Conquer Fear In Four Easy Steps

In a situation:

1 -- DO NOT PANIC!
Panic can make a bad situation worse - FAST - it will render you unable to think on your feet and come to a quick decision, if that's what is needed.

2 -- WHAT'S THE WORST-CASE SCENARIO?
What will you do if the worst happens? Can you live with the outcome? Depending on the time frame that you have to make a decision, you may have to live with it, like it or not.

3 -- ACT ON THE BEST INFORMATION THAT YOU HAVE AT THE TIME.
If you've prepared as best as you can for the worst-case scenario, anything better than that is gravy, which it usually is. If you haven't prepared yourself, THINK, what advice would I give to someone else in this situation?

In situations where you may have a little more time to think, ask yourself what is the worst case scenario? How would I handle it? What resources do I have to deal with this problem? Is there an alternate way to handle this? Ask people you trust, if they are available, for advice.

4 -- GIVE YOURSELF PERMISSION TO 'PANIC' ONCE ALL THE EXCITEMENT IS OVER WITH.
This has worked successfully for me - I've been postponing a nervous breakdown since 1991!
:->... Seriously, once it's all over with, you are not going to want to panic then, you'll be basking in the glow of quiet confidence because you handled something that you were afraid of with grace and aplomb :-).

5 -- (BONUS) After all the excitement is over, have some/do [insert favorite low-cal/no-cal reward here] to celebrate your victory over adversity/trouble!!

When it is all over, debrief:

Will this situation come up again?
How can I handle this if it does?
What resources do I have/can get to prevent this from happening again ('Ounce of prevention', and all that)?
What have I learned about myself and/or others because of this experience?
Is there anything else 'coming down the road' because of this experience that I can see that may cause more trouble?

Sometimes, you will find that the fear that you have is real and justified. But going through the exercise will help you find a solution, while keeping 'mind-death' at bay.

Conquer Fear In Four Easy Steps

How to Learn More About Natural Healing

Read, read, read. Go to the library, and see what books they have on herbs and their uses. Read about what the herbs are good for, and try out a few remedies on a few minor ailments.

For example, people ask me how I know so much about what to do for various problems. I explain that I have an interest in my health. I have noticed that conventional medicine usually focuses on controlling the symptoms, not getting to the root cause of the problem. I'm much more interested in getting to the cause. So, for example, I used to suffer from severe asthma attacks quite frequently. I took all the medicines that I was given, without question. But I didn't get any better. It wasn't until I began reading about my condition that I began to understand that my diet (lots of junk food), and emotions (I was upset about some things going on in my homelife), had as much to do with my asthma symptoms as the pollutants and allergens in the air, water, and food around me.

I discovered that I was allergic to certain things. I also discovered that pushing my emotions down, unacknowledged, was a surefire way to create problems down the road. I also learned that I needed to eat better, more fruits and vegetables, no soda, more water and herbal teas. I needed to exercise, because a strong body can handle more with less discomfort. In short, there was no magic drug that would 'fix' the asthma. I had to start taking care of myself.

Once I realized that, the herbs were a help to restore balance while I took care to let my body heal. Herbs do not contain one or two active ingredients, like pharmaceuticals, but lots of different, interactive chemicals that work together in a synergistic way to support your system in repairing itself.

The reason that I say start at the library, is that there are a *lot* of books about herbal medicine, ranging in quality from junk to fantastic. However, even in the 'good' range, you need to find books that you are comfortable reading. Some books talk in 'medicalese', others are designed for the layperson. It's a matter of style, and what you are comfortable with. So, after you find and test-drive a few books at the library, go and buy the ones that you are most comfortable with (one at a time).

Whenever you have a minor ailment, look it up, before you reach for the over the counter stuff. Is there something else that I can do to alleviate or fix this problem? Have I been drinking enough water? What have I eaten today? What have I *not* eaten today? What else is going on around me? Am I angry or upset about something?

One more thing. A good book will also describe symptoms of serious ailments that you *should not* try to 'fix' yourself... these include heart attack, stroke, appendicitis... these are potential ailments that should cause you (or your loved one) to head for the nearest emergency room *IMMEDIATELY*, while calling 911 on your cell phone to alert the aformentioned hospital that you are on the way.

Beware of books that tell you that all medical problems can be fixed by positive thinking, or strictly by herbs/oils/etc. Pardon the expression, but that is just **stupid**. A smart person knows the limits of their knowledge. If a small problem doesn't respond to a home remedy, then perhaps it is not a small problem. If you feel like it may be more serious, it probably is. You know your body better than anyone else. Use common sense. If you don't have any, borrow a respected friends' common sense.

More to come, as it comes to mind.
©2007 LaVeda H. Mason All Rights Reserved.

How to Learn More About Natural Healing

Healthy living

Don't you hate it when Mom is right? Exercise, get 8 hours of sleep, eat your vegetables. Turns out that good old Mom wasn't so old-fashioned after all... she was cutting edge all these years.

When my friends asked me how I lost the weight (I used to weigh 180 pounds after the birth of my last baby), I told them that I stopped eating (not recommended, long story)! Then, I explain that I drank plenty of non-carbonated, not-heavily sugared beverages (mostly iced tea, *very* lightly sweetened) whenever I thought that I was hungry, then I went on about my business. If I was hungry twenty minutes later, then I ate a reasonable meal. I found that a lot of the time, I wasn't hungry, I was thirsty! And when I did eat, I didn't want a huge amount of food.

I also learned to ignore my desire to eat when I wasn't hungry. Like a lot of people, I picked up the habit of eating when I was bored. That alone added 15 pounds to my weight, easily dropped when I started paying attention to what and when I put food in my mouth. Make no mistake, it is *not* easy. Sometimes, your body literally has a mind of its own when it comes to the last piece of chocolate cake, lol!!

Some days, at bedtime, my stomach would be growling. But I knew that I shouldn't eat another helping of dinner, not if I wanted to fit into that favorite dress that was 10 pounds too small!! So, I'd have a cup of lightly sweetened tea, and read a book before bed. Some days, I thought I'd die! But, I didn't :-).

Today, my biggest problem is my eldest... I'm closing in on her size (we share a wardrobe), so just like a typical loving daughter, she's decided that I'm suffering from a homemade doughnut deficiency, or that I need to eat more ("You're wasting away... eat!!!")... I see through her machinations... she just wants to keep my skinny clothes to herself, lol!!

I have quite a bit of work to do in my garden this fall, and when I'm done, I will have lost the last of the baby weight, and then I can wear everything in my closet... of course, now I'm thinking that I'll have to brush up on my Kung-fu skills to win the clothing battles in the morning. But it *is* a good problem to have :-)!!

©2007 LaVeda H. Mason All Rights Reserved.

Healthy living