Your body was not designed to become ill.
When we take care of our bodies, our bodies take care of us.
“Cold and Flu” is not a season.
High sugar intake is a season with buckets of Halloween candy, desserts on Thanksgiving, events surrounded by Christmas cookies, sweets at every holiday gathering, chocolates on Valentine’s Day & more desserts for Easter.
High stress is a season with family members who don’t get along, celebrations to coordinate among multiple households, perfect presents to find, money that shouldn’t be spent, food to prepare, shopping to do, places to be & schedules that are packed.
When we get busy, self care is the first thing to go. Morning lemon water, yoga stretches, regular sleep, nutritious breakfasts, veggies throughout the day, sufficient water intake.
70% of your immune system is in your gut. Nourishing your gut health is a top priority when it comes to maintaining a thriving immune system.
Probiotic before bed THEN 8oz lemon water right out of bed THEN protein for breakfast THEN morning coffee (organic, if you can). (This is my favorite probiotic and this is my favorite gut-loving coffee.)
Manage your stress with time carved out just for you. 10 minutes first thing in the morning before the day starts, 15 minutes before crawling into bed. However it works best in your schedule.
Quiet your mind. Read a chapter in a book for pleasure. Look up a video for some gentle yoga. Sit in stillness and pray or meditate. Go for a walk around the block. (This is my current favorite quick yoga video.)
Turn off your phone. Keep the screens off for a while. Don’t check your notifications first thing in the morning. Start your day slowly.
As tempting as it may be, limit sugary, processed foods as much as possible. These wreak havoc on your gut, which means they wreak havoc on your immune system.
Stay active during colder months. Make sure you’re getting at least 7 hours of sleep at night. Prioritize Vitamin D levels and water intake. (This is my favorite Vitamin D supplement and this is what I carry my water around in.)
And irony of ironies, worrying about getting sick makes you more susceptible to getting sick.
That dreaded question on every medical form: “Do you exercise regularly?”
Oof. Is that convicting or what? This probably isn’t something that you’re thinking of on a daily basis, but when you’re flat out asked the question, you’re forced to reflect.
“Do you exercise regularly?”
Less than 1 in 4 people do.
I feel like a big reason for this is that we are simply not taking our health seriously enough. We’re not putting ourselves first, not making ourselves a priority. We “don’t” have time - but of course we know we’re just not making the time.
You make time for what’s important to you. Period.
The other reason I can think of is that it’s just plain daunting. You feel like you have to jump right into this routine of working out an hour a day, 7 days per week - but you don’t!
This is something I’ve been guilty of, I’ll admit. I fall out of an exercise routine for one reason or another, tell myself I need to jump back in (with a consistency of 5-7 days per week) & then I procrastinate until I'm sure I can get it perfect.
I’m a master procrastinator.
I procrastinate because it’s daunting to start a “routine”.
There’s a sense of commitment that comes with the word.
But here’s the thing: You don’t need to work out every day to say you exercise “regularly”. At least that’s how I see it.
What’s important is that you start. You can start with ONE day per week. Work your way up to 3. Maybe you’ll make your way up to 5. You might even find a form of exercise that you LOVE and you actually start to crave every day!
Or maybe you’ll find a few things you enjoy and you’ll spread them out throughout the week! Especially now that spring is upon us - thank you God for warmer weather! (Hello there, walks and bike rides!)
I love to do yoga at home. It’s not a huge commitment to just roll out your mat and follow a free 15-30 minute YouTube video. GOING to the yoga studio and committing to a hour long practice, yes, can be SO good for the soul, but it’s not something I can easily commit to in this season of life.
Something I recently started is Pilates! I’ve been loving that too. It’s not something that requires a supportive sports bra, tied up gym shoes or really even much of a sweat. And yet my whole body feels “worked” at the end of the 30 minute session. That's my kind of workout.
Pretty much any form of exercise I can do barefoot is more my vibe. I know this about myself, and I work with it.
If you don't know what your vibe is yet, I encourage you to try different things until you finally find what you truly enjoy! Or reach out to me and I'll help you figure out what your workout style is!
If you loved this blog post, there's more where that came from in my free Facebook group here. You'll want to get in there soon because that's where I'll be launching a 5 Day Eczema Relief Training this month!
Want to get a head start? You can also grab my new guide on 5 Steps to Taming an Eczema Flare Up here!
Stress management is huge. It impacts your whole world. How you talk to others, how you talk to yourself, how your food digests, the overall health of your body.
A body with well-managed stress is a lot healthier than a body that’s in fight or flight all the time.
And if you’re having gut health issues (eczema, acne, anxiety, headaches, fatigue), it’s that much more important to get your body out of fight or flight and into rest and digest.
Not to mention you just FEEL a million times better when you’re managing your stress appropriately.
Here are some of my favorite ways to manage stress:
1. Meditation
This is something I’ve only just started doing, but I’m already a huge fan. I’ve been starting with a 10 minute guided meditation, and I notice a massive difference in my stress (and patience) levels. I’m less likely to be triggered by things that usually annoy the heck out of me when I’ve done my meditation that morning. And I’m only 4 days in.
2. Yoga
It’s the stretching and the breath work. I have a feeling of zen I carry with me when I finish my yoga practice.
3. Connect with the Earth
Take your shoes and socks off, stand in the grass & just feel for a few minutes.
4. Essential oils
There are the obvious ones like Stress Away and Lavender, but Palo Santo and other tree oils are very grounding. Frankincense is another one that’s earthy and grounding. Valor and Peace & Calming are great ones to use too. Diffuse them, rub a couple drops together in your palms and take the scent in, put a drop or two on your wrists - there’s really no wrong way to do it. As long as you’re breathing in the scent, it’s working.
5. Sleep
Sometimes, you just need a good sleep. Take a nap, get 8-9 hours in, or just get under the covers and rest your eyes.
If you can find a way to work these into your daily routine, you'll be much better off - I promise! Which of these do you see yourself working into your morning routine? Your wind down routine? What are some of your favorite ways to manage stress? Let me know in the comments below.
A body with well-managed stress is a lot healthier than a body that’s in fight or flight all the time.
And if you’re having gut health issues (eczema, acne, anxiety, headaches, fatigue), it’s that much more important to get your body out of fight or flight and into rest and digest.
Not to mention you just FEEL a million times better when you’re managing your stress appropriately.
Here are some of my favorite ways to manage stress:
1. Meditation
This is something I’ve only just started doing, but I’m already a huge fan. I’ve been starting with a 10 minute guided meditation, and I notice a massive difference in my stress (and patience) levels. I’m less likely to be triggered by things that usually annoy the heck out of me when I’ve done my meditation that morning. And I’m only 4 days in.
2. Yoga
It’s the stretching and the breath work. I have a feeling of zen I carry with me when I finish my yoga practice.
3. Connect with the Earth
Take your shoes and socks off, stand in the grass & just feel for a few minutes.
4. Essential oils
There are the obvious ones like Stress Away and Lavender, but Palo Santo and other tree oils are very grounding. Frankincense is another one that’s earthy and grounding. Valor and Peace & Calming are great ones to use too. Diffuse them, rub a couple drops together in your palms and take the scent in, put a drop or two on your wrists - there’s really no wrong way to do it. As long as you’re breathing in the scent, it’s working.
5. Sleep
Sometimes, you just need a good sleep. Take a nap, get 8-9 hours in, or just get under the covers and rest your eyes.
If you can find a way to work these into your daily routine, you'll be much better off - I promise! Which of these do you see yourself working into your morning routine? Your wind down routine? What are some of your favorite ways to manage stress? Let me know in the comments below.
If this was helpful for you, join my Facebook group where you can find more wellness tips – free of charge. <3
You can also grab my free guide on 3 Easy Steps to Lose Weight and Feel Amazing here.
Have you ever had such a busy weekend that you’re more exhausted than rejuvenated once it’s over?
Or when you get back from a trip and feel like you “need a vacation from your vacation.” Have you been there?
What about when you’ve had to put in HOURS of overtime at work and you’re just SO burnt out?
My suggestion to you…is not to just push through these feelings of overwhelm. My suggestion to you is to take care of yourself. Listen to your body. Take a personal day. Dedicate a day to doing absolutely nothing.
It’s okay to not have productive days. The funny thing is, having non-productive days can make you have more productive days. Knowing when to give yourself a break is self-intuition. It’s self-care. Self-love.
Your body is talking to you always. You just need to love yourself enough to listen and give your body what it needs.
The majority of health issues these days are stress related. Which means they’re lifestyle related. Which means we have the power to take back control!
If you’re not sure what to do on your “personal day” here are some of the things I do:
1. Clean. Sometimes I just need a day to catch up on housework. Dishes, vacuuming, laundry. This isn’t exactly “doing nothing” but sometimes it’s really just what I need.
2. Stay in your pajamas ALL. DAY. LONG.
3. Sleep in. Or take an afternoon nap. Or both.
4. Indulge in some Netflix binging.
5. Aromatherapy. Breathe in relaxing essential oils like lavender, stress away, orange.
6. Yoga. It’s awful but when life gets busy, self-care practices are the first to go. But this is when we need it most! When I fall out of my yoga routine, my muscles tense up. My neck, back & shoulders especially. And after my body has had enough of my ignoring of this need, it screams for attention via a massive headache and very stiff neck.
It’s okay to have days where you do nothing. Don’t forget to treat yourself like someone you love, take care of yourself & give your body what it’s asking for.
If this was helpful for you, join my Facebook group where you can find more wellness tips – free of charge. <3
You can also grab my free guide on 3 Easy Steps to Lose Weight and Feel Amazing here.
This is your reminder to take care of yourself. You cannot pour from an empty cup. We can be so quick to take care of others, sometimes we forget to take care of ourselves.
I’ve seen this a lot in my life.
My dogs eat better than I do. I make sure my husband has lunches prepped for the week. I make sure my stepdaughter is getting enough sleep and eating enough vegetables. She doesn’t get dessert before dinner. Not because I’m mean – because I care. Because I know better.
Why shouldn’t I be treating myself with the same love and care? The answer? I SHOULD.
In order to care best for those around you, you need to make sure you’re caring for yourSELF. Self-care is not selfish. Self-care is nothing to feel guilty about. Self-care is a necessity. No one has the capacity to care for you the way you know to care for yourself.
Here are 25 examples of acts of Self-Care to get your wheels turning on what this may look like for you:
1. Make your bed in the morning
2. Make sure you have healthy, nourishing food in the house
3. Do yoga
4. Exercise
5. Go to bed early
6. Wake up early
7. Sleep in
8. Take a nap
9. Diffuse essential oils
10. Meditate
11. Meal prep
12. Wash your hair
13. Spend time in your hobby
14. Watch a Romantic Comedy
15. Have a Harry Potter marathon
16. Go out on a date with a loved one
17. Clean your house
18. De-clutter your space
19. Redecorate
20. Get your hair done
21. Get your eyebrows threaded
22. Buy the more expensive, chemical free, plant based soap
23. Say no
24. Say yes
25. Snuggle
The list goes on and on and it’s completely individualized to one’s taste. What you do to take care of yourself is up to you. You know you best, after all. This week I challenge you to make yourself a priority EVERY DAY. Then notice how you feel and report back to me. <3
Was this helpful for you? Let me know in the comments below! You can also request to join my new Facebook group for more tips to come – free of charge. <3
