At least I wasn't.

Let me explain.

Here is a picture of a meal I had about 7 years ago. I found it when Facebook popped up with one of those "remember when" posts. I had dinner with my 13 year old daughter and this was on my plate, or bowl I should say.

It's a little blurry because of the candlelight, which was a nice touch. I love candles, so that's a good thing.

The small plates, a good thing. That was for a protein on the way.

The glass of red wine for me, and not my daughter, that's a good thing too.

The salad of mixed greens - that is organic and triple washed, so that's a good choice. Greens soak up pesticides and chemicals easily, so it's important to get them clean and organic. Check out the EWG's 2018 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce™ for up-to-date information.

The organic cauliflower and the organic slicer tomatoes are good choices too - sort of - I'll explain more below. 

Let's take a look at the bottle of salad dressing on it's head. That's organic too. However, this salad dressing contains the following ingredients according to their website:

Organic Soybean Oil, Water, Organic Distilled Vinegar, Organic Buttermilk, Organic Whole Eggs, Salt, Organic Garlic Puree, Contains 2% Or Less Of: Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Garlic*, Organic Onion*, Organic Parsley*, Organic Gum Acacia, Xanthan Gum, Mixed Tocopherols For Freshness, Organic Sunflower Oil. 
*Dried.   Contains: Milk, Egg.  Kosher

This isn't so healthy. The organic soybean oil is non-GMO (genetically modified organism); most  soybean products today are not - so it's good that this one is.  If a product is certified organic, it's not GMO. Whew. Yet soybean oil, even organic, is considered a PUFA oil, which is chemically unstable and prone to oxidation. If you want to really dive deep into this, check out Mark's Daily Apple. He's the dude that trained and certified me as a Primal Health Coach, and he knows a ton about PUFAs.

If you're getting aches and pains every morning, like I was, and thinking it's that you're getting older, like we all are, it may very well be that the PUFA oils are creating stress in your body, like what happened to me. So PUFA oils - canola, corn, soybean, refined coconut, and almost all nut and seed oils - are off of my grocery shopping list these days. For a deep dive into oils, Mark has done a fabulous job.

As i've wrestled with some autoimmune achiness, swelling, and pain this year, I have made some big changes. I have begun an Autoimmune Protocol to eliminate possible offenders. This is a rigorous protocol and it is helping me tremendously to get the irritations out of my foods and life. 

When I look at my "healthy" meal based on this new knowledge about foods that can trigger an autoimmune response, here is how it stacks up.

1. The tomatoes are nightshades, so they are avoided; they can ignite the immune system - a no-no for anyone with an autoimmune issue. Upon reintroduction in my diet, I noticed my gut doesn't care for them.
2. The salad dressing is a no for the soybean oil, xanthan gum, mixed tocopherols for freshness (because I don't know what they are), and sunflower oil. I'm having most of my vegetables lightly steamed now, as it's better for my digestion. If I use any oil, it's avocado oil, lard, bacon grease, cultured ghee, or coconut oil for cooking, and olive oil spritzed on the salad.
3. Any red wine I have is low carb or energy-cleared before drinking.
4. I am using my intuition to check in with my body. I have slowed down - I sit when I eat and don't eat on the run - so that I can pay attention to how my body feels about what I am eating. And I sit to rest and digest after a meal. This new practice is the single most important thing that contributes to my health. My intuition knows what works for me and what doesn't. I have to take the time to tune into it, and respond to this powerful feedback.

Especially for Highly Sensitive People: Since we highly sensitives feel more, see more, and intuit more, our reaction to foods is strong too. So we really need to make sure we're tuning into our bodies and creating the health that we want. We need to honor this feedback and make it a priority to give ourselves foods, thoughts, and movements that support us well. 

I'm sure I'm not perfect yet (as if I ever will be!). There are days I have symptoms and I have no idea where they came from. But I'm continuing to learn and grow, and I feel healthier the older I get. I plan to live long, stay healthy, and drop dead without disease. 

Care to join me?

Play.

That's right. Play each day!

What is play exactly. 

A Google search defined it as:
verb
1. engage in activity for enjoyment and recreation rather than a serious or practical purpose.
"The children were playing outside" synonyms: amuse oneself, entertain oneself, enjoy oneself, have fun;
2. take part in (a sport). "I play softball and tennis" synonyms: take part in, participate in, be involved in, compete in, do "I used to play hockey"

noun
1. activity engaged in for enjoyment and recreation, especially by children. "a child at play may use a stick as an airplane" synonyms: amusement, entertainment, relaxation, recreation, diversion, distraction, leisure;
2. the conducting of an athletic match or contest.

Yet that's not the play I'm talking about. 

We, as a culture, often think that play is going out for a few drinks with friends. Or attending a large party event. Going to a movie perhaps. Or shopping, that can be a form of play.

I'm talking about the kind of play that rejuvenates the soul and makes life less serious. I don't think we, as a culture, play in this way, enough. Why do we need to be children to play like a child?

To me, play is a spontaneous event, a playful nature in what you're doing. It involves a variety of physical movement and mental acuity that keeps our bodies strong and flexibly, and our minds working well. We stay young at heart. 

For example, children can play at a park structure endlessly. I remember following my children around the park structures. They climb up and down the structures. They walk across make-believe bridges. They toss the autumn leaves into a small stream running through the park, then run to follow it along it's path until it hits the pond. They scoop it out of the pond, run to the top of the stream, and do it again and agin. They scoop sand and create magic castles. They hid behind things and pop out to scare you. They throw things, splash in water, laugh out loud, and often have friends, or imaginary friends with them. Children don't have to think about how to play, they just play. They have an attitude of play throughout their days.

Why don't we play like children? 

The spontaneity of play gets us out of our heads, into our bodies and into the moment at hand. Play uses our whimsical and creative nature as we do whatever comes to mind. It's unstructured, free-flowing and relaxing. It provides functional movement - these are movements that use a variety of muscles and keep you fit throughout your life. They are movements you want to be able to do even when you reach the age of 104. Play helps with balance and stamina, and allows us to do all the tasks we want to do throughout our lives on this planet. Play feels joyful, and we want to laugh out loud! It's contemplative as well; as we create our moments, we are building pathways in our brains that nurture our souls. 

Obviously, children don't have the financial worries and responsibilities that we do as we grow into adults. So they spent their entire days learning through play.

As adults, I believe we have a couple of ways that we can play. 

1. In whatever we are doing, we can adopt an attitude of play. Find ways to make life fun. Even when we're sitting in a corporate meeting or taking emptying the garbage cans for a grocery store, we can find ways to make it fun. We need to adopt an attitude of playfulness, and see how to create each moment. 
2. We also need to take time to go outside and play, all year long. Being in nature and the elements is good for our souls, and the agility of our bodies. The hormetic stress (intermittent, mild stress) we get from exposing our bodies to heat, cold, wind, rain, sun, etc. stimulates or up-regulates our cells and molecular pathways to improve the capacity of our cells and organisms to withstand greater stress. So that if greater stress inadvertently comes along, our bodies can readily respond. Low levels of intermittent stress keep us fit.

Let's get out and play today.