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Mental Health

5 Actions for Solid Mental Health

How much have you thought of your mental health today? Sure, you’ve thought about your physical health, because you are easily reminded of it by looking in the mirror, but chances are mental health doesn’t cross your mind very often.

But if you want to live your life to the fullest, take care of all aspects of yourself. If you’re young and haven’t entered the world of work, peer pressure at school may take its toll on you. Being faced with the task of performing at your peak day after day can create huge challenges and internal stress. These can take a toll on your mental health, which is why it’s important to perform key actions that can help you protect your mental health.

Be sure to perform these actions daily:

Sleep On Schedule

We know work and school can be tough. Sometimes we take the stress to bed with us, making sleep difficult. However, this is one of the worst things you can do, and lack of sleep will only hasten decline of your mental health. If you’ve ever had a poor night’s sleep you already know the negative effect is has on your mood and performance. As much as possible, shoot for a minimum of 7.5 hours of sleep every night- go to sleep at a time that leaves you enough hours for rest. Nobody likes a grouch in the morning.

Spend Time Outdoors

Ever notice when things get overwhelming how we are drawn to the beauty of being outdoors? Well, as it turns out, Mother Nature knows best. Spending more time outdoors translates to improved mental health. When you feel like you need a break, head outside. Take a walk in the park, stand on the beach and listen to the waves, sit in the forest and listen to the wind. A leisurely walk outdoors can reduce stress and boost your endorphin levels. And connecting with nature reminds us that we are part of something greater than ourselves.

Love And Be Loved

A fairly common trait among depression sufferers is the feeling that they are alone in this world – a lack of connection. This could stem from many things, but commonly is related to some form of rejection or the feeling of not fitting in with socially accepted norms.

Maybe you have a sibling who is the clear favorite of your parents, or maybe you’ve just experienced a break up. Here’s an out-of-the-box idea for you – get a dog! Dogs are undoubtedly the most loving companion you can ever have (ok, not starting a dog vs. cat war here!). A dog will make you the sole focus of his life – with a few squirrels and toys thrown in for balance. Of course, we’re not advocating that you forego your human companions, but pets are darn good as well!

Laugh Heartily

Someone once equated laughter with exercise, since they are both excellent activities for your mental and biological health. Though there is no doubt that laughter can’t replace exercise (get yourself to the gym!), that’s not to say you can’t enjoy life to the fullest. Laughter (and exercise) reduces stress hormone levels and elevates levels of endorphins, those mood elevating neurochemicals that are so crucial to our mental health. So when things look gloomy, just step back and laugh at yourself.

Exercise And Meditate

Exercise is a key piece to health and mental fitness. Endorphins help optimize your mental health and help ward off chronic lifestyle conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes. While these diseases can negatively affect the brain itself, they can inadvertently contribute to poor mental health either from exacerbating stress or negatively affecting brain chemistry. Meditation allows you time to look inside yourself and find that place of calm where you can mentally rest and recharge.

Conclusion

Do not take the state of your mental health for granted. Many people will never grapple with depression or any other form of mental illness, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. A few simple preventive measures can improve the quality of your future.  What is your daily routine to maintain your mental (and physical) health?

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Anxiety

Natural Treatment Methods for Anxiety

Many people who struggle with anxiety turn to prescription medications for treatment, which in some cases can cause even worse side effects or significant dangers to a person’s health. This is one of the reasons so many people are turning to natural treatment methods to help with anxiety issues that are causing problems in their lives.

What Is Natural Treatment?

Natural treatment is simply treatment without chemicals. This can be non-medical treatments or natural supplements or even a mix of both.

No matter what method you choose, be sure to consult your physician and to take any advice or treatments he recommends seriously. But you can also add alternative natural treatments for a more holistic approach to your anxiety care.

Alternative Natural And Non-Medical Treatment Options

There are many non-medical treatments for anxiety that you can use each day to help get your anxiety under control.  Non-medical treatments are for people who are willing to commit themselves to a treatment that is not chemical based.

  • Regular exercise will allow your body to release “feel good” hormones. This is a great non-medical treatment for those who are suffering from anxiety, because you can create a routine where you exercise each day.  But you can also use exercise to help when you have unexpected moments of anxiety.  This will help your body to become healthier, and a healthy body can deal with anxiety more easily than an unhealthy body.
  • Sound therapy is another form of non-medical treatment that can be used for anxiety.  This is a new discovery that science is using to treat many things including depression and anxiety. The way sound therapy works is that the person listens to high frequency sounds, and these sounds stimulate the brain and recharge it.  Sound therapy has been found to create a permanent state of peace and relaxation in some patents.

Herbal Supplements

There are many herbal supplements that can be used to alleviate your anxiety.  These can be used as an alternative treatment to prescription medications but should never be mixed with prescriptions without first talking to your health care provider.  You should never stop taking prescription medications unless directed by your physician, and should only alter the dosage under your doctor’s care.

  • St. Johns Wart is the most popular herbal supplement for anxiety, and is the most reliable.  It also contains a sedative that can help you sleep.  It is best to take St. Johns Wart with your evening meal or right before you go to bed.
  • Kava is another herbal supplement that is used for mild to moderate anxiety.  Unlike St. Johns Wart, Kava does not contain a sedative.  You should be very careful when taking Kava because it can affect the liver.  It is recommended that you not drink any alcohol when taking using Kava.  It is also known to interact with anti-psychotics, so you should speak to your doctor before taking Kava.

Learning How to Handle Stress

Learning how to handle stress is another way you can naturally treat your anxiety.  One of the ways you can do this is by keeping a daily journal.  Here you will be able to write down all of your feelings, talk about the things that are causing you anxiety, determine if there is anything you can do to change the situation, and create an action plan for changing the situation.

Listening to positive affirmations is another way some people handle anxiety.  Positive affirmations teach your brain to think in a new way and after you have listened to them for a while you will find that when you are becoming overwhelmed by anxiety they will automatically play themselves over and over in your mind.

Putting It All Together

Now is the time that you should put everything you have learned together.  If you want to alleviate your anxiety naturally, it is not enough just to exercise or just to take a supplement.  You have to put all of the techniques together. Taking a supplement while creating an exercise routine, eating right, and learning to manage your stress is the best way for you to naturally cure your anxiety.

The Missing Piece

Finding the root cause of the anxiety might have eluded you in the past. But now you’ve found the way to explore the cause and rip it out by the root. Are you ready to live your best life?

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Stress Kills

Stress Kills: Is Yours Out Of Control?

Stress is arguably one of the most silent killers on the planet, largely because people don’t realize something is going wrong, or they refuse to act on it.

But why does stress contribute to so many aspects ill health, ultimately leading to death?

Because often it is untraceable. You may not even realize that you are suffering from stress overload.

Interested to know if your stress is rapidly becoming out of control? Look for the following tell-tale signs:

Unexplained Aches And Pains

A little pain here and there is normal, and should be nothing to get worried over; but it can spell a worrying trend when it occurs too often. And this is the case with being overly-stressed all the time.

Muscular pains most commonly occur around the back, neck or shoulder areas, and may be attributed to poor sleep patterns, although not always. Medication to treat the pain many only yield temporary relief, and should not be relied upon as a long term solution.

Frequent Colds And Infections

One thing associated with high stress levels is the negative effect on immunity. Cortisol suppresses the immune system and leaves the body wide open to infection. This is especially troublesome during flu season, and necessitates that extra precautions be taken (such as increasing anti-oxidant food consumption).

Poor Sleep Patterns

Insomnia is usually one of the first signs that you are over-stressed, as cortisol does not work by itself. In fact, it recruits the neurochemicals adrenalin and noradrenalin, which enhance awareness, and energy levels.

This is an important function in the morning when you need that “get up and go” boost, but not at night when you should be unwinding. Use of heavy stimulant based supplements (such as caffeine) too late in the evening can cause this to occur out of sync with your normal functionality.

High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure involves multiple pathways all experiencing dysfunction, with cortisol happy to oblige. High blood pressure in this case is precipitated by increased retention of water (which increases blood volume), faster heart rate, and blood vessel constriction. All these factors increase blood pressure, so care needs to be taken to manage cortisol and stress levels.

Loss Of Sex Drive

Both men and women require a normal level of testosterone to modulate sex drive, but this important hormone is suppressed when levels of the stress hormone cortisol are high. Cortisol and testosterone share a negatively inverse relationship, meaning that as one goes up, the other goes down. If this loss of sex drive occurs in a young person who previously enjoyed normal sex drive, it can be an indicator that the person is overly stressed.

Frequent Outbursts Or Mood Swings

It can be hard to maintain a level head when stress levels are high.  High stress levels can cause someone to lash out for seemingly no reason. This is not normal behavior, especially if the individual was previously very level headed. If it does occur, it may be best to reduce the work load and make a concerted effort to lower the stress level by relaxing in nature or by spending more time with family and loved ones to connect to what is important in life.

Depression or Feelings of Inadequacy

Stress can seriously affect your emotional well-being, especially since it can tear apart relationships with loved ones. You are likely to be irritable, picking fights, or feel pressured to perform. This can lead to depression, anxiety, or feelings of disappointment. Depression is sometimes difficult to diagnose, especially in individuals who do not possess a strong support system.

Conclusion

If you find yourself experiencing one or more of the symptoms above with increasing frequency, it is time to take a step back from the burden you have placed on your shoulders. Sometimes a short vacation, weekend getaway, or just a simple trek in the great outdoors can do wonders for your wellbeing.

It would also be a good time to check in with your body and see if you are carrying old baggage with you that is negatively impacting your life. Old traumas, memories, and emotions can create physical symptoms in your body. We can explore those and rebalance your body so it can function more efficiently, throw off those old symptoms, and bring peace back into your life.

 

 

 

 

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Your Personal Growth and Vision

4 Actions That Target Your Personal Growth

We all have areas where we want to improve; health, work, family, finances, you name it. But reality can get in the way – along with a busy schedule that doesn’t leave any room for quiet time, let alone personal development. We also sometimes lose focus or can’t muster the willpower to take the steps to create the improvement we so desire. Or maybe we just don’t know where or how to start.

There’s a saying I often mention to my clients who are trying to grow their business – you need to know where you are to figure out how to get where you want to be. So, where are you now? Where do you want to be? What do you want your life (or business) to look like? In 3 months, 1 year, 3 years, 5 years? Define your targets and figure out the action steps you need to take immediately to move you toward your goal. If you don’t know the goal, how do you decide which way to go or which opportunity to jump on? Without direction you can get so lost and frustrated that you lose your creative spark, and give up just a few steps from the finish line.

You need a unique, individualized growth plan.  For your personal development, and for your business.  You have to know where you are, where you want to be, and what roads to take to get you there.  You CAN achieve the vision you have of yourself, but it’s something you will need to consciously think about and work toward. If you don’t plan your own development and growth, no one else will.

Here are 4 steps you can take to create your unique growth plan.

 1.  Know Thyself

In order to plan for the future, reflect on your past experiences, your weaknesses, and strengths – they’ve made you who you are today. Clarify your own unique values, such as integrity, respect for others, leadership, honesty. Your values define your position – at the workplace, with family and friends, in your romantic relationships. Ask yourself:

  • What do I want my life to look like (emotional and physical health, finances, career, relationships, activities, possessions, spiritual, etc.)?
  • What are my greatest achievements?
  • What are my strengths?
  • What are my weaknesses?
  • What skills do I have?
  • What are my personal goals?
  • What are my career ambitions?
  • What steps have I taken to pursue these goals and ambitions?

Once you’ve asked and answered these questions, you’ll have a better idea of who you are and what you truly value.

2.  Develop your vision

So where do you see yourself in the future? What does your perfect world look like?

What does your house look like? What car are you driving? How big is your family? How many pets do you have? What career field are you enjoying? What kind of vacations do you take? How much cash do you have? How many best-selling books have you written?

Ever heard of a vision board? It’s a powerful little tool that can be really simple or really elaborate. My most powerful one was created using colored markers and white poster board. Now I use apps available online. But that first one I created while living abroad – and when I unpacked it just a few years later I realized that EVERYTHING I had created on that poster had come true. Now I wish I had imagined even greater things – who knows what could have happened already!

So create your vision board! Then write out action steps you can take today to move you from where you are to where you KNOW you want to be. Brainstorm multiple paths to get you to your goal so that when obstacles pop up you can switch to another path for a while. Don’t get stressed about timing – be flexible in your planning because when those obstacles crop up they can mess with your project coordination and timing. The goal is to keep moving. Failure is irrelevant – it just means you need to correct your course and keep moving toward your goal.

3.  Assess your present-day situation

Implementing your plan can be difficult at first. But with dedication and an eye on the prize you’ll soon find that taking action becomes a daily habit. Putting your strengths to good use will harness your energy level so that it’s utilized efficiently. Outsourcing for your weaknesses can free up valuable time – hire a housekeeper, an assistant, or a yard maintenance company, get an online virtual assistant, use an online scheduling program, the opportunities are endless.

Set up achievement milestones, and celebrate when you reach them. Smaller goals give you the motivation and drive you need to work your way to the big ones. And each time you reach a milestone or achieve one of the small goals, reward yourself for your hard work!

4.  Review your progress

Each project needs to be reviewed and assessed. Your unique growth plan is no different. You should schedule your review on a weekly basis to start, no more than monthly, until you build up the discipline and the habit of checking in internally and moving forward regardless of what is going on in your life to distract you.

It’s crucial that you take a step back and look at all the hard work you’ve accomplished.

Check to see if you’ve left anything out or missed any deadlines. Or maybe the mini-goals you set up last time don’t fit your criteria any longer, or they need tweaking or readjusting. Reflect on your experience and consider everything you’ve learned. This will ensure that you keep moving forward toward your long-term goal and the vision you’ve created.

Pull out that vision board every day – at a minimum during your weekly review. Step back into the feeling you get when you see yourself living your new reality. That feeling is what will keep you moving forward, and will help attract those things into your life. Be grateful for every step you’ve managed to take, and every scrap of evidence that showed up to prove to you that you CAN make things happen.

Final Thoughts

You create your own reality. The life you are living today is a direct result of the choices you have made and the steps you have or haven’t taken. If you want your life to change, you have to take action NOW. Move toward your vision. Take a baby step. A baby falls a hundred times before he learns to stand. But he keeps trying and eventually learns to walk. You can too!

If something is keeping you stuck and you just can’t take a single step, we should talk. If you can’t see a better future for yourself, there’s something out of balance in your body that we need to take care of so you can live your best life. You can do it!

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Focus on Success

10 Tips to Focus on Success

Courage. Heart. Acumen. Accountability. All incredibly valuable traits, and all necessary for the success mindset.

Whether you want to experience serious changes or you’re looking to fine tune your reality, here are 10 tips to focus on success.

1.Redefine Accountability

Life, and business, will often place us into circumstances that are beyond our control. Your success doesn’t rest in the hands of others. It depends on you taking responsibility for your actions, your plan, and your follow-through. Yes, sometimes you have outside constraints, but in those situations YOU decide what is possible, and what is right for you. Take charge of your circumstances, whatever those may be. And don’t hold yourself to a standard that is impossible to meet. You shouldn’t feel that being true to your goals, and yourself, is impossible. If that feels true for you, it might be time to make some changes in your life. You are human. Cut yourself some slack.

Accountability is your gift to yourself. It is a mindset that you create and accept voluntarily – and it’s a way to help ensure your success.

2. Plan Your Success

You need to actually sit down regularly and work out the strategy you will require to achieve that success. Consider every detail, every step that will lead you to success.

Those plans may need to change from time to time, or be altered to adjust to current realities. Course correction is a necessary part of any journey, and being prepared by reviewing your project often can be a smart strategy to reach your goals.

With every dream, must come a plan. If you desire success, understand that it won’t just happen.

3. Believe in Your Success

If you don’t believe that you can attain success, how will you stay motivated?

Having giant dreams is tremendous, and your dream of success may seem as though it is beyond what you are capable of, but you must believe in the dream. Heart is key for true success.

4. Set Realistic Dreams

The goals of success and working towards a dream must be set in some basis of reality. Ask yourself, is the success truly achievable? Can it be done? This goes beyond believing, it goes to reality. If your dream is to prove that the sky is green and that grass is blue, how realistic is that?

Here’s an excellent example – A person without any education beyond high school has a dream that he can build a multi-million-dollar company. That’s a huge dream, but it’s believable – it’s happened before.

Now, here’s a terrible example – A 95-year-old man who suffers from arthritis and asthma decides to run a marathon tomorrow without his walker – and he hasn’t run in 25 years. That’s an immense dream, but also an impossible one!

5. Be Patient 

Instant gratification is rarely an element of real success. Real success takes time, effort, and patience.  When a seed is planted in the ground it needs water, sunlight, and the right environment to sprout, flourish, and bear fruit.

Yes, someone wins the lottery every day. But how many people bought a ticket? Winning is a slight possibility, but buying a ticket isn’t really a plan with a high chance of success.

6. Don’t Allow Circumstances to Control You

Life can throw all sorts of circumstances at us. We can sometimes fall victim to being left powerless, believing we don’t have the strength to change our reality without someone swooping in to fix things for us. Taking on the victim mindset leads to blaming the world for all our failures and our current circumstances. It can also lead to people living below their potential.

We look to others for help when we need a hand, but to let our circumstances define us – what we do, or who we are – is to willingly give away our own personal power. And then we are stuck living a life of weakness. Don’t fall into the trap. Take responsibility for your actions (and lack of action). It’s amazing what taking that first step can do for your self-esteem.

7. Ask for and Accept Feedback

Asking for the advice (and criticism) of others is a wonderful way to create and instill accountability. An important aspect of feedback is convincing people that you need honest feedback. Whether you’re asking your friend, significant other, mentor, or a colleague, give them the space to be honest in their opinion.

Anonymous feedback is better, because people are more inclined to be honest when they don’t have to worry about hurting your feelings. You’ll eventually learn what type of feedback is helpful and what you should disregard. No matter what you hear, process it non-judgmentally and decide how best to apply it.

8. Courage

Taking risks requires courage, and courage is needed to achieve success. Be brave, be bold, and reach for success as if your life depended on it.

9. Work for It

Those who achieve success work for it, and they work towards that success every single day. Are you working for your success?  Do you focus on taking at least one single action every day no matter what?

You’re certainly not going to succeed by sitting on the couch watching Netflix, so the only way you’re going to succeed is by taking action.  Now you have to decide what action to take next.

10. Perfect Your Decision Making Skills

The ability to make quality decisions is key to success. You are the master of your own life and your dreams, and the decisions you make move you toward your goals, successes, and dreams.

Spend some time regularly evaluating your decisions. Are they moving you toward your goal, or away? Maybe you need to make some new decisions. Set yourself up for success.

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Your Body was Created to Heal

Has your body forgotten how to heal?

Do you seem to pick up every virus out there?

Is your immune system keeping you healthy, or does it seem like it has deserted you?

Do you have neck, shoulder, back, knee, or foot pain that you just can’t get rid of?

Your body was designed to heal.  The cells of your body are being replaced with new cells as old ones naturally die off.  That means that you have the opportunity to have a completely different body, without the aches and pains that are keeping you stuck and holding you captive.

When you get ready to shake them off, take action.  If you’ve never tried energy healing, you just may be surprised at what can happen with your first session.

Can’t hurt to give it a shot.  Get help now.