It’s officially Spring – my favourite time of year. Seeing the daffodils, snowdrops and bluebells spring into life and the days getting longer certainly lifts my mood and helps me to de-clutter my mind.
This month’s article is all about helping to lift our mood, help us feel in control of our lives and allow us to appreciate time a little more. Scientifically there are many studies that link illness and disease with STRESS. Life is all about balance, time to work, rest and play – be active in the mind and also with the body. Not so easy you say as ‘I don’t have the time’……….
Looking back at the advent of the Industrial Revolution, time could suddenly be measured in output as well as minutes and hours and new advances in machinery and technology made most work easier. However over the last decade, we’ve seen the introduction of smartphones and tablets, in particular, which have rendered the term “off the clock” nearly obsolete. We all seem to be so “busy” and it’s not a surprise that at some point, most of us reach a point when we are too busy to add even one more task to our overbooked schedules. What used to be free time has been hijacked by work, classes, social events and errands. We seem to be tethered to devices that offer an unprecedented amount of information and accessibility. How many people in café’s and restaurants are texting or looking at their smartphones rather than talking to each other?
This constant connectivity, combined with the feeling that there is too much to do and with no end in sight leads to NEGATIVE STRESS. That stress, in turn, can take a toll on health as highlighted above and the ability to focus on work tasks. It can also alter how we feel about our employer; undermine accuracy and creative thinking, foster depression, resentment and feelings of paranoia about job security. The bottom line: sustained busyness is taking a toll on our health, the quality of our work along with our personal relationships.
By taking a few simple steps and supporting your body with the correct nutrition you can slow down, flow in-between activities, bring mindfulness to your day and reclaim your life, even if it’s for just seconds or minutes at a time. Just “go with the FLOW”. The full article will be found on my website www.delglynclinic.co.uk later this month where I describe some simple techniques & exercises (that can be done almost anywhere) and recipes.
The Mighty Mindfulness
The “buzzword” of the moment and an incredibly effective tool, mindfulness is a way of being aware of what’s going on at a particular moment without assigning any judgment to what you’re feeling. By taking just a few moments throughout the workday to take a breath and regroup, can break the sometimes, crazy momentum of what’s happening around us.
It will not eliminate life’s pressures, but it can help us respond to them in a calmer positive manner that benefits our heart, head, and body. It helps us recognise and step away from habitual, often unconscious emotional and physiological reactions to everyday events. It provides us with a scientifically researched approach to cultivating clarity, insight, and understanding. Over time, mindfulness brings about long-term changes in mood, levels of happiness and wellbeing. Scientific studies have shown that mindfulness not only prevents depression, but that it also positively affects the brain patterns underlying day-to-day anxiety, stress, depression and irritability so that when they arise, they dissolve away again more easily. I like to say: “go with the flow!” and here are a few simple steps for you to find your “flow”:
Some simple steps to “go with the FLOW”:
- FEELING of being overwhelmed or panicky is the signal to step away from what you are doing, take a few deep breaths and give yourself 10 to 15 minutes to go outside, leaf through a magazine or just stare into space
- LEARN to breathe, deep abdominal breathing re-oxygenates the body, which slows the heartbeat and stabilizes blood pressure
- OBSERVE the silence – don’t be a slave to Facebook, emails, text messages and the phone. Set aside a regular time-slot each day when you want to deal with them, and stick to it
- WATCH what you eat and when you eat. Eat complex carbohydrates (starches), such as whole-grain products, vegetables (sweet potatoes are a great choice) and beans. Complex carbs contain fibre, which helps slow blood sugar level changes and reduce negative effects on mood
In addition, you can use some of these great foods to boost your mood, help anxiety and stress, which can be the major cause of serious pain and illnesses.
Your brain needs fats to function so we need to feed it the right type of fats, you don’t want to shortchange it so go for good fat sources such as avocados, a wide range of seeds and virgin olive oil.
Sweet potatoes – an excellent complex carbohydrate with a high level of tryptophan, an essential amino acid, that converts into serotonin – the feel good hormone of the brain. They are also high in beta-carotene, which boosts immunity when stress is high and fibre, which helps stabilize surges in blood sugar caused by acute stress.
Black beans – full of magnesium and other minerals that promote muscle relaxation and lower blood pressure. Having low magnesium levels may result in headaches and cramps and can aggravate an already anxious state. They are also rick in fibre and protein, which stabilize blood sugar.
Asparagus – contains high levels of vitamin B6 and folic acid, both of which help boost levels of dopamine, a substance that acts as a natural relaxant on the brain. Both these vitamins are crucial in healthy immune and nervous system functioning.
Nuts – particularly walnuts and almonds are rich in omega-3 fatty acids that naturally decrease the stress hormones cortisol, which is secreted in our bodies when we are under stress, and adrenaline, which stimulates heart rate, and dilates blood vessels and air passages. Nuts are also high in vitamin B, which supplies the body with serotonin producing carbohydrates. They are also an excellent source of protein, which stabilizes blood sugar.
Yoghurt is high in calcium and magnesium, minerals that help relax muscles and lower blood pressure, look for “live yoghurt” that are rich in good bacteria (acidophilus), to help stabilize and soother nervous digestive systems resulting from stress.
Low sugar breakfast cereals are packed with fibre, B-vitamins and magnesium, all of which lower blood pressure, nourish nerves, brain and adrenal glands and stabilize mood by providing a surge of serotonin.
If you’d like to get in touch or learn more about anything outlined in this article, please feel free to contact me at my website www.delglynclinic.co.uk or my email address nicoladelglyn@gmail.com
See you all
next month!
