By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer, December 28, 2010
Many people I meet tell me that they have become vegetarians, or vegans. Often, when pressed, they will admit they are doing this for “spiritual” reasons. They sometimes say they don’t eat anything “with a face”. They often seem quite self-satisfied when they say this, and expect me to congratulate them for their highly developed sense of morality and sensitivity. Unfortunately, for them, this is an unwise decision, destined to reduce them to a state of nutritional deficiency. So, to explore this idea, let us consider the concept of nutrient-dense foods. What are they?
When Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden, they were vegetarians. They were given every possible kind of fruit and vegetable to eat, and they were quite content. They lived in complete harmony with nature, and all their needs, nutritional and otherwise, were met quite simply. They did not have to plow or plant, but merely had to stretch out a hand and pick luscious fruits and other delights. Vegetarians often point to the Garden of Eden, saying that Adam and Eve were vegetarians. But wait, not so fast!
After the Fall, they were expelled from this paradise on earth, and Adam was instructed that he now had to work hard to produce his food. Farming and animal husbandry began. From that time on, men on earth have been eating animal products and animals themselves. They ate things with faces, delighting in them. Throughout history, many people have voluntarily given up eating meat, but there never has been a society that was completely vegetarian. Individuals in a society may have decided, usually for religious reasons, to eschew the use of meat or any other animal product, but this was always an individual choice, and a difficult one.
Today, though, we have children, adolescents and adults all hewing to the vegan “lifestyle”. That is, no meat, eggs, dairy or any other animal product, even honey. And I am here to tell you, this is an diet that is doomed to failure. Humans need to eat certain foods to provide them with essential fats and vitamins. There is really no substitute for vitamin B-12 produced by animals. There is really no good substitute for the fat-soluble vitamins in fish liver oil, and if one lives in a northern climate, getting the right amount of vitamin D is very difficult, if not impossible.
The foods that are avoided by vegans, and some vegetarians, are what we would consider nutrient-dense. In other words, you get a lot of bang for the buck. Eating organ meats, such as liver, provides concentrated nutrition that is not obtainable by eating vegetable products alone, since the amounts of vegetable matter needed to equal the nutrients in a food such as liver puts it out of reach for most people. The body simply needs these foods, and no amount of wishful thinking will change what our body needs.
Now, it is true that throughout history, there have been examples of men and women we would call saints, who subsisted on little or nothing. But, I am guessing you are not such a person, and you have ordinary needs. A Bocaburger is not the nutritional equivalent of a quarter pound of good beef. Sorry. And, I don’t mean a “Quarterpounder” from McDonald’s, because you have probably heard the anecdote about the man who has a McDonald’s hamburger from 1989 which has yet to decompose. This is not real food, but is some kind of dead thing that no one should ever eat.
Some months ago I connected with a woman who has chickens who produce what we would call free-range eggs. Her eggs come to me unwashed, lovely, large, sometimes with green shells, and always with huge orange yolks. They are absolutely delicious! They are real eggs, from some past time before factory farms. There is nothing to compare with them. They are nutrient-dense, and to some, they have a face.
I also made friends with some people who sell me raw milk. Did you know you can make cream cheese directly from raw milk? And wonderful yogurts and kefir and buttermilk, and butter? Not to mention cottage cheese and quark. All these foods are ancient, wonderful and nutrient-dense, because the milk is alive, not dead, as all pasteurized milk is. You feel more alive when you drink it! Another face here.
I regularly go to markets to buy bones now. I look for big, fat beef bones with marrow and cook them for twenty-four hours or more, to extract all the nutrients from them. I don’t eat soup from packets or cans, because they usually contain many additives that are harmful to the brain and to the body, like monosodium glutamate (MSG). You cannot imagine how delicious homemade stock from marrow bones can be. It is a revelation! It is also very nutrient-dense. Cows have faces, too. They are beautiful!
When I lived in Poland, I went to visit my relatives on the farm where my grandmother was born. It was Christmas the first time I went, and for our Christmas dinner, my great aunt took a rooster and chopped off his head and plucked him, and she then made a soup of him. It was the most delicious soup I ever had! Nutrient-dense, too. With a face.
If we were cannibals, and we were going to eat a fellow human, you can bet that everyone would want to eat the best parts: the heart and the liver. As we go up the food chain,( leaving humans off it, please), we seek these “best parts” instinctively. Except, in our society, we are so divorced from our God-given instincts, that we shy away from the best things, and just eat muscle meat. In my mind, we must retrain our palates to appreciate the best. All the best foods have faces.
We are not cannibals because we understand that man is made a little lower than the angels, and he is a special creation of God, worthy of respect and honor. Animals are worthy of respect, too, but they are of a lower order, and do not have souls, as we do. This is why it is acceptable to eat them, and we do not commit moral evil when we do so. They are here to help nourish us, and when we use them with reverence, there is no sin. Factory farms which force animals to live in squalor and misery are sinful and disrespectful to the animals, and should be banned from civil society.
Nutrient-dense foods are here to provide men with healthy lives, sound minds, and good character. We must thank God for them, and use them wisely.
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Elements of a Traditional Diet
For The Rome Observer, December 21, 2010
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
In my last column I outlined the way in which all human communities, over thousands of years have found diets that promote good health, good emotional stability and even contentment. If this seems a foreign concept, no wonder. We in the western world are surrounded by thousands of so-called “foods” that do nothing but promote our demise. The worst aspect of this situation is that we have lost our innate ability to choose foods that are nutritious. Think about this for a moment: When faced with the hundreds of thousands of choices available in the supermarket, we are pretty much at a loss as to which of them is truly good for us. The vegetables look “healthy”, right? They say chocolate is good for you! I should stay away from fat, that’s for sure! Skim milk is the way to go! Eat lots of soy! No butter- eat heart-healthy margarine! And get that whole wheat bread, too!
Most of us would agree with these statements, because we have fallen for the food myth, or I like to call them memes (pronounced meems) that prevail in our time. Memes are carefully constructed slogans or ideas that are floated out to society by those who have something to gain from their adoption. You can call them propaganda, if you like. Truth or falsehood is not the idea of a meme, because someone other than you is going to benefit if you take it to heart. What I am now going to deliver are some actual facts, backed by thousands of years of empirical evidence. Empirical evidence is part of the scientific process – you just notice what is happening in front of you, with no theory. Our ancestors had no theories of nutrition, and they did just fine in that department. We, on the other hand, are in the grip of many competing theories which are supposedly based on real science. But, let me point out a little factoid that all scientists know: Scientific theories are know by scientists themselves to be noting more than “useful fiction”. That is, science is not really in the business of finding the truth. It is in the business of testing theories. So, if you have any doubts about what you should be eating, why not go back to the tried and true? Your ancestors certainly did a good job of choosing nutritious foods, or you wouldn’t be here. Why not look backward for direction?
The Weston A. Price Foundation
Professor Mary Enig was one of the first experts to point out the dangers of trans fats to the human organism. She sounded the alarm that these notorious man-made new fats were killing millions of people every year. At this point, science has grudgingly admitted she was right, and these pernicious fats have been reduced in our diets, but do not think they are really gone. They are still present in lots of foods you are eating, but they are occurring at levels that keep them from having to be labeled. Thanks, FDA, for that! So, they are still accumulating in your arteries if you are eating processed foods.
I mention Dr. Enig, because it was she, along with food activist Sally Fallon, who founded the Weston A. Price Foundation in 1999. These two remarkable women have worked to bring to our nation information about traditional diets, based upon the findings of Dr. Weston A. Price, a pioneer in world nutrition and the causes of degenerative diseases.
So, what did they come up with for a nutritious diet? Here are the general outlines of their diet. In succeeding weeks I will focus on each of these elements in depth, so that you can understand the importance of each of them. Remember, all human diets prior to the introduction of the “western diet” were life-enhancing. And none of them was vegetarian! Or especially, vegan!
Elements of the Weston A. Price Diet
1. Butter, cream and raw whole milk
2. Organ meats, such as liver
3. Pasture-fed meats, dairy and eggs
4. Wild fish, shellfish and fish roe (caviar)
5. Organic vegetables and fruits
6. Traditional lacto-fermented foods, such as sauerkraut and yogurt
7. Healthy lacto-fermented soft drinks, such as kombucha tea
8. Homemade bone broths
9. Properly prepared whole grains and traditional sourdough breads
10. Unrefined salt
11. Coconut and coconut products, and unprocessed and unrefined oils
Surprised by how delicious all this sounds? Believe me, it is! Your head may be spinning at the thought of ALL THAT FAT, but believe me, this diet is the road to health! But, we will have many weeks to understand the whys and hows of this remarkable OLD way of eating.
The Other Side of The Coin
Of course, for every yin, there’s a yang, and here it is. Stuff you should avoid like the plague.
1. Modern soy products, i.e., unfermented soy foods
2. Pasteurized, homogenized dairy products
3. Margarine and trans fats
4. Processed vegetable oils
5. Dry breakfast cereals (throw out the Wheaties!)
6. Artificial sweeteners and food additives
7. Fast foods and sodas
8. Refined sweeteners and processed fruit juices
9. White flour products
10. Genetically modified foods (GM or GMO)
11. Factory-raised meats and farm-raised fish
12. Unprepared grains and nuts (these need to be soaked before eating)
Now, if you read these two lists, and try to figure out what you are doing right and doing wrong, it can be kind of overwhelming. I have been following this diet for about six months now, and I have not yet been able to completely rid my kitchen of all the “bad” stuff, but remember, this is a journey to health, and every step you take in the right direction brings you closer to your goal. Don’t despair! The best news is, you can eat wonderful foods with abandon, because if you eat the right foods, you will actually lose weigh. I was trained as a French chef, and after years of fearing the butter, cheese and eggs, they are back with a vengeance. Pates, rich stews and soufflés are also back! Delicious! And I am learning to make traditional dishes that are absolutely satisfying and nutritious. So will you, I promise!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
In my last column I outlined the way in which all human communities, over thousands of years have found diets that promote good health, good emotional stability and even contentment. If this seems a foreign concept, no wonder. We in the western world are surrounded by thousands of so-called “foods” that do nothing but promote our demise. The worst aspect of this situation is that we have lost our innate ability to choose foods that are nutritious. Think about this for a moment: When faced with the hundreds of thousands of choices available in the supermarket, we are pretty much at a loss as to which of them is truly good for us. The vegetables look “healthy”, right? They say chocolate is good for you! I should stay away from fat, that’s for sure! Skim milk is the way to go! Eat lots of soy! No butter- eat heart-healthy margarine! And get that whole wheat bread, too!
Most of us would agree with these statements, because we have fallen for the food myth, or I like to call them memes (pronounced meems) that prevail in our time. Memes are carefully constructed slogans or ideas that are floated out to society by those who have something to gain from their adoption. You can call them propaganda, if you like. Truth or falsehood is not the idea of a meme, because someone other than you is going to benefit if you take it to heart. What I am now going to deliver are some actual facts, backed by thousands of years of empirical evidence. Empirical evidence is part of the scientific process – you just notice what is happening in front of you, with no theory. Our ancestors had no theories of nutrition, and they did just fine in that department. We, on the other hand, are in the grip of many competing theories which are supposedly based on real science. But, let me point out a little factoid that all scientists know: Scientific theories are know by scientists themselves to be noting more than “useful fiction”. That is, science is not really in the business of finding the truth. It is in the business of testing theories. So, if you have any doubts about what you should be eating, why not go back to the tried and true? Your ancestors certainly did a good job of choosing nutritious foods, or you wouldn’t be here. Why not look backward for direction?
The Weston A. Price Foundation
Professor Mary Enig was one of the first experts to point out the dangers of trans fats to the human organism. She sounded the alarm that these notorious man-made new fats were killing millions of people every year. At this point, science has grudgingly admitted she was right, and these pernicious fats have been reduced in our diets, but do not think they are really gone. They are still present in lots of foods you are eating, but they are occurring at levels that keep them from having to be labeled. Thanks, FDA, for that! So, they are still accumulating in your arteries if you are eating processed foods.
I mention Dr. Enig, because it was she, along with food activist Sally Fallon, who founded the Weston A. Price Foundation in 1999. These two remarkable women have worked to bring to our nation information about traditional diets, based upon the findings of Dr. Weston A. Price, a pioneer in world nutrition and the causes of degenerative diseases.
So, what did they come up with for a nutritious diet? Here are the general outlines of their diet. In succeeding weeks I will focus on each of these elements in depth, so that you can understand the importance of each of them. Remember, all human diets prior to the introduction of the “western diet” were life-enhancing. And none of them was vegetarian! Or especially, vegan!
Elements of the Weston A. Price Diet
1. Butter, cream and raw whole milk
2. Organ meats, such as liver
3. Pasture-fed meats, dairy and eggs
4. Wild fish, shellfish and fish roe (caviar)
5. Organic vegetables and fruits
6. Traditional lacto-fermented foods, such as sauerkraut and yogurt
7. Healthy lacto-fermented soft drinks, such as kombucha tea
8. Homemade bone broths
9. Properly prepared whole grains and traditional sourdough breads
10. Unrefined salt
11. Coconut and coconut products, and unprocessed and unrefined oils
Surprised by how delicious all this sounds? Believe me, it is! Your head may be spinning at the thought of ALL THAT FAT, but believe me, this diet is the road to health! But, we will have many weeks to understand the whys and hows of this remarkable OLD way of eating.
The Other Side of The Coin
Of course, for every yin, there’s a yang, and here it is. Stuff you should avoid like the plague.
1. Modern soy products, i.e., unfermented soy foods
2. Pasteurized, homogenized dairy products
3. Margarine and trans fats
4. Processed vegetable oils
5. Dry breakfast cereals (throw out the Wheaties!)
6. Artificial sweeteners and food additives
7. Fast foods and sodas
8. Refined sweeteners and processed fruit juices
9. White flour products
10. Genetically modified foods (GM or GMO)
11. Factory-raised meats and farm-raised fish
12. Unprepared grains and nuts (these need to be soaked before eating)
Now, if you read these two lists, and try to figure out what you are doing right and doing wrong, it can be kind of overwhelming. I have been following this diet for about six months now, and I have not yet been able to completely rid my kitchen of all the “bad” stuff, but remember, this is a journey to health, and every step you take in the right direction brings you closer to your goal. Don’t despair! The best news is, you can eat wonderful foods with abandon, because if you eat the right foods, you will actually lose weigh. I was trained as a French chef, and after years of fearing the butter, cheese and eggs, they are back with a vengeance. Pates, rich stews and soufflés are also back! Delicious! And I am learning to make traditional dishes that are absolutely satisfying and nutritious. So will you, I promise!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
What Should We Eat?
For The Rome Observer, December 14, 2010
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For many months now, I have been studying nutrition and various claims made from all angles. I began somewhere around last October after attending a break-out session conducted by Gary Kohl, M.D., who is now retired, but who made it his life’s work to find out how to help people who were taking psychotropic medications. That is, he learned how to get them off these terribly, unnecessary drugs, and back to health.
Along the way, he ran into a cast of characters, including Russell Blalock, M.D., a neurosurgeon, who was very much interested in nutrition and its effects on the brain. He also bumped into many of the folks working with the Weston A. Price Foundation, including Mary Enig and Sally Fallon, were the founders of Weston A. Price in 1999. These two have attracted many other sterling scientists, all intent on figuring out just what humans need to thrive, and what people from all over the world have, in the past, consumed in order to preserve their health.
In studying the horrible effects of psychotropic medications, I had not originally realized that this problem was only the tip of the iceberg. Yes, these medications damage everyone who takes them, but the larger issue of the general health of all people came into view. At the same time, my mother underwent some scary procedures, and the doctors, being oriented only toward allopathic medicine, prescribed more medications for her. At this same time, I was being sent to various websites, and found that a whole world of non-allopathic medicine exists, and is thriving, and is saving lives.
Briefly, allopathic medicine relies on poisons, otherwise known as “medicine”, to effect changes in the human body. It looks as disease as something to “cure” this way. And, to a small extent, this works. I mean, if you have a raging bout of strep throat, a dose of strong antibiotics gets rid of it, quickly. This is the allopathic approach. It does not usually look at questions such as: Why can’t my body resist this germ? Is there something I am lacking, nutritionally, that renders my immune system helpless in the face of this organism? What kinds of foods should always be in my diet? Or even, what should I be eating to preserve my body in an optimum state? Now, this is not to say that some doctors are prescribing various nutrients in various forms, or telling people what they shouldn’t be eating. But, I have never felt that “regular” doctors see nutrition as the first line of defense in the prevention of disease. It just isn’t their normal orientation. Fixing problems is their normal way of seeing things.
Back in the Mists of Time!
While medicine has come a long way in understanding the microbiology of the human body, and in understanding germ theory and such, we should remember that for thousands of years, people were living on this earth without these theories to guide them.
They had to eat food to survive, and they had to find ways to do this in quite extraordinarily different climates.
Think of Polynesians, surrounded by coconut palms and the seas. Think of the Swiss, living in secluded mountain valleys, with a few cows and some rye. Think of the Eskimos, with no green plants or fruits or many vegetables, other than seaweed, but surrounded by whales and seals and fish. It is amazing that ALL these people came up with diets that promoted excellent health. And all without a single nutritionist or doctor on hand to guide them! We must look, then, to some different answer as to how they could do this. We have to understand that man is not evolving into a superior being, but that he is devolving and degrading into a lesser one.
If every primitive community on earth somehow understood and sensed what they needed to eat to thrive, we must understand that we humans have lost this precious gift of discernment. We no longer instinctively, or with the grace of God, know what we need to eat. On the moral plane, it is also obvious that man is devolving, not advancing in virtue.
When these primitive cultures were studied, at the last possible moment before they were thrust into the “modern”world, it was found that not only were they healthy physically, but that their moral character was exemplary, as well. And what is more, they suffered from few emotional problems. Depression and anxiety, the plagues of our current existence, simply didn’t make it onto their radar. In a word, they were happy. Happy to live on just oats and fish, or cheese and rye bread, or fish and coconuts, or seal meat, blubber and seaweed.
This state of contentment and moral, physical and emotional health ended in every case when the “western diet” was introduced to their culture by the supposedly “advanced” civilizations. Eager to advance themselves, and tantalized by the sweetness of sugar and the refined white flours with their soft, cushiony cakes and breads, all the primitive cultures soon took these western foods for their own – and all degenerated just as the western societies that provided these deadly foods
What Is Happening To Us?
If anyone wants to understand what is going on in our world, the best place to begin to understand would be in the Bible. There you will learn that the highest point of our civilization occurred hundreds of years ago, when Christianity became the dominant force in the world. Of course, I cannot outline the degeneration of Christian society for you here, but take it on faith that the decline began well before what are considered the Middle Ages. Before the Crusades, and before the split between East and West, when the Roman Empire under Christianity still existed.
Heights of moral and personal sanctity have never been reached since that time, save by a few saints who serve as example of what man can achieve when guided by God. We are the poor, struggling remnant of that time, and if one continues to look into the Bible, we cannot help but notice that things now happening point to decline, not some glorious evolution into supermen.
With this in mind, one can look at one’s place in the march of history and understand that at this terrible place, when assaults against God are daily occurrences, there are also assaults against all people, in various forms. Our liberties are being stripped away daily. Our children and elders are being drugged into submission. But, a very important piece of this is: Our food supply is being adulterated and turned into a source of our demise, and we have very little control over this process, since we still believe that those in charge are looking out for us. This is part of the great delusion.
Let me just say this: You are now in charge of your own life and your own safety, and even your own medical care. Luckily, we still have the internet and some freedom to pursue knowledge. There is little you can do that would be more important than begin to study the effects of the foods you are being offered in the marketplace, and to begin to choose those which will preserve your health and your life. In the coming weeks, I will outline the diet, created by the Weston A. Price Foundation, that I believe will be best for preserving your lives and your emotional health.
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For many months now, I have been studying nutrition and various claims made from all angles. I began somewhere around last October after attending a break-out session conducted by Gary Kohl, M.D., who is now retired, but who made it his life’s work to find out how to help people who were taking psychotropic medications. That is, he learned how to get them off these terribly, unnecessary drugs, and back to health.
Along the way, he ran into a cast of characters, including Russell Blalock, M.D., a neurosurgeon, who was very much interested in nutrition and its effects on the brain. He also bumped into many of the folks working with the Weston A. Price Foundation, including Mary Enig and Sally Fallon, were the founders of Weston A. Price in 1999. These two have attracted many other sterling scientists, all intent on figuring out just what humans need to thrive, and what people from all over the world have, in the past, consumed in order to preserve their health.
In studying the horrible effects of psychotropic medications, I had not originally realized that this problem was only the tip of the iceberg. Yes, these medications damage everyone who takes them, but the larger issue of the general health of all people came into view. At the same time, my mother underwent some scary procedures, and the doctors, being oriented only toward allopathic medicine, prescribed more medications for her. At this same time, I was being sent to various websites, and found that a whole world of non-allopathic medicine exists, and is thriving, and is saving lives.
Briefly, allopathic medicine relies on poisons, otherwise known as “medicine”, to effect changes in the human body. It looks as disease as something to “cure” this way. And, to a small extent, this works. I mean, if you have a raging bout of strep throat, a dose of strong antibiotics gets rid of it, quickly. This is the allopathic approach. It does not usually look at questions such as: Why can’t my body resist this germ? Is there something I am lacking, nutritionally, that renders my immune system helpless in the face of this organism? What kinds of foods should always be in my diet? Or even, what should I be eating to preserve my body in an optimum state? Now, this is not to say that some doctors are prescribing various nutrients in various forms, or telling people what they shouldn’t be eating. But, I have never felt that “regular” doctors see nutrition as the first line of defense in the prevention of disease. It just isn’t their normal orientation. Fixing problems is their normal way of seeing things.
Back in the Mists of Time!
While medicine has come a long way in understanding the microbiology of the human body, and in understanding germ theory and such, we should remember that for thousands of years, people were living on this earth without these theories to guide them.
They had to eat food to survive, and they had to find ways to do this in quite extraordinarily different climates.
Think of Polynesians, surrounded by coconut palms and the seas. Think of the Swiss, living in secluded mountain valleys, with a few cows and some rye. Think of the Eskimos, with no green plants or fruits or many vegetables, other than seaweed, but surrounded by whales and seals and fish. It is amazing that ALL these people came up with diets that promoted excellent health. And all without a single nutritionist or doctor on hand to guide them! We must look, then, to some different answer as to how they could do this. We have to understand that man is not evolving into a superior being, but that he is devolving and degrading into a lesser one.
If every primitive community on earth somehow understood and sensed what they needed to eat to thrive, we must understand that we humans have lost this precious gift of discernment. We no longer instinctively, or with the grace of God, know what we need to eat. On the moral plane, it is also obvious that man is devolving, not advancing in virtue.
When these primitive cultures were studied, at the last possible moment before they were thrust into the “modern”world, it was found that not only were they healthy physically, but that their moral character was exemplary, as well. And what is more, they suffered from few emotional problems. Depression and anxiety, the plagues of our current existence, simply didn’t make it onto their radar. In a word, they were happy. Happy to live on just oats and fish, or cheese and rye bread, or fish and coconuts, or seal meat, blubber and seaweed.
This state of contentment and moral, physical and emotional health ended in every case when the “western diet” was introduced to their culture by the supposedly “advanced” civilizations. Eager to advance themselves, and tantalized by the sweetness of sugar and the refined white flours with their soft, cushiony cakes and breads, all the primitive cultures soon took these western foods for their own – and all degenerated just as the western societies that provided these deadly foods
What Is Happening To Us?
If anyone wants to understand what is going on in our world, the best place to begin to understand would be in the Bible. There you will learn that the highest point of our civilization occurred hundreds of years ago, when Christianity became the dominant force in the world. Of course, I cannot outline the degeneration of Christian society for you here, but take it on faith that the decline began well before what are considered the Middle Ages. Before the Crusades, and before the split between East and West, when the Roman Empire under Christianity still existed.
Heights of moral and personal sanctity have never been reached since that time, save by a few saints who serve as example of what man can achieve when guided by God. We are the poor, struggling remnant of that time, and if one continues to look into the Bible, we cannot help but notice that things now happening point to decline, not some glorious evolution into supermen.
With this in mind, one can look at one’s place in the march of history and understand that at this terrible place, when assaults against God are daily occurrences, there are also assaults against all people, in various forms. Our liberties are being stripped away daily. Our children and elders are being drugged into submission. But, a very important piece of this is: Our food supply is being adulterated and turned into a source of our demise, and we have very little control over this process, since we still believe that those in charge are looking out for us. This is part of the great delusion.
Let me just say this: You are now in charge of your own life and your own safety, and even your own medical care. Luckily, we still have the internet and some freedom to pursue knowledge. There is little you can do that would be more important than begin to study the effects of the foods you are being offered in the marketplace, and to begin to choose those which will preserve your health and your life. In the coming weeks, I will outline the diet, created by the Weston A. Price Foundation, that I believe will be best for preserving your lives and your emotional health.
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
It's All Coming Together!
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer, December 7, 2010
I have been reading and studying for over a year now in the area of nutrition, and I think all my work is finally coming together in a structure that makes complete sense, is useful for all I work with, and is personally fulfilling. God, in His infinite wisdom, has sent me someone to work with who absolutely has demonstrated the truth of what I have been suspecting. When I tell you this, I hope you will take this information and apply it to your own life, and the lives of your families, and especially, your children.
Daniel’s Story
Some weeks ago, a new client came to me. He is a marvelously talented man, mid-30’s, who has spent many months in various mental hospitals. He tried to commit suicide several times, mostly by ingesting huge amounts of prescription medications.
He has been diagnosed as bi-polar, schizophrenic, and probably some other things. The fact is, he suffers from none of these mythical disorders. He has also been labeled an alcoholic, due to his irregular binges. He has been carted off to mental hospitals, and finally, was brought under the care of some people in a nearby town.
Now, let’s just say this: Daniel is a fabulously intellectual man, with several advanced degrees under his belt. He appears to be totally “normal”, and I could see nothing “off” in him. That is, many times people come to me and immediately there is some eccentricity, usually of an autistic nature, that let’s me know all is not well, neurologically. Daniel, however, displays nothing but ordinary human interaction. He is wonderful to talk to. I really like him, a lot, and would consider him a great dinner guest: One of my highest designations for a person. He could grace any table and give pleasure to all my guests, merely by speaking his deep wisdom and insight.
The Beginning
When someone comes to me with multiple psychiatric diagnoses, and the like, I first have to consider that they have psychological problems, if only in deference to the doctors who went before me. So, I began by taking his history. He comes from a family of intellectuals, but he talked of their coldness and emotional neglect. We mined this field for a couple of weeks, and while this could have been part of the problem, I just wasn’t picking up a lot of deep emotional turmoil. He even gave me some articles written by his father, a psychologist, but even this did not open any doors to understand why Daniel was suffering from such deep depression. In fact, he never experienced the “manic” phase of bi-polar disorder, so pretty soon I discarded that label.
As for being schizophrenic, deep depression can look like psychosis, and he really was very well grounded in reality, so I tossed that one, too. So, he is massively depressed, and there is no real compelling reason for it. I don’t believe he was “hiding” anything from me. This really didn’t make any sense.
Then, it hit me!
It’s About His Diet, Stupid!
I asked Daniel about his diet, and what I heard really got me thinking.
Daniel has been eating a largely vegan diet since he was around twelve. That means over twenty years of no meat! Often, he eats no fish, either, or eggs, or milk products. He eats a lot of starchy foods, obviously, since little is left. He sometimes eats beans and rice, and he consumes soy products such as tofu. All his food is cooked in vegetable oils, such as canola, soy and corn oil, which are hydrogenated, and totally processed. He gets few fresh vegetables or fruits, and does not drink fresh squeezed juice. He eats little of cultured milk products or other fermented foods.
And there you have it! For the past ten years, at least, he has been suffering from varying depths of depression, sometimes massive depression that renders him unable to get out of bed in the morning. And, as I said, when it gets too bad, he is shipped off to a mental institution for months at a time. He describes the horrors of these institutions to me, and I wonder that this highly intelligent man could be reduced to such misery.
Here was a test case for my new understanding of what people need to survive and thrive. There is no distinction between what our brain needs for mental health, and what our bodies need for maintenance and growth. It is all nutritional, all the time.
Daniel’s Solution
My assessment of Daniel, therefore, was that he is massively undernourished. He weighs much more than he should, but a lot of that can be attributed to the horrible medications he is taking for his supposed psychiatric problems. Things like Paxil, Seroquel and the dreaded lithium. All poisons, which further put a burden on his already malnourished body.
What Daniels really needs are nutrient-dense foods, such as good butter, eggs, lots of fish, fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood of any kind (he will not eat meat, but that’s OK), whole grains, and LOTS of cod liver oil, vitamin D3, K-2 and A, magnesium and a whole lot of other nutrients, but especially the omega-3 oils. I told him to get out there and get these items, plus others as we see how he does, and he started chugging cod liver oil the very next day.
So, What Happened?
When I first met Daniel, he was unable to work, basically. He could not sleep, either. Now, in less than a month, he is working about 8-10 hours a day in his profession of writer, which is a total change, and his has described himself as “happy” in his work.
“Happy” is not a word that a massively depressed person uses to describe himself, so I would have to say that he is well on the road to recovery. He also disavows any idea of suicide, and seemed shocked that I asked him that!
It is so gratifying to be able to work with a person so seriously affected, and see him come out of his malnourished state to one of normality. This is the first time I have had such an opportunity, and I feel particularly blessed to have met this client. It demonstrates how very important proper nutrition is for all of us. Unfortunately, this cure runs counter to most of what passes for conventional nutritional wisdom in America, and so millions of Americans will continue their sad, malnourished lives because no one will speak the truth to them. I hope this story will help you understand some of the realities of human nutrition. Please contact me if you have any questions!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
For The Rome Observer, December 7, 2010
I have been reading and studying for over a year now in the area of nutrition, and I think all my work is finally coming together in a structure that makes complete sense, is useful for all I work with, and is personally fulfilling. God, in His infinite wisdom, has sent me someone to work with who absolutely has demonstrated the truth of what I have been suspecting. When I tell you this, I hope you will take this information and apply it to your own life, and the lives of your families, and especially, your children.
Daniel’s Story
Some weeks ago, a new client came to me. He is a marvelously talented man, mid-30’s, who has spent many months in various mental hospitals. He tried to commit suicide several times, mostly by ingesting huge amounts of prescription medications.
He has been diagnosed as bi-polar, schizophrenic, and probably some other things. The fact is, he suffers from none of these mythical disorders. He has also been labeled an alcoholic, due to his irregular binges. He has been carted off to mental hospitals, and finally, was brought under the care of some people in a nearby town.
Now, let’s just say this: Daniel is a fabulously intellectual man, with several advanced degrees under his belt. He appears to be totally “normal”, and I could see nothing “off” in him. That is, many times people come to me and immediately there is some eccentricity, usually of an autistic nature, that let’s me know all is not well, neurologically. Daniel, however, displays nothing but ordinary human interaction. He is wonderful to talk to. I really like him, a lot, and would consider him a great dinner guest: One of my highest designations for a person. He could grace any table and give pleasure to all my guests, merely by speaking his deep wisdom and insight.
The Beginning
When someone comes to me with multiple psychiatric diagnoses, and the like, I first have to consider that they have psychological problems, if only in deference to the doctors who went before me. So, I began by taking his history. He comes from a family of intellectuals, but he talked of their coldness and emotional neglect. We mined this field for a couple of weeks, and while this could have been part of the problem, I just wasn’t picking up a lot of deep emotional turmoil. He even gave me some articles written by his father, a psychologist, but even this did not open any doors to understand why Daniel was suffering from such deep depression. In fact, he never experienced the “manic” phase of bi-polar disorder, so pretty soon I discarded that label.
As for being schizophrenic, deep depression can look like psychosis, and he really was very well grounded in reality, so I tossed that one, too. So, he is massively depressed, and there is no real compelling reason for it. I don’t believe he was “hiding” anything from me. This really didn’t make any sense.
Then, it hit me!
It’s About His Diet, Stupid!
I asked Daniel about his diet, and what I heard really got me thinking.
Daniel has been eating a largely vegan diet since he was around twelve. That means over twenty years of no meat! Often, he eats no fish, either, or eggs, or milk products. He eats a lot of starchy foods, obviously, since little is left. He sometimes eats beans and rice, and he consumes soy products such as tofu. All his food is cooked in vegetable oils, such as canola, soy and corn oil, which are hydrogenated, and totally processed. He gets few fresh vegetables or fruits, and does not drink fresh squeezed juice. He eats little of cultured milk products or other fermented foods.
And there you have it! For the past ten years, at least, he has been suffering from varying depths of depression, sometimes massive depression that renders him unable to get out of bed in the morning. And, as I said, when it gets too bad, he is shipped off to a mental institution for months at a time. He describes the horrors of these institutions to me, and I wonder that this highly intelligent man could be reduced to such misery.
Here was a test case for my new understanding of what people need to survive and thrive. There is no distinction between what our brain needs for mental health, and what our bodies need for maintenance and growth. It is all nutritional, all the time.
Daniel’s Solution
My assessment of Daniel, therefore, was that he is massively undernourished. He weighs much more than he should, but a lot of that can be attributed to the horrible medications he is taking for his supposed psychiatric problems. Things like Paxil, Seroquel and the dreaded lithium. All poisons, which further put a burden on his already malnourished body.
What Daniels really needs are nutrient-dense foods, such as good butter, eggs, lots of fish, fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood of any kind (he will not eat meat, but that’s OK), whole grains, and LOTS of cod liver oil, vitamin D3, K-2 and A, magnesium and a whole lot of other nutrients, but especially the omega-3 oils. I told him to get out there and get these items, plus others as we see how he does, and he started chugging cod liver oil the very next day.
So, What Happened?
When I first met Daniel, he was unable to work, basically. He could not sleep, either. Now, in less than a month, he is working about 8-10 hours a day in his profession of writer, which is a total change, and his has described himself as “happy” in his work.
“Happy” is not a word that a massively depressed person uses to describe himself, so I would have to say that he is well on the road to recovery. He also disavows any idea of suicide, and seemed shocked that I asked him that!
It is so gratifying to be able to work with a person so seriously affected, and see him come out of his malnourished state to one of normality. This is the first time I have had such an opportunity, and I feel particularly blessed to have met this client. It demonstrates how very important proper nutrition is for all of us. Unfortunately, this cure runs counter to most of what passes for conventional nutritional wisdom in America, and so millions of Americans will continue their sad, malnourished lives because no one will speak the truth to them. I hope this story will help you understand some of the realities of human nutrition. Please contact me if you have any questions!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Don't Touch My Beets!
For The Rome Observer, November 29, 2010
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
I suppose that many of you read that the FDA is now considering allowing Monsanto to start producing genetically modified sugar beets for widespread consumption in America, and probably elsewhere. A couple of months ago it was the salmon they were going to be tinkering with, and some reports say the FDA is “poised” to approve what some refer to as “Frankenfish”. This would be the first genetically engineered animal deemed safe for us all to eat.
Naturally (no pun intended), thousands, if not millions of Americans, and scores of ad hoc groups are springing up to protest this horrible idea, and I have written about some of the down side to Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s). At this point in our history, I hope you all out there realize that our government is now on the side of Big Whatever (Business, Pharma, Food), and not on YOUR side. And, as proper little citizens, we are pretty much just sitting back and allowing this farcical “protection” agency to keep doing things in our worst interest. What is more basic than food that is nutritious? If we can’t get excited over protecting our food supply, what else can do it?
Or, are we thinking: Well, they don’t serve salmon at Mickey Dee’s anyway, so what’s the harm?
Because there is no rioting in the streets, I guess the FDA will let this one slide through, just as they did with the approval of aspartame. And we all will go on eating and drinking the stuff that will eventually kill us, or maybe just render everyone sterile.
Maybe it is the high percentage of those who have been numbed with psychotropic medication that keeps us so passive and controlled.
Other people in the world aren’t so passive, however. In August, Spanish citizens, in a sort of posse, attacked a whole vineyard planted with GMO grapevines, destroying them all. French citizens did the same, and it has also been done in Roanoke, VA. Some people are doing their research, and realize this means the end of food we can trust.
What’s the Big Deal?
If I may repeat some past warnings about the negative effects of GMO’s, what we can all look forward to is:
1. The appearance of more and more food allergies among our populations. Right now, I’ll bet you personally know someone who is deathly allergic to something. I know I do. This was not the case before GMO’s appeared on the scene. Now we have tots at death’s door because of peanut allergies. I met a woman last week who has to carry her epi pen in case someone has sneaked any one of about thirty ingredients into the food she may eat. Soy, corn and some other ubiquitous products are in the neighborhood of 90% GM at this time. Soy products are everywhere, especially where you least expect them. They are triggering lots of allergies, and things can only get worse from here. To think that we need MORE GM foods in our system is ludicrous, if it were not unethical and possibly criminal.
2. When foods are genetically modified in any way, it is a total mystery as to how the foods will change generation after generation. It is likely that even if the food is not overtly harmful at once, it can develop deadly toxic properties after several generations. This has been proven in scientific studies. Are you willing to take that chance with your life, or the life of your children? Remember, it is very, very difficult to trace these kinds of toxins to their sources, and the engineering companies and seed companies will probably get a free ride on the blame game.
3. GM foods are sometimes altered in a way to make them less nutritious. This means you can be consuming them, thinking that you are eating something nutritious, and actually, it is a nutritiously dead food. Have some GM salmon, feel virtuous, and find you have been eating the nutrition equivalent of a Pop Tart! Sounds great, no? And, if they keep making more of our superfoods like salmon into GM foods, will there be any superfoods left? What will we eat for our nutrition needs?
4. There is some speculation that GM foods are going to prove to be endocrine disrupters. That is, they will interfere with hormones in our bodies. Down the road, this spells infertility! Not to go all “conspiracy theory” on you, but trials were conducted on GM corn in Mexico which were actually intended to be endocrine disrupters. They worked! Those who consumed them became infertile! Is this what you want for your children?
Now, I’m Really Mad!!!!
There was an uproar in the past year about the GM sugar beet problem. Farmers were ordered to stop using the GM seeds for their sugar beets. After all, the sugar was going into the candy that kids would be devouring on Halloween! See the four points above and try and decide whether you want your Gummy Bears made with GM beets!
However, the jury is still out on this one, so the farmers were given the go-ahead to resume using the GM seeds until a final ruling is made. HUH??? Wouldn’t it make more sense to hold off on the GM junk until real scientists not in the employ of Big Food do some tests and definitively determine what the heck is going on? Not in America! No, just go ahead and create these possibly life-threatening foods. We all want to be your guinea pigs!
In fact, I LOVE BEETS!!!!!! And they are really GOOD for you – when they are in their non-GM state. They contain flavanoids that can protect you from cancer. But even if they didn’t they are among the very best vegetables to consume, especially raw, when they are simply loaded with beneficial enzymes. Now, I have to worry that my ton a year of beets is actually harming me? My ancestors in Poland are now spinning in their graves to think that the marvelous beet could cause harm.
I am writing in a light vein here, but I want to stress this: Your life and the lives of your children are in grave danger from those who would purposely contaminate the foods that give life. Please let your representative in Congress know that you don’t want to eat Frankenfoods!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
I suppose that many of you read that the FDA is now considering allowing Monsanto to start producing genetically modified sugar beets for widespread consumption in America, and probably elsewhere. A couple of months ago it was the salmon they were going to be tinkering with, and some reports say the FDA is “poised” to approve what some refer to as “Frankenfish”. This would be the first genetically engineered animal deemed safe for us all to eat.
Naturally (no pun intended), thousands, if not millions of Americans, and scores of ad hoc groups are springing up to protest this horrible idea, and I have written about some of the down side to Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s). At this point in our history, I hope you all out there realize that our government is now on the side of Big Whatever (Business, Pharma, Food), and not on YOUR side. And, as proper little citizens, we are pretty much just sitting back and allowing this farcical “protection” agency to keep doing things in our worst interest. What is more basic than food that is nutritious? If we can’t get excited over protecting our food supply, what else can do it?
Or, are we thinking: Well, they don’t serve salmon at Mickey Dee’s anyway, so what’s the harm?
Because there is no rioting in the streets, I guess the FDA will let this one slide through, just as they did with the approval of aspartame. And we all will go on eating and drinking the stuff that will eventually kill us, or maybe just render everyone sterile.
Maybe it is the high percentage of those who have been numbed with psychotropic medication that keeps us so passive and controlled.
Other people in the world aren’t so passive, however. In August, Spanish citizens, in a sort of posse, attacked a whole vineyard planted with GMO grapevines, destroying them all. French citizens did the same, and it has also been done in Roanoke, VA. Some people are doing their research, and realize this means the end of food we can trust.
What’s the Big Deal?
If I may repeat some past warnings about the negative effects of GMO’s, what we can all look forward to is:
1. The appearance of more and more food allergies among our populations. Right now, I’ll bet you personally know someone who is deathly allergic to something. I know I do. This was not the case before GMO’s appeared on the scene. Now we have tots at death’s door because of peanut allergies. I met a woman last week who has to carry her epi pen in case someone has sneaked any one of about thirty ingredients into the food she may eat. Soy, corn and some other ubiquitous products are in the neighborhood of 90% GM at this time. Soy products are everywhere, especially where you least expect them. They are triggering lots of allergies, and things can only get worse from here. To think that we need MORE GM foods in our system is ludicrous, if it were not unethical and possibly criminal.
2. When foods are genetically modified in any way, it is a total mystery as to how the foods will change generation after generation. It is likely that even if the food is not overtly harmful at once, it can develop deadly toxic properties after several generations. This has been proven in scientific studies. Are you willing to take that chance with your life, or the life of your children? Remember, it is very, very difficult to trace these kinds of toxins to their sources, and the engineering companies and seed companies will probably get a free ride on the blame game.
3. GM foods are sometimes altered in a way to make them less nutritious. This means you can be consuming them, thinking that you are eating something nutritious, and actually, it is a nutritiously dead food. Have some GM salmon, feel virtuous, and find you have been eating the nutrition equivalent of a Pop Tart! Sounds great, no? And, if they keep making more of our superfoods like salmon into GM foods, will there be any superfoods left? What will we eat for our nutrition needs?
4. There is some speculation that GM foods are going to prove to be endocrine disrupters. That is, they will interfere with hormones in our bodies. Down the road, this spells infertility! Not to go all “conspiracy theory” on you, but trials were conducted on GM corn in Mexico which were actually intended to be endocrine disrupters. They worked! Those who consumed them became infertile! Is this what you want for your children?
Now, I’m Really Mad!!!!
There was an uproar in the past year about the GM sugar beet problem. Farmers were ordered to stop using the GM seeds for their sugar beets. After all, the sugar was going into the candy that kids would be devouring on Halloween! See the four points above and try and decide whether you want your Gummy Bears made with GM beets!
However, the jury is still out on this one, so the farmers were given the go-ahead to resume using the GM seeds until a final ruling is made. HUH??? Wouldn’t it make more sense to hold off on the GM junk until real scientists not in the employ of Big Food do some tests and definitively determine what the heck is going on? Not in America! No, just go ahead and create these possibly life-threatening foods. We all want to be your guinea pigs!
In fact, I LOVE BEETS!!!!!! And they are really GOOD for you – when they are in their non-GM state. They contain flavanoids that can protect you from cancer. But even if they didn’t they are among the very best vegetables to consume, especially raw, when they are simply loaded with beneficial enzymes. Now, I have to worry that my ton a year of beets is actually harming me? My ancestors in Poland are now spinning in their graves to think that the marvelous beet could cause harm.
I am writing in a light vein here, but I want to stress this: Your life and the lives of your children are in grave danger from those who would purposely contaminate the foods that give life. Please let your representative in Congress know that you don’t want to eat Frankenfoods!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Fighting Memes!
For The Rome Observer: November 23, 2010
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
Someone recently gave me a book to look at, Carol Kivler’s Will I Ever Be The Same Again? It’s a pretty short book, but the message is very important- in a negative way. What the book amounts to is propaganda, and dangerous propaganda at that. It’s the story of an unhappy woman who can’t face the fact that she is living the American dream, and hating it. She becomes very sad, and then decides to bow to the nudging of the kindly medical professionals and agree to some mind-altering treatments.
I am quite sure that Ms. Kivler is earnest in her attempt to help us all understand her pain in suffering from depression, and is equally earnest to enlighten about the wonders of Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT). Unfortunately, her efforts are blighted by both her scientific knowledge, and perhaps even self-knowledge. In a word, the book represents a view of emotional distress that is not consistent with reality. Ms. Kivler has been fully indoctrinated into the biopsychiatric worldview, and is a mouthpiece for this dangerous and harmful philosophy. I will write more about this view, but, briefly, it proposes that humans are mere conglomerations of chemicals, without souls. All mental distress, in this view, is caused by some unexplainable balance of brain chemicals, and fixing the problem revolves, mostly, around taking psychotropic, or mind-altering medications, or submitting, like Ms. Kivler, to barbaric assaults on the fully functioning brain.
First, I must explain my reaction to her subtitle: “Transforming the Face of ECT (Shock Therapy).” In fact, ECT needs no such transformation. It has always been feared by patients, and rightly so. No one will benefit from embracing this disabling “treatment”, except perhaps the doctors who earn thousands of dollars every time they flip the switch and light up someone’s brain.
Many books have been devoted to this topic already, but to just name a couple: Brain Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry, by Peter Breggin, M.D., who is an internationally respected psychiatrist, and The History of Shock Treatment, by Leonard Roy Frank, a patient’s rights advocate, mental health activist, and victim of shock therapy. These books outline in minute detail the negative effects of this brain-disabling method of dealing with people in distress. So, right out of the box, we must face the fact that ECT destroys brain cells. Lots of brain cells!
One example Ms. Kivler failed to include in her pantheon of “celebrities” who have undergone ECT is Ernest Hemingway, who famously blew his brains out after he realized he had suffered brain damage following this “treatment” for his depression. Few among us would every consider seizures as healing events, and neurologists struggle to prevent them in those who suffer them naturally.
There is no credible science to suggest that ECT does anything except kill brain cells, and Ms. Kivler’s “scientific” explanation is ludicrous. If someone feels “better” after ECT, this is by no means any indication that the seizure has “fixed something”. It hasn’t. Perhaps the pain of existence burns less brightly, and this is translated into “relief”. Or, the memory loss that inevitably follows blunts one’s distress to some degree, and that is regarded as “remission”. As Peter Breggin notes in his latest book Medication Madness, people with altered brains are very poor judges of their own mental states, and those with brain trauma are among the least capable of such judgment.
Cui Bono?
This is a legal term, meaning, “whose benefit?” I ask this question of Ms. Kivler. Who benefits from this little tome? I looked at her testimonials, and saw that this was a book supporting (or supported by?) NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. If we get into the book at all, it is obvious that Ms. Kivler has bought their perspective on mental illness, hook, line and sinker. She calls herself a “consumer”, she is not to blame at all for her depression, and shares no part in its genesis, she has nothing to be ashamed of or guilty about, she needs to be on medication forever, she spends a lot of time with others similarly indoctrinated, realizes that she has a chemical imbalance in her brain, and that she has a real illness, called depression. This is the total package of NAMI thinking, and all I can say is: Nah! Nope! No way! Not so! And especially: Ain’t true!
So, who benefits from this propaganda? Not Ms. Kivler, who has sacrificed untold numbers of brain cells to the cause. No, the big winners in this are biopsychiatry and Big Pharma, via the Big Pharma funded NAMI, who spreads their poisonous thinking far and wide.
Fighting the Memes!
I have decided that in future articles I will attempt to disassemble many of the memes currently overhanging our society. Memes are ideas, or thoughts which are disseminated by those in power to sway the thinking and behavior of us all. Memes are a deliberate and distinct form of propaganda.
It takes a lot of work, reading, research and study to overcome the power of the meme. One such meme, obviously, is “Depression is a disease, like diabetes.” This meme has been floating about for years, if nowhere else than in the billion-dollar ads for such poison as Zoloft or Zyprexa. If you will give me a few moments each week, I will try to present some anti-memes to you all. You can certainly disagree with me, but you had better come up with some real science, because I am armed and ready with mine!
I am greatly moved by the suffering, spiritual, emotional and physical, of those around me. I try my best to help people look within and without themselves to find the source of their unease. Very often, it works! What never works is medication for spiritual or emotional problems. But, I hope I will have many weeks ahead to give you all the latest information on an alternate reality I inhabit. It is a place where people are sad, or despondent, not “clinically depressed”. I never used labels for people, such as “schizophrenic”. I call people “overwhelmed”. I believe that we are not mere animals, concentrations of various chemicals which mysteriously interact to make us “depressed”.
No, we are alive and responding to our thoughts, our lives, even our nutrition. There are understandable reasons we become sad. In fact, in reading Ms. Kivler’s early chapters, it became apparent to me that she was less than thrilled with her endless motherly duties, and lack of personal fulfillment. I think that, plus a somewhat lousy marriage, was the REAL cause of her “clinical depression”, and I think she was too polite to say anything about it. If she were my client, and I sincerely wish she had been before she killed off millions of brain cells, I probably would have told her to can the idea of being Super Mom, and go out and do something she felt was more life-enhancing – even if it meant her kids didn’t have a home-baked brownie every afternoon. But, that’s just me.
One last word: Let’s fight the memes together! Stayed tuned!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
Someone recently gave me a book to look at, Carol Kivler’s Will I Ever Be The Same Again? It’s a pretty short book, but the message is very important- in a negative way. What the book amounts to is propaganda, and dangerous propaganda at that. It’s the story of an unhappy woman who can’t face the fact that she is living the American dream, and hating it. She becomes very sad, and then decides to bow to the nudging of the kindly medical professionals and agree to some mind-altering treatments.
I am quite sure that Ms. Kivler is earnest in her attempt to help us all understand her pain in suffering from depression, and is equally earnest to enlighten about the wonders of Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT). Unfortunately, her efforts are blighted by both her scientific knowledge, and perhaps even self-knowledge. In a word, the book represents a view of emotional distress that is not consistent with reality. Ms. Kivler has been fully indoctrinated into the biopsychiatric worldview, and is a mouthpiece for this dangerous and harmful philosophy. I will write more about this view, but, briefly, it proposes that humans are mere conglomerations of chemicals, without souls. All mental distress, in this view, is caused by some unexplainable balance of brain chemicals, and fixing the problem revolves, mostly, around taking psychotropic, or mind-altering medications, or submitting, like Ms. Kivler, to barbaric assaults on the fully functioning brain.
First, I must explain my reaction to her subtitle: “Transforming the Face of ECT (Shock Therapy).” In fact, ECT needs no such transformation. It has always been feared by patients, and rightly so. No one will benefit from embracing this disabling “treatment”, except perhaps the doctors who earn thousands of dollars every time they flip the switch and light up someone’s brain.
Many books have been devoted to this topic already, but to just name a couple: Brain Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry, by Peter Breggin, M.D., who is an internationally respected psychiatrist, and The History of Shock Treatment, by Leonard Roy Frank, a patient’s rights advocate, mental health activist, and victim of shock therapy. These books outline in minute detail the negative effects of this brain-disabling method of dealing with people in distress. So, right out of the box, we must face the fact that ECT destroys brain cells. Lots of brain cells!
One example Ms. Kivler failed to include in her pantheon of “celebrities” who have undergone ECT is Ernest Hemingway, who famously blew his brains out after he realized he had suffered brain damage following this “treatment” for his depression. Few among us would every consider seizures as healing events, and neurologists struggle to prevent them in those who suffer them naturally.
There is no credible science to suggest that ECT does anything except kill brain cells, and Ms. Kivler’s “scientific” explanation is ludicrous. If someone feels “better” after ECT, this is by no means any indication that the seizure has “fixed something”. It hasn’t. Perhaps the pain of existence burns less brightly, and this is translated into “relief”. Or, the memory loss that inevitably follows blunts one’s distress to some degree, and that is regarded as “remission”. As Peter Breggin notes in his latest book Medication Madness, people with altered brains are very poor judges of their own mental states, and those with brain trauma are among the least capable of such judgment.
Cui Bono?
This is a legal term, meaning, “whose benefit?” I ask this question of Ms. Kivler. Who benefits from this little tome? I looked at her testimonials, and saw that this was a book supporting (or supported by?) NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. If we get into the book at all, it is obvious that Ms. Kivler has bought their perspective on mental illness, hook, line and sinker. She calls herself a “consumer”, she is not to blame at all for her depression, and shares no part in its genesis, she has nothing to be ashamed of or guilty about, she needs to be on medication forever, she spends a lot of time with others similarly indoctrinated, realizes that she has a chemical imbalance in her brain, and that she has a real illness, called depression. This is the total package of NAMI thinking, and all I can say is: Nah! Nope! No way! Not so! And especially: Ain’t true!
So, who benefits from this propaganda? Not Ms. Kivler, who has sacrificed untold numbers of brain cells to the cause. No, the big winners in this are biopsychiatry and Big Pharma, via the Big Pharma funded NAMI, who spreads their poisonous thinking far and wide.
Fighting the Memes!
I have decided that in future articles I will attempt to disassemble many of the memes currently overhanging our society. Memes are ideas, or thoughts which are disseminated by those in power to sway the thinking and behavior of us all. Memes are a deliberate and distinct form of propaganda.
It takes a lot of work, reading, research and study to overcome the power of the meme. One such meme, obviously, is “Depression is a disease, like diabetes.” This meme has been floating about for years, if nowhere else than in the billion-dollar ads for such poison as Zoloft or Zyprexa. If you will give me a few moments each week, I will try to present some anti-memes to you all. You can certainly disagree with me, but you had better come up with some real science, because I am armed and ready with mine!
I am greatly moved by the suffering, spiritual, emotional and physical, of those around me. I try my best to help people look within and without themselves to find the source of their unease. Very often, it works! What never works is medication for spiritual or emotional problems. But, I hope I will have many weeks ahead to give you all the latest information on an alternate reality I inhabit. It is a place where people are sad, or despondent, not “clinically depressed”. I never used labels for people, such as “schizophrenic”. I call people “overwhelmed”. I believe that we are not mere animals, concentrations of various chemicals which mysteriously interact to make us “depressed”.
No, we are alive and responding to our thoughts, our lives, even our nutrition. There are understandable reasons we become sad. In fact, in reading Ms. Kivler’s early chapters, it became apparent to me that she was less than thrilled with her endless motherly duties, and lack of personal fulfillment. I think that, plus a somewhat lousy marriage, was the REAL cause of her “clinical depression”, and I think she was too polite to say anything about it. If she were my client, and I sincerely wish she had been before she killed off millions of brain cells, I probably would have told her to can the idea of being Super Mom, and go out and do something she felt was more life-enhancing – even if it meant her kids didn’t have a home-baked brownie every afternoon. But, that’s just me.
One last word: Let’s fight the memes together! Stayed tuned!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Yorkville, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, November 15, 2010
"Supersize Me" Redux
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer, November 15, 2010
Last night I had a chance to rewatch the movie “Supersize Me”, which came out in 2004. Since the time I first saw it, I have moved to a different understanding of nutrition, largely because I have had to do my own research and find out what is really going on. The fact is, just as with the drug industry, the food industry, or Big Food, as we might call it, is working “in cahoots” with the agencies that regulate and speak with authority on our food supply. And, just as with Big Pharma, a lot of downright lies are being passed on to us at every turn.
But first, the movie’s creator, Morgan Spurlock, as you recall, subjected himself to one full month of All McDonald’s meals. That would equal ninety doses of fast food, or, as one nutritionist put it, eight years worth of fast food, if eaten at a safe rate.
What happened to Mr. Spurlock on this diet? He developed high blood pressure, high triglycerides and cholesterol levels, began on the pathway to gout, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, liver failure, sexual impotency, and other conditions which, thankfully, reversed themselves within a year or so. Part of his rationale for making the film was that two young women had sued McDonald’s as being responsible for their weight gains of seventy to one hundred pounds. When the movie ended, and Spurlock was found on the brink of systemic collapse, it was noted that the women’s case was being reconsidered, after initially being thrown out.
Some Hasty Conclusions
As Spurlock grew fatter and fatter (he gained about 25 lbs.!), he also suffered from other kinds of symptoms, such as mental health issues, including depression. This was particularly interesting to me, since I am now becoming more and more involved in separating nutritional depression from other kinds. My inbox for e-mail is loaded with all kinds of notices about teens and depression, and the rise of depression in general in the modern world. I don’t think anyone could argue that our lives are far more comfortable now that they have ever been in the history of the world.
Really, there are some people in America you could call “poor”, but when you compare our citizens to say, the Haitians, who are living miserable lives of deprivation, the word “poor” is a relative term. Those with shelter, enough food and clothing, television sets and cell phones and other modern accoutrements can hardly be compared to those subsisting on fifty cents a day in Third World Countries. And yet, with all the wealth we enjoy, suicide rates just keep climbing. I realize that material things do not bring happiness, but even if they promote just material comfort and not spiritual ease, why should our people be killing themselves? Of course, I look to their spiritual lives, which are wanting, but first, I like to look at their diets.
Let’s face it: The typical American diet is just horrible! Add to the regular lousy American diet such items as fast food, and you indeed have a recipe for suicide. It is true that the regular American diet produces malnourishment. Don’t confuse malnourishment with hunger or starvation. Well, it is a sort of starvation: The body is starved for proper nutrition. The most easily detected elements, vitamins are present in such minute quantities that we can just write them off. In addition, good fats and enzymes are also sorely lacking. The brain does not function when it is malnourished. Hence, such “symptoms” as suicide. Believe me, all the “counseling” in the world will not help a depression that is based in poor nutrition. Can we assume that many of those drawn into suicide got there because of their terrible diets? I sure think so!
Some Erroneous Conclusions
As Spurlock went from doctor to nutritionist to doctor, they all became more and more concerned for his fate. And, when the final numbers came in, they all made their pronouncements: “See, a diet in too much fat can kill you!” Well, yes and no.
A diet with too much of the WRONG fat certainly can and does kill you! But no one was making this distinction. Fat was just bad for you, according to all of them, and a low-fat diet would cure all that ails you. Except, it doesn’t.
No one picked up, in the film, on the rise in phosphorus levels in Spurlock’s blood, except to say that he would soon develop gout. But what was the source of all this phosphorus? Of course, it was in the Supersized sodas that he drank several times a day.
I have previously written about the problem of soft drinks and gout. The doctors all seemed to look at Spurlock’s diets in a monolithic way. One interesting fact: There was one man featured who ate three Big Macs a day, and he had already consumed over 19,000 of them. Funny thing was, he wasn’t even fat! But, he ate no French fries, and soda was not mentioned either. He just ate Big Macs. Big Macs, which do nonetheless contain sugar, are low in the kinds of fats French fries swim in: Hydrogenated oils. So, this man was relatively untouched by his bizarre diet. Meat and cheese were not killing him. Hydrogenated oils and sugar were killing Spurlock, and all the others who consume them in large quantities. Yet, the doctors inveighed against “saturated fats” as if they were directly implicated in Spurlock’s tremendous weight gain.
Also quite weird was Spurlock’s girlfriend, a vegan chef, claiming that now that he was off the McDonald’s diet, he needed to eat “nutrient dense” foods to cleanse his system. My question to her: What vegan foods are nutrient dense? Vegetables and fruits do have many beneficial nutrients, but the only real nutrient dense foods are of animal origin. Foods like eggs, raw milk products, organ meats, fish and shellfish, saturated fats and fish liver oil are the most nutrient dense foods we know. A little postscript added that after Mr. Spurlock “cleansed his body” of all the fast food junk, he reverted to being a meat eater, and left the tofu behind. Good for him!
It bothers me when I read, as last week, that in San Francisco they want to ban the use of whole milk in the Happy Meals kids get there, or something like that. Children should not be consuming low fat anything, because their growing bodies need fat to create new cells. Low fat milk has added powdered milk, a dangerous product, since it is highly processed. Children who consume it have much higher rates of asthma than children who consume whole milk. Do the research!
Overeating is one of the main problems when dealing with fast food. Huge portions and the use of high fructose corn syrup conspire to create big, obese, fast-food addicted customers. Stay away from fast food, but learn to eat foods that are actually life-giving, even if “they” say they are not good for you!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY, and is a trained chef and Health and Wellness Counselor. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 786-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
For The Rome Observer, November 15, 2010
Last night I had a chance to rewatch the movie “Supersize Me”, which came out in 2004. Since the time I first saw it, I have moved to a different understanding of nutrition, largely because I have had to do my own research and find out what is really going on. The fact is, just as with the drug industry, the food industry, or Big Food, as we might call it, is working “in cahoots” with the agencies that regulate and speak with authority on our food supply. And, just as with Big Pharma, a lot of downright lies are being passed on to us at every turn.
But first, the movie’s creator, Morgan Spurlock, as you recall, subjected himself to one full month of All McDonald’s meals. That would equal ninety doses of fast food, or, as one nutritionist put it, eight years worth of fast food, if eaten at a safe rate.
What happened to Mr. Spurlock on this diet? He developed high blood pressure, high triglycerides and cholesterol levels, began on the pathway to gout, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, liver failure, sexual impotency, and other conditions which, thankfully, reversed themselves within a year or so. Part of his rationale for making the film was that two young women had sued McDonald’s as being responsible for their weight gains of seventy to one hundred pounds. When the movie ended, and Spurlock was found on the brink of systemic collapse, it was noted that the women’s case was being reconsidered, after initially being thrown out.
Some Hasty Conclusions
As Spurlock grew fatter and fatter (he gained about 25 lbs.!), he also suffered from other kinds of symptoms, such as mental health issues, including depression. This was particularly interesting to me, since I am now becoming more and more involved in separating nutritional depression from other kinds. My inbox for e-mail is loaded with all kinds of notices about teens and depression, and the rise of depression in general in the modern world. I don’t think anyone could argue that our lives are far more comfortable now that they have ever been in the history of the world.
Really, there are some people in America you could call “poor”, but when you compare our citizens to say, the Haitians, who are living miserable lives of deprivation, the word “poor” is a relative term. Those with shelter, enough food and clothing, television sets and cell phones and other modern accoutrements can hardly be compared to those subsisting on fifty cents a day in Third World Countries. And yet, with all the wealth we enjoy, suicide rates just keep climbing. I realize that material things do not bring happiness, but even if they promote just material comfort and not spiritual ease, why should our people be killing themselves? Of course, I look to their spiritual lives, which are wanting, but first, I like to look at their diets.
Let’s face it: The typical American diet is just horrible! Add to the regular lousy American diet such items as fast food, and you indeed have a recipe for suicide. It is true that the regular American diet produces malnourishment. Don’t confuse malnourishment with hunger or starvation. Well, it is a sort of starvation: The body is starved for proper nutrition. The most easily detected elements, vitamins are present in such minute quantities that we can just write them off. In addition, good fats and enzymes are also sorely lacking. The brain does not function when it is malnourished. Hence, such “symptoms” as suicide. Believe me, all the “counseling” in the world will not help a depression that is based in poor nutrition. Can we assume that many of those drawn into suicide got there because of their terrible diets? I sure think so!
Some Erroneous Conclusions
As Spurlock went from doctor to nutritionist to doctor, they all became more and more concerned for his fate. And, when the final numbers came in, they all made their pronouncements: “See, a diet in too much fat can kill you!” Well, yes and no.
A diet with too much of the WRONG fat certainly can and does kill you! But no one was making this distinction. Fat was just bad for you, according to all of them, and a low-fat diet would cure all that ails you. Except, it doesn’t.
No one picked up, in the film, on the rise in phosphorus levels in Spurlock’s blood, except to say that he would soon develop gout. But what was the source of all this phosphorus? Of course, it was in the Supersized sodas that he drank several times a day.
I have previously written about the problem of soft drinks and gout. The doctors all seemed to look at Spurlock’s diets in a monolithic way. One interesting fact: There was one man featured who ate three Big Macs a day, and he had already consumed over 19,000 of them. Funny thing was, he wasn’t even fat! But, he ate no French fries, and soda was not mentioned either. He just ate Big Macs. Big Macs, which do nonetheless contain sugar, are low in the kinds of fats French fries swim in: Hydrogenated oils. So, this man was relatively untouched by his bizarre diet. Meat and cheese were not killing him. Hydrogenated oils and sugar were killing Spurlock, and all the others who consume them in large quantities. Yet, the doctors inveighed against “saturated fats” as if they were directly implicated in Spurlock’s tremendous weight gain.
Also quite weird was Spurlock’s girlfriend, a vegan chef, claiming that now that he was off the McDonald’s diet, he needed to eat “nutrient dense” foods to cleanse his system. My question to her: What vegan foods are nutrient dense? Vegetables and fruits do have many beneficial nutrients, but the only real nutrient dense foods are of animal origin. Foods like eggs, raw milk products, organ meats, fish and shellfish, saturated fats and fish liver oil are the most nutrient dense foods we know. A little postscript added that after Mr. Spurlock “cleansed his body” of all the fast food junk, he reverted to being a meat eater, and left the tofu behind. Good for him!
It bothers me when I read, as last week, that in San Francisco they want to ban the use of whole milk in the Happy Meals kids get there, or something like that. Children should not be consuming low fat anything, because their growing bodies need fat to create new cells. Low fat milk has added powdered milk, a dangerous product, since it is highly processed. Children who consume it have much higher rates of asthma than children who consume whole milk. Do the research!
Overeating is one of the main problems when dealing with fast food. Huge portions and the use of high fructose corn syrup conspire to create big, obese, fast-food addicted customers. Stay away from fast food, but learn to eat foods that are actually life-giving, even if “they” say they are not good for you!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY, and is a trained chef and Health and Wellness Counselor. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 786-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, November 1, 2010
How To Be Assertive
For The Rome Observer: November 2, 2010
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
Now that Thanksgiving is coming into view, many of us will be facing family members who seem to lack personal boundaries. More about that some other time. Today, I want to talk about one of my favorite things: Assertiveness. What is it? Why do we need it? How is it different from other ways of dealing with conflict?
What is Assertiveness?
The Webster’s Dictionary I checked gave two definitions of assert. One: “To state positively, declare or affirm”, and Two: “To maintain or defend (one’s rights, etc.)”. My own use of the term incorporates both these ideas. We need to be able to speak up and state the obvious without fear, and we need to defend ourselves and others when conflict rears its ugly head.
Assertiveness as a response style is the only mature way to handle the inevitable problems we face living with others. Because it is a respectful style, it causes much less pain and guilt than aggressiveness or manipulation. It is affirming to the other person when done properly. To quote my former professor, “ Assertiveness says ‘You count and I count”. Nobody is the loser here, and it creates an atmosphere of listening and co-operation.
Why Do We Need Assertiveness?
We need to be acquainted with the skill of assertiveness because when we use it to deal with problems, it preserves our relationships with others. If you catch yourself burning your bridges again and again, it is likely you don’t understand how to be assertive. If you find yourself suffering from chronic depression, fatigue and other “down” kinds of feelings, it is also likely that you don’t use assertiveness in handling conflicts. In fact, you are probably just absorbing all the negativity others are throwing at you, and it is bumming you out!
What Does Assertiveness Look Like?
It’s easy to think of a million examples where being assertive can be used. Let’s start with an easy one: The check-out line at Big M on Main Street. You are waiting in line, and suddenly, a guy steps in front of you. What to do? The aggressive person will say, “Hey, Buddy, back of the line!” and throw an ugly face his way. The passive person will, of course, say nothing, but will silently be angry, thus compounding the rage inside, generating another migraine later on. The passive-aggressive person will say nothing, but will “accidentally” ram the guy in the behind with their basket. What will the assertive person do? They will probably say something like, “Excuse me, sir. I’m sure you are in as much of a hurry as I am, but I believe I was next in line. Can you let me go ahead?”
That’s it in a nutshell. However, hidden in this response is a three-part statement we will now deconstruct.
The Three “A’s”
To create an assertive statement, we need to make sure it has those three parts.
The first part is the Affirmation. If we want to make a good assertion, we don’t want to lose everybody at the get-go. So, we create an affirmation which tells the person we understand that they have their own unique point of view, and we appreciate it. Now, we don’t agree with it, but we can see that they are coming from a different place. This is the hardest part for those who are used to being aggressive and riding roughshod over others. But, research has shown that when the affirmation is added to the assertive statement, it gets far more results than just the naked assertion. Think of it as the bow on the package.
The second part of the statement is the Assertion. This is where you make your case. You tell the other person the way you see things, your reality. This isn’t hard to do.
The final part of the statement is the Action. You want to see something happen here, and this is what you want to see. So, we have the Affirmation, Assertion and the Action. Three parts to one assertion.
More Assertions
Let’s see a few of these assertions. How about: “I know that my parking space is a lot closer to the building than yours, Bob, but I need to use my own space, so I am asking you to please not park in my space in the future. Thanks.” Or, “I really like Lady Gaga myself, Tiffany, but I have an exam tomorrow, and I can’t study when you have the volume so loud. Could you please turn it down a bit? Thanks.” Or, “I realize you need to raise a lot of money for the class trip, but I won’t be able to make ten pies for the bake sale. Please put me down for two.” So, you get the idea. We want to let the other person know that we understand where they’re coming from, but that we have an alternative idea, and we tell them what we expect them to do. See how easy this is??
The Down Side
Well, that was a trick title, since there is no down side to assertiveness. It is a great tool to have in your everyday dealings with others. But, don’t think that just because you frame a perfect assertive statement, you are going to get your way. In fact, since so few people are actually good at this, it may put you a little farther ahead, but there are plenty of stubborn, selfish people around, and they don’t really care what you think or want. At least, though, you will be able to identify them much more easily, and then we’re on to the next topic: Dealing with difficult people, otherwise known as jerks!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
Now that Thanksgiving is coming into view, many of us will be facing family members who seem to lack personal boundaries. More about that some other time. Today, I want to talk about one of my favorite things: Assertiveness. What is it? Why do we need it? How is it different from other ways of dealing with conflict?
What is Assertiveness?
The Webster’s Dictionary I checked gave two definitions of assert. One: “To state positively, declare or affirm”, and Two: “To maintain or defend (one’s rights, etc.)”. My own use of the term incorporates both these ideas. We need to be able to speak up and state the obvious without fear, and we need to defend ourselves and others when conflict rears its ugly head.
Assertiveness as a response style is the only mature way to handle the inevitable problems we face living with others. Because it is a respectful style, it causes much less pain and guilt than aggressiveness or manipulation. It is affirming to the other person when done properly. To quote my former professor, “ Assertiveness says ‘You count and I count”. Nobody is the loser here, and it creates an atmosphere of listening and co-operation.
Why Do We Need Assertiveness?
We need to be acquainted with the skill of assertiveness because when we use it to deal with problems, it preserves our relationships with others. If you catch yourself burning your bridges again and again, it is likely you don’t understand how to be assertive. If you find yourself suffering from chronic depression, fatigue and other “down” kinds of feelings, it is also likely that you don’t use assertiveness in handling conflicts. In fact, you are probably just absorbing all the negativity others are throwing at you, and it is bumming you out!
What Does Assertiveness Look Like?
It’s easy to think of a million examples where being assertive can be used. Let’s start with an easy one: The check-out line at Big M on Main Street. You are waiting in line, and suddenly, a guy steps in front of you. What to do? The aggressive person will say, “Hey, Buddy, back of the line!” and throw an ugly face his way. The passive person will, of course, say nothing, but will silently be angry, thus compounding the rage inside, generating another migraine later on. The passive-aggressive person will say nothing, but will “accidentally” ram the guy in the behind with their basket. What will the assertive person do? They will probably say something like, “Excuse me, sir. I’m sure you are in as much of a hurry as I am, but I believe I was next in line. Can you let me go ahead?”
That’s it in a nutshell. However, hidden in this response is a three-part statement we will now deconstruct.
The Three “A’s”
To create an assertive statement, we need to make sure it has those three parts.
The first part is the Affirmation. If we want to make a good assertion, we don’t want to lose everybody at the get-go. So, we create an affirmation which tells the person we understand that they have their own unique point of view, and we appreciate it. Now, we don’t agree with it, but we can see that they are coming from a different place. This is the hardest part for those who are used to being aggressive and riding roughshod over others. But, research has shown that when the affirmation is added to the assertive statement, it gets far more results than just the naked assertion. Think of it as the bow on the package.
The second part of the statement is the Assertion. This is where you make your case. You tell the other person the way you see things, your reality. This isn’t hard to do.
The final part of the statement is the Action. You want to see something happen here, and this is what you want to see. So, we have the Affirmation, Assertion and the Action. Three parts to one assertion.
More Assertions
Let’s see a few of these assertions. How about: “I know that my parking space is a lot closer to the building than yours, Bob, but I need to use my own space, so I am asking you to please not park in my space in the future. Thanks.” Or, “I really like Lady Gaga myself, Tiffany, but I have an exam tomorrow, and I can’t study when you have the volume so loud. Could you please turn it down a bit? Thanks.” Or, “I realize you need to raise a lot of money for the class trip, but I won’t be able to make ten pies for the bake sale. Please put me down for two.” So, you get the idea. We want to let the other person know that we understand where they’re coming from, but that we have an alternative idea, and we tell them what we expect them to do. See how easy this is??
The Down Side
Well, that was a trick title, since there is no down side to assertiveness. It is a great tool to have in your everyday dealings with others. But, don’t think that just because you frame a perfect assertive statement, you are going to get your way. In fact, since so few people are actually good at this, it may put you a little farther ahead, but there are plenty of stubborn, selfish people around, and they don’t really care what you think or want. At least, though, you will be able to identify them much more easily, and then we’re on to the next topic: Dealing with difficult people, otherwise known as jerks!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Eighth Grade Exam: Salinas, KS, 1895
What it took to get an 8th grade education in 1895...
Remember when grandparents and great-grandparents stated that they only had an 8th grade education? Well, check this out.. Could any of us have passed the 8th grade in 1895?
This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina , Kansas , USA . It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society
and Library in Salina , and reprinted by the Salina Journal.
8th Grade Final Exam:
Salina, KS - 1895
Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph
4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of 'lie,''play,' and 'run.'
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.
Arithmetic (Time,1 hour 15 minutes)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2.. A wagon box is 2 ft. Deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. Wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel, deducting 1,050 lbs. For tare?
4. District No 33 has a valuation of $35,000.. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs. Coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft.. Long at $20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt
U..S. History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.
Orthography (Time, one hour)
[Do we even know what this is??]
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u.' (HUH?)
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis-mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup..
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain, vein, raze, raise, rays..
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks
and by syllabication.
Geography (Time, one hour)
1 What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas ?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , Manitoba , Hecla , Yukon , St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S. Name all the republics of Europe and give the capital of each..
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.
Notice that the exam took FIVE HOURS to complete.
Remember when grandparents and great-grandparents stated that they only had an 8th grade education? Well, check this out.. Could any of us have passed the 8th grade in 1895?
This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina , Kansas , USA . It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society
and Library in Salina , and reprinted by the Salina Journal.
8th Grade Final Exam:
Salina, KS - 1895
Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph
4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of 'lie,''play,' and 'run.'
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.
Arithmetic (Time,1 hour 15 minutes)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2.. A wagon box is 2 ft. Deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. Wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel, deducting 1,050 lbs. For tare?
4. District No 33 has a valuation of $35,000.. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs. Coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft.. Long at $20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt
U..S. History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.
Orthography (Time, one hour)
[Do we even know what this is??]
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u.' (HUH?)
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis-mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup..
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain, vein, raze, raise, rays..
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks
and by syllabication.
Geography (Time, one hour)
1 What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas ?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , Manitoba , Hecla , Yukon , St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S. Name all the republics of Europe and give the capital of each..
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.
Notice that the exam took FIVE HOURS to complete.
Public Education in America
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
My uncle sends me stuff on e-mail regularly. Because he is a Navy Chief, ret., you can probably figure out his stance on things. Let’s just put it this way: He’s not a Democrat, and is VERY patriotic. Now, you might say, can’t a Democrat be patriotic?
At bottom, no. Because the Democratic party has been co-opted by the liberal agenda. If you like, you can substitute the word “socialist”, or “fascist”, or even “communist” for the word ‘liberal’ This is only if you are aware of the development of these three branches of what could be called “Progressivism”. Progressivism is opposed to nationalism, which is the basis for patriotism. So, no, you can’t be progressive and patriotic, if you are going to be intellectually consistent. I am sure many would disagree, but I would love to debate it with whomever....
Anyway, the gem Uncle Alex just sent me was a copy of the Eighth Grade Final Exam from Salinas, KS, dated 1985. Most of you know that in 1895, a very large portion of the population would have ended their formal education.
All I can say is, after looking at that exam, what a grand and wonderful education it was! Someone had written above it, “Most teachers with a Master’s degree would fail it!” I’m not too sure how I would have done, either.
Here is a sampling of some of the questions, drawn from the five topics of Grammar, U.S. History, Orthography (do most of us even know what that means?), Arithmetic, and Geography. Check these little tidbits out!
1. Define verse, stanza and paragraph.
2. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 feet long at $20 per meter? (Yes, meters, not feet!)
3. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
4. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi-, dis-, mis-,pre-,semi-, post-, non-, inter-, mono-, sup-.
5. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
6. Name and describe the following: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver, Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall, Orinoco.
This exam took five hours to complete, and I can say that if anyone could pass it, they would be ready for life in any state as a full adult. So much for the good old days. I will post this on my blog so that anyone of you can take a better look at the standards which used to guide our schools.
Is There Something Wrong With Our Schools?
Some of you may believe that our schools are in good shape right now, and that educational excellence prevails throughout our land. Unfortunately, the opposite is true, and most can agree that our schools are not doing a good job of creating educated adults.
So, imagine my surprise when I followed a link from one of the listserves I get daily to this: The Tea Party Education Manifesto. This document was written by Bruce Deitrick Price, who has a website entitled, improve-education.org. I had never heard of him, but I think most of you will be very pleased to read his eight ideas on how to improve our American education system. Here are his ideas, with my comments in parentheses:
1. Encourage and strengthen charter schools, vouchers, homeschooling and all types of private schools, because diversity and competition is a sure way to have improvement. (Sounds good, and this way not all of our children will be force fed the same liberal ideology and political correctness. There is the possibility that the most gifted will somehow escape the dumbing down effect of our present educational system.)
2. Support fast-track alternative credentialing. If smart, educated people want to leave other fields, all they really need is a couple of months of classroom training. (Amen! I have taught at the university level, and there were no classes on how to teach. If you know something, and you have the gift, you are a teacher. If you don’t have the gift, no amount of training will help.)
3. All teachers must major in the subjects they teach. ( Duh! Mastery of a topic is essential before one can teach it. Case closed. This is not always the case in our schools today.)
4. Make schools safe and secure. (He goes on to state that if someone has a pill in their purse, it is far less dangerous than someone coming to school with a gun).
5. Teachers must not be required to join a union. The power of the National Education Association (NEA) is an obstacle to reform. (The fact is, the NEA is the most powerful union in America, and it has far too much control over the teachers it is supposed to be representing.)
6. Repeal, rescind or scale back Race to the Top. (Like No Child Left Behind, these large-scale top down educational are not necessary, and they really get in the way of a teacher teaching the way he or she wants to.)
7. Cut the Department of Education by half, then do it again. This thing should never have been created [it was a payback from the Democrats to the NEA]. Similarly, cut in half the role of schools of education. These places take two years to impart two months worth of information. ( In other words, it would be better to take new teachers who are talented in their area of expertise, rather than take teachers who have just been learning to “teach”.
8. (This is my absolute favorite!) Try to dismantle all the sophistries and gimmicks introduced by progressive educators in the last 100 years (since Thomas A. Dewey took over the direction of American education, and after the 1895 Eighth Grade test seen above), for example Sight-Words, New Math/Reform Math, Constructivism, Self-Esteem, Multiculturalism, Fuzziness of any kind, Group Learning, etc. Instead, there must be a renewed emphasis on foundational knowledge and basic skills, with mastery of both (Say, for example, in the 1895 Kansas schools).
Mr. Price suggests that even if four of these eight suggestions were to be implemented, we would see vast improvements in our American educational systems. We can only hope!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
My uncle sends me stuff on e-mail regularly. Because he is a Navy Chief, ret., you can probably figure out his stance on things. Let’s just put it this way: He’s not a Democrat, and is VERY patriotic. Now, you might say, can’t a Democrat be patriotic?
At bottom, no. Because the Democratic party has been co-opted by the liberal agenda. If you like, you can substitute the word “socialist”, or “fascist”, or even “communist” for the word ‘liberal’ This is only if you are aware of the development of these three branches of what could be called “Progressivism”. Progressivism is opposed to nationalism, which is the basis for patriotism. So, no, you can’t be progressive and patriotic, if you are going to be intellectually consistent. I am sure many would disagree, but I would love to debate it with whomever....
Anyway, the gem Uncle Alex just sent me was a copy of the Eighth Grade Final Exam from Salinas, KS, dated 1985. Most of you know that in 1895, a very large portion of the population would have ended their formal education.
All I can say is, after looking at that exam, what a grand and wonderful education it was! Someone had written above it, “Most teachers with a Master’s degree would fail it!” I’m not too sure how I would have done, either.
Here is a sampling of some of the questions, drawn from the five topics of Grammar, U.S. History, Orthography (do most of us even know what that means?), Arithmetic, and Geography. Check these little tidbits out!
1. Define verse, stanza and paragraph.
2. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 feet long at $20 per meter? (Yes, meters, not feet!)
3. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
4. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi-, dis-, mis-,pre-,semi-, post-, non-, inter-, mono-, sup-.
5. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
6. Name and describe the following: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver, Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall, Orinoco.
This exam took five hours to complete, and I can say that if anyone could pass it, they would be ready for life in any state as a full adult. So much for the good old days. I will post this on my blog so that anyone of you can take a better look at the standards which used to guide our schools.
Is There Something Wrong With Our Schools?
Some of you may believe that our schools are in good shape right now, and that educational excellence prevails throughout our land. Unfortunately, the opposite is true, and most can agree that our schools are not doing a good job of creating educated adults.
So, imagine my surprise when I followed a link from one of the listserves I get daily to this: The Tea Party Education Manifesto. This document was written by Bruce Deitrick Price, who has a website entitled, improve-education.org. I had never heard of him, but I think most of you will be very pleased to read his eight ideas on how to improve our American education system. Here are his ideas, with my comments in parentheses:
1. Encourage and strengthen charter schools, vouchers, homeschooling and all types of private schools, because diversity and competition is a sure way to have improvement. (Sounds good, and this way not all of our children will be force fed the same liberal ideology and political correctness. There is the possibility that the most gifted will somehow escape the dumbing down effect of our present educational system.)
2. Support fast-track alternative credentialing. If smart, educated people want to leave other fields, all they really need is a couple of months of classroom training. (Amen! I have taught at the university level, and there were no classes on how to teach. If you know something, and you have the gift, you are a teacher. If you don’t have the gift, no amount of training will help.)
3. All teachers must major in the subjects they teach. ( Duh! Mastery of a topic is essential before one can teach it. Case closed. This is not always the case in our schools today.)
4. Make schools safe and secure. (He goes on to state that if someone has a pill in their purse, it is far less dangerous than someone coming to school with a gun).
5. Teachers must not be required to join a union. The power of the National Education Association (NEA) is an obstacle to reform. (The fact is, the NEA is the most powerful union in America, and it has far too much control over the teachers it is supposed to be representing.)
6. Repeal, rescind or scale back Race to the Top. (Like No Child Left Behind, these large-scale top down educational are not necessary, and they really get in the way of a teacher teaching the way he or she wants to.)
7. Cut the Department of Education by half, then do it again. This thing should never have been created [it was a payback from the Democrats to the NEA]. Similarly, cut in half the role of schools of education. These places take two years to impart two months worth of information. ( In other words, it would be better to take new teachers who are talented in their area of expertise, rather than take teachers who have just been learning to “teach”.
8. (This is my absolute favorite!) Try to dismantle all the sophistries and gimmicks introduced by progressive educators in the last 100 years (since Thomas A. Dewey took over the direction of American education, and after the 1895 Eighth Grade test seen above), for example Sight-Words, New Math/Reform Math, Constructivism, Self-Esteem, Multiculturalism, Fuzziness of any kind, Group Learning, etc. Instead, there must be a renewed emphasis on foundational knowledge and basic skills, with mastery of both (Say, for example, in the 1895 Kansas schools).
Mr. Price suggests that even if four of these eight suggestions were to be implemented, we would see vast improvements in our American educational systems. We can only hope!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
The Government Has No Money!
The Government Has No Money!
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer: October 19, 2010
Like you all, I have been watching numberless political ads these days on television. They roll in like waves, one after the other. The “bad” guys have dark circles under their eyes, or have a heavy five o’clock shadow, like Nixon. The “good guys” are seen clutching their beautiful babies, or dressed in jeans to show how “earthy” and humble they are. Throw a cow or two in, and the candidate looks like a saint, almost.
This is just “normal” media manipulation of images. I would like to quote one of my favorite movies on this one: “As if!”
I am sure some of you have studied these kinds of tactics, and can see through most of it. I really don’t want my re presentative or governor wearing jeans when they discharge their duties in Albany or Washington. And bringing a milk cow into these legislative offices would be just unseemly.
But all this stuff doesn’t really bother me that much. I just have to laugh.
No, what really bothers me is what these clowns, excuse me, candidates, are saying to us. That which they hope and pray we will trust and believe.
Where Does Federal and State Money Come From?
This would appear to be a no-brainer, and yet millions of my fellow Americans obviously think differently on this topic than I. Where DOES the money that these candidates are talking about spending really come from? I’ll give you a hint: It’s really close to you right now. Really close.
Answer: It is going to come out of YOUR pocket. Now, the less gifted among you will say that the government prints the money, so they really don’t take it out of our pockets, but that is just specious!
The federal government, if we start there, has no money of its own. It is the instrument of the will of the people, through their representatives, one hopes. When an elected official, or a candidate for office starts spouting off about “creating jobs”, and funding this or that program, the bottom line in all of your minds should be: This is on my dime.
How does the government, any government in America, from the federal to the town level, get its money? It takes the money away from those who work and own property, or those who travel and pay customs and duty on goods. Tariffs are largely a thing of the past, so foreign businesses are much less on the hook than previously.
No, for the most part, you and I, the taxpayers, the property owners, the business owners are picking up all the tabs. When I hear Democrats saying they are going to be bringing in lots of entitlement programs, I cringe. My bills for them will be going up.
What do Democrats and Republicans Say?
When I hear Democrats telling me they are cutting taxes, I get confused, since entitlement programs they are so keen on, like health care, are going to be paid for through reaching into my pocket. Huh? You are going to spend trillions and I am off the hook? How can it be? Well, very simply, it can’t. Old Uncle Sam will have to reach in even deeper for those entitlements, so just buck up and take it!
Let’s consider what our Republican candidates are saying: I will create many new jobs, and will cut spending and bring in tax cuts! But, how can government “create” new jobs without spending any government money? It is impossible! And, if you do that, won’t my taxes go up? Yes, they will. That’s what the bailout was all about: Creating millions of new jobs and cutting taxes at the same time. A sleight of hand? No, just twisted factoids, delivered to sway the minds of those who either need jobs, or need tax cuts. Sort of like a miracle, except it isn’t real, but campaign fantasy.
Republicans are creating jobs AND cutting taxes, and Democrats are creating jobs AND cutting taxes. Something for everyone, so I guess it boils down to which candidate warms the cockles of your hearts more, or who looks better milking a cow. Come to think of it, the milking scenario could actually be a coded reference to what they are really up to: Milking the taxpayers!
I have an excellent credit rating. People would love to give me all kinds of money. I don’t take it, however, because it really bothers me to be in debt. Aren’t there other Americans out there who look at our mounting debt and shudder?
By the way, if 40 or so millions of Americans do not have health insurance, and suddenly it will be available to them, who do you think is going to pay for it? You. Even if you have your own health insurance, you are now going to pick up part of the tab for 40 million more people. As old Marx said, “Each according to his ability, each according to his need.” You may have the ability to pay for more people’s health insurance, so pony up! You may have the need to get some, so sit back and wait for me to kick in for you! Well, kick in isn’t really the deal: Old Uncle Sam will decide to help himself and just put his hand in my pocket. If this is not socialism or communism, I would really like someone to explain why not. Didn’t we once seek out communists to stop them from perverting our freedoms? I guess the folks in government missed that memo.
I have often said that I don’t like fantasy in any form. I don’t like fantasy movies, or books, or games. My life is devoted to helping others come into reality, understand reality and most importantly, deal with reality. So, when it comes to politics and political campaigns, I mostly notice what is fantasy about them. I don’t know if any of you are also recognizing the fantastic nature of the current political ads, but here is what I would like to hear from someone:
“We have spent your money over the years, like a bunch of drunken sailors. The time has come to get into reality. We have to cut programs, especially entitlement programs, to preserve our country (town, state) as a free republic. If you yourself are a careful spender, and don’t go into debt without serious thinking, you will appreciate what I am trying to do: Get us out of debt. We have to tighten our belts and give up some of the fantasy programs which we cannot afford. Vote for me if you are living in reality, and not some fantasy-land of unlimited credit spending. Thank you.”
Would anyone vote for such a person? Anyone besides me?
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY, Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer: October 19, 2010
Like you all, I have been watching numberless political ads these days on television. They roll in like waves, one after the other. The “bad” guys have dark circles under their eyes, or have a heavy five o’clock shadow, like Nixon. The “good guys” are seen clutching their beautiful babies, or dressed in jeans to show how “earthy” and humble they are. Throw a cow or two in, and the candidate looks like a saint, almost.
This is just “normal” media manipulation of images. I would like to quote one of my favorite movies on this one: “As if!”
I am sure some of you have studied these kinds of tactics, and can see through most of it. I really don’t want my re presentative or governor wearing jeans when they discharge their duties in Albany or Washington. And bringing a milk cow into these legislative offices would be just unseemly.
But all this stuff doesn’t really bother me that much. I just have to laugh.
No, what really bothers me is what these clowns, excuse me, candidates, are saying to us. That which they hope and pray we will trust and believe.
Where Does Federal and State Money Come From?
This would appear to be a no-brainer, and yet millions of my fellow Americans obviously think differently on this topic than I. Where DOES the money that these candidates are talking about spending really come from? I’ll give you a hint: It’s really close to you right now. Really close.
Answer: It is going to come out of YOUR pocket. Now, the less gifted among you will say that the government prints the money, so they really don’t take it out of our pockets, but that is just specious!
The federal government, if we start there, has no money of its own. It is the instrument of the will of the people, through their representatives, one hopes. When an elected official, or a candidate for office starts spouting off about “creating jobs”, and funding this or that program, the bottom line in all of your minds should be: This is on my dime.
How does the government, any government in America, from the federal to the town level, get its money? It takes the money away from those who work and own property, or those who travel and pay customs and duty on goods. Tariffs are largely a thing of the past, so foreign businesses are much less on the hook than previously.
No, for the most part, you and I, the taxpayers, the property owners, the business owners are picking up all the tabs. When I hear Democrats saying they are going to be bringing in lots of entitlement programs, I cringe. My bills for them will be going up.
What do Democrats and Republicans Say?
When I hear Democrats telling me they are cutting taxes, I get confused, since entitlement programs they are so keen on, like health care, are going to be paid for through reaching into my pocket. Huh? You are going to spend trillions and I am off the hook? How can it be? Well, very simply, it can’t. Old Uncle Sam will have to reach in even deeper for those entitlements, so just buck up and take it!
Let’s consider what our Republican candidates are saying: I will create many new jobs, and will cut spending and bring in tax cuts! But, how can government “create” new jobs without spending any government money? It is impossible! And, if you do that, won’t my taxes go up? Yes, they will. That’s what the bailout was all about: Creating millions of new jobs and cutting taxes at the same time. A sleight of hand? No, just twisted factoids, delivered to sway the minds of those who either need jobs, or need tax cuts. Sort of like a miracle, except it isn’t real, but campaign fantasy.
Republicans are creating jobs AND cutting taxes, and Democrats are creating jobs AND cutting taxes. Something for everyone, so I guess it boils down to which candidate warms the cockles of your hearts more, or who looks better milking a cow. Come to think of it, the milking scenario could actually be a coded reference to what they are really up to: Milking the taxpayers!
I have an excellent credit rating. People would love to give me all kinds of money. I don’t take it, however, because it really bothers me to be in debt. Aren’t there other Americans out there who look at our mounting debt and shudder?
By the way, if 40 or so millions of Americans do not have health insurance, and suddenly it will be available to them, who do you think is going to pay for it? You. Even if you have your own health insurance, you are now going to pick up part of the tab for 40 million more people. As old Marx said, “Each according to his ability, each according to his need.” You may have the ability to pay for more people’s health insurance, so pony up! You may have the need to get some, so sit back and wait for me to kick in for you! Well, kick in isn’t really the deal: Old Uncle Sam will decide to help himself and just put his hand in my pocket. If this is not socialism or communism, I would really like someone to explain why not. Didn’t we once seek out communists to stop them from perverting our freedoms? I guess the folks in government missed that memo.
I have often said that I don’t like fantasy in any form. I don’t like fantasy movies, or books, or games. My life is devoted to helping others come into reality, understand reality and most importantly, deal with reality. So, when it comes to politics and political campaigns, I mostly notice what is fantasy about them. I don’t know if any of you are also recognizing the fantastic nature of the current political ads, but here is what I would like to hear from someone:
“We have spent your money over the years, like a bunch of drunken sailors. The time has come to get into reality. We have to cut programs, especially entitlement programs, to preserve our country (town, state) as a free republic. If you yourself are a careful spender, and don’t go into debt without serious thinking, you will appreciate what I am trying to do: Get us out of debt. We have to tighten our belts and give up some of the fantasy programs which we cannot afford. Vote for me if you are living in reality, and not some fantasy-land of unlimited credit spending. Thank you.”
Would anyone vote for such a person? Anyone besides me?
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY, Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Socialism and Freedom: The Coming Elections
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer: October 12, 2010
This column was inspired by a quote from an article in The New Yorker, in a review of a book by Isabel Wilkerson. In describing how she decided to structure her book, she decided to avoid the “Chicago School sociology view” of literature, which was “always about the collective (if you just talk to enough people, take enough photographs, conduct enough surveys, you could, finally, record what it meant to be human”. This style, which developed in the nineteen-thirties, stands in opposition to the newer narrative journalism of the nineteen-sixties (if you could just find the right person to talk to, you could write the story of everyone). I say this: Both approaches are wrong, because the whole world resides in each of us, and there is no way to capture all of that reality either through crowds, or through the life of one person. We are all totally unique.
I have written before about my abhorrence of statistics in the field of mental health and/or psychology. Comparing two people or more for traits, or beliefs, or any other factor is silly, at best, and utterly damaging at worst. I know that at these election times, we are coerced into thinking along these lines continually, and for me, it is highly upsetting. I don’t know about you, but I have been getting lots of calls for polling information, and it always makes me very uneasy when I given a forced choice, and I don’t like either of the options. We get forced into “camps”, pro and con.
“Would you vote for Bob Brown, or Sally Black if you had to vote today?” runs a typical question. This time around, in particular, it seems no choice is good. I really don’t like anybody for any reason, or for many reasons!
I also don’t want to be lumped into a category of “angry voter” if I don’t like these choices. I’m not particularly angry, but I am saddened by the mess that our legislators have created at every level of government. What were they thinking?
Am I An Angry Voter?
On the local level we see story after story of towns’ reserve funds being used up, and then the inevitable “Oh-Oh!” moment when they discover their till is empty. In Albany, we find such chaos that to even contemplate change is impossible, and at the federal level, well, who knows what they are really up to there.
My question is: What kind of country are we trying to create? Is it a socialistic place where everyone has all needs met by our vast and every increasing bureaucracy? We know full well that this bureaucracy is not acting in the interests of the little guy, but that it is highly influenced, if not controlled, by corporate and business interest. The Eisenhower-named “military-industrial complex” is here. I would amend that title to “military-industrial-chemical complex”, to include those who tamper with our food, our water supply and our minds with an assortment of chemical products.
So, for me, who is opposed to socialism in all forms, the choice does not stand out as “vote Republican!”, because I have studied the history of the Republican Party, and it has, since the latter part of the nineteenth century, represented the interests of big business, and the vast complex of powerful entities named above. Just read about how the railroads almost took over the federal government at the height of their powers, and you will shrink from thinking that the GOP is looking out for little old you.
In past years I lived in a country under socialism, and I can tell you that it is not something you really want to consider. People and their individual lives are not all that important. The state is the thing, not the individual. An artist friend of mine considered long and hard, because he wanted to do a performance piece and this included painting a red star on the sole of his shoe and displaying it to the audience. At the end, he decided it was “too risky”, and he didn’t do it. That is life under socialism.
Here is America, there are many issues, such as health care, which seem to need fixing. I am not sure that the state taking over is the best thing for us. I had a root canal in a socialist country – without any Novocain, because there was none available. Ouch, is all I can say!
So, for someone who believes what the Bible says, that everyone is most content in their own little yard, sitting under their grapevine, it is hard for me to look to the Democrats, because they are pushing more and more socialistic ideas. And, at the end, they are in just as deep with the moneyed class who actually decide things. The Democrats throw a few bones to “the people” and seem to want to help the little guy, but what ends up happening is a socialistic push to corral us all into their programs, such as Head Start, the use of school-based clinics, the abyss of public education, more and more stupid entitlement programs to please those who make full use of them, such as the various bogus “disability” pensions for everything from alcoholism to bi-polar disorder.
What About Freedom?
Freedom for me is the freedom to go out and make my own life. It is not freedom to sit home and pretend to need to be taken care of by Big Brother. Just get out of my way and pretty much, leave me alone. I fear, more than anything, that we have given up too much freedom, and succumbed to socialism with a “kind” face, a socialism that forbids us to smoke, makes us wear seatbelts, forbids us to swim unless a lifeguard is watching, and thousands of other annoying rules. Hey, if we don’t want to wear helmets when biking, what business is it of the government? If I choose to drink milk that is not “assassinated” (according to the French) by pasteurization, why does the government care?
So, the choice, in November, lose even more personal freedom, promote the entitlement and dependency that leads to slavery, choose to support those who only have their own bottom line in view, or try to find a way to return to a path of freedom for the individual. I don’t know – it seems like a long shot, but it’s all we have right now. Good luck in choosing your options!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
For The Rome Observer: October 12, 2010
This column was inspired by a quote from an article in The New Yorker, in a review of a book by Isabel Wilkerson. In describing how she decided to structure her book, she decided to avoid the “Chicago School sociology view” of literature, which was “always about the collective (if you just talk to enough people, take enough photographs, conduct enough surveys, you could, finally, record what it meant to be human”. This style, which developed in the nineteen-thirties, stands in opposition to the newer narrative journalism of the nineteen-sixties (if you could just find the right person to talk to, you could write the story of everyone). I say this: Both approaches are wrong, because the whole world resides in each of us, and there is no way to capture all of that reality either through crowds, or through the life of one person. We are all totally unique.
I have written before about my abhorrence of statistics in the field of mental health and/or psychology. Comparing two people or more for traits, or beliefs, or any other factor is silly, at best, and utterly damaging at worst. I know that at these election times, we are coerced into thinking along these lines continually, and for me, it is highly upsetting. I don’t know about you, but I have been getting lots of calls for polling information, and it always makes me very uneasy when I given a forced choice, and I don’t like either of the options. We get forced into “camps”, pro and con.
“Would you vote for Bob Brown, or Sally Black if you had to vote today?” runs a typical question. This time around, in particular, it seems no choice is good. I really don’t like anybody for any reason, or for many reasons!
I also don’t want to be lumped into a category of “angry voter” if I don’t like these choices. I’m not particularly angry, but I am saddened by the mess that our legislators have created at every level of government. What were they thinking?
Am I An Angry Voter?
On the local level we see story after story of towns’ reserve funds being used up, and then the inevitable “Oh-Oh!” moment when they discover their till is empty. In Albany, we find such chaos that to even contemplate change is impossible, and at the federal level, well, who knows what they are really up to there.
My question is: What kind of country are we trying to create? Is it a socialistic place where everyone has all needs met by our vast and every increasing bureaucracy? We know full well that this bureaucracy is not acting in the interests of the little guy, but that it is highly influenced, if not controlled, by corporate and business interest. The Eisenhower-named “military-industrial complex” is here. I would amend that title to “military-industrial-chemical complex”, to include those who tamper with our food, our water supply and our minds with an assortment of chemical products.
So, for me, who is opposed to socialism in all forms, the choice does not stand out as “vote Republican!”, because I have studied the history of the Republican Party, and it has, since the latter part of the nineteenth century, represented the interests of big business, and the vast complex of powerful entities named above. Just read about how the railroads almost took over the federal government at the height of their powers, and you will shrink from thinking that the GOP is looking out for little old you.
In past years I lived in a country under socialism, and I can tell you that it is not something you really want to consider. People and their individual lives are not all that important. The state is the thing, not the individual. An artist friend of mine considered long and hard, because he wanted to do a performance piece and this included painting a red star on the sole of his shoe and displaying it to the audience. At the end, he decided it was “too risky”, and he didn’t do it. That is life under socialism.
Here is America, there are many issues, such as health care, which seem to need fixing. I am not sure that the state taking over is the best thing for us. I had a root canal in a socialist country – without any Novocain, because there was none available. Ouch, is all I can say!
So, for someone who believes what the Bible says, that everyone is most content in their own little yard, sitting under their grapevine, it is hard for me to look to the Democrats, because they are pushing more and more socialistic ideas. And, at the end, they are in just as deep with the moneyed class who actually decide things. The Democrats throw a few bones to “the people” and seem to want to help the little guy, but what ends up happening is a socialistic push to corral us all into their programs, such as Head Start, the use of school-based clinics, the abyss of public education, more and more stupid entitlement programs to please those who make full use of them, such as the various bogus “disability” pensions for everything from alcoholism to bi-polar disorder.
What About Freedom?
Freedom for me is the freedom to go out and make my own life. It is not freedom to sit home and pretend to need to be taken care of by Big Brother. Just get out of my way and pretty much, leave me alone. I fear, more than anything, that we have given up too much freedom, and succumbed to socialism with a “kind” face, a socialism that forbids us to smoke, makes us wear seatbelts, forbids us to swim unless a lifeguard is watching, and thousands of other annoying rules. Hey, if we don’t want to wear helmets when biking, what business is it of the government? If I choose to drink milk that is not “assassinated” (according to the French) by pasteurization, why does the government care?
So, the choice, in November, lose even more personal freedom, promote the entitlement and dependency that leads to slavery, choose to support those who only have their own bottom line in view, or try to find a way to return to a path of freedom for the individual. I don’t know – it seems like a long shot, but it’s all we have right now. Good luck in choosing your options!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, October 4, 2010
What is Mental Health?
What is Mental Health?
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
There is much talk in the news about mental illness and everyone seems to understand what that is all about. As you read my columns in this paper, you and I will be looking at the present state of the mental health care in America, and together we will decide what is true and what is false. I guess you can already tell that I may have my doubts about a lot of what is going on…
However, as to the question of “What is mental health”?”, I am ready to go on record with some very clearly thought out ideas. I have a very solid idea of what mental health looks like, how to achieve it, and how to tell if someone is mentally healthy or not. For me, it all comes down to relationships.
The Four Relationships
I believe that for a person to be mentally healthy, they need to have four different kinds of good relationships. If these are in order, it is almost assured that the person will be able to function well in society, and will enjoy great peace of mind and peace. If, on the other hand, any of these relationships are in trouble or even missing, there will be less to be happy about. This will lead to mental distress and sometimes the person will become overwhelmed by life. So, what are these four types of relationships.?
The first relationship we must consider is the one we have with ourselves. This might seem like an odd thing to think about, but the truth is, many people are taught by those around them to think poorly of themselves. They are shamed and criticized, and, in a word, not loved enough. I spend a lot of time telling people they are wonderful, because – they are!
Family and Friends
Of course, no man is an island, and we all need to have good, loving relationships with our families, and with friends. Some people are lucky, and their parents loved them, disciplined them and taught them to value the things that endure. Others were not so lucky. They have trouble trusting others, since they have been so hurt. Perhaps they can even say they have no friends. This is indeed a troubling situation, and one which needs to be addressed.
Relationship with Community
Since we no longer live in a tribal society, but are part of a democratic country, we all need to be involved in something bigger than our family. We benefit from joining organizations which match our interests, whether that be a church, political party, sports group, a volunteer organization, or any other worthwhile group. Working and playing together, we form bonds of friendship with others, increase our feelings of competency and generosity, and we feel included.
Relationship with our Higher Power
I believe humans have a very real need for a connection to something greater than ourselves. This power is usually described as God, but some people have been hurt in their relationships to religious organizations, so we will use the more neutral term, Higher Power. This is somewhat mysterious to those who do not think about this type of relationship, but I think it is a necessary part of development of one’s greatest gifts.
A Final Word
This is my basic view of mental health. It’s all about how we are connecting to ourselves, to a Higher Power, to friends and family, and to the larger world around us. Sometimes it seems very difficult to manage all these facets of relationship well, but I will be discussing all four aspects of this struggle in my future columns. I certainly welcome your feedback and comments and questions. Let’s have some fun!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900, or at info@thedoorcounseling.com
By Elizabeth Szlek, Licensed Mental Health Counselor
There is much talk in the news about mental illness and everyone seems to understand what that is all about. As you read my columns in this paper, you and I will be looking at the present state of the mental health care in America, and together we will decide what is true and what is false. I guess you can already tell that I may have my doubts about a lot of what is going on…
However, as to the question of “What is mental health”?”, I am ready to go on record with some very clearly thought out ideas. I have a very solid idea of what mental health looks like, how to achieve it, and how to tell if someone is mentally healthy or not. For me, it all comes down to relationships.
The Four Relationships
I believe that for a person to be mentally healthy, they need to have four different kinds of good relationships. If these are in order, it is almost assured that the person will be able to function well in society, and will enjoy great peace of mind and peace. If, on the other hand, any of these relationships are in trouble or even missing, there will be less to be happy about. This will lead to mental distress and sometimes the person will become overwhelmed by life. So, what are these four types of relationships.?
The first relationship we must consider is the one we have with ourselves. This might seem like an odd thing to think about, but the truth is, many people are taught by those around them to think poorly of themselves. They are shamed and criticized, and, in a word, not loved enough. I spend a lot of time telling people they are wonderful, because – they are!
Family and Friends
Of course, no man is an island, and we all need to have good, loving relationships with our families, and with friends. Some people are lucky, and their parents loved them, disciplined them and taught them to value the things that endure. Others were not so lucky. They have trouble trusting others, since they have been so hurt. Perhaps they can even say they have no friends. This is indeed a troubling situation, and one which needs to be addressed.
Relationship with Community
Since we no longer live in a tribal society, but are part of a democratic country, we all need to be involved in something bigger than our family. We benefit from joining organizations which match our interests, whether that be a church, political party, sports group, a volunteer organization, or any other worthwhile group. Working and playing together, we form bonds of friendship with others, increase our feelings of competency and generosity, and we feel included.
Relationship with our Higher Power
I believe humans have a very real need for a connection to something greater than ourselves. This power is usually described as God, but some people have been hurt in their relationships to religious organizations, so we will use the more neutral term, Higher Power. This is somewhat mysterious to those who do not think about this type of relationship, but I think it is a necessary part of development of one’s greatest gifts.
A Final Word
This is my basic view of mental health. It’s all about how we are connecting to ourselves, to a Higher Power, to friends and family, and to the larger world around us. Sometimes it seems very difficult to manage all these facets of relationship well, but I will be discussing all four aspects of this struggle in my future columns. I certainly welcome your feedback and comments and questions. Let’s have some fun!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900, or at info@thedoorcounseling.com
Who Are Mental Health Counselors?
Who Are Mental Health Counselors?
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer, October 4, 2010
Since a week early in October is generally designated Mental Health Awareness Week, I thought I would take the time to refresh my own memory on the facts of becoming a Mental Health Counselor, or more properly, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor – that’s what those letters after my name above signify!
License or No License- What’s the Difference?
For a quick answer, the difference is tens of thousands of dollars spent on educating oneself, and several years of life! Counselors have only been licensed for five years in New York State, since we were the 48th state to license counselors. Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC’s) have been around for decades in other states, but the iron grip of the other mental health professions, psychiatry, psychology and social work, blocked the admission of counselors to the ranks of the licensed.
Finally, though, reason has prevailed, and at this writing, New York State has thousands of LMHC’s doing all kinds of work across the state. Some counselors work doing assessments, some do psychotherapy, some do treatment planning, some do brief and solution-focused therapy, some work in alcoholism and substance abuse facilities, some are in private practice, others do psycho-educational and prevention programs and crisis management, and others, like me, are Christian counselors. In other words, our training, which is quite extensive, has prepared us to do just about any kind of healing work you can imagine.
By contrast, I always remember the statement of someone who worked in a Domestic Violence shelter for some years. At her own proclamation, she “became” a counselor by doing work with the women in the shelter. Would that it were so easy.
No, the professional counselor holds a 60 credit (as of 2010) Masters degree in counseling, and we have all taken masters-level courses in diagnosis and pathology, group counseling, multicultural counseling, family therapy, counseling theory, theories of personality, testing and assessment, human growth and development, supervised practica and internships, and in my case, the psychology of religion and other courses attuned to the spiritual problems people often develop. THEN, we do a many-month-long supervised internship and finally get our Master’s degree. But wait, there’s more:
After receiving our degree, we need to accomplish 3000 more hours of counseling under supervision. At that point, we can apply for licensure, and if all our ducks are in order , we become licensed! So, no one just “becomes” a counselor in an informal way – it is a highly regulated process, and a true profession.
Comparing Social Workers and Counselors
Of course, there are other mental health professionals who do the same kinds of work counselors do. Psychiatrists are medical doctors, and they are, so far, the only mental health professionals who can prescribe medications. At present, they do very little actual counseling, and receive very little training in this area. Psychiatry today is almost totally dominated by the biological views that deem mental disorders as forms of biological dysfunction, in spite of the fact that no biological markers have been found for ANY mental disorder. They hold to this view, however, with religious fervor, and authorize millions of prescriptions for drugs every year, beginning with patients at age 6 months. I am opposed to this practice, as are many other mental health professionals.
Psychologists are doctors with a Ph.D., not a medical degree. They cannot prescribe drugs, although they are trying to convince various states that they should be able to do this. I think that would be a mistake, and a disaster for those they might put on medications. Many psychologists also do counseling, but they prefer to call it “therapy”, since that sounds more important, somehow.
Then we come to the Masters level mental health workers: Social workers and counselors. Both these professionals have a master’s degree, but the training they get is far from identical. Let’s compare the two for a moment:
Social Workers earn 60 credits for their degree, as do Counselors.
Social Workers have no required clinical education, and have 900 hours of supervised internship. Counselors have many courses in various counseling areas, and have a minimum of 600 hours of supervision. Both professions require an exam for licensure and both are trained in Child Abuse Reporting.
However, when a social worker wishes to receive the designation Clinical Social Worker, they must earn twelve hours of clinical casework, versus the now-60 hours of courses related to counseling. Finally, counselors must acquire 3000 hours of supervised experience in an approved setting to receive their license, and social workers must work for three years and acquire only 960 hour of supervision before getting their licenses.
It seems to me that counselors, with their course work revolving solely around the field of counseling, are much more highly trained in the area of counseling, psychotherapy or therapy, whatever you want to call it, than their supposed peers, social workers.
But, that being said, there is another issue which should be mentioned at this point. Counseling is not a science, but an art. In fact, my degree is a Master of Arts in Counseling. And this is proper. The longer I practice, the more I see that this profession has little to do with science, and EVERYTHING to do with being an artist, in this case, of the soul. Counselors, social workers, psychologists and psychiatrists all deal with problems in living, spiritual problems and problems dealing with finding one’s way in the world. In fact, I have often pointed that psychiatrist is a word meaning “soul doctor”. I think they may have forgotten that fact. So, in reality, how good any mental health professional is depends upon one thing: Can this person connect to their client? Can they understand the movement of the soul, the language of the heart? At the end of everything, this is what needs to be considered, not the degree.
I believe, however, that counselors, with their wealth of training in so many areas of counseling, are far and away the best equipped to handle all kinds of counseling problems. Add to this a strong spiritual base, as in Christian counseling, and you are very likely to find someone who can empathize and bring clients to greater mental and spiritual health.
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek, LMHC
For The Rome Observer, October 4, 2010
Since a week early in October is generally designated Mental Health Awareness Week, I thought I would take the time to refresh my own memory on the facts of becoming a Mental Health Counselor, or more properly, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor – that’s what those letters after my name above signify!
License or No License- What’s the Difference?
For a quick answer, the difference is tens of thousands of dollars spent on educating oneself, and several years of life! Counselors have only been licensed for five years in New York State, since we were the 48th state to license counselors. Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC’s) have been around for decades in other states, but the iron grip of the other mental health professions, psychiatry, psychology and social work, blocked the admission of counselors to the ranks of the licensed.
Finally, though, reason has prevailed, and at this writing, New York State has thousands of LMHC’s doing all kinds of work across the state. Some counselors work doing assessments, some do psychotherapy, some do treatment planning, some do brief and solution-focused therapy, some work in alcoholism and substance abuse facilities, some are in private practice, others do psycho-educational and prevention programs and crisis management, and others, like me, are Christian counselors. In other words, our training, which is quite extensive, has prepared us to do just about any kind of healing work you can imagine.
By contrast, I always remember the statement of someone who worked in a Domestic Violence shelter for some years. At her own proclamation, she “became” a counselor by doing work with the women in the shelter. Would that it were so easy.
No, the professional counselor holds a 60 credit (as of 2010) Masters degree in counseling, and we have all taken masters-level courses in diagnosis and pathology, group counseling, multicultural counseling, family therapy, counseling theory, theories of personality, testing and assessment, human growth and development, supervised practica and internships, and in my case, the psychology of religion and other courses attuned to the spiritual problems people often develop. THEN, we do a many-month-long supervised internship and finally get our Master’s degree. But wait, there’s more:
After receiving our degree, we need to accomplish 3000 more hours of counseling under supervision. At that point, we can apply for licensure, and if all our ducks are in order , we become licensed! So, no one just “becomes” a counselor in an informal way – it is a highly regulated process, and a true profession.
Comparing Social Workers and Counselors
Of course, there are other mental health professionals who do the same kinds of work counselors do. Psychiatrists are medical doctors, and they are, so far, the only mental health professionals who can prescribe medications. At present, they do very little actual counseling, and receive very little training in this area. Psychiatry today is almost totally dominated by the biological views that deem mental disorders as forms of biological dysfunction, in spite of the fact that no biological markers have been found for ANY mental disorder. They hold to this view, however, with religious fervor, and authorize millions of prescriptions for drugs every year, beginning with patients at age 6 months. I am opposed to this practice, as are many other mental health professionals.
Psychologists are doctors with a Ph.D., not a medical degree. They cannot prescribe drugs, although they are trying to convince various states that they should be able to do this. I think that would be a mistake, and a disaster for those they might put on medications. Many psychologists also do counseling, but they prefer to call it “therapy”, since that sounds more important, somehow.
Then we come to the Masters level mental health workers: Social workers and counselors. Both these professionals have a master’s degree, but the training they get is far from identical. Let’s compare the two for a moment:
Social Workers earn 60 credits for their degree, as do Counselors.
Social Workers have no required clinical education, and have 900 hours of supervised internship. Counselors have many courses in various counseling areas, and have a minimum of 600 hours of supervision. Both professions require an exam for licensure and both are trained in Child Abuse Reporting.
However, when a social worker wishes to receive the designation Clinical Social Worker, they must earn twelve hours of clinical casework, versus the now-60 hours of courses related to counseling. Finally, counselors must acquire 3000 hours of supervised experience in an approved setting to receive their license, and social workers must work for three years and acquire only 960 hour of supervision before getting their licenses.
It seems to me that counselors, with their course work revolving solely around the field of counseling, are much more highly trained in the area of counseling, psychotherapy or therapy, whatever you want to call it, than their supposed peers, social workers.
But, that being said, there is another issue which should be mentioned at this point. Counseling is not a science, but an art. In fact, my degree is a Master of Arts in Counseling. And this is proper. The longer I practice, the more I see that this profession has little to do with science, and EVERYTHING to do with being an artist, in this case, of the soul. Counselors, social workers, psychologists and psychiatrists all deal with problems in living, spiritual problems and problems dealing with finding one’s way in the world. In fact, I have often pointed that psychiatrist is a word meaning “soul doctor”. I think they may have forgotten that fact. So, in reality, how good any mental health professional is depends upon one thing: Can this person connect to their client? Can they understand the movement of the soul, the language of the heart? At the end of everything, this is what needs to be considered, not the degree.
I believe, however, that counselors, with their wealth of training in so many areas of counseling, are far and away the best equipped to handle all kinds of counseling problems. Add to this a strong spiritual base, as in Christian counseling, and you are very likely to find someone who can empathize and bring clients to greater mental and spiritual health.
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
EducationNation, My Way
EducationNation, My Way
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer, September 28, 2010
I am sure that everyone has heard about the “national conversation” sponsored by NBC News now going on in New York City, EducationNation, Loads of people are “dialoging” and “sharing” their thoughts on the miserable state of our public educational systems. Of course, no one asked for my opinion, but I am delighted to add my thoughts to this general brouhaha!
There are many awful things about public education, and we in this area can see the results of a system that fails to educate its pupils. While we in this area are blessed with some of the finest schools in America (New Hartford and Clinton spring to mind), I think it is safe to say that most citizens could conclude that many schools are not producing well educated citizens, ready to take on the world.
What Are Some of the Problems?
I listened briefly to some of the news segments last night, and this is what seems to be a running theme: Bad teachers, unbustable teachers’ unions, and bad teachers with tenure. That was pretty much what I heard. Having studied the National Education Association (NEA) for many years, I can safely say that their liberal agenda has definitely lowered the quality of education available in public schools. The NEA is a powerful force in politics in Washington, and any attempts to wrest control of education away from their grip is going to be quite a battle. Getting rid of tenure and bad teachers is only the beginning.
If we think about tenure for a moment, the absurdity of the institution just springs out at you. I remember the fights for tenure when I was teaching at a large university. College professors, however, once had reason to seek tenure, which involved the ability to conduct research independently of university control. With tenure, the administration couldn’t dictate what avenues of research you could pursue if you had tenure. If you wanted to spend years researching some obscure worm or bug, they just had to let you do it!
I don’t know why tenure moved down to the public schools. I don’t think this freedom of research idea holds in the lower areas of education. Why tenure? Certainly, no one can say that teachers are paid poorly, and their retirement packages are excellent. So, what does tenure have to do with anything? If they are bad teachers, just like if they were bad salespeople, or bad pipefitters, or any other salaried position, they should be able to be fired. Yes, schools are rife with politics, but if someone is doing a great job as a teacher, even if he or she is fired, the teacher can find another job where talents will be appreciated. If teachers are incompetent or mediocre, why force your precious children to be educated by them through the tenure system? Don’t kids deserve the best?
Perhaps This is the Real Problem
I have been reading about the effects of poor nutrition on the human body, and it occurred to me that perhaps nutrition plays a much greater role in the dumbing down of our society than ever thought. The actual fact is that millions of Americans are truly suffering from malnutrition. Think about that for a moment. Millions of parents conceive their children while they themselves are in a state of malnourishment. The child gestates in the womb of a woman who continues to be malnourished throughout her pregnancy. Then, after birth, the infant is malnourished on such poisons as soy formula, or bottles of fruit juice. The child continues to eat poorly until he or she arrives at the red schoolhouse, ready, supposedly, to learn. The malnourishment continues through the free breakfasts and lousy school lunches, and at home, Mom and Dad are bringing in pizza and wings for supper on a regular basis, or worse, Mac and Cheese or other highly processed foods.
Now Princess or Junior reaches the age where they can pick their own diets, and soda and chips and especially loads of sugar, processed snacks and processed breakfast cereals form a large part of their caloric intake.
They continue this diet and soon, produce their own malnourished offspring, who have mentally and physically degenerated far more than even their parents.
We all expect these poor malnourished children to become effective learning machines for eight hours a day, when their tanks are running on empty most of the time? We must be crazy! Furthermore, I have not even mentioned the fact that many, many children do not even eat breakfast of any kind before jumping on the school bus – not because their parents have no food in the house, but because they don’t want to get fat!
Or, because the thought of a nourishing breakfast makes them want to puke!
I have had many young clients, with some emotional problems, who regularly do not eat breakfast OR LUNCH. They wait until they come home from school at 3PM to give their starving brains some fuel. Now, just imagine what harm this is doing to their entire physical and mental being. No nourishment for a brain that is expected to master the calculus!
Or, I have had clients who become grossly obese due to the horrible diet their parents allow them to eat. One boy, who weighed over 300 lbs. at age fifteen, told me he had eaten “some doughnuts” for breakfast. And the mother of this boy actually stocked them for him! This is madness!
If we consider the lunches now being considered for schools, we can see that they are loaded with such “goodies” as soy burgers, pizza and chicken McNuggets. Our nation’s dieticians have bought into the idea that soy is good for you. In that form, burgers, it isn’t, but those who make up these menus have merely capitulated to the whims of the malnourished children they serve. Why should kids eat pizza at school?
Because there is so little understanding of what truly nourishes the human body, we cannot get out of the giant hole we have dug for ourselves. Few understand the ravages of a diet based on sugar, hydrogenated oils, refined flours, aspartame and MSG. Obesity is just the tip of the bad news iceberg. Heart disease, diabetes and other degenerative diseases are just waiting to take over young lives.
People seem to be searching for the proper foods to eat, but they have been so brainwashed by the ridiculous food pyramid that they are almost helpless to come up with a way of eating that meets their body’s needs. We need to eat to live! Children need to eat to develop their intellect, to protect their health and spirit. It is no wonder we see a huge growth in mental disorders, since our very mental health often depends upon our diet.
My word for the EducationNation debate would be: Look at what your students are eating. Perhaps nutrition education should be instilled in them all along the way!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer, September 28, 2010
I am sure that everyone has heard about the “national conversation” sponsored by NBC News now going on in New York City, EducationNation, Loads of people are “dialoging” and “sharing” their thoughts on the miserable state of our public educational systems. Of course, no one asked for my opinion, but I am delighted to add my thoughts to this general brouhaha!
There are many awful things about public education, and we in this area can see the results of a system that fails to educate its pupils. While we in this area are blessed with some of the finest schools in America (New Hartford and Clinton spring to mind), I think it is safe to say that most citizens could conclude that many schools are not producing well educated citizens, ready to take on the world.
What Are Some of the Problems?
I listened briefly to some of the news segments last night, and this is what seems to be a running theme: Bad teachers, unbustable teachers’ unions, and bad teachers with tenure. That was pretty much what I heard. Having studied the National Education Association (NEA) for many years, I can safely say that their liberal agenda has definitely lowered the quality of education available in public schools. The NEA is a powerful force in politics in Washington, and any attempts to wrest control of education away from their grip is going to be quite a battle. Getting rid of tenure and bad teachers is only the beginning.
If we think about tenure for a moment, the absurdity of the institution just springs out at you. I remember the fights for tenure when I was teaching at a large university. College professors, however, once had reason to seek tenure, which involved the ability to conduct research independently of university control. With tenure, the administration couldn’t dictate what avenues of research you could pursue if you had tenure. If you wanted to spend years researching some obscure worm or bug, they just had to let you do it!
I don’t know why tenure moved down to the public schools. I don’t think this freedom of research idea holds in the lower areas of education. Why tenure? Certainly, no one can say that teachers are paid poorly, and their retirement packages are excellent. So, what does tenure have to do with anything? If they are bad teachers, just like if they were bad salespeople, or bad pipefitters, or any other salaried position, they should be able to be fired. Yes, schools are rife with politics, but if someone is doing a great job as a teacher, even if he or she is fired, the teacher can find another job where talents will be appreciated. If teachers are incompetent or mediocre, why force your precious children to be educated by them through the tenure system? Don’t kids deserve the best?
Perhaps This is the Real Problem
I have been reading about the effects of poor nutrition on the human body, and it occurred to me that perhaps nutrition plays a much greater role in the dumbing down of our society than ever thought. The actual fact is that millions of Americans are truly suffering from malnutrition. Think about that for a moment. Millions of parents conceive their children while they themselves are in a state of malnourishment. The child gestates in the womb of a woman who continues to be malnourished throughout her pregnancy. Then, after birth, the infant is malnourished on such poisons as soy formula, or bottles of fruit juice. The child continues to eat poorly until he or she arrives at the red schoolhouse, ready, supposedly, to learn. The malnourishment continues through the free breakfasts and lousy school lunches, and at home, Mom and Dad are bringing in pizza and wings for supper on a regular basis, or worse, Mac and Cheese or other highly processed foods.
Now Princess or Junior reaches the age where they can pick their own diets, and soda and chips and especially loads of sugar, processed snacks and processed breakfast cereals form a large part of their caloric intake.
They continue this diet and soon, produce their own malnourished offspring, who have mentally and physically degenerated far more than even their parents.
We all expect these poor malnourished children to become effective learning machines for eight hours a day, when their tanks are running on empty most of the time? We must be crazy! Furthermore, I have not even mentioned the fact that many, many children do not even eat breakfast of any kind before jumping on the school bus – not because their parents have no food in the house, but because they don’t want to get fat!
Or, because the thought of a nourishing breakfast makes them want to puke!
I have had many young clients, with some emotional problems, who regularly do not eat breakfast OR LUNCH. They wait until they come home from school at 3PM to give their starving brains some fuel. Now, just imagine what harm this is doing to their entire physical and mental being. No nourishment for a brain that is expected to master the calculus!
Or, I have had clients who become grossly obese due to the horrible diet their parents allow them to eat. One boy, who weighed over 300 lbs. at age fifteen, told me he had eaten “some doughnuts” for breakfast. And the mother of this boy actually stocked them for him! This is madness!
If we consider the lunches now being considered for schools, we can see that they are loaded with such “goodies” as soy burgers, pizza and chicken McNuggets. Our nation’s dieticians have bought into the idea that soy is good for you. In that form, burgers, it isn’t, but those who make up these menus have merely capitulated to the whims of the malnourished children they serve. Why should kids eat pizza at school?
Because there is so little understanding of what truly nourishes the human body, we cannot get out of the giant hole we have dug for ourselves. Few understand the ravages of a diet based on sugar, hydrogenated oils, refined flours, aspartame and MSG. Obesity is just the tip of the bad news iceberg. Heart disease, diabetes and other degenerative diseases are just waiting to take over young lives.
People seem to be searching for the proper foods to eat, but they have been so brainwashed by the ridiculous food pyramid that they are almost helpless to come up with a way of eating that meets their body’s needs. We need to eat to live! Children need to eat to develop their intellect, to protect their health and spirit. It is no wonder we see a huge growth in mental disorders, since our very mental health often depends upon our diet.
My word for the EducationNation debate would be: Look at what your students are eating. Perhaps nutrition education should be instilled in them all along the way!
Elizabeth Szlek is the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Eat Less, Exercise More?
Eat Less, Exercise More?
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer: September 20, 2010
This morning I read in my daily paper that Americans are getting fatter and fatter. Obesity and mere overweight are rampant. We are being told what to do, and it is quite simple: Eat less and exercise more! This sounds so simple, so good, and so easy.
Unfortunately, several things stand in the way of this advice working.
First: Human physiology.
Second: Our modern way of life.
Third: Our food supply.
If we look at these three factors, I think we can begin to understand why we are getting fatter and fatter, and perhaps, how we can begin to reverse this deadly trend.
A Look at Exercise
I mentioned that I spent my whole summer in the woods researching this topic, both for myself and for the sake of my mother, who turned 90 in July. Let me just say this: My mother went for visits to her cardiologist and nephrologists, and in both cases, they were astounded at her condition! She looks better than she has in a couple of years!
What are we doing to create a health(ier) 90-year-old? Well, the same thing you all should be doing to be healthier yourselves, and possibly to prevent your untimely deaths, or the development of diabetes, heart disease and other degenerative conditions: Eat better!
Exercise, is, of course, an important component of health. No one can argue that we need to move and work to use up the calories we consume. But, even in the case of a totally sedentary ninety-year-old, amazing progress can be made with diet alone.
Me, I bought a beautiful red bike and trucked around town all summer, so that was my contribution to exercise. In the fall, I have to clean up my huge overgrown garden, so that constitutes my exercise. During the winter, I repair to my cellar, where I multitask on my treadmill, studying the music I have to conduct as choir director. Then, more gardening in the spring. Not a bad system. I hate to “exercise”, but I have realized that I will either have to lead a monklike existence of total denial, or gain weight. I’m not ready for monkhood yet, so, exercise it is. This used to be taken care of automatically when I lived in Manhattan. I would walk for miles everywhere, because it was so interesting. In the ‘burbs, there is much less of interest for me and I get bored looking at manicured lawns. Back to the cellar.
What does Physiology Have To Do With It?
So, let’s consider human physiology. What is making so fat? One prime suspect is our diet, and by this, I really mean the “hidden” components of our diet, with the prime suspect being fructose. When I wrote about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) before, the public relations firm representing this industry kindly sent me a packet of information, pointing out how wrong I was about HFCS, and that it was just a misunderstood, regular old sugar. By the way, they are now calling it “corn sugar”, so as to obscure just what is in your food, so watch out for that. Anyway, it seems that HFCS is pretty much ignored by our hormone systems when we ingest it. Insulin gives it a free pass, as does leptin. Both these hormones regulate blood sugar levels, and insulin also signals the release of ghrelin, the hormone that tells you when you should stop eating, the satiety hormone.
Now just think, you ingest massive amounts of HFCS, and you don’t get the signal that you are satisfied, and you keep eating and eating. Meanwhile, the fructose is sent to your liver, where it is turned into fat. Fructose in beer is responsible for the characteristic “beer belly” that many develop when they overconsume beer. A beer belly is a precursor to a host of degenerative diseases. Now I look at these bellies and want to run over and warn these men to get to a nutritionist , fast!
HFCS is hidden in almost every processed food you can imagine. This leads us to the third leg of the obesity stool: Our food supply in America.
What is in There, Anyway?
All I can say is: Watch out! Unless you are shopping in the outer aisles of the supermarket, you are exposing yourselves to massive amounts of bad food ingredients.
HFCS is chief among them, when it comes to obesity. However, it doesn’t stop there. Aspartame, MSG, hydrogenated vegetable oils, genetically modified soy and corn, adulterated dairy products, loads of sugar in EVERYTHING, and many other deadly chemicals inhabit almost every box of food you buy. In addition to these bad things, what we really have is a LACK of good things.
By this I mean, our processed diets of today have taken shortcuts (for the sake of the industry), and are selling us foods that, in the past, were nourishing. Now, they are just fillers, and they are pretty much dead.
For example, pickles. I have made pickled products in the past, but never really understood what I was doing. It said, put the beets in a big jar and throw in some sugar and vinegar and thought I was making pickles. But I wasn’t. In order to make pickled beets, you need to ferment them. This is a process using lactobacillus bacteria. Now, it takes three days to make pickled beets, but they are actually GOOD for you, full of enzymes, and healthy. I make sourdough bread and homemade yogurt and cheeses, also fermented products full of beneficial enzymes. Processed foods are not made using the age-old methods. They are all actually “fast” food. And we all know how good THAT is for us. Are we all too busy to make food that is good for us?
There is a movement in the food world entitled “Slow Food”. It is concerned with producing food made the “old” way. It just so happens the old way is a better way. I went to visit a friend the other day, and he presented me with some raw milk, straight from the farm. I turned it into cultured buttermilk, cream cheese and whey, and homemade cottage cheese. Will I die from this daring move, since the milk was not pasteurized? We shall see. But if I don’t, it may mean that I am eating far better than others who must use dairy products which are stripped of much of their nourishment.
Perhaps “Eat Less, Exercise More!” isn’t the battle cry we need. Perhaps it should be simply, “Eat Nourishing Food!” I think that says it all…..
Elizabeth Szlek is a trained chef and has taught Healthy Cooking and nutrition. She is also the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
By Elizabeth Szlek
For The Rome Observer: September 20, 2010
This morning I read in my daily paper that Americans are getting fatter and fatter. Obesity and mere overweight are rampant. We are being told what to do, and it is quite simple: Eat less and exercise more! This sounds so simple, so good, and so easy.
Unfortunately, several things stand in the way of this advice working.
First: Human physiology.
Second: Our modern way of life.
Third: Our food supply.
If we look at these three factors, I think we can begin to understand why we are getting fatter and fatter, and perhaps, how we can begin to reverse this deadly trend.
A Look at Exercise
I mentioned that I spent my whole summer in the woods researching this topic, both for myself and for the sake of my mother, who turned 90 in July. Let me just say this: My mother went for visits to her cardiologist and nephrologists, and in both cases, they were astounded at her condition! She looks better than she has in a couple of years!
What are we doing to create a health(ier) 90-year-old? Well, the same thing you all should be doing to be healthier yourselves, and possibly to prevent your untimely deaths, or the development of diabetes, heart disease and other degenerative conditions: Eat better!
Exercise, is, of course, an important component of health. No one can argue that we need to move and work to use up the calories we consume. But, even in the case of a totally sedentary ninety-year-old, amazing progress can be made with diet alone.
Me, I bought a beautiful red bike and trucked around town all summer, so that was my contribution to exercise. In the fall, I have to clean up my huge overgrown garden, so that constitutes my exercise. During the winter, I repair to my cellar, where I multitask on my treadmill, studying the music I have to conduct as choir director. Then, more gardening in the spring. Not a bad system. I hate to “exercise”, but I have realized that I will either have to lead a monklike existence of total denial, or gain weight. I’m not ready for monkhood yet, so, exercise it is. This used to be taken care of automatically when I lived in Manhattan. I would walk for miles everywhere, because it was so interesting. In the ‘burbs, there is much less of interest for me and I get bored looking at manicured lawns. Back to the cellar.
What does Physiology Have To Do With It?
So, let’s consider human physiology. What is making so fat? One prime suspect is our diet, and by this, I really mean the “hidden” components of our diet, with the prime suspect being fructose. When I wrote about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) before, the public relations firm representing this industry kindly sent me a packet of information, pointing out how wrong I was about HFCS, and that it was just a misunderstood, regular old sugar. By the way, they are now calling it “corn sugar”, so as to obscure just what is in your food, so watch out for that. Anyway, it seems that HFCS is pretty much ignored by our hormone systems when we ingest it. Insulin gives it a free pass, as does leptin. Both these hormones regulate blood sugar levels, and insulin also signals the release of ghrelin, the hormone that tells you when you should stop eating, the satiety hormone.
Now just think, you ingest massive amounts of HFCS, and you don’t get the signal that you are satisfied, and you keep eating and eating. Meanwhile, the fructose is sent to your liver, where it is turned into fat. Fructose in beer is responsible for the characteristic “beer belly” that many develop when they overconsume beer. A beer belly is a precursor to a host of degenerative diseases. Now I look at these bellies and want to run over and warn these men to get to a nutritionist , fast!
HFCS is hidden in almost every processed food you can imagine. This leads us to the third leg of the obesity stool: Our food supply in America.
What is in There, Anyway?
All I can say is: Watch out! Unless you are shopping in the outer aisles of the supermarket, you are exposing yourselves to massive amounts of bad food ingredients.
HFCS is chief among them, when it comes to obesity. However, it doesn’t stop there. Aspartame, MSG, hydrogenated vegetable oils, genetically modified soy and corn, adulterated dairy products, loads of sugar in EVERYTHING, and many other deadly chemicals inhabit almost every box of food you buy. In addition to these bad things, what we really have is a LACK of good things.
By this I mean, our processed diets of today have taken shortcuts (for the sake of the industry), and are selling us foods that, in the past, were nourishing. Now, they are just fillers, and they are pretty much dead.
For example, pickles. I have made pickled products in the past, but never really understood what I was doing. It said, put the beets in a big jar and throw in some sugar and vinegar and thought I was making pickles. But I wasn’t. In order to make pickled beets, you need to ferment them. This is a process using lactobacillus bacteria. Now, it takes three days to make pickled beets, but they are actually GOOD for you, full of enzymes, and healthy. I make sourdough bread and homemade yogurt and cheeses, also fermented products full of beneficial enzymes. Processed foods are not made using the age-old methods. They are all actually “fast” food. And we all know how good THAT is for us. Are we all too busy to make food that is good for us?
There is a movement in the food world entitled “Slow Food”. It is concerned with producing food made the “old” way. It just so happens the old way is a better way. I went to visit a friend the other day, and he presented me with some raw milk, straight from the farm. I turned it into cultured buttermilk, cream cheese and whey, and homemade cottage cheese. Will I die from this daring move, since the milk was not pasteurized? We shall see. But if I don’t, it may mean that I am eating far better than others who must use dairy products which are stripped of much of their nourishment.
Perhaps “Eat Less, Exercise More!” isn’t the battle cry we need. Perhaps it should be simply, “Eat Nourishing Food!” I think that says it all…..
Elizabeth Szlek is a trained chef and has taught Healthy Cooking and nutrition. She is also the Director of The Door Counseling Center of Utica, NY. Questions and comments can be directed to her at (315) 768-8900 or at info@thedoorcounseling.com.
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