HEALTHY LIFESTYLE NEWS June, 2014 Issue #104

Sponsored by InspiredLiving.com for Better Health and Cleaner, Safer Living Environments

Copyright 2014 Carol A James. All rights reserved. This publication may be freely redistributed if copied in its ENTIRETY.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • Promotion of the Month
  • Healthy Quote for This Issue
  • 10 Life-Changing Facts About Anger
  • Is It Finally Time to Forgive?
  • Your Skin – Are You Creating an Asset or a Liability?
  • Healthy Recipe: Bluto’s Beans and Veggie Chili
  • A Touch of Humor: In Line at the Checkout

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HEALTHY QUOTE FOR THIS ISSUE:

“Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind and spirit. When one is free from physical disabilities and mental distractions, the gates of the soul open.” — B.K.S. Iyengar


10 LIFE-CHANGING FACTS ABOUT ANGER
By Gail Brenner, PhD, syndicated from ahopefulsign.com

“Yes, I was angry. And I was a little afraid. After all I’ve not been free in so long. But, when I felt that anger well up inside of me, I realized that if I hated them after I got outside that gate, then they would still have me. I wanted to be free so I let it go.” — Nelson Mandela upon leaving prison after 27 years of confinement

Frustrated, impatient, raging”¦aaarrrrrrgh! Yes, it’s normal to feel angry — you are human, after all. But if anger causes problems in your life — if it interferes with your health and happiness — then consider these 10 life-changing facts. Get curious about anger, and you just might discover an untapped well of vital energy that improves your life circumstances and wakes you up to the whole of life.

1. It’s easier to feel anger than hurt.
Anger tends to be a surface emotion. But if you look at what is driving the anger, you will often find hurt, pain, or fear. Can you tell the truth to yourself about what you are actually feeling? Can you meet the depth of your experience with supreme kindness? You might be surprised at the freedom you discover.

2. Anger has a strong physical component.
Bring out the microscope when you are angry, and you will find strong physical sensations — tightness, contraction, burning. Anger is a fiery emotion full of energy. If you don’t want to be caught in anger, bring your attention right into these physical sensations. Without running a story in your mind, fully allow yourself to feel what is present. It might be difficult, but you won’t actually combust, I promise you. Be real with your sensations, and eventually the anger will stop controlling you.

3. Perfectionists are angry.
Are you a perfectionist? Then take an honest look at what you are saying to yourself. You will undoubtedly find a repetitive loop playing in your mind that is harsher than you might imagine.
Don’t kid yourself — this is anger. If you don’t want to be a slave to your perfectionist tendencies, then go to the root of the problem and learn to meet your anger with love.

4. Stories sustain anger.
Angry stories barrel through our minds like an out-of-control train careening down the tracks. To find freedom from anger, you must recognize the story and see that repeating it doesn’t serve you. Yes, what happened happened. But how much longer are you going to let it be your ball and chain? Here are some strategies to help you soften the story:

  • Open up with compassion to everyone involved, including yourself.
  • Recognize that you are bringing the past into the present by repeating the story endlessly.
  • Bring your full attention into the sensations you are experiencing in the moment.
  • Commit to bringing all your actions in alignment with what you really, really want.

5. Anger comes from an overblown sense of self-importance.
Often, what underlies anger are statements like, “I’m right” and “I want my way.” There is a huge attachment to “I” and the beliefs that “I” holds that causes separation and disharmony.
Recognize these “I”-focused statements and know that they keep you locked into one way of thinking. Then inquire:

  • Am I really right?
  • Does this wanting to be right serve me — and others?
  • What does it mean to want my own way? What are the implications?
  • Exploration of these “I”-focused beliefs can lead you to untangle the deepest knots that block your happiness.

6. Anger causes separation.
Speaking of separation, what are the effects when you are angry? Anger pushes people away, scares them, makes them fight back or shut down. Relationships don’t have room to breathe when they are defined by anger. “How could you?” “You shouldn’t have”¦” Sound familiar?
Remember that anger — or any reaction — is not the fault of the other. If you are angry, look within yourself. Lovingly investigate what has been triggered in you, and your whole perspective on the situation will shift.

7. Anger gets attention.
Maybe you express anger because you want attention. Depending on the circumstance, this could be a useful strategy. But consider this: there may be other ways for you to express yourself so that you are heard. Open up your mind and heart to all the possibilities.

8. Unexplored anger can mute your experience of life.
Are you sitting on a hotbed of anger, but keeping it so underground that you can hardly live? Some people are so intent on keeping peace that they minimize the truth of their experience.
Are you asleep at the wheel, attached to inner peace and pleasant living? Exploring the seeds of anger can enliven you to all of life.

9. Anger can transform into useful action.
Taking in all the problems in the world can bring about a sense of injustice. Yet, if you move from anger, you are missing out on the whole picture. Meet your anger with love and let your heart break open. Then move forward with actions that are wise and skillful.

10. Anger traps you.
The arising of anger is not necessarily a problem, and is not even under your control. What matters is how you relate to anger once it is present. If you dwell in the energetic sensations and convince yourself that your thoughts are true, anger overtakes you. But there is an alternative: feel the sensations and tell the truth about the story. Then anger is your ally — revealing more and more deeply the essence of you.

How does anger impact your life? What is your experience of dealing with it? I’d love to hear.

Author Profile: Gail Brenner, Ph.D. is a psychologist and blogger. Her blog, A Flourishing Life — http://gailbrenner.com/ — offers practical wisdom for discovering the happiness, peace, and joy available in this very moment.


IS IT FINALLY TIME TO FORGIVE?
By Charlie Badenhop

In order to free ourselves from the pain of anger and resentment we need to be able to forgive our self and others. The longer we dwell on hurtful situations from the past, the longer we keep our self from living fully in the present. Forgiveness is an act of kindness. An act of kindness to yourself, as it leads to a sense of personal freedom.

Recently I had a client who had a lot of resentment towards her mother for many things that she had done to her in the past. “I don’t want to forgive my mother for what she did in the past.” my client said. “What she did is wrong, and she has never apologized.”

I hear this very same statement from many clients who are living with resentment, whether it be towards their parents, their spouse, or their boss.

I asked my client if she felt that anyone other than herself, was responsible for, and capable of, making her happy. After a rather long and convoluted discussion, she said that when it was all said and done, she realized that she was indeed the only one that could make herself happy.

We sat there together for a while, and then I took a deep breath and suggested that my client do so as well. Here is an idea, I said. “What if as a totally selfish act, done simply for your own personal happiness, you decided to go ahead and let go of the resentment you had towards your mom, so that you would no longer need to have resentment clouding your life. What would that be like?” “You would not be saying that what was done to you was OK. You would simply be letting go of the resentment so that your own life would be happier. Would you want to let go of your resentment if it meant you would feel greater happiness?”

We sat there together for a while and my client’s face softened. She said that if she was able to let go of her resentment, it would be like lifting a weight from her shoulders, and removing a dark cloud from her heart.

“With all you have been through,” I said. “With all of the pain you have suffered, wouldn’t it be a wonderful gift to yourself if you could lift this weight from your shoulders and remove the dark cloud from your heart? Would it not be wonderful to be freed from your hurt and resentment?” She sat there for a while, as tears formed, and she said very softly “Yes, I want to feel good. I want to feel love. I want to feel free.”

“So” I said, “In order to free yourself from pain and open your heart to love, you would be willing to go so far as to forgive your mother if this is what you felt was necessary for your own personal happiness?”

She was somewhat hesitant, but said “Yes.”

“Remember” I said, “I am suggesting that you do this purely for selfish reasons. Not because you want to actually forgive your mom at this point in time, but because you want to free yourself to live a happier life.”

My client said “Yes, when it is said like this, I have the resolve to forgive my mother, in order to free myself to live a happier life.”

“Good I said. “Hold these thoughts and feelings in your heart for a while and then we can talk about how to actually accomplish your forgiving.”

How about you? Are you holding onto any resentment? Are you ready to recapture your happiness? Would you be willing to undertake the radical act of forgiveness in order to free yourself? I certainly hope so.

And if not today, maybe tomorrow.

Author Profile: Charlie Badenhop is the originator of Seishindo, an Aikido instructor, NLP trainer, and Ericksonian Hypnotherapist. Benefit from a new self-help Practice every two weeks, by subscribing to his complimentary newsletter “Pure heart, simple mind” at http://www.seishindo.org/anger/index.html .


YOUR SKIN – ARE YOU CREATING AN ASSET OR A LIABILITY?
by Danny & Susan Siegenthaler

Your skin can be one of your greatest assets or become an expensive liability. It’s all in the way you treat it.

We hear a lot these days about skin care, skin care for the Metro-sexual man, anti-aging skin care, anti-wrinkle crème, and so on. But what is skin care really?

Skincare consists of Skin and Care — obvious really, but let’s look at exactly what that term means. Anything that is taken good care of will look, last and function better for longer and retain its value.

Maybe we should think about skin care in terms of “˜Skin maintenance’, because there are several factors, which constitute good skin care. Consider that your skin is involved in both absorption as well as elimination of chemicals; does it not stand to reason that the healthier your skin is, the better it will be able to fulfill these functions?

Most people think of skin care as keeping your skin clean and if it gets dry, use a moisturizer and that’s that. Well, it’s a start, but far from constituting skin care or maintenance of skin function.

Information on exfoliation, cleansing, toning and moisturizing is readily available, and both men and women of all ages should follow these basic skin care concepts. However, as we become older, the type of maintenance needs to change and the skin care regime that is relevant in your 20’s changes as we move through our 30’s, 40’s and beyond.

Your skin is a valuable asset. Treat it well, and you will reap the rewards, treat it badly and it could ultimately kill you!

Skin cancer is a growing concern in the health industry. As the Ozone layer is under ever increasing pressure and indeed thinning over some parts of the World, UV radiation is reaching the Earth’s surface in greater concentration and this is not only having a detrimental effect on our climate and ecosystems, but also affects each and every one of us directly.

UV rays have been shown to cause skin cancer. Getting sunburn is now accepted as a leading cause for skin cancer and guarding against it is not quite as simple as staying out of the sun.

Maintaining a good skin care regime is now more important than ever, and consists of several important parts:

  1. Eating a well balanced, healthy diet which consists of fresh fruits, vegetables, fish, and grains, and, if you choose, good quality meat, is paramount to supplying your skin with the nutrition it needs to function at its optimal level.
  2. Water — you cannot under estimate the body’s need for being well hydrated. Medical research shows that your body requires at least 2-3 liters of water per day to maintain its functions. Dehydration is not as obvious as one might think and can be chronic with few or no symptoms. If you are physically active, you will need to drink even more that 3 liters per day.
  3. Exercise — Now you do not have to be a “˜Gym-Junky’, but being unfit will have consequences that you will ultimately not appreciate; go for a walk 3-4 times a week; use the stairs not the elevator; park the car further away from the office or the shops; join a walking club; ride a bike; play tennis, golf or another sport that gets your body moving — you don’t have to be an Olympic champion you know, but get moving and have fun.

Finally, there is one more important consideration in the maintenance of your skin — should you use natural skin care products or will any products do?

The answer is NATURAL, naturally. Think about it from this point of view: When you buy food, do you look for “no artificial coloring”, “no artificial flavors”, “contains not GMO’s” (genetically modified organisms), etc., or don’t you care?

What about your drinks, do you not look for 100% natural, low in salt, no artificial this or that, no added sugar, etc. Of course you do. Well, your skin does absorb nutrients whether they are natural or not; it will absorb these chemicals into the tissue and it will then be able to use them, or not. Natural substances are much more easily assimilated in your body and are also more easily eliminated, once they’ve performed their functions.

As scientific research is becoming more sophisticated we are discovering more and more information on how our body works, how foods interact in our systems and how some foods contain substances which are not able to be made synthetically — well, the same of course stands true for plants. Phyto-estrogens are just one example of naturally occurring substances essential to the well-being of our bodies. Similarly, herbal extracts, essential oils, fruit extracts and so on, all contain naturally occurring chemicals, which science is not able to make synthetically due to their complexity.

This means, that the synthetic version of a plant extract (often in concentrated forms) is not the same as the natural version and can in fact have different and even side effects on your body. An old, but good example is Aspirin. We are all aware by now, that Aspirin can cause stomach irritation and even lead to stomach ulcers.

The active ingredient in Aspirin is salicylic acid. It naturally occurs in the bark of the White Willow tree. The big difference between taking Aspirin as opposed to the herbal extract of the White Willow bark, is that in the herbal extract there are many more substances contained which have secondary effects — one substance for example is a mucilaginous substance, which has the function of protecting your stomach lining! Guess what, there is nothing in Aspirin (from the chemist) that acts to protect your stomach — That’s the difference between using natural versus artificially manufactured substances.

So, the choice is yours, natural or not, it’s your asset and it is up to you to choose whether you will invest in your asset or withdraw from it.

Author Profile: Danny Siegenthaler is a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine and together with his wife Susan, a medical herbalist and Aromatherapists, they have created Natural Skin Care Products by Wildcrafted Herbal Products to share their 40 years of combined expertise with you. http://www.wildcrafted.com.au


HEALTHY RECIPE: BLUTO’S BEANS AND VEGGIE CHILI

Ingredients

  • 3 cups dried kidney beans
  • 2 tbs olive oil (optional)
  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced well
  • 1 green pepper (or red or yellow), chopped coarsely
  • 1/2 cup diced red unpeeled potatoes
  • 1 can (10 oz) tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
  • 5 cups water or vegetable broth
  • Salt to taste
  • Freshly-ground black pepper to taste
  • Grated cheese for garnish, if desired

Directions

  1. Cover and soak beans overnight in cold water.
  2. Drain and rinse beans, the put them in slow cooker.
  3. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil or a small amount of liquid; saute onion and garlic until soft — about 3 to 5 minutes.
  4. Add bell pepper, potatoes, tomatoes, chili powder and the cumin. Continue cooking, stirring frequently for about three minutes; transfer to slow cooker.
  5. Add rice and water or broth; cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or until chili is thick and rice and beans are tender.
  6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  7. Garnish with cheese if desired. This recipe yields 4 to 6 servings.

A TOUGH OF HUMOR: IN LINE AT THE CHECKOUT

Here are the reasons I’d Like to thank Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, and my local grocer for having 25 checkout lanes and only three open at any given time.

  • Waiting in long lines keeps my domestic brain from going completely idle — there’s so much to learn!
  • I can catch up on my magazine reading without buying any.
  • I have time to leave my cart in line and run back to get the 13 things on my list I forgot.
  • I can be one of those annoying cell phone users and catch up on all my phone calls to my insurance agent, mother-in-law, and Auntie Anne.
  • I can catch a quick catnap now rather than on the drive home.
  • I can assess what other people have in their carts and get exciting new dinner ideas.
  • I can finally apply my top coat of nail polish with plenty of drying time.
  • I can run next door and pick up my dry cleaning.
  • I can update my coupon organizer and leave the trash in the we-never-open-enough-checkout-lanes store instead of my purse.
  • I can practice my standup comedy routines on unsuspecting fellow customers.
  • I can practice some standing yoga poses and then do those isometric muscle-contracting exercises no one else in line is supposed to know you’re doing.
  • I can taste test my package of the newest low-carb, zero-transfat, Splenda-saturated cookies.
  • I can breathe heavily on my T-bones so they’re defrosted in time for dinner and I won’t have to leave them out on the driveway in the hot late afternoon sun as I normally do.

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