Tag: wellness

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Wellness

What Essential Oils Are Best For Stress Relief?

Stress is inevitable especially in modern day. It’s super important to do as much as you can to reduce stress. There are so many stress relieving activities, but something that can help support stress relief is essential oil. Essential oils have so many benefits. They can change your mood, get rid of headaches, help you relax and so much more. Below are some of the best essential oils for stress relief. 

  1. Lavender

Lavender is a super popular essential oil for reducing stress and anxiety. It has been scientifically proven to slow heart rates and lower blood pressure plus it smells great. Lavender is also great for improving quality of sleep. 

  1. Neroli 

Neroli reduces the feelings of anger, irritability and stress. In ancient Egypt it was used to heal the body, mind and soul. 

  1. Lemon 

Lemon promotes energy and relieves nausea and anxiety. Lemon is a super popular essential oil and along with stress relief it also promotes energy with its trong citrus scent. 

  1. Ylang Ylang

Ylang Ylang boosts feelings of joy and comfort and it reduces negative emotions such as stress and anxiety. 

  1. Frankincense

Frankincense is a super popular essential oil. It boosts mood and reduces feelings of anxiety and stress. It can also improve focus and decrease pain, mentally  and physically

  1. Chamomile

Chamomile has an amazing soothing smell and much like chamomile tea promotes relaxation, and calmness. 

  1. Jasmine

Jasmine has been used in Asia as a natural remedy for anxiety, stress, insomnia and depression. 

  1. Rose

Rose is amazing for relaxation; its scent soothes emotions, headaches, breathing rates  and balancing hormones. 

  1. Bergamot

Bergamot promotes energy, fights bacterial infections and stimulates joy and freshness.  

Using essential oils for stress relief

Now that you know what oils to use you need to know how to use them. There are a few different ways you can use essential oils; here is a list of some of my favorite ways to use essential oils.

  1. Diffuser

This is one of my favorite and the easiest ways to use essential oils. All you have to do is place a few drops of your oil of choice with water in your diffuser. 

  1. With a carrier oil

Putting oils on the skin is a great way to get the most benefit of the oil. However It’s super important to dilute oils with a carrier oil when you’re putting them directly on the skin. This is because the essential oils are too potent to be put directly on the skin. My favorite carrier oil is jojoba because it’s super easy to use. Just mix 20 to 25 drops of jojoba with a drop of essential oil. 

  1. In a bath

The best part about this method is that you’re doing two stress relieving things, a bath and essential oils. Just be sure you’re still using carrier oil.

Categories
Beauty Nutrition

11 Foods That Boost Collagen Production

Collagen is a huge component in your skin, hair, nails and general health. It makes skin, hair and nails look youthful, bouncy and healthy, however as you get older your body produces less collagen which leads to aging and less healthy skin and hair. However, to keep your body producing collagen, you can eat certain foods that can boost your natural collagen production no matter what age. Here are some of the top collagen boosting foods. 

  1. Fish

Like different creatures, fish have bones and ligaments made of collagen. However the parts of the fish that contain the most collagen are the less desirable parts of the fish such as the skin, bones, head and eyeballs. 

  1. Citrus fruit

Citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruit, limes and lemon are high in vitamin C. Vitamin C is a fundamental part of collagen production. Getting your daily dose of vitamin C is crucial for the skin. 

  1. Berries

Berries are another fruit with high contents of vitamin C. In Fact strawberries actually have more vitamin C than oranges. As Well as the high vitamin C contents berries also have antioxidants which are great for protecting the skin from damage. 

  1. Garlic

Garlic has so many health benefits, and one you may not know of is its contents of sulfur. Sulfur helps prevent the breakdown of collagen.

  1. Tropical fruits

Tropical fruits are another on the list with high vitamin C. Tropical fruits such as mango, kiwi, pineapple and guava. Guava also is high in zinc which is another great ingredient for collagen production. 

  1. Leafy greens

Leafy greens as we all know are a key feature in a healthy diet. These greens also have chlorophyll which is an amazing antioxidant for the skin. Chlorophyll also increases the precursor for collagen production. 

  1. Beans

Beans are great for collagen because they not only have copper (a nutrient for collagen production) they also have proteins necessary for collagen. 

  1. Tomatoes

Tomatoes (including sundried) also contain the high vitamin C levels needed for collagen production. 

  1. Nuts and seeds

Nuts and seeds boost your levels of zinc and copper. Zinc and copper are great nutrients to support collagen production. 

  1. Bell peppers

Bell peppers are yet another food with vitamin C. In Fact half of the bell pepper is around 117 ml of Vitamin C.  As Well as this bell peppers contain anti-inflammatory properties that combat aging. 

  1. Eggs

Eggs have large amounts of proline, which is an amino acid which is a key component for collagen production.

Categories
Lifestyle Wellness

15 Things You Can Do To Decrease Stress

Everyone gets stressed every once and awhile, it’s almost impossible not to. However, it’s best to diffuse stress as soon as possible before it gets worse. While at the moment it might seem impossible to ease your stress however, luckily there are so many things you can do to decrease the feeling of stress. Below are some of my personal favorite things to do when I’m feeling stressed and anxious.

  1. Exercise

Exercise and just moving your body in general is great to just reset your focus on something else. Exercising also releases endorphins that reduce your perception of pain, these endorphins also trigger a positive feeling. Exercising can also be super easy, even a ten minute workout video can help!

  1. Meditate

Meditation has been known to diffuse stress and clear the mind. Meditation is another thing that can be super simple and easy. There are tons of apps and videos for guided meditation which are super great for beginners, meditation can also be super quick but the more time you meditate the better!

  1. Journal

Journaling can reduce stress by getting rid of negative thoughts. Writing your thoughts down on paper is a great way to clear your mind. When using journaling to reduce stress there are many different methods you can use, personally my favorite is to just start writing what I feel on a page. Although you can also do things such using prompts or state things you’re grateful for. 

  1. Deep breathing

While doing breathwork a message is sent to your brain to relax, this happens because you are doing what your body does when it is already in a relaxed state. There are tons of different types of breathwork but you can do something as simply as a few long breaths in and out. 

  1. Get a full night of sleep

Sleep is super important for almost every bodily function. When you’re feeling stressed it’s best to make time to get as much rest as possible. When you’re asleep your brain regulates and lowers negative emotions such as stress and anxiety. 

  1. Read

Reading is another great way to distract your mind from whatever is causing you stress. Reading is also a very calming and stress free activity. My blog about my favorite books will be linked here. 

  1. Take a bath

Taking a warm bath doesn’t just feel great but it also relieves stress in the brain. Being in a bath can reduce levels of pain and inflammation as well as calming your nervous system. Bonus points if you put essential oils in your bath, essential oils also have different stress relieving properties. My blog on my favorite stress relieving oils will be linked here, just be sure to dilute them with a carrier oil.

  1. Practice some self care

Self care can be something such as taking a bath or doing a face mask but it can also go so much further than that. There are tons of ways to do self care you can practice meditation, read or talk to a friend.

  1. Do a creative activity

Being creative is another one of those things that is great for just taking your mind away from whatever is worrying you. There are so many ways to be creative such as painting, dancing, writing and so much more which means everyone can find something creative they like to do. 

  1. Yoga

Yoga can reduce anxiety immediately as it combines exercise and breathwork, as well as this the poses and stances involved in yoga can stimulate power in the brain. If you don’t want to go to a studio to do yoga there are tons of yoga videos on youtube that you can do from home!

  1. Listen to music

Music is so effective to our minds, especially soothing slower music. There are lots of music playlists made specifically for stress reduction and some even include songs that are scientifically proven to have an effect of relaxation on the mind which is super cool!

  1. Laughter

Laughter has been scientifically proven to reduce the feeling of stress. Laughter can relax your muscles, improve your mood, soothe tension and so much more. So when you’re not feeling your best it may be a good idea to throw on a funny video or TV show. 

  1. Eat healthy

Eating foods such as vegetables, fruits and grains increase the release of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is a chemical that regulates your mood, happiness and anxiety. So eating healthy foods can basically make you happier. 

  1. Go outside

Personally, whenever I’m feeling overwhelmed or stressed going outside for even just a few minutes completely clears my mind and makes me feel so much better almost instantly. Going outside reduces levels of cortisol in one’s brain (cortisol is the chemical that produces stress). I would recommend going on a walk or simply sitting outside if you are feeling stressed.

  1. Talk to friends or a loved one

Talking through why you feel stress with someone you trust is a great way to relieve feelings of anxiety. Talking to friends boosts your executive function which is what makes us better problem solvers.

Categories
Beauty Nutrition

Does Drinking Water Actually Help Your Skin

While drinking water has so many benefits for your mind, body, and overall health. You’ve probably heard before that drinking water can help your acne, or make your skin glow, and maybe you’ve also heard this isn’t true. So is it really true, if so many people swear by it drinking water must help your skin in some way? 

According to science, there isn’t really any evidence that drinking extra water will cure your skin issues. That being said there is no denying that water has so many benefits, and is quite literally crucial to human life. So if it helps your skin or not it is still crucial you drink water. But going back to the question of whether or not water will save your skin, the truth is no. 

So what can you do to help your skin, without water? Rather than upping your water intake try lowering your intake of sugary beverages such as juices and soda. This is probably where the myth came from in the first place. It’s less about drinking more water and more about replacing unhealthy drinks with water. Another thing you can do is to simply take care of your skin on the outside. Following a skincare regime is the best thing you can do for your skin, and while drinking water may not make a huge impact on what you’re eating actually will. Stay away from fast food, eat collagen boosting and nutritious foods, and stay on top of your skincare regime and you should be pretty good.