health

Control My Pain Project

September 18, 2018 by Anne Sweet 6 Comments

The control my pain project is an online course which helps those with chronic pain restore their health, comfort and happiness.

The six week holistic pain management program leads you week by week into understanding your pain and how it affects you both mentally, physically and socially. It provides you with resources that you can use to thelp you reduce your pain and improve your attitude towards it.

The Program

The program is split into six weeks, but takes around an hour and a half maximum to work through the videos and quizzes. You are then required to put what you have learned into practice for the rest of the week. The aim is that by the end of the program you will have practised each weekly tasks so that they become natural to you.

There is nothing too difficult to digest or to do, the program is pretty easy. It explains everything really clearly and the tasks and quizzes are not difficult to complete.

The program begins by explaining the way our body, mind and what we can physically do are all connected. You are introduced to the biopsychosocial approach to pain management. For this you will learn about how your thoughts and feelings affect both your pain and your social life.

You will learn how things like mindfullness and communication skills can improve your mental and physical health. You will also learn how to practice these alongside relaxation and thought processing techniques.

Each week has video presentations by Pam and Jackie. Jackie is your guide and Pam is a professional in pain management and rehabilitation and has over thirty years experience.

My Thoughts

The program is a detailed weekly plan which teaches you why an holistic approach can work, what techniques work and how to put them into use.

Personally, I already use a lot of the techniques described but I did identify some problematic areas that I still have and I am putting what I have learned into practice.

Of the techniques that are offered that I already use I can sincerely recommend them. A lot of people with my condition spend a lot of time in the Accident and Emergency Department. I am convinced that the reason my visits have been more limited is because I know of these techniques. During an attack I am able to control my body’s responses with my mind and relaxation techniques. I truly believe that everything is connected and a calm and relaxed approach can improve your physical condition.

I am sure that if you do not know these techniques you will be able to relate to the opposite effect. Just think to a time when your emotional distress has left you feeling physically drained or in pain. Excessive crying can leave you exhausted and may even give you a headache.

Support and Information

Signing up to the program gives you access to a closed Facebook group and support by e-mail. There is also lots of extra information which supports the program available on the website in the form of a blog and a load of downloadable resources.

If you want to know more you can sign up to a free masterclass in the form of three videos sent by e-mail, this gives you a real feel for the program.

Joining the program gives you the full course and all the resources along with a support group. Full access costs $59, around £45 at the time of posting this.

If you do sign up for the free class or the course, be sure to let me know how you get on and what you think.

Disclosure: I was able to try the course for free in return for my honest review.

6 Ways to Stop Grinding Your Teeth

May 16, 2018 by Anne Sweet Leave a Comment

photo credit Christina Rivers on Unsplash

In February I told you about Star’s latest on the list of health conditions, TMJ. It’s a jaw disorder and can be caused or aggravated by teeth grinding.

Today I wish to share with you six ways to help with teeth grinding.

Bruxism

Bruxism refers to clenching or grinding your teeth. Many people do it without even realising, and many do so in their sleep. It’s important to understand that bruxism can impact your dental health. While there is no real cure, there are several ways to treat bruxism.

Usually, you will work with along with your holistic dentist in Brisbane or in your local area to craft a care plan designed to help you reduce the symptoms as well as tooth damage that is often associated with the condition. An individualised plan may include some of the below treatments.

Mouth Guard

A mouth guard is the most common treatment. Your dentist will order a custom-made mouth guard or splint, designed to keep the teeth separated and prevent further damage. While some people do find the mouth guard awkward and uncomfortable, it is an excellent way to protect your teeth.

Correcting Alignment

If your bruxism is due to improper alignment of your teeth, it is important to correct the alignment before any more damage is done and this is an excellent long-term option. An orthodontist or dentist might recommend oral surgery, crowns, braces or reshaping your teeth’s chewing surface to get your teeth to properly align.

Prescription Medication

If your bruxism is the result of anxiety, depression or stress, doctors may prescribe muscle relaxants. While the medication may be effective, it’s important to understand the potential side effects since some commonly prescribe medications may have a negative affect on your thyroid or live, while others could be addictive. Always listen to your doctor’s advice and avoid self-medication.

Botox

If you don’t respond to the most convention treatments for bruxism, some dentists may suggest Botox injections. Researchers have stated that there is very little research on the efficacy and safety of Botox for bruxism sufferers, but it does seem that Botox could be useful when it comes to reducing myofascial pain associated with the teeth grinding condition.

Managing Stress

Many of us grind our teeth when we are anxious and stressed, which means we need to learn how to manage and then release the stress. People can benefit from popular relaxation techniques such as meditation, physical exercise, essential oils and yoga. A healthy diet is also important, as is avoiding foods that could trigger allergic reactions.

Vitamins and Minerals

As a complement to your stress management techniques, boosting vitamin C levels is another good way to stop bruxism. Vitamin C is used by the adrenal glands, which affect our response to anxiety and stress. Besides vitamin C supplements, you should aim to eat foods that are rich in vitamin C such as oranges, guava, broccoli, red peppers, black currents, kiwi, strawberries, green peppers, papaya and kale.

As for minerals, if you have a magnesium deficiency, you may experience restlessness, anxiety, hyperactivity, insomnia and irritability. It’s a good idea to take a high-quality magnesium supplement daily, just before bed to help improve the quality of your sleep.

Use these 6 treatments to help stop grinding your teeth today and get a better night’s sleep as well as to help you release stress and anxiety.

Disclosure: this is a collaborative post

Five Motivation Killers and How to Tackle Them

March 23, 2018 by Anne Sweet 6 Comments

Some days motivation is just so hard to find don’t you think?

I’ve been feeling like this for while now and I’ve been trying to get out of this slump. I’ve been reading motivational posts and looking at motivational quotes and nothing. I’ve felt no motivation at all.

So, I’ve decided to take a different approach and look at what kills motivation.

Impatience

I always pride myself as being a patient person. In fact a lot of people have praised me on my patience. Many people have admired my patience and said things like ‘I wish I was as patient as you.’

Sometimes, I don’t feel patient. In fact lately I’ve been looking at my life and thinking ‘what the hell!’ How did I get so far along without achieving anywhere near as much as I had hoped to. There are so many things I wanted to do, so many things I still wanted to do. Then it creeps into me, that nasty little word, impatience. Time is running out, get it sorted now. Do it now. I can’t wait anymore, I want it now.

In a way, it’s hard to get past. I know I’m running out of time. I know I have so much still left to do. But feeling impatient isn’t going to help me. If I run out of time I have to accept it. I have to accept that not everyone achieves everything in life. Would I go back and change it all? Well, it would be nice to be somewhere else in my life right now, but changing it would change the things I have right now, and that’s not all bad. In fact there are so many things I wouldn’t change at all. Which brings me nicely into my next motivation killer.

Ingratitude

You know when you are told to keep a gratitude diary, or even to just write down the things you are grateful for? Well, I’ve always found this so hard. Yes, I’m grateful for my family, I’m grateful for the roof over my head, errr, I’m grateful for the sky and the sun and the stars and the moon and bloody hell, I’m so ungrateful, my life is a load of crap. Who would be grateful for legs that don’t work properly, for constant pain day and night, for arguing siblings, a partner who doesn’t understand, the shit way my life has turned out.

There it is, ingratitude, rearing it’s ugly head…that didn’t take too much digging did it!

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. – Melody Beattie”

Time to turn that around on it’s heals.

It’s so easy to feel ingratitude, but feeling grateful is so much nicer.

Let’s get back to writing that list. I’m not grateful for the constant pain, but I’m grateful for the doctors that listen to me complain, take all my worries on board and provide me with treatment.

I’m not grateful for arguing siblings, but when they play together they make me feel so happy. Everyone has to experience the little bad things to appreciate the good things more.

I’m not grateful that my partner doesn’t understand, how could he, would I really want him to feel the same? I am grateful for everything he does for me. He doesn’t always get it right, and sometimes he drives me up the wall, but I wouldn’t be without him. Never mind losing my legs, without him would be like losing my arms as well.

As for the way my life has turned out, well, it could have been worse. I could have still been with my ex husband (haha, sorry if you read this Dave, but it’s true, what a nightmare for us both.) I could have never had children, I might never have experienced some of the wonderful jobs I’ve had, met the lovely friends I’ve met, oh I know life could have been so much worse. With every bad thing there has been good. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems.

If you have trouble finding gratitude in life, then try this simple thing.

Write a letter, or a note, or a card to someone you care about. It could be a friend, a family member or even someone as obscure as a bus driver or shop assistant. Let them know what you are thankful for, minding your kids, helping you out, always being friendly, being someone you can talk to….anything at all, big or small. You don’t even have to give them the letter afterwards if you don’t want to, but just writing it down has given you the opportunity to express gratitude and unlocking the fullness of life.

Envy

I’ve always prided myself as not being the jealous type but sometimes envy gets to everyone. Are you on Facebook? Do you see posts of friends enjoying fabulous holidays that you know you could never afford, or someone showing off their brand new house, or baby or even kitten? Maybe, if you are a blogger, you see someone reviewing the latest gadget that you really would have loved to have reviewed, or going to the most fantastic event that you would have loved to have attended.

Hands up! I pride myself as not being jealous, but that’s only because I would never admit it in public. The truth is, there is always someone who is going to be ‘seeming’ to be bigger and better than you. But I say seeming to be, because that’s just it. Life is what you make it and if you let envy get in the way then you are less likely to go out and make it better for yourself.

Envy is a trick, it will make you forget that the only life worth living is your own!

Being Overwhelmed

Ever felt that there is just not enough time in the day? Ever feel that you have so much to do you just don’t know where to start? Ever feel that life is passing you by and all you can think about is everything you need to do?

I know I do. I know I get overwhelmed a lot.

Being overwhelmed can take over your entire life. When I’m overwhelmed I struggle to get out of bed because I’m thinking of everything I have to do, then I get on my computer and mess around on Social Media or play silly games, read lots of pages that are interesting but not really helping me get everything done that I need to do. By the time I get to bed in the evening I’m still feeling overwhelmed and I can’t sleep because I didn’t get everything done that I needed to do that day.

How do you get over being overwhelmed? Certainly not by getting everything done, because then you’ll have a whole heap of new things to do.

It’s a case of breaking everything down. Start by making a list of what you need to get done. Then strike out everything that is not absolutely necessary. Don’t put things off , strike them off. Then think about what you really need to do first, maybe it’s a little thing that you’ve been putting off because you have so many bigger things to do. Just do it, get it out of the way.

Schedule your tasks and work your way through them at your own pace. Once you’ve cut down your list of things to do and got the little things out of the way you probably won’t feel so overwhelmed by the rest.

So, I’ve done all this, taken my own advice, but still feel overwhelmed. The next step is not to be so hard on myself. I’m not superhuman, I can only do what I can do. I’m going to stop beating myself up over what I’ve not achieved and appreciate myself for what I have.

Poor Health

Health and motivation go hand in hand. If I’m ill then my motivation to do anything at all just disappears. Last week I was so poorly for a few days and I achieved so little. This is probably why I’m so overwhelmed this week, I’m playing catch up!

Sometimes you can’t help being sick, I couldn’t help it last week. But, if you look after yourself properly then even though you can’t always beat the bugs, you can keep yourself going throughout the day.

So, just by eating better, getting as much sleep as you can and taking a little exercise you can boost your energy and your willingness to get things done. Get rid of the sluggishness and get yourself motivated instead.

I hope you’ve found this interesting or helpful. I’d love to know how you stay motivated or what kills your motivation?

Healing from the Inside, Repairing a Leaky Gut

March 7, 2018 by Anne Sweet 1 Comment

I have been sick for just over two years now. I have an auto-immune disease and I’m pretty sure it’s made worse because of my leaky gut and my weight.

I have decided that by dealing with my weight and thinking about what I put inside my body is the path I must take to start healing.

Leaky Gut

I have a poorly gut. I’m no doctor but I am convinced it’s either the cause of my issues or it exacerbates them. Before I got sick I was having a lot of problems with bloating, stomach pain, constipation etc. I even had a CT scan which showed that I had a lot more gas inside me than was normal, it was leaking into my womb. I was going to seek further help but then I ended up in hospital. I know the problem is still there, but I’ve decided I am the one who can tackle it.

What is a leaky gut? The medical term is ‘Intestinal permeability’ and it’s when the lining of the small intestine becomes damaged causing the things it contains to leak through into the blood stream. This can cause an autoimmunse response.

Symptoms of a leaky gut include migraines, irritable bowel, eczema, chronic fatigue, food allergies and even rheumatoid arthritis.

It sounds like a pretty serious condition but it’s not mentioned often. In fact a lot of medical professionals don’t believe it exists.

A leaky gut can be caused by food and/or medication. A particular culprit is over-the-counter pain relief that contains aspirin.

Repairing a Leaky Gut and Healing from the Inside

The obvious way to repair a leaky gut is to think about what you are putting in your body and improve your diet.

Paleo

Last year, after I’d put on a lot of extra weight during steroid treatment, I decided to try a Paleo Diet.

What does the Paleo diet involve?

You should avoid, grains, rice, beans and pulses, dairy products, processed foods, sugar, artificial sweeteners, soft drinks, ready meals, refined vegetable oils, chocolate and sweets, refined table salt.

You can have, meat, fish, seafood, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fresh fruit, olive oil, coconut oil, nut oil, honey, coconut sugar, nut and seed milks, and even coffee and alcohol in moderation.

It’s not that bad is it?

I lasted a few months but it became a little too difficult. I liked my bread and rice too much. I have taken a few things from the diet though. My dairy intake is very limited, I’m a big fan of almond milk. I have cut down considerably on sugar, I do have sweet treats, but not regularly. I no longer eat pasta, but I wasn’t so keen on it anyway. I have never been a fan of processed foods so I although I have them, I don’t indulge often. I also try to eat gluten free whenever I can. I’ve never used table salt although I do add salt, usually rock salt, while cooking.

Time to Lose weight

Although I lost a little bit of weight last year, eleven pound to be precise, my body mass index (BMI) is still 30. I am still suffering from bloating and constipation, so I know my gut is still leaking. I’ve decided that it’s time to lose weight and I think I’ve found something that works for me.

Herbalife

I met Charlie in hospital while we were both having infusions. He has MS and is a true warrior. He was diagnosed 10 years ago and was in wheelchair. With a lot of work he know walks and drives and is living his life as well as he can. To get this far he has tried everything, and has worked out a combination of things which have increased his mobility and given him his life back.

One of the things that Charlie is enthusiastic about is Herbalife. We had a chat and I decided to try some. I chose the vanilla shake and substitute one of my meals in father of a shake with added fruit. Each shake contains a good amount of vitamins and minerals. I’ve recently suffered from a lack of vitamin D, vit. C and Vit. B12. I’ve also taken supplements of magnesium which help with my leg cramps. a Herbalife shake contains all of these and more so I no longer need to take any supplements.

Since staring Herbalife I have felt a little better and I have lost 7lb. I’m convinced that the shake is helping and I’ve just ordered my second tub.

Mindful Chef

I have also decided to eat more healthily and instead of having the hassle of researching meals and getting in what I need, as well as all the shopping I need for the rest of the family, I have decided to try a food box. With health in mind I went for Mindful Chef. These boxes are delivered with everything you need and all the food is reduced in sugar and refined carbs. You can choose whatever meals you want and when you want it. I have two meals, which are for two people, so I split them up and make myself four meals. It works for me and in combination with my herbalife shake for lunch and a healthy (gluten free) breakfast, I am hoping for some good results.

If you would like to try Mindful Chef you can get £20 off your first box by giving my e-mail address when you sign up. (okesanne@gmail.com)

a plate of food, sweet potato chips, haddock and a small salad of tomato and lambs lettuce

Fish and chips, Mindful Chef style

My Goal

First and foremost I want to heal my leaky gut, and I also want to lose weight. I am hoping to lose the two stone I put on since being sick. As I can’t exercise much I need to rely on what I eat. I hope that once the weather gets a little better I can go for some outdoor exercise with my walker. I can’t go very far, but hopefully I’ll be able to build up to do a little more.

Have you heard of a leaky gut?

What do you do to keep healthy?

Preparing for a Miracle

October 9, 2017 by Anne Sweet 13 Comments

I wrote a blog post and my daughter, Boo, leaned over my shoulder and I was horrified. I told her to go away and not to read what I was writing over my shoulder, I said she was rude.

I made her cry.

I comforted her and then read back what I’d written. I’d poured out my deepest feelings and they were horrible. No wonder I didn’t want her to see.

Have you ever sat at a keyboard and just written everything down, all your feelings, all that’s wrong with life?

It’s not a bad thing to do, it does help to get those feelings out. But sometimes it’s just not right to share them and my reaction to Boo made me realise that. So I apologised to Boo, gave her a big hug and all was right with her. If only life was that easy to fix!

Then I decided to take a positive turn and starting looking up miracles. Oh yes, that’s what I need. forget winning the lottery, I need a miracle. I need to get well so I can fix everything else. Sometimes I think that I got sick because I spent so long trying to fix things, sometimes I think I burnt myself out. Stress and stress and more stress trying to be here and there and solving everyone’s problems, carrying everyone’s burdens. Then to see a family member drop down in front of me and never get up again. Maybe that was just too much. Maybe that pushed me over the edge and my body decided to start attacking itself?

But, if I had a miracle, a cure for myself, then that would prove that I could do anything wouldn’t it? All with the hindsight that looking after myself is most important.

So, as I said, I started looking up miracles and I came across Jordan Bach. A little research made me think he was slightly bonkers, you know, the sort of person that oozes so much positivity that they must be a complete depressive zombie in their own world. (oh, hang on, no, that’s me.) No, Jordan Bach does have some great resources if you are feeling down.

Here is what Jordan Bach says about Miracles.

There are 2 important steps to manifest what you want:
1) Create a channel through which the miracle can flow. You can’t have the miracle just by wishing for it. You have to stretch yourself: send out the resumé, make the phone calls, and put up the website.
2) Prepare to receive that which you want. Align your energy with abundance, not lack. Affirm, “This or something better is on its way to me.” The perfect mental vibration to hold is gratitude for what you already have and excitement for what is to come.

thebachbook.com

So, my miracle is a little more than something I can just wish for or plan for, I definitely can’t stretch myself (ok, that’s a personal joke, I have stiff person syndrome, my muscles are stiff and stretching is something I cannot physically do!) I can prepare myself though. Instead of thinking this treatment didn’t work last time and it’s not going to work again, I can think, this treatment didn’t work last time but that doesn’t mean it wont work this time. Just a tiny little difference in the way of thinking can create the channel for a better outcome.

I know this. I have a degree in psychology. I know how positive thinking is real and can have very real affects. Start the day on a positive note and you are more able to deal with whatever the day throws at you. I have practised this for so long.

I have young children, what could be a more stressful start to the day when you have to get them up and ready for school on time. Even when completely planned, clothes ready, bags ready, even breakfast bowls set up, you can’t account for the odd tantrum or refusal to get dressed.

If you react with anger then the kids will go to school miserable and you will feel guilty.

If you react calmly and positively, count every blessing (she put her socks on all by herself today) and get on with the stressful times (cuddle the tantrum thrower and tell them everything will be okay) then everyone’s day will be more positive and happy.

It’s simple, yet sometimes so difficult.

Today, I am pushing my problems to the back of my mind. I am going to the hospital feeling positive. I’m going to receive my infusion with gratitude. I know it costs the NHS around £450 per infusion and I will be having five of them, that’s just the cost of the infusion, never mind how much it costs the hospital to treat me. It’s mind blowing and I’m so utterly grateful for the NHS.

Each day I will expect my miracle and at the end I won’t get depressed like before. If my miracle doesn’t arrive then I will look for it elsewhere. It has to come eventually.