For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving Day is a whirlwind of a day. It involves a lot of cooking time, a marathon of eating, and time spent with loved ones. Maybe you turn on the Macy’s parade or watch some football games before you pile on the calories. However you celebrate this holiday, one thing is for certain: about 70% of the American population feels stressed about the holiday’s arrival. 

Thanksgiving can induce stress for a variety of reasons. If you are in charge of cooking the meal, you have a lot of prep work today for the arrival of your guests. That can be quite stressful, but it’s also possible to feel anxiety or strong emotions about going to Thanksgiving dinner at a relative’s house. Maybe you had to take two flights and an Uber in peak holiday travel to make it. Perhaps you just have anxiety about aunts and uncles asking about your employment. Whatever the case, there are many things that can induce stress over this feast of a holiday. Fortunately, there are also strategies that can help you manage stress, and we detail them below.

Consume To Enjoy And Don’t Eat Your Feelings

The Thanksgiving spread is full of calorically dense, rich entrees, sides, and desserts. We are not here to dissuade a generally healthy person from an extra spoonful of gravy or an additional slice of pie. Are you enjoying an extra serving just to do so, or is a fully loaded second plate your way of coping with feelings of stress or anxiety? Overeating and over-drinking are unhealthy coping mechanisms that are all too common around the holidays. Consume festive food with people out of merriment, not to bury negative feelings. 

Set Boundaries

If you want to avoid stress and anxiety around Thanksgiving, or any holiday celebration with family, make sure to set boundaries regarding certain discussion topics. For whatever reason, there is always one family member that likes to stir the pot. Perhaps they bring up who they voted for or what their foreign policy opinions are. There will likely be a lot of election anxiety, as a result of the aftermath, and opinions are stronger than ever. Set a boundary by sending a loving email requesting that everyone leave their political opinions at the door for Thanksgiving. Request that you do not want to talk about any religious, socioeconomic, or other issues that are touchy subjects. Keep the conversation light-hearted and loving to keep stress levels down.

Embrace Gratitude

There is great power in gratitude. Being thankful for things that are good in life, even the smallest things, can lead to mental health improvements. According to one analysis of 70 studies, there is an association between higher levels of gratitude and lower levels of depression. The same report found that reaffirming gratitude for 15 minutes per day, five times per week, can enhance mental awareness. A separate meta-analysis of 64 randomized trials found that participants who underwent gratitude interventions experienced fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression. Try your best to express gratitude on a day that represents being thankful. If you do not wish to speak your feelings of gratitude out loud with family, consider writing in a gratitude journal and reflect on it around Christmas or the New Year. 

Be Mindful Of Your Triggers

There are certain people and situations that just seem to push your buttons like no other. This is especially true during the holiday season. As you enter Thanksgiving, be mindful of this and recognize your potential triggers before you encounter them. That way, you can practice coping skills and prepare how you will react to those triggers. You can reframe your thoughts, employ progressive muscle relaxation, or use breathing techniques to help reduce anxiety and stress. A few common triggers are:

• Excessive crowds in shopping centers and grocery stores
• Travel issues, including flight delays and accommodation struggles
• Issues that come about when you host Thanksgiving
• Interactions and disagreements with certain family members

Exercise

Fatigue and laziness often accompany Thanksgiving stress and anxiety. Stave off your lethargy by incorporating or increasing exercise into the days leading up to the big feast. You are not trying to burn extra calories so that you can eat more; rather, the goal of exercising is to promote mental wellness. Exercise helps to trigger a brain-body response through the healthy release of dopamine. When you exercise outdoors, that dopamine release is combined with an increase in serotonin, a feel-good neurotransmitter that may help reduce anxiety and stress.

SHARE:

The post Managing Mental Health This Thanksgiving appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

Recent studies suggest that junk food accounts for about 50% of the average American’s daily caloric intake. Junk food is the umbrella term that describes ultra-processed foods and drinks, such as fast food, soda, candy, packaged cookies, and salty snack foods. Although there is nothing wrong with enjoying ice cream, chips, or baked goods from time to time, junk food should not be a regular part of your diet. Consuming too much of it can be detrimental to your mental and physical health. 

People who consume more junk food have a higher risk of obesity, fatty liver, depression, high blood pressure, heart disease, and certain cancers. You may understand this reality, but the problem is that junk food is so appealing. The brain encourages you to seek pleasurable experiences, such as enjoying tasty food. This natural encouragement is the brain’s “reward” system. When you eat tasty food, including junk food, you activate that reward system and the brain releases dopamine. This rush of pleasure causes the brain to create more receptors to respond to that dopamine rush. Ultimately, you care more about junk food the more you eat it because you have that reward system in place. 

If you currently eat a lot of junk food and want to kick your habit, the methods in this article may be effective for you. The following tips are evidence-based, so experiment with them to see which ones work for you. 

Fuel Your Body Regularly

You may think that depriving your body of calories or being overly restrictive with food will lead to weight loss. This tactic can actually have the opposite effect, causing you to ravenously eat foods, many of which are unhealthy. There is a complex relationship between calorie restriction and the cravings you have. The research, however, shows that skipping meals or depriving the body of certain foods can increase cravings and snacking. Everyone has different caloric needs, but you should aim to fuel your body with fiber-rich, protein-rich, and nutrient-dense meals and snacks. When you provide your body with these types of foods, you will reduce your cravings for junk food. 

Get Enough Sleep

Whether you want to believe it or not, insufficient sleep can cause you to make poor food choices. Additionally, lack of sleep increases your desire for junk food because it is quick, easy, and highly accessible. Studies confirm that lack of sleep, or irregular sleep patterns, can increase your caloric intake, snacking, and cravings for high-fat, high-sugar foods. In fact, just one night of poor sleep can affect your food choices the next day. A 2019 study found that reducing sleep time by 33% (two to three hours of sleep) caused increased hunger cravings, compared to a normal night of sleep. To protect your food choices, get between seven to nine hours of sleep per night. 

Consider Taking Inventory Of Your Pantry

If you have junk food in your house, especially if you know where to find it, you will likely gravitate towards it. Consider swapping out ultra-processed food products with more nutritious options. Junk food that is palatable and addictive is dangerous to have in your house. The research shows that just looking at tempting foods can stimulate the striatum, an area in the brain that regulates appetite and reward from food intake. Looking at cookies, candy, or chips may lead to snacking, overeating, and eating even if you are not hungry. Do a pantry overhaul to see which foods need to go. Stock your counter with fresh fruit instead of keeping candy in your pantry!

Cook More Meals At Home

Not only does cooking at home save you money, but it can also help you cut back on junk food. Stopping at a fast food establishment, although convenient, is not conducive to your health journey. Cooking at home, especially if you meal prep, can help you decrease your reliance on convenience foods. Additionally, meal prepping is a great way to ensure that you always have healthy food options. Many studies indicate that people who cook more have better quality diets, enjoying more servings of fruits and vegetables per day. They also eat less food than people who dine out often. 

Eat More Filling Foods

Struggling with what to eat? It can be beneficial to learn more about how certain foods impact your body and hunger levels. That knowledge can help you devise a better plan of attack for your meals, and may help you cut back on your junk food intake as well. Most junk foods are high in calories, but they don’t fill you up. Ever notice how you can eat an entire bag of chips and still be hungry? That is why it benefits you to eat foods that are higher in protein, healthy fats, and fiber. Consider eating homemade overnight oats or chia pudding instead of grabbing a donut and coffee on your way to work. You can also opt for a fruit and vegetable smoothie to satiate you until lunch!

Grocery Shop Regularly

If you want to make more food at home and stop eating junk food, a well-stocked kitchen makes that task much more doable. Studies have shown that people who grocery shop regularly have better quality diets than people who don’t. Additionally, those people eat much less ultra-processed foods. When you go to the grocery store, make sure to take a grocery list and stick to it. Avoid going to the store when you are hungry because that will cause you to make impulse purchases that do nothing for your health.

SHARE:

The post Helpful Tips To Stop Eating Junk Food appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

In a world that is seemingly out of your control, taking care of yourself in little ways can make a huge difference. Eating foods that nourish the body, mind, and soul is one of the easiest ways to do this. Caring for yourself via your diet can help keep you in tune with your hunger cues, but the foods you eat also influence your mental health. In fact, what you put on your plate can increase the production of dopamine, your body’s feel-good hormone.

What Is Dopamine?

Dopamine is a type of neurotransmitter that the body makes. The nervous system uses it to send messages between nerve cells, which is why scientists refer to dopamine as a chemical messenger. Dopamine also plays a role in how you feel pleasure, helping us strive, focus, and find interest in things. The body spreads it along four major brain pathways, and you don’t notice it until a problem arises. Too much or too little can lead to varying health issues, including Parkinson’s disease, although other conditions are much less dire.

It’s hard to pinpoint a single cause of most mental health disorders and challenges. Researchers speculate, though, that they are often linked to too much or too little dopamine in different parts of the brain. Some research shows that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be due to a shortage of dopamine. Drug misuse and addiction is often because drugs satisfy the brains’ natural reward system. Repeated drug use, however, raises the threshold for that kind of pleasure, meaning you need to take more of that drug to get the same dopamine rush. At the same time, drugs make the body less able to naturally produce dopamine. If you want to naturally increase dopamine levels, though, the following foods may come to your aid.

Coffee

In moderation, coffee exhibits several health benefits, especially if the coffee beans are high quality. Drinking a cup of coffee a day can help increase dopamine levels because caffeine signals the body to produce additional dopamine. You don’t necessarily have to drink coffee to help the body produce more dopamine. Matcha, chocolate, green tea, and other caffeinated teas can increase the body’s dopamine production. Consider a morning cup of caffeinated tea or coffee an investment in your overall mood. 

Foods High In B-Vitamins

If the body is low in B-vitamins, it is unable to produce enough dopamine, according to health experts. Vitamin B6, specifically, is essential for the synthesis of many neurotransmitters, including dopamine, serotonin, GABA, and melatonin. Most B-vitamins are fairly easy to obtain from a variety of food sources. In the case of vitamin B6, you can easily include more of it in your diet by eating avocados, pistachios, quinoa, bananas, sunflower seeds, nutritional yeast, acorn squash, chestnuts, hazelnuts, oranges, sesame seeds, and tomatoes. 

Nuts And Seeds

Nuts and seeds contain heart healthy fats and vital protein, but they also contain an essential amino acid that works with dopamine. Nuts and seeds contain L-tyrosine, which the body breaks down and converts to dopamine. Peanuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds, for example, are great sources of L-tyrosine. Anytime you want to boost your happiness, snack on some high-quality nut butters and trail mixes.

Chocolate

Sweet treats are tricky when it comes to dopamine because they work in two ways. Sweets tend to produce serotonin, the feel-good hormone, in the body. Chocolates also contain small amounts of phenylethylamine (PEA), a compound that stimulates brain cells to release dopamine, according to studies. PEA is also associated with falling in love! That said, the quality of chocolate is very important. Ideally, you should consume fair-trade dark chocolate instead of chemically manufactured candy bars. 

Probiotics

There is a clear connection between the gut and brain, with scientists referring to the gut as the second brain. Certain species of bacteria that inhabit the gut are capable of producing dopamine, which may positively impact mood and behavior. Although research is limited in this area, some studies suggest that, when consumed in enough quantities, certain strains of bacteria may reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression. Dopamine production likely plays a role in the way probiotics improve mood, but more studies are necessary on this topic.

SHARE:

The post 5 Foods Known To Boost Dopamine Production appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

In today’s day and age, it’s often necessary to press pause on social media platforms and press play on real life. Whether it’s TikTok, Twitter, or Instagram, endless scrolling can leave you feeling jittery, stressed, and on edge. Too many people spend more time browsing social media feeds than they do engaging with people face to face. The constant scrolling is very negative, which is why taking a break from social media can benefit your health. 

You may not think that you are a social media addict, but how many times do you check your social platforms on a daily basis? Do you search memes or mindlessly scroll through reels when out at a restaurant? Is capturing the moment on your phone more important than experiencing it through your own eyes? If this describes you, it’s time to take a break from social media. 

What Is A Social Media Cleanse?

Basically, a social media cleanse is a fancy way of saying “taking a break” from social media. “Cleanse” is a buzzword, which is why a lot of health websites use it in regards to things like a social media cleanse. A hiatus from the Twitterverse, for example, can last for a week or months; it really just depends on your Internet habits. Mental health experts explain that taking a break can help reduce the risk of addictive habits or behaviors. Notifications, messages, likes, and comments are little dopamine jolts. These can feel good, but the negative attention, or lack thereof, on social media can send you into a downward spiral. When you take a break from the screen, you may experience the following benefits. 

You May Sleep Better

There are many people who sleep with their phone, clutching it like a child cuddling a stuffed animal. Some people scroll their way to sleep, while others cannot sleep because they scroll right up until bedtime. Artificial light from your phone or screen can interfere with the body’s melatonin production. This hormone is responsible for helping you fall asleep, so looking into the social media void can make this process very difficult for your body. Separating yourself from social media will not only lead to less time in front of your screen, but it may also aid your sleep. 

Curb Your FOMO

Fear of missing out (FOMO) is the daunting feeling you get when you’re plugged into your device. Psychologists say that linking up to a large social media network can make where you are in the world feel like it’s the wrong place to be. Naturally, you experience FOMO, but professors at Kent State University say that where you are in the moment is often the right place to be. That said, the absence of social media can create FOMO because you worry that you are missing a friend’s wedding announcement or baby shower celebration. Sometimes, though, you just need to unplug to appreciate that you are supposed to be exactly where you are. 

Improve Your Self-Esteem

Constantly scrolling through social media can cause many people to compare lives, bodies, and achievements with everyone else. Friends and influencers alike can make it seem like your life isn’t going the way it should, or that it doesn’t measure up in quality. According to scientists, this constant comparison leads to high rates of depression. A digital detox can help you focus on yourself and reconnect with the people, things, or places that make you happy. Freeing yourself from comparison is often one of the best things you can do for mental health and self-esteem. 

Free Up Your Time

If you stop scrolling, you can free up space in your life to complete other things, which you may avoid. Get out from behind the screen and take a walk, clean your kitchen, organize your closet, rearrange your living room, or go to the gym. You never know what possibilities exist outside of the screen if you never take a break. You may find that you want to devote more time to painting, practicing an instrument, volunteering, or hanging out with friends. The social media-free world has so much to offer, so what will you do?

You May Relax More Easily

As we mentioned earlier, excessive social media use can lead to issues with self-esteem, but it can also lead to loneliness, depression, and stress. A 2017 meta-analysis examined 61 studies that examined social media’s relation to mental health. The researchers found that social media may not affect everyone the same way, arguing that people may not experience depression or self-esteem issues. However, psychologists suggest that taking a break from social media can help reduce anxiety. It lessens the obligations to respond or comment, which can become stressful.

SHARE:

The post 5 Benefits Of Doing A Social Media Cleanse appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

How do you ring in the season of pumpkin spice and Halloween candy? Do you head to pumpkin patches, go apple picking, or get in the fall spirit by decorating your home? However you enjoy the fall season, one thing is for certain: your mental health deserves attention as the weather changes. In the blink of an eye, the holidays will be here and stress levels will skyrocket. Making a point to devote time for self-care in the fall can greatly benefit you towards the end of the year. 

Why Do You Need Self-Care?

Stress is a natural part of life for everyone. Sometimes, stress is that little extra nudge you need to complete a project on time. There are a lot of negative stressors in your life, though, and you can’t avoid all of them. Self-care helps to counteract the negative effects of stress! Without self-care practices, stress can build up in your system, boiling over and wreaking havoc on your body. Stress goes beyond anxiety and mental exhaustion; rather, it can make you eat unhealthy or physically ill. 

Self-care is all the steps and actions you take to nourish you physical, mental, and emotional health. Exercise, talking with a friend, cleaning your house, soaking in a bath, getting a massage, or making a meal count as self-care practices. As the seasons change, it is nice to adapt your self-care practices. You don’t have to make extravagant changes, but it can be nice to embrace certain aspects of fall and incorporate them into your life. Read on to learn about some helpful self-care practices for fall. 

Embrace The Sunshine

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) impacts about one in every 20 American adults. The change of season, no matter if the weather transitions from warm to cold or cold to warm, triggers the condition. For those who suffer from this condition annually, it can be beneficial to embrace the sunshine whenever you get the chance. If you notice that your mood dips as the days get shorter and weather gets colder, go outside if the weather permits. You can also speak with your doctor about taking the right steps to treat SAD with light therapy. Many people find that this therapy greatly improves their mood and SAD symptoms. 

Savor A Warm Drink

Half the fun of colder weather is enjoying an amazingly soothing warm beverage. While we don’t encourage you to consume sugar-laden pumpkin spice lattes on the regular, and occasional one may bring you joy. Tea, coffee, cider, or cocoa are the classic hot beverages that seem to warm the soul. Maximize this self-care practice by taking the time to enjoy the beverage. Don’t simply gulp it down in the car while commuting; rather, take the time to sit, relax, and enjoy your drink. Listen to a podcast, read a book, or watch an episode of your favorite show with your hot drink. 

Spruce Up Your Space

A change of seasons is a great opportunity to give your space a thorough deep cleaning. Getting rid of unnecessary things can be difficult, but also very relieving in regards to stress. Put away the summery things and get out the fall and winter items you’ll use until the spring. Leaving your summer things in your house along with the fall things can create clutter, which can induce stress. Make sure to place your seasonal decorations in bins that you clearly label. Store them in a garage or shed, if that is a viable option, so that they aren’t cluttering up the inside of your home. 

Layer Up And Walk Outside

Before the temperatures become frigid, depending on where you live of course, enjoy the outdoors. You don’t have to venture into nature, although that is never discouraged, because a neighborhood stroll is enough to recharge the batteries. According to research, being outside while the sun is shining may help decrease symptoms of depression and boost levels of happiness. If the temperatures are chillier in the fall, dress yourself in some warmer layers that you can shed as your body warms up during the walk. Try to go on a 30-minute walk whenever you feel overwhelmed, and increase the benefits of this walk by talking to a loved one on the phone. 

Get Out Your Favorite Fall Clothes

Sweater weather is a thing, folks, and bundling up in a cozy sweater is like giving yourself a giant hug. Not only that, bundling up when it gets colder can feel quite soothing, almost as if you are receiving a giant hug. There is also value in wearing clothing that makes you feel good about yourself. Researchers say that wearing something you love triggers the release of dopamine, a hormone that ignites the reward center of your brain. There is even a #DopamineDressing trend with hundreds of thousands of posts on Instagram!

SHARE:

The post Helpful Self-Care Practices That Are Perfect For Fall appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

As one of the brain’s most important chemical messengers, dopamine is essential for memory, mood, motivation, sleep, and behavior regulation. It is at the center of how the brain’s reward system operates. For example, dopamine rewards you when you engage in a behavior that motivates you to repeat that behavior. This is why you feel immense reward or pleasure listening to music, getting a good night’s sleep, or eating a great meal. 

Contrarily, low dopamine levels can deplete your motivation and enthusiasm about things that excite most people. There are several causes for low dopamine levels, some of the primary of which include brain injury or an inability to respond to dopamine properly. If levels get too low for too long, you increase the risk of restless leg syndrome, depression, and Parkinson’s disease. Low dopamine levels can also make you more susceptible to developing addictions or taking risks.

Natural Ways To Boost Dopamine Levels

If you find that you regularly feel tired or sad and experience brain fog, low energy, or lack of motivation, you may have low dopamine levels. Irritation and worry tend to indicate low serotonin levels, which you can learn more about here. There are strategies to address low dopamine levels and naturally increase them. Below, you’ll find the best ways to naturally increase dopamine levels. 

Maintain A Healthy Diet

Diet supports mental and physical well-being. If you need to increase dopamine levels, try to focus on foods that contain tyrosine, which is a nonessential amino acid that is necessary for the production of neurotransmitters, including dopamine, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. Foods that are rich in tyrosine include almonds, avocados, lima beans, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, flaxseeds, yogurt, fish, and bananas. Additionally, probiotic-rich foods may help to increase dopamine production.

Listen To Music

If you want to stimulate the release of dopamine, listen to music. Several brain imaging studies found that listening to music works to increase activity in the pleasure and reward sectors of the brain. Both of these areas of the brain contain lots of dopamine receptors. A small 2011 study investigated the effects of music on dopamine levels. The findings indicated a 9% increase in brain dopamine levels when people listened to instrumental songs that gave them chills or goosebumps. 

Exercise

If you are familiar with runner’s high, you understand that exercise can affect your mood. Several experts recommend high-intensity interval training workouts to yield a mood-boosting effect. Take a brisk walk and include moments of walking as fast as you can for one minute at a time to boost dopamine levels. More research is necessary to figure out the exact mechanism that causes the brain to produce dopamine during exercise. 

Meditate

Meditation is an old practice that helps you establish a better mind/body connection. Forcing you to look inward and accept your thoughts without judgment, meditation is a practice that benefits your mental health. New research found that regular meditation has the ability to increase dopamine levels in the brain. One study, for example, included 8 experienced meditation teachers and found a 65% increase in dopamine production after one hour of meditation. Researchers believe that increasing dopamine levels is thought to maintain a positive mood and motivation amongst meditators. 

Avoid Processed Sugars

If you love candy and soda, it’s time to remove them from your diet if you want to increase dopamine levels. The interesting thing is that eating sugary foods can lead to a quick dopamine rush, but this is only temporary and artificial. Alcohol and drugs have a similar effect, giving you temporary dopamine bursts. These vices actually affect the rate at which your body produces it naturally, so don’t consume processed sugars in order to avoid the crash that leaves you feeling down. 

Get Your Zzz’s

Sleep experts recommend that people get between seven to eight hours of sleep every night for better overall health. When dopamine is released in the brain, it creates feelings of wakefulness and alertness. Having less dopamine in the body typically makes it harder to concentrate and it affects coordination. Sleep deprivation and insomnia can adversely affect dopamine receptors in the brain. Lack of sleep can actually suppress these receptors, which makes it difficult for your body to produce dopamine. Make sure to get your zzz’s on a nightly basis to help you feel more alert and in a better mood. 

Consider Supplements

The body requires several nutrients in order to create dopamine. These nutrients include iron, folate, vitamin B6, and niacin. Being deficient in one or more of these nutrients can make it difficult for the brain to produce enough dopamine. If you get a full blood panel, you can get a better understanding of whether you are deficient in any of these nutrients or not. That way, you can supplement accordingly to bring levels back up to normalize dopamine production. These nutrients are readily available in food sources, so consider looking at your diet prior to supplementation.

SHARE:

The post 7 Ways To Naturally Increase Dopamine Levels appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

A little over one year ago, gathering with friends in any scenario seemed dangerous, life-threatening even. Going out and playing a pick-up game of basketball wasn’t possible. Smiling at strangers could only be done through masks. More than one year later, however, things are looking up. 

Many adults around the country continue to experience feelings of euphoria as the country transitions into a recognizable state of normalcy. Visiting family, grabbing after work drinks, attending concerts, and going to movies are all possible now. For most people, being within six feet of a stranger is no longer a threat. The fact of the matter is that the world is reopening and the joy of it all is infectious. 

What Are The Numbers?

Since January 20, 2021, COVID-19 cases in the United States have gone down more than 90%. According to a mid-June 2021 report, roughly 175 million Americans received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. That number includes 74% of adults over 40 and 87% of all seniors over 65. In 14 states, at least 70% of adults have received one dose of the vaccine. As younger people start to receive the vaccine, the path to what we knew as normal is clearer than ever. 

Post-Pandemic Joy: What Is It?

There was a common saying throughout the pandemic when it came to interacting with people. “When this is all over,” became something that friends and family said in regards to living life post-pandemic. The sad reality was that the pandemic was ever-changing; nobody knew how long it would last or how serious it would get. While a mild level of danger still remains, fear has subsided and a mental switch flipped. People are ready to break out of their cages and navigate the world again.

Because people had the “when this is all over” mindset, meeting up with people and doing regular things feels that much better now. It’s time for fear and sadness to go and for joy to take over. That being said, some people remain hesitant or fearful of reentering society. It’s perfectly understandable to experience mild anxiety about being in unmasked social settings. People will enter back into the world in their own way that feels comfortable. 

Why Does Everything Seem To Feel Great?

For the majority of the pandemic, people had to suppress happiness. That’s why rates of depression and anxiety skyrocketed. There was a wall, essentially, between the self and pleasure/happiness, creating an absence of joy. Now, there are little to no limitations as to what you can enjoy, especially if you are fully vaccinated. Something as simple as going over to a friend’s house for a barbecue may feel as thrilling as summiting Mount Fuji. Walking into a grocery store without a mask is riveting. Hugging family members is an emotional experience. Going on dates is possible. Almost anything and everything can trigger joy! 

Doing things in the world perpetuates the release of dopamine, which is a reward/feel good hormone. The body releases dopamine during a new and pleasurable experience. It often occurs when you do something exciting, for example, visiting a new country or trying a new activity. The body can also release dopamine after joyful or pleasurable experiences are withheld from a person for a long time. 

That’s why things that used to be commonplace are now exciting and pleasurable. The realization is that people didn’t fully understand how much these things meant to them before the pandemic. Variety kept things interesting and pumped people full of good hormones. That’s coming back again and isolation and loneliness are in the rearview mirror. 

Things To Keep In Mind

Everything is not simply feel good hormones and good times with the return to normalcy. Some people still need space. Strangers in the grocery store aisles aren’t ready for your hugs just yet. People will eventually arrive at the “woohoo” state, but please take consideration for those who are not there yet. Spread kindness and love, but don’t overextend your joy vibes. Letting loose can still have consequences, as the pandemic is not over yet. Take time to adjust to the new world and savor those joyful highs you continue to experience. 

SHARE:

The post Post-Pandemic Joy: Why The Simple Things Feel Good appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

There is a fundamental understanding that your mental health is linked to your physical health, and one can undoubtedly influence the other. Poor physical health can induce mental strain, and mental health conditions can play a significant role in the development of physical health complications. In order to be completely healthy, you must put equal importance on caring for mental, physical, and emotional health.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” There is a connection between your thoughts and the components of the brain responsible for controlling bodily functions. Thoughts can influence hormone production from the endocrine system, which controls a lot of the inner workings of the body. Unhappy or stress-related thoughts may not directly cause physical pain, but they may explain why one person experiences physical suffering and why the other person does not.

How Does The Mind Affect The Body?

The mind can affect physical health in many ways. Consider that people with depression have a higher risk of developing chronic illnesses, such as stroke, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. A review of studies on the link between depression and diabetes found that people with depression had a 41% higher risk for diabetes than those who were not depressed. Additionally, mental or emotional distress can take the form of physical symptoms, for example, insomnia, lethargy, lack of appetite, or constipation.

Nutrition

Food is necessary for survival and the mind and body are connected when it comes to food consumption. What you eat can influence behavior, mood, and cognition, but it can also lead to poor digestion, diabetes, and chronic inflammation. Studies have shown that people who eat more processed foods have a higher risk of developing a mental health disorder. People with deficiencies in micronutrients and omega-3s, for instance, are more prone to feeling depressed. Consider how your nutritional habits affect your physical and mental health.

Sleep

Sleep is the body’s way of naturally recuperating, and having quality sleep every night can make your days stress-free instead of fatigued and restless. A healthy sleep cycle can keep you sane, whereas an unhealthy sleep schedule can put undue stress on mental health. Sleep troubles have been linked to bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, and depression. Adequate sleep can regulate hormones and emotions, keeping you calm in both the mind and body.

Illness

After being diagnosed with a short-term or chronic illness, it is common for people to feel shocked, angry, and sad. Suppressing these emotions can lead to another diagnosis of depression, anxiety, or even chronic stress. The physical diagnosis can worsen the mental diagnosis and vice versa. Additionally, the mental stress can interfere with the recovery and maintenance of the physical condition.

Exercise

It is widely known that physical activity is linked with both physical and mental health benefits. Regular exercise has been known to decrease depression symptoms, stimulate healthy digestion, and boost self-esteem and resilience. Exercising can help boost the brain’s serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine levels, which can improve mental well-being. 30 minutes of exercise a day for at least five days per week has been proven to be more effective at treating eating disorders than other therapies, and regular exercise helps relieve tension or stress via endorphin production.

When you accept that your mental health and physical health are linked, you can start developing strategies to find a harmonious balance and make forward strides in both areas.

SHARE:

The post Connecting The Dots Between Physical And Mental Health appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

Most cases of depression require treatment in some form or another. Be it therapy, medications, counseling, or self-care (sleep, physical activity, and diet), depression needs to be communicated and addressed so that it doesn’t worsen. According to research, eating the right foods ties with getting adequate sleep for combatting depression.

Diet is an integral part of mental health, so much so that there are specialists known as nutritional psychologists. The foods people eat can influence both physical and mental health. Multiple studies have found that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, antioxidants, and wild caught fish and low in animal foods decreased a person’s risk of depression. Consuming a lot of processed foods, meat, meat products, refined grains, sweets, dairy products, and avoiding fresh, plant-based foods increased a person’s risk of depression.

Does Poor Diet Or Depression Come First?

This debate is almost like the chicken or the egg argument. Being depressed may make you more prone to eating unhealthy foods, but eating unhealthy foods may lead to depression. According to research, people who followed a healthy diet, like the Mediterranean diet, had a decreased risk of developing symptoms of depression.

While it can be difficult to opt for healthy foods when you find comfort in a bag of chips, eating healthy can be a great way to improve your mental health. Follow the dietary recommendations in this article to naturally decrease your risk of depression.

More Whole Foods, Less Packaged

The excess sugars, fats, and hormones from dairy products and processed foods can lead to mental and physical ups and downs. Food in its natural state (i.e. foods without chemicals, additives, or refined sugars) is rich in a variety of essential nutrients that help the body function optimally. Clean eating doesn’t necessarily translate to veganism or vegetarianism. Vegans and vegetarians can eat poorly if they are focusing on soy products or frozen, fake meat products. Fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains should be your focus.

Eat Your Tomatoes

The only thing holding you back from doing this is a tomato allergy! Tomatoes contain a lot of folate and alpha-lipoic acid, both of which have been known to naturally fight depression. A research study that was published in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, found that depression patients were deficient in folate. Folate helps to prevent the formation of homocysteine, which partially inhibits the production of important neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine. Alpha-lipoic helps to stabilize your mood because it turns glucose into energy.

Healthy Diet = Better Mood

Dieting can cause stress, but stress hormones can cause you to break your diet. Stick to the path of clean and healthy eating to naturally boost brain health and mood. Foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids work to encourage healthy brain function and can naturally reduce depression symptoms. Over the last century, there has been a massive shift away from natural foods containing omega-3s. Several studies attribute the rise in mental health disorders to the lack of fatty acids in peoples’ diets. Foods that are high in omega-3s include avocados, walnuts, Brussels sprouts, hemp seeds, flaxseeds, and chia seeds.

Cut Out The Sweets

Eating a lot of foods with refined sugars can take your blood sugar levels on wild ride over peaks and valleys. Sticking to foods in their natural state can help eliminate cravings, reduce inflammation, and promote a better outlook on life.

The moral of the story is to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. You want to avoid foods that contain refined grains, refined sugars, animal products, trans fats, and antibiotics. Your diet has a bigger influence on your mental health than you think, so keep eating clean to help avoid depression symptoms.

SHARE:

The post How Clean Eating Can Fight Depression appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.

By adopting the raw foods diet that accompanies any of our cleanses, it is common to experience feelings of hunger. People typically don’t eat enough while they are cleansing, which can lead to fatigue or headaches. On the other end of the spectrum, people may also feel as though they don’t need to eat or don’t want to eat. It’s important to eat, people! It is also good to recognize the difference between hunger and appetite.

The Difference Between Hunger And Appetite

Food keeps you going, which is why you need to keep replenishing your body with sustenance. Hunger is the need for food; for example, you may feel some sort of discomfort if you have not eaten for a while. Hunger typically indicates that glucose levels in the blood are low and it is your body’s way of telling you to fuel up again. Appetite, on the other hand, is a sensory reaction when you see or smell food. This means that you can eat food even if you aren’t hungry.

Appetite has been closely linked to behavior because it is commonly associated with an emotional connection formed with food. Someone with an increased appetite doesn’t necessarily crave something like broccoli or carrot sticks. These cravings are typically for processed foods, refined sugars, caffeine, or fatty/acidic foods. This is because appetite controls your cravings and is influenced by how you react to food. Hormonal factors or stress, for example, can also lead to an increased or decreased appetite.

Because of the fast-paced, on-the-go world that we live in, people don’t have the time to feel satiated. People eat while they are distracted, driving some place, or watching videos/shows, all of which keep them from feeling like they have eaten enough food. You may feel satiated after eating something that has been deep-fried because it is full of energy, but it doesn’t contain micronutrients. Eating half of an avocado, for instance, gives you sustained energy via the monounsaturated fats and 19 essential vitamins and minerals. The battle to acknowledge cravings and choose the better and more beneficial food option is ongoing.

We can’t talk about hunger and appetite without mentioning the metabolism, which ultimately affects hunger. Metabolism is the rate at which the body converts food to energy. The speed of your metabolism is regulated by the thyroid gland, but metabolism is also influenced by muscle mass and hormones. People with more muscle mass typically have a higher metabolic rate, typically meaning that they have a greater level of hunger. But…this is not always the case, due to hormonal and emotional factors.

Your brain chases satiety (signaling that you have eaten), not the feeling of a full stomach. The brain gets signaled by different hormones to indicate whether or not food is needed. Eating different foods can change the dopamine output to the brain’s reward center, which controls your motivation for food. Lower levels of dopamine have been linked to overeating. 

How Do You Know When To Eat?

Remember that you have to eat more on a raw foods diet. If your body is telling you that it is hungry, listen to it. If you eat a meal and feel that you are still hungry, perhaps your meal was not large enough. While cleansing, many people say that they ate salad for a meal, but how big was this salad? You have to eat a large bowl, and we mean a large bowl. A small side salad will not fill you up. The amount of food each person will need to eat is dictated by his/her weight, age, and level of physical activity, so there isn’t a blanket statement for how much one should eat and when.

Be Patient After Eating

Feeling full is the result of the brain reacting to chemicals that are in the foods or liquids in the stomach. It may take 20 minutes for the brain to register these chemicals. If you do not feel full directly after you finish eating, give yourself some time to absorb the nutrients you just consumed. As the chemical levels rise, the hunger will dissipate.

Tips For Feeling Satiated

Always drink a hefty glass of water about 10 minutes before each meal. Not only is this a great way to stay hydrated, but the brain will realize that you are partially full by the time you actually start eating. Have another glass of water while you are eating, drinking between bites. Not only does this slow down your eating, but it also helps you to thoroughly chew each bite. Once you finish your meal, remove any food from your sights and occupy yourself with another hobby like reading, walking, or conversation.

Always remember that foods containing added sugars, refined sugars, or artificial sweeteners can stimulate your appetite, even if you aren’t hungry. They can make you crave carbohydrates and even stimulate fat storage, which is how a lot of people start to gain weight.

SHARE:

The post Hunger Vs Appetite: What’s The Difference? appeared first on Dherbs - The Best All Natural Herbal Remedies & Products.