Category Archives: Habit Building

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction, Titles Worth Reading

Delay is Not Denial

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Patience, grasshopper!

By the time you read this, it’s quite possible I will have an exact publishing date for the third edition of my Toolkit for Caregivers!

I only wish the date this instant.

This has been, what … over a year in the making – maybe longer? Don’t remind me.

Personal slowdowns, coupled with glacially slow turnaround times with those helping me have challenged my desires for, “do it right now”! Slowdowns have been my personal gadfly – needling and buzzing around me – a constant reminder there is a timing and a rhythm beyond my control.

But you know what?

Those slowdowns have helped me produce a better product for readers with offerings of more helpful materials to access – all to reach and support family caregivers everywhere.

The book launch is coinciding with a redesigned sales page on Amazon and a brand-new business website I haven’t even seen yet. So many moving parts, but all for a good cause.

This leads to a life lesson I want to share with you, plus a request for you to consider.

Life lesson:

Delay is not denial. Ofttimes, the circumstances improve because of the delay.

Case in point, I was encouraged to not replace my car right away, to take my time and consider all the options. With a bit of a pouting attitude – because I wanted a particular car right now! I waited and looked at other options and got opinions from others.

When I got a text alert yesterday that the car dealership was offering a tremendous incentive to buyers that would help make my (delayed) purchase so much better, I thanked my lucky stars I had not purchased it a month ago.

When faced with delays, I remind myself there’s still something to learn, do, or prepare for.

Request for you:

The publishers and I are moving the new edition of Toolkit for Caregivers into the already existing slot of its current edition, so the reviews will not be lost. But – new reviews and sales are crucial to put Toolkit for Caregivers in view of potential readers.

This is how you can help. Whether you have purchased the previous edition or not, the eBook will be on a $.99 special for a few days during the launch. You can help by doing one or all of these:

1) Get it for $.99.

2) Leave a star review.

3) Leave a brief, honest, written review.

I will be posting links and more information for you here next week. There will be a one-page synopsis available to you, if you do not have time to read the book right away.

The eBook will have a full-color interior; and the paperback will, initially, be available with a black and white interior.

My dream edition with a full-color interior will be forthcoming. It’s a complicated process, but it will happen.

Patience, grasshopper.

In health and with deep appreciation for your support,

Deidre

PS: Every week, requests for Toolkit for Caregiver Emotions reach me. Rest assured; I am working on getting that manuscript to the editors as soon as possible.

Blogging for good health!, Exercise, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Still Grateful and Breathing

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Remember my previous post about various breathing techniques, including Box Breathing and Emptying Breath?

Last week while scrolling through an author platform, I discovered an interesting book that called to me like sirens out of the deep. Written by a neonatologist, Edgar Reynoso Vanderhorst, MD, this book was about a holistic approach to health that included breathing techniques, and even tied into last week’s gratitude post featuring David Steindl-Rast.

In Wellness: Optimizing Yourself,  Dr. Vanderhorst mirrors Steindl-Rast in seeing the link of regular personal habits of gratitude to creating a more compassionate world.

How does this all tie together?

As I have written here before, positive thinking not only changes the hormonal chemistry of our bodies, but also influences the very structure and receptivity of our cells to positivity.

To paraphrase Steindl-Rast, gratitude comes from a place of satisfaction and a feeling of ‘enough’ rather than from a reminders of scarcity. Being grateful extends to better social connections that include respect and wanting the best for others.

Putting these together, we can see that transforming our own peace naturally leads to uplifting our interactions and concerns for others.

Dr. Vanderhorst has graciously agreed to share his thoughts with us on one aspect of wellness to combat the pull to our increasing stress response to today’s world.

His message to foodtalk4you readers:

“By incorporating simple breath practices, we can stabilize our minds, cultivate calmness and access our innate ability to choose how we respond to the world.

Physiology tells us, activating our parasympathetic nervous system reduces heart rate, oxygen consumption, and cortisol levels – a state described as calmness, which is what happens when we meditate.

Achieving this state can be simple. I developed a technique for myself that I implement daily to increase my awareness of the present moment that helps me navigate daily chaos in a more controlled way. I call this technique, “The Vanhorst Technique,” (meditation technique), which consists of simply taking a deep 4-second inhale, holding for 2 seconds, followed by a slow 6-second exhale, and holding for 2 seconds, repeating this cycle five times and working up to 10 minutes.

I usually practice this technique in the morning while lying in bed or when I’m in an emergency that requires my focused attention.”

Just yesterday, we witnessed horrible images of violence taking place at a political rally in America. Clearly, we need to have calming techniques ready to always use.

We can light only one candle to give light to a dark world, dear readers, and that’s our own.

Calming down with a breathing technique and staying in the moment to find what we are grateful for – even in an unpleasant situation – can help brighten our inner candle and set us up for a mindset that creates a listening ear, a reasoning mind, and helps us appreciate differences in the people around us.

In health – Deidre

Let me know in the comments below how you use breathing and reminders of gratitude to reframe your inner self.

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Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction, This -n- That

Which Came First, The Chicken or The Egg?

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Continuing Education requirements were beckoning me to ramp up my learning for the biennial renewal of my nursing license.

I am taking a deeper dive into topics I already like, (ex.: probiotics), and am gleaning some new information from other areas of interest.

The course about the frequency of depression among people with diabetes promised to offer something that could be of great value to foodtalk4you readers.

Did you know depression is the leading cause of disability in the world?

I learned that people with diabetes are 1.5 times more likely to also have depression. And yet, depression is only treated in about a third of those with diabetes.

Also, mothers in one study who had gestational diabetes, (diabetes symptoms showing only in pregnancy), had a twofold increase in post-partum depression than those without diabetes.

Back to the original question, which came first? Is there a link between depression and diabetes?

Well, we can’t answer that one today, BUT we can be on the lookout for signs of depression when diabetes is on board.

Why would that be important other than general quality of life?

The daily management of diabetes through self-care is jeopardized when depression is also present. Living a life with depression and diabetes is reflected in poorer outcomes, complications, and earlier death.

Can you see this added diagnosis in yourself, in a friend, or loved one?

A condition called diabetes distress is the emotional response to living with diabetes when the following are experienced:

  1. less than optimal self-management of diabetes
  2. elevated A1-C levels (blood level reflecting long-term blood glucose levels)
  3. more frequent episodes of severe, low blood sugar
  4. decreased quality of life

Those with diabetes and depression might experience:

  1. anxiety and guilt about their inability to self-manage their condition,
  2. fears about long-term effects,
  3. constant concerns about food and eating – all the while knowing daily ups and downs of blood glucose levels can generate feelings of fatigue and anxiety anyway.

If you or someone you know is experiencing a decline in successfully managing their diabetes and their quality of life is being affected, the health care provider should be alerted to the possibility of depression.

The good news is, there are so many therapies that can address depression. Some may be as simple as connecting with others socially, to prescriptions that will ease the symptoms and not aggravate diabetes.

Addressing what may be a hidden depression for someone with diabetes, could be a double blessing for them because their diabetes can be better controlled when their depression is controlled.

That’s a win-win.

It’s easy to share this post using the options under the MORE button below. Thanks for reading.

In health –

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, This -n- That

Fingers and Toes!

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There is the childhood song, “Head, shoulders, knees, and toes,” that gets the little ones moving around while they point to body parts, but this post is not that.

Today, we’re looking at fingernails and, mostly, toenails.

I thought my research – based on a hot tip from a loved one who is having success with a home remedy – would be straightforward.

Whew! Two hours later, and I’m just now crawling out of the rabbit hole!

The Latin word part, onych, refers to toenails and fingernails.

Throw on a variety of letters afterwards and you get: slitting nails with ridges (onychorrhexis), nail lifting with fungus (onychomycosis), nail lifting without a fungal infection (onycholysis) … you get the picture.

After a year of using over-the-counter and prescription treatments for my unhappy big toenails, improvements seem to have plateaued.

Upon learning that a home remedy seemed to be yielding better results for someone, I thought there was nothing to lose in trying it.

Enter Tea Tree oil – also known as Melaleuca oil – derived from an Australian tree.

Did applying this oil to my nails after filing and buffing their surface really make a difference?

Well, yes.

There’s enough improvement that I will continue the twice daily application of Tea Tree oil to see if I can finally turn the corner toward healthy toenails.

My dive into all things “onycho” has revealed detailed advice about step-by-step nail care, how many people think Tea Tree oil should be diluted by another oil to enhance absorption and to ward off irritation, and that additional ingredients (including 10% undecylenic acid) creates the perfect balance.

The dilution of 10% undecylenic acid seems to be only available through that one company selling it HERE. Everyone else uses 25%. Hmmm.

I will be upping my toe hygiene game, however, just in case there is a fungal infection present with my nail lifting problems.

Sanitation of all nail trimming, filing, and buffing implements is key. Don’t forget foot soaking areas, care surfaces, and towels, and wear gloves!

When keeping the nail as short as possible without discomfort, and gently filing and buffing the nail surface to thin and smooth the surface, care must be taken to thoroughly clean equipment each time – even between one toe and the next. Nail trimming, filing, and buffing are not done daily, but the application of the Tea Tree oil is done morning and night.

Here are some other hints for happy, healing toes:

After careful daily cleaning, make sure the toes are thoroughly dry – using a hair dryer is recommended.

After the application of the Tea Tree oil (or the expensive 10% mixture), allow nails to dry completely before putting on socks and shoes or going to bed.

Make sure to wear open-toed shoes or roomy, well-fitting shoes along with moisture-wicking socks to prevent moisture build up. Use clean socks daily and rotate shoes to allow for proper drying.

Nail lifting can be the result of foot injury – how well I remember walking too far in the wrong shoes!

There’s no guarantee this is going to result in total improvement for me or you. I just wanted to share some anecdotal evidence that it might be helpful.

So far, there have been no bad reactions to the full-strength Tea Tree oil, and things are looking better. As an experiment, I’m trying this approach with the splitting fingernails as well!

Just wanted to share – which you can do as well, using the options under the MORE button below.

In health –

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction, This -n- That

Heal Thyself

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How often do we read about some high-profile guru dispensing advice about … just about anything … who fails to follow their own suggestions and burns out in flames?

While I am not a high-profile guru to be sure, I do self-checks to verify that I am modeling my beliefs in balance, harmony, and all the aspects of self-care expressed here at foodtalk4you.

Lately, there have been too many spinning plates, and I have felt like a circus juggler trying to keep all those plates balanced on their poles.

Most of the, seemingly, high-priority projects have been of my own creation: writing and speaking deadlines, book relaunch deadlines, Garden Club, and other neighborhood obligations. Car problems just plopped into my lap, uninvited to boot.

Then there are the personal, family, and dear friend concerns and events that are most important of all.

I paused the other day when given another choice to maintain an obligation over the summer or to step back.

This was a seminal moment, and with a great sense of power for my self-care, I said, “No.”

So it is, dear readers, I am keeping my message this week brief.

My thirteen-month-old grandson naps upstairs, while we enjoy an amazing and rare, full-family visit for two weeks.

I am choosing family above all this week.

There are pressing issues and deadlines that will gradually be tackled in these next two weeks; but I think it a worthy, albeit short, message to share with you the need for life balance is critical.

Are you on a precipice? Do you feel yourself nearing a ‘splat?’

Our undone projects would probably go on if we dropped dead. Why do we need to die to take a break?

Maybe we cannot take an extended leave, but a mental health day/morning/hour to reset can do us all a world of good.

Next week, I hope to share some very exciting news! Until then, breathe and choose what is the most important of all for you.

In health –

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction, This -n- That

Happy Hour!

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A listener to my webinar, Unique Tips for Family Caregivers That Will Amaze You, recently confided in me that my tip to, “bring the party home,” in a caregiving setting – imparted a special message to her even though she was not currently a caregiver.

She and her husband both work; and apparently, they have been morphing from working, to doing their evening time routine without any fanfare. No pause. No exchange of thoughts.

When she heard me describe how happy hour was such a lifeline to both me and my loved one, and how it gradually changed over time but was always maintained, she got to thinking about her own life.

That very night, she asked her husband to stop what he was doing so they could sit on the front porch together for just a few minutes. To pause. To reflect on their day.

Ten minutes.

No alcohol.

Soda and iced tea.

They got out of their respective work selves to just be them. Together. Having a moment.

She practically had tears in her eyes as she related to me how this simple idea – although golden for caregivers – transformed their evening and blessed their relationship as well – and is really a golden idea for everyone.

So, remember happy hour – every night.

Alone? Call a friend over.

Want to socialize a bit extra? Call some more friends over.

Fancy charcuterie trays are optional. A bowl of gluten-free pretzels will do nicely.

Also optional is alcohol. Hot or cold coffee, tea is great, or try sparkling water with a splash of fruit juice.

Want to be alone tonight? Find a special spot to relax, reflect, and to tie up the busy day before jumping into dinner prep.

No cell phones.

Just sayin’.

In health –

Deidre

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Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction, This -n- That

Who’s Sleeping?

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“How do I go to sleep, Mommy?”

Apparently, my childhood inquiry is just as valid today.

“How do I go to sleep?”

My mom said, “just close eyes and be still.”

Well, a lot of help that gave me.

I can still hear her saying, “close eyes,” as she left my room at night. My little eyes popped open as soon as she closed the door.

But think about it: the steps are to get into bed, close my eyes, and be still.

Mom got me into bed; now, I am responsible for that.

How about you? Binge-watching just one more show? Reading just one more story on your phone?

Many of us have not absorbed the message that sleep is a priority or how to get to sleep, it seems, because an article this week shared graph after graph of evidence showing that Americans are getting even less sleep than ever.

And it’s mostly the women who are faring the worst in each comparison.

Stress is being cited as the culprit, and that’s easy to see, but the effects of a lack of sleep must be seen as major contributors to the stress levels being felt.

What’s the purpose of sleep, anyway?

Let’s summarize:

Tissue repair and healing – in ways we can see externally, and moreover, in ways we cannot see internally. Daily life creates a lot of wear and tear on our bodies and minds – it takes 7-9 hours of sleep to clean up, mend, renew, and heal.

Regulation of body processes – especially seen with hormones, the hours of sleep allow the body to have time to reset back to normal levels. When hormones are regulated, body systems function smoothly.

Brain function – we’ve all experienced sleep-deprived fuzzy-brain feel from time to time. Looks like most of the country is having a rough time of right thinking. Just watch the nightly news. Memory function and clear thinking are contingent upon consistently getting enough sleep.

Normalizing blood sugar levels – in addition to right eating, blood sugar levels are greatly affected by our getting regular adequate rest.

Weight management – another part of that hormone regulation mentioned above is the role of appetite suppressing and appetite stimulating hormones that can get unbalanced when there is not enough sleep time.

Stress reduction – did you have a stressful day? Not getting enough sleep causes even more stress hormones to be released. This creates a textbook example of a vicious cycle.

Reduce inflammation – here’s my favorite topic. Remember, all diseases have some major causative factor rooted in inflammation. Sleep helps to regulate some of the factors that would cause inflammation.

Is it a coincidence that along with inadequate sleep, we are seeing an uptick in obesity, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, and more?

There is no one answer or approach to solving the tsunami of sleep deprivation being experienced across the country – and probably the world.  But making a difference in our singular lives, doing one thing less every night that’s keeping us from going to bed in a timely fashion would help.

Now, close eyes.

In health –

Deidre

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Blogging for good health!, Exercise, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

The Potion is Motion

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Are you a note taker?

I take notes when listening to speeches all the time – there’s always some new idea I want to remember or refer to again. Note pads and notebooks abound at home.

It’s like I can’t listen without taking notes – the same way some people can’t talk without using their hands. (Oops, I may do that, too!)

While rummaging through my desk drawer in search of …  a notepad – what else? I rediscovered some old scribbles I have referred to several times:

The more emotion you are in, the more motion you should be in.

Wish I could give credit to the lady speaking to our group back then, but her name was not in my notes. She shared with us how stress hormones directly affect our physical health, and how we could counteract natural reaction through movement.

Her introduction to the connection between stress and physical disease was, “the more signs and symptoms we have of stress, the more we need to do something different.”

What are your signs of a stress reaction?

For many, ground zero may be the stomach:

The stomach is one of the most common places people hold stress. Stress in the abdomen/stomach usually manifests itself in maldigestion, changes in appetite, and even stomach pain. If you’re someone who tends to resist change or feels like you don’t have power over their life, you might hold stress in your stomach.

Our speaker described the stress hormones we release as, “getting caught in the body, wrapping around internal organs … and killing us.”

Now, there’s a graphic image to remember.

Then she crystalized the knowledge that exercise increases the production of our feel-good transmitters, called endorphins, by saying that getting our bodies in, “a new motion would result in a new emotion.”

Today’s simple reminder is to:

Use our “magic potion”

of getting our bodies in motion

to create better emotions

that will slay that thing wrapped around our innards.

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In health and still doing planks and wall sits –

Deidre

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Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Recipes, This -n- That

Diamonds Are A Blog’s Best Friend!

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Do you see the shower of diamonds falling upon you?

As a reader of foodtalk4you, you should, because this marks our tenth anniversary edition!

Big periodicals would have had staff assigned to their special edition, delving into past articles, to select the essential messages from the past ten years. They would have taken most of a year making it a keepsake edition.

We are a team of two.

It’s taken several months of sifting through each blog post since the beginning, and now there are visions of a book, The Best of Foodtalk4you, on the planning board.

But first, I’ll need to finish the relaunch of Toolkit for Caregivers – which is looking fabulous as it nears the completion of formatting and cover design – and retool, edit, and format, Toolkit for Caregiver Emotions, before we can think about, The Best of Foodtalk4you.

In the meantime, Sheree and I want to thank you for your support and encouragement for these past ten years. Many of you have been with us since the beginning of our journey, dedicated to helping others see the natural health available to them – one meal … one breath … one movement at a time.

Our health is a quest that spans our lifetime, and requires a diligent application of the basic principles we outline every week – including:

“Am I doing my body good?” What it means to be on the same team with my body – consistently pulling in the same direction – in this post from 2019.

Building a positive emotional mindset – freeing ourselves from the past and changing self-talk to recreate the landscape of our day – found in a series of three posts in 2022 HERE, HERE, AND HERE. 

Are we destined to follow our genes? How our thinking and self-talk can guide our health status in these posts HERE and HERE.

Autoimmunity: the wolf at everyone’s door – a series of three posts HERE, HERE, and HERE about what autoimmunity is, the importance of avoiding things that contribute to it, and steps to take to live an anti-inflammatory life.  

Stress management – ever on everyone’s minds, has been frequently addressed on foodtalk4you. In 2016, it was discussed as the January top searches post and again in the 2019 post “SPLAT.”

Exercises – especially outside of the confines of a gym, are regularly explored as I have always believed that movements to keep and build range of motion and strength can also be done throughout the day wherever we are. Recent posts have covered this well.

Recipes – the quest for anti-inflammatory eating has spanned this decade, and recipe sharing is a favorite pastime here. From seasonal soups to Scones That Love You Back, we’ve covered it all.

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SCONES-THAT-LOVE-YOU-BACKDownload

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So, here are some of our favorite glittering diamonds for you, dear readers! Your readership and comments are our diamonds! Thank you!

In health –

<— Deidre, who writes, and Sheree—>, who makes this lovely to read!

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Blogging for good health!, Exercise, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

April – The Month For Isometric Exercises!

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Are you up for an April challenge?

Grab a wall and sit down.

I’m committed to revisiting an old friend that’s been neglected – the plank trifecta – and to embrace an isometric exercise I’ve never done consistently before – the wall squat, or wall sit, if you prefer – because that’s what it looks like.

If you are a long-time reader, you know my passion for planks – they have done me well over the years and have proven to be transformative to tighten my core. And yet, I have allowed planks to fall by the wayside from my daily routine.

A great way to start a habit/routine is to incorporate it into another one that is already established – like I do every morning with arm exercises while using my pour-over method to brew coffee, (explained in a recent post, February 27th).

The coffee making process is firmly established. All I had to do was tweak it a bit to give my biceps and shoulders a great workout.  

It’s been just a few weeks, but I can feel the difference; and my non-dominate arm is now much stronger than when I started.

So, to successfully start a new habit, I have added a simple sticky note in view of my office desk, that reminds me to do my planks and wall sit before I get deeply involved in daily writing projects.

I can report that today’s initial return to planks was quite acceptable: thirty seconds each of straight arm, forearm, and knee planks. Beginners may start with as little as fifteen seconds of the easier knee plank, and gradually lengthen time before adding another position.

What a workout! After only a minute and a half, I experienced a more rapid heartbeat and shaky muscles. Awesome!

Please check with your health care provider before starting any kind of new exercise, and if pain is experienced at any time, stop exercising.

A review of plank techniques may be found HERE.

That smooth surface on the Murphy bed in my office is the perfect place to do my wall sits.

Somehow, the idea of using a painted wall to scooch down into the wall sit position didn’t seem proper to me – I mean, what if my back were to sweat or the color of my clothes were to mar the paint?

Now, the perfect set-up is staring at me every day. No excuses.

If you are not used to the wall sit – and I am not – it can be a bit of a challenge. I eked out 30 seconds today, and my thighs were definitely talking to me.

And that’s okay.

Eventually, I will do my first set of three, thirty-second wall sits.

In time.

A review of the wall sit exercise may be found HERE.

Planks and wall sits are called isometric exercises, and they can be an important part of our regular routine for strengthening core muscles and increasing joint stability.

Isometric exercises produce no movement – muscles are held in a certain position which creates muscle fatigue, but is less challenging to the joints than regular exercises.

Here are five benefits to incorporating isometric exercises:

They help us get in shape without a high intensity workout and are a good start for an exercise program.

Isometric exercises help maintain muscle and joint strength.

Wall squats, especially, have been shown to lower blood pressure.

Rehabilitation after injury or surgery is helped with isometric exercise.

Those with osteoarthritis can build strength and increase range of motion doing isometric exercise as a warm-up to traditional exercise.

The Cleveland Clinic has a great summary about isometric exercise and offers additional exercises to try out HERE.

For now, planks and wall sits are my April challenge. How about you?

In health –

Deidre

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