This post covers a bottom-up somatic nervous system regulating tool: shaking. What is nervous system dysregulation? Nervous system dysregulation occurs when the autonomic nervous system becomes entrained to patterns of chronic stress, threat, or shutdown, rather than fluidly shifting between states of activation and rest. The nervous system continuously scans for safety or danger and […]
How to Manage Stress with a Chronic Illness
This post covers how to manage stress with a chronic illness. Stress Stress is implicated in many physical and mental conditions that affect your health, weaken your immune system, and cause inflammation. To function at your best, you need to pay attention to your energetic hygiene, set effective boundaries, attend to your self-care and communication, […]
Caregiver Trauma as a Trigger for MCAS Flares
This post discusses caregiver trauma as a trigger for MCAS flares. I talk about how caregiving stress is a trigger for my trauma loop, and how I’ve started to use the Safe and Sound Protocol to address trauma.
Focus Your Mind: Meditation for Chronic Illness
Meditation for chronic illness has myriad physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual benefits. Did you know that you can help to heal your vagus nerve with meditation? Meditation reduces cortisol and epinephrine in the body, chemicals that lower immunity over time. Brain research confirms that meditating even for a few minutes per day makes a significant difference in your ability to cope, in resilience, in your quality of sleep, and in your stress response.
Empowering Caregiver Survival Tips for When You Need Care Too!
This post is a guide to caregiver survival tips when you have a chronic illness yourself. If your loved one needs your help you jump in without questioning it! But taking time to evaluate what your loved one needs, who else is available to help, and what they can afford, can ensure that you are not doing everything yourself. If you are the only caregiver available you need to be extra careful to watch your stress levels when you yourself are chronically ill.
Navigating Caregiving Stress
This post discusses caregiving stress, and how I made sense of my caregiving journey.
