stress

Mindfulness 101

December 2, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

Mindfulness is something that may sound very mystic and out there to most people. You may think it is all about meditation and how to find out more about yourself. What you may be thinking is that you don’t have time or that the process just won’t do anything for you in your life. There are actually several things you should know about mindfulness before you toss it out the door as something that won’t work for you or isn’t for you. Here are a few of those key points.

Mindfulness Helps Focus

One of the key points to mindfulness is how it helps with focus. By working through the stages of mindfulness and learning different techniques, such as breathing, you will start to learn to focus on certain stages and aspects of your life. For example, instead of focusing on all of your tasks for the day, the week, your friends tasks, and everything else going on you can focus on the task at hand and be present in that task. This allows you to get the task done quickly and easily.

Mindfulness Helps Stress

Stress can be brought on by a number of issues. One of the main issues is having too much on our task list and not enough time to focus on each item to completion. Other stressful aspects can be the outside influences of others including gossip and friends issues and problems. Mindfulness helps you by showing you ways and methods to avoid immediate reaction and instead focus on issues and decide what you need to take on and what you do not. For example, you can still be there for your fitness without allowing your friend’s issues to become your issues and cause more stress.

Mindfulness is a Routine

In addition to viewing mindfulness as a way to handle events and aspects of your daily life in order to be happier and less burdened, you should also remember that mindfulness is not a one time event. Mindfulness is not a quick fix and it is not a BandAid for your issues. Mindfulness is a routine that you incorporate into your life. By doing mindfulness techniques each day, you will find mindfulness becoming a part of you instead of something you just do.

This is just a very quick overview of mindfulness and what it can mean in your life. Consider these points along with some research on the benefits of mindfulness and how you can put it in your daily routine and life.

What is Mind Mapping

November 20, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

If you have ever been in the middle of a project, task for a client, or trying to organize the household budget and you can’t seem to focus then you have experienced the need for mind mapping. Mind mapping helps you take your jumbled mess of thoughts and organize them visually to help you focus on the task at hand and get to where you need to be with the task. If you have never used mind mapping, here are a few techniques and information about the process to help you get started.

Connecting the Chaos

One of the key benefits to using mind mapping techniques is to connect the chaos. Often times the chaos that seems unconnected actually is. For example, you may be thinking about the meeting you have the next day, but you are also thinking about your kids’ soccer practice alongside grocery shopping and dinner. Though this may not seem like a huge project to most people, to a busy entrepreneur and parent it can be uncontrolled chaos. Mind mapping helps you start at the center goal and work your way out, the whole time connecting the different aspects of your points of focus so you have a clear goal, starting, and ending point. You can see how your kid’s appointments now connect to the meeting.

Starting the Path

You may already know how things connect and what your end goal is. The problem for most people is getting started. When you do mind mapping, you can see where you normally would have started and work your way back from that point until you get to a more logical starting point. For example, you may know that your end goal is to produce a website for a client that allows for appointment scheduling. You may think that your starting point would be to just start with the basic template. With mind mapping you can discover that a more logical place would be to start with asking what type of scheduling and if drop down menus or fill in the blank are the best options for your client. This saves time that would have normally been spent reworking what you started with instead of starting where the client’s needs are based.

Finding a Goal

Sometimes you know what you want to do, but you don’t know exactly what the end goal needs to be to call the project complete. Your mind mapping can help with this. It can also help you develop a clearer path to that goal and a goal that is healthier and produces more happiness for you than you first imagined. You can see where the path is taking you and how the path may continue beyond your original thoughts.

You can use mind mapping for any task that you have. Don’t forget that mind mapping is not a set in stone method. If you need to adjust it or work on it, you can. You can adapt it to your new goals, changes, and what you need. It is to help you work out your chaos, not add to it.

Mind Mapping Resources

There are several free tools out there to help you get started with a digital mind map. However, I highly encourage you to take pens, colored pencils or makers to paper and create!

Why Sleep? Your Adrenals Need a Break

August 8, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

The “fight or flight” syndrome – you’ve heard of it, right? Accompanied with the image of the saber-toothed tiger dashing after a hunter, getting ready to attack. You often get into this situation, don’t you? In modern times, we’re not literally in that frantic position, but our bodies are often reacting as if we were fighting for our lives. Our adrenal glands, located on top of each kidney, are forced to work overtime in an effort to deal with stress from all sources: injury, disease, work, family, finances, environment, etc.

It’s hard to imagine these small endocrine glands, essentially the size of a walnut, responsible for the manufacture and secretion of vital hormones such as cortisol, estrogen and testosterone. The cortisol production is crucial for the body to combat stress. Whereas thousands of years ago the stress was a finite amount of time – you either outran the predator or survived or you were eaten – nowadays, stress seems to be a state of being for so many people.

Although not getting along with a boss or missing a bill payment are not life-threatening like the saber-toothed tiger, our bodies react to the stressors in a similar fashion. The body starts to feel unsettled. More and more cortisol is produced because the body believes it needs massive amounts of energy to run for its life. This happens over and over again throughout the day: getting the kids ready for school and getting yourself ready for work, traffic, spilling coffee on your new suit, your assistant calls in sick and you’ve got to send out 20 packages today, the babysitter is late picking up the kids from school and taking them to soccer practice, your late afternoon meeting runs over and you leave the office late so family dinner becomes you eating leftovers alone. And all this is going to happen again tomorrow!

Here’s the problem: chronic stress can overload the adrenal glands to the point of exhaustion. For some, the fatigue will become overwhelming and the adrenals will no longer function properly to provide the energy and resources the body needs on a day-to-day basis. When someone is exhausted, a natural suggestion is to get more sleep. That’s not always easy with adrenal problems because insomnia is a common symptom. There are, however, steps you can take to prepare yourself for sleep, which is certainly one of the best ways to refresh and rejuvenate your body, mind and spirit.

For better sleep and to heal your adrenal glands:

Go to bed at the same time every night between 10-10:30pm.
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine and sugar in late afternoon/evening (or remove them completely from your diet to avoid any rollercoaster-like blood sugar surges).
Keep a gratitude journal near your bedside. Every night, list five things for which you are grateful. Remind yourself that even though you may feel fatigued, there are wonderful aspects of your life and many reasons to heal.

Your adrenals depend on you to give them a break to reset and rest. Let me know how it goes!

5 Easy Self Care Tips

February 13, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

Self care is the act of loving yourself. Whether it is mind, body or spirit, it doesn’t matter as long as you are nurturing You. Dr. Chistiane Northrup says,

“You are responsible TO your life and health, not for your life and health.”

Amen. And Amen. What a powerful shift a simple preposition can make. We are responsible to our lives. Love this!

Once you understand the importance of self care and how to avoid the top three excuses for not scheduling in time for You, it’s time to implement. And implement with passion, Peeps! This is where intuition and self trust comes into play. You will know what feels right if you listen to your inner voice. Once you start taking care of You, it’s addictive and time will never be a factor again. Promise.

Five Fabulous Self Care Tips

1. Schedule quiet time. – Actually write it in ink on your calendar and if you don’t use one – start! I really dig meditation and music. They soothe my savage beast inside. Now that I do it regularly, everyone in my orbit is thankful and they never interrupt. Often they remind me before I have to remind myself. Powerful stuff. Seriously.

2. Take a hot bath. – This is so decadent to me but so simple. A 20 minute soak in an Epsom salt bath with a few drops of lavender, a candle, soothing music and I feel like a Queen. There’s a bonus here too. The Epsom salt helps you purge the toxins from the day.

3. Take yoga or exercise class. – Getting the body moving increases endorphins which help manage stress levels. You may need to try a few different classes, or instructors, until you find the right fit, but do something that gets you moving.

4. Journal. – This little tip is not so little in effect. Journaling is a powerful way to decompress and let yourself go. It can be in any form too! Some people keep a daily update of their lives, some write five things they’re thankful for each day and others still like to free flow and write whatever pops into their big beautiful brain that day. There are absolutely no rules. It’s all about You.

5. Get a massage. – A relaxing massage is not a frivolous activity for those with cha-ching. Massage provides health benefits; calms the nervous system, reduces tension and anxiety and improves blood circulation, which is the highway for delivering oxygen and nutrients to our cells. If you can’t swing it in the budget, make a deal with your partner to practice self care on each other.

Hopefully one, or all, of these tripped a trigger for you and your intuition is pointing you in a direction. Remember, self care is self love it isn’t selfish, it is necessary for radiant health.

Tips to Relax from Holiday Hoopla

December 26, 2014 by Joni Leave a Comment

Puh-wooooosh! That’s the sound of us all deflating after the holiday hustle. Do you feel it?

You’ve spent weeks rushing around and making sure you’ve gotten everything done for your friends and family, but there’s one gift left that you need to give yourself this season: the gift of a peaceful mind. If you could take just one day, or just part of one day, to relax your mind and body, you’ll be sure to close out this year on a good note. Here are some of my favorite ways to relax and recharge my peaceful mind batteries!

Tips to RELAX

Get Moving

Exercise is a fabulous stress and tension reliever. A nice walk outside is a great way to restore some peace of mind. If it’s too cold where you are, some yoga or simple heart rate boosting jumping jacks and pushups will do the trick. The exercise will increase your endorphins, which are known stress-reducers, and increasing blood flow helps you feel better, too.

Listen to Calming Music

Science backs me on this one. Scientists have found that music stimulates more parts of the brain than any other human function. Plus, my own empirical data proves certain music is just the thing to soothe the savage beast inside. Choose soothing sounds, not jarring combinations of notes, and just let it work its magic!

Conscious Breathing

I know that deep breathing can reduce stress and promote relaxation, calm and inner peace. By paying attention to your breath, you will rapidly change your state of consciousness, begin to relax, and slowly detach from ordinary awareness. Try this breathing exercise and see for yourself!

Take a Warm Bath

Don’t underestimate the effectiveness of a nice, warm bath. Once you glide into the water and your muscles voluntarily relax, your tension floats away. Adding a few drops of lavender essential oil will melt your cares away even further. Plus, who doesn’t enjoy a few moments of quiet alone time?

Essential Oils for Stress

Essential oils can be perfect for helping take the edge off your stress. Some of the best essential oils for this purpose are:
• Lavender
• Frankincense
• Chamomile
• Patchouli
• Wild Orange
(Find these 100% pure essential oils here.)
Some essential oils can be applied to the skin, but almost all can be used in essential oil diffusers.

Your Assignment

Some of us need permission to carve out some me-time. Well, here it is, Beautiful! Your decompress, relaxation plan for the post holiday hoopla. Go for a walk or get some sort of exercise to get your blood moving. Take a nice, warm soak in the tub with a few drops of lavender essential oil, as you are listening to your favorite relaxing music. While you are enjoying the soak, do some deep breathing exercises and feel the tension melt away.

When you are all finished, curl up on the couch with someone special and cuddle to your heart’s content! Being close to your loved one helps release oxytocin, and that helps reduce stress. Be sure to diffuse some relaxing essential oils while cuddling for added benefit.

If you follow my advice, the last few days of the year will feel much richer and clear your head to start setting intentions to make your new year FABULOUS!

Enjoy!

Humidifier, Vaporizer or Diffuser. . .

November 20, 2014 by Joni Leave a Comment

Humidifier, Vaporizer or Diffuser…What’s The Difference?

Ready to diffuse your essential oils but not sure where to start? You’ve probably heard of humidifier and vaporizer, but the word diffuser may be new to you. There is a difference between the three, so think about them as tools used for different conditions. Here’s a simple explanation of the differences for your reference, and why you’ll want to make sure you always have a diffuser for essential oils.

The Basics

Humidifiers – vaporize water into the air. Increasing the amount of moisture in any one area. The ultimate purpose of a humidifier: To increase humidity by heating water and oils. Using oils with a humidifier can often “break apart” the full benefit you can receive from essential oils due to excess heat. Giving you less than a 100% effect.

Warning: Make sure your humidifier is actually made for the use of essential oils. Some EO’s can eat away at some plastics, and therefore ruin your machine. Be sure your machine is EO friendly.

Vaporizers – boil water, releasing moisture and steam into the air. Any liquid including that of essential oils when added to them will change into a vapor or a gas and be released into the air as a steam. The ultimate purpose of a vaporizer: Is to increase moisture and is used for individual inhaling treatment purposes by heating water and oils. Warning: Make sure you are using a vaporizer that is actually made for the of use essential oils. Some EO’s can eat away at some plastics, and therefore ruin your machine. Be sure your machine is EO friendly. If your vaporizer is not made for EO’s you can also lose the effectiveness of your oil.

Diffusers – are made up of many forms, shapes & sizes and are used almost solely for the purpose of diffusing EO’s for all types of aromatherapy purposes. This includes, but are not limited to: electric diffusers, ceramic diffusers, lamp rings, etc. Most Electric EO diffusers are designed to vaporize a micro fine mist, dispersing a cold air misting effect, scattering and spreading water molecules combined with EO’s. These very fine water droplets give the EO’s a ride in the air so to speak. Electric diffusers do not create heat to create “steam” to dispense oils. Ultimate Purpose of a Diffuser: Is to disperse essential oils into a large area to create a therapeutic effect on respiratory systems, and aromatic effect in any room.

Why should I diffuse?

I suppose it was presumptuous to think you already know the why. Maybe you do, but if not, here’s the scoop.

Aromatherapy is the practice of using the natural oils extracted from flowers, bark, stems, leaves, roots or other parts of a plant to enhance psychological and physical well-being.The inhaled aroma from these “essential” oils is widely believed to stimulate brain function. Essential oils can also be absorbed through the skin, where they travel through the bloodstream and can promote whole-body healing. It is used for a variety of applications, including pain relief, mood enhancement and increased cognitive function. And now you know!

What should I diffuse?

I love to experiment and you should too! Here are some we’ve tried…

When Cassis or Cinnamon is diffused it can help with fevers, colds, flu, low vitality, chills and will support the digestive system.

Put a few drops of Eucalyptus in a diffuser to ease bronchitis, flu and hay fever.

Frankincense when diffused creates a YUMMY pleasant fragrance, yet at the same time may be beneficial with bronchitis, headaches and pneumonia.

If you’re plagued with headaches, mental exhaustion and depression, Grapefruit is a great pick-me-up.

Diffusing Lavender oil may support the body’s natural defense against airborne sensitivities to the skin and immune system. It can create a very relaxing atmosphere.

Lemongrass oil diffused can be used for nervousness and as an insect repellant. It is also great to revive the mind when feeling lethargic and to energize and relieve fatigue.

To promote sleep and feelings of peace, diffuse Marjoram. Can also prove to be beneficial when diffused for asthma, bronchitis, poor circulation, coughs, physical exhaustion, headaches, tension, insomnia, sinusitis, anxiety, nervous tension and stress.

Wild Orange when diffused can assist with colds, flu, nervous tension and relaxing for children at bedtime.

Diffuse Peppermint or Rosemary oil in the room while studying to improve concentration and accuracy.

If you want a calming and relaxing atmosphere, diffuse Ylang Ylang.

Diffuse Purify to clean the air and neutralize foul or stale odors.

To help stop nocturnal teeth grinding, diffuse Calming Blend while sleeping, also to calm overactive or hard-to-manage children.

And of course you can diffuse your favorite oil or blend of oils to enjoy a freshly scented room! Let me know if you have a favorite…