Weight Loss Tip, Plan When to Eat, Not Just What

Dieting is very one-day-at-a-time. I've been doing it for about 20 months. Some days, I'm so sick of counting calories I want to scream. I'm always looking for ways to make dieting less tedious. I realized that it's as much about when I eat as what.

I've lost 95 pounds (left November 2013, right 2011) by allotting myself 1,350 calories a day. I eat six small meals and snacks. I eat breakfast within 30 minutes of rising (Dr. Oz recommendation). I've found that to have less trouble with hunger, I have to balance calories between meals and snacks. 300 for breakfast, lunch and dinner; 150 for snacks.   Diet Tip Plan When You Eat, Not Just What

Quit When You Still Feel Ahead to Prevent Burnout

I did it again. Worked past personal stop time I'd set. I meant to get to the store in the window of time while it was nice. A teeny-weeny porthole window in Michigan.

Now I can't because my husband will be getting up soon and I don't want to miss him before he goes to work. There's no way I can make it back from the store in time. And I want to get it done before Snowmageddon hits, again, tomorrow. But no, I ignored my inner prompting and now I'm feeling anxious, burned out, but still like I didn't accomplish enough.

My friends, that still small voice is there for a reason. It's her that keeps us from overwork. When she says stop, listen, for your own good. Read on. Prevent Burnout, Quit While You Still Feel Ahead

Weight Loss Challenges--Maintenance Diet After Weight Loss

I write a lot about weight loss. Over the last 10 years, I put on 100 pounds. I went into menopause and everything went FUBAR. So I've been working to lose shed that fat. I've only got about 7 pounds left to go. I'm trying to do it healthy, making little tweaks. I made up my mind I wasn't going to crash diet, nor make huge, invasive changes, like surgery. I'm looking to build healthy habits I can sustain once all the weight is gone.  Diet Difficulties--Weaning Into a Maintenance Diet After Weight Loss

Neither Shaming Not Enabling Helps the Obese Person

You've heard those PSAs "if you love someone, DO this or that for them?" Help them, get help for them. Okay, sometimes we can assist. And other times, the most loving this is not to help. Encourage them to do it themselves or just butt out and be a friend. Like losing weight. Several adult friends are overweight. Their parents and/or spouses are trying to force weight loss.  Shaming, Enabling Obesity Does Not Help--I Know

Relationship Glue Recipe: Take Care of Yourself, Demand Consideration

 We teach preschoolers to play nice. But many adults need refresher courses, too. Getting what we want and need without hurting others--lots of people need to learn how to do that.

Let's discuss healthy self-care. What it isn't--Blanche duBois Syndrome--always relying on the kindness of strangers. That's a one-way ticket to misery. Not everyone is kind. It's selfish and manipulative to expect others to do for us what we should do for ourselves.  Relationship Glue Recipe: Demand Consideration

Banish Winter Blahs or (at Least) Balance Blues and Bliss

The calendar says "spring." Days are longer. Birds are twittering joyously, emerald shoots peek up from melting snow and spring-new sun shines gloriously. Why then, when the world is coming alive, do I feel blue? Here are reasons, plus spirit-lifters to beat depression or at least balance winter blahs with springtime bliss!  Banish Winter Blahs or (at Least) Balance Blues and Bliss

Using Al-Anon Slogans to Heal Post Holiday Depression

Depression and I go back a long way. Some of my worst bouts of depression have happened during or after the holidays. If you're coping with depression, particularly post-holiday letdown, here are some tips. I've tried many different techniques to heal or at least just cope with my depression. About 10 years ago, I tried Al-Anon, the companion support group for Alcoholics Anonymous. I discovered that Al-Anon principles were useful for treating a gamut of emotional issues, including depression. Some of the most helpful components of Al-Anon, for me, are the recovery slogans. Addiction A-Z lists a collection of slogans for all different sorts of situations. There are general helpful reality checks and mental health tools, too. Read more

Sweet Tooth Taming Tips for Holiday Dieting

Holiday baked goods and desserts, Christmas cookies and candy, Hanukkah treats--from Thanksgiving to Epiphany, the holidays mean sweets. If you're dieting or watching your weight, holiday goodies can pose real stumbling blocks. Why not try these tips to tame the sweet tooth and curb holiday cravings?  read more

Sibling rivalry: Parenting tips to help kids get along

I'm always saddened when I hear parents say that their kids don't like each other. I'm not bragging (well, not much), but our four kids all get along great and always have. I don't say that to be self-righteous. I don't know exactly why our family has so little sibling rivalry. We may just be lucky. If it had anything to do with our parenting, here's what we did. Sibling rivalry: Parenting tips to help kids get along

How I Self-Discipline, Change Habits Using Al-Anon Slogans

Self-discipline is something I've never had trouble with. I've got a nasty case of low self-esteem. Auto-flagellation my modus operandi. But rigid self-control isn't healthy. It doesn't work either. Here's a simple self-help plan I created, based on Al Anon principles, to modify behavior and change habits. How I Self-Discipline, Change Habits Using Al-Anon Slogans 

How I'm Rethinking My Negative (and Unhealthy) OCD Thinking

I've struggled with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) for, well, as long as I can remember. For me, OCD manifests itself as a compulsive need to outperform and overdo. It's not that I think I could ever be superior to others--quite the opposite. My OCD stems from nagging feelings of inferiority and failure. I compulsively set myself to impossible tasks at which I fail. In the self-fulfilling vicious circle which is OCD, my sense of failure is reinforced. To break the cycle, I'm changing how I think about myself. Here are some new ideas I'm learning.  How I'm Rethinking My Negative (and Unhealthy) OCD Thinking

Al Anon--What the Stinking Thinking of Addiction Looks Like

One mistake we make in health care is to separate emotional/mental health issues from physical health issues. Last time I checked my mind and spirit were housed in my body. Physical health affects mental health and vice versa. And behavior is an outward manifestation of inward processes (aka thoughts and feelings). To be truly healthy, we've got to get our thoughts, actions and feelings working together on the same page.

Addictive behavior is driven by distorted emotions stemming from unhealthy thoughts. In his recovery manual "Addictive Thinking: Understanding Self-Deception," Abraham J. Twerski says these thoughts are sometimes called "stinking thinking" (coined in Alcoholics Anonymous). Stinking thinking doesn't always go away just because an addict quits. Alanon says real recovery means identifying dysfunctional thoughts and replacing them with healthier ones. Here are some examples of sick things addicts tell themselves.
 What the Stinking Thinking of Addiction Looks Like 

Al Anon Recovery--How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Heals Negative Thoughts, Depression

I wouldn't say depression and I are friends, but we're definitely old acquaintances. I've tried different therapies to treat my depression. Counseling, journaling, herbal treatments, antidepressant medications, self-help books-each has helped me in some way. The best treatment I've found is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), also called Rational Emotive therapy. The National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists (NACBT) says CBT is a collection of techniques which seeks to root out the distorted thinking that causes unhealthy behavior. How Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Heals Negative Thoughts, Depression 

Study Showing Breastfeeding Benefits Should Encourage Moms

A study in the journal Pediatrics comparing development in breastfed infants to those fed with milk-based or soy formula shows exciting results on the advantages of breastfeeding for the first year of life. It underscores that breastfed babies truly are the best fed. Study Showing Breastfeeding Benefits Should Encourage Moms 

Parent Safety Tips--How to Monitor Kids' Cellphone Use

It never ceases to amaze me how prevalent cellphone use is among kids, even young ones. Unlimited texting and call plans mean kids can use their cellphones almost carte blanche, 24-7. I don't think this is healthy physically, emotionally or socially. Kids lack inner limit switches. That's why we parents have to help them set boundaries. It's easier said than done, I know. I've raised four kids to teen and adulthood and I've found that cellphones present a challenging learning curve. Here are some strategies I've used with success. Read more here. 

Tips to help kids manage weight problems, stay fit, and be healthy

The Center for Disease Control says three times as many kids are overweight than they were in 1980. Weight problems in childhood can lead to diabetes, cholesterol, and heart problems. That should give us cause for concern, but it's important to keep the issue in perspective, too. In some families, kids go though a chubby phase in puberty that they outgrow around age 12-14. I was a chubby child until age 12. Then I slimmed down and was actually slightly underweight in college and early adulthood. Three of my children went through a similar growth pattern. How do you know if a child is going to outgrow being overweight? Family obesity problems are one cue. Here's how I helped my kids avoid weight problems later in life. Tips to help kids manage weight problems, stay fit, and be healthy 

7-Year-Old Girl Fights Off Kidnapper, Child Safety Tips

Brittney Baxter, 7, was filmed on store surveillance cameras fighting off an alleged kidnapper at a Walmart in Bremen, Ga. She followed instructions learned in a "stranger danger" class, CNN reports. Her actions have prompted discussion about public safety. According to an interview on HLN TV, Baxter was shopping with her mother, Georgann Baxter. The mother says she allowed the child to remain in the toy aisle while she went to get something in the grocery aisle. The camera shows a man, identified as Thomas Woods, a parolee, reaching for the child and trying to carry her away.Read more at Girl Fights Off Alleged Kidnapper, Prompts Child Safety Discussion

How I Avoid Antidepressants with Daily Mental Affective Meditations

How I Avoid Antidepressants with Daily Mental Affective Meditations In nearly 30 years of mental health exploration, personally and professionally, I've tried many different techniques. Nine years ago, I began a regimen of antidepressant therapy but quit 18 months ago. I've since developed ways to tend to my emotional health without medication. Here's a home-grown technique I call "mental-affective meditations." It employs some 12-step work, cognitive therapy, healing of the inner child and family tree and re-parenting tools. Read on...

Nutritional Supplements to Replace Antidepressants

Nutritional Supplements to Replace Antidepressants I took the antidepressant Paxil for over seven years. According to Drug Alert, Paxil has multiple side effects which I was not informed of when I began taking it. I quit taking Paxil after experiencing many of the listed side effects. When I quit, I knew that I would need to find ways to stabilize chemical imbalances and compensate for the lack of the drug. Here's my nutritional supplement guide to get off from an antidepressant. I take these in combination and have been able to stay antidepressant-free for over 16 months. Read on...

Self-Help Tricks, Mental Health Tips to Quit Antidepressants

Self-Help Tricks, Mental Health Tips to Quit Antidepressants For seven years, I took Paxil (paroxetine) to relieve anxiety and depression. I began to put on an alarming amount weight and with extended use, the antidepressant didn't work as well, either. I decided to quit. I have been antidepressant-free for 16 months. Here are self-help tips and mental health strategies for quitting SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor). Read more...