Roadblocks on Your Path to Wellness

STRESS, ANXIETY, & TRAUMA. OH MY!

Studies show that stress and anxiety are at the root and exacerbate some 90% of diseases, including gastrointestinal ailments. It has been published to cause more frequent issues, including worsening of symptoms.

June is National PTSD Awareness Month.

A key contributor to stress and anxiety is trauma. On some level, we have all experienced traumas. Not all suffer from PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder), but awareness and processing are important factors for us all. 

So, let’s talk about some keys to processing stress and anxiety on an emotional level. Working through these contributors allows us to reduce their impact and lessen symptoms.

You have the power already. You just need some tools.

Our first step is to accept the challenge to take an honest look at ourselves. It starts with you so that you can craft your life from a clean, fresh place. It’s time to remove the mess that blocks your path. You don’t want poop on your shoes, slowing you down and smelling up the place. How? Determine your blockers!

7 Key Obstacles that Block

Seven main obstacles get in the way of living your dream life. Granted, this is not an all-inclusive list, they are the ones I’ve found to have the greatest impact on me and others I’ve coached.

They are fear, guilt, anger, self-sabotage, laziness, envy, and focus (lack of- or misdirected). These blockers create stress and anxiety, affecting both the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Stress triggered by blockers can increase heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, and oxygen consumption, thus impacting all things gut-related.

Are you willing to get real with yourself? We cannot change what we don’t confront. Have the courage to determine the things that block you. Once you do, you can apply the best tool for busting through what blocks you.

Ready. Set. Go!

The life of your dreams awaits. You’ve gotten honest with yourself. You’ve identified those pesky blockers. Now what? You need a method to set them in their place and move through them. That method is called- Ready. Set. Go! 

READY

Acknowledge the blocker. Just set it right there in front of you and take a look. Oh hi, guilt. I see you. Sit with it and just recognize it for what it is, an obstacle.  Admit it is an issue and be okay with that.

SET

Now that you have confronted that blocker, you need to set it in its place. Ask yourself two questions:

1. What does my life look like if I continue to be consumed by this?
2. What does my life look like if I overcome and move past it? What are the possibilities?

Write out the answer to these two questions side by side. Is life honestly better in vision 1 or 2? If life is better in vision 2, then it’s go time. 

GO!

If you are done with being stuck and you see a better life on the other side of your blocker, then the next step is 20 seconds of courage. Interrupt the thoughts and doubts, muster up that courage, and take action. The whole process only takes 20 seconds. You got this!

There is no rewind button in life, but it’s never too late for a new beginning. Start today and finish strong! Your future self will thank you. Your dream life is just that, YOURS. Take inspired action. Write your own story. If I can do it, so can you!

I see you, and YOU are beautiful!

_{Ken Haruma, Yoshikazu Kinoshita, Shigeru Sakamoto, Katsuyuki Sanada, Shinzo Hiroi, Hiroto Miwa, Lifestyle Factors and Efficacy of Lifestyle Interventions in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease Patients with Functional Dyspepsia: Primary Care Perspectives from the LEGEND Study, Internal Medicine, 2015, Volume 54, Issue 7, Pages 695-701, Released on J-STAGE April 01, 2015, Online ISSN 1349-7235, Print ISSN 0918-2918, https://doi.org/10.2169/internalmedicine.54.3056.}

_{Wright CE, Ebrecht M, Mitchell R, Anggiansah A, Weinman J. The effect of psychological stress on symptom severity and perception in patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux. J Psychosom Res. 2005 Dec;59(6):415-24. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2005.05.012. PMID: 16310024.}

_{Bradley LA, Richter JE, Pulliam TJ, Haile JM, Scarinci IC, Schan CA, Dalton CB, Salley AN. The relationship between stress and symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux: the influence of psychological factors. Am J Gastroenterol. 1993 Jan;88(1):11-9. PMID: 8420248.}