Detaching yourself from your phone and truly unplugging can seriously improve your life. While there’s no doubt technology has made our lives easier in many ways (remember roadmaps?), research suggests that our addiction to it is real. Every new notification triggers the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that drives us to seek rewards, so you keep coming back for more. This vicious cycle is taking a toll on our health, mental wellbeing, and relationships. But this habit isn’t entirely your fault. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter—they’ve all been designed to make you repeatedly use them and check back in. Time for a digital detox?
Community News
Ride Don’t Hide!
Outdoor exercise is a great way to soak up the sun’s vitamin D, get your blood pumping, and reconnect with your community – all proven ways to boost your mental health. Need some motivation? Join Ride Don’t Hide, Canada’s largest bike ride for mental health! Two routes will take riders through Winnipeg’s beautiful streets. Ride Don’t Hide is for cyclists of all skill levels. Come ride with us to honour the recovery journeys of those living with mental illness and celebrate mental health! For details, visit: www.ridedonthide.com/mb/ride/winnipeg
Crunchy Citrus Salad
Enjoy this refreshing summer salad! Ingredients: 1 zucchini, chopped and peeled; 1 carrot, chopped and peeled; 1/2 napa cabbage, chopped; 1 green pepper, thinly sliced; 2 stalk green onions, minced; 1 grapefruit, peeled and segmented; 1 lime, peeled and segmented; 1 bunch fresh basil, chopped; 1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped; 2 handful bean sprouts.
Dressing: 2/3 c water; 1 handful cashews; 1 piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped; 1/2 garlic clove, peeled and coarsely chopped; 2 tbsp lime juice; 2 tbsp soy sauce. Simply add all ingredients together, toss in dressing, and serve! Recipe adapted from www.lowfatlowcarb.com
Book Club: Metabolism Revolution
Bestselling author, leading health and wellness entrepreneur, celebrity nutritionist, and motivational speaker Haylie Pomroy has the answers. Drawing on her fundamental “food as medicine” techniques, she’s created the Metabolism Revolution diet, which strategically manipulates macronutrients to speed the body’s metabolic rate, a guaranteed way to kick start a stalled metabolism. Following the Metabolism Revolution plan, you will burn fat, build muscle, improve your skin, boost energy levels, and look and feel great—all while losing weight quickly and keeping it off for life.
Family Gathering Tips
Family Gathering Tips. Enjoying the company of relatives you don’t see very often is one of the best parts of family gatherings.
Enjoy your day to the fullest by taking every opportunity you can to connect and speak an encouraging word to every person in attendance. In doing so, you will start a ton of great conversations and learn fun facts about your relatives. Here are a few more family gathering tips to help you make the most out of your time spent with loved ones.
Enjoy your Tribe to the Fullest with These Family Gathering Tips
1. Talk about past memories. If it’s an annual gathering that’s been going on since you were a kid, start a conversation to bring up some of the funny and heartwarming memories of years gone by. Include aunts, uncles, and cousins as you relive the “good ole days”.
2. Get into a conversation with your favorite relatives. If you just them a hug or a handshake and move on, you may be missing out on special stories and memories.
3. Changing up your surroundings where you normally host your gatherings are both great ways to encourage fresh conversation and connections. Make an effort to create a Family Gathering Committee. Rotate members in and out every gathering so everyone has a chance of honing their leadership and planning skills.
4. Crack a joke at an unexpected time, or grab a smaller group to go hunt down some hot chocolate.
5. Exchange phone numbers and emails with cousins and others you’ve grown distant from. You might have lost your childhood closeness, but why not bring that closeness back as adults? That way, when the next family gathering rolls around, you’ll already feel connected, both as family members and as friends.
6. Whip up some of your favorite recipes as a special treat. Or make it a recipe swap, either with or without the actual dishes. Start a fun new family tradition by creating a family “Secret Recipe” collection that can be added to over the years.
7. Create some completely new Family Traditions. Whether serious or funny, family traditions are the catalyst for bonding opportunities that can be continued for hundreds of years. Just make sure they’re memorable and a somehow representative of your family.
So, dust off your electronic family address book and plan a get-together. Gather for an annual winter marshmallow roast, a monthly poker game, or a quarterly brunch where you all wear your finest clothes and drink orange tea. After all, anything goes. It’s tradition!
Check out more great tips on our Edge Blog www.wildernessedge.com/blog
Celebrate Aging!
We often hear the negative about seniors in our society, rather than celebrating them. Seniors offer wisdom and life experience integral to the fabric of a vibrant community. They contribute by shopping, using services (keeping people employed), and paying taxes. Seniors volunteer and make more charitable donations than any other age groups do. Many organizations could not function without them. Additionally, they help with babysitting and caregiving for spouses and friends, ultimately helping others to successfully “age in place”. Take the time to acknowledge the contributions made by seniors. By making our community more age-friendly, we can all play a role in inspiring more intergenerational understanding and connection.
Ride Don’t Hide
When we hide, mental health stays hidden. When we ride, we create change. This year, on June 24, ride in plain sight. Ride Don’t Hide. It’s more than the name of the event. It’s also the reason we’re riding. Think about joining the Ride Don’t Hide movement, a Canada-wide community bike ride to build awareness for mental health. Ride Don’t Hide is for riders of all skill levels; it is not a race, but, rather, an opportunity to celebrate mental health and honour the recovery journeys of people who live with mental illness. Join the Ride Don’t Hide movement and celebrate mental health!
Drink Aloe for Weight Loss
Aloe Vera’s weight loss properties are becoming better known. This plant stands above the rest of nature’s products as a detoxifying agent that helps the body remove waste. This is largely due to one of its components called ‘aloin’, which taken in appropriate doses can help us achieve its beneficial cleansing properties. The Aloe plant also helps us burn fat by improving our metabolism and the production of fatty acids, which is undoubtedly a big help in the fight to rid our bodies of excess fat. Aloe promotes intestinal function and better allows us to eliminate toxins from the body.
Spring Into Love
Spring is a season of cliches — birds singing, bees buzzing and people falling madly in love. If you’re a scientist though, the love sickness can be blamed on one very real thing. Dopamine! Dopamine is a naturally occurring chemical your brain uses to make you want things. There are other systems involved in love, but when it comes to new love, dopamine is the main culprit. And with enough of it swirling around your system, you’re prone to fall in love — and fall hard. No question, the newness of spring provides an ideal context for starting a new relationship. The changing weather and sunshine energize us — especially those of us who live in Manitoba where we’ve had to hibernate all winter. We’ve survived winter and now it’s time to start your search for love with the help of an experienced matchmaker.
Diffusing Essential Oils Just Got Better!
The purpose of diffusing concentrated plant essential oils into the air is 2-fold. It adds a beautiful natural scent to the room and it cleans the air of pathogens. Diffusing is one of the most effective ways to enjoys the benefits of essential oils. Breathing deeply relaxes the body and allows the essential oil molecules to be utilized very efficiently. To keep your diffuser working efficiently here are a few tips: use a cup to pour warm tap water into water reservoir, fill water just below the marked water line, and clean the white ultrasonic disc with rubbing alcohol and cotton swab on a weekly basis. Just Breathe!
Unlock the Power of Your Brain
Are you in reaction mode throughout your day? Do you wake up in the middle of the night worrying about things? Are you up in the morning, refreshed and able to take on the day’s challenges? Which part of your brain is usually in charge: reptilian, limbic, or neo-cortex? At your best, all three of these regions are working together. Your brain is capable of meeting any challenge that life presents. If you find yourself struggling, maybe your brain needs training. Brainwave Optimization helps the brain relax into a natural, creative flow that can adapt to whatever comes your way.
