Recovery Enthusiast/ Recovery for Women

As a middle-aged person (40-60), you may wonder if it's too late to become a vegetarian. In reality, a meat-free diet could be especially beneficial for older adults. Several studies suggest that eating more plant-based foods can reduce the risk of age-related health conditions and may even help you live longer.   Of course, the details matter. You could call yourself a vegan if you ate French fries for three meals a day, but you'd hardly be a healthy one. It's still important to eat a balanced diet of nutrient-dense foods.   Find out what a vegetarian diet can do for you. Eating more plants may help you look and feel younger.   Vegetarian Eating for Middle-Aged Folks   There is ample evidence that vegetarians may be less prone to heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and certain cancers. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine review found that a plant-based diet lowers the risk of heart attacks by 40% and the risk of type 2 diab...

  You are what you eat, as the saying goes. I have been reading up a lot on nutrition. I've always been interested in healthy living. I was a personal trainer and fitness instructor for over ten years, and I knew nutrition was an important piece of physical fitness.  My concern has lately been around hormones and specifically how they are related to perimenopause and menopause. And I've seemed to open up a proverbial can of worms. I have decided to make this week's topic on my blogs and podcasts and videos on healthy eating and its relation to  EVERYTHING!!  The way we look and our skin, body composition, and how we feel in our vitality, energy, and even psychological areas such as anxiety or depression, are all directly related to what we eat. I've been following David Avocado Wolf for the past year or so but just recently has really intrigued me, and I've dived deep into learning more about his teachings on nutrition. I've also decided to make a lifestyle chan...

You could be in a controlling relationship without even realizing it. Manipulative and dominating behavior is very often subtle. It like they say about cooking a frog. If you put the frog in a pot with lukewarm water and slowly bring it to a boil, the frog will just stay in the pot and not even realize he's being cooked. As opposed to putting a frog in an already boing pot of water, the frog will surely jump out. So controlling relationships happen slowly, and of course, no one wants to admit that they've fallen for someone who is manipulative. after all, we're smarter than that. Love can not only be blind but deaf and dumb. Please don't think it can't happen to you. That is a belief that has been disproven time a d time again. Instead, educate yourself on the warning signs. Once you learn to recognize these signs, you will see them as glaring and in your face. Please don't beat yourself up for not seeing them before. Common warning signs include a partner who...

Every relationship requires boundaries. What are boundaries?  Personal boundaries set limits on how others can behave in your presence and interact with you.   Certainly, your boundaries have been violated at some point in your life. Maybe a partner used language that was unacceptable toward you. Perhaps someone invaded your privacy by asking you a personal question you considered inappropriate.   What are your boundaries? How do you show others where you draw the line? Once your lines are clear, they benefit you and those around you.   Consider these areas in determining your personal boundaries:   Physical boundaries. Physical boundaries include space. There are certain people whom you feel comfortable standing much closer to than others. Your partner can stand closer to you than a friend, and a friend closer than a coworker. Maybe a coworker can stand closer than a stranger. ●       Touch. There are certain p...

  What would your life look like if you were free from worrying about the opinions of others? What if seeking the approval of other people failed to enter your mind? How would it change your life? Our lives are negatively influenced by the fear of rejection. It holds us back in so many ways and limits our ability to experience the positive aspects of life.   Consider these ideas to banish your fear of rejection:   1.      Rejection is largely a self-fulfilling prophecy. When you’re constantly worried about rejection, it changes the way you act. You become anxious and defensive. Those actions may cause you to be rejected by others. After all, who wants to spend time with someone who’s unpleasant to be around?   ·        Consider how this fear is affecting your behavior. Are you acting in a way that’s causing others to reject you?   2.      Focus on how you want to feel. Most peo...

Fear is the biggest roadblock to success. Fear is a constant companion if you're attempting to grow and achieve. The most successful people are often those that manage fear most effectively. Those that manage fear poorly are often the least successful. Learning to push beyond fear is a valuable skill that greatly increases your odds of success. There is an acronym for fear. Forget everything and run or face everything and recover. Facing your fear is a big part of recovery.   Our bodies are designed to protect us. Fear is part of that design, so it does suit a purpose. But our body's goal is for survival only, not to thrive, challenge or become successful. So it is important first to recognize which is a real physical threat and which is merely psychological. Here are some techniques to help you overcome the non-threatening psychological fear.   Conquer your fear and achieve success:   1.      Control your thoughts. It's possible to think...

  Meditation is simple, cheap, and highly effective, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. And to be honest, it actually is pretty easy; it’s just not what people expect it to be.  Beginners have all sorts of challenges when meditating, but most of them aren’t really problems. The complaints beginners have are simply part of the meditation process.  Meditation can work for everyone that puts in the time and effort.   Are these challenges holding you back?   Your mind is too active. Of course, it’s active. It takes practice before the mind quiets down, and it’s rarely silent even after years of practice. It takes about 20 minutes for experienced meditators to notice a slowing down of the mind. ●       This isn’t really a problem. Part of the purpose of meditating is to learn how your mind operates. This is how it operates. ●       Just return your focus to your breath. ...

  When I think I am better than or less than, I’m dealing with worthiness. I am evaluating my worth compared to some standard either I set for myself or I feel is expected of me. I am not in a state of compassion for myself or anyone else. Actually, if you don’t have compassion for yourself, you can’t have it for anyone else. We are all doing the best we can. In Brene Brown’s book Rising Strong, she talks about how she came to believe this to be true. And by having this belief, it had changed her perspective on the world and her place in it. I also had a similar experience.   My son’s father and I had been split up for several years, and I was struggling with forgiving him, letting go, and moving on. I was so angry, and I felt justified in my anger. I did not want to give him The satisfaction of forgiveness. It was also one of the reasons why I could not stay sober. The resentment had me hostage. One of my sisters invited me on a retreat.   It was some type of religious...

 M any times emotions are an indicator that something is going on inside us. And other times, they are straight out lies. It’s no wonder people get confused about emotions and what they are and how they’re supposed to deal with or respond to them. I feel our society today has looked at negative emotions, you know, painful ones, as bad and will do everything to get rid of them, whether that be with medication, a new house, a new outfit vacation, and basically everything external from us. On the other side of the token, all the pleasant emotions are manipulated to be extravagant even better again with medication alcohol is a big one shopping gambling vacations, etc. So where do we go? How do we figure out this funny thing called emotions? How do we navigate through them? I’m sorry to tell you that there is no one simple answer or solution. What I can tell you is that the solution is creating or recognizing your mind-body connection. And there are many ways to go about doing that. M...

Not a morning person? Would you like to get up earlier and feel more productive? Would you like to feel more in control of your day? Developing a morning routine that will boost your productivity can help you stay on top of your commitments for the day. I was never a morning person. For years I worked the second shift and my kids were grown and out of the house so I did have a need or the ambition to get up early let alone be productive in the morning. Then I switched to the first shift so I could go to school at night. So I not only needed to wake up earlier I needed to get a lot of stuff done in a day and had to plan my day wisely. So I started slowly and got into a routine. Then I decided to develop my own online course online.  Not to mention the time with family and self-care, both of which I feel are so important. Over time I became very good at time management and making good use of my time. I now wake up at 4 AM (I know, right?!) so I can fit in my meditation time and work...