Bach Flower Remedy |

Nine Star Ki, Bach Flower and Medicinal Tea Class

Setsubun ((節分) is February 3, the day before the beginning of spring/the new year in the old calendar in Japan is over, and Nine Star Ki’s new year has started. (it starts the day after Setsubun).

This year’s my first class was held last weekend.

I taught Nine Star Ki, Bach Flowers, and Medicinal Tea (support winter organs, kidneys, and bladders).

See what kind of year you will be in 2023 at Nine Star Ki, and get help to spend this year mentally (emotionally) meaningfully at Batch Flower.

Traditionally, the Kyoko area has new year’s tea Obukucha (Kombu kelp and Umeboshi plum tea with green tea), but I chose the medicinal tea of Nettle instead of green tea with Kombucha kelp and Umeboshi plum for the class.

The hour-and-a-half class ended in no time.

First, I asked everyone to write down their goals from this year (and three years and ten years), what is preventing them from progressing toward that goal, and what they are doing to reach it.

After that, I explained briefly by checking everyone’s Nine Star Ki number.

Many people who participated in the class were with Three Tree. Other people were Two Soil, Four Tree, and Seven Metal.

This year’s Nine Star Ki is “Four Tree” in the center (above is Nine Star Ki Basic “Five Soil” is in the center). Four Tree is growing and prosperous in Nine Star Ki.

To thrive this year, we all need to be in shape. What does mean “need to be in shape”? It is not a physical shape the case.

In the class, I explained to everyone that after planting seeds of what you want to do and it sprouts, then thinning is sorting out/shaping up the things that have sprouted and grown and focusing on only the things you want to grow.

It also means that you must clean up what you have been procrastinating or not connecting with your feelings, so you also need to mentally and emotionally organize yourself.

For example, those who attended the class, especially for people with Three Tree are in the position of growing up more this year, so they need to be thinned out.

The person with the Two Soil was in the position of sowing seeds last year, so it is necessary to water and give the sunshine so the seeds will sprout and spend every day regularly.

People with Four Tree‘s nature is growing in Nine Star Kinninth, but this year they are in the center position. They might feel the energy from the left, right, up, and down (it means from everywhere or everybody)will come in, so they might support other people’s prosperity more than themselves. Remembering to support yourself to grow more this year is important.

Seven Metal person is the year of sowing this year. It’s the year to start new things.

It’s different from Nine Star Ki, but this year’s Chinese zodiac is Water Rabbit year.

The Rabbit represents peaceful and patient energy. The Rabbit is a gentle creature known for thinking things through before acting. This energy will encourage us to approach challenges and opportunities calmly and rationally. In addition to the Rabbit’s peaceful energy, the Water element brings intuition and inner peace. Water is all about tapping into our inner wisdom and trusting our instincts. It encourages us to be more in tune with our emotions and sensitive to those around us.

As the Year of the Rabbit 2023 has come, it’s time to tap into its energy and make the most of it. Let’s focus on building strong connections with loved ones, colleagues, and anyone else in our lives. After all, the Rabbit is known for its ability to create and maintain harmonious relationships.

Next, let’s turn our attention to our careers. 2023 is the perfect time to focus on professional development and advancement. Take advantage of networking opportunities, build relationships with colleagues, and even consider taking on new projects or additional responsibilities.

Of course, the Rabbit represents wealth and prosperity, so according to the Chinese horoscope 2023, it’s a great time to focus on our finances and work towards increasing our income. Whether it’s investing in stocks, property, or other types of savings plans, now is the time to make smart financial moves.

But let’s remember the importance of being cautious. The Rabbit is also associated with trustfulness and an easygoing attitude, but it’s essential to be vigilant regarding potential scams or frauds. Trust, but verify.

On a more creative note, the Rabbit is also associated with creativity and artistic talents. So, let’s tap into our inner artists and explore our creative side. The possibilities are endless, whether it’s taking up a new hobby, trying your hand at painting, writing, or any other form of art that you’re interested in.

Lastly, the Rabbit is also associated with taking care of oneself, so let’s prioritize self-care and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Eating well, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep will help us stay balanced and take advantage of the positive energy of the year. By following these tips, we can make the most of the Year of the Rabbit 2023 and take advantage of the positive energy and opportunities it brings.

[Source: The Chinese Zodiac]

Bach Flower Remedy.

I asked people what they were going through emotionally and mentally.

These are examples of people who attended classes that they needed for Bach Flower Remedy recommendations:

Person in transition – Walnut

People who can’t see the future – Wild Oat

Anxious people – Mimulus

Those who feel resentment for what happened – Willow

Setback – Gentian

People who are taking care of their families all the time and are overwhelmed by responsibility – Elm

Overthinking – White Chestnut

Everyone got their remedies to take home. They will take 2 drops of Bach Flower Remedy at least 4 times a day for 1-2 weeks. I look forward to seeing how all students progress with their remedies.

For the Medicinal Tea, I chose Nettle, which is rich in minerals and suitable for the New Year.

For the New Year, Kombu kelp (I get it from The Seaweed Man)and Umeboshi plum (Check my blog: Santa Monica Homemade Umeboshi plums)with green tea is a traditional drink in the Kyoko area in Japan.

Nettle instead of green tea, which supports the kidneys and bladder and is also beneficial for the liver and lungs.

Kelp benefits the kidneys, bladder, liver, and stomach.

Umeboshi is an alkaline food that aids intestinal function and relieves fatigue, detoxifies, sore throat, fatty liver, and cholesterol, and purifies water.

Herbal tea is easy to make at home, and you can drink it and take care of yourself.

Please give it a try.

Love,

Sanae❤️

Please email me if you are interested in Bach Flower online classes or individual consultations.

Also, if you are interested in Medicinal Tea consultation, please let me know by email.

sanaehealing@gmail.com

Online Bach Flower Remedy Classes in Japanese

Since the Covid/Pandemic year of 2020,
the world has been threatened with fear, anxiety, irritability, loneliness, depression, and increasing domestic violence.

For more reasons, I felt strongly that we now need to connect within ourselves and focus on self-care by receiving holistic natural healing support from Bach Flower Remedy. Finding out and understanding your own feelings/mind/emotions are essential.
I am grateful that I offered my first online Bach Flower Remedy classes in Japanese from March to May 2022.

It was my first time teaching five series of Bach Flower Classes also.
I have been living in America for a long time.
Teaching in my native language, Japanese, gave me the experience of the ability to understand feelings and the mind deeper, which exposed my heart core.
I deepened my childhood favorites to open up to my life when I started to teach the class.
My heart felt so much gratitude.
I appreciate the people who took the classes and Masayo, who made these classes happen.

I shared many of my actual experiences for people to understand flower remedies.
I had so much fun sharing the flowers (some of them were the same flowers of Bach Flower Remedy) that I was growing each class.
Case study every class was so helpful; I used movie scenes/characters as case studies.
I gave one case study:
Will Smith and Chris Rock’s 2022 Oscars Incident Over Jada Pinkett Smith – which was so realistic to understand how to choose Bach Flower Remedy.

Live classes ended, but these classes are still available to take/watch by the archive.
Homework, questions, and comments are all answered by me when you send your email to sanaehealing@gmail.com.
The detail and link are here.

Bach Flower Remedy’s gentle support has helped me for many years (since 1993), many times, hundreds of times, and thousands of times.

I hope I can offer the classes in English near future.

Love, Sanae❤️

What is Bach Flower Remedy for people who do not know about it.

Bach Flower Remedies are made with wildflowers and plants energies transcripted to water.

There are 38 remedies in the Bach remedy system. All of them were discovered in the 1920s and 1930s by Dr Edward Bach, a well-known bacteriologist, physician, and pathologist.

Each remedy is associated with a basic human emotion. Mimulus, for example, is for when we are anxious or afraid about something specific. Taking the remedy helps us overcome our fear and face it with courage.

The remedies are in liquid form so that you can mix together the remedies you need to help balance your current emotional situation. Like Dr. Bach, we believe that healing on an emotional level has knock-on effects on other levels. A healthy emotional life and a balanced personality will allow your body to find its own natural state of health.

Dr. Bach designed his system to be simple. It may seem daunting at first, but anybody can learn how to use it. On this site, you will find all you need to get you started. We have pages where you can look up every remedy and find out what they are for. Other pages tell you how to select and take the remedies. Below you will find how they are made, and we have lots of recommendations for further reading if you want to know more.

Sources from the Bach Center, home of Dr. Edward Bach

My Bach Flower Remedy Story

I was first introduced to Bach Flower Remedies in 1993 after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

I did not yet know anything about Dr. Bach or Flower Remedies.

When my acupuncturist recommended that I take four drops of Rescue Remedies every day whenever I felt stressed, I didn’t realize I was under the harmful effects of stress. But thinking back, I see that the anxiety and stress of finding out I had cancer was perhaps more deadly than the disease itself.

I had no medical insurance for treatment or surgery in America, and my family in Japan could not help me, as my father had just passed away from his cancer.

I was compelled to seek a path of self-healing holistically.

I researched and made an appointment with a macrobiotic counselor in Los Angeles.

After the counseling, I started taking cooking classes, making healing food, and using herbs and holistic medicine.

And I also tried acupuncture for a short time; I remembered that when I was growing up in Japan, my parents used acupuncture to boost their strength, so I thought it might help me.

The acupuncturist who introduced me to Rescue Remedies did not explain much about Bach Flower remedy, but I was motivated to try any holistic approach to healing.

I was only 38 years old and had just separated from my first husband, and I wanted to do so much with my life.

My decision to heal was solid, so I told myself, “No matter what, I am overcoming this challenge so that I can move on to my wonderful life.”

A few days after I started taking Rescue Remedies, I noticed that I could drive more calmly, even in the heaviest of traffic. I came home from work feeling more peaceful and could sleep better.

I thought to myself, could this little bottle of drops be helping?

I wanted to know what was inside the bottle, so I went back to the natural food store where I got it.

I bought my first Bach Flower Remedies book, Bach Flower Essences for the Family.

It was so fascinating for me to find out for the first time how flowers’ healing powers help our emotions and mental issues.

I could not stop reading it and felt like trying all the remedies!

I decided to study Bach Flower Remedies someday when I recovered from ovarian cancer.

I started to study and became a registered practitioner in 1995 and became Bach Flower Registered Practioner of BFRP in 2005.

I have been using Bach Flower Remedy for myself, my family (including my dogs and cats), and my friends, to help their emotional and mental balance.

I also offer Bach Flower Remedy counseling.

I recommend Bach Flower Remedy to my clients who come for macrobiotic nutrition counseling.

I have seen so much benefit for most people in their emotional/mental challenging, which they get a smoother transition to healing their physical conditions.

Bach Flower Remedy counseling, here

Animal Communication: Red Berry Bird

Nature is showing me kindness with strong-mindedness.
Connecting with nature is always vital for me to understand my life.

I have been going to North Fork, California (60 miles south of Yosemite National park) for over 15 years.
When I visited North Fork for the first time, I felt that this was where I wanted to cleanse my soul.

Springwater fills out my thirst for healing.
Sky with free spirits cloud dancing.
The scent of earth and forest lift my mind.
Hundreds of years old oak and ponderosa pine trees, creeks, and lakes give me strength.
And constant learning, instincts from wild plants and animals.
I feel that I am a part of nature, and I can support them once in a while.

Eight years ago(in 2013), my maple tree by the gate got hit by a car and broke the main trunk completely.
Everyone said it was not going to survive.
But I really wanted to help so I made special glue with soft-cooked brown rice and barley.
It did not just survive; it became the most beautiful tree to show autumn colors since then.
I am sure all of the people in North Fork and people going to Sierra Vista Scenic Byway enjoy the colors when they drive by.

I wrote this on my blog: Miracle of Maple Tree Recover!

The Maple tree this year.

We usually stay in North Fork one day or two days, but we stayed four days this time.
We went to Vipassana meditation teacher’s house to meditate together. Visited Sierra Mono Museum and Culture Center.
Had fun at Willow Creek with our dogs’ family.

The morning we were leaving, I was getting ready to pack.
I wanted to get some pine needles to bring back to Santa Monica so I went outside.
I usually use the back door to go outside, but somehow I went out from the front door and found a little bird lying on the front deck.

If I had not gone out from the front door, I might not have seen this bird. I saw a small red berry near her which I believed this bird had with her mouth. (I had no idea if this bird was a girl or boy, but I felt the bird was a girl).
I first thought this bird was dead, but her feather was moving slightly when I looked carefully.
My heart was full of the rescue mission.
I started to hold her gently and apply Animal Reiki right away without thinking.
I called my husband, Eric, to ask him to bring Bach Flower Remedy “Rescue Remedy”. I put the rescue remedy 4 drops around the bird’s feet, put another 4 drops on my palm, and held her again.

Then, next, my instinct brought the bird to sunlight filtering through the trees.

As I hold her gently, I chant softly, “Arigaotu, arigatou, arigatou (Thank you in Japanese).”

She opened her eyes calmly but closed eyes again; she was weak.

I continued Animal Reiki for a while, then she sat with her feet and came close to me.
I whispered to the bird, “I love you. You get well.”
The bird closed its eyes like relief.

I felt that the bird needed more time to heal, and I still had to pack to leave for Santa Monica, so I created an area with soft dried leaves and moved her to rest while I was packing.
I let her know, “I am sorry. I need to go inside the house for a little bit.
I will come back shortly.
I hope you are ok.”
She was content.
I went inside the house to pack.

While I was packing, I was praying for the bird to get better every minute.
When I came back to the bird, I hold her carefully.
She opened her eyes.

I gave Animal Reiki again and the bird closed eyes to rest more.

About 4 hours passed since I found the bird.

The bird could sit for a while now, but she was still very weak and not moving at all. I could tell the bird felt better when I touched her.

I was afraid that some other wild animals would attack or eat the bird.
I started to think about bringing the bird to Santa Monica to recuperate and bring her back to release in North Fork later.
But the bird was wild; it might not be appropriate.
I did not know what to do.
I decided to ask the bird through animal communication and she could tell me what was best for her.
I talked to her, ” I am glad to see you are getting better, but I am not sure if you need my help more for you to heal completely or not. Can you show me some sign if you are all right?”
The bird opened its eyes a little bit momentarily, looked at me for a while, and suddenly jumped.

I thought the bird was going to fly but just hopped.
I was surprised, but I have seen many surprised after I learned animal communications.
I understand what just happened.
I followed her slowly.

The bird found the hidden healing place by the side of a hill with dry bushes. It will protect her from wind and rain.
What a wise bird.

I found the same red berries that she had when I saw her lying by my feet where I was standing.
I put the two red berries next to her.
She thanked me and said, “You can keep the one I had.”
I said, “I am happy to see you are better and you showed me a sign that you are going to be all right here even after I leave. I will see you again. Thank you for your precious red berry. I treasure it for a long time.”
My tears came down with my warm feeling.
I was not sad.
I was relieved to see the bird was better, and she was able to move to a safe area for her to rest more.

I was thinking of her on the way to Santa Monica.
I felt that the bird was getting all well.

After returning to Santa Monica, I looked up to see what kind of bird I helped. I could not find an exact bird name.
I decided to call the bird Red Berry Bird (RBB).
While writing this blog, I felt that RBB was communicating with me.
I looked up at the sky from my window and closed my eyes.
I saw RRB flying away with red berries that I gave her, saying “Thank you!” to me.
I put the red berry that she gave to me in my palm, my eyes got full of tears.

I wish I could express more detail with my writing to share how I felt when I saw her flying away, but I am overwhelmed even now with so much gratitude.
I close this blog with my respectful gratitude and abundance of love for nature and this red berry bird (RRB) to let me practice my instinct from my heart.

Love, Sanae❤️

Bach Flower Remedy for People and Animal Grieving

It has been two weeks since Bubu, our beloved dog, departed. I wrote Bubu’s last words and how he departed on my previous blog. https://sanaesuzuki.com/2021/06/02/animal-communication-bubus-last-words/

I have had many dogs and cats as my family this lifetime. It is harrowing when they depart and I grieve.

As I wrote about Bubu’s aunt, Kula’s life on my blogs many times (https://sanaesuzuki.com/category/kulas-healing-journey/), I want to write about Bubu as much as I can. I feel that Bubu is giving me this as an opportunity to share.

Today, I feel so so. Probably better than two weeks ago.

I miss Bubu and feel an emptiness in my heart not seeing him or touching him physically.

I feel his existence in my heart when I go deeper in my heart so I need to be dive into my heart.

For the first ten days, I got up in the morning and cared for his dog and cat family. It was mechanical action as I had to do it.

I was feeling too sad. I decided not to attend zoom art classes. I am not in the mood to seeing people and hearing their voices, even online.

All I wanted to do was two things.

One – taking a walk with Bubu’s dog family where I used to walk with Bubu and talked to them every morning, and sometimes I cried while I was walking.

Two- gardening. Stay in my garden, watch the sky, sun, moon, birds, butterflies, ants, and how flowers and leaves swing by the wing.

Smell the flowers and listening bird sounds and wind chime. Dig the soil and desperate to connect earth or something.

A few days ago, I injured my hand carelessly. I shot the front door as I was going out to the front garden as usual, but I forgot my left hand inside the house and closed the door over my left hand. Ouch!!!

What was I thinking? No, I was not thinking anything.

I realized I was not functioning. I was feeling too much pain of losing Bubu so I avoid thinking.

Bubu departed the next day after he was diagnosed with cancer, I was not ready. Well, was I ready if he lived a longer? Was I ready when any of my animal family departed? …

My husband, Eric, cried when Bubu was diagnosed and when he was leaving. He goes foil surfing and dealing with his pain his way.

I am not expecting anybody to understand. I meditate and acknowledge Bub’s love for us and my love for him to move forward.

Then, I noticed his sister, Lumi and his daughter Happy were grieving a lot. Lumi did not want to move much and did not lift her face. Happy was ricking, pulling her fur and chewing her skin.

I felt I need to take care of them more than ever.

Photo: Lumi and Happy are laying down a lot with no energy.

One of the holistic modalities that I have been using for emotional support since 1993 is Bach Flower Remedy.

I first time used Bach Flower Remedy for me when I had ovarian cancer in 1993. An acupuncture doctor recommended it. I did not know that I had stress till I used Bach Flower Remedy. I learned how to release tension and ease my stress using Bach Flower Remedy. I decided to study more Bach Flower Remedy in 1995 and became Register Practitioner.

Animals have feelings and emotions too. I have been helping dog and cat rescue groups using Bach Flower Remedy, Animal Communication and Animal Reiki. Many cases there are great benefits for them.

They are 38 Bach Flower Remedy discovered by Dr. Bach. Each remedy is directed at a particular characteristic or emotional state.

Lumi and Happy have different personality;

Lumi is excitable and Happy is shy.

I chose and mixed different Bach Flower Remedies to help their grieving when Lumi lost her mom, Oro, Happy’s grandmother. It helped them and they got more energy and played together.

Lumi:

Beech, Honeysuckle, and Walnut

Happy:

Aspen, Chicory, Honeysuckle and Walnut

I also decided to mix Bach Flower remedies for me too. These grief remedies have helped me not feel stuck and accept reality to move forward.

Honeysuckle, Pine, Star of Bethlehem, Walnut and Water Violet

Description for Remedies that I choose for grieving for Lumi, Happy and me are:

Aspen – Useful for animals that display signs of anxiety following the death of an animal companion. It also helps humans that may have generalized fears for the safety or health of other pets in the household
Beech – For animlas or people who are grumpy, irritable or ‘snappy’ during the stressful grieving period. Increases tolerance of others and allows for the processing of genuine emotions in stressful situations.
Chicory -For animals that suffer extreme anxiety, hair chewing, etc.

Honeysuckle – For humans and animals that are longing for their lost companions.

Pine – Releases guilt surrounding the death of a pet and those lamentations that you ‘could have helped them’, ‘should have known’ or ‘should have loved them more. Releases self-blame and self-doubts over the situation.
Star of Bethlehem – The remedy for shock and particularly useful when the death of a pet has been sudden or without warning. Comforts and soothes the individual after a shocking incident when there is emotional pain and suffering.
Water Violet – The ‘grief’ flower essence helps you process all the feelings associated with grief (sadness, anger, denial) to prevent you from creating unhealthy blockages. Allows you to experience and process the emotions of grief fully and may bring about teariness to help you release emotions over the death of a pet.
Walnut – Helps in times of transition like the loss of a pet and allows humans and animals to ‘break the links, release the pet who has passed on and be able to move on with life more easily.

Photo: Walnut flowers

Flower Remedy Dosage:

Take each Bach Flower Remedy 2 drops at least 4 times daily. You can mix all together in 1 oz mixing bottle with spring water and 4 drops from the bottle is works too. You can add in water and food and use them as a room spray.

Make 1 oz mixing bottle with water with chosen Bach Flower Remedy will last two weeks, then reassess for suitability and make any alterations to the mix as necessary to take for another two weeks. The length of time it takes for the grieving process is different for every person (and animal).

Internal Use:

Bach Flower Remedies – Take 4 drops under the tongue, at least 4 times daily.

Topical Use: A few drops can be rubbed into the skin (or fur or paws for animals) or can be added to moisturizing creams, lotions or baths.

Room Spray: Add several drops to a small spray/atomizer bottle filled with spring water. Spray throughout the house, over human and animal bedding, and any areas the deceased animal used to frequent.

I hope this helps others who are going through grieving.

Besides Bach Flower Remedy, Animal Communication helps your animal family who is going through grieving. I hope to write about it also soon.

If you have any questions, please post on this blog and I will answer for you.

Love,

Sanae

Growing Healthy, Beautiful Hair After Chemotherapy

I post my blog “Shaving My Hair After Chemotherapy” on July 28th, 2017 after I shaved my hair.

I’d heard that one of the side effects of chemotherapy was that my hair was going to fall out after three weeks. My hair was falling out almost two weeks after the first chemotherapy.

There is a saying in Japan, “Hair is women’s lives,” and I loved my mother’s long hair, so I really enjoyed growing my hair most of my life.
I was sad in the beginning to lose my hair.
I could not bear seeing the pillow covered with it when I got up in the morning.
I decided to shave my head so I would not have to see my hair fall out everyday.
I asked Eric to shave my head.
I felt at ease and refreshed, and I did not feel sad.

Photo: I felt refreshed after Eric shaved my head!

But I was so weak and so much pain after the third cycle of chemotherapy.
I lost even eyebrows and had no strength to get up most of the time.

Photo: After the third cycle of chemotherapy – lost even eyebrow.

I got used to not having hair and eyebrows eventually, but my head was feeling the wind and feeling cooler and I could not find something I like to wear so I decided to hand-knitted a hat to wear.

Photo: A pretty pink color linen yarn that I started to knit for my chemo hat last summer.

Photo: Here is my linen hat and me.

As the weather changed to winter, my head got very cold, so I made the hat with thick cotton and later with cashmere and wool hat and sometimes I even slept in my hat.

After I completed six rounds of chemotherapy, I noticed my hair is starting to grow slowly.
I wanted to help my hair grow to be healthy and beautiful again, so I thought about making an essential oil blend for my hair.

There are many different blends you can make for growing healthy, beautiful hair.
My choice is blending with helichrysum, rosemary and lavender with Bach Flower Rescue Remedy (this blend is not only for people who lost hair because of chemotherapy. It helps anybody to promote healthy beautiful hair, but good for men who are bald because massage your scalp helps to enhance blood circulation in your head and neck area to loosen tight areas. Also, scalp massages can support to calm your spirit and relax your body which aid to promote good sleep).

Helichrysum essential oil is regenerative to all body tissues. Its regenerative qualities support healthy scalp tissue and sebum production, and it helps improve blood circulation to the scalp.
This encourages blood and nutrient flow to the hair follicles, which improves their growth rate.
I used helichrysum oil to repair the skin on my legs after I had a life-threatening car crash; it helped me avoid needing a skin graft.

Rosemary is packed with antioxidants, which can prevent thinning and even graying hair.
It’s another essential oil that promotes blood circulation, so it’s perfect for stimulating hair follicles and growth.

Lavender essential oil improves blood circulation when massaged into the scalp, can prevent hair loss, and promotes hair growth. Furthermore, it is a powerful moisturizer, antimicrobial and antiseptic. It balances sebum production and is ideal for those who suffer from dandruff.

Bach Flower Rescue Remedy mix was created by Dr. Bach to deal with emergencies and crises – It can be used to help us get through any stressful situations, from driving LA traffic jam, last-minute exam or interview nerves, to the aftermath of an accident or bad news or cancer.

Essential Oil Blend for Growing Healthy, Beautiful Hair

4 drops helichrysum essential oil
4 drops rosemary essential oil
5 drops lavender essential oil
2 oz (4 tablespoons) rosehip, castor or jojoba oil
4 drops of Bach Flower Rescue Remedy

Mix ingredients in a 2-oz bottle.
Massage the blend into the scalp. Leave in for 1–2 hours, or overnight, and then shampoo out.

Precautions to Take When Using Essential Oils for Hair Growth

If you are not sure how to properly use essential oils for hair growth, ask the advice of your doctor, a licensed natural health practitioner, or an aroma therapist.
If you are pregnant, suffer from hypertension, or have epilepsy, you should avoid rosemary essential oil. Again, ask your doctor, a licensed natural health practitioner, or an aroma therapist.
Although reactions are rare with proper use, always perform a skin patch test before using a new essential oil to ensure you will not have an allergic reaction to it.

Source

I started massaging my head with my blend everyday after chemotherapy.
Can you see how much my hair has grown by this photo which is after ten weeks since the last chemotherapy, and that my eyebrows are growing too, right?

It will take a long time for me to grow long hair again, but I am enjoying massaging my head and supporting my hair to grow beautifully again.

Now it has been about 16 weeks since the last chemotherapy, can you see my hair has grown so much!

Another thing what helps to grow healthy, beautiful hair is eating sea vegetables.
I eat kombu (using kombu to cook whole grains and making a miso soup everyday), wakame, nori (I make condiment with wakame or nori) everyday.

I would like to share my recipes of Wakame and Nori condiment in the near future.
I post Red Radish & Wakame Pressed Pickle Salad recipe about one year ago so you can check it right now. Wakame is springtime sea vegetable!

Eating sea vegetables also helps to make a blood alkaline, clear your skin and supports to build strong bones.

Also, eating green leafy vegetables (kale, collard green, mustard green, daikon and red radish top green etc.) cooking water sautéed or steam is the best. Using oil for cooking too often clog up the scalp.

As I wrote on my blog, “Shaving My Hair After Chemotherapy” when I shaved my head, I had an image of the famous Sinéad O’Connor’s shaved head and told myself it would maybe grow into a short Annie Lennox hairstyle after chemotherapy. They are beautiful women, so here I am. I feel beautiful without long hair. Don’t you think so?

Love,

Sanae 💖

Looking Back at 2016

Life’s challenges come just like the waves of the ocean.
Some are big, and some are small.
2016 is almost over.
Eric and I had an opportunity to look back over the whole past year.

I wish I could write about how wonderful 2016 was, but I want to share our real life and true feelings and be honest about the many challenges we had.

The last month of the year, I usually feel sad and unable to match the outside world of cheerful faces and holiday gatherings, so I tend to stay home more, be with my dogs and cats family, and do knitting/crocheting or other hand-making projects. But two weeks ago, I was feeling run-down and unable to do what I wanted to do my daily chore.
I told Eric that I was not feeling well, and he responded, “Okay,” and then he started talking about a GoPro he was trying to get with his credit card reward points. I asked him what he meant by “Okay,” and he did not have much of an answer. We ended up having an argument that did not make any sense. We felt frustrated because we argued over nothing, and because of our argument, our cat Mai Mai got scared and started peeing all over. Tin Tin laid down in his litter box and not coming out for a few hours.

Mai Mai peed all over the house about a year ago also, when we did not know what to do with our Seed Kitchen business and we were very stressed out, so I knew this must be from stress again.
It took about a week, but I realized that I was not the only one feeling sad and tired. Eric also felt sad, tired and grieving. Eric almost never gets sick or takes sick days off from work, but he had a dry cough (which usually comes from grieving) and fever, and he had to take a day off. I was weak and had no motivation to do much. We both had bad dreams.

What did we do?
We nurtured ourselves with respect and friendly manners—meaning no arguments.
We made special remedy drinks (Lotus Root), homeopathy (Ignatia Amara for grieving), and cooked healing food, our garden wintergreen Shungiku water sauteed ; we took a warm bath with Bach Flower (Rescue Remedy and Honeysuckle) and Aromatherapy oils (Mandarin, Lavender and Clary Sage) ; we stayed in bed with a hot water bottle and slept; when we were awake, we watched good movies and cuddled; we meditated in bed and just saw our feelings as they were. We also cried and rested with our five dogs and two cats. They totally understood us and never complained. They comforted and rested with us. I think they needed this family bonding. Mai Mai stopped peeing all over.

Looking back at 2016, we realized what we lost this year was big—from my completely cracking a tooth while having a nightmare, to losing our beloved dog daughter Kula and our lifetime work Seed Kitchen. Life has struggles, no matter what; it is up to us to live as though this is a beautiful struggle or a miserable struggle.

Today, we decided that our life is a beautiful struggle, and we appreciate what we still have—I still have 31 teeth out of 32—so I am ready to move forward to 2017.

Whatever you are going through, I hope you are able to look at the bright side.
If you are not able to do so, take a rest and please nurture yourself like I am doing for myself now; that is the best remedy you can give yourself.

Thank you for your support and being our friends and family.

Wishing you a healthy and happy New Year 2017!

Love, Sanae💖