Web Extras – Page 3 – Vibrant Life

01 JUL

Help for Overcoming Habits, Hurts and Hang-ups

Do you sometimes feel your habits and choices control you, rather than the other way around? Is there something about yourself you’ve tried to change, but you just can’t seem to experience a breakthrough? Does fear hold you back from getting the help you need?

The truth is we all suffer from circumstances, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors that can cause disruption in our lives. Often we feel like we just have to live with it, but there is hope for change. Twelve-step programs can be of assistance to you or loved ones.

The 12-steps are spiritual—not religious—tools that can be applied to any issue in life. The steps have been proven to help countless people work through unhealthy life issues that separate them from God and other people, thus freeing them up to healthy relationships in the environment in which they work and live.

01 JUL

Five Stories of Overcoming Hurts, Habits, and Hangups

The 12 steps aren’t just for Alcoholics Anonymous. They can change your life in ways you can never imagine. Just listed to how the steps changed the lives of these five people.

Overcoming Perfectionism and Workaholism

Work and worry were the watchwords in my early environment.

Family life centered around church, where I gathered many positive messages. But for some reason, my brain fastened on the negative. I heard subtle mandates in scripture, sermon, and song that drove me to obsessive/compulsive behavior: “We’ll work ‘til Jesus comes.” “Work for the night is coming.” “Be vigilant, lest you be caught unawares.” “Are you ready for Jesus to come?”

Studiously obeying these “commandments,” I became a world-class workaholic/ perfectionist, driving myself mercilessly for the next 40 years. The social and emotional consequences of my excessive behavior were enormous. When I finally accepted the fact that I was a workaholic and that this addiction was killing me, I went into a treatment center for addictive disorders. There, most of my peers were alcoholics. I could see that I was no different from them. Subsequently, I have found in twelve-step groups the guidance and support I needed to change long-standing, deep-seated, self-abusive habits into balanced, moderate, healthy living.

01 JUL

Sleep Apnea and Restless Limb Syndrome affecting your sleep?

I can fall asleep, but I wake up throughout the night and never seem to feel rested the next day. How do I get a good night’s sleep?

There are several different stages of sleep that need to be reached in order to achieve quality rest. Many things can disrupt your ability to achieve quality sleep, including your external environment and medical problems.

Your external environment
An uncomfortable bed, constricting clothing, bright lights, and noises can be distracting while you slumber. Even a disruptive spouse who snores or tosses and turns could be the reason you don’t get rest!

01 JUL

Five of the Healthiest Breakfast Cereals

Cheerios (Original)
Serving Size: 1 cup (30g)
Calories: 110
Fat: 2g
Fiber: 3g
Sugar: 1g
Sodium: 210mg
Carbs: 22g
Protein: 3g

Cheerios was made and marketed in 1941 by General Mills under the name “Cheeri Oats,” and the named changed to “Cheerios” because of the “o” shape. Cheerios has always been and remains a “children’s favorite cereal.” Be careful with the flavored cheerios, though, because even the multigrain Cheerios are loaded with sugar!

Mesa Sunrise Flakes
Serving Size: ¾ cup (30g)
Calories: 120
Fat: 1.5g
Fiber: 3g
Sugar: 4g
Sodium: 130mg
Carbs: 24g
Protein: 3g

01 JUL

Grilled Vegetable Salad

Ingredients: Salad 1 zucchini, cut lengthwise and then into ½-inch slices 1 yellow squash, cut lengthwise and then into ½-inch slices 1 small eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch squares 1 red onion, cut into ½-inch thick slices 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning (or a mixture of dried basil, […]

01 MAR

Breaking Your Hardest-to-Break Habit

A woman reaches for a cigarette while her 2-week-old-daughter sleeps in the bassinet beside her. A man leaves his family behind and drives into the city looking for his next drug fix. A pastor powers up his computer and clicks on a link that will carry him to a popular porn site. A married businesswoman glances at a handsome coworker and allows herself to wonder what it would be like . . .
Read more about Breaking Your Hardest-to-Break Habit …

01 MAR

Cincinnati "Chili Mac"

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon light olive oil 1 cup chopped onion 1 medium green bell pepper, diced 1 medium red bell pepper, diced 1 small fresh hot chile, minced, or one 4-ounce can chopped mild green chilies 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes 2 16-ounce cans red or pinto beans, drained and rinsed 1-2 teaspoons good-quality chili […]

01 MAR

A Top Doctor’s Advice on How to Fight Diabetes

Vibrant Life: Give us an idea of the scope of the diabetes problem.

Dr. Barnard: It is reaching epidemic levels. There are 200 million people or more who have it. Year by year it gets more common. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta estimates that children born since the year 2000 have a one in three risk of developing diabetes at some point in their lives. Most of them will not develop it as children but as adults, but one in three is an astronomical figure we’ve never had before.

01 JAN

Tips for Strong and Healthy Nails

Everything that Dr. William W. Jih, medical director for Loma Linda University Family Medical Group, had to say about maintaining healthy fingernails didn’t fit in the magazine. Here’s the complete interview.

I’ve heard characteristic on fingernails can indicate health problems. Should ridges and brittleness worry me?

Nail changes may not be the window to the soul, but they certainly can give a glimpse into the potential health of a person. Elements of the human body that are constantly growing and regenerating–such as skin, hair, and nails–are very susceptible to major changes in the overall health of the human body. Just like rings in a tree trunk, nails can develop lines after a particularly stressful illness that inhibits the body’s resources to grow healthy nails. Auto-immune disorders or disease in which your immune system is affected can have nail manifestations. Additionally, vitamin and iron deficiency have been known to cause nail changes and brittleness. Although these changes can be a clue to systemic illness or deficiency, these changes may also be the result of external damage. Exposure to chemicals and common cleaning agents–and even prolonged exposure to water–can have a harsh effect on nails leading to crumbling, pitting, and development of lines in the nail.