The Over Stressed Heart

Yes diet and exercise have a major impact on your heart health. But your mental outlook can be the killer.

Stress comes from many sources but the capacity to deal with stress is only in your brain and your response to the stress.

The British Medical Journal published a study done on women asking the question Do you feel that you are being treated unfairly. Those that responded yes ended up with a 50% higher rate of heart disease including stroke and heart attack.

The victim mentality and heart attack.

When you play the victim, you deal with your stress by suppressing it and blaming others for any defects in your own life and body. Nothing is your fault because someone else or the government or your parents or global warming is to blame. If it is not your fault, you can do nothing to change it--whatever it is.

Herein lies the problem. Your negative thoughts and all the negative speaking you do is impacting your brain and it in turn is sending out all the little enzymes and adrenaline to cope with the stress. When you are venting your anger at the price of gas to your friends, your brain must respond with the chemicals it thinks you need. You may think you are feeling better by venting, but in truth, you are destroying your own heart.

Since stress is necessary to life, you need to find your balance. Can you save a few
gallons of gas by walking? You then take matters into your own hands. You cannot change the price of gas by calling the gas company, although I do recommend that approach as well.

You can only change your own consumption of that gas. A good brisk walk will use up that stress caused release of chemicals in your body and you will therefore be healthier.

It is the victim mentality that ages the body, brings on the wrinkles and destroys the heart.

We have all said it --- It is not fair. But if that is your daily mantra, you have opened the door to heart attack (not to mention cancer).

No one can tell you what stress amount you can handle. No one can tell you what should stress you and what should not. Reaction to stress is as individual as fingerprints.

However, a universal truth is that not dealing effectively with stress will kill you. And playing the victim takes all the power of controlling your own survival out of your hands.

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Our garage sale went well. Did not sell the few big items we had but we can run a newspaper ad for those. We made enough to pay for the gas and food for the upcoming "vacation" to visit my husband's family next week. For 3 days of that vacation, we will be camping and I am looking forward to peace and quiet and doing nothing. I have picked a couple of books to take.

until next time - smile
Sharon
(c) Answers For Your Health.com

The Value of Supplements and the Good Life

I have a confession. Because of various things happening in my life in the past couple of weeks - months, I have been neglecting my health. I haven't been eating the right stuff and in fact have been following the sumo diet -- Eat meal, sleep, no breakfast, little physical activity and gain weight. Worse I have not been taking any supplements including the all-powerful standard vitamins and minerals.

Perhaps you can relate to the sumo diet. Or perhaps you can relate to the brain fog I have been experiencing for the last couple of weeks. You probably know that taking a supplement is not going to give you an immediate boost. It is cumulative and takes time to get the best effect. Conversely, when you stop taking the supplements it takes a little time for the good effects to fade.

It took becoming very ill this past week to finally break into my mind and realize I was not taking any of my supplements on a regular basis. Oh, I would remember them here and there but that is like drinking water only every couple of days. Dehydration will screw up your brain faster than drugs.

This is the rainy season here in San Antonio and thus the mold spoors are very high. I am suffering from a deep chest cough from constant sinus drainage that has turned into an infection and inflammation. Not only is it very uncomfortable for me, but my family is very concerned because I NEVER GET SICK. Allergies generally make me uncomfortable but rarely knock me down.

Oh, I throw my back out every so often from moving something very heavy and my right knee hurts occasionally (old skiing injury), but the common cold or flu is just not for me.

When I started working nights, I put myself into a downward spiral. I go to work before supper time and get home between 10 and midnight. Then I would eat and very quickly go to bed to get up early with the grandchildren in the morning. A pot of coffee to wake up and no food until around noon or later. So we have late night eating, insufficient sleep and the inevitable weight gain.

Because of my job, I come in contact with many many sick people who cough and sneeze into my face. I find I can no longer fend off the germs. Another side effect has been pointed out to me -- I am no longer cheerful.

Right now I cannot change my hours at work or the number of hours I can sleep. But, I can do a simple thing that will stop the downward spiral and begin the trip back to good health. I will take my daily supplements and in fact add a few for a while.

This weekend we will be having a garage sale to get rid of all the stuff that has been in a storage building for the last 4 years. My oldest daughter is moving to Florida in June and all the stuff we have been paying money to store is now going to be sold.

It is difficult to know that the grand children will be gone in just a few weeks. They are such a big part of my life. On the other hand I will have my house back and will have space again.

On May 21 my husband, youngest daughter and I will be taking a trip to see his family. We will be gone for a week. When we get back I will be changing my hours at work to day time hours. That may reduce the hours I work but then I will have 3 less mouths to feed.

So, while my health will improve so that I feel motivated to post to this blog, my time will become more compromised. But, since I will be taking my herbal supplements I will be able to make the most of my time, although it will take a few weeks to get back up to speed.

The lesson here is to take your own supplements. Mother Nature knew there would be difficult times and that is why she gave us the herbs to help. The herbs are there, but you must make the effort to use them.

I picked up this link the other day and wanted to pass it along. It is free and invaluable to the health of your computer.

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until next time - smile
Sharon