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Wednesday Mornings 8:00-9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST

Returning to the Body Mind

Returning to the Body Mind is a radio show that revisits the wisdom of the body as the seat of the soul. With so much talk in the media about manifesting and mind over matter we may have forgotten about the importance of the health of our bodies as the foundation for spiritual and personal growth. There is a deep-seated tradition of thinking in the Western world that privileges the mind over the body. Yet even as spiritual beings we inhabit human bodies. The body is truly a temple for our spirit. In order to honor our bodies we need to treat them with optimal respect by properly nourishing them with good hydration, oxygenation, sleep, nutrition, and activities that uplift the soul. On Returning to the Body Mind, radio talk show host Dr. Melissa West will lead you through a series of common sense topics from breathing, hydration, sleep, digestion, and sex as tools not only to optimal health but as a gateway to the soul.

About Dr. Melissa West

Dr. Melissa West is a holistic lifestyle coach and yoga and pilates instructor who helps people surrender to peace in their lives by connecting to and feeding the vital energy in their bodies. Melissa has spent ten years in the health and wellness industry as a yoga and pilates instructor helping adults decrease stress in their lives and improving overall functioning of their bodies from brain longevity to digestion, optimal organ function to healthy weight loss. Melissa learned the importance of a healthy lifestyle as a way to cope with the stress of academia during her studies in a Masters of Arts in Music Criticism and a Ph.D. in Communications and Cultural Studies. Melissa now helps people find peace amidst the turmoil of their anxiety-ridden lives. Lifestyle coaching along with teaching yoga and pilates is a natural extension of the creative expression she learned first through performing music and later through the writing she did for her degrees. Her skills as a scholarly researcher, combined with her experience teaching adults within the university institution adds to the pedagogical skills Melissa brings to talk radio.
 

Radio Show Topics

The Benefits of a Vegan Diet with cook book author Dreena Burton
Wednesday July 9, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
Did you know that the consumption of animal fats and proteins has been linked to heart disease, colon and lung cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, kidney disease, hypertension, and obesity? During this show we will talk about healthy cooking with a vegan diet . Join us with expert guest Dreena Burton, best-selling author of The Everyday Vegan, Vive le Vegan and Eat, Drink and be Vegan to learn the many benefits of a vegan diet. Dreena is an expert on whole grains, legumes, healthy oils and hemp food. As a Mother of two she has created countless recipes, which require little preparation and stove top time. Dreena makes vegan eating delicious and accessible. Learn about using more whole grains, legumes and how to work with ingredients like tempeh, nuts and seeds. We will also talk about baking with whole flours, using unrefined sugars and less oil. You won’t want to miss this show! Vive le Vegan

Energy Psychotherapy with guest Michelle Doucette
Wednesday July 16, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
Energy psychotherapy acknowledges the interconnection between the body, mind, heart, soul and spirit. Energy psychotherapy works on the premise that certain circumstances and events in our lives can interfere with the well being of our body. These circumstances and events can create emotional triggers, physical reactions and spiritual disconnect. In energy psychotherapy the client and practitioner articulate in words the cause of the client’s distress and clear the blockage from the body. Michelle Doucette is a shiatsu practitioner and energy psychotherapy therapist. Her private practice of 19 years integrates body-centered transpersonal energy psychotherapy, Shiatsu, Therapeutic Touch and Kripalu Holistic Bodywork.

Yoga with guest Sheree Nicholson
Wednesday July 23, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
Yoga is an amazing tool that can put you more in touch with your body. It allows you to come back to yourself. In our fast paced life we often override our body with work, television, caffeine, food, alcohol etc. No longer is it okay to work ourselves to death, ignore our bodies and shove fast food in our mouths. Yoga is a way to get in touch with what is really going on in our bodies rather than drowning the warning signs from our bodies with unhealthy habits. Sheree is a certified yoga teacher who has been practicing yoga for ten years. She is the owner of Live with Spirit, one of the yoga studios where Melissa teaches yoga. Sheree believes in yoga as a tool to create a connection between the mind body and soul, ultimately creating a peaceful existence within ourselves. Yoga is a way that we can honor ourselves by taking time to slow down and do things that are right for us. Live with Spirit

Anxiety with my yoga teacher Tama Soble
Wednesday July 30, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
We live in stressful times, and we literally embody the experience of our lives. Many of us hold habituated patterns of tension. These patterns become hardwired into our nervous systems after years of repetitive triggering of the startle reflex, or the fight or flight response. Our systems are flooded over and over again with adrenalin and we get into a cycle of over reacting physically and eventually emotionally and psychologically to stressful situations. Join us for a radio show where special guest Tama Soble will explain the ways that yoga and meditation can help us to manage chronic stress.

Tama Soble began practicing yoga with Esther Myers and Monica Voss in 1984, and is a graduate of the Esther Myers Yoga Studio Teacher Training Program. She earned an interdisciplinary BFA in dance and theatre from York University, and has trained in Body-Mind Centering, contact improvisation and various other movement techniques. As a professional dancer and choreographer, Tama had the opportunity to tour and teach across Canada, in the United States, in Mexico and New Zealand. Tama's background in movement is a rich source of inspiration for her teaching. She finds the interplay between imagery, breath and the physical experience of the asanas particularly powerful in deepening the mind/body connection. Tama teaches classes, teacher training, advanced teacher seminars, and offers retreats in Ontario and Costa Rica. She co-owns and directs Esther Myers Yoga Studio with Monica Voss.
Esther Myers Yoga Studio

Breath – with yoga instructor Monica Voss
Wednesday August 6, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
It has been said you can live for weeks without food, days without water but only minutes without breath. Breath is the foundation for optimal health. In yoga breath practice is called pranayama. Pranayama is a sanskrit word that means control (yama) of the life force (prana). The word pranayama is comprised of two roots: prana and yama. Prana includes the breath, but more accurately signifies the 'vital energy' or 'life force' that permeates the universe. It is also commonly used to describe various yogic breathing exercises that help give the practitioner control of the life force, or pranayama. Breath is the foundation of optimal health. During this hour you will learn the importance of breath to overall health as well as several different breath techniques. You will learn cleansing breaths, detoxifying breaths, breath to help you sleep, cooling breath and breath as a tool for relaxation.

Monica Voss has been a practitioner and teacher of yoga for thirty years, and has been training teachers since 1986. In addition to co-owning Esther Myers Yoga Studio, she offers workshops and retreats in Canada, the U.S., Great Britain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Costa Rica.
Esther Myers Yoga Studio

Listening to your Intuition with psychic Cyndi Tyron
Wednesday August 13, 2008 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PST, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. EST.
Intuition is not a gift given to a select few psychics. We all have psychic power within us. Intuition is an inner knowing that can point us in the right direction. We can get in touch with the signs and ways intuition knocks on our door each and every day. Connecting to your inner guidance is an important way to fulfill your mission and life purpose. Intuition can come in many forms from seeing, feeling, knowing and hearing. Join us with guest psychic Cyndi Tyron to learn how to unleash the power of intuition in your life.

Recent Shows

6/25/08  xxxxx   Women’s Sexual Health with expert guest Sex Therapist Dianne Cassidy   Are you too exasperated, exhausted, and dissatisfied to enjoy a healthy sex life? Do you long for love, passion, closeness, empathy, respect, mutual caring, pleasure, a sense of renewed energy, connectedness to your partner and most importantly yourself. In this radio show we will attempt to redefine and shift negative beliefs about women's sexuality and so-called low libido using the best of Eastern and Western philosophy. Diane Cassidy is a sex therapist who has worked as a psychotherapist for the past twenty-six years. She is the owner of Sacred Quest: A Spiritual Pathway to your Authentic Self, a unique book, gift and resources store that provides products and services on topics related to health, wellbeing, personal and spiritual growth.   xxxxx 6/18/08  xxxxx   The Spine with guest Dr. Sarah Strano Dr. Sarah Strano BA, BPHE (Hons), DC is a family wellness Chiropractor and clinic director. She is a wellness advocate and health promoter, with a special interest and her mission is to help as many people as possible reach their optimal health potential and abundant vitality through gentle, natural and holistic chiropractic care. Dr. Sarah's approach to health and wellness incorporates a full-spine, whole person approach. In this show Dr. Sarah Strano will enlighten us about the spine - the central nervous system and master control system of the body. She will explain the ways that the nervous system coordinates the respiratory, digestive, muscular, and immune systems. She will also clarify how information from both the internal and external environment travels through the spine to get to the brain, just as the information and decisions made in the brain go through the spine to effect certain outcomes. Join us for an exciting show in which Sarah will help us to improve the health of our spines and improve overall energy flow in our bodies. xxxxx 6/11/08  xxxxx   The Seven Channels of Elimination with holistic nutritionist Vilma Laurito Are you interested in detoxification? Join Melissa’s expert guest Vilma Laurito and learn about the about the seven channels of elimination. Knowing these seven channels of elimination can be key to the best possible health. In this show, Vilma will teach you how to keep each of the seven channels of elimination functioning optimally. Join us and bring your questions to find out how to keep the lungs, liver, lymphatic system, blood, skin, colon, and kidneys at their prime and say goodbye to toxic substances forever!   xxxxx 6/4/08  xxxxx   Connecting Our Internal and External Environments with expert guest Andy James Andy James is an acknowledged Master of the “internal” sciences and an advocate of integrating both the “external” and “internal” worlds. He is a Co-director of The Forge Institute’s “Global Spiritual Citizenship” initiative. In this exciting and informative show Andy James will help to synthesize the internal and external environments which affect our well being. Environmentalists, economists, health practitioners, politicians and other specialists are now telling us that many “issues” in the “external” world are interconnected. Spiritual teachers and leaders, alternative health practitioners, mind-body teachers and more are telling us in their own ways that the various aspects of our “internal” world are interconnected – body, energy, emotions, mind and spirit. Confused? Andy will help tie it all together! xxxxx 5/28/08  xxxxx   CranioSacral Therapy with Martez Schembre-Diskey Craniosacral work is a holistic healing practice which uses extremely light finger pressure to optimize a movement pattern within the body which is known as the "cranial wave." Craniosacral therapy is especially known for releasing painful or restricted conditions anywhere in the body. Craniosacral therapy helps the client access their own wisdom and therefore empowers the client to deal successfully with many different life situations. Craniosacral therapy can be useful in uncovering the emotional trauma underneath the pain in the body. Through a process of somatic emotional release, the client can release the trauma and thus relieve pain and improve the overall functioning of the body. Martez Schembre-Diskey is a craniosacral therapist and owner of Hands on Heath Care a wellness center in Whitby Ontario dedicated to providing excellent health care for over fifteen years. xxxxx 5/21/08  xxxxx   Vegetarian Cooking Harmony Dawn Style with guest Nicola (author of The Dao of Harmony Dawn Cooking) Join us for an exciting hour with hilarious vegetarian chef, Nicola Lawrence. Nicola Lawrence is the owner and vegetarian chef at Harmony Dawn retreat center in Southern Ontario. Nicola will explain how to create harmonious balance in your vegetarian cooking. Her passion for creating yin-yang balance in food is contagious. Nicola will help us explore the practice of macrobiotic, organic, vegetarian cooking to create a yin-yang balance in the body. In Nicola’s own words, “Selecting more balanced foods helps to promote physical and mental vitality, equilibrium and positive outlook. It also reduces craving, which is a sign of imbalance”