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How to Have An Out Of Body Experience

February 5, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Having an out of body experience can be a bit disconcerting, especially when it seems so real. During an out of body experience, you may feel like you aren’t really where your body is. This sense of displacement makes you question your reality.

It is estimated that 1 in 10 people have had an out of body experience. This event feels like you have left your physical body and are floating or moving about as usual. But you feel removed from your physical self.

Trying to have such an experience can result in some disappointment. If a first you don’t succeed, keep trying. It is important not to discount your experiences as you work to achieve this non-physical state. You may experience images, sounds, voices, smells, colors, sights, or other interactions. Keeping a dream journal by your bed is a good idea so you can record these when you wake up.

What You Need to Know About Having An Out of Body Experience

1. An out of body experience is a type of lucid dreaming

The sensation of being out of your own body has been described as a euphoric awareness that you have the ability to control where your ethereal self is going while your physical self stays behind. The ability to control what happens while you sleep is called lucid dreaming.

Most people who have an out of body experience become aware that it is happening. Once they know it, they can consciously decide to go certain places or transport themselves to see other people.

2. An out of body experience could be related to a brain dysfunction.

According to Swiss researchers who were looking for the causes of out of body experiences, “An out-of-body experience (OBE) may be defined as the experience in which a person seems to be awake and to see his body and the world from a location outside the physical body.”

The researcher believes that these out of body experiences come from brain dysfunctions because they ‘have been described repeatedly in patients suffering from neurological or psychiatric disease – such as epilepsy, migraine, neoplasia and psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, and dissociative disorders.’

3. You can control having an out of body experience

There are different ways to control having an out-of-body experience but all of them involve sleep paralysis while you are aware in your mind. The easiest method is to remain still after waking up in the morning. Literally, stay as still as possible without moving anything and keeping your eyes closed.

At this point, you can imagine a rope hanging down above you. Imagine yourself reaching for the rope, grasping it, and pulling yourself upward. Continue to climb the rope until you are vertical. Once you are vertical, you can choose to let go of the rope and walk about as usual.

If this method doesn’t work for you to create this experience, you can also set an alarm to wake yourself during the night after at least 4 hours of sleep. Be sure to awaken fully, stay in bed as still as possible and try to go back to sleep. Then either imagine pulling yourself out of your body with the rope again or your hands rising up away from your body and pushing yourself up vertically with your visualized arms without moving your physical body.

If you cannot achieve the out of body experience with either of these methods, you can try a countdown timer to induce the out of body feeling. It will count you down with a relaxing hypnosis designed to plant subconscious thoughts about an out of body experience.

4. Your ‘GPS’ cells may be responsible for having an out of body experience

In an out of body experience, your brain may send signals about your physical location is wrong. It is possible that this event is an illusion. An out of body experience can be induced by scientists in a healthy brain. In one study, researchers mapped “brain areas involved in feelings of body ownership, as well as regions that contain cells known to be involved in spatial orientation.” These “GPS cells are involved in navigating one’s body in space.”

In a study of a patient who had ringing in the ears, a surgical procedure was done to implant an electrode in the auditory or hearing cortex of the brain. As the researchers stimulated the electrode, the patient reported several out of body experiences.

The patient was able to stay conscious during the procedure. While he sensed this event, he reported that he felt the “perception of disembodiment always involved a location about 50 cm behind his body and off to the left.”

10 Space Oddities That Will Change Your Entire Perspective About Life

February 5, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Space has stirred the curiosity of scientists such as Hawking since the beginning of mankind. Indeed, the Universe is incredible. It’s astounding to consider that the more we learn about space, the more there is to learn. Some scientific discoveries lose that initial spark of intense curiosity as more information is uncovered – the universe’s origin, function, and complexity have not. These space oddities prove why.

Many people have often reflected on the complexity and sheer magnificence of the Universe. Anyone who studied space – formally or informally, inside or outside of the classroom – will state that the breadth of knowledge about space and the passionate inquiry it elicits are unmatched. The human brain is probably the only entity inviting such intense interest.

Fortunately, technological advances have made space more identifiable than at any other time. Telescopes like the Hubble have led to breakthrough discoveries in astrophysics, astronomy, and cosmology. The Hubble Telescope helped determine the universe’s age (13-14 billion years), discover new galaxies, and gave us – for the first time – detailed visual information from billions of years past.

The Hubble telescope is now over 25 years old, and there now exists imaging technology that far exceeds the Hubble’s capabilities. Of course, this development led to many asking: ‘What next?’

The simplest answer: some pretty amazing stuff.

Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. – Stephen Hawking

Some of the knowledge obtained about space was quite unexpected, as one would assume. Then some discoveries flat-out stumped some of the most brilliant scientists, researchers and academics in the world.

Here are 10 facts about space that will change your perspective about life:

10. Triangulum II

Researchers at Caltech, one of the most prominent universities in the country, were enthrallingly astounded concerning the speed with which the stars of our ‘galactic neighbor’ moved.

The main reason is that for such a ‘tiny’ galaxy, Triangulum contains a huge amount of hidden mass. Consider this: our galaxy contains at least 100 billion stars, while the Triangulum has only about 1000. So this discovery left scientists intrigued on what one this galaxy was composed of, as the size of a galaxy is somewhat proportional to its number of stars.

Scientists found the highest concentration of dark matter – lightless, non-observable matter – of any galaxy ever discovered.

9. Tanya The Firstborn

Astronomers employed the combined powers of both the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes to capture images of the dimmest galaxy ever. ‘Tanya’ is not only the dimmest galaxy ever, it’s one of the earliest (hence, ‘Firstborn’) – forming between approximately 12.6 to 13.4 billion years ago.

Launching in 2018, the James Webb Space Telescope – NASA’s ‘premier observatory of the next decade’ – will allow astronomers to explore some of the earliest galaxies in far more detail.

8. Breast-Feeding Galaxy

Astronomers can tell us a vast amount of information about space. One discovery that has eluded them so far is how galaxies are formed. Currently, there are two predominant hypotheses: (1) hydrogen and various gasses gather with massive clumps of dark matter, or (2) a long filament feeds gas into forming galaxies through a webbed pipeline.

Caltech used their Cosmic Web Imager to spot a baby galaxy ten billion light-years away that was being ‘breast-fed’ a hydrogen mixture via an expansive filament of gas – a filament that is part of a cosmic web of stellar-forming material. This was the first significant discovery of the 2^nd hypothesis.

7. A Cryptic Galactic Ring

Using the juxtaposition of seven observable gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), the most violent collisions in space, astronomers discovered a structure so massive it shouldn’t exist.

This unnamed entity is insanely massive: a formation of galaxies over five-billion light-years in width, stretching across an area over 70 times greater than that of a full Moon.

6. Hercules A

Hercules A is one of the brightest conglomerations in space. At the center of Hercule’s pinkish-red mixture of magnetic fields, subatomic particles and plasma is a black hole that contains a mass comparable to 2.5 billion suns.

The energy that Hercules emits is astonishing: its central black hole discharges energy with one billion times more power than our Sun.

5. The Large Megellanic Cloud

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One of Earth’s closest neighbors at a distance of 160,000 light-years, the LMC is visible by the naked eye in the night sky of the Northern Hemisphere. One aspect of the LMC that is puzzling to astronomers is the sheer brightness of its stars. Another is that it siphons off these stars from its smaller companion, the Small Magellanic Cloud, making it the first observable entity to do so.

4. The Super Luminous WISE

The WISE is the brightest galaxy that scientists discovered so far, it emits a light source more powerful than 300 trillion Suns. The images captured from the WISE also provide us with a picture of the universe at 1/10^th of its age – supplying us with one of the earliest glimpses of the universes’ complex evolution.

3. The Milky Way’s Birthing White Dwarfs

White dwarfs are one of the densest forms of matter in existence, encompassing the mass of the sun in a structure only slightly larger than Earth. Astronomers discovered 70 dwarfs contained within the Milky Way’s “heart,” which experts estimate to be near twelve billion years old.

Although these dwarfs are now inactive, scientists believe that they could have seeded our own galaxy.

2. The M60-UCD1

This minuscule galaxy is the size equivalent of about two-tenths of one percent (.02%) of the Milky Way. Yet, its enormous black hole is the mass of approximately 21 million Suns. By comparison, the Milky Way’s black hole is a relatively small 4 million Suns.

This discovery completely whitewashed a long-held hypothesis: that a galaxy’s size is proportional to the size of its black hole. This had led scientists to the newfound belief that black holes are much more common in space than originally thought.

1. The 13.2 Billion-Year Old Galaxy

Dubbed the ESG8p7 (what’s with these names?), this is the oldest galaxy visible with our technology. In fact, it’s so ancient that scientists shouldn’t have been able to observe it at all. To the astonishment of astronomers everywhere, the cluster became visible through the Keck Observatory’s MOSFIRE spectrometer. This discovery is currently one of the most noteworthy conundrums that experts are trying to rationalize.

10 Ways To Stop Heartburn

February 5, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Heartburn is that throat-scorching pain that is annoying at its least and unhealthy at its best. When it happens, you regret doing whatever brought it on, like eating pizza, and vow never to do it again. But you like pizza, of course, so eliminating heartburn rather than your favorite foods should be the goal. Let’s look at 10 ways to eliminate heartburn so we can keep right on enjoying our food.

10 Ways To Eliminate Heartburn

Heartburn is literally the burning of the tissues of the sensitive esophagus by the acid that comes up from our stomachs. The typical over the counter remedies for heartburn is the typical chalky chews of antacids made from bismuth, liquid bismuth, or preventative pills that you take every day.

Rather than resorting to medication, whenever possible we prefer to seek natural, wholesome remedies that can be found just as easily at home. When you are already pursuing an organic, healthy lifestyle, you will find that your home begins to contain more of what will keep you healthy and heal you from the inside out.

1. Eliminate these heartburn trigger foods

Although we want to be able to keep our favorite foods in our diet AND eliminate heartburn, you may need to cut back on one or more of these:

Any caffeinated soda, cola, tea or coffee
Processed tomatoes (stewed, canned)
Alcoholic beverages
Carbonated beverages
Added fats (butter and oil)

There are some foods that you can predict will give you heartburn. Until you get control over your diet, you may need to skip these foods for a bit, or at least cut back.

Carbonated beverages or other foods that produce gas in your stomach are ones to avoid because they may cause your esophagus to open to release the gas, which makes it possible for stomach acid to come back up. The less you burp, the less likely it is that you will have heartburn.

2. Ginger can ease heartburn

Widely recognized as a natural stomach-upset remedy, ginger has the power to help balance your digestive system’s pH. Less acidic stomach means less stomach acid to come back up and cause heartburn.

3. Baking soda & water

Baking soda is the pH remedy to your stomach’s acidity. Mix a small amount (about a teaspoon) in 8oz of water and drink it. The baking soda will help the acid to come to a more normal PH.

4. Chewing gum

Chewing gum helps you produce and swallow more saliva, which helps your digestion to process food more easily. In fact, just slowing down your rate of eating by chewing food thoroughly may be the easiest, cheapest, and most effective way to eliminate heartburn altogether.

5. Supplements

HCl/Pepsin/vitamin B12 supplements may not be readily available to you in your kitchen, but you may have already heard of their benefits. In the book Why Stomach Acid Is Good For You, Jonathan V. Wright and Lane Lenard say that the way to eliminate heartburn is actually increase the amount of acid, not reduce it with antacids.

The authors say that heartburn pain is caused by acid, but not by too much acid. When heartburn happens there is actually too little acid in the stomach, but some of it got into the wrong place, which hurts. Taking supplements with Betaine HCl (hydrochloride) helps add to the hydrochloric acid in your stomach, which helps your natural digestion process.

6. Probiotics to decrease heartburn

Eating your probiotics from fermented foods like miso, tempeh, or kombucha helps your gut. These foods can re-establish the good bacteria and aid digestion. Probiotics are more likely to help you by reducing gas, which reduces the need for your esophagus to open, and eliminates the likelihood of heartburn happening.

7. Put orange peel in your water

The d-limonene found in the peel of oranges helps eliminate heartburn. Lifeextension.com says that in a study of orange peel extract as a heartburn reliever, ’22 participants were randomized to take either 1000 mg of d-limonene or a placebo. At day 14, an impressive 83% of those taking the orange peel extract (d-limonene) reported heartburn severity no higher than 2 on the 1-10 scale, compared to just 30% of those taking placebo. At the end of 20 days, 75% of those taking d-limonene reported relief from heartburn symptoms, compared to only 20% of the participants taking placebo.’

8. Loosen your belt

Wearing tight clothing restricts your stomach and can put pressure on your organs. Pressure applied to your stomach can force acid up and out of where it belongs, causing heartburn.

9. Sleep with your head elevated

Let gravity help you keep your stomach acid down by lifting your head slightly as you sleep. Even a slightly thicker pillow could be enough to help. Eating late at night should also be avoided to help eliminate heartburn.

10. Licorice may help heartburn

The licorice plant root extract has been used for heartburn relief for centuries. Licorice root tea is available as well as candies that have natural licorice root extract in them.

10 Habits of Unhappy People (and How to Avoid Having Them)

February 4, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Happiness is something that we all strive to attain. As human beings, we can accept that: (a) life is short, and (b) unhappiness makes our lives difficult. As is common knowledge, our habits have a big impact on the quality of life that we live; specifically, these habits directly impact whether we are happy people or unhappy people.

To make a clear distinction, there is a substantial difference between clinical depression and chronic unhappiness. Depression is a chemical imbalance in the brain, while unhappy people have a disposition often acquired through how we choose to live our lives. Similar to depression, however, unhappiness can be diagnosed and treated.

Here are ten habits of unhappy people, all of which can be avoided.

“I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself. For I have learned that the greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition.” – Martha Washington, wife of 1^st U.S. President George Washington

1. Chronic Complaining

Happy and successful people do not complain much. Conversely, it seems that unhappy people always have something negative to say… even when those around them are happy! The bottom line: we all have different circumstances that we are given in this lifetime, but in the end, these circumstances are ours – fair or unfair, wanted or unwanted. Instead, seek solutions to problems instead of complaining, which leads to nowhere.

2. Being critical – of self and others

How we talk to ourselves shapes our self-image, for better or worse. Self-worth is essential to our happiness, and feeling good about ourselves is a right we all have. Realize when mistakes are made, accept them, and move on…don’t engage in negative self-talk. Further, respect the inherent differences of others and recognize their right to live happily and without undue criticism.

3. Living beyond means

We live in a materialistic society, one where we are constantly bombarded with advertisements for the latest car, gadget, or credit card; all promising an easier, more fulfilling existence. Don’t believe it for a second. While purchasing a new product may provide a needed emotional boost, it doesn’t last. Ever heard the term “buyer’s remorse”? It exists for a reason. Instead, seek out something to do that doesn’t involve whipping out a piece of plastic – exercise, reading, sightseeing, etc. – anything brings satisfaction without the debt.

4. Negative addictions

Most things are good in moderation – food, a drink or two, entertainment… it’s when these things take center stage in our lives that it becomes a problem. Unfortunately, many unhappy people have met their end through addictive habits, especially through dependence on alcohol and drugs. A great preventative measure and remedy to these addictions? Finding and living our passions to the greatest extent possible (see #8).

5. Regretting the past

Regret is not only useless, it can be extremely harmful. Research continues to show that repetitive, negative thoughts about decisions made in the past in often a precursor to chronic stress and depression. Four coping methods exist to deal with regret: (1) learn from mistakes but don’t dwell, (2) if nothing can be changed about the situation to let it go, (3) make sure too much blame is not being undertaken, and(4) reframing the situation more positively.

6. Worrying about the future

We only have so much say in what our future holds. This is not meant to disempower (quite the opposite); rather it is stating simple truth. What we can do is live in the present while fully exercising our God-given abilities and talents, enabling and empowering us to live a happier existence. There’s that phrase again: living in the present. Face difficulties as they arise and let them go. Enjoy the beautiful things in life and experience them fully…be present.

7. Being driven by fear

Yes, fear can be an enabler to why there are unhappy people today. To fully understand this, we must go back to being present again. Quite simply, we can’t allow fear of the unknown (and/or the unavoidable) to cripple our quality of life. Fear is a negative thought process that is often on autopilot. Remember: we are not our negative thoughts. We are not fear, worry, anxiety, or any other negative thought process.

8. Gossiping

Nothing exudes unhappiness and insecurity more than negative small talk about someone else. After all, why would a happy, confident person engage in something that is of no benefit? They wouldn’t. Gossip is something you should leave to the kids at recess. Indeed, it has no place for adults attempting to improve their lives (and others!).

9. Holding grudges

Like other negative emotions, animosity is a needless weight on our backs. We are all witness to the negative behaviors of unhappy people and can become (sometimes justifiably) angered as a result. But remember: this isn’t about their ignorant behavior but your happiness. Either forgive, forget, or ignore… and move on with your life.

10. Expanding our problems

When we experience unhappiness and discontent, our first reaction is almost entirely emotional. In other words, we blow things completely out of proportion. After all, we still have that darned “lizard brain” (amygdala) – the epicenter of negative emotions. Instead, just take a step back, look at the problem objectively (with minimal emotion), and focus on a solution!

Once aware of these habits, you can keep them at bay by following the advice mentioned above.

Join the discussion: What negative habits do you try to avoid?

5 Things That Happen To Your Body When You Eat Himalayan Salt

February 4, 2016 by Power of Positivity

You may have heard of Himalayan salt before. But you might wonder what exactly makes it superior to sea salt or table salt? Well, for starters, Himalayan salt contains 84 trace minerals that we need for survival, including calcium, sulphate, potassium, magnesium, and sodium chloride. Himalayan salt does not go through nearly the same amount of processing as sea salt and table salt. That means it offers more nutritional value per serving.

Himalayan salt, as you might’ve guessed, comes from the Himalayas in Pakistan, and doesn’t have the same exposure to pollutants and toxins in the environment since it must be obtained from underground. Workers hand-mine it, hand-crush it, and wash it thoroughly. Then, they dry it in the sun and put it into bottles for transport. On the other hand, sea salt and table salt go through tremendous processing and heating, which strips the salt of most minerals. Also, table salt contains additives to prevent clumping, which makes it unhealthy to consume in large quantities.

Here are 5 things that happen to your body when you eat Himalayan salt:

So, now that you know that Himalayan salt contains far more nutritional value than other types of salt, let’s talk more about the benefits of Himalayan sea salt.

1. It regulates water in the body

Sodium plays a critical role in maintaining optimal functioning of your nerves, muscles, and other body tissues. Salt, an electrolyte, helps to carry out electrical impulses within the body, and actually controls our thirst mechanism. Therefore, if you don’t consume proper amounts of salt, you won’t get nearly the amount of water that you need. Having enough water in your body allows your kidneys to retain the proper level of electrolytes as well. Therefore, consuming a moderate amount of Himalayan sea salt will help you to consume enough water, and keep your electrolytes balanced.

2. Himalayan sea salt lowers blood pressure

I know what you’re thinking – doesn’t salt actually increase blood pressure?! Actually, according to a groundbreaking European study that measured salt levels in people’s urine over an eight-year period, more cardiovascular deaths occurred in people with low salt levels than those with higher amounts of salt in their bloodstream. Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the researchers found no correlation between higher salt intake and hypertension risk.

After following up with the participants in the study, researchers found that 50 people with low urinary sodium died, compared with 24 deaths among those with moderate urinary sodium, and only 10 deaths among those with high levels of urinary sodium.

However, regarding this study, it’s important to remember that you still should monitor your salt intake, but salt is vital to the regulation of blood pressure, and can lower it if eaten moderately.

3. It prevents muscle cramps

This refers to electrolyte levels in the body, which can change dramatically when you exercise. Sweat contains salt, and when your sodium levels drop too low, it can result in muscle spasms and contractions. Therefore, if you exercise regularly and rigorously, Himalayan sea salt can help you maintain proper electrolytes in the body. Additionally, they may prevent painful muscle cramps and excessive sodium loss. This explains why sports drinks such as Gatorade (not recommended by us, by the way), contain high levels of salt to replace what you’ve lost during a workout.

Like we said before, sodium helps to maintain a healthy nervous system. Thus, having low sodium levels results in twitching and cramping muscles. So, another benefit of Himalayan sea salt is the maintenance of the nervous system plus helping to prevent muscle cramps.

4. Himalayan salt balances your pH levels

Our body’s normal pH level is around 7.4, however, anywhere between 7.0 and 7.7 is generally healthy. Because Himalayan salt contains 84 trace minerals that can be found within our bodies, it perfectly matches our natural pH level. We have an alkaline pH, just like Himalayan salt. So, if your body’s pH is more on the acidic side, Himalayan salt can help to stabilize it.

5. It keeps your bones strong

While having a diet too high in sodium can actually leach calcium and potassium from the body, eating just the right amount of salt balances these minerals in the body, which promotes healthy bones. According to this study published in the Journal of Nutrition, we need a perfect balance of potassium and sodium bicarbonate in our blood to maintain healthy bones. They recommend eating mostly fruits and vegetables; however, adding Himalayan sea salt to a salad or cooked vegetables at night will ensure you get enough sodium in your diet, plus make the vegetables more appetizing if you don’t find them enjoyable by themselves.

6 Things I Dare You To Do Today

February 4, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Do you ever feel like most people today pay far too much attention to themselves and far too little to others? What would happen if we all went a little out of our way to make someone else feel good? I think we would have a world full of more hope, love, compassion, and smiles than we do now. No matter how much money you have, where you live, or what language you speak, you can ALWAYS do something to help another person, even if that just means opening the door for them when they have their hands full.

Here are 6 things I dare you to do today:

“How you make others feel about themselves says a lot about you.” – Unknown

1. Show compassion to someone

Like we said before, our society today pays far too much attention to the self rather than other people. No matter what you’re going through, you can always make someone else feel good somehow. Compliment them, hold the door for them, pull over to the side of the road if you see someone stranded, or bake cookies for a friend who just had a bad breakup. I think you get the point – you can probably list a million nice things to do for someone if you tried. Compassion costs nothing, and only requires that you open your heart and realize that we all are one family and should look out for each other whenever possible.

2. Tell someone they’re beautiful

We live in a world behind screens, and our conversations happen in bubbles through text, so our people skills will start to suffer. We have literally become afraid of getting close to other people because talking through technology feels more comfortable. Well, it’s time to break down those walls and get used to vulnerability again. Nothing bad will happen to you if you call someone beautiful – in fact, it has mutual benefits. You will feel uplifted, and the other person will, too. If you don’t believe us, you should read about this amazing photography project that a student did where she took pictures of people she found beautiful.

3. Hug a stranger

You don’t have to stand on the corner of the street with a ‘Free Hugs’ sign, but it might work best that way, because at least people know what to expect. Running up to them in a store or other public place might not give you the reaction you want, so if you feel like trying this, the free hugs strategy will probably be your best bet. Who knows the last time people hugged someone…they might live alone, not have a girlfriend or boyfriend at the moment, not have any friends..the reality for most people is that they feel quite lonely. So, you can help alleviate this feeling if only temporarily by offering them a hug.

Hugs have so many health benefits, including releasing oxytocin, a feel-good hormone that helps us trust others, decreasing our stress levels, giving us security, and lowering our blood pressure.

4. Call someone you’ve been meaning to talk to

Today, I dare you to give someone a ring who you have been wanting to talk to for ages, whether that be an old friend, your mom, your high school math teacher, or your ex-boyfriend. Calling someone we had/have a relationship with can make us feel safe, understood, and maybe give us a good laugh, too. It never hurts to catch up with someone and ask about how their life is going either, so what do you have to lose?

5. Commit a random act of kindness

This doesn’t have to involve anything fancy – you can hold a door open for someone, pay for their coffee at Starbucks, help them change a tire, offer to help your neighbor carry in their groceries, or something similar. We have dozens of daily opportunities to help one another, so why not take them? Remember, it usually costs nothing to help another person, and the feelings you and the other person will get are priceless.

6. Write someone a letter (by hand)

Can you think of the last time you received a handwritten letter? Me either. Today, we read emails and text messages, but it just doesn’t feel the same as opening a letter you got in the mail from your friend who lives halfway across the country. You get to see their own unique handwriting, read on paper instead of a screen, and wait with anticipation for the letter to arrive. So, if you can recall how excited you feel running to the mailbox to open your long-awaited letter, imagine how the recipient would feel!

Whether it’s a note from a loved one, a postcard from a friend traveling abroad, or even a special package, the mailbox transforms into a source of excitement and anticipation.

To elevate this experience, having the right mailbox is essential. A well-designed mailbox not only adds curb appeal to your home but also ensures the safety and security of your precious correspondence. For a wide selection of stylish and functional mailboxes, look no further than https://mailboxempire.com/. With an array of options to suit every taste and need, this site offers the perfect solution for enhancing your mail-receiving experience. By choosing a mailbox that reflects your personal style, you can turn the simple act of checking the mail into a delightful daily ritual, reminiscent of the joy felt when opening a handwritten letter.

I dare you to do some, if not all, of these things today. They don’t take much time or money – all they require is for you to open up your heart and spread a little love, kindness, and compassion.

9 Things You Should Do Every Day Before 9 AM

February 4, 2016 by Kristen Butler

Think of your morning routine – do you wake up, stretch, and go about your day easily before 9 AM, or do you jump up, throw on some clothes, and grab breakfast while running out the door? Most of us probably picked the latter and wished we could transition to the former.

Luckily, starting up morning rituals is just a matter of practice and habit – in fact, to form a new habit and get it to stick, research says it takes about 66 days on average.

This might seem like a long time, but at least you will have an improved lifestyle after adjusting your routine and will have greater happiness at the end of the day. Our mornings shouldn’t begin abruptly and hastily – we should have time to ease into our day so we can approach it mindfully and optimally.

Here are 9 things you should do every day before 9 AM:

1. Set your alarm for an earlier wake-up call

Do you wake up with time to spare in the mornings, or do you have enough time to throw on your clothes and grab a piece of toast while putting on your shoes on the way to the car? To have a morning routine, you need to set aside enough time to get ready while also doing the things that will promote a positive mindset. If you want to start your day on the right note and have some extra time in the morning to gather your thoughts, so your day doesn’t feel like a whirlwind, start setting your alarm for 5-10 minutes earlier each day. This way, you will have a wake-up time that can support a healthy morning routine.

2. Get some sun

If we still lived closer to nature like our ancestors, we would rise with the sun and start our day with direct exposure to it. However, living in modern times, many of us don’t get near enough sunshine to support our mental and physical health. Early morning light exposure may lower BMI, improve mood, greater energy and concentration, better sleep at night, and much more. Just 10-15 minutes per day in the early morning sun can make a difference.

3. Meditate

Meditation allows you to quiet your thoughts, center yourself, and prepare your mind, body, and soul for a rigorous, trying day ahead. In essence, meditation gives us a chance to detach from the modern world and enter a land of utter tranquility and peace without a boss, deadlines, people talking to us, and other stressors. If you’d like to read more about the incredible benefits of meditation, you can do so here.

4. Take time to stretch

Stretching in the morning helps to wake up our bones, joints, and minds. When we first wake up, our muscles may feel a bit stiff and tight, so stretching them out helps to relax our bodies and prepare them for the day ahead. You can even improve your posture and circulation by doing a few simple stretches in the morning, so set aside 5 or 10 minutes to get those limbs limber.

5. Listen to inspiring music

Countless studies have linked music to improved mood, concentration, performance, a sounder sleep, and much more. Try to put on some music that pumps you up for the day and contains a positive message to get in the right mindset for your work or school day. Or, if you feel particularly stressed, you might put on some relaxing, meditative music to listen to while you stretch or get ready.

6. Prepare a nutritious breakfast

Too many people today skip breakfast because they feel they don’t have time to make it or would rather pick up something on the way to work. However, how we fuel our bodies in the morning directly influences how much energy we will have during the day. Opt for a healthy smoothie full of fruits, vegetables, chia, hemp seeds, or a bowl of oatmeal with cut-up fruit. If you give your body the necessary nutrients, you will have much more energy throughout the day.

7. Have plenty of H20

In addition to a lack of nutrients, too many people also suffer from dehydration. When you wake up in the morning, go for at least one liter of water with cut-up lemon to activate your digestive system and clear out toxins. Also, bring a reusable bottle to work or school so you can fill it up on the go. You probably know how essential water is to our health by now, so ensure you get enough of it in the morning and during the day.

8. Express gratitude

Either write in a gratitude journal or express your thanks to someone in your household when you wake up. Simply writing or saying what you feel thankful for will start your day on a positive note and set the stage for a productive, happy day ahead. In our society, it’s far too easy to complain about our lives, so instead of draining your energy with this negativity, counter it with gratitude.

9. Practice positive affirmations

To get your mind focused on the good in your life, you can also say positive affirmations or mantras aloud or in your head. Our minds can easily fall into a negative thinking pattern, but we can change our minds through intention and habit, using affirmations to guide us to more productive, healthy thinking. If you’d like some ideas for morning affirmations, read our article here.

Final Thoughts on Being More Productive Before 9 AM

By achieving more by 9 am, you will feel less stressed and more grateful for every moment that comes throughout the rest of your day. You will enjoy the blessing of the extra time and be better equipped to live a healthier life. Give it a try!

4 Ways Alcohol Is Hurting Your Sleep

February 4, 2016 by Power of Positivity

Many folks enjoy a drink or two after a long day at work, and why not? Many workplaces are stressful. Deadlines, gossip, a demanding boss are all common complaints of people that spend 40-plus hours in a stress-laden environment. Fortunately, a drink or two seemingly produces minimal effects on sleep quality. Dr. Irshaad Ebrahim, the medical director at The London Sleep Centre in the U.K, conclusively states – based on an accumulation of data – that alcohol consumption of up to two drinks will not significantly impair sleep quality.

Up to two drinks being the key phrase. Exceeding this limit will almost assuredly negatively affect sleep quality during the mid to late stages of sleep for several reasons, which we’ll discuss.

The primary reason is that, to get a good night’s sleep, we must enter and remain in a state of REM – the most restorative sleep stage for our mental faculties. Without adequate REM sleep, our cognition is highly likely to be off-kilter.

Alcohol effectively obstructs the brain’s ability to achieve the REM sleep state in larger quantities. Again, the higher the consumption, the more disruptive alcohol is to this vital sleep phase.

Here are four ways alcohol hurts your sleep:

1. Alcohol wakes us up

While booze may help us fall asleep faster, it also wakes us up during key sleep phases. In a review of 20 different studies, scientists examined the effects of alcohol on 517 people in 38 different lab experiments.

The volunteers drank varying amounts of alcohol, from one to two, two to four, and four or more drinks. Some studies were conducted as a one-night experiment while others spanned a few days.

The results were clear in every case: drinking alcohol helps shorten the time needed to fall asleep and even increases deep sleep during the first part of the night. Afterwards, the participants were more prone to sleep disruption, including wakefulness.

2. It can cause heartburn

Anyone that is prone to heartburn will emphasize how badly it sucks. That uncomfortable burning sensation coupled with stomach tightness is particularly unpleasant.

Alcohol loosens the sphincter muscle in the esophagus, preventing food from entering the stomach. Normally, this muscle is constrictive and prohibits stomach acid from flowing into the esophagus. However, too many drinks can cause this barrier to relax. Naturally, this leads to stomach acid entering the esophagus – creating that damnable burning sensation.

In other words, lay off that third glass of merlot for a heartburn-free, sleep-inducing night.

3. It sends us to the bathroom

Not much else to say here, right? We can all attest to alcohol’s ability to send us B-lining to the nearest toilet. A scientific explanation isn’t necessary, but it helps understand why this is the case.

Alcohol is a diuretic – an effective substance in ridding the body of liquid. Under normal conditions, the body is extremely apt at getting liquid out of the bladder before bedtime, which allows us to achieve the recommended six to eight hours of sleep. We also have an innate tendency to consume less liquid at night. Well, unless we insist on a well-deserved nightcap.

Since alcohol produces the effect of liquid removal from our bladder, and because it’s normally consumed within a short period before bedtime, it’ll often wake us up and send us to the bathroom. Notice that this is a double-edged sword – waking up in itself is counterproductive to regular sleep patterns. When combined with the potency of alcohol, not only are healthy sleep patterns disrupted, we’re more likely to arise to use the bathroom simply. Our sleep patterns are both voluntarily and involuntarily disturbed as a result.

4. It counteracts other sleep aids

For those of us with difficulty sleeping (raises hand), we’ll often rely on some form of sleep aid. If this is the case, consuming alcohol with an active sleep aid is a big no-no.

Alcohol and most sleep aids enhance the neurotransmitter GABA – the brain chemical responsible for calming neural activity. GABA also suppresses breathing and reduces heart rate. So, combining two agents – alcohol and sleep aids – that suppress breathing is not only disruptive to sleep, it can be potentially dangerous.

While many of the newer sleep medications are less prone to harmful interactions with alcohol, health professionals remain adamant that alcohol should not be combined with any sleep aid – prescribed or over-the-counter.

6 Ways To Become A Stronger Woman

February 3, 2016 by Power of Positivity

“I believe in strong women. I believe in the woman who is able to stand up for herself. I believe in the woman who doesn’t need to hide behind her husband’s back. I believe that if you have problems, as a woman you deal with them, you don’t play victim, you don’t make yourself look pitiful, you don’t point fingers. You stand and you deal. You face the world with a head held high and you carry the universe in your heart.” – C. JoyBell C.

Strong women just have a certain vibe about them, and emanate confidence and assertiveness wherever they go. Most women could probably agree that they enjoy being independent, self-assured, and mentally and physically strong, but getting to that point can seem challenging. Despite gender roles and social conventions, women have risen above the expectations of others and have made great progress in showing the world the beauty and strength of femininity.

It doesn’t matter how you see yourself now – you can easily become a strong, independent woman using these tips below.

Here are 6 ways to become a strong woman:

1. Seek the right kind of attention

In today’s world, we have dozens of apps, such as Tinder, that can give us instant gratification without having to form real connections. It’s no secret that women are objectified and oversexualized everyday for marketing campaigns, advertisements, and other forms of media, so using your body to get what you want only further perpetuates the idea that women have nothing more to offer than sex. If you want to form long-lasting, deep connections and attract the right attention, share your intellect and feelings with others.

If you carry yourself with dignity and know your self-worth beyond your appearance and sex appeal, you will start to attract others who also want something more than just a shallow connection to fulfill base-level desires.

2. Follow other strong women

If you turn on almost any reality TV show today, you won’t find much more than materialism, self-absorption, and sexualization of both men and women. Reality TV and other types of media, despite the name, don’t actually portray reality at all. Watching these superficial shows only makes people become blind followers of icons that don’t necessarily have the best values. Instead of binge-watching Keeping Up With the Kardashians, why not start following other strong women who actually promote causes that help the planet and its inhabitants, and don’t use their bodies or money to gain attention? To name just a couple wonderful women to look up to, Oprah and Ellen DeGeneres certainly fit the bill.

3. Don’t wait around for someone to save you

Probably one of the most important tenets of becoming a strong woman is not relying on someone else to come along and rescue you. A strong, independent woman knows she possesses all the power within herself to make positive changes in her life. She doesn’t wait around for someone else to pick her up when she’s down or show her the right way to live her life. While emotional independence may not happen overnight, you can easily work at it each day if you’d like to become a stronger woman. Of course, having relationships with others who we can share our concerns with is important, but we shouldn’t ever look to others to lick our wounds or save us from ourselves.

4. Free yourself from the victim mentality

While women have undeniably been oppressed in the past, and still may not be seen as equals to men in some parts of the world today, you don’t have to perpetuate this belief. Shatter the idea that you somehow have less value than men, because this simply doesn’t have any truth to it. Men and women both play important roles in society, and one gender does not have greater worth than the other. However, playing into the victim mentality and believing that you get treated differently than men will only keep the idea alive that we live in a man’s world.

The best way to overcome this belief is by simply having confidence in yourself, asserting yourself, and sharing your thoughts and ideas with others. If you don’t allow other people to control you, and you stand up for yourself if you believe you have been taken advantage or treated unfairly, then you have mastered one of the best ways to become a strong woman.

5. Keep challenging yourself

Don’t just allow yourself to fall into stagnancy and complacency – keep doing things each day that challenge you both mentally and physically. Life just gets dull if we don’t regularly push ourselves out of our comfort zones and try something new, so don’t hold yourself back just because of self-imposed limitations. Strong women don’t let their minds dictate what they can and can’t do, and push past their barriers even if it feels uncomfortable.

6. Don’t depend on others to make you happy

Most importantly, don’t rely on other people for happiness – this will only make you believe that you need someone at all times to feel content. You have everything you need to feel absolutely wonderful about life, so don’t believe any differently. Relationships can definitely provide a source of happiness, but they shouldn’t serve as our ONLY method of finding fulfillment and joy in life.

If you’d like to read more about the traits of a strong woman, please read our related article here.

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