The Eight Steps to Vibrant Health: And the Miracle of Moving the Lymph

By Jennifer McCollum ND BSc CBS

Most everyone has a desire to live a vibrant, healthy life. Yet our daily lifestyle choices often prevent us from doing so, and unfortunately, can even lead us down a path to disease and chronic pain.

In a holistic guide, Jennifer McCollum relies on twenty years of professional experience as a naturopathic physician to teach others how to properly care for the mind, body, and spirit. Through eight simple steps, McCollum details the importance of oxygen, why water is the flow of life, the essential building blocks related to food, the play of movement and exercise, how to clean and clear toxins, the value of sleep in repairing the body, ways to control our thoughts and feelings, and the essential wisdom surrounding spirituality. Also included is information about the miracle of moving the lymph; helpful references, tools, and recipes; and exercises.

The Eight Steps to Vibrant Health is a holistic guide for anyone wishing to prevent disease or regain their health.

“These eight steps are essential Common-Sense Health which should be a foundation in every person’s life.”
—C. Norman Shealy, MD, PhD, Founder of the American Holistic Medical Association and author of Conversations with G: A Physician’s Encounter with Heaven.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Dec 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9781663247643

Jennifer McCollum ND BSc CBS

Dr. Jennifer McCollum is a Naturopathic doctor who graduated from Bastyr University. She passionately serves others, trying to regain and optimize their health. Dr. McCollum started working in the health field of nutrition and herbal medicine in 1978. She has two Bachelor of Science degrees, one in horticulture and the other in nutrition, from New Mexico State University. Dr. McCollum believes that choosing healthy foods and a healthy lifestyle supports a healthier planet and a more peaceful and healthier humanity.

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Copyright © 2019 Jennifer McCollum, ND, BSc, CBS.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

The information, ideas, and suggestions in this book are not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice. Before following any suggestions contained in this book, you should consult your personal physician. Neither the author nor the publisher shall be liable or responsible for any loss or damage allegedly arising as a consequence of your use or application of any information or suggestions in this book.

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ISBN: 978-1-6632-4765-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-4766-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-4764-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022921638

iUniverse rev. date:  12/09/2022

To all the people willing to be open to innovative ideas. To all willing to change a habit, a belief, or even a tradition for beneficial health and well-being. I salute you. These changes will benefit our species and our environment.

The Doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet and the prevention of disease.

—Thomas Edison

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Step 1 Oxygen: The Air We Need

Step 2 Water: The AFlow of Life

Step 3 Food: The Essential Building Blocks

Step 4 Exercise: The Play of Movement

Step 5 Cleansing: The Clearing of Toxins

Step 6 Sleep: The Dream Time to Repair

Step 7 Feelings and Thoughts: The Path to Control

Step 8 Spirituality: The Essential Wisdom

The Miracle of Moving the Lymph

Appendix A Further Reading and Information

Appendix B Diseases Associated with Gliadin/Gluten

Appendix C Vaccinations Opt-Out Letter

Appendix D Helpful Tools and Recipes

Appendix E Exercises

References

Map of Consciousness by David R. Hawkins, MD

Foreword

I was inspired by my patients to write this book to share my knowledge and expertise in the unique way that I share it with them. My intention with this book is to dispel some misconceptions about health and disease. I hope to inspire you, the reader, to make certain choices in the care of your human body, mind, and spirit so that you can live a vibrant, healthy life.

This book is written for people who want to understand the basics of body care and how to prevent disease or regain their health. I intend to reach people of general knowledge. It is challenging to write about medical information without having a lot of medical jargon shrouding the subject matter. I have done my best to make the subject matter understandable. To your vibrant health and well-being. Be blessed.

Acknowledgments

It is my privilege to honor my mentors and teachers for their research, unwavering faith in their science, and passion for passing on their wisdom to me. Some of these mentors and teachers I never met because they came and left this world before my time. Others, I am grateful to have met or to have attended their conferences and classes personally.

My most sincere gratitude and admiration to my teachers, Dr. John Lust, Dr. Jethro Kloss, Dr. Linus Pauling, Dr. Michael Tierra, Dr. John Bastyr, Dr. Tieraona Low Dog, Hanna Kreiger, Edgar Cayce, Dr. Hulda Regehr Clark, Machaelle Small Wright, Dr. Bach, Dr. Walter Crinnion, Dr. Jonathan Wright, Dr. Klinghardt, Dr. Peter D’Adamo, Dr. Alan Gaby, and Dr. Christine Northrup.

I am grateful for and appreciative of my spiritual teachers for their teachings and philosophies, which have kept me focused and my faith nurtured. These spiritual teachers are Bob Proctor, Anjali Hill, Eckhart Tolle, Dr. Dwayne Dyer, Dr. Joe Dispenza, Gregg Braden, Dr. Bruce Lipton, Dr. Christine Page, Jack Canfield, Satyen and Susan Raja, Stephen Garrett, Neale Donald Walsh, Mike Dooley, Mary Morrissey, and Marianne Williamson.

My sincere gratitude and appreciation to Dr. Barry Morguelan for teaching me Energy for Success, which I used to direct my life focus into creating and publishing this book. I am grateful to Dr. Joe Dispenza, who taught me to liberate the last of the emotions that held me back and to step into a newly created future.

This book was possible because of the support I received from my dear husband, Jeff Wilson, and our loving mother, Donna Wilson. I offer special gratitude and appreciation to Donna Wilson for proofreading my rough draft and for her encouragement. Thank you all.

Introduction

I grew up in a middle-class family with the idea that you eat the food that is put before you. I was not allowed to leave food on my plate because there were starving children in other countries. My parents fed us, like most children in the United States in the 1960s, square meals. We were taught there were four food groups: meat, vegetable, fruit, and dairy. These foods were suitable for everyone, and no one questioned the source of the foods.

I noticed that I had stomachaches every time I had orange juice or milk. My parents dismissed my complaints and always made me drink every drop. I also had allergies and asthma and gained weight quickly. By the time I was ten years old, I had been diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, which manifested after a bout of Rocky Mountain Tick fever. I was prescribed indomethacin by my doctor. By the time I was eighteen, my stomach was aching all the time. My arthritis, which had started in my finger joints, had moved to my elbows, shoulders, knees, and hips and was starting to move into my back.

I went to the doctor in search of a better drug that would help me. The doctor told me, You are taking the strongest drug that we prescribe for your condition. You might as well face it; you will be in a wheelchair by the time you are twenty-one. I went back home feeling defeated. Then I thought, I might as well stop taking the prescription, since it was killing my stomach and was not helping the pain or the migration of arthritis. So, I threw away the prescription drug.

By chance, the next day, I had a knock on the door from my neighbor, who wanted to use my phone. She had a strange green-gold powder in her hands, and she snuffed some up her nose. She said, Excuse me, but I am catching a cold, and I need to be well. Tomorrow is my boyfriend’s birthday, and I am going to his party. I was repulsed by the snuffing up of this powder. It was plain to see that this woman already had a cold by her runny nose and watery eyes.

I inquired about the golden-green powder in her palm, and she told me it was the herb goldenseal. I asked her if she knew of herbs that helped with stomachaches or sore joints. She replied, There are herbs for all kinds of ailments. She then proceeded to use my phone and leave.

The following day, the woman came back to my door. To my amazement, she looked perfectly well. She said, I have a gift for you. She handed me The Herb Book by John Lust, ND.¹ Then she went to her boyfriend’s party. I started reading about herbs that would be beneficial and foods that could be detrimental or beneficial to the body’s joints.

I took herbs like blessed thistle (also known as holy thistle) and spikenard to clean my blood of impurities. I also increased my water intake to help remove impurities and keep my bowels moving well. I removed foods that are denatured, like white flour and white sugar. I found that red meats were not digesting well, so I had to remove them from my diet. I added movement in the form of yoga postures to help limber up my joints.

Gradually over two years, I recovered my mobility, starting with the last area to be afflicted, my back. That was followed by relief in my elbows and knees and finally in my fingers. Inspired by this remarkable healing, I had the desire to help others. I studied all the nutrition and herbal books I could. I took classes from herbal masters, such as Michael Tierra and Tieraona Low Dog.

I applied to go to naturopathic college in Oregon, but they denied me entry without a college education. I got the opportunity to go to college years later when President Reagan decided to help single women with children go back to school to get a degree. I enrolled in