Two days ago I ventured into a catalog return and overstock store about 30 minutes before they closed for the evening.  I usually find amazing half price deals on unusual items you can't find in most stores around here.  As I was browsing through the beauty section, a small box caught my eye. I opened it up to find two small clear, silicone cups.  The back of the box referenced Traditional Chinese Medicine, so I was instantly intrigued. I had no time to research the product, so I snatched it up and bought it before they closed (Thank God for 30 day return policies).  

When I got home, I began doing some research on these Bellabaci Cups and discovered an alternative healing technique I had never heard of before called "cupping."  Apparently cupping is a relative of acupuncture, but instead of using needles, glass cups are heated then placed on the body and create a suction.  There are other variations as well, specifically where rubber cups can be used to create suction and massage the body. 

The Bellabaci Cups are medical-grade silicone cups patterned after this "cupping" therapy.  They claim to help reduce cellulite, fade stretch marks, ease migraines and headaches, relieve digestive trouble and more.  

My husband and I often discuss the lack of true open-mindedness in our society and how it has radically limited advancement and growth in every area of our lives and culture. When you look at great discoveries of the past, they come from individuals who are not convinced that the science of their day has it all figured out.  They veer from the logical path and question the status quo. They risk mockery and judgment and step away from the strongly held beliefs of their society.  They are open to something different and something new -- something that opposes the "truth of the time."    

Open-Mindedness Precedes Growth
It's always sad to hear someone quickly dismiss an idea or a theory without ever giving it an opportunity to breathe.  Immediate dismissal is the mark of the narrow mind -- even if the idea flies in the face of logic, reason and science -- and it is a definite sign of stagnated growth. 

We have a tendency to believe that our way is the best way -- the only way -- and that anyone who believes differently is a bumbling fool who has not yet been enlightened.  We don't consider that we could be the bumbling fools. We look back to our past and see our ancestors as ignorant and uncivilized.  We never stop to consider that our so-called advancements could lead to our ultimate downfall and perhaps our ancestors understood something that we don't.  

We have laws of physics on this earth; however, history has shown us that those "laws" can be wrong. Without questioning standard beliefs -- without realizing the science of our day may be flawed -- we cannot grow.  

Without open-mindedness, the world may still be regarded as flat.  Without open-mindedness, we wouldn't know that time is relative.  Without open-mindedness, we may never have had the advances of alternating current (thank you, Tesla, for your radical open-mindedness).  

So open-mindedness is necessary for growth and new discoveries.  True open-mindedness does not quickly dismiss the impossible, the ridiculous, the illogical, the "pseudoscience" -- because true open-mindedness is OPEN to possibility and new truth and is willing to admit that it may be wrong.  The quick dismissal is the mark of the narrow-minded -- no matter how open minded they believe they are.  

So what does all this have to do with natural health?  

So I got the flu this year. Fortunately, I had elderberry lozenges on hand.  Fever, aches and chills were gone within an hour, and by day 3 I was able to go back to work for half a day. Yes, elderberry is good stuff.  Read the rest of this entry for details and a link to a study detailing the effectiveness of elderberry in lessening flu symptoms. 

These are the lozenges I used. I now have 4 packs on my shelf!
-----------------