This is a Guest Post from Dr. Craig D. Reid who was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis at a young age and is now beating the odds through the use of Chi Gong. Click here to read the previous article about him and his story.

Godonya mates.

You might have seen an article I wrote many, many moons ago that Evan posted on the site, which told about my adventures of learning chi (qi) gong as a way for me to control CF rather than have CF control me. Evan asked me if I would be interested in writing something for the site…well…seems like my answer is clear.

I guess this is as good as any time to share with you that at the end of this month (March), it will be my 53rd birthday. Eek, could it be that now I have to act more maturely…nope. Hey, and next month it will be my wife and I’s 27th wedding anniversary. Time is sure zipping by, feels like we’ve only been married for about five years.

I have now been doing chi gong for about 28 years and as Evan reported, I have been off all medication and therapies since August of 1980 (was on 30 pills/day, and two hours of therapy/day, and taking a crap on average 5-6 times a day for about 17 years or so prior to learning chi). Although I could not run much, I had plenty of the runs.

Pardon the crappy joke. I could have used the more common vernacular on that, but one never knows how young a reader might be.

I would also add that I do not condone others to come off their medication because many peculiar things happened to me, which led to that decision.

Who I am today, physically, emotionally and spiritually (not religious), I owe to martial arts and learning chi gong. It does not matter what style you practice because ultimately the goal of a real martial artist is to train not to fight and learn to heal rather than hurt.

So why are martial arts and chi so good for someone with CF?

For me, the answer began around age three or four.

As a kid growing up in England in a soccer family (my dad was a pro in Scotland and both of my older brothers were great players), I was barely able to run 20 feet before dropping from sheer exhaustion, which always ended up in me coughing my guts out.

But I wanted to be like my dad, so instead of him having me run around, I would stand in one place and kick a soccer ball to him. The best players in the world can kick with both feet so part of the training to prevent one from just using their strongest foot, was to go barefoot with that foot and wear a shoe on just the weakest foot. Back then, balls were made of leather and were heavy, so if you kicked the ball with your barefoot…ouch man.

So over the years, both of my legs and knees got stronger from just kicking the ball.
Influenced by watching a Bruce Lee film at the local drive-in theater, in 1972, I got bitten by the martial arts bug. It seemed a logical transition to take my soccer ball kicking habit and with a few tweaks here and there, begin to kick a punching bag or the air.

Traditional martial arts practice strengthens one’s legs and knees through stance training, where I would stand, for example, in a low horse stance (so named because it looks like your sitting on an invisible horse), for hours a day (not all in one go mind you).

The most I was able to hold that stance was about 20 minutes. Usually after one minute, it begins to hurt, and after two minutes, you want to stop, after three minutes you can’t breath, and after that…well, try it yourself and you’ll see.

The purpose of stance training is to not only strengthen your legs and knees but to also teach you discipline and push you to see how far you can go.

So meanwhile, I was now throwing about 1000 kicks per day as well as doing various, other excruciatingly painful and difficult stances. Although I was still taking heavy meds and therapies, I did notice that my lungs were getting stronger, and even though after long coughing bouts and coughing up blood, I was able to recover faster.

By the time I got to the Republic of China (Taiwan) in 1979, the doctors had already written me off (if you know what I mean), but I was there to find a chi gong teacher. To make a long story short, I found a teacher and you know the rest of the story.

For those of you who are wondering what is the point of all of this, here is the kicker. Over the years of going back and forth to Taiwan and learning about Chinese theories of medicine and other alternative healing methods, one of the first things I learned was that lung strength is directly related to knee strength.

So all those years of kicking soccer balls was helping me more than me or my father knew. Then after switching to martial arts and throwing 1000 kicks a day and doing all those knee strengthening stances, my lungs were subliminally getting stronger.

I would add that leg weight training is different. For example, a good friend and student of mine, although he was once a top ranked discus and shot putter in America and could squat 720 pounds, he was unable to hold a horse stance for more than 90 seconds.

Furthermore, chi gong, which is basically breathing exercises, teaches one to fill the upper lobe of the lungs with oxygen (normal breathing does not do this, even for those without lung problems). This is important because this is where a lot of infectious, anaerobic (oxygen hating) bacteria hang out.

When I walked across America back in 1986, I met a lot of folks with CF that had weak knees, many of which were arthritic, and it was those folks that had the most congested lungs. Sadly that makes sense, because if you’re knees are arthritic, very tough to do any kind of cardio-vascular exercises. Then it becomes a positive feedback loop, where the more you can’t exercise, the more congested one get, making exercise harder…etc.

So if I might proffer to you, for those willing to discover a different dimension of yourself, and to find a new kind of strength and therapy for helping your health and strengthening your lungs, I would propose you to investigate the martial arts as a way of life and living, and learning chi gong as a way of attaining things you never knew about yourself or your body.

What martial arts you might say? Something with kicks and stance training (just about most of them) and a teacher who is more concerned about the welfare of his students than the welfare of his pocketbook.

Just remember as in life and all of its challenges…walk on, walk on, you will never walk alone.

We would like to apologize for having such a long gap in between posts here at Living Indubiously. We have been extremely busy with a bevy of important projects that have not allowed us any time for creating quality content.

 So what have we been up to? Well here is a short list to keep you up to speed on the lives of the Burton brothers.

 1. We are currently preparing for the release of our first full length album from our band Indubious, entitled “Fresh Leaves”. This album has been 3 years in the making and we are extremely excited about its completion, as it is being printed up right now! We are offering a pre-order price of $10 plus shipping if you want to order one through paypal today! After its official release it will be $14 through cd baby. Click HERE to hear all of the tracks off of the album!

 Buy it through paypal!

 2. We have taken the time to create some promotional videos for the album which we have made from clips of our live performances. Check them out!

 3. We have been preparing our speech for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation 2008 Breath of Life Spring Gala in San Diego. Evan and Spencer Burton are going to be the keynote speakers for this fundraising event, as well as the live entertainment in their band Indubious. Please get your ticket today in order to help find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis!

 4. Playing shows! We have been touring like crazy up and down the west coast and show no signs of slowing down with our busy summer schedule already filling out.

 Here are some of our upcoming dates:

 Be sure to check out our myspace for updates on shows and add us as a friend!

 5. Spencer and Evan are currently training for their first half marathon this summer! It’s going to take a lot of hard work and determination but *COUGH*HACK*WHEEZ* its definitely going to be worth it!

 Thank you for being loyal readers of Living Indubiously and please stay tuned as we continue to see what kind of mountains we can move with these words.

 Love and Blessings,

 Evan Burton

After the success of my first warrior’s guide to parenting, I couldn’t help but feel like there was something missing; a hole in the story that was begging to be told. It wasn’t until I started to read the responses from people who were promising to go out and teach their warriors how to take control of their own lives that I realized what an important piece of the puzzle I had forgotten.

Although it was apparent that my parents had gone out of their way to tell me things that would empower me in my life, it was often the things that they didn’t say that had the most impact on me. It was when the motivational talks were over, and life was waiting for me, that their quiet confidence was a constant guide in my success and health.

The way that my parents treated me like a normal person, and never emphasized my disease is what kept my mind in the right place and allowed me to focus my energy into other aspects of my life. They provided me with the basic knowledge of my own infinite potential, and it was up to me to apply it to my own life situations.

If my parents were to have told me repeatedly about how I could overcome my disease if I practiced positive thinking and fought hard enough, then it would have felt forced and out of place to me. It’s when minds are young and observant that this kind of desperation is easily sensed by a child, and taken as a sign of their parents’ own weakness and fear.

If one wishes to have the best possible impact on their child’s life then they must act as an example and role model, constantly demonstrating through the application of these techniques in their own lives. The very act of being positive, and never wavering in your belief in the power of intention, will be more than enough to uphold the vibration that is conducive to an environment of positive manifestation for your young one.

Children are immensely more observant and intuitive than adults. Going out of our way to pound an idea into their heads is often unnecessary and can be counterproductive. Your own quiet confidence in their abilities is usually all they will need. When they are troubled about something in specific, then one must only refer back to the general rule of the universe by saying that we have the ability to craft any kind of outcome that we desire, as long as we believe we can.

If man has the power to change his life through the use of his own intent, then imagine the possibilities when two people can focus their intent towards the same goal. The simple act of believing and being confident in the abilities of your child will offer a foundation of strength and confidence that will empower them to achieve what they wish.

If what you wish is for your child to have the utmost confidence in his own abilities, then you must first build and maintain the confidence within yourself that will facilitate this kind of result.

“If I have lost confidence in myself, I have the universe against me”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

When we are born into this world we become a further extension of the cultural beliefs, habits, and knowledge that immediately surround us. As we grow, we begin to take on the views of our family, friends and media. This reality that we come to know as an absolute truth is nothing more than a story. It is the story that was told to you, which you turned into your reality. Our beliefs are always emanating an energy which shapes our surrounding circumstances and reality, whether or not we are aware of it. If this is true then we must monitor with great care who’s story we begin to believe and take on as our own. If one wishes to master the art of writing their own story in life then they must come to realize that ALL stories are correct in the fact that they become the reality of the person who believes them.

 

 

“Whether you think you can or can’t, you are right.” –Henry Ford

Surrounding yourself with the right kind of people is a Key factor in the manifestation of your dreams and aspirations. People who are uplifting and make you feel empowered are the kind of people that you should focus on attracting into your life. There is an abundance of these uplifting individuals who offer their inspiration to anybody willing to lend an ear. These are people that have discovered the secret to the unconditional and infinite abundance and love that life has to offer.

On the other hand, there will always be people who would like to put you down and make you feel as if what you wish to accomplish is impossible. These are the folks who themselves have not realized success in their life through the misuse and ignorance of the laws of the universe. In order to strengthen their own story, they wish to have as many people as they can believe in it which makes them feel secure in the fact that they are not failures, but that life is often unfair and random in its dealings. This is understandable but not acceptable. The sooner you can rid your life of these types of people, the sooner it will fill back up with the type of support you need.

 

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” -Mark Twain

It has been through dealing with my disease that I have come to identify the harmful types of personalities, each with their own story, that I must avoid to maintain the positivity needed of me in order to uphold my health. Online communities have become a place for people who identify with their disease to come together and convince others of the permanence and deadliness of their disease. They have made it their identity and are angered at the notion that they have the power to change it if they wish. The empowering individuals are not online chatting about the many ways they may die, but out living their lives and pursuing their dreams.

Being a musician myself, I have noticed that there were always an abundance of washed up musicians who would go out of their way to let me know how hard it is to make it in the industry. I would also come across people who would let me know that I could make it if my heart was in it and if I worked hard enough. These were usually the people that had found success themselves or were close to people who were successes in the industry.

Misery loves company while success breeds success. Why is it that there are certain people whom everything they touch turns to gold? It’s because the story that they believe in says that success comes often, easily and without question. If you wish to create this kind of result for yourself then you need to start paying close attention to the story you are telling yourself in your head and the stories that you are listening to from other people.

With the elimination of the negative people out of your live, and the revision of your life’s story, you will be one step closer to the manifestation of the kinds of results that you desire in your lifetime.

By Evan Burton

You have a purpose in this world. You have a specific and unique talent that no other person in this world has the ability to offer, except you. Whether or not you realize this fact is the only determining factor that will keep you from achieving the reality of finding your calling in life.

It seems like the number one complaint from people today is a lack of contentment in their work life. It’s no wonder with the myriad of boring office jobs and fluorescent-lit cubicles that people are commonly expressing a feeling of dissatisfaction in their jobs. What most people don’t realize is that these jobs are essential to our evolution as people and also equally effective in being motivational tools to get out there and find something we love!

With the application of the following steps you may begin to see the road out of your current dead-end job and into the captain chair of your life.

-Find what you are best at.

Write down all of the talents and abilities that you have. Organize them in order of the level of skill you think you have in each one and then pick out the top 3 talents.

-Find what brings you the most joy.

Write down the things that you enjoy doing the most. Also organize these by the amount of joy that they bring you and then pick out the top 3.

-Find the common denominator.

Now look for a common theme in your two lists that is closest to the top. Your list might look like this:

Most Skill,          Most Joy,

1.Writing               1.Martial Arts

2.Martial Arts      2.Playing Chess

3.Playing Chess    3. Drinking Beer

You can see that Martial Arts is the common theme in both top 3 lists that rank the highest. You can also see that although writing made it to the top place in the skill column, it didn’t even rank in the joy column, making it a bad choice for pursuing it in your life. You are less likely to achieve success by doing things that you do not enjoy!

-Can it help people?

There is a very obvious loophole here that needs to be addressed. What if, for instance, somebody’s best skill AND most enjoyed thing happens to be eating chicken wings? Although you could become the chicken wing eating champion of the world, it is unlikely that you will be able to support yourself with this kind of work or find the kind of long term satisfaction required to be fulfilled from it.

What one must do is search for something that can help people. The amount of money you can make off of your talent is directly related to the amount of potential it has to help other people. This can be looked at from the standpoint of supply and demand, or from the spiritual view of karmic cause and effect. Offering yourself to the service of others will create an imbalance in your karmic energy and sooner or later it will balance itself with an influx of wealth and success into your own life.

If you find that your common denominator cannot help people then you should move further down in your list to find the next most common denominator. You may have to lengthen your list to four or five items.

-Slowly implement your newly found life purpose.

Congratulations! You have found out that your life purpose is being a Martial Arts Teacher! Hold on. Not so fast. You need to make sure that everything is in order before you quit your current job. You can’t jump head first into something that you may not know enough about or be prepared for. This is where your current crappy office job comes in handy. It allows you to fund your search and education towards achieving your newly found purpose.

I’m sure you are wondering; if everybody was out there working their dream job, then who is going to do all of the boring, tedious jobs that are essential to our countries’ survival? The answer is that regardless of how many people out there are deciding to quit their day jobs in pursuit of their dreams, there will always be 10 more behind them that are using these jobs to make enough money to get to that same point of independence. There is a place for these crummy jobs and you should always be grateful for every opportunity you get in life, no matter how rocky the road may be.

-Make yourself rich, not your boss.

Some people may have the concern that although they love their job, they are not making enough money doing it. My answer to them is always the same; if you are not making yourself rich with your work then you are making somebody else rich. It may take some serious work, grit, and good old fashioned creative financing, but starting your own business may be the only way to do what you love and make a great living doing it. Another thing to consider is that after a few years of working for somebody else in a particular field you will start to make the connections and networking contacts that will help you in figuring out the business models and important factors around starting your own business in this particular field.

Hopefully through these techniques your life purpose will start to become illuminated and as obvious as ever. If it doesn’t seem to line up for you right away, do not get discouraged. Sometimes it may take a while to find your life purpose but getting out a pad of paper and writing down your ideas is the first step to getting the wheels in motion.

The very simple act of bringing this idea to the front of your brain will be a catalyst in your life through helping you notice more things about yourself than you ever did before. This will begin to attract into your life the desired situations and opportunities that you are now clear that you want. Start looking at the world as the playground for your dreams and aspirations, and it will respond accordingly.

“When we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change.” Wayne Dyer.

By Evan Burton

By Evan Burton

Let’s face it. There are some things in life that we just cannot change. However, it is not what we are dealt, but how we deal with it that determines our outcome. It is through this perspective that we have the ability to manifest greatness in every outlet of our lives and generate the desired perfection of which we crave.

The first step to manifestation is through the belief in the possibility of obtaining the desired outcome. In its most basic form, this idea is made evident through the fact that we would never take action to achieve a particular endeavor if we didn’t first think that it was possible to have success in doing so. We would give up or not even put forth effort in belief that it would be wasted time and energy. Lance Armstrong would have never won the Tour De France if he didn’t first believe that he could do so!

This idea is further expressed through the scientifically proven and biologically significant ways that our bodies react to the thoughts put forth by our minds. It is often observed that people with the most positive and carefree outlooks are blessed with low rates of disease while those who live high stress lives and are regularly depressed experience higher rates of disease and a loss in the function of their immune systems. Our thoughts then become self fulfilling prophecies that are perpetually manifesting that in which they hold a strong belief.

A Common Theme in Cystic Fibrosis Patients

Since me and my brother have started www.livingindubiously.com, we have had the opportunity to come into contact with so many amazing people and have heard so many inspiring stories that have further strengthened our beliefs in what we do and what we stand for. One of the most common stories that we have heard again and again is the story of somebody who either had a “mild” case of Cystic Fibrosis through childhood, or was not diagnosed until later in their life, and then had a rapid deterioration of health. They always explain this as directly accompanied with an increased anxiety about their condition and a general negativity spawned by the scare tactics put forth by doctors in order to convince patients to do their medications more regularly. The most compelling of these stories go on to tell of the rapid regeneration of lung function and overall increase in health after these people decided to stop obsessing over their condition and went back to the positive outlook that they had before.

The reason these stories do not surprise me is because I have also been a perfect example of one of these people, having had the exact same experience in my life. Up until I was about 18 years old, I didn’t ever really think about my disease. I lived life like a normal person and rarely did my medication. I drank a lot of alcohol, smoked, and didn’t exercise regularly.

The interesting thing was that my health was completely fine until I started to become more aware of my disease and obsessed over trying to find a cure. Even though I had stopped smoking and drinking and began eating healthy and exercising, my health began to deteriorate. I was obsessed with eating the right foods and taking the right supplements and it was always on my mind. I was constantly searching and reading and thinking about my disease, all the while completely oblivious to the harmful effects of my negative thoughts. In the next 4 years I was put into the hospital about 5 times for serious lung infections and left the whole ordeal with an FEV1 of 22%.

It was after my last hospitalization when I decided to stop obsessing over my health and start living my life again. Although I still stayed clear of smoking and alcohol and continued to do my medications, I started to not care about my disease and accepted it for what it was. As long as I wasn’t obsessed with changing it and fighting against it, it wasn’t on my mind. This lead to a way better quality of life for me, and my health rebounded. My FEV1 went from 22% to 55% and is still climbing.

What do the Scientists and Doctors Say?

Although this idea may seem flimsy and unsupported by science, this is not the case. According to a recent paper in the ‘Medical Journal of Australia’, they have found depression and loneliness to be just as significant risk factors for coronary artery disease as high blood pressure, cholesterol and smoking. Also, an earlier Harvard study of 1,300 older men showed pessimists to be twice as likely to develop heart disease as optimists. One must then assume that negative emotions can have some sort of impact on the progression of a disease, such as Cystic Fibrosis.

Recent breakthrough research in the field of exercise has also proven the power that the mind has to transform the body. This study has proven that the act of imagining and believing that you have performed an exercise is as nearly affective in weight loss and muscle gain as doing the exercise itself! In this study three groups of people were studied. The first group did absolutely nothing and had no strength gains. The second group performed specific exercises 3 times a week and experienced a 28% increase in strength. The third group listened to audio tapes that helped them imagine themselves performing the same exercises as the second group and experienced a 24% increase in strength.

Another significant Harvard study in February 2007 further proved the power of our beliefs to change our bodies. In this study they convinced housekeeping staff from a hotel that the amount of work they did in a day was more than enough to keep them physically fit. The maids continued their jobs as normal with no changes to their schedule. The results after a month were some major weight loss, lowered blood pressure, waist-hip ration, body fat percentage and BMI. Another group of maids were not told anything and experienced no changes in their bodies. This is undeniable proof that our physical condition is largely influenced by the thoughts that we think.

Using this Power for Yourself

So how can we take this amazing tool and put it into use in our own lives? Do we drop all of our meds and start drinking copious amounts of booze and smoking cigarettes while “thinking happy thoughts”? I think common sense would tell anybody that this is a bad idea.

The real lesson to be learned here is the power of positive thoughts and how all of our views and beliefs become self fulfilling prophecies in our lives. If we have a firm belief in the fact that our disease progresses as we get older, then that will become the case. If we have a firm belief that our disease is nothing more than a reminder for us to stay on track in life, and that we can overcome it, then our bodies will follow. If you believe that you can increase your health beyond what you ever thought was possible, then you have just made that a possibility in your life. Without the belief, there cannot be the result.

I do my medication every day, exercise religiously, eat a ton, and continue to believe that my body is getting stronger at every moment. Whether it’s the physical things that I do or my belief in the fact that they work that keep me healthy, the world may never know. All I know is that without the right outlook and the correct state of mind, all the medicine, exercise, and supplements in the world will not save you.

Something to Chew On…..

True warriors use their unbending will and intention to craft their own reality to their liking while never giving thought to the reality of others who may wish to bring you down. You should be able to close your eyes and see yourself at the finish line, having accomplished everything you strive for. Whether you like it or not, your beliefs are constantly affecting your life. All it takes is a conscious effort to make your self fulfilling prophecy one worth being fulfilled.

Cystic Fibrosis and Stress

By Spencer Burton

  Living a fast paced life seems to be the standard these days. As our environment has sped up its rush to success, we’ve acclimated our bodies and minds to handle the higher level of stress that comes at us like a freight train. Its this lifestyle that can only breed an imbalanced value system, an imbalance in what truly matters most in life, and a higher chance for illness. This is something I wish to truly focus on.

 For people living with Cystic Fibrosis or many other illnesses that require nutrition, care, sufficient rest and preparation, stress levels from this fast-paced lifestyle need to be examined, and changed. A warrior know when its best to fight battles, and when its best to walk away.

 Walk a Warriors Path

“Does this path have a heart? All paths are the same: they lead nowhere. They are paths going through the bush, or into the bush. In my own life I could say I have traversed long paths, but I am not anywhere. Does this path have a heart? If it does, the path is good; if it doesn’t, it is of no use. Both paths lead nowhere; but one has a heart, the other does not. One makes for a joyful journey; as long as you follow it, you are one with it. The other will make you curse your life. One makes you strong; the other weakens you.”

         - Don Juan  (Carlos Castenada’s Teachings of Don Juan)

The path we walk in life is often the wrong one for us, mentally, spiritually and physically. Its apparent that in order to become truly happy in this life,  we have to find a “path” or purpose that resonates with us deeply. If you wake up in the morning and have that worried or nervous knot in your stomach because you hate what you do or the people or situations you do it with, then you are simply not walking your path. The bigger the detour you take to your path, the bigger the gamble you take on your health.

How much happiness do you experience doing what you do? If the answer is not much,  then that daily unhappiness has been shown to lower your immune system. This world is full of wonders and you need to be a part of the glory. Live grateful of your blessings, and grateful of your ability to change what doesn’t serve you. Become sensitive to yourself and what you need to feel happy and whole. Realize that life isn’t promised and what you do today may be a warriors last battle on earth. Make that battle worthy of you and your life and your stress cannot survive.

 Separate Yourself From Chaos

The dramas of life are so frequent that it makes no sense to add more than necessary. Who do you associate with? Where do you live and does it serve you? Where do you work? If any of these elements in your life are adding to your stress they must be removed. Are your friends and family good positive influencers and supporters of your dreams and aspirations? There are so many good and positive people in the world that it makes no sense to let the materialistic and negative neigh-sayers intrude on our happiness. Do you live in an overcrowded and under natured big city? Sometimes in order to truly realize what is important in life, which is key in dissolving stress, we need to slow our lives down get out of the fray. Move to the country,  or just go camping or hiking more. Your connection with life should be a personal one. All of your surroundings should put you at ease, and at peace. Your surroundings and circumstances should inspire you, not hinder you. It is in peace of mind that you will find your mind of peace.  

In this world of big corporations and overpopulation,  stress is larger than ever before. However, we need to see that our lives are not to serve these large money machines,  or work a dead end job, they are to align with a passion and a love for what we do and what we contribute to the universe. Living like a warrior means that we must remove the impending stress and become the healthy and vibrant creatures we were intended to be. We must inspire others, and be inspired. If we can manage to weed out that which is adding stress to our lives, then we clear the path to being a warrior,  and illuminate the path to true health; mind, body and soul. ~

Rocking CF Everday!

By Emily Schaller of www.letsrockcf.org

“I was completely blown away when I came across Spencer and Evan’s site Living Indubiously, a Warriors Guide. I felt really connected to these guys not only because we all have Cystic Fibrosis but how similar our outlooks on life are and our ideas on dealing with CF.

Adherence, exercise, proper nutrition and most importantly a positive outlook are the four main things that I use to “Rock CF.” I have seen too many CF patients, others living with chronic illnesses and most shocking healthy individuals who are so negative and don’t believe that they can take their life by the horns and run the show. Life is so precious and some people take it for granted never learning how lucky they are to be alive.

Keeping up with all of my treatments and medicine is key. I play drums in a rock band called Hellen and have some late nights here and there. It may be easy to just skip my meds because it is too late or I am too tired but that can turn into a habit and could land me in the hospital on IV’s antibiotics. 

I have always been very active but just in the past couple of years I started to really push my body to the max. In the fall of 2006 I started training for a 5K race. Once that race was completed I went on to 10K and just kept going. Currently I am training for a half marathon (13.1 Miles) that I will run in the spring of 2008. This past summer I rode my bike from Detroit to Chicago with my friend and am planning to do so again this summer. There aren’t too many days where I am not exercising and on the one to two days a week I take off I actually feel guilty. Whether it is running or riding my bike trainer or lifting weights I am always doing something to enrich the quality of my life.

Growing up I was always told to eat as much fat and as many calories as I could. So I did! Being pancreatic insufficient I of course wasn’t able to absorb all of that fat so I never was overweight and never thought about what I was eating. Something struck me a couple of years ago though and I thought maybe eating all of this junk food isn’t good for my body. I thought I can get the same amount of calories from eating food that was way better for me and is full of rich vitamins and antioxidants. So since then I make sure I eat five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables everyday. Recently I started to love salmon so I eat that as much as I can as well as tuna or shrimp two to three times a week. I am a huge whole-wheat person and drink my sixty-four ounces or more of water each day. Oh and I try to sneak in a green tea most days too. These foods help feed my body the nutrition I need while delivering good calories.

Since my “lifestyle” change a couple years ago I have never felt this great! My pulmonary function has climbed to the highest it has been in over five years and I have not been on IV’s in over sixteen months. This is a record for me since I am usually in one to two times every year. Each day I thrive on exercising and eating great food to keep me feeling this well. I never look at my life and think that I am unlucky for having cystic fibrosis. Instead CF has helped make me the person I am today and I would not trade it in for anything. This year I founded the Rock CF Foundation and am trying to raise funds and spread awareness about CF through the arts, entertainment, fashion and fitness. These are all things that are important to me and I hope can help me teach others about CF and include them in our fight to Rock CF.

It is pretty incredible all of the ideas Evan, Spencer and I share. We are trying to inspire people to go beyond their normal CF routines and add an exercise routine. After hearing how diet has affected these guys it really gives me hope that what I am doing is working.”

Make sure to visit Emily’s website at www.letsrockcf.org, and also visit www.myspace.com/hellenofdetroit for Emily’s band Hellen.

Recently, we made a new friend, at www.letsrockcf.org. Her name is Emily Schaller. We wrote a guest article for her about the amazing healing powers of music in our lives. Please visit Emily’s site, and read our guest article HERE.

Also, if you haven’t had a chance to subscribe to our blog, please click here and subscribe now.

Luv n Light to all 

By Evan Burton

  The single most rewarding experience in many people’s lives will be the gift of raising children. That being said, the most fruitful things in our lives are often the most difficult. When my mom and dad decided to have kids, they never could have imagined the hardships and tribulations that would be placed before them. It was the amazing power of intention and positivity that made my parents so successful in crafting two of the strongest little warriors the world would ever see.

 It was when my brother was two and my mom was pregnant with me, that little Spence started experiencing some strange symptoms. After taking him to several different doctors for his unexplained digestion problems, he was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis. When I was born it was their natural inclination to have me tested, which proved to be the same diagnosis. In being forced to deal with such a bleak outlook of our disease, and rejecting the current idea that Cystic Fibrosis was a death sentence, my parents developed a parenting style which they believed would give us the power to manifest our own outcome and write the pages to our own life.

 The Amazing Power of the Mind

 “Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.”

- Mahatma Gandhi

 An emphasis on the infinite potential and power of each and every human being is of the utmost importance, if one intends on laying the groundwork for a life of success for their child. The importance of enforcing this outlook cannot be overlooked, for it will be the single most important tool in your arsenal if you wish for your child to overcome adversity and gain control over their health. When I was a child there was one thing that my mom would tell me that always stuck out in my mind. She would sit me down and tell me that I had the ability to do absolutely anything and everything that I wished to do in my life, as long as I believed I could do it. She went on to say that my disease was only there to teach me an important life lesson, just like everything else in this world, and that I could overcome it as long as I took the lesson that it was there to show me.

 I can remember days where I would sit out on the lawn for hours and try to levitate, thinking that I could do anything that I wanted to as long as I believed it. When I told my mom about my failed attempts, she would say that of course I could fly if I tried hard enough, but that it would take a long time and that it might be a better idea to focus my concentration onto something more productive. I started dreaming big and becoming obsessed with the possibilities that lay before me. I knew that I would grow up to make a difference in the world. I thought about becoming the President of the United States or becoming a famous scientist or doctor that would cure diseases. I dreamt about becoming a famous musician or artist that would spread my love and vision throughout the world. I fully believed that I could do any of these things and that my disease would not dictate my place in this world. In fact, I didn’t even think about my disease too often. It was never made a big deal by my parents, so I didn’t see it as a big deal either. It was just a part of who I was, and something I was forced to overcome.

 When I was around 15 years old my parents told me a story of great importance that would further strengthen my belief in the power of positive thought. The story was about some friends of theirs’ whom also had a child with Cystic Fibrosis. They were extremely religious people who, upon their child’s diagnoses, said to her that she was going to have some hard times with her disease. They said not to worry though, because if she died that she would go to heaven and be taken care of by god. It wasn’t until her late teens that she passed away and her parents’ prophecy fulfilled itself. My parents believed it was their friends’ negative outlooks that lead to their daughter’s eventual death, despite their best intentions. They were merely unaware of the amazing power of suggestion and the possibility of another way. It was when my brother and I were very young that she passed away so our parents decided to keep this story secret from us in order to uphold the outlook that they wanted us to have.

 I can remember my mom pointing out famous people on T.V. and saying that they had Cystic Fibrosis, just like me. She would say that despite having this disease, they were still successful and healthy and they didn’t let it stop them from anything. To this very day I cannot find information on these people sharing my same disease, and I suspect that my mom made some of these things up in order to give me a belief in the longevity and success of my life. I would not have ever wanted my mom to change the way she did things because these were the things that gave me hope. These were the things that solidified my belief in my own infinite potential and my power to be anything I wanted to be.

 The Importance of Love above All Else

 There will be times in every child’s life when it seems like they are falling off of the right path and acting in a way that you don’t feel is right. It is important for you to never react in anger because this is not what your child is lacking. When you react in anger, your child is more likely to want to rebel against your wishes. The best way to light the path for your child is through unconditional love and being an upstanding example for them. If you feel as though you might know what’s best for your child in terms of their life path then you need to take a step back and look at the real picture. Forcing them to go to college or to pursue a specific life path can be very damaging to them and only delay the discovery of their true life path. The best way to help them grow into the amazing adult that you want them to be is by supporting them through thick and thin and letting them know that you believe in the fact that they will be successful in whatever they put their minds to.

 Love is the main lacking factor in a troubled child’s life. The more love that is offered, the stronger foundation and confidence your child will have on which to build their life of health, wealth, wisdom, and happiness. Part of being a warrior is learning to know what tools to use in order to effectively inspire others to their greatest potential. Although a small amount of tough love is sometimes necessary, the mostly negative aspects of anger, guilt, judgment, and manipulation can never be effective. We must always focus on the transformational tools of positive reinforcement, support, understanding, and above all else: Love.

 An Example to Learn From

 My life has been a direct reflection of the love and support that my parents laid before me. My confidence and success in life can be credited to the positive outlook that was given to me at an early age. There has never been a moment in my life that I doubted my ability to overcome my disease or find happiness and success in life.

 Today I am 23 years old and I am experiencing great success in pursuing my dream of becoming a professional musician. My brother and I have toured the country with our band Indubious and began to spread our message to the world. Our first album is due for a 2008 release and you can check www.indubiousmusic.com for more info. I have supported myself by working part time in the real estate industry, which has given me the financial freedom to support the following of my dreams. My brother and I decided to created www.livingindubiously.com  in order to inspire other people to overcome adversity in their life and realize their true potential.

 Today my health is better than ever and I owe it all to my positive outlook and motivation that pushes me to take great care of my body. I go snowboarding, biking, running, hiking, play sports and work out. I have never let my disease hold me back from anything and I can keep up with whatever life throws at me. My outlook for the future is bright and I couldn’t be more content with my life. In order to raise a warrior you must first become one yourself.