Tag: natural healing
Spring Cleaning Your Skin!
The struggle is REAL.
You look in the mirror and think, oh dear, it’s my MOM (or Grandma *gasp*)
Then you think, beauty is fleeting INDEED, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised, right?
Right!
But that doesn’t mean you don’t want to show your best face, right?
Right!
Your skin is the body’s largest organ and it deserves care!
I remember standing in the skin care isle at the drug store, looking at Deep Crease Serum.
The woman next to me was about 75-80 and had GREAT skin!
I asked her what her secret was and she said, “I never God married or have kids, so I don’t have worry lines.” I think she was being serious.
Well, THAT is not an approach to skin care that is gonna work for this mamma, and incidentally, neither did the cream I chose. Recently though, I’ve been on a skincare “full court press” and I’ve found a few things that seem to be working.
We all want something that works, right?
Right!
So….here’s the scoop!
My daughter turned me onto the skin care routine that she witnessed as an exchange student in Japan.
Here in the U.S. A. it’s gathered the common name The Korean 10-Step- Facial.
Now, note this. There is something profoundly different about the ways Korean makers are crafting their skin care and it just….works. So, when I’m at a discount store with good skin-care, I always check and see it there is anything with a basically “clean” label that was made in Korea. My rule is, if it’s clean and under $5, GRAB IT. I don’t have an entire line of Korean products for my routine. In fact, several of my 10 steps are being done with homemade products, but friends. I swear it’s working. I don’t know if it’s the products themselves, the way they are layered or maybe I skin is just glowing because I’m finally practicing the kind of self-care it’s been wanting my whole life! Either way…the change is dramatic enough that my husband, friends and co-workers can see the difference and ask, WHAT are you DOING?
So, win!
The product brands I’ve tried so far are called Tony Moly, The Crème Shop (they have a mask with snail slime in it!) and I’m Real! They are not fancy or special as much as they were…on SUPER SALE!
The Ten Step Facial takes about ten minutes twice a day and the system is basically as follows:
1-Oil Cleans. I made an oil cleaners with olive oil, castor oil and geranium
2-Foam or Gel cleans (I’m using a $4 Korean brand I got at Marshalls)
3-Exfolliate (Use whatever you have. I am using homemade product made of coconut oil with oats and honey)
4-Toner (again…whatever you have. I’m using witch hazel)
5-Treat problem areas (for example deep wrinkle cream or acne-tea tree oil is great for this)
6-Essence (this is a very light moisturizer. Mine was $3 on the Body Shop sale rack)
7- Serum! (I’m using Roc right now. It was $10 at Kroger)
8-Mask (I think this may be the secret sauce of the 10-step facial) A couple times a week, choose a nice and nourishing sheet mask. If you can find one that has a good clean label of ingredients, grab it. The one’s I’m using are from Tony Moly and The Crème Shop (both Korean makers) and were about $1 each at Marshalls. But look and see what they have. Choose a few that fit your needs.
9-Moisturize. (Just use what you have. Day cream by day and night cream by night)
10-Sunscreen (by day) and either a “Sleeping Mask” by night (I am waiting to find a cheap one of these) but for now: a nice layer of Castor Oil!
YES! It’s extensive.
No! It’s not vanity.
It’s creation care.
You are His marvelous creation.
I hope you find time to care for your sweet self today!
If you try this, let me know how it works for you.
Sweet Ways to Lower Blood-Sugar
It’s National Diabetes Awareness and Prevention Day!
Shannyn’s family tree has an over abundance of Diabetes- her mom, aunty, grandma and even great grandma were (are) all Diabetic.
The following info is shared from Shannyn to you with hope for a healthy family tree to grow for you and yours!
(Excerpted)
It was years ago that I was blessed to have a massage (I know, swoon) and at the end of the massage, I asked the therapist if he noticed anything that was out of line.
“Nope” he said, “All the bones and muscles are in right order, but you eat too much sugar, that’s why your back hurts RIGHT THERE” as he pressed into the spot on the right side of my middle back that ALWAYS hurt.
“What? What do you mean?” with a shrug of his shoulder he gave me insight that would change everything for me. “That’s not a muscle hurting” he explained “That’s where your pancreas is. It’s inflamed. Don’t believe me? Cut out refined sugar for a week and see if you notice a difference.” He further explained that I didn’t even have to cut out all sugar, just the white stuff. Switch to raw sugar or honey, he said.
I did. And guess what! No. More. Back pain!
So let’s start there. If you have a pain in the right side of your middle back, cut out white sugar for a week and see if anything changes.
Beyond that, there is so much you can to to keep your body humming along, healthy and even with the worst genetic pool, be encouraged. You don’t need to receive the diagnosis plaguing so many in our Nation today.
Here are a few simple things that you can do today to help your body stay healthy or even return to the health it was created for.
1-SAY NO to fake food! GMO foods are not real food. Even if your tongue thinks they are, your cells not better. Don’t eat them. Kick them to the curb! Corn, Soy, Canola oil are the most common offenders with any hydrogenated oil fast behind. Skip the fake stuff, including dyes and bleaching agents.
2-FEED Your Body the good stuff! Macro’s are key. Good fiber helps your body do the happy dance. They slow down the rate at which your body absorbs glucose and help detoxify your system. Some great fiber choices that are nutrient rich are Artichokes, Avocado, Nuts and Seeds (especially Chia and Flax) Healthy fats (like coconut oil) can help level out your blood sugar therefore helping out your pancreas. Good clean protein is also key. They work to slow the absorption of sugar. So, if you eat meat, get good grass-fed organics, wild-caught fish (which are packed with Omega-3’s to reduce inflammation) or reach for lentils or eggs!
3-MOVE Your Body! Studies show that as little as 20 minute of light exercise 5 times a week can help prevent and even reverse type 2 diabetes.
About 10% of the American Population has diabetes, including our kiddos.
How about we move that number down by moving our bodies UP and out for a nice walk and then a healthy plate of real, nutritious food. We can reclaim the health God gave us, one step, bite, choice at a time.
Shannyn Caldwell is a certified holistic nutritionist a student of Naturopathic Medicine