Working Too Hard? Don’t Forget Quality Rest & Recovery
long hours, you like your job – most days - and yet… somewhere along the way, you’ve noticed some unwelcome changes. Maybe your stamina just isn’t what it used to be – on the job, in the gym, or having sex; maybe you wake in the morn- ing feeling less refreshed that you used to – possibly a bit uncharacteristically depressed; or when you travel across time zones, your jet lag recovery takes longer. You may have started getting allergies – seasonal or diges- tive – and you don’t recall having had them before; you notice occasional heartburn, a bit of constipation or loose stools. You may
O
ver the years you’ve been happily climbing the proverbial ladder in your profession, you’re still working
start waking at night – sometimes you go right back to sleep, but other nights… it’s not as easy.
“What went wrong?” is usually the first question people ask when they find out that their current state is not either some sort of disease or part of the natural progression toward getting older. The answers are as var- ied as the patients, but there are some core culprits that I see repeatedly. 1. Too much stimulation - coffee, sugar,
simple carbohydrates like cookies, coffee cakes and desserts; 2. Poor diet – skipping meals, not enough protein early in the day, too little water, too much soda, mindless late night snacking, few vegetables, poor quality fats, eating too few home cooked meals and too many processed foods;
By Penelope McDonnell, ND 3. Nutritional depletion of the all impor-
tant minerals needed for brain health or of B vitamins which are so critical for sustaining a body under stress; 4. Lastly, poor “battery recharging”
techniques. Very hard workers tend to de- velop the habit of powering through stressful times, not taking a moment to pause and regroup. Many start having an alcoholic drink or
two in the evening to relax and help them sleep, thinking erroneously that this artificial relaxation is healthy. Unfortunately, drinking alcohol has been found to deplete minerals and actually interferes with sleep quality. Even other evening activities such as
training for a marathon and taking classes like competitive spinning, or running flat out on a treadmill – while usually beneficial –
28 Natural Nutmeg April 2013
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