Sat, 31 Jan 2026 09:12:55 -0800WeeblyTue, 21 Jan 2020 18:58:41 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/iodine-health(Interesting book about the value of iodine and how it has been widely neglected since the 1960s.)
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In The Iodine Crisis, author Lynne Farrow discusses how, traditionally, for centuries, iodine was held in high regard by physicians as a beneficial element that promoted health. However, from the 1940s to 1960s a couple researchers concluded that iodine was bad for the thyroid. It later turned out these unverified studies were flawed. Nevertheless, at the time they impacted the medical and food industries.

Until the 1960s, for instance, iodine was routinely added to flour; soon after, iodine was out and replaced by bromine. In fact, bromine is still present in many of our foods today. More recently, it has been discovered that bromine causes health problems, starting with iodine deficiency. According to Farrow, bromine is “poisonous” in its effect, and iodine helps counter it. She states that the US RDA standards for iodine are much lower than they should be. Further, iodized salt – which many commonly believe is enough – contains way too little iodine to make a difference.

Thus, Farrow recommends iodine supplementation. In order to maximize the benefits of supplementation, she recommends a protocol which includes selenium, magnesium, vitamin C, vitamins B2 and B3 (ATP co-factors), and unrefined sea salt diluted in water. This protocol is designed to facilitate iodine’s role in detoxing from bromine, fluorine, and other toxins and in restoring or improving health.

David Brownstein, MD, who Ms. Farrow cites as an influence, wrote the foreword. He is the author of Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can’t Live Without It. His book is more detailed in the science and medicine, while hers is more informal and casual.

Overall, The Iodine Crisis is an informative read that makes a compelling case for iodine and for how the needs and viewpoints of industry at times are incompatible with the public’s well-being.]]>Mon, 18 Nov 2019 04:09:58 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/binaurals-help-improve-attention-anxietyThis article from Psychology Today presents info on how listening to binaural beats can benefit one's cognition, anxiety, sleep, and meditation. To read, click here. ]]>Sat, 26 Oct 2019 04:54:19 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/eight-step-emotion-process-for-parentsHere is an article from the Psychotherapy Networker about a self-compassion process that parents can use to better understand challenging emotions such as stress, anxiety, and sadness: Eight-Step Process.]]>Tue, 10 Sep 2019 18:49:13 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/new-center-to-research-psychedelic-therapy-for-mental-healthHere is a recent article from the New York Times on how Johns Hopkins University is opening a new center to study the application of psychedelic substances (psilocybin, LSD) for mental health issues like depression, anorexia, and addiction: Johns Hopkins Opens New Center for Psychedelic Research.]]>Mon, 17 Jun 2019 21:04:36 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/niacin-and-sauna-detoxRecently, I finished a 30-day niacin and sauna detox. This program is considered helpful in releasing toxins, including heavy metals, that can build up in the body (especially the fat) over the years.

Each day, you take increasing amounts of niacin (Vitamin B3), run on a treadmill for 20 to 30 minutes, and then sit in an infrared sauna for an hour (at 125 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit) while regularly hydrating and toweling off. You perspire a lot. You then take numerous vitamins and supplements throughout the day to replace what you have sweat out. At Day 23, I noticed a shift, as though I felt calmer and clearer, physically and mentally. Of course, each person will have their own results and patterns.

There is a facebook group (Smart Detox -- Niacin and Sweat Protocol) with lots of info: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Saunadetox/

I researched the different brands of saunas -- reading various articles, reviews, and testimonials -- and concluded that Clearlight is the best brand. Their saunas are full-spectrum infrared, low in EMFs (electromagnetic frequencies), and the interiors are made of cedar (which has antimicrobial properties due to the cedar oil). I contacted Clearlight, and they referred me to the only gym in Tampa Bay which carries their sauna and that was Driven Fitness on Swann Avenue in Tampa https://www.drivenfit.com/

Aside from having this sauna, it's a very nice gym with friendly and professional staff.

I found this program beneficial, and anyone who thinks it may help them can check out the resources above to learn more.

​Alex Chapunoff, LMHC


]]>Wed, 29 May 2019 00:32:04 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/book-review-the-easy-way-to-mindfulness-by-allen-carrThis book's subtitle is "Free Your Mind From Worry and Anxiety." The author explains how mindfulness can help you accomplish that. It's not that you won't ever have worry and anxiety; rather, that you can be free of them: in other words, you can have them but not be taken over, knocked down, and beat up by them. Mr. Carr explains how to live in the moment, and provides exercises to help you experience what it's like.

Mr. Carr's background is in smoking cessation, and I first heard of him from a friend of mine who used his book The Easy Way to Stop Smoking to quit cigarettes. My friend said, "It was easy. I'd always thought smoking relaxed me. Allen Carr made me realize smoking actually caused me stress." I could trust this testimonial since it came from a friend, and I decided to look into the author. For years, I've considered Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now the gold standard of mindfulness books, and still do. However, The Easy Way to Mindfulness is a great contribution to the field and may be more accessible to some readers.]]>Tue, 18 Dec 2018 05:33:29 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/night-table-reading(Books I am currently reading. —Alex Chapunoff)

*  The Power of Now (Eckhart Tolle)
Every now (pun intended) and again, I like to read from this book. Just a few pages can do a lot to refresh me.

*  Against the Day (Thomas Pynchon)
Epic 1,100-page novel about the cutting edge of science and politics in the Belle Epoque. Funny, brilliant, poetic. Reveals how every time period is “modern” to those living in it.

*  Using Your Brain—For a Change (Richard Bandler)
Lectures, by one of the founders of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), on submodalities (the different ways you see, hear, and feel mentally) and how you can work with them to improve your psychological patterns.

*  From Power to Exile: How I Was Overthrown and By Whom (Juan Perón)
Reprint of a rivetting and articulate magazine article written in 1956 by the then-recently-deposed president of Argentina (yes, Evita's husband).]]>Tue, 30 Oct 2018 04:04:21 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/electile-dysfunction-how-to-check-itThe Midterm Elections are almost upon us. Left, right, or center, there is much passion, animosity, and stress. Drama. Pressure. Anger. Villifying the other side and getting villified by them. Then press “Repeat.”

But is it possible to be a proactive, politically committed person without getting too worked up (more distressed than is helpful or necessary)?

Is it something even worth considering? After all, the adrenaline rush can be mighty addictive.

At the end of the day, though, is it good for you?

The key may be to remain committed to your political values and views – and respect the fact that your opponents’ values are different, even contrary.

As incredible as it may seem, those bastards believe they are “good” and “righteous” and “moral” and that we are NOT.

Just … like … we … believe … about them.

How could this be?

It’s not possible. It simply isn’t.

But then, THAT’S what they think about us.

In today’s toxic environment, respecting your opponents’ right to differ can seem unacceptable. And yet it could help keep politics from becoming deeply personal. It may help keep the conversation civil without igniting a civil war. 

If nothing else, being driven by your cause – without getting agitated about it – may make you a more effective person and citizen.
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The main thing, of course, is to vote.]]>Mon, 29 Oct 2018 16:43:45 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/compassionFeeling compassion for others is highly associated with emotional well-being, interpersonal connectedness, and stress management.

Here is a pithy article on Compassion by Jason Louv of Ultraculture: Compassion: Understanding the Buddhist Teaching of Radical Equality
]]>Wed, 17 Oct 2018 13:51:35 GMThttps://www.groundingcenter.com/blog/the-opidemicThere is an opioid epidemic in the USA. These highly addictive synthetic opiates are being purchased on the street, in pill mills, or with legal prescriptions.

They were designed to alleviate pain but are causing disease.

This is not a new phenomenon but simply the latest version of a long history between opiates and big business.

​Did you know that Bayer released heroin as an over-the-counter cough suppressant in 1895? (In fact, “Heroin” was Bayer’s trademarked brand name for what is really called diacetylmorphine.)

Did you know that in the 1800s England fought – and defeated – China in two wars (called the Opium Wars) to “earn the right” to sell the Chinese people abundant amounts of opium and keep them addicted, contributing to China’s decline?

There’s money to be made in addictive substances since they create their own increased demand. There’s money to be made in pain relief since people want to feel good.

There is a legitimate role for effective physical pain relief in medicine. Having said that, much of the pain people who abuse opioids try to avoid is emotional pain. They may feel nervous, guilty, depressed, traumatized, bored, angry, indifferent, and so on. This is natural … a normal response to life stressors.

Their emotional pain is a signal from their mind-bodies telling them something is wrong and needs to be looked at and changed.

People are spending a lot of money, committing crimes, and abusing their minds and bodies to not have to feel some of their human emotions.

Ultimately, people who have opioid addictions may want to ask themselves: Could it simply be better to feel my emotions than be addicted to opioids?

To meditate instead of medicate?
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Something to ponder….]]>