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Hello everyone!! I hope summer has been kind to you, no sunburns, no family vacations that you will forever regret and those guests have returned from whence they came!

Brett and I have had an exciting summer to say the least. We purchased a Pop-up camper from a friend and have spent almost every waking moment prepping it for it’s maiden journey! We took it about 10 miles outside of town to a great KOA and practiced the ‘Camp Life’ for a weekend. There is still much to do, but overall, we are ready for life on the RV road!

I have recently found myself with an abundance of time! I’m talking organize your filing cabinet, go through your closet, read a book, and dust your blinds time! It’s really starting to freak me out! But it got me to thinking……what do I do now that I have nothing to do?

I’ve thought about things I want to do….that I’ve never had time for before, but there are so many, I don’t know where to start! So I began to write a list of those things I have on my project list (that don’t involve cleaning or house chores!).

#1 Prayer- I am often so busy during the work week that I do not make the time to talk to God. Last weekend at church, the priest told us about a man that was 98 years old that made it to church every day. I found myself envious of his relationship with God and the church. The first thing I put on my list of things to do with my extra time was daily Mass. It was a struggle to make sure that I kept the promise, ( I did miss daily mass yesterday on Saturday), but I was able to make Monday through Friday of this past week and it really helped my attitude.

#2 Go outside- I have so many amazing spots outside around my yard that I love to enjoy. Oftentimes, I am leaving for work, or getting home too late to fully enjoy them. My bench on the front porch, where I can watch the squirrels in the morning aggravating the neighborhood cats, my planted area in front of the porch that I enjoy weeding or watering or my raised garden bed with tomatoes, peppers and basil that I enjoy watering and searching for tiny sprouts of new veggies. These are all things that I miss out on when I don’t have ‘time’.

#3 Reading- I have loved to read since I was a child. It has always been something that has come easy and whether I am reading for fun, reading an article to learn about a new medical therapy or trying to better myself, I enjoy the time alone with a book (regular book or E-book, doesn’t really matter). I have found that combining #’s 1, 2 and 3 have given me the most pleasure this past week.

#4 Crafts- Now here is my Achilles heel. I LOVE to do crafts! I love to sew, crochet, paint, knit or color (yes I have some adult coloring books, but I still can color a cartoon pig with the best of them!). Usually when I get home from work, I am so mentally tired that learning a new craft is difficult. Then on the weekend, there is so much OUTDOORS to do!! Especially in Florida- cycling, beaches, yoga, paddleboard, theme parks (Disney of course) sporting events (Go Orlando City!!) and local community events and fairs! How is someone supposed to fit all that into a 48 hour weekend? I probably have been to a mall <20 times in the past 3 years Brett and I have lived here. There’s just no time to spend indoors, how am supposed to get a scarf knitted? Even in the Winter, the season is nice enough to continue cycling and other outdoor activities that may be too hot to do in the summer swelter!

#5 Trips- And this doesn’t necessarily mean Vacation. Just a day trip to Tampa, New Smyrna Beach, or any of the local springs. There are trips on trips on trips to take!! Then planning a Vacation is an event! Where to go? Do we visit family? How about going somewhere we haven’t been to before? New Orleans? Canada? Should we camp? Can we take the dogs? We haven’t even been on a cruise since we’ve lived < 1 hour from the coast! Boy how does one person fit all these things in one lifetime!?

This is just a small list of the things that I have recently found time for. I make sure to write these into my calendar to ensure that they are done. Habit.former makes a deck of cards to allow you to set good habits, slowly so that you will be successful. The card I chose from the deck today said on the front: make a to do list for the week. On the back: What you write down gets done. Start with a blank piece of paper and write your to do’s for he next seven days. Be sure the list is inclusive” work, family/home and don’t forget….you, personally!

I often tell my patients, ‘You can’t take care of others if you forget to take care of yourself”. Even 10 minutes of your day needs to be spent refilling your cup! Whatever it is that fills you up, even if it isn’t any of the things listed above, find your ‘thing’ and make sure you include it in your daily activities. You will be a better person for it. A better wife, mother, sister, friend, co-worker and overall a better human.

Go do that thing you would do, if there was nothing to do!

 

Tracy

I was standing in line at the store earlier this week, going over the list of things I had to do while I was out of the house. My mind was mostly on the task at hand, but I overheard some ladies behind me talking about a female they knew ( I’m not sure of the relation to these ladies… ) and how she had ‘finally found happiness!’

Usually I would be happy for whoever they were talking about, after all, someone being happy makes me happy! But this time, I was thinking about the statement one of the ladies said, the female they spoke of ‘finally found happiness’….this was odd to me.

“FINDING HAPPINESS” – the statement struck me as odd because in order to find happiness, it had to have been lost first. How did her happiness become lost? Often we think our happiness is lost after losing something or someone we cared for or loved deeply. But can our happiness be misplaced and not lost?

One of the most frequent topics of self-help books, other than weight loss is success/happiness. I wondered about the two topics being  mutually exclusive. We often hear about successful people not being happy, but how about happy people? Can they be happy without being successful? We often thing about success as being equated to finances and money.

” Success is not the key to Happiness. Happiness is the key to Success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. ” -Albert Schweitzer This is more often true than not. Sitting in my Grandma Hart’s kitchen, I would hear story after story (often more than once) about my mother, her sisters and brothers, and how they would have fun doing this or that when they were children. My mother was one of 11 children, born in the 40’s. There was not a lot of money to go around for that many children, as they children became of age, they would work to bring money home, or joined one of the branches of the military to allow them to take care of their self.

Would I consider them successful? Maybe not financially, no one in my family has retired at 40 an moved to a tropical island. But as a family and as friends to each other, they are immensely successful. And as for happiness, they have happiness by the bucketful. I have myself been through times when I was unhappy, and thought (incorrectly) that ‘If I had ‘A’ or got to go to ‘B’ or bought ‘C’, I’d be much happier. This had a quick moment or two of happiness, but then the problem itself was still there and the unhappiness would return. Kind of like eating a glazed donut, the sugar rush makes you feel good for a little while, but then when it’s gone, your still hungry and back to feeling down.

Once I found my happiness (and this was before I met my wonderful husband, Brett) success was not far behind. It was not a monetary success, but I was a successful friend, daughter, mother and sister. I was a better person when I was happy. And I found my happiness…in myself. Happiness is not found in a store, in a person, a place or a job. You must find happiness within your soul, within your person, within your circle. This is when you will find your success!!

I hope you find your happiness and then find your success! I know this will bring a smile to my heart and my happiness will grow with your happiness!!

‘I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear’. – Nelson Mandela

Bravery has many definitions. Many people think bravery came from facing danger, saving lives as police officers or fire fighters, or even soldier fighting for our freedom. And these are all very good examples of acts of bravery, but today I am talking about the more common bravery!

A single mother that works two jobs to make sure her family is well cared for, someone facing a health crisis and their unknown future, an elderly widow or widower that continues to try to maintain their independence…..these are all more common acts of bravery!

When you are facing a situation that fills you with fear and the fear overwhelms you, being brave is the last think you can think about doing! But this is when doing what needs to be done becomes bravery. Getting up in the morning, putting one foot in front of the other and facing the day is where bravery begins.

Fear of failure, feeling inadequate,  low self-esteem are often factors that prevent us from finding our bravery inside. But we are fearfully and wonderfully made! We are made for greatness! Our minds have brought forth amazing creations and ideas! Imagine the Wright Brothers allowing their ideas to be left on the ‘drawing room floor’ so to speak. Could you imagine life without air travel? Without space travel? We may not make major changes to the world, but we can change our world and the world of those around us.

So, think about that one thing that you would like to do, but fear has prevented you from trying. Do you want to take up a musical instrument? Maybe you’ve been thinking about going back to school? How about learning a second (or third) language? What would you do if you were brave? How high can you set your limits?

“Everybody’s been there, everybody’s been stared down by the enemy. Fallen for the fear and done some disappearing, bow down to the mighty. Don’t run, stop holding your tongue. Maybe there’s a way out of the cage where you live. Maybe one of these days you can let the light in. SHOW ME HOW BIG YOUR BRAVE IS!!’ -Sara Bareilles

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lets’ face it….we all feel it. Hi all!! I’m back!!

We’ve all been there, all of us have felt that we’ll never get it all done. Feelings of being overwhelmed by work, family, chores, duties and well, just life! There are times when the feelings of being overwhelmed can make you buckle down and power through the tasks that need to be done. Then there are other times when you have overwhelming feelings of being overwhelmed.

When the second type of feeling overwhelmed happens, we can’t focus, we can’t function. Our brains can become short circuited by the multiple projects that are requiring our ‘immediate’ attention. Often we are too close to the situation to find a solution to make our way out to a more manageable pathway.

We see this often with hoarders. There is a emotional trauma that causes the person to leave reality and when they are able to regain their focus, they are often overwhelmed at the task at hand, ie. cleaning up and throwing away the clutter. Then an outside party will come in with the ability to see the whole project and break it down into manageable pieces. I have always been very impressed at those who can see the ‘greater picture’ and cut down an issue into those more manageable parts.

I have often had issues with clutter. I am not a hoarder by any means, but I will find that my life will often run so fast ahead of me, that when it does slow down, I look around and boy, my weekend is spent decluttering my living areas. I often joke that I need to live in a house with no flat surfaces. Junk mail, receipts, paperwork, magazines, medical journal articles often end up in neatly stacked piles in my office and on my kitchen table. For those of you that know me, you know I get it honest!! Then the feelings of being overwhelmed begin….’Where do I start?’, ‘Do I clean off my office desk first, or take care of the dining room table?’. ‘Where do I put the papers on the dining room table if my office desk isn’t cleaned?’, ‘Shouldn’t I start in the dining room where company can see our home?’. This is how I become frozen with the feeling of being overwhelmed.

How then do we prevent this from happening? You can do a quick google search to find out how to handle this. My favorite has been from Quickanddirtytips.com. There you can find 7 tips to help you get out of the cyclone of feeling like the mountain is coming down on your head. Ellen Hendrikson, Psychologist says these 7 things can help: 1) ground yourself in the present, 2) clean up your immediate surroundings, 3) ruthlessly prioritize, 4) stop accidentally multi-tasking, 5) the next tiny step [take that first tiny step towards your goal], 6) follow your impulses [unload those ideas that may distract you and waste time] and 7) rethink to-do lists. I highly suggest heading over and checking out the article for more detailed information.

I feel that the MOST important part to climbing out from under the avalanche that makes us feel overwhelmed is to remember….IT’S OK!! It’s okay to feel overwhelmed, it’s ok to feel imperfect, it’s ok to feel human! You’re not a robot, you can do it all…just not all at once!!

Learning. It is necessary to life. As we move through life, we continue to learn things. As children, we explore our world, learning new things. As adolescents and teens, we are learning more about the world around us as well as who we are as a person in that world. Finally as adults, we learn what we need to navigate life successfully as adults; where we want to live, the job/career we want to have and who we wish to share our life with.

Learning can be fun or painful. It can be exciting or dreadful. A lot of the way a person looks upon learning depends upon the experiences they have had in the past. Almost everyone knows someone that could not wait to get out of school and never wanted to go back again. Opposite of that is the person that is a ‘lifetime’ student and would take classes forever if they could.

I tend to be in the latter of that group. I enjoy learning new topics and expanding my knowledge of those topics I know a bit about. Unfortunately, my job and finances keep me from getting my next 5 degrees! 🙂

Learning can help boost your mood though. There has been evidence that shows that continuing to learn can improve and maintain mental wellbeing. Learning something new can help improve your self-confidence and boost your self-esteem. This can be as small as learning a new skill or craft, or as advanced as learning a new language or career.

It has been found that continuing learning after childhood can help you have a greater ability to cope with stress and change. Those that continue their learning often report higher feelings of hope, purpose and self-confidence.
So, go out and learn something new! Learn to cook a new dish, learn about the history of the town you live in, take a class at the local college, community center- such as CPR, and enjoy the interaction with others, improving your mood.

I hope you learned a little something from today’s blog…And it helped you feel a bit happier!! See you in class!

April showers bring May flowers, but what does Mayflowers bring….pilgrims!! I have always loved that joke! The weather here in Florida has had showers, while others in the US have new fallen snow! Yuck!

I read an interesting article in our Orlando Health Choose Health Spring 2018 edition magazine. The theme for the spring edition was STRESS! I thought this was timely as I just wrote about stress and its effects on the mind and body.

The interesting article was related to the foods you eat and how they effect your mood. I had not thought about this previously, but as I read the article, it made complete sense. Cortisol is a hormone that is released during times of chronic stress and is known as a hunger hormone. Cortisol is also associated with weight gain or central obesity often referred to as the ‘spare tire’ around your waist.

Stress causes you to crave fatty and sugary foods that work quickly a well as cause a quick crash. This in turn causes you to then crave not only the foods again, but the quick energy from those foods. It’s a vicious cycle. There is now information on the way food enhances or inhibits your mood and is known as a 3R food strategy. Foods should be chosen to relax, regulate and revitalize your body and manage the effects of stress on your body.

There are certain foods that can help promote relaxation, reduce levels of Cortisol and provide energy and promote Serotonin (happy hormone). Other foods can be chosen to boost brain function, decrease neurological decline and improve memory and alertness! I will be following the grocery list for stress reducing foods and let you know how they are working!

To read more on ‘mood foods’ and reducing stress, you can find the article ‘The Food and Mood Connection‘ on http://www.Orlandohealth.com/ChooseHealth

Enjoy your dinner! I hope it literally makes you happy!!

Hello all! I have been M.I.A. for a bit. Thank you for being patient and awaiting my next blog post! Life got in the way, and for that I apologize! LOL!

We all have struggles we go through in life. Some are major, some minor. When we are having troubles, it is often hard to see a solution, an ending, or a ‘bright side’ ! We often have to find it in ourselves to get through whatever the difficulty is. Some people run, exercise or  turn to meditation. Others turn to religion/spirituality and even others turn to more dangerous and damaging ways to get through difficult situations. We learn as children, teens and young adults, what works and return to that when needed.

But what do we do if our go to method no longer works? How do we find another way? We have to create a new habit. We need to reprogram ourselves. Our brains are full of circuitry, electrical connections. So, reprogramming should be easily done. Not necessarily! Habits are hard to form when we are in a peaceful state of mind.

The body, when stressed, goes into the ‘Fight or Flight’ mode. You are either going to fight (stay and face the stressor) or run away (leave the situation and ignore the problem) from the stressful situation. When stressed, we do not pay attention to detail, become disorganized and feel overwhelmed. We become increasingly irritable, defensive, frustrated and annoyed with small, petty concerns. Physically, stressors can have a positive and negative effect on our bodies. Acute stress can heighten our sense of awareness, improves memory and increases immune function.

When stress becomes chronic is when it has dangerous effects on our health, both mentally and physically. We have heard of the effects to the heart and GI system. We have headaches, fatigue, decreased and non-restful sleep, anxiety, increased alcohol use, drug and tobacco abuse. We often exercise less often and become socially withdrawn.

So, how then are we supposed to find a new way to deal with stress when we most need it. The key is to work on your coping before you need it! Start journaling, reading, praying or running while you are feeling good and not under stress. Find a group to join that enjoys the same things you do and form bonds with people that can help you when you nee it most. Reach out to others that may be stressed, so that when you are stressed, you can reach out as well.

There is a saying…”Find you Tribe and love them hard!” It can be family, friends, co-workers or anyone that will be the support you need…when you need it! 

 

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend!

Today was supposed to be a work around the house day for my husband Brett and I. He wanted to start working on the back yard to get it ready for the Spring/Summer season!

I pulled the wifey card and decided that I wanted to take my husband to see the Detroit Tigers at Spring Training! Brett was a bit upset that his plans were foiled! But I told him that when we are 80 years old, we won’t look back on today and remember how great it was pulling weeds and moving rocks!

We are now going through the difficult time of Brett’s grandmother lose her memory. Grandpa is having a difficult time letting go of the woman he has spent 60+ years with. It’s almost like becoming a widower without a death. The family is now reviewing memories with great fondness to help cope with the loss of Grandma’s personality. It has become even more vital now to me that I make memories with my family.

So to you I say, live today to make memories for tomorrow! Memories will be all you have left when material things have gone. When all you have left is yourself, your memories will sustain you.

Go out and have FUN with life!

Happy Sunday evening everyone! I hope your weekend was productive &/or eventful!

I’ve often heard as I’m sure you have about F.O.M.O. or fear of missing out! That absolutely applies to the weekend! Working Monday through Friday, spending valuable time away from your family, making a living to be able to live life.

When the weekend comes, there is nothing you want to do more that DO NOTHING! But then you realize all those ‘Honey-do’s’ that have waited patiently for just this occasion. Housework, yard work, and if you have kids…..homework.

But what about getting out and ‘doing’ something?! My mom was always telling us as kids to ‘go do something outside’! I loved the outside, it has the best of everything….sun, shade, hide-and-go seek spots, friends, places to ride my bike, I could go on and on here.

Now I have to work hard at making myself go outside, because I worry about all the inside things that aren’t getting done. But when I do get out, still the best of everything is there…sun, shade, friends, places to paddle board and places to ride my bike!

So all of you kids at heart, get outside! Eat your cereal for breakfast on the porch, go for a walk, play hide and seek, enjoy the shade and fresh air!

Look forward to the week physically and mentally. And then play your heart out this coming weekend!

Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a great Valentine’s Day! Whether you are married, separated, single, divorced or ‘other’! I remember how excited I used to be for Valentine’s Day in elementary school. I would go to the store with my mom, pick out an adorable pack of Valentine’s Day cards, and if I was really lucky, they had lollipops attached! Then we would head home and I would write out every classmates name on a card of some sort or other. Looking for the BEST card out of the pack for that ‘special’ someone! Everyone got a card and everyone felt special.

Then fast forward to adulthood….now it is not as much FUN! We have placed so much importance on getting a gift from that special someone. And if we don’t get something as fantastic as one of our co-workers, we are disappointed in our person! Why are we disappointed that they didn’t show their heroic display of love on this specific day? What about January 26th, May 17th, August 4th or October 13th? Are those days not as important?

How about showing ourselves some love? (No not in THAT way!) Loving ourselves means taking care of the most important person in our lives…Us! We get wrapped up in everyday living, housework, work deadlines, husbands/wives needs and demands, children to be made happy, and other distractions. I ask people daily about what they do for stress relief. ‘What do you do for fun?” ‘What kind of physical activity do you do that doesn’t include work?’ Many times the blank stare that is returned is answer enough. I often tell people if it takes them longer than 10 seconds to think about it, that is entirely too long!

We need to go back to that feeling in elementary school where we enjoyed doing things for others because it made us feel good! No other reason, but that we wanted to make out friends smile! Taking care of ourselves is important in accomplishing this. If we take time out to relieve stress by walking, taking a swim, riding a bike, reading just one chapter in that book we bought 6 months ago, then we can be better prepared to make others smile.

It’s true that misery loves company, don’t invite yourself to that party! Have some fun and do something for someone in your life, just to make them smile! I guarantee that you will be smiling as well!

Tracy