Feng Shui For a Good Night's Sleep

Utilize January's introspective energy to assess your bedroom space in a new way. Feng Shui is a simple practice that enhances your environment according to principles of harmony and energy flow. Whether you're aware of it or not, your environment - and your relationship with it - are constantly affecting you, and even your sleep. Feng Shui is something that can be implemented with just a few basic techniques, or fully integrated into each space of your home to magnify the energy in each "life area". 

So where to start?

1. Rid Clutter

This first step will feel easier if you consider donating or gifting these items to someone who could use them, rather than simply throwing them away. Examples of things to move out of the bedroom are: any artwork that doesn't bring you joy, a desk piled high with bills or paperwork, and any other objects that you associate with a negative time in your life. Try to keep furnishings on the light side and keep clutter as contained as possible - avoiding storing anything under the bed. This is your first stride towards good feng shui energy (called Chi) in your home. The goal of Feng Shui improvements is to keep Chi flowing gently throughout the environment rather than running straight through it. 

2. Swap Out Decor

If you must have a mirror in your bedroom, drape a sheet or curtain over it at nighttime as our eyes are sensitive to movements. Bright lights keep us awake and can disrupt our sleep pattern. Try to use dim lights with a soothing color and use blinds or curtains to completely block out light. When choosing a headboard for your bed, chose wood as they provide additional strength and support while you sleep. Lastly, there is research behind the recommendation to remove plants from your bedroom as they release more carbon dioxide than oxygen at night. Carbon dioxide has the ability to affect the quality of your sleep so it is best to move plants to other parts of your home. 

3. Move Electronics Out of the Room

For many, it's too tempting to stay up late with a smartphone or TV in the bedroom. Not only that, but many times emotional shows or movies can keep us from falling asleep.  It's been proven that artificial light from electronics wrecks your sleep - instead, dedicate your bedroom simply for getting a good night's sleep. To ease into this new habit, you can swap out your device for a couple pages in a relaxing book. 

4. Change Your Daily Habits

Close the window while you sleep to keep outside city noise and scents - like cigarette smoke - from disturbing you. Closing your bedroom door can provide you with a sense of security which can relax your survival instincts to help you sleep. Lastly, open your bedroom windows during the day at least for an hour to refresh the air quality in your room. We give off carbon dioxide as we sleep and releasing this will help the next night's sleep. 

We spend a third of our lives in our bedroom sleeping and these tips will create a place for rest, contemplation and intimacy. Applying these Feng Shui principles to your bedroom will give you a space to not only let go of the stresses of the day but also get more quality sleep. 

Detox Your Home

When you come home after a long day, it’s essential to have a clean environment that is conducive to relaxation and is free of clutter and toxins. Here are some tips to making some easy swaps and changes to detox your home and breathe easy:

Add House Plants to Each Room

Certain varieties of houseplants, such as English ivy, bamboo palm and spider plants can filter pollutants from the air, allowing you breathe in the benefits. Your best bet is the Garden Mum - NASA research found this to be the air-purifying champion, removing benzene, formaldehyde and xylene from indoor air. 

Purify the Air You Breathe

Himalayan salt lamps can generate negative ions in your home, improving the air quality over time - all thanks to their hygroscopic effect. Water vapor (found naturally in our air) and its pollutants are attracted to the salt lamps and these microscopic compounds remain on the salt, not in the air you breathe. An even better way to get exposure to these negative ions is the old, natural way: spending time outdoors surrounded by a body of water and plant life. 

Swap Out Your Chemical Cleaners

Although many of us have been made to think the dirt in our homes is worse than the spray we use to clean it up - there is increasing evidence that it may be the other way around. A common ingredient in everyday cleaners is bleach, which can irritate the respiratory tract and mucus membranes. There are lots of non-toxic cleaners available, but one Google search can bring up plenty of simple, homemade ones for you to try with ingredients like white vinegar and lemon. Also, Norwex is a brand of microfiber towels that use an antibacterial agent (micro silver) against mold, fungi and bacterial odor. Take this one step further and remove fragrance-filled candles and room sprays. Most candles are made of paraffin wax, which creates highly toxic benzene and toluene when burned (both are known carcinogens). Instead, try out an essential oil diffuser to freshen up a room or make your own room spray with the essential oils of your choice. 

Clear Clutter + Let Go

Donate and purge items that no longer serve you - whether it’s unused appliances, clothing, or books, there are several donation centers that will take them off your hands for you. Simplifying one room - let’s say your office or den - to have only what you need, makes work much more productive. Instead of shuffling through old papers, you can easily grab what you need and stay focused. Having a home for all items in a room means you can walk into the space feeling relaxed rather than stressed to tidy up. 

Make Cleaning a Regular Occurrence

It seems obvious that the more frequently you clean your home of germs, dirt and dust, the better your health will be. By regularly dusting and vacuuming you’ll remove common allergens that stick to carpet, and get rid of the pet dander, mold spores and chemicals that collect in dust bunnies. Even if you can't deep clean as often as you'd like, taking your shoes off at the door will prevent pesticides and other contaminants from entering your home. 

Maintaining a clean and orderly space (even organized chaos) provides the sanctuary needed to relax at home. Trying one or all of the above tips will help improve the quality of your health and create a place you feel good to come home to.  

2016: Ending With Reflection

Give 2016 some thought and note the times that you celebrated, re-charged and felt whole. You might be surprised how frequent this actually was. We tend to remember and dwell most heavily on the challenges that were presented in our year, or altered the path we were on. What we tend to forget is that many of these path-altering challenges indeed forced us to learn a necessary skill or grow in a new direction that we wouldn’t otherwise have gone. Reflecting on an entire 12 months can be a powerful reminder of the bigger picture, and demonstrate your resilience despite those rocky moments - and when you step back, you can see they were only moments. 

When Did You Feel Your Best?

Was 2016 the year that you took a leap in your career and left a toxic work environment? Or did a family trip bring you and your children or siblings closer? Even on a smaller scale, we can find memorable and important times where we felt really alive. Maybe you took skiing lessons for the first time, started to go on weekly nature walks or started volunteering your time for a cause you really believe in. Journaling can be an excellent practice to uncover these specific times for yourself, and to discover new ones as well. 

What Are Your Happiest Moments of 2016?

Was a new member or pet added to your family, or did you get to connect with an old friend or relative that you haven’t seen in a long while? Did you get recognized for your hard work on a project, or were you able to able to be present at a sibling’s wedding? A “happy” moment can easily be a subjective way to describe a shift or experience in your life, big or small. 

Past, Present and the Future

With only one day left of 2016, this is a prime opportunity to kick-start a flow of energy that helps keep our minds calm and clear and also invites fresh positive energy to enter. Decluttering your space helps clear that old energy and make room for new projects and ideas. Focus time and dedication on finishing any projects that have been started or halfway completed. Anything that we have been procrastinating on will need some kind of structure so that we can release the energy caught up in it, even if all we do is make a plan with a realistic deadline. 

Here are a few intention-setting prompts to help you reflect on where you’ve been and where you’re headed:

1. What’s the last good habit you developed? How did you do it?
2. What have you always wanted to do, but haven’t gotten around to doing? What is stopping you?
3. What are one of the desires you have for your career? 
4. What relationships (with children, relatives, coworkers, romantic etc.) do you want to grow and flourish? 
5. What brings you joy every single day?

Healthy Eating for the Whole Family

Many parents battle to have their kids eat balanced, healthy meals both at home and at school. Families, however, can make the shift towards healthier meals without having to coax their children to eat something they don’t want to eat. Here are a few ways that you can make healthy food a fun part of your meals together and even have them requesting whole, nutritious foods. 

Give Them the Chance to be Involved

Many kids enjoy helping out at dinner time and even helping out with the grocery store list. Bringing them along to the farmers market is a great chance for them to learn about vegetables or fruits they have never had before, and together you can come up with a dish to try them in. Depending on their age, you can start to let them join in on preparing food and even cooking. An easy way to start cooking together as a family is with “build it yourself” meals such as fajitas, salad bars, pizza or fruit and yogurt parfaits for dessert. This is also a great method if you have some picky eaters as it will give them the chance to try something new, but also eat what they like. Cooking at home shows them that healthy means using whole ingredients and can be fun, too.

Teach Your Kids to Follow the 80/20 Rule

Kids’ appetites fluctuate with their level of activity, mood and growth so don’t stress over a couple of unbalanced meals - or days. The 80/20 rule means they eat wisely 80% of the time, which leaves the remaining 20% for pizza with friends or enjoying the occasional treat. As parents know, it can be stressful trying to control what your child eats at a friends house or at school lunchtime. But the 80/20 rule shows them that perfection is not the goal, and it's alright to indulge in a small treat here and there. This also helps them see that not everything about food has to be restrictive - setting up positive eating patterns early on.

Stock the Fridge with Healthy Choices

Just like adults, kids will make better choices if they are easy. Filling a bowl with fruit and keeping it on the kitchen table puts a healthy and quick option in plain site. The same works for the less healthy options like soda and chips - if they are kept out of sight they are not as tempting. It’s one thing to tell your kids to “eat the rainbow” -  meaning eat colorful fruits and veggies - but it’s another for them to open the fridge and see it. 

If you're used to going down the snack aisle and picking up pre-packaged snacks for your kids, it won't be as difficult as you'd think to pick up quick and healthier options instead. Many stores carry pre-cut vegetables and fruit and although they are a bit more expensive, it can offer more convenience when you need it. Here are some simple snack ideas that require minimal prep or cooking:

• apples and peanut butter or cheese
• broccoli and hummus
• ants on a log (celery, nut butter and raisins)
• lettuce wraps (turkey+mayo, tuna salad...the fillings are endless)
• sweet potato and zucchini fries
• fruit and yogurt ice pops
• homemade trail mix

If your kids are curious about learning how to make their own snacks, this peanut dipping sauce goes great with carrot sticks and can be put together in less than 5 minutes:

• 3 tablespoons of peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• A splash of soy sauce
• A few drops of sesame oil
• Water to smooth
• Carrot sticks

Mix everything but the carrot sticks together with a fork or whisk in a bowl. Add water as needed to thin mixture to a dipping consistency (all-natural peanut butter needs more; everyday brands need less).

Still concerned your kids will reject “healthy food”? They will eat healthy, delicious food if you continue to offer it and try to model the right food choices for yourself.  Kids can learn to eat on their own terms which is the key to healthy eating in the long run. It is good to strive for balance but over the course of the week most kids will eat what they need; let them decide how to eat so they learn their own satiety signals.

Start the Morning Off Right

If you go about your days feeling disorganized or overwhelmed, starting a morning ritual can be a simple way to start your day more positive and focused. There are several different things you could use to start your morning, depending on personal preference and the amount of time you can set aside each morning.

This ritual could include activities such as meditation, stretching, journaling, exercise or even cleaning. It can be stacked onto another part of your morning, for example: meditating for three minutes before brushing your teeth. The idea is to create space for reflection so that you know where your day is headed, and give you a sense of control so that you are less reactive and more productive for the day. Over time you can add on more time to this morning ritual, ideally setting aside 45 minutes to an hour each morning. 

One morning ritual that has a long list of health benefits and is easy to incorporate: drinking warm tea. Tea has less caffeine than coffee (some are caffeine-free), so it provides mental alertness but is less likely to increase anxiety or jitteriness. The general health benefits that tea provides includes: protection against heart attack and stroke, improved bone mineral density and a boost to your exercise endurance. 

If you're curious about adding tea to your morning routine, we're happy to announce that you are now able to purchase our new proprietary tea blends at the clinic. We have taken a lot of time to curate these exclusive blends with Urbal Tea that support the body in managing stress, fighting inflammation and better digestion. Here's what you can find in our two blends:

Sweet Relaxation

• Hibiscus: reduces high blood pressure and symptoms of anxiety and depression
• Oatstraw: high in calcium and other minerals, stabilizes mood and supports the nervous system
• Kava Kava Root: offsets anxiety, stress and disrupted sleep patterns

MindBody Wellness Blend

• Turmeric: effective at managing arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease
• Milk Thistle: lowers cholesterol and detoxifies and protects vital liver functions
• Dandelion Root: strengthens the immune system and balances the natural and beneficial bacteria in the gut

Urbal Tea uses 100% herbal quality ingredients in their tea blends and are based here in Milwaukee. You can find several of their blends such as Brain Booster and Sleep Tight inside our  clinic in addition to our proprietary blends. To learn more about Urbal, check out their website here.