Total Health: Mary Jo Gentert of Alpine Essence Farm On How We Can Optimize Our Mental, Physical, Emotional, & Spiritual Wellbeing
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Having a gratitude mindset is still one of the most valuable tools I try to use daily. Waking up each day, proclaiming to be happy and grateful for whatever joy, abundance and love finds me on this day, is unbelievably rewarding for my emotional health. As I start my walk each morning, I recite a Navajo beauty prayer that says “With the beauty before me, I walk. With the beauty behind me, I walk. With the beauty below me, I walk. With the beauty above me, I walk. With beauty all around me, I walk. For me this has a way of bringing beauty from within, outward and casts a strong echo of love out into the world.
Often when we refer to wellness, we assume that we are talking about physical wellbeing. But one can be physically very healthy but still be unwell, emotionally or mentally. What are the steps we can take to cultivate optimal wellness in all areas of our life; to develop Mental, Physical, Emotional, & Spiritual Wellbeing?
As a part of our series about “How We Can Cultivate Our Mental, Physical, Emotional, & Spiritual Wellbeing”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mary Jo Gentert.
“Cultivating the connection to the powerful healing of the Divine energy” has become Mary Jo’s lifelong passion. She is continuously learning about the energy of the earth and the connection it has to the energies of the body. She then adapts that newfound wisdom and creates ways to help others heal, whether that be from her line of Alpine Essence wellness products or teaching them that they have the power and all the tools needed to heal and thrive at any age.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive into the main focus of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
I grew up in a rural community in Nebraska and spent most of my childhood playing in nature and unbeknownst to me, learning natural healing remedies from a very young age. It became a normal way of life. Then my daughter became very sick at the age of 7 and I was told that she couldn’t be on any medication for 1 to 2 years, for her immune system to rebuild itself. I was now scared and felt at a total loss as to how I was going to keep our family healthy. I used this fear to help me learn everything I could about all the medicines that nature provides. Little did I know that this was the beginning of a lifelong journey that I could never have imagined. I developed a passion and deep respect for the way the body is made and for the connection it has to nature. This journey has come full circle, back to the energy of nature and being one with Source. Once you truly connect with that Divine energy, nothing will ever make sense without it.
What or who inspired you to pursue your career? We’d love to hear the story.
There have been so many wonderful teachers along the way, including my grandmother who put fresh herbs in a long stocking to wrap around my neck, proclaiming the sore throat would be gone by morning. However, I honestly think that once I ever so gently touched upon the energy within, everything changed. My greatest teachings have come from that Source, whether it be through my clients or nature, it is still the same Divine energy.
None of us can achieve success without some help along the way. Was there a particular person who you feel gave you the most help or encouragement to be who you are today? Can you share a story about that?
That would undeniably be my clients. For the last 17 years, I have built an energy healing practice as well as a line of skin care products made entirely from plants and my clients have been my biggest supporters and test subjects. They not only tell me exactly how a session made them feel, but they come back week after week showing me the miraculous results from the products, I have made to address their inflammatory situations. Pain has a way of bringing out authentic honesty all in seeking relief. For them I am eternally grateful.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting mistake that occurred to you in the course of your career? What lesson or take away did you learn from that?
I have had some of the funniest moments in my career, some where my clients and I laugh until tears come pouring out, but I can’t think of one mistake. I remember there being an example back in a particular time, when I would work on a client and once I had them roll over onto their stomach, I would inevitably go to the wrong side. It seemed to happen repeatedly to a particular client and just as I was starting to get frustrated with myself, we both realized that in working on the other side of the body, particular unrelated symptoms had healed themselves. Now I’m convinced there are no mistakes, just steppingstones along the way, all being used for the greater good. We just may not know the how’s or why’s but maybe it’s not ours to know.
Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
I love reading and devouring books weekly. The feel or smell of a good book in my hands can still send vibrations throughout my entire body. There are books that I will read repeatedly and am still in complete awe when learning just how powerful the human body is. One of those books is called Power vs Force by David R. Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D. Understanding how the body contains frequencies from the food we eat, to the inherited DNA and then learning that we have the power to free ourselves into a health and wellbeing is incredibly empowering. I have found that this empowerment creates an echo vibrating out from the body, that always returns two-fold. Some call it LOVE.
Can you share your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Why does that resonate with you so much?
Once you connect with the Divine within, nothing will ever make sense without. Author unknown. This is something I have experienced and have become passionate about. When you feel the powerful energy of the Divine Source, you realize there is nothing else like it, nothing even comes close. It is a natural high of sorts, where you feel better than you could have ever imagined. You see things in your own life you never saw before. You experience things you never thought possible and the more you connect the more your life takes on a whole new meaning. You never want to be without it again.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?
I absolutely love my entire line of wellness products right now. They each serve a very distinct purpose, whether that be reducing pain and inflammation or restoring a great night’s sleep and I am always trying to come up with some new blend to address a new physical ailment. However, I am over the moon excited for the 2 new projects I am currently working on. One project involves sequences that you can do on yourself using your hands that will restore bio magnetic energy flow throughout the entire body. The body heals from this energetic movement. I am combining these sequences with suspension training to increase muscle health which is a major player as we age.
The other project is to teach a morning routine that involves breathwork and another energy sequence that resides in our spinal column. By utilizing this flow, you can maintain health through every single organ and even the central nervous system. This is by far the most empowering sequence I can teach others that will have a lasting impact on not only their own bodies but on the earth as well.
OK, thank you for all of that. Let’s now shift to the core focus of our interview. In this interview series we’d like to discuss cultivating wellness habits in four areas of our lives: Mental wellness, Physical wellness, Emotional wellness, & Spiritual wellness. Let’s dive deeper into these together. Based on your research or experience, can you share with our readers three good habits that can lead to optimum mental wellness? Please share a story or example for each.
I have a 2-minute exercise that I do every single morning to ensure a healthy and metabolically flexible nervous system. This affects everything I think, feel, and ultimately do for the entire day. I also do 2 quick types of journaling first thing each morning. One is to just write down any words that are in my mind. It’s not even necessary to make sense of any of this journaling. It is a great way to detox our mental health. I find it lets my true authentic self-emerge more easily. The other type of journaling is Dream or Imagine journaling. This is where I journal my wildest dreams for myself on this current day. Over time this wakes up the most creative aspect of my mind and projects pour forth. It is super fun and incredibly empowering.
Do you have a specific type of meditation practice or Yoga practice that you have found helpful? We’d love to hear about it.
I am obsessed with my morning routine that consists of my own Jin Shin flow, along with some incorporated breathwork. This 30-minute flow charges my entire body, gives a gentle detox to every single organ and bodily system all before getting out of bed. I find it incredibly powerful. It can even be used for any spot treatments that may arise throughout your entire day.
Thank you for that. Can you share three good habits that can lead to optimum physical wellness? Please share a story or example for each.
Do you know that there is magic in the early morning air? Every morning, I go for a 2–3-mile sunrise walk and even incorporate a little sun gazing just as the sun crests the horizon. Our eyes and skin have receptors for the complete spectrum of the sun’s rays. This not only helps build vitamin D, but it helps sculpt the gut and brain, in preparation for the day’s food. Depending on the season’s temps I try to expose as much skin as possible to the full spectrum of the sun.
While on this walk it has become very important to ground myself throughout the day but after spending the last 8 hours in bed, I feel it is very important to ground the body. You can do this whether you are walking on mother earth or spending time touching nature. It raises your vibrational levels of health. This is reconnecting to Source.
One of my new favorite things I do is to ride my bike. My entire family has ridden for several years now but I was late to join in on what has become very spiritual for me. Early morning rides along the Colorado foothills are my absolute favorite thing. Living in Colorado, I don’t have to look very hard to see beauty every single day but am amazed at how different each morning’s ride is. Physical wellness has always been one of my weakest links, but the bike and my new suspended training has become very special to me.
Do you have any particular thoughts about healthy eating? We all know that it’s important to eat more vegetables, eat less sugar, etc. But while we know it intellectually, it’s often difficult to put it into practice and make it a part of our daily habits. In your opinion what are the main blockages that prevent us from taking the information that we all know, and integrating it into our lives?
I wholeheartedly can’t tell you how important drinking structured living water has become to me. I saw the most changes occur in both my husband and my overall health within a few short weeks of starting this water. We were both completely shocked at how fast our skin started to change. It became silky soft and has a strong youthful feel to it. The cellular renewal was fast. I start with 30 ounces of “living” water somewhere in the first hour of my day and try to drink approx. 100 ounces a day. I don’t always get that amount in, but it is always the goal.
Structured water is found in our bodies, in natural spring water, rainwater and food. Microscopically it looks like snowflakes and is “living”. Once through a refinement or filtration system it is no longer “living”.
I have eaten plant-based food for several years now but have recently learned more about the frequencies found in whole living food and have started incorporating more organic food grown in nature and under the sun.
Whole living food also contains this magical structured water and truly is medicine for the body. It’s as if any living plant has a QR code made specifically for the human body. This QR code is found in the plants’ receptors and has matching receptors found in our body. The “livingness” of plants will raise the frequency of the body, ultimately raising the overall level of health. It is this frequency that gives a faster cellular renewal within the body.
When it comes to healthy eating one of the things that has helped me the most was just having an awareness, as to what I was eating and connecting that information to how I was feeling each day.
The energy within will connect ALL the dots and guide you to what you need to eat. This is quite simply done by keeping a food and feeling journal each day for a while until you start to connect food with sleep, energy levels and pain.
Can you share three good habits that can lead to optimum emotional wellness? Please share a story or example for each.
Having a gratitude mindset is still one of the most valuable tools I try to use daily. Waking up each day, proclaiming to be happy and grateful for whatever joy, abundance and love finds me on this day, is unbelievably rewarding for my emotional health. As I start my walk each morning, I recite a Navajo beauty prayer that says “With the beauty before me, I walk. With the beauty behind me, I walk. With the beauty below me, I walk. With the beauty above me, I walk. With beauty all around me, I walk. For me this has a way of bringing beauty from within, outward and casts a strong echo of love out into the world.
One simple tool I find invaluable is to put a drop of an essential oil, such as Idaho Blue Spruce which has the highest frequency of 580 MHz or even Rose, with a frequency of 320 MHz, in the palm of my hands and take 5 deep inhalations through the nose to activate and raise the happy hormones, such as the serotonin levels. Try it, I think you will be amazed at how effective this is and how long it lasts throughout the day. Of course, I immediately follow that by spraying my face with Alpine Essence Body Mist and taking 1 deep inhale. The Alpine Essence Body Mist is a blend of pure Lavender, Chamomile and Rose Geranium. This is the living fluids from each of these plants. They are organically grown, steam distilled and kept pure, with nothing added nor subtracted. This blend is amazing for the nervous system as well as the entire body and even your hair. It calms anxiety, nervousness, even panic and makes a great skin toner as well.
Do you have any particular thoughts about the power of smiling to improve emotional wellness? We’d love to hear it.
I believe the smile is a powerful miracle. Years ago, I read somewhere that you can’t smile and be angry at the same time. Well over time I found the smile to be miraculous at breaking a bad mood or even stopping me from passing judgment on anyone else. With the energy work I do, I have learned that you never know what someone’s life is like, nor what their body has been given through inherited DNA. So now no matter where I am maybe I will try to give everyone a smile. Smiles are also contagious, and you never know who might need them today. Smile and be someone’s miracle!
Finally, can you share three good habits that can lead to optimum spiritual wellness? Please share a story or example for each.
Most of my habits that we have been talking about have a lot of crossovers into this area, but one of my most important habits is prayer. I used to have a set time for prayer but now I try to be one with the Divine Source all day long. Throughout the day I touch my heart center which disconnects the ego and reconnects me and instantly brings a smile. Every time I do this, feelings of gratitude automatically flood my body. It is fun and quite exhilarating.
I would have to say that looking for beauty is a big part of my spiritual journey. I have not found anything that will change everything you feel inside, like finding beauty no matter where you are. Once you see beauty, you feel a connection inside and become deeply grateful for all that IS.
My last habit is to keep learning. This may sound like a strange habit for my spiritual wellness but there has been no bigger growth in this area than when I am learning more about how the body works. I am in awe at the intricacies of every single piece and every single function. Our body truly is a powerful gift and is unbelievably magical.
Do you have any particular thoughts about how being “in nature” can help us to cultivate spiritual wellness?
Being “in nature” always cultivates spiritual awareness for me. Seeing the absolute beauty in nature, feeling the effects nature has on our body, deeply within, not only makes us feel healthy but makes you realize we are all connected to every single part of nature. Realizing we are one with nature is the highest spiritual awareness one can achieve. Grounding in nature is connected to Source and as I previously stated that “nothing will ever make sense without it”.
Ok, we are nearly done. You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I heard Dr Zach Bush say “If you look for beauty, then you will experience Love” on a health podcast when he was talking about the frequencies of the different chemicals or emotions in our body. He explained that by seeking or looking for all the beauty around us, in all things, you raise the frequency of the body to one of the highest frequencies measured, which is that of love.
I just happened to be on my bike, as I am most early summer mornings and I started intentionally noticing all the beauty around me. It was everywhere. I could see it; I could smell it and I could literally feel the changes take place in my mind and body. Now I make it a daily practice to look for beauty to feel the love and it’s easy, for beauty is everywhere.
I think if we made this a daily practice, the world would be a much better place. We would cherish each other more, deeply respect the human body and treasure all of nature.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we both tag them :-)
It would have to be Dr Zach Bush. Every time I hear him speak, whether it is on a podcast or in a lecture, he puts forth this echo that you literally feel throughout your body. It is the vibrations of pure love and gratitude. He not only teaches all things about the body and nature, but he truly lives it, and you can feel it emanate from him every time. It is truly an honor to be here, on this planet at this same time.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
www.facebook.com/alpineessencefarm/
www.instagram.com/alpine_essence_farm/
www.linkedin.com/in/mary-jo-gentert-06373045/
Thank you for these really excellent insights, and we greatly appreciate the time you spent with this. We wish you continued success.
