Doctor Mark's Healthy Thoughts

Don't read the ingredients!

2010-10-03T04:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a common bit of health advice for you NOT to follow:
"Read the ingredients."

If a product has a list of ingredients, there are a couple of things you can be sure of:
1. It's processed. (Even if it's labled "natural" or even "organic.")
2. There are some ingredients in it that you'd rather not eat.

Here are some examples of foods that most people would consider healthy. Note the prevalence of corn and soy. Since these foods are not labled as organic, chances are that the corn and soy in them are genetically modified.

And remember, these are "health foods!"

1. A frozen chicken dish:
Chicken tenderloins (chicken tenderloin, water, olive oil, soy protein product [isolated soy protein, modified food starch, starch, carrageenen, soy lecithin], dextrose, salt, potassium chloride, paprika, caramel coloring, flavorings)
Crushed tomatillos
Sweet corn
Red peppers
Poblano peppers
Chicken base (whey powder, salt, corn oil, chicken meat, natural flavoring)
Cilantro
Corn starch
Garlic
Sugar
Lime juice concentrate with lime oil

2. Boxed vegetarian chili on the natural foods aisle:
Textured soy protein
Dehydrated vegetables (tomatoes, onions, garlic, red bell peppers, celery, jalapeno peppers)
Corn meal
barley flakes
Soy sause powder (wheat, soy beans, salt)
Spices
Brown rice syrup solids
Sea salt
Expeller pressed canola oil
yeast extract
Miso powder (soybeans, rice, salt)
Natural flavor
Vinegar powder
Citric acid

3. "Made-fresh-daily" Sushi:
Cooked rice (white rice, water)
Tuna treated with carbon monoxide (to promote color retention)
Cucumbers
Vinegar (with high fructose corn syrup, grain vinegar, rice vinegar, salt, brown sugar)
Pickled ginger (ginger, water, sugar, acetic acid, citric acid, fructose, malic acid, potassium sorbate, [preservative])
Spicy sauce (soybean oil, water, egg)
Distilled vinegar
Whole eggs
High fructose corn syrup
Salt
Spices
Lemon juice concentrate
Calcium disodium EDTA to protect flavor
Chili
Vinegar
Garlic
Sugar
Salt
Potassium sorbate and sodium bisulfate as preservatives
Xanthan gum
Red chili pepper
Sesame seed oil
Pepper
Green horseradish (horseradish, mustard, corn flour, citric acid, capsicum, yellow #5, blue #1)
Sesame seeds
Seaweed

Instead of buying processed foods, buy these foods that have NO lists on ingredients:

And now, a bonus - here are some photos from my recent trip to Washington, DC:

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: This week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com and FriendsOfBooks.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming any day now(I hope) to Amazon's Kindle store.
(If you have a Kindle reader of have the Kindle program on your computer or samrt phone, you can buy the Kindle version of Oby's Wisdom at Smashwords.com

Your health changes--for better or worse--one small invisible step at a time.

2010-09-12T04:00:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year. One of my favorite activities is cutting firewood for the approaching winter. There's nothing more comfortable on a blustery winter day than a warm, cozy fire in the wood stove. As I was cutting wood the other day, it occurred to me that the process of transforming big logs into firewood mirrors our health. It happens one seemingly insignificant step at a time. This is true for a positive path or a negative one in your health.

Take a look at the photo below.

The first blow with the maul barely made a dent in the wood. It seemed insignificant. But it was a start...

After about 20 more blows, this happened:

Usually, a noticeable crack appears across the diameter of the log and then, after a couple more strikes, the log splits. That's what I expected and I had planned to take a picture of the first big crack. But that didn't happen this time. I was pounding away, making seemingly insignificantly dents and then all of a sudden, with one strike, I had a complete split. It seemed instantaneous. But, of course, there was a lot leading up to that instantaneous split.

And then, with just a few more swings, I had this:

Think of your health. What direction are your seemingly insignificant steps taking you...?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: This week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com and FriendsOfBooks.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming any day now(I hope) to Amazon's Kindle store.
(If you have a Kindle reader of have the Kindle program on your computer or samrt phone, you can buy the Kindle version of Oby's Wisdom at Smashwords.com

Nature (Including You) Rejuvenates

2010-08-15T04:00:00.000-07:00

One hundred years ago this week, the great fire of 1910 roared through North Idaho, Western Montana and Eastern Washington, scorching over 5 million acres of lush forest. During one 36 hour period on August 20 - 21 a firestorm now known as The Big Blowup burned 3 million acres of National Forest. At least 85 people, mostly firefighters, died in the blaze and 8 billion board feet of timber were destroyed. Evidence of the fire is still visible today. But to see it, you have to look pretty close. Although the fire damage was total in many locations, the forest immediately began to come back to life. For many years now, the forests of the Inland Northwest have thrived.

The photo at the top is the forest today, north of Sandpoint, Idaho. That's the Pack River.

Below is a photo of a huge tree that was burned but survived the fire. Several years ago, it died and toppled over. Burn marks are still visible. And the "dead" tree has become a home for new life.

Below are a couple photos of stumps of old cedar trees near the Pack River that probably died in the fire. Note how new growth has taken root inside of the stumps.

The next photo is of a gigantic ponderosa pine on Canfield Mountain near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. It is known to local hikers and horseback riders as The Big Tree. I'm pretty sure that this tree is well over 100 years old. What you can't see in this picture is that the top of the tree looks dead. Bare wood. Below it, a long expanse of massive living, green branches. Although it seems evident that The Big Tree was severly damaged in the fire, it continues to thrive today.

The rejuvenating power of Nature -- of life -- is amazing.

That power is in you!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: This week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

This week's highlight: Tune in this Friday, August 20, 10 AM Pacific time to hear me interiewed on The Hollis Chapman Show on Blog Talk Radio.

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com and FriendsOfBooks.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming any day now(I hope) to Amazon's Kindle store.
(If you have a Kindle reader of have the Kindle program on your computer or samrt phone, you can buy the Kindle version of Oby's Wisdom at Smashwords.com

"Life isn't about how to survive the storm....but how to dance in the rain." ~Judy Irving

2010-08-08T04:27:00.000-07:00

A view from Sea Cliff State Park (near Encinitas) looking south toward La Jolla

I'm ba-a-a-ack! (Sort of.)

I didn't post a blog the last two weeks becaues I was vacationing in San Diego. You might say I was "dancing in the rain."

Enjoy this week's post - photos.

Yosemite Valley from the airplane.

Cricket and I at her daughter, Janelle's wedding

Wildflowers in San Diego

A desert mountain range south of Las Vegas

A picture of Cricket taking a picture from the airplane.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: This week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

This week's highlight: Oby is now available on another website in India!

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com and FriendsOfBooks.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming within a couple of weeks (I'm told) to Kindle.

The way we treat the world is a reflection of how we treat ourselves.

2010-07-18T04:14:00.000-07:00

In last week’s post, I discussed how fighting is the predominant approach to health and healthcare in today’s society. The example I used was a headline I recently read: “Use Yoga to Combat Stress.”

"Chemicals and Blades..."
Whenever we have a “problem” with our health what do we do? We attack the invader with chemicals. We have chemicals that are supposed to kill invaders and we have other chemicals that claim to promote health. Many of these chemicals are “natural.” If the chemicals don’t do a good enough job, we resort to blades. All too often, the chemicals and blades don’t work anyway. For many people, during the whole process, little to no thought is given to enhancing the vibrant inherent health that shines within all of us. Enhancing health, as our first course of action, always serves us the best. Sometimes chemicals and blades can be helpful, too, but should only be considered as an adjunct, with “facilitating life” as our foundational approach to health.

Is it any surprise, then, that that is how we treat the world around us? The way that most of our food is grown is by using blades to remove the surrounding Nature (including rain forests) and then planting vast monoculture tracts of one crop (which is far too often hybridized or genetically modified), and then using plenty of chemicals to kill “pests” and “weeds” and more chemicals to stimulate growth. The result: A poisoned water supply, a food supply that is making us sick rather than nourishing us, and a planet that—unless we make a big shift—will no longer be able to sustain us.

Is it any surprise that when there are disagreements between people, we resort to chemicals and blades (and bullets and bombs…) to “solve” the problem. Even when we don’t actually engage in armed combat, a fight mentality exists…
Fighting injustice…
Fighting for your rights…

I was once at an event where we listened to a great presentation on Human Rights. During the discussion afterwards, one of the audience members, himself a highly respected human rights activist, declared, “We must fight hate!”

Hmmmm…

I’ll leave you with this question to ponder:

Is it even possible to win a fight…?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Read this week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

I had a wonderful interview on Friday with The Psyche Whisperer, A.J. Mahari. Listen to the interview here:

Listen to http://www.blogtalkradio.com/">internet radio with ajmahari on Blog Talk Radio

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

Health and well-being are harmony, not combat.

2010-07-11T04:48:00.000-07:00

Recently I saw a headline on a health related website that read, “Use Yoga to Combat Stress.”

Yoga…? Combat…!? Hmmm…

I have been practicing yoga regularly for over 25 years and it has never felt like combat to me. And all of the yoga teachers I have ever known have been pretty different from the hand-to-hand combat instructors I knew when I was in the Marines.

Does yoga help relieve stress? Yes! Is stress relief the reason I practice yoga? Nope! I practice yoga because of what it does for me and not to fight anything within me. Yoga turns on life; it deepens my state of internal harmony.

“Fighting” is an all-too-prevalent theme in our healthcare world. How often have you heard or read phrases like:
Cancer fighting…
Stress busting…
Germ killing…
Fat burning…
Stopping (whatever) in its tracks…

Fight! Fight! Fight! Everyone loves a good fight. Deciding to fight something can give us the illusion of action, strength and power but, in reality, fighting DISempowers us because it anchors us into a low rate of vibration. When we’re fighting we don’t grow…

A more empowering perspective is to always remember that we are all beautiful, perfect, inherently healthy beings, buzzing with vibrant life. Intervention (a better perspective than “fighting”) can be useful sometimes, but it serves us best when applied within the context of harmony, healing, growth, expansion and turning on life.

More thoughts on harmony vs. combat – beyond health – next week…

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Read this week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Read reviews (all of which are 5 star) and buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association's Amazon Book Store.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

Now is a good time to declare independence from belief systems that no longer serve you.

2010-07-04T04:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Independence Day, everyone!

I devoted my blogging time this past week to putting together a list of books, DVDs and websites for someone I know who is on a healing journey and is open to a new perspective. What a perfect thing to share today!

I've also included some of my favorite photos for you to enjoy.

Books:

Oby’s Wisdom! (of course.)

Peace, Love and Healing
by Bernie Siegel, MD

Love, Medicine and Miracles
by Bernie Siegel, MD

The Biology of Belief
by Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.

Messages from Water
by Masaru Emoto

Re-inventing Medicine
by Larry Dossey, M.D.

The Twelve Stages of Healing
by Donald M. Epstien

It’s Not About he Bike. My Journey Back to Life
by Lance Armstrong

DVDs:

What If? The Movie
http://www.WhatIfTheMovie.tv

The Living Matrix
http://TheLivingMatrixMovie.com

Numen: The Nature of Plants
http://www.NumenFilm.com

(There are lots of great video clips and interviews on the movie websites above.)

Other websites:

www.BernieSiegelMD.com
Bernie Siegel’s official website. Bernie is one of the pioneers and preeminent authors and speakers in the holistic health world. He has had a more profound impact on me than any other author.

www.BruceLipton.com
Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.’s website. Bruce is one of today's most respected and sought after authors and teachers on the subject of the power of human consciuosness. He is truly cutting edge! I have personally met Bruce. He was a visiting professor when I was a student at Palmer. What an amazing mind!

Enjoy!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is the latest update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

Health and healthcare are two very different things.

2010-06-27T04:00:00.000-07:00

This is a photo I took of some beautiful Lupine flowers in bloom in the woods north of Sandpoint, Idaho. No human planted it, fertilized it, used any sort of chemicals on it or “cared” for it in any way.

The Lupine are thriving as designed. They are beautiful and perfect!

What would happen to the flower and the surrounding ecosystem if we started subjecting it to chemicals and blades…?

Other examples:

You are beautiful and perfect!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is the latest update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

What shape would your car be in if our car care system looked like our healthcare system?

2010-06-20T04:37:00.000-07:00

Ferrari...!

...One of the finest cars ever made!

Even for me, a non car buff, the sight of a Ferrari gives me a sense of excitement. (Not that we see many of them here in the Panhandle of Idaho.) The other day, I drove my Subaru Forester to the Tubbs Hill trailhead adjacent to downtown Coeur d'Alene. This particular trailhead is at one end of a very large parking lot which also happens to be right next to the Coeur d'Alene Resort. When I arrived, there were two large trucks offloading their special cargo -- priceless vintage automobiles that were arriving for the start of the Northwest Passage Vintage Rally. The two pictures in this post are of a Ferrari that was offloaded just as I arrived. According to my automobile consultant (my son), this is a Ferrari 360 Spyder. I marveled at the sleek, exquisite beauty of the cars I saw. It was obvious to me that the owners put a lot of loving care into their cars! Good example for all of us to follow, whether we happen to be proud owners of a Bently or a Bug.

As I stepped off on my run around the Lake Trail, I began to wonder how many of those car owners take care of themselves as well as they take care of their cars. As my run proceeded and my thoughts progressed, I reflected on what shape our cars would be in if our "car care system" was designed the same as our healthcare system. Here's what we would have:
--Car insurance would cover a blown engine or transmission, but not oil changes or tune-ups.
--Most people wouldn't bother with tune-ups.
--Mechanics (also known as Mechanical Doers or MDs) wouldn't know -- or care -- how to do tune-ups anyway.
----MDs would only work with cars at the most superficial of levels, and would treat car problems by removing parts and by pouring lots and lots of dangerous, rust-producing useless gunky substances (DRUGS) into them.
--Most people would buy cheap "junk gas" that contained caustic ingredients that would significantly decrease their car's performance and would slice years off the life of the car. Even though people knew the gas was bad, they'd buy it anyway. All the time.
--Our government would heavily subsidize junk gas and DRUGS, and we would be indoctrinated during EVERY television commerical break on how wonderful our cars will be if we always use junk gas and DRUGS. Lots of them. Every day.

The result is obvious: We would have a national fleet of clunkers. Ferraris would be rare indeed!

In such a backward world, would there be any hope at all for our cars? Yes!There would be infinite hope...if we also had specially trained car lovers who Dote on Cars (also known as DCs)who would be experts on true car care -- from the inside out!

MDs may be able to slow down your clunkiness process. Sometimes. (Sometimes they speed it up.)

DCs help bring out your inner Ferrari!

Would you rather be a clunker...or a Ferrari? Your choice!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is the latest update on the Oby Phenomenon:

I still have my fingers crossed for a review of Oby's Wisdom in O! The Oprah Magazine. (Read last week's super excting update.) Please keep yours crossed, too!

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Book signings:
We had a GREAT book signing will at Northpointe Borders in North Spokane yesterday. Thanks to all of you who came by!

If you would like to host or help arrange a book signing, please let me know and we will make it happen.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

The first rule of fitness: Have fun!

2010-06-13T04:09:00.000-07:00

Muddy Trail at English Point

Ah, I love a good, muddy trail run!

I love lacing up my trail running shoes and running through the peaceful forest...enjoying the scenery, watching wildlife, breathing in the clear, cool fresh air. And if the trail happens to be really, really muddy, so much the better! Last Thursday, I went to English Point, north of Hayden, Idaho -- one of my favorite trail running destinations for a slippery, slidey midday workout. I had a blast, even when I tripped and fell into the mud, covering my legs and splattering mud all over my face. (People looked at me funny when I got back to the trailhead.)

SPLAT! (Have a nice trip? Yuk yuk.)

In Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide to Health and Well-being, I stress the importance of fun when you're getting your exercise. Two reasons:

1. You don't have to force yourself to exercise. You're already motivated. You won't be tempted to make excuses like, "I just can't seem to find the time."

2. If you're having fun, exercise will be good stress relief instead of becoming a source of stress.

I had planned my trail run the night before. Thursday morning was very busy for me -- lots to do and not enough time to do it. I also had a Toastmasters meeting that evening that I had to prepare for. If I had planned some sort of exercise that I knew I wasn't going to enjoy, I would have been dreading it all morning, and thinking of excuses why I should sacrifice my all important exercise. Then, whether I went or not, I would have been stressed. Afterwards, I probably would have been run down, and not as well prepared for my meeting as I should have been.

Instead, all morning long, I looked forward to going out for my run. I didn't get everything done that I wanted, but I did get a lot done. And afterwards, I was refreshed, energized and therefore more efficient. I was well prepared for my meeting and had a great time!

Now...just gotta wash my shoes!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is this week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

The most fantastic development so far: The Books Director for O! The Oprah Magazine has asked for a copy of Oby's Wisdom! It would be awesome if Oby were to have a review in O! Keep your fingers crossed!

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Book signings:
My next book signing will ae at Northpointe Borders in North Spokane, Saturday, June 19, noon - 5 PM. This will be a local author's day with about 20 different authors representing many different generes. This is going to be a great event. I'd love to see you there!

If you would like to host or help arrange a book signing, please let me know and we will make it happen.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon.

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Oby's Wisdom is now available in Apple's iPad store.

Coming eventually to Kindle.

“If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.” ~The Buddha

2010-06-05T22:39:00.000-07:00

There is no "good health" or "bad health." There is only perfect health.

2010-05-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

How do you like these photos?

I shot them last week on a day that was mostly cloudy, rainy and quite chilly. It wasn't the kind of spring day most people hope for. I shot the pics in color; composition was good...nice lines...crisp, clear color. The pictures were decent but not that great. Ho hum! Then I played around with them on the computer and -- POP -- surreal and engaging. I can't stop looking at the first one. Perfect!

Now let's talk about the weather that day. All day long, people were complaining about it. Earlier that afternoon, I heard someone describe it as "yucky." Yet, when I was out for a walk in the park at City Beach in downtown Sandpoint, although it was cold, windy and rainy, I saw a family playing baseball together, laughing, enjoying each other, splashing through puddles, sliding in the soggy grass and having a fabulous time. Perfect!

Even when we don't enjoy the prolific spring rains around here, we all know how important they are. And the cold? That serves a purpose too. I don't know what that purpose was on that particular afternoon, but just because most people didn't like it, that doesn't mean the cold was "bad." If you doubt the perfection of the cold, the rain and the synergy of all weather conditions, just look around and behold the spectacular scenery of North Idaho. I'm here day in and day out, and I'm constantly blown away by the exquisite splendor surounding me. I can't tell you how many times I have been talking about an unrelated subject, then looked at the Cabinet Mountains, the Seven Sisters, a dilapidated barn, an newborn colt, Schweitzer Mountain, a moose, a cloud formation, Lake Pend Oreille, or any of the endless variety of sights, and stopped mid-sentence to say, "WOW! That's amazing! Perfect!

How do you feel today...?

Perfect!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is this week's update on the Oby Phenomenon:

You can now purchase or order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being at your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Book signings:
There are no book signings currently on the schedule, although I'm working on one at Borders in North Spokane, perhaps next month.

If you would like to host or help arrange a book signing, please let me know and we will make it happen.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon. Oby enjoyed a spike in Amazon sales this past week. Thanks!

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Coming soon to Kindle.

I think Oby may be available for Apple's iPad now. I'm not sure. If you have an iPad, check it out. (BTW - I'm thinking about buying an iPad. If you own one, please post a comment about how you like it.)

We are equally served by beauty and pain.

2010-05-23T03:52:00.000-07:00

Cricket snapped this photo last month while we were visiting Saguaro National Park near Tuscon, Arizona. We were there when the desert was alive with the vibrant color of spring flowers.

Take a look at the picture above. Two parts of the cactus jump right out. First, of course, the eye is drawn to the bright flowers. If you come close to pick one, or take a whif of the pleasant scent, be careful. As you see, the cactus is also covered with sharp spines.

Beauty and pain...

Contrasts such as this are everywhere in the natural world.

Flowers and spines...

Sunshine and rain...

Warm summer breezes and the biting winds of winter ...

Bright daytime and the darkness of night...

Bunny rabbits and coyotes...

Bees pollinating and bees stinging...

While we might not always enjoy puncture wounds, getting wet, having to bundle up, darkness, the death of cute critters and the prospect of painful bee stings, it is easy to understand the importance of all of these things in the elegant design of Nature.

The same important balance is inherent in my and your life experience.

We enjoy the good feeling of vibrant and robust health; but our challenges with pain and dis-ease always present an opportunity to grow, heal and expand. Always.

Remember the basic truth: You are beautiful and perfect! Always...!

Enjoy these other photos Cricket and I took at Saguaro National Park that all depict the beauty and perfection of Nature.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is the latest on the Oby Phenomenon:
You can now order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being through your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Book signings:
There are no book signings currently on the schedule. If you would like to host one, or if you know someone you think might like to, please let me know and we will make it happen.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Coming soon to Kindle and Apple's iPad.

Which voice do you choose to listen to...?

2010-05-16T07:52:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I participated in the annual Bloomsday Run in Spokane, Washington. Bloomsday is a fun time, with about 50,000 participants running or walking 12 kilometers (about 7 and a half miles). It's a hilly and challenging course. All along the route thousands of spectators cheer the runners on with signs and shouted words of encouragement. It's a very motivating experience!

This year, a couple of miles from the end, there were two guys who had a different message. Take a look at the picture above. You can read the red sign: "Just quit now." The green sign says, "You'll never make it."

These two guys were quite a contrast to the countless others who were offering cheers of support and encouragement at a point where the race was really becoming a challenge. It was all in fun and I doubt they de-motivated anybody. I'm sure they got many thousands of laughs from the passing runners. Even so, these guys serve as a colorful illustration of the contrasting messages that swirl around in our heads as we encounter life's challenges. Whether it be health, wealth, love or whatever; we often have two voices speaking to us: a naysayer and a motivational speaker. One will always be louder than the other. We always have a choice about which voice to listen to.

Which voice do you choose listen to -- the one that is loudest, or the one that serves you the best...?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Happy birthday to me!

PSS: Here is the latest on the Oby Phenomenon:
You can now order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being through your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings and Borders
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Book signings:
The recent book signings at Hastings in CdA, Auntie's in Spokane and Borders in CdA were a great success. Thanks to all who attended! I will post future book signings here as they are scheduled.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Coming soon to Kindle and Apple's iPad.

The Key to Health is Synergy.

2010-04-25T04:17:00.000-07:00

I learned a brilliant lesson about health a few days ago -- in a game of dodgeball -- from an opposing team who calls themselves "Team Stupid"...!

A few evenings ago, my dodgeball team played our final match of the regular season. We discovered that we are not very good at coordinating our efforts as a team. The other team, on the other hand, was very good at that. Our opponents jokingly named themselves "Team Stupid," but, in reality, they were very smart. In contrast to my team,they were very effective at coordinating their efforts. There was one point when four people on Team Stupid each threw a ball at me all at the same time. They got me! They employed that tactic time after time and they won the best-of-five series against us.

A winning dodgeball team operates on the same principle as a healthy living being. That principle is synergy. When your body is functionng in a synergistic manner, with no interference, guided by your Innate intelligence, you are free to express vibrant health.

Unfortunately, our lifestyles bring in a lot of interference:
Processed, lifeless food...
Lack of sleep...
Not enough clear water...
Too much time in front of the tube...
Sedentary ways...
Prescription medications...
The list goes on...
and on...

These factors do not bring in poor health; what they do is diminish the expression of vibrant health. Here is an example that everybody can relate to from personal experience: We all need adequate sleep to function optimally in every aspect of our beings -- physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Go just a few days on limited z's and you'll be cranky, you will zone out any time you try to concentrate on a mental task and you will tire quickly when performing physical tasks. Get a couple nights of good, restful sleep, and everything falls back into place.

Another great example that I have extensive experience in is the power of the Chiropractic Adjustment. Your spine is the center of the structural and neurological functioning of your body. It is also key to your spiritual expression. Time and time again, I have seen people's lives blossom when they are under Chiropractic wellness care. Why? Because, when there is less interference, there is greater synergy!

Life needs no help, just no interfernece!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Here is the latest on the Oby Phenomenon:
You can now order Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being through your favorite local bookstore. Here in the Inland Northwest, Oby is on the shelves at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Upcoming book signings:
April 29, Thursday - Auntie's Book Store, Downtown Spokane, 7-9 PM. A reading and Q&A will precede the book signing.
May 1, Saturday - Borders in Coeur d'Alene, 1-3 PM

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Buy Oby's Wisdom on Amazon

Buy Oby's Wisdom at BarnesAndNoble.com

In India and other locations in Asia, Oby's Wisdom is available at Infibeam.com
(Free shipping in India.)

If you would prefer to read the book digitally, you can find Oby's Wisdom in various digital formats at:

Barnes and Noble's Nook

Sony e-reader

Other digital formats at Smashwords.com

Coming soon to Kindle and Apple's iPad.

The Internet is a Stick

2010-04-04T04:48:00.000-07:00

That's right; the internet is a stick!

A very wise and good friend of mine named Grover told me that a few days ago, and I was struck by the simplicity and depth of that wisdom. What Grover said was that, if you sit with stick for awhile, you can access all of the wisdom of Creation. Think about everything a stick is synergistically connected with. The Sun, the Earth, the Animal World, Humanity, the Universe...

A simple stick represents the Mother of all internets.

A simple stick represents you and your critical part of that vast and wondrous internet!

Think about it...

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: The most important update yet on the Oby Phenomenon:
The Oby Phenomenon is much more than selling books. The Oby Phenomenon is about spreading a new, empowering perspective -- in health and in life. Here is a great example of how the Oby Phenomenon is doing that:

A couple of weeks ago, I gave my "Wellness 101" seminar to a group of employees at a particular organization. This seminar is built around the lessons in Oby's Wisdom. As always, I emphasized "The Basic Truth" that I present in Oby's Wisdom. The Basic Truth, of course, is: "You are beautiful and perfect!" About a week after the seminar, I ran into the person who had invited me to speak. She told me that they have a new office motto: "You are beautiful and perfect!" They tell it to each other regularly, especially during stressful times.

Just imagine if everyone in the world responded to a stressful moment by reminding everyone else that they are beautiful and perfect. Just imagine...

Incorporate the Oby Phenomenon into your own life! If you live in the Inland Northwest, you can buy your copy of Oby's Wisdom at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Upcoming book signings:
April 10 - Hastings, Coeur d'Alene, 2-4 PM
April 17 - Borders in Coeur d'Alene, 1-3 PM
April 29 - Auntie's Book Store, Downtown Spokane, 7-9 PM. A reading, Q&A will precede the book signing.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Oby is also available through Amazon and your favorite local bookstore.

Your "flaws" are truly gifts!

2010-03-28T03:52:00.000-07:00

I received this story in an email from a friend last week and knew right away I wanted to post it to this blog. Apparently it has been floating around for quite awhile, but this was the first time I have ever received it. Enjoy!

A woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house.”

The old woman smiled, “Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.

Remember: You are beautiful and perfect!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: An update on the Oby Phenomenon:
If do not yet have your own copy of Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being, why wait any longer? For those readers here in the Inland Northwest, you can pick up a copy at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

Upcoming book signings:
April 10 - Hastings, Coeur d'Alene, 2-4 PM
April 17 - Borders in Coeur d'Alene, 1-3 PM
April 29 - Auntie's Book Store, Downtown Spokane, 7-9 PM. A reading, Q&A will precede the book signing.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Oby is also available through Amazon and your favorite local bookstore.

Which aspects of yourself are you revealing?

2010-03-21T00:22:00.000-07:00

An Elder told his grandchild: "I have two wolves fighting inside of me. One wolf is anger, suspicion and fear. The other is a wolf of love, joy, peace and generosity."

“Which wolf will win, Grandfather?” asked the child.

“The one I feed the most,” answered the Elder.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: An update on the Oby Phenomenon:
If do not yet have your own copy of Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being, why wait any longer? For those readers here in the Inland Northwest, you can pick up a copy at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products

We had a GREAT book signing at Inquire Within in Sandpoint yesterday (Saturday). Many thanks to all who attended!

Upcoming book signings:
April 10 - Hastings, Coeur d'Alene, 2-4 PM
April 17 - Borders in Coeur d'Alene, 1-3 PM
April 29 - Auntie's Book Store, Downtown Spokane, 7-9 PM. A reading, Q&A will precede the book signing.

You can also visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Oby is also available through Amazon and your favorite local bookstore.

The best diet: Don't go on a diet!

2010-03-14T04:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago, one of my Facebook friends posted a note on my profile page asking what diet I could recommend for losing weight and keeping it off. Here's how I responded:
"Don't go on a diet! Just eat as Nature intended - a balance of fresh, whole, natural, organic, local foods. Focus on a healthy lifestyle rather than the number on the scale or comparing yourself to magazine cover models. I devote an entire chapter to this in Oby's Wisdom. Remember this always: You are Beautiful and Perfect!"

With nutrition as with everything else health related, Nature has the answer. Nature has provided all we need. And when Nature designed our food supply, She didn't include junk like preservatives, food dye, artificial flavorings...

Ponder this: have you ever seen an obese wild animal?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: The Oby Phenomenon has begun!
My new book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is now available in print!For those readers here in the Inland Northwest, you can pick up a copy at these locations:
Spokane: Auntie's Bookstore, downtown
Coeur d'Alene: Hastings
Sandpoint: Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market, Zero Point and Vanderford's Books & Office Products
If you live elsewhere, you can visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Oby is also available through Amazon and your favorite local bookstore.

Health is free. Healthcare is expensive.

2010-03-07T04:40:00.000-08:00

The basis for vibrant health is the life force…the inherent vitality…the Innate Intelligence of your being. You were born with it and there was no extra charge. You can’t obtain good health or lose it. You can only bury your inborn state of good health, or reveal it.

An unhealthy lifestyle including junk food, sedentary habits, high stress, toxic substances, a negative attitude and neglecting your spirit, will bury your health.

That’s when healthcare becomes necessary. And healthcare only tends to poor health, it doesn’t reveal vibrant health.

The good news is that, no matter how unhealthy you may become, your inherent state of vibrant health is always right inside of you, waiting to be revealed...

...with a healthy lifestyle that includes fresh, whole organic foods; fun physical activity; regular Chiropractic wellness care, plenty of sunshine, fresh air and water; enlivening your spirit, a positive outlook; joy and laughter.

Take an honest look at your lifestyle.

Are you manifesting health…or healthcare?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: My new book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is now available in print! For those readers here in North Idaho, you can pick up a copy at Auntie's Bookstore in downtown Spokane, Hastings in Coeur d'Alene, and Inquire Within, Winter Ridge Natural Foods Market and Vanderfords in Sandpoint. If you live elsewhere, you can visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

Oby is also available through Amazon and your favorite local bookstore.

The Oby Phenomenon has begun!

Would you rather stay on top of the mountain, or hope someone can fix you after you fall...?

2010-02-28T04:47:00.000-08:00

Enjoy old classic poem and my version of a well known nursery rhyme for a clear illustration of this week's healthy thought.

The Dangerous Cliff

'Twas a dangerous cliff, as they freely confessed,
Though to walk near its crest was so pleasant;
But over its terrible edge there had slipped
A duke and full many a peasant.
So the people said something would have to be done,
But their projects did not at all tally;
Some said, "Put a fence 'round the edge of the cliff,"
Some, "An ambulance down in the valley."

But the cry for the ambulance carried the day,
For it spread through the neighboring city;
A fence may be useful or not, it is true,
But each heart became full of pity
For those who slipped over the dangerous cliff;
And the dwellers in highway and alley
Gave pounds and gave pence, not to put up a fence,
But an ambulance down in the valley.

"For the cliff is all right, if you're careful," they said,
"And, if folks even slip and are dropping,
It isn't the slipping that hurts them so much
As the shock down below when they're stopping."
So day after day, as these mishaps occurred,
Quick forth would those rescuers sally
To pick up the victims who fell off the cliff,
With their ambulance down in the valley.

Then an old sage remarked: "It's a marvel to me
That people give far more attention
To repairing results than to stopping the cause,
When they'd much better aim at prevention.
Let us stop at its source all this mischief," cried he,
"Come, neighbors and friends, let us rally;
If the cliff we will fence, we might almost dispense
With the ambulance down in the valley."

"Oh he's a fanatic," the others rejoined,
"Dispense with the ambulance? Never!
He'd dispense with all charities, too, if he could;
No! No! We'll support them forever.
Aren't we picking up folks just as fast as they fall?
And shall this man dictate to us? Shall he?
Why should people of sense stop to put up a fence,
While the ambulance works in the valley?"

But the sensible few, who are practical too,
Will not bear with such nonsense much longer;
They believe that prevention is better than cure,
And their party will soon be the stronger.
Encourage them then, with your purse, voice, and pen,
And while other philanthropists dally,
They will scorn all pretense, and put up a stout fence
On the cliff that hangs over the valley.

Better guide well the young than reclaim them when old,
For the voice of true wisdom is calling.
"To rescue the fallen is good, but 'tis best
To prevent other people from falling."
Better close up the source of temptation and crime
Than deliver from dungeon or galley;
Better put a strong fence 'round the top of the cliff
Than an ambulance down in the valley.
~Joseph Malins
Circa. 1895

The best 'fence' is a wellness lifestyle. Without it, you are almost certain to fall. And once you fall, the ambulance may not be able to help you. Case in point:

Humpty dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's doctors and all the king's men
couldn't put Humpty together again.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: My new book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is now available in print! For those readers here in North Idaho, you can pick up a copy at Hastings in Coeur d'Alene, and Inquire Within in Sandpoint. If you live elsewhere, you can visit the official Oby's Wisdom website to purchase a copy. www.ObysWisdom.com

You are beautiful and perfect!

2010-02-21T04:25:00.000-08:00

You have read that before on this blog, haven't you? I refer to that statement as "The Basic Truth."

I shot these mirror image photos at the Coeur d'Alene Resort marina a couple of weeks ago. As you can see, the water was like glass!

I would venture a guess that, within the framework of today’s healthcare system, you have never had anyone (except me) tell you, “You are beautiful and perfect.” That is the opposite of how most of today’s healthcare world looks at people. Most health practitioners – conventional as well as alternative – look at you in terms of what is, or may become, “wrong” with you. Chances are, you look at yourself the same way.

But, that’s backwards. Approaching health to fix or prevent what is wrong is a perspective that only blurs the truth, even if it seems real. Take a look at the photographs above. Pretty cool, aren’t they? But, guess what? They’re upside down!

Now look at the photos below. They are the right side up mirror images of the ones above. Notice how much clearer they are. And, although the upside down photos appear clear at first; once you compare them to the right side up ones, you can see they’re just a bit off.

“You are beautiful and perfect!”

Amazing how an accurate perspective brings clarity!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: My new book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is now available in print!

Visit www.ObysWisdom.com to buy as many copies as you want.

Convenience can be bad for your health.

2010-02-14T05:07:00.000-08:00

Quite some time ago, it seems, there was an old farmer who still had not had a telephone installed in his home. After many months of persuading, the farmer’s son—now a grownup city slicker, wise to the ways of the world—finally convinced his cantankerous old dad to have a telephone installed. “After all,” the son had pointed out, “a telephone is such a wonderful convenience.”

One day, the son paid a visit to the old homestead. After dinner, he and his father were sitting on the front porch enjoying the singing birds and watching the sun sink slowly beneath the rolling wheat fields. The phone rang.

“Aren’t you going to answer it?” asked the son.

“Nope,” replied the father. After seven rings the caller hung up and the phone fell silent.

“Why didn’t you answer the phone?” asked the son.

“Wasn’t convenient,” replied the wise old gentleman as he continued to enjoy the colorful sunset.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Exciting update on Oby's Wisdom!
My new book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is at the printer, and the first proof is on its way to me in the mail! If all is well, it will be available within less than two weeks!

Oby's Wisdom is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader.

Healing is a lot like learning to snowboard...

2010-02-07T04:54:00.000-08:00

Atop Schweitzer Mountain
Photo by Kathleen Cricket Windsong, 2009

My tailbone hurts. Still.

Last Sunday, Cricket and I hit the slopes on Schweitzer Mountain. We had a great time, as always.

I just started snowboarding last year and I'm getting better and better the more I ride. That doesn't mean that each time is progressively better than the last.

A couple of weeks ago, on a Friday night, I felt like I took a quantum leap forward in my skill level. I was doing things I had never done and going places I had never gone. Then, just two days later, I felt like a raw beginner again. No matter how I hard I tried, I couldn't stay on my feet. Then, last Sunday, just a week ago, I did better than I had ever done prior. Even so, I took my most painful fall yet. Square on my sacrum, on solid ice, as I was getting into a lift line. Ouch! And I do mean OUCH!

As this past week has progressed, my symptoms have shifted. One morning I might feel relatively pain free and the next I may be awakened by throbbing pain. But I know that as long as I am doing what I need to do to facilitate the expression of life through Chiropractic, massage, yoga, more Chiropractic, more yoga, moderate physical activity, healthy nutrition, and plenty of clear water; I can trust the healing process.

Any human process -- snowboarding, educated learning, growing, and even healing a bruised bum -- entails ups and downs...ebs and flows.

Healing is change, growth and evolution. It is a dynamic, ever-changing cycle directed by an Innate Intelligence that is more brilliant and complex than your educated mind can even begin to comprehend.

Trust your Innate Intelligence!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS:
My new book,Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being will soon be available in print! (I'm SO excited!)

Oby's Wisdom is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader.

The World Around You Is Your Mirror

2010-01-31T04:30:00.000-08:00

What Kind of People Live Here?
(My version of an old parable)

A young drifter was riding the range looking for a town where he could settle down. He rode into a small town, stopped at the general store and ambled in to visit the proprietor.

"What kind of people live here?" he asked.

"Well,” replied the storekeeper, “What kind of people were in the last town you lived in?"

“A buncha no accounts,” complained the newcomer. “Nothin' but mean, selfish thieves and liars. All they cared about was themselves, and they'd just as soon rob ya as look atcha.”

“Ya best ride on, cowpoke. You'll find nothing but the same in this town."

A few days later another traveling cowhand rode into town. He, too, stopped in to visit the owner of the general store.

"What kind of people live here?" he asked.

As before, the storekeeper answered, “What kind of people were in the last town you lived in?"

“Good folk; all of ‘em. Honest and hard workin,’” replied the young traveler. “Why, they'd give the shirt right off their back just to help a poor ol’ stranger.”

“Stick around, young feller,” smiled the storekeeper. “The folks hereabouts are just the same.”

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS:
Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader. Print version will be available sometime this spring.

"It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness..." B. J. Palmer, D.C.

2010-01-24T04:01:00.000-08:00

The Big Idea
Bartlett Joshua Palmer, D.C.
The Developer of Chiropractic
1944

“A slip on the snowy sidewalk in winter is a small thing. It happens to millions.
A fall from a ladder in the summer is a small thing. It happens to millions.
The slip or fall produces a subluxation. The subluxation is a small thing.
The subluxation produces pressure on a nerve. That pressure is a small thing. That decreased flowing produces a dis-eased body and brain. That is a big thing to that man.

Multiply that sick man by a thousand, and you control the physical and mental welfare of a city.
Multiply that man by one hundred thirty million, and you forecast and can prophesy the physical and mental status of a nation.
So the slip or fall, the subluxation, pressure, flow of mental images and dis-ease are big enough to control the thoughts and actions of a nation.

Now comes one man. And one man is a small thing.
This man gives an adjustment. The adjustment is a small thing.
The adjustment replaces the subluxation. That is a small thing.
The adjusted subluxation releases pressure upon nerves. That is a small thing.
The released pressure restores health to a man. This is a big thing to that man.

Multiply that well man by a thousand, and you step up the physical and mental welfare of a city.
Multiply that well man by a million, and you increase the efficiency of a state.
Multiply that well man by a hundred thirty million, and you have produced a healthy, wealthy, and better human race for posterity.

So, the adjustment of the subluxation to release pressure upon nerves, to restore mental impulse flow, to restore health, is big enough to rebuild the thoughts and actions of the world.

The idea that knows the cause, that can correct the cause of dis-ease is one of the biggest ideas known. Without it, nations fall; with it, nations rise.
This idea is the biggest I know of.

It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness. Get the idea; all else follows.”

B. J. Palmer, the Developer of Chiropractic, was a brilliant man and a true visionary. Think about what he’s saying: that if every human being on earth were free of subluxations and realizing their peak human potential, we would have a “healthier, wealthier and better human race.” Just imagine…what if every human being existed in a state of maximum life expression…?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS:
Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader. Print version will be available sometime this spring.

Is Treating the “Underlying” Cause Any Different From Treating Symptoms?

2010-01-17T04:17:00.000-08:00

Deja vu!?

If this healthy thought looks familar, it is. I used the same one last week. I decided to continue the discussion of last week's post because of an excellent (and important) comment a reader made about it. These blog entries automatically post as notes to my Facebook profile; that's where this exchange took place.

Reader comment:
"I tried treating my headaches with NSAIDs for months, but they kept getting worse until they removed the brain tumor. Enlightened - who cares? Effective, on the other hand, I cared about immensely."

My reply:
"Thanks for your comment, Jan. You make a good point. I hope you understand that I am not suggesting that we never treat underlying causes – or even symptoms, for that matter. In your case, and in many others, that’s clearly an appropriate thing to do. What I’m saying is that there is so much more that we can do. As you describe your experience, things sound pretty cut and dry: remove the tumor and headaches stop. For many others, things aren’t so simple. For example, for many years, I experienced severe, debilitating chronic pain as a result of inflammatory arthritis. A significant part of my journey was the search for that elusive “underlying cause.” Was it my diet…an emotional issue…relationship challenges…subluxations in my spine…a karmic lesson from a past life…clogged charkas…leaky gut syndrome…a vibrational imbalance…or…what…? Never did pin it down. What finally allowed me to leave my arthritis behind was when I shifted my focus away from trying to “fix” my problem and began to do all I could do to maximize my own, natural potential for vibrant health. That’s an approach that benefits everybody, whether one is in perfect health, is journeying with a chronic (or even terminal) disease, or—like you and me—has moved through a health challenge and left it in the past. Thanks again for your comment, Jan. Best wishes to you for continued vibrant health!"

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS:
Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader. Print version will be available sometime this spring.

Is Treating the “Underlying” Cause Any Different From Treating Symptoms?

2010-01-10T07:07:00.000-08:00

Today, practitioners in many healing arts see “treating the underlying cause” of our symptoms as the wise, enlightened approach to healthcare. I have a different perspective: Treating the cause is no different from treating symptoms. They are both the same—treating. Even the deepest underlying causes that we can perceive with our educated mind may still exist at a relatively superficial level. I will agree that it can be useful to look beneath the surface for hidden issues that, when addressed and released, can help us heal. As we discover and clear these issues, though, it helps to keep in mind that we are beings of unfathomable depth and complexity. The totality of our existence is an intricate web of spiritual, emotional, mental and physical aspects—and maybe even some dimensions that we have not yet discovered—all giving rise to infinite possibilities. Our intellect is probably incapable of grasping every underlying cause of all other underlying causes of the countless layers of deeper underlying causes of many possible outlying causes, as they may relate to all of the conceivable overlying causes…

For example, people diagnosed with depression often have chemical imbalances that their physicians believe are an underlying cause of the depression. Yes, these chemical imbalances do exist; and yes, they do correlate with symptoms of depression. And, yes, treating the chemical imbalances with drugs can “correct” the perceived imbalance and relieve the symptoms. But merely relieving the symptoms does not bring about healing. In fact, it may very well deprive someone the opportunity for the deep, core healing that their depression is presenting them. Can we ever really know what caused the chemical imbalance in the first place? Was it a self limiting belief? Might it have been a past trauma from childhood…or from a past life…or a future life…or one or more parallel existences? Or is it, perhaps, a karmic life lesson playing out at a vibrational level? Or…?

Most of us have seen nesting dolls—those large, rounded, hollow toy figures that you open to reveal an identical, but somewhat smaller figure. Within the smaller figure you find another smaller one, then an even smaller one, and yet another, and so on. Think of a human being as a set of nesting dolls that goes from an infinitely large doll down to an infinitely small doll, and with dolls that go not only from large to small, but also from side to side, forward and backward in time, and back and forth through every dimension and possibility. Trying to reduce symptoms and disease to a finite set of successive layers of underlying causes is an oversimplification that limits the possibilities available to us on our healing journey.

Rather than limit ourselves to treating problems, be they symptoms or perceived “underlying” causes, I suggest that we spend more time and energy on fully expressing the beautiful and perfect life force that shines within each of us.

Book update:
Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Gude to Health and Well-being is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Oby is coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader. Print version will be available sometime this spring.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Empower your potential, not your problems!

2009-12-27T02:02:00.000-08:00

What an exciting year 2009 has been! Thank you for traveling this journey with me. Here are my Top Ten Healthy Thoughts for 2009. And make sure you read beyond the quotes so that you can also enjoy more beautiful Nature photography, a couple of great videoas, and my number one favorite book!

Empower your potential, not your problems.
This is my all time favorite. (So far...!)

You can't change. You can only hide or emerge.

You are more than just the main character in your life story. You're also the writer, the producer and the director.

Are you hoping for a healing miracle? The miracle is already inside of you, just waiting to be released…

Exercise is for elevating your spirit, not just your heart rate.

Stop worrying so much about IT. Start taking care of YOU!

Each moment, you are in the process of becoming.

It's not whether you have the time; it's whether you take the time.

Sometimes the fog that shrouds the beauty has a beauty all its own.

Your health can change in two ways: by design, or by default. Make 2009 your year of design. (Well, how did this one go...?)

The Photos:

The Breathtaking Synergy of Nature; Selkirk Mountains, North Idaho

Coeur d'Alene Resort Marina, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Chimney Rock in the Fog; Selkirk Mountains, North Idaho

Maiden Rock, Lake Pend Oreille, North Idaho

The Videos:

Talk about potential!!!

We are designed to live in harmony with Nature!

AND...My favorite book! (I wrote it!)

Oby's Wisdom is curently available as an e-book in various different formats:
To read all about Oby's Wisdom, download a free excerpt and purchase a pdf download, visit www.ObysWisdom.com.

Oby is available in various other digital formats at:
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader.

Coming soon to Amazon's Kindle e-reader and the Sony e-reader. Print version will be available in early 2010. Stay tuned...!

See you next year!
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, lightworker, energy healer, writer, speaker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

A Visit From St. Nick – To His Chiropractor!

2009-12-20T09:15:00.000-08:00

by Dr. Mark William Cochran

'Twas the night before Christmas, and at the North Pole
Jolly Old Saint Nick was getting ready to go.
Mrs Claus said, "You must fly now, before it get's dark.
Your first stop this year is to see Dr. Mark."

"Dr. Mark?" he asked as he filled his last sack,
"Why go to the Chiropractor? I've no pain in my back."
She said, "Having your spine checked is simply essential!
It's not about pain, it's about releasing potential."

"Okay, okay!" laughed the jolly old elf.
You're right. I need to take care of myself."
He gave her a kiss and he dashed out the door.
His adjustment was scheduled promptly at four.

I knew they had arrived when I heard on my roof,
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
They had far to go and had traveled many a mile.
And I greeted each one with a hug and a smile.

I said, "This is your big night. It's not a vacation.
Let's make sure you are free of subluxations.
First of all Santa, I will check your spine.
Then I will check your reindeer--all nine!"

You know," Santa sighed, "If the truth be told,
My body's slowing down, I think I'm just gettin' old."
I smiled, then I offered a gentle correction.
"Santa, you're a being of beauty and perfection!"

He said, "To travel the world in one night is quite pleasing.
But the weather…I'm either frying or freezing.
The deserts are scorching, the rain forests torrential,
And I love it! So I need to be at my maximum potential."

I spoke not a word, I went straight to my work.
I adjusted each spine with nary a twist nor a jerk.
After we finished, Santa said, "This is terrific.
All of your adjustments are so gentle and specific."

"This is cool!" he exclaimed, "My step feels so much lighter.
And just look at Rudolph. His nose is shining brighter!
Blitzen and Dancer, I've never seen them so spry.
Thank you so much. We are ready to fly!"

Then Santa paused and did thoughtfully ponder.
'Tis a wonderful thing that we do way out yonder.
The toys we deliver are all very fine.
But I wish you could come along and check each child's spine."

Then he sprang to his sleigh, to his team he yelled, "Whee!"
And away they all flew, subluxation free!
Then I heard him exclaim, as they flew o'er the city,
"Chiropractic adjustments are the gift of vitality!"

Empowering outlook or limiting outlook? Your choice...

2009-12-13T03:52:00.000-08:00

What do you choose to focus on?
In this photo...?
In your life...?

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Remember to check out my new e-book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide to Health and Well-being.

Oby is available as an instant pdf download as well as other electronic formats. Coming soon, Kindle, Nook and Sony! Stay tuned!

Visit www.ObysWisdom.com to learn more about the book, download a free excerpt, and read about the incredible bonuses available if you buy by Dec 26th.

You Are a Symphony!

2009-12-06T04:37:00.000-08:00

A symphony is a beautiful musical composition performed by an orchestra made up of a large number of gifted musicians. These artists, with their diverse selection of instruments, play many different melodies in harmony with each other, bringing the symphony to life.

You are a symphony. More sophisticated than any orchestra, you consist of a vast array of complex systems, subsystems, organs, tissues, cells, and chemical and biomechanical processes. The adult human body is a thriving community made up of an estimated 75 trillion cells. These countless parts and processes work together to perform functions as obvious as the circulation of your blood, movement of your limbs, your thoughts and emotions, and perception of sensations such as heat and cold. They also include functions that take place on such a tiny scale that you are completely unaware of them. For example, the Kreb's Cycle—the cellular process that provides energy for cells to live and function—is generating energy in thousands of trillions of microscopic power plants throughout your body right now.

A thousand trillion looks like this: 1,000,000,000,000,000.

There are untold numbers of other functions, large and small, working in synergy in your inner universe, nonstop. For you to live—to express life—everything from your major systems to your countless intracellular processes must play in harmony. You are a wondrous and beautiful symphony.

Who conducts this magnificent symphony? Your life force. As long as your life force can express itself with no interference, you perform a harmonious and delightful symphony.

But what happens when there is interference? Let’s pretend that you are the world’s most gifted virtuoso violinist, performing with one of the world’s finest symphony orchestras. Suppose an audience member walks up onto the stage and stands in front of you, completely blocking your view of the conductor. Would you be able to play your part of the symphony? Of course you would. You are, after all, the greatest violinist in the world. You can still read your music, listen to the other musicians and play along with them. Even so, would your performance be flawless? Perhaps not; a bit of disharmony may result from the lack of communication between you and the conductor. Since you are such a gifted violinist, probably nobody but you will notice the disharmony. In other words, the life expression of the orchestra is diminished, but to such an insignificant degree that no “symptom” manifests.

Now, what if 25 more people joined the first on stage, each one blocking a different musician’s view of the conductor? Will these musicians be able to play their part of the symphony? Of course they will; this is the world’s finest orchestra. But will it be the orchestra’s best possible performance? Probably not, because so many musicians are unable to see the conductor. Now, because of all of the interference, the disharmony may become noticeable to the audience. We now have a symptom in the symphony.

For the orchestra to come back into harmony, an important factor would be for the musicians to be able to follow the conductor’s directions without the interference of the stage crashers. The first response would be an innate one—the musicians would simply shift their positions a bit so they could see the conductor. If the trespassers continued to block the musicians’ view, an usher might ask them politely to leave. If they remained, then someone could call security and have them forcibly ejected from the concert hall. Once they were gone, the orchestra would be able to play beautifully again, because that is what orchestras do. The point is that the orchestra is inherently capable of restoring the harmony it lost due to the interference. Even if the source of interference is removed by external means, ultimately, the orchestra’s ability to return to a state of harmony is due to the talent of the musicians and the conductor, rather than the security guards who removed the interference.

Until next time,
Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Remember to check out my new e-book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide to Health and Well-being.

Oby is available as an instant pdf download as well as other electronic formats. Coming soon, Kindle, Nook and Sony! Staytuned!

Visit www.ObysWisdom.com to learn more about the book, download a free excerpt, and read about the incredible bonuses available if you buy soon.

The Secret to Healthy Nutrition: Never Go On a Diet Again!

2009-11-29T04:35:00.000-08:00

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I sure did. It is such a wonderful holiday, celebrating one of the most beautiful and empowering states of consciousness there is: gratitude.

Thanksgiving is a day of feasting and it ushers in the winter holiday season. The holidays are fun and joyous time of celebration and fellowship, but they can also be a time of great challenge. The challenge I am talking about is, of course…

Food!

For many, food is a battle. Almost all of us have been on a diet at some point in time. Some people always seem to be on a diet—and usually not a consistent one. Opinions as to what comprises healthy nutrition change from time to time, and our eating habits usually follow the latest theory or fad. (How many people have stayed on their 1970’s low cal diet through the low fat and low carb eras?)

So here is a simple solution:

Never go on a diet again!

When I say, “don’t go on a diet,” I am referring to the intention, not to the behavior. Anybody can benefit from healthier eating habits. The important thing is the intention—to incorporate better nutrition into your life for the health benefits, and not to fight yourself.

So many diet plans, diet books and weight loss programs exist that it would be pretty much impossible to count them all. Low cal, low fat, low carb, slow carb, raw food, beer and cookies—the list continues to expand.

And they all work…

But none of them work…

That is, they all work if you stick to them, but virtually no one sticks to them over a lifetime. I’m not joking about the beer and cookies diet. When I was a college student, I had a good friend who was famous for his beer and cookies diet. He wanted to maintain a healthy weight, but he knew that beer and cookies, on top of everything else he ate and drank, would probably cause him to gain weight. He decided to do away with the unnecessary foods and just stick with the important stuff: beer and cookies! He stuck with it religiously for a good two months. His cookies of choice were home-baked oatmeal raisin cookies or, in a pinch, the occasional box of vanilla wafers. Whichever cookies he had on his plate, he washed them down with his favorite beer: “whatever’s cheap and cold.”

I would never suggest a strict regimen of beer and cookies as a healthy approach to maintaining your ideal weight. My friend never tried to pass his diet off as serious; it was just a fun college guy thing. But he did follow his diet for two months, and he met his objective. It supports the point I am trying to get across. In terms of weight management, lots of diet plans will work, no matter how kooky or unhealthy. The challenge is sticking to a regimen…for the rest of your life.

So often, a diet is process of doing something you don’t like, to fix something you don’t like. What are the odds of that succeeding?

It will be much more self affirming for you to remember The Basic Truth:

You are beautiful and perfect!

This is a more empowering way of thinking than the dieting mindset. Feel love and gratitude for yourself as a beautiful and perfect being, and live your life from that perspective. Then imagine what your life and health will be like in 5…10…25…50 years from now, compared to what it will be like if you keep loathing yourself. Just love yourself and do everything you do—including eating—from that place of self love.

Until next time,
Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

PS: Remember to check out my new e-book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide to Health and Well-being. Visit www.ObysWisdom.com to learn more about the book, download a free excerpt, and read about the incredible bonuses available if you buy soon.

Make one commitment to yourself today – just one – just for today.

2009-11-22T04:36:00.000-08:00

This photo is of the breathtaking view of the Cabinet Mountains from South Chilco Peak in North Idaho.
(I made a commitment, and traveled to the summit, one step at a time!)

The type of commitment you make is important. (More on that below…)

As I said in last week’s blog, the most effective way to make profound changes in your life is to go one step at a time.

Just one step at a time.

So today, take one step. Make one commitment – just one – without even committing to do it tomorrow, much less every day for the rest of your life. Make it an easy step.

Ideas:
Eat more green veggies for dinner.
Uprade one food purchase from non-organic to organic.
Spend more quality time with your kids, your partner, your pet or even yourself.
Go out for a nice walk, run, bike ride, swim or whatever you enjoy.
Meditate or pray.
Drink as much water as you know you should be drinking.
Go back to the yoga class you’ve been missing.
Read something that's been waiting in your "gotta read" stack for awhile.
Go out and play!

Now a note about what type of commitment to make to yourself. Notice that all of the items on the list above have one thing in common: They all add value to your life. None of them are about quitting, cutting down or avoiding.

My commitment for today: to enjoy a longer yoga session than usual.

It's that simple!

Tomorrow, make another commitment – to yourself – just one – just for tomorrow. Make it a commitment that adds value to your life. It can be the same as today, or something new. You get to choose. But don’t even think about it until tomorrow.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Coeur d’Alene and Sandpoint, Idaho

PS: Remember to visit www.ObysWisdom.com to check out my award winning new e-book. There are some great limited-time-only bonuses AND you can download a free excerpt.

You can go anywhere one step at a time...

2009-11-15T05:21:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of the most recent lofty peak I reached, one step at a time.
www.ObysWisdom.com

Sometimes we have a goal or desire in life and set to work to achieve it. We are excited about what lies ahead for us and we know that we just have to set an intention, take some action, and - poof! - what we desire falls into our lap! Easy, right?

Sometimes...

But not always.

Achieving a goal can take longer - sometimes a LOT longer - than we expect, but as long as we keep taking the next step, we WILL arive.

There are two important things to keep in mind.

1. The road is usually not as smooth and straight as you expect.

I reached a major milestone this week. I just launched my new e-book: Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide to Health and Well-being. When I came up with the idea, I thought I could complete the book in just two weeks. That was over 4 years ago. And I also knew that my idea was SO great that as soon I sent a book proposal to my chosen publisher, they would love it so much that they would snap it up and pay me a juicy advance. So I mailed off the proposal...and got it back, returned to sender, unopened, with a note scrawled on the outside of the envelope: "No unsolicited manuscripts accepted."

Sigh!

I could have given up right then, but I didn't. I kept taking steps. On the way, I took wrong turns, got lost, hit dead ends...everything you can expect on such an adventure. But I just kept taking steps, taking steps, taking steps...

And now, Oby's Wisdom is published by a real publisher!

2. Sometimes the destination you reach is different (and even better) than the one you planned.

At one point on my journey, I felt like I had exhausted all options. I wasn't moving. I couldn't see any new paths to try. At that point, I was invited to help start a new publishing company with several other authors. And now, I'm part owner of my own publishing company! Never foresaw that. And a couple of months ago, Oby's Wisdom won first place in the 2009 Idaho Writer's League nonfiction book contest. Never imagined that one, either. But here I am, an award winning author!

Whatever you want in life, go after it. Keep moving. Step by step. Keep your eyes open for new destinations. And always, take your next step!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropracrot,energy healer, lightworker
Coeur d'Alene and Sandpoint Idaho

From atop Mallard Peak, Idaho

Your immune system does not fight anything. Health is not about fighting; health is harmony!

2009-11-08T04:53:00.000-08:00

Pause for a moment to contemplate the peaceful beauty in this photo. It's a photo I took several years ago from atop Maiden Rock overlooking Lake Pend Oreille in North Idaho. The scene is tranquil. Everything you see exists in harmony and synergy with everything else.

If you wanted to, you could look at all of this as a product of an endless succession of fights. Wind and rain have "lashed" the rocks, the forests have "succumbed" to fire, glaciers "gouged" the landscape and created the lake.

Of course there have been forces in opposition with each other. But opposition does not automatically mean combat. Opposition of forces also exists when a child (or an adult) swings on a swingset. No one would ever think of swinging on a swingset as a fight. Swinging is a state of harmony that brings joy!

It's the same with immune functioning and all other processes inherent in life. We exist in a dynamic state of balance and harmony.

Take a look at the photo below. This photo is one I took about a year and a half ago, looking up at Maiden Rock from the beach. Notice how the wind and rain have revealed magnificent rock formations, how the plant life is flourishing because of how fires have cleansed the land and enriched the soil, and how masterfully the glaciers sculpted beautiful Lake Pend Oreille.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Is the Swine Flu just a Self Fulfilling Prophesy?

2009-11-01T05:18:00.000-08:00

Let me tell you a personal story about how words and thoughts can effect our physical bodies:

One morning, a couple of years ago, I was working on my computer, and I wasn't feeling very well. My son got up, got ready for work and walked out the door, saying he wasn't feeling well, either. The symptoms he described were the same as mine: a little bit of nausea, a bit headachy, some dizziness, and feeling quite lethargic. We had both been feeling that way for a couple of days. It occurred to me that, as best I could remember, those sounded like the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning. I did a quick internet search and, yep, those were the symptoms. That HAD to be it. Why else would two otherwise healthy men be feeling like that? I immediately began to feel worse. I called the fire department and asked if they could come by and check my house for carbon monoxide. Then I went outside to get out of the danger zone. As soon as I got out into the fresh air I began to feel much better. Before long, a big ol'fire truck pulled up and three firefighters hopped out; one with a magic carbon monoxide detecting wand. They walked through the house, checking every nook and cranny, as well as my crawl space where my gas furnace is located. Nope...no CO. My abode was fresh as a daisy. One of them even checked the CO detector and found it to be in good working order. (I hadn't thought to do that.) I thanked these fine, brave public servants and went back inside feeling fine, and more than a little embarrased. I came to realize that I had been putting in some long hours and I was just run down. Same with my son. That's all there was to it.

The main point of the story is that my reading a set of symptoms on my computer screen, along with my preconceived suspicion that I may have CO poisoning, caused my symptoms to dramatically worsen almost immediately.

This illustrates the nocebo effect. The Nocebo efect is kind of like a reverse placebo effect, and causes a person to experience symptoms and other adverse effects based on their expectations. Nocebo, and not carbon monoxide, is what caused my nausea, headaches and dizziness to worsen on that morning.

Words are powerful. Consider how many times we have all heard the word, "pandemic," lately. We're being pummeled by it. We hear it on the news, in commercials, on the street, and even from our president. Is it unreasonable to suspect that, to a very significant degree, we are creating a pandemic with our consciousness alone? It's a possibility we all need to consider.

Because words are so powerful, I'll leave you with the same positive, empowering words I left you with last week:

You are beautiful and perfect.
Empower your potential, not your problems.
You are inherently healthy.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

We find health in the light, not in the shadows.

2009-10-25T03:57:00.000-07:00

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Well, on second thought…

I scoffed at SARS and the bird flu, and they both turned out to be about as dramatic as Comet Kohoutek. (You probably don’t even remember Comet Kohoutek, which made a pass through our solar system in the early 70’s. After months of hype about how it would light the night sky for months, it fizzled. By the time it got here, it was hardly visible at all. Comet Kohoutek was entirely UN-dramatic.)

I’ve done a lot of scoffing at the swine flu, too. After SARS and the bird flu, I’ve come to regard this latest threat to humanity as nothing more than another cry of “wolf.” Despite all of the screaming, fear based headlines, I don’t personally know one single person who has come down with the swine flu. I am a healthcare practitioner, and none of my clients has come in sick or called to cancel because of the swine flu. None of my friends, family, acquaintances or colleagues have gotten the swine flu. Within my sphere, which is considerable in size, the swine flu has yet to show up.

So, I was a bit surprised by a conversation I had just a few days ago with one of my clients who is a nurse at the large medical center in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Before I go on, let me say that she is one of my very favorite clients and, even though our philosophies differ on some health issues, I have the utmost respect for her professional knowledge, experience and insight. She told me that her hospital is inundated with swine flu cases. The emergency room is overflowing and doctor’s offices are full. She also told me it’s the most virulent flu she has ever seen. She is scared of it.

She went on to tell me that, earlier on, she advised her family not to get the swine flu vaccine and she had not planned to get it herself. Now, after dealing with the disease first hand, she plans to get the vaccine when it becomes available, and she is advising her family to get it, too. I told her that if my son ever says he is going to get the vaccine, I’ll handcuff him to his bed and guard the door so he can’t leave the house.

I pointed out that the vaccine is largely untested and contains some very toxic components. No one has any inkling of what adverse long term effects may show up, and it’s likely not to work anyway.

Her response: “Yeah, I know. It’s a crapshoot.”

That was a real eyebrow-raiser for me. Her decision was based on fear. She’s more afraid of the disease than she is of the vaccine. Not a very empowered position is it?

After our conversation, it occurred to me that I used the same tactic as the fear mongers of the flu. Fear. Toxicity…questionable efficacy…long term risks…
Fear!

Another thing occurred to me. My client’s experience shows that the swine flu virus is among us. That means that, by now, we have ALL been exposed to it. Yet, I still don’t personally know one single person who has come down with the swine flu. I am a healthcare practitioner, and none of my clients have come in sick or called to cancel because of the swine flu. None of my friends, family, acquaintances or colleagues have gotten the swine flu. Within my sphere, which is considerable in size, the swine flu has yet to show up, even in my client, who is surrounded by it every day at work.

That’s because we all have an immune system—part of our innate healing wisdom—the most powerful healing force available.

I’ve decided to move away from fear-based arguments and stick with MY message, in its various forms. That’s what I left my client with the other day and it’s what I’ll leave you with today…

You are beautiful and perfect.
Empower your potential, not your problems.
You are inherently healthy.

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

You can't change. You can only hide or emerge.

2009-10-18T04:24:00.000-07:00

This photo of a gorgeous wilderness sunrise on a smokey summer morning tells the tale of your life...

The darkness of night and the smoke from a distant forest fire made the towering pines, sparkling river and majestic mountains invisible to me only an hour before I took this photo. Still, although shrouded in darkness, they were there in all their splendor and it took only the light of dawn to reveal their beauty.

Vibrant health, joy, inner peace, abundance, wisdom, success and everything you could ever want are already a part of you. Perhaps they are veiled -- even hidden -- but they will always be there. Beauty and perfection are the real you. That can never change. You just need to decide whether you want to keep hiding, or emerge into the light.

(Photo taken in the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness area about 6 years ago.)

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, energy healer, lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Prevention is not the answer. Wellness is.

2009-10-11T04:19:00.000-07:00

Continued from last week...

When we last heard from our friends, Bright Dwight and Silly Willy, Willy had given up on ever swimming across the river and making it to the market to sell his heavy load of apples. He sat upon the bank, despondent, wondering what could be done to solve this river problem. His brother, Dwight, on the other hand, had devoted his thought, time, energy and resources to building a boat. His boat was strong and swift, and he glided across the river to the market with his load of apples and returned with a tidy profit.

Silly Willy knew that the river had been a threat in previous years. He had heard tell of the swift and rapid stream (SARS) a few years earlier. And only the previous year, waterfowl had been seen swimming in the river, giving rise to great fears of bird flow. And this very year, wild boars had been seen frolicking upon the banks of the river upstream of the village. “Certainly, with hogs in the river,” Willy thought aloud, “we must protect ourselves against swine flow.” Silly Willy thought and thought, and soon formulated a brilliant plan. “This river is a menace to all our land,” thought Willy. We must prevent this dangerous and life-threatening flow.”

Willy rose early the next morning and swam across the river to meet with the Village Executive Council. He swam with fear gripping his heart for he knew that the river threatened his very existence.

“First there was SARS, then Bird Flow, and now Swine Flow,” admonished Silly Willy to the council. “This river is a grave threat to the people of our fine village. Something must be done!”

“Yes, but what?” Asked the Chief of the Executive Council.

“We must stop the flow before it can reach us,” answered Silly Willy. “We need only build a dam, far upstream, and that will prevent the water from ever reaching us.”

“Brilliant!” exhorted the Chief Executive.

“Yes, brilliant indeed!” echoed the council.

“From now on, you will be known as Wise Willy,” proclaimed the Chief Executive.

“Wise Willy…Wise Willy…Wise Willy!” chanted the council with great adulation.

Soon after, the wisest of the land’s Magnificent Dambuilders (MD’s) teamed up with the Committees for Drainage and Canals (CDC) and before you could say, “belly flop,” they had a plan approved by the Fence and Dam Authority (FDA).

The people of the land rejoiced at the wisdom of the plan, knowing that their lives would be safer and more pleasant as soon as they were dammed.

Most people rejoiced, but not all…

Some warned that damming the river was dangerous, and a dam would never work anyway. Among these voices of reason was Bright Dwight. “We need the river,” he said. “If the river stops flowing, everybody’s well will go dry. Dry wells are a much greater threat to our health than a flowing river. We must preserve our wells. Well-ness is far better for us than trying to prevent the flow.”

“Preposterous!” replied the MD’s and the CDC in unison. “Don’t you know that 36,000 people die each year from the flow?”

“Um…who?” asked Dwight.

“Well…(ahem)…uh…we don’t know exactly who. Everybody just knows that 36,000 people die from the flow every year. This is an incontrovertible truth because we say it every year.”

One villager chuckled to a friend, “These ‘well-ness’ people are strange ones, to be sure.”

“Strange indeed,” agreed the friend. “And this Dwight fellow is the strangest among them. Too bad he isn’t brilliant like his brother, Wise Willy. Obviously one brother got most of the brains in the family.”

With that, this story—from a time long ago and a land far away—comes to a close. I don’t need to tell you the outcome. It’s easy to figure out…

Author’s note: Please forgive the unsophisticated humor in this tale. You may even consider it pun-demic! (Oh, that one even makes me groan!)

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor, Energy Healer, Lightworker
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Empower your potential, not your problems!

2009-10-04T04:04:00.000-07:00

Two brothers— Bright Dwight and Silly Willy—had grown up together and decided it was time to leave the cozy hearth of their mother's and father's home, and make their own way in the world. They set out on an early spring morning and spent the days walking the byways and marveling at the beautiful mountains, forests and rivers of the surrounding countryside. As they traveled, Dwight and Willy shared their dreams, excited about the many possibilities that lay before them.

By and by, they came upon an old apple farmer who wanted to spend the rest of his days in leisure and offered to sell them his apple orchard. After a lively discussion and a good bit of friendly haggling, they struck a fair bargain, with each brother buying one half of the orchard.

Growing up, they had learned much about farming. Now, as the months passed, they tended their apple trees with skill and nurtured them with love. When the cool breezes of autumn arrived, both Dwight and Willy enjoyed abundant harvests and each expected to reap a handsome profit when they sold their delicious, juicy apples at the market.

The bustling village market was nearby, just on the other side of a deep, wide river that ran past the brothers’ orchards.

Willy viewed the river with great consternation, worrying about how he would ever be able carry his heavy load of apples across such a great obstacle. He loaded all of his fruit into large sacks and stepped into the flowing river, intent on swimming to the other side. Although he was a strong swimmer, his heavy load caused him to sink beneath the surface when he was still but a short distance from the bank. It took all of his strength to struggle, sputtering, back to the bank from which he had come. He tried time and again, always achieving the same result. Eventually, he used up all of his energy and fell, exhausted onto the ground.

“I give up,” he moaned. Willy cast a forlorn glance at the bustling market on the other side of the river. “This river is much too great an obstacle for me to cross with such a heavy load of apples. I guess I have no choice but to give up apple farming.It's not my fault and there's nothing I can do about it.”

Dwight had not even noticed his brother’s struggles. He had been busy building a boat.

To be continued next week...

Take the Next Step...

2009-09-27T03:52:00.000-07:00

See that beautiful picture? It's not just of a magnificent mountaintop on a gorgeous day. Look closely and you'll notice a tiny speck at the top. That tiny speck is a person. In fact, it's me! I'm standing atop the Selkirk Crest way up north in the Panhandle of Idaho.

The view from the summit was one of the most amazing I have ever expeirenced. To the west lay sparkling blue Priest Lake. To the southeast stretched the vast, silent and mysterious Lake Pend Oreille, the largest and deepest lake in Idaho. Snaking its way to the east was the rugged and green Pack River Valley. The memory of that magnificent vista still gives me goosebumps!

It wasn't an easy trip. It took hours of bushwacking and boulder hopping before we made the summit. There was no trail to the top, so the route wasn't obvious. Some of the routes we tried didn't work. Several times we had to turn around, backtrack and try another route. The dead ends weren't "failures" because each of them presented their own backcountry beauty. Eventually, we made it to the top. We had an objective; we made a commitment and we kept going until we reached our mountaintop.

There are magnificent vistas awaiting you. Even if you have no idea how to get there, you always have one thing available to you: your next step!

Until next time,
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

(Photo credit: Chic Burge)

Your body is smart!

2009-09-20T04:04:00.000-07:00

During a trip to India several years back, I visited an old fortress that had a large population of monkeys. Although the monkeys usually managed to tolerate the thousands of visiting tourists, sometimes—as I learned personally—they can become downright unfriendly. At one point, I ventured a bit too close to a female monkey who had a baby with her. She felt threatened and attacked me. Monkeys have sharp fingernails and the attack left me with several deep, bloody scratches on my forearm, not to mention a significantly elevated heart rate and just the slightest bit of shakiness.
What did I do to treat this potentially serious wound? Well, basically, nothing. No antiseptic or antibiotic ointment found its way to my cuts, nor did any bandage shield them. Afterwards, contrary to conventional medical wisdom, I chose not to get a tetanus shot. My scratches never got infected and they healed nicely with no scarring at all. My arm was able to heal without any outside intervention because...
My body is smart!
Your body is smart, too. Nature designed all of us to be healthy and vibrant. Nature’s ingenious design gave us an innate intelligence that we carry with us throughout our lives. When we are injured, it is the wisdom within, and not what we put on, that does the healing. It is our innate intelligence that allows us to heal, grow and thrive.
When the monkey attacked me, my innate intelligence initiated my fight or flight response, and my internal functions shifted gears instantaneously. My pupils dilated to make my vision more acute. My hearing and mental ability became more focused. My blood glucose concentration increased to give me a surge of energy, and more blood flowed to my muscles to give me a burst of strength so I could jump away. The blood supply to my digestive organs decreased. Digestion was not important at that moment. I had to get outta there!
As soon as the threat from the frightened monkey ceased to exist, innate intelligence allowed me to resume my normal mode of living. My muscles relaxed, my heart slowed back down and my digestive processes resumed. Thousands of internal functions that had so radically shifted just seconds earlier, gradually readjusted moment by moment, at exactly the right time, in precisely the right sequence. All of this happened within the space of just a few minutes and I did not even have to think about it.
Brilliant!

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

What is the center of your world? You get to choose!

2009-09-13T04:00:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Cricket and I were in Yuma, Arizona visiting family. On Sunday, we took a short road trip across the river and visited the tiny desert community of Felicity, California. Felicity has the distinction of being The Official Center of the World.

This auspicious title isn't just something that the residents decided to paint on a sign. It's a designation that is officially recognized and codified into law by the governments of Imperial County, California, and France. (Hey, official is official.)

Here's the important thing: Of all of the communities in all the world that could have been selected as The Official Center of The World, Felicity is the one who has the title. Why? Because they went for it.

It wasn't random and it wasn't blind luck. Felicity is the Official Center of the World by design.

Reflect for a moment on what the center of your world is. Is it something you chose, or did it just...kind of...happen? Or might it even be something someone else chose for you?

The center of your world is your choice. Choose wisely!

Click here to read more about Felicity.

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

First, add value.

2009-09-06T04:00:00.000-07:00

This photo of a beautiful sunrise
is a perfect metaphor for today's thought.

Soft morning sunshine is illuminating the smoky wilderness rather than darkness being removed.

Life works the same way.

"I'm going to start eating more fruits and veggies," is more empowering than, "I gotta stop eating so much junk food."

"I've been wanting to learn to meditate. I feel like this is a good time to start," is more affirming than, "I need to stop stressing out so much."

"I'd like to get back to shooting hoops," is more fun than, "I'm going to quit watching so much TV."

There's something positive you've been wanting to add to your life. Today is a good day to start. Enjoy it!

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

Health is synergy.

2009-08-30T20:55:00.000-07:00

Contemplate this photo for a few moments. Elegant genius...!

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

You are more than just the main character in your life story. You're also the writer, the producer and the director.

2009-08-23T04:00:00.000-07:00

(And, although I have no idea what a key grip is, you're probably the key grip, too.)

Here is a story about two friends. You know both. You probably identify with one more than the other. One may even be your clone.

Once upon a time, two friends sat down to catch up. One had driven over from a fast food restaurant via the nearby donut shop. The other wheeled in on a bicycle, carrying a few bags of organic foods from the local Farmers Market. The cyclist commented on how wonderful it was that they were finally getting some rain, and told of recent experiences that had brought joy and fulfillment...then got an earful as the donut eater complained about politicians, the boss, the traffic, the economy and every other aspect of life including nonstop headaches ("I just ran out of iburofen. Do you have any I can bum? You don't? Hmmm. I'll pick some up on the way home.")

As they parted, one of the friends hopped in the car, stomped on the gas and sped off to make it home for prime time. The other pedaled away to drop the vegetables off at home and still had plenty of time to walk to yoga class.

Now, this is a different sort of story. I'm not going to tell you the ending or even the middle. I'm only telling you what's happening today. The two characters that I introduced each get to write the rest of their own story. The plot, supporting characters, ending (and even the key grip, I guess) are all a matter of choice.

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

You can’t conquer your fears. (Why would you want to, anyway…?)

2009-08-16T00:04:00.000-07:00

Let’s face it; we’re all human and humans have fears. Fear is an inextricable, necessary and even a beautiful and perfect part of you. If you try to defeat your fears you’re just fighting yourself.

Let me tell you about one of my fears.

Yellow jackets.

In the summer of 2003, I was out cutting firewood, and some yellow jackets apparently took exception to my chainsaw. So they swarmed me. They stung me through my jeans and through my shirt. There were yellow jackets in my hair and even one inside of one of my gloves, stinging me. In all, I think I got about 20 stings -- enough stings to elicit a minor anaphylactic reaction. It was a painful and frightening experience.

Although it has been six years since my run in with the yellow jackets, I still have some fear of them. Even so, I don’t let the fear determine whether or not I enjoy my life. Here in North Idaho, the easiest way to avoid yellow jackets is to stay indoors. If you look back over my earlier blogs, you’ll see numerous posts about hiking, backpacking, trail running and kayaking. Obviously, I love to spend time outdoors and, even though I’m uncomfortable whenever a yellow jacket is buzzing around me, I still enjoy spending as much time outside as I can. What’s the worst thing that can happen? I can get stung. In fact, last summer, a yellow jacket stung me right on the upper lip. Wow, did that ever HURT! But I healed. I haven’t conquered my fear of yellow jackets—it’s still there—I just don’t let the fear imprison me.

The challenges in your life that give rise to fear are always an opportunity for you to learn, grow, evolve and become stronger. So don’t try to conquer fear; embrace it. Don’t allow yourself to be paralyzed by it and don’t let fear be the determiner of your life experience.

Take a look at the photo above. I took it jut a few days ago with my camera phone. My hand was just inches away. I was nervous, but I didn’t want to pass up that fleeting opportunity to capture the beauty of the yellow jacket sitting on the flower. The lesson: even if I’m afraid, I’m still willing to go after what I want. Good lesson; good self reflection; good feeling.

Until next time,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

Are you hoping for a healing miracle? The miracle is already inside of you, just waiting to be released…

2009-08-09T00:19:00.000-07:00

There are countless miracle stories in Chiropractic, especially when it comes to children. One of my favorite miracle stories is the one of little Winifred Gardella. Stricken with polio, Winifred was the March of Dimes poster child in 1952-53. The image of this beautiful little girl standing with crutches and leg braces tugged heart strings nationwide. After two and a half years of the finest medical care available, her doctors pronounced her “hopeless” and condemned her to a life on crutches and braces.

Little Winifred, March of Dimes poster child, 1952-1953.
(Before Chiropractic)

Winifred’s grandparents refused to accept this fate and sought something different. They took Winifred to Dr. Lewis Robertson, a Chiropractor in Glendale, California. After six months of Chiropractic adjustments, Winifred no longer needed crutches or leg braces. She was again able to ride her tricycle and play with her friends!

Winifred after Chiropractic.
No more crutches, no more braces.
Ready to run and play again!

Did Dr. Robertson “cure” Winifred’s polio? No. What Dr. Robertson did was facilitate the expression of life. Chiropractic adjustments released Winifred’s own miraculous potential for vibrant health. It was her own innate healing ability—her beautiful and powerful life force—that allowed her to throw away the crutches and braces, and run and play again!

Photos originally published in Chiropractic Home, August 1957.

All I really need to know -- about health and about life -- I learned from my dog.

2009-08-02T00:04:00.000-07:00

Radar

Radar is a master of the art of life.

Radar is all about joy

and love

always...

With everyone.

"Wherever you go, go with all your heart." ~Confucius

2009-07-29T00:13:00.000-07:00

The answer to our society's healthcare challenges -- and yours -- isn't who pays. It's who takes responsibility.

2009-07-26T00:09:00.000-07:00

This is me, living a healthy lifestyle --
physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

One of the hottest topics in the news of late is the healthcare reform debate in our nation’s capitol. Put in simple terms, the discussion boils down to one question: “Who’s gonna pay for my health?”

Whatever answer eventually emerges as the winner in the current debate, it won’t make any meaningful change in the health of our society. Health costs are a challenge, but they aren’t the real problem. Spiraling costs and an ineffective healthcare delivery system are mere symptoms. The root problem is the predominant, rigid belief system that health comes from someone else. A majority of people have relinquished responsibility for their personal health and well-being to external parties. That’s understandable. We’ve been conditioned that way our whole lives. How many times have you heard or read, “always consult a doctor before you…?” And how many times have you been told that such and such a drug, supplement, machine, etc., is necessary for you to achieve and maintain good health?

Health comes from within and only from within. It does not, never has, and cannot come from the outside. The only way we will ever have a healthcare system that actually enhances the health of our population is to instill in everyone a sense of personal responsibility for one’s own health and well-being. When that happens, lifestyles will change, dependence on expensive medical care will be greatly reduced, and the need for most pharmaceuticals will disappear. Think that might save a few dollars?

Getting back to basics is powerful, often difficult...and, ultimately, unavoidable.

2009-07-19T00:19:00.000-07:00

Double rainbow picture I took from my
backyard a few years ago.

Deja vu?

You may notice that the title of this week's blog is the same as last week's. Last week, I addressed the first part: that getting back to basics is powerful. This week, I'm addressing the part about basics being difficult but ultimately unavoidable.

Take a look at the photo above. It's a double rainbow -- a rare and breathtaking spectacle. The concept of a rainbow is pretty simple. The rays of the sun shining through water droplets suspended in the air refract into the colors of the visible spectrum. We all learned about that in elementary school science classes. We can duplicate the process with a prism. Simple. Basic. Why, then, do I claim that getting back to basics can be difficult? Well, I would suggest that a rainbow is more basic than a prism-generated spectrum because a rainbow does not require anything that is human made. Although a rainbow is more basic, it's a good bet that humans will never be able to duplicate the majesty of a rainbow arcing across the sky.

It's the same with health. Even with the countless drugs, "natural" remedies, surgeries, therapies, machines, books, retreats and everything else humanity has invented, healing always -- always -- comes down to the healing wisdom that resides inside each of us.

Now take a look at the next photo.

Hot air baloon photo I took from my
front yard a few years ago.

A hot air balloon operates on a simple principle. Hot air rises, therefore a balloon filled with hot air will fly. Wind currents at different altitudes move in different directions, so it is possible to steer a hot air balloon by changing altitudes. No ailerons, vertical stabilizers or pitot tubes required. A hot air balloon may not be as fast or precise as a sleek new Boeing 777, but it's a lot safer because a balloon is in resonance with Nature. I doubt any hot air balloon gondolas are equipped with the same state of the art entertainment packages as the latest airliners, but the experience of floating in silence above the beauty and grandeur of the Earth will leave a more indelible memory than a first class airplane flight because flying in a balloon is flying closer to Nature.

High tech airplanes, balloons and all other aircraft have one thing in common. They all gotta land. It's unavoidable. The only way anyone can restore, improve or enjoy health is by facilitating the expression of one's inherent vitality.

Getting back to basics is powerful, often difficult...and, ultimately, unavoidable.

2009-07-12T00:09:00.000-07:00

Perfect reflection. Simple.

This month, in my yoga class, we're working on the yoga posture that is the most difficult of all to master. It also happens to be the most basic. At class this past Thursday, it struck me that that's a perfect mirror for life.

The especially difficult posture I'm talking about is sitting. That's right; sitting. Seems simple, but try sitting motionless, spine straight, mind quiet, for even a few minutes. Sitting is an important skill to develop. Even if a yoga practitioner never "masters" sitting, regular practice of that basic posture will enhance one's overall practice.

That's an important reflection of our approach to health. As a society, we have become so enamored with new technology -- "miracle" drugs, vitamin supplements, surgery, machines, natural remedies, new therapies and the like -- that we have lost sight of the healing gifts of Nature.

Think about it. How much healthier would humanity and Mother Earth be if we all ate fresh, whole, local foods, drank clear water, exercised regularly in Nature, and practiced a living art such as yoga or tai chi? In my profession -- Chiropractic -- how much more powerfully would we serve if we focused on empowering life by just adjusting rather than treating complaints with gizmos and peddling other products?

One thing that I have observed time and time again -- in myself and those that I serve -- is that the most amazing health breakthroughs come when we embrace the simple, breathtaking healing wisdom of Nature that exists right inside of each of us.

More thoughts on this next week...

Your body is not just for display, it's where you live, work and play.

2009-07-05T00:20:00.000-07:00

If you re trying to lose weight, and are doing so mainly for the sake of appearance, chances are, you will fail. Again. And you might be sacrificing your health in the process. There is one reason why almost all diets fail:

Usually, a diet is a process of doing something you don’t like...
to take care of something you don’t like.

What are the odds of that succeeding?

Here’s a real life story that illustrates this point vividly. When I was a captain in the Marines, we had a Gunnery Sergeant in my outfit who did not meet the official Marine Corps height and weight standards. Back then, the Marines had a program known as the Weight Control Program. Despite its official wording, it played out as appearance-oriented, and had little to do with health and performance.

Even though the Gunny was deemed overweight, he was in pretty decent shape. He easily passed the Marine Corps physical fitness test (PFT) and he could perform all of the duties required of him. That didn’t matter when the Gunny hopped on the scale. Time after time, the doc had to slide the weight farther along the bar than was allowed. There was no avoiding it; we had to put the Gunny on weight control. Once on weight control, a Marine was given a certain amount of time to lose a specified amount of weight. Failure to lose the weight meant a discharge from the Marine Corps. Despite a great deal of counseling, cajoling, joining the Run for Lunch Bunch, and weekly weigh-ins, the Gunny went quite a long period of time without losing any weight. He eventually found himself with one month left and still a long way to go to meet the standard. He was facing the end of an honorable and productive career because of that stubborn spare tire. Out of desperation, he went on a crash diet. He lost a lot of weight in that last month and met his objective.

He succeeded!
He made it to his healthy weight!
He was off weight control!
Hooray for the Gunny!
Hooray for the Weight Control Program!

Then...

The Gunny failed his next PFT. He looked better in his uniform, but he had weakened himself so much in his desperation weight loss that he could no longer accomplish his mission. We had a good looking, physically unfit leader of Marines. My purpose for telling this story is not to criticize the Marine Corps. I love the Marines. They have my deepest respect and admiration, and always will. Physical fitness is paramount in the Marines, and I would never suggest that Marines be allowed to have unhealthy bodies. I tell the Gunny’s story to show that the ultimate purpose of the old weight control program—although ostensibly to improve health—was really to make Marines look better. What happened with the Gunny did not serve the Marine Corps and it certainly did not serve the Gunny. Thankfully, the Marine Corps has a better program today than the one we had back then.

The Gunny’s story is a reflection of our society. Many people resort to unhealthy, even dangerous lifestyles in their quest for that ever-elusive Hollywood physique. People have even died on that quest. Good looks, as defined by fashion and fitness magazines, are mere judgments.

When you eat for the vitality that fresh, whole foods give you, rather than dieting for looks, your health and life will improve.

Exercise is for elevating your spirit, not just your heart rate.

2009-06-28T00:08:00.000-07:00

I have discovered the perfect exercise program. Two simple steps. Guaranteed to extend the years in your life and, more importantly, to improve the life in your years. It's a program that can be custom tailored to most people.

Step 1: Think of a few physical activities that you enjoy, used to enjoy, or have been wanting to try.

Step 2: Go out and enjoy them!

It would probably take more than ten fingers to count all of your friends, acquaintances and relatives that have plunged into a workout regimen but quit after a short time because they lacked the motivation. And…it may take all of your digits to count the number of times you have done that yourself. In too many lives, exercise without joy has become yet another stress.

Fun is the key to success.

One of my favorite activities is trail running. I enjoy other activities too, but trail running may very well be my favorite. You need only look at the three photos on this blog post – pics I took on a recent trail run – to understand why I love it so much.

We are all busy. We have too much to do and not enough time to do it. If our exercise regimen is something we dread, it becomes easy to ignore it. Why would someone leave something hanging that they have to do, to go do something they don’t like to do?

Physical activity is important for the whole person, not just for the physical body. Our spiritual, mental, emotional and physical aspects are intricately intertwined. Your mind, emotions and spirit dwell in your physical body. The better each one works, the better they all work; when you exercise your body, you also sharpen your mind and nurture your soul. Physical activity makes you feel good deep inside. Being active is part of your core essence. You are designed to move. You must move. All living bodies are enlivened by physical activity.

The greatest benefit of exercise is that it elevates your spirit, not just your heart rate.

Stop worrying so much about IT. Start taking care of YOU!

2009-06-21T00:09:00.000-07:00

In recent years, we have been searching for something new, different and better in our approach to health and well-being. Since 1997, people in the United States now pay more visits to alternative healthcare practitioners such as chiropractors, acupuncturists and homeopaths than to medical doctors. We have thousands of natural and conventional remedies and therapies, and new ones continue to emerge. Yet, as a society, our health continues to decline. So, what are we missing…?

Life!

Even though people are looking outside the medical box, we still have not experienced a fundamental shift in thinking when it comes to our health. Today’s healthcare system—conventional and alternative—seems to ignore health and life. Our overarching concern is disease. We have countless names for the ills that befall us. But there is one name that fits them all: “IT”

We are consumed by IT.

Fighting IT.
Finding a cure for IT.
Losing IT and keeping IT off.
“Let me kiss IT and make IT feel better.”
IT cetera, IT cetera, IT cetera...

We do not have a health care system; we have a disease care system. And again, that holds true for the alternative market as much as the conventional one. We may be buying more herbs and vitamins rather than pharmaceuticals to fight IT, but we still worry mainly about IT.

Well, guess what? IT is YOU!

That’s right. As with vibrant health, IT comes only from within. Sure, there may be external factors in play such as pathogens, trauma, poor nutrition or stress, but all of that needs to be experienced, interpreted and integrated before your body can express IT. Ultimately, IT—however IT manifests—comes from within.

When you fight IT you are only fighting yourself. So stop fighting. Find peace with yourself. That does not mean to “give up and just learn to live with IT.” Just stop devoting all of your time, energy and money to your disease, pain or weight, and start paying attention to your life. Concern yourself with enhancing your life and maximizing your life expression. Place your priority on life, rather than IT, with your loved ones, too. “Let me kiss you and make you feel better.”

Understanding that IT is you does not mean to blame yourself for IT, but it does allow you to take responsibility for your life. Blame anchors you in the past, leaving you with a feeling of powerlessness, whereas taking responsibility gives you strength by allowing you to shape your future.
.
Stop worrying so much about IT and start taking care of you.

Each moment, you are in the process of becoming.

2009-06-14T00:15:00.000-07:00

As I was flying back from Australia a few days ago, I had a profound realization. It was one of those moments that shifts the way you look at everything. Forever.

The flight between Sydney and LAX is a long one. I was taking some time to read a classic spiritual novel, Siddhartha by Herman Hesse. If you consider yourself spiritually conscious and have never read it, I highly recommend it. If you have read it, I recommend it even more. This was my second time through. The first time was in 1979.

Anyway, one passage in the book refers to the sound of the river as, "not just water, but the voice of life, of Being, of perpetual Becoming." For me, that was an illuminating thought. It became clear to me: I'm not just who I am; I'm who I've become. And, in the future, I won't just be who I'll be, but what I become.

As I go through each day, I am not just doing or being; I'm becoming.

All that I say, think, plan, eat, drink, do (or don't get around to), feel, choose, react to -- everything -- contributes to what I am becoming. Kinda makes the mundane more important.

How about you? Take a look at the past week, month, year...
Think about your habits, your relationships, your plans.
What are you becoming...?

The greatest adventure is the journey of self discovery.

2009-06-07T00:03:00.000-07:00

As with last week's post, this is one of my all time favorite healthy thoughts. I'm on holiday in Australia, kicking back and enjoying my time off. I'll be back next week with a new post. Until then, enjoy this collection of a few of my favorite Healthy Thoughts.

Just love yourself!

It's not whether you have the time; it's whether you take the time.

Focus on process, not progress.

Sometimes the fog that shrouds the beauty has a beauty all its own.

Health can change in two ways: by design or by default.

The best health insurance is a wellness lifestyle.

Healing is like a roller coaster -- you may not know what's over the next hill but you can be pretty sure it will be exciting!

How can we know the true power and beauty of Nature if we always "assist?"

Are you seeing the beauty that surrounds you? More importantly, are you recognizing the beauty within you?

You are beautiful and perfect!

Empower your potential, not your problems

2009-05-31T00:01:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite healthy thoughts. At present, I'm on vacation in Australia taking a much needed break. So, instead of writing new blog posts, this week and next week will be collections of some of my favorite Healthy Thoughts. Enjoy!

What you do makes things happen, but who you are decides what happens.

Don't love unconditionally. Just love!

If we are to have peace on Earth, we must first make peace within our own bodies.

Stop avoiding and start living!

Life is an art, not an act.

Trying to get well quick is like trying to get rich quick.

Health is more than the absence of pain, disease or symptoms.
Health is balance
Health is harmony.

Health isn't something you squeeze in. Health is a priority you plan around.

Live your life as a best seller, not as a rough draft.

You are beautiful and perfect!

It's not whether you have the time; it's whether you take the time.

2009-05-24T00:23:00.000-07:00

These days, we're all busy. We feel like we can't possibly fit everything in that we want and need to get done. Often, people let let their health take a back seat. That's a challenge I face myself.

For me, lately, the challenge has been taking the time for physical activity. Lots of important things, good things, things that fullfill and enliven me, things that I care about, compete for my time. In the last couple of months, I've traveled to California, opened a new office in Sandpoint, moved my office in Coeur d'Alene, am preparing for a trip to Australia, and am getting ready to publish and market my first book. I also attend Toastmasters meetings and am heavily involved with the Sandpoint Transition Initiative. So...lots on my plate...all important to me.

What has taken a back seat? Exercise. And you need to understand, I love the things I do for exercise -- yoga, hiking and trail running. My busy schedule isn't an avoidance excuse. For me, it's so easy to get wrapped up in everything I perceive that I "gotta" do, that I've often been known to let exercise slide. Over the past few months, I've missed a lot of yoga classes, and I haven't been on the trail as much as I want (and love) to be.

So, last week, I did something important. I prioritized! Lately, the reality of my schedule is that, every week, something is going to be moved to the back burner. Well, I can promise you (and me) one thing, it's not going to be my health. Because, if my health takes a downward turn, so will everything else. If my health stays vibrant, so will everything else...!

You do have the time to live a healthy lifestyle. Take it!

Good health isn't something you can get. You already have it; you need only reveal it.

2009-05-17T00:15:00.000-07:00

This is something with which I have extensive personal experience. For over 20 years, I struggled with health challenges. And for most of that 20 years, I was in a fight. Eventually, I figured out what I was fighting. Or, I guess I should say, I finally figured out who I was fighting...myself!

I thought of my disease as something external, something I could defeat. And I thought of health as something I would be able to add to my life once the disease was gone. It took me years to realize that all of the vibrant health I could ever want was already inside of me. I also figured out that the disease was part of me too, and not an external invader. By fighting the disease, I was only fighting myself.

When I tell people my story -- that, at times, I could barely walk due to arthritis pain, then later ran my first marathon at age 49 and took up snowboarding at age 50 -- they ask, "how did you do it?"

That's a really tough question for me; there's no easy answer. My current state of vibrant health isn't a matter of what I did, it's who I became. For years, I "did" lots of things to fight the pain. I bounced from this remedy to that gizmo to this treatment to that drug. Doing never got me anywhere. It wasn't until I decided to love myself as a beautiful and perfect being, and began engaging in a glowingly positive internal dialogue that I was able to reveal the robust health that was shining within me all along.

Always remember this: You are inherently healthy!

One of two things will happen to you today: you will either get a little healthier, or a little less healthy. You get to choose...

2009-05-10T00:04:00.000-07:00

"One of two choices?" you ask. "Isn't there a third choice? Staying the same...?"

Nope; there are only two choices. Nothing in between. Ask any business professional or athlete -- you're either growing or shrinking, improving or going downhill. There's no such thing as maintaining. (Why would we want to maintain, anyway, when we can always choose to improve?)

When I tell you that you get to choose, that doesn't mean that your choice needs to be a conscious one. You're making your choice all day long, every day, whether you're thinking about it or not -- what you eat, how physically active you are, how often you have your spine adjusted, how much clear water you drink, how you relax, how much sleep you get, whether or not you engage in a spiritual practice, how much you laugh, and many other choices.

Think back to the choices you made yesterday. Taken as a whole, in which direction did those choices steer you...toward becoming more healthy, or less. What choices will make today...this week...the rest of the year...the rest of your life?

Amid the hype and hysteria surrounding the swine flu, remember one thing: You are inherently healthy.

2009-05-03T00:05:00.000-07:00

SARS...bird flu...swine flu...I'm seeing a pattern. The news media and governments worldwide are administering a huge overdose of fear, while overlooking the most important, most obvious and most powerful form of protection available: The human immune system.

We read headlines about measures being taken to fight the swine flu. Governments are mobilizing, schools are closing, athletic events are being canceled and the VP of the United States is publicly advising his family to avoid subways and airplanes. But I have heard nary a whisper about what we can all do to stay healthy.

Aggressive public health measures may be helpful but your immune system is what is most important. Mobilizing government agencies and canceling track meets, while ignoring human immune functioning is akin to a bank installing a state of the art security system and hiring highly trained guards but not bothering to lock the vault.

So don't buy into the fear. Just take care of yourself. Eat fresh, whole natural foods; be active, drink enough water, get enough sleep, remember your spiritual practice, have your spine adjusted regularly and LIVE.

You probably won't get the swine flu. In fact, chances are, you won't even know anyone who gets the swine flu. But even if you do, your immune system is well equipped to see you through.

When the light is just right, you will discover beauty within you that you never knew existed.

2009-04-26T00:32:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, while landing at the Las Vegas airport, I was capitvated by one of the most dazzling, breathtaking light shows I've ever seen. But it wasn't The Strip. Not New York, Paris, dancing waters, shiny hotel towers or extravagently illuminated casinos. The light show that took my breath away played out on the streets, cars and parking lots of Las Vegas.

Cricket and I were on our way back to North Idaho after spending four fun filled days with her family in Silicon Valley. The trip included a short layover in Las Vegas. As we landed, The Strip happened to be on the side of the plane where Cricket and I happened not to be. Of course, the passengers on that side of the plane were ooh-ing and aah-ing at the shiny human made terrain of The Strip. As far as I'm concerned, they got the boring show.

As our airplane was making it's descent, the sun happened to be precisely at the right angle to illuminate every reflective surface facing us. The sun is so far away that, even as we descended, the relative angle between the sun and the ground didn't really change. So this light show unfolded from when the outskirts of the sprawling city first came into view, until we were on the ground. Thousands upon thousands of car reflectors, and hundreds of street signs glinted brilliantly as we passed. As we flew past each street, the 20 to 50 or more street signs of every cross street flashed a simultaneous brilliant green. Every parking lot was a wave of shining red and amber. Every street was a flowing procession of brightly colored reflection. I have been to Las Vegas several times, and this was by far the most breathtaking light show I have ever seen there. The inherent beauty of the cars, streets and parking lots was revealed by a new light.

"We doctors do nothing; we only help and encourage the doctor within." --Albert Schweitzer

2009-04-10T17:58:00.000-07:00

Are you seeing the beauty that surrounds you? More importantly, are you recognizing the beauty inside of you?

2009-04-05T00:05:00.000-07:00

Below is a great story with a powerful and thought provoking message. It left me doing a bit of deep introspection. Am I appreciating all the beauty that surrounds me? Are you...?

Recently, a friend of mine shared this story at our Toastmasters meeting. It really impacted me so I asked her to forward it to me. (Thanks, Kate!) I knew I wanted to shae it with all of you. It will take a couple of minutes to read -- well worth the time. And, the busier you are, the more important it is for you to pause and take this in...

I personally confirmed that this is legit; not an email hoax. Here's a link to the Washington Post article that tells the whole story:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html

The article will take a lot longer to read, but I encourage you to take the time to read it through to the end and watch the very brief videos that are included. The whole thing took me about 30-40 minutes. I can assure you, it's well worth giving up one of the sitcoms you may be planning to watch. As great as the short version below is, it doesn't come close to capturing the whole story. I was riveted from beginning to end!

And, please take note of my "PS" at the end of this post.

Enjoy the story, the article and the beauty that surrounds you!

Cheers!
Dr. Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Subject: The Violinist In The Metro
A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100.

Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

PS: Here are a couple of illuminating quotes from the Washington Post article that we will all be well served to ponder...

First, a vivid illustration of the wisdom of our children, and how we can learn from them:
"But the behavior of one demographic remained absolutely consistent. Every single time a child walked past, he or she tried to stop and watch. And every single time, a parent scooted the kid away."

And, from a passage about a young man who walked within 4 feet of Joshua but didn't notice him because he was listening to his iPod:
"For many of us, the explosion in technology has perversely limited, not expanded, our exposure to new experiences."

A message that is worth repeating: Now is the perfect time for internal spring cleaning.

2009-03-29T00:15:00.000-07:00

As I've found out over the last few days, sometimes, if you want to clean up a mess, you need to make a bigger mess first.

In last week's post, I mentioned that I was going to participate in a sweat lodge and then start a fast to cleanse myself of old energys and make room for rejuvenation and rebirth. Well, the sweat was powerful; it initiated a very deep cleansing process for me, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I actually felt kind of sick for a couple of days, didn't sleep very well and had some really freaky dreams. And the fast, which I began on Monday, magnified the experience. It wasn't until about midmorning on Thursday that I started to feel a bit normal. By early afternoon, I felt fantastic -- lighter and with more energy than I have had for awhile. I got lots of work done and even went on a short trail run to enjoy the beautiful spring afternoon.

A photo I took from the trail

If I didn't understand the nature of healing, I might have been tempted to end my fast as I started to feel worse and worse. Luckily, I knew what was going on; feeling sick was how my body happened to be reacting to the deep cleansing that was taking place. Sometimes, in order to wash old stuff out, you need to stir it up first.

Over the last week, I have had several new clients. Two of them actually felt a bit worse after their first adjustment. To explain why, I used the analogy of cleaning a room. When you do your spring cleaning, part of the process is pulling things out of drawers and closets so you can decide what stays and what goes. Initially, the room that you're cleaning will have junk strewn all over the place. It will be chaos. Then, as the cleanup progresses, the room begins to look neater and cleaner. Fianlly, the job is done, the room is neat as a pin, and there's no more junk hiding in the closets.

Ahhhhhh.....

Time for some internal spring cleaning! Get rid of what's no longer serving you to make room for better health...

2009-03-22T00:21:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring! This is a time for renewal...for rebirth...

As we all know, one of the most time honored of spring traditions is spring cleaning. I'm an enthusiastic proponent of it myself. But for me, it is not as important to clean out my house as it is to cleanse and renew my self.

There are two personal rituals I practice in conjunction with each spring equinox. First, if you happen to be reading this on Sunday afternoon, think of me -- I'll be sitting with fellow sojourners, in a sweat lodge ceremony of the Native American tradition. The day after the lodge, I will begin a multi-day fast. (I always wait until the day after the lodge to start my fast, because a sweat lodge is followed by a feast, and I don't want to miss the feast.)

Both the sweat lodge and the fast are deep, cleansing experiences, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. They both provide an opportunity to release things that no longer serve -- toxins, foods, vibrations, ego, habits, patterns, relationships, limiting blockages, beliefs, judgements...the list goes on...

When we let go of things we no longer need, we make room for a new, healthier, more empowering way of living. In other words, fasting and sweating -- or whatever avenue you may choose to do your own spring cleaning -- can lead to rebirth.

Enjoy your new life!

What does this image have to do with your health?
I'll leave that to our imagination...

The greatest adventure is the journey of self discovery.

2009-03-15T00:37:00.000-07:00

I went on Arctic expedition the other day...in downtown Coeur d'Alene...during my lunch hour!

I often like to take walks during my lunch hour (which is actually two hours). One of my favorite walks includes walking around the CdA Resort's floating boardwalk, around City Park and back around the boardwalk. The boardwalk is just over a half mile long and is the world's longest floating boardwalk.

It was a bitter cold day. The temperature was close to zero; the wind chill was no doubt below zero. The wind was splashing waves up onto the snow-covered boardwalk, making for icy, treacherous walking conditions on a boardwalk that was rocking heavily.

In all, the route is only about two miles, but in conditions like this, two miles has the feel of a raw, extreme, epic adventure! It was a challenging walk, but exhilirating. And it was just outside my office door. You don't always need to travel to a distant locale to find adventure

In fact, you don't even have to step outside your front door. The most daring, sometimes frightening, always breathtaking journey that you will ever take is to go deep inside yourself.

Your journey will take you to beautiful vistas you could not have imagined, by way of dark canyons you never expected. As you descend into the deepest, darkest of valleys, you will behold magnificent views on the way down. At the bottom you will discover some of the most verdant and unexpected beauty—beauty you could not see from the top. Not until you reach the bottom can you find the treasures that the valley has to offer.

As you climb out of each valley toward the next peak, you will rarely get a straight shot to the top. On the way up you will encounter dips, plateaus and unexpected detours. Each of these milestones has a gift which you will find if you keep your eyes open. You will always find the top. Always. Sometimes it might not look like what you expected. Remain open to the different gifts that life has to offer, and you will always make it to the top...

Enjoy your adventure!
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Are You Afraid of Better Health?

2009-03-08T00:45:00.000-08:00

I overcame a great fear the other day -- my fear of mashed potatoes.

Seriously. Mashed potatoes.

These weren't just any mashed potatoes. They were the ones that had been gradually changing color in a Tupperware container in the back of my fridge since Christmas. This past Christmas, I had the good fortune of partaking in three separate Christmas dinners. As a result, I enjoyed many meals of leftover turkey and fixings. Finally, sometime toward the end of January, I called it quits on Christmas dinner. The last holdout was one small container of mashed potatoes. It has since been lingering behind the orange juice and yogurt, not really in the way and usually obscured from view. On those occasions when I noticed them, I would pause, say to myself, "I need to throw those away. Later." Then I'd slide them back out of the way and close the door. I just didn't want to deal with them. Every time I looked at them, I could tell that finally opening up the container was not going to be pleasant. When I finally did it, it was very unpleasant. But I did it, and now I don't have to deal with it anymore. And I have Tupperware container that I can use again.

So, what does this have to do with health?

Better health means change. And life changes -- even positive ones, and even easy ones -- can be scary. Maybe better health will require you to change parts of your lifestyle that are ingrained and you know will be inconvenient to change. Maybe better health will nullify some of your excuses. If you become healthier, you may not fit in with your current group of friends. Perhaps others don't believe you can change your life, and you're afraid of their nay-saying. Or, maybe, (fill in your own fear here.)

Now is as good a time as any. Reach back to the back of the fridge and clear out your old, green mashed potatoes. Don't be afraid. It'll be OK...

Wishing you a vibrant week,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Sandpoint and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

You are a collection of the finest gems imaginable.

2009-03-01T00:06:00.000-08:00

I had an epiphany the other day when I was doing yoga in the snow. (That’s right…I like to do yoga in the snow. I don’t even bundle up. I wear no more than if I were practicing inside my warm house.) The day was clear, bright and sunny. As I moved through my yoga postures, the sun would catch individual snowflakes at just the right angle, and the glint reminded me of diamonds. My mind formed a picture of me practicing yoga in a field covered with brilliant, sparkling diamonds. I was reminded that the beauty of Nature that surrounded me was a precious gift. This is true every moment of our lives, wherever we may be.

“Ha,” you may be saying, “What if I’m in the middle of a big smoggy city, surrounded by skyscrapers and snarled traffic, and can’t even see Nature? Where’s the beauty there?”

“Well,” I reply, “you are surrounded by your own body, a beautiful and perfect creation of Nature."

Every part of your body – every molecule, chemical, cell, structure, blemish, germ, feeling, thought and dream – is a precious, sparkling jewel. Each individual gem brings you a gift, as does the synergistic whole of your being. Think about it for but a moment you will be able to find the gifts in every part of you.

To illustrate the point, go back and look at the picture at the top of this post. It's a picture of a dead tree on a gray, cloudy, freezing, muddy, slushy day. And it's beautiful!

Yours in beauty and perfection,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene, and Sandpoint, Idaho

The Key to Healing: Just Love Yourself

2009-02-22T00:17:00.000-08:00

If you want to experience deep, core healing, there is one critical first step you must take.

Learn to just love yourself.

Love everything about yourself—your body, your appearance, your gifts, your challenges—everything. At your core, you are love. Just love. Engaging in a moment-to-moment, lifelong process of bringing this core essence to light is a beautiful, powerful, empowering path for healing.

Just love yourself as a being of beauty and perfection. Note that I have not said to “accept” yourself. Just love yourself without feeling obligated to accept or reject anything. I also did not tell you to love yourself “just the way you are.” Just love yourself without regard to what you are, what you were, what you hope someday to be, or what your fears tell you that you may someday become.

Love is the divine light that illuminates your perfect beauty.

You can just love yourself today, in this moment, and still work to grow and evolve in your lifes. To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson: “These roses beneath my window make no reference to former roses or better ones. They are for what they are. They exist with God today.”

Exist with God today—just love yourself.

Until next post,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene, and Sandpoint, Idaho

Enjoy this video about love around the world.

Sometimes the fog that shrouds the beauty has a beauty all its own.

2009-02-08T00:06:00.000-08:00

Do you have a health challenge? If so, be grateful!

We often think of health challengs -- minor or serious -- as something bad, something we need to fight, manage or cure. We feel like they are only getting in the way of how we want to feel and live. But every challenge in life presents an opportunity to grow, improve, evolve and expand. Pain and disease can take us back inside ourselves and show us our beautiful, divine essence. And from there, we can become more than what we were before.

It happened with me; it can happen with you...

Until next post,
Doctor Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene, and Sandpoint, Idaho

Is there something you want to do, but believe is impossible. You CAN do it. Time to get started!

2009-02-01T00:32:00.000-08:00

This past Thursday afternoon, I pulled on my running shoes and Yaktrax, and crunched down a slippery, snowy trail, elevating my heart rate -- and my spirits -- on a grand trail run. As I ran, I reflected that, lately, I've been having a lot of fun doing the impossible.

One of the gretest inventions of all time!

Just a few years ago, the idea of me going for a challenging trail run would have been preposterous. Anyone who knew me would have laughed at such a notion -- and I would have laughed loudest of all.

Steep, slippery trail

If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you know my story. For much of my adult life, chronic arthritis pain made it difficult for me to even walk, much less run or do anything else physically strenuous. Now, I enjoy running regularly. In years past...impossible!

Happy runner!

A couple of weeks ago, I went snowboarding for the first time ever. It's one of the most fun things I've ever done!!! When we first moved back here to North Idaho, my son took up snowboarding. It looked so fun that I wished I could try it, too. But, alas, my pain made it ...impossible!

Although I've only been snowboarding once, I can harday wait to go again...and again...and again! On that first day, my instructor said he was impressed with how well I took to it. (Yeah, I know, he probably says that to all of his students. But I'm sure he really meant it for me.) Before the day was done, I was doing flips, spins, cartwheels quadruple axles, and stuff they haven't even named yet. None of those fancy stunts were actually intentional, but, hey, I was having a great time!

This is me. (Maybe...someday...who knows? It's possible!)

Is there something you'd like to do, but feel is impossible due to your health? It's possible. It might take awhile but IT IS possible. Give it a shot!

I'll close with this quote from an Adidas ad campaign that ran a couple of years ago:

"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it.
Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion.
Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare.
Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary.
Impossible is nothing."

Have a vibrant week!
Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene and Sandpoint, Idaho

Want healthy kids? Let 'em get dirty.

2009-01-25T00:22:00.000-08:00

I offered this profound thought in my August 3, 2008 posting, and was inspired to repeat it by this British TV commercial for a laundry detergent. (Thanks, Cricket!)

This TV commercial is entertaining, but it doesn't explain why getting dirty will help make children healthier. Please visit my August 3 post to read the story of the Bulldogs and learn all about it.

Have a vibrant week!
Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene and Sandpoint, Idaho

A timeless truth that bears repeating: You -- yes YOU -- are beautiful and perfect!

2009-01-18T00:52:00.000-08:00

A life of vibrant health pulses within you, and is waiting to be released. There is one critical step that you must take to begin revealing the vibrant health within you.

That step is to recognize and embrace what I call The Basic Truth:

You are beautiful and perfect!

Yes, you are beautiful and perfect.

When I tell people that they are beautiful and perfect, a common objection is, “I’m not perfect; only God is perfect.” You are a creation of God, made in His image. Would you suggest that one of God’s creations is anything but perfect? Any such opinion is a human judgment—nothing more. “Well then,” you may ask, “aren’t beauty and perfection judgments, too?” The way I see it, beauty and perfection are divine truths. The way to rise above judgment is to acknowledge them as The Basic Truth and recognize that, whenever we are unable to see the beauty and perfection in ourselves or others, it is because we are looking through human filters darkened by a lifetime of fear, conditioning, others’ judgments and a multitude of other shadows.

The suffering soul hobbling down the street bent over in pain is beautiful and perfect, as is his athletic cousin who springs up six flights of stairs. An ailing octogenarian with a terminal disease is just as beautiful and perfect as her healthy, happy newborn great grandchild.

If you desire to enjoy robust health, The Basic Truth is your most empowering point of departure.

Have a vibrant week!
Mark William Cochran
Chiropractor
Coeur d'Alene and Sandpoint, Idaho

"A path is formed by walking on it." --Chuang Tsu

2009-01-11T00:06:00.000-08:00

You are forming a path with every step you take. Will your path take you where you want to go? You have, at your fingertips, some very revealing snapshots that will give you a pretty accurate picture of where you're headed.

The beginning of every new year is a great time for introspection, for reflection, for going deep inside taking a close, objective look at yourself and your life. Do this and ask yourself, "What path am I forming?" If you think you're on the right track, check yourself with these:
How did I spend the last 4 hours?
What was in my grocery cart the last time I rolled through the supermarket checkstand?
How many times did I laugh yesterday?
How many glasses of clear water have I had so far today?
How many times in the last week did I elevate my heart rate, and have fun doing it?
Am I having fun on the path that I'm walking?

I wish you well for a long, enlivening journey!

Your health can change in two ways: by design, or by default. Make 2009 your year of design.

2009-01-04T00:19:00.000-08:00

This thought really covers everything in life.

If you just sit back, feel helpless and deal with whatever happens to come your way, your perfect life is not likely to roll out before you.

On the other hand, you can look to the future; envision what you want, and then figure out who you must become and what you must do to realize your vision. As you travel this journey, you can not judge with certainty how your final chapter will read, but if you have a self empowering vision, work on yourself and take positive action, then you will invite success, abundance, happiness, joy and vibrant health into your life.

In health, this starts with recognizing yourself as a beautiful and perfect being with breathtaking potential. When you embrace this philosophy, and remind yourself of it every day, this will elevate your level of vibration to facilitate the expression of your highest possible potential. If you consistently use building blocks such as regular Chiropractic wellness care, enjoyable physical activity, fresh, whole foods, plenty of water, an enlivening spiritual practice, healthy relationships, rewarding work, intellectual stimulation, and fun, you will ultimately build a life of robust, vibrant health.

As we embark upon a New Year, you have a wonderful opportunity – now – to plant the seeds to grow a wonderful life of your design!

Best wishes for a New Year filled with joy, love, prosperity and vibrant health!

2008-12-28T00:03:00.000-08:00

The Key to Vibrant Health: Let Heaven and Nature Sing!

2008-12-21T00:28:00.000-08:00

Happy holidays, everyone!

Chiropractic facilitates ALL healing.

2008-12-14T00:17:00.000-08:00

Chiropractic has never healed anybody of anything.

Healing is a deep, complex process that includes your physical body, your emotions, your mind and your human spirit. All healing always includes all of these dimensions to some degree. Healing arts and practitioners can facilitate healing, but, ultimately, your healing is driven by the innate wisdom of your being. Chiropractic works with this wisdom at every level -- body, mind, emotions and spirit.

The people I serve in my practice fall across a broad spectrum of health. Most are perfectly healthy, many are in pain, some are on a journey with some sort of chronic disease. All are beautiful and perfect. And for each person, Chiropractic is integral to their healing and growth.

Life is a roller coaster. Have fun!

2008-12-07T00:37:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday I got to do something I've been waiting to do for 38 years!

When I was 12 years old, my family went on a vacation that included a drive up the coast of California. One stop was in Santa Cruz where we got to frolic on the beach. Santa Cruz has a great boardwalk with a classic old roller coaster. Unfortunately, even as close as we were, we didn't get a chance to go on it.

Well, last weekend, Cricket and I visited her family in the San Jose area for the Thanksgiving holiday and we spent a day on the coast. Late in the afternoon, as the sun was sinking low over the ocean, we made it to the boardwalk and went on the roller coaster -- The Giant Dipper.

Cricket and Me in Front of The Giant Dipper
(Isn't she beautiful?)

Needless to say, I was thrilled!

The Giant Dipper is relatively small compared to the mega roller coasters at newer amusement parks. Small, maybe, but WAY exciting! The ride starts out by twisting and turning through a surprisingly long, completely dark tunnel. Then, after emerging into the light, you have the thrilling ups and downs that are the reason for going on a roller coaster in the first place. We had a blast!

The Giant Dipper is a perfect metaphor for life and health. You start out in the darkness, twist and turn through a tunnel, then emerge into the light. Once outside, the roller coaster is a thrilling succession of ups and downs. And we do it on purpose. It's not an accident. We anxiously and happily climb into the car because we know it's going to be FUN!

Today, I happen to be diggin' life. Totally! Other days can be more challenging. But I'm living on purpose, relishing all of the ups and downs. Every one of them!

As I've written before, life is a roller coaster. Enjoy the ride!!!

Here's a video of the Giant Dipper that I found on YouTube.
(I've never met Aaron.)

Healing Comes From Above, Down; Inside, Out

2008-11-30T00:12:00.000-08:00

What do healing and skateboarding have in common...?

When I was a student at Palmer College of Chiropractic, I had a really cool decal on one of my notebooks. It said "ADIO" in large fancy letters. Lots of my friends and teachers thought it was great. I got the decal from my son, Matt. At the time, he was an avid skateboarder. ADIO happens to be the name of a company that makes skateboarding shoes. So, why on Earth would I walk around with a skateboarding decal on my notebook, and why would my Chiropractic friends and teachers think it was so great?

It just so happens that ADIO has been a central concept in Chiropractic from its earliest days. Healing, health and life come from Above, Down and Inside, Out.

It starts with the understanding that there is a power in the Universe greater than ourselves. In Chiropractic philosophy we call that power, "Universal Intelligence." The major premise of Chiropractic is, "There is a Universal Intelligence in all matter, constantly giving to it all of its properties and actions, and thus maintaining it in existence." Your body is a collection of many trillions of cells, thousands of chemicals and countless molecules and atoms. Universal Intelligence is what tells that collection of cells, chemicals, molecules and atoms to be your human body. (Above, Down)

Your have within you an Innate Intelligence or Life Force. Your life force is what causes all of your cells, chemicals, molecules and atoms to work together, in perfect harmony, to give you life. It is the core of your being. Everything you experience in life comes from this core. Life, health, healing, happiness, success--everything! (Inside, Out)

ADIO!

We’re forgetting something. In the food we eat…in healthcare…in exercise…in the way we live. We're forgetting life!

2008-11-23T00:15:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday I got high on…breakfast!

Earlier in the day I attended my weekly yoga class where we practiced an especially powerful type of yoga known as Yoga Nidra. After that, I went for a four-mile run on a scenic, challenging trail. The type of running I do is called ChiRunning, which focuses my life force, and brings in the beauty and chi of my surroundings to carry me along the trail. My post-run stretch consisted of more yoga…in the sunshine…next to the lake. Needless to say, by the time I hopped in my car to head home, I felt fantastic!

At home, I made myself a breakfast that included a locally grown organic apple; an omelet of organic eggs, fresh spinach, organic locally grown sweet onion and some locally produced organic goat cheese. I washed it all down with some delicious whole, raw, locally produced organic goat’s milk. There was such a high vibe in that meal that, by the time I finished, I literally felt high!

Yoga Nidra – more life than a cup of coffee.
ChiRunning with Mother Nature – more enlivening than pounding a treadmill while watching TV. More fun, too.
More yoga – more life than not having enough time to stretch.
Fresh, organic, local, unadulterated, delicious food for breakfast – way, way, WAY more life than an egg McMuffin.

Get high on...life!

It’s “flu season.” Is the flu caused by “germs”?

2008-11-16T00:27:00.000-08:00

The Germ Theory of Disease tells us that germs are the cause of disease. I have a different theory.

Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary defines “Germ Theory” as, “Theory that certain diseases are the result of the presence of pathologic microorganisms in the body.” The same dictionary defines “germ” as, “a microorganism, esp. one that causes disease.”

So, do germs cause disease? To answer that, let’s delve into another important and time honored theory, the Fly Theory of Garbage Dumps. The Fly Theory states: “Garbage dumps are due to the presence of the flies that buzz around them.” I hope you get a good chuckle from this tongue-in-cheek analogy. We all know that flies do not cause garbage dumps; on the contrary, the dumps provide the environment that allows the flies to proliferate. We find flies everywhere, but large concentrations tend to exist where the environment allows them to, like at your local sanitary landfill.

Tomorrow you may go to work, school or the store, and be sneezed on by someone who has the latest bug that is going around. You may catch it, or you may not. If germs caused disease, you would catch the bug every time you were exposed to it, and so would everybody else. Germs are ever present so if germs were the cause of disease we would all be sick all of the time. To quote Bartlett Joshua Palmer, D.C., known as the Developer of Chiropractic: “If the ‘germ theory of disease’ were correct, there’d be no one living to believe it.”

Like flies, germs are everywhere. I learned in a pathology class that the average person in one of our nation’s cities will inhale 10,000 different types of viruses, bacteria and fungi every day. Right now there are more bacteria in your mouth than the number of people sharing our cozy planet. We will never be able to avoid germs; they are an inescapable part of our everyday existence. Germophobes provide a comfortable home to as many germs as Charlie Brown’s hygienically challenged buddy, Pig Pen. No problem. Our immune system allows us to live in harmony with them. If you "catch the bug" it's because your internal environment is in a state that allows pathogens to proliferate. Your cold or flu symptoms are normal, healthy immune responses keeping you in harmony with your external environment.

Germs are present in disease, but they are also prominently present in perfect health.

Should you get a flu shot?
Check out this funny video first!

The best health insurance is a wellness lifestyle.

2008-11-09T00:46:00.000-08:00

A simple blog post for a simple concept:

Enjoy a balanced diet of fresh, natural foods.
Engage in physical activity that you love.
Incorporate a spiritual practice in your life.
Have your spine adjusted regularly to make sure you are in alignment...
...with yourself
...with your external environment
Live!

Reduce Consumption -- Improve Your Health.

2008-11-02T00:34:00.000-07:00

Reduce, reuse and recycle -- great advice for taking care of our Mother Earth. It's also great for your health!

Last Thursday at my yoga class, my teacher, Chris, asked us each to make a personal commitment to helping the planet by reducing our consumption of something. She asked us to think of at least one specific thing we could reduce in our lives. As we meditated and reflected on her request, nothing came to me. I'm already pretty conscientious a about conserving. Still, I knew that there are ways that even the most scrupulous conserver can improve, so I left myself open to discoverig new ways I can reduce my own consumption. I knew something would come up, and it didn't take long. After my yoga class and a great trail run, I ran some errands on the way home. One errand was to a music store to buy a CD I've been wanting. At the checkout stand, I spied some delicious-looking dark chocolate bars, and--on impulse--I bought one. Not the healthiest thing in the world, but after all, I rationalized, I had already burned a lot of calories that morning.

Impulse consumption. Something I've found myself doing a lot of lately, and not something that I need to do at all. Eliminating this impulse buying is a small but effective way for me to reduce my consumption and improve my health at the same time.

Symptoms are your body's way of telling you to make a change.

2008-10-26T00:15:00.000-07:00

This time of year is many people's favorite, including mine. The fall colors here in North Idaho are resplendent!

Autumn is a season of important -- and beautiful -- transition. As the days grow shorter and the temperatures drop, Mother Earth prepares for her winter slumber. As we observe the most visibile of these changes -- the changing leaves -- we marvel at their beauty. Year in and year out, although we have seen it happen many times, we always treasure the fall for its vibrant colors. This is a change we are familiar with, and one whose beauty we recognize.

Soon the leaves will fall and the trees will appear to be lifeless. But we all know that they are still vibrant and alive; we just can't see it. Great potential lies latent in each tree...waiting. Come springtime, new leaves will bloom and we will marvel at their beauty just as we did six months earlier. With these changes comes new growth.

Our bodies go through cycles as well. They aren't as predictable as the seasons, but they always offer us the opportunity to rest, reflect and -- if we're willing -- change. In this change is where our lives expand and our breathtaking human potential unfolds.

Your symptoms are every bit as beautiful and perfect as the colorful leaves on the autumn trees. A new season is at hand -- an opportunity for breathtaking potential to be revealed.

Wellness is a way. It is not a goal, an end or even a means to an end.

2008-10-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

Your health -- are you going to tank...or win?

Wellness is a way of living—a way of being. Wellness is a popular buzz word today, but unfortunately most people have a fuzzy understanding of what wellness really is. I once heard a prominent physician define wellness as, “the prevention and management of disease.” Doc, I respectfully disagree. Wellness is about health and vitality; it has no relation to disease.

Most people believe prevention and wellness to be the same. On he contrary, they are fundamentally different from each other. Let me illustrate the difference by using business as an analogy. Two new business school graduates, Winifred and Tanicus (Win and Tank to their friends) have just earned their MBAs and are charging out into the world of big business to make their fortunes. Tank’s strategy is to steer clear of the pitfalls of the business world so that he can avoid failure. His outlook and approach are based on fear. Tank has a failure consciousness.

Win, on the other hand, chooses to achieve success. She understands what it will take to succeed, and she devotes her time, energy and resources to move in that direction. Win has a success consciousness.

So, time to place your bets. Who will win and who will tank? My money is on Win to win.

The Law of Attraction tells us that what we concentrate on, we invite into our lives. Many “wellness” programs have nothing to do with wellness because ultimately, they seek to prevent disease. They approach health from the same fear based failure consciousness that Tank carries with him into the business world. This does not mean that prevention is bad; it certainly has its place. If it is our main focus, though, it can keep us rooted in the world of disease. A wellness lifestyle, on the other hand, opens the door to success, health, and maximum potential. Which would you prefer to invite into your life?

Maximized Potential Evolves Through Continuous Refinement

2008-10-12T00:03:00.000-07:00

I spent last Thursday examining colons.

Frankly, colons have never been of great interest to me so I never took the time to learn much about them. Now I realize that colons are important, even for a Chiropractor like me, so last Thursday was Colon Day for me. I devoted the day to learning as much as I could about colons, and scrutinizing as many as I could find.

I mentioned in a previous post that I am putting the finishing touches on my first book, Oby's Wisdom! A Caveman's Simple Guide To Health and Well-being. I finished the first version of the book over a year ago but, as any writer will tell you, once you've "finished" a book, the work has only begun. Even with the first draft, I knew it was a special book. With every refinement, it is becoming better and better. By the time it is published, Oby's Wisdom! will be a truly remarkable book.

Over the past months, I have been focusing mostly on the content. One thing I've been putting off is checking my punctuation. I'm pretty good with periods, commas, dashes and the like, but I've never been all that great with colons. As I started scrutinizing my manuscript, it became glaringly obvious that I needed to tighten up my use of the colon. So I cracked open my Prentice-Hall Handbook for Writers and honed my colon skills. It took hours, but in the end, it has really improved my manuscript.

As always, there's a health tie-in here. Refinements are always useful. Regardless of how healthy you may be, scrutinizing the details of your wellness lifestyle and making small but meaningful improvements -- nutrition, exercise, Chiropractic adjustments, spiritual awakening -- will allow you to continue to grow, improve and evolve for the rest of your life.