THE SENSITIVE TRAIT – UNPROCESSED

As sensitive people, we support ourselves the best when we eat wholesome, whole foods that are meant for our bodies. To do this well, we need to take the time to know where they are farmed (source them), and what is in them (all ingredients.)

Background. 
Sensitive people are antennas for information. With the nervous system picking up on everything going on around them, we can become tired and frazzled. It's like there is radio static constantly playing, and it wears on us. 

Supporting the physical body is oh so very important. If we are not feeling well and grounded by our foods, it is so much harder to have a positive day and a positive approach. When we have anxiety, a perfectly normal emotion, and we aren't physically grounded, it can be hard to manage the body's response. Our hearts can be pounding so hard that we can't think.

When the body is getting processed foods, or foods that it finds hard to process (because of allergens, sulfates, histamines, etc.) it knows that it needs more or different nutrition and will either create extra hunger, or present anxiety. It can leave sensitives feeling ungrounded and out of sorts. So that anxiety that we're feeling may not be all in our heads after all. It may be originating in our guts.

My Story.
I have experienced digestive issues my entire life. Thankfully I have been fairly good with my eating habits, preferring to get organic and clean foods as often as I can. 

A few years ago, I decided to join Food Addicts Anonymous to support me in cutting out refined sugar (yes, even the organic kind!l) As part of that 12-step program, a sponsor (coach) empowered me to eat whole foods by portion-size at certain times throughout the day. As I eliminiated flour, sugar, and yes, alcohol, I dropped the pounds and the problems of achiness, back pain, and moodiness. I felt fabulous, and I looked great.

Except for one thing. I continued to crave. I felt like I was missing something. Not on a spiritual level, as is often the thinking in a 12-step group, but on a physiological one. So I continued to explore solutons.

Tool 1 - Coaching. I had the opportunity to go to an I Can Do It weekend with Hay House. I met Heather Dane, the 21st Century Medicine Woman, and began coaching with her. Through this experience, I have learned so much more about my physical body and what it needs. Although the bottom line message is that we need to pay attention to our intuition and listen to our bodies, we now have fabulous tools today that can help us along our journeys. I'd like to share them with you.

Tool 2 - Genetic testing. I first got my genetic profile done from 23andme. This has been a great tool to see what my genetic make-up is. I don't use it to scare myself; we now know through epigenetics that the lifestyles we choose have a 95% impact on whether we come down with a genetic related illness. So I use the information to keep my symptoms in check.

Some examples:

• I have rheumatoid arthritis from both parent's genes, so I know if I start to feel achiness in my joints that I need to make a nutritional, supplemental, attitude, or lifestyle adjustment.
• I have trouble digesting thiols, so I have modified my diet to eat lower thiol foods more often than ones that have larger amount of thiols.
• I found out that I have difficulty processing B vitamins. And I came to find out that my Great Great Grandmother realized the same thing intuitively and used liver to boost her system into her elder years. And I found out my mother, experiencing high fatigue after college, ended up with B12 shots for 12 weeks to readjust her system. I have been supplementing with B12 shots as I need to. I lean into my intuition in administering this supplement.

Tool 3 - HTMA. Soon thereafter, I arranged to do a Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis (HTMA) to find out how my minerals were doing. This tests minerals like magnesium, zinc, copper, lead, etc. to see if they are in balance. Experts now think that at least 80% of Americans do not have the magnesium in their bodies. Magnesium is the ambassador of our cells, so if it is not there to regulate our systems, we start to come down with all kinds of symptoms. No matter how positive we are and how many affirmations we say, our bodies are not feeling affirmed and supported. I found out that I did not have a healthy balance, so I have been using single ingredient, whole food supplements that are supporting my body. This program is uniquely tailored to me.

Tool 4 - Native Diets.  I have also been learning that we do best on the diets of our ancestors. Since my ancestors evolved in the Eastern European region, I do best with cooked vegetables instead of the raw salads I had with Food Addicts Anonymous. I have also started using bone broth for cooking and drinking. This "Elixir of the Elders" support my bones and joints, and has the added bonus of  reducing food waste in our home.

So, today, I'm not the weight I was during my Food Addicts time. Yet, my gut and body feels more grounded and satisfied than it has in years. I know when I do heal myself to my natural weight again, I won't experience the cravings that I had before. My food is grounding me, and helping me to stay centered as I gather the enormous amount of intuition around me.

Summary. It's important to educate yourself using today's wonderful tools to help you on your health journey, so you can be a sensitive person who feels good and well-grounded throughout the day. The resources explained above to get you started:

• Get coaching to empower you
• Do genetic testing
• Get a HTMA test and consultation
• Use your native diet, including well-sourced bone or vegetable broth

When you ground your body, it doesn't mean that you won't feel anxiety, or moodiness, or other physical symptoms. It does mean that when we have these feelings, our physical bodies won't over-react and go into alarm mode. So when we're anxious, we'll feel the anxiety, but our hearts will not be pounding out of our chests.

Until next time, Be Kind to Yourself.​