Hysterectomy Recovery

So you’re having/had hysterectomy, now what?!

The picture above is meant to be cute, but having a hysterectomy is a very serious decision. I’m not here to debate the decision, but to help women know they’re not alone in their decision or their recovery.

My hysterectomy story

Being a Functional Nutrition Coach that specializes in women’s hormones, I thought I’d be the last person to need a hysterectomy. Sometimes though, these things can’t be helped. But, many times they can, just so we’re clear. I had to come to a place of acceptance that my case was pretty severe and I would have the best outcome by doing the total hysterectomy.

Without going into a long medical history, I recently was diagnosed with a large 6cm tumor on my left ovary. Just 18 months ago I had a 9cm cyst removed on my right ovary. Before that I had 4 stomach surgeries, some having to do with the adhesions that had formed in my stomach from an initial surgery of a diverticulitis rupture. After a consult with a highly regarded gynecologic oncologist, we decided it was best because of my previous history that we do a total hysterectomy. My oncologist thought that stomach surgeries on me were becoming complicated and more dangerous, and I had to agree, it was a scary thing.

One of my main concerns was of course, being forced into menopause instead of going through it naturally. The plus side about being in the Functional Medicine career was that I was prepared for what was going to happen. I already had in place my Functional Medicine Dr. who was waiting to prescribe bioidental hormones as soon as my procedure was over. I already had the hormone saliva kit waiting for me at home to send in. These two things alone made me feel great relief that I wasn’t alone and that help was on the way should I need it, via hormone replacement therapy.

Grieving the loss

Even though I had come to a place of acceptance for what needed to happen with me, I was still grieving. My career has taught me that the ovaries, uterus, Fallopian tubes, aren’t the problem. It’s always a hormonal problem. The female reproductive system is just basically like an innocent bystander. I had to grieve the loss of what I wasn’t going to get to experience. I had hoped to go through natural menopause and be able to teach my four daughters how to do that with grace and ease via nutrition and bioidenticals, but that choice was being taken from me. I had to take a few weeks to process what was happening and then set my mind to recovering and having optimal health through the second phase of my life, whether that was naturally or forced. Once I had a few good crying sessions, a few good talks with my girls and a lot of research, I felt comfortable with the decision and knew I had made the best choice.

Recovery Process

I hope that if you are considering a hysterectomy or have already had one, or if you’ve just gone through natural menopause, you understand that there is a recovery process. The steps you need to take to recover and have optimal health are all within your grasp, but they’re not always easy. Nutrition is number one. Getting your gut health on target as well as making sure you’re detoxifying correctly will help you in ways I can’t even describe. The next step is always testing. We don’t want to be guessing if we need hormones, we already know we definitely do, but you need to have a good Dr. that’s willing to do bioidentical hormones and give you the testing that you need to figure out your individual dosage.

What do you need

You need a good Functional Nutrition Coach to help you with your nutritional needs. You also need a good Dr. who believes in supporting you and in using bioidentical hormones to do that. If you have not found a Dr. like this, don’t get discouraged, they’re out there. By working with me, you will get both. I am a Certified Functional Nutrition Coach through Mind Body Green, and I have a relationship with a great Doctor who will get you the testing you need as well as the bioidentical hormones you need. To schedule a free 15 minute consult with me go to: https://calendly.com/grounded-inthe-present/15min

Whether you’re in perimenopause, already gone through menopause or a doctor has recommended you have a hysterectomy, I would be honored to meet with you to discuss the best options for you. It is my goal and life purpose to inform women of their rights as well as teach you about our glorious beautiful bodies and how they function hormonally. Don’t ever think you’re alone, you’ve got a friend in your corner right here 🙂

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there “Soon Enuff”.

Amy Lopez

The Unhappy You

Free from unhappiness

There is a longing in all of us to be free from unhappiness. Guilt, regret, grievances, these are all simply feelings. But when we add our narrative to why we are having these feelings, they become emotions. Emotions plus the story and boom, there you have it, the unhappy you. Then we like to get together with others and share our unhappy stories to see who’s is worse, lol!

Today I’d like you to try something different!!

5 Questions

Ask yourself these questions:

“Who am I today?”

“Who am I not today?”

“What do I need more of in my life to be my authentic self?”

“What do I not need more of in my life to be my authentic self?”

“What can I do right now in this present moment to arrive at a new inner state?”

Everyone’s answers are going to be different, but I’ll give you my answers as an example.

“Who am I today?” I am a present being trying to live my life in alignment with my truest self. I want to make right decisions for myself, but also scared to do so. Is this woman my truest self right now? No, because I am stuck in a spot where I’m unsure of myself. Trying to make myself and everyone around me happy.

“Who am I not today?” I am not the helpless, low self esteemed woman that I once was. Can I leave these qualities behind for good? Yes, I can! I live in the present no longer basing my current situation on the past.

“What do I want more of in my life so I can be more authentic?” Honesty without a narrative. Time alone outdoors. Less social media. More time with loved ones. More time in meditation.

“What do I not want more of in my life so I can be more authentic?” Chaos, disorder, rushing around, social media.

“What can I do right now in this moment to arrive at a new inner state?” Be true to myself.

I hope this practice helps you. Spend today and maybe even every morning this week asking yourself these questions. The answers may change day to day, mine certainly do.

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there, Soon Enuff…

Amy

I am a Certified Life Coach and Functional Nutrition Coach through Mind, Body, Green. If you’d like to work with me shoot me an email, I’d love to hear from you!

It’s a Balancing Act

Hormones…in or out

I cannot tell you how long I’ve struggled. Thinking I was crazy, being prescribed anti anxiety meds, birth control pill, anti depression pills, only to find out later through years of research that my hormones were simply (well not so simply) out of balance! I had no idea at the time that my diet and lifestyle which included way too much stress and too little sleep were at the root cause! This is what led me to a Certification in Functional Nutrition Coaching. I needed answers, and now that I’ve found them, it’s my goal to share them with every woman that is struggling like I was!

Hormones are these chemical messengers in our bodies from endocrine glands. The pineal, thyroid, pancreas, adrenals, ovaries, testes, and pituitary. But did you know they all receive messages from the food we eat and from the thoughts we think?!!

We need to unlock the path to hormone balance for optimal health. Since we know our food and our thoughts send messages to our hormones, it only makes sense that we ourselves, not some physician or prescription, hold the key. And the best place to start is at the end of our forks!

In the tab above, “The Powerful Fork” under Free Courses I have posted a free Comprehensive Hormone Questionnaire. It’s always nice to have blood work done, but it’s not absolutely necessary to diagnose hormone imbalance. If you’d like to work with me to help balance your hormones through a few lifestyle changes, join me for a consultation at The Powerful Fork! I’m looking forward to our time together!

Cause we’re not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff!

Amy

The Big M

The Big M is Magnesium! Magnesium is essential for optimal health. It also has the ability to help prevent inflammatory diseases like Alzheimer, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Here are the top 6 reasons to get adequate magnesium daily:

Top 6

Boosts Mood: Do we need anymore reasons?! 🙂

Magnesium is known to improve mental health by supporting brain biochemistry and neurotransmitter regulation. It’s been shown to improve clinical depression and conversely, low levels of magnesium have been associated with depressive behaviors. Oral supplements of magnesium have been shown to have the same effectiveness of some pharmaceutical drugs to treat depression. Now who wouldn’t choose a natural mineral with no side effects?

Fights Inflammation:

Did you know that eating foods high in magnesium like dark chocolate and pumpkin seeds can decrease inflammation? Many chronic inflammatory diseases have been associated with low levels of magnesium. Magnesium acts as an antioxidant by protecting our mitochondria from oxidative stress.

Reduces Insulin Resistance:

Insulin Resistance is when certain cells in your muscles, fat and liver don’t respond well to insulin and can no longer take glucose (sugar) up from your blood stream. Insulin resistance causes weight gain and all kinds of chronic diseases, including Type 2 diabetes. Low levels of magnesium have been associated with insulin resistance.

Helps maintain healthy blood pressure:

Taking an oral magnesium supplement reduces blood pressure in patients with mild hypertension. Eating foods with magnesium also has a positive impact post exercise blood pressure, who doesn’t want that!

Improves PMS:

Premenstrual syndrome plagues many women in their child bearing years. Magnesium has a soothing effect on the mind and body and has been shown to help alleviate PMS symptoms.

Relieves Menopause symptoms:

Magnesium is vital during the years leading up to and during menopause. Magnesium helps keep bones strong and prevents osteoporosis. It also helps with those pesky menopause symptoms like difficulty sleeping and depression.

We literally cannot live without this vital nutrient, yet almost half of us don’t get adequate amounts of magnesium. This may be due to people eating fewer amounts of nutrient rich foods like the ones shown above. Industrial farming isn’t doing us any favors either. The soil is becoming depleted and reducing the amounts of magnesium in our foods.

Let’s work together to make sure what you’re putting at the end of your fork is giving your body the vital nutrients it needs for optimal health! Check out my new program, “The Powerful Fork.”

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff!!

Amy

Today only if you are over 40 my daughter, Dr. Jazmin Lopez, is offering a Cyber Monday Deal for a 3×4 genetics testing kit. This kit would be sent to your home, where you do a simple cheek swab and mail it in. Upon receiving the lab results you would have a Lifestyle Genomics Consultation with Dr. Jazmin to review your DNA results and how they affect your metabolism, inflammation, detox pathways, weight, fitness, injury/recovery, cognition, response to food, and supplements that you may choose. You’ll also receive one functional nutrition session with me to begin implementing your targeted plan for exercise, nutrition, and supplementation, based on your genetic results and personal goals for your body and life! This 3×4 genetics testing is offered today only at $400! Visit @drjazmin.physio on instagram to book yours, there’s only two spots left!

If you are under 40, Dr. Jazmin will send you to, Grace Lopez, Integrative Health Coach to begin implementing your targeted plan!

Check them both out on Instagram @drjazmin.physio

Jazmin graduated from Chapman University as a Dr. of Physical Therapy and Integrative Physiotherapy. She’s also a Functional Medicine Practioner with certifications in Pilates and pelvic floor health.

@gracejlopez

Grace received her Nutritional Health Coach Certification from IIN, Integrative Nutrition. The world’s premiere Health Coach Training Program.

I am a Certified Functional Nutrition Coach through Mind Body Green. If you’d like help with dietary changes, life coaching, or just to ask questions, I’d love to work with you. Follow me on Instagram @grounded_inthe_present

Break the bondage from the “externals”

The Externals

The “externals” are anything outside yourself. What are you feeling in bondage to? Your job, significant other, kids, school, food, the list could go on and on. But if you took away the need to live up to, or down to, in many cases, what would your life be like? If you stopped internalizing everyones opinions and just empowered yourself to do what’s best for you, how would that feel?

I’ll give you an example of my own turmoil. Recently I have felt like I’m in a fight with the food industry. (not literally, but just a sense of frustration) The pesticides in our food, the lack of nutrients in our soil, all the added sugar, etc. etc. And at times I’ve let that external force really get to me and almost give up. Like what’s the point of trying to buy all this organic food and eat really healthy, when honestly our food has become not so healthy. Thoughts like this race through my head, “It’s all bad, go on and have that soda and candy bar, what’s the difference anyways.” The thing is, thoughts like that contribute to my own degradation. If I followed those thoughts, I’d essentially be doing what’s best for the externals, and not what’s best for myself.

How do you contribute to your own degradation

So ask yourself, “How am I contributing to my own degradation?” Depending on your circumstances there are countless ways we do this. Someone treats you poorly, you let it slide instead of standing up for yourself. Someone/something is demanding your attention and instead of doing what’s best for you and saying honestly you don’t have time, you instead give in and do the task. You’re doing your best to live a healthy life and you give in to friends that want to go out and party all weekend. You see, we all have the power to do what’s best for ourselves, but by not making the right choices, we contribute to our own degradation and then tend to blame it on the externals.

The externals are real, but don’t give them that much power. Instead, regain your own power, be your own leader. Look within yourself for the answers you need. Search your own heart for solutions.

Cause we’re not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff…

Amy

Focus off the Future

Make a Future Plan/Set a Goal

Monday is a great day to sit down and make a plan. Maybe set some new goals. Here’s the thing…after doing that, you need to take your focus off the future!

If all you focus on is that future end result you’re going to miss out on the present moment, which is all we really have.

Focus here, on the moment

If you can focus on a few things you need to do today to reach that goal, you’ll find yourself more at peace and happy. You’ll actually even be more effective at reaching those goals. And I promise you, you’ll feel more fulfilled. If we’re always so engaged in seeking the end result we become preoccupied. The end result becomes all that matters and our focus is drawn away from what’s going on in our lives right now, to some future moment that we aren’t in control of.

Have goals for the future, but keep your energy in the present!

It’s a process, and I know we’re not there yet, but if we keep working on it, perhaps together, we’ll get there, Soon Enuff.

Amy

Epigenetics

Huh? Epigenetics, what’s that even mean!

That was my exact thought when I first heard the word epigenetic in my Functional Nutrition courses. I was literally mind blown to learn that Epigenetics is the study of how our behaviors, environment and life choices can alter the way our genes work. Maybe read that line again! Yes you can alter your genes with your thoughts and with what you choose to put at the end of your fork! While epigenetics are reversible and can’t change your DNA sequence, they can change how your body reads the DNA sequence. A little scientific I know, but I’ll try to put it in terms that helped me understand it better.

Our genes only have 5% to do with determing our risk of developing a particular disease. That means 95% has to do with our behaviors, environments and lifestyle choices. That doesn’t mean that if you do develop a disease it’s 95% your fault. A lot of people cannot control their environment. It does mean that we can greatly influence our genes with what we choose to put in our mouths and our outlook on life. So when I hear people say things like, “My whole family is obese so I am obese,” doesn’t fly. Or my mother and grandfather died of heart disease so I probably will too. Here’s the thing….if you know you have these traits in your family, whether that be heart disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimers, ADHD, MS, Parkinson’s, the list goes on and on, then you actually have the upper hand. You know you can alter your genes with the your life choices. Epigenetics can turn a gene on or off. If you have heart disease in your family, you can choose to exercise, eat well, live as stress free as possible and keep your waist line down. By choosing this way of life, you can alter that gene in a positive way. If you choose to ignore the fact that your family has a history of diabetes, and you eat a highly processed diet, a lot of sugar and carbohydrates, live a stressful life, then your epigenetic will be influenced in a negative way and you may very likely turn that gene on.

Epigenetics and Pregnancy

One of the most awesome things a mom to be can do for her unborn child is change their behavior before they become pregnant. You see a mother’s food choices, such as eating a healthy diet, avoiding too much sugar, and living as stress free as possible can actually change the unborn Childs epigenetics. Your baby doesn’t have a choice is in this, it’s up to you to impact it’s genes in a positive or negative way. These changes to your babies epigenetic can impact the child for decades and may make your child more likely to get certain diseases.

Epigenetics and Aging

I have been literally so excited to learn that aging doesn’t have to be a terrible thing. We’ve been conditioned to believe that menopause for women and aging in general for men and women is awful. We’ve been told menopause is terrible and all the symptoms that go with it are just the way it is. Men have been conditioned to believe that as they age they’ll lose some of their libido, their bellies will just naturally get bigger, and our mental prowess will begin to decline. But it’s totally not true! We can absolutely impact aging with our behaviors, life choices, and amount of stress we allow in our lives. I’ve personally experienced how changing my diet and lifestyle habits has impacted my moods. How choosing the right foods and supplements has changed peri-menopause symptoms. Of course, it’s not all fun, and I’ve had a few symptoms that were challenging, but it’s definitely not the normal symptoms that I’ve been conditioned to believe were going to happen!

Ultimately, it’s up to you. You play the most crucial part in how your life plays out. I’d love to help you with getting on the right track! If you’re interested in working one on one with me to learn the best choices for your particular health and mental needs, let me know by setting up an appointment below. Health isn’t black and white and neither should your healthcare be. Everyone has different needs and conventional medicine doesn’t address those, but I will!

Cause we’re not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff…..

Sincerely,

Amy Lopez, FNC

To set up an appointment with me click the link below:

https://calendly.com/grounded-inthe-present/the-powerful-fork-client-intake?month=2021-10

Let’s talk Diverticulitis

What is Diverticulitis

Let’s start at the beginning. Diverticulitis isn’t something sexy or fun to discuss, but unfortunately, thanks to our SAD (standard American diet) 30% of people ages 50-59 and 70-80% over age 60 will be told they have diverticulosis. I suspect that 30% to be much higher than reported.

So what is diverticulosis? Diverticulosis is a small pouch similar to a bulging wall that are present in the digestive tract and are usually discovered during a routine colonoscopy. There are no symptoms unless they become inflamed.

Diverticulitis is what occurs when one or more of these pouches becomes inflamed or infected. 5% of people with diverticulosis will get diverticulitis.

My own health battle with Diverticulitis

Back in March of 2015 I was watching a movie in bed when my left side and lower abdomen, right around my pelvis bone started to really hurt. Within 30 minutes I was throwing up from the pain, but since I had always struggled with what I thought were gall bladder issues, I chalked it up to just something I had eaten. After an hour I had turned pale and grayish colored and could not stop throwing up nor could I get off the toilet though nothing was coming out. It was the worst pain I’ve ever experienced, and I’ve had 5 children. My husband finally talked me into going to the ER. When I arrived they agreed at first, it must be my gall bladder, and I distinctly remember being made to feel guilty for eating something that must have been bad for it. I was given morphine and blood was drawn. When they came back with my blood count they knew there was a problem. I was told they would need to do exploratory surgery, that it was most likely an ulcer that had ruptured and that the scar would be very small down towards my pelvis. I was wisked off in a matter of minutes, extremely scared and extremely unaware of what was about to happen.

Unknown to me, they came out a few minutes later and had to get permission from my husband for what they were about to do. I had over a foot of my intestines removed due to diverticulitis rupture and they were going to need to do a colostomy. I woke up with a tube down my nose, 58 staples from just under my breast bone down to my pelvis, and a colostomy bag. I was just 45 years old.

I remember hearing my mom and husband saying, “She’s going to be devastated.” I had no idea what had happened to me. I was extremely sick and had almost died. When I was finally awake enough to realize it, she was right, I was completely devastated. How could this have happened? I was young, in shape, and had never even heard the word diverticulitis before. I was in the hospital for 10 days. The surgeon told me if all healed well, we could reverse the colostomy bag after 6 months.

It was the worst summer of my life. If you don’t know what a colostomy bag is, it is basically taking the place of your colon and rectum. If you have gas, you hear it loud and clear because it’s coming out of the bag on your stomach instead of down below. If you have to go number 2, it’s right there filling up a bag hooked to your stomach. Want to have sex, there it is, right there on your stomach. So I went into deep depression. I wanted no help, I wanted no one to see this thing, and I had a huge scar on my stomach that just added to the humiliation I was feeling. Looking back now, I think the humiliation came more from no one, and I mean no one, talking to me about what had happened. What had caused this diverticulitis and why had it ruptured and almost killed me.

We did the reversal of the bag in Sept. of that same year. Another 5 days in the hospital. Another incision where the bag was removed, and they had to open up the same scar and do another 60 staples this time. I had also had a lot of pain in my tail bone area and when they did the surgery they discovered one of the staples had adhered to my skin thus the tugging I kept feeling. They also decided during this surgery to go ahead and remove my gall bladder.

Again, I was never talked to about what had caused any of this. When I asked the surgeon if there was anything I needed to be careful of he said, “Some people say not to eat nuts and seeds.” That’s it? Don’t eat nuts and seeds?! Funny thing is, another attending physican said the opposite, “You really don’t need to worry about what you eat. Nuts and seeds are fine.” When I asked at my follow up visit another Dr. said it was highly unusual for someone my age to have this happen. He asked if I knew I had diverticulitis, because had I known it could have been treated with antibiotics and over the counter meds. No, I had no idea that I had diverticulitis. I had been telling my primary care physician for years that I had stomach pain all the time. No matter what I ate. It was all related to my gall bladder she had told me. I was never offered a colonoscopy or ultra sound.

Needless to say, I felt puzzled, I felt overwhelmed, and my life had changed drastically. I have been a gymnastics coach and owner for years and now I found myself unable to do my job. The two back to back incisions, one going laterally and one horizontally, had a done a number on my abdominal muscles and I could no lift the way that I once had. I was also still having stomach trouble.

Two years later, I had just finished lunch with my mother when I had terrible stomach pain. I turned white as a ghost, it felt exactly the same as before. After trying to calm it for 3 or 4 hours I was finally forced to go back to the ER. Because of my history, they immediately did a CT Scan with contrast and discovered I had a small bowel obstruction and would need immediate surgery. Turns out, adhesions from the first two surgeries had formed a knot around my small intestine. I was assured this was a “fluke” and was nothing to worry about as it would most likely never happen again. Another 5 days in the hospital, and you guessed it, the exact same incision with 50 some staples in the exact same part of my stomach. All the work on my abs over the past two years was thrown out the window.

Three years later I was having so much pain, but this time on my right side that my surgeon finally agreed to do an ultrasound with contrast. It turned out this time, I had an ovarian cyst that was 10cm in size. I was scheduled for surgery. To be on the safe side, the gynecologist performing the ovarian cyst surgery wanted to have my gastro surgeon there in case she ran into scar tissue. Sure enough, the adhesions from my previous surgeries had grabbed a hold of a layer of my stomach lining called the, Serosa, and pulled it over to one side. The cyst was taken care of, but the adhesion removal was quite painful. It was done laparoscopically this time, so instead of one big scar I now had 5 more little scars. My stomach at this point looks similar to something from Dr. Jekly and Mr. Hyde. And now, my biggest fear is adhesions, as they have caused the last two surgeries. I have been told there is nothing I can do about them, and you can’t see them under MRI or CT Scans, so it’s nothing we can even continue to check for.

It’s been a little over a year now, and so far so good, but I am in constant awareness of anything with my insides, I don’t think it’s a worry that will ever go away. I know my story was an Acute case and a situation that doesn’t happen too often, but it can happen, especially if we don’t know the reasoning. The reason I’ve gone into such depth with my story is because it’s what has driven me into Functional Nutrition. You see, I was never given any direction. Never told what possibly caused this. Never told that I should change my eating habits or lifestyle. Instead I felt that this was something just wrong with me, something I had done or created that caused it. I was literally disfigured and it was all preventable…..

Through my studies in Functional Nutrition I discovered the role that our diets play in diverticulitis, and in fact, in every aspect of our bodies and brains. I never knew that eating a diet high in sugar, processed foods, soda, etc. was destroying my gut and at the same time making me feel depressed and fatigued. I didn’t know that by not eating enough fiber I was wreaking havoc on my intestines and colon. I didn’t know that taking Advil and ibuprofen was just adding to the inflammation in my body. And sadly even after all the surgeries, no one discussed any of these things with me.

I recently drove my 70 year old mother to her colonoscopy where she was told she had a little diverticulitis but that it was nothing for her to worry about, “everyone at her age has it.” I asked, because now I know better, “Is there any special diet she should follow or things she should change?” And of course the answer from her surgeon was, “Nope. Totally normal, nothing to worry about.” The same thing happened this year with my own husband, who is 60. “Colon looks great. He does have a small area of diverticulosis.” I asked, again, because now I know, “Anything we can do to prevent it from getting worse?” And again, the same answer, “Nope, totally normal, nothing to worry about.”

Here’s the thing…..It’s not normal, and it is something to think about. I say think, instead of worry because it turns out that stress does in fact have a lot to do with our gut, which I’ll also call our microbiome. You see, by making just a few small changes to our diet and lifestyle we could save ourselves from devastating health consequences. But, as I’ve discovered first hand, you’ll need to be looking outside of conventional medicine for help.

This is why I decided to become a Functional Nutrition Coach. It’s so important to me that people understand they don’t have to get sick. You don’t have to wait until you have a disease to then try and find a drug to help you. You don’t have to be a statistic due to our SAD diet. It can all be prevented by some life style changes and by what you put at the end of your fork.

My program is called, “The Powerful Fork,” and if you’d like help learning how to become more healthy, happy, and have not just a longer lifespan but a greater health span, I’d love to help you. Just click the link below and I’ll be in touch 🙂

https://view.flodesk.com/pages/61658fbf9a36b29c176a3a45

Sincerely, Amy, FNC

Cause we’re not there yet, but perhaps, together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff.

You Choose

Your Choices

Did you know you can halt the disease process by learning to control your thoughts, or should I say by not allowing your thoughts to control you.

When you allow your thoughts to linger in the past, your brain doesn’t recognize that it’s the past, it thinks it’s right now and affects every part of your body. It sends messages through the vagus nerve to your gut and that gets your stomach all upset and in knots, causing all sorts of gut trouble, including inflammation. An inflamed gut wreaks havoc. You know that feel good hormone, Seratonin, well, guess what, that comes from your gut, and an inflamed gut blocks the production of serotonin.

The by product of your choices

Now that your thoughts have gotten you all upset the ball is in motion. Now your thoughts are sending messages to your brain that it is stressed and your body starts producing cortisol because it wants to rescue you from this stress. And remember your gut is lowering the production of serotonin already. This release of cortisol causes you to crave sugary, salty foods, which, if you give in, cause you to feel even worse. This can be a vicious cycle, especially if your thoughts are in control of you day in and day out. It can really impact your health regardless of how well you may be trying to eat.

“Only you choose, every day, every hour, how your life will play out. You have more control over developing disease than the genes you were born with. Choose well.” Dr. Mary Hyman

So what to do…..

What I practice doing when thoughts of a past trauma start to creep in is sit with the thoughts from the place of a third party. Reminding myself that I am no longer experiencing the trauma, the trauma has passed. I don’t necessarily try to ignore it, instead I try to love myself through it. Deep breathing has drastically helped me. I find that I can free my mind of most thoughts by concentrating on my breath. Inhaling through my nose to a count of 4, holding that breath for a count of 2, then sighing it deeply out of my mouth to a count of 6. I only practice this for a few moments, then I get up and move. I have found that moving, whether that is doing yoga, going for a walk, a run, a bike ride, or simply walking around in my yard just looking at nature brings me back to the present moment.

Stay Present

I’d be misleading you if I didn’t also tell you that you need to practice staying present. Any time I feel my thoughts starting to take over, you know, that rambling voice in my head gets on a roll, I bring myself back to a state of aware presence. Reminding myself that I am here in this space, wherever it is, right now. Reminding myself that I am the observer of my thoughts, my thoughts are not who I am. Usually bringing some silence, even if it’s noisy around me, helps me focus on the present moment.

Cause you know what, we may not be there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff.

The Powerful Fork

Amy Lopez, FNC

The Art of Being Okay…

Are You Okay?

Have you ever really thought about how you need your life to be in order to be okay? Have you thought about how often you are attempting to create safety and control by defining how you need life to be in order to be okay? I’m here to tell you that this way of thinking, though we all do it, is how the world becomes a frightening place.

While attempting to be in control doesn’t sound frightening, it is. When you think this way, life becomes “me against life” very quickly. We all have fears and instead of facing them and letting them pass, we try to create scenarios in which we never have to face our fears. We start to feel like this person isn’t acting the way they should, and this event is not unfolding the way you want it to. You see your past as disturbing and your future loaded with potential problems. You even have set definitions of desirable and undesirable, good and bad, and they all came about because of your need of how you feel things need to be in order to be okay.

Is Your Fear Okay?

So how is it that we come to this idea that life isn’t okay just how it is? Or that it won’t be okay the way it will be? Who taught us that the way life naturally unfolds isn’t all right? Well the answer is ….Fear! Most people don’t understand that fear is just a thing. Another object in the world that we are all capable of experiencing. And we choose to do one of two things with fear: We recognize we have it, and thus, start working on it, or we keep it inside and try to hide from it. The problem is, life is ever changing, and so at some point something will eventually trigger your fear, no matter how safe you try to keep yourself and how in control you attempt to be at orchestrating your life.

The easiest thing to do is stop fighting against life. When life pushes you to the edge, and you feel that fear creeping up inside you, simply recognize it for what it is. It’s an object. The fear is not who you are, you are the one recognizing that you have the fear. If you can look at your fear from a state of mental clarity, you can make the best decision in the moment and the fear will pass. The problem occurs when you let the fear distract you and draw you in. When this happens, you can become totally lost in the fear. It could last a few moments, hours, days and sometimes even years. Once you become lost in the fear, things head down hill quickly. Many times when we are lost thoughts come into our minds that want to get us out of here as quickly as possible. You may start packing your bags, quit your job, or begin verbally abusing someone that happens to be near by. The thing is, any decision made out of fear, without mental clarity isn’t going to be a good decision at all. Most assuredly, you are going to regret any decisions made when you are lost in fear. See fear is okay, if you learn to let it pass, and it will pass. But the moment you don’t, well….then fear isn’t okay anymore.

Letting Go from the Beginning is the Best Way to Stay Okay

So what if you had let the fear/disturbance go right from the beginning? What if no matter what happened, you just turned your eyes upward and relaxed your heart? What if you could stay in that place of mental clarity, staying present in the moment, and just watching your fear or whatever disturbance come and go. You see if you don’t give it your attention, it can’t disrupt your energy, it can’t draw you in. But if you do fall, don’t worry, just get yourself back up and move along as soon as possible. Always, always, try to let go as soon as you’re aware that you’ve gotten drawn in. You’ll undoubtedly have ups and downs along the way, we all do, but this can be a great reminder that whatever is holding you down, fear, jealousy, loneliness, can become the source that eventually raises you up.

Cause I’m not there yet, but perhaps together, we’ll get there Soon Enuff….

Sincerely,

Amy Lopez

Check out the tab above to find my books, “Present Ground” and “Soon Enuff,” as well as free PDF’s on how to live a more present life.