RE: 6 Tips for Beating Seasonal Affective Disorder
Excellent suggestions, @shawnamawna! Funny, as I started reading, I thought, "I should tell her about the SAD lamps, and how much they've helped a local friend" - next thing I know, you're talking about them! 😊
I especially agree with paying attention to your body and brain's hints that something's up. One pattern I've discovered in recent years is that when I'm wicked stressed out, it kicks up yeast in my system. Because yeast loves sugar, I start craving (and eating) tons of sweets. The more yeast builds up in my system (not just a simple yeast infection - like, intestinal too), the more stressed out I get.
That's my cue to take a few days of putting my brain in a stress-timeout, and being mindful of how I'm eating (more water, less sugar, lots of probiotic goodness) to get things back on track again.
Oh, and yeah - the, "giving up shame" has been one of the toughest things to remember for me. Thanks for the reminder!
Sending you some...
Ah, yeast. That one used to annoy me to no end. I follow a ketogenic diet now, so haven't dealt with it as much, but I occasionally get off track, then comes the stress, then come the carb cravings and peanut butter benders. I experience shame around that cycle (and that can lead to disordered eating), but looking at it as an opportunity to receive a message from the bacteria my body is a colony to is super creepy AND effective!
LOL! Good perspective on it! 😊