Consciously Well

Noticed this discount from the Calm Ap people. I have no affiliation, but I just like to share anything that I find helpful... that you may also.

Limited Time Offer - 40% Off Calm The most relaxing app in the world

An inspiring weekend at the ACIIDS conference with some great thought leaders in Australia in the chronic complex illness space.

The gracious Jill Carnahan, MD who does a beautiful job of acknowledging the complexity of how both environmental exposure to toxins and infections, AND trauma ALL contribute to disease states.

With heart, spirit Dr Jill truely “gets” how early developmental experiences and pasts trauma’s contribute to our stories, beliefs and body patterns that contribute to disease. And the commitment and dedication it takes to understand our true nature. For an inspiring read…check out her book Unexpected.

An end of year post to say hello!! ...and to wish you peace and joy at the end of this 'break neck paced year".

I hope you find some space in the coming weeks to just BE - with loved ones, in nature...anything that brings you joy.

My husband recently called 2022, the 1000 day year. With the unprocessed feelings, emotions and exhaustion of 2020 & 2021 in there too. I agree with him.

This repost below resonated with me - and hopefully it may give comfort to someone out there who is wondering why they feel so depleted. Wishing you happy holidays. My last day in practice for 2022 is the 22nd December and I return in 2023 on the 18th Jan. With love and gratitude...Sally

A gentle reminder about why you are utterly exhausted…

No one I know began this year on a full tank. Given the vicious onslaught of the previous two years (let’s just call it what it was) most of us dragged ourselves across the finish line of 2021… frazzled, spent, running on aged adrenaline fumes…

We crawled into 2022 still carrying shock, trauma, grief, heaviness, disbelief… The memories of a surreal existence…
And then it began… The fastest hurricane year we could ever have imagined. Whether we have consciously processed it or not, this has been a year of more pressure, more stress, and a race to “catch up” in all departments… Every. Single. One. Work, school, sports, relationships, life…

Though not intentionally aware, perhaps hopeful that the busier we are, the more readily we will forget… the more easily we will undo the emotional tangle… the more permanently we will wipe away the scarring wounds…
We can’t.

And attempts to re-create some semblance of “normal” on steroids while disregarding that for almost two years our sympathetic nervous systems were on full alert, has left our collective mental health in tatters. Our children and teens are not exempt. The natural byproduct of fighting a hurricane is complete and utter exhaustion…

So before you begin questioning the absolutely depleted and wrung-dry state you are in- Pause. Breathe. Remind yourself of who you are and what you have endured. And then remind yourself of what you have overcome.
Despite it all, you’re still going. (Even on the days you stumble and find yourself face down in a pile of dirt).
Understanding brings compassion…

Most of the world’s citizens are in need of a little extra TLC at the moment. Most are donning invisible “Handle with care” posters around their necks and “Fragile” tattoos on their bodies…
Instead of racing to the finish line of this year, tread gently. Go slowly.

Amidst the chaos, find small pockets of silence. Find compassion. Allow the healing. And most of all… Be kind. There’s no human being on earth who couldn’t use just a little bit more of the healing salve of kindness.

With love ♥️

Naomi Holdt - Psychologist and Speaker

www.raisingvibrations.com.au

Happy long weekend. As I sit in the sun drinking my delicious cup of tea listening to the birds chatter around me…I am deciding to drink all that positivity into my body. This is why…💕

Fleeting thoughts and feelings leave lasting traces in neural structure. Whatever we stimulate in the brain tends to grow stronger over time.

This brain stuff can sound exotic or esoteric, but in essence the approach is simple: find the neural processes that underlie negative mental factors, and reduce them; meanwhile, find the neural processes that underlie positive mental factors, and increase them. Less bad and more good – based on neuroscience and Western psychology, and informed by contemplative wisdom.

An interesting read about addiction…

“Put a rat in a cage and give it 2 water bottles. One is just water and one is water laced with he**in or co***ne. The rat will almost always prefer the drugged water and almost always kill itself in a couple of weeks. That is our theory of addiction.

Bruce comes along in the ’70s and said, “Well, hang on. We’re putting the rat in an empty cage. It has nothing to do. Let’s try this a bit differently.” So he built Rat Park, and Rat Park is like heaven for rats. Everything a rat could want is in Rat Park. Lovely food. Lots of s*x. Other rats to befriend. Colored balls. Plus both water bottles, one with water and one with drugged water. But here’s what's fascinating: In Rat Park, they don’t like the drugged water. They hardly use it. None of them overdose. None of them use in a way that looks like compulsion or addiction. What Bruce did shows that both the right-wing and left-wing theories of addiction are wrong. The right-wing theory is that it’s a moral failing, you’re a hedonist, you party too hard. The left-wing theory is that it takes you over, your brain is hijacked. Bruce says it’s not your morality, it’s not your brain; it’s your cage. Addiction is largely an adaptation to your environment.

Now, we created a society where significant numbers of us can't bear to be present in our lives without being on something, drink, drugs, s*x, shopping... We’ve created a hyperconsumerist, hyperindividualist, isolated world that is, for many of us, more like the first cage than the bonded, connected cages we need.

The opposite of addiction is not sobriety. The opposite of addiction is connection. And our whole society, the engine of it, is geared toward making us connect with things not people. You are not a good consumer citizen if you spend your time bonding with the people around you and not stuff. In fact, we are trained from a young age to focus our hopes, dreams, and ambitions on things to buy and consume. Drug addiction is a subset of that."
Credit: Johann Hari

Okay okay so these are still an occasional treat… but my “little girl” inside myself just got really really excited seeing these gluten free mint slice biscuits just released 🥳😍🥳

EXCITING ENDORSEMENT NEWS! The Arnott's Biscuits products you’ve been waiting for!

We saw so many fantastic guesses last week for the new gluten free Arnott’s products – and here they are!

Arnott’s culinary experts have created three more gluten free versions of classic Aussie favourites: the delightful Shortbread Cream, the decadent Mint Slice, and the tasty and fun TeeVee Snacks Original!

Arnott’s has extended their range of gluten free biscuits so that more people can enjoy their delicious and iconic biscuits without compromising on taste and quality. These are additions to the existing Arnott’s gluten free range of Scotch Finger, Choc Ripple and Tiny Teddy’s.

This new range is Endorsed by Coeliac Australia, made in Australia, and available in Woolworths and selected Independent stores from this week.

Some thyroid (and regulation of nervous system) gems here….

The symptoms of low thyroid function and vagal tone are similar.

Their connection may be based on a physical layout of the vagus nerve.

On the way to the gut the vagus controls the muscles at the back of the throat to begin the digestive swallowing process.

It also slings a nerve back up to the voice box, to control the laryngeal muscles.

Right here is the thyroid gland, which may show the connection between vagal tone and our voice.

Low thyroid hormone levels cause fluid to accumulate in the vocal folds, and when the thyroid gland enlarges due to disease, the vocal chords can become pinched or partially paralyzed due to their snug proximity.

One characteristic of hypothyroidism is a hoarse voice.

The thyroid gland is controlled by sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves (vagus).

That means if your stressed, it will downregulate the production of thyroid hormone, potentially due to lack of vagal nerve tone.

Your vagal tone can be measured by tracking your heart rate, your breathing rate, and your heart rate variability (HRV).

Increasing your vagal tone activates the parasympathetic nervous system, and having higher vagal tone means that your body can relax faster after stress.

In 2010, researchers discovered a positive feedback loop between high vagal tone, positive emotions, and good physical health.

So how to improve vagal tone? Better connection and control to vocal chords and voice will assist your brain to keep good relaxing vagal tone (hence why singing make us feel good!)

Physical ways to activate the vagus nerve:

1) Gargling while humming – try to see if you can do a 1-minute exercise
2) Cold showers
3) Deep expansive breathing, with exhale double the inhale
4) Voice exercises

To use the laryngeal muscles you need to exercise the full pitch of your voice.

Siren exercise: takes an “oooo” sound and gradually goes from the lowest note of your range to the highest and back down, like a siren for an emergency vehicle.

The sound is continuous and covers the tones between the notes.

If it’s hard in one point, just keep practicing, it will get easier as you gain better control.

💜

This weekend may bring up difficult emotions for some people.

If you're worried about someone, check in to let them know you're thinking about them, and offer to support them in any way you can.

You can find tips on what you can do to help them at https://bit.ly/3MXCqj9

And a bit more on hormones and what can disrupt them...

Imbalances in your hormones are triggered by bad food. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
If you eat sugar, you’ll produce more insulin, more estrogen, and more testosterone. Any type of flour and sugar can lead to these imbalances. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Dairy and gluten are often triggers for inflammation and hormonal imbalances. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Xenobiotics or environmental chemicals like pesticides in our food can act like powerful hormone disruptors and trigger our own hormones to go out of balance.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
We know that sugar, caffeine, alcohol, stress, and lack of exercise all contribute to worse PMS and all hormonal imbalances – including menopause.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
After removing the bad stuff, you will want to replace it with good stuff. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Eat a whole, real, unprocessed, organic, mostly plant-based diet with organic or sustainably raised animal products. When you focus on this type of diet, you minimize intake of xenoestrogens, hormones, and antibiotics. Taking simple steps like choosing organic food and drinking filtered water can hugely impact hormone balance.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Getting good quality sleep every night and exercising regularly can help balance your hormones. Along with supplementing with Omega-3, vitamin D3, B vitamins, magnesium, and probiotics.

Often people don’t think this is an issue…but it is. Very much so. The reason I use pure essential oils as perfumes only.

Hormones get messed up by perfumes… in body wash, smelly candles, and anything with man made fragrances in it. It’s never just one sniff of course…it’s the total load on the individual human. Aim to reduce the load of all environmental chemicals for overall health.

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals Obesogens are a subset of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, which disrupt a body’s hormone activity. Obesogens are generally defined as any chemical that can cause the human body to produce more fat than it normally would. These can include substances we usually think of as fattening, like sugars or...

How beautifully accurate! Weather we call it depression, burnout, breakdown… We need to let the old die so the new can emerge.

THE WISDOM OF BURNOUT

I don’t think people realise how much sacred intelligence there is in their exhaustion, their burnout, their despair.

We all need to become exhausted, burnt out, frazzled and depressed at some point in our lives.

All of us.

Some get stuck in the mud. Others push through. It’s somewhat of a mystery, what helps people push through into the glory and into their wildness.

The edge of death, the edge of life. I have been there. I lived there for many years.

The false self NEEDS to burn out. It longs to die. It is not real.

Yes, our inauthenticity needs to die. Saying no when we mean yes and yes when we mean no. Stuffing down our rage to appear polite.

Squashing down our despair to seem “up”.

Repressing our s*xuality, our true longings, our authentic desires.

Pretending to know when we don’t, or pretending to not know when we really do.

Suppressing the wisdom and intuition and knowing in our guts.

Pretending to be spiritual, nice, kind, nonjudgemental, tolerant, strong, when really, fear and loathing and rage boil underneath.

Trying to avoid disappointing the ones we love.

But our wildness will save us. Our rage, our terror, our explosive despair will make us whole, if we can digest these misunderstood energies. The more we suppress such infinite creativities, the more exhausted we become and the more we want to die (live).

The danger is, we assume that there is something “wrong” with us for feeling so “negative”; we see this as some kind of failing or weakness of ours, and we further shame our shame, de-press our depression, turn away from these infinitely intelligent signals, these CALLS FOR NEW LIFE.

Yes, in our innocence, we push away the very thing that is trying to save us. We medicate away our feelings, try to numb ourselves even further.

We try to “keep going”. We try to “relax”. Or we wallow and indulge in our feelings, creating a new identity of “victim”.

There is a middle way, friends.

Breaking open to the truth of our lives is terrifying. But necessary. Sometimes we need to burn out first, be brought to our knees first, fall into utter despair and helplessness, travel into the underworld of ourselves, and tell the awful truth of “me”.

We need to speak our raw truth and risk alienating everyone around us.

We need to be willing to confront our deepest loneliness and rage and risk losing our friends, family, supporters.

We need to take the risk of joy. Follow our heart’s call.

Take small steps towards the things that scare the s**t out of us.

We need to let ourselves die... to who we took ourselves to be.

Break down, burn out, end the bulls**t... and touch the awesome fire of Truth. This is the path of the brave and of those who have no damn choice anymore anyway.

- Jeff Foster

As a tea addict.... its important to choose a pesticide free cuppa. Hope you have a happy long Easter weekend.

If you like tea, make adjustments to avoid these brands. Many have pesticide residue and others have toxic tea bags.

I like Traditional Medicinals.

Here's some of the problems with tea and alternatives: https://healingthebody.ca/when-tea-is-no-longer-a-healthier-beverage/

Strawberries, Spinach, Kale: High on the 'Dirty Dozen' List The yearly report comes from the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving human health and the environment, and also includes a "Clean 15" list of produce.

Having these vegetables daily (preferably organic) and/or adding organic broccoli sprout powder to a dash of water each day is easy.

Chemical Found in Leafy Greens Shown to Slow Growth of COVID-19 and Common Cold Viruses A Johns Hopkins Children’s Center-led study finds sulforaphane could help prevent and treat illnesses caused by some coronaviruses, including COVID-19

A nice reframe and so true…

Via https://instagram.com/themindgeek?utm_medium=copy_link

Some gluten free goodies hitting the shelves for Easter. My favourite ones are the chocolate ones... 😀

This spoke loudly to me this morning! A good example of being willing to challenge the concept of who we really are.

BUT we need a feeling of calm and to feel safe in our nervous system (a different experience) for us to “try on” different ways of being. We are (and our nervous system is) severely influenced by our environment. Especially the nervous systems of our early care givers and that early environment. If that environment was chaotic, unpredictable, fearful, etc etc… then that is what we know.

One off good experiences unfortunately can be registered as a threat for our nervous system. We need repeated yummy fun playful safe experiences for lasting change.
💜💕💜

When I first met my partner, Lolly, I immediately noticed she was naturally optimistic + viewed the world much differently that I did. Waking up, she would be in a good mood while I spent the first hour of my day in a state of brooding + dreading what I had to do.

Honestly, I found this very triggering + sort of annoying. A part of me labeled her as naive. Once we were having a conversation about psych disorders + she said “I believe everyone is born perfect.” I just sort of froze. At this point I’d been working within the mental health system for years. Jaded + brunt out, this was a perspective I couldn’t even grasp. Funny enough, today it’s a truth for me.

One day she started talking to me about how she noticed I didn’t feel much hope about life. Which was super triggering. At the same time, I was having tons of awareness about my home environment. How there was always crisis after crisis, a lot of negative outlooks. A lot complaining or venting as connection. All of these things I hadn’t noticed before. As I became more conscious I could feel that energy more + came to see that my identity had been wrapped within struggle + suffering. A small part of me knew she was right.

I didn’t know how to feel good. I had an emotional habit state: survival mode. And my thoughts, behaviors, + beliefs reflected that.

One day, after months of doing some work around this, we were on a road trip to upstate New York. The windows were down, music was playing, the sun was shunning. I was starting to feel good about life. I was starting to feel good about me. I was starting to trust myself.

She turned to me + said “Aw look Nicole, you’re feeling hopeful.” I was teaching my body (with practice) it was safe to feel good. It was ok to experience life in a new way. It was ok to for me to prioritize things that HELPED me feel good. And put boundaries around what didn’t.

Do you feel SAFE to feel GOOD?

Gut-brain axis and how changing the microbes in the gut, changes mood dramatically.

Three months after starting poo transplants, Jane's world became brighter and happier

A beautiful poem to ponder for the weekend.

The only moment we have is now.... this inhale, and this exhale.

If you are consulting with me at present, you'll be hearing me talk a LOT about the breath and how to alter it, to alter your nervous system (and therefore your health/mental health).

It's definitely like we are suffering from an emotional whiplash of sorts!
"You can’t freak people out for that long and that hard without expecting some residual traces of that fear to remain in the system.
Predicting anything in this pandemic has been impossible, but I do sense one thing: after the fear subsides, there will be anger."

One thing that seems crystal clear in people I meet over the last 2-3 weeks.... they are on their knees again reeling from this renewed (but now different) stress.

You can’t freak Australians out about Covid for two years then expect that fear to fade overnight | Brigid Delaney We’ve gone from nationwide surveillance and public shaming to the government saying it’s OK to go to work as a close contact. The whiplash is intense

Update: 1/2/22
I'm now seeing people in person, face to face on Wednesdays.

Hello 2022!!! (it seems a bit nuts to say Happy New Year with the strange state of the world)! I'm back from holidays this week - my first day in practice is Wednesday 12th Jan. Consultations in the coming weeks until further notice - will be online only. I very much look forward to seeing you or connecting with you in the coming weeks or months.

This post is a reminder of the connectivity between our immune system, our spirit, our gut and our environment (food and surrounds). And it's the reason I went onto further study in the field of psychology & psychotherapy. Please consider what might be missing in your individual world or 'health picture' - especially at this challenging time. Building awareness of the missing pieces is the first step. Then action is possible. Please seek help if you need support. We are all in this crazy world together. You don't have to do it alone.

Verified
I can’t tell you how many patients I have seen who seem to be doing everything right such as eating the right foods, taking the right supplements, and moving, yet, they can’t seem to get better. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
As a college student, I became passionate about meditation and Buddhism, and I used what I learned to deepen my connection to myself and strengthen my spirit. And then I entered medical school and residency, and real life got in the way, and I let go of the daily practices that kept me grounded.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
I became very sick, and not just physically; I became spiritually bankrupt too. ⁣
⁣⁣
Chances are the same thing has happened to you at one time or another. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
The good news is that there are simple ways to get back in touch with your authentic self, that childlike part of you, that spark:⁣⁣
⁣⁣
1) Take time every day to check in with yourself. How are you feeling? Are you spending time doing things you want to do, or things you feel obligated to do? Do you feel fulfilled? This seemingly basic step is vital for identifying what brings you joy, where your passions lie, and how you can get more of them in your life. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
2) Journaling is a great way to talk to yourself on paper, it allows you to have an uninhibited discussion with yourself, oftentimes leading to an “aha” moment that was hiding under the surface all along. Studies have shown that journaling focused on gratitude can even reduce inflammation and improve mental wellbeing.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
3) It’s completely okay to realize your current path is not making you happy and change directions—give yourself permission! ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
4) Clear the clutter. A more organized and simplified space will help you focus on more meaningful and non-material aspects of life, helping your spirit shine brighter. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
5) Meditate. This has been an essential step in rekindling my spirit and regaining the spiritual vitality that I had, at one point, lost.

Some gold here...

When did you realise you were growing?

And another gem to share....

The gut-brain system is a vast network connecting the digestive tract and central nervous system.

Many people don’t realize it, but being stressed, poor breathing, or low nutrients put this system into constant ‘fight’ instead of ‘rest'.

To get better control of your digestive system, you need to tip the autonomic nervous system to ‘rest and digest’.

The vagus nerve represents the main component of the parasympathetic nervous system.

One way to see the vagus nerve is that it plays a critical role in letting your body know that things are going to be okay. Heart rate variability (HRV) is also controlled by the vagus nerve. The more “complex” or variable your HRV, the more resilient and adaptable you are.

Researchers have discovered that reflecting on positive social connections improves vagal tone and increases positive emotions. Laughter has been shown to increase heart-rate variability and improve mood . And vagus nerve stimulation often leads to laughter as a side effect.

But if you can’t find laughter all the time, there are other techniques to get your vagus nerve working.

The nerve runs to the larynx (voice box) and controls vocal fold movement and is connected to muscles at the back of your throat. Singing, humming, chanting and gargling can activate these muscles and stimulate your vagus nerve. These activities have been shown to increase heart-rate variability and vagal tone.

So: to improve your vagal tone. Gargling is a GREAT daily tool to incorporate in front of the bathroom mirror, or in the shower.

The action creates continuous opening and closing vocal cord allows the air to escape intermittently. When this happens in speed, air bubbles through the liquid in throat, creating gargling.

What is gargling doing? It activates the vagus nerve. It’s located at the bottom of your brain stem in the pons/medulla area.

You can try with saltwater: Saltwater solution creates an osmosis effect where the concentration of salt draws fluids from mouth and throat tissues to relieve any inflammation.

•How to stimulate the vagus nerve with gargling:

1. Take as much of the solution into the mouth as is comfortable.
2. Tip salt water around the back of the throat.
3. Gargle, LOUD, for 1 minute.
4. Spit out the solution.

Why loud? A light gargle is like a light bicep curl while a loud, long gargle is like a deep heavy squat. You want to work your vagus to get best benefits.

What you might feel? Dry eyes. One thing you may experience is that if you have dry eyes and you gargle really loud, it may stimulate tears to the eyes.

Ok, how did this feel for you?

Is gargling something you could work into your daily routine?

I'm having a bit of a professional crush on this guy and his posts. And always want to share his work with you. Another interesting take on our mouth, our nervous system and the body and brains ability to be well and healthy. Check this one out :-)

We have drastically underestimated the importance of our teeth.

How do we know? Look at how the brain ranks the importance of teeth.

The mouth is hooked into an incredibly complex neural network directly to the brain.

Your teeth are bony imprints of the building blocks your body used to create its architecture. Minerals, nutrients, the immune system, and physical messages all combine to be your pearly whites.

Your teeth stay ALIVE, all through your life, constantly listening to the environment via a hyperconnected network. They sense, heat, cold, pressure, but also, an inner immune system that can invoke a response to heal potential threats (think tooth decay).

Yes, your teeth have an inner ability to heal tooth decay. They contain special SWAT-like cells that invoke an immune response. They require you to eat enough of the fat-soluble vitamins for strong teeth and bones.

Your brain devotes a large proportion of its 12 cranial nerves to the other oral and nasal structures. Pictured here are only the MAIN ones, there are plenty more.

For example, the tongue. If you look at the brain homunculus, it innervates roughly 45% of the cortical space that your brain uses to monitor muscle.

That motor function directly controls your airways, tongue posture allows opening of the throat, sealing the mouth for nasal breathing, and pressing against the palate.

The palate has its own set of nerves, that are heavily based in the parasympathetic autonomic nervous system. This helps to kick off digestive processes, and via the vagus nerve, communicates with your gut (the gut-brain connection). Research also shows bacteria communicate between the gut and brain via a specialized lymphatic system!

In kids, if we harness the tongue-palate connection, they breathe through the nose, and develop a nice wide palate, for straight strong airways and smiles.

Good news for those who are looking for gluten free sourdough bread that is yum! I use this bread myself and often am recommending it to others.... so its good to see it getting into more venues.

From today our bread is available at these HARRIS FARM Markets stores:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
💚 Lindfield (pictured)
🤍 St Ives
♥️ Mona Vale⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🤍 Erina, Central Coast⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
All five varieties of our loaves will be available: plain, seeded, charcoal & turmeric, olive & rosemary, and fruit. Look for the brown paper packaging (new packaging coming soon 🌱).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🚚 Delivery days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
📷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

I love this post so much. It explains so well what I'm rabbiting on about frequently. As someone who had insomnia for....say...about 15 years (maybe more). I love training people to get their sleep patterns back on track for the health of their mental wellness and future brain health (think preventing dementia, alzheimers, diabetes etc etc). Often it is behavioural, and often it is diet related and environmental. But the biggest benefit to sleep is to have an alcohol holiday. It takes 2-4 weeks to take effect. But it is a remarkable difference.

Did you know 1 night of lack of sleep drives inflammation of the brain?

Losing sleep for even part of one night can trigger the key cellular pathway that produces tissue-damaging inflammation according to new research. The findings suggest a good night's sleep can ease the risk of both heart disease and autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis.

If you are suffering from any heatlh issues, don’t discount low quality sleep.

The reason is that we have an inbuilt dishwasher system that clears the brain of toxins at night. It’s important because the neural signals tell the rest of the body how to operate, so if toxins build up in the brain, the messaging to the entire body is affected.

During deep sleep your brain relaxes and allows the release of CSF via tight junctions and communication with the ‘glymphatic’ system.

The glymphatic system is a fluid-transport system that accesses all regions of the brain. It facilitates the exchange of cerebrospinal fluid and interstitial fluid and clears waste from the metabolically active brain

The glymphatic systems in the brain and the eye export fluid and solutes from metabolically active neural tissue. The organization of brain and ocular fluid flow can be divided into four distinct segments that share similarities, but differ in specific respects.

(1) The first segment of the brain glymphatic system includes CSF production (purple arrows) and circulation in the subarachnoid space (SAS, light purple arrow), followed by periarterial influx of CSF into the brain tissue (light blue arrows).

Two influx paths exist in the eye: the first path is the ciliary body, which produces the aqueous humor fluid. Most of the aqueous humor fluid leaves the eye via the anterior chamber. However, aqueous humor also moves posteriorly, passing the vitreal body before entering the neuroretina to support removal of waste products from that metabolically active tissue.

The second inflow path is limited to periarterial influx of CSF along the posterior segment of the optic nerve. CSF does not pass into the eye, but drains into lymphatic vessels located in the dural sheet surrounding the optic nerve prior to the lamina cribrosa barrier

This is why it’s very important to make sure you limit blue light exposure to your eyes after dusk.

Light from TVs, bulbs will be detected through the eye and send signals to the brain that it’s daytime. The glymphatic system will not relax without darkness, found in the complete stages of sleep.

Other interruptions are breathing. If you breathe through the mouth at night, the brain has to monitor the airway, make sure to breathe through the nose, to help this system clear properly and pump CSF up the spine.

Blue light blocking glasses are one tool. Mouth taping is another tool. Watching the morning sunlight, with deep nasal breathing, helps to tell your nervous system to relax 12 hours later!

Do you feel like you wake up tired or unrefreshed?