Life, Money & Development » Health

10 Tips for Overcoming Shyness

Herrera — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 15:53:54 +0000

Shyness

1. Acknowledge your fear and accept it as a specific and particular feature of your personality. Do not try to get rid of it immediately: even if you think you’ve succeded at first, the fear will likely return. The issue here is not to eliminate fear, what we have to do is assimilate fear, understand it, point it out, handle it. Fear vanishes only when it realizes of its inability to distress us anymore.

2. Talk about your fears and share your experiences with others. This way, you will get accustomed to your fear and will handle it normally.

3. Decode your fear and try to elaborate a definition of it. Which feelings activate when you’re afraid? Anguish, sorrow, disappointment, guilt, helplessness?Identify each of the feelings, and analyze them carefully: perhaps they’re hiding a deeper problem.

4. Find all the information you need. The most you know about your fears, the least they will be able to disturb you.

5. Analyze your fears calmly. Fears almost always come from a wrong perception of reality. Try to spot what aspect of reality you’re perceiving mistakenly.

6. Think about your victories, focus on your successes. Most often than not, fears stem from a lack of self-confidence. List your qualities, learn to love yourself. Talk about yourself with respect and affection. Avoid recriminations and insults.

7. Ask someone to help you and support you: someone who works as an observer, could later tell you if you behaved right or not.

8. Give yourself a period of time to anticipate positive outcomes, look different options and make a list of positive things that can happen, try to visualize yourself successfully performing them, “see yourself” while performing. Think positive: “I’m talking to people and I am relaxed”, “They’re listening to me as I talk”, “I’m giving my opinion and it’s valued”, etc.

9. Once you overcome the fear, share the pride of success you’ve achieved. Remember the person you were, a preson previously dominated by shyness and make a positive comparison between what you are today and what you were yesterday. Identify the little victories that led you to be a person with self-confidence.

10. Try to describe the future as you would like it to be, looking good and with problems resolved. Experience and enjoy the relaxing and happy feelings that such positive imagination produces in your mind and body.

7 Essential Tips to Lose Weight the Healthy Way

Herrera — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:59:52 +0000

In this post I’ll give you 5 tips to lose weight the healthy way. Start by noticing that our bodies like slow, gradual changes in terms of calorie intake and exercise. Avoiding overweight is important: remember that women who lose between 10 lb and 25 lb halve their risk of developing diabetes and for men the risk of suffering heart problems reduces noticeably. Begin to learn how to lose weight by following these guidelines:

1. Lower your stress levels: too much stress acts as an important and pernicious factor for overweight and your overall health. This occurs because, when you are under stress (family, work, relationships, etc.) a chemical in your body (cortisol) is secreted, and the excess of this chemical will be retained by the body. Now to reduce stress, I recommend you to do things like taking a walk, and a few stretching and breathing exercises. Here are a some tips for overcoming stress.

2. Cut down on fatty meals and eat more fruit, vegetables and wholegrain bread. I specially recommend to increase greatly the consumption of leafy greens such as spinach. The reason is because these vegetables contain lots of antioxidants and fiber, and a higher intake of leafy greens can make your body burn calories and fat. Lower your cholesterol levels.

3. Drink water and eat fiber before meals. If you want to reduce hunger and prevent those pesky crazings for food, I recommend you to take a glass of ice water and eat some fiber (like an apple or some almonds) just before eating. Try it. It works!

4. Drink plenty of water: to feel more satisfied (as mentioned above) and to build muscle tissue more effectively to increase your metabolism, and to remove toxins from your body. However, always remember that no excess is good.

5. Don’t starve yourself. Take an adequate amount of daily calories. Jusy replace fizzy drinks with water. Prefer semi-skimmed rather than whole milk. Prefer coffee and tea with no sugar. Reduce unhealthy treats, specially between meals. And cut down on alcohol and tobacco.

6. Eat less dinner than usual. And, regarding that high calories food you enjoy… have smaller portions of it, and preferably take them for lunch.

7. Exercise. Exercise. If you don’t like gyms: even light exercise, such as a short walk, will be beneficial if done most days of the week. Swimming is also very good.

10 easy tips to cope with stress

Herrera — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:10:31 +0000

Know yourself: Learn to recognize your reactions to stress and think of them as a warning: some stressors are bothering you.
Research about such stressors: A cornerstone to cope with stress. Take a few minutes to elaborate a list of people, activities, events, things that bring in stress to your life. Specify the more immediate stressors: work, family, money? Is it possible to diminish the effect of the stressors?
Put things in right context: Maybe you are stressing about relatively small things which will be soon forgotten. No matter your stress, worries, results, your failure or your success, the world will keep going around. Think carefully about your stressors: they might seem catastrophic monsters, but they’re just problems which will be forgotten as time goes by. Therefore, don’t rush through life, learn to take things slow. Enjoy your family, your meals, your nature, your life. What have you done today to reward the great person you are?
Don’t anticipate scenaries: Ignore every thought of the type “what if …”. Our mind formulates plenty of images and catastrophic or pessimistic scenaries: we are wasting our energy because of futile thoughts about situations that never occur.
Learn to breathe properly: Take a deep breath. Practicing some breathing exercises can be highly effective.
Avoid multitasking: Give and accept social support. Share the load. Attending a lot of activities at the same time is counterproductive, because it slows us down from focusing on an activity and fulfilling it.
Identify your limitations: Be realistic. You’re not a robot built for fighting ghosts. Accept the things you can’t change: it’s impossible to control the uncontrollable. Also, learn to forgive.
Exercise: Physical exercise helps to release the energy contained by stress. Go for a walk and spend time in nature. Get a massage.
Just Relax: Talk to a good friend, write in your journal, take a bath, play with your pet, work in your garden, listen to music, watch a comedy, take photos of nature, enjoy a nice book.
Avoid fake balsams: Drinking too much, smoking, overeating or undereating, wasting your time in front of the TV or computer, taking out your stress on others… those are really unhealthy behaviors which will fortify your stress in the long run and are also a highway to addictions.

The Fortress of Fears

Herrera — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:20:04 +0000

The biggest fear is fear itself. No human is without fears; even in the deepest recesses of our souls, some fear is lurking. And this is not bad, quite the opposite. Fears mean limitations of the mind. Just as our body is a limitation of physical matter, our mind also means an unknown territory, a frontier to our capabilities. When these boundaries are not imposed by a disease or a syndrome, that is when it is purely and exclusively a fear. The problem with these limitations is that they may get to function as a constraint. Sometimes fear becomes a barrier, which prevents us from moving forward. However, when you overcome fears, you get higher. When you get over your fears you grow as a human being, you break that boundary, entering a new world of possibilities.

The problem is when fear is fear itself. That’s when people get stuck. They avoid facing life because of the fear of being afraid. In other words, we are avoiding self-growth, we don’t move forward. At the outset, fears might seem as high as huge fortress walls, impossible to access. However, beyond fears, there is a new world containing hides greatness, happiness, and more importantly, life. We should think if we want to live avoiding the bitterness of fears, or to live our lives at their fullest. Because unfortunately, life truly begins from the moment our fingers crush the huge rocks that make up the great fortress of fears; that’s when we really begin to live.

Think about it, spend a few minutes of your time to think if you stopped living in fear of being afraid. Think about which side of the fortress you are. Surely there is still enough time to pass through the walls.

How to relax: overcoming anxiety

Herrera — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:13:52 +0000

Relaxation lowers down anxiety and helps your body and your mind recover from everyday stress. A long soak in the bath, your favorite relaxing music, or just a walk in the park do the trick for some people, but for others, sometimes, it’s not so easy. If you feel you need help with learning to relax, try consulting a professional, and following a relaxation or meditation program. Nevertheless, here we have a little program for you:

Choose a quiet, calmed place where you won’t be interrupted.
Before starting, do a few gentle stretching exercises to relieve muscular tension. Stretch your arms and try to smile.
Sit or lie down, make yourself comfortable.
Start to breathe slowly and deeply, in a calm and effortless way. If possible, try that the expiratory phase takes about two seconds longer than usual.
Relax, little by little, each part of your body, starting with your feet and working your way up to your face and head.
Push any distracting thoughts to the back of your mind; imagine them floating away.
Don’t force relaxation. Simply let go of the tension in your muscles and allow them to become relaxed.
Let your mind go empty. Some people find it helpful to visualise a calm, beautiful place such as a beach or a garden.
Stay like this for several minutes, then take some deep breaths and open your eyes, but stay sitting or lying for a few moments before you get up.

Remember, relaxation is returning to equilibrium. Equilibrium is the base for a good health.

Learning to believe

Herrera — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 22:21:31 +0000

If we believe that we are able to do something, we’ll do it. If we believe we cannot do something, we won’t do it. The fact of believing or not influences our results, regardless of the area: sportive, economic, professional, personal, etc. If we repeat an assert a lot of times, we will ultimately believe it, and by carrying it out, we are able to modify our behavior. In other words, we reprogram ourselves. Words believe and belief take a central role and a special interest in regards to our capacity for success. In every case, we must research, recur to introspection and identify which beliefs are limiting us and preventing us from acting the way we’d like to. Beliefs are born and consolidate to produce, afterwards, positive or negative effects. Such beliefs influence our decisions. In fact, a belief is a deeply-rooted conviction.

We should differentiate clearly between beliefs and ideas. An idea is the mental image, devoid of action, which subsequently creates the belief. The belief, in turn, is a deeply-rooted conviction which influences our behavior and is present in our decision-making process. Beliefs stem from ideas, bearing positive or negative nuances. An idea can turn into a positive belief which will help us to personal growth and self-improvement. Our problems start when ideas are limiting, creating limiting beliefs, and dangerously constraining our behavior.

Furthermore, beliefs are affected by a series of events which surround an individual and influence his ideas. These events are: cultural background, job, opinions, accumulated experience, and the circle of influence. On each of these events a person develops her own ideas which will ultimately be reflected on the beliefs she embraces.

The constant search of negative references and the mental repetition of limiting phrases such as “I’ll never make it” lead us to unconsciously adopting negative behaviors. In this context, we are subjugated by the negative suggestions that we repeat to ourselves incessantly. The only way to break free from this constraining spiral is to be aware of our power to change negative approaches. Change has to start right now.

That’s why it’s so important to have and to form positive ideas, in order to let them to turn into deep, automatic positive beliefs. In this way these positive beliefs will influence our behavior, and will lead us to a successful life, full of victories. Hence, the first sentence of this post: If we believe that we are able to do something, we’ll do it. If we believe we cannot do something, we won’t do it.

Exercises

Repeat 5 times: “I am a positive person, I can achieve my goals and I…” (complete the phrase)
Identify a negative idea you have. Think about how you could turn it into a positive idea.
Meditate about your main goals right now. Are they realistic, are they attainable?
Do you fear failure? Meditate about this: Fearing failure is natural. Everyone fails. The problem is not failure, the problem is to halt after failing. Winners, leaders keep trying, and that’s why they’re are successful and different.

A version of this post, in Spanish, can be read here.

Breathing for Stress Relieving

Herrera — Sun, 22 May 2011 15:08:13 +0000

As promised in our previous post about the roles of breathing, we present here a simple routine for stress relief through breathing. Remember that breathing is especially important for those who suffer from stress, high blood pressure, anxiety or digestive problems. These symptoms and problems are typically the result of the body staying in conflict due to an disequilibrium of the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems. As our body is burdened with stress, our sympathetic nervous system is stimulated so often that it begins to dominate the parasympathetic nervous system resulting in chronic elevated blood pressure and heart rate, nervousness, anxiety and muscle tension, bowel problems. In this sense, the goal of this breathing exercise cleanses the body of diseases, steadies the mind, helps in concentration, improves digestion and increases appetite. The exercise can also be done anywhere and at virtually any time:

First locate a quiet and comfortable place. Make sure the room is not too bright. If you prefer to play music, choose relaxing themes and set them to a reasonable volume level.
Sit or stand in a relaxed position.
Slowly inhale through your nose, counting to five in your head. As you breathe, let your abdomen expand outward, rather than raising your shoulders. This is a more relaxed and natural way to breathe, and helps your lungs fill themselves more fully with fresh air, releasing more old air.
Let the air out from your mouth, counting to nine in your head as it leaves your lungs. If you like, you can make your throat a little tighter as you exhale so the air comes out like a whisper. This type of breathing is used in some forms of yoga and can add additional tension relief. Try for several breaths to make your breathing as quiet, slow, regular and deep as possible. Repeat the exercise several times (at least 10 times).

This simple exercise can be used for meditation and visualization.

On Breathing

Herrera — Fri, 20 May 2011 20:27:51 +0000

As stress in our lives keeps growing, breathing in our activities is becomes increasingly shorter and faster, that is, we tend to inhale less oxygen as we exhale more. This causes our body to become quickly tired because of low blood flow due to the small amount of oxygen and the high levels of carbon dioxide. In turn, the physical fatigue stresses the muscles that support the spine and the weight of our body, generating unnatural pressure on the lungs and other internal organs. For its part, the brain, not receiving adequate amounts of oxygen, begins to reduce performance, and this causes drowsiness among other problems. Further, the diaphragm, when not working properly, makes little effort and loses tone, thus contributing to the reduction of lung capacity.

That is why it’s very important to learn to breathe properly, with simple exercises and frequent practice. In an upcoming post, we’ll be reviewing one useful exercise for proper breathing.

Blake on Nature

Herrera — Mon, 16 May 2011 00:23:59 +0000

The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity… and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself.

William Blake

Tips for a healthy world: Part II

Herrera — Mon, 16 May 2011 00:21:20 +0000

Second part of our series. First part here. Here we review some facts (grouped into five topics) for fighting pollution.

1. Water

Consume the really needed amount of water. Avoid unnecessary water costs with these tips:

Do not leave the tap running while you brush your teeth or shave.
Do not wash the foods with the tap open; use a container. Upon completion, this water can be used for watering plants.
Do not use any soap under running water.
Use the washing machine and dishwasher only when they’re fully loaded.
Do not throw sticks, paper, cigarette butts, sanitary towels, tampons or condoms. Put them in a garbage basket.
Repair leaks immediately. 10 drops of water per minute represent 2,000 liters of water a year wasted.
Use native plants that require less care and less water.
Reuse as much water as you can. Reused water is fine for bathrooms, cleaning floors, or washing the front of your home.
Do not empty the tank without a real reason to do it .
Do not throw the oil sinks. They float on water and are very difficult to remove.
Do not throw any garbage into the sea, rivers or lakes.
Water gardens and streets with potable water.
The best time to water is late afternoon as it prevents evaporation.
Gel, shampoo and detergents are not environmentally friendly. They should be used sparingly and where possible choose organic products.
Do not forget to plant a tree at least once in your life.

2. Garbage

More than half garbage is recyclable.
Recycling boxes or containers that are made of paper also contributes to fewer trees cut down, less releases of methane and an improved air purification. By reusing 100 kilograms of paper we can save the lives of at least 7 trees.
Classify the trash you generate. You should consult your local or residential institutions asking if they have a garbage selection system.
Always prefer recycled paper and always write on both sides .
Do not waste napkins, tissues, toilet paper or other form of paper whenever possible .
Choose glass containers instead of plastic and aluminum ones.
Remember that there are companies dedicated to the purchase of recyclable materials such as newsprint, old books, bottles, etc.

3. Food

Reduce consumption of red meat because rearing of cattle contributes to global warming, deforestation and reduction of the rivers. Producing a kilogram of meat spends more water than 365 water showers.
Production of canned goods is also high in resource and energy consumption. And avoid canned tuna because it is especially in danger of extinction.
Avoid foods “transgenic” organisms (GMOs: genetically modified organisms) as their production pollutes the environment deteriorating ecosystems .
Do not eat exotic animals such as turtles, capybaras, iguanas, etc.
Eat more fruits, vegetables and legumes.
Never buy fish of small sizes to consume.
If you can, eat organic food (no pesticides, no insecticides, etc.)

4. Paper

Use recycled paper.
Encourage the use of products made from recycled paper.
Reduce consumption of paper: use the leaves on both sides.
Make photocopies of essential documents only.
Reuse envelopes, boxes, etc.
Reject single use products.

5. Education

Finally, it’s very important to educate our kids about nature ant teach them the love for our world.

Life, Money & Development » Health

10 Tips for Overcoming Shyness

You may also like...

7 Essential Tips to Lose Weight the Healthy Way

You may also like...

10 easy tips to cope with stress

You may also like...

The Fortress of Fears

You may also like...

How to relax: overcoming anxiety

You may also like...

Learning to believe

You may also like...

Breathing for Stress Relieving

You may also like...

On Breathing

You may also like...

Blake on Nature

You may also like...

Tips for a healthy world: Part II

You may also like...