You will need: 2 peeled and frozen bananas, 2 T almond or peanut butter, 2 T almond or coconut milk. Optional add ins: nuts, chocolate chips, fruit, coconut, cocoa powder. Directions: In a blender, mix the bananas and the milk substitute. You may need to cut the banana into chunks depending on how powerful your blender is. Once they are partly chopped up, add in the nut butter. Continue to blend until you get a soft serve consistency. Spoon ice cream into a bowl and stir in any additional ingredients you desire. That’s it! Enjoy this healthy ice cream alternative!
Community News
Book Club: Beyond the Label
Beyond the Label offers a unique perspective on mental health: it shares the author’s own recovery from four major mental health conditions: anxiety, depression (attempted suicide), bulimia, and bipolar disorder type 1. The book outlines a detailed, step-by-step plan for how others can achieve optimal mental health. A combination of practical clinical experience and years of lived experience, the book shares insight into how diet, exercise, and sleep can be optimized for improved mental wellbeing, as well as strategies for coping with negative thoughts and emotions, and building self-love and compassion, among other skills.
Catching Your Breath
Because breathing is an involuntary action, we rarely pay attention to the process. But did you know that how you breathe impacts your health? Deep nasal breathing can reduce stress, help you fall asleep faster, aid toxin removal, and lower blood pressure to a greater extent than mouth breathing can.
And did you know that your nasal passage serves as a biological air filter, humidifier, and air conditioner to cool the brain? So the next time you’re catching your breath, try deep breathing through your nose and note how much better you feel while going about your day.
Using Essential Oils
Aromatherapy is also referred to as essential oil therapy. It can be defined as the art and science of using highly concentrated medicinal plant extracts to promote mental and physical health. Did you know that one of the most effective ways to enjoy the benefits of essential oils is by diffusing? Breathing deeply relaxes the body and allows the essential oil molecules to be utilized very efficiently. Massage is another wonderful way to enjoy essential oils. Add 3-4 drops to 1 oz of coconut oil and enjoy. Never use essential oils directly on your skin without a carrier oil and NEVER ingest essential oils. Just breathe!
Vipassana Meditation
Research has shown that meditation can expand the brain, and help people avert stress and disease. One way to achieve this is through Vipassana meditation, a technique that emphasizes mindfulness, with the goal of seeing things as they “really are”. An ancient meditative technique from India, Vipassana was taken up by Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) just over 2,500 years ago. Vipassana meditation is an honest and direct practice: the moment-to-moment investigation of the mind-body process through calm, open, and precise awareness. This experience fosters clarity and penetrating insight into the nature of who we are, as well as increased peace in our daily lives.
Get Your Greens
Spring is just around the corner, and the timing is perfect to start adding more colours into your diet. Leafy green vegetables contain many important macro and micronutrients. In 1 cup of broccoli or kale, there is actually 3 grams of protein! Try adding vegetables such as spinach, kale, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage to your salad. These vegetables will not only add flavour and a richer colour to your meal, but also drastically increase the amount of vitamins A, C, and K, which help with immune function and vision, decrease cholesterol, and assist in synthesis of protein and the binding of calcium for bone health.
Creating Health
In a world where stress is a constant, we are at risk physically and mentally when overstimulation erodes our resiliency. Those are exactly the times when we need to be more attentive to our diet, exercise commitments, and sleep cycle in order to sustain our physical resources. This helps our mental health, which is rooted in brain health; however, flexibility in the brain’s neuroplasticity is also very important. Brainwave Optimization, with its acoustic mirror, invites new connections in our neuronetworks, sustaining us in stressful times by strengthening our mental “muscle” and function. This can be a game-changer when facing life challenges and disease.
Gut Feeling
Poor gut health has been linked to fatigue, mood disorders like depression and anxiety, and a variety of conditions associated with nutrient deficiencies, such as anemia.
Fibre is a great way to keep things regular and increase the elimination of toxins and waste from your digestive tract. Eat a variety of vegetables, fruits, and whole grains and grasses. If reaching the recommended 10 servings of vegetables per day seems unattainable, consider adding a greens powder to your daily routine to make things easier. Look for a product that is gluten-free, contains probiotics, and is cold-pressed, as this maintains enzymes that improve the digestion and absorption of nutrients.
Tired of Being Sick and Tired?
Science has linked poor sleeping habits with all kinds of health problems, from weight gain to a weakened immune system, to many chronic health conditions. Practicing good sleep hygiene can help to obtain that better quality of sleep. Follow a regular sleep schedule, develop a relaxing bedtime routine, and create an environment that helps you doze off. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and glowing electronic screens in the hours before bed. If sleep still remains a struggle, Access BARS may help by releasing stress in the body and mind, and providing more clarity, focus, and joy, all of which can help improve sleep.
Taking Time to Breathe
Chronic stress floods the brain with powerful hormones that are meant for short-term emergency situations. This can cause damage to your brain, narrowing your ability to think clearly, function effectively, and enjoy life. Simply taking a few deep breaths over the course of your day can reduce your stress and help the brain and body to check in. Breathing in allows the brain to scan the body and find areas of stress or tension, and help to prevent health issues from arising. Breathing out can help you let go of the day-to-day issues that bring up those chronic stress situations.
Contemporary Neurofascial Blade Massage
Contemporary neurofascial blade massage is based on the traditional techniques of Gua Sha. Its core purpose was to “induce crisis to hasten the resolution of disease” by using a specific tool to massage the area by countering internal inflammation. These short stroking techniques were used along with traditional acupuncture to treat pain. These same traditional tools stimulate piczo (electrical current) and spread the interstitial fluid along connective tissue planes (increasing local blood flow) with light, gentle, repetitive strokes. This offers another method to decrease inflammation manually.
