It is your choice what you do with the information you see, hear, feel, taste or even think. Your thoughts and what you choose to do with them can have an effect on how your body reacts. I believe “It is an excuse once you know and do nothing. You have 2 choices once you know; one is to do something about it or two, to ignore it. If you ignore it nothing changes and the excuses start. If you do something about it, your new journey begins”.
It isn’t always easy to make changes even though we know that the change no matter how big or small might have a positive outcome for us. Creatures of habit we are! So you have probably heard the saying “we are what we eat” and what about “we are what we think about”
If you have ever had some not so good news you may have noticed you feel sick to the stomach. This is due to neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine being in the highest percentages in the gut and if the gut is not in good working order your mind likely wont be either. Depression and anxiety can stem from poor gut health. Symptoms of poor gut health can include reflux, poor digestion, low stomach acid, leaky gut or candida to name a few.
Poor gut health is usually always associated in some way to what is happening in our mind and body. Leaky gut for example is where the small intestine should have tiny sieve like holes to allow the digested food particles (nutrients) into the blood stream but instead is more like a collider than a sieve thus undigested food particles are able to fit through. This then means that the nutrients are no longer available to the body, they are foreigners/invaders in the blood stream and lead to nutrient deficiencies, inflammation and an immune response.
So how do we go about sorting out what is going on and why?
Stress in our lives can effect us in different ways. Some of us cry, some of us emotionally eat, fight with our loved ones, pretend it isn’t happening or find some other way to self sabotage ourselves. Many do not even realize they are stressed or do not associate the word stress with what they are feeling. Some use the term pressure or busy and these terms all have the same chemical response in the body and that is that the adrenal glands pump out adrenaline and nor-adrenaline in the first stage and then cortisol to try and balance or stabilize the body. Long term the protective stage of the stress neurotransmitters is not so good for us and the adrenals become tired. The adrenals require nutrients to sustain them and if our diet or supplement regime is deficient in vitamin C, B5. B6, magnesium and the amino acid tyrosine among other things, we will start to notice signs starting to occur. These may start as tiredness, fatigue, poor blood sugar control, changes to blood pressure and possibly a lowered thyroid activity which comes with it’s own set of symptoms such as weight gain or metabolism changes, skin, sleep and hormone issues
Saffron, withania, ginseng, rehmannia, baical skullcap, skullcap, rhodiola, magnolia, St John’s wort, passiflora, valerian and chamomile are a few herbs that can be helpful in times of stress. Remember to check for herb drug interactions if you are in medications.
Bach flower remedies are a wonderful tool for the mind and emotions and if you are unable to find an outlet that will put together a personalized blend for you then I recommend the rescue remedy.
Talking about things that are worrying you with those that understand can help as does mixing with like minded people. When you are with like minded people you will often feel a sense of relief at being understood. Sadly this often isn’t with family members in the way it used to be due to the divisions that have been created in society. Find a local group that is on the same page with you and meet or chat often. If you feel you need more help then find an NLP practitioner or counselor you get you on track.
Remember to be grateful for the things you do have in life and even the things that don’t feel so good may just be the things that start a change for the better. Be at peace for as much of each day as possible and take time to smell the roses or what ever you favourite flower is.