Archive for the ‘Keeping Healthy’ Category

What You Can Eat When You Are Down: The Different Types of Food that Help Relieve Stress

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Posted 09 May 2012 — by admin
Category Home Remedies, Keeping Healthy

Stress is not an uncommon experience in today’s fast pace world. When one is stressed, his or her mental and emotional balance can be disrupted. If the type of stress you are experiencing reaches to chronic level, it might also affect even your physical health. No doubt, stress has to be combated as soon as possible.

That is why, there are many protocols done by different people just to fight stress. Good thing, there are simple ways to win over stress. By just simply opening your fridge and choosing the right type of food, you may be able to reduce the levels of stress that you are encountering now. What you have to know are those foods that help relieve stress.

Foods that help relieve stress are surprisingly easily available. You may have them in your household without even knowing that they are the ones that can greatly help you in fighting your stress. Only a few people know that stress can be reduced by just simply modifying your diet. Furthermore, only a few people know what foods could help relieve stress.

Start to eat right for you to feel right. Here is a list of foods that help relieve stress. Make sure to include them in your grocery list to help boost your mental fitness

  • Bright colored fruits and vegetables

These are included among the foods that help relieve stress because they are very rich in Vitamin C. Vitamin C boosts your immune system which helps your body cope up with the stressful situations and helps to protect your body from getting ill when you feel really stressed. In addition to this, Vitamin C also helps in fighting free radicals in the body.

  • Asparagus

This is also one of the most effective among the foods that help relieve stress because it contains folic acid that helps your body to release serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps you to have a positive mood.

  • Milk

It helps you have a good sleep, which can make you feel relaxed and rejuvenated. Milk is one of the highly advised foods that help relieve stress because it is rich in antioxidants that can also fight those free radicals in your body.

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Is It Safe to Have Sex During Pregnancy?

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Posted 05 May 2012 — by admin
Category Health Procedures, Keeping Healthy

By the time that you have found out that you were pregnant, you must have been very excited about the fact of having a new baby. It is usual for expectant mothers to assure that every single thing that they do will be safe for her and for her developing baby.

It might have crossed your mind if it is safe to have sex during pregnancy. Intimacy between you and your partner is important to both of you. However, you must also assure that if you engage in sex during pregnancy, it will not harm your child.

When health professionals such as obstetricians-gynecologists are being sought for advice regarding sex during pregnancy, they can discuss many factors related to the changes that occur to a woman’s body during the course of her pregnancy.

First, they say that the fluctuating hormonal levels occurring during pregnancy can influence a woman’s desire to engage in sex during pregnancy. Some women reportedly lose their desire to engage in sex during pregnancy, especially during the last months of their pregnancy, when their bodies enlarge and there are positions that are awkward to do because of the enlarging belly.

If this is the case for you, it is important that you establish open communication with your partner that you might just find other ways to express your intimacy other than sexual intercourse.

Another thing that medical professionals can discuss with you about sex during pregnancy is the importance of knowing if your pregnancy has low-risk or high-risk for complications. If you have low-risk for complications, then you can be assured that you it is safe for you to have sex during pregnancy.

Rest assured that for low-risk pregnancies, the fetus cannot be harmed by sex during pregnancy because it is protected by the amniotic sac and the muscles of the uterus.

However, if you find out that you are at a high-risk for complications, then you must decide to abstain from sex during pregnancy. The following are signs that you have a high-risk pregnancy:

  • Having multiple fetuses
  • Having an incompetent cervix, wherein the cervix of the uterus is weak and prematurely dilates
  • Experiencing unexplained uterine cramps, vaginal bleeding or abnormal vaginal discharge
  • History of previous miscarriages or threatened abortions
  • Placenta previa

You can discuss your concerns about sex during pregnancy further with your medical doctor for you to be properly advised if your pregnancy is low-risk or high-risk and for you to be educated on the positions that will be more appropriate for you.

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Natural Remedies to Back Pain

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Posted 03 May 2012 — by admin
Category Alternative Medicine, Health Procedures, Home Remedies, Keeping Healthy

By: Alleluia Reyes, PTRP

Back pain, either acute or chronic causes much discomfort and may disrupt a person’s functional ability. Many people who complain of back pain also complain that it decreases their productivity at work, with some people even opting to take a day off just to rest their painful backs. If you are experiencing back pain, it will be more practical for you to learn about the natural remedies to back pain so that you will know how to ease yourself even at the comfort of your own home.

Furthermore, you need not purchase many different medications just to relieve your back pain once you have tried the different available natural remedies to back pain. The following is a list of the most effective natural remedies to back pain. Most of these remedies are cost-effective, easily available and as effective as pharmacological treatment.

Back Exercises

There are particular exercises for the back that helps to relieve back pain. These exercises have components that either stretch the tight muscles of your back or strengthen your core muscles. These are both important in maintaining a healthy back. Thus, these exercises are considered as natural remedies to back pain because they can assure that your back muscles have a lesser tendency to experience pain and injury even during activity.

Cold compress

When your back pain is acute, you can apply cold compress for an analgesic effect. You may use ice chips placed in plastic bags and cover it with a thin towel. Applying it on the area that is painful for 5-15 minutes can also be one of the very effective natural remedies to back pain.

Hot compress

This is effective for the chronic types of back pain. Hot compress is one of the natural remedies to back pain because it can provide muscle relaxation to the muscles of your back. It also has a natural soothing effect that can help relieve you from aches and muscle spasms. You can use a heating pad if you have purchased one or you may simply use a towel dipped in hot water. You may apply the hot compress on the affected area for around 20-25 minutes.

Massage

This is one of the natural remedies to back pain that is considered as a favorite to many. Massaging the area that is painful can also relax the muscles and provide immediate relief to the back. Make sure to apply oil or lotion over the skin when massaging the muscles so as to prevent discomfort caused by friction on the skin as you massage the muscles underneath.

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Methods of Coping with Stress in the Workplace

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Posted 02 May 2012 — by admin
Category Alternative Medicine, Keeping Healthy

Coping with stress is very important especially if you think that your workplace is your major stressor. Your job is a big part of your existence that is why this is one aspect of your life that you should be able to handle with positivity despite the hassles and challenges that it brings.

The Workplace as source of stress

Though the workplace is a common source of stressful events, you must make ways of coping with stress so that you can still maintain a feeling of enjoying your job. It is very important to do so because your job productivity, professional relationships and self-fulfillment can be greatly affected by how you feel towards your work.

Another important reason why you should learn ways of coping with stress is for you to be able to prevent its adverse psychological and physical effects. Stress is highly linked to psychological problems such as severe anxiety, mood swings, depression and feelings of worthlessness.

It is also common that people who are stressed also experience physical manifestations such as chronic muscle pains, frequent headaches, gastrointestinal disturbances, breathing difficulties and sleep disturbances.

Management of stress

If stress is not managed immediately, it might even cause you more severe health problems in the long run such as having a weak immune system or having a higher risk for cancers. That is why, if you do not want to reach to a point of having all these manifestations, you should make ways of coping with stress now!

Different people have different ways of coping with stress. This is because a person’s personality and previous life experiences can affect the way a person handles stress. Some people are more tolerant to particular stressors in the workplace while other people may get easily stressed.

If you think you are one of those people who are stressed with your current work situation, you must try to make ways of coping with stress.

The following methods can be effective to help you in coping with stress:

  • Take care of your personal health. By paying close attention to your health, you can make sure that you are physically and emotionally ready to handle any demands of the type of work that you have.
  • Practice proper time management. People who are stressed usually complain of having a lack of time to do a large bulk of work. To prevent this, it might help of you make a priority list of things that you have to do and accomplish each task on your list based on how you prioritized it.
  • Prevent a feeling of being burned out. To do this, you must not neglect the other things that you love to do. You must still take time to do your hobbies for you to be relaxed and be ready to face the challenges of your job for the day.
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How to Cope with Stress in School

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Posted 11 Apr 2012 — by admin
Category Keeping Healthy

Being a student is difficult because it is the phase when people are in their teens and are trying to establish their adulthood and their place among peers. Stress is high and not being able to manage it could sometimes have its dire effects. Stress management is crucial in staying happy and healthy.

If you are a student, knowing how to cope in class therefore is vital for your success, peace and happiness. Here are pointers you may want to adapt to cope with stress in school.

Be yourself

It is stressful to try to be the person others want you to be, unless you have a sincere desire to be that person. If you are comfortable with yourself, then there is no need to change who you are just because your friends tell you so. Of course if it is for the better then you should grab that opportunity to grow and develop. Perceive it in a positive manner. Look at the process as a challenge so you would enjoy the process than being stressed about it.

Don’t worry too much

Worry only for those events or things you can change. Worrying about things you don’t have any control of is frustrating and stressful.  As long as you’ve done your best, accept whatever consequences that come. Stop worrying and observe how you will be relieved from lots of stress. Believing in God or someone more powerful than you are, who could take care of everything, would relieve your stress tremendously.

Belong to a group

Belonging to a group would help you overcome stress.  This is one of the great ways on how to cope with stress in school. This group can be a church group, a writing club, a dancing club or any worthwhile group you could join and learn from.

Acquire a hobby

Acquire a hobby that would help you de-stress like swimming, dancing, horseback riding, reading or any sport that you are interested in.

These are simple but effective methods that usually work with most students.

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Stress management: How to Cope with Stress in the Workplace

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Posted 07 Apr 2012 — by admin
Category Keeping Healthy, Workplace health practices

Coping with stress in the workplace may be difficult if the stressful activities happen simultaneously. Understanding however that stress is part of normal daily activities would help you cope with it. You should also be aware that the mind plays a crucial role in coping with stress.

There are numerous causes of stress. Some of them are the following:

  • Upcoming reports where you may be a presenter
  • A meeting where you are assigned to speak
  • A new boss
  • A new partner
  • A new assignment
  • A demotion
  • A promotion

These are only some of the reasons why you can be stressed out at work. You should know how to pinpoint your source of stress. You can determine this by the following indications:

  • When you think about the activity, your pulses quicken and your heart beats faster
  • You hyperventilate
  • Your muscles are tense
  • You have butterflies in your stomach
  • You can’t keep still or the opposite- you freeze
  • You sweat profusely

These are the signs that you are stressed out about that particular event.  If you noticed the though had made you react that way. It started with your mind, your thoughts. There was no actual physical occurrence that had brought the signs of stress. This indicates that these symptoms just by merely thinking about the activity.

This means your thoughts cause you stress. This denotes also that for you to cope with stress in the workplace, you have to know how to control or manage your thoughts.

The hypothalamus is the center of the central nervous system and it is what allows you to feel. It responds to your feelings and needs. If it does not acknowledge the stimuli, then nothing happens. It is crucial that you understand this so you could deal with your sources of stress in your workplace.

Stress management and how to cope with stress means you have to re-direct your thoughts and way of thinking. You should realize first, that these feelings of stress are natural and human, but you should learn how to manage and cope with them. Hence, to successfully cope with them you have to change the way you think.

Here are pointers on how to manage your stress

Perform breathing exercises

When you start becoming stressed out with the thought, breathe deeply for several minutes. Inhale deeply through your nose, hold it for seconds and then exhale forcefully through your mouth. Do this for several seconds until your breathing becomes even.

Perceive the activity as something positive

While doing this, look for something positive in the activity. Let’s say it’s a report you’ll have to do before your colleagues; think of the activity as just a means of sharing and not a daunting one.  It could also be a means of helping out your colleagues or having a bonding time with them.

Believe in yourself

Have faith in yourself.  Top management is asking you to present because they believe in you and you should believe in yourself too. Oftentimes the worst enemy you can have is yourself. Don’t let that happen to you.  Imagine yourself presenting the report calmly and successfully. Keep that image in mind as you breathe deeply.

Do minimal exercise before the activity

You can do arm stretching exercises or simply exercise by opening and closing the fist while doing your breathing exercises. This would channel your energy into something physical and would also get your mind off your anxiety and stress.

Methods of successful stress management vary from one person to another. What’s important is to remember that coping with stress in the workplace should start in the way you think. Convert your thoughts into positive ones and you’ll notice that you’d be less stressed out than before.

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Meditation Methods to Cope With Stress

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Posted 31 Jan 2012 — by admin
Category Alternative Medicine, Keeping Healthy

By: Evelyn B. Trinidad

Meditation is a by word in the health profession but most people do not give attention to stress or want to cope with stress. This is simply because they do not know the effects of stress on their health and even if they do, how to cope with stress is foreign to them.  In a study conducted, 60-90% of the reasons why people visit the doctors are stress related.

The study further revealed that stress is related to immune system weakness, skin disorders, cancer, heart attacks, diabetes, insomnia, chronic pain, asthma. It has something to do with headache, backache and depression that may lead to accidents and suicide. It also decreases the number and function of white blood cells. It has been pronounced that meditation is one way to cope with stress.

Deep Breathing or body-scan meditation

Deep breathing meditation is a very good method to cope with stress. It’s an uncomplicated method that requires little effort. It’s done by sitting upright with eyes closed. Then you inhale deeply then exhale. Focus on your breathing. Then shift your attention to your toes and how it feels against the floor.  Stay with that feeling for a while then move to your legs. Do the same with the other parts of your body until your head.

Mantra or focused or transcendental meditation

The primary consideration here is clearing your mind and focusing on an object, mantra or a single thought. A soft music can be helpful during the meditation. Let your attention focus on your body, you will feel where the tension is and let it relax. Begin to say a word.  Doing this helps you cope with stress and you will feel re energized afterwards.

Metta meditation

Is an excellent way to cope with stress. Many negative thoughts about yourself and about others are all that are occupying your mind and these could stress you. Clear your thoughts of negative ones and think positively. Sit upright comfortably and remember a time when you were loved, how you felt about it and stay with the feeling for 15 minutes. In doing so, you are changing the negative thoughts with positive ones.

Mindfulness or depression meditation

This type of meditation helps you to cope with stress or depression as your mind is allowed to wander and not focusing on one thing. This is also the most common technique. It is done by sitting down in one place and watch people come and go. You just watch. The point is, your mind has a lot in it, and just let the thoughts come and go. Don’t dwell on them. The more you are exposed to negative thoughts the lesser the effect it will have on you.

Movement or walking meditation

Sit and close your eyes then rotate your head, the movement relieves and helps you cope with stress. You can also run, walk, and pace while meditating. As you run focus your attention on your movements especially as your feet touches the ground and you can feel the release of tension there. Continue focusing on your feet as you keep experiencing the feeling of your feet hitting the ground.

Empty mind meditation

As the term connotes mean, this is a meditation technique that makes you discard all thoughts from your mind or keep your mind blank let it rest. Find a quiet place where you can relax. Sit down with your legs crossed and start to remove all thoughts from your mind. Stay that way for 15 minutes. You will feel refreshed afterwards.

Visualization meditation

Imagine a peaceful scene with you in it using your mind. If the scene you imagined is the ocean, then you smell, see it through your mind, touch it and listen to the sound of the ocean and feel the breeze of the sea on your skin. Enjoy the moment as you savor the beauty and serenity of the place. This will relax your mind and help you to cope with stress

Meditation techniques have been used for centuries now to help people cope with stress and to promote a healthy body and mind. It has evolved from the simple to the more complex methods as combinations and new techniques were discovered.  Even if there are numerous methods, it does not mean you have to use them all simultaneously. You can use two or just one depending on your needs.

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Causes of Myofascial Syndrome

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Posted 05 Jan 2012 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Health Procedures, Keeping Healthy

By: Arvie Vitente, MPH, PTRP

Have you already experienced frequent cramping pain on your muscles mostly at the upper back area? That even with enough rest and massage the pain still persists? Maybe you are suffering from myofascial syndrome. Myofascial syndrome is included in the long list of chronic musculoskeletal pain disorder. In myofascial syndrome, there are palpable nodules in the muscles that are called the trigger points that cause pain upon application of pressure on them. This could also be felt in other parts of the body.

Causes of Myofascial Syndrome

Myofascial syndrome classically occurs among individuals with chronic faulty posture in which the muscles are contracting repetitively resulting initially to simple muscle soreness, then later on to a bothersome condition, which is the condition myofascial syndrome.

Clinically, the exact cause of myofascial syndrome is still not known. There is a theory associating it to connective tissue diseases but this is much generalized. Other theories state that this could be due to accumulation of lactic acid in muscles among individuals with jobs or other activities that require repetitive motions like in carpentry, typist, among others.

Another probable cause of myofascial syndrome are stress-related conditions. Individuals working in the academe are particularly prone to myofascial syndrome since aside from their true job, which is to prepare lessons and deliver these in their classes, they still have other school-related responsibilities which come with great pressure that would in turn result to muscle tension. Likewise, bank managers, typists and bus drivers are also prone to myofascial syndrome.

Difference between Myofascial Syndrome and Fibromyalgia

Myofascial syndrome and fibromyalgia both affect skeletal muscles but the difference is that, myofascial syndrome affects muscles on one side of the body that radiates on other parts, which include the neck and shoulder areas, while fibromyalgia affects muscles on a broader distribution.

Red Flags of Myofascial Syndrome

The signs and symptoms of myofascial syndrome may include deep, aching and cramping in the muscles involved. The description of pain in myofascial syndrome is usually pain that persists and is aggravating. The pain is elicited by applying pressure on the muscles affected which are called the trigger points. Patients with myofascial syndrome mostly complain of having a hard time to sleep primarily because of pain. If these symptoms are present, make an appointment with your doctor.

Treatment

Mostly, patients with myofascial syndrome are advised to undergo physical therapy and trigger point injections. Oral analgesics and relaxation techniques are also included in the treatment options.

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Anxiety: How to Cope with It

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Posted 01 Jan 2012 — by admin
Category Alternative Medicine, Health Procedures, Keeping Healthy

Anxiety and how to cope with it, is a common dilemma nowadays. This is because anxiety has become a common occurrence as a result of the increasing demands in the home front, coupled with the fast pace of doing work in a very competitive arena. Before you attempt to use some of the techniques, you must understand first what is causing your anxiety.

Accept that you suffer from anxiety

Once you recognized that you are suffering from anxiety, determine what triggers your anxiety and look for ways to treat it. There are many causes of anxiety, and how to cope with it can sometimes be individualized. You can read further for a better understanding on the subject thereby giving you the leverage to treat yours.

Do simple relaxing activities

Breathe deeply and slowly release the air. It relaxes the body. Veer away from negative thoughts. Indulge yourself. You can go dancing, listen to music, go to the beach, and go hiking, joy riding. There are arrays of happy things you can do if you love to do it. These will help you ease away your anxiety.

Engage in physical exercises and body relaxation

Go physical for 30 minutes 3 times a week. This would help you release the tension from your body and mind. There are relaxing exercises such as yoga and tai chi that you can do.

Meditate

Meditation relaxes the body and mind that leads to lesser tension and calm mind. When meditating put your mind in a “blank” state, in that way your mind is free of all thoughts that may trigger tension.
Talk to a Friend about it or Write it down

Talk to a friend about your situation, it would help release the tension. You can also do a diary on how you feel every time anxiety attacks, this way you are easing away tension and you might develop a strategy on how to combat it when it attacks.

Use Herbal Remedies

Aromatherapy is known to have soothing effects to the body that causes you to relax. When you relax, the tension eases out of your body leaving it worry-free.

“Anxiety and How to Cope with It” books and manuals include among others herbal remedies to address anxiety, specifically aromatherapy.

Observe proper and balanced diet

Intake of proper diet helps the body function at its optimum. Stay away from caffeine and sweets it increases tension in the body.

Boost your Confidence

The common cause of anxiety is lack of confidence in yourself and in your capabilities. When you feel this way, your mind reacts to it resulting to an inferiority feeling that tends to agitate and stress you.

With the tips discussed on Anxiety and how to cope with it, it is hoped that you gained knowledge on how to manage yours and find a fulfilling life.

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How to Know If It’s Migraine: Be Aware of These Migraine Symptoms

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Posted 29 Oct 2011 — by admin
Category Diseases and Conditions, Keeping Healthy

Headache is probably the most common of all migraine symptoms. The question is, how will you be able to determine that what you are experiencing is really migraine? How are going to identify a migraine as compared to all other causes of headache?

Knowing the other associated migraine symptoms would help you differentiate migraine from headache caused by tension headache, sinusitis or cluster headache. If you are diagnosed with migraine, it is helpful to be familiar with such migraine symptoms so that you will be able to provide immediate care to decrease the pain that you are experiencing. Some migraines have auras, which are described as visual, olfactory or auditory perceptions that occur prior to a migraine attack. To be exact, auras may be experienced for 10-15 minutes before the occurrence of the actual migraine attack. Those who experience these auras describe them as flashes of light or visions of zigzag lines.

However, not all people who have migraine experience the auras mentioned above. In the absence of an aura, it is more integral to be familiarized with the different migraine symptoms. You will know if you are having a migraine if you experience any of the following:

  • Usually, one-sided headache. Although pain of both sides can also occur, this is less frequent than one-sided pain.
  • Throbbing type of pain. Intensity of this type of pain may range from moderate to severe. For most cases, the person will not be able to continue with his physical activity due to this debilitating intensity of pain.
  • Nausea or vomiting. Among the migraine symptoms, this is one of the most classic complaints of patients. They will say that the headache is accompanied by nausea and most patients say that they feel some degree of relief after they vomit.
  • Increased sensitivity to light, odors or noise.  The patient gets more easily irritated by these stimuli. That is why a person who suffers from migraine will prefer to rest on a dark and quiet place.
  • Other less common associated migraine symptoms such as pain near the eye, loss of appetite, blurred vision and dizziness

Remember, migraine is different from the other types of headache. These migraine symptoms described above are not commonly experienced by patients experiencing the other types of headache. Thus, you will be able to identify the difference. Now you would know, if it’s truly a migraine.

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