Your Thyroid Gland And You

Think of your thyroid as the symphony conductor of your body’s energy levels. Imagine hearing your favorite music playing too fast, too slow or off beat –wouldn’t you feel off kilter or out of tune?

A Powerhouse In You

For such a small gland … it’s a real powerhouse -located at the base of your neck and shaped like a butterfly. The thyroid uses what it produces and receives from other organs to determine how we grow, develop and reproduce. It regulates the cardiovascular system, calcium metabolism, how we think, immune response and balances weight-body temperature and energy production.

The thyroid story is all about PRODUCTION and PROCESSING. Do you produce too little or too much thyroid hormone? Are you able to PROCESS the hormones your thyroid makes and receives from other organs?

Environmental And Petrochemical Toxicity

Enviromental & petrochemical toxicity along with inflammatory hormone levels can interfere with hormone production and processing. Another key factor is how your thyroid interacts with the pituitary, liver and adrenals. Both the thyroid and liver (which converts many of the thyroid hormones )are easily damaged by free radicals (potent chemical buzz bombs that promote cell and tissue damage causing inflammation and premature aging). Remember what we eat, drink, breathe and touch leaves it’s mark on all of us.

Indicators Of Thyroid Problems

Low energy, erratic energy and hyped up energy levels. Fatigue, exhaustion, and anxious burned out feelings. Weight gain, difficulty losing weight and excessive weight loss-along with menstrual problems, headaches, constipation, hair loss, brain fog, cold hands/feet even sleep disturbances are part of the long list of symptoms that can indicate thyroid problems.

Around the world especially where the soil is iodine deficient thyroid imbalance is a problem. At least 3% of all Americans have some form of thyroid disease and a far greater number suffer from thyroid hormone processing problems. Thyroid imbalance is more common in women than men but as men age they too are more susceptible. Sadly thyroid cancer is on the rise.

If you suspect a thyroid imbalance it’s a good idea to get a checkup and have some testing done on your thyroid and vitamin D levels.

Checkup and Rebalance

It can take time to rebalance your thyroid …your body is unique and no one program is right for everyone. Some people can jumpstart their burdened thyroids by changing their diet and using natural therapies. Others will need a prescription for thyroid hormone-many people handle this quite well and some individuals can have a difficult time adjusting to these medications. It is helpful to detox your thyroid & liver and reduce inflammatory levels in the body… so that whatever level of thyroid hormones you are producing can be most successfully utilized.

You Can Still Take Steps To Improve Your Thyroid Health

Even if you do not know how well your thyroid is working you can still take steps to improve your thyroid health by doing the following:

· Eat breakfast-don’t wait till lunchtime to give your metabolism a boost with a healthy meal.

· Balance your protein intake and cut back on sweets and carbs.

· Include in your diet: coconut oil, brazil nuts, mushrooms, legumes, yogurt, strawberries, sea weed, leafy green vegetables, fish, seafood and eggs.

· Avoid non fermented soy products, artificial sweeteners, and gluten (found in wheat, rye and barley with small amounts in spelt and kamut).

· Broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, cabbage, kale and mustard greens should be eaten cooked-not raw. This family of vegetables contains natural chemicals-called goitrogens which can interfere with thyroid hormone production. Be sure to cook them which neutralizes this tendency so you can take advantage of the numerous benefits these vegetables provide.

· Support your emotional well being by learning how to reduce or manage stress- get regular sleep each night and adopt a regular exercise program.

For more information you can email me—ask about natural therapies for thyroid health and how to detox your thyroid and liver.

Take steps now -make sure the music your thyroid is conducting in

“your life” is playing at the best tempo to keep you dancing.

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Lifestyle Changes for Better Sleep

The sun rises, the sun sets, the moon shines longer as the month progresses. These natural rhythms of light and dark regulate our body’s clock and tell us when to awaken and fall asleep.  Light  receptors in our eyes respond to the amount of light they are exposed to- then signal the brain which takes in the information and supervises production of the hormone melatonin to regulate our sleep.

Do you live in a world of light? At night where is your cell phone  and charger , computer, tv,  and remote controls? Does the light from street lamps, passing cars , large buildings and even over head planes make it’s way into  your bedroom? All that light can confuse our brains and disturb our natural tendencies to sleep easily while it’s dark.

Stress, worry and anxiety easily override  our desire for sleep even when melatonin levels are adequate - stress can make sleep seem impossible.  How restful is your sleep? Is it easy for you to fall asleep and stay asleep so that you feel rested when you awaken in the morning?

Well known suggestions  for better sleep include reducing the use of caffeine & alcohol, arranging your bedroom so that offending light sources no longer stimulate your brain, not eating too late at night, meditation and regular exercise. 

However other lifestyle changes that you may not have tried can really make a difference when it comes to permanently achieving restful sleep.

A simple yoga pose that anyone can do allows the body and mind to re-harmonize and rebalance so falling asleep seems natural and easy. Savasana (the corpse pose) involves laying down on your back with your arms stretched out to your sides. Some people may need a pillow under their head or their knees to be comfortable.  Once you lay down- quietly observe your body. You may need to adjust your body slightly to be fully at ease. Begin to breathe deeply and rhythmically  place your awareness on your feet and slowly and consciously  relax each part of your body from your feet up to your head. Most people would take about 15 minutes to do this. It is a wonderful way to detach from the day and prepare for sleep. 

Two of the best ways to relieve the tension, stress and worry that trigger insomnia are: Keeping  a gratitude journal and practicing  forgiveness on a daily basis. Acknowledging the gifts that surround you- the people and things in your life  that you truly appreciate  can permanently enhance your sense of happiness and satisfaction. This can be something as simple as jotting down 2 or 3 things that really moved you today.

Resentment, grudges, anger and judgement take up so much space in the human heart and can anchor us to the past. Being able to forgive and move on frees us to have more happiness and less worry for tomorrow. Taking a few moments to consciously let go of  grievances and resentments brings a sense of deep sweet peace.

Try these practices every night for two weeks-gratitude & forgiveness along with  Savasana will take the work load off your heart and re-balance blood pressure & breathing rate,reduce tension, anxiety and fatigue and make it much easier for you to sleep.  After two weeks you will have taught yourself  the way to  restful sleep that always brings a  clear head the next morning.



                                            “The best cure for insomnia is to get a lot of sleep”

                                                                                                W.C. Fields


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Help Yourself with a Helping of Peace

Meditation is known to have a beneficial impact on health yet many people struggle with finding the meditation style that works best for them. Check this out.......

Meditation A Way of Life May 23,30 & June 6 @ 7-9pm total cost $35
Center for Spiritual Living-2075 Occidental Road Santa Rosa Ca 95401

Offered by Sanna Rose RScp Licensed Spiritual Counselor

 Find the meditation method that suits you! Learn to establish a regular practice. Explore breathing, mantra & sutra, relaxation & visualization, chanting & movement.

For more info connect with Sanna @ 707-539-6155.

The Best Advice to Create Joy in Your Life

Do you share your joy with those you meet and always feel good about yourself? Do you believe that the natural answer to having more joy is to express joy and love to yourself and with one another? If you answered no- you are not alone. Not everyone walks around with joy in their hearts and some people do their best to share their misery-at no extra charge!

Joy is the natural state of being for our souls and love is the universal language the soul speaks-yet many do not know how to be happy and experience joy – some of us need a training period to practice the steps that make Joy an everyday reality.

Begin by giving your soul room to breathe. Ask yourself how do I really feel? If you are in pain-be sure to take the time that you need to find the support that will help you heal. Remember, compassion like charity begins at home. And so does Joy and the home where Joy lives is in your heart. 

First, make a list. Decide what makes you happy or brings you joy. You could call this your joy journal or joy list. Write down what is it that makes you genuinely happy. Everyone’s list will be completely different. So don’t try to censure your feelings. It might take more than a few minutes and you might find out that you can’t easily remember what makes you feel good. Some people will remember their favorite vacation or the sound of a lover’s voice. For others it could be family time , your pets, your garden, your cell phone, your car, being in nature or listening to music.

Next allow yourself to re-experience what is on your list. Express your gratitude for what you have known and perhaps shared. Practice walking around with these feelings alive in your heart . Can you find one thing about your day or your situation that you appreciate? If your car is what brings you joy-get out the Turtle Wax; or pick up your phone, make a visit talk to those you love. As you begin to revisit what brings you joy keep a gratitude list so you can practice appreciation which is another way to learn what makes you happy.

Donate your misery or anything that keeps you stuck in regrets from the past. Find a drop off station for these donations by practicing forgiveness. A great way to change your past is to live your life fully present in this moment and as each new moment appears continue to step forward with your attention gently devoted to what is happening right now. For it is only by letting go of what is keeping us stuck that we can walk freely and move forward.

Make space to listen to the sound of your heart beat, feel your breath moving regularly in and out of your body. Observe and express how you appreciate others-Find a way of helping them or being of service to those who could use some help. Do the same for yourself --acknowledge what it is that you like about yourself. Each day, find the prayer in your heart appreciate how magnificent you truly are, keep breathing and say YES!

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Nutrition and Your Brain

Think of your brain as a tree full of luxurious leaves that never drop unless the tree becomes diseased or malnourished.  As problems with memory, focus and  the ability to think clearly  develop- the health of this tree is diminishing  and the leaves begin to fall. By the time a person has dementia, Alzheimer’s or is suffering from cognitive impairment  there are almost  no leaves left  and  it becomes difficult  to nourish the tree so that it can hold onto it’s remaining  leaves or regrow more.

Around the world the leaves are falling off everyone’s tree-more than 24.3 million people have age related dementia.  20 million people struggle with problems of memory, focus and the ability to think clearly.  80% of the people who struggle with memory and focus problems go on to develop Alzheimer’s  disease.

Everything Influences How We Feel

Everything that we eat, drink, breathe and touch influences how we feel and how healthy we are. Eating  a diet rich in  vegetables, fruits, whole grains and clean burning proteins  signals  our cells to produce healthy cell growth, repair our DNA, regulate our hormones and metabolism and sustain a healthy brain.  White flour and sugar, high fat foods, artificial colors and sweeteners, fast foods etc  create an inflammatory response in the body  which promotes  metabolic imbalance and disease which rapidly age the brain and makes the leaves fall quickly.

We are all biochemically unique and there is not a universal food plan that will work for everyone however there are a few simple things that you can do right now to jump start your body’s ability to heal itself and protect  your brain and thinking powers.

Send Health Signals To Your Body

A modified Mediterranean diet has been proven to reduce inflammation and send the healthy signals to our bodies and brain so that disease and aging are reduced and healthy brain function is protected.  The antioxidant effects from fresh vegetables and fruit has a beneficial effect on the brain and helps prevent dementia and  Alzheimer’s disease. 

You can help yourself now by drinking ½ cup of fresh vegetable and fruit juice 3 times a week.  Learn how to balance your clean protein & carbohydrates foods with modest amounts of healthy fat and  generous portions  of fresh vegetables and some fruit.

You will feel better, have more energy and think more clearly and at the same time ensure that the leaves on the tree inside your brain stay lush, green and plentiful.