Natural Stress Relief

If you're feeling like all of your responsibilities are getting the drop on you, or you are finding it difficult to function and adapt as you normally do or perhaps you're simply feeling down in the dumps, here are some amazing tips for unwinding your mind.

1. Change Your Attitude

Imagine you are about to take part in your first marathon and your stomach is in knots. The goal is to switch your "Oh, no!" thinking to "Bring. It. On!" confidence. Easier said than done, surely, but know this: Short stints of stress are actually good for you because they maximize performance. Blood pressure rises and digestion of food slows, allowing your body to summon the energy to combat the anxiety-producing situation. It is chronic stress that shortens your life and makes things seem hopeless. You can use positive affirmations to change your patterns of thinking, and to help squash negative thought patterns. I will go into this in more detail in future blog posts.

If changing your mindset isn't working, try this: Realize it's okay to feel anxious as you contemplate a stressful situation. But remember, to envision positive outcomes, do not focus on the negative, this will hold you back. One recent study found that people who learned to identify and acknowledge stressful thoughts and think them through showed notable improvements in their inner calm. You can, too!


2. Find Your Sanctuary

Have a big presentation to make? Scared you'll stutter or fumble? Try this before venturing into the conference room: Close your eyes. In a quiet area, settle into a comfortable position. Relax every muscle, starting with your toes and moving upward. Focus on your breathing. With every inhale, sink deeper into your body. As you exhale, imagine tension leaving your muscles. Feel better? Congrats, you've just performed a "body scan", a meditative exercise that helps you be super-aware of where your body is holding stress, so you can physically let go of your worry. Other mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques, such as deep breathing, meditation, and yoga, have been shown to ease anxiety substantially as well. Also try doing things that normally relax you, such as cozying up with a good book, having a delicious beer on your back porch while listening to the sounds of nature, the kind of thing that makes you smile.

3. The Food-Mood Connection

Many foods that people subsist on nowadays are nutrient deficient, and raise blood sugar levels; and, consequently, the level of stress hormones and adrenaline in our bodies. This is disastrous for many reasons, it triggers your fight-flight response, and picks at your ability to think clearly, as well as your ability to handle situations in an effective manner. Most people do not get enough minerals and micro-nutrients (Antioxidants, phytosterols, etc) from fruits, nuts, and vegetables.

Without proper mineral nutrition, your neurons fire erratically, cause undue stress and anxiety. Phytonutrients are certain compounds found in plants that evidence has shown to increase overall health and protect against certain diseases including cancer. Minerals are absolutely vital to the proper functioning of our cells, brains, and bodies. They make every little thing in your body possible. Magnesium, for instance, improves muscle and nerve function, reduces stress levels, helps ease pain and inflammation of the joints and muscles, and improves sleep and concentration. This is only scratching the surface of the beneficial things minerals do for us!

By improving your diet, you will start to feel absolutely wonderful, day after day! You will realize how your lifestyle choices always held you back, without you knowing it. You will feel calm, content, and ready to take on anything! Trust me, I have made the change in my own life!

4. Get Regular Exercise!!

This cannot be stressed (Ha!) enough! Exercising for even an hour every day, be it walking, yoga, strength training, or biking, has innumerable benefits! Some of these positive benefits include enhanced mental function and increased clarity of thought, relief from symptoms of depression, lowered blood pressure, increase bone density, and even prevention of diseases such as osteoporosis, cancer, and heart disease!

Even as little as 20 minutes of exercise a day is a great start on the path to calm happiness; the problem for most people isn't thinking of something to do, but actually doing it. Sometimes you have to just get up and go! And what more reason could you want? This could very well change your life!

I will be posting more info on the above topics in the near-future! Stay tuned, and be well!

Be Happy and Vibrant, EVERY day!

Many people I talk with and see every day seem to go up and down with just the smallest set-backs, becoming despondent or depressed and hopeless. Well here I am going to outline some tips for living happily, healthily, positively, and just a great deal BETTER every single day, no matter what lies ahead!

1. You ARE what you eat (and drink)!!

The first tip, and it is always where I start, is to look at what you eat! What you choose to allow your body to use as nourishment will have a big impact on your overall mood, outlook, and disposition. Firstly, simple carbohydrates and sugars wreak havoc on our hormones and our bodies. Back when I was not into nutrition, I would consume mostly simple carbs or animal proteins, but no fruits or vegetables, which contain trace minerals, vitamins, and enzymes to allow your body to produce the feel-good chemicals that define our better days! Subsisting on sub-par foods will result in mood-swings, short tempers, irritability, and just a general feeling of malaise and lethargy.

Start by replacing candy bars and starchy snacks little by little with naturally sweet alternatives like strawberries, peaches, pears, etc. Also, try to get more raw veggies and greens into your diet, this is easy to do using salads, green smoothies, etc. By making these changes, you will see improved mood, more energy, and more enthusiasm towards work, studies, and everything else! It also will bring you more clarity of thought, and noticeable stress reduction.


2. Positive thinking does more than you think!

If you are overly cynical, or find yourself thinking in pessimistic ways, this will indeed have an effect on how you actually feel! Time and time again, people find that taking the time and effort to introduce positive thinking patterns and positive affirmations has a dramatic increase on your mood and positive outlook! Some examples of good positive affirmations are:

- "I love and accept myself just as I am."
- "I am creating my amazing, ideal life."

Affirmations such as these express a positive thought, and are stated in the present tense, which insures that your subconscious will make use of these positive statements, and you will start to believe them. When you believe something, you will STRIVE to MAKE it happen in your own life, this is very powerful! Any positive affirmations can be constructed to suit your current situation...an example is:

-"Success comes to me easily."

It is a good idea to personalize your affirmations, so that they *resonate* with you -- feel right for you. The stronger your connection with the affirmation, the deeper the impression it will have on your subconscious mind, and the sooner you will experience positive results.

Once you have a list (however big or small) of affirmations that you can relate to, it is very beneficial to write each one on a post-it note and stick it where you will see it every morning, and/or night. Some good places are on the bathroom mirror, near your computer screen, on the fridge, etc etc. Seeing the affirmations every day amplifies the impact on your patterns of thought, turning them positive.


3. Helping others, helps yourself! Really!

Every day, strive to do at least one thing that will make someone else's life easier, happier, more bubbly. This can be anything from thanking someone humbly who is not used to appreciation (Thanking the mailman for the job he/she does as your parcel is delivered, thanking the waitress for her excellent service, etc), to complimenting on someones attire if they seem to be down in the dumps. This will lift both of your moods, make you feel better about yourself, and make both of your days that much brighter. You will be surprised at the results this will produce!

4. Being grateful will humble and lift you!

Every day, you should list a few things and people whom you are truly thankful for. You will find that you are in a much more optimistic mood after you have spent a few minutes contemplating the blessings and joys in your life and feeling thankful for them. Compassion and kindness will fill your heart!


Applying even just a few of these techniques listed above will soon put you in a truly positive, compassionate mind-state, which will uplift you and all those around you! I invite you to try some of these tips, and please post here on this blog, or even email me at sgrequest[at]gmail.com to tell me the positive effect it has had on your life. Thanks for reading!

Free Food from your Garden

Ever wonder what it would be like to not have to go to the grocery store every week? What about wondering where the food that feeds your family really comes from? Or where it would come from, if there were a food shortage and the food markets could not supply food for a long while?

We take precautionary measures before winter storms, hurricanes, and the like...but in this ever-changing day and age, relying on an outside source for your next meal is simply not feasible or sustainable. So why not prepare now? The easiest and most rewarding way to go about getting your own private food supply is obviously to start your own garden!

But for some people (i.e city or apartment dwellers) it seems that this would be an impossibility... but I bring to you a truly revolutionary concept. The magic of container and tower gardening can be used by anyone to grow delicious, nutritious, and life-sustaining fruits and vegetables; even if all you have to work with is a small closet or balcony!

Stay tuned for my series of blog posts detailing different methods of creating any kind of garden you wish, regardless of space constraints or other hurdles.

Welcome to the Most Tranquil Blog on the net!!

Welcome to arguably the most valuable resource online for information and advice for living vibrantly in our quickly changing world.

Here you will soon be able to find tips and information on calming your mind, transforming your life, and working for what you really want to achieve with your life, your calling. There will be much, much more to come...stay tuned!

Enjoy your stay, and don't forget to tell your friends about us!