Spring is nature’s way of saying, “Let’s party!”  ~ Robin Williams

There’s a spring smell in the air. Colourful flowers are bursting from tiny buds. Trees are sprouting millions of tender new leaves. Do you feel the feeling of “hope” and “new beginnings” and “possibility” when you wake up in the morning?

Traditionally, spring is the season of new beginnings and rebirth. In keeping with what happens around us, we often feel like starting a new habit or behaviour in our lives. Things like,

• I’m going to lose those unsightly winter rolls before December
• I’m definitely going to eat more healthy foods
• I want to cut down on my smoking
• I’m going to spend quality time with my family

An important factor we easily leave out of our noble intentions and plans is that human beings don’t just suddenly change. Most of us find change quite daunting and even scary. We stick to what’s comfortable – that’s where the safety is.

In order to bring about change successfully and permanently, there are a number of great tools we can use. One of them is a model that measures are “readiness to change”. Failure to take our readiness into account often leads to the “New Year’s Resolution syndrome” where failure is a very likely outcome – again!

Let’s say I want to lose those few kilos before December. What most of us don’t realise when we want to implement a major change is that are no less than SIX phases of change to go through before the change has been successful. If we are aware of these phases, it’s much easier to negotiate the bumpy territory we might find ourselves in for the next couple of months (or years).

• In the Pre-Contemplation Phase, a person does not even consider changing. It’s during those cold winter months when we need chocolate “to keep warm” and can’t even begin to contemplate giving up a 3rd mug of Milo. It could play out as a form of denial, or as an “I’ve given up” feeling because of many past failures. Trying is not an option. It’s everyone else that has the problem if they glance at my stacked plate. We might feel reluctant, rebellious, resigned or rationalise our current weight or eating habits.

• The Contemplation Phase follows, where we start thinking about a new behaviour or habit. We might be a bit more open to receiving information or looking at the situation we find ourselves in. However – there is much ambivalence about any proposed change. There’s a feeling of “I want to be thin” AND “I don’t want to do this”. There might be a sense of “I know I have to give up the chocolate/crisps/croissants, BUT…”  And there might already be a sense of loss or deprivation about what will have to be “given up”.

• In the Preparation Phase, a person has moved into making plans for changing. We might start looking for healthy meal plans, getting rid of the cookies in the tin (in small bits), or go and visit a gym to find out about programs they offer. In this Phase we still haven’t started the new diet and we’re certainly not taking the stairs instead of the elevator. We’re merely sampling, getting ready, dipping our toe and feeling our way into it. The major concern during this phase is “If I start, will I fail?”

• The Action Phase is finally where we make a noticeable change. We start our new diet (of course, usually on a Monday!), we visit the gym. We opt for healthier meals, say “no” to temptations and real change starts to happen. This is usually the only phase that we consider when we want to change. In the world we live in, action is applauded and people say things like “Don’t tell me, SHOW me!”  We mistakenly think that a new behaviour is as easy as just taking action. Not so, if you look at the millions of failed New Year’s Resolutions.

• People who are in the Maintenance/Relapse Phase, have started their new behaviour, diet, exercise programs or other actions more than 6 months ago. It’s here where we realise we’re in it for the “long haul”. We can become complacent in this stage and this is where we can sometimes think “Just this once surely won’t make a difference??” Most people find themselves cycling through the stages of change a few times before the changes become truly established.

• The Termination Phase is where you feel 100% sure that your new habit is established. Your body looks wonderful, you love eating healthily, you easily opt for the salad instead of “slap chips”. You can’t imagine that you could ever go back to the “old you”.

How can we use the Stages of Change Model to start our new habit easily?

• Be aware of what stage you’re in. If you’ve just decided today that maybe a diet is a good idea and you feel ambivalent, DON’T start your diet tomorrow. Go through the model again and move to the next level first.
• Give yourself plenty of time to prepare – create meal plans, work out a new schedule to include exercise, throw out or give away the unhealthy foods in the cupboard
• The goal of each phase is just to move to the next phase – nothing more. Don’t skip phases to hurry the process
• Important: For every phase – find an EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Practitioner that can help you work through the thoughts, feelings and memories of past failures. I mention EFT because it’s the single most effective form of “getting over stuff” that I have found. And it’s the “stuff” that keeps us stuck in the past.

EFT Tips for Each Stage:

Pre-Contemplation

• Work on the feeling of anger, intrusion, resistance or rebellion if it feels like others are making comments or criticizing your current behaviour (like eating too much, eating the wrong foods, not exercising).

Contemplation

• Work on ambivalence, fear of failure and the fear of loss.
• Ask yourself: “What would the consequences/reaction be when I start my new way of being?” This includes your own as well as that of others!
• We might be afraid of losing friends (who used to enjoy food with us), family might make comments, we fear deprivation, feeling left out. All of these feelings, if not sorted out, will cause us to stumble eventually!

Preparation

• Work on feelings of anxiety around the impending change. It’s also important to work on the anxiety around high-risk situations.
• What might happen if my friends invite me to have a pizza? Identify high risk areas, work on the anxiety around each and find possible alternatives.

Action

• Work on grief/loss issues. Eg the loss of a friend, missing a certain food, loss of being able to sleep in if you now go to gym early-morning.
• Work on irrational statements that might arise like “I have to be loved by everyone”, or “I can’t make mistakes” or “I’ll be a failure”.
• Work on assertiveness! You might have to find ways of saying “no” to situations you used to say yes to. This can lead to anxiety. Do EFT for the anxiety around saying “no”, and find a way to increase your skills in this area (a later article will cover many different ways to do this).

Maintenance

• Be aware of situations that may tempt you to slip back into selecting unhealthy food—particularly stressful situations. Be aware of self-blame, daily temptations and overconfidence!
• Make EFT a daily routine to tap away the stresses of each day – the chances of relapsing will decrease dramatically.

The simple fact is that most of us don’t eat when we’re hungry – we eat when life throws us challenges and we cover up the anxiety (or other uncomfortable emotions) this way.

Learning and using EFT and being aware of the Stages of Change can increase your success for new beginnings and change dramatically!

To find out more about EFT, go to www.eftacademysa.co.za or www.eftuniverse.com. On the EFT Academy website, free charts and information are available to get you started.

Liesel Teversham
Co-Founder, The EFT Academy of Southern Africa
www.eftacademysa.co.za
liesel@eftacademysa.co.za

 

 

Eating while sleeping? It’s probably a disorder.

Has this happened to you?

You woke up one morning, and you found that there were wrappers of candy bar all over your kitchen. Incidentally, your stomach aches and you see that you had chocolate smudges all over your hands and face. Your parents or your husband tells you that you are up all night long eating, but surprisingly, you don’t recall that you did so. Your parents or your husband seemed serious telling you that you actually ate all those chocolates. Is there an inside joke?

Probably not, In fact, the symptoms show that you probably have a night eating syndrome.

Night eating syndrome, also known as sleep-related eating, is considered by medical doctors as a parasomnia. It is not a frequent sleepwalking type. People suffering from this disorder have experiences of recurrent eating episodes while asleep, without actually being aware that they are actually doing it. This nocturnal eating syndrome might happen most of the time that it would show significant gain in your weight. Although this disorder can affect people in all ages and sexes, the sleep-related eating affects young women more than men.

What is night eating disorder?

Also known as nocturnal sleep-related eating disorder or NS-RED, night eating disorder is not an eating problem strictly speaking. It is known as a sleep disorder type that enables people to eat while seemingly asleep. While sleeping, they could eat while in bed, or in some cases, roaming around the house or staying at the kitchen.

The people suffering from this disorder are not conscious during NS-RED episodes. That is why night eating disorder is always related to sleepwalking. Being asleep, they do not know that they eat and cannot recall any incident of eating the night before. If at all, they can only remember in fragments. The NS-RED episode more or less occurs somewhere in a state between sleep and wakefulness.

When people suffering from night eating disorder learn that they have such a problem, they feel ashamed and embarrassed. Some, even with evidence presented by his or her family members, deny that they did that. They cannot believe that they could do such a thing and cannot admit to themselves that they could not control themselves.

The food consumed during the disorder periods are most likely to be high-sugar, high-fat food that people usually avoid when they’re awake. In some cases, there are those who eat bizarre food combinations, such as raw bacon partnered with mayonnaise, or hotdogs being dipped in a peanut butter. Some even eat non-food items such as soap in the same way they slice cheese.

How can you get NS-RED?

According to recent statistics, about three to nine people or about one to three percent of the total population are most likely to be affected by the disorder, with up to 15 percent of those who have eating disorders affected by night eating disorder.

Many of those affected by the syndrome diet (or at least try to) during the day, leaving them hungry and very weak to binge eating during the night when their control to achieve weight loss gets weakened by sleep. Some people have medical histories of drug abuse, alcoholism, and other sleep disorders such as restless legs, sleep apnea, and sleep walking. They often get tired upon waking up due to fragmented sleep. Many NS-RED cases seem to run along family lines.

How can you eat and unable to remember doing so?

Actually, that could really happen. While research on this disorder is still not that comprehensive, there is a high probability that there are parts of the brain that are truly sleeping even though some parts stay wide awake. Also asleep are the parts that regulate your waking consciousness, so it is no wonder that you cannot remember any memories of gorging on food on the night before.

Is NS-RED curable? What should you do if you have it?

Thank god, treatment is available for your night eating disorder. Treatment starts with a medical interview as well as spending a night or two in a good sleep-disorders center where you brain activity can be monitored. Medication is sometimes helpful, but you should avoid taking sleeping pills as they can aggravate your sleep disorder by adding to the clumsiness and confusion upon waking up and may cause you injury as can regular use of these pills.

Yes, there is treatment. It begins with a clinical interview and a night or two at a sleep-disorders center where brain activity is monitored. Sometimes medication is helpful, but sleeping pills should be avoided. They can make matters worse by increasing confusion and clumsiness that can lead to injury. Regular use of sleeping pills can also lead you to dependency. It would be better that you ask a doctor on what medication to take.

Nishanth Reddy is an author and publisher of many health related websites. Visit his website to know more about other Sleep Disorders like insomnia, sleep apnea, snoring, restless legs, narcolepsy.
Sleep Disorders Guide

It’s all in the air that we breathe.  The very thing that keep life going is also the carrier of allergens and harmful substances that could cause allergies and other respiratory ailments.  In order to get allergy and sinus relief, you have to make sure that the air that you are breathing is clean and free of any contaminants.

One way to do this is to install an air purifier in your home.  There are a number of models and designs of home air cleaners from different manufacturers.  Spending your hard earned money on an air purifier is well worth every penny especially as it is your health that is at stake.  Finding the best air cleaner that is efficient yet reasonably priced should not be all that hard.  Understanding your allergies vis-à-vis your environment could help you choose the right kind of equipment.

Based on studies, the most common sources of airborne allergens are pollens, molds, and other non-living organic waste materials.  Any one of these could trigger an allergic attack.  Unfortunately, it is not easy to identify exactly which allergen is causing your attack.  Even if you go for a costly allergen test, it is still very difficult to determine the extent of allergen presence that could trigger your attack.

The best way to avoid an allergic reaction altogether is to clean the air at least in areas where you can.  You can have an air purifier installed in your home or workplace to filter out all the possible allergens in the air.  Growths of mold and health hazards like microscopic dust mites, gaseous irritants, and pet dander among others would not be as harmful when they are taken out of the air that you breathe.

Indoor room air cleaners could be installed in your home or workplace depending on how big your space is and the amount of polluted air that gets into the space.  An efficient air cleaner would have to be installed in such a way that no pollutants are able to bypass the system.  Otherwise, you will likely be exposed to the same allergens over and over again.  Air purifiers for indoor use should target an air change rate of at least four per hour.

The most important part of these purifiers, perhaps, is the air filter.  The filters in your air purifier should be able to trap really small particles of allergens and irritants.  These contaminants have been measured down to about .1 micron to about 2.5 micron.  Only a HEPA purifier could deliver such filter efficiency.

For allergy and sinus relief, you have to choose from among the most trustworthy HEPA purifiers.  There are a lot of purifiers that claim to have HEPA filters.  Not all of these, however, deliver on what their product advertisements claim.

You have to choose only from brands that are reliable.  When it comes to your respiratory health, cost considerations should not take precedence over efficiency.  You simply have to find the best air purifier and then look for a source where you can get the unit for the most reasonable price.

Twenty-first century life can be defined using one word – stressful! The noise, the deadlines, money, expectations, and time restraints. Sleep deprivation and food cravings, where does it all end? As busy as we are, taking care of all the things that pass our way, the truth is that we create an enormous amount of stress for ourselves. Our minds are stress factories, constantly taking in information, processing it, and creating unnecessary panic that we add to our drained emotions.

The good news is that you can do something about this! The truth is, sometimes we just think too much. We spend hours thinking about things we have to do, things we want to say, things we want to buy or find, etc. We replay our mistakes over and over in our heads. No wonder we have no energy! Instead of using your time and energy storing all this stuff in your head, put your thoughts on paper.

1. Things to do
One wing of this mental stress factory is named, “Things I have to do.” Don’t rely on your memory to get you to all your important appointments. When it fails you you’ll be three times as upset. Maintain lists of things to do, and mark next to each task how long the task will take. Number tasks in the order in which you should perform them or group them by priority. This will help you break your larger projects into smaller tasks so they don’t seem overwhelming, and will prevent you from forgetting important deadlines.

When you assign each task a time limit, you can also schedule them right into your day planner. Then you can see that you only have to struggle through your thesis in thirty-minute increments, and then you’re free to go out and play. Bonus!

2. Things to say
The stress factory in our heads has another wing named, “What I want to say.” Amazing creatures as we are, we regularly spend hours and hours thinking about conversations, arguments, presentations, and situations in our head. At the end of it all, we’re entirely exhausted, and the real work hasn’t even begun!

If you’re stuck on a conversation with yourself, write it down. You’ll remove the worry of trying to remember what you’re going to tell your boss when you give your notice, or how to phrase that difficult question to your son. Your mind will be free to move on to other, more important and enjoyable tasks.

3. Learning experiences
The most challenging output that you get from this stress factory comes from the wing titled, “What I did wrong.” Life is one learning experience after another, cunningly disguised as something we like to call “failure.” In the age of better-faster-stronger-first, we’re not encouraged to make mistakes. The winning ticket goes to those who can do it right the first time, straight out of the chute. Just because this mindset is popular doesn’t make it right, and when we don’t get the results we expected, we’re overly harsh about it.

Just like a conversation, work out your situation on paper. What happened? How did it happen? What did you learn? What questions will you ask next time? What do you need to complete the experience? End your journaling with a short note to yourself, congratulating yourself on being smart enough to allow yourself to learn something new. This is the essence of self-growth, which all strong and intelligent people must accept and embrace.

We know how self-defeating our negative thoughts can be, but who would have thought that most of these thoughts could be tamed so easily? Practice these techniques often, and enjoy the lifestyle that comes with having less stress and anxiety. All it takes is paper and a pen!

Kimberly Dawn Wells is a freelance writer and author of several non-fiction books in the areas of business and personal development. To find Kimberly’s books, visit http://www.kimberlydawnwells.com. For more articles by Kimberly, visit http://www.k23enterprises.com/articles.

A recent study shows that two third of women suffer from hair loss at some point of their life. However, such hair issues are more severe in men than in women. Hair and health experts suggest many ways to prevent hair problems.

Believe it or not but one of the natural remedies that is said to have an effect on the loss of hair is to rub onion juice into the head. This procedure should stimulate the growth of the hair and might have some positive affects on the loss of hair as well. Rubbing onion juice is not a solution for everyone as onion juice will make your eyes water and has a terrible smell – so don’t leave your house with onion juice in your hair.

The essential aromatic oils of the herbs like jojoba, lavender, aloe vera, cedar wood, grape fruit etc. are very useful in treating this condition. Massaging of these oils on the scalp improves the blood circulation and helps in hair growth.

A woman’s hormone levels can affect the rate at which her hair grows. If there is a shift in the amount of hormones in the blood, the hair can start thinning. This can be caused by childbirth, the use of birth control pills, menopause, or thyroid disorders. In these instances, a hair growth treatment may not be necessary. The hair will often start to grow back on its own after the hormonal levels return to normal.

Coconut oil and almond oil are effective in stopping hair loss and in stimulating growth. Lavender oil, if used at least three times a week, increases hair growth significantly. You can also mix various oils together and massage your scalp with the product that resulted. Make sure to also add some olive oil because this will make your hair grow healthy and look shinny.

One of the major factors of hair loss is due to low blood circulation, according to many hair loss experts. The easiest way to improve the blood circulation in your scalp is by massaging and kneading your scalp a few times a day. By doing so, you will be able to improve the blood circulation in the scalp area and hopefully this will slow down the thinning and balding of your hair.

before you start trying any home based remedy to arrest your hair fall problem you should first put a finger on the root cause of your problem. Androgenic alopecia otherwise known as pattern baldness in men and women is the root cause for many people to experience hair loss. This condition is due to the presence of high amounts of the hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the body. This hormone prevents the hair follicles from receiving any nutrition which leads to them becoming weak and thus hair falling.

 

As one gets older, human development deteriorates and one of the aspects that are mostly affected is the memory. People tend to be forgetful due to the reality that the cells decline when one becomes aged. Disease is also inevitable when one gets older thus mental health is also affected consequently resulting to poor memory.

Research results revealed that foods containing antioxidants could be of great help in internal cleaning, stimulating brain activity, improving the immune system and helping in oxygen circulation. Moreover, experts say that foods rich in Vitamin C, B12 and B6 help improve your memory. Various foods contain the said vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and they are easily available in the supermarket or at your own backyard.

Take three servings of fish such as salmon and sardines every week.  They are rich in Omega 3 that prevents the brain cells inflammation.

Include spinach on your list because it is rich in folic acid that prevents mental illnesses brought about by aging. Take at least a half cup of it daily to prevent you from having an Alzheimer’s disease.

Antioxidants are present in green leafy vegetables, preferably the dark ones. Experts say the darker the leaves are, the more nutritious they are. Never overcook the vegetables because antioxidant property and nutrients tend to diminish when done well.

Blueberries pose great memory boosting powers because of its anthocyanin- a phytochemical that promotes healthy body.

Fisetin, a yellow substance needed by the body is present in strawberries, cherries and blueberries.

Coffee lovers will be happy to know that opposing to what people say coffee is a good beverage because it has antioxidants and stimulates brain activity.

When eating apples, just wash it with clean water and eat as it is, do not take off its peelings. Quercetin, which prevents memory loss, is concentrated on its peelings than the flesh itself.

Red onions have higher amount of phytochemicals than yellow and white onions.

Nasunin, an antioxidant that guards brain cells, is present in eggplant.

Aside from being an herb, rosemary is an excellent memory stimulant and has the capability to defend the brains from neurodegenerative disorders.

Take moderate amount of grapes; otherwise eating too much of it will overturn its beneficial effects.

 Minimize your intake of processed meat products. Instead take plenty of fish, fruits and vegetables. Train yourself to include nutritious food in your everyday menu by creating a meal that is healthy and helpful to your memory too. You can also teach the kids as early as now to enjoy eating fish, fruits and vegetables to prevent their bodies from diseases and avoid having memory problems at their young age. Improve your memory by recreating a list of healthy nutritious and delicious foodstuff. Check your list if you have the foods cited above and if none, include them the next time you go to the supermarket. You can start now, choose from a variety of foods needed by the body and it will surely lighten your burden of memory loss.

 

The next time you see a pesky dandelion interfering with the perfection of your lawn, you might want to reconsider your first reaction to spray it with weed killer. That little weed is actually an incredible source of vitamins and other substances that can be greatly beneficial to your health. Many people still don’t realize that the dandelion is even edible, much less are they aware of the amazing benefits this natural herb can have on their health.

Dandelion contains a significant amount of vitamin A and potassium, as well as moderate amounts of vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin D, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, zinc, and manganese. All of these substances can be beneficial to your health, but the dandelion also provides a more specific health benefit. Dandelion can actually act as a gentle and natural diuretic that aids in the function of the entire digestive system, including the function of the kidneys, gallbladder, bowels and more. It can aid in treating constipation and water retention.

Dandelion leaves can be eaten directly from the plant, but their bitter taste makes them less than appealing to the average person. It is better to boil the leaves and add them to salads, vegetable dishes, pasta dishes, and various casseroles. You can also purchase dandelion tablets from various herbal stores and online centers.

Always be sure to consult with your doctor before taking in any new supplement. As beneficial as dandelion can be to your health, it is not for everyone. Those with digestive issues such as gallstones and ulcers should take special care with dandelion and should only ingest it under the supervision of their doctor.

There are quite a few benefits associated with dandelion, and many people can benefit from its use. Now that you are more familiar with the advantages of this herb, the next time you spot a dandelion in your lawn, you might find yourself eating it instead of trying to get rid of it.

Visit Susan’s website A 2 Z of Health and Beauty for information on health and beauty, nutrition, fitness, skin care, weight loss and more.

*** This article can be freely used as long as a link to “A 2 Z of Health and Beauty” (http://health.learninginfo.org) is provided.