Globally, there’s a growing army of holistic health advocates: nutritionists, spirituals and doctors and their patients who approach wellness by simultaneously addressing the physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual components of health.
This movement can be seen here in Houston in the many vegetarian and vegan eateries opening up, the explosion of Black yoga and meditation adherents, and growing numbers of individuals who add traditional health practices to western medicine, or shun western medicine altogether.
Dr. Alauna Curry, “America’s only trauma psychiatrist,” is on a mission to help people understand the way their brains process information, and empower them to use a “skills over pills” approach to improve their mental health.
“We really dive into how our brains process information, how we put labels on things that cause us to have experiences and reactions about them,” Curry said. “We really get into what is trauma, and then how we resolve it through our own power, through self-healing.”
Curry contends most people erroneously reduce trauma to being in war or a crime victim.
“Trauma is ever-present. We’ve experienced the trauma of COVID globally… Racism is traumatic. Gender violence is traumatic. Geopolitical upheaval, climate disasters, weather disasters are traumatic. That’s not even considering the traumas we go through in our families, our relationships and our workplace.”
Curry’s holistic approach to improving mental health focuses on empowering patients with information on the workings of the brain.
“If we understand the parts of our brain that are predictably programmed by our painful and traumatic experiences, then we have a better chance of being able to control our responses,” she said.
Curry is also an advocate of music therapy and making fun part of the healing journey via her online Trauma Recovery Academy coursework (DrAlauna.com).
And again, brainpower.
“I want people to understand we are the most advanced technology on earth. But we have never been taught enough about our brain and our body and how it processes information.”
Jennifer Jones, founder/owner of JENuine Nutrition, is a certified integrative, holistic nutrition health coach, personal trainer and wellness educator with a focus on Nutrition Psychology. Jones deals most often with how food impacts mental, physical and emotional well-being.
Jones doesn’t provide clients with meal plans but rather lifestyle and nutrition management under the dual mottos “Love yourself to better health” and “Live with intention, eat with intention.”
“Not only can what we eat improve our mental and emotional well-being, but things we do to improve our mental health and what we think can then lead to better food choices,” said Jones.
Dr. Baxter Montgomery, a board-certified cardiologist, practicing cardiac electrophysiologist and practicing internist with 25 years of experience in private practice, believes society’s over-reliance upon prescriptions and medical procedures are literally killing us.
“What I’ve noticed in my years of practicing here in Houston is that sickness has become the norm,” said Montgomery. “If you look at the data, about six out of 10 people have chronic illnesses and are on prescription medications. If you add over-the-counter medications to that regimen, you’re probably dealing with 70% or more.”
Montgomery says he’s seeing more young adults between 20-40-yrs-old with chronic illnesses such as Type-2 Diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, heart failure and heart disease. He contends standard medical treatment (pills, procedures, surgeries) may provide temporary relief, but don’t confront the underlying problems: poor dietary lifestyle, lack of exercise, lack of fresh air, lack of sunshine.
Montgomery started prescribing these “therapies” (exercise, nutritional regiments, dietary detoxes, etc.) and was so amazed by the results, that he developed a comprehensive program called “Heart and Soul of a Champion,” an integrative approach that’s “helped patients reverse chronic illness in a more natural way to reduce the reliance on prescription medication, reduce the requirements for medical procedures and surgeries, and get patients in a position where they are empowered to maintain optimal health.”
The doctor’s Montgomery Heart & Wellness Center will host a four-day open house Oct. 19 through Oct. 22 to introduce the Houston community to its programs and premiere the “Heart and Soul of a Champion” docuseries that follows former pro athletes who used Montgomery’s system. Visit Montgomeryheart.com for more info.
Curry will be hosting a three-day live virtual event, “The Trauma C.U.R.E.,” Oct. 26 to Oct. 28 via Zoom. For more info, visit DrAlauna.com.
UPCOMING WELLNESS EVENTS
- Montgomery Heart & Wellness Center will host a four-day open house Oct. 19 through Oct. 22 to introduce the Houston community to its programs and premiere the “Heart and Soul of a Champion” docuseries that follows former pro athletes who used Montgomery’s system. Visit www.Montgomeryheart.com for more info.
- Dr. Alauna Curry will be hosting a three-day live virtual event, “The Trauma C.U.R.E.,” Oct. 26 to Oct. 28 via Zoom. For more info, visit www.DrAlauna.com.
HEALTHY EATERIES
(with Vegetarian and/or Vegan Options)
Sunshine’s Vegetarian Deli and Health Food Store
Suzie’s
Green Seed Vegan
Korny Vibes
Kale Me Crazy
Doshi House
Houston Sauce Pit Food Truck
Houston Sauce Co Food Truck
Soul Food Vegan
Roostar Vietnamese Grill
MASSAGE
A Kneaded Touch
Physical Touch Massage Therapy
Nuture Massage & Bodyworks
Body Fixx
Che Touch Massage & Wellness
Healthy Self Fitness and Massage
MENTAL HEALTH & WELLNESS
Dr. Alauna Curry
Jennifer Jones, JENuine Nutrition
Dr. Baxter Montgomery, Montgomery Heart & Wellness Center
Divine Counseling Service
Right Mentality Mental Health & Wellness
Fully Alive Coaching
YOGA, MEDITATION & INSTRUCTORS
Black Swan Yoga
Namitzi Yoga in the Park
You Too Yoga
Krystalight Yoga
NamasJade
Alicia Dugar Stephenson, yoga instructor (Mastermind.yoga)
Jill Minard, yoga instructor (Yoga House Houston)
Aisha Stevenson
Marlon Hall
DEFENDER ARTICLES ON YOGA
Blacks and Yoga a Growing Phenomenon, https://defendernetwork.com/news/local-state/blacks-and-yoga-a-growing-phenomenon/
Namitzi Yoga in the Park, https://defendernetwork.com/faces-houston-events/yoga-in-the-park/
Spotlight on Yoga Instructor Alicia Dugar Stephenson, Energy Personified, https://defendernetwork.com/community-central/spotlight-on-yoga-instructor-alicia-dugar-stephenson-energy-personified/
