Toward the end of last winter, I found myself crying one day- for what seemed like no apparent reason at all. I felt horrible. Horrible about myself, my life, everything. The truth was my life was pretty good. Not perfect, but overall good. I had two sons who were doing well, a caring husband, a comfortable house, and all of us were in good health. However, regardless of what was going well in my life, I felt like crud! And, I didn’t know why.
My symptoms mirrored extreme sadness or depression, but I refer to it as experiencing disconnection. But, disconnection from what? Disconnection from the things that help all human beings feel happy and good about ourselves. Disconnection from sunlight, being outside and being active. I was jogging most days outside, yet still, I wasn’t spending as much time outside as I would in the warmer months. My body and emotions needed me to be out MORE. Breathing in fresh air, moving around, absorbing sunlight. Our bodies require all of this to function optimally. Without one of these components, you’ll probably notice your emotions or energy take a dip.
Moving around allows your lymph nodes to drain toxins out of your body. When you’re stagnant, your lymph nodes are more stagnant, therefore allowing more ‘gunk’ to build up in your system. Moving around is a natural way to flush the ‘gunk’ out and in turn think and feel more refreshed. Being outside allows you to breathe in more fresh air and more oxygen in your body means you feel more relaxed and at peace.
Absorbing sunlight is a natural healthy way for our bodies to receive vitamin D. Vitamin D helps us to absorb calcium, and calcium is not just good for our bones, but is actually essential to primary functions within us: our heart beating, our lungs inhaling and exhaling air.
When I looked more closely, I also found that I was disconnected from the pace of life my body really wanted me to be living. I was just “too busy” to listen. And, I was also disconnected from
some of the foods my body wanted me to eat more of. What exactly was a more feasible pace for me and what were the foods my body desired and needed from me to thrive physically and emotionally?
Eating more natural sweets and less sugar
During the winter months, it’s normal to eat a bit more. Our body will intuitively send us cravings for more food during these months. Winter is when animals go into hibernation, and slow down. What do bears do in the Fall? Eat extra food, pack on a few pounds and then go into hibernation for a few months. Well, while we’re not hibernating, our natural rhythm and the natural rhythm of winter would normally be to slow down and eat more to keep warm.
When you go against your natural rhythm and run around completing your to-do list day in and day out, that’s a recipe for feeling stressed and, as we all know, this routine is not very uncommon. When you feel stressed, your body is tight and contracted and consequently your body will eventually send you a craving for something light and uplifting so that it can naturally balance itself. The typical craving that surfaces is for sugar or a glass of wine. This cycle simply happens because people forget to listen to their body and instead forge forward with what they think they have to do.
How can you remedy this?
Yes, you guessed it. S-L-O-W Down. No, you don’t have to hibernate, however, you NEED to make your body and emotional state a priority, otherwise you will find yourself feeling neglected and depressed. And, I say this with gentleness but Truth, constantly being busy is a form of self- neglect.
Look at your to do list and ask yourself this? Will I be ok if I don’t get all of this done? Go through each item on your list. And, get really, really honest with yourself. How much of what’s on there really has to get done? Probably not much (if you’re really being honest with yourself.) For what does need to get done, give yourself more time to get it done.
Relax more. Remember, winter is meant for resting. As for when the sweet cravings do come, try eating foods that are made with natural sweeteners that add nutrients to your body instead of depleting your body of nutrients (cane sugar /sucrose depletes your body.)
Add more sweet veggies
If you don’t already, bring more sweet vegetables into your diet. Veggies like butternut squash, acorn squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and even onions when they’re sautéed. By the way, I recommend baking these veggies.
Here’s the deal, eating more sweet veggies can help you decrease and even bypass some of those cravings for sweets. Because these veggies taste sweet, your body very often feels satisfied. And, each of these veggies is a little powerhouse of an assortment of vitamins and nutrients, so instead of eating sweets that add zero nutrients and deplete you, you’re adding nutrients that replenish you.
Here’s to a winter of lighter more comfortable thoughts!
Submitted by Andrea Anderson. If something Andrea shared resonates with you and you’re ready to take this further, you’re invited to schedule a private or group Healthy Food Shopping Tour. Andrea meets with clients at the store, showing them what specific foods they can eat to bring more healing to their conditions, which foods to skip and new healthy meal ideas that match the type of foods they prefer to eat. Interested? Email andrea@IHealedMySons.com or text 860.485.4118 with your appointment request.