Imbalances Happen to Everyone!

It all started this past summer. I was at the pool, trying to give blood during the blood drive. I take the pre-requisite hemoglobin test to determine eligibility to give and FAIL. My hemoglobin was LOW! I had been on a daily salad binge and did liquid chlorophyll with regularity in my water. How could I have low hemoglobin? The men I played poker with were walking around with their "dad bods" drinking beer,hard liquor and fried chicken sandwiches and all had a sticker on themselves showing they were able to give blood - and I wasn't - I actually was ashamed, embarrassed that the one who cared so much about health "failed" a test of health. I had been thinking strongly about giving platelets due to all the blood cancer clients I see, I certainly wasn't up for that either.

The summer ended, I was still dragging a bit, but with school in full swing - 4 after school programs and classes for the kids, working 6 days a week, and definitely burning the candle at both having to also taking care of the home and night time needs of everyone I couldn't do much about it...yet.
I started to notice other big changes in my health,

• Grey hair - 40% - me!! I couldn't even hide it if I tried! Thank you to my hair dresser, 8 weeks at a time I am keeping it blond.
• Anxiety - dread, heavy, crushing, anxiety - fall to the floor, cannot get up anxiety and depression
• Irregular periods, (well I am 45 after all), 30 days here 11 days there.
• Insomnia
• Weight gain (9 lbs, before I even noticed)

thinking it was all stress related I just dragged myself through each day trying to eat the best I could and rest when I could.

Things changed when I had a sales call from one of my laboratories show up at my office. He had kits in hand of new tests they were offering. I hadn't heard of the type of hormone test he was introducing so he gave me a free test, (the only way these days I would be able to do it, and this gave me an idea. I called another lab I use and asked if they offered any free tests for their practitioners and, viola! I had a hormone screening AND a micronutrient test, free - I thanked the stars and got them sent out with my various bodily fluids.
What came back was amazing - it showed all of the intense, relentless stresses and what they had done to me! My adrenals were tanked - exhausted! My estrogen - non-existent, testosterone, low, epinephrine, low, even my melatonin was askew!   My adrenals, helping me deal with a heavy load of stress gave in - no more cortisol or epinephrine left - I used up every drop of the stress response I had. No wonder I was an emotional mess!
I had the answer for the irregularity in my cycles - I needed more estrogen and testosterone.
My sleep issues determined by elevated sleep hormone, melatonin at 5 p.m. and none at 10:30 when I needed it the most.
I knew this meant I needed some B vitamins - especially Pantothenic acid, B6, B12 and folate, leading to a better balanced glutathione.  I now knew that vitamin E would be helpful and perhaps some betaine and selenium. I would wait  for my micronutrient test to see what it said I needed.
Six days later, my micronutrient test results arrived. I was deficient in the following:

• Pantothenic acid
• Manganese
• asparagine
• vitamin E
• Carnitine
• Oleic acid and 
• Glutathione

They matched! My imbalanced I had with all my hormones matched with the causes - the things I was most deficient in. Pantothenic for my poor, depleted adrenals, I would do these with all the other B vitamins to help with a certain type of anemia, this would be what I would need for any hemoglobin issues  - along with my salads and  liquid chlorophyll, and aid in my glutathione production too! Manganese is the necessary food for the ovaries - that made sense with the hormone imbalances - I would do raspberry leaves - highest herb in manganese, vitamin E for hormones and, what about the asparagine. I had to look that one up! This is very interesting:
https://blissreturned.wordpress.com/2012/03/27/asparagine-the-amino-acid-that-is-needed-to-maintain-balance-in-the-central-nervous-system-it-prevents-you-from-being-either-overly-nervous-or-overly-calm/
In case you just want a summary - it is the reason why I was feeling tired, anxious, overwhelmed, not able to handle stress as well, any longer - why I was depressed. High in Asparagus - I will have that every day - I love asparagus - morning and dinner for me!
Then the Oleic Acid- I knew it was a good fat. I needed to find a way to get it in my diet daily. Butter, flax, coconut oil, that's easy! I now do grass-fed cow butter and coconut oil every day - sometimes twice a day on the coconut oil!
Carnitine - It's in mostly animal kingdom foods - I'm a vegetarian - It's in avocado - I do a ton of avocado, I will need to supplement I guess. I need it for energy when I work out - for fat-burning ability when I'm active. It's good for gut mucosa, for thyroid - I need to get it in and will work on this one sooner than later.

I started on all of this about 3-4 weeks ago and immediately felt a sense of relief from the effects of stress. Yes, still having anxious moments and feeling the heavy weight that my life is right now, but able to get through it without feeling like I'm going to drop - going to lose it at any given moment. Within days started sleeping better, heavier. Energy has come up over the past 3 weeks, mood better, just all over feeling more balanced! I have a lot of work to do, but I am on it and benefiting daily!
The changes to my diet, other than adding the things I needed more of , I also changed by removing the two bad things I felt I did too much of. Cheese - even goat cheese and alcohol - the wine in the evenings here and there as my "reward" for getting through the day. With these gone and the balancing things I am doing otherwise, so far I've lost 2 1/2 lbs - yes, the 1/2 counts - on the scale here at the office, anyhow!

If you are interested in or know someone in need of the micronutrient testing, send them over! I offer all the lab here at wholesale, and that one is $290 for my clients and those planning on being clients. Retail for someone that isn't a client, and that's just $390
For hormone testing, I can help you to determine what kind of hormone testing would be needed - and yes, that is wholesale as well. Talk soon!
Jill Clarey, ND
336.456.47413
3723 West Market Street Unit B
Greensboro, NC 27403

Invest in Self Care

Why Invest in Your Own Self (Care)

Why not just start with stress. We all have it, (most all of us). When not managed it can cause many symptoms! 

• High blood pressure
• insomnia
• headaches
• inflammation
• depression
• anxiety
• Irritability in the gut
• Indigestion
• Heart Burn 
• Ulcers

And so many more!  I see many clients that suffer from un-checked stress and if managed,  many would heal faster and benefit long term. I suggest  that most invest time several times a week in themselves.

• Take naps
• meditation
• yoga
• go for a walk
• reike
• get a massage
• take a mindful moment daily
• "feel your feet in your shoes" , or otherwise known as get grounded daily
• take a bath with essential oils
• hang out with your friends
• take a moment with a family pet (unconditional love)

You get it - there are many options. Today I will catch up, see clients, get my kids to their after school practice, pick up my teen from his Beta convention, take care of the house and family pets, feed everyone, and EXERCISE! That one moment of giving back to myself is all I need sometimes to keep my "batteries charged".

This un-checked stress can throw us off, chemically. Cortisol, for instance, comes from the adrenal cortex and helps us deal with stress, good stress and bad! It will go up to get us through it and in an ideal world come down when we take these wonderful, necessary moments for ourselves. Some individuals have the hormone up more often than not and that is referred to as stressed adrenals. Did you know that when that hormone stays up that it can lead to inflammation, hormone depletion, higher cholesterol, a hypo-activity in the thyroid and lowered immune response? Yep, you will feel wired, and yet exhausted. It will keep you from resting well at night as well. When up in this way long term it will deplete the adrenals, this is called exhausted, or, fatigued adrenals. This is a state where you will have no "get up and go" and you will always feel overwhelmed....Either adrenal state is not healthy, not balanced and will make you feel nuts and OLD. The other chemicals and hormones wax and wane with these stress hormones. Your serotonin and gaba, epinephrine and dopamine. Especially worse during menopause and andropause with estrogens, progesterone, DHEAs, testosterone... If you feel you are stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, depressed, exhausted and not able to enjoy things you feel you should really truly enjoy - you might fall in this category. I wrote a piece on this once and it's here:

Neurotransmitters and how They Affect Us

I test hormones here, for men and women, but also cortisol and neurotransmitters. I do a thorough intake to determine if there are imbalances that will cause a cascade of concerns with your health. All you have to do is call or email or text at 336.456.4743 or jillclarey3@gmail.com

Let's get you on the Natural Path! 

Most Common Problems I See with Clients

Okay, so I see some of the same things here in my practice over and over again. The common things I see among most are:

DEHYDRATION! I do a thorough intake with all my clients. One form gives me an idea as to what each person is eating, drinking and their lifestyle choices. I see it all the time. 2-3 cups of coffee, 12-16 oz. on average sodas daily, black tea when out to eat, alcohol weekly, but maybe 6-8 oz. of what our bodies are actually made of, WATER!!  

Yes, your body is about 74.5% water! I have posted on water before. Your blood is made of over 90% water! Your brain needs it, your body will rid of toxins better when you drink it, your skin will benefit, your hair will look healthier, your organs will be happier, cleaner and you will have more energy. So what's the deal? You need 1/2 your weight in oz. of water every single day. Without this, your body will be toxic, your blood will be thick, you will not be able to concentrate, but you will blame it on your brain or your age, your skin will be very dry, your hair, brittle, you will suffer from headaches, constipation, you will hold onto fluid (*yep, you will retain fluid, your body will hold onto it to rescue you from any more dehydrated disease tendencies)!!  I hear, "I will be in the bathroom all day if I drink my water", or, "I already have swollen ankles and hands, won't this give me more fluid to hold there"?  "I hate the taste of water".....It is necessary for life! It's not a mistake that we are made of water, it is the way we are made!!! Drinking coffee dehydrates you! Drinking soda dehydrates you, drinking black tea dehydrates you, drinking alcohol, dehydrates you. You drink it, then you rush into the bathroom and urinate, your body cannot hydrate tissues with any of those. Your blood cannot clean itself with soda, that would be like cleaning your windows with soda, they will be dirty when you finish. 

Okay, that's enough for now about water. The second thing I hear a lot here in my practice is gut problems. Gas, bloating, heart-burn, indigestion, constipation or diarrhea, cramping....

THE GUT:  A couple interesting things right off the top. You have more nerve endings going into your gut than you do your brain and spine!! Your happy chemical, Serotonin lives in the gut, about 95% of what you have, lives in the gut! So, no wonder when you are constipated you are miserable, cranky, not well from head to toe. There are a lot of things that can disturb the gut, from antibiotics to parasites, a hiatal hernia, ulcers, gallbladder dysfunction, poor diet choices, living with unchecked stress, (day to day stress without giving back to yourself and having a stress outlet), and so on..... I am going to talk here about the first step to gut health. Digestion! You need to liquefy food before it reaches the latter part of the small intestines so you can absorb the nutrition from your food. I see a very common issue with simply not breaking down food well. Digestion is key! Enzymes are key to digestion. If you don't have enough you will have undigested food pass into the area you use for absorption whole, it will be in a dark, warm, moist environment for about 6-8 hours by the time it gets there, it will rot and ferment and put off quite a bit of gas. So, I suggest enzymes, a blend of digestive enzymes prior to every meal! Liquefy the food, absorb the nutrients from your food and benefit from the nutrition in your diet!  Your diet choices for a healthy gut will need to be a different blog, it is it's own thing! One thing I will say is small meals, often, don't drink at meals or you will dilute all the gastric secretions you do have or dilute the enzymes you just took and render them useless! Drink 30 min. prior and wait 1 hour after. 

STRESS:  Everyone has it (for the most part, there are a few that don't). It is toxic, just like poor diet choices. It will adversely affect your blood sugar, your hormones, your nervous system, your thyroid, your gut, of course and more!  It's not like you can decide not to be stressed, it doesn't work like that. You need tools. Tools meaning, show yourself some love, give back when you are taking away day to day. I love the book The 5 Languages of love. It is a great reminder of what is the best way to give back to yourself. My husband and I read it together so we knew each others language. It's not necessary, but a great part of the process of finding what you need. How to give back to yourself in the most effective way. http://www.polyu.edu.hk/sao/publications/emagazine/issue133/love%20language2.pdf Here is a quiz that I found online to see what your language is! 

Stress outlets can be whatever gives to you the most. Massage, yoga, meditation, prayer, going for a run, bubble baths, reike....whatever makes you feel like you can get up and once again conquer the world. Utilize these several times a week!  You may also feed the nervous system with nutrition. I love Holy Basil, phosphatidyl serine, Valerian, 5-HTP, inositol, gaba......I have most of these and will use whatever feels right from day to day. Last night I did Valerian Root and an herbal tea with Chamomile in it before bed. But lately, taking a theanine, B vitamin blend for anxiety has been very helpful. I can help you to determine the best route for you to take, just get in here, it's part of what I do for a living!

As far as what to avoid: hanging around with toxic, negative people, realizing that toxic, bad thoughts aren't hurting anyone but you and you only, limiting caffeine, get enough sleep and love yourself, faults and all. 

The five love languages 

Words of Affirmation 

 One of your deepest needs is the need to feel appreciated. Verbal compliments, words of appreciation, 

encouragement, kind and humble words are all ways to show love to you. 

Quality Time 

 You enjoy doing things TOGETHER! We aren’t talking about just sitting in front of the T.V. together but 

really giving each other undivided attention. This means looking at each other, talking to each other, 

sharing your life with your partner. 

Receiving Gifts 

 You are happy to receive things from your loved ones. They don’t have to be expensive. The gift is a 

symbol of “s/he cares about me” and “s/he thinks of me”. 

Acts of Service 

 For you, actions speak louder than words! You prefer your partner to do things for you such as cooking a 

meal, giving a massage, cleaning the room… You like your partner to initiate the acts of service and put 

efforts into doing them to show that s/he cares. 

Physical Touch 

 You love to receive a hug, a kiss, squeezes on the shoulder, a pat on the back, a touch of the face, and an 

arm around the waist... Touches can be 10 times as powerful and comforting as any words! 

I have run out of time today, A client is rolling in the door in ten minutes and I want to do some stretching and breathing before the rest of my day takes over. Treat yourself with respect and take care!

Stress Is a Killer!

Okay, STRESS! It is always going to be a part of life. Work is stressful, I love what I do, but as a business owner I push myself to do more, to do it better, to work until everything is done, yes, everything! It is a constant effort. This past week my checking account was hacked and everything was taken. So, you know what that means, what checks are floating around? What drafts are coming out, and when? How do I pay all these people without receiving penalties from everyone? My car was hit, now for repairs, my 13 year old got chicken pox, how do I make sure he gets the attention he needs while working and taking care of 2 other children? My health had a couple challenges, took care of that, of course, my sister had a scary diagnosis, my kids have guitar lessons, drum lessons and an art class after school....all  in the past 2 weeks!  You can see why I write this blog. You MUST have a stress outlet to get through it without falling apart. I am not making time to work out, so now what? Well, as soon as I write this I will go take a Lavender bubble bath with candles! I will strive to get more rest tonight by going to bed earlier than usual.  I am full of ideas for stress outlets. Here are some that I love to utilize

massage

yoga

tai chi

pedicure

reike (this one should be at the top of the list)

meditation

facial

sitting and listening to the birds and watch clouds (great way to start the day)!

go for a run

Socialize with a friend

When I am under a lot of stress I support my adrenals so they do not become exhausted. I have a phosphatydle serine cream that I benefit from immediately. Also, I support my nerves with a natural anti depressant and B vitamins. It helps me get by without snapping, that would be very easy.  

Be good to yourself! You are the one that knows what you need, you will be the only one that will do it for you when you need it. Off to the tub! Do something wonderful for yourself, NOW!