sleep

How About a FRESH Valentine?

February 13, 2019

A heart shaped bowl full of antioxidant rich fruit, a *FRESH* Valentine indeed

A *FRESH* Valentine is a positive move!

How About a *FRESH* Valentine?

I was thinking about Valentine’s Day and how to celebrate the occasion. It didn’t take long to ask myself “how about a *FRESH* valentine, a gift that will keep on giving?”

What on earth is a *FRESH* valentine? It is purposefully implementing one of five lifestyle areas I pinpointed once I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) to help my medications to better manage my systemic inflammation. The five areas are F for the food I eat, R for rest and relaxation, E for exercise, S for sleep and H for hydration.

Let’s look closer at each of these areas:

F for food. I was too sick to follow a strict diet at the time. I didn’t have the energy to find recipes to make the restrictive diet edible. I defaulted to keeping it simple by limiting processed foods, added sugar and added salt. I learned to read labels, and was shocked at times learning what I thought was something healthy was actually not so.
R for rest and relaxation. In other words, managing stress in my life. I have found meditating and using visualization to be very helpful.
E for exercise. Keep moving! One Pilates session a week made a big difference in stamina, flexibility and better posture. I also walk the dog every day.
S for sleep. I aim for at least eight hours of sleep every night. I start winding my day down right after dinner so I’m ready to turn in sometimes by 8:30!
H for hydration. A rule of thumb I was taught was to take your body weight in pounds, divide that number in half and that is how many ounces of fluid to aim to consume each day. It is helpful to have a goal.

So take your pick. Try one thing in one of the areas to make your lifestyle healthier in one small way. I have found making small adjustments to my lifestyle have added up to make a big difference.

My pick for this Valentine’s Day is to have a big-dark-chocolate-covered strawberry instead of indulging in a gooey chocolate desert. It may seem like a small thing, but when I eat sugary deserts I crave more. And sometimes I’m not so good at resisting the craving.

Let me know how you are celebrating with a *FRESH* Valentine this year. I’d love to hear from you!

Have a wonderful Valentine’s Day.

And that is using Arthritis Wisdom!

XXOO Cathy

photo credit: Jamie Street at Unsplash

4 Beliefs on Christmas Eve

December 24, 2018

Time to rest and enjoy the season to release stress when managing rheumatoid arthritis

The time is now to rest and enjoy the season remembering 4 Beliefs on Christmas Eve.

4 Beliefs on Christmas Eve

All month has been spent preparing for and celebrating Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa. It is certainly a festive and fun time of the year. It’s a perfect time to reconnect with those important to us. The holidays are full of tradition and literally brighten the shortened daytime hours.

Today is Christmas Eve and I have adopted 4 beliefs, or mottos, for this day since my rheumatoid arthritis (RA) diagnosis. These beliefs help to better manage the disease. It is a time of enormous expectations and my lifestyle had to change because of my RA. In many ways it is a better lifestyle than before because I am taking better care of myself. Here are 4 ways I’m doing so today.

What isn’t done by now wasn’t that important after all. I love this motto because it allows me to simply enjoy the Christmas lights and all I have done to prepare up until now. It also allows me to enjoy my family and what is really the reason for the season.
Release your inner child. Go ahead and recall your childhood memories and indulge your imagination. I’m remembering all sorts of memories, especially since losing my mother last summer.
Have an attitude of gratitude. This time of year causes me to think more acutely of all I have to be thankful for. Relationships, provisions, and even with RA I am thankful for all the parts of my body that do work well.
Be sure to get a good night’s sleep tonight. I have found even happy stress is stress on my body. All the excitement and anticipation takes a toll on my joints. I need to purpose to counter that stress as much as possible and getting the proper amount of sleep is critical.

With my 4 beliefs on Christmas Eve I wish you all a very happy day. And that is using Arthritis Wisdom!

XXOO Cathy

photo credit: Marina Khrapova from Unsplash

Ten Tips To Tranquility

June 24, 2018

Two adorable lambs snuggled together sleeping peacefully is how I want to sleep every night in order to best manage my RA

Peace and tranquility, the kind of restful sleep my body demands in order to best manage my RA. I want to sleep like these cuties!

Ten tips to tranquility are a great help to ensure a restful sleep. Sleep is very important to best manage rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is one of the five FRESH areas I focus on to keep my disease in check. It is what the S in my FRESH acronym stands for. I use the acronym daily to live a healthy autoimmune lifestyle.

I had to review these tips to tranquility as I was waking up and wandering around my house in the middle of the night several times this week — once at 4 in the morning. I knew it wasn’t good for my joints and I needed to do something before I had an arthritic flare. I’m again reminded how I’ve designed as much of my lifestyle as I can around managing my RA. I wouldn’t characterize it in a negative way because I believe my disease has helped guide me to a healthier lifestyle. I am motivated to make changes in order to feel so much better. That in itself is a powerful motivator. That is using Arthritis Wisdom!

I aim for at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night. Sleep is time of restoration. It is when our mind and body recovers from our all-in-a-day’s-work stuff. One of the stages of sleep is called rapid eye movement stage, or REM stage. It is during the REM stage of sleep the brain organizes important information for long-term memory.

Without a good night’s sleep our immune system doesn’t function as well. Lack of proper rest can affect our ability to think, important for making better decisions and having more fruitful interactions with others. My patience shortens when I am tired or fatigued and I know that matters when I try to communicate. Hormonal influences can be disrupted by a poor night’s sleep. Sleep is when hormones are regulated. This is probably why I tend to go for junk food, something quick, when I’m not well rested. Here are my tips:

Ten Tips To Tranquility

Avoid caffeine after 2 pm. That includes chocolate and any caffeinated teas.
Getting physical activity during the day. Gardening, yoga, pilates, walking. You name it. Just get moving!
No screens two hours prior to bedtime. Turn off your computer, smart phone,and put away electronic games. They stimulate the mind when it’s time to wind down.
A cool temperature in the bedroom is comfortable for sleeping.
Wear comfy pajamas.
Read uplifting, soothing materials before turning in for the night.
Certain essential oils have a calming effect to facilitate sleep. Lavender, Frankincense, Sweet Marjoram, and Tangerine are a few. They can be diffused into the bedroom.
Avoiding eating after 6pm, especially a heavy and/or spicy meal. This helps to prevent acid reflux as well. A cup of warm milk can be soothing and signal that it is time to sleep.
Develop a bedtime routine so your body knows it is time to wind down for sleep.
“White noise”, such as a fan, can help tune out other noises in order to fall asleep. It also circulates the air in the room.

Knowing how critical sleep is for someone with RA, I wanted to go back to my basics to nip a potential bad habit in the bud. In my professional world of pharmacy, we call this good sleep hygiene. The practice of preparing for a good night’s sleep. I wish you all happy zzzz’s!

Let me know your tips for getting a good night’s sleep by sharing a comment or two! (Aren’t those little lambs just the sweetest thing? I want to sleep like they do!)

XXOO Cathy

photo: Daniel o’down at Unsplash