I just found out in June that I am pregnant. It is my first, and I am overjoyed! Dredging through the trenches of 24/7 queasiness, heartburn, and frequent headaches, knowing that there is a big prize at the end makes it all worthwhile!

I am thankful to have gained the knowledge of the importance of living an all organic lifestyle 11 years ago, as I feel it has really helped me coast through the past two months with more ease than those who eat poor diets. (Honesty, I can’t imagine living any other way!) My occasional slip-ups on my diet due to comfort food cravings are a reassurance to me that I should not eat processed foods filled with flavor enhancers, dyes, sugars, and preservatives. When I do, nausea usually gets worse than before and I just feel outright crummy as a result!

With another human being growing inside of my body, I become more sensitive to the outside world. As we all know, the media does a great job at pumping fear into most Americans. As with any mother, I feel extra responsible and concerned with this new life I will soon be watching over. Constant bombardment of news regarding wars, disease, pollution, and GM (genetically modified) farming can really wear on an individual’s psyche. But there still remains the glimmer of hope thanks to supportive community grassroots movements toward real democracy to protect our remaining freedoms, and education about the truth that much of the media tries to hide.

-Rowena, Product Specialist

There are many types of yoga. Ashtanga, Iyengar, Bhakti, and Anusara are just a few.

Karma yoga is the discipline of action. It is thought by many that if your actions are pure and good, then positive things will come into your life. One example of Karma yoga is buying organic food. After cooking and eating a healthy meal, we benefit from feeling pleasantly full and satisfied. Our friends and family have more peace in their lives because they are relaxed after a good meal, and the farmer that produced healthy food receives payment. Conversely, when food is heavy in empty calories or toxins, the body feels heavy and may respond to life situations in a harsh way. In such cases we may have given our hard earned money to a farmer who sprays the land with pesticides and other potentially harmful products that affect both humans and animals.

It can be said that people have free will to decide if positive or negative actions come into our lives. Home products can be applied to Karma yoga. Making the choice to buy natural cleaners, organic bedding, and of course, sustainably made mattresses allows us and those we invite into our homes the opportunity to be healthier. Because of your life choices, your guests may learn about organics from talking with you. Then, they’ll go out and buy an organic product or two, and before you know it, America will be a model of sustainability and health. Now that’s good Karma!

-Sara, Product Specialist

I was first introduced to Lifekind by way of my own chemical sensitivity. I was searching for employment with a list of requirements that included a chemical-free work environment, organically based products, and a company with a conscience for helping others. I was thrilled when I learned about Lifekind and found that the company was based in my hometown!

It was only after reading Toxic Bedrooms, written by Lifekind’s president, Walt Bader, that I began to piece together a series of health problems that had plagued me for over two years. It began when I had purchased a new, conventional mattress. The day the mattress arrived I immediately experienced a burning sensation in my eyes and throat. Lucky for me, the mattress company agreed to remove it and replace it with a showroom model that they said had already offgassed. I still didn’t understand what might be in the mattress that was causing such difficulty.

The replacement mattress arrived, and even though it didn’t smell like fresh chemicals, it was so uncomfortable that I went out and naively purchased a memory-foam topper. However, when I removed the memory-foam topper from the plastic wrapping, the chemical smell was so bad I had to take it outside to air. Weeks passed, then months, and still when I went to smell the memory-foam topper it burned my eyes and nose.

With winter coming on, I rolled up the topper with disappointment and put it in the basement. By spring of the next year it had finally offgassed enough for me to place it on my horribly uncomfortable mattress.

In retrospect I realize that for over 20 years I had slept on organic cotton futons, and it had never occurred to me there might be something in a conventional mattress that would affect me so greatly and cause such health issues. But that was exactly the case.

Presently, I am a well-rested sleeper with two Lifekind mattresses. All of the health issues from my past have disappeared and I have found a new purpose in life, where I feel confident helping others in the transition to organic, chemical-free bedding.

-Kimberly, Product Specialist