Category: Holistic Health

Holistic Health, Mind-body

Are you fatigued? The superhero herbs to the rescue!

Catie Fitzgerald

Recently I had the honor of hanging out with the dynamic duo behind Transformation Cafe, host Robin Masiewicz with co-host Amy Frost. The conversation centered on natural ways to overcome stress-induced fatigue, including the superheroes of the herbal world, adaptogens.

So, pour yourself a comforting cup of tea and join us as we explore the herbs that can help your body “adapt” to the moment. Does your body need a pick-me-up or does it need to relax? The adaptogens “know” what you need at the moment and help restore your body to a healthy balance.

Listen to the show below.

Superhero Herbs – Countering Fatigue!

Holistic Health, Lifestyle, Nutrition, Physical Fitness

Spring Forward: How to Successfully Transition to Daylight Savings

Catie Fitzgerald

Winter has shed her mantel and given way to the rebirth and rejuvenation of spring! Learn how to tap into the energy of this season by participating in this FREE online course. You’ll learn simple ways to use diet and lifestyle to…

  • Enhance your energy
  • Boost productivity
  • Clear brain fog
  • Rejuvenate your skin

During this 60-minute self-directed course, I’ll answer these questions and more:

  • What special role do B vitamins play in energy production and what foods contain them?
  • Why does time in the sun matter and how to do you safely get your daily dose?
  • How can you use naps and other sleep strategies to bolster your energy throughout the day?
  • What special needs does skin have as the season transitions from winter into spring?

The first five (5) people to register for this online course will receive a $125 gift card from Enhanced Health Solutions redeemable for coaching services and online classes.

Sign up to take this course at your own pace by registering at Teachable.com. Attendance is free and you’re welcome to invite guests (simply share the link to this event).

FAQs
How can I contact the organizer with any questions?
You can reach me via email at cfitz@enhancedhealthsolutions.com.

Holistic Health, Lifestyle, Mind-body

Hello new decade! Let’s talk

Catie Fitzgerald

Many of us start a new year with a commitment to self-growth and self-improvement. I admire this habit and take this action myself.

I take a slightly different approach than the traditional goal and resolution setting most people equate with the New Year. I shared my approach, RISQ Take, on the radio show Transformation Cafe in December 2018.

Recently, I began writing a new post and realized the 2018 post did a thorough job covering the topic. So, rather than rewrite, I’m reposting the radio links and the support materials.

When you are ready, click here to revisit the RISQ Take radio recording and access the slides.

Holistic Health, Lifestyle, Physical Fitness

Go outside and play; it’s National Relaxation Day!

Catie Fitzgerald

It’s National Relaxation Day, a holiday initiated on August 15, 1985, at the prompting of nine-year-old Sean Moelle of Clio, Michigan (Levine, 2017).  This young person noticed that constant work without any down time could make us ill.  Science supports his conclusion: too much work and no play can lead to chronic stress which contributes to the development of such diseases as insulin resistance, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension.  In fact, the cardiovascular effects of stress increase your all-cause mortality risk  by two to three times and decrease life expectancy by several years (Guilliams & Edwards, 2010, p. 7).

Last year, I observed the holiday by chilling out with an afternoon tea break.  This year, I’m taking time to get outside and play for at least 15 minutes. Why play outdoors? Research has shown that humans experience reduced stress levels and increase overall health when engaging in activities in nature. A study conducted in Japan performed on the physiological effects of forest bathing showed that forest-like environments could lower concentrations of cortisol, reduce pulse rate, decrease blood pressure, increase parasympathetic nerve activity, and lower sympathetic nerve activity compared with city settings (Park, Tsunetsugu, Kasetani, Kagawa, & Miyazaki, 2010, p. 25). 

Here are a few ideas of outdoor group activities you can enjoy:

  • Shooting hoops
  • Tossing a Frisbee
  • Playing corn hole / bean bag toss
  • Bocce ball
  • Badminton and tennis
  • Group games such as Simon Says, Red Rover, and tag. 

No one to join you in play? Solo play also has a positive impact on health and stress management. Try skipping, doing a few somersaults and cartwheels in the grass, rolling down a slope of the lawn, or swing on the monkey bars at your local park.

What will you do for yourself today to observe National Relaxation Day?  Please share your ideas in the comments section.

Bibliography

Guilliams, T. G., & Edwards, L. (2010). Chronic stress and the HPA axis: Clinical assessment and therapeutic considerations. The Standard, 9(2), 1–12.

Levine, D. S. (2017, August 15). National Relaxation Day 2017: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com. Retrieved August 15, 2018, from https://heavy.com/news/2017/08/national-relaxation-day-2017-facts-origin-date-ideas/

Merriam-Webster Inc. (2019). Definition of RELAXATION. Retrieved August 15, 2019, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relaxation

Park, B. J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Kasetani, T., Kagawa, T., & Miyazaki, Y. (2010). The physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing): Evidence from field experiments in 24 forests across Japan. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, 15(1), 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12199-009-0086-9

Holistic Health, Mind-body

Weekly Health Quest (July 15-19, 2019) – Relaxing Tea Ritual

Catie Fitzgerald

Join Amy Lynn Frost and me for this week’s practical self-care action. This week, we’ll be practicing a virtual tea ritual each day. This mindful exercise serves as both a method for reducing stress and hydrating the body. Want to join us?

At 3pm (PDT) each day this week, make yourself a cup of tea as a self-care practice to enhance your well-being. Engage all of your senses in the process:

  • Select a fragrant tea, relaxing tea (visit here for ideas)
  • Listen to the water boil and splash into the cup
  • Inhale the aroma as the tea steeps
  • Feel the warmth of the cup in your hands and on your lips/tongue
  • Taste and savor each sip.
  • Stay focused on making and then drinking the tea.
  • Breath deeply throughout the ritual.

Once you finish drinking your cup of tea, share anything you want to about your experience in the comments below.

Learn more about the Weekly Health Quest concept here.

Check out Amy’s and Catie’s Facebook pages.

Holistic Health, Lifestyle

Introducing the Weekly Health Quest – Practical steps you can take to enhance your health

Catie Fitzgerald

While having a nice chat with my friend Amy Frost this Sunday, we realized that we had allowed some of our daily self-care rituals to fall by the wayside. One of our favorite rituals involves us simultaneously preparing and enjoying a cup of tea at 3:00 pm each week day from our respective offices (mine in Mountain View, CA and hers in Las Vegas, NV).

We decided that this week we would re-institute this meditative tradition. We committed to do this ritual every day for the next 5 days. No big, long-term commitment. Just one small step towards enhancing our health through a simple meditative exercise that takes all of 5 minutes to perform. This hands-on experience provides both our body and our mind with a respite from the hectic work day.

As we chatted about self-care in general, we came back to a topic for which we both have a great passion: making self-care easy and practical. We all face a variety of constraints that can get in the way of self-care, including bandwidth, motivation, and financial pressures.

So, we pressed our “Easy” buttons and came up with the idea of a Weekly Health Quest to share health-enhancing actions that anyone can do in the real-world of deadlines and packed calendars.

How the Weekly Health Quest Works

Each Monday we’ll share on our Facebook pages (Catie’s Page and Amy’s Page) a Health Quest, an action we commit to take daily that will promote our personal well-being. We invite you to join us on the Health Quest and share your experiences via comments on the post. Amy and I will do likewise.

Together, we can support each other in practicing self-care on a practical level. Will you join us?

Holistic Health

RISQ Take in 2019

Catie Fitzgerald

As part of the StressLess for the Holidays series hosted by Transformation Cafe, Robin, Amy, and I discussed the Pre-resolution Solution. What is the Pre-resolution Solution? Simply put, it is a process that helps you leverage your 2018 results (or lack thereof) to craft your goals for 2019 and define an effective action plan. During this process, you…

  • Acknowledge your achievements in 2018
  • Learn from your hits and misses
  • Identify and secure the resources needed for 2019 goals
  • Build a doable plan
  • Create a contingency plan

What are the steps?

The Pre-resolution Solution process has five steps, what I call RISQ Take:

The 5-step process for making your pre-resolutions.

We discussed each of the steps in detail during two recent sessions
(Dec 11 and 18) of Transformation Cafe. In case you missed the sessions or want to listen again, click on the audio files below or download them to listen later.

Transformation Cafe – The Pre-resolution Solution (Part 1)
Transformation Cafe – The Pre-resolution Solution (Part 2)

Click the picture below to download the presentation that outlines each step of the process.

Holistic Health, Mind-body

Chilling Out with a Hot Cup of Tea

Catie Fitzgerald

Relaxation: the state of being free from tension and anxiety; recreation or rest, especially after a period of work (Google Search, n.d.)

It’s National Relaxation Day, a holiday initiated on August 15, 1985, at the prompting of nine-year-old Sean Moelle of Clio, Michigan (Levine, 2017).  He suggested that too much work can make us sick, run down, and tired.  He’s right!  All work and no play can lead to chronic stress which contributes to the development of such diseases as insulin resistance, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension.  In fact, the cardiovascular effects of stress increase your all-cause mortality risk  by two to three times and decrease life expectancy by several years (Guilliams & Edwards, 2010, p. 7).

In observance of today’s holiday, I’ll chill out at with an afternoon tea break.  Why a tea break?  Well, making and sipping a cup of tea helps induce the relaxation response in two ways: in your mind and in your body.  Research by psychologist Dr. Malcolm Cross, of City University London, has shown, that 60% of people primarily “seek solace in a calming cup of tea” for the promise of comfort and warmth provided and 41% do so as a means of psychological escape (Cross & Michaels, 2009).  As David Hoffmann, a fellow of Britain’s prestigious National Institute of Medical Herbalists, points out, “it’s easier for the psyche to relax when the body is at ease” (Hoffmann, 2000, p. 30).

Herbal teas for a calming effect include the adaptogens and the nervine relaxants.  Adaptogens increase resilience and resistance to stress by supporting the adrenal glands, the endocrine organ responsible for turning on and off the physiological stress response (Hoffmann, 2000, p. 16).  Common herbs that fall within the adaptogen category include tulsi or holy basil (Ocimum sanctum) and Chinese ginseng (Panax ginseng) (Chevallier, 2000).  These plants exert a normalizing influence on the body, perking you up when you need energy and calming you down when your body is overstimulated (Wallace, n.d.).

Nervine relaxants help ease anxiety and have a calming effect on the nervous system, especially during times of stress.  The following common nervine herbs have a mild relaxing effect on the body, soothing without sedating: chamomile, lavender, and lemon balm.  Studies have demonstrated that merely smelling lavender can reduce anxiety and induce calm in one of the most stress-promoting situations out there, waiting for your dentist appointment (Forêt, 2017, p. 109)!  Researchers from the College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, found that inhalation of lavender decreased stimulation of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) as evidenced by a significant decrease of blood pressure, heart rate, and skin temperature (Sayorwan et al., 2012).

So, who knew that an unassuming little cup of tea held such a wealth of relaxation benefits!  Well, its time for me to brew a cup of tulsi tea for myself and enjoy a bit of #digitaldowntime with my coloring pages.

What will you do for yourself today to observe National Relaxation Day?  Please share your ideas in the comments section.

Bibliography

Chevallier, A. (2000). The encyclopedia of herbal medicine. New York: A Dorling Kindersley Book.

Cross, M., & Michaels, R. (2009). The social psychological effects of tea consumption on stress (Executive Summary). City University London.

Forêt, R. de la. (2017). Alchemy of herbs: transform everyday ingredients into foods & remedies that heal. Carlsbad, California: Hay House, Inc.

Google Search. (n.d.). Dictionary – Relaxation. Retrieved August 15, 2018, from https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS731US733&q=Dictionary#dobs=relaxation

Guilliams, T. G., & Edwards, L. (2010). Chronic stress and the HPA axis: Clinical assessment and therapeutic considerations. The Standard, 9(2), 1–12.

Hoffmann, D. (2000). Healthy digestion: a natural approach to relieving indigestion, gas, heartburn, constipation, colitis, and more. Pownal, Vt: Storey Books.

Levine, D. S. (2017, August 15). National Relaxation Day 2017: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know | Heavy.com. Retrieved August 15, 2018, from https://heavy.com/news/2017/08/national-relaxation-day-2017-facts-origin-date-ideas/

Sayorwan, W., Siripornpanich, V., Piriyapunyaporn, T., Hongratanaworakit, T., Kotchabhakdi, N., & Ruangrungsi, N. (2012). The effects of lavender oil inhalation on emotional states, autonomic nervous system, and brain electrical activity. Journal of the Medical Association of Thailand = Chotmaihet Thangphaet, 95(4), 598–606.

Wallace, E. C. (n.d.). Adaptogenic Herbs. Retrieved August 15, 2018, from http://www.chiro.org/nutrition/FULL/Adaptogenic_Herbs.shtml

Holistic Health, Neurological

A Deep Loss: Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain

Catie Fitzgerald

Normally I conduct tons of research before I write and post a blog.  Today, I break from my tradition and just writing from my heart.  I will follow up with some science because I think we would all benefit from knowing the signs of depression.  For now, I offer my raw feelings about the loss of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain.

The recent suicides of Kate Spade and Antony Bourdain have left me feeling strong emotions.  The day of Kate’s death (I use her first name not as a sign of disrespect but as a sign of devotion and a connection with her as a person…she seems like an acquaintance), I had to turn off the radio in my car when a song evoked a strong emotional response from me.  I began to cry and my whole body went into a fight-or-flight mode.  I felt raw, exposed, and vulnerable ever since her death.

Then I awoke this morning to the news (literally because my alarm clock opens to the NPR station) that Anthony Bourdain had also committed suicide.

I’m feeling very emotional, and at a loss.  I achieved something big today yet I can’t celebrate because so many people are hurting.

I want to cry and moan and grieve but I feel like these avenues aren’t open to me.  I don’t know why I feel this way.  I just do.  Maybe I feel I have no right to mourn because these people were strangers.  How do we mourn?  What’s allowed?

I’m so sad.  I’m sad that these people who seemingly had it all had no one they could turn to and talk through their moment of pain.  I’m sad that those around them didn’t see the signs (or didn’t know the signs) that something was very wrong in the psyche of these two prominent public figures. I’m so sad two remarkable people who have made such a positive impact on this world have removed themselves (violently) from the mix.

I’m hurt by the selfish act of these people.  Yes, selfish.  They have hurt so many people by hurting themselves. The pain their families and loved-ones feel eclipses my hurt one-million-fold, but I still hurt.

We can do better than this.  We need to help people to not go the route of suicide.  We can love better, deeper, more thoroughly.  We can pay better attention to the needs of those around us. We can open our hearts, souls, and arms to those in pain.  We can recognize the pain others are facing and respond.  We can be their tribe, and as such, provide them with a safe place where they can express vulnerability.

I’m not sure who said it but this quote sums up much about suicide, “Killing yourself is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.”  Please don’t go there!  Please reach out to your tribe if you feel troubled beyond endurance.  If you don’t have a tribe (or don’t know your tribe), reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.  These folks are your extended tribe.