Being burnt-out sucks and if you aren’t careful, it’s easy to get stuck there.
Here are 5 simple things you can do daily, that will help you manage your stress, love up your adrenals, help you feel calm and hopefully help you have more FUN!
The Truth about Storms
Storms.
We’ve seen them before, we’ll see them again.
When I say "storm", I'm referring to something that has the potential to cause a whirlwind of stress in our lives.
Sometimes, huge storms roll in-- devastating events that are hard to make sense of.
Sometimes, the storms are quick
Sometimes they last a really long time and the severity varies.
One thing all storms have in common is that they all pass.
Make Your Health a Priority... but ACTUALLY do it!
It’s easy to say, “I want to make my health a priority” but how do you put it into action and hold yourself accountable?
When you are fatigued and burnt-out it’s easy to use your fatigue and lack of energy as an excuse.. and when we do this perpetually it keeps us stuck. Here are our tips for staying accountable and helping you to continue moving forward.
Feeling "unfixable" or like a slave to your chronic condition
This has been coming up a lot for us lately.
The idea of feeling "unfixable" or feeling "stuck" with your health.
Many in our community are just beginning to learn about adrenal fatigue, but for many the reality is that adrenal fatigue is another "condition" on top of many-- from sneaky, hard to pinpoint viral or bacterial infections, addictions, cancer, MS and much more.
We get feedback from those suffering that "adrenal support alone-- can't FIX me" and we totally understand why you feel that way.
But if we may, we want you to know why having strong, supported adrenals is important when recovering from something bigger than "hormonal imbalance".
YOUR ADRENALS = YOUR RESILIENCE GLANDS.
When I was working my way through nutrition school we went over protocols for supporting all sorts of different conditions-- literally ALL the different conditions. The thing that blew me away all those years ago and part of the reason I am so passionate about this topic today is because the number one recommendation mentioned, protocol after protocol was --- MANAGE OR REDUCE STRESS.
Let's face it, when your body is facing something huge-- an addiction, cancer, a stealth infection like LYME or Epstein Barr Virus) or even emotional trauma, or surgeries…-- your body is doing what it can to regulate and survive, it's actually amazing what the body does to PROTECT us. ** insert time for a quick, big self-hug**
And if you're NOT facing something huge at this time, then think of how important the health and resilience of your body is to prevention.
We can't deny these little glands are flippin' important, can we?
NOT ANYMORE!
Anyways, what I'm getting at is the more we can reduce the overall stress load on our body and keep our adrenal function as optimal as possible, the better equipped and energized our body will be to do its thing to help fight off or process what it's dealing with. Make sense?
We know that working on the adrenals might seem like small fish to some of you when you've got bigger fish to fry, but...we urge you to consider the following when moving forward with your recovery plan:
Follow a holistic protocol
Often when we think of stress, we think of bills, traffic, overwhelm that comes with parenting or a job, but the truth is the stress we are talking about has the potential to come from all the main areas of our lives.
Stress is cumulative. Here are some other areas it can come from:
Sleep
Are you sleeping at the right times?
Are you getting optimal sleep?
If you aren't sleeping well, it becomes hard to repair your tissues optimally... and many aren't sleeping well due to out-of-rhythm hormones from stress in their daily lives.
Diet/Nutrients
Are you giving your body the nutrients it needs to heal and be super resilient?
Are you eliminating those things that stress the body and the digestive tract?
If the body is operating in a state of deficiency, it will be operating under a constant state of stress every day until that deficiency is corrected.
Digestion
Are you releasing and detoxing properly to keep the body working optimally?
Are you getting optimal assimilation from the food you eat?
If digestion is impaired of overburdened, it has the potential to add stress the body every time you eat, often sparking a hormonal response that involves stress hormones.
Exercise
Are you moving the body in a way that is honoring of what you’re going through?
Is your workout routine contributing to your condition or helping you get your life back?
Certain exercise can cause tissue damage and oxidative stress in the body, this is totally fine if you have the capacity to recover and repair from your workouts with good self-care, but if not, the wear and tear on the body can be extremely stress inducing.
Mindset
Are the thoughts going through your head keeping you stressed, thinking negatively about everything your body is experiencing and extra sensitive?
Are you constantly finding yourself in the same toxic thought patterns?
The way our brain perceives what we are experiencing orchestrates a wave of hormonal response to accommodate what the brain is perceiving. Whether we are consciously or unconsciously trapped in fearful or depressive though patterns, it resonates deeply on a physical level.
So when we’re talking about reducing the stress load on the body to heal our adrenals and have more resiliency, we need to address all these areas, not just one or two of them.
The magic that happens when you shift your thoughts, patterns and habits in each of these areas and actually STICK with them long enough for results to show up-- is pretty incredible.
So, if you've ever felt unfixable or just flat out STUCK, then it's time to ensure you're tackling this from a holistic angle.. because I promise you, miracles are happening every damn day.
If you need help implementing this, if you need a clear plan on how to move forward, or a support community to help get you through this, then click here to download the free Recovery Starter Guide.
The 5 Step System for Repairing a Leaky Gut
Good digestion is a prerequisite for good health.
As we continue living with chronic stress in our life, an abundance of toxins in our environment, poor diets, bacterial imbalance, and gastrointestinal issues are becoming more and more common. One of the most common issues we see with adrenal fatigue sufferers is intestinal permeability.
What is Leaky Gut Exactly?
Intestinal permeability also known as "leaky gut" is a condition when essentially, the intestines become damaged and are unable to protect foreign invaders or larger food particles from the digestive tract, from leaking into the bloodstream. The intestines are typically lined with tight junctions that carefully protect what makes it through to the rest of the body. When damaged, these loose junctions begin to let bacteria, incompletely digested food matter or waste through to the blood, setting off an immune alarm in the body. Cortisol and histamine surges are part of this alarm. This scenario leads to increased food sensitivities, digestive issues, auto immune conditions and a plethora of symptoms.
The symptoms of leaky gut are vast, and the truth is that gut health issues could very likely be a root level cause behind many of today's common health issues.
Just like the symptoms of leaky gut, figuring out the cause can be quite complicated.
Luckily, the body has an incredible ability to heal itself if you provide the right environment for it to do so.
When it comes to repairing a leaky gut, there are 5 steps, that when followed correctly will support creating an optimal environment for healing to take place.
THE 5 STEPS TO REPAIRING A LEAKY GUT
1. REMOVE
Remove anything that is creating to inflammation or negatively affects the digestive tract.
This starts with removing problematic foods, any common or known allergens, processed foods and excessive sugar. It also includes removing unwanted microflora like yeast (candida), parasites or unfriendly bacterial overgrowths.
2. Replace
This stage begins with replacing problematic foods in the diet with nutrient dense, whole foods.
It also includes restoring the naturally occurring digestive aids that may be lacking, things such as hydrochloric acid, bile acids and digestive enzymes.
3. Repair
In this phase, the focus is on restoring the mucosal lining of the G.I. tract.
Food plays a large role here, focus on eating foods that are easily digestible like smoothies, soups and cooked vegetables and quality proteins. Foods that are high in healing vitamins and minerals like vitamin C, zinc and other antioxidants, along with fatty acids like omega 3. Bone broth is a particularly gut loving food and is a wonderful addition to a restorative diet. Supplements can also be used to help repair the lining more quickly, to help protect and soothe the lining and help ensure there are no nutrient deficiencies that could be slowing down the recovery process.
Wondering the top healing foods you can eat and where to start with supplements? We're breaking it all down in this week's freebie! Grab it below!
4. REINOCCULATE
In this phase beneficial bacteria are re-introduced. Ideally, this is done with a high quality probiotic supplement, but naturally occurring probiotic rich foods like kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and kombucha can be consumed to help support this via food as well.
The correct balance of healthy flora supports more than just digestion.
Click here to learn how our microbiome affects the brain, behavior, mood, and more.
5. REBALANCE
The rebalance phase is one that is on going, one that will help support a healthy and happy gut long-term.
This phase largely correlates with general good health practices such as mindfulness practice, sleep, healthy exercise, good food, and finding time for fun.
When combined and worked on consistently, these 5 steps will guide you well on your way to abundant energy, easy digestion, a flat tummy, glowy skin and so much more. Leaky gut recovery does not need to be a lot to swallow- it comes back to changing the GI environment and creating one that allows the body to recover, repair and come back into balance.
Knowing the steps to healing your gut is one thing, but implementing them is a WHOLE OTHER THING...So, if you want SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE implementing these steps into your life, you need to know about this training: http://bit.ly/2iRSQAT