By Caitlin Rothermel On Vashon, conversations about health happen everywhere, all the time, and go well beyond the typical topics of diagnoses and drugs. We discuss what we eat, where that food came from, how we move, and how we want to age and ultimately die. At a time when conventional healthcare can feel increasingly…
Health Matters, May 2025
Address Your Physical Health Through Subconscious Work
By Dr. Lisa Morse I remember it vividly: The day during my clinicals of naturopathic medicine that I realized how much thoughts and emotions affect our physical health. I was seeing a 70-year-old woman who had a full-body itchy rash. She was attached to the idea that candida was the cause. Upon questioning, it was…
April 2025, Health Matters
Nettles, a Natural Super-Food
By Jayne Simmons Everyone remembers the first time they met nettles in person. Sometimes, you were just trying to step off the trail for a moment, and nettles found you. Or if you are lucky, and you have a good mentor, you got to learn how to fold up the leaf and eat it without…
April 2025, Health Matters
Time Together – Healing
By Ali Elsberry This is a bit of a detour from my usual “Time Together” articles, but I’ll loop back around to that in the end. I have a slightly different approach to healing than the average person. I believe that our health is our full responsibility and ours alone. I don’t believe that you…
Health Matters, March 2025
Eating in Step with the Spring
By Emilia Vogt What do we know about the eating habits of our ancestors? And … what makes our own seasonal, diverse diets so different from ancient meals? Many eating a primal diet will tell you that our ancestors’ plates were heavy on meat and low on carbs … and that, as a result, we have…
Health Matters, January 2025
Seasonal Affective Disorder
By Dr. Marli Parobek, DNP Greetings, fellow Vashonites! With the rain and dark in full swing, we are primed and ready to discuss Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), otherwise known as “The Winter Blues.” According to the National Institute of Health, SAD is defined by a new onset of depression with symptoms that last 4-5 months,…
Health Matters, January 2025
Restoring Magnesium After the Holidays
By Kathy Abascal Editor’s Note: Please enjoy this article, reprinted from the January 6, 2011 Vashon Loop and just as relevant today. Magnesium is an essential mineral. It regulates and helps maintain normal blood pressure. Magnesium also helps regulate our cholesterol levels. Low stores of magnesium increase the risk of abnormal heart rhythms, associated with…
December 2024, Health Matters
Herbs for the Holidays
By Kathy Abascal Editor’s Note: Please enjoy this article, reprinted from the December 2005 Vashon Loop, and just as relevant today! The holidays bring lights, presents, and a variety of tempting foods. We often spend our holidays with people we love in a dysfunctional way. Things may not measure up the way we think they…
December 2024, Health Matters
Why Use a Soft vs Firm Roller?
By Sandi Silagi “Fascia is a network of connective tissue, without beginning and end, which encloses everything in the whole body, from muscles and bones to organs and cells.” Foam rollers are generally thought of as a self-massage technique to ease muscle and fascia tension and improve circulation. The effects of foam rolling have been studied…
Book Review, Health Matters, November 2024
Book Review – The Indoctrinated Brain
Many of us have lived with loved ones who suffered from Alzheimers or other types of senile dementia. More recently, we’ve also seen complaints of “mental fog” coincident with the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 novel coronavirus. One medical researcher, Dr. Michael Nehls, believes he’s found a common mechanism for all of these afflictions. Dr. Nehls…