Humor is an extremely important route to wellness. I have found that to be extremely healing and is not easy to access at times , but for me one to go to wherever I can. Being with others and finding humor can change the energy of the day.
The term Blue Zones has been used to describe places where people live long and healthy lives. What exactly does it take to live a long and healthy life? What is the science and the secret behind longevity and life extension? In this series, we are talking to medical experts, wellness experts, and longevity experts to share “5 Things You Need To Live A Long, Healthy, & Happy Life”. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Dr. Marianne Messina.
In her 25 + years of practice, Dr. Messina’s experience has been vast, working with diverse groups, ages and acute and chronic conditions. During your session, you will gain an awareness of how to recreate the dynamic energy of the body during a session; learning how manifestation of symptoms can occur due to many repetitive, ongoing stresses in our environment; physical, mental and spiritual. She holds a special focus towards women and girls, and conditions related, which include but are not limited to musculoskeletal symptoms, headaches and migraines and nutritional coaching and body image (weight loss).
Thank you so much for joining us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’?
I was intentional as a young person to how the body functioned and moreover how it healed!! I was introduced to chiropractic and hands on healing as a young teenager. My family utilized this way to heal rather than traditional medicine. As a first generation college student , I was eager to do something grand that could change the lives of “humanity.”
I worked in health care, elder settings and psychiatric centers and I remarked at how people changed just from talking with them and holding space for them. It was at that time as a first year college student, chiropractic became real to me as a profession and lifetime career. I would be able to merge, touching people realistically and figuratively. I have never looked back on that decision. It has been a gift and a blessing to be a chiropractor.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
There is more than one person I have gratitude toward for helping me along my way. The people that stand out would be my parents. I was a first generation college educated person in my family. They were emotionally and financially supportive of me becoming a chiropractor. They supported me in completing the education, that was an 8 year process and with that also completely supported me financially. I have a large debt of gratitude toward them! It would have been much more stressful to broach that journey on my own.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
The 3 characteristics that have remained true are: vision, purpose and perseverance.
As a young practitioner, my vision was primarily to be a conduit for healing and wellness for people that came to see me. That vision has not changed, I have changed through it. Heal thy Healer is a motto I align with.
My purpose has been singular in nature. I became a chiropractor to serve humanity in the physical realm. Service was a character I attached to in my second year of my undergraduate degree. I was working as a dietary aide in a long term facility at this time. When I would deliver the meal to each patient, many times I would smile at the patient or touch them or just be, and I became intimately connected with how I felt about their reaction and how that made me feel about the job. I loved the job, even though my shift was 6:30 am to 3:00 pm on Saturday and Sunday. A time frame that was not conducive to college life. I still feel the sense of purpose in serving and honored that I can inspire people!
Perseverance is the most difficult of the 3 characters. It is the one that supersedes all of the feelings that occur on a daily basis in the mind. The self talk that sometimes questions and judges who we are and what we are doing. I feel this has been difficult yet primary to being a
self employed solo practitioner. Practicing gratitude has accelerated and grounded my perseverance over the years.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of our interview about health and longevity. To begin, can you share with our readers a bit about why you are an authority in the fields of health, wellness, and longevity? In your opinion, what is your unique contribution to the world of wellness?
As a chiropractor I have studied the unique characteristics of the human body. I have seen the ability of the body to heal through hands on chiropractic adjustments. My unique contribution to the world of wellness is to be able to deliver chiropractic to each individual and watch their health change for the better. I also integrate nutrition, mindfulness and breathwork with each session. I am a practitioner that practices all of what I bring to each person. I feel that has an immeasurable impact on my contribution to each individual person.
Seekers throughout history have traveled great distances and embarked on mythical quests in search of the “elixir of life,” a potion said to cure all diseases and give eternal youth. Has your search for health, vitality, and longevity taken you on any interesting paths or journeys? We’d love to hear the story.
My search for the “elixir of life” comes to the deep knowing that “we” as humans have all that we need. I have learned and I practice the many ways to access that within myself. Those things that speak to that are diet, exercise, breath and connection. I bring that to patients I work with on a regular basis.
Based on your research or experience, can you please share your “5 Things You Need To Live A Long & Healthy Life”? (Please share a story or an example for each).
1. Diet: daily intake of whole, clean food. My family of origin was in the food business. I grew up honoring food and eating the Mediterranean diet. This was a grounding for my own life commitment to continuing to honor food and transfer into my own diet and continuing learning about nutrition through diet and educating and sharing that information.
2. Exercise and metabolism. This principle goes with diet and honoring the body. I loved to swim as a teenager and continued my routine of exercise as a lifelong commitment. Once you are on the hierarchy of maintenance, it is not something you have to give a lot of thought to. It becomes a lifestyle. I am grateful to have that as a part of my life.
3. Awareness is a practice that is subtle yet profound. I have been able to watch myself, especially with anger as a reactive state or anger at someone and modify that very much. I value anger when it can motivate me to move forward but not when it comes to someone I care about. I have worked with awareness through journaling and being in circles of women.
4. Breath is a powerful life line of the body , mind , spirit and wellness. I became aware of this method of practice two decades ago. I have been able to go to that over and over again in many various life situations. Primarily it has been my route to healthy sleep.
5. Humor is an extremely important route to wellness. I have found that to be extremely healing and is not easy to access at times , but for me one to go to wherever I can. Being with others and finding humor can change the energy of the day.
Some argue that longevity is genetic, while others say that living a long life is simply a choice. What are your thoughts on this nature vs. nurture debate? Which is more important?
I acknowledge how primary genetics and or DNA are to our makeup. In the research done on happiness it is known that the pie statistics are 40% is genetic, 50% is choiceand 10% is situational. In terms of dis-eae, research tells us the epigenetics which comprises lifestyle, practices and thinking, we can change the expression of the DNA code but not the genetic code itself. To that end I believe nurture plays an enormous role in our wellness journey.
Life sometimes takes us on paths that are challenging. How have you managed to bounce back from setbacks in order to cultivate physical, mental, and emotional health?
I have managed to bounce back from several life crises being a mature woman now. I have utilized the many things I have outlined here. I would say the primary things for me gratitude, exercise and diet, journaling and connection to loved ones. I have found that practicing gratitude in a “Dark Night of the Soul” can be a way through it. It does take great fortitude and strength.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life?
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.”
- Marianne Williamson
This quote has always resonated with me. I hope to ignite the light in people, working with the lifeline of the body, the nervous system. I so resonated with this quote. I wove it into my eulogy for my mother. She had a larger than life personality and I know people felt her light.
My hope and intent is that “we “ can honor this light and not allow fear to stand in the way.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that woul bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
My movement would be around a community of gratitude. I believe if humanity could practice gratitude individually and in community, we would change the brain and the trajectory of humanity.
What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?
You can visit cortlandtwellness.com
This was very inspiring, Marianne. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.