Evolutionary Wellness News and Notes

October 4th, 2024 | Early Autumn Edition

My Personal Hurricane Story + Look for the Helpers

7 Day Cleanse - Donations for Hurricane Relief

Hello dear clients and friends,


I'm grateful to be writing you right now, as a fortunate survivor of the recent hurricane that has decimated parts of the SouthEastern US, including my previous home city of Asheville, and many of the mountain towns in Western NC and surrounding states.


I arrived in Asheville two days prior to the hurricane hitting, intending to offer 5 separate workshops/retreats/ceremonies over the next two weeks.


Fate had something else is store this time though, as you are probably already aware of if you've been tuning in to the news over the last week.


No one was prepared for what happened. Some are calling this not just a 100-year flood, but a 500 or 1,000 year flood - basically the worst flooding in recorded history for this area of the country.


Entire towns in the mountains have been decimated, neighborhoods of Asheville are gone, and immediate survival-related needs are immense.


I would like to do what I can to contribute and so I will be passing forward 1/2 the money from each 7 Day Cleanse registration (this Cleanse begins October 21st) towards hurricane relief efforts at the grassroots level.


I am keeping my eye on which non-profits and organizations are doing the most essential on-the-ground work, and will be spreading the money out between multiple places.


Additionally, for anyone in Asheville or the surrounding towns in Western NC/TN/GA who has been impacted by this hurricane I would like to invite you to join this Cleanse for FREE.


Please just email me directly if you have been impacted by hurricane Helene, and want to join (and I fully understand that you may not have all the normal supplies, access to healthy food etc., so it's totally modifiable - I just want to offer as a place to find connection/ healing/support IF you might find this attractive or helpful).


If you're NOT in the area impacted by hurricane Helene, and want to be a part of supporting relief efforts while also tending to your own precious body and health, please do join me now, and know that the money will be going directly to where it's needed.


I have so many friends and dear loved ones in those mountains...and the need is very very real. Thank you so much for joining in for a win-win of support for yourself and others!


-Ellen

p.s. Don't feel like a Cleanse, but want to send some money to support relief efforts? I'll list some of the best places I'm aware of right now to donate to below. If you're on the ground in WNC (and have enough of an internet connection to read this) please let me know of other places you'd recommend!

p.p.s. IF YOU'RE WAITING FOR AN EMAIL BACK FROM ME, THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED PATIENCE. IT WILL BE A COUPLE MORE DAYS UNTIL I CAN RESPOND TO MY EMAIL BACKLOG.

Meet our Cleanse Chef for this 7 Day Autumn Cleanse!


I hope you enjoy this interview with the chef whom I've hired to create recipes for this cleanse. He will also be offering cooking classes - starting with the basics!

I can't wait to be inspired along with you!

Wisdom of the Body, Wisdom of Nature: A 6 Week Journey of Embodiment with Nature's Healing Nectars


Begins October 20th - 1/2 Full


After living through the hurricane and considering deeply the profound imbalances we are witnessing in the world right now with extreme flooding, extreme fires and other imbalances within the ecosystem, if there one thing I can recommend from the healing traditions I've encountered this lifetime which could be very helpful right now, it would be to learn to align with the healing forces of nature and balance/harmonize these forces within our own being.


The inner has a reflection to the outer - and vice versa. My teachers would share that we are experiencing a collective imbalance - because we have moved away from the balance afforded by sacred reciprocity - a way of living in harmony with nature and all of creation.


The indigenous traditions of alignment with the earth and her healing forces can be of assistance to us all right now, IMHO, because they can help us to rebalance and find a way forward through these chaotic times.


The first step to deepening with nature and beginning the process of finding internal harmony, (according to the traditions I've studied in the Andes) is to meet/reconnect with your Nature Parents. These are the most important/essential healing forces to begin to work with.


That's what the Wisdom of the Body, Wisdom of Nature Course is all about!


Please join me for my next Wisdom of the Body, Wisdom of Nature Course, beginning October 20th! We are 1/2 full.


All subscribers to this email newsletter get a $200 discount to attend this Course. Please just email me for the discount code.

Healing with the Nectars of Nature through Reconnecting with Your Nature Parents

WISDOM OF THE BODY - WISDOM OF NATURE - BEGINS OCTOBER 20TH - enjoy this video to learn more!

"Ellen and Cynthia each have a wealth of knowledge and combine their various areas of expertise beautifully and seamlessly to provide a rich journey of deeper connection to both yourself, your physical body and the nature that lives all around us. They are warm, caring, compassionate and wise, and they offer a lot of time and space for asking questions and receiving extra support if you need it. Together they create and provide a safe and sacred container that makes transformation and deeper self-knowledge available and wholly possible. The course is well-organised, content-rich, and I am deeply grateful to have had the opportunity to experience it." - past Wisdom of the Body course participant


Hippocrates famously said: "All Disease Begins in the Gut"


But he forgot to say that all health begins there too!


Are you curious about what's going on down there?


If you've cleansed with me in the couple years you will already know that I've been taking a deep dive with the gut biome and learning how to work with a very high quality lab test to help my clients resolve their gut health concerns.


I'm VERY impressed with the company and with the results my clients are having! If you are interested in getting some gut-specific loving, please let me know!


Here are the steps to move forward.


3 STEPS TO HEALING YOUR GUT!


#1. Order A Gut Microbiome Test Kit

Register a New Patient Account at this link HERE and then "register/purchase" the Gut Microbiome test kit, which is called BiomeFx. You made need to enter the code: Biome when you register for an account on this site.


#2. We will then need to schedule an hour-long consult to do a full health history if you have not worked with me as a private client before or if we haven't worked together in a while...


#3. After the results come in, you and I will schedule an hour-long consult to go over the recommendations and get you started on a gut healing protocol.


NOTE: If you're in the UK/EU or anywhere besides the US, please contact me directly to arrange testing/shipping, etc.


The world of the gut microbiome is cutting edge and IMHO, one of the best places to focus on for overall health and wellness. I look forward to helping you get to know what's going on in there and how you can best address it.


LOOK FOR THE HELPERS


My experiences with Hurricane Helene and some places to donate to directly


There was one conversation I had a couple hours after the hurricane passed through, which I'll never forget.


But before I share that, let me begin with how the first few hours of the morning on Friday, Sept 27th in Asheville, NC progressed for me and my friends whom I was staying with.


We lost power around 6am.


The highest winds moved through for the next couple hours. We saw lots of trees bending over and heard lot of pops/crashes from across the road. We also saw some flooding starting in the cul-de-sac at the bottom of the street where my friends' house is.


At around 11am we realized that a big tree had come down that was blocking the exit to the main road outside my friends' residential neighborhood.


It was amazing to witness how many chainsaws came out and how quickly the community gathered together to make quick work of the obstruction!


At this point we had no idea the level of destruction that had happened in the entire area...but we drove out to see if we could get out to the main highway and find a place to get cell reception - as all communications were down where we were.


There are about 5 or 6 ways to get to the main highway along the road that runs through the part of East Asheville I was staying in. We soon found out that all ways were blocked. One way had a massive flood that had taken out the road, and all other ways were blocked with fallen trees and power lines.


The Conversation...


As we were turning around and making our way back to the house (which fortunately had not sustained any damage) we came upon three men walking along the road. It looked to be a father, son, and uncle.


We stopped to ask if they needed anything, and they proceeded to tell us: "The river took our house".


We were a little stunned, and asked exactly what they meant...having no idea at this point the extent of the flooding...They described their entire house being carried away by the river - all at once. They then proceeded to tell us that many houses had also been taken in this way by the Swannanoa River.


We could hardly believe our ears, and asked again what we could do to help. They said they were on the way to a friend's house and were okay. They looked remarkably calm, but I can only imagine that they, like so many in the greater Asheville area that day and the days following, were in shock.


At that moment any thoughts of how I was going to manage to shift the work I came to Asheville to do, and whether I was going to cancel, etc., disappeared. I realized how significant the situation was and concurrently the incredible fortune I had to be situated where I was during the hurricane.


Life is so incredibly precarious and precious...and I know this experience will stay with me forever, and serve as a reminder of what's really important in life.


What I witnessed for the next 2 1/2 days that I was in Asheville was an incredible display of neighbors helping each other in so many ways: people showing up with chainsaws seemingly out of nowhere, families who had a generator providing water for their whole community, spontaneous potlucks where food that was quickly thawing in freezers that were no longer functional, being shared...and so much more.


So many people spoke to the fact that neighbors they'd never taken the time to get to know were becoming new friends, or perhaps even living in their home - as people so generously offered beds to those who needed refuge.


The beauty of the human spirit and the generosity of heart that I witnessed, alongside the layers of shock that moved through, as we all learned more and more about the extent of the damage, was a heart-expanding and disorienting experience like nothing I've ever been through.


When my friends I'd been staying with were offered a place a few hours south to go to for a couple weeks, I knew it was my cue to leave as well, in order to not become an extra mouth to feed or body to "water" when there were so few resources available.


And so, I journeyed back to my parents farm in Massachusetts to nourish myself and rest with the assistance of lots of healthy organic veggies...and I've turned my attention to doing what I can to help from afar.


I invite you to join me if you wish!


As mentioned above, 1/2 of the proceeds of all Cleanse registrations for my upcoming 7 Day Cleanse, which begins on October 21st, will be directly donated to non-profits doing on-the-ground work to bring essential supplies and relief to those who've lost everything.


If you've been directly affected by Hurricane Helene, and you'd like to join in for this Cleanse, please email me to join for FREE. ***Please don't worry about doing it "perfectly" - I understand you may not have access to organic food or other things that would support your Cleanse as you would normally have - so please know you can join just to be in a supportive and healing container for a week, with other souls who are also looking to support optimal health. My prayer is that this can be a helpful reset for you if you've been through the hurricane and the resulting aftermath, and that any focus on health and healing and wellbeing, however limited due to resources, would be supportive.**


AND NOW! LOOK FOR THE HELPERS!


There are so many amazing people and organizations showing up with hearts wide open to help support the relief efforts. Here are just a few I've identified that you can donate to directly if you wish!


Mother Earth Food Hub - providing local and organic healthy meals to folks in Asheville, and supporting the local economy and local farmers


Hope Mill Air Drop - bringing supplies via helicopter to people stranded in the mountains


BeLoved Asheville - providing incredible local support in many ways as needed


World Central Kitchen - proving free meals in and around Asheville


Brother Wolf Animal Rescue - donations needed to support rebuilding of shelter and providing immediate aid for animals


MANNA Foodbank - food aid for greater Asheville area


There are so many other great places to donate to, and if we're facebook friends, please check there as I am regularly sharing what I'm learning is needed most...


Thank you all SO much for whatever you feel to contribute at this time. All methods of support are so welcome!


Ellen


Evolutionary Wellness and Ellen'sP Ph Counseling| [www.ellenkittredge.com]