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10 Exercises That Work Best For People With Diabetes

February 10, 2021 by Power of Positivity

Being diagnosed with diabetes is a scary time in your life. If you have type 2, you want to fix the problems that have caused you to get this disease, which means altering your diet and adopting an exercise plan. However, you might wonder what’s the best exercises for diabetes, and how can you start such a program without further compromising your health?

Thankfully, there are many things that a person with diabetes can do without issue. The benefits of doing the proper exercises for diabetes can help put the condition in remission. Consequently, it would help if you choose your exercise routine wisely, as not all workouts are equal or suitable for a person with compromised health.

How much exercise do you need? Well, according to the National Institutes of Health, a person with diabetes should get around 150 minutes of activity each week. If you break that down into daily goals, it’s roughly 20 minutes.

The target is to never go for more than two days without any activity. If you develop a routine, then you can quickly get control over this disease.

Considerations Before You Begin an Exercise Routine

You’re pumped and ready to begin your workout schedule. You’re eating healthier, and now you want to try to lose some weight and boost your insulin-making abilities. While it sounds like a good plan, there are a few things that you must consider.

First, if you don’t have enough insulin in your body when you start your workout, it can cause your blood sugar to rise further. Anyone with a glucose level of 250 to 300 mg/dl shouldn’t do any activities until this number is more controlled. Another thing to keep in mind is that as you’re working out, your body will release hormones, such as adrenaline, which can cause a temporary rise in your glucose levels.

If there is any time during your workout that you feel weak, confused, or your body is shaking, then you should stop. If your blood sugars fall below 70 mg/dl, then it’s not safe for you to exercise. Low blood sugar can be dangerous when mixed with methods that can help to lower it further.

Choosing the Right Activities for Diabetics

So, what are the best exercises for diabetes? You might be surprised at the workouts that will help you with your body and your disease. Here are the top ten activities recommended by doctors for people with diabetes.

1. Swimming

When dealing with type 2 diabetes, it’s a commonplace to find obesity at the crux. Swimming relieves the pressure from aching joints that might not otherwise be able to move. Using a soothing swimming pool to exercise is a great way to work the entire body without intense pain.

Not only does this joint-friendly option help to lower glucose levels, but it helps to strengthen your heart, muscles, and lungs too.

2. Walking

Oh, the places your feet will take you in life! Did you ever think about starting a walking regimen? Walking is less harmful to the joints than running, and it’s something that everyone can do. You get to choose the pace and how far you go.

Plus, when you walk with friends or family members, you will have the companionship that makes it not even feel like a workout. You can walk on the beach, in a park, or even around your house. The options are limitless when it comes to walking, but it’s notably one of the best exercises for diabetes.

3. Dancing

What genre of music do you prefer? Do you like to boogie down to country music, or do you choose to show off your best moves to hip-hop? Whatever your preference doesn’t matter, as dancing will help you reach your goals to control glucose.

According to Captain Calculator, you can burn as much as 300-800 calories for one hour of getting your groove on. If you’re limited because of weight or mobility, you can use a chair and incorporate it into your routine. Dancing is one of the best exercises for diabetes because it’s fun and doesn’t feel like a workout.

4. Yoga

Yoga has got a great deal of attention in the last decade. This ancient practice combines centering the mind, body, and spirit using gentle poses and moves. The wonderful thing about yoga is many different styles can accommodate your needs.

Thankfully, you probably won’t break a sweat, but still, the rewards of this exercise are hard to ignore. Doesn’t weight loss start in mind first anyway? So, using an activity that helps you center is an excellent place to begin.

5. Tai Chi

This oriental art uses gradual, efficient body movements to loosen the joints and muscles and ease the mind. Using Tai Chi is an effective way to control your blood sugar as it enhances vigor, strength, and mental health.

6. Cycling

Remember how much you loved riding your bike when you were a child? Well, studies show that getting back on your cycle can help you manage your diabetes. There are now cycling centers with stationary bikes that can help you peddle your way to better health.

According to the Arthritis Foundation, almost half of the people who have diabetes have an arthritic condition. This most likely occurs from being overweight. Cycling is low impact, which means it won’t hurt your joints and muscles as much.

If you want to meet your fitness goals, improve your glucose levels, and lose some weight, then you can use cycling as your go-to method.

7. Weightlifting

It’s always good to build muscle mass to burn more calories and control your glucose. You can use kettlebells, free weights, or machines to help you achieve your goals. You don’t need to go out and buy any expensive equipment if you don’t have it on hand, as you can use canned goods or even water bottles to lift.

You must learn how to lift weights safely as you can cause joint damage if you do it incorrectly. A class or two is an excellent option to try out different methods and get some guidance on the strategies that work best for you and your situation.

8. Resistance Bands

If weights are too much for you at this stage in your life, you might consider resistance bands. Resistance bands are great because it’s a low impact way to get a good workout. It’s one of the best exercises for diabetes, especially for those who have extra weight and sore joints that hinder movement.

Using these unique bands, you can sit on your couch or a comfortable chair and get a good workout in.

9. Calisthenics

The wonderful thing about this type of exercise is that you use your body’s weight to build strength. The most common movements in this category are squats, lunges, pushups, and crunches. Since these muscle-strengthening activities are challenging when you’re first starting, you may want to allow a day to lapse in between your workouts to allow your body to adjust.

10. Pilates

Pilates became popular in the past couple of decades as it improves the inner core and enhances balance and coordination. According to the National Institutes of Health, studies show that it also improves blood glucose control in women based on a 12-week review.

Many online tutorials can show you what to do and allow you to work alongside professionals. Or you may want to take a class in your area and team up with others battling diabetes and overweight.

Final Thoughts on the Best Exercises for Diabetes

The first place to start when considering a workout is to talk to your medical provider. You need to ensure that your glucose levels are at a safe place to do any workout routines. Second, you need to select a workout plan that is right for your body and needs.

It sounds good to do an hour of weightlifting each day as it’s one of the best exercises for diabetes, but not everyone can do such a workout. You need to start small and do things that won’t cause a great deal of pain. An excellent place to start is with something like resistance bands and then incorporate some dancing into it.

Both workouts can be done using a chair for comfort when needed, and you don’t have to strain your muscles or joints. The important thing about working out with diabetes is knowing when to listen to your body. If at any point you feel dizzy, lightheaded, or you’re short of breath, then you need to stop.

While it’s great to pick fantastic exercises for diabetes that strengthen your core and bring down those glucose levels, you want to make sure it’s done healthily. You can get control over your blood sugar levels, and it just takes a little effort to do it.

Experts Reveal 8 Reasons Why Being Happy All The Time Isn’t Healthy

February 9, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Most people strive for happiness in their lives. It’s an admirable goal to be happy. Many even hold it up as a final ideal, an end goal that will mark their true success. Some might even feel disappointed with themselves when they “let” some happiness drop. But is this really a good thing?

The fact is that happiness was never meant to be a constant emotion. On top of that, it can actually actively harm you if it’s excessive! Here’s how experts reveal 8 reasons why being happy all the time isn’t healthy.

1. Not All Situations Should Involve Happiness

Being happy all the time isn’t practical because it’s not really appropriate to be happy in all situations. Human beings have emotions for a reason – to meet challenges, adapt to opportunities and new situations, and respond well to the environment. That cannot be done if you’re always happy.

Charles Carver, a psychologist, states that positive emotions in general, happiness included, can lead to the act of slowing down and just “coasting” mentally for a while. This is because happiness is meant to be a signal of fulfilled desires or goals. Unfortunately, this means that always being happy can lead to decreased performance, especially in challenging or competitive environments. In fact, being angry is likely to boost your performance more than happiness!

Knowing when it’s okay to feel bad is crucial for overall health and happiness. If you want to perform well, you don’t need constant overwhelming and unbalanced positivity – you need realism and emotional balance.

2. It’s Important To Truly Feel Your Feelings

Some people may be tempted to try and dismiss all negative emotions. If that sounds like you, you’re actually doing more harm than good. By replacinglings completely and becomingbecomingng but positive, you’re not really getting rid of the bad – only repressing it.

In most cases, someone who feels happy all the time isn’t being honest about their emotions with themselves, says Suzannah Weiss, a highly-published lifestyle writer who has degrees in Cognitive Neuroscience, Gender & Sexuality Studies, and Modern Culture & Media. It’s a dangerous cycle to get used to repressing emotions, and those repressed feelings can come back to bite you later. Here are some reasons it’s important to feel your feelings:

· You Shouldn’t Have To Perform

Hiding your feelings behind facades of happiness is a kind of performance. Constantly performing this “positivity” stops you from being human. You’re supposed to have ups and downs, and you shouldn’t be performing ups only, especially if it’s only because you feel pressured to act happy by those around you.

· You Want To Appreciate Happiness

If all you are is forcibly happy, you stop feeling appreciative of that happiness. In fact, happiness is now more negative, as you have to force that emotion. Letting yourself feel negative emotions means that you’ll be more grateful for times of positivity.

· You Need The Feedback

Your emotions exist for a reason. They’re valuable feedback provided by your brain for your wellbeing. Emotions are a chance to stop and reflect on why you feel those ways, allowing you to learn and grow through difficult times. In other words, feeling negative emotions can make you a stronger person!

· Bad Feelings Can Make Good Memories

Some people think that they need to force happiness,, so they don’t waste their lives on negativity. While it’s true that wallowing isn’t good, it’s also true that good memories don’t need to involve happiness. Letting yourself be vulnerable, allowing negative emotions to exist, and watching yourself rise from negativity again are all wonderful ways to make memories. Part of the human experience is going through ups and downs, and you’ll remember your strength, the people who helped you, and how you climbed up again!

3. There Is A Difference Between Happiness And Purpose

A lot of people conflate the idea of happiness with meaning. While the meaning is necessary to have most of the time in life, happiness is a completely different. Professor of counseling psychology, speaker, and author David B. Feldman, Ph.D. states that there are two common kinds of experiences that make people feel that their lives are worth living:

Hedonic experiences, which relate to pleasurable activities such as eating sinful foods, watching a sunset, watching your favorite shows, or enjoying intimacy
Eudaimonic experiences, which relate to personal purpose, typically relating to living by certain values, making a difference, helping others, or completing goals and projects
These two experiences are distinct and separate, indicating that what is meaningful is not always pleasurable, and what is pleasurable is not always meaningful

Hedonic experiences are often generally considered the things that create those moments of positive thinking and happiness – but as you can probably guess, they’re not sustainable and can’t – and shouldn’t – be done all the time. Having meaning in life is what should sustain you, not having bursts of pleasure.

4. It Reduces Creativity

Intense experiences of happiness that are unbalanced and disproportionate may actually lead to decreased levels of creativity. Basically, too much positive thinking can kill your ability to think outside the box and be open-minded!

Psychologist Barbara Fredrickson further expands on this by stating that this creativity decrease doesn’t just occur in obvious creative pursuits, like art or media. It also means:

A lack of flexibility when facing difficulties
An inability to come up with effective, unique, or innovative solutions in the face of challenges
Difficulty accepting or understanding new perspectives from other people
A lack of interest in learning or trying new things

5. Some Kinds Of Happiness Are Bad For You

Happiness is a spectrum. It’s not just one term with one definition. There are many different flavors and sources of happiness, each one providing valuable context to situations. Different happiness has different effects, according to Yale Positive Emotion and Psychopathology Laboratory director, licensed clinical psychologist, and assistant professor of psychology June Gruber, Ph.D., and not all of them are healthy.

Make you feel closer to others.
Increase energy levels
Make you feel proud of yourself.
Increase generosity
Slow you down

Even more complex than that, each flavor of happiness can have “sub-flavors”! For example, being proud of your accomplishments and patting yourself on the back reinforces positive self-esteem, but being proud to the point where you act above others has social consequences. Understanding the nuances of happiness is important to ensure that you keep your emotions in check and stay grounded in the real world.

6. Negative Emotions May Improve Your Life

It goes without saying that a majority of people would rather never feel anything negative in their lives. But Feldman states that this may actually not be very positive, as negative emotions are typically crucial in at least some circumstances. For example:

Fear and anxiety can warn you against threatening situations and circumstances
Feeling guilty helps you reach the decision to make amends, take responsibility, or own up to mistakes
Anger motivates you to stand up for yourself and refuse to accept injustice (and in some cases, may even get you more positive outcomes from interactions with others)
Sadness helps you process difficult situations and makes you more grateful in happier times
Regret can push you to do better in the future, learn from mistakes, or try to create a better world

The trick, of course, is not to go overboard with negativity. Anxiety to the point of an anxiety disorder, for example, needs medical attention. Or acting violently and lashing out in anger is not a good thing, as another example. Balancing negative emotions with positive ones allows you to have a more moderated, effective, and positive life overall.

7. It Can Threaten Safety

It’s hard to understand why being happy all the time could harm your personal safety, but all one has to do is look at what happiness is at its core. Let’s think, for a moment, about what happiness does. It:

Focuses your attention on positive thinking, excitement, and great things happening in your world
Reduces inhibitions, meaning you are likely to take more risks or be open to new possibilities off the bat
Tries to sustain positive feelings by focusing for as long as possible on only the good

Now, imagine all of those great benefits of happiness, but taken to the far extreme. You might ignore risks for a prolonged period of time, stop noticing anything grounded in reality, and take leaps without looking or caring about what happens next.

Think it’s far-fetched? Science supports it. A study by psychologist Howard S. Friedman found that individuals who grow up being considered extremely cheerful had a higher chance of mortality carried forward into adulthood. This is because of a “happiness overdrive,” where they would engage in behaviors without caring about threats. This could lead to:

Binge eating
Risk-taking behaviors
Promiscuity
Excessive alcohol consumption
Substance abuse

8. Constantly Chasing Happiness Is Bad For You

Everyone wants to be happy, but sometimes it becomes too much of an obsession. It’s fixed into our brains that we have to be happy and pursue that goal at all costs, and that being happy is a sort of end-goal. This is especially true for Americans, as the Declaration of Independence even includes a line on it!

But according to social psychologist and emotion regulation expert Iris Mauss, this is very counterintuitive. This is because:

The more someone pursues happiness, the more likely that they are to set very high goals and standards for that happiness
Higher goals and standards mean a lower chance of obtaining that gold-standard happiness they seem to want
Trying to chase happiness excessively is essentially setting oneself for disappointment.
Those with these lofty goals may not even be able to feel happy in positive circumstances, as their positive thinking is dependant on something almost unattainable.
The pursuit of happiness may be associated with a worsened risk for mental disorders, including bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder.

Final Thoughts On Some Reasons Why Being Happy All The Time Isn’t Healthy

Negative emotions are normal and healthy in moderation. Even the happiest, most successful people you know experience negative emotions. It’s just part of the beautiful life you’ll live as a human being.

Instead of focusing on achieving constant happiness, focus on regulating your emotions, balancing your feelings, and addressing your negative emotions. You can learn, grow, and appreciate yourself, even more, that way!

Why It’s Okay To Be Picky In Relationships, According to Relationship Experts

February 9, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Are you currently single? Are you often told that if you just lowered your standards and stopped being picky, you’d have an easier time dating? Do you sometimes feel ashamed for your perceived pickiness?

Keep your chin up and turn on your positive thinking! Being “picky” isn’t actually as bad as you might think. Here’s how experts reveal 8 reasons why it’s okay to be picky in relationships.

1. You Have To Focus On The Long-Term Facts

If all you’re interested in is a fling, sure, you don’t have to be picky. But if you’re seeking long-term relationships with the end-goal of a life partnership, then long-term thinking is crucial. This means being significantly pickier when it comes to the people you choose to date.

Licensed Clinical Social Worker and psychotherapist Leah Aguirre states that although living in the present is important for healthy relationships, you need to still think of the big picture. Long-term implications exist in all relationships, and if you want to go the distance, you need to prepare for them.

In other words, chemistry and connection may not be enough to carry you all the way to a together-forever situation. Differing expectations, future desires, and general compatibility issues can cause long-term plans to fall apart. You have to think about if you share these common things:

You both want children, and if so, if they would be a good parent
Both will be supportive of your personal choices and career path
You both have similar visions for the future
You can both be happy with each other for the rest of your lives, or as long as possible
Both partners have the ability to compromise, communicate, and be accepting of each other

Being picky allows you to weed out prospective partners with who you may not be able to truly go the distance. It saves you time and heartache in the long run.

2. Little Things You Overlook Now May Bother You Later On

Minor quirks from a partner should be things that endear you to them. Finding tiny little personal traits of theirs annoying is a surefire way to wind up in a contemptible and negative relationship.

According to Andrew G. Marshall, a relationship expert, most people assume that major issues are the primary cause of difficulty in relationships. But in reality, small little irritations are more likely to build up over time and even overpower bigger problems. The reality is simple: if something small your partner does irks you to no end, there are likely larger issues at play, and that could point to long-term incompatibility.

Being picky allows you to avoid winding up in situations where seemingly small things wind up causing huge problems. Though it’s possible to learn to accept little things that annoy you, it’s also understandable if something you can’t stand from someone off the bat makes you realize this isn’t the right person for you.

3. You Can Learn From Past Relationships

When past relationships don’t work out, you need to stop for a while and think about why. When you realize what made you incompatible with your exes, you also realize that you have to be a bit pickier when you learn from these mistakes and choose new partners.

Studies have long indicated that people have a tendency to gravitate towards similar relationships than they had in the past. That, unfortunately, means that you may end up stuck dating similar people for a long time if you don’t learn to be picky!

The good news is that the same aforementioned research also reveals that individuals who are more open to new situations are less likely to choose new partners that are similar to their old ones. So if you do your best to open your mind and world, you likely won’t be bound by what naturally attracts you – and if that means being pickier, that’s okay!

4. Your Intuition Can Be Powerful

Intuition is often dismissed as something purely illogical, but sometimes listening to your gut isn’t a bad thing, says Aguirre. If things seem right with someone but feel wrong, and you can’t figure out what may be the cause, it’s okay to decide to call it off before things get serious.

Think about it this way: often, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. The fault could like on their side, your side, or neither side, but the bottom line is that if things don’t add up or just feel “off”, you have every right to end things or back out. Especially in new or budding relationships, you do not have to justify a decision you make based on instinct – especially if it’s clearer and clearer that something is wrong every day.

5. You Shouldn’t Be Bound By Sunk Cost

Sunk cost refers to a phenomenon where people are more likely to stick with difficult or even painful situations if they have invested a significant amount of something into it. This could be:

Time
Money
Effort
Sacrifices
Plans made

Marriage and Family Therapist Darlene Lancer states that a huge number of people remain in relationships where they are unhappy. They can feel suffocated, be controlled, or be abused and still remain, despite being miserable, and a lot of that stems from the feeling that you have already invested so much into this relationship – why leave?

When you’re picky, you don’t let yourself be bound by these things. Putting in effort into a relationship that you later realize isn’t going to work won’t keep you there, unhappy. You’ll know that you should move on and won’t get hung up on the idea that you’ve “wasted” anything. In fact, you’ll have learned and grown from this relationship and will be wiser about future ones.

6. You Know Your Must-Haves and Dealbreakers

When choosing a partner, you likely have lists of things you absolutely need someone to have and also things you absolutely do not want. It’s true that some people go overboard with their lists, but it’s also good to have standards.

Some examples of common reasonable must-haves include:

Emotional openness
A kind heart or compassionate values
Aligning political or social beliefs and ideals
The responsibility to maintain reasonable employment
Similar desires regarding having children
Intelligence and the capacity for engaging in discussions and conversation

Some examples of common reasonable dealbreakers include:

Negative behavioral traits like selfishness, controlling behavior, or dishonesty
Smoking, drinking, or substance abuse
Career choices that put someone in the public eye
A far distance from each other
Money-mindedness
Incompatible intimate desires

Animal studies have shown that older individuals may have a likelihood of being more selective when they choose friends, let alone partners. Why? Because they seek more positive relationships towards the end of their lives and know what works for them!

People get tired of drama and trying to force things to work. They know what they like and they’re sticking to that. It’s a perfectly respectable approach to dating, as long as you’re being reasonable about your lists for must-haves and dealbreakers. The trick is to be the right amount of picky!

7. You Know And Appreciate Yourself

You know who you are. And you know what works best for you. You know your flaws, your strengths, and most of all, you know that you deserve to be appreciated – and you want to appreciate your partner in that same way, too.

Having high standards is often looked down on, but there’s nothing wrong with respecting yourself, says Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Associate and National Certified Counselor Heather Gillam. The time you spend searching for someone you’re compatible with isn’t “lost” time – it’s time you get to use to work on yourself!

8. You Shouldn’t Have To Settle

Nobody should have to settle on a partner. There is no point in choosing someone only to dislike them or wish you’d done better later. And think about how negative it is for someone to know you’re only dating them because you couldn’t find the right person!

Research has shown that individuals who are looking for a partner are likely to narrow down their options to choose “candidates” by settling. It may be some way to force positive thinking when you think dating is difficult or hopeless or might be entirely subconscious. But the bottom line is that it happens. Here are the four things people may “settle” on when choosing candidates for a relationship:

· Stability or Dependability versus Good Health or Physical Attractiveness

People may choose to forgo emotional stability for levels of physical attraction, or may happily disregard someone’s health status for the sake of better dependability.

· Love verses Resources or Status

People are likely to choose to compromise on someone’s economic status for feelings of romantic attraction, or to date someone without sufficient romantic attraction because of their economic status.

· Intelligence or Education Level versus A Desire For Children or Home-building

You are more likely to be picky about someone’s career or level of education if they don’t want a lot of kids, but you are also more likely to forgive someone’s lack of education if they genuinely want many children.

· Religious Beliefs versus Sociability

A person is likely to compromise on someone’s social skills or character in exchange for compatible or similar religious beliefs, but they are also likely to accept someone with a different religious background if they are sociable.

Professor of psychology, practicing clinician, and researcher Noam Shpancer, Ph.D., clarifies, however, that this process is primarily used for the selection of romantic candidates, not for actual decisions regarding whether you “accept” those candidates or not. Acceptance is dependant on highly personal and often mysterious personal desires.

Essentially, by “settling” when choosing between what traits you want in a partner during candidacy selection, you’re basically performing arbitrary tasks that don’t even matter when you actually make your full decision! Why start by settling when you can, from the beginning, follow your true desires?

Final Thoughts On Some Reasons Why It’s Okay To Be Picky In Relationships

There’s no race to the land of long-term relationships. You can take your time and define your own standards for a future partner, and that’s your choice and right. It’s up to you who you date, and if being so-called “picky” is what you need to be, then there’s no shame in owning that.

5 Things To Do After 6 PM That Improve Your Mental Clarity

February 9, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

What do you do after 6 pm? For some people, that’s the time their day ends, and they get to relax. For others, they have more work to do. Still, others may have commitments of some kind at this time, or perhaps it’s dedicated to spending time with friends and family. Regardless, you need mental clarity. The world, meanwhile, is mostly speeding up for the rush hour as most people head home.

Whatever you use your evening time for, there’s one thing that is almost unanimously true. Few people are as sharp at 6 pm as they were during the day. For those who have some things that they still need to finish or some errands that need doing, the tiredness from the rest of the day can weigh heavily on them.

On the other hand, for those completely free after 6 pm, they may spend their time doing nothing in particular, getting more sluggish as time goes on. While having time off is great, and it’s good to get some rest after a long day, one can’t deny that at least some of that free time may have better ways to be spent.

If your brain is foggy after 6 pm, or if you’re looking to help stay more alert and clear any time of the day, there may be ways to utilize this time. Whether you’re busy or free after 6, there’s sure to be something you can do to help yourself and your brain out. Here are 5 things to do after 6 pm that improve your mental clarity.

1. Learn

If you’re the kind of person with a good chunk of free time after 6 pm, then you may want to learn better ways to use it. This is not to say that you should be busy non-stop and forgo all rest time. Instead, this means that you should learn to fill your time in positive ways for you.

Learning is one of the best ways to keep your brain engaged and help your mind form stronger functions and connections. If you have nothing to do in the evenings, take advantage of some of that free time! After all, building your brainpower through learning can help your cognitive function and clarity. Here are some ways to learn after 6 pm:

· Read

Please pick up a book you’ve been interested in and lose yourself in it, whether it’s fiction or nonfiction. You’re keeping your mind engaged, and you might even learn a few new things! Just make sure you’re reading for fun and enjoyment, not because you feel like you have to. Just a few pages can be enough to achieve these results!

· Satisfy Your Curiosity

Is there something you’ve been curious about for a while? Use your free time to learn something about it! Whether it’s an obscure topic or just a bit of fact-checking, you now have the time to answer the questions you’ve been wondering about.

· Try A New Hobby

Hobbies are a great way to expand your skillset and build your brainpower for better mental clarity. If you work in a technical field, try something artistic, and vice versa! Work out parts of your brain that don’t usually get exercised!

2. Go Outside

Have you ever noticed that you often feel calmer when you’re outside and have a clearer head? To understand why this happens, we have to think about structural plasticity – that is, the human brain’s ability and desire to rewire and produce neural connections based on its environment. Essentially, being in an environment that is enriching may help your brain function.

Nature is one of the best ways to “enrich” your brain easily and directly. The quiet that nature brings is contrary to the city-slicker life many of us live, allowing for a break from the hustle and bustle that removes the sensory overload. Studies have found that even if you can’t get to full-blown unfiltered nature, you can still benefit from exposure to the environment by:

Looking up at the sky
Being around trees and greenery
Listening to birdsong

3. Try Brain Dumping to Reach a State of Mental Clarity

The brain is like a natural computer of sorts. If you’re even a little tech-savvy, you probably know what RAM, or random-access memory, is in electronics. RAM is a kind of data storage that is taken up when you run software or applications. It’s helpful to think of brains as having a kind of “RAM,” too.

But what does this mean? Basically, your brain has a limited capacity to process multiple tasks and thoughts, often getting slower the more cluttered it gets. Worse still, many so-called processes that take up brian’s RAM lie in background thoughts, mental loads, sensory input, and other subconscious things.

Some activities can help clear up this RAM, like getting good quality sleep or relaxing calming practices. But in a pinch after 6 pm when you’re tired but have more to do, brain dumping is a good way to do it and clear up your mind! Here’s how to do it:

Step 1: Get a medium to write with. You can use a notepad or word program on your computer, a note app on your phone, or even traditional pen and paper.
Step 2: Write or type absolutely anything and everything that pops into your head, no matter how mundane or strange it is. Whatever thought crosses your mind, scribble it down quickly. Remember, even thoughts like “I don’t know what to type” are still thoughts you should write out! Don’t overthink, do.
Step 3: Continue this practice for 5-15 minutes, or longer if you really feel like you have a lot to let out.
Step 4: As an optional step, if your mental clutter on the page is clearly a little heavy, you can try to think about (and write your thoughts on) why you feel that way or why those words were in your head to begin with.

4. Do Some Mindfulness Meditation

You’ve probably heard about mindfulness meditation lots of times by now. It’s the act of meditating to ground your thoughts in the present, releasing anxieties, worries, and stressors as you do so. It’s meant to relax you and increase your positive thinking, and most studies have found that it works well.

Mindfulness meditation works wonders for concentration and may allow you to clear your head well and continue performing at an efficient and productive rate, even in the evenings. Here’s how to do it:

· Step 1: Settle Down

Find a relatively quiet location and sit down on a chair or cushion, sitting with your back straight (not stiff). Make sure you feel stable and relax your shoulders. Rest your hands on your legs, keeping your upper arms on the side of your torso.

· Step 2: Relax

Gently lower your chin, allowing your eyes to fall shut if they need to (though make note you do not have to close your eyes to meditate). Keep your body engaged without being too tense or loose.

· Step 3: Breathe and Feel

Take a deep breath and focus on the way your breath naturally fills and empties your body. Follow the rise and fall of your chest, feeling the way air enters your nose or mouth, fills your chest and stomach, then leaves again.

· Step 4: Maintain Focus

Your thoughts may attempt to creep in and call your attention away from your breathing. Notice them, but don’t react – don’t judge them or respond to them – and slowly redirect your attention to your breathing. You may count breaths to focus better.

· Step 5: Finish

Slowly raise your head back upwards, opening your eyes if they have shut. Gently bring yourself back to the present by taking notice of the things around you in your environment, then pay attention to yourself. How are you feeling? What are you thinking? Pause and decide how you will continue your day, then get up and do that!

5. Take A Break

If you’ve ever tried to spend a long time focusing on something, you might notice that your ability to concentrate gets less and less workable as time goes on. Your efficiency and productivity eventually start going downhill as you struggle to make your brain focus. There are several explanations for this:

Mental resources may be depleted over time
The brain may naturally ignore repeated and constant forms of stimulation
You are likely to be bored with the same task as time goes on

Regardless of which of these explanations is the truth, most research concludes that, for the most positive levels of mental focus, you need to take short breaks. Brief pauses from what you’re doing to shift your attention for just a short while may significantly increase your ability to focus. In other words, let yourself take a break, especially if you’ve been doing the same task for a long time and are suffering from general tiredness from the day wearing on!

Final Thoughts On Some Things To Do After 6 PM To Improve Your Mental Clarity

Most people don’t have optimal brain function all day long, especially as the day wears on. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t do little things to improve your mental state and help you keep a clear head so your daily tasks can still be performed without significant slowing.

Even if you don’t have any more tasks in the evening, that doesn’t mean you can’t enrich yourself. Many people want to pursue new goals but lack the time to do it, and you have it all right here! The way you manage your free time can determine your success and accomplishments in life, so it’s a good idea to use it wisely.

There are plenty of things you may need to do after 6 pm. There may also be nothing that you need to do at this time. Still, regardless of your commitments, you can do any of these things to improve your mental clarity, so you don’t suffer the effects of brain fog too much!

If all else fails, though, remember that it is also wonderful to rest after 6 pm sometimes. It would be best if you recharged every once in a while, and there’s no harm in giving yourself some breathing room. Balance might be the key to mental clarity and positive thinking!

5 Therapists Reveal 7 Techniques to Declutter Your Brain

February 9, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Does your head ever feel muddled? Do you tend to get easily overwhelmed or confused? Do you have trouble organizing your mind and thoughts? If you relate to those statements, then your brain might be cluttered! Luckily, it’s something you can undo to declutter your brain.

Five leading therapists reveal the seven effective ways to declutter your brain for clarity in thoughts.

1. Challenge Feelings Of Self-Doubt

Self-doubt can be rooted very deeply, which means that telling yourself nice little words may not work. That’s why the trick is to challenge feelings, not merely try to brush them off or talk them down. Superficial platitudes are unlikely to work when your self-doubt is buried within your entire psyche.

For example, you are unlikely to respond to phrases like:

“I’m awesome!”
“These voices are lying, and I’m great!”
“I can do it!”

According to the psychotherapist, licensed clinical social worker, and renowned mental strength expert Amy Morin, learning to declutter here requires not confidence but courage. Many people often assume that self-doubt can be conquered simply by becoming more self-assured, and while that is technically true, you can’t build that overnight. Accepting the fear and being brave in its face lets you take action.

What does this mean? The next time you see self-doubt forming, tell yourself that you’re taking that self-doubt as a challenge. This is because you’re trying to retrain your mind so that you learn, one step at a time, that your self-doubt is lying to you. It’s time to prove your own self wrong, and through this, you’ll slowly learn that your brain may not be right all the time!

2. Look For Movement And Sensation In The Natural World

The natural world is full of beauty and wonder, and there are ways you can engage your senses, muscles, and body in the world around you. This is a beautiful way to help declutter your mind, and it can also be good for your physical health.

Royal College of GPs chair Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard states that general practitioners have begun to use social prescriptions to help patients. This refers to using non-clinical recommendations to boost mental and physical health. The world outside gives people a chance to be active and expand their positive thinking and overall wellbeing.

The stress relief and wellness you may get from engaging in the natural world can help you declutter and gain clarity.

uHere are some ways to do so:

· Physical Connections To Nature

In this day and age, few people will come into close contact with nature more than a few times a year. Gone are the days of regular picnics and rolling around in the grass. Though, of course, some people in rural areas continue these acts, the fact remains that most people caught up in the hustles and bustle in the world don’t physically interact with nature as much as they used to. So do that! Go to a park and lie in the grass. Head to a quiet area and listen to the birds. Keep a plant. Do what you need to do to get close to nature!

· Movement In Nature

Just walking a little every day is a great way to clear your head, but doing it in nature is even better. Something is relaxing and restoring about performing even the simplest form of exercise outdoors. If you’re into sports, even better!

· Gardening

There are so many positive effects of gardening, and one of them is its ability to reduce stress levels and help your cognitive function. Merely taking care of living organisms is already an excellent way to manage negative moods, but doing it outdoors and in a physically active way helps even more.

3. Try Minimalism Lite

Minimalism is a great movement and style choice for decluttered thoughts, but of course, not everyone wants to go the whole mile with that. People can’t deny that some things that bring them joy are material items, and for those who like building collections of things, it may not be the best option.

But living a less cluttered life is still something that will transfer to your mental state. As a general rule, a chaotic environment will typically lead to a cluttered mind. If what you see the moment you wake up is a mess, you’re starting your day off with decreased positive thinking.

The act of cleaning itself can feel quite therapeutic, says Own Your Anxiety author and anxiety coach Julian Brass. As such, spending a little time decluttering can also help your brain naturally declutter itself as you go. This means that regularly removing excess stuff from your home can be just as helpful as maintaining minimal excess to begin with.

Here are some reasons you should try a lighter version of minimalism to reduce clutter in your life:

· It’s Demanding

Clutter and things in general demand space. They demand effort to move and clean. They require time to organize and money to buy. They can be overwhelming and require upkeep and maintenance. You won’t have time to keep a clear mind if you’re occupied with ways to handle your accumulated things.

· Possessions Don’t Carry Memories

Studies indicate that people often become attached to clutter and disposable items that hold some positive memories. Some don’t even have memories attached – they feel valuable, like something you’ve had for twenty years, even if you haven’t used it in ten. Some keepsakes are worth having, but worn-out shoes, tattered random magazines, and other damaged and unusable items with no significant sentimental value aren’t worth keeping around. It would be best if you didn’t have to rely on these items for mental security, and let go of them can free up mental space and declutter your brain.

· It’s Easier To Process

The brain can have difficulty processing very cluttered environments, as there’s a lot to take in at once. Clearing up and keeping clean, streamlined spaces also make it easier to spot any buildup of clutter to get rid of again.

4. Separate Worry From Problem-Solving

When faced with a difficult situation, problem-solving needs to be done. Overwhelming negative emotions can negate that right away. Of course, there is nothing wrong with feeling bad when things go south. The importance lies in separating those feelings from the actual issues you’re dealing with.

Morin makes the distinction clear. Problem-solving involves finding solutions, whether by changing the environment, addressing the issue, or finding ways to move on. On the other hand, ruminating in worry involves:

Rehashing and replaying bad memories
Second-guessing all the choices you’ve made so far
Imagining the extraordinarily improbable and catastrophic worst-case scenario
Going in circles of negative thought

Morin recommends spending 15 minutes daily dedicated to worrying and being anxious. Essentially, you set aside worries until you reach your dedicated 15 minutes, then worry as much as you want for that time, and stop when the time is up. Whenever new worries come, you can only sit in them and ruminate during those 15 minutes.

This allows you to remove the worst negativity from your day quickly, decluttering your mind so you can think more clearly and with sharper intent. It prevents you from being bogged down by unnecessary stress that clutters your mind!

5. Keep A Journal

Journaling is a proven method of maintaining positive thinking every day, and it also gives you an avenue to declutter your brain. Neuropsychologist Sanam Hafeez, Ph.D., states that journaling allows the mind to organize its thoughts, analyze them, and relax.

Research certainly agrees, as most studies indicate that journaling can boost positive thinking, reduce stress, and even improve thought clarity. When you journal, you:

Get to express intrusive, embarrassing, and unwanted thoughts without judgment.
Free up mental space for more pressing matters, decluttering your brain as you go
Gain better cognitive resources and thought clarity
Cope with negative emotions and situations in positive ways

Not much of a writer? Try using bullet journals or just writing a few sentences! Once you get into the habit, your words will flow easier each time.

6. Learn To Pause, Daydream, and Rest

In today’s busy world, it’s easy to feel like you need to keep going and going, even when you’re tired of longing for a break. There’s wisdom in learning to pause and take a break, especially if you allow your mind to wander a little. The excess clutter that crowds up your mental faculties won’t have the chance to be processed and diffused if you never rest.

Psychologist Jennifer Hughes, Ph.D., says that the human brain is designed to wander and daydream. It’s part of what allows for productivity, innovation, and creativity. Cluttered brains prevent that creativity from occurring, and studies have found that it’s most positive actually to let your brain daydream as it desires!

Sadly, many people equate daydreaming to laziness or idleness. That’s not the case. Haven’t you noticed that, after a brief break, you tend to be more productive? Pauses in tasks are crucial to the decluttering process – if you don’t give yourself time to breathe, stuff builds up in your head!

7. Don’t Wallow In Self-Pity

Self-pity is a pretty useless emotion. It’s not healthy or productive, unlike other negative emotions like sadness or anger. It merely involves magnifying current situations and making them big enough for you to sit in. It’s easy to get stuck when you pity yourself, and your brain gets more and more clogged up with your complaints and muddy thoughts.

Morin recommends stopping pity parties in their tracks by circumventing them with something positive. Even if you can’t solve the issue causing those feelings, at least turn your attention to something productive and useful. She also cautions against using red flag self-pity language, such as:

Why does bad stuff always happen to me?
Nobody understands me!
No one ever wants to hang out with me.

These kinds of phrases perpetuate the pity cycle, further taking up space in your mind. You’re much better off letting go of these thoughts. Instead of wallowing because your date canceled on you, spend the night treating yourself! Or, instead of getting stuck in the knowledge that you can’t solve the health issue of a relative, turn that energy to volunteer work that supports a relevant health cause. It makes all the difference.

Final Thoughts On Some Effective Ways To Declutter Your Brain For Clarity In Thoughts

A cluttered brain is hard to work with! It tends to make bad decisions, worsens negative mood, and makes you feel bad in general. Make sure to take the time to declutter your brain regularly, and you’ll enjoy clearer, more workable thoughts and a more relaxed life!

4 Daily Habits That Promise Positive Results

February 9, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Are you a proactive person? Proactiveness can best be defined as self-initiated behavior that allows for the prevention or future solution placement of problems that may occur. It’s the opposite of reactiveness, which means only reacting to the events as they happen, often with less successful results.

This trait is often considered one of the most crucial for success, productivity, and effectiveness. So how can you make yourself a proactive person? The answer is simple: by starting with what you do. Here’s how experts reveal 4 proactive activities that promise positive results.

1. Create A Self-Care Routine

Self-care is great, but if you want to be proactive in self-care, you’ll want to make it into a routine. A lot of people make the mistake of only performing self-care when they really need it. They’ll let themselves get to the point of dire stress before finally stepping away. This is “reactive” self-care and isn’t the best way to get the most out of Me Time! You want self-care to always exist, preventing stress from reaching burnout levels in advance. That’s proactivity!

Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Nationally Certified Counselor, and Diplomate and Clinical Specialist in Child and Adolescent Counseling Stephanie Sarkis, Ph.D., makes it clear that proactiveness in self-care is extremely crucial for positive thinking. Research has shown a similar fact – self-care alleviates stress severity, eases mental illness symptoms, and even helps with productivity, performance, and problem-solving.

Basically, regular, proactive self-care, performed because you value yourself and not because you have no choice at the last minute, is good for you all around. You’ll be less burned out, you’ll be able to manage difficult situations, and you’ll feel better every day. Those are some great positive results!

Self-care expert Gill Lopez, who has conducted lots of research in the field, outlines the following tips for making proactive self-care routines:

· Find What Works For You

There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to proactive self-care. Some people may find that certain common self-care activities don’t help them at all! (For example, taking a bubble bath may make you feel restless if you dislike sitting still.) So, tailor your self-care to you! Begin by listing some things that make you happy and work your way from there.

· Find Ways To Incorporate What You Love Into Your Life

So, you’ve listed what you like. Now, think about if these things help to ground, calm, and center you. If they do, consider ways you can incorporate them into your daily life. For example, if you like the scent of lavenders, try adding lavender-scented items to your space. Or, if you love nature, schedule weekly hiking trips and spend a short amount of time daily walking in a park.

· Adjust As You Go

Sometimes, your goals for self-care won’t actually work out when you put them into practice. Don’t be afraid to make changes! Evaluate your self-care routine regularly to see what is and isn’t working for you.

2. Empower Yourself With Adaptable Plans and Goals

No one can deny the importance of goal-setting and making plans when it comes to achieving dreams or moving towards success. Satisfaction and performance are often improved through the use of positive goals in everyday life and schedules.

But there are many common mistakes that people make when trying to set goals, and that can mess things up! Overly rigid goals may be more of a hindrance than a help, so you want to learn to empower yourself with your plans, not give yourself even more hassle. Here are some tips from Eastwick Executive Vice President and General Manager Heather Kernahan for better empowerment through the use of adaptable plans goals:

· Build Your Confidence With Preparation

You can’t prepare for anything, but you can prepare yourself for enough. You don’t have to be strict and perfect to prepare, and there are many different kinds of preparation: mental, physical, technical, informational, and so on. Find the kinds of preparation that make you feel confident when it’s time to put your plans into action and strike a balance between perfectionism and carelessness.

· Tailor Plans To You

You’ll hear all kinds of advice – most of it unsolicited – about what you should or shouldn’t be prioritizing. Remember, no opinions of others matter more than your own. You get to decide what matters most to you and set goals and plans accordingly.

· Be Open To Possibilities

A lot of people make the mistake of accidentally restricting themselves with their goals and plans. There are so many opportunities that show themselves every day, and you need to be ready for them with positive thinking. Be prepared to adapt to new openings that you come across, and also be prepared to adjust if you’re struggling.

Now that you know how to set plans and goals that are adaptable, it’s time to spend some time actually putting those goals into place! Creating daily plans, short-term goals, and long-term goals is a great way to get things into motion. You’re being proactive by planning ahead for the future, which is guaranteed to get you positive results if you’re doing it the right way!

3. Take Charge Of Your Health

Your health is arguably the most important part of your life. That’s why proactivity in your medical status and health is one of the most crucial ways to ensure long-term positive results – like an increased lifespan!

Instead of waiting for your health to go downhill before seeing a doctor or even thinking about your physical state, learning to take charge of yourself in a proactive way. Banner Health physician Dr. Jessica Regnaert recommends the following steps for taking charge of your health:

· Know Your Family History

Your family history determines what you should be screened for, what your doctors should be on the lookout for, and what current seemingly harmless issues may point to. It’s extremely crucial to your health, and most experts agree!

· Take Preventative Measures

Vaccinations, a healthy lifestyle, and any other recommendations your doctor may have can make the difference between developing a disease or not. Prevention is a prime example of true proactiveness, after all!

· Get Your Regular Screens and Tests

For many health conditions, prevention is the best cure – but you can’t always prevent everything, and that’s where screening comes in. Early detection can be a huge lifesaver when it comes to disease. Talk to your doctor about screenings that you need and make a list of them, then make sure to attend. This includes annual standard checkups!

4. Make Some Smart Money Moves

If you’re in a position to spare some money, then one of the most proactive activities you can engage in is putting it in wise and smart places. It’s one of those things that feels hard to do now but only promises more and more positive results as time moves forward.

Personal finance and business writer Kate Luther recommends some of the following things as proactive steps for your future when it comes to managing your money wisely:

· Start Saving

A worrying number of people still don’t have any savings, and with economic changes and job market troubles, it’s easy to see why you may have not prioritized putting aside any money. After all, you likely have more significant financial responsibilities to attend to! But that doesn’t mean you can’t start saving just a little bit. This doesn’t mean putting aside 10% or even 5% of your earnings – it can mean just putting $5 a month aside to build up in the background over time. A little financial cushion can provide you with even a little bit more security, and that’s something everyone can benefit from.

· Start Paying Down Debt

Naturally, this is significantly easier said than done. But just like with saving, a little bit can add up over a long period of time! Adding just $5 to your monthly standard payments lets you take charge of your finances and will show itself in significant ways over time. It’s not quick, but it is effective, and every little bit provides something positive.

· Learn About How Investing Works

There are many kinds of investment plans, and in the United States, those with an IRA or 401(k) probably already know what sort of plan they’re on. Other countries have their own versions of this. But no matter where you’re from, when making a decision, you need to know more details than just how much risk you’re willing to sign up for. What’s the difference between all the available mutual funds? What are the fees like? What’s the value for the stock you’re looking at? What tools can you use to manage and control your finances? So instead of diving headfirst into trying to “invest” right away, begin by simply learning how it all works. It will be easier for you to make smart decisions when you have more than surface-level knowledge!

· Start Considering Your Retirement

A huge chunk of the world doesn’t have any retirement savings at all. This is due to the lack of understanding and knowledge of what goes into retirement, but it can also be due to feelings of fear or hopelessness when it comes to looking at the future. This is even worse for those on tight budgets. So reduce some of that fear by doing research into retirement options and find ones that interest or may work well for you. See Birch gold prices if you’re thinking about setting up a gold IRA. You don’t need to financially commit to them just yet, especially if you’re younger, but knowing your options always helps.

· Think About Estate Plans

It’s bleak to think about, and it makes sense that few people want to think, in detail, about their death – especially younger individuals. But planning for death and the future can make all the difference for the financial state of your family one day, and it may even save them money later on. This is because, in most countries, legislators have an in-place plan of what will happen to the belongings of those who pass away unless they override it with a will of their own. As such, the positive results estate planning promises aren’t just for you – they’re for the future, your loved ones, and your peace of mind as you age.

Final Thoughts On Some Proactive Activities That Promise Positive Results

Being proactive means being prepared. It means being ready for multiple possibilities and, if something does hit you out of the left field, it means knowing how to react in the most positive ways. By practicing proactive habits and activities, you allow yourself favorable results, good handling of difficult situations, and a better future.

10 Scientific Reasons Eucalyptus is Good for Your Health

February 9, 2021 by Power of Positivity

For thousands of years, humans relied on essential oils for food, perfume, and medicinal uses. Modern science now confirms some of their health benefits. One quintessential favorite comes from the eucalyptus tree.

Most essential oils are safe for your skin if you dilute them with a carrier oil. These unscented oils safely dilute the essential oil without affecting its effectiveness. Some common ones include sweet almond, jojoba, coconut, and olive oil.

Ten Potential Benefits of Using Essential Eucalyptus Oil

Are you interested in trying essential oils for your health? Eucalyptus may be one to consider. Here are ten possible benefits of using eucalyptus oil for its health benefits.

1. Can Help Reduce Coughing

Not only does coughing irritate your chest and lungs, but it often drains your energy. According to an article published by the American Lung Association, coughing is a vital reflex that helps clear your airways from irritants and excess mucus. Although coughing is beneficial, it can make your throat feel scratchy and raw.

An article published by the Florida Naturopathic Physicians Association states that eucalyptol is a powerful expectorant. An expectorant is a substance that helps thin excess mucus in your airways so you can expel it.

It’s why you often find eucalyptol in chest rub remedies and aromatherapy vaporizers.

•How To:

Add 2-3 drops of eucalyptol oil to a tablespoon of your favorite carrier oil. Rub the mixture on your chest, neck, and back.

2. May Minimize Seasonal Allergy Symptoms

Are you one of the thousands of people across the country who battle with seasonal allergies? These allergies are usually worse in the spring and summer when pollen count and other microbes are at their peak. Seasonal allergies are notorious for causing sneezing, coughing, congestion, runny nose, sore throat, and itchy eyes.

If you want to minimize your symptoms naturally, you might consider trying eucalyptol oil. According to a study published by BMC Immunology, the anti-inflammatory properties of eucalypt can also affect your body’s immunity responses. So, it may be used to help suppress many of your seasonal allergy symptoms.

• How To:

Add 5-7 drops of pure eucalyptol oil in a diffuser to use at home or work. You can also mix three drops of it in a tablespoon of sweet almond oil to use as a vapor rub on your neck, chest, and under your nose.

3. Helps Respiratory Issues

Since eucalyptol oil has anti-inflammatory properties and may boost your immune system, it may also be useful for treating respiratory issues. It stated in a study published by the Alternative Medicine Review. These issues include chronic bronchitis, COPD, and asthma.

• How To:

If you have sinus issues or other mild to moderate respiratory issues, you can add 5-7 drops of eucalyptol oil to a vaporizer or diffuser in your home. You can also pour a cup of boiling water into a large bowl and add 3-5 drops of the oil. Cover your head with a towel and inhale the soothing vapors for about 15 minutes.

4. May Reduce Pain and Inflammation

If you have mild to moderate pain or inflammation, you may think about using eucalyptol as an aromatherapy treatment. A study published by Evidence-Based Alternative Complementary Medicine demonstrated promising results. Participants in the study had knee replacement surgery, and one group inhaled eucalyptol oil 30 minutes for three days.

When researchers compared the vitals and pain scale of these patients with the control groups, they found that the eucalyptol inhalation effectively minimized their pain. The study concluded that using eucalyptol inhalation may be a valuable tool for reducing pain and lowering blood pressure after total knee replacement surgery.

If using this essential oil shows promise after a painful surgery, it stands to reason that it may help with other acute and chronic pain, but more research about its potential needs to be completed.

• How To:

Sniff from a bottle of pure eucalyptol for 3-5 minutes. For a topical solution, add 2-3 drops of the oil to one-fourth cup carrier oil and rub it gently into the affected area.

5. It Can Fight Infections

Your body has a unique self-defense network called your immune system. Whenever anything foreign enters your body, your white blood cells surround and attack it. The aftermath is inflammation and infection.

Some of the most common infections you may recognize come from microscopic pathogens like E. coli and S. aureus, which causes staph infections. According to research published by the Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine, eucalyptol oil showed promising results as an antibacterial and antifungal.

• How To:

If you have an infected area, mix 2-3 drops of eucalyptol oil with a tablespoon of carrier oil, and gently treat the area. Add 3-5 drops of the pure oil to a diffuser if you want to inhale it.

Make this honey ginger tea to stop coughing immediately.

6. Helps Wounds Heal

For minor cuts and other wounds, eucalyptus oil may be a wise addition to your home remedy collection. Since it has antimicrobial and antibiotic properties, using eucalyptol topically may help cuts, bruises, minor burns, or bug bites.

According to an article published by Evidence-Based Complementary Alternative Medicine, eucalyptol oil may also be used to treat certain skin issues. Of the 88 essential oils studies, eucalyptol demonstrated potential for treating at least 20 dermatological conditions. These include dermatitis, athlete’s foot, boils, blisters, shingles, and even chickenpox.

• How To:

If you have a larger area to treat, mix 3-5 drops of eucalyptol oil with a ¼ cup carrier oil. For smaller sores or cuts, mix 2-3 drops in a tablespoon of carrier oil. Rub it gently on the affected area until it heals.

7. Can Soothe Earaches

Earaches are painful conditions that are common in children, but adults can have them, also. They can be caused by infection or inflammation in your middle or inner ear. Sometimes, they present with fever, jaw pain, and fluid leaking from the infected ear.

Did you know that eucalyptol has antibacterial and pain-fighting properties that can soothe a painful earache? Sometimes, you can have infections and fluid building up in your ear due to colds and allergies. A little eucalyptol may help.

• How To:

Dilute the eucalyptol with a carrier oil, dab a little on a cotton ball, and gently place it in the affected ear.

8. May Boost Mental Clarity

Frontiers in Anti-Aging Neuroscience published a study of several prominent essential oils, including eucalyptol oil. They concluded that eucalyptol oil, as well as seven other essential oils, have neuroprotection properties.

These oils also have naturally occurring antioxidants that protect cells and may minimize premature aging. Since eucalyptus oil can help protect brain cells, using it as an aromatherapy oil may boost your mental clarity.

Do you know that miserable brain fog that seems to descend right after lunch? Inhale a little pleasant eucalyptol oil and see the difference it can make.

• How To:

Mix 2-3 drops of eucalyptol oil with a carrier oil and pour it into a small glass roll-on container. Use it as aromatherapy throughout the day by just smelling it or dabbing a little on your wrists or under your nose.

9. May Soothe Tired and Aching Muscles

After coming home from a long day at work, your body may be aching from head to toe. You may also feel sore after a long work or your daily workout. It’s also common to experience worn, achy muscles when you have a cold or flu.

Why not mix the benefits of massage with a soothing essential oil like eucalyptol? According to an article published by the Arthritis Foundation, using diluted eucalyptol topically may also reduce arthritis pain.

• How To:

Make your healing muscle balm by mixing 7-9 drops of eucalyptol in one-half cup carrier oil. Keep it sealed in a small dark-colored jar. Rub the scented oil generously on the affected muscles or joints.

10. May Help You Sleep Better

Do you feel exhausted and rundown even when you awaken in the morning? Perhaps you’re not getting enough sleep. It’s recommended that adults get 7-9 hours of sleep each night.

If you have problems falling asleep, essential oils like eucalyptol may help. An article published by the American Sleep Association recommends using eucalyptol oil topically or in a diffuser to open your sinuses more and help you sleep better possibly.

• How To:

Consider keeping a diffuser by your bedside at night. Add 5-7 drops of eucalyptol oil and allow it to diffuse while you sleep. You may also add a couple of drops of lavender oil to increase the soothing effect.

A Word of Caution

Just because eucalyptus leaves are vital food for koalas doesn’t mean the leaves or essential oil is safe for human consumption. Only use this natural product as an inhalant or topically. Don’t swallow the oil, and do not use it in your mouth or eyes.

Final Thoughts on the Benefits of Eucalyptus

These cited studies demonstrate the potential benefits of using eucalyptol topically and in your diffuser. It has an earthy, familiar scent that can make you breathe better and relax. If you show any signs of an allergic reaction, discontinue its use immediately.

If possible, always use natural remedies like essential oils to treat your ailments. Natural things like eucalyptus can soothe many of the things that ails you.

11 Health Benefits of Macadamia Nuts According to Nutritionists

February 9, 2021 by Sarah Barkley

Macadamia nuts taste similar to butter and have a creamy consistency. These nuts are more than just a delicious snack, as there are many benefits of macadamia nuts. These health benefits can improve your health and help you feel better each day.

You can eat macadamia nuts alone or use them in baking and as additions to other dishes. They have a tough outer shell, so make sure to remove that beforehand.

Macadamia nuts are nutrient-rich and full of beneficial plant compounds. They have a higher fat content than other nuts, with more than 75% of their makeup being monounsaturated fats. These nuts also contain essential vitamins and nutrients.

The high-fat content is the only benefit of macadamia nuts, though. Nutritionists found that these nuts are one of the healthiest snacks you can choose. Adding macadamia nuts to your diet can benefit nearly every area of your health.

Eleven Health Benefits of Macadamia Nuts

Are macadamia nuts healthy for you? You will be delighted to learn just how good they are for you.

1. Macadamia Nuts Are Full Of Nutrients

Macadamia nuts contain around one gram of natural sugar, making them a low glycemic index food. They are low in carbohydrates, contain fiber, protein, and other essential nutrients, too. One ounce, which is less than a quarter cup, of macadamia nuts contains the following daily recommended values:

6% iron
58% of manganese
23% vitamin B1
5% vitamin B6
5% phosphorus
11% copper
9% magnesium
10% fiber
4% protein
22% thiamine

Additionally, macadamia nuts contain vitamin A, riboflavin, niacin, and folates. They also contain zinc, calcium, potassium, carbohydrates, and antioxidants. With all of these nutrients packed in, these nuts are a beneficial addition to your diet.

Keep in mind that one ounce of macadamia nuts contains over 200 calories. If you consume too many, it could skyrocket your calorie intake for the day. These calories come from essential nutrients and vitamins, so they don’t have the same detrimental effects on your body as unhealthy options.

2. Macadamia Nuts Are Rich In Antioxidants

This delicious snack contains antioxidant flavonoids, which can help prevent chronic disease. Plus, flavonoids help lower cholesterol levels, furthering the prevention effect.

Macadamia nuts also contain other antioxidants that neutralize free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that result in cellular damage and lead to severe health conditions. As one of the best benefits of macadamia nuts, antioxidants can save your life.

These antioxidants can help prevent the following conditions:

diabetes
Alzheimer’s
heart disease
cancer
brain disease

3. Macadamia Nuts Improve Your Cardiovascular Health

Research shows that eating macadamia nuts decreases your risk of having a heart attack, stroke, or other cardiovascular health emergencies. Since they significantly lower cholesterol levels, these nuts help stabilize blood pressure, promoting heart health. The American Heart Association explains that macadamia nuts reduced cholesterol levels in the blood just as much as a heart-healthy, low-fat diet.

Monosaturated fats help reduce the risk, too, as you aren’t filling your body with unhealthy fats. With less unhealthy fats in your diet, you are less likely to develop blockages in your arteries.

Additionally, the anti-inflammatory markers leukotriene and B4 also decrease the risk of heart disease. Sources explain that one in four people die from heart disease, so you must find ways to reduce your risk.

4. Macadamia Nuts Reduce Your Risk For Metabolic Syndrome

Metabolic syndrome isn’t just one condition on its own. Instead, it is a group of risk factors that include:

high blood sugar
increased blood pressure
excess body fat around the waist
high cholesterol or triglyceride levels

Your risk of developing heart disease, stroke, or type 2 diabetes increases for each risk factor you have. Once you have three risk factors, you will be diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. If you have three or more factors, your risk of developing life-threatening conditions drastically increases.

Studies show that consuming between one and three ounces of macadamia nuts each day helps maintain blood sugar. The participants experienced increased levels of hemoglobin A1c, which is a long-term blood sugar control marker.

Additionally, monosaturated fats further the risk reduction of metabolic syndrome. These fats are particularly beneficial to people with type 2 diabetes, improving their symptoms and preventing other conditions from developing.

5. Macadamia Nuts Aid In Weight Loss

Although macadamia nuts are calorie-dense, they can still help you lose weight. The calories all come from healthy vitamins and nutrients, though, so it isn’t as damaging to your body as calories from unhealthy foods.

The high protein, fiber, and fat content reduce hunger, allowing you to feel fuller for extended amounts of time. Monounsaturated fat makes you feel full because it takes longer to digest, while the protein and fiber content prevents drastic blood sugar changes. Without sudden blood sugar changes, you won’t have as many cravings and can hold off until healthy options are available.

Macadamia nuts also contain omega-7 fat palmitoleic acid, which is a monosaturated fat. This fat protects your body from unwanted weight gain as it decreases the size of fat cells.

6. Macadamia Nuts Improve Your Digestive Health

The high fiber content of macadamia nuts helps maintain a healthy digestive system. You will have more regular bowel movements, preventing constipation and other digestive issues. If you’ve ever had digestive problems before, you know that it can be painful and uncomfortable.

7. Macadamia Nuts Contain Anticancer Properties

The flavonoids and tocotrienols found in macadamia nuts help fight or kill cancer cells. Tocotrienols are a type of vitamin E that often acts as an antioxidant. These vitamins have powerful anticancer properties and, along with flavonoids, destroy damaging free radicals.

8. Macadamia Nuts Improve Your Brain Health

Vitamin B1, also known as Thiamin, is found in macadamia nuts and converts carbohydrates into energy. Your brain requires this process, or your brain health will suffer. By eating more macadamia nuts, your brain function can improve and continue working efficiently.

Additionally, the tocotrienol content can protect your brain from conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. Tocotrienol protects your brain cells from the damaging effects of glutamate toxicity, which is a key factor in developing brain diseases.

Monounsaturated fats also improve brain health as oleic acid, a type of fat, protects the brain from oxidative stress. Oxidative stress occurs when there is an antioxidant and free radicals imbalance. The free radicals can damage your tissues and cells, as they outnumber the antioxidant.

Furthermore, the palmitoleic acid found in macadamia nuts increases protection to the brain’s nerve cells. Palmitoleic acid is a component of the myelin, which is the fatty protective layer of the nerve cells.

9. Macadamia Nuts Improve Your Bone Health

Since macadamia nuts are a source of calcium, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, and magnesium, they can improve your bone health. With this improvement, your teeth and bones get stronger while it prevents bone disease and dental issues.

10. Macadamia Nuts Improve Your Skin Health

The fatty acids in macadamia nuts improve your skin health in a few ways. Your skin will become softer, the appearance improves, and irritation will ease.

Additionally, macadamia nuts contain an acid that delays the signs of aging and repairs your skin. Macadamia nuts prevent age spots and wrinkles, and they protect your skin from sun damage.

The palmitoleic acid found in this nut also prevents tissue dehydration and promotes skin regeneration. It also increases the production of elastin and collagen, which keep your skin strong and flexible.

While consuming macadamia nuts helps, you can also use nut oil on your skin to give it a youthful glow. The oil is thick, but your skin absorbs it quickly and easily. Palmitoleic acid naturally occurs on your skin, but the amount diminishes with age, making nut oil a beneficial supplement.

11. Macadamia Nuts Help Fight Inflammation

As a good source of alpha-linolenic acid, macadamia nuts can help fight inflammation. With inflammation being a cause of coronary heart disease, this is an essential benefit that you can’t ignore. It also helps prevent and reduce inflammation that accompanies arthritis.

The inflammation-reducing properties of macadamia nuts benefit gut health. They protect you from developing irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis. Studies show that nut oil can also reduce skin inflammation.

Final Thoughts on Health Benefits of Macadamia Nuts According to Nutritionists

The nutrition in macadamia nuts is far-reaching, and they can improve every area of your health. Add these nuts to your diet and keep them on hand for an easy and healthy snack option that gives you a boost of nutrients. You will feel more energetic, and you won’t be as likely to get hungry before your next meal.

Plus, with every ounce of macadamia nuts you eat, you receive a significant portion of your daily recommended values of vitamins and nutrients. Because of this, the nuts can help with weight loss, reducing inflammation, and preventing diseases and other conditions.

As a delicious snack or a beneficial addition to other dishes, you can use macadamia nuts in many ways. You can even use them in place of croutons on a salad or use the nut oil as cooking oil. No matter how you choose to incorporate them into your diet, you will experience the benefits of macadamia nuts.

10 Habits That Can Block Your Connection to the Spirit World

February 9, 2021 by Power of Positivity

There is a world beyond that which we can see with the naked eye. In that world roams the spirits of the dead. They may be trapped there, waiting to get messages across about some final order of business before they can finally go to rest.

Someone in our world must receive those messages. Perhaps you have been trying to receive them with no success. There’s something preventing communication, and most likely, it’s habits that you aren’t even aware of.

These Ten Behaviors Might Block Your Connection to the Spirit World

There are quite a few reasons why a person would not be able to get messages from the spirit world. Here are ten habits that would prevent that from happening.

1. Being skeptical.

We live in a world where many people don’t believe in what they can’t see. However, communicating with spirits is not a gift that comes easily. You’ll face skeptics and even ridicule sometimes. If you aren’t strong or cautious, you may find yourself being skeptical also despite your ability to commune with the dead.

Communicating with the dead is no parlor trick. It takes a symbiotic effort of the mind, spirit, and body to receive these messages. If you don’t believe in your abilities or believe in communicating with the dead, then there is no way you’d be able to receive the messages.

Being able to do something as unique as communicating with deceased people requires the utmost faith. Get those naysayers out of your head, and your communication with the spirit world could be restored. Be confident that you will succeed, and open your mind to hearing them.

2. Allowing a muddy aura blocks the spirit world.

If you have a cloudy aura, this could be the reason that you’re unable to receive messages from the dead. You must be of a pure mind and pure heart to receive these cryptic messages. They aren’t going to just come to anyone.

Your aura is essentially your spirit – you. A muddy aura indicates that your soul or your psyche may be confused or in turmoil. It would be best if you straightened this out before you can communicate with spirits.

There are several reasons that an aura could be cloudy, and describing them all would take another article. However, start there. Before you try to receive any other messages from the spirit world, ensure that your aura is cleansed and ready to receive.

3. Trying to communicate while being stressed out.

Just like stress can affect every other area of your life, it can impede your ability to receive messages from spirits. Stress interferes with your cognitive functioning. To obtain guidance from the spirit world, your mind must be clear and ready to receive.

According to Harvard Health, stress causes your brain to behave differently because of how it affects your brain.

When you’re stressed, it’s like you’re in a fight or flight situation. Your amygdala takes over the stressful situation, leaving the rest of your brain to take on the amygdala’s original job.

This means that the rest of your brain is stretched too thin and can’t function efficiently. You may have gaps in memory, and you can’t focus as much as you need to. You won’t be able to communicate with spirits if your brain isn’t functioning right.

4. Not fully listening.

If you’re expecting a full-on, straightforward conversation, think again. After all, you’re communicating with spirits. They aren’t going to speak on your terms no matter how much you try to make them.

It would help if you listened to what they are saying to you. Let go of your expectation of what you think the message will be or how they will communicate with you. Open your mind and your heart and receive the news as they give it to you.

Think of it as communicating with someone who speaks a foreign language. You must be ready to listen to the language and the differences in how they speak. Essentially, you must be prepared to receive “spirit talk,” which may not even be words. Just be open-minded, and the communication may come to you.

5. Asking the wrong questions.

Communicating with spirits is a two-way street, and you must have the right inquiry to receive any answer. Simply wanting general information may not be specific enough. It would be best if you had a reason for communication.

Another issue is asking complicated questions. Spirits often will not give lengthy, well-thought-out responses. Simple yes or no questions may be your best bet. If you need a little more details than this, try breaking the problem up into simpler terms.

6. Not understanding the messages.

There is a possibility that they are communicating with you, but you don’t understand what they’re saying. Again, as stated in the fourth behavior, they aren’t going to have a full-on, cut and dry conversation. You’ll need to practice your ability to understand what they’re telling you in the way that they are telling you.

Continually trying to contact the spirit world without understanding how they communicate will only lead to frustration and failures. Take the time to observe messages in all forms that may occur. Once you’re more familiar with the process, you’ll notice that communication is much more comfortable.

7. Attempting to contact spirits while you’re too emotional.

Your psychic vibrations are sensitive, and your emotions are intense. Emotions can interfere with your vibrations, throwing them out of tune with the spirit world.

Think of it like radio interference. If you aren’t on the right channel, static will interrupt the message or send it to another medium altogether. You will need to find a way to relax; meditation and breathing exercises are a great way to do this.

In some cases, if you’re attempting to communicate with spirits and you begin experiencing intense emotion, that could be the way the ghosts are sharing with you. This is known as clairsentience. This points back to the previous behavior – you must learn to understand the messages.

8. Trying to force communication with the spirit world.

Have you ever gotten a phone call while you were busy, so you sent it to voicemail only to have the person call you right back a minute or two later? When you didn’t answer a second time, they commence to texting you? That was probably incredibly frustrating.

Remember this as you attempt to communicate with the spirits. They can be temperamental, and they’ll get “annoyed” as we will. These beings may even become a bit mischievous if you irritate them. They may not be in a position to communicate, and trying to force it isn’t going to work.

If this happens, try again later. If you’re trying to communicate on behalf of someone else, this could be a bit inconvenient, but it’s better than no answer at all.

9. Sending mixed signals or the wrong signals.

Your space, conduits, and set up need to be right to make contact with the spirit world. It’s sort of like having the right tools for the job. Many people may be using the wrong tools, which can turn spirits off.

Make sure you have more than one conduit since spirits may prefer one over the other. Start with something relating to your moon sign and go from there. Also, consider the method of divination you’re going to use. That will also influence what you use as conduits.

Use the right herbs to set the mood. A better way to say this is don’t use the wrong herbs. Using the wrong herbs can cause the spirits to stay away from you. Herbs you should use are:

Thyme
Cedar
Palo Santo

Herbs you should not use are:

Fennel Seeds
Sage

10. Not accepting that you don’t have the gift.

Not everyone has the gift to communicate with the spirit world. Even if you have the talent, there is a possibility that it won’t ever happen for you. It could be a mental block you can’t shake, genetics, lack of passion, or anything under the sun. It’s just not possible for some people, and if you come to that conclusion, you must accept it.

Don’t despair. The majority of the world can’t part the veil and communicate with spirits. It doesn’t mean that you don’t have some other psychic ability. Keep working on your skills to find out what you can do.

Final Thoughts on Habits That Make It Hard to Communicate with the Spirit World

Spirits have a lot to say if you can communicate with them. However, it can be hard sometimes, and you may not realize that you have habits that interfere with communication. The good news is that you can break those habits (unless you don’t have the gift).

Using the tips above will help you start to dispel habits you may never have realized you have. In the process, you may even discover more practices you should drop. Give them a try. After all, you don’t have anything to lose, but you could gain the ability to be the best medium around.

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