Kid Approved Meals

Kid Approved Meals Weekly Breakfast and Lunch Menus Moms and Kids Love!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

The Best Aromatherapy for Stress Relief

It has been a widely held belief that aromatherapy can calm and soothe most people who are suffering from stress. Here are some of the best aromas that have been utilized for this very purpose.

Chamomile, consumed as a tea, is perhaps the most widely known product used to relieve stress. Utilized in its oil form, its scent calms and reduces pain as well.

Lavender is also popular oil, which is primarily used in bathing. While it has been known to treat a variety of ailments, its scent is widely used to calm, release tension and offer a peaceful sleep as well.

If the use of rose petals was good enough for Cleopatra, it is good enough for the rest of us. This essential oil also produces a calm and inner peace. Primarily used in bathing, it has been known to not only alleviate stress, but dissipate depression as well.

Jasmine oil has a scent, which is considered the best for treating nervous conditions, combat depression and overcome sadness.

Sandalwood oil has been known to not only calm the nerves, but rid anyone of those jittery and irritable feelings as well. It is also known to bring one out of a state of depression.

While this oil is primarily used in baking, vanilla is one essential oil that invokes feelings of well being and pleasant memories. It calms, relieves stress and is overall a wonderful scent whose fragrance is known throughout the culinary world.

Any of these scents can be used in baths, candles teas, or as a condiment in baking. While there is some who plant roses in their garden or display scented candles throughout the home, aromatherapy does indeed soothe the inner soul and impart calmness and serenity.

Moreover, using any of these essential oils in their purest form is the best way to relieve stress. In fact, there has been an explosion of aromatherapy candles on the market today with various scents that offer stress relief as well.

Cleo had the right idea. Take a milk bath and fill it with rose petals. Add a few rose scented candles and you will feel better than you’ve every felt before.

How Negative Thinking Effects Your Health

Have you ever been at home or at work and became frustrated with the task at hand and muttered to yourself “I can’t take this anymore!” We all have many pressures in our lives. Whether it is raising families, trying to make the mortgage payments, keeping up with the kids or a myriad of other things we deal with on a day-to-day basis.

Most of us find ourselves talking in negative tones, using negative words and becoming quite depressed afterwards. Sometimes we are so tired we can’t get out of bed or do a simple chore. The effects of negative thinking can and do have serious health consequences.

Negative thinking causes headaches, body aches and a host of health-related conditions that might not normally occur. While depression is the main culprit, it is caused by feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem, fear and anxiety. These feelings will generally result in an overall feeling of hopelessness. They can also lead to heart attacks and strokes.

In addition, negative thinking creates stress and stress is the number one cause of major health problems today. While it’s not easy to stay positive in a world that’s often negative, the idea is to focus on you and your family. Stay focused on what you can control, not what is totally out of your control.

There are people whose lives are surrounded by negativity and they have been plagued with diseases such as cancer and other debilitating illnesses. While there are those who live in there own little world made up of negative thoughts and feelings, there are those who will battle those feelings with every fiber of their being to ensure they enjoy life to the fullest and not worry about tomorrow.

Positive thinking people may be less likely to get sick, and their view of the world is to always to look for the good in others, appreciate the now and not worry day after day about the future. They enjoy each day as it comes and live in the moment. With everything going on in the world today, perhaps this is the best alternative to bemoaning one’s life and future.

The key to a long life is to stay focused on the here and now, enjoy loved ones and friends, experience new things, conquer old fears and live with a positive attitude as much as possible.

How Exercise Can Help Relieve Stress

Exercise is the quintessential method to relieve stress. When fully engaged in an exercise program the body releases endorphins in the brain, which induces a natural high and dissipates the stress, leaving you feeling energized and relaxed.

It doesn’t matter what form of exercise you choose, the point is that any type of exercise will achieve the same results. Whether its walking, running, stretching, aerobics or yoga. Your body becomes completely relaxed and able to cope with whatever it is that caused the stress in the first place.

Moreover, exercise is essential for your cardiovascular system. It improves your overall health and along with a diet regimen, can help you maintain a balance within.

Walking for 20 minutes every other day, biking in the park, engaging in aerobic exercises either at home or at the gym are the clear cut solutions to relieving stress.

For example, if you are a working mom or dad, walk during your lunch hour every day for 20 minutes before lunch. Sometimes fatigue sets in during the early afternoon and this is a great way to become energized for the rest of the workday.

If you are working on a project and cannot take a lunch break, take a five minute break and do some stretch exercise in the office. Sitting all day in front of a computer is not healthy. It can cause leg cramps, shoulder and back problems, neck cramps and clots. Getting up and moving around is essential. Stretching will help relieve the stress that causes these symptoms, and you will be able to finish out the day in a calmer and more relaxed state.

One can always tell when stress is taking its toll. The body tenses up, muscle aches begin, and irritability becomes your unwanted friend. Exercise, no matter what form, not only makes you feel good but also relaxes the body and frees up the mind to be able to concentrate on the tasks at hand.