Tag: health

food · life curation

Free Online Courses for Improved Wellness

MstldelanoLeave a comment

One of the pleasant side effects of our current crisis is the increased interest in improving our health through natural methods. If we can employ safe, effective natural remedies to complement conventional (Western) medical treatment, then maybe we can promote better health, improved vitality and increased longevity.

In my desire to learn more about natural remedies (as you know, I’ve been studying The Women’s Herbal Apothecary by JJ Pursell), I took to the Web to see what complimentary courses I could find to deepen my knowledge. I was delighted by what I found!

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Coursera is currently offering a five-part specialization program in Integrative Health and Medicine. Each of the five courses in this program covers a different aspect of using alternative medicine to support overall wellness. I’ve signed up for a couple of the courses because I’m very interested in what will be taught! The course will be taught by University of Minnesota professors, so you can be assured that what you will learn is akin to what may be taught in a course on campus. You can either sign up for a paid subscription to Coursera or you can audit the courses, which allows you to view the instructional material for free but does not offer a certification if you complete the assignments in a timely fashion.

Another fantastic course that I found while searching for free online alternative medicine courses is this free Introduction to Aromatherapy course offered by Aromahead. I really like the fact that this is a self-paced course, so you can complete it as you have the time available to do so. I have a small collection of essential oils so I’m excited to learn more about tapping into their power and harnessing the maximum benefit.

Finally, the American Herbalist Guild has generously provided a library of archived webinar materials for free. This may be great for you if you don’t want to commit to a full-fledged course but still want to learn more about herbs and natural remedies. I like that these concentrated teaching sessions can help you get targeted information about a specific topics. 

There are many more free online herbal and alternative medicine courses that you can find by simply doing a Google search, but these were my favorites that I wanted to share with you.

I hope you all are having a great day! Take care, and I’ll be back tomorrow.

 

 

(This post contains affiliate links)

 

beauty · life curation

Getting Gorgeous, Inside and Out

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One of my not-so-guilty pleasures has been looking at YouTube videos for beauty, style and life advice. As you all recall, I love watching mature YouTubers give their tips and tricks for living well. Along with the mature ladies, I also check out the younger women that are making great content on YouTube.

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A few of my recent favorite videos have been around the topic of “glowing up” during the quarantine. This concept – improving our looks while we stay home – is very popular because many of us FINALLY have time to do all of the beauty treatments, fitness routines, and dietary changes that we’ve always wanted to try. So, since we have the time, why not?

Here are a couple of my favorite videos featuring how to “glow up”, both on the inside and the outside (because having a beautiful exterior and broken interior is not the goal: wholistic/holistic health and beauty is what we’re creating!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

health

Fibro Fridays: Nervine Herbs

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In the quest to reduce my fibromyalgia symptoms and treat my condition with as few chemicals as possible, I’ve began exploring and experimenting with natural supplements. I don’t claim that these options will work for everyone, but for those that are curious, there are certain plants that may relieve some of the common symptoms associated with fibro.

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I have been reviewing The Woman’s Herbal Apothecary by JJ Pursellquite a bit over the past few months. This book offers a condensed herbal dictionary and a host of natural remedies to try. One of the best things about this book is how the various effects of certain herbs is summarized for each plant listed. I was intrigued by the herbs that have nervine properties.

My constant companion over the past few months

Nervine herbs can influence the nervous system. It can soothe the nerves and reduce the reaction within the nervous system. Since fibromyalgia is essentially an overactive nervous system that exaggerates sensation in the body, a nervine herb could, theoretically, relax some of those nervous responses and cause the system to calm down.

Below, I’ve listed some of the nervine herbs outlined in the book (the author includes several more).

  • Angelica Root
  • Black Cohosh
  • Chamomile
  • Gotu Kola
  • Hop Flowers
  • Lemongrass
  • Sage
  • Skullcap
  • St. John’s Wort

I’ve personally used chamomile tea, and I’ve made a tea from fresh sage. I have noticed that I am noticeably more relaxed after consuming either tea. I may eventually try experimenting with using these teas as a way to wean myself off of prescription medication, but for now, I’m pleased with the gentle effects from occasional use.

My current favorite chamomile tea blend

On the occasions when my grocer runs out of sage,I’ll order it from Amazon

Have any of you tried any nervine herbs? I’d love to hear about your experiences!

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*Disclaimer: this post is not intended as medical advice. Please consult your doctor for any medical recommendations and advice.

**This post contains affiliate links.

health

Fibro Fridays: Resources for Chronic Pain Sufferers

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Over the past year, I’ve compiled quite a few resources that I’ve used regularly. These resources consistently provide reliable information and guidance for handling the next steps in my health journey.

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One of the first resources I uncovered is The Fibromyalgia Digest. This is an excellent website that provides information related to obtaining government benefits if you suffer from chronic pain. Their team is very proactive about reaching out to digest subscribers and offering assistance. I most benefited from the website’s encouragement to keep a log of my daily symptoms to identify trends and keep track of what treatments work best.

WANA is We Are Not Alone, an app that provides a virtual community for chronic illness sufferers. Users can connect based on similar illness or specific symptoms.  What’s really cool is how the app lets users learn more about traditional medical treatment as well as explore alternative treatment options.

Fibromyalgia Association of Michigan is a great resource for learning about the most recent research on fibromyalgia and treatments. I usually follow their Facebook page for updates, but the main website is fantastic, too: you can easily get updates from the blog within the website.

I hope these websites can help you! This chronic illness journey doesn’t have to be a solo one: there is support for us.

That;s all for this week! I’ll talk to you all soon. Take care!

beauty

Shelter-In-Place Skin Care

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While sheltering-in-place, it can be tempting to “let ourselves go”. After all, the only people that are seeing us regularly are our families and friends that we choose to either 1) quarantine with or 2) video chat with regularly.

But while I’m inside, I’m amping up my skincare. Why? Well, *one day* in the not-so-distant future, I’ll be going outside again. And when I do, I want to look great! I want to look good and feel good when life returns to “normal”. So my skincare isn’t taking a break while I’m at home: in fact, I’m learning new ways to improve my skin.

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I’m still doing a version of the Korean 10-step skin care regimen, but I felt like my skin could use a little more care than normal. So I looked up different beauty treatments for the face and body. I created a fabulous coffee & brown sugar scrub using this recipe from Living Chic on the Cheap. I love using this on my body to soften my skin. I prefer to use this after I apply and rinse my soap off while showering. That way, a light layer of coconut oil (one of the scrub’s ingredients) will remain once I leave the shower. However, I have noticed that it helps to use a dark towel after using the scrub: some of the coffee color can remain on your skin if you use the scrub as the last step.

Next, I found this great video showing how to give yourself an at-home facial. I am a HUGE fan of gentle skin care, but there are times where a little more “elbow grease” is required to get the results that you want. This video shows you ways to gently extract impurities from the skin, and how to effectively steam your face. I’ll likely add a relaxing, inexpensive herbal tea to my steaming water, just for the aromatherapy benefits. Also, instead of using a mechanical scrub, I’ll employ a chemical one (I bought one from The Ordinary that I’ll review once I’ve used it a few times).

 

This week, I’ll be using my coffee scrub as well as doing my at-home facial. I’m going to give my skin the extra TLC it needs and deserves!

That’s all for today. I hope you all are doing well! Take care.

health · life curation

Fibro Friday – Unexpected Fibromyalgia Symptoms

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As promised in a previous post, I’m devoting Fridays to fibromyalgia and all of the information, advice, support, and discoveries that I’ve had during my fibro journey.

Today, I’m discussing some of the unexpected fibro symptoms that I’ve noted in the past year. The most common symptoms – fatigue, muscle aches, mental fog – are well known, but there are quite a few others that I feel are worth noting.

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  • Hypersensitivity to heat and cold – I found myself unable to enter certain grocery stores due to the extreme cold within certain sections of the store. Even though summers here in Virginia are scorching, I couldn’t bear to go from the heat to the air-conditioned stores. Then, during the winter, I found myself quickly adjusting my thermostat because a little too much heat would trigger intense sweats. I’m glad that my medication has given me some relief from this particular symptom, but I still notice that those sensitivities have to be actively managed (dressing in layers so I can quickly adjust to the temperatures of whatever place I’m visiting).

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  • Pronounced thirst – I find myself drinking a LOT of water. And it seems like sometimes I can’t drink enough water to quench my thirst. I suppose it’s a good thing that I’m drinking more water, but it also gets annoying. It’s also important to be careful: too much water can be harmful to the body. So I have to also make sure that I get as much of my “water” from fresh fruit as possible. Which leads to my next point . . .

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  • Taste for “light” (fresh) foods – I’ve found myself wanting very “light” foods all of the time. I crave foods that can digest easily and leave me feeling light and refreshed. Don’t get me wrong I still enjoy the heady delights that can be found in Thai, Indian and Ethiopian cuisine. But over the past several months, I’ve craved smoothies, salads and other “light” foods that are gentle on my digestion. I think this may be because fibro is usually associated with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and, while I don’t have IBS, I still prefer foods that aren’t too taxing on my somewhat more sensitive digestive system.

Those are just a few of the symptoms that I’ve experienced that I suspect are related to my fibro. There are several more, but these were the most pronounced symptoms that I rarely saw mentioned when researching fibro.

That’s it for the week! I hope you all are well and continuing to take care of yourselves. Have a great weekend.

health · life curation · relaxation

Take a Moment to Feel the Sun

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The sun is such a blessing. I feel very connected with sun energy, and I embrace the times where I can go outside and simply feel the sun on my skin. My good friend Diana mentioned more than once that I need to intentionally connect with sun energy, and that’s why I’m devoting this post to her. I’m listening, chica. I’m choosing to regularly connect with this incredible energy source.

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Enjoy the sunshine

This life-sustaining ball of fire continues to remind me of all of the good things about life. Delicious fresh fruit and vegetables grow because THE SUN IS. My skin grows to a deeper chocolate hue every summer because THE SUN IS. Time and all things that we use to measure the span of our lives is possible because THE SUN IS.

So, if you can, take a moment, step outside and feel the sun. Let the rays kiss your skin and serve as a reminder that every day is magical. And then, embrace the other magic that shows up for you: it surrounds you, and it is waiting for you to see it.

beauty · fitness · life curation

My Latest Obsession: Mature YouTubers

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There’s something truly magical about learning to love the skin you’re in and embracing the aging process. I’ve spent a lot of time combing through YouTube to find content creators that can offer their life insights along with beauty information that’s applicable to the 40/50+ crowd. I’m inspired by these lovely women that define “aging gracefully”.

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The Free Range Diva: One of my all-time favorites. She is one of the rare mature women of color in the green beauty realm. She’s taught me about many green/clean beauty and health brands that I’d never heard of before. Here’s a video where she shares some things we can do while quarantined.

MzBrazell: She cooks, she dons different hair looks, and she’s charming. MzBrazell’s channel has been one of my favorites for quite some time. Here’s a video where she shows her most recent Amazon haul:

 

Life Over Sixty with Sandra: She has a background in media so she is amazing on YT. I love to hear her musings and refletions on her career. This video about listening to your intuition is a treasure.

 

 

NeeCJae: She has beautiful makeup looks and reviews, and I love her energy! This is a video with ideas of what you can do while quarantined.

 

Sussex Sandra: One of our sisters across the pond has a YT channel that discusses makeup and beauty. She does a lot of unboxing videos, so if that’s your thing, her channel is worth checking out. Here, she does a Treasure Tress Hair Subscription unboxing:

 

These are a few of the ladies that I’m watching right now. Do you have any favorite mature YTers? Please let me know in the comments below!

health · life curation

How I’m Managing Anxiety Right Now

MstldelanoLeave a comment

During this time, I continue to surprise myself with how calm and level-headed I have been. Yes, I know that having many privileges and blessing (comfortable home, enough food, adequate finances, family in good health) factor into my relatively anxiety-free state. But, I’m also actively managing my anxiety levels because I’m very susceptible to low moods and bouts of nervousness that can easily aggravate my fibromyalgia and trigger a flare-up of my symptoms.

For starters, I’ve tried to maintain my normal schedule as much as possible. Remaining committed to a regular schedule can really help you feel “in control” of your circumstances and more relaxed as a result. Along with good nutrition and continuing to take my pain management medications, I also have been incorporating yoga into my routine several times per week. I find that doing stretches and sensing the areas of tension in my body have been crucial in learning to relax and manage my anxiety.

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I pour my feelings into a journal in order to give myself some relief. I have designed over 100 journals that I absolutely love, and I have happily used several of them to capture my musings and to help me manage anxious feelings whenever they arise. I’m glad that I haven’t had to use them daily, but whenever it’s needed, it’s good to know that this method is available to me and it’s effective.

I’m also taking a supplement that I purchased from a local health food store. I cannot guarantee that this supplement will give you amazing results, but I find that it gives me some relief, especially when I’m experiencing fibro symptoms. This hypericum performatum is great and I’ve enjoyed using it occasionally. I’ve found that it really does help with my symptoms

How are you all managing your anxiety right now? Please let me know in the comments below!

 

 

 

*Affiliate links are featured in this article.

 

health · life curation

What If I Just Want to Rest Right Now?

Mstldelano1 Comment

With all of this unexpected time to stay home and devote to the projects that have been nagging us, it only makes sense that some of us feel it is necessary to do all of our “to-dos” while we can.

But . . . What if all we really want to do is rest and relax?

What if we are too tired to actually do all of the things that we said we’d do when we had “free time”?

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We shouldn’t feel guilty about deciding to simply BE at this time. This time isn’t truly “free” time: this is a period of unexpected, forced containment that has us all feeling uncertain right now.

So if you’re feeling tired, or just want to relax right now . . . DO IT. You’ll be better for it.