Posted in Christian living, communication, Life, Love, Marriage, Parenthood, Uncategorized

Keeping on Top of Attitudes

Posted on by narellejkelvin

How often are we let down by our poor attitude, or those of others around us. Every day we meet someone who challenges our attitudes! It can be as simple as being challenged by our children or spouse before we have left the house. Then as we drive to work or shopping, the person who cuts us off on the highway. Then there is the stand in line or waiting on line for service!

This is not to mention traumatic situations that occur behind closed doors. These are severe stress situations that I won’t broach here too much as they create deeper issues that need to be addressed. However, every day in many ways we are confronted with how we handle testing situations.

Most of us can feel we are alright emotionally and spiritually until we are confronted by our own attitudes towards a situation! Its all good until it isn’t!

The Bible tells us to love others as we love ourselves. So many don’t love themselves and are incapable of  loving others in a healthy manner. So we need to start there by loving ourselves and who we are.

Recently I posted about turning 60 and having felt pretty much invisible during my 50’s. It was interesting to see some of the comments. I think women particularly who don’t have an established career which carries them through that period, find themselves once children leave home, redefining themselves and who they are at this stage. When we don’t know who we are or it is in a bit of chaos, we can find our attitudes start to get smelly. We must understand our identity is not found in what we do but whose we are!

When we forget whose we are and loose our identity at any stage of our life, when we are tired, stressed, have financial worries or health issues, we can find ourselves coming out with some pretty poor attitudes.

It’s then we have to fall back in to the arms of our Saviour and say, “Lord help me put off this stench and put on your fragrance!” The stench of the flesh is sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies.  His is the fragrance of love, joy, peace, long-suffering, patience, goodness, gentleness, faith, kindness.

When I place the mirror of His word up to gaze in to, I see that I must constantly move back into the Spirit. This is hard when you are confronted with situations that make you angry, hurt or offend. When we loose our peace and feel that churn within our gut towards someone we think about who has offended or hurt us, we need to forgive and begin to put on that fragrance again! 20151025_115756.jpg

It is our choice. We chose life or death every day when we are confronted with situations. Taking a deep breath and not allowing the overwhelming anger to envelope ourselves, is the first step.  Count to 10 wasn’t such a silly idea! Don’t confront at that moment in anger. Take time to calm down.

There is a lot more to talk about this but suffice to say for the moment is just breathe!

B – Back away, r – resist, e – emotional, a- action, t – think, h- healthy, e – emotions!

Until next time

Let it go – Let it go – (Frozen theme running through your head now?)

Blessings Narelle

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Posted in camino de santiago, Christian living, the way, Uncategorized, walking

Camino – How to Get There

Posted on by narellejkelvin

In my previous blog I spoke on how to prepare to walk the Camino. In this blog I would like to share on how we actually got there.

As I have said it was a process of preparation over a 2 year process. Losing weight, gaining better health, studying, reading, and of course training by walking regularly were all a part of that process.

I checked on many sites to see what the cost would most likely be to walk the Camino as well as cost of food and accommodation.  We were living back in Australia at the time so an airfare to Europe was a great cost.

  1. So the first thing to consider is when will you undertake walking the Way?

As we don’t like crowds, we decided that either spring or autumn would be our preference to walk. Due to time constraints we settled on autumn. I am an autumn girl and love the colours of fall so this was really great for me.

Weather in Northwest Spain in October is usually warm but not hot, we found this to be so with some cooler days and nights. Generally it was pleasant. You can expect some rain (unless you travel with Paul – more on that later).   Galacia is Spain’s wettest region and on average,  rains 18 days out of 31 in October.  Santiago de Compostela averages between 64 degrees and average lows 55 degrees.

We found these temperatures to be pretty accurate with some fog in certain areas. Some times there were light showers as we headed out in the morning but by mid morning it would fine up to become sunny. Paul had a special anointing and was spoiled with the weather. He prayed because he hates wet feet and started believing for fine weather. Almost immediately the sun came out and stayed for nearly 3 weeks! We really only had a few days of heavier, uncomfortable rainfalls early on – hence the prayers. This is not normal, particularly in Galacia! So be prepared with wet gear and good weatherproof shoes!

The wind and changeable weather on the Pyrenees can not be underestimated and you need to be prepared for that.

We also liked that there was fewer people on the Camino. One issue starting mid autumn was the amount of albergues that were closed or closing for the season. Spring also has the same but reversed with some not being open yet for the start of the season. Winter there are even fewer albergues  open so a lot of research and preparation needs to be done! Summer has its own challenges with so many vying for a bed for the night and space on the walk.

2. You’ve chosen the season, now where are you going to start the walk?

Most choose the Frances Camino which starts most commonly from St Jean Pied de Port. We chose to warm up by walking two days from Bayonne. There are many other points of starting and ways to traverse, France and Spain. It is purely up to you which direction you start from and which way you head. We actually met a couple walking the Camino backwards, starting at Santiago and walking back to St Jean! We chose the most common route to begin with but who knows where we will go next time!

Some of our friends flew or trained it from Barcelona. It really depends on where you are coming from and where you want to start from.

3. You’ve chosen the season and the route, now how much is it going to cost?

The average day:

  1. AIRFARES – Of course this depends on where you are starting from. We flew from Sydney to Paris. From Paris we took a train trip down to Bayonne in the South of France where we actually walked two days to the jump off point of St Jean Pied De Port. From Santiago De Compostella, after having spoken to some people on the Way we decided to self-drive through Portugal and then across to Barcelona where we flew back to Paris. These are all costs that need to be allowed for.
  2. HOTELS – We slept mostly in the Albergues, the hostels that you will find in nearly every town you come to.  At that time of year and in 2015 the fees were about Euro 10-15 per bed per night. I see that some are saying currently it has risen to nearly Euro 30 per night We paid more for the odd hotel stay but rarely more than Euro Euro 30- 35 per night. We wanted to experience being with others but did enjoy the alone nights as well. Some paid much more when they arrived in Santiago staying in an up market hotel to celebrate their completion. On reflection I would do that too next time.  Because we hadn’t pre-booked we had to take what we could get. Summer would be much worse! It is up to you what you choose to pay but I would suggest getting more up to date costs before you head off. Some chose to camp along the Way too but I would be considering what you need to carry to do that!

3. FOOD – We set ourselves a 30 Euro a day budget each, but probably would be closer to 35 Euro per day. We found the Pilgrim meals, a three course meal most towns offer, for 13-15 Euro were fine and economical. We often bought lunch, cheese, bread or other foods, from the little food places or markets along the way. Sometimes we ate at a restaurant but they were fairly inexpensive. Tapas bars are a great way to eat economically too.  It’s your choice on your budget.

4. INCIDENTALS – We probably allowed 10 Euro per day for these including pharmacy items, but I would suggest shopping at larger stores as some of these were very expensive particularly when dealing in Euros.  Mostly I brought medicines and other items from Australia but you must consider the weight factor of carrying as opposed to buying along the Way.

All up our total budget for the two of us was 4000 Euros exclusive of return air fares to Australia and doesn’t include the cost of setting up your kit or travel insurance. This did include our train fare, hire car and flights to Paris to fly home and we had some cash left over. I would have preferred to train it back to Paris but we left the run too late and from an overnight fare costing 100 or so Euros, booking on the day of travel would have cost over 500 Euros – each! So we booked a cheap air fare and flew to Paris for lunch before our flight that night back to Australia. I could then say, “My husband flew me to Paris for lunch!”

These are suggestions and there are a lot of sites with up to date information which I again suggest you read. Some of the forums give great information but ultimately half the adventure and fun of the Camino journey is working it out as you go along!

Bein Camino!

Until next time

Blessings Narelle

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Posted in autoimmune, dementia, energy, Hashimotos, health and wellness, inflammation, Life, Night shade Allergies, stress, thyroid, Uncategorized

Alzheimer and Dementia – Inflammation, Diet, Auto Immune connections?

Posted on by narellejkelvin

The third video in the series on Auto immune diseases discusses the links to dementia and Alzheimer and other neurological diseases. The link was only up for a limited time so I would consider purchasing the entire set of information if this area is of concern to you or yours.  I am going to. This in helpful formation is in all one place with great explanations.

If you have ever watched a love one suffer with dementia or Alzheimer disease you will find this video probably a little sad that you hadn’t seen something like it before or at least all in one place to be able to really get a fuller understanding of it.

The more I explore inflammation and the issues that ensue, it is very challenging and makes you sit up and look at what we eat, what we allow in our home e.g. cooking, cleaning, make up even, not to mention  EMR!

If you were like me EMR meant nothing! It is basically the micro waves that surround us everywhere and with all the wireless devices that are used within the home situation as well as work places, it is little wonder we are tired and struggling with energy loss.

I also loved the explanation of hydration within our systems. I love water, so it is not a big issue for me but I know many who barely drink enough to pee and poop let alone hydrate the rest of their systems.

Fasting is also a healthy practice. So that is a nice prompt to get back in to the practice. I have always found it to be a spiritual and physical practice. It has always been an important aspect of healing for me at various times in my life. I will follow this up later with a blog as I really believe in this.

So these videos are really another important message for health and wellbeing. Check it out. 

 

Until next time

Blessings Narelle.

 

 

 

Posted in autoimmune, energy, fertility, Hashimotos, health and wellness, inflammation, Night shade Allergies, stress, thyroid, weight loss

Adrenal Dysfunction, Auto Immune Diseases including Hashimotos, Diabetes, Thyroid and Infertility – Examining the Links

Posted on by narellejkelvin

Adrenal dysfunction is so connected to Auto Immune disease! After years of adrenal issues caused primarily from living at high levels of stress, not sleeping well or enough, and ultimately really not caring for myself, I succumbed to some serious health issues!

This second video is so interesting and covers many different areas of dysfunction starting with the relationship between adrenal and thryoid systems. I can not recommend this video enough! The information is so helpful in understanding the correlation of all of these systems within our bodies.

“All or nothing” comments from the woman at 1:24 has really challenged me and is a bit of a wake up call. As with any product you take from the system, responses do seem to come back with a vengeance if you weaken and partake! I have been really cutting back on gluten products, prepackaged anything, and also sugary products, but in the last couple days I have eaten some gluten products and jelly (sugary) products and suffered with pain. So back to the commitment board! But more importantly I want to see this problem fully fixed so I can get back in to a “normal” routine and enjoyment of all healthy foods!

Fertility issues, energy, diabetes, hormone imbalance, thyroid issues, immune issues, so  many diseases and issues, are caused by unhealthy diets, and environmental toxicities. We know it but this video really highlights the need to cleanse and heal. I like the balanced approach from most of the health professionals.

This is an amazing video pointing out so many different aspects of our unhealthy lifestyle. I urge you to take the time to listen to this series a few times over if necessary to get the most out of it! Click here to connect!

I am looking forward and believing for healing to be able to live a healthy life, by eating closer to the food chain. How about you? So many have said they will listen to the video but how many will follow through to even do that, let alone make changes to their lifestyle? How determined to gain good health are we? Find new hope for health – check it out now.

Keep eating well – living well.

Until next time

Blessings Narelle

 

 

Walking the Camino – How to Prepare

The Camino de Santiago is an 800 km or 500 mile walk through France and Spain. It is a pilgrimage walk that has been around for thousands of years that has many trails originating around Europe. It was said that you could step outside your door and begin the pilgrimage from anywhere in Europe. During the time of occupation by the Ottomans in Jerusalem the Way of St James became a safer pilgrimage and acceptable in the eyes of the church for pilgrimage absolution.

St James was supposedly buried there after having floated there from Jerusalem on a ruder-less boat. I don’t know about that. There are many beliefs surrounding the pilgrimage that many believe or don’t believe but there is one binding factor with nearly all pilgrims who we encountered or spoke to had one thing in common: the sense of being called to walk The Way!

Many including myself when they find out about the Camino Way have a strong sense that not only would they like to do the long walk but there is a strong feeling of “having” to do the walk.

For me it started after I watched the movie, “The Way”, written and directed by Emilio Esteves and starring his father Martin Sheen.  It is the story of a father who completes the trek after his son dies on the Way getting caught in bad weather: something that is a common occurrence as seen by the memorial headstones dotted along the pathways.

Once I saw the film I knew I had to do it. But at the time I was pretty much chair bound with illness and pain. However, within a couple of years I set the date to make the journey.

It was 2 years down the track, the year we celebrated 40 years of marriage and Paul turned 60. Also, it would give me time to gain my health back, while starting to train for the walk.

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In training in the Philippines. Early hours of the morning because past sun rise, the heat was too much.

One of the first thing I did was buy a pair of comfy training shoes. They were light, a size larger then I needed (to help with blisters), and didn’t confine my feet and cause pain. The first pair of shoes that didn’t cause me pain!

I walked in rain, in the cold, the heat, the day, the dark, by myself, and with others. The time rolled by as the miles did.

So here are some of the preparations myself and Paul underwent to prepare for the Camino.

  1. Set a date – Setting a date  brings the goal into focus and plans will begin to take shape.
  2. Train – Set up a training program and stick to it. I tried to do at least 6-8 kilometers a day more on others in any kind of weather, wet, cold, hot, everything except for thunderstorms – They were a no go!  I would also recommend stretches to build strength. The one I didn’t do enough of was to door more hill climbs.
  3. Carry a pack – The more I started to walk I would add weights to a pack to increase my ability to carry a pack. I even used coral rock in the Philippines to get used to the added weight.
  4. Study – Increase your knowledge of the paths you will follow. Understanding the terrain and what is ahead in terms of weather, and accommodation. Also understanding how diet and water affects walking.
  5. Purchase the correct equipment –

       –  Pack – We changed Paul’s pack right at the end. It has to have a waist band to                 take the weight and not pull on the shoulders.

–  Rainwear  – A good rain coat is important. We will probably go with the Atalaa next time. Our ponchos were ok but not great. They needed to be longer although they were light weight – always a consideration. The Atalaa people seemed to just cruise by unscathed by the weather on themselves or their packs.

– Footwear – Of course it goes without saying – correct footwear is a must. I was told to go a size bigger and it worked. Two pairs of socks fill the gaps. Duct tape is a must. Prevents blistering!

– Underwear. We opted mainly for bamboo socks and jocks. I would hope for a better fitting pair next time that dried quicker. Also undergarments that wick moisture away from your body too.

 – Poles – this is not last for any reason but they definitely were our definite bring along. Some did walk without them – good luck to them. I would never think of it! They were invaluable. Spring loaded were good but not particularly necessary. We didn’t go very expensive due to financial constraints and it really didn’t seem to make a difference, except the tips do wear out after 40 days of pounding. They can be purchased along the way.

6. Stay the course – There may be  road blocks or at least detours so persevere. Keep focused. Don’t give up!

 

 

 

Auto Immune – It’s not in your head – It’s in your body!

There is so much to write about today I feel a little concerted. I will start with Auto Immune Secrets first though. Auto Immune diseases. As I have said before on a previous blog found here it has taken me years to recover and discover just what was happening within my body. Two burnouts took its toll on my immune system. Finally a diagnosis of Hashimotos and then a realization that food allergies, (night shades) primarily, were creating havoc in my system and finally as I undertook methods to heal with diet changes, medication, prayer, life style changes and I felt like I was a renewed woman

A crisis within my system this past week and a flair up of inflammation caused me to look again at just what is happening and then I found this!  AutoImmune Secrets . If you click on here it will take you to a link that you can join up. So far they are not selling anything except the understanding of what is happening to your body. I related particularly to the story of the first guy Arthur’s story at 1:32. It is my story! Even to the point where suicide became an invasive thought despite my strong belief about that being any sort of option! Praise God He showed me years back how to walk in healing and health that is why this weeks crisis was a real bummer!

I would encourage anyone who is struggling with autoimmune problems such as diabetes, thyroid conditions, lupus, or un-diagnosed issues or been told it is in “your head” when your body is screaming another reality, check this out.

I believe in Jesus as my healer and also believe we need to take care of this body we have been given in maintaining health. This is so hard to do in this day and age with the amount of environmental toxins, and food additives etc, not to mention the stress levels we live under.

But God is good and led me to this site!  AutoImmune Secrets   has come at a great time. I want to see my body completely healed – and this video offers insights and hope to the millions who like myself struggle with keeping on top of  living a healthy lifestyle.

I look forward to Episode 2!

Until next time

I will write the next blog while sipping my golden milk. Thanks Jo Kelvin and Naomi Darg for the recipe!

Blessings Narelle

Posted in Christian living, communication, grief, health and wellness, Life, Love, Uncategorized

Re-living the Pain of Tragedy – Grief revisited

Posted on by narellejkelvin

crying lady

With all the blogs, posts and comments regarding the latest mass shooting of people in the United States, it is tempting to enter the debate on why? but I will not get into that. Evil is evil! The tools to deliver evil intent will always be found.

My thoughts run to those who have walked this path before – too many of them. The LA shooting, Orlando, Sandy Hook, Columbine, Virginia Tech, the list goes on. So many have lost so many!  Can you imagine the pain each of them feels when something like the Valentine’s Day tragedy occurs again?

It would be like an almost healed wound being torn open again with fresh bleeding gushing out.

The reliving of dread as you hear through social media or friends or television that there is a shooting. The pain of the wait to know if your child or loved one is among the injured or dead. The agony of having to identify the shattered body of those who you saw only that morning wave their last farewell or kissed you on the cheek. The perpetual internal and external screams as you realize the finality of the outcome. Then the ongoing daily pain of grief flowing over you, only to be followed by anger and bitterness toward whoever is to blame for your loss.

Walking the path of the broken as you buried ones whose lives were cut short: Comforting others as you yourself struggle for answers and the what-ifs: Struggling with the knife of grief cutting through your heart every day as you struggle with survivor guilt and the pain of loss: The pain of obscurity as the focus shifts to the next group of victims and your pain is shelved with the faces of the quickly forgotten: These emotions are all that you have to look forward to in the aftermath.

There are few words to say at a time like this for those who are re-living all of those emotions. I have not walked in your shoes. I can not offer wisdom into a situation I don’t understand. I can offer the professional advice for grief management and these are helpful but your journey is your journey.

All I can offer are the words of the wonderful and truthfilled Psalm 23:

Yea though I walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death I will fear no evil because You are with me.

Evil can try to crush but love will prevail! He is with you at this time.

There is also the truth of His name – The Comforter, the Healer, the Prince of Peace.

Nothing can prepare us for the separation of death – It was not what we were created for. It is part of the death sentence of sin, but we can be assured that Jesus said, “He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.” The Devil comes to steal and destroy but He comes to bring us Life. He is Peace and although it may not feel like it right now, Peace and life will come. He is with you during this time of loss. It is times like this where your faith can bloom or shrivel. Faith is comfort.

Know that although I don’t understand your pain completely, myself and many others stand in prayer with you and those around you as you grieve again. We stand with you as you remember your loved ones and their loss. I may not know your name or who your loved one was but I still stand with you to offer you love, and prayer for strength as you face the tragedy again.

In love

Narelle until next time.

 

 

 

Posted in Beekeeping, Christian living, energy, gardening, health and wellness, Hobby Farming, honey, Life, Uncategorized

Tragedy of the Bees!

Posted on by narellejkelvin
20170605_123053
Happier times!

So sad this morning as we approached the silence of the remaining hive. The recent blizzard conditions did the damage! The poor girls succumbed to the severe weather.

The wonderful aroma of honey left untouched, wafted up as we finally had some warmer weather when we were actually at the property. We lifted the lid on the bees to check out what happened over the severe weather.

It is an extremely sad sound not to hear the beautiful hum from an active hive.  As we lifted the boxes we came across the odd dead bee until finally we lifted the final box to the sight of our beautiful ladies unceremoniously piled in a heap at the bottom of the hive. I couldn’t believe how disappointed I felt at the loss.

So our first foray into bees this season has become part of the huge statistic percentage  of failed hives. The varroa mite is the largest contributor to a failed hive and we did have our share of them. Someone suggested “Whiffer” pads to trap them and we did find that worked.

However, I think our loss was the problem of lack of time to really “keep” our bees and pay closer attention to them, as well as the severe storms that we experienced on the Eastern Shore, Virginia and East Coast in general early, in January.

We will need to research the insulating of hives more thoroughly this year and do more homework on how to keep them from fleeing and freezing!

It was sad though and I can only imagine how farmers feel when they lose their herds or flocks as seen during some of Australia’s harshest drought seasons!

Anyway we will borrow a spinner and rob the hive of what honey was left by these before other hives become active and rob the honey.

The other hive was picked clean by the “cleaner team” who worked tirelessly for weeks to ensure nothing was left in the abandoned hive – not even a smidgen of wax or propolis  (the “mortar” they use to seal up the boxes) was left. When you consider the effort and time used to build a hive and produce honey I don’t blame them for not having to repeat the process if they don’t have to. This last hive didn’t have time to clean out.

I did find a site that discusses the aspects of insulating which we did attempt but didn’t follow through on, for various reasons. One of his comments is that the moisture content under the roof can sometimes layer, freeze and then in the melt down from warmer whether, fall down and drown the bees. I am wondering if this could have been a major contributing factor as I looked at the mildew at the bottom of the boxes. A link is provided lower down to the site that details more on insulating.

Here are a few lessons I hope we have learned and will remedy this coming year. They are also a reflection of life –

  1. You have to spend the time in “keeping” the bees.  – You can not leave it until you are able or feel like it. Paul  laughed at my blog about bee keeping. He said, “We are bee losers  not keepers!” Time in any animal husbandry is of the essence. You can’t put caring off. 
  2. Learn more. – Bee keeping is a science and we need more understanding and guidance. We have to be ever learning.  
  3. Learn more about wrapping hives particularly for winter – There is a lot of discussion regarding insulation.  I found a great site that explains some aspects of insulating. Click here to check it out  There are many opinions but you have to work out what works for you and learn from others’ wisdom.
  4. Don’t neglect the small things in every day life – There are so many little things in every day life that add up to the greater plan. These bees each only add a small contribution to their hive but each bit adds to the larger scale. They are content and faithful to their “call”. Do we have the same sense of purpose in doing the small things each day? Do the small things with purpose and sense of duty and destiny. 
  5.  Persist – Failure is bound to happen you have to keep persisting and try again.

That’s all until the next bee keeping adventure – Part 2

Until next time

Blessings Narelle

 

 

Posted in Christian living, energy, Goal setting, health and wellness, Life, Marriage, Uncategorized

10 Points on How to Burn Out

Posted on by narellejkelvin

Burn out is defined as – worn-out; exhausted. 

Burn out was a catch cry from the 90’s and 2000’s and having experienced 2 of them, I somehow wish I could warn everyone about how not to burn out. It is no fun being carried out of a building because you can’t stop crying and lying in fetal position unable to communicate just what is happening as you cry for days on end. Or watching as your husband literally wastes away in front of your eyes and can’t walk 6 paces due to burn out and physical exhaustion. They used to call it a “breakdown” and it is a fair analysis of what happens when your body, soul or spirit revolt and say enough.

Many in the 21st Century are so consumed with achieving or keeping on that they neglect to take the time to consider their life’s journey and how they are actually functioning until the wheels usually fall off or a major health scare forces them to reassess their life style.

Hear are 10 points to follow if you want to burn out!

  1. Over work, unfulfilled and exhausted – Any job that is taking more than 60 hours is too much. You need a balanced time for work, eating, resting, exercise, and relationships. Unbalance will cause you to burn out. Taking on tasks out of your expertise or responsibility will also cause excessive stress and anxiety – all rushing you towards a burn out.
  2. Have only a few hours sleep each night. Sleep is needed to re-rejuvenate the body. It also helps us to lose weight. I was impressed when I went to the headquarters of Huffington Post not long ago and saw sleep pods! The previous owner Ariana Huffington discovered that sleep isn’t overrated and that she shouldn’t wait until she dies to sleep. She brought sleep pods into the office discovering napping can increase productivity. Solid, sweet sleep is a gift from God!
  3. Don’t exercise regularly. Regular exercise can not be overemphasized. It doesn’t have to be ridiculous amounts but must be enough to get the heart rate up and blood flowing. Stretching exercises are gentle and help build strength as well. Fresh air also brings about sanity in this sedentary and craze filled world.
  4. Don’t eat healthily. High carbs, high sugar and high fat diet will see the body experience high highs and low lows. Change to a lot more water than coffee and sugar drinks – even juices. Go for it…fill up on those but don’t be surprised when your finally tuned machine starts to react to improper fuel.
  5. Neglect relationships. When you lose touch in your relationships you find yourself alone and lacking in emotional support and well being. We need each other. 10 hugs a day are essential for emotional well being and growth. Start counting today and be surprised how little you actually touch another human being during the course of the day. Don’t make this one creepy though..use wisdom!
  6. Don’t put devices down or multitask. Having a device in your hand constantly and multitasking with them all the time, means we are never free from pressures or interruptions. The brain can never shut down or fully concentrate on the present again separating you from relationships.
  7. Give out to too many or don’t give to any others. Again the issue with only being focused on self or too much on others means you become unbalanced like a wheel of a bike with a bulge in the tire. You can still keep peddling but it will be an unbalanced ride. Set yourself healthy boundaries!
  8. Stay in chaos. When you are overworked, overtired, over-pressurized, over extended, the last thing you feel you have time to do is get organized. However, starting to bring order out of chaos will certainly alleviate stress. Use whatever form of list-making that feels best for you, electronic or a diary. I remember when I was going through my burn outs, part of my recovery was taking control of what I could take control of – my kitchen and house! Start small if you  have to, including your work space. One lady called the Fly lady started to control her sink. I heard an officer from the Corps recently say if you want to overcome in your life start by making your bed! All good advice and a key to starting to climb out of chaos in your life.
  9. Don’t say No to anyone who asks anything of you. Learning to say no brings health on many levels. It helps you to build strong boundaries as well as keeps your work load under your control.
  10. Neglect your spiritual life  You are a spiritual being and when you only focus on the body and soul or mind you are again like the bicycle with the gammy wheel. Prayer and meditating on the Word of God brings healing and health to your body,   mind and spirit. Taking time to just sit and contemplate is nearly a lost art. When was the last time you lay on the ground and watched the clouds roll over head – without glancing at your phone in between? Or sat and listened to the birds around you instead of the ear plugs blasting music or even motivational speakers in to your ear?Life is too short!

Do the above for long enough and you are sure to find a time in your life when the brakes will suddenly go on and you won’t have a choice but to stop. Better to chose now and take time to readjust the speed and direction of your life.

Blessings

Until next time Narelle

Drop me a line and tell me how you have made a change this week to slow the pace down or readjust your settings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Christian living, energy, health and wellness, isagenix, Life, Night shade Allergies, Uncategorized, weight loss

VICTORY – WEIGHT LOSS + ENERGY + HEALTHY LIFESTYLE CHANGES = 1 ECSTATIC WOMAN!

Posted on by narellejkelvin

This is followed up my previous blog on how I gained health and energy. This blog covers the aspect of weight loss. It is a couple of years since writing this and I have maintained my weight but still continue to work at loosing the last 10 kilos I need to.

I have succumbed a few times to reactions to food as something slipped by me so I have still maintained my abstinence of nightshades. I also still maintain my Isagenix routine and swear by them!

Below are some of the other struggles I overcame in this area of weight loss I recorded a few years back!

Struggling with Weight Loss? This might help you however, if you have never understood the struggle of losing weight or being able to keep it off then this blog is not for you. In fact please don’t read it because you will most likely be critical and judgmental of those of us who have faced the struggle and until you have walked in the shoes of those of us who have fought to overcome in this area you won’t get it!

There are many reasons why people struggle with their weight gains. I think I have covered a few of them in the past 6 or so years and will share a few “reasons” here as to why weight loss is complicated for some and not just a matter of not eating too much.

  1. Genes – My family is prone to overweightness

This has been a problem within our family for many years. Our mother had a huge weight issue all her life. I don’t know how many diet fads she attempted in vain. We are prone to weight gain and my siblings and I put on weight as she did – all over. We are big-boned so we tell ourselves. We are just a big family. I always refused to accept that but found myself looking more like her. It has always been an issue for me and a goal to stay slim and to stay healthy. I achieved it for a lot of years but the past few years saw me gain kilo after kilo and the ability to shed them was becoming increasingly difficult.

  1. Comfort Eating and Depression

I saw this in my mother who used food as a comfort for some challenging issues within our family but I personally didn’t know I was also starting to use it to comfort myself. That was until I did a fast last year and realized each time I was starting to feel sad, worried, tired or angry about something I would head for the food cupboard until I remembered I was fasting. It was a huge awakening for me to find my “comfort” from another source other than food. The depression from the cycle of frustration and hopelessness is hard to describe. You actually might need to seek counsel as there may be even deeper roots to the cause of comfort eating that need addressing.

  1. Illness or injury

In 2009 two things happened to my health that was to affect me for the next 6 years. The first was the onset of Hashimotos Thyroid condition, which meant rapid weight gain and other issues that affected my ability to function at any high level of energy, at times even the ability to function for more than an hour or so before needing to rest. Thinking I was just becoming a lazy slob I embarked on a significant physical training program. All was going well although an hour’s exercise meant a recovery time of 3 hours at least. Then I twisted my ankle – ever so slightly. The injury produced a clot somewhere in my leg. Long story short the health issues continued as my weight ballooned. Depression set in and comfort eating became an issue. Cycles! They are hard to break. Exercise became associated with pain and when there are no apparent benefits, frustration and disillusionment.

  1. Food allergies

I started the same route as my mum exploring different diets and food regimes. I embarked on the various paleo diets around and found they worked at various levels. I grew my own vegies; ate healthy meals but still found weight loss illusive. “Just don’t eat as much” people said. How does about 1000kls a day equate to too much! Fasting produced some good side effects in that for that time I didn’t bloat or feel sick. But you can’t not eat forever! I discovered I had an allergy to nightshade plants. Elimination helped but still the weight was only slowly dissipating.

VICTORY!

Last year I undertook a Daniel fast. This means eating only vegetables, fruit and water. I actually found that having one meal a day in the middle of the day worked well for me regarding bloating, sufficiency and just all round health.

It started off with being very sick at the beginning of the year.  Flat on my back for about the third January in a row: Shingles, autoimmune issues, flus, bronchial issues, all occurred around the end or beginning of each year.

How I started my road to recovery.

  1. Prayed.

I spent days in bed with the virus I had. So I figured that I would make it work for me. I spent time waiting on God: Days of just being quiet before Him. Those who wait on Him will renew their strength!

  1. Fasted

Because I couldn’t eat from being sick I turned it into a fast. I was determined to see a breakthrough. I don’t believe in fasting as a form of twisting God’s arm but for me it definitely helps in clearing the airwaves between myself and God. I have found after 40 years of walking with the Lord that times of dedicated prayer and fasting definitely bring breakthrough in wisdom and understanding.

  1. Listened

Listened to my body and discovered what worked for me. I had a regime of vitamins I was on and have been for quite a few years but found that I may still have been lacking in a few areas.

  1. Did the Practical

Day by day as I started to improve I started exercises. I was doing my knee exercises in bed and strengthening my core muscles as well as my knees. I then started walking a little each day and building on that.

  1. Found supplements that worked

My biggest breakthrough came though when I discovered Isagenix. I have heard a lot of negative reports about the product since joining but let me tell you I have found they worked powerfully for me and thousands of others.

When I went back to my naturopath who for two years has been working with me to improve my health and weight, with little to no avail, she was shocked to see I had lost 5 kilos in 1 week.

From January to May last year after nearly 60 days on a Daniel fast I had only lost about 7 kilos. The fast was not about losing weight but you would think it would be a bi-product. On the Isagenix program eating more than before and taking the vitamins and minerals, I lost the 5 kilos in a week! Since that time with all the travel and the exercise producing muscle and toning my body I have managed to lose and sustain around 17kilos loss. This isn’t a diet it is a lifestyle change!

Now here is one of those frustrations. My naturopath knew about the products and agreed they were very good products and the balance of the regime was “probably” a good fit for the various conditions I had..!! But she doesn’t recommend them because they are “those” products!! What products? Multilevel marketing! Well really – because an ordinary person can sell them and not just the “professionals” means she didn’t recommend something that could have helped me..

Herein I put up a disclaimer. These products may not work for you. I am not a professional but I do believe in encouraging people who like me have struggled with the whole aspect of weight loss. I am also a trained counsellor and understand that weight loss is a lot more complicated than just not eating too much for many people. See my previous blog where I share some of these issues.

I urge you to consult a naturopath, doctor or health professional who is trustworthy and cares about your health. Mine did but also had some strong opinions that I was happy to ignore. You have to decide to explore your options. These are just my comments and discoveries.

FAQ and Common Comments

Is it for everyone? My only comment on that is that for many it has been the breakthrough they have needed for years. Is it for you? Only you can decide that. For me it has given me the energy that I had been lacking for so many years. The balance of vitamins and nutrients works incredibly well for me. This regime may not be for you but it is worth a try. More importantly, is to find what works for you and your body. It is not a magic pill to swallow but a system that does help many to improve the health of their bodies.

It is expensive!  For me as I did the math, meal replacement and vitamin exchange (remember I was on many vitamins prior to this) meant I came out about equal in cost. The products are good quality and if it works are a lot less expensive then healthcare costs. I haven’t been to a doctor, or even the naturopath since! You do the math. I also saved on my gym costs because I have my own motivation and love the freedom of exercising outdoors…..

It isn’t real food. I love real, healthy food. But I also have found that for the time being meal replacements are working for what I need right now by providing nutritionally rich foods. I still have a really lovely main meal at lunch time and find I am satisfied with that. When I attain my final goal weight I will be able to utilize introducing more foods back in to my diet. However, I will still maintain the cleanse aspect of the regime to maintain good health. This means a cleanse day ONCE (1) day a week. I have heard people “quote” you have to fast 2 or so days a week.

If I starved myself I would lose weight too! I have heard people on blogs say it is a starvation diet – wrong. It does take discipline and is controlled calories, no doubt, but you are satisfied and getting the right nutrients you just don’t feel like overeating and once you have cleansed your system from the sugars etc your cravings abate. I was fasting and still not losing copious amounts of weight. Starving yourself actually has the opposite affect which I will not go in to here as I have said I am not a qualified professional.

You just have to learn to eat smaller amounts! If I had a dollar for everyone who said that I would be a wealthy woman. It’s about what goes in and absolutely smaller portions help. But it is not always the easy answer. Again see my blog regarding this. I was eating salads and protein every meal and because of allergies was making myself extremely sick. Find out what is right for you.

You started to exercise – therefore your energy returned. It wasn’t the products. I don’t know how many people said this to me as well. However, for me the exercise even though I was doing better still left me depleted of energy. The products definitely improved my energy levels to the point I could function when I get back from excessive exercise. Also I gained 10kilos in as many weeks years ago, as there were health issues that needed to be addressed with a malfunctioning thyroid, even though I was jalking (jog walking) up to 8klms 6 days a week. So don’t assume exercising is the answer to healthier living and weight loss for everyone.

So in summary – find what works for you. These products are worth a look and a trial. We are all different metabolisms and health issues so take responsibility for your health and don’t expect others to do it for you. Check out this site and look over the products I cannot recommend them enough but do your homework and start living the life your body deserves. Most people do not know what it feels like to be well. Some said I became fanatical when I started recovering and using these products to boost that recovery…I absolutely was! When you feel so wonderful after years of being unwell and unable to get through the day without energy and feeling well…who wouldn’t want to run a marathon and shout it from the rooftops. This excited over 50’s woman completed a 800 klm walk in 2015 and walked approximately 3000 km in preparation for the walk. Life is for living. Check it out.

Until next time

Blessings Narelle

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