The Superfood you should be adding to your Coffee by Tero Isokauppila

Mushrooms might not be the first things that come to mind when you picture your morning coffee, but hear me out. Though they may not be as "sexy" as other superfoods on the market today, medicinal mushrooms like Reishi, Chaga, Cordyceps, and Lion’s Mane come packed with some hefty nutritional benefits. At the beginning of the 21st century, fungi were used in more than 10 of the 20 most profitable products used in human medicine—including penicillin. Today, thousands of studies have been conducted on their healing properties.

Researchers have compiled promising evidence that antioxidants in Chaga mushrooms can help lower inflammation in the body; while Reishi mushrooms might improve heart health by lowering LDL cholesterol levels, Cordyceps can boost natural energy levels and oxygen intake by up to 15 percent, and Lion's Mane might influence brain health by stimulating the Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) production in the body. Incorporating even small amounts of nutrient-rich mushrooms into your daily routine can help you tap into these significant health benefits. Not to mention they can be added to almost any diet—no matter if you're Paleo or vegan. The only downside is that these healthier mushroom often have a bitter taste.

That's where mushroom coffee comes into play. Coffee comes with health benefits of its own, and it's one of the few bitter foods that people consume regularly. However, drinking coffee can be very taxing on our adrenals and tough on our stomachs due to its acidity. But combining coffee with mushrooms may help alleviate these issues. This superfood combo of mushrooms and coffee might sound outrageous, but it tastes much better than you'd imagine. Here are two of my favorite morning coffee recipes. Not only will they help you wake up; they'll improve mental focus, boost brain health, and support overall immunity.

Quick & Easy Mushroom Latte One packet Four Sigmatic Mushroom Coffee with Lion’s Mane (which comes in a powder form similar to other instant coffees) 1 cup hot water A splash almond milk A tiny bit of vanilla-flavored liquid stevia Mix everything together with a spoon or milk frother.

Hard-Core Mushroom Coffee 16 grams high-quality coffee beans of your choice 1 cup hot water One packet Four Sigmatic Chaga Elixir 1 tablespoon coconut oil 1 teaspoon ghee 1 teaspoon maca and/or mucuna extract Grind the coffee beans and throw them into an AeroPress or a French Press. Extract them with hot water for 60 to 90 seconds, depending on the size of your grind. Mix the fresh-brewed coffee and all other ingredients in a blender for a few seconds, and you’re done. Just remember to open the blender lid carefully after mixing a warm drink. http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-24153/the-superfood-you-should-be-adding-to-your-coffee.html

A Doctor Explains How to Write the Prescription For Your Own Health by Dr Lissa Rankin

Dr. Lissa Rankin is on a mission to merge science and spirituality. A certified MD and expert in integrative health, Lissa is a thought leader in mind-body medicine. If you're inspired to learn more, check out her new course: Getting Back to 100 Percent: A Six-Step Process for Radical Self-Healing. In my book, Mind Over Medicine, and in the training program I run for doctors and other health care providers, the Whole Health Medicine Institute, I teach the "6 steps to healing yourself" and step 5 is always to write your own prescription. I’m a physician, so it might sound strange for me to suggest that you may be able to write a prescription for yourself. Let me clarify: I’m NOT talking about having you steal a prescription pad so you can write an illegal script for your own Xanax. Nor am I telling you to listen to all those direct-to-consumer marketing ads that suggest "asking your doctor” for whatever expensive new wonder drug is on the market. (Did you know that direct-to-consumer marketing for prescription drugs is only legal in two countries in the world — the U.S. and New Zealand? But that’s a topic for another blog post.) What I’m suggesting is something radically different.

While conventional medical treatment options — drugs, surgeries, or other standard medical interventions — will get you far, I'm asking you to go even deeper. I'm encouraging you to diagnose the root cause of your illness or, if you’re not sick, the root cause of why you're not feeling 100 percent. In other words, find the aspect of your life that's predisposing you to illness or manifesting itself as sluggish energy or chronic fatigue. Here's how to do it: I’m not suggesting that you refuse a doctor’s conventional recommendations.

1. Address the root cause of illness. In order to address the root causes making you susceptible to illness, you’ll really need to listen to your “Inner Pilot Light" — that wise inner doctor who knows what’s best for you. Let’s suppose that someone with cancer or another serious illness feels lonely, works in a soul-sucking job, or has underlying depression. If you're sick and you’re not addressing your loneliness, stress, or depression, taking medicine may help in the short term, but the changes won't necessarily be permanent. Your illness may come back, or you might wind up with some other ailment because your body is still at the mercy of the root cause that put you at risk in the first place. I’m not suggesting that you refuse a doctor’s conventional recommendations. If your Inner Pilot Light says, “Hell yeah” to drugs, surgery, or any other treatment, do it. Modern medicine can work miracles, but so can your intuition.

2. Take charge of your health (with humility). Part of writing the prescription for yourself is stepping up to the plate as the head honcho of your health care. Remember, you’re the boss. Everyone else is in service to you. This doesn’t give you license to be a jerk to your doctor or anyone else who is doing his or her best to help you. Entitlement will not help you, but empowerment will. Make your body ripe for miracles by staying both empowered and humble. Let go of any victim story or perceived power imbalance between you and your doctor. You can call upon doctors and healers for their expertise, opinions, and support without relinquishing your power or violating your intuition. If your body is physically ill, sure, your doctor will help you diagnose what’s wrong, write prescriptions, and recommend surgery when they think it's necessary. But it’s up to you whether you take those drugs or submit to that surgery. If you do feel guided to partake of what conventional medicine has to offer, don’t stop there! Conventional medical treatment may be part of your larger prescription to health, but don’t use it as a crutch to avoid doing the deep inner work that helps you heal at the soul level. Modern medicine can work miracles, but so can your intuition.

3. Have the courage to heal from the root. By writing a prescription for yourself, you're refusing to allow medical treatment to serve as a Band-Aid that keeps you from facing the truth about where your life is out of alignment. Every individual’s prescription is going to be unique. Maybe your prescription, in addition to medicine, will include adjusting your wellness routine by cutting out carbs, starting an exercise regimen, or adding green juice to your diet. Or it might include actions like finding a community, leaving your job, finding your calling, or prioritizing self-care. When you’re willing to be honest with yourself about what your body might be saying “no” to, you come face to face with the truth of who you are and what your soul needs in order to fully express its glorious radiance.

Once you heal any soul sickness that's interfering with your health, you'll not only start to feel better — you'll start to glow. You'll open yourself to synchronicity and move closer to finding and fulfilling your calling in the world. Optimal health is just one of many magical unfoldings that often accompanies doing the deep inner work of writing your own prescription http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-24073/a-doctor-explains-how-to-write-the-prescription-for-your-own-health.html

11 Ways Clutter is Messing With Your Health and Relationships by Karen Kingston

11 Ways Clutter Is Messing With Your Health & Relationships Most people have no idea how much their clutter affects them. It is only when you start clearing it out that you realize how much better you feel without it. Here are some of the main effects to watch out for: 1. Having clutter can make you feel tired and lethargic. Most people who have clutter say they can’t find the energy to begin to clear it. But the stagnant energy that stacks up around clutter actually causes tiredness and lethargy. Clearing it frees up the energy in your home and releases new vitality in your body.

2. Having clutter can keep you in the past. When all your available space is filled with clutter, there is no room for anything new to come into your life. You tend to you look back rather than forward in your life, blaming the past for your current situation rather than taking responsibility for creating a better tomorrow. Clearing your clutter allows you to begin to deal with your problems and move forward. It is vital to release the past to create a better tomorrow.

3. Having clutter can congest your body. When you have lots of clutter, the energy of your home gets congested, and so does your body. Clutterbugs generally do not get enough exercise; are often constipated; have dull, clogged complexions; and show no vitality in their eyes. People with little clutter in their lives are generally more active. The choice is yours.

4. Having clutter can confuse you. When you live surrounded by clutter, it is impossible to have clarity about what you are doing in your life. When you clear it, you can think more clearly and life decisions become easier. Being clear of clutter is one of the greatest aids I know to discovering and creating the life you want.

5. Having clutter can affect the way people treat you. People treat you the way you treat yourself. So if you value yourself and look after yourself, people will treat you well. If you “let yourself go” and allow the junk to mount up around you, you may attract people who mistreat you in some way because subconsciously you feel that is what you deserve. When you sort out your home, you can improve all your relationships in the process.

6. Having clutter can make you procrastinate. If you have a lot of clutter, you will tend to put off doing things until "tomorrow." The clutter stagnates your energy and makes it difficult to get yourself to do anything. After clutter clearing you are likely to surprise yourself (and everyone else!) by wanting to do things you’ve put off for a long time.

7. Having clutter can cause disharmony. Clutter is a major cause of arguments in families and between housemates, business partners, and coworkers. If you live or work knee-deep in the stuff and those around you do not, their lifestyle will not impede your progress, but yours most certainly can impede theirs. Clear up your clutter and then you will be able to get to the higher possibilities of what you can do together, which is much more interesting than arguing about mundane junk!

8. Having clutter can put your life on hold. Don't let your life slip away. Sit down right now and write a list of all the things you would love to do if only your clutter were sorted, and let this be the inspiration for you to get on with it.

9. Having clutter can depress you. The stagnant energy of clutter pulls you down and can make you feel depressed. Feelings of hopelessness are compounded by clutter and can be relieved to some extent by clearing it, because you create space for something new to come into your life. http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-24035/11-ways-clutter-is-messing-with-your-health-relationships.html