I’m recovering from a yucky bout of flu invariably passed on to me by a cute and vivacious four year old with a runny nose and crackling cough.
Taken over by her cuteness I succumbed to her request to snuggle on the couch and watched minions Stuart, Kevin and Bob wreck havoc on the lives of their villain bosses. Meanwhile the sneaky villain viruses snuck their way onboard my body and took up their diabolic means to bring me down.
I won’t be the only one to topple over from lurking germs this season. With the holidays almost upon us, everyone will be gathered together and confronted with sniffles and coughs while traveling on planes, trains and yes, automobiles. Getting through the holidays healthy with steadfast energy requires a determination to kick start each day with some handy advice.
Don’t let stress get the best of you. You read this all the time, but the holidays are primed to rip apart our inner peace with the pressure of friends and families gathering together all in one place with personalities and eccentricities stirred into the mix. Go with the flow. Don’t worry, be happy. Those sayings need to be taken to heart as we celebrate abundance and the entrance of the roly-poly guy in the bright red suit.
Stress is one of the biggest immune depressors and pollutes the body with toxins, leaving it wide open for attack. Anger, frustration, and the constant rushing everywhere all play into stress’s plan to keep the body ramped up in the fight or flight mode.
Be vigilant with the tension in your body and do something to ease it up. Start the morning right with yoga, running, biking or simply five minutes of quiet time or walking the dog sets the day in the right mode and prepares the body to tolerate the holiday madness.
Schedule a massage before and after the relatives arrive or your holiday departure to loosen the muscles and the mind and tighten up on tolerance.
Eat your peas and don’t forget to take your vitamins. Ok, so maybe not peas, but be sure to eat a good array of healthy foods to give your body something to work with other than sugar, fat and more sugar. Gooey goodness and tantalizing treats are much too tempting. With sugar another downer for the body and fatty richness a sure ride to fatty livers, the body’s ability for daily cleansing becomes limited. At least make one meal of the day a healthy one. Eat a breakfast of oatmeal or yogurt filled with fruit and ground up flax seeds. For lunch or dinner include a salad with delicious raw veggies. Vitamins that help combat stress include thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, vitamin B6 and B12, biotin and pantothenic acid, and most good quality stress vitamins boosts those ingredients. Keep a bottle in your suitcase if traveling abroad or in packets in your purse for emergency.
Flush your troubles away with H2O. The weather becomes drier during the holiday season, leaving the body crackling with want of water. Hydrate constantly, it can never be said enough. Besides plumping the skin cells up for a more youthful look, water is necessary for the body to dispose of unwanted cellular waste, especially in the aftermath of an infection or holiday imbibing. Airplane travel is weathered better when the body is fully hydrated, keeping jetlag to a minimum. Enhance the water with electrolytes for better cellular action when extra energy is needed to bump your way through the holidays.
Cleanliness is next to godliness when pulling out anti-bacterial wipes. The best line of defense for getting sick is no defense at all. Keep it all clean. And though we live in a world that is brimming with all kinds of bacteria, viruses and what-nots, the body is pretty good at keeping things at bay, especially if it is given a break once-in-awhile. Make your own natural anti-bacterial spray with ¾ cup filtered water, ¾ up white distilled vinegar, 15 drops lemon essential oil and 8 drops lavender essential oil. Use to clean the kitchen and bathroom, especially the counters. Put in a small pump spray and use to wipe down airline seats and anywhere you might travel this season. It’s also good for wiping down the hands of cute little four year olds that just want to hug you all day long.
