Christmas is next week already! Wow where did 2019 go?? If your calendar looks anything like mine it is just full of different events: family Christmas parties, work parties or luncheons, travel, cookie and candy baking, and so much more. So how do we manage through all the holiday madness and stress, so that we can keep our health in check? I want to give you a few things that I am doing to help myself through this busy season, but first I need to be real with you.
What could I possibly have to fess up about? I just had my birthday a few days before Thanksgiving and so we’ll just say that since then I have let my eating really get away from me and even before then it has not been as strict as what it has been since I started my whole journey. Let me tell you…things have not been the greatest when it comes to my gut health because I have let things slip. You ever tell yourself when you start getting signs of a cold that oh I am not getting sick and you try to ignore it? Yeah? Well that is what I have been trying to do with symptoms I have been experiencing. Now that does not mean it is time to sound the alarm and say I am no longer in remission but it is just me being real with myself and saying “no more” time to get back on track. The symptoms I am experiencing are: fatigue/lack of energy, bowels have been all over as far as consistency, bloating, some headaches and a few times where I had some stomach cramps.
So why am I not freaking out? I am not panicking because if I do that I will send myself directly into a flare. Stress is most definitely my number one trigger when it comes to my Crohn’s disease, and I bet a lot of people could say that is their trigger as well when it comes to health issues flaring. Right now needs to be all about showing myself some love and respecting that my body needs some support, not sending myself spiraling down into the rabbit hole of stress and worry. I am getting back on track with eating habits and avoiding all the inflammatory things. One thing I know that has been getting away from me is my dairy consumption. I am from Wisconsin… but all that cheese is really catching up to me! The other thing I have noticed is with all the social events I have been choosing to consume some alcoholic beverages and it just does not agree with me and when one glass of wine is giving you a headache and making your mood altered the next day my body is definitely screaming at me that it is not happy with that decision. It comes down to is my overall health really worth the one drink? No not at all!
What Do I Do About It?
- Anti-inflammatory diet. Back to eating a stricter diet I go. How convenient is this with the holidays’ among us and all the different dishes that will be made that do not fit into my eating habits? Not really convenient at all. However, when it comes down to it I do not look at it like I am missing out on these things. Instead, I remember if I do not choose to eat a healthier & a more clean diet I may not make it to these holiday celebrations at all or I may be there but will be uncomfortable depending on the symptom I could be experiencing that day. In the end I would rather be present than not there at all. My anti-inflammatory diet consists of getting rid of the gluten, dairy, sugar, alcohol, caffeine, chocolate, and more. If you want to read more about this check out out my blog post, The AIP Diet. Which it usually makes people uncomfortable because they do not know what I can and cannot eat. Which I am thankful that people are concerned that I have food to eat, but I always tell them you make what you want to make and I will eat the food that fits into my eating plan. Another good idea is if you have a pot luck, bring a dish to have at the holiday festival that you can enjoy and can share with everyone else. My final suggestion is eat before you go to your event and just enjoy the company of everyone. Ultimately, that is what it is about over the holiday season is just being there to spend time with the ones you love.
- Self – love activities. This could really vary from person to person, but it is really anything that allows you to de-stress, cleanse and allow your body to relax. My favorite self-love activities are:
- having a cup of my favorite herbal teas
- detox baths
- monthly or bi-weekly visits to the chiropractor
- meditation
- writing in my gratitude journal
- yoga (any exercise is great, but yoga is my favorite)
- massages
- Taking my supplements and greens daily. You would think I am on top of this right? I am human and life totally got away from me and I fell out of my morning routine, which is when I always take my supplements. So I have begun to get back on track with making sure every morning that I am taking my pre & probiotic supplement (gut health support), vegan protein (fuel my body with energy), spirulina (high in B vitamins), magnesium (help keeps my bowels moving and good for cardiovascular health), green superfood smoothie (loaded with nutrients you need daily), barley grass (high in B vitamins & good for increasing breast milk supply since I am nursing) & rice bran solubles (gut health support and the most nutrient dense part of rice). Sounds like a lot of things but in reality it really is not a whole lot especially since some of the things I am adding into my superfood smoothie in the morning. With me trying to get back on track I have been having two green smoothies a day (normally I only have one a day) because I want to give my digestive system a break from doing all the hard work of breaking down my food.
- Sleep. Sounds silly that I am listing this but proper sleep is crazy important! If we are not getting enough rest our body cannot heal. In fact that is when our body does a lot of the work. Make sure you are getting the required amount of hours of sleep for your age. Check out those numbers here.
The sweet and short version is do what serves your body and avoid what does not. Your body is always talking to you and telling you what it needs and what it does not need. While the holiday season is always hard because schedules get off with it being the busy time of year you just have to do your best and forget the rest. Do not let your busy schedule become an excuse to put your health on the back burner. Most definitely do not wait until the new year to start your health goals either if your body needs the love and support now. It will do you more harm than good to ignore it and try to pretend that those symptoms are not happening. I have had to learn this just a few times in my life. I am not perfect and no one is but if you can make sure to try to serve your body and allow it to relax at some point daily you will be doing yourself a great service.
May 2019 end on a high note and that 2020 will be filled with good health, love, light and positivity.
Happy Holidays & God Bless!
Brooke
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