Tell Me, Should We Vent Our Feelings, Or Should We Stuff Them?

me:girlsThat might seem like a really odd title to a post 4 days before Christmas, but I live in a Girl Household, and it’s been a subject around here.  We have 4 daughters, ages 16 to 23, and the subject has come up:  if you’re stressed and something’s bothering you, should you talk about it or not.  I tend to be a “not” person.  I find that I actually forget about what bothered me if I ignore it; and most of my problems aren’t biggies, which in my book, at 48, primarily means health.  Besides, talking doesn’t resolve most problems, actions do, (even a lot of health problems).

That title question could be argued to death, but here’s some facts:  our feelings aren’t always an accurate reflection of the situation. Our moods, our feelings, our attitudes, they come from the Neurotransmitters in our brain.  Neurotransmitters are like roadmaps up there, and they send signals for everything:  breathing, moving, opinions, moods, everything.  The four main neurotransmitters are Serotonin, Dopamine, Gaba, and the Catecholamines, adrenalin, and norepinephrine.  These  things are made from Amino Acids, and Fatty Acids.  There are no carbs in our brain structure.  Our brain cells use glucose for fuel, but science has shown that they can also use Ketones ( a by-product of fatty acid metabolism, from a high fat, low carb diet), really well.  As a matter of fact, science is showing that the brain actually runs BETTER on fatty acids than glucose. ( the brain is 60% fat, much of it saturated.)

 

What happens when you don’t eat enough protein and fat?  Or when you do eat enough, but your digestion is bad and you don’t break them down and absorb them?  (remember:  heartburn, bloat, gas, stomach pain = NOT NORMAL, and a big sign of poor digestion).  Your brain suffers.  Those neurotransmitters don’t get made, or they don’t get made correctly.  Add the Standard American Diet on top of that, and you’ve got flours, sugars, hydrogenated oils, and chemicals messing up brain function even more.  Add lack of sleep and movement on top of that, both of which are VITAL to brain function, and the brain goes even further down hill.

Depression, anxiety, ADD, ADHD, and other mood disorders are plaguing this country, but you don’t need a “mood disorder” to signal that your brain could use some TLC, and the right food.  Access yourself:  are you stressed often?  do you constantly take offense?  need naps?  feel wired but tired?  gravitate to stimulants or depressants ?  Listen To Your Bodies Signals, they’re telling you something.

Commercial Advertising by Big Pharma would have you believe that this is all normal and unavoidable and you just need to take a pill.  The efficacy rate of mood drugs is between 30 and 50%; that’s pretty bad, and so are the side effects.  What if it’s not your circumstances, or the people around you driving you crazy, but it’s you?  Oh man, that line got me in trouble the other day, but… what if?

My husband and I (the guy deserves a medal, by the way), read Julia Ross’s The Mood Cure this past summer, did the quiz, and have been on her  program for Amino Acid therapy since July.  Oh My Gosh what a difference, for both of us!  We’ve also made going to bed early a priority for the past 2 years;  again, Oh My Gosh, what a difference!  Did you know that each hour of sleep before midnight is worth at least 2 hours after midnight?  Actually, the more we tie our daily habits and actions to our mood and our health, the better everything keeps getting.

Wow, I hope I’m not making it seem like I don’t think any problems are worthy of stressing about, because I do.  In a house with so much drama  (we had 4 teenagers for a couple of years.), you have to be a little bit tough.   But the older I get, the more I believe that “life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it.”,  Charles Swindall;  and this one, “most people are about as happy as they make up their mind to be.”, Abraham Lincoln.

Remember the other day when I told you about Charis and her advice to look back over this past year and see what we’ve manifested?  I’ve been doing that every day this week.  My life is what I make of it, even when a challenge is thrown at me.  We only have a couple of weeks left of 2013; ask, what did I do, what do I wish I did, and what do I want to do in 2014?  What kind of person do I want to be?  It all happens in your mind, and your mind can’t work for you if you’re not nurturing it with the food and the rest and the oxygen that it needs to thrive.  Be determined to create a life where you thrive!

 

 

 

2 comments

  1. sue buckstrup says:

    Debbie these are my thoughts only and not to judge or correct. Stuffing should only be allowed in turkey. To say it is to deal with it and yes, action and change hopefully comes after the thinking process. To take care of the brain is one thing, but taking care of the mind is another. And the mind is very complex. It is based on so many components of living experiences from the time we are born and our early interactions with our parents and all those genes in the gene pool of our family and ancesters and more. Doing all we can in the way of positive thinking and good dieting keeps us healthy and on the right track everyday of our lives. My therapist once said, “Live your life so that every word you say and every action can be written on the front page of the Washington Post”. Therefore no secrets and an open face sandwich policy. Another words, “get it out!”

  2. Debbie says:

    I love the Washington Post advice – how true! Thanks Sue.