miller, Founder of Southwest Institute of Healing Arts

‘Don’t dim my light!’ was the warning Richard Seaman gave me as one of his employers here on earth several years ago. This affirmation was not in the least way said in a threating or condescending manner; Richard was just very aware that his full-time employer was God. Often without warning some amazing force would show up and come out of his mouth . . . sometimes with grace, other times with real raw honesty. Before long it became increasingly obvious Richard was on loan as an employee to the college and that his real job was to be a spirit-directed pot-stirrer. He was in our employ to shake things up, do things a little differently and to prepare for his next assignment.

Richard has been very reliable in showing up to deeply touch the lives of many people, to help heal their stories, and in a very real way, helped to free many souls. There is no doubt his new book, Spiritual Reliability: Are You God’s Employee , is his continued commitment to serve as a teacher and guide for those who are ready to do their own work in recovering and discovering.

by Liz Dose, Clinical Aromatherapist, Cht, LC

“Smell is a potent wizard that transports us across thousands of miles and all the years we have lived. The odors of fruits waft me to my southern home, to my childhood frolics in the peach orchard. Other odors, instantaneous and fleeting, cause my heart to dilate joyously or contract with remembered grief. Even as I think of smells, my nose is full of scents that start to awake sweet memories of summers gone and ripening fields far away.”Helen Keller

Since the dawn of time humans have been under the spell of perhaps the most mysterious of the senses – the sense of smell. Our ancestors relied heavily on this gift to find food, detect a predator in the area or alert them of a nearby fire. But on another level, our sense of smell has blessed us with the ability to experience the intoxicating aroma of a freshly opened blossom, coffee brewing first thing in the morning, or fresh baked cookies straight out of the oven. Our sense of smell provides so much more than instinctual protection mechanisms. An aroma can’t be accurately described by simply comparing it to another, yet a familiar scent can act like a time machine transporting you back to another time or place. Because our sense of smell was so crucial to our early survival, the Olfactory System that starts with the nose takes these aromas on a journey through the brain, and affects every part of our body almost instantly.

By Melanie Albert

Protein, alongwith fats and carbohydrates, is an essential macro nutrient which we must eat everyday with every meal. Protein is a building block of our body and helps to buildthe foundation of our bones, muscles, cartilage, skin and blood.

No Meat for 25 Years

I stopped eating red meat 30 years ago because my body could not digest it. I was a runner and felt like the meat made me sluggish. Then 18 years ago when my Mom was diagnosedwith breast cancer, I learned about antibiotics in poultry and stopped eating chicken and turkey, which I loved at the time.

My family was worried for years that I was not eating enough protein, but while I was studying nutrition, I learned so much about good plant protein, and now I’m honestly not worriedabout eating enough protein. Today, I love educating people about good sources of plant protein, including beans, whole grains and even vegetables.

Great skin is often associated with youth and beauty. Gorgeous models with glowing faces adorn magazine covers. Countless ballads and romance novels wax poetically about the thrill of a lover’s touch on their skin.

Keeping our skin healthy and supple is a huge business throughout the world. A 2013 story in the Huffington Post, written by Rebecca Adams, states women in the U.S. spend $426 billion on beauty products alone. This figure does not include beauty and spa treatments such as facials, waxing, deep pore cleaning or microdermabrasion, laser treatments or photo facials.

Women in the U.S. spend $426 billion on beauty products alone.

Nor does the monetary figure include skin diseases and medical treatments. As the largest organ in the human body our skin (also known as epidermis or integument) has the practical purpose of protecting the underlying muscles, bones, ligaments and internal organs. It is also prone to maladies that range from acne to xerosis (abnormal dryness of the skin.)

The roots of reflexology date as far back as ancient times. A non-invasive, complementary practice, reflexology involves the use of thumb and finger techniques, applying alternating pressure to reflexes. It is a clothed technique limited to the feet, the hands, and the ears. According to the Arizona Reflexology Association (AZRA), these reflexes match up to different parts of the body, also referred to as “maps,” located on the feet, hands, and outer ears.

Over the last century, reflexology has become fairly main stream due to diligent study by medical doctors and surgeons. Dr. William FitzGerald and his student Dr. Joe Shelby Riley created Zone Theory, a basis for reflexology. (See Fact 1 for details about the Zone Theory.) A physiotherapist working with Dr. Joe Shelby Riley, Eunice Ingham, documented organ reflex areas that complemented the Zone Theory. When Ingham saw the positive impact of reflexology on the clients in their practice, she chose to share her findings and the techniques of reflexology throughout the United States and Europe. Her teachings are the framework for the current teachings of reflexology today!