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WELL

Spring 1999
Vol I, Issue I

Dr. Martin Collis

Welcome to WELL

"I'll tell you how to reach the highest high
You'll laugh and say "nothing's that simple"
But you've been told many times before
Messiah's pointing to the low
But noone has the guts to leave the temple."

Pete Townsend of The Who

This journal/webzine is about the wellness journey. It's about tapping into our own health resources. It's about breaking out of the gravitational pull of destructive behaviors.

Everywhere I speak, the relevance and power of wellness is self-evident. Educators, health professionals, business people, seniors, students, scientists, and artists want to "have life and have it more abundantly."

I've always liked the word "well", it has so many good associations. It was derived from 'hal' which became the root of words like health, healing, holy, and whole. So to me wellness and wholeness are closely linked.

Holistic thinking is one of the positive trends as we approach the new millenium. In education we work with the whole child. Medicine is stumbling towards holistic solutions, working with the whole body rather than against the disease, and on a planetary level there is an emerging awareness that we need to start thinking in global rather than national terms. As John Donne taught us many years ago, "No man (one) is an island entire unto itself, we are all a part of a whole". One of the key elements of that quotation is "a part of"; wellness thinking is inclusive. In his book Reversing Heart Disease Dr. Dean Ornish noted that one characteristic of the the thinking of coronary prone patients is that they thought in terms of "apart from" rather than "a part of".

So again I say welcome to WELL. Even the word welcome breaks down to "well" and "come", or come in wellness. There is no better way!

This Issue

The One Minute Biography of Dr. Martin Collis
The man behind the guitar.
Martin's life and career highlights in under sixty seconds.[Full article]

My Personal Wellness Journey
"I'll let you be in my dream if I can be in yours." Bob Dylan
I'm going to take a risk and that risk is to share my wellness journey with you, the readers.[Full Article]
by Dr. Martin Collis

Every Breath You Take
Simple Breathing Techniques
We are rarely conscious of our breath, it does its job without our having to pay attention. Yet it is in the act of paying attention, when we choose to, that affords the possibility of using the breath to restore balance in the face of life's constant demands and disruptions. [Full Article]
by Nancy Wardle, M.D.

Diet & Exercise
Commentary on the 4th International Conference on Preventative Cardiology.
"The best strategy for avoiding heart disease includes a balanced diet low in animal fats, sugar and salt, and high in fibre, fruits, grians, and vegetables, quitting smoking and regular exercise."[Full Article]
by Dr. Martin Collis

Putting The FIT into Fitness
Pointers on getting back into shape
Lara Lauzon of Body Moves fame reminds us of the fundamentals of starting a fitness program.[Full Article]
by Lara Lauzon, MA

Some Of My Favourite Things
6 CD'S BY SINGER/SONGWRITERS
To speak of music and books as sources of stress reduction is to diminish them, and yet to lose yourself in words and music, can be the balm which brings "surcease of sorrow" in the words of Edgar Allan Poe (or at least make sorrow sweeter and more manageable).[Full Article]
by Dr. Martin Collis

A M.E.L.L.O.W. Approach To Wellness
An outline of the M.E.L.L.O.W. acronym.
Martin explores the 6 letters that reflect fundamental needs, reflexes, and attributes of the human machine.[Full Article]
by Dr. Martin Collis

Everyday Wellness
Victoria's Hidden Mystic Vale
To me, Mystic Vale is a metaphor for wellness, many people go about their busy lives as human doings and are unaware of the beauty of high level wellness which is in such easy reach. [Full Article]
by Dr. Martin Collis

Buy First, Get Fit Later....
The Commodification of Wellness
"Who hasn't heard someone say, "I'll start running as soon as I can afford those new air pocket - gel - hexalite - neoprene - anti-rusting running shoes." [Full Article]
by Dino Asproloupos

Take Control Of Your Bodies
By Jessie Moniz
"Bermudians need to take control of their bodies and live well, two world renowed Canadian experts said yesterday." As appeared in the Bermuda Mid Ocean News 1-15-99. [Full Article]

Dr. Martin Collis and Dr. Nancy Wardle (pictured to the left) presented to the Bermuda Diabetes Association, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Education this past January.

Regular Features

Contact Info
[Phone] 250 721 6997
[Fax] 250 721 6929
Email : mcollis@speakwell.com