Health tips for the mind, body and spirit
Here are some of my best tips for a healthier, happier you. All of these tips I practice myself and, in them, I have found great relief, health and benefit. I encourage you to explore as many of these as possible and I am positive that, if implemented, they will improve your life.
Health tips for your mind:
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Take off your time piece. Do not wear a watch and just listen to what your body says
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Try not to be controlled by other peoples' time. It is ok to delay a decision or not do something until you feel up to it
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If you cannot work, but have enough energy to do a little, why not do some volunteering? It may make you feel better to get out and do something different
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Keep a gratitude journal. I have encouraged people who come to hear me speak at conferences to write about two positive things each day, against one negative. If we are all able to see, hear, talk, eat, have water, have food, have a home, have shelter, have our family and friends and just be alive, with the hope for a better tomorrow, we have something to be grateful for
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Write something positive in a book or place a post-it note in a jar and read back all the wonderful things in your life, each week
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Keep a health diary to see your progress or where you need to improve
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Even when you are in pain or weak, try to think of something positive or what makes you laugh the most
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Watch something you find funny to help you stay positive and take your mind away from the feeling of being ill
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Tell someone about how you feel. Do not suffer in silence. Get counselling if you need to
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Communicate honestly
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Get enthusiastic about your shower by using a natural shower gel that smells and makes you feel good (LUSH have some beautiful smelling gels)
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Boost your mood by listening to your favourite music
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Watch your favourite childhood series, movie and boost your endorphins
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Use aromatherapy oils to boost your mood. They make you feel energised, calm and relaxed. Try lavender, chamomile, sandalwood, or lemon (You can buy the oils as a mist, spritz or a diffuse)
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Use YouTube and watch the dancing hamster or whatever works for you. A good laugh will raise your blood pressure and enhance your heart rate, which can pump you up when you are feeling tired
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Keep crimson flowers in your sight. Seeing something scarlet can actually give you a burst of energy. So, go out and smell the flowers or get some in your home
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Give yourself a birthday treat. Buy the best present you can afford for yourself. See yourself as the most important person on that day
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Make a colour shift; wear brighter colours to boost your mood. Colour is said to have energy. Especially the colour red, it affects the brain. Wear warm colours to bring warmth to you
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Get yourself a beautiful Christmas gift. It does not have to be expensive
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Make a list of 12 goals and try to aim for 1 goal each month
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Stay connected with the ones you love most
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De-clutter your computer desktop. It can be a constant drain when you have lots of icons and other programs giving you visual stimulation
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Stop unwanted subscriptions. If you need to, get someone to help you to stop them
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Do not lose the child inside of you
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Help others when you can
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Acknowledge people
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Pay close attention to what people say and appreciate their kindness. However, pay more attention to what people do. Actions speak louder than words and you need to make sure that the people around you are actually helping you when you need it
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Apologise when you do wrong
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Do not complain
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Find the best in everyone
Health tips for the body:
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Eat more protein than carbs, because it makes you feel fuller for longer
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High energy snacks include tuna fish, nuts, leftover chicken, hard boiled eggs and cheese (non-dairy goats I would recommend)
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Eat wild salmon fish. The most common farm-raised fish (catfish, tilapia, and salmon) all have low or very low mercury levels
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Try having a nutritional shake for breakfast. Try using a NutriBullet or its equivalent. The roughage will benefit your body. Or have some fruit juice too.
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Have your supplements, alongside your juice
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Have some warm water each morning, before anything else, to flush away toxins
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Drink water with fresh lemon. This stimulates the liver and detoxes the body
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Snack on seeds to sustain energy
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Try eating beans and lentils to get through the day
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Take coenzyme Q10 and other supplements to boost your energy
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Zap energy-draining organisms with probiotics; try Symprove and BioCare Probiotics
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Eat organ meat like liver, to boost your energy
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Detox the body with Apple cider vinegar
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Use blackstrap molasses for a boost of iron in your diet
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Chia seeds are packed with B vitamins, fibre and protein and are a good pick me up. Some people have it with yogurt
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Omega 3 fatty acids, found in food like salmon, improve your mood, brain function and help some people to avoid a midday slump. There are plenty of supplements. Vegetarians can use Flaxseeds
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Vitamin D is vital for your recovery, as it helps to improve mood. Try two or three drops of 1000iu per drop. BioCare based in Birmingham (and found on the internet) is a good brand
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Eat lots of greens
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Eat organic if you can
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Eye washing can be used to improve the eyesight and make you feel better. My client, Robert, uses a sterile solution eye wash to get rid of the multiple irritants that his (and all of our) eyes can be exposed to throughout the day, such as dust, grit and pollutants
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Reduce your pain with the use of heat. The sun is great and saunas are a really great alternative during the winter months
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Do alternate nostril breathing to boost your energy
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Place a teaspoon of organic coconut oil in your month and do oil-pulling. Essentially, oil pulling is swishing some organic coconut oil around your mouth for around 20 minutes a day. It helps to elevate the pain in your throat and get rid of bacteria in your mouth (a bonus is that it also whitens your teeth)
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Wash your mouth to ease the pain with hydrogen peroxide (3% or 6%). If you cannot find it in it is pure form some mouth washes like Colgate Peroxyl have it in
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Try using a Chi machine (aerobic exercise device), an alternative to walking, to get the body moving. Benefits also include temporary muscle pain relief, increase in local blood circulation and oxygen via gentle motion of the entire body, energy increase, mental focus, stable back support alignment and it promotes lymph drainage
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Exercise a little at a time, according to how you feel, rather than a full workout. Often this is too much and causes a set back
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Practice Yoga. It increases energy, promotes relaxation and sleep, aids detoxifying the body, and helps you to focus so that you can better organise your thoughts - unsure about this
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Minimise the time you spend on your desktop. It depletes your energy
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Have sex side by side with your partner, it takes less energy
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Limit the time spent on electronic devices. Too much time with electronics will drain your energy and may cause you more pain
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Do a little dance to your favourite music
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Get a Lymphatic massage to drain away the toxins in your body
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Try Emotional Energy Tapping (EFT) to release emotions and free up energy
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Try Light Therapy. Light affects the receptors in the brain that produce serotonin. If you cannot get out, try using a SAD lamp. Especially during the winter months. (10,000 lux is best)
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Do not mind the yawn! Yawning is the body’s way of cooling down the brain and, essentially, waking it up
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Energise your body by doing some Qi Gong. Start off with an introductory practice. I started with 'Smile Qigong', which is specifically for people with ME, by Ron Prescott and Linda Jones
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Energise your body by using magnesium salts in the bath, and use magnesium supplements, creams and oils on the body to boost your magnesium levels
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Go to sleep an hour earlier
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Take a 10-20 minute nap during the day. This will boost your energy levels for the rest of the day
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Use meditation recordings to calm your mind
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Do stretch exercises early each day, after you have had some water and juice
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Walk at least 10–15 minutes outdoors, each day
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Make the best of the sunshine. Try and spend 10 minutes, every day, in the sun
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Breathe the right way for better energy
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Try using a salt pipe, especially if breathing problems often keep you awake or you struggle to enjoy summer weather because of allergies
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Energise yourself each day by brushing your body with a bath brush, before having a shower
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Rest whenever your body is telling you to do so
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Unplug and switch off electrical appliances before going to sleep, for a more restful sleep
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Stop and listen to what your body is saying to you and PACE yourself
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Take a cold shower. It produces natural analgesic, which has pain killing effects that can ease muscle aches and pains. It also raises your metabolic rate, which can reduce fatigue and increase energy
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Revive your energy by having acupuncture. It is used specially to treat musculoskeletal problems such as back pain and neck pain, nausea, migraine headaches, anxiety, depression, and insomnia
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Strengthen your body and improve your posture with osteopathy. It is a form of drug-free, non-invasive, manual medicine, that focuses on total body health by treating and strengthening the musculoskeletal framework. Which includes the joints, muscles and spine. It positively affects the body's nervous, circulatory and lymphatic systems
Health tips for your spirit:
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Every day visualise yourself well again
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Pay attention to your personal and spiritual growth, to give you joy, enthusiasm and optimism
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Remove chemical toxins out your life, the best you can
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Try to smile every day. Think of the best time in your life, the most beautiful place in the world or the best person you know, and what they would say
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High energy people cultivate an attitude of enthusiasm and optimism. These characteristics will serve you well, if you, too, try to cultivate them
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Ditch the energy vampires. Stay away from people who leave you depleted
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Meditate and calm your mind
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Make a promise to yourself about something positive you will do before you die
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Make peace with your gremlins
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Take the time to dress up at least once a week. Put on your best clothes and go somewhere nice. You will feel like a millionaire
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Practice Mindfulness. Ditch multi-tasking
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Be selfless not selfish
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Have fun
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Listen
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Learn to love yourself
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Give yourself the gift of life. Never give up!