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Stress busting Tip 3 – find a quiet place to spend time in. It can be a comfy couch enjoying a relaxing cup of tea, take a walk to a special place and enjoy some beauty and quiet in nature. Spending some time in a quiet place is a great way to reduce stress.  Photo by Ladyfern Photos on Unsplash  Recently, while recovering from surgery, I had movement restrictions. It ended up being 6 weeks of wearing a funky brace even when I slept to give my body time to heal. When the day came to stop wearing it, I wanted to shout “FREEDOM” at the top of my lungs and toss the brace!
It's funny how we can take for granted movement or other things we do or have without thinking about it, until it’s gone, even temporarily. Let’s be thankful for what we have, movement, sight and more.  Adding in extra steps and people can add joy in our day.
Here’s a video about community time and extra steps https://youtu.be/3aGGyFVnI-Q Here's a quick way to check in and see signs of needing to drink some water, it’s important… http://www.kdsadventure.com/blog/water  Today I saw something about meditation come up more than once. I know it’s good for me but I have resistance to doing it.
Earlier this year I learned I can do it although I do it rarely. Seeing it come up today made me think about how I could add in something in that direction. Adding a short breathing exercise daily would be good for me and I just found some video meditations I’m going to watch. I have some options and it feels great! Adding one simple thing in our lives can improve it and be good for us. It can feel empowering and inspiring. Let's add something positive to our lives; it can even be something very small. Over the years I learned I can’t give to others when my bucket is rusty, full of holes and empty.
Part of this is:
I’m still a work in progress on this but I continue to improve. Taking good care of myself lets me be my better self because my bucket isn’t empty. Let’s remember to fill ourselves up…it can make us feel better and be better parents, partners and friends As some of you know I’ve been on a weight-loss journey this year.
Some big keys in this year’s journey to learn more about weight-loss are:
I’m glad to be on my way to my ideal weight and looking forward to sharing what I learned from my own experiences and others. I was thinking about a group I go to and it reminded me how glad I am to have resources to tap into. It is important for me to be in community in different way. I enjoy connecting with different groups and hearing about them. When I feel like connecting with people I’d check around to see what looked interesting. A few that I liked are: Meetup.com Parks & Rec or Local Gym Local college non-credit classes If I want to get out in the community with like-minded people or I want to find people or new adventures I’d check out meetup.com. If I want to do classes or take a swim I would check out Parks/Rec or a Gym and I had a friend recommend a writing class at a senior center I enjoyed and the local colleges offer interesting classes too. I am amazed at the diverse groups and activities that are out there. It’s my hope you have amazing group(s) you connect with and your open to learning new things.  From Red Finch Japanese page, Kanji Dictionary Link below Have you ever got on the scale and not liked the number on it. You aren’t alone. I have been on a weight loss journey this year. I have done a lot of tapping on weight loss for myself and with others. There have been many ups and downs with it. Over time I found the ups on the scale really affect me negatively. It was getting worse as time went on but I would talk with my Honey and I’d feel better until the next unwanted number on the scale. Recently, when I had bad news from the scale I started tapping about my feelings on it and it helped me let go of some of those negative emotions around it. I plan to tap as I’m walking to the scale to weigh in and tap after if needed. I still have further to go on my weight loss journey but I choose to have a good day no matter what the scale says. Have you struggled with the number on the scale and do you have a weight loss story you’d like to share?  Have you ever felt stressed about finances? Recently I woke up feeling that way. The stress felt really strong and I decided to do some tapping on it. My stress dialed down and I went about my day. During the afternoon I was checking in on my stress and was amazed at how much peace I felt compared to when I woke up. The next day I woke up in a better space. I am so glad I have tapping to help dial down my stress and bothersome emotions. It makes room for more peace and joy in my life. What de-stressors do you use that work for you?  I like having more peace & joy in my life! Pt 2 Peace is a big topic and there are many ways to find moments of peace. Some kinds I’m ready for and some I’m not there yet. Near death (or death) experiences are one of those kinds I’m not ready for. When I was chatting with a person they mentioned their near death experience and a kind of powerful, miraculous peace that was felt. The pull to stay and continue to experience it was strong but it wasn’t their time. I hear this is one of the gifts for the next adventure after this life! I must admit that I want to have peace in my life but I am willing to put off that particular adventure; after all, I still have things I want to do in this life time. Some of those are finding moments of peace by sharing time &/or nature with a friend, taking a drive with my Honey down a scenic road and doing a bit of tapping adds moments of peace for me. What are some ways you find a bit of peace in your life, do you listen to music, meditate? Let me know I’d enjoy hearing from you.  Country road pic by Katrina Davis Lately I have been tweaking my diet to help with some health matters. It was recommended I add in two cloves of raw garlic a day. I haven’t peeled or used raw garlic in many years. While I was bustling in the kitchen pealing garlic I was hanging out with a person in my life (for the blog) I will call her Lilly. I was using a garlic press for the first time and I was fussing over getting as much out as possible. Then sudden Lilly popped out with “you have some in your salad that’s good enough for the first time. “ It was so amazing to hear such wise words from a beautiful, candid autistic woman. This was a reminder to me to go with the flow. I am so glad to have Lilly in my life; she brings me joys, gifts and laughter. Have you had a reminder lately about something in your life?  Pic by Katrina A person in my life is struggling with depression and it reminded me it’s important to take care of this. I have had depression at times in my life and know other people that have struggled with it too.
There are somethings that need to be addressed by medical and/or mental health providers. Its best if the person seeks help on their own. If they are a danger to themselves or others then a hospital or mental health professional can decide what is needed. It’s important to have resources easily accessible during these times like:
Staying busy can be helpful too. Finding a movement class that is enjoyable and/or possibly connecting with people through a meetup group with like-minded interest. Some classes & movement could be: Yoga, Tai Chi, or taking a relaxing walk (at a favorite spot) or another kind of movement that works for you. While I was going through a big life change and struggling with my mood I had friends and family I could call, support groups to go to when needed and I even made some new friends. I am thankful for people's time and resources during a big life transition. Have you or others close to you struggled with depression and what were somethings that helped? One day I was at a massage appointment and she mentioned using magnesium oil to spray on my tight neck. When I was working for a wellness office I learned about it and I had it in a spray bottle by my bed for leg cramps and tight muscles.
I knew I wasn’t supposed to spray it on my face because it will give me a headache and a friend can’t spray it on her neck either for the same reason. I heard it can make floors slippery too; luckily I have carpet where I spray it. I didn't get headaches spraying it on my neck and it helped the tightness too. Using it again reminded me this is fantastic for cramps, sore muscles and it is a great way for me to get more magnesium in my body without the side effects. Have you tried magnesium oil and if so what did it help with for you? I was feeling down about my food choices and slow weight loss lately. Then I received a note from one of my TOP's chapter people and my weight loss for March was mentioned. This reminded me it doesn't matter if it's an ounce or a pound just so it's going down. I was pleasantly surprised I had lost more than I thought last month. There is going to be times when I fluctuate a few pounds up and down or plateau. It's a process. I am glad I have my TOP's group to encourage me. I lost weight last month and this week too, yes! How have you struggled with food or weight and how did you handle it? I had to laugh at myself because earlier I did yoga and even got on the treadmill for a short time. Both involve breathing; yoga breathing is practiced during it and it’s natural to breath while walking. I really needed a massage and it’s important I get regular massage for my health. Shortly into a massage I realized I was holding my breath and/or shallow breathing. It was more challenging lying face down but I knew massage is more effective with good breath. I was glad I could laugh at myself about it and concentrate on improving breath during the massage so it was more productive. Have you ever noticed how you catch your breath doing tasks or hold your breath during certain times?  A while ago I was going in for knee surgery and I wanted to be more relaxed. I decided to go see a hypnotherapist.
We did hypnotherapy to reduce stress and a saying to make the connection: “I’m doing just fine.” I put up a note of the saying and repeated it to myself whenever I needed it. A friend that accompanied me to the surgery also said, “You’re doing just fine.” It made a big difference and the surgery and recovery went well. Four years later, I still have the note up and it still helps me relax. Have you ever had hypnotherapy and what did it help with? One day I was sitting in my living room feeling blue and I couldn’t figure out why. It was a sunny, beautiful day so I decided to take a walk.
After a while I noticed a beautiful rose and stopped and smelled it. I realized when I am busy or feeling blue I forget to take in the beauty around me in and it helps take time to notice the little joys:
I was talking to my doctor about some ongoing pain and she suggested physical therapy. There was some resistant to this and I reminded the doctor about how the last PT person didn’t know how to create a program that could help my pain and health. My doctor mentioned it has been a while and PT has improved. I went and the first PT appointment and when I returned she listened to how I had done and she mentioned a specialty physical therapist could be a better fit. I set up the appointment and it was a fantastic! She set up a program for me to do at home for strengthening and stretching. I still do many of the exercises she suggested and it has been a while since I had an appointment with her. She helped me find other ways in the community to get some movement and she was my physical therapist for recovering from knee surgery too. I was glad I walked through some resistance and found a resource for fantastic tools on my wellness journey.  It’s important for me to keep my stress down for my health. Unexpectedly I needed to move into a smaller place. I felt overwhelmed and my stress level increased. I thought about it and realized I needed to break it down into obtainable steps …baby steps. When I could see how to walk through this with attainable goals it made it easier to do and my stress level came down. In the process of packing I cleaned out things I didn’t use and it felt great to let things go. I have been here over a year now and when I close the door from an outing I feel happy to be home. When faced with a big project:
A big project goes smoother with a plan.  Photo by Haley Phelps on Unsplash |