As you look to many different diets in the marketplace, you’ll find that they address which foods to eat, and which to avoid, but they often don’t address several things that underpin EVERYTHING: Your emotional health and your cyclical design.
I recently hosted a FREE Masterclass: How To Heal Your Hormones With Cyclical Living.
In it, I shared how looking at your overall health and lifestyle through the lens of your cyclical rhythms can enhance your life. (Click the link above to watch for more detail). The beauty of being a woman is that you have 4 predictable cycle phases each month that can help you plan your self-care for maximum benefit.
One of the main sources of many chronic diseases that women face stem from insufficient self-care, leading to stress. Everything you think and experience is being downloaded into your body on a physical and emotional level. The good news is that you have the power to be the gatekeeper of how what you experience is either internalized or let go.
What I love about being a health coach is that I get to guide you towards becoming an expert on your own body. This also helps you get in touch with what’s going on in your inner world. There are so many areas of your life where stress can bubble up. Work, family dynamics, friendships, achieving personal goals. Often the stress you feel is a recurring event.
Let me give you an example:
You’ve been burning the candle at both ends. You never feel like you have enough time. You’ve got an appointment to get to and you’re running late, then you realize you car’s low on fuel. You barely have time to eat lunch as it is, so the stress hormone, cortisol, starts pulsing through your body as you race to fuel up, grab the healthiest thing you can find at the convenience store (which is likely loaded with salt and sugar) and you race to your appointment.
The whole time, your heart’s beating faster, your breath quickens and you run the scenarios through your mind as you navigate traffic. You make it to your destination 2 minutes late – no biggie, but It takes at least an hour for you to feel calm again. And then you’re stuck in rush-hour traffic on the way back from your appointment. Do you see how your stress hormones are switched on and off multiple times a day?
And the results of stress, or elevated cortisol may leave you feeling like you can’t relax, self-care gets bumped off your to-do list, or you’re simply too exhausted to have fun. Constantly elevated stress over time can lead to chronic health problems.
Can you relate?
I can! Life moves fast and learning to bring more peace into your days is a practice for all of us. This is why looking closely at the sources of stress in your life and exploring ways to minimize it are crucial.
What’s the best stress management technique?
The one you’re most likely to stick with. Taking brief walking breaks, doing breathing exercises, incorporating a meditation practice into your day are a few to try. You’ll know what works for you.
One of the best ways to lower the overall stress in your life is to plan your life around your menstrual cycle, or if you’re not cycling, the moon phases. You may or may not know that women’s bodies were originally designed to cycle with the moon. I share more about this in my program, Balance Your Hormones.
As you reconnect with how your body is meant to operate, you can work hard when you have the energy and rest when your body needs a break. Women who implement stress management techniques find that they sleep better, their cravings are diminished and their weight moderates.
You may go through busy spurts and life will throw you curveballs sometimes, but you have the power to thrive. Prioritizing a self-care practice that nourishes you will be increasingly rewarding over time.
Tell Me:
Do you have a self-care practice, or are you waiting for some day in the future to slow down? OR, Are you a self-care rock star? What’s your favorite way to invest in feeling your best? Please share in the comments. No matter where you’re at, you’ll encourage someone to let them know that we’re all in this together!
Many Blessings,
Sheila
