Dragging a Weight...

Most of us get tired and run down on occasion, but are you one of the millions of people that have chronic fatigue?  Even first thing in the morning are you exhausted?  Do you feel like you are dragging around a 20 pound weight?  What causes it?

There are several possibilities - let's hit the obvious that I am not touching - not getting enough sleep, drinking two pots of coffee every day, drinking sodas and caffeinated drinks right before bed.  Those are the "DUH" reasons.  Dehydration, Hypothyroidism, Anxiety, Anemia, Adrenal Fatigue, Nutritional Deficiencies, Stress, Pharmaceutical Drugs, and several diseases all can cause chronic fatigue. 

You need to figure out what your issue is, and resolve it - otherwise, the problem will continue to manifest - possibly in more damaging ways.  Your body sends out warnings when things aren't right - when you need to FIX something (Mental, Diet, Exercise) and when you ignore the small warning signs, all that happens is that larger more pressing ones occur. 

In the meantime.... here are some suggestions for the warning sign of fatigue:
1. Get enough sleep - most people need about 8 hours of sleep every night.  If you have problems getting to sleep or staying asleep try 30 minutes of light exercise, yoga, or Pilate's.  Turn down your lights 2 hours or more before you want to go to bed.  Turn down music/tv volume same amount of time before bed.  Drink something warm 30 minutes before bed - stay away from sugary and/or caffeinated drinks. 
2. Light exercise / yoga / Pilate's first thing in the morning.  Wake 20 minutes before usual and spend the time to meditate and exercise your body before getting started.
3. Shower in the morning.  add some scented soap or bath salts that invigorate your senses.  Scent is a great way to wake up your mind as well.
4. Turn on all the lights in the room you begin your day in.  Light wakes the senses and mind.
5. Take your daily herbs and supplements.  Emergen-C is a great supplement that I take all winter long - it has both Vitamin C and Vitamin B in it and can be taken up to 4 packets a day... I recommend as a preventative only one a day - first thing in the morning.  Vitamin B is a mental booster and will help charge you up.
6. Ginkgo Biloba is a mental booster.  Will help give more of a positive outlook on the day. 
7. Goji is the "happy" fruit.  I don't like the flavor of the juice straight - but mixed with cherry (my favorite) it isn't bad.  you only need about 1/2 a cup to feel the effects.
8. Turn on some lively, bouncy music in the morning - make sure it is something with a positive beat and a positive message.

Wake up your senses...

Stressing over Anxiety...

I got a question about anxiety from my cousin last week.  I know several people - adults, teens, and adolescents that suffer from anxiety.  To a certain extent we all do - new situations, having to confess something we are guilty of doing, leaving behind an old life, etc.  And like a lot of things, different people call the same thing different names - anxiety, stress, depression, worry, fear... we are going to talk about real anxiety - the type that can cause phobias, panic attacks, and potentially some life threatening issues.

About 4m people suffer from the most common type of Anxiety - GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) in any given year and more women are typically affected than men.  There isn't any one thing that causes anxiety most agree that genetics, brain chemistry, and life experiences all play a part.  While we can't change anything with genetics - we can make the most of our life experiences (mental attitude) and brain chemistry (diet/exercise).

You will find several things repeated in my blog over and over again.  The three premises of natural medicine are mental well being, diet, and exercise.  As you see, this is a prefect example of this.  Every facet of our lives contain all three of these aspects.  If one is out of whack, you are not well.  Make sense? 

Mental attitude.  Did you know that a positive attitude releases dopamine, tryptophan, and serotonin in the brain - these are "happy" chemicals.  A negative attitude breaks down cells and changes the body chemistry into a more acidic rather than alkaline - which is what you need it to be.  We have all heard that positive people live longer than negative ones.  Music can help with attitude too - too often we don't realize how much music affects us.  Next time you have some quiet, private time (I know - I am dreaming) listen to different types of music and pay attention to your reaction to it... how does it make you feel, what thoughts does it provoke, what colors do you think of, what do you smell... Scent also plays a huge part in a positive attitude.  My favorite scent is cinnamon, it makes me happy.  When I need a quick pick me up - I light some cinnamon candles and relax... it never fails to bring a smile to my face.  My favorite saying to my kids is, "What will be, will be" or "it is what it is."  When a stressful situation arises that I can't change, I repeat that to remind myself that there are things in life that I can't change, and that I have to let go.  It works.  Most people with anxiety disorders allow their every day stresses to manifest into larger issues.  Learning to let go, is very important.  When we get to exercise, we will have some additional help with "letting go."

Diet.  Let's start with the things NOT to eat - Caffeine, chocolate, sodas, processed foods, fried foods, junk food, and dairy.  These are pretty standard for everyone, not just those affected by anxiety - but they WILL exacerbate the situation more radically than for other people.  Everything is building blocks - so don't feel that you must remove all of these things on day one.  So... what should you be eating.  Foods rich in Vitamin B - Tuna, Salmon, Snapper, Scallops, Mushrooms, Sunflower Seeds, Black Beans and other legumes, Spinach and other dark green leafy vegetables, Bananas, Edamame, and Nuts,  And then our herbs - fresh Basil, Passion Flower, St. John's Wort, Ginkgo Biloba, Meadow Sweet, and Kava Kava.  Now, with herbs - if you are unfamiliar with the herb and how much to take, I urge you STRONGLY to get a book about herbs and understand potential allergies, interactions, etc... like pharmaceutical drugs, some herbs can be dangerous in large doses or when mixed with other herbs and drugs.  In addition, you will need to try them out and see what works best for you.

Exercise.  I am addicted to exercise.  As a child, I hated gym class and exercise in general.  My whole world changed when we moved to Hawaii and I was able to exercise every day.  We hiked, biked, bladed, swam and walked every day.  And then when I started studying martial arts... I couldn't believe how addicted I was.  I never realized that exercise was a natural high for me.  The more I did, the happier and healthier I was.  For people suffering from anxiety, you may just need some quiet time and not the full intense workouts that I am used to doing.  Yoga techniques.  Deep breathing techniques. Tai Chi.  These are FABULOUS helps for both stress and anxiety.  You need to really start changing your mental attitude - replace the "I can't" with "Let's see what we can do" and "I think I can."

I KNOW you can make a change... think positively!