Re: new to macrobiotics

: hello!

: i am quite new to macrobiotics. i have been
: eating a very inconsistent diet for at least
: the past four years--going from vegetarian
: to junk, back to vegetarian back to junk!
: finally, my husband and i came across
: macrobiotics. we both feel that this
: lifestyle will be a way to reduce the
: inconsistencies in our lives--both
: physically and mentally. So, in a wonderful
: (and very quick) moment, we decided to clean
: out our kitchen. Now, the question is where
: do we go from here. We have been reading,
: and have a pretty good basis of what our
: diet should consist of. But--we both feel a
: little nervous and scared to handle this on
: our own--a little unprepared. We have read
: that it is better to go into the diet
: gradually. However, I am the kind of person
: that likes to go into something full force.
: Is it recommended that we get some
: counseling? I just want to make sure that I
: don't shock my body by moving too quickly!
: Any advice on how to begin would be greatly
: appreciated. Also-any ideas on macrobiotic
: resources in austin, tx would be great!!

: how did some of you begin the transition into
: macrobiotics?

: thanks so much! ABBY

Abby...don't you love the clarity of those spur of the moment decisions? This is how we move in synch with our body and spirit. As for starting a macrobiotic lifestyle, I feel it's better to do as much as you can as soon as you can and make adjustments later rather than before you begin. There are a lot of things that happen during the changeover. As you may have seen in other posts here, discharges may be many and varied or few and subtle depending on you as an individual. And they can have all the same characteristics as things we've been conditioned to believe as having something bad going on in our body and/or lives. My understanding is that at the point at which you start macrobiotics is the point at which you immediately change from going through the stages of disease to going through the stages of healing. These stages of healing are in exact reverse order of the stages of disease and the symptoms will show this. What is happening is that your body is now dealing with each imbalance, clearing it however, and moving on to the next one until it reaches a point where it can easily deal with excesses and stay approximately in balance on a daily basis. This is when you can eat or do anything you want to in moderation. This process is not only physical, but even more importantly, spiritual. This will become clearer to you the farther you get in your healing. Physical healing cannot succeed without spiritual healing or knowledge and in 99.9% of things, vice versa. If you don't have a known chronic degenerative disease at this time, you can probably feel your way through the initial stages. Myself, even with a chronic degenerative disease, went in head first. A friend of mine suggested it and helped me at the beginning. When I had so many more questions than he could answer, he sent me to an experienced teacher/counselor and I never looked back. A few important things that you may already know are to use whole foods, fresh organic foods, local and seasonal foods, except for some of the medicinal stuff or if you can't get something, cook for yourself all of the time at first if you can (you will not heal without cooking for yourself) except for once in awhile have someone else's cooking so you don't get stuck in your own spiral, no microwave, wood or gas is best, you can live with electric (it has a jagged energy that transfers to the food, other methods are calmer), chew well (many reasons, alkalizes food, lets body know what's coming, stimulates immune system. etc), try to eliminate stress, get 8 hours sleep, wear cotton/natural next to you're body, study yin/yang/five transformations, and learn how to self reflect and what to do when you notice something. And of course, all the things that are not productive need to be stopped. I feel you make the most progress by doing everything you can yourself. More difficult, more rewarding, more fun. It's all experience. It is nice and sometimes necessary to have support and somebody who can answer your questions. This works best on an in person level. But, as Bruce previously has said and which is one of my major things, is that no matter who it is you see for advice, they can only advise you from the level that they're at or the condition that they're in. And my experience so far says to me that there are not a lot of people that I know out there who have a good understanding macrobiotics, yet think they do. You need to feel comfortable with what they do and say and how you react to it, otherwise move on. Everybody is learning, experiencing, healing each and every day of their lives and it never stops. Another thing, along with the food/lifestyle change is that the ginger compress and daikon hip bath (bath for women only) are necessary to aid in the clearing of intestinal mucous stagnations that hinder the absorption and elimination functions of these organs. I posted information on this site on how to do this and why. Check it out.

Referrals in Austin from Int'l Macrobiotic Directory: Eduardo Longoria, 512-476-2535; Elizabeth Ann Foster, 512 476-2276.

Please feel free to ask any more questions. Bill