Month: May 2017

Benefits & Uses of Coconut Oil

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Health & Wellness

For a long time, coconut oil has been used to for so many different things. It is one of the oils I like to use for numerous reasons. I love all the benefits coconut oil has and there are still more uses being discovered.

To date, there are over 1,500 studies proving coconut oil to be one of the healthiest foods on the planet. Coconut oil benefits and uses go beyond what most people realize.

–Dr. Axe

One of the main ways I use coconut oil is for my hair. I use it for hot oil treatments. It moisturizes my hair and scalp, keeping dandruff at bay, and helps stop breakage allowing it to grow healthy. I use coconut oil in just about every hair treatment mask or oil I make at home. It has healthy fatty acids (lauric acid, capric acid, and caprylic acid) needed for a healthy lifestyle. Coconut oil is safe to use topically and to ingest. It is also a really good substitute to use when cooking instead of butter or cooking spray. Coconut oil has antifungal, antibacterial and antiviral properties.

Coconut oil is safe to use topically and to ingest. It is also a really good substitute to use when cooking instead of butter or cooking spray. Because of the good fats in coconut oil, it can actually help lower your cholesterol levels and help fight high blood pressure when ingested. It also helps you digest your food. It strengthens the immune system because it contains antimicrobial lipids and the healthy fatty acids I mentioned above.

Coconut oil is also good for your skin. It is filled with antioxidants that help relieve dry skin and is good for skin infections like eczema and dermatitis for example. You will find that a lot of products have coconut oil in its ingredients for this reason. It is also a carrier oil which means you can easily add essential oils and other beneficial oils to it.

I also like to use coconut oil for oil pulling in the mornings when I first wake up. I scrape my tongue first and then for about five to ten minutes I pull coconut oil in my mouth. It is almost like using a mouthwash but has greater benefits. Since coconut oil aids in the absorption of calcium by the body, it helps in developing strong teeth. It also stops tooth decay and reduces plaque from forming and gingivitis.

The benefits I have mentioned are just to name a few and give examples of how I myself have used coconut oil. Should you want to look up recipes for inspiration or just want to know more ways coconut oil can benefit you, check out these following websites:

You can start small when incorporating coconut oil into your lifestyle for the first time. I started with a top/down approach myself, using it in my hair first. Try not to overwhelm yourself by trying a ton of recipes at once, focus on one and take notes on any reactions. Also, be sure to talk to your doctor prior to making any changes. It is always best to know your starting markers to see how much coconut oil can improve your life.

Until the next post,

Namaste!

Doubt: One of Our Biggest Enemies

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindfulness

DOUBT

(noun)

A feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction. — “some doubt has been cast upon the authenticity of this account”Synonyms: uncertainty, unsureness, indecision, hesitation, dubiousness, suspicion, confusion

(verb)

  1. feel uncertain about. – “I doubt my ability to do the job”
  2. archaic fear; be afraid of. – “I doubt not your contradictions”

I felt it was important to look at the proper definition of what doubt is to then understand what it does to a person. Doubt is a very powerful weapon that can be used to insight even the smallest bit of fear in us. I do not know about everyone’s situation; however, when doubt hits me, it makes me a little scared of what is to come next. It can come when you least expect it as well.

I usually feel doubt creep up on me the most right when I get excited about a new project or a new path I have decided to take to better myself. Doubtful thoughts come up such as: “How will I get to from point A to point B without making a fool of myself?”, or “What am I really doing? Can I even succeed in this?” It always happens, but I know they are fleeting thoughts.

Doubt is fleeting while Faith is permanent. I can say this with confidence because the only time doubt fades for me is when I increase my faith and believe that doubt is just a temporary inkling that I get. It does get hard to remind ourselves of this fact though. As with anything we decide to do in life, it is greeted with a little bit of uncertainty. The important part is to remember that yes it is okay to doubt sometimes, but not to constantly stay in that state and never progress forward.

Some of us do get stuck. I like to think of it as pushing a truck or car out of a parking spot in Chicago winter months. At first, you try and push your hardest to get out of the park and on the first, and maybe even second, try you just cannot get it out. You start to feel like it will be stuck in that park forever and doubt that you will drive it somewhere soon. Then someone comes along to assist and you believe and have faith that with their help, you will get out. Now, you are free from the park.

It happens all the time in life. Just remember that your faith is what removes doubt.

Doubt is fleeting. Faith is permanent.

Namaste!

Yoga Poses To Strengthen Your Bones

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Yoga

I found this amazing article about a study that was conducted on persons doing just 10 minutes a day of yoga, and as a result help improve their bone health. They succeeded doing this just by doing the following poses:

  • Tree pose
  • Triangle pose
  • Twisted-triangle pose
  • Side-angle pose
  • Bent-knee twist
  • Corpse pose
  • Warrior II pose
  • Locust pose
  • Bridge pose
  • Supine hand-to-foot I pose
  • Supine hand-to-foot II
  • Straight-legged twist pose

You can read more about it you can find the original article below.

https://www.curejoy.com/content/yoga-poses-strengthen-bones

Namaste

Dealing with Loss

by Brittany M. Edwards, posted in Mindful Living

Dealing with the loss of a loved one is never easy. The very first thing you want to do is start crying your eyes out and asking the age old question: WHY??

Why did they have to pass away? Why does it hurt so much? Why can’t I get more time with him/her? It can be so difficult, and for some downright impossible to feel like they can press forward. You tend to wonder how you will make it through this. Support from family and friends helps to lighten the load you feel weighing on your shoulders. We have all been there and had these same thoughts. Grief hits us like a ton of bricks on our chest. Everyone goes through grief differently, but it never fails that we go through all five stages.

The five stages of grief are:

  1. Denial
  2. Anger
  3. Bargaining
  4. Depression
  5. Acceptance

They are the framework that makes up our learning to live without the one(s) we have lost. How we choose to deal with the grief can affect us for a long while after the news is first broken to us. During the denial stage, you cannot even believe the facts put in front of you. The person(s) you love is no longer here to hug you, tell you things will be okay, etc. Then usually after that, comes the anger. You are angry because they are no longer able to be present with you anymore. You may fight with someone, throw things, break things, or choose the creative expressions like dancing and/or art. Then there is the bargaining with God – or higher power, whichever you believe. We then begin bargain, saying we will do whatever as long as we get to have more moments with them. We are trying still to rationalize what has happened and even offering your life for theirs.

Depression is usually the toughest stage to get through. The preparations following a death can seem to be the hardest thing to do. Now you have to plan a ceremony, write about their impact and the memories they have left you with, burial or cremation, contact those who do not know what happened yet. There are just too many tiresome and daunting tasks to take care of when someone passes away. It can all be so overwhelming. These activities usually can either ease the depression or worsen it.

Acceptance is the final stage. This is also the most relieving stage. Even though you have gone through this incredibly terrible loss, you have finally reached the light at the end of the tunnel. There is a glimmer of hope that comes over you, they are no longer in pain. The gloom is no longer hanging over you as much and each day gets better and easier to deal with. Though we may all have to experience the loss of a loved one, it is helpful to understand what it is we are going through.

I hope that this post finds you well.

Namaste.