Short on Patience!!

Why have I been feeling snappy, irritable, impatient? I haven't been sleeping. Every person deals with the occasional interruption of slumber. But when we can't sleep, we get moody.

That's one of the things insomnia does to us. Here's some good read about other things insomnia does to us, with both why stress interrupts sleep, and how to stop it: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/17/stress-and-sleep_n_5824506.html

How My Mindset Alters My Pain Perception?

Came across a very cool article about how people approach pain. Apparently, they way we think about pain determines how much pain we actually experience.

A quote from the article, "Throughout the ages, athletes, soldiers in combat, and prisoners of war have intuitively learned how to use cognitive methods like imagery and distraction to alter perceptions of certain types of pain. Anyone who has read or seen Unbroken knows that Louis Zamperini was a master of the cognitive self-regulation of pain."

It's a bit of a dense read, but does a great job of explaining how our mind has such power in reducing our experience of pain.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-athletes-way/201501/neuroscientists-identify-how-mindset-alters-pain-perceptions

I am bipolar, and have been managing my condition through medication and therapy. I have recently started some natural therapies in addition, with notable success. Here are some things I have added to my regimen:

1. Vitamin D
2. Omega-3 Fatty Acids
3. Meditation...
4. Light Therapy

There is a lot of info available, but be careful. Not all natural therapies are safe. Talk with your doctor about drug interactions. We would all do well to appreciate not just the importance of addressing physical pain, but psychological pain as well.

A great article with more info:
http://www.everydayhealth.com/bipolar-disorder/alternative-treatments-for-bipolar-disorder.aspx

Ash
 

I saw a commercial today for a new nasal spray. It doesn't clear sinuses or address allergies. It is for accidental overdose from opioids, or painkillers.

There are a lot of ways to treat pain, both natural and pharmaceutical. The same industry who creates these deadly pills has now come up with a new product to stop these very deaths. That's a smart business strategy for those who care about profit instead of people.

3 Interesting Facts About Opioids:

1. Drug Overdose is the Leading Cause of Accidental Death in the US

2. Opioid Addiction is Driving this Epidemic

3. More People Die of Prescription Pain Relievers than from Heroin

Here's more info if you're interested:

http://www.asam.org/docs/default-source/advocacy/opioid-addiction-disease-facts-figures.pdf

We've been looking at Stress Trigger Points lately, those critical events that change stress from motivating to discouraging. Monday is a great day to see a Trigger Point in action. Today something will happen to each of us that is a Trigger Point.

I've realized I only see the Trigger Point after the fact, when I am feeling too stressed. So I challenged myself: begin noticing when I am feeling very uncomfortable. Then I would ask, "What happened just before this, or very recently, that got me to this point?"

I've begun to observe little things that send me over the edge, these are Trigger Points. I'm not good enough yet to prevent them, but I'm getting better at recognizing that I have been pushed too far, and that it's time to step back and regroup.

We've been looking into Trigger Points, the things that convert stress from helpful to harmful. I've been thinking lately about caregivers, those who accept responsibility for the care of another person.

We talk a lot about our own challenges. Today I want to focus on the caregivers who are essential to helping us manage these challenges. Being a caregiver is incredibly difficult. We have heard from many of you about the stress that comes with being responsible for someone else, making sure they have the best life possible. The pressure to provide a life someone might not otherwise have can be mentally debilitating.

Let's look at common Trigger Points for caregivers:

 --Added Workload
--Changes In The Family
--Sudden Change In Loved One or Patient's Condition

To a certain point, the stress of being a good caregiver motivates him/her to work harder, to improve. When a Trigger Point like one of the above occurs, the stress becomes too great, and caregiver burnout begins.

Here is some more info about caregiver burnout, the signs to look for, and how to avoid it:
http://www.helpguide.org/…/caregiving-stress-and-burnout.htm

We see the important role Trigger Points play in getting the most out of stress. So what are some common examples of Trigger Points? What things make stress switch from being helpful to being destructive?

Here are a few of the most common stressors according to WholeLiving.com:

--Money Issues

--Work & Life Balance

--Who Does Which Chores At Home, and Whether They Are Getting Done

There are so many more, we will revisit Trigger Points a lot at Relax Wraps. Let's look more closely at one of the examples to see how it relates to the graph: Work & Life Balance.

With smartphones and abundant technology, the lines blur for where a work day ends and personal time begins. We can now start a work day before getting out of bed, and track our children's movements from the office.

Naturally, trying to strike the work/life balance causes us a certain amount of stress. Up to a point, this stress is actually helpful, allowing us to be more motivated and work harder to strike that balance, giving us the most out of life.

Here's where learning our individual Trigger Point becomes so important. As soon as we begin to think we don't have the ability, time or resources to do something (in this case to create balance between work and personal life), it is at this moment when stress becomes harmful. We become demotivated, and with every new stressful thought, we retreat further and further from trying to create balance.

Take Away: If we can begin to recognize signs that we are approaching our Trigger Points, we can take a step back and regroup. As long as we don't set off this Trigger Point, we can always come back to the issue, and with a healthy amount of stress, make more progress.

Ash