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Written By Julie Khaled - November 08 2019

Hi, I’m Calvine G. Castro and I am a Licensed Acupuncturist. I have been in practicing acupuncture for 16 years. I have a Bachelors of Science degree in Biology from UC Riverside and a Masters in Oriental Medicine from Pacific College of Oriental Medicine in San Diego. I am a second generation acupuncturist with my mother being both an acupuncturist and medical doctor.

Growing up at a young age I was able to see how impactful acupuncture can be to patients suffering from many different types of ailments. Time and time again, my mother’s patients would hobble in suffering from back pain and needles were placed at locations on the patients body and within a short time patients left the clinic feeling better and walking upright. I realized without medications I could help many people with the use of acupuncture needles as my tool.

I came across Mom Culture through my wife, Tina. After we had our three year old son, my wife was looking for products that she could relate to in regards to motherhood and she found Mom Culture. She loved the shirts, sweatshirts, and mugs that Mom Culture offered. She even loved it more when she found out that Mom Culture had a Facebook community where all the moms can share their experiences as moms. In other words my wife is a big fan of Mom Culture.

When I first met my wife, she didn’t believe in acupuncture but I was able to treat her for her monthly abdominal cramps and opened her mind that acupuncture is another way to relieve her of her pain instead of constantly taking pain relievers. When my wife was pregnant with our first son she experienced excessive vomiting, cramping of her legs in the morning, fatigue and headaches. I treated her with acupuncture and was able to help her with her symptoms.

Knowing how I am able to help my wife and many of my patients with their symptoms I wanted to reach out to the Mom Culture community to let everyone know that acupuncture is another option for all your health conditions and symptoms. I have treated women with anxiety, stress, tension headaches, muscular skeletal disorders such as back pain, neck pain, knee pain and upper shoulder/neck tension.

Acupuncture is also good for preparing women to get pregnant. It helps regulate the mensuration cycle, short cycle, long cycle, heavy bleeding, scant bleeding to create an environment more favorable to getting pregnant.

The following are some of the conditions that I’ve treated my wife and patients with acupuncture:

1st Trimester pregnancy symptoms- Nausea, vomiting, fatigue, constipation, headaches, insomnia, anxiety.

2nd Trimester pregnancy symptoms- Mental clarity, start of back pain, sciatica and hypertension.

3rd Trimester pregnancy symptoms- Circulation, swelling feet and legs, back pain, sciatica, insomnia, cramping in legs, discomfort, restlessness, and anxiety associated with preparing for childbirth.

Post pregnancy- postpartum depression, difficulty breastfeeding obstruction and pain, regulation of hormones, and balance.

Middle age women- Menopausal symptoms- hot flashes, night sweats, arthritis.

Those conditions that I’ve mentioned are just some of the many conditions that I’ve helped my patients with and I’d like to let everyone know the benefits of acupuncture especially for women. There are many acupuncturists all over the country and if you find one local to you, that would be a great tool to help you. I have clinic locations in Temecula and Menifee here in California.

If anyone local would like to try acupuncture my website is www.castroacupuncture.com

I hope I will be able to offer my services and give you relief.

Why yoga might be the best choice for physical and mental self-care

Written By Julie Khaled - September 04 2019

Written by: Morgan E.

All mommies out there are well aware of how hard it can be to find a perfect balance between chores and duties around the house with some “me” time. Actually, it might be close to impossible to have some alone time, nevertheless, it is extremely vital to dedicate time to improve your outer and inner state. Constantly looking out and running around with kids is utterly draining, let alone having to cook and clean at the same time, so what can be done to find some inner peace and boost your self-care? The answer is simple: do yoga. This mindfully and physically engaging activity will get the blood thriving though your veins and give you the necessary physical and mental enhancement to survive the day.

A perfect mindful activity

When you feel exhausted after a long and tiring day, there is nothing more relaxing than doing an activity that will set your mind loose. Yoga is a type of activity where you can totally close up into your own world, set yourself free from the hectic world around you and focus on finding your inner tranquility. As a mom, that is a vital thing to achieve. If you are constantly on edge, nervous and agitated because you simply have too much worry on your mind, then you need to set your mind at ease, otherwise, you will go ballistic. And there is no better way to find a perfect balance between outside commotions and your inner will than by doing yoga. By doing yoga you will be able to take a look at what is happening in your mind, thus be able to release the tension that you might be having and break free from the nerve-racking phase.

Embellishes self-control

Striving moms who want to have good mental control of their life should start practicing yoga. By doing yoga on a daily basis you will have more control over your actions, you won't burst so easily if your child starts crying, and you will effectively manage every chaotic situation that lies in front of you. What is more, you don't need to go far from your home to do your workout, you can put your yoga mat in the bedroom and succumb to this mentally energizing activity. Moms find it also enjoying and stimulating to get yoga outfits, mats, and yoga balls that will help them gain self-control over this activity. Moreover, intriguing moms who want to learn more about how yoga can positively impact on their mental stamina can find good reviews about best yoga books and embellish in yoga even more.

Enhances your physical condition

Raising tiny humans is a tough job which requires your full attention and dedication. Luckily, yoga will help you build up physical strength and recharge you with more positive energy and stamina for those little monkeys. You might only feel like you are stretching your body when you do yoga, but you are actually tightening up all your muscles and enhancing your body and tone. Yoga mainly focuses on working on separate small muscles at a time, which is why yoga moms have the best-sculpted muscles and defined body core. Plus, by doing yoga for 15 minutes per day, you will even beat the symptoms of insomnia, reduce stress, improve cholesterol levels, reduce fatigue and boost heart conditions.

Yoga boosts emotional health

Let's be honest, every mom now and then simply wants to run away from it all in order to save her nerves and not start crying simply because she can't stand the pressure. Oh, yes, there are times when moms feel like they have too much pressure and burden on their backs, which is a normal thing and tends to pass very soon. Believe it or not, but by doing yoga you will have more control over your emotions and some yoga poses will elevate the brain to a higher state where you won’t ruminate. Some yoga poses are designed to help you better process your feelings as they come to the surface instead of repressing them inside. And the best helpful benefits of yoga or busy moms is that yoga helps you “reset” your brain to a calmer, more collected state, giving you the baseline mood you deal with the daily stress around children.

Channel your self-care by doing things that you love. If you implement yoga into your daily spiritual routines, you will elevate your mood, boost your self-esteem and be ready to take up any challenges that lie in front of you.

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Morgan Rose Elliott is an aromatherapist, yoga instructor, animal lover, a happily married mother of two. She enjoys reading biographies and writing poems, sunny days on the beach and any shape and form of vanilla. Crazy about the '80s, her favorite band is Duran Duran and she is obsessed with Netflix original Stranger Things.

Knock Knock...who's there?

Written By Sarah Komers - August 16 2019

To celebrate National Tell a Joke Day, we've compiled a fun list of our favorite books and resources to get your tiny human belly laughing in no time, mama!

Laughter truly is the best medicine and can turn crankiness into giggles in no time if you just let the silly in and enjoy the fun. It's not only good for your tiny human but can lower your stress level and give you a much-needed boost of endorphins to lower blood pressure reducing stress levels and making for a much happier mama!

"As children, we used to laugh hundreds of times a day, but as adults, life tends to be more serious and laughter more infrequent. But by seeking out more opportunities for humor and laughter, you can improve your emotional health, strengthen your relationships, find greater happiness—and even add years to your life."- helpguide.org

Get them started young with their very first Knock Knock Who's There: My First Book Of Knock Knock Jokes

For the school age jokester, we love Highlights Best Kids' Knock-Knock Jokes Ever! Volume 1

For the seasoned jokester in your life, we love Laugh-Out-Loud Jokes for Kids

For more ideas on how to GIGGLE head to our Pinterest board

What Captain Marvel Taught Me

Written By Julie Khaled - April 23 2019

Written by: Ashland H.

We just got back home from watching Captain Marvel and I couldn’t help but to immediately sit down and write all my feelings about this movie down. I am going to be completely open and honest and admit to you that there was a part of this movie where I sobbed…and I mean SOBBED!

This movie really got to me on a personal level and inspired me to write this post! With that being said, I am going to attempt to take a deep dive to explain why this movie punched me in the gut. To start off, I just want to say that Carol Danvers is a total BOSS! I mean, even before she becomes Captain Marvel she is independent, in the Air Force and there is no other description besides an overall, kick-ass woman!

Ashland What Captain Marvel Taught Me

In my opinion, this movie has a HUGE, deeper message that not just every single woman should hear, but every HUMAN on the planet should hear. I am going to warn you, there are spoilers throughout this post, so if you have not seen the movie and do not want me to spoil some scenes for you, I would suggest bookmarking this page to come back and read it later.

As mentioned earlier, you find out from the start that Captain Marvel or Carol Danvers is, pretty much, a badass. She is tough, she can fight and from the get-go, you can tell she has a stubborn independence about her. She starts off on this planet named “Hala” with these humanoid aliens called the “Kree” who make her believe that they have given her these “powers.” You also find out from the beginning that she is constantly told that she is “too emotional,” and that eventually, this will become her downfall. The Kree inhabiting this planet also threaten to take her power away if she keeps being “too emotional.”

As the movie progresses, you start to learn about her past prior to her gaining powers and end up finding out that she is actually human and that these powers were something that she absorbed, becoming part of her. There is a pivotal part in the movie where she finds out that this planet Hala that she has lived on, and these people who have always threatened to take her power away have just been lying and brainwashing her into thinking that these powers were “given” to her by them. When in reality, she had the power all along, they were just programing her into thinking that it didn’t belong to her as a way to control her. They also knew that her emotions, which made her human, would cause her to see that the Kree were actually evil and her empathy would kick in to fight for the greater good instead of blind loyalty to them.

That pivotal moment that I mentioned was the moment in the movie where I sobbed. I sobbed because I internalized what she went through. I related and I relived it on the big screen through Captain Marvel herself. In another life, I worked in Corporate America and there was a particular person who told me I was “too emotional” …and upon leaving Corporate America they told me I really never was cut out for it. Now, deep down, I always had felt that I didn’t fit in with the “Corporate America mold” that you are supposed to fit into, but I forced myself into that mold. I tried to push away my emotions, tried to hold back tears at times when I wanted to cry and tried to mimic what I was told you were supposed to become to move your way up the ladder. For years, I tried and I tried hard… I felt like I had to earn this power, achieve a position and keep working towards becoming this unemotional businessperson that cared more about profits than people. I became depressed and I became depressed because I started believing the lie, I tried not to be “too emotional” but no matter how hard I tried, I kept breaking down into emotion.

You see… the lie is all wrong because I don’t think there is such thing as “being cut out for Corporate America”.

I think that there is no Corporate America mold to be cut into. I don’t think you earn power nor do you achieve power… I wholeheartedly believe that you already own power; you were born with it. I think this rat race that we put ourselves in is a lie. I think deep down, we already have what we want. Some people are emotional, some are quick-witted, some are creative, some are analytical, some are a little weird… and all of it is power. Being “too emotional” is your power; it means you care a lot. Which means you have empathy and that you are ethically minded. The mold doesn’t actually exist in Corporate America; it is a façade. You do not need to fit into the mold to succeed. So, I am going to give that person who told me I was “too emotional” credit. You are right, I am.

The difference between now and then though is that I realized that, that was the power that I had all along. It is what allows me to relate to people in my writing, my art and my communication. It is my compass when making the decision of right and wrong, selfish and selfless. It is my power. Like Dorothy, I got to the end of the yellow brick road clicked my heels and found out I had the power the WHOLE TIME. I was held back too long listening to the lie that this power was actually my weakness. Leaving Corporate America was my pivot, my Captain Marvel moment… and believe me, I am just getting started.

Ashland What Captain Marvel Taught Me

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Ashland is a mom and lifestyle blogger based in Southern California. She worked for years as the event planner at Disneyland and has recently followed her heart and created a space to share her thoughts and dreams with her blog. To learn more about Ashland, click here. You can also follow her on Instagram.

Christmas Life Hack!

Written By Julie Khaled - November 21 2018

Christmas is right around the corner, and how many of you have yet to go shopping??

Have you ever struggled with WHAT to buy for the little ones in your life? Well, I discovered this post on Pinterest the other night and I had to check it out!

All you do is give your kids Santa's phone number and let them leave a voicemail for him. What they don't need to know is that you will get a text with an invite to hear their voicemail so you know their wishlist!! It's such a brilliant idea. You will feel like a spy on a top-secret mission.

What is your favorite Christmastime hack?

XO,

Julie

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Put a pin in it!

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Why yoga might be the best choice for physical and mental self-care

Written by: Morgan E.

A perfect mindful activity

Embellishes self-control

Enhances your physical condition

Yoga boosts emotional health

Date

Written By

Comments

Knock Knock...who's there?

To celebrate National Tell a Joke Day, we've compiled a fun list of our favorite books and resources to get your tiny human belly laughing in no time, mama!

Get them started young with their very first Knock Knock Who's There: My First Book Of Knock Knock Jokes

For the school age jokester, we love Highlights Best Kids' Knock-Knock Jokes Ever! Volume 1

For the seasoned jokester in your life, we love Laugh-Out-Loud Jokes for Kids

For more ideas on how to GIGGLE head to our Pinterest board

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What Captain Marvel Taught Me

Written by: Ashland H.

Date

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Christmas Life Hack!

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