Have you noticed how easy it is to forget the important things in life?

It’s easy to get caught up on trivial matters or get into flustering over what else must get done.

But learning to live a holistic lifestyle almost certainly involves – at some point or other – a slowing down of life and a taking stock. When this happened to me there was one thing at the crux.

At the crux was a new understanding of how I interacted with the world. I began to understand something about my own energy – something I didn’t understand before.

What do I mean?

What I mean is I became aware of when and how I lose and gain energy and how to tune the body system to become sensitive to situations so I could be at my most efficient, more of the time.

As we come to know our own energy our awareness grows. We note that some people and some situations drain us while others lift our spirits. When this happens, we can begin to alter life in a way that lightens our burden. This in turn means more pleasure and less pain and frustration. We can also become sensitive to the moment when energy drops in a conversation or meeting and know that it’s either time to leave, protect yourself or transform the energy.

There are three elements to this:

1. Being aware of your own energy
2. Being sensitive to changes in your energy
3. Knowing how to change it

The first step is about knowing how you feel. Do you feel flat or abundant in energy or somewhere in between? If you feel abundant, then great, if you feel flat then you need to raise your energy (see the tips – below).

If your energy feels good and then you notice tiredness coming over you for no apparent reason, then you’ve probably maxed out in a situation (unless it’s midnight or you had a late night). In which case it’s time to change things.

For step three see the tips.

Of course, there are always situations that test us. My father has just been taken into hospital with cancer. The question I’m asking is how can I help, but not be effected by a situation like this.

Maybe the answer is to imagine myself in a pink bubble. Maybe it’s to thank my lucky stars I’m not on the hospital ward. Maybe it’s bringing a smile to people’s faces in the beds. Maybe it’s just sitting next to my father and appreciating some wonderful moments. Maybe it’s all of the above.

When it comes down to it, work and money and the stuff money buys are all nice, yet they’re trivial in comparison to human life.

Simple tips for raising your quickly:

1. Take a dozen really good deep breaths.

2. Get some fresh air

3. Listen to your favourite piece of music

4. Dance

5. Make your excuses – leave if necessary

6. What else do you enjoy doing? Make a list and use it to raise your energy when you need to.

With love and good wishes

Neil

Compulsive overeaters are individuals who suffer from an obsession with food and a compulsion to eat despite the resulting negative effects on their physical and emotional health and well being. They eat to satisfy an emotional hunger, whether this hunger is for love, for comfort or for a sense of control over something in their life. Compulsive overeaters may be a few pounds overweight, or over a hundred pounds overweight. The defining factor is not how much they weigh, but the underlying reasons that they eat.

Compulsive overeating is one of three major eating disorders, the other two being anorexia and bulimia. Compulsive overeaters are addicted to food in the same way that alcoholics are addicted to alcohol. It is their substance of choice. Like an alcoholic, their addiction to food as a way of self-medicating to relieve stress, loneliness, emptiness or boredom, can make their lives unmanageable and result in major health problems.

Compulsive overeating is a difficult addiction to treat, because unlike addictions involving alcohol or drugs where the addict must totally abstain from these substances in order to recover, we all have to eat in order to live. Eating in moderation in order to satisfy physical versus emotional hunger becomes the challenge. People may overeat compulsively for a variety of different reasons. Obesity can be something to hide behind, like a protective fat pad. It can be a way of hiding one’s sexuality or avoiding intimacy. This is especially true for individuals who were emotionally or sexually abused as children. Eating compulsively can also be a way of stuffing feelings of rage, depression and dissatisfaction with one’s own life

Overeating results in feelings of guilt and shame, and often self-hatred. Overweight individuals are frequently the but of negative stereotypes and are often labeled as dumb, inefficient or lazy, which further damages their self-esteem. Their activities can be severely restricted. It can become difficult to participate in sports, or even to get up from a chair. Obese individuals suffer from job discrimination. They are ostracized by society and criticized by loved one’s, family and friends.

Psychotherapy (often in combination with a 12 Step Program such as Overeaters Anonymous) provides a safe, nonjudgmental environment that can help individuals in their recovery from compulsive overeating. Getting to the root causes by working through underlying emotional issues, along with helping individuals change their relationship with food and their bodies, can lead to recovery.

Parkinson’s disease is often thought of as a physical disease. In advanced cases it is not difficult to observe the tremors, tics, stiffness and mobility problems that are characteristic of the disease. Yet there is also a strong link between mental health and Parkinson’s disease, with dementia often taking hold during the disease’s later stages. A more prominent Parkinson’s related mental health issue is depression. Parkinson’s literature suggests that as many as half of people with Parkinson’s disease also suffer from depression.

Depression is a serious condition that has the potential to interfere with daily functioning, and in severe cases, can even lead to isolation, self-mutilation or even suicide. While it can be triggered by stressful events, prolonged environmental or social circumstances, or even from medication, depression is caused by abnormal brain function of which the cause is unknown.
In addition to the classic signs of depression that include unsociability, isolation, moodiness, decreased hygiene or care for personal appearance, or low self-esteem, Parkinson’s patients may exhibit different signs of depression than non-Parkinson’s sufferers. Differences in the symptom profile for people who have Parkinson’s as opposed to those who do not may include:

* Frequent occurrences of suicidal thoughts but with fewer actual suicides
* Sadness without guilt or self-blame
* Higher rates of anxiety

The good news is that depression, for healthy individuals as well as those with Parkinson’s, is treatable. Seeking and undergoing treatment for depression will makes people feel better about themselves and their circumstances, and, in the case of Parkinson’s sufferers, will allow them to increase their focus on overcoming the symptoms of their disease and living a more normal life. Treatment should be a collaborative effort between the Parkinson’s patient’s physician and a qualified mental health professional, preferably a psychiatrist, who is authorized to prescribe appropriate medication. By encouraging communication between neurologist and psychiatrist, potential medication interaction can be avoided and optimal mental and physical health achieved more quickly.

Even when treated, depression does not instantaneously disappear. It may take time to discover the right balance between medication and emotional therapy to assist a patient’s recovery from depression, even when they are very ill. No matter what stage of Parkinson’s a person might be experiencing, treatment for depression can be incorporated into his or her overall health treatment plan without compromising the efficacy of either program.

People diagnosed with Parkinson’s, especially if they suffer from depression, may feel overwhelmed by the enormity of their health concerns. It may be helpful to learn more about the disease and recent advances that enable most people with Parkinson’s to live long and productive lives. It may also be comforting to make contact with other people who have the disease and who have learned to live with it. Worldwide, there are national, regional and local associations whose mission is Parkinson’s disease research, education and support of Parkinson’s sufferers. This kind of real-life assistance from people who are familiar with what it is like to live with Parkinson’s can be an invaluable addition to the support network made up of family and friends.