Do you Suffer from Adrenal Fatigue?

Are you one of the many who suffer from a common condition known as adrenal fatigue? The adrenals are endocrine glands the size of walnuts which are located on top of the kidneys. The outer layers are known to create more than 30 hormones or hormone-like substances which are integrated into virtually every function of the body.  The inner part of the adrenal gland is an extension of nerve tissue providing quick jolts of energy to help us handle “emergencies.”  Unfortunately, our busy lifestyle seems like one emergency after another to our adrenal glands, so they end up getting exhausted and overworked. And without healthy adrenal glands we suffer.

Think of your adrenals as if they were muscles. Muscles contract when a need arises and relax when the need passes. Constant stressful stimulation of the adrenals ultimately leads to adrenal exhaustion. Try holding even a small hand weight straight out from your body – it won’t take long before your arm will fatigue.  Similarly, the adrenals will respond to stress and fatigue if not given an opportunity to “relax”, rand restore function. In this way, constant stress leads to the loss of normal adrenal function. 

How can your diet support healthy adrenal function?   You can first focus on eliminating or reducing the triggers that are counter supportive to healthy function.  These include: refined carbohydrates – junk foods – physical and mental strain – sleep deprivation – environmental toxins – trauma / injury – anger – fear – worry – stress/anxiety – overworking – noise pollution – Inflammation – infections – nutritional deficiencies – food allergies – low blood sugar.

Take positive steps to support and nurture your adrenals by

• Eating fresh whole foods and plenty of dark green vegetables

• Learning how to breathe properly

• Getting to bed early and enjoying a deep, restful sleep

• Purifying your body of toxins as they build up in your body systems

• Correcting any allergies or food sensitivities

• Enjoying regular, gentle exercises like stretching and walking

• Taking time to relax and meditate every day

• Eating your food slowly and intentionally

• Regularly scheduling downtime or “mini-vacations” on your calendar

Contact me to find out more about these action steps toward wellness.  Email debi@debifarley.com

DOING, DOING, DOING by Vickie Griffith

Do you have this insatiable urge to always be "doing"?  A drive to be busy and to stay busy? You may know where this drive came from. Or, it may be just the way you have always been.

Two ten year-old best girlfriends are lying on the floor, in front of the fan on a hot summer's day reading. One of the girl's mothers runs into the room yelling to get outside and help weed the garden. The little girl's 10 year-old brain interprets mom's request as a criticism that she is lazy and unproductive.

From that moment on, a belief was created to always be doing something productive. Reading was not productive. After all, there was nothing tangible produced? 

I was that 10 year-old little girl and that belief carried on with me throughout my life to always be "doing." The belief is that I have to always be doing something that produces something real. But what is real? What counts as "real"?

This mindset keeps us stuck. DOING, DOING, DOING keeps us running in the hamster wheel but never getting anywhere. Yes, we are busy but not necessarily productive.

The funny thing is, in my business and for many other women I know, there is rarely anything tangible produced on an everyday basis. Feelings of failed accomplishment or productivity flood our thoughts. Yet many "doing" activities are vital at maintaining or growing a business.

Changing the mindset for the value of doing and the activities that don't' produce a tangible product is important to building a foundation for success in the future. Regardless if you are building a business, juggling work and life schedules -- "doing" is necessary! Switching the mindset from the outcome needs to be productive to being mindful of the activities. Be present in the moment.

Celebrate not only what you got done but the process of "doing".  This will get you unstuck and out of the hamster wheel.

Need a little help getting unstuck? Join Vickie for a free Teleseminar, "How to Move from Sad, Broke, and Stuck...to Happy, Wealthy, and Free" on Thursday, August 16. Get all the details here: www.stuckedup.com

Favorite Raw Reads

There are books you read, and then there are books that can change your life. When it comes to finding books that will help you make changes to the way you eat, one of the key "ingredients" to being successful with your new effort, is to build a collection of recipes that you enjoy making, eating and sharing. This is especially true if you wanted to start integrating more live and raw foods into your diet.  

Below are a just few books that I find myself turning to over and over for great recipes, new ideas, loads of resources or just for the fun of reading!  

What are some of your favorite raw books?

                   

My Morning Pick-me-up Juice

Are you a morning juice drinker? Growing up, I always thought “morning juice” referred to small glass of orange juice or perhaps cranberry or apple. I remember spending the night at my friend’s home and drinking freshly squeezed orange juice. But now as an adult, I have an entirely new perspective of what a “morning juice” can be.

Now, let me preface this by saying that I don't hold any disdain for fruit juice. I use it in marinades, dressings, and baked goods. But when it comes to a tall glass for breakfast, I’d rather have a tall glass of freshly blended veggies as my morning pick-me-up juice any day. 

Here’s one of my favorites:


Morning Pick-me-Up Juice (Makes 1 quart)

• 1 English cucumber 
• 1/2 head of celery 
• 2 limes peeled 
• 1/2 jalapeño pepper with seeds removed 
• 1granny smith apple 
• Handful of cilantro
• Beet greens from one bunch of beets 

Run through the juicer and enjoy!

Acupuncture Points for Good Summertime Health

Did you know that energy circulation can be increased by rubbing acupuncture points with your finger? All you need is 30-60 seconds. 

Here are 3 acupuncture points you can gently massage to help you stay healthy this summer:

·         Small intestine 17- This is the indentation below the ear lobe and behind the jawbone. This can relieve hives, improve skin’s luster, and balance the thyroid, as well as relieve facial spasms, itching ears, swollen throat, and nausea.

·         Small intestine 15 -This can alleviate asthma, coughing, back pain, chills, and fever.

·         Heart 3-  Between the elbow crease and the inside of the humorous bone, stimulation of this point can alleviate poor memory, depression, anxiety, red eyes, arm tremors, and elbow pain.

 Interested in learning more about acupuncture? Visit www.debifarley.com

Summer is Ruled by Fire

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), there is a healing methodology related to the seasons and the Five Elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water.  

Summer is ruled by the Fire element and is associated with the heart, small intestine and tongue.  It is also a period of maximum activity or greatest yang, which means that there’s increased heat, extroversion, and moving outward in nature and in our lives.

According to TCM, the Heart houses the Shen, which is the mind, memory, consciousness, and spirit.  While these activities are attributed to the brain in Western medicine, we tend to intuitively know that the Heart is also an organ of feeling or spirituality.  In fact much of our language refers to the heart as an organ of feeling.  Phrases such as someone “knowing things in your heart” or having a “broken heart” are speaking to an emotional organ rather than simply a muscle that pumps blood.  Of course, the heart does move blood throughout your entire body, but in TCM that function is secondary to its job of housing the Shen.  So, your heart can be said to impact your physical health, mind and spiritual growth and awareness.

During the summer season, be aware of how Fire is affecting you.  An imbalance may be evident in you physically, emotionally and/or spiritually.

Emotionally, if you have an imbalance, you may find that you’re either lacking joy (depression), or experiencing an excess of joy (maniac condition).

Physically, you may be experiencing palpitations, profuse sweating, hypertension, agitation, insomnia or sores on the mouth and tongue. 

It’s important to think about protecting your heart in multiple levels or layers.  Maintaining a peaceful and balanced Heart helps ensure the health of your entire being.

A Simple TCM Heart Exercise:  Smiling from Your Heart

This ancient exercise is one of the most powerful things you can do for the health of your Heart: Stand or sit facing a mirror. Now smile at yourself—really smile at yourself—directly from your heart. That's it! How simple and yet how difficult this practice is for most people. Judgmental thoughts often enter our mind and prevent us from experiencing healing. True smiling from the heart, not just a fake smile, actually has a profound physiological effect.  Once you've mastered this exercise, then try smiling at others from your heart.

Nourish your heart and small intestine by balancing your sun exposure with shade, drinking plenty of water, and eating light, cooling foods.


©2012 Debi Farley | www.debifarley.com  


Debi Farley is a licensed acupuncturist, naturopath and owner of the Acupuncture Clinic of Richmond, in Richmond, Virginia. To create optimal mind/body wellness, you need specialized information, expertise and experienced teachers. Debi works with and helps individuals achieve optimal health through her private practice and educational workshops.

Improving Athletic Performance with Acupuncture

Athletes are often searching for ways to improve performance and gain a competitive edge. By following the principles of Oriental medicine, an acupuncture treatment can put you in the best possible position to give you just that.

Acupuncture can strengthen your body function, improve the flow of blood to specific areas of the body and helps to restore the internal harmony that takes place when you hear about athletes "getting in the zone." You need all of your body systems working harmoniously together and at a very high level. I'm reading more and more about professional sports teams and top athletes who regularly have an acupuncturist on staff. In fact, some of the best Olympic athletes are incorporating acupuncture into their wellness programs. China's 7 foot 6 inch basketball center, Yao Ming, used acupuncture and Oriental medicine to help him recover after undergoing surgery on his ankle in April, 2007

In what other ways can acupuncture help?

Acupuncture is also effective in alleviating pain, promoting healing and decreasing inflammation, swelling, and spasms. Because of its broad range of applications, acupuncture can be used during any of the phases of injury. Acupuncture focuses not only on treating the injury but also on treating the underlying conditions that may make someone more susceptible to injuries.

Some Commonly Treated Sports Injuries:

·         Muscle Pull

·         Neck Pain

·         Shoulder Impingement

·         Tennis Elbow

·         Lower Back Strain

·         Groin Pull

·         Hamstring Strain

·         Runner's Knee

·         Shin Splints

·         Ankle Sprain

·         Achilles Tendonitis

·         Arch Pain

Sports injuries are most often caused by trauma (from a fall or blow) or overuse/misuse of certain muscles and the neighboring structures.   If you have a preexisting or new sports injury that’s preventing your training or recreational goals, acupuncture and Chinese medicine can help.  Don’t let sports injuries keep you from enjoying life!

For more information, visit www.debifarley.com or call 804.288.3927.

©Debi Farley 2012, Debi Farley is a licensed acupuncturist, naturopath and owner of the Acupuncture Clinic of Richmond, in Richmond, Virginia. To create optimal mind/body wellness, you need specialized information, expertise and experienced teachers. Debi works with and helps individuals achieve optimal health through her private practice and educational workshops.