Monthly Archives: January 2019

Jan29

Reflections in Your Rearview

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Driving home from school drop-off this morning, I was listening to Andra Day (one of my favorite singers) and her song “Rearview” came up on my playlist. What I love about Andra’s songs are how I can pull something from each one. I love this song because I feel like the idea about looking into your “rearview” is so important as part of a healthy lifestyle.

I seem to always tell people I feel it is so important to know where you come from before you can move forward with your future. Of course, this usually comes after a glass or two of wine and some deep discussions. You gotta know when to go deep with people so they don’t flee from you in the opposite direction! You can’t just randomly bust out your personal “Jack Handy Deep Thoughts” after the first “hello” in a conversation. (Please tell me you remember SNL’s “Deep Thoughts” skits…if not, go find them online and watch some because they’re hysterical.)

Although, I am pretty sure Andra was discussing a personal relationship in the song, based on her lyrics, I couldn’t help find myself connecting it with self-reflection and understanding of one’s past. I started musing to myself of how I felt so far in my own life based on how my own rearview mirror looks. Have a left an impact on society? On a person’s life? Am I leaving the world a better place than when I entered it? Andra continued to sing on as I contemplated these questions, and many more, on my fifteen minute drive back home. Obviously my coffee was kicking in full swing by now, and my brain was pulsating out my own “deep thoughts.” But I couldn’t leave the notion alone, so here we are now writing away on my laptop.

As we are wrapping up the first month into the new year, how do you feel things are going? Do you think about your 2018 Rearview Mirror? I’m almost 40, so I guess entering a new decade has caused me to really pause and think about how my own life has gone so far. There have been some serious ups and downs, there have been huge challenges and triumphs. But for the most part, my Rearview doesn’t look too bad. Can it be better? Sure, there is always room for improvement and I know areas that desperately need it. But my point I want to make here is when you want to move forward in life and work towards higher goals and aspirations, why not take a peek into the mirror of your past. Learn from your mistakes, take notes on your successes and duplicate the process, and pause for a moment to think about how life has impacted your worldview thus far.

Take a piece of paper, a page from your journal, or the notes application on your phone and jot down these things that come to your mind. I guarantee it will impact your next step today and tomorrow for the better. Living life can be a constant roller coaster, so find out how to keep your belt buckled. And do this by self-reflecting and looking into your Rearview Mirror. It can heal you from whatever pain you have, lift you up for the happiness you felt at times, and make you a grateful person for who you can become tomorrow.

Until next time,

Cheers

For more information about my health coaching practice, visit http://www.lifestylelistener.com and sign up for my free cleanse guide.

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Jan23

Liver Rescue

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If there is one organ in the body that could be deemed amazing, it is the liver. Our liver is not only the largest organ in our body (about the size of a football), it’s also one of the most hardworking. The liver acts acts as the body’s filter system. Anything we eat, drink, breath, touch, or come into contact with is filtered through the liver at some point. So, it’s not hard to imagine how a liver can become sluggish and bogged down when too much toxicity exists in your life.

The liver also serves a metabolic function and holds onto vitamins and minerals to be used by the body when needed. It breaks down fats, processes alcohol, regulates immune function in the body, aids in blood reproduction and regulation, and it can even regenerate itself after surgery or an injury. How amazing is that for one organ!

So with all these important roles of our liver, there is little reason to wonder why it’s so imperative to take care of it and try to keep it running as smooth as possible. But how can you do that, you might ask? First you need to know what is affecting your liver. Then it’s easier to find solutions to get it running better.

Toxins and heavy metals are in our everyday environment and they can affect how your liver performs. Think about the detergent you use in the laundry, or the cleaner used on your desk at work. It can even be the paint on the walls. It’s just next to impossible to eliminate certain chemicals from our life. It can be the exhaust from traffic, the type of beauty products you use, or even the swimming pool you go to during those warm summer months. But don’t freak out or feel you have to move into a mud house and give up showering or wearing clean clothes. Sure, some of these toxins we can’t avoid even if we tried, it’s the world we live in today. But there are ways to eliminate so many chemicals in your life, which I will discuss further down.

Viruses and bacteria can also harm the liver. Because the liver plays a role in our immune system and with our blood, viruses can cause the liver to run slow and sluggish. That’s why certain autoimmune diseases and and other illnesses can damage the liver. You must also be watchful of medication because there are many out there that affect the liver since medicine is metabolized in the bloodstream. And remember your water source! Many water systems have been polluted with medications and other drugs, and can still have an affect on the body despite going through the harsh cleaning process regulated by city governments. It just goes to show you need to look at the source of what you eat and drink before you stick it in your body.

So what can you do to help your liver? First off, it starts with the foods you eat. If you can get leafy greens incorporated into your daily routine, you are already doing the liver a load of good. Other veggies, like celery, broccoli, asparagus, and tomatoes are also foods that keep your liver functioning at maximum capacity. Berries, apples, bananas are some fruits which can help keep the liver working properly.

Drinking plenty of filtered water and limiting the amount of alcohol and caffeine are two ways to ease the load on your liver. Because the liver is our body’s filtration system, it has to process both of these stimulants. Having too much of them can cause the liver to become sluggish, which starts a domino effect on the rest of your body. So try to limit your intake to one drink a day (or a couple times a week) and maybe just one cup of coffee in the morning instead of, say, four?

Sugar is another culprit, and eliminating refined sugars from your diet will not only help your liver out, it will do wonders for the rest of your body. Refined sugars have such detrimental effects on the body, it would take an entirely new post to just address that issue! It’s also important to assess how much fat and protein you have in your diet because those can make a difference in how your liver functions. It’s kinda like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, your body needs just the right amount of everything to function properly. Too much or too little throws everything out of whack.

Other ways to inadvertently help your liver is by finding way to eliminate some of the chemicals I wrote about earlier. Pesticides and fertilizers are an obvious area, and that can be reduced by buying organic, going to farmers markets, or washing non-organic produce with warm water and non-scented soap. This last little trick may help in the finance department since many organic products can be costly on a person’s budget.

Many large companies are getting on the bandwagon to offer cleaning products and personal beauty products that are free of dyes, perfumes, and other synthetic chemicals. So it’s easier to find items to purchase at places like Wall-Mart, Target, or your local grocery store. Just remember read those labels before you purchase! Many times these products are more expensive, but can still contain some of the toxins you are trying to eliminate. I look for companies that have plant-based product lines and I try to steer clear of dyes and perfumes that are not derived from natural oils.

When it comes to any kind of detox, liver or no, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and frustrated. But don’t do this to yourself. The liver is an amazing organ and even the littlest change in your lifestyle can make a huge difference. Just take things one step at a time based on your personal needs and what your budget allows. Creating a healthy lifestyle is about doing things you can remember and easily fit into your normal routines. Otherwise the trend will pass and you will go back to old habits.

If you have any questions or need advice, you can e-mail me at samantha@lifestylelistener.com or visit my website at http://www.lifestylelistener.com. Facebook (Lifestyle Listener) and Instagram (@lifestyle_listener) also have daily posts on healthy tips and tricks to help create a healthier you.

Until next time,

Cheers!

Jan18

Damn, the Bottle is Almost Gone.

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Last night I walked over to the counter where the bottle of wine I had opened up earlier sat. I looked at it closely, then closely again, my eyes squinting with chagrin because I just didn’t want to accept what I saw with my own pupils…yep, that damn bottle was almost gone. What the heck just happened? I mean, I opened up the sucker thinking it would be so nice and relaxing to have a glass, turn on my favorite show, and just breathe a bit. I needed to breathe, to think, to process my thoughts. The next thing I know, I’m going back for tiny refill number…4? Now, give me bit of slack here, it was over a long period, like several hours. But the fact is I obviously needed this situation to happen. I needed release and a chance to just “be.”

Can I get a show of hands from the two or three people actually reading this and see if it has ever happened to you? Oh really, both of you? Awesome, so I’m not sailing this ship to crazy town all on my own! Sweet! The point I want to make here is, sometimes that bottle just needs to be half empty.

I’m a pretty positive person, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE coaching others to good health and lifestyle choices (ah, here’s that parenting tip…you know…the “do as I say, not as I do” tip). But I am also a human being and susceptible to “falling off the health wagon,” so-to-speak. Last night was one of those exceptional moments of pure indulgence and embracing my moment of “being bad.” So let me back up a bit and explain how my bottle became drained so fast.

As some of you may know, if you’ve ever read my bio, that I am a mother of two beautiful children whom I love and adore more than life itself. That’s an honest statement, too. But the thing that comes with any responsibility, whether it is parenting, a career, or whatever your jam may be, it also comes with moments of pure, undiluted stress. I could totally do a plug here for my health coaching business on how to manage stress, because I do know those fun little tips, but nope. I’m going to be super real for you here and let you know that I threw all of those out the window. Even I had a moment where stress got the best of me. Parenting got the best of me. I want to have all the answers, and yet, I don’t. I’m not even close. But dammit, I try every stinking day to get this gig right so I can raise Warriors in this world and not take away from society. But raising Warriors can be hard at times, especially when what you want to do for them gets so much backlash and negative feedback. This is where my own spiritual strength kicks in like Chuck Norris.

Raising kids in the age of social media, Google, and Netflix is like trying to get the last section of your zipper on that little black dress of yours. You can bend and twist your elbows in multiple directions, but in the end you have to ask for help because that last section is truly unattainable. And so when I was trying to “zip” up my own section of parenting, I realized I needed to ask for help. So I did. What I got was good stuff, and still is good stuff, but man does it suck some brain power from you. Oh, I’m sticking to my guns and holding strong but standing up for what you know is right and doing what you know is best for the people you love is EXHAUSTING!!!

And yet, it’s what we are supposed to do, people! We are supposed to fight the good fights for what we believe in because deep down we know it is right. And that doesn’t mean strictly parenting principles. It can encompass anything you feel is worthy of your time and mental energy. Rome was not built in a day, and whatever your end-game may be, you’re probably going to need to ask for help (I pray over mine for a long while), see what answers you get, and then drink some wine (or vodka). You are going to cry by yourself for a moment, let that pity party commence, and then move along to task number 2, which is solving the problems and getting to solutions you feel good about. To be fearful of seeking advice is such a detriment to healthy living, especially if you are a spiritual person like me. I can’t tell you the number of times my own faith has pulled me through things or guided me to others that offered exactly what I needed. I just had to simply ask. There are so many credible people and resources out there to offer suggestions, tips, tricks, and plain ol’ support to people out there silently screaming for it. So please, before your ship crashes to shore, find a way to get some answers and then go out there and tackle that problem like a Roman soldier! Once the battle is over, you can do like I did last night and find your own bottle half empty, but your heart completely full.

Until next time,

Cheers!

Want to learn more about my health coaching business and what I can do for you? Visit http://www.lifestylelistener.com and sign up for my free sugar buster sheet!

Jan14

Memory Lane

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New year, and that means doing some closet cleaning. You know how that goes…baby clothes, costumes, toys, and the occasional miscellaneous beach bag you only used once. It all needs to be purged, organized, and eliminated from the chaos we call “life.” But in one of the items I was cleaning out, I discovered some journals from my college days. Oh my, how great it was to walk back down memory lane with my college self, and all the immature selfishness that goes along with this period in one’s life.

Circa May 1997

So what was happening in the mind of an 18 year old college student at Vanderbilt University? Well, stress is one of the common threads in my journal. I talk about the stress of classes, the stress of trying to fit into a world I didn’t think I belonged. The stress of trying to keep relationships going, but watching them crumble. I read about heartache over the loss of family members and frustration with may parents, whom I felt were dictating to me how I needed to live over the two-state distance. I also read about a desire for more confidence and the need to figure out who I wanted to become while living away from home for the first time in my life.

If you have never had the chance to step back into your 18-year-old self, I am sad for you. It is comical, but also a bit disheartening. It will humble you in a flat second too. Because now, as a 39-year-old woman, I realize the things that seemed so major at that time in my life were actually small in scale compared to the challenges I would face in my more adult lifetime. But I also see some beauty in this method of self-reflection. I can get a glimpse into how my daughter might think of things when she is this age. I see how my son could get frustrated at me as a parent when he goes to college. This journal might be a flash to the past for me, but it is also a peek into the future for two children who are very much like me, although still very different. I am thankful for having a sort of “crystal ball” into parenting my children. The things I wrote about the people around me, whether they were fellow college student or my own parents driving me crazy, spans the test of time. Behaviors will remain the same, even though circumstances will greatly change. Yes, my kids will face different battles than me because their world is totally different than the world I lived in during 1997. And yet, common human behaviors and natures will still be there. So maybe this little “God Wink” of mine is a tool I can keep for future use.

I plan to read some of my entries to my 11-year-old daughter because I want her to understand it’s okay to be frustrated with me, but that I am doing what I do for her best interest. And perhaps it will inspire her to start more journaling of her own so she has an avenue to vent out frustrations about life, flesh out personal thoughts, or just rant on how annoying I am as a mother.

Floating down memory lane today made me laugh a little, tear up a bit for lives that are now over, but most of all actually feel very proud of the person I have become. The person God has made me into, and the character I have worked so hard to preserve and grow over the years. Here’s hoping you get to find our own version of Memory Lane, and to take that time to do some good self-reflection. And to take the time to relish in the good and the maybe not-so-good about your own life. Remember, healthy living is always about looking inward and finding what you love and what you want to change.

Happy New Year everyone…Cheers!