Category Archives: Stress Reduction

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

Zentangles

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Trick or Treat?

Welcome to the world of tangling! In this world, you will doodle your way through Cantebrands, Auras, Dexes, Dewdrops, Hollibaughs, Poufs, and my two favorites, Dingblatz and Dingsplatz creations!

Are you feeling like a wizard costume is needed? These terms I’m learning about sound like a Halloween story or something from Hogwarts.

Costumes are optional for this world of organized doodling that I recently discovered through my friend, Mary, who shared her first foray into this art form:

This method provides the soothing mental and emotional benefits obtained through creating easy artwork, by taking all those thoughts and emotions darting around our brains and replacing them with learning how to use simple steps for creating elaborate drawings.

I’ve shared my story here, and in my book, Toolkit for Caregivers, about how using adult coloring books helped ground my jumbled thoughts and emotions during the challenging years of caregiving at home.

This artform may be even easier and more portable than adult coloring because the required supplies are small and few:

Tortillons
  • Super fine-tipped pen
  • Graphite pencil
  • White graphite pencil
  • Tortillons for blending
  • Small squares/pieces of drawing paper

These supplies can be conveniently tucked into a simple zip bag and taken wherever you go – as opposed to my array of 100 colored markers and full-sized coloring books previously used.

Besides, how cool is it to use a “tortillon”?

After googling Zentangle, I landed on a one-stop-site that has enough information and how-to videos to last me a long time: HERE. Video #023 guided me along a restful journey to complete my first drawing:

I will tweak the kind of paper I use, perhaps – it’s no big deal – and I am looking for a brighter, white pencil to increase the depth of field and general sparkle.

This is a thoroughly satisfying and absorbing experience for all ages, and the therapeutic aspects of this activity did not disappoint.

Whether you desire an escape from stress, or are looking for something better than another reality show on TV, entering the world of Zentangles falls into the realm of TREAT at Halloween or anytime.

Please share your Zentangles with us through comments and share this post with your friends by using the MORE button below.

In health-

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Mindful Eating

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Yeah, yeah, yeah – mindful this and mindful that … give me a “mindful” break.

Ever thought that?

With visions of people in a lotus position – “ohhhming” – all day, I frankly didn’t used to understand what mindful really was.

A little enlightenment – pun intended – helped me appreciate how “mindful” has supplanted so many other words:

My Noom experience since February of this year has lead me to more than just a 20 pound loss in weight; it has opened up a world of understanding and mindfulness in countless aspects of my life.

With holiday and special event eating temptations already calling to us like sirens from the deep, a reminder about the whys and wherefores of eating could do us all some good.

Fuel Eating

According to Noom, there are four kinds of eating:

Fuel Eating – When we are seeking food that will “do my body good.” Think clean protein, veggies, fruit, high fiber starch – without added fats and sugars.

Joy Eating – When foods delight our palate and soul. For many of us, this kind of food has become very different from foods that will, “do our body good.”  Sure, it might be great to eliminate such eating, but realistically, it’s going to happen. Just make sure it’s not more than 10% of our consumption.

Fog Eating

Fog Eating – This is mindless grazing and munching on whatever is around. This can be easily controlled and modified by eliminating candy dishes, junk food cupboards, and replacing what is available with healthier alternatives. Asking ourselves why we are eating – being mindful – may reveal a lack of hunger (fuel needs) so we can remove ourselves to do another activity while we’re fogging-out. Think a walk to the mailbox, playing with the dog, or taking a few minutes to move and stretch.

Storm Eating

Storm Eating – Results from a psychological response to a situation, or from food denial. Think eating to excess, knowing you are doing it, and then beating yourself up about it later. I have found that eating a consistent diet of fuel foods, coupled with mindful and measured joy foods on occasion, help lower any desire to this, “I don’t care, I’ve been good too long and I deserve to go off the deep end,” kind of eating altogether.

So, WHY are you eating and what can you DO about it?

Being mindful-

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Plan Ahead …

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If you’ve ever done lettering, created a greeting card, made a poster, or anything that requires planning prior to execution, then you’ll appreciate the this well-known poster.

That’s what I’m doing right now. Planning ahead. Writing posts for Foodtalk4you several weeks in advance. Why? Because of superb efficiency? I wish.

I am struggling, even now, with a limited bandwidth. Each of us has a finite amount of energy… bandwidth … focus. Yes, there is a limit as to how many plates we can keep spinning up in the air at one time.

First, I am in Grandma heaven! Even before I get to hold my new granddaughter and marvel at her every breath, movement, and glance. I am floating on cloud nine! As I write this, it’s hard to focus, and it’s been less than a day since her birth. Of course, that was a few days ago now.

Second, I must stay in one piece as I drive to see her and return home. My cloud nine brain needs to concentrate on the Interstate.

Third, relationships need time and attention.

Fourth and fifth, I want to focus on revisions and additions to both Toolkit for Wellness and Toolkit for Caregivers – which is going to require massive concentration and commitment.  

That leaves the sixth, learning the ins and out of putting both books in an audio format.

So, dear readers, let me ask you a few questions as I ‘plan ahead’: What wellness issues would you like to see amplified, changed, or addressed in a future version of Toolkit for Wellness?

If you have experienced an improvement in your health/wellness status from ideas you have implemented after reading Toolkit for Wellness, would you be willing to share?

The revised Toolkit for Caregivers will have expanded discussions about caregiver emotions, keys for resilience, how to transition away from caregiving when your loved one improves, and grief after caregiving. What other topics about general caregiver issues, (not specific to a particular disease), would you like to see?

Would you be willing to share any helpfulness that Toolkit for Caregivers has given you or to someone you have given the book to?

Please leave your thoughts, comments, and suggestions with me at deidre@toolkitsforhealth.com. Thank you so much!

In health-

Deidre

Shhhhhh! Baby’s sleeping ….

As always, please click on the MORE button below to discover all the options to share this helpful article. And to my dear readers in Poland, feel free to translate and share with your friends!

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

Synchronicity – or Lucky Star?

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Happenstance? Chance encounters? God wink? Coincidence? Or just dumb luck?

You pick.

As we slosh around on the ground in the day-to-day, our thoughts may stray to dumb luck.

It seems, though, when we take the proverbial bird’s eye view, or a higher suborbital view, we can often connect the dots of life happenings. Kind of like trying to help a 5-year-old understand that life is bigger than the little red-haired girl not wanting to sit next to them in lunch. It’s a matter of perspective.

Currently, I am surrounded by messages in books, articles, posts, texts, and conversations dealing with:

– Breaking down thought distortions

         –  Identifying limiting beliefs  

-Exploring the childhood emotional experiences that taught us limiting beliefs

       –  Embracing and then releasing those limiting beliefs

Discovering the liberation created in not requesting band aids for our broken life, but rather taking a hold of the change and growth that is happening so we can become our best selves

Writing down our desires, not as, “I want,” statements, but as, “I see a future vision of myself,” statements. “I want,” emphasizes our lack. The, “I see a future vision of myself,” is full of hope, possibilities, and an implied plan of action.

Things around me are building into something more beautiful, powerful, and meaningful with every passing day. There is evidence, for me, of a great universal synchronicity – that is working for good.

Take the high-up view of your life. Are you seeing patterns of meaningful growth? How can you embrace that for the good?

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The phone is by my side as I await to hear of the birth of another granddaughter! Now, that’s something to celebrate!

In health-

Deidre

Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Change

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Book Report – Part 1

Change proves there has been learning. Have you ever thought about it? If we learn a better way of doing something, our actions should follow the new way.

No change; no learning.

Are you learning about healthier eating? Did your last meal reflect that? Is there still junk food in your cupboards?

Being exposed to something does not mean we are learning – until we apply the new information. Then there is evidence of learning. It’s the process of internalizing new information to create a different behavior on our part.

So, what am I studying?

As a student of self-improvement and habit formation, I am discovering how to take steps beyond affirmations. Affirmations have their place, and I even offer a free, handy set of them on foodtalk4you. (See the Affirmations button towards the top of the home page).

What I am just beginning to learn is, roadblocks to our advancement in any area of life are rooted in emotional responses we developed when, as children, we created our natural response to life experiences. Think: Being loved and supported – or not – and every variation of that.

The guiding light to my exploration of creating and attracting positive outcomes in my life is THIS:

Now, Become a Manifesting Machine: Learn to Use The Law of Attraction to Embrace your Goals, Create Success, and Live the Life of your Dreams, may sound more than a little too, “out there” for you, but hold on.

Perhaps you have heard the term “law of attraction” before. No, it’s not a technique for using a dating app. If you are involved with sales of any kind, you have probably read books and have attended seminars about the law of attraction.

It’s tied to the power of positive thinking. Sort of akin to, “if you think you can – you can. If you think you can’t – you can’t.” Along with visualizations of success – think the Olympic athlete holding the image of perfect execution of their skill and racing across the finish line – there are also the mantras of, “I can do this!”

But wait! There’s more!

Are there roadblocks? Voices in the deep subconscious saying, “you don’t deserve this,” or “you are not good enough”?

The author of this book, Jennifer Teske, takes the reader through her experiences in conquering her personal roadblocks to success in various life goals – including the publishing of this very book and, recovering from the PTSD associated with the seeming death of her husband – by a deeper understanding of the source of her negative emotions … rooted in her childhood.

To summarize some key thoughts I am acquiring:

  • Beliefs are thoughts we keep thinking.
  • Each thought is tied to an emotion.
  • Any limiting beliefs we have, are tied to an uncomfortable emotion from childhood that we continue to feel as an adult.
  • Taming those limiting beliefs and behaviors that demonstrate a lack of advancement, will require reliving that pain from your youth.
  • To release a negative emotion/experience, we must allow it to fully exist and to feel that pain again.
  • Let that feeling wash over us; experience it fully, and do not push it away.
  • Then, it can naturally fade into the past, as we release it.
  • The only way out of negativity is through it.

I first spoke of my word of the year, “Embrace,” several years ago. It referenced my role as a 24/7 caregiver. As much as I wanted that role to vanish, I knew it was there to stay until my husband passed. I needed to embrace my role to get through it. I had to lean in.

The visceral response is, “No!” – but embrace, we must. Denial is not the answer; nor is it the answer in recovery from an event. I even shared a releasing technique in, Toolkit for Caregivers, that first acknowledges the emotion before it can be released.

If you are interested in learning from this excellent book, I highly recommend getting the paperback. Currently, I am reading the Kindle version and am trying to decipher my scribbled notes. The paper version was ordered today, and I can’t wait to start using a highlighter and writing in the margins!

Here’s to learning ways to get rid of limiting beliefs.

In health –

Deidre

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Anti-Inflammatory Foods, Blogging for good health!, Stress Reduction, This -n- That

Potassium Tasty … AND Good For Me?

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Why are there baked home fries from white, and sweet, potatoes on my plate tonight? Why are cantaloupe, salmon, bananas, and more spinach on my shopping list? What possibly could be missing?

Precisely!

Something is missing, and this detective was pretty sure of the culprit …,er, the missing one.

Problem? Maybe you are familiar with those troublesome foot spasms that occur in bed – usually in the morning hours for me, just prior to rising – that can only be fixed by standing up to gently return the tortured foot into proper alignment?

This had been going on with even greater frequency lately. Coupled with a few other seemingly random symptoms, I was wondering if, maybe, I was just in a total mind/body/spirit funk.

Have been there and done that before with foot spasms, but the other complaints were new to me. After reading the article HERE, I was able to put things together. Let me summarize signs and symptoms of possibly being low in a vital nutrient: Potassium.

You may have low potassium if you are experiencing:

Weakness and fatigue – Low potassium can interfere with blood sugar levels, depriving muscles of the energy they need.

Muscle spasms and cramps – BINGO! Therefore, athletes are very careful about their potassium intake.

Digestive problems – let’s just say things slow down…a…lot. Also, there’s bloating. Check.

Heart palpitations – not to be confused with serious heart issues that are not fixed by a meal high in potassium. Starting to check this, too.

Muscle aches and stiffness – Again, the pathways to proper muscle function are disrupted.

Numbness and tingling – When nerve pathways are affected, it’s best to contact your doctor.

Breathing difficulties – Potassium pathways for proper muscle function and communication may become disturbed with severe deficiencies.

Mood disorders – while more research is needed on this one; there is a correlation of mood disorder patients being low on potassium. I certainly could check this box off as my usual chipper inner — self seemed to be in a funk.

What to do? Most people know to eat bananas for potassium, but there are other choices that are even better. The following table shows the ranges of potassium level to consider when choosing food sources:

What is the recommended daily allowance for potassium, you may ask? There ,actually, isn’t an official RDA, but the umber of 4,700 mg a day is the consensus. Not surprisingly, most people are deficient.

Armed with these target ranges, let me give you a short list of high-potassium foods I gleaned from this source HERE:

Artichoke 345 mg.

Banana 425 mg

Beef, ground 270 mg

Beets 260 mg

Dried peas and beans 300-475 mg

Haddock, perch, salmon 300 mg

Lentils 367 mg

Milk 350-389 mg

Baked potato 925 mg

Prunes 305 mg

Spinach 420 mg

Baked sweet potato 450 mg …

There are more, but check the resource cited above for serving amounts and other options.

The caveat comes for those using the lite versions of salt which are formulated with high levels of potassium. Work with your doctor about balancing potassium and sodium levels.

Additionally, let’s not jump off the cliff with this.

Geez you give some people an inch, (read ground beef and white potatoes), and they’ll start eating hamburgers, French fries, and loaded baked potatoes saying I told them it was good for their potassium levels.

No. No. And no.

Think of dinner consisting of baked fish, one HALF of a potato (I like to cut them into home fries, toss in a bit of olive oil with salt and pepper, and bake), along with a generous green salad with that creamy yogurt-based dressing I shared recently. Evening snack of a small bowl of cantaloupe (also on the list) and ½ banana.

No cramps this morning. Just sayin’.

In health-

Deidre

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Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Affirmations and Simple Words Of Wisdom

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Five Little Words

They were five little words – well, they contain two contractions, but I’m not splitting hairs.

Five words that have inspired me since discovering them.

Five words that have motivated me to be better.

Five words that are helping me push several tasks to completion.

“Enough!”

“Give me the @#%& five words!”

Hold on to your hat, pilgrim, I’m getting there. Just a minute.

These words were wrapped around a small square of goodness called Dove dark chocolate.

I’ve emphasized the important benefits of dark chocolate over the years – namely an abundance of all the good things: trace minerals, and antioxidants such as polyphenols, flavanols, and catechins. All-in-all, these compounds in dark chocolate have been studied showing that they can help with our cholesterol profile, lower heart disease risk, and help with brain function.

Check out the details here: 7 Proven Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate (healthline.com)

Of course, eating the entire bag of Dove dark chocolate squares would be counterproductive. Moderation in all things. Remember my personal mantra: “It’s so good, you only need one!”

Anyway, these little treasures are individually wrapped in foil which makes for a neat, clean, conveyance of just the right amount of tasty satisfaction – contrary to Hershey Kisses which are a bit too small to quench that chocolate urge.

Printed on the inside of each wrapper is a clever saying that assists the consumer with a contemplative thought to savor while that square of bliss melts in the mouth.

You might see messages such as” “You’ve got this,” “Cherish each moment,” “Be fearlessly authentic,” “Share a smile,” or “Study a flower.”

The maxim that has recently inspired me so much is a play on words we often shared with our children: “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right,” or “Be your best in all you do,” – all in our best parental efforts to inspire them to put their best into every task.

These five words embodied those thoughts and maybe more:

“Don’t stop until you’re proud.”

  • By Lauren N. Colorado

Not proud and boastful, but proud as in pleased at a good job well done. Proud because the deed has your name on it, and it more than passes muster.

Are you slogging through a long project? Or maybe a short project required more than the usual effort?

Any advancements on my commitment to daily exercise were shot down with that sprained ankle I sustained early last month. Standing and any kind of locomotion were problematic, at best. It’s still a bit swollen, but I can at least walk without a limp now – although zingers in that foot bother me each night.

My successful weight loss project was simply treading water while I recovered. I totally lost my mojo and was struggling to balance my new eating patterns with the proper exercise to stay in shape and lose the last five pounds.

Then, into my hands plops this inspiring message: “Don’t stop until you’re proud.”

So, each day, steps were taken; ankle was iced and elevated, and more steps taken. I reconnected with my plank buddy, and we are texting a thumbs up emojis for every minute of plank we do. In the beginning, my planks were half planks done from the knee to elbow, but they were done.

Finally, I can walk without pain, tennis shoes can be worn, and full planks are being accomplished. I also discovered the effectiveness of doing at least a minute each of straight arm/full body plank, followed by elbow/full body plank, followed by elbow-to-knee/half plank.

Like the little engine that could, I’m getting there to tighter abs with each minute of effort. Four minutes total today. I am just starting to feel a teeny bit like I’m on the right track again.

Hang in there.

Don’t stop until you’re proud.

In health-

Deidre

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Blogging for good health!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Autoimmune What?

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You had me at, “What is an autoimmune disease explained in 5 minutes.” If you have 5 minutes, it’s worth absorbing Gabriel Arruda’s easy to understand explanation – because an understanding of how our natural immunity works is needed before plunging into the deep waters of autoimmunity.

Yes, I thoroughly covered how inflammatory foods and lifestyles can lead to autoimmunity in my first book, Toolkit for Wellness, but I wanted a fresh take.

A little animation helped, and I agreed with his basic approach, but not necessarily with his entire online program. Mr. Arruda presents one of the many ways autoimmunity can occur – I’ll share another one.

He took me back to my teaching days, using Pac Man as a symbol for white blood cells munching up the bad hombres floating around our bodies.

Otherwise, you can lean into Wikipedia’s explanation HERE: Autoimmunity – Wikipedia

Or another explanation HERE: Autoimmune Diseases: Types, Symptoms, Causes & More (healthline.com) 

Autoimmunity is when your body’s natural defenses somehow get scrambled and are no longer able to correctly identify foreign threats; instead the attack on invaders is misdirected onto self. Thus auto/self-immunity.

As mentioned last week, I an offering this discussion because we are in the middle of an explosion of people suffering with autoimmune diseases.

One might ask, “What’s happening to cause this? Spontaneous worldwide meltdown of our internal defenses?”

Well, you be the judge.

Clearly, an appropriate immune response is an intricate cascade of events that enlists organs and organ systems throughout the body. What we’re throwing at our bodies in terms of stress and chemicals has changed considerably in the last 40-50 years. What hasn’t changed is our genetic make up to handle these new factors.

I’ve read more than I want about the autoimmune crisis and there are at least 10 tabs open on the computer right now. That said, this article revealed so much new information that I’d like to summarize some key points for you:

-Favorite direct quote: “As such, autoimmune diseases could be the product of our own success as an industrialized species. This vexes researchers, because autoimmunity is not only one of the most prevalent disease categories but also fiendishly complex, a tangle of factors that scientists have yet to fully understand.”

-Doctors cannot agree on what constitutes an autoimmune disease. Right now, there are about 100.

-Unlike diseases such as cancer, there is no national data base for autoimmune diseases and, thus, no shared research, no coordinated data – it’s pretty much each disease subset is on its own.

-The rate of autoimmune disease uptick is far outpacing our DNA/gene’s ability to change and be the cause for such a shift.

-The diversity of our gut’s microbiome is a key element to our overall health and appropriate immune response. It’s been discovered that under-developed countries have an exceptionally low incidence of autoimmune disease along with a well-diversified gut microbiome. Whereas developed countries have less diversified microbiomes and have a high incidence of autoimmune disease.

-Studies of adults in 2003 and in fetal cord blood in 2005 revealed the presence of man-made chemicals including industrial compounds, pollutants, insecticides, dioxins, and mercury. The fetal cord blood study showed 287 different chemicals that were transmitted to those babies prior to birth.

-Americans report ever greater levels of personal stress. Who hasn’t taken a stress hit this past year? One last quote for the day: “The stressed-out individuals were more likely to be diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, more likely to develop multiple autoimmune diseases, and tended to develop autoimmune diseases earlier in life.”

Whew! That’s just the sprinkles on top of the cake, dear readers.

What started out as a simple assignment – “get the bad guys” – has been muddled by so many factors that have made identifying, what is foreign and what is self, almost impossible.

Next week, we’ll look at another common factor that can stimulate another cause of autoimmunity: leaky gut.

Don’t know about you, but I’m headed outdoors to harvest some organic veggies, sit under an umbrella, and soak up the sounds of nature.

If this post was useful to you, please share with others by clicking on the share button below and don’t forget to subscribe through the box on the left so you never miss an issue of FoodTalk4You!

In health,

Deidre

Food Talk 4 You!, Habit Building, Stress Reduction

Scan Me, Dah-ling!

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Let’s do a body scan …

No, not the kind the TSA folks do. This is the hands-free kind we can do for ourselves – fully clothed before and after yoga, exercise, or a morning stretch routine.

We often assume the time spent in movement is working for us because … well … we did it. Maybe there are feelings of relaxation or invigoration, but who knows if your efforts were a benefit or not? There is a way to do a self-assessment that is easy to perform and will reveal just how your body is responding.

It’s called a body check, body survey, or body scan and involves a mindful, relaxed, and non-judgmental overview of how things are feeling to you.

You can google body scan meditation to find a variety of approaches that will take 15-25 minutes. These scans/surveys/checks can be useful to decrease anxiety, explore pain response, or enter a deeper meditative state.

What I have done recently is bracket a 20-minute movement routine, with a brief two-minute scan, designed to que me into my balance, posture, general positioning, and set me up for a mindful practice and a thoughtful release from the session.

Try this simple body scan before your next time of movement.

BODY SCAN 101

Move to a standing position. Place your feet a shoulder width apart; hands hanging freely at your side.

Just relax and stand comfortably with your eyes closed. There is no right or wrong way to do this.

Notice your feet. Do you have more pressure on one foot than the other? Are you feeling more pressure on the front part of your feet, or are you noticing more weight on the heels? Is there increased pressure on the outside or inside of your feet?

Notice your lower legs. Are the muscles relaxed or do they feel more tense?

Move your awareness to your knees. Are your knees slightly bent? Maybe they are pushed back? As you stand, is your weight evenly distributed on both knees?

Notice your hips and pelvis. Is your pelvis tilted forward creating a forward bow to your lower back? Maybe your pelvis is tucked toward your back, causing your tail bone to lower?

Notice your belly. Is it more toward your spine, or is it relaxed in a neutral position, or is it pushed out?

Consider your arms and shoulders. Are your shoulders more back and in alignment with your ears? Or perhaps your shoulders are more forward, and your upper back is more rounded? Are your shoulders at the same height, or maybe one is higher than the other? Are your arms hanging at your sides the same way, or is one different?

Notice your neck and head. Is your head centered and balanced, or is it tilted forward, back, or to the side? Are your head and neck in alignment with your shoulders or are they leaning more forward?

This constitutes a pre-check. Open your eyes and move into your yoga, Pilates, aerobics, nature walk, or other exercise.

Conclude your movement routine with another body scan. It may surprise you how differently your body is oriented and balanced.

This time, when you open your eyes, gently and naturally walk around your immediate area. How does it feel to move through the space? Is it different from prior to exercise?

I have found this simple practice to be so centering. A mindful bracketing of movements using this body scan will set you up for a more balanced approach to the rest of your day and will clue you into to how your body is responding to movement.

If this post was useful to you, please share with others by clicking on the share button below and don’t forget to subscribe through the box on the left so you never miss an issue of FoodTalk4You!

In health-

Deidre

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

More Vacation Mindset -Please

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Or is it Empty Brain Syndrome?

Have I been anything but brutally honest with you? No, I can promise you, I haven’t.

This week is no different.

First, a big shout out to my dear friend and editor for foodtalk4you, Sheree Alderman, for pitching in on the writing side of things with her post, Life in the Stairwell. When she told me of her experiences during those scary hours leading up to, and during, the tornado, I immediately knew it was a story best shared in the first person.

Which was very timely for me, because I was seeing both of my adult children and grandchildren, simultaneously, for the first time in fifteen months! Fully vaccinated – except for the children, at this point – we shared hugs, laughter, delicious five-star restaurant-worthy home cooking, the warm spring weather, walks with two rambunctious and loving Goldendoodles, and happy family trips to nurseries for spring herbs and flowers.

In other words, a slice of heaven for this mother.

Just hearing my son and daughter, who are separated by 3 thousand miles of land plus an ocean, as they talked, laughed, and caught up with each other – made my heart sing.

Ten days of blissful memories carried me through being solo on Mother’s Day.

Still smiling here.

That brings me to EBS. Empty Brain Syndrome. Yup. I’m blaming EBS for my lack of fresh ideas. It’s a part of the umbrella diagnosis of PVS. Post Vacation Syndrome, which may be familiar to you.

PVS is now placed under the new diagnostic category of: First Time Getting Together with Vaccinated Family After Being Isolated in a Global Pandemic Syndrome. FTGTWVFABIIAGPS.

All I really want to do is sit outside, enjoy the sounds of nature, drink coffee/fuzzy water/wine, and just BE.

And prop up my sprained ankle with an ice compress – that’s another story, altogether – still savoring the happy feeling in my heart full of warm memories, while also planning on making more.

Hmmm.

This EBS/PVS/ FTGTWVFABIIAGPS is not such a bad thing after all.

There’s not a stressful thought, feeling, or twitch on the horizon.

When was the last time you could say that?

I think the dark night of my soul during February and March has passed. Nothing that a little sunshine, the safety of being vaccinated, and being around family again couldn’t cure.

Now, about that Empty Brain thingy…

Make sure to subscribe to foodtalk4you to easily receive next week’s post about some mindful exercise and body check-in techniques I learned about during vacation. The brain is beginning to percolate.

In health,

Deidre