'fairy insights to excite'
I started this blog to share phrases and ideas which help me to feel good whilst living with a 'scleroderma and Raynaud's' diagnosis, to which there is no cure.
Attitude is everything - so pick a good one!
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Intuition, psychic knowing, fruits of the spirit - Know Your Soul:
Edgar Cayce, HH Dalai Lama, Rumi
"Keep it [your
soul] then in patience, in love, in gentleness, in kindness . . .
For these are indeed
the fruits of the spirit . . .
And remember, a
kindness sometimes consists in denying as well as granting those activities in
associations with thy fellow man."
~
Edgar Cayce reading 5322-1
Peace of mind; His Holiness the Dalai Lama
“An affectionate
disposition not only calms the mind, it’s good for our physical well-being too.
On the other hand, hatred, jealousy and fear disturb our peace of mind, they
make us agitated physically and mentally. Such agitation is disturbing, which
shows that the need for peace of mind is in our blood.”
"The kind of
behaviour that really is spiritual practice consists of refraining from falsehood
and abiding by the truth, neither humiliating nor mocking others, being humble,
and having a good heart and helping others" ~ HH Dalai Lama
"In the practice of tolerance, one's enemy is the best teacher" ~
Dalai Lama
"When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you" ~ Rumi
PLEASE DONATE to the ROYAL FREE CHARITY, to
help fund desperately needed MEDICAL RESEARCH at the SCLERODERMA UNIT, THE
ROYAL FREE NHS HOSPITAL.
How I Beat Stress And
Depression - John Abbott BSc MSc CtH
About The Author
I am John; agricultural
scientist, ex diplomat, development economist, education researcher, university
senior lecturer and certified clinical hypnotherapist.I was born in Southport, UK, and have lived in South Africa for most of my adult life, 45 years plus.
This is my personal story of
how I beat stress and depression.
The techniques I'm going to
share with you are not difficult and they worked for me. They will probably
work for you too.
I distilled everything that I
am recommending to you from many books written by highly qualified
psychologists and neuroscientists. I have simplified their recommendations so
that everyone, even teenagers, can benefit.
Their research shows that
these modalities work as well, if not better, than medication; except in very
severe cases of clinical depression.
I know that if you are
stressed or feeling depressed you will, as I did, benefit immensely from this
valuable knowledge.
John G Abbott BSc. MSc. CtH.
ALF
AND AUTOMATIC NEGATIVE THOUGHTS
I want to share with you now, the
most exciting and effective method I have found to help you stop worrying,
feeling stressed, fed-up, blue, depressed......call it what you will.
You will know the feeling: you
don't feel like facing the world, down in the dumps, feel nothing is going
right, you don't enjoy things you used to do. Something has changed in your
head but you don't know exactly what?
You may also be drinking more
alcohol than usual, hoping you can drown your sorrows. But it makes matters
worse?
So your doctor gives you a
SSRI (like Prozac) but it doesn't work, turns off your sex drive, makes you
fat, makes you feel lousy? Even worse, teenage suicides have been associated
with these drugs......the jury is still out on that terrifying prospect.
Now let me introduce you to my
friend ALF. He is my "Annoying Little Friend" (you may remember a
cuddly, brown, hairy alien on tv, some time ago, with the same name? Well, you
may like to think of him like that?)
Alf is my creation, he
represents that inner voice in my head, the one we ALL have, constantly bugging
us with "Automatic Negative Thoughts" (ANTS) throughout the waking
hours; almost non-stop.
Did you know that Alf is not
the conscious YOU? It's, in fact, your over-protective subconscious mind trying
to warn you of potentially dangerous possibilities?
So Alf is continually telling
you to worry; about the kids, your job, your health, you name it.
He will make
you stress about something without fail......continually, if you let him. You
may suffer "anxiety" from this, worrying about events in the future
which usually never happen.
But I'm going to show you how
to stop him. He's not the conscious, thinking, real you, remember?
Most things he tells you are
negative suggestions..... should have done that, I regret, I can't do that,
what will happen if... You get it? Nothing positive? Don't you experience Alf?
Doesn't he stress you? He did me, until I found the solution and changed my
life for the better.
Let me first tell you what Alf
and his stressful thoughts do to our bodies; it's not good news I'm afraid.
Stress releases hormones (adrenaline
and cortisol if you really want to know), which prepare us for "fight or
flight": very helpful when we were hunter - gatherers about to be eaten by
a predator! But not so useful these days because continued stress weakens our
immune system, increasing our risk of heart and brain attacks plus cancers.
Sorry to scare you but this serious risk is reducible if you follow some
lifestyle changes.
So what should you do? Well,
you mustn't "ruminate"(brood) on Alf's negativities, churning them
over and over all day, every day. This is the key to alleviating stress. You
need to practice noticing ANTS (automatic negative thoughts); that is your
first step.
You can learn, through
practice, to reduce Alf's presence but never completely. He is there for an
evolutionary purpose, he is part of your genetic makeup and not your enemy. We
need to learn to live with him but not listen to him.
Experts suggest we have a choice
of tactics. First, we need to accept that inner voice is not our conscious,
logical, thinking self.......it is not inner wisdom, giving us good advice (except
occasionally, I'll agree). The first step is to notice by
"checking-in" on our thoughts at regular intervals, say every hour or
so at first, to notice that it's happening.
Then we have several choices.
We may try to ignore Alf or we can talk to him, telling him "we are not
playing today, thanks". Some authors suggest mocking him but this doesn't
work for me because Alf is, after all, my annoying little friend; he thinks
he's helping, doing his job, that's all.
My advice to you, is to notice
him but never engage in self- talk with him. This would lead to rumination and
the stress we are trying to avoid. I usually say to Alf, "Hi Alf, not
today, thanks". Then I turn immediately to becoming ‘mindful’.
Mindfulness is very popular
these days. It is simply the act of concentrating completely on everything we
are doing at any one time throughout the day. It means not day-dreaming while
undertaking an everyday chore or at work. It means concentrating on everything
we are doing. If we are driving, be conscious or mindful of driving, nothing
else. If cleaning, be mindful of the physical exertion involved, do not let
your mind wander.
It's a simple form of
meditation, one’s mind is focussed on the present moment. Our lives are
composed of a series of continuous present moments; the past is gone forever
and the future cannot be known. Mindfulness needs to be practiced to be
effective, because we are used to letting our minds wander while performing
routine activities. We need to change how we think. We need to think when WE
want to think, not when Alf tells us to. That is the secret to living almost
stress-free.
Just remember that within a
few days of ‘noticing’ and not engaging and ruminating, you will feel a great
improvement in your mood. Alf eventually gets tired of being continually
rebuffed in a friendly way. Trust me it's true! You will feel a whole lot less
stressed in a few days or weeks, but be warned, Alf will never leave you!
BREATHING
AND MEDITATION
Let me deal with a common
misconception about Meditation. It has been practiced by all religions
throughout the ages, including Christianity. It is not solely ‘Eastern’ in
origin and it is practiced by religious and secular (non-religious) people. For
me, it's like prayer without asking for anything- there is no conflict as I see
it.
I would like to tell you how
meditation has helped me to get out of my depression.
I have found it calms my mind
in just twenty minutes a day, promoting health, creativity and mental
performance. Its practice enhances our ability to control Alf by enabling us to
switch quickly to positive affirmations or a spiritual word/phrase or neutral
words of love and peace.
There are so many ways to
meditate but the essence is incredibly simple; relaxation in any physical
position while clearing the mind of ANTS. Avoid any distractions if possible,
then think about your breathing or, if you prefer, a peaceful word or phrase.
The breathing method is
recommended because its natural, we know how to do it! We should breathe
deeply, emptying the lungs completely to a count of about six inhalations to
six exhalations. If you prefer words to breathing, then try my favourite,
"infinite love and gratitude".
When you start for the first
time you will find thoughts (Alf) invading your mind. That's normal, don't
worry, don't give up as many do. Just let the thoughts pass like clouds in a
pure blue sky and return peacefully to your breathing or chosen word(s). Take
it easy, don't fight with or engage with thoughts, let them go as they will.
There's a beautiful method I
like very much called the Coherent Technique, developed by the Institute of
HeartMath (IHM). It takes a minimum of only five minutes per day, while sitting
or lying comfortably. One imagines ones’ breath emanating from ones heart
region, that's all. At the same time one imagines happy, peaceful thoughts.
That's all!
Several authors I've read rave
about the benefits of this technique which is claimed to calm heart rhythms and
harmonise them with our brain. It is said to reduce feelings of frustration,
anxiety, anger and despair. That's not bad for a mere five minutes, is it? In
addition, it is said to reduce hypertension, atrial fibrillation and assists
diabetics with mood swings.
I use the HeartMath method
these days instead of the simple breathing-only technique; and I use the words
"infinite love and gratitude". Can anything be simpler? Why don't you
checkout www.heartmath.org for more information and research.
Always remember your
subconscious mind will always tend to drift away to Alf's worrying thoughts.
Take it easy, it's normal, just return to your special words, continue
breathing slowly and deeply. Five minutes is all it takes but twenty would be
ideal in my opinion. Try it in the traffic jam, or the supermarket checkout, or
in times of stress, anywhere.
AFFIRMATIONS
and SELF-HYPNOSIS
Hopefully, you are beginning
to control ANTS. But what about substituting them with positive thoughts?
As a Hypnotherapist I believe-
what we are convinced we believe, we can achieve. Notice I say ‘convinced’
because less than that just won't work!
All hypnosis is in fact self
hypnosis because no one can be hypnotised to do something they don't want. So
the therapist is an ‘authority figure’, acting as the convincer, he/she can do
no more than help you with relaxation and ‘framing’ the beliefs and actions you
yourself, want to implant in your subconscious. Your subconscious doesn't
think, it obeys orders, good or bad ones. That's why Alf gives you negative
advice, it's how your subconscious was programmed throughout your life,
particularly in your childhood.
We can re-programme our
subconscious with ‘Affirmations’, short positive statements repeated to
yourself while relaxed at the end of a meditation.
We should carefully decide
what it is we want, using no negative words in our short statement of the
change we want; only, positive qualities or actions we wish to acquire or
achieve. We merely think or say these words to ourselves while relaxed, or,
anytime at all, you don't need to be relaxing.
To give you an example of this
‘waking hypnosis’, have you noticed how you can be convinced by a salesman, a
pastor, a parent, a teacher, a politician, a person you respect or a person of
authority? All that is required is three things: want it to happen, believe it will happen, see it happening. It is
your belief which will make change happen. You must have heard about the ‘placebo
effect’? A sugar-pill working as well as an active medication in the safety
trials of new drugs. If the person strongly believes the sugarpill will work,
then it does, sometimes, nearly as well as the active real pill.
One of the classic
affirmations is: "Every day in every way I am getting better and better”.
You can make them up for yourself. You might wish to achieve an objective or
plan for your life. You might formulate an affirmation such as: "I am making
progress on my objective/project/business plan every day". I'll tell you
mine:"Every day I'm getting
younger and younger, healthier and healthier, stronger and stronger".
FOOD
AND DRINK
What I'm going to tell you now
is going to put some of you off continuing to read this book. But it's
important you know all the contributing causes of stress, anxiety and
depression.
The following may be difficult
to accept and even harder to do but it has worked for me, so it's worth
considering- even in moderation.
It is my strong conviction and
belief that we are being sold mostly unhealthy processed foods, lacking
essential ‘vitanutrients’ and containing harmful chemical additives.
However, without criticising
the bad guys let me, instead, rave about the ‘wonder foods’. I know you have
heard about fish oil, containing Omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3 is largely
deficient in our diets, unless we are eating very large amounts of oily fish
and dark green vegetables.
Omega 3 is not found these
days in grain fed meats or any other processed food, except fish, and there,
only in inadequate quantities for brain health.
Most of the oils and fats we
eat in processed foods are Omega 6 NOT Omega 3. This massive imbalance is the
cause of inflammation and disease throughout our bodies and resulting in poor
brain function.
To cut a very long story short
Omega 3 is essential for optimum operation of neurotransmitters in the brain
(heard of serotonin?) The latter helps keep us calm and is essential for brain
cell renewal and regeneration. It's a must for adults and especially for kids
to attain optimum brain function. It's not just for calm mood equilibrium but
for enhanced mental performance too.
I credit Omega 3 with quickly
lifting my depressed mood. It's recommended by many psychologists and
neuroscientists for brain and heart health. And not just for stress and
depression but also for a few other mental conditions.
Omega 3 contains two active
components, EPA and DHA. Most experts recommend a minimum daily dose of 1000 mg
of EPA, which automatically includes the recommended 600 mg of DHA.
Because of problems of heavy
metals and active ingredients in many brands I'm going to recommend a specific
product, available at Dischem. It is called ‘Real Thing Mega Fish Oil’. It's ‘pharmaceutical
grade’, meaning it has been distilled to remove all toxic pollutants from the
seas. It's nearly tasteless and one teaspoon is all that is required per
day.....easy to give to your kids? If you are vegetarian you could use flaxseed
oil but it's not as potent as fish oil- it has to be converted to EPA in our
bodies.
Now, to be even more
contentious I am going to talk about sugar, caffeine and alcohol. These are
stimulants which cause stress directly by releasing hormones in our bodies.
Nicotine is yet another but I hope you stopped smoking a while back.
Sugar, caffeine and alcohol
create blood-sugar imbalance, causing the same damaging hormones to be released
as if we had experienced an external stressful thought or event. So, on top of
everyday worries we take coffee/tea with sugar to make matters worse. No wonder
we are doubly stressed and our mental and physical health deteriorates. We even
drink alcohol to unwind, compounding the stress even further.
Sugar is probably the biggest
problem. There are huge amounts in soft drinks and fruit juices, sweets, cakes,
biscuits. Even high GI white carbohydrates are soon converted to sugar in our
bodies so we need a new low GI diet. No more six coffees a day, each with
sugar. But be reasonable, even I have one coffee in the morning. Tea has half
the caffeine, even green, but the latter contains the calming Theanine.
I've given up alcohol all
together and feel the benefits of better mood and productivity but we don't all
want to give up the joy of a good wine. I miss it I admit, but I put my brain
health first. Experts suggest two units of alcohol per day is optimal for your
health (never when pregnant). What scared me most were photographs of scans of
heavy drinkers showing dramatic shrinkage of parts of the brain associated with
dementia in later life. So, enjoy life but be reasonable, no binge drinking,
stick to the guidelines.
Sugar is causing a world
epidemic of obesity and diabetes 2. It's perhaps less well known that it is a
major cause of stress leading to depression. The constant yo-yo effect of a
short term ‘sugar fix’, followed by a blood- sugar spike and then more sugar craving
leads to insulin resistance. The net effect is the weakening of the immune
system. So, we get stressed, depressed and prone to other disease.
We need to also look at our
non sugar sources of high GI carbs. White flour products are like sugar, try replacing
them with whole grain products where possible. Eat fruit whole, don't juice it,
the sugar is released more slowly. Chocolate is full of sugar and a
caffeine-like chemical with similar stress related effects.
Try Freshpak Rooibos with
Chamomile for a deliciously calming caffeine free tea which is full of
anti-oxidants too. Valerian is a herb also recommended widely for stress and
sleep. For a sugar substitute why not try Nature's Choice Stevia Elixir,
reasonably priced at Dischem; and it's a natural product. Other artificial
sweeteners, I feel, have questionable long term safety.
Last but not least, by just
cutting or reducing sugar and high GI carbs you WILL lose weight. Two birds
with one stone, less stress and a new shapely, more healthy, you.
SOCIAL
EXERCISE
There is an epidemic of
physical inactivity worldwide, including South Africa. In the UK it is reported
that one person in three has a sedentary lifestyle, equivalent, it is said, to
the same longevity risk as smoking.
Exercise is not only great for
the heart but it's also highly effective for reducing stress and lifting
depression; if combined with my previous recommendations. When we work up a
sweat, ‘feel-good’ chemicals (endorphins) are released by our brains.
Socializing with extended
family and friends is also recommended by psychologists for lifting our
spirits. So why not combine the two? Get off the couch, leave the tv, ipad, go
out and do something active. It doesn't have to be organized sport, just physical
activity, anything which keeps us active and on our feet. It has been found
that even domestic chores (done mindfully?) like gardening or cleaning the car,
walking to the shops, are as effective as the gym. So just get up, get active
with friends and family outside in the sun. That brings me to my next
suggestion.
VITAMIN
D
Vitamin D is made by sunlight
on our exposed, unprotected skin. It's a kind of hormone rather than a true
vitamin and apart from promoting bone health, it is also found in the brain, where
it helps elevate our mood.
People living in northern
countries often get depressed during their dark, ‘sunless’ winters; they often
suffer from SAD, a light deficiency disorder. This is a vitamin D deficiency
treatable with portable light therapy devices.
Even here in South Africa
those of us working in offices may be D deficient; and it's worse for
dark-skinned people protected from UV light by their higher skin melanin
levels. We all need daily sun exposure, half an hour for light skinned and
double that for those darker skinned. Many of us try to avoid the sun so we are
often deficient.
You can be tested by your
doctor but I just take a safe dose of 1000 international units (IUs) of D3
available without a prescription. And I make a point of getting some sun
exposure, without a sunscreen, at a safe period of the day. I feel this has
helped elevate my mood and I recommend you try it; under medical advice if you
are worried about skin cancer.
GOOD
SLEEP IS ESSENTIAL
Keep in mind that everything I
am sharing with you is what I do every day. It’s a package of lifestyle changes
which has helped me become largely stress and depression free, without using medication.
And sleep was one of my
problems. Psychologists will tell you categorically that good sleep is
absolutely essential, for a productive happy life.
I used to drink coffee and
alcohol before sleeping. No wonder I was awake half the night, often watching
tv until the early morning.
I have since learned that the
bedroom should be a haven for sleep and love. No distractions allowed, sorry!
And not too much alcohol before sleep; it flatters to deceive. You think it
helps, while, in fact, it disturbs your brain rhythms.....those necessary
stages in sleep necessary for the brain's restorative activities.
People often go to bed late,
have disturbed sleep, wake early still tired, grab a coffee and voila!....the
stress cycle begins again. Blood sugar and insulin levels spike and soon
decline until we get another ‘hit’ of more caffeine and sugar, plus a high GI
snack of low nutrient content. It's often a vicious cycle throughout the day?
Tiredness and craving followed by a coffee and carbs?
So, try to get at least seven
hours good sleep. Use the HeartMath technique to help you sleep, it really
helps. No tv, no radio in the bedroom if possible and turn off your cellphone
to reduce exposure to electronic radiation (not proven but I do it and if you
believe it, it will work). Don't drink any coffee or strong tea after midday
because the half life of caffeine in the system is quite long.
I know you will say all this
will ruin your social life. It's about healthy, lifestyle change. I was not
happy until I made them. Now I'm better. Happiness is a choice we can make,
it's there for the taking. Remember, what we BELIEVE we can ACHIEVE.
PROBLEM
SOLVING
Do you now agree with me that
stress can be caused by thinking? We think about real and perceived problems?
I believe real problems should
be sorted if possible, and as soon as possible. Get professional help where
necessary, don't ruminate! Take action! The sooner you can find a solution the
sooner you will feel better and move on with your life.
Many problems or worries can
be fixed, but we procrastinate? We make excuses not to do something? I still do
that too but I recognize (notice) I'm doing it these days and have become more
proactive without alcohol, which really does slow down our mental processes.
I
now enjoy getting things done, I make a ’to do list’ and tick off my progress.
I live by achieving ‘objectives’ and I see the results; like this book for
example, which I had put off for years!
Of course, some problems are
not real, they are imagined or perceived. This is similar to the ‘anxiety’ I
mentioned earlier. It's about intense worrying about things which could happen,
but statistically, probably won't. For example, are my kids taking drugs? Will
my son fail matric? Does my partner still really love me?
The list could be
endless and very debilitating.This is Alf doing his thing.
We need to train ourselves by constant ‘noticing’ and practice to ignore ANTS.
You may decide, however, to give yourself permission to ‘reframe’ your worries
but I suggest you limit the time, say to half an hour. During this fixed time
you permit yourself to plan remedial action on a real problem. It's most likely
you will formulate one or two strategies within this period. Write them down
and then STOP thinking about them. Now try to return to mindful living.
The more we learn to recognize
ANTS, do the HeartMath technique, become more mindful and repeat positive
affirmations, the less stressed and depressed we will become. You will
indefinitely become more content, it will be unavoidable.
POSTURE
Did you know that if you have
a good posture, standing up straight, head up, looking up not down, you trick
the brain into feeling happier. If you can also smile more, even when stuck in
traffic, you will feel better. Try it, it really works.
GRATITUDE
You've heard the expression ‘count
your blessings’? It's about gratitude. Wanting more and more material things
won't make us happy. As an economist I know the ‘system’ teaches us that it
will, but it’s not completely true. I recently got a new car but the ‘high’ didn't
last very long just as my psychologist friend, Deepa, told me it wouldn't. I
agree I'm still glad I got it though! It's about moderation?
Try ‘wanting what you have
rather than having what you want’. Make a list of five different things each
morning for which you are grateful. Small things like having a job, food to
eat, your family, your friends, your health. Having new material goods is not
wrong, but we need to also appreciate the small things in life we tend to take
for granted. Tell your partner and children every day you love them! Be kind,
be friendly, try living with a smile on your face. Life is short; we need to
live mindfully, enjoying the here and now.
The past is gone, the future
is unknown, we live in a series of present moments, we need to enjoy all these ‘now
moments’?
A
FINAL WORD
Maybe you don't want to do all
these things. I can understand that. This is my story, remember? Change is
possible but uncomfortable. We are all stuck with habits. I had to change mine
in order to regain my happiness. If any of my suggestions here can help you
just a little, I shall feel well pleased.
Before I leave you I'm going
to wish you one of my daily affirmations:
"Infinite love and gratitude"
Go well and may you feel less
stressed and much happier in all the days to come.Please feel free to contact me: abbottjohn89@gmail.com
----------------
PLEASE DONATE to the ROYAL FREE CHARITY, to
help fund desperately needed MEDICAL RESEARCH at the SCLERODERMA UNIT, THE
ROYAL FREE NHS HOSPITAL.