Abundant Health Associates
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UpComming Events

 

 

Ipsalu Tantra

Level 1  

November 8-10

Friday evening- Sunday afternoon 

with Lexi
For more information call 760 327-4041




 


 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

August and September  2013
 
 

   

We hope you are enjoying your summer and Rejuvenating yourself.

  

 Dr. Lexi is traveling to Buenos Aires for 4 weeks of Restoration and Dance.  She will be out of the office from August 30-September 27th.

         She will be here Wednesday the 28th and                                return Monday, September 30th.

   

Kelly with be rejuvenating in Washington State with her family Sept. 10th-19th.

              She will be here Monday 9th and                                        return on Friday, September 20th.

 

John has just returned from N. Carolina rested and inspired, back to offer Hypnotherapy sessions. 

 

 

                      Dr. Lexi's regular schedule is: 

                              Mondays 9-12 & 2-6  

                          Wednesdays 9-12 & 1-5           

                     Fridays 9-12 & 1-5  

                                          

 Kelly is here on Mondays and Fridays for massage
call her at 760-815-1189
       
John Till is here for Hypnotherapy, by appointment,
call him at 760-285-6535
       
We look forward to seeing you at
Abundant Health Wellness Center
760-327-4041

         Recharge yourself by doing what you Love!

 

      Doing what you love is a great way to recharge your Body, Heart, Mind and Spirit. I love to dance...just my own private dance with some gentle flowing music or the Tango! My 60th Birthday present from Riccardo is 4 weeks in Buenos Aires to Tango. For a look at how our tango is progressing you can click below to see my birthday dance from May of this year: 

                       click here to view video

      When we dance we celebrate our love of life, of music, and of our body temple--and when we dance with a partner, we celebrate our appreciation and connection to them. Dancing gives our brain and nervous system a work out as we learn new patterns of movement. Endorphins, our bliss hormones, are increased as we let go of our critical mind, feel our body, and connect with our hearts in the grace of the dance.

 

      Numerous studies cite the health benefits of dance in general, and Tango specifically. Studies conducted in many countries and across many cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds have found that three important factors help predict how well healthy adults maintain cognitive function as they age. These 3 areas are:

           Mental activity

           Physical activity

            Social engagement.

Tango supports all 3 areas.

 

     There is good news about the Nervous System's function and Plasticity. "Recent neurobiological studies have found that healthy individuals lose far fewer nerve cells (neurons) in the brain as they age than previously thought", says Marilyn Albert, PhD, a neuroscientist at Johns Hopkins University. The brain is composed of the gray matter which is the nerve cell bodies, where the nucleus of the cell lives, and the white matter is the axons, the "tails", of the neurons. The spinal cord is white matter, so named because of the white myelin sheath, the connective tissue that wraps the axons. Dendrites are whisker like projections on the cell body or "head of the neuron". The axon of a neuron connects to the dendrites of another neuron and the migration of the axons, as they make new connections, is called nerve cell plasticity. That is all the neuroanatomy you need to understand this next part.

 

       At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, David A. Ziegler and his colleagues used an MRI-based brain imaging technique, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), to study white matter changes in healthy aging brains and how these changes are linked to cognitive performance:

Dr. Ziegler states "...the cellular components of white matter show a remarkable capacity for plasticity through the lifespan, it may be possible to enhance white matter integrity in older individuals pharmacologically or even through changes in diet or cardiovascular fitness (or dancing Tango!). If it is possible to harness white matter plasticity, this approach might prove a very effective means of countering some of the cognitive declines that are typical of advanced age."

 

      When the neurons link together, axon to dendrite, they create neural pathways that carry information from the brain to the body (motor information) and the body to the brain (sensory information). As we learn new things the axons migrate to make new connections. Can you imagine the amount of new connections your axons are making with sensory input and motor information as you dance?

 

           Patricia McKinley of McGill University in Montreal studied aging individual; she knew that the activity she choose for her study had to be something that seniors would enjoy. She picked the Tango, because it is a dance that's both fun to do and involves a series of complex moves that can improve balance. Her team recruited 30 seniors ages 68 to 91. Half the group took tango lessons, and the other half walked. The dancers got a boost in self-esteem almost right away. "They would come in with sweatpants and sneakers, but after the third or fourth class, they had on makeup and jewelry," McKinley says. The class was mostly older women, but older men came, too.

 

        After 10 weeks, the team looked for improvements in brainpower. Both walkers and Tango dancers had better scores on memory tests, but only the Tango dancers improved on a multitasking test.

 

       Tango requires the leader to navigate the dance floor, remember the sequences learned, balance with contra body movements, listen to and interpret the music. The follower is mostly walking backwards, performing contra body movements, and staying connected to their partner so they can execute the steps their partner has initiated all while maintaining their balance. The improved multitasking may translate to better abilities off the dance floor, such as the ability to talk on the phone while responding to an e-mail. Tango dancers also gained improvements in balance and motor coordination. This finding suggests they would be less at risk of falling.

 

          Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine found the when patients with Parkinson's took tango lessons their balance improved. Tango's intricate steps helped to improve the memory of Alzheimer's patients in Britain. In Italy the trust needed for Tango's close embrace and its backward walk are used in couple's counseling.

 

         In Buenos Aires Martin Sotelano, chairman of the International Association of Tango Therapy said that they find that with tango they have the advantage of having many different components of the dance to fit each specific patient, "You focus on the embrace and the communication for couples counseling; the eight basic steps of Tango for Alzheimer's; and the tango walk, that requires so much grace (and core strength) it can help a patient with Parkinson's."   Patient Sergio Villa, 37, has partial paralysis after suffering brain damage from years of consuming paco, a crack-like drug popular in Argentina's slums. Tango lessons have helped him improve his movements. "I love the music," he said. "Tango helps me walk better and there's nothing like the embrace." From Sergio's response we see that tango also fulfills our human need for contact with another.

 

        I have been dancing Tango for 3 years and have loved every minute especially when I can relinquish control, maintain my connection with my partner and surrender to his direction as the music flows from his heart into me. Several women have said that they have been struggling with letting go enough to follow their partner. Understanding Masculine/Feminine dynamic has helped me let go into the polarity of Tango where every movement is lead so we can experience the magic of the dance. Equally important is that as a follower I maintain my center (my truth) following as accurately as possible without anticipating so my movements are feedback to my partner of how he is leading.

 

          "Just as the aging of a bottle of wine is a function of the grape and vineyard that the wine came from and how it's treated during its life, so is the aging of the human body and brain," says Paul Coleman, PhD, professor of neurobiology and anatomy at the University of Rochester Medical Center. "So people need to treat the brain properly and take care of it and do things to it that will increase its longevity." Tango has been shown to enhance our physical, mental and emotional wellbeing and it goes great with a glass of Malbec!

 

 

 

To Your Abundant Health, Lexi Fisher D.C., Kelly Luvera H.H.P.
and John Till CMS-CHT


 Abundant Health Wellness Center

 1281 N. Gene Autry Trail, Suite L

 Palm Springs, CA 92262

 760-327-4041