My friend went to a stress seminar and she learned something very interesting. Namely, she learned that stress is the body's fight or flight response to potentially harmful stimuli. Stress actually helps us in those times of extreme duress because it energizes us to take action, to do something.
In the old days, when we lived in the jungle or had to deal with real animal predators, this response was very useful to us, and helped us to survive. Nowadays, when our jungle is more steel in nature and our fears more imagined, we still feel that fight or flight response to unwanted stimuli. The only problem now is that we don't react to it. That is, we don't move, or take action. We just sit there and endure it. That means that we create that energy, and instead of acting to let it out, we trap it in.
That repressed energy then ends up hurting us physically and mentally and emotionally. So how do you let go of this energy so that it doesn't harm you? The best way, said the stress expert to my friend, is to simply exercise. If the whole reason we feel stress is so that we can act, and do something, if we do nothing, then that stress remains with us. And if we keep feeling stress and bottling it up, that compounds all that energy on top of previous bottled energy, and harms us more and more each day we keep it in. However, if we just exercise thirty minutes a day, we give ourselves an outlet to let that trapped energy out.
Now that's a good reason to exercise. If you told me that exercising would relieve all my stress, I would do it in a heartbeat. It's that easy? It's that simple? I'd do it just to feel good after. That's positive reinforcement. That's something I could hold on to and feel good about. For the past few decades, we've made exercise a bad word, a bad idea by associating it primarily with weight loss. And so people feel that it's more of a punishment than a pleasure. That bad reputation makes us dread doing it and means that we do it even less. If we could now associate exercise with stress relief instead, I think we could convince a lot more people to go ahead and take up the towel.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
21 is the Magic Number
Everyone under 21 thinks they're too young.
Everyone over 21 thinks they're too old.
Everyone 21 thinks there's nothing really magical about it, and that they're getting old.
Everyone over 21 thinks they're too old.
Everyone 21 thinks there's nothing really magical about it, and that they're getting old.
Timing is Everything
The wise people say that "Fortune favors the bold," and "Patience is a virtue" but these axioms would seem to contradict one another. Though good advice, they do not always ring true in every situation. Sometimes being bold will get you into hot water, and sometimes being patient is letting opportunity slip through your fingers. In actuality, it would seem, then, that these two adages work best when combined into the one overall adage that always holds true: Timing is Everything.
Timing is everything. If you're in the right place at the right time, you can get almost anything you want. But if you're too late or too early, then you're out of luck. And nothing can be done for you. So being bold, going in before you're comfortable, might hurt you; and being patient, waiting for a time when you're sure, might also hurt you. So what is to be done since timing cannot be controlled or prepared for?
In life, fortunately, when one opportunity passes you by, there is another that comes along. That is the beauty of life. And the wise person is the one that keeps looking for that opportunity, for the time when they will get to that right place just in time to be lucky.
I suppose then that these two adages actually do work in concert together: You have to be bold to seize the opportunity when it comes, before it passes you by. But if for some reason, your timing is off or, for whatever reason, the opportunity passed you by, you need to have patience to wait for the next opportunity to come. In that way, then, being bold and being patient are harmonious attributes that make for a more successful and satisfied life.
Timing is everything. If you're in the right place at the right time, you can get almost anything you want. But if you're too late or too early, then you're out of luck. And nothing can be done for you. So being bold, going in before you're comfortable, might hurt you; and being patient, waiting for a time when you're sure, might also hurt you. So what is to be done since timing cannot be controlled or prepared for?
In life, fortunately, when one opportunity passes you by, there is another that comes along. That is the beauty of life. And the wise person is the one that keeps looking for that opportunity, for the time when they will get to that right place just in time to be lucky.
I suppose then that these two adages actually do work in concert together: You have to be bold to seize the opportunity when it comes, before it passes you by. But if for some reason, your timing is off or, for whatever reason, the opportunity passed you by, you need to have patience to wait for the next opportunity to come. In that way, then, being bold and being patient are harmonious attributes that make for a more successful and satisfied life.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Cut Out the Serving Sizes
Recently, the FDA has taken up the cause of updating serving sizes. They first came up with standard serving sizes in the 1990s, using data collected on the eating habits of Americans in the 1970s and 1980s. But that data has become suspect and the FDA wants to revamp the system with more realistic sizes. After all, who really eats only a handful of chips, half a can of soup, half a muffin, or half a candy bar? Yet these sizes are what the manufacturers use to determine the numbers they put on the label for calorie and nutritional content.
The thing is, no one pays attention to serving sizes anyway. I know I don't. They don't make any sense. And even if they did, I still wouldn't heed them because I don't like the idea of anyone sanctioning how much I should eat. That's for my body to decide, not anyone else. And everyone is different. No matter how much studying scientists do, they won't be able to create serving sizes that fit everyone's daily habits. Even if everyone were the same size, we would still eat differently at different times.
Besides, has the creation of standard serving sizes -- or for that matter, the nutrition label -- really helped us? It would seem that this country has only gotten much more obese since the launch of all this nutrition label stuff. Perhaps the FDA should consider that all this is just TMI (too much information), and we were all a lot better off when we didn't know the number of calories we ate, and relied instead on our bodies to make the right decisions for us. That's because people don't realize they can't rely on their conscious minds to do everything for them. Sometimes, your body knows better than you. And if we could trust our bodies, we would all be a lot better. After all, it's the TV commercials influencing our consciences that make us crave junk food in the first place.
But I digress. The point I wanted to make here is that we don't need serving sizes. And we really should just do away with them. No one pays attention to them and they seem to do more harm than good.
What would make more sense is to use cup sizes as the standard. In most cases, people eat about a cup of food or drink. If they eat more, they can multiply the numbers listed on the label to figure out their nutritional content, and if they eat less, divide them. What's more, nearly everyone has a measuring cup to measure their food if they so wish to be exact, and everyone has an idea how much a cupful of food is.
And this way, no one will feel like anyone is recommending how much they should eat. That's the problem with serving sizes, after all. Make them too big, and it seems like you're advocating people eat more. Make them too small, and people overeat because they underestimate the calorie content. So why not not recommend anything? Let people think for themselves. Let them know how much is in a cup and let them take it from there.
The thing is, no one pays attention to serving sizes anyway. I know I don't. They don't make any sense. And even if they did, I still wouldn't heed them because I don't like the idea of anyone sanctioning how much I should eat. That's for my body to decide, not anyone else. And everyone is different. No matter how much studying scientists do, they won't be able to create serving sizes that fit everyone's daily habits. Even if everyone were the same size, we would still eat differently at different times.
Besides, has the creation of standard serving sizes -- or for that matter, the nutrition label -- really helped us? It would seem that this country has only gotten much more obese since the launch of all this nutrition label stuff. Perhaps the FDA should consider that all this is just TMI (too much information), and we were all a lot better off when we didn't know the number of calories we ate, and relied instead on our bodies to make the right decisions for us. That's because people don't realize they can't rely on their conscious minds to do everything for them. Sometimes, your body knows better than you. And if we could trust our bodies, we would all be a lot better. After all, it's the TV commercials influencing our consciences that make us crave junk food in the first place.
But I digress. The point I wanted to make here is that we don't need serving sizes. And we really should just do away with them. No one pays attention to them and they seem to do more harm than good.
What would make more sense is to use cup sizes as the standard. In most cases, people eat about a cup of food or drink. If they eat more, they can multiply the numbers listed on the label to figure out their nutritional content, and if they eat less, divide them. What's more, nearly everyone has a measuring cup to measure their food if they so wish to be exact, and everyone has an idea how much a cupful of food is.
And this way, no one will feel like anyone is recommending how much they should eat. That's the problem with serving sizes, after all. Make them too big, and it seems like you're advocating people eat more. Make them too small, and people overeat because they underestimate the calorie content. So why not not recommend anything? Let people think for themselves. Let them know how much is in a cup and let them take it from there.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Good Choice -- Good to Say?
Recently my friend broke up with her boyfriend. They had been going out a long time, and after finally realizing that he would not be able to commit to her as she wanted (i.e. marriage), she decided to end the relationship. This had been in the works for the last few years but it took her a while to finally break it off. This was because, as she explained it, they had a good relationship. He was good to her, and she liked spending time with him, and they were good together. The only problem was when she thought about the future, and he couldn't give her a straight answer. She just wanted to know that their relationship was going somewhere and because he couldn't tell her that it was, she decided to cut her losses and look for something (someone) else.
Eventually she let us know that they had broken up. My friends and I had known that this was a long time coming, since she had been complaining for a few years about him not wanting to marry her (yet) and saying that she would break up with him at a certain point. After a while, though, we all wondered if she would actually go through with it, or if she had lost the heart. We all thought that it would be a good idea, that he didn't deserve her, and that losing her would be the only way that he would see how great she really is.
But when she told us, none of said what we had been truly thinking. Neither "that's great!" nor "finally!" Instead, we stuck with sympathetic remarks and polite questions about how she felt, and how it happened, and what she was going to do now? And even though I had sensed as I was driving to our meeting place that this revelation was the purpose of our meeting, and imagined myself hugging and congratulating her, I didn't do it. I suppose I took my cue from the other two, and didn't say anything of the sort.
It wasn't until after we had parted ways, and I was walking with my friend back to her car that we had our own little chat, where she intimated that she wasn't sure she made the right choice, and that she sometimes regretted it. I made up my mind to tell her then that when I was driving there sensing what she would tell us, I had thought, "it's a good choice". I told her that I didn't know what was going to happen in the future, but at this moment, she made a good choice.
And the funny thing is, she thanked me. I wasn't sure what kind of reaction I expected, but I didn't expect that one. At first I thought perhaps she might be thanking me just to be polite. And I replied quicker than I could think, "No, you should thank yourself, you're the one who did it." But she kept saying that not many people when you tell them such news would tell you that -- that you made a good decision -- but I did, and it was actually good for her to hear it. It finally dawned on me that she was being sincere, and so I replied that I just call it like I see it, and left it at that. She was glad I did. And so was I.
I didn't think about it until my friend pointed it out to me that it is rare for people to be so direct on such a topic. For some reason, people don't want to praise you for breaking up with someone, even when it's a good move. I guess they feel that you might get angry at them for inserting their opinion unasked, and that it would be rude and unfeeling to say such a thing when you're feeling so badly.
But sometimes, as in this case, it is good to praise someone for the decision they made. That's because we all need that validation, that feeling and knowledge that what we did was wise. As humans we doubt ourselves so much, even when we think we're sure. It's nice for us when someone can allay that doubt even just a bit. And the thing is, we feel better knowing someone else also thinks we made a good choice.
Eventually she let us know that they had broken up. My friends and I had known that this was a long time coming, since she had been complaining for a few years about him not wanting to marry her (yet) and saying that she would break up with him at a certain point. After a while, though, we all wondered if she would actually go through with it, or if she had lost the heart. We all thought that it would be a good idea, that he didn't deserve her, and that losing her would be the only way that he would see how great she really is.
But when she told us, none of said what we had been truly thinking. Neither "that's great!" nor "finally!" Instead, we stuck with sympathetic remarks and polite questions about how she felt, and how it happened, and what she was going to do now? And even though I had sensed as I was driving to our meeting place that this revelation was the purpose of our meeting, and imagined myself hugging and congratulating her, I didn't do it. I suppose I took my cue from the other two, and didn't say anything of the sort.
It wasn't until after we had parted ways, and I was walking with my friend back to her car that we had our own little chat, where she intimated that she wasn't sure she made the right choice, and that she sometimes regretted it. I made up my mind to tell her then that when I was driving there sensing what she would tell us, I had thought, "it's a good choice". I told her that I didn't know what was going to happen in the future, but at this moment, she made a good choice.
And the funny thing is, she thanked me. I wasn't sure what kind of reaction I expected, but I didn't expect that one. At first I thought perhaps she might be thanking me just to be polite. And I replied quicker than I could think, "No, you should thank yourself, you're the one who did it." But she kept saying that not many people when you tell them such news would tell you that -- that you made a good decision -- but I did, and it was actually good for her to hear it. It finally dawned on me that she was being sincere, and so I replied that I just call it like I see it, and left it at that. She was glad I did. And so was I.
I didn't think about it until my friend pointed it out to me that it is rare for people to be so direct on such a topic. For some reason, people don't want to praise you for breaking up with someone, even when it's a good move. I guess they feel that you might get angry at them for inserting their opinion unasked, and that it would be rude and unfeeling to say such a thing when you're feeling so badly.
But sometimes, as in this case, it is good to praise someone for the decision they made. That's because we all need that validation, that feeling and knowledge that what we did was wise. As humans we doubt ourselves so much, even when we think we're sure. It's nice for us when someone can allay that doubt even just a bit. And the thing is, we feel better knowing someone else also thinks we made a good choice.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Milia Treatments & Cures
For those who suffer from what they think is milia, little white bumps on their face, or who have been misdiagnosed with syringoma, here are a few of the treatments that people have recommended that have worked for me:
1) Use serums instead of heavy creams, esp. in your most sensitive areas where milia form the most. If you have sensitive skin, heavy creams prevent your skin from exfoliating dead skin cells especially where skin is the thinnest on your face -- around your forehead, under your eyes, and chin.
2) Apply a hot pack: Run a face towel under really hot water, and then apply it to your problem areas. The steam will open up your pores, which allows your skin to exfoliate the trapped dead skin causing the milia.
3) Apply an aspirin mask: These are all the rage now. There are even videos on YouTube on how to do this. But it's really simple. Take a few generic white aspirin tablets (I usually use four), and put some drops of water on them until they start to dissolve into powder. Then get rid of any excess water, and add Cetaphil and milk or honey, and mix. Apply the mixture to your face, let it sit for 15-20 minutes, and then rinse off, and apply moisturizer. Do this about 1-2x a week depending on your skin type, and so your skin doesn't become used to it. The aspirin contains salicylic acid, which we all know, is used to treat acne. And actually, salicylic acid, I found, is one of the few chemicals that can really penetrate deep down into your pores.
These treatments really worked for me. I stopped applying heavy creams to the sensitive parts of my face, and started using serums there only, and found in doing so no new milia formed. That was a great relief to me. Even just using the hot pack, when I only knew about that, really helped to reduce my existing milia. And now that I also use the aspirin mask, I can see and feel a much greater reduction in bumps.
1) Use serums instead of heavy creams, esp. in your most sensitive areas where milia form the most. If you have sensitive skin, heavy creams prevent your skin from exfoliating dead skin cells especially where skin is the thinnest on your face -- around your forehead, under your eyes, and chin.
2) Apply a hot pack: Run a face towel under really hot water, and then apply it to your problem areas. The steam will open up your pores, which allows your skin to exfoliate the trapped dead skin causing the milia.
3) Apply an aspirin mask: These are all the rage now. There are even videos on YouTube on how to do this. But it's really simple. Take a few generic white aspirin tablets (I usually use four), and put some drops of water on them until they start to dissolve into powder. Then get rid of any excess water, and add Cetaphil and milk or honey, and mix. Apply the mixture to your face, let it sit for 15-20 minutes, and then rinse off, and apply moisturizer. Do this about 1-2x a week depending on your skin type, and so your skin doesn't become used to it. The aspirin contains salicylic acid, which we all know, is used to treat acne. And actually, salicylic acid, I found, is one of the few chemicals that can really penetrate deep down into your pores.
These treatments really worked for me. I stopped applying heavy creams to the sensitive parts of my face, and started using serums there only, and found in doing so no new milia formed. That was a great relief to me. Even just using the hot pack, when I only knew about that, really helped to reduce my existing milia. And now that I also use the aspirin mask, I can see and feel a much greater reduction in bumps.
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