Hello Friends!!!!! 

Can you believe Thanksgiving is next week?  I also turn 51 next week, too!!!  Time is sure flying by lately.

When I was sitting down thinking about this I realized that means that if you are like the majority of people (Americans anyhow) you are focusing right now on meal plans for next week, and then moving in to thinking about shopping for Christmas. For many of us the next 5 or so weeks will blow any financial strategy or gains we had, and if you purchase gifts on credit, then you'll be blowing the first few months of next year too. Or if you only make the minimum payment then maybe the next several years of your finances.  How depressing.  

And that doesn't leave room for any emergencies. Like this guy....
This is Eggroll. He's a 13ish year old cat who needs surgery next week. And not cheap surgery, either. Like $1,000+ surgery. Right before Christmas and my upcoming vacation!!!!  Aaaaccckkkk!!!!

Here's the thing. Six months ago I wouldn't have been able to afford this surgery and would have had to either leave him in pain, pay it on Care credit or on a credit card (which I don't even have). Or worse, be forced to maybe even make the most difficult decision.  The one you never want to make due to money when the pet still has so much living left to do.  

But I'm lucky. In the past 6 months I've been able to build up an emergency fund to cover this cost, still be able to buy all the Christmas gifts I want, save for my two upcoming trips (one to Australia next year that will be expensive), invest in my future, and still have fun along the way. And pay for it all with cash. And I didn't get a job making more money, either.  I'm doing this with my current income.  

So what changed? I found a plan that takes the emotion out of money and helped me finally get my finances in order.  Yep, it took me 50 years to finally figure it out.  Yes - I am embarrassed about that, but better late than never right?

And it is not rocket science, and it doesn't matter what your income level is.  This system can help you, I promise.  

So, how are you going to finish out these next 6 weeks of the year?  Worrying about money, dreading the thought of the end of January when the credit card bills come due, or worried about what you'll do if the car breaks down or the cat needs surgery?

There really is hope.  You can grab the full program here
Green Gap
GREEN GAP
and it even includes monthly coaching with the creator, where you can ask questions and dive even deeper in to how the system works.  You too can become a money machine.  

I'm sure you are thinking?  Great.  But I'm broke and a system like this probably costs a fortune, especially with those included monthly coaching/Q&A sessions.  But guess what?  It doesn't.  It's a one-time fee of $197 or $147 if you are already an Oola Member or Ambassador.  So....are you ready to invest in yourself and your financial future?  

If you want to see more of Eggroll check out this Facebook Live I did with him today: https://www.facebook.com/1641691034/videos/861985131117602/

Reach out if you have questions. I'd love to help you find the freedom I've finally found after all these years.

Make Progress Every Single Day And You’ll Beat Procrastination For Good

It’s hard to believe but we are coming to the end of our seven-week challenge to get off your butt and finally beat procrastination. I hope you’ve been following along and more importantly that you’ve been making progress on at least one of the things you’ve been procrastinating on. We end today with the most important piece of advice and the main lesson I want you to take away from all this.

Make progress every single day!

Of course, that’s easier said than done. That’s why I’m leaving you today with three simple hacks or strategies to help you. Give them a try and see if you can’t get into the habit of being productive every day instead of procrastinating.

Plan For It

It’s easy to make progress every day when you know exactly what you should be working on next. Make a plan and then decide what you will do each day of the week. Write it down in a planner and adjust daily as needed. In the morning, you can see at-a-glance what it is you should be doing. Then get to work on it first thing before the day gets away from you. I find it helpful to have my planner sitting right in front of me at my desk, keeping me on track.

Don’t Break the Chain

There’s something to be said about a chain or a streak. Record every day you don’t procrastinate on something. You can mark it on a monthly calendar, or create a chain of sticky notes, stickers, or even one of those paper chains you used to make in preschool. The goal is simple. Don’t break the chain. Once you have a few days under your belt, you’ll be motivated to go the extra mile and do that one thing you need to do to avoid breaking the streak.

Check In with Yourself

As you start to make progress on the things you know you need to be doing, you should feel your anxiety reduce. Instead, your will feel your confidence go up. Don’t be surprised to feel proud of your accomplishments. Instead use those feelings to propel you forward to more procrastination free days. Procrastination is a habit. It’s something you learned to do, which means it’s something you can unlearn. Stick with it, make progress every day, and enjoy those feelings of accomplishment.

Check out the rest of the series here:
Forgive yourself for procrastinating in the past

Listen To Your Inner Voice And Change That Dialogue

Something we haven’t talked about yet is that little voice in our head that either encourages us to go do something else - thus procrastinating, or the other one… the critical one… the one that tells us how much we suck because we didn’t get the things done we set out to do.

Why is it important to listen to those voices? Because they have an impact on your life both on a conscious and a subconscious level. Let’s start with that negative voice because I think in the long run it’s the most destructive of the two. Back on day one of this seven week challenge to beat procrastination we talked about the importance of forgiving yourself. To quickly recap, it does you no good to beat yourself up over past procrastination and that you should expect to “fail” by procrastinating again here and there. Nobody is perfect. We all have good days and bad days. The important part is to show up and try your best.

That little negative voice in your head doesn’t help you do that. Become aware of it and when you hear it, defuse it. You can do this by responding to it out loud or in writing (via a journal). Or go up and do something else. Do whatever it takes to silence that voice. A great option is to prove it wrong by doing something productive. Over time that voice will speak up less and less unless you indulge it by paying attention to it and letting it ruin your day.

Next it’s time to tackle the voice in your head that tells you it’s much more fun to do just about anything other than what you should be doing. We all have that voice. It’s why we come up with terms like procrasticleaning and procrasticrafting. We can get pretty innovative when it comes to doing anything but the thing we don’t want to work on and that little voice is feeding us suggestions and cheering us on.

The best way to diffuse this particular voice into something more productive is with “yes, and” statements. “Yes, playing video games sounds like a lot of fun and I’m going to play for an hour or so after I get this task done.” Use the suggestions this voice gives you as bribes if they sound like something fun. Ignore them otherwise, or put them off until tomorrow.

Check out the rest of the series here:
Forgive yourself for procrastinating in the past

Old Habits Are Hard To Break - Accountability Is Key To Beating Procrastination

Beating procrastination can be hard. We do well for a few days, but then old habits set back in, or we get frustrated with our lack of apparent progress. Nothing goes fast enough. If you face a small setback at this point, it may be enough to stop working on what you wanted to accomplish in the first place. Thankfully there’s something you can do to greatly improve your chances of success. Accountability.

Track Your Progress

Start by tracking what you do. You can do this via a simple habit tracker. Use a box for each day of the week and check it off or fill it in when you do the thing you told yourself you would do. Keep tracking until it becomes a habit or until the project is done.  Ready to try the Oola Framework and Activity Tracker?  You won't regret it and there is even a 30-day money back guarantee.  

For larger projects that you may or may not work on a daily basis, it helps to write down your goal and then break it into milestones. Record your progress and how much closer you’re inching to each of your goals.

Make Daily To-Do Lists

Write out a list of everything you want to get done for the day. I find it helpful to do this the day before. Play around with how many items you put on that list. You don’t want it to overwhelm you, but you do want to challenge yourself to get more done. The list holds you accountable because you can see in black and white if you procrastinated or not.

Tell Someone About Your Plans

If there’s something you’ve been struggling to get done, tell someone else about your plans to finally tackle it. Call a friend, tell your spouse, or announce it on social media. Encourage the people you’re sharing with to check back with you on how you did. It may be the little extra push you need to stop procrastinating.

Find An Accountability Buddy

Last but not least, find someone else who’s procrastinating and start holding each other accountable. This could be as simple as checking in once in the morning to declare what you each want to get done, and then again at the end of the day to see what happened. Knowing someone else is right there with you can be super motivating.  Reach out if you want to join our Inner Circle.  

Give each of these procrastination beating strategies a try and see which ones give you the best results. Like anything else, procrastinating is a habit and you can get out of it and turn yourself into the motivated and productive version of yourself you want to be.

Check out the rest of the series here:
Forgive yourself for procrastinating in the past

You wake up in the morning motivated and ready to tackle whatever it is you’ve been procrastinating on. Or maybe you’re excited about a new project. You drink your coffee, get dressed, and get ready to get to work. Then something happens.

Maybe you open your email, or worse Facebook and get sucked into spending the next few hours on your computer. Or maybe a good friend calls and asks you to go shopping. Or you get an alert that your favorite TV show dropped on Netflix. It doesn’t matter what it is, the point is that there are people and things that will try to distract you into procrastinating. If you let them.

There’s a simple strategy you can use to keep this from happening. It’s to make the important project you’ve been procrastinating on a priority and working on it first thing every morning. The whole process starts the night before. Before you call it a day, sit down and make a simple plan for what you want to get done the next day. Identify the three most important tasks. This will be things that start to move the needle. Maybe they are all focused on one main project, maybe it’s several things you know you should be getting done.

Write these three things down, or better yet add them to your Oola Activity Tracker and you’ll be set!!! They don’t have to be anything big. In fact, I find it helpful if they are all items I can take care of in an hour or less. When you get up in the morning, or get to your office, look at your list and work on these three most important tasks before you do anything else. Don’t look at email. Don’t start playing on your phone. If possible don’t even answer the phone or attend meetings before these three tasks are taken care of. Make them your number one priority.

This alone will make a huge difference in how your day goes, how productive you are, and it of course keeps you from procrastinating on those projects. Putting them off until the end of the day when you’re too tired to do anything is no longer an option.

Aside from that, simply being more aware of what things, devices, and people tempt you to procrastinate is helpful. When you find yourself putting something off, look back and see if you can pinpoint what caused it. Then take action towards preventing it from happening in the future.

Check out the rest of the series here:
Forgive yourself for procrastinating in the past

Set A Goal - Write It Down - Get Started

Getting over procrastination takes action. Of course that is easier said than done. Today I'm going to share a simple three-step process with you that will help you get off your butt and get more done than you ever thought possible.

It all starts with a goal. You have to know what it is you want to accomplish. If you don't know what your goal is, it's hard to know what you should be doing first or what you should be doing right now to move in the right direction. So what do we do instead? Anything other than the work we know needs to get done.

Your goal is simply putting what you know you need to get done into words. A good goal has defined parameters and a set deadline. That doesn't have to be complicated. Here's a simple goal we all strive to accomplish. We have to file our taxes by April 15th. You have a pretty good idea of what paperwork you need, what forms you need to fill out, and where you need to turn them in. You also know what your deadline is. In other words, you have a well-defined goal when it comes to filing your income taxes. And yes, I realized most of us still procrastinate when it comes to this particular task. That's why the remaining steps are just as important as the first one. For now I want you to think about one thing you need to get done and turn it into a goal.

Write it down. I don’t care if you find a random scrap of paper, use your favorite notebook, or type a note to yourself on your phone. The important part is that you put your goal into writing. This does two things. First of all, it helps you clarify what your goal is. You have to get pretty specific when you try to put what you want or need to do into words. Secondly, writing it down gives you something to look back on. It serves as a reminder and as a tool that you can use when you are tempted to procrastinate.

Last but not least, it’s time to get started. That’s often the hardest part, isn’t it? You’re tempted to skip your workout until you lace up your shoes and get started. Once you’re off and running, it’s much easier to keep going. Once you have your goal written down, think about something you can do right now to move you in the right direction. Go do that. Then come back and do something else. Each morning, start by looking at your goal and challenge yourself to take action. Before you know it, you will have made some serious progress. And you’re starting to beat procrastination.

What goals are you going to commit to for this month?  How about for the rest of 2021?  What about in the next year?  Let me know and I'll help you stay accountable.  

Check out the rest of the series here:
Forgive yourself for procrastinating in the past

Are you a procrastinator? Many of us have the tendency to put things off and no matter how often we beat ourselves up over waiting to the last minute to pack for a vacation, book a flight, or file our taxes and struggle to get it all done in time, we keep doing it again and again. If you’re ready to finally beat procrastination and get ahead of the game, you’re in the right place.

Over the course of seven blog posts, I’m going to share my best tips and strategies for overcoming procrastination with you and we start today with - Forgiveness. I know it seems like a strange place to start, but it’s an important first step. Here is why forgiving yourself for procrastination should always be the first step.

Here's the thing. There's nothing you can do about the past except learn from it. Beating yourself up about not following the plan you made for reaching a goal does you no good. Quite the opposite actually. If you stress yourself out and engage in negative self-talk, you make it worse. Those feelings of anxiety will enforce your habit to procrastinate again the next time.

The next time you find yourself procrastinating, tell yourself that it's okay. It's not the end of the world. Say it out loud and then promise yourself to try to do better. Trying is the important keyword here. You're working on mastering a new skill and changing a habit. That takes practice, time, and often failing a few more times, too. Remember, it's part of the learning process.

You may feel frustrated at times about your lack of progress. It's normal. If you can, tap into that frustration and use it to motivate you. Vow to try again and do better. Look at your mistakes. What caused you to procrastinate this time? Learn from it and you will start to do better.

Maybe there's a big task and you started strong, chipping away at it a little at a time. Then you missed a day, and another. That's okay. Not great, but okay. You did well for a while. It's good practice and maybe this particular experience taught you that you can't allow yourself to skip more than one day on an ongoing project.

There's always something new to learn whenever we fail at something or slip back into a bad habit. At the very least we figure out that something isn't working for us. Maybe you do better with three to-do's per day. The Oola Framework is a great way to get better at setting goals and getting three action steps done a day with the Action Tracker.

Forgive yourself for procrastinating so you can move on and practice some more. But, the trick is to move on and keep working at it. Don’t give up.

Tell us - Are you  a procrastinator?  I am when it comes to doing the dishes.  What things are you most likely to procrastinate about?

Check out my other blog content here: https://cathrynknock.com/blog

5 Tips To Help Distract You From Food During Your Intermittent Fast Time

Intermittent fasting isn’t hard to do, but we all have days that are harder than others. As a general rule of thumb, the first few weeks will be the toughest to get through. After that your body (and your mind) will be used to not eating during your fasting hours.

That said you’ll occasionally have days that are tougher than others. Most of the time it’s little mind games we play. We tell ourselves that we are hungry, not feeling well, bored, sick, and we just need a little food to make it all better. And those thoughts are enough to get the hunger pangs started.

The key to getting through those days is to distract yourself until it’s time for your next meal. Here are five tips to help you do that.

TIP #1 - STOP STARING AT THE CLOCK

The first thing you need to do is to stop staring at the clock. Time moves much slower when you’re watching the seconds tick by. Don’t even allow yourself to look at the time. Go do something else. Anything!

Get some work done, call a friend, go clean the bathroom, or walk the dog. It doesn’t matter. But whatever you do, don’t look at the clock for a good long while.

TIP #2 - MAKE A CUP OF TEA OR COFFEE

The ritual of making a nice cup of coffee or tea can calm and center you. Take your time and make it last. Then curl up and enjoy that cup. Not only will it help you pass the time, it also fills your belly and that may be just what you need to make it through those last few hours until it’s time for breakfast / lunch.

TIP #3 - GET OUT OF THE HOUSE

Sometimes one of the best distractions is a change of scenery. Go get out of the house. Run some errands, head to your local park with a blanket and a good book, meet a friend for coffee or just head into the back yard for some gardening.

TIP #4 - LOSE YOURSELF IN A GOOD BOOK OR MOVIE

Do you have a book or audiobook that you love? How about a Movie or Netflix Series? Find something you can lose yourself in and use it as a last resort distraction for those days when you can’t get anything productive done or you’re ready to relax and make it through that last hour or two of your fast.

TIP #5 - EXERCISE

Last but not least, get some exercise. Go for a walk, head to the gym, practice yoga, or dance to a Zumba DVD. It doesn’t matter. Not only will you pass the time while burning more fat but, exercise also releases endorphins that will make you feel better.

I hope you’ve found these tips helpful. Do you have some ideas of your own? What’s your favorite way to distract yourself before it’s time to eat again?

I’ve been hearing about Intermittent Fasting (IF) for a few years, and to be honest, I thought it was a crazy idea.  Mainly because I had no idea what it really meant, but still, I was sure that was not something I would EVER do.  

Fast forward to now. I don’t know about you, but I have tried pretty much every diet known to woman. The first diet I ever did back in the early days was the Cabbage Soup Diet. Did I lose a few pounds? Yep. Was that sustainable over the long-term? Nope. And like every DIET I have tried since then, once I wasn’t being strict and following the P.L.A.N. I gained all the weight back – and then some!

I’ve done them all. Here’s a recap of the ones I have tried over the years (at least those I can remember):
Cabbage Soup Diet, HcG Drops, Weight Watchers, Isagenix, Diet Power.com, JJ Virgin Elimination Diet, some weird chalky bark like substance that made you have to use the bathroom immediately, with no notice. I tried to find the name of it, but it no longer shows in my Amazon history. I think it has been pulled from the US market. Probably with good reason.
I am sure there are others I’ve tried over the years that I just don’t remember.

So, what about this IF and hypnosis thing? Well, I met someone in my women’s business networking group who is a hypnotist and focuses on weight loss and smoking cessation. I thought, well hypnosis is one thing I haven’t tried yet. Because let’s be honest. One of the main reasons those other options have not worked for me long-term is because I’m great out-of-the-gate, but when the diets are restrictive I just can’t keep to them long-term. So, I met with her and she explained she uses Intermittent Fasting (IF) and hypnosis. I figured I had nothing to lose – except the weight – so I jumped on board.

The first thing I had to do was homework. What? I thought she would just hypnotize me, tell me what I needed to know, and then voila – weight loss. Guess not.

So, here’s what I am going to do. I am going to chronicle my IF and hypnosis journey here in my blog. The deal is, I don’t know how it is going to turn out. But, if you are interested, I’ll be sharing my journey along the way. My research, my wins, my struggles, all of it. Maybe you’ll learn something too.

For now, you can start with the resources I have used so far or have been recommended to me. In future blogs, I’ll try to recap some of the takeaways from the books as well. As of now, I have completely read Delay, Don’t Deny , and most of The Obesity Code and they are eye-opening.

I will tell you all about my first hypnosis session I just had and my first week of IF (I’m starting Monday, August 3, 2020) in my next blog. Most likely it’ll post a week from the date of this blog. My goal is to post at least weekly, but if anything super exciting happens, it might be more often.

Are you an intermittent faster?  If so, please share with me your tips and tricks.  I am so eager to learn. 

Feel free to leave comments by clicking the word comments at the top. See you next week.

 

It’s almost that time of year.  In fact, it might already be in your area.  You know what I’m talking about right?  Either fireworks or thunderstorms.  The times of the year that can be so very hard on your pets, especially dogs.  Read on to find some great tips I’ve picked up over the years of being a pet owner and helping with pet rescue.  

 

Thunderstorms and fireworks can be the bane of dogs everywhere.  Oftentimes, it doesn’t matter if your pup is the best-behaved dog in the world, when the booming of thunder or the bam of fireworks is happening, even the calmest dog can get spooked.  And getting spooked can be dangerous.  Did you know more dogs go missing on the 4^th of July (US) and New Year’s Eve than any other time of the year?  

One, don’t ever leave your dogs outside if you know there are going to be thunderstorms or fireworks.   They don’t understand what is happening and they will do anything to get away.  And sometimes, that can be a dangerous proposition if they get out on a road.  Dogs will literally climb or jump 6+ feet fences trying to get away.  

Two, plan ahead.  This means, don’t wait until the event is upon you to figure out what you are going to do to mitigate the fear for your dog.   Get your supplies ready and do some trial runs.  It’ll be less stressful for you both.  

In my house, it means planning a safe space for them, be that a kennel or an interior room.   Yep, I’ve slept in the bathroom many a night with my pups.  It happens less often than before, because now they are used to the items we use and I do my very best to plan ahead and not wait.

One that I always had on hand for Bryndoll (she crossed the Rainbow Bridge this year) was a Thundershirt.   This Velcro contraption wraps them up tight and helps them feel secure.  The issue most people have is they wait too long to put the shirt on the pup or to get them acclimated to it before there is a need.  If you wait until there is a problem, then the dog will only associate the shirt with being scared, and it is less effective.  So make sure you get the pup used to wearing it, and that you put it on well before it is needed.  I always watched the weather reports and if thunderstorms were projected I’d just go ahead and put Bryndoll in it. Same thing for fireworks.  She went in the Thundershirt at least by late afternoon to ensure it was on before the first firecracker went off in the neighborhood.

Another thing I use is several Young Living Essential Oils.  And yes, they are the only ones I trust for my family and pets.   Again, the trick is to apply them before there is a problem.  The best way to introduce pets to essential oils is to do it low and slow.  Dogs especially have a very keen sense of smell, so too much oil too fast can make them sneeze and might make them less inclined to want to be around them.  What I have found to work best is to take one drop of oil rub it on my hands, and then pet down the back of the dog.  I try to stay away from the ears so the scent doesn’t overwhelm their nose. 

I also will drop some oil on the Thundershirt as well.  Remember, that just like with people, different oils work better for some dogs than others.   In our house, Bryndoll always loved and was calmed by Frankincense the most.  But Twinkle will come running for our Valor blend.  Seriously, if I open the bottle she comes running to get some.   As you can imagine, that is the first oil I reach for when I know there is going to be fireworks.  Other oils that are helpful to dogs are Lavender, Peace and Calming, and Stress Away.  

I hope this gave you some ideas of things to try to help keep your pups calm during stressful times.   And don’t forget, these work just as well for you, too.  We don’t have Thundershirts for humans, but I hear weighted blankets are great!!!

Remember how I said I only trust Young Living Essential Oils?  That’s because they are the only company with a Seed to Seal promise which means they take the utmost care from the selection of the seed all the way through the planting, growing, harvesting, distilling, bottling, and shipping of the products right to your door.  If you want more information on our process check it out here at www.seedtoseal.com.  And if you want to join me personally in learning more you can contact me HERE and join my community where I teach more about these products, pets, and how to live a bit more naturally HERE.  

 

Let's all do our part ot keep our pets worry-free this summer.  

Keepin' Real, as always ----Cathy

Disclosure: This site contains affiliate links to a few select products I use, enjoy, or recommend. I may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links, and your purchase supports companies and products I believe in. 

 

Right now, we all feel a lot of chaos in our lives.  Between what is going on in the world surrounding the pandemic, the working from home, unemployment, becoming the teacher you never wanted to be – and let’s not forget a toilet paper shortage - we’ve all probably felt like we are not in control of our lives.  That feeling is normal under these circumstances.  I know I’ve felt the stress and just wanted to crawl back in bed and forget about it all for a while.  And you know what, that’s okay to do.  But, we can’t live in that realm forever, because we have to still live our best life.  So, what do you do when all you want to do is…nothing?  How do you make sure you stay healthy, while staying home?  

The best thing, is to turn off the news and get off the chaos bandwagon.  Not gonna lie.  That is hard to do right now in a time when we crave connection.  Social media helps us easily feel connected to people we miss, but it is so easy to get caught up in that news cycle of gloom and doom.  My recommendation is to set a timer, and when it goes off, you get off the computer or phone, off Facebook or Twitter, and do something else.  Play a game, you know the real kind with cards or that comes in a box with pieces and a gameboard.  Build real connection with your family.  And if you live alone, then at a minimum play a real game with a real live person.  The internet is a great place, when you set limits.   

Take a walk in nature if you can.  If you live in the city and your parks are open, go to a park and get some fresh air.   If you have a dog, they will love exploring a new location, too.  If the weather permits, take off your shoes and socks and feel the grass or dirt beneath your feet.  This is a concept known as “earthing” and it is thought that the connection with the Earth allows free electrons to be taken up into the body which helps your body deal with stress, improves sleep, and can even help reduce pain in just 30 minutes a day. Check out this book on Kindle https://amzn.to/3bO5fwo or in paperback https://amzn.to/3aOSb8P to learn more about earthing.  And then I’d love to hear what you find when you try it.

This can be something as simple as just taking a relaxing bath with your favorite essential oils and some Epsom Salts.  Or curling up with your favorite book and your favorite blanket in your favorite comfy chair with your favorite drink.  It doesn’t matter what it is you do, just do something that allows you to relax and unwind.

Still need to release some tension or stress?  Need to find a way to overcome other things that might be holding you back? Have goals that you want to reach, but are not sure how?  If so, Aroma Freedom Technique might be just the thing you are looking for.  Using the power of essential oils and common psychological techniques an AFT session can help you break through barriers you didn’t even realize were holding you back.  Click HERE to claim your FREE session today. 

 

Like what you learned today and want to learn more about related health and wellness topics in a judgement-free way?  I have a community of real people, learning new tips and tricks to help them on their wellness journey.  Join HERE.  

You can also get my guide on easy ways to reduce toxic fragrances from your life.  Grab it HERE!

 

Cortisol is a stress hormone that is made in your adrenal glands.  Most cells of our body have cortisol receptors which serve to uptake the hormone for a variety of functions, including blood sugar and metabolism regulation, reducing inflammation, and memory formulation.   These are all very necessary body processes, but as you can imagine, too much of this hormone can wreak serious havoc on your body and comes with a host of unwanted symptoms.  Read on to learn a bit more about cortisol and learn some simple ways to manage your levels for optimum health.  

High cortisol can cause many symptoms in your body.  The most common are weight gain, generally around the midsection and upper back, as well as around the face.  Yay! ☹ Just what we all want, right? Acne is another unfortunate side effect that many people suffer from just when we thought for sure we had left that teenage problem far behind!  Added on to the rounder face and that’s just not a look I am going for, to be honest.  

I can usually tell when I am suffering from high cortisol because one of my first signs is difficulty concentrating.  You know, where you hear the same thing over and over and still can’t make sense of what was said?  That could be “old-timers” but it is likely just high cortisol levels messing with you.   Brain Fog is real and it is no fun!!!!

Other common symptoms are thinning skin and a flushed face – to go with that weight gain and acne.   That’s like the quadruple punch in the face, am I right?  Then throw in some severe fatigue, headaches, high blood pressure, muscle weakness, easy bruising, slowed healing, and irritability and we are a COMPLETE MESS.   And let’s be honest, I’m not sure the irritability is so much a symptom in and of itself so much as the inevitable response to all the other freaking symptoms!!! Geesh!

Both your hormones and your nerves send signals when you are stressed.  This causes your adrenal glands to release hormones, including adrenaline and cortisol.  Adrenaline and cortisol kick off the flight-or-fight response and increase your heart rate and your energy to get your body ready for a dangerous or harmful situation that needs dealt with.  Cortisol also has the extra job of limiting functions not necessary to fight-or-flight.   Then your hormones will return to their normal levels after the danger has passed.  This is all a good thing, except….

When you are under constant stress and the response doesn’t turn off.  Then the long-term exposure to cortisol and other stress hormones start to create problems for your body.  Problems like obesity, anxiety, depression, and heart disease. 

 

Many medications can increase cortisol levels. Corticosteroid medications used to treat asthma, arthritis, certain cancers, and other conditions can cause high cortisol levels when taken in higher dosages or over long periods of time.   This includes medications likes prednisone and cortisone which are commonly prescribed.  Estrogen replacement therapy and pregnancy are two other causes of increased cortisol levels.   Of course, you should never stop a prescribed medication without speaking to your doctor, but knowing the side effects can be helpful when having the conversation.

Over time, sleep deprivation causes increased cortisol levels.  Night shift workers are at increased risk for high cortisol ([1]).  Insomnia and interruptions to sleep can also increase levels and disrupt daily hormone patterns ([2], [3], [4]).

Intense exercise increases cortisol shortly after exercise in the short-term, but decrease in the nighttime.  Mild or moderate exercise at 40-60% of maximum effort, however, does not increase cortisol in the short-term, like intense exercise, and it still leads to lower levels at night ([5], [6]).

It goes without saying, eating healthy foods is good for you.  There doesn’t seem to be an issue out there that a good diet of whole foods won’t help, and cortisol levels is no exception.   A diet full of fruits and vegetables is good for you.  But guess what?  Studies even show that dark chocolate may be helpful ([7], [8]) as well.  And dark chocolate lovers rejoiced!  

Dehydration can also increase cortisol levels, so drink up. I find that I tend to not drink enough water – come on – it’s boring.  I’ve found a great water additive that I love and that is good for you, too.  

There are several good nutritional supplements that can help with maintaining healthy cortisol levels.   

A good fish oil supplement can be a great way to reduce cortisol levels in response to stress ([9], [10]).  

Probiotics are friendly, symbiotic bacteria found in foods such as yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi, as well as in nutritional supplements.  Prebiotics, such as soluble fiber, provide food for these bacteria.   Both probiotics and prebiotics help reduce cortisol ([11]).  The issue is often the levels in the foods or supplements are not high enough to be measurably helpful.  Choosing a good supplement is therefore very important, otherwise, you are just throwing money down the drain…or toilet if we are honest.  So you have to be able to trust the source.

There are supplements on the market that are specially formulated to work with the body to reduce cortisol levels.  One I trust is a combination of pregnenolone, lipids, black cohosh, DHEA, clary sage, and high-quality essential oils known to help the body manage cortisol levels.   When I am feeling the effects of stress, I add this supplement to my daily supplement regimen for about 8 weeks and the brain fog, bloating, and tiredness melt away.  

Many essential oils have a positive effect on cortisol levels.  Researchers found that the inhalation of lavender, ylang ylang, marjoram, and neroli decreased blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels ([12]).  Other oils such as basil, bergamot, rosemary, and orange are also helpful.  The important thing to note in the study linked above is that participants who smelled artificial fragrance had no improvement.  So, trusting your oil source is important, as many oils on the market are actually artificial synthetics!  Read below for a free roller bottle blend.  

Combine the following oils in a cold-water ultrasonic diffuser for stress relief:

4 drops Lavender

3 drops Ylang Ylang

2 drops Marjoram

1 drop Neroli

As you can see, maintaining healthy cortisol levels is important and there are some simple steps such as getting more sleep, moderate exercise, eating healthy, and nutritional supplementation that can assist you in keeping your cortisol levels in check.   

Remember what I said about trusting the source when we talked about probiotics and essential oils?   It’s true.  Not all supplements are created equal and not all essential oils on the market are even made from plants.  Just like I am sure you would rather get your produce from a local source where you can trust the process as opposed to vegetables that were grown on industrial farms with chemicals and picked too early and shipped too far, right?   Lucky for you, I have a source I trust for oils, supplements, and so much more – one where I can even tour the farm and speak to the workers.  How cool is that?  Want to learn more?  Contact Me.

If you liked this content you are sure to love my FREE GUIDE on Boosting your Immune System.  

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