Archive for the “Adrenal Self-Health” Category

 Adrenal Self-Healthy Nutrition

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We have come to truly understand the significance of our daily intake of whole food nutrition and basic foundational nutrient supplementation. Your adrenals are on the clock. This clock is one that is timed to the light of day.

From sunrise to sunset your adrenals are monitoring and adjusting your energy levels based on natural cycles. Your body needs you to be consistent in your timing of when you eat and what you eat and how you eat. We would like to share with you some general guidelines for nutritional adrenal support. Please know that we will be updating and expanding this information often.  En~joy!

• It is always best to eat a wide variety of whole, organic, minimally processed foods. This is body wisdom for all of our systems.
• It is recommend that one who desires to step out of adrenal exhaustion to eat a fat, protein and carbohydrate source with every meal.
• You will greatly benefit from eating lots of vegetables with each meal…especially ones that are brightly colored..
• If you can, avoid fruit in the morning. Experiment with having these potassium rich foods a little later in the day?
• Mixing 1-2 Tbs of Essential Oils into your grains or vegetables on a daily basis will certainly bring a smile to you adrenals. ( Learn about Macadamia Nut, Kukai Nut and Black Current seed Essential Fatty Acid Blend, that really makes the veggies sing and also supports your Adrenals wonderfully)
• Eat the best quality food you can afford. Some would say that this is a Self-Health Essential in all facets of your wellness. As you know, your food becomes you!
• For those with moderate to severe adrenal depletion, increasing your protein intake and decreasing the whole grains and fruit from your food plan will better serve you. Please know that as you make these simple shifts your body will respond. How quickly is truly a personal experience, is it not? Patience is a gentle herb that will do wonders for your adrenal replenishment.
• A consistent whole food nutritional lifestyle will really help your adrenals. We have also found  that for an already deficient body, we benefit greatly by adding low-stress supplements that are easily absorbed and created to replenish a body that has little extra energy to use for breaking down nutrients. 

                  

We highly recommend that as with any general guideline you go within your own reference systems and carefully choose the foods that are best for you!

This inner reference system is one that we develop with intention, skill and sometimes guidance. It is our sincere wish for your Self-Health; that with these educational offerings you will develop your own personal Self-Health guidance system, this could be a health essential!

© 2012 Self-Health Essentials LLC

This soup is wonderfully simple and can be made at the last minute with the proper ingredients gathered.

 Slice 4 sticks of organic celery

Let your soup sit on the burner and in about 25 minutes you will have a wonderfully nutritious and easily absorbed soup.

This soup is designed to have the veggies soft. No worries here.

It is best to leave this soup unseasoned except for salt.

Yes, believe it or not, salt is your adrenals friend. Please make sure your salt is air-dried and from the sea.

                 

Each ingredient is synergistically combined to create a truly healthy meal for your adrenals as well as your liver. And because you took your time in preparing it and smiled a lot as you so efficiently placed the veggies in the pot and it only took a few minutes; you created a low stress meal in a low stress environment that also goes along way to vitalizing your adrenals.

What to Avoid to attain Adrenal Well-Being

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As you know you are a very intricate being. Between physics and medicine, we have constant reminders that the interplay between our Mind and Body is constant and much more active then we might truly understand.

The following lifestyle experiences are offered to support you in the inner inquiry with the sincere knowing that most of these are within your personal parameters of perception and action to re-design. Ask us how?

• Poor Food and drinks as stimulants (sugar, caffeine, excessive carbohydrate)
• Trying to be perfect
• Staying up late even when fatigued and therefore lack of deep restorative sleep
• Staying in situations that are no-win (for example: double binds)
• Being consistently in a position of powerlessness
• Poor food choices
• Lack of enjoyable and replenishing activities
• Constantly driving oneself
• Over exercising
• Environmental toxins
• Relationship turmoil
• Skipping meals

 

You will note that many of these circumstances involve how we might create our relationships. These relationships seem to encompass every interaction we have with our outside world. Do these interactions have our bodies constantly in a fight or flight mode?

This is a very subtle awareness. By that we mean that when one is interacting in a relationship with self or another, we are very unlikely to have the awareness in that moment of the potential physiological consequences, often until it is too late.

For example, you are late for an appointment and instead of pushing yourself out the door in a flight mode perhaps calling ahead to have a more calming drive time would be a good self-health alternative?  Would this simple action step begin to layer off some of the "external" stimulants our lifestyles can produce for us? Would this simple step begin to re-design a more favorable wellness approach for your adrenal system? Could this step save you a cold or flu episode in the near future?

Research is showing the strong relationship between the emotions and emotional wisdom and their affect on the health of the body. This plus the importance of consistent whole food nutrition and supplementation is being supported everyday in new reasearch. It often takes a multi-faceted approach to support our bodies in creating a new homeostatic way of relating to itself.

Please take a moment to wonder about your personal relationship with yourself and your body. This might be a very good list to play with and give another look at in a few weeks time. This would allow you to gently anchor the possible cause with effect of some of your lifestyle realities.

Thank you for enjoying our educational offerings!

Another Reason to Avoid Juices by Kathy Abascal

As we discuss in class, juices pose a number of problems and our bodies actually do better without them. First, we typically strain the fiber out of most our juices, fiber we need to grow the right intestinal flora. Second, … Continue reading →

 

 Easy Homemade Sauerkraut

Each time Robert would try a different recipe…I would assist him and after it was fermented take one bite then leave the batch for his lucky digestive system. You may or may not know that sauerkraut is really good for your entire body but particularly your digestive system.

One day we found sauerkraut at a Health Food Store that I really liked. I liked the taste as well as the texture. We decided to create our own version of the concoction. We decided to use our Champion juicer to grind the green cabbage into fine pieces instead of the food processor. We found that the finer pieces fermented quite easily.

So now I love sauerkraut our way. I share this recipe with you so you can bless your digestive system with a wonderfully tasty and beneficial fermented food. YUM!

Chop your organic green cabbage up so it will fit into your juicer.

Juice it.  Save the pulp.

The beauty of juicing the cabbage is you have created the brine quite easily. If the cabbage is not covered by the juice (it should be) add water until the cabbage is covered; then let it ferment for 6-7 days. May take less time with this juicing step.

We use our sauerkraut on many many many things…salads are my personal favorite. With a little organic extra virgin olive oil, the taste is quite wonderful replacing salad dressings.  You can add other vegetables, fruits, herbs or spices. I encourage you to start simply then explore your organic vegetable section of your market to personalize your sauerkraut.

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"Massage and movement stimulates circulation. Life is in the blood. The body repairs itself when it is functioning optimally. Increased circulation enhances youthfulness and vitality. Everyone needs massage and movement on a regular consistent basis to be optimally healthy. " author unknown

I wanted to share this quote with you because there is so much truth in it. There are as many types of massage as there are massage therapists.Individual and unique yet with common threads running throughout the modality called therapeutic massage.  It simply is one of the best ways to support your precious body in true wellness.

Let’s look at some information about the benefits of massage and movement….
Physical and mental oxygenation through movement and massage can increase  your energy and focus, can raise your metabolic rate, can improve your blood circulation and can activate your lymphatic system’s detoxification.

The mind moves into alertness and mental focus. Your natural chi or life force energy, can be stimulated and enhanced. It can help eliminate stress.

The brain can also move into an Alpha state which thereby creates a peaceful, meditative state of calmness, mind/body healing and wellness. Often after massage or meditative movement we can find ourselves in an altered state.

•  Reduction in muscle soreness, tension, stiffness, body aches and pains.
• Improved flexibility of muscles and joints, more limber – spinal alignment.
•  Improved function and regulation of internal organs and body systems.
•  Improved circulation of the blood – activated lymph drainage and detoxification.
•  Alleviation of stress related conditions – headaches, anxiety, depression.
•  The brain shifts into a relaxed Alpha brainwave state – mental focus.
  
• Steady weight loss correction if under or over weight, or menopausal (plus diet adjustment).
  
• Sound, restful sleep – increased energy, a wonderful sense of well-being.

These are just a few of the benefits one can receive from consistent movement and massage.

If you have never received a massage or do not have gentle movement built into your daily life, please consider exploring this wonderful modality.

©2011 Self-Health Essentials LLC

Hello, This is Tessa writing you today. I just had the honor of facilitating a distance session with a young mother and her daughter. I feel so very privileged to be a part of someone’s personal steps in transformational evolution.

I have been experiencing personal transformational evolution for decades through personal work as well as group work facilitated by gifted instructors. I discovered long ago that if I did not attend to my emotional ‘baggage’ I would find life on Earth a bit uncomfortable. In my session work with clients I have also observed the results of ignoring or pretending the emotional traumas are not there.

Please know I do not hold a degree in counseling or psychology. I have earned my abilities through years of personal work and client support work. I have always been perceptive in ‘emotional’ language and have developed my own skill set and information base called Self-Health Essentials ie S.H.E.  I have tested this system and I trust it.

Today’s session once again showed me the significant blessings that are contained in S.H.E. distance session work. This young mother not only released emotional patterns that had been with her since childhood and before but also assisted her 4-year-old daughter in releasing hers patterns. She saw threw a real life experience how some old emotional patterns that she had released in her last session of S.H.E. were mirrored back to her in her daughter. Before her session with Self-Health Energetics she could not perceive the pattern. When it was gone, her new open clarity made it so very evident and gave her tools with which to free her young daughter before she too created a lifetime of being the effect of that limiting emotional perception.

My client shared some of her physical sensations as she allowed herself to ‘feel’ emotional patterns that had kept her ‘ boxed in ‘ all of her life. She mentioned nausea, hyper-ventilation, chest pain and vertigo.  Each of these are listed as ‘symptoms’ in many illnesses. Research has shown how trapped emotions can lower the immune function, create symptoms like allergies, exhausted adrenal function, mood disorders, affect blood sugar, affect headaches and body aches. She noted that in the past she would not have been able to move when these ‘symptoms’ appeared. Now she not only moved but was able to experience a profound interaction.  She embraced an opportunity and expanded her life choices because of it. How useful is that?                                                    

I am simply thrilled for her! I am indeed blessed to have gathered so many energetic ‘tools’ that have gone into creating Self-Health Energetics. I consistently use them on myself. I KNOW people CAN change their lives, their health, their world, for I have done it myself.

I remember a teacher sharing the phrase…’emotion is energy in motion’…I am reminded that as one shifts an emotion and releases emotional traumas and emotional walls that in a split second the energy in motion moves new possibilities into not only their life but also each life that they touch. Our world is quantum and holographic.

Tessa

Nutritional Solutions for Depression and Mood Disorders Part II

Depression and mood disorders are characterized by extreme feelings. These feelings can include feelings of dejection, sadness, and emptiness. Symptoms can include poor appetite accompanied by inadequate diet and weight loss, or increased appetite with weight gain: insomnia or excess sleep; changes in usual activities; loss of interest; fatigue; loss of concentration and feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt.

In certain cases depression is indeed appropriate to a life event. To be diagnosed as depression, the depressed state must  be experienced for at least one month and should be defined as inappropriate to one’s life’s events. The causes of depression are categorized as psychological, sociological, biochemical or physiological. Specifically, they can include an overreaction to one’s life’s events or to stress, lack of sunlight during the winter months (Seasonal Affective Disorder), poor diet, nutritional deficiencies, hormonal imbalances, allergies, environmental and microbial factors or any serious physical disorder.

Good nutrition is a vital part to appropriate psychiatric care. Studies have shown that nutrients can profoundly influence biochemistry and brain activity. Among nutritionally oriented doctors, it is believed that diet is often the cause of depression and that our Western diet –which emphasizes junk food, snacking, processed foods and poor eating styles- is the primary contributor to mood disorders.

Some Nutritional Lifestyle Suggestions

vAvoid Caffeine and sugar. Research is showing many individuals experience a wonderful lift emotionally after eliminating caffeine and sugar from their diets.

vIncrease your consumption of tryptophan-rich foods. L-tryptophan is an amino acid that essentially is responsible for the production of serotonin, which is the part of our brain chemistry that can elevate mood and assist in normal sleep. Research has shown that in depressed individuals, the transportation of tryptophan maybe inhibited. A complex carbohydrate rich meal has been shown to facilitate the body’s ability to absorb tryptophan. Some tryptophan rich foods include turkey,raw  milk, bananas, figs, and dates.

vAvoid over processed and rancid fats. Bad fats can inhibit the synthesis of neurotransmitters in the brain,and can cause the blood cells to clump together resulting in poor circulation to the brain. On the other hand, healthy fats, like organic extra virgin olive oil, organic virgin coconut oil, raw organic butter and avocados ensure vascular flexibility and improved circulation.

v  Eating quality proteins that contain essential fatty acids can increase alertness. Some foods that contain essential fatty acids are wild caught salmon, sardines, organic almonds and sunflower seeds. Please make these organic whenever possible.

vIncrease your exercise. We keep hearing that gentle exercise done 3-4 times a week will make a great deal of difference in one’s ability to balance a mood disorder. Studies show a decrease in depression with an increase in movement and exercise.

vStudies have also shown the benefits of appropriate supplementation with whole food vitamins, systemic enzymes, Essential Fatty Acids and minerals. Why Ziquin

We at Self-Health Essentials support you in making these simple action steps in gaining balance and peace of mind. Please know this information is not intended as a substitute for consulting with your health care provider.These are suggestions to begin as you gather your many resources.

An Adrenal Supporting Lifestyle  

Managing the stress in your life is key to supporting your adrenals. The most important factor in managing the stress is understanding the mind-body connection in regards to stress. We know that what makes a situation stressful for one person may not be stressful for another. Remember the example of a person in a car stuck in the middle of rush hour traffic.  It can be perceived as an opportunity for listening to a self-health audiotape or perceived as highly frustrating. Either way the operative word is perception. Whether a situation is stressful or not is based on our perception. And our perception is based on what we believe to be true. Our beliefs determine our perception. So if we believe bumper-to-bumper traffic is stressful, guess what for us it will be. But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can learn to change how we perceive things by changing how we look at things and yes even our beliefs. Letting go of our fears is the first step toward creating a fuller, more satisfying life. We need to seek joyful, loving and fulfilling activities, ones that stimulate us to grow and be happy at heart. After all we are worth it! Let this be our mantra. I do those things that give me joy and let go of those things not in harmony with my joy.

Providing nutritional support. Now let’s talk about a day-to-day adrenal supporting plan. 

On a fresh sheet of paper make a heading “health drains” and list everything and everyone in your daily life that are health-limiting factors. The following are examples;

Junk food, alcohol, overwork, chemicalized water, coffee, financial pressures, unhappy work or home environment, prescription or non-prescription drugs, lack of fresh air, tobacco, lack of sleep, soft drinks and chemical pollutants. The idea is to minimize as much as possible those health-limiting factors in your life that take away from supporting your adrenals and overall health.  

Someone who has adrenal fatigue have used up much of the body’s stored nutrients and are in desperate need of new supplies just to continue to function, let alone heal. Good quality food is the best source of these nutrient. Nutritional supplements can increase your ability to heal and speed your recovery.

If you have adrenal fatigue, when you eat is almost as important as what you eat. Low blood sugar is in itself a stressful situation that further drains yours adrenals. Therefore, avoid letting your blood sugar levels drop too low by eating natural, high quality food at frequent, regular intervals. Small high quality meals are ideal. It is important that you eat before 10:00 am. If you eat breakfast earlier in the morning around 8:00 am then you will want to have a snack around 10:00 am. You need to replenish your waning glycogen supply after the previous night’s energy requirements. Then lunch at noon, a snack sometime between 2:00 and 3:00 pm and your evening meal around 5:00 to 6:00 pm. Later in the evening, before bed, just a couple of bites of a high quality snack is often the key to successfully getting through the night without sleep disturbances or feeling wrecked in the morning.

It is best to combine fat, protein, and whole food carbohydrates at every meal and snack. Eating sugar or sugary foods is hard on your body. It makes blood sugar rise too high, too fast, and subsequently fall too low, leaving your body starving for fuel again.

Salt craving is a common symptom in all stages of adrenal fatigue. Most people with adrenal fatigue have low blood pressure, not high. Salt is a welcome addition to the diet in adrenal fatigue because it not only helps increase blood pressure, but also helps restore some of the other functions related to sodium loss within the cells. If you have concerns about taking salt and high blood pressure check with your doctor. We recommend natural unrefined sea salt and Ziquin Nanomeds. Another way to naturally increase sodium levels are to take sea vegetables like kelp and dulse.       

Vegetables that are high in sodium and helpful in supporting adrenal recovery include the following; kelp, dulse, green and black olives, beet greens, celery, zucchini, and Swiss chard. Please refer to the recipe for adrenal recovery soup that is posted on our blog.

People with adrenal fatigue are hugely lacking in several vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids and this is where high quality supplemental can speed recovery. Both Ziquin’s mind and body tonic and EFA complete is crucial to supplying the body and adrenals of the nutrients it so dearly needs. 

Summary of what to eat: Eat a wide variety of whole, natural foods. Combine a fat, protein and carbohydrate source with every meal or snack. Eat lots of vegetables, especially the brightly colored ones. Use unrefined sea salt if you crave it. Eat mainly whole grains and vegetable sources of carbohydrates. Eat high quality foods.

Adequate rest. For people with adrenal fatigue, it is important to be in bed and on your way to sleep by 10:30 pm. Although most people’s schedules do not allow it, it also helps to sleep in until 9:00 in the morning. For those who have a day job, sleeping in on the weekends until this time is highly beneficial. Sleeping in until 9:00 am gives your adrenals a chance to rest, allowing your cortisol levels to rise. Normally cortisol levels rise rapidly from 6:00 to 8:00 am, but quite often in adrenal fatigue these levels do not rise as high and/or drop faster than normal. Also when your cortisol levels are lower, as in adrenal fatigue, it takes longer to feel fully awake in the morning. Sleeping in, therefore, is not only restorative for your adrenals but also helps you feel much better when you wake up and during the rest of the day.

If you wake up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep this is a sign that your cortisol levels are probably low due to depleted or exhausted adrenal function. As mentioned before the reason you awaken in the middle of the night is due your body releasing adrenaline instead of cortisol to raise your blood sugar. This works as a brain stimulant, which naturally keeps you awake. To help counteract this have a light snack that contains protein, unrefined carbohydrate, and a high quality fat before going to bed, such as a slice of whole grain bread with almond butter.

1)     Be sure to get enough physical exercise during the day. Rapid breathing expels volatile gases out of your body that become harmful if they build up. The increased blood flow helps keep plaque from building up in your arteries while stimulating your liver to perform more efficiently. Cell function improves with accompanying acceleration of carbon dioxide, oxygen and nutrient exchange. Exercise normalizes levels of cortisol, insulin, blood glucose, growth hormone, thyroid, and several other hormones and puts more oxygen into your brain. Exercise also decreases depression.

2)     Avoid coffee, caffeine containing beverages and chocolate because they act as stimulants. These can interrupt sleep patterns and increase morning lows.

3)     If you are having difficulty going to sleep and usually watch TV or work on a computer late at night, try having an 8:00   PM limit on these visual stimuli.

4)      Some common herbs used to promote better sleep are hops, catnip, valerian root and licorice root.

5)     Try to schedule breaks around times when you feel more tired so that you can lie down for 15-30 minutes. Lying down is much more restorative than sitting, for the person with adrenal fatigue.

6)     Laughter. Norman Cousins found that two important keys to rebuild your adrenals are laughter and vitamin C. He laughed himself back to health from a debilitating disease. We recommend a whole food natural source of vitamin C like Acerola cherries.

© 2009 Self-Health Essentials LLC

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