Mind, body, spirit – Connection addiction and the digital diet

­It is fair to say that staying connected with others today is easier than ever. In fact, maybe it’s too easy, what with social media and a variety of gadgets available to communicate with others.

Think about how much time you spend on social media. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube and innumerable blogs are just a few of the social media channels that may take up part of your day.

Consider also how many different ways there are to access social media. Computers and laptops were the sources for access until just a couple of years ago. Mobile devices – tablets and smartphones – have made it possible to stay connected no matter where you are.

­­­Signs of social media addiction

There are signs of addiction to social media for which you should be on the lookout. The first sign that you may have a problem is if it’s the first thing you do every morning. You may also find that your productivity at work is falling. In the company of others, you feel the need to constantly check in or update your status. You may even find yourself dreaming about social media.

Like anything, if you think you have a problem, you need to take a hard, realistic look at your social media habits. Counseling is now an option for social media addiction.

Putting yourself on the digital diet

Many people have compared social media addiction to an addiction to food, and are choosing to treat it the same way, by rethinking their habits and limiting their intake. No one is saying that you need to quit completely, but it is a good idea to make some changes if you feel you have a problem.

Turn off all your gadgets and computers for an hour a day. Take a hike, read a book or engage on a personal basis with a real live human. Remember to practice consumption in moderation. Make sure that you’re turning them off at least a half hour before bed; it will help you sleep better if you give yourself some wind down time.

 

Mind, body, spirit Take these steps for a good night’s sleep

Eight hours a day is what is recommended, but most American adults fall short of sleep almost every night. That’s just an average; some people require less and some require more. 

Although you may be able to function with less than eight hours, you probably aren’t functioning at peak efficiency. Lack of sleep affects your mental capacity and decision making. Prolonged periods with a lack of sleep can increase your stress levels. You may also notice unexplained weight gain. 

How to get a good night’s sleep

1. Make bedtime an appointment

Put it on your schedule. Everything else in your life is on a schedule, why not sleep? The more often you’re able to get to bed at a certain time, the more your body will expect it.

2. Avoid caffeine in the evening

The more you can cut out in the daytime, the better, too.

3. Get regular exercise

Physical activity helps to tire you out, and it doesn’t really matter if you exercise in the morning or at night.

4. Give yourself some wind down time

Turn off the phone, TV and computer a half hour before bed time. These all stimulate the brain. The object here is to shut down.

5. Try to wake up without an alarm clock

This is impossible for some, but if you wake up without an alarm, chances are that you probably got the amount of sleep you needed to be fully rested. 

6. Clear your mind

Even if you’re giving yourself ample time to wind down, you still may have thoughts swirling around. Try writing them down in a journal to get rid of them. 

Improving your sleep habits can have effects on your overall health and well-being. If you notice that you’re not sleeping enough, make sure you’re taking steps to get more rest. For more information about sleep and how to get more of it, take a look at the National Sleep Foundation (link to http://www.sleepfoundation.org) website.

 

 

Mind, body, spirit 10 Tips to Help You Stay Motivated

Motivation is a tricky issue for many people. Whether you want to lose weight, get a promotion, plant a garden or finish the basement, making yourself move toward a goal is difficult. 

Corporations hire motivational speakers. There are shelves of books, entire sections dedicated to it. Motivational speeches by coaches are the stuff of legend. And you can actually use those things to inspire you, but here are 10 things you can do to help yourself stay motivated.

1. Develop a positive attitude

Negativity sets you up for failure. Take charge of your attitude and the power it possesses. There is a positive side to every situation, challenge or trial you go through. 

2. Know your obstacles

If you know the obstacles you may encounter, you can create strategies to overcome them. 

3. Be personally accountable

Write down the goal. Put it on a Post-it Note on the bathroom mirror. Address the goal every day. Know what you’re going to do that day to help you move toward achieving it. 

4. Be accountable to someone

Find someone you can confide in about your goals. It can be a friend, spouse, or even a life coach. If you tell them about your goal and what you’re doing to achieve it – every day – your chance of success increased. 

5. Be realistic

Setting your goals is crucial; you need to set goals that are attainable. That is not to say they should be easy. Challenge yourself. 

6. Surround yourself with positive people

Hanging out with a group of people who are motivated will help you adopt the same frame of mind. Birds of a feather do flock together.

7. Stay active

Exercising actually keeps people happy and upbeat. It gives you more energy, which in turn helps you achieve more in life. Exercise has a way of freeing your mind to allow you to focus on the task at hand. 

8. Measure your progress

It is important to understand that you’re making progress toward achieving your goal. Make it a point to look back at where you started and how close you are. Allow yourself to celebrate progress and feel good about it. 

9. Be persistent

Things may not work out right the first time. This just means that you need to try harder. Keep working even though you may have a setback.

10. Get Started

Today. Do it today. Not on the first of next month. Not on Monday. Today is the day to start. You’ve determined what the goal is and how to get there. The time for thinking about it is over and the time to do it is now. Get moving!

 

Walk your way to better health

 

Over the past couple of years, much attention has been paid to the “10,000 steps” regimen. The theory is that you should set your goal to walk 10,000 steps a day. Bear in mind that your normal, everyday walking counts in your total. A sedentary person walks between 1,000 and 3,000 steps a day, which means they would have to account for 7,000-9,000 steps in order to meet their goal.

How far is 10,000 steps?

Of course, it varies, but the average person covers 2.5 feet with every stride. That works out to 25,000 feet, which is 4.75 miles. Determining just how much you’ll need to walk as part of an exercise regimen is simple. An inexpensive pedometer will tell you how many steps you normally take every day. Average it over a week and you’ve got a good starting point. You may be surprised at how little or how much you actually walk in a given day.

Ways to increase your walking distance

After you’ve determined how much you walk during the day, it’s time to think about how to increase the distance you walk. Be creative! There are a number of ways to increase the distance you walk each day. One warning, though: If you don’t currently walk much, don’t jump right in and try to hit the goal of 10,000 steps a day. Increase the number of steps you take gradually – maybe 500 a week – until you reach your goal.

• Wake up and get moving. Take a walk around the neighborhood just to wake up.

• Take a walk with your spouse, child or friend.

• Walking the dog is great for you and the dog. Do it in the morning and the evening.

• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

• Park farther from the store or walk to the store.

• Go shopping. You don’t even have to buy anything.

The health benefits of walking

Walking will not only help you physically, but can help your mental state as well. It helps you to relax and get your mind off of things. By the same token, it can also help you concentrate. For many, it is the “me time” they take every day.

People who walk for exercise can experience significant weight loss. As the weight comes off, you may even find yourself with the ability to come off of diabetes medication. It can tone and tighten the muscles in your legs and glutes. More importantly, a brisk walk can help improve your cardiovascular fitness, too. As with any exercise regimen, it’s a good idea to talk to your physician about walking for better health.

 

Mind, body, spirit Signs you’re stressed out

Stress is the feeling that’s created when you’re faced with change. It can be both positive and negative; however, for most people, stress is definitely negative.

Why? Quite simply, because there’s too much of it and we react to it in a negative way. Yes, it can be positive, but we tend not to think of it as stress. It is a challenge that we must arise to meet. Requiring our best performance, it produces a genuinely positive response.

The most common connotation is that stress is negative, and our response to it can vary and can affect our physical, emotional and psychological well-being. Prolonged periods of stress can be debilitating and you should take steps to ensure that you’re dealing with stress in a proactive way.

Be on the lookout for these signs of stress.

Weakened immune system

If you’ve got a cold you can’t shake, it could be a sign that your body’s immune system is working at its full potential. 

Memory loss

Studies have shown that chronic stress can expose the hippocampus, which is the area of the brain that controls short-term memory.

Grinding your teeth

If you wake up with pain in your jaw or teeth, it could be a sign that you’re grinding your teeth in your sleep. This can cause the enamel to erode and can crack your fillings. A mouth guard can prevent damage while you’re addressing the stress that’s causing you to grind your teeth; a visit to your dentist to discuss options would be good.

Upset stomach

Stress can cause gastrointestinal problems such as heartburn, indigestion, abdominal upset, cramps and diarrhea.

Back pain

When you’re experiencing stress, you may hold your body in different positions while sleeping or tighten your muscles subconsciously, leading to ache and fatigued muscles.

Sleeplessness

Stress and anxiety can cause you to not get a restful night’s sleep. It can make it hard to relax. This can cause restlessness and even insomnia.

Vomiting

In some instances, stress triggers nausea and vomiting.

Headaches

Head pain can range from low-grade headaches to debilitating migraines.

Strange thoughts

When you are stressed out, it can be very difficult to concentrate. You may find your thoughts wandering, and your thoughts may not always seem rational.

Acne breakouts

One very unattractive symptom of stress is pimples and acne breakouts caused by the release of androgen in your blood, which clogs pores.

Sensitive gums

Another sign of a weakened immune system, your body may not be able to fight the bacteria that settle around your gum line, which causes inflammation, bleeding and sensitivity. 

Itchy skin

Stress can lead to skin rashes and may worsen skin conditions such as psoriasis and dermatitis. 

Twitchy eyes

You may notice that your eyelids start twitching uncontrollably on their own when you are stressed out. 

Hair loss

You may find that you’re losing a higher than normal amount of hair when washing or brushing your hair. Stress causes your hair follicle to go into the resting phase; prolonged inactivity causes the hair to fall out.

There are more symptoms that can be indicators of stress, but these are very common. If you notice that you’re experiencing one or more of these symptoms, a visit to your doctor is in order. They can help you with strategies to deal with stress so that it does not become a debilitating aspect of your life.

Mind, body, spirit

Signs you’re stressed out

Stress is the feeling that’s created when you’re faced with change. It can be both positive and negative; however, for most people, stress is definitely negative.

Why? Quite simply, because there’s too much of it and we react to it in a negative way. Yes, it can be positive, but we tend not to think of it as stress. It is a challenge that we must arise to meet. Requiring our best performance, it produces a genuinely positive response.

The most common connotation is that stress is negative, and our response to it can vary and can affect our physical, emotional and psychological well-being. Prolonged periods of stress can be debilitating and you should take steps to ensure that you’re dealing with stress in a proactive way.

Be on the lookout for these signs of stress.

Weakened immune system

If you’ve got a cold you can’t shake, it could be a sign that your body’s immune system is working at its full potential. 

Memory loss

Studies have shown that chronic stress can expose the hippocampus, which is the area of the brain that controls short-term memory.

Grinding your teeth

If you wake up with pain in your jaw or teeth, it could be a sign that you’re grinding your teeth in your sleep. This can cause the enamel to erode and can crack your fillings. A mouth guard can prevent damage while you’re addressing the stress that’s causing you to grind your teeth; a visit to your dentist to discuss options would be good.

Upset stomach

Stress can cause gastrointestinal problems such as heartburn, indigestion, abdominal upset, cramps and diarrhea.

Back pain

When you’re experiencing stress, you may hold your body in different positions while sleeping or tighten your muscles subconsciously, leading to ache and fatigued muscles.

Sleeplessness

Stress and anxiety can cause you to not get a restful night’s sleep. It can make it hard to relax. This can cause restlessness and even insomnia.

Vomiting

In some instances, stress triggers nausea and vomiting.

Headaches

Head pain can range from low-grade headaches to debilitating migraines.

Strange thoughts

When you are stressed out, it can be very difficult to concentrate. You may find your thoughts wandering, and your thoughts may not always seem rational.

Acne breakouts

One very unattractive symptom of stress is pimples and acne breakouts caused by the release of androgen in your blood, which clogs pores.

Sensitive gums

Another sign of a weakened immune system, your body may not be able to fight the bacteria that settle around your gum line, which causes inflammation, bleeding and sensitivity. 

Itchy skin

Stress can lead to skin rashes and may worsen skin conditions such as psoriasis and dermatitis. 

Twitchy eyes

You may notice that your eyelids start twitching uncontrollably on their own when you are stressed out. 

Hair loss

You may find that you’re losing a higher than normal amount of hair when washing or brushing your hair. Stress causes your hair follicle to go into the resting phase; prolonged inactivity causes the hair to fall out.

There are more symptoms that can be indicators of stress, but these are very common. If you notice that you’re experiencing one or more of these symptoms, a visit to your doctor is in order. They can help you with strategies to deal with stress so that it does not become a debilitating aspect of your life.

 

 

 

Waking up without coffee

Waking up without coffee

One of the rituals of the American morning is coffee. People love it. Coffee makers come in all shapes and sizes. Some people search to find THE coffee makers that match their kitchen. They can be pre-set, they have alarm clocks and some will even brew just one perfect cup of the stuff that wakes them up and gets them moving.

Next to oil, coffee is the commodity that generates the most revenue worldwide. Entire industries have been built on this morning ritual. Starbuck’s corporatized the corner coffee shop, made it cool and built one of the biggest companies in the country. Coffee houses and chains sprang up after Starbuck’s initial success. In response, McDonald’s changed their coffee and started to offer gourmet coffees for the morning commute. And Dunkin’ Donuts, which sells more coffee in theU.S.than anyone, focuses its corporate advertising on the coffee, not the donuts.

Coffee, or more accurately, the caffeine in coffee, is addictive. It can also be expensive. If you find yourself with some of the symptoms of too much caffeine – jitters, heartburn or acid reflux, irritability, trouble sleeping, stack of coffeehouse receipts in your wallet – you might try these alternatives to the morning joe.

Take a cool shower

Not a COLD shower, a COOL shower. A cold shower can shock your system and there’s no sense in that. A cool shower will get the mind and body going. Try an invigorating body wash, too; something with peppermint in it.

Let there be light

Getting some light is a way to make your body realize that it’s time to get up. Getting outside in the sunshine is a great way to start the day; however, like many, you may be up before dawn. Just turn on the lights in the bedroom and the house. Dark is the enemy to waking up.

Listen to something

Set your alarm clock to your favorite radio station. Turn on the TV. Listen to an audiobook. Quiet is the enemy to waking up.

Get moving

Taking a brisk walk or jog around the neighborhood is a great way to start the day. Any exercise is beneficial. Take your dog for a walk. It benefits them just as much as it does you. Stretching, calisthenics, or yoga are also great ways to get moving in the morning.

Drink a glass of ice cold water

A glass of ice cold water, and we’re talking as cold as you can make it, will help wake you up as much as a cup of coffee will.

Don’t skip breakfast

Eating breakfast kick starts your metabolism. Make sure you get some protein and good carbohydrates. If you absolutely HATE eating breakfast, some people find that eating an apple is beneficial. The natural sugars in them give you energy. (And there is some truth to “An apple a day…”)

Try herbal tea

Hot teas may not be your bread and butter, but you probably didn’t LOVE coffee the first time you tried it, either. There are hundreds of different teas to try so you’re likely to find one that you like. Teas have great properties to help your health, too; many are high in antioxidants, which can help you fight certain types of cancer.

If you’ve tried to cut down on coffee, what’s your favorite way to start the day?

 

Waking up without coffee

 

One of the rituals of the American morning is coffee. People love it. Coffee makers come in all shapes and sizes. Some people search to find THE coffee makers that match their kitchen. They can be pre-set, they have alarm clocks and some will even brew just one perfect cup of the stuff that wakes them up and gets them moving.

Next to oil, coffee is the commodity that generates the most revenue worldwide. Entire industries have been built on this morning ritual. Starbuck’s corporatized the corner coffee shop, made it cool and built one of the biggest companies in the country. Coffee houses and chains sprang up after Starbuck’s initial success. In response, McDonald’s changed their coffee and started to offer gourmet coffees for the morning commute. And Dunkin’ Donuts, which sells more coffee in theU.S.than anyone, focuses its corporate advertising on the coffee, not the donuts.

Coffee, or more accurately, the caffeine in coffee, is addictive. It can also be expensive. If you find yourself with some of the symptoms of too much caffeine – jitters, heartburn or acid reflux, irritability, trouble sleeping, stack of coffeehouse receipts in your wallet – you might try these alternatives to the morning joe.

Take a cool shower

Not a COLD shower, a COOL shower. A cold shower can shock your system and there’s no sense in that. A cool shower will get the mind and body going. Try an invigorating body wash, too; something with peppermint in it.

Let there be light

Getting some light is a way to make your body realize that it’s time to get up. Getting outside in the sunshine is a great way to start the day; however, like many, you may be up before dawn. Just turn on the lights in the bedroom and the house. Dark is the enemy to waking up.

Listen to something

Set your alarm clock to your favorite radio station. Turn on the TV. Listen to an audiobook. Quiet is the enemy to waking up.

Get moving

Taking a brisk walk or jog around the neighborhood is a great way to start the day. Any exercise is beneficial. Take your dog for a walk. It benefits them just as much as it does you. Stretching, calisthenics, or yoga are also great ways to get moving in the morning.

Drink a glass of ice cold water

A glass of ice cold water, and we’re talking as cold as you can make it, will help wake you up as much as a cup of coffee will.

Don’t skip breakfast

Eating breakfast kick starts your metabolism. Make sure you get some protein and good carbohydrates. If you absolutely HATE eating breakfast, some people find that eating an apple is beneficial. The natural sugars in them give you energy. (And there is some truth to “An apple a day…”)

Try herbal tea

Hot teas may not be your bread and butter, but you probably didn’t LOVE coffee the first time you tried it, either. There are hundreds of different teas to try so you’re likely to find one that you like. Teas have great properties to help your health, too; many are high in antioxidants, which can help you fight certain types of cancer.

If you’ve tried to cut down on coffee, what’s your favorite way to start the day?

 

Why your down payment should be at least 20 percent

 

If you’re like most people, you’re planning to have a mortgage in order to pay for your house. It’s almost unavoidable to buy a home without financing.

Conventional wisdom until a couple of decades ago was that a home buyer needed to save at least 20 percent to put down on a house. Recently, though, many people have gotten away from that rule of thumb. In order to promote home ownership, some programs require much less. There are some options that offer zero down.

Simple math

For the sake of this example, the home you’re buying is $200,000. The interest rate is 4 percent. Taxes are 1.5 percent. Private mortgage insurance (more on that later) is 0.5 percent.

Rates calculated using: zillow.com

Lower mortgage payments
Simple math dictates that the more you put down, the less your monthly payment will be. All things being equal, your mortgage payment drops $191 if you have 20 percent down as opposed to zero down. As a new homeowner, that will definitely help your monthly budget.

No mortgage-insurance fees
Private mortgage insurance (PMI) protects the lender in case you cannot pay the mortgage. PMI is required if your down payment is less than 20 percent in most cases. Your lender requires the fee be paid until you reach 20 percent equity in your home. Mortgage insurance can be expensive, ranging from 0.5 to 1 percent of the home’s value annually.

Lower interest rate
With a larger down payment, you could qualify for lower interest rates, a fact not taken into account in the example above. Using the same example, if your interest rate dropped to 3.5 percent, your monthly mortgage payment would be $926.80 and the total interest payment would be $98,649.74. Compared to the 10 percent down payment in our example, you’d save $30,715 over the life of the loan in interest and PMI payments just by paying an extra $10,000 down.

Patience pays

As stated, the example above is simple math, but there’s nothing simple about mortgage math. Ask your REALTOR® and mortgage lender to crunch the numbers for you. Patience pays: taking the time to save money for a down payment offers solid return on investment. Over a 30-year mortgage, having a bigger down payment can save you tens of thousands of dollars on your starter home, helps you build equity faster and puts you on firmer financial footing.

 

Spring cleaning checklist (and how to keep it green)

 

One of the annual events that no one looks forward to (well… almost no one) is spring cleaning. If you’re like me, you dread it. But it’s one of those things that have to be done.

For many people, spring cleaning is daunting because as they’re working, something else that needs to be done draws their attention. Don’t let that happen! Concentrate on the task at hand, one room at a time. Here’s a checklist for your spring cleaning.

 

Keep your spring cleaning environmentally friendly

You don’t need to buy cleaning products heavy on the chemicals. Be sure to check out the tip at the end of each checklist to help make your spring cleaning green this year. Most of these cleaners can be made inexpensively with common household products.

 

Kitchen

Dust everything, including tops of cabinets, door frames, baseboards, chairs, tables and window sills.

Refrigerator – Clean out the coils of the refrigerator vent. Wipe down the outside. Pull everything out and wipe down the shelves and drawers.

Microwave – wash out the inside and outside.

Wash the windows and the light fixtures.

Clean any small appliances such as toasters and can openers.

Cabinets – Pull everything out to check the condition of pots and pans. Replace shelf lining if needed.

Pantry – Just like a grocery store, it’s a good idea to rotate your stock of staples. Remove all boxed and canned goods and throw away anything that is out of date.

Stove – Even if your stove has a self-cleaning mode, it doesn’t get everything, especially on the door. You’ll need to use a cleaner to get it really clean.

 

Environmentally friendly oven cleaner: Make a paste using baking soda and hydrogen peroxide. When oven is cool, rub it on to the oven door and bottom. Leave overnight. Then wipe away.

 

Bedrooms

Dust – baseboards, door frames, window sills, lamp shades and any small items on shelves

Bed – Turn and rotate the mattress. Vacuum and clean under the bed, as well as the mattress and box springs.

Carpet – Attack any spots and shampoo the carpet.

Closets – Pull out winter clothes for storage. Organize by style and color, which makes your closet look great and saves you time in the morning.

Windows – Wash the curtains and the windows.

 

14 Facts to Help Improve Your St. Patrick’s Day Trivia

On March 17, everybody in America becomes Irish for a day. A religious day in Ireland, drinking a pint or two to celebrate really began here in the U.S. Here are some things you may not have known about one of America’s favorite holidays and the man it celebrates.

1. St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland, was born Maewyn Succat in Great Britain, near Kilkenny, Scotland. At 16, he was kidnapped and sold as a slave in Ireland. He escaped after six years, entered the monastery, became a priest, and returned years later to spread Christianity in Ireland.
2. Although everyone wears green on St. Patrick’s Day, his color, and the one most associated with the holiday until the 19th century, was blue.
3. Although generally accepted and widely known as St. Patrick, he has never received formal canonization by a Pope.
4. The legend of St. Patrick says that he drove the snakes from Ireland. While it’s true there are no snakes indigenous to Ireland, the snakes of the myth more likely symbolize the Pagan beliefs held by most in that country before the arrival of St. Patrick.
5. March 17 does not celebrate St. Patrick’s birthday. No one really knows upon which day he was born, but it is generally accepted by historians that he died on March 17, 460 A.D.
6. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was held in Boston in 1737. Irish soldiers serving in the English army, missing their home, organized the parade.
7. The St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York has been held every year since 1762.
8. Boston still hosts one of the largest parades in America. New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Kansas City also host very popular parades.
9. The city of Chicago turns the river that runs through it green to celebrate the day.
10. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade held in Dublin was in 1931.
11. In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday to celebrate Lent. In fact, pubs in Ireland were actually closed on March 17 until the 1970s.
12. More than 33 million people in the U.S. claim Irish heritage. There are only about 4.4 million living in Ireland.
13. Although many people celebrate the day with a pint and corned beef and cabbage, that is almost exclusively an Irish-American dish. Corned beef was inexpensive, and probably the only meat poor Irish immigrants could afford.
14.  A popular Irish toast on St Patrick’s Day, is “may the roof above us never fall in, and may we friends beneath it never fall out.”