it's just another day

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Let's start here, shall we?  You may want to listen to this as you read... :)

So....after that little classic musical interlude -  (sorry, when I was thinking about what I would write in this post, that song came immediately to mind - and I had to share it!) :)

ANYway.....I was getting ready for work this morning, and it dawned on me.   In the past year or so, since I've been attempting to take more active control of my health by making conscious changes to my diet, lifestyle, etc., my morning routine has also changed somewhat (hopefully, for the better).  And as I was standing in front of the bathroom mirror partaking in the usual morning rituals that most of us do, whether we work from home or at an office, I thought it might be fun to do a little "day in the life" (or at least start to a day in the life) post about my morning routine.  Apologies in advance if this comes across as somewhat self-indulgent - but it occurred to me that I'm quite pleased with some of the changes I've made, and that you might also be interested in some of the products I've been using that I've been happy with.

The first pertinent thing I did today was something that is still very new to me - I took a therapeutic dosage (three capsules) of of this little miracle - SierraSil Joint Formula 14.

As one who has been suffering increasingly from joint/muscle aches and pains (age related/arthritic) - but also as someone who prefers to be as pharmaceutical-free as possible, I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that with each passing year, this was a problem that was only going to get worse. But lately, those aches and pains had seriously been encroaching on my quality of life, and the occasional doses of Aleve were starting to become more frequent (NOT a good thing - Naproxen definitely helps relieve the pain, but the dangers can outweigh the benefits).  When I had a sudden onset of severe shoulder pain last week, I was ready to try anything - and decided the time had come to try something my daughter had been recommending to me for months (yep, the aforementioned SierrasSil).  She had never tried it herself, but is of course aware of my complaints - and had been hearing repeated testimonials to it from Erin Davis, a local radio personality here in the greater Toronto area.

Maybe Meg (my daughter) had just been tired of hearing me complain of all my aches and pains, but whatever her motivation,  the time had come to take her advice - so I ponied up $60.00 for a large bottle. Now, I've learned to be pretty picky about what I'm putting in my body, and to question the ingredients of everything....so after some fairly extensive google research, I discovered that SierraSil is a legitimately all natural mineral supplement (basically derived from clay from the high Sierra mountains - hello Shailene Woodley!), and try as I might, I could not for the life of me find ANYTHING negative about it on the web.  Nothing.  Nada. It was ALL good.  So I took my morning dosage as instructed (on an empty stomach), and waited to see what would happen.  And literally OVERNIGHT my shoulder pain (which was severely impairing my ability to lift my arm) was GONE.  Gone, people!  I awoke the next morning with full shoulder/arm mobility.  Since then, I've been taking it steadily for a week - and without a word of a lie, the aches and pains that I've had for AGES have dissipated noticeably. I have no earthly idea if this is totally a placebo effect or not, but whatever it is, it's actually working for me - and I have ZERO to gain from telling you this - I'm not being paid ONE. RED. CENT. to extol the virtues of SierraSil.  Now, keep in mind we are all different - what works for one person, may not be effective for another - but it seems to be working favourably in my case.  I'll monitor my progress and let you know how I feel after a few months... :)

So, next thing I did was open up my vial of lavender essential oil, and take a deep inhale:

Instant tranquility. Honestly, I wish there was a "smell-o-blog" feature so that you could all experience the gorgeous scent of this oil.  Essential oils are extremely therapeutic - even the simple act of inhaling their scent can release chemicals in the brain that stimulate emotions - in the case of lavender oil, it has the ability to release serotonin, thus promoting a sense of calm and relaxation.  It's important however, to make sure you're buying the purest of essential oils available - i.e. 100% pure botanical extracts, and not chemical replications (chemical duplicates will not evoke the same biochemical responses in the brain).  I purchase my essential oils from Living Libations.  I was introduced to the Living Libations line of products last year, and LOVE them. Not only do they make the purest of essential oils, Nadine Artemis of Living Libations concocts an extensive line of the most deliciously pure and natural beauty products I've ever tried (which I will happily be expanding on in a future post!).   But back to the essential oils - after inhaling the calming scent of the lavender oil, I put a drop in my palms, rubbed them together, and transferred the scent to a dry skin brush for a pre-shower round of dry skin brushing:

I have two brushes - a long handled and short handled

Always brush upwards in a circular motion - towards your heart.

You can purchase skin brushes in a variety of places - I got my long handled one at my local Rexall drug store, and my short handled one comes from the Body Shop.  Dry skin brushing is one of the best things you can do for yourself, and takes less than a minute - it's detoxifying, increases lymphatic drainage, and leaves your skin glowing.  All good, right? Take a look here to watch a short video from Meghan Telpner about the how-tos and multiple hidden benefits of dry skin brushing.  :)

Shower all done, I dried my hair whilst standing on another recent purchase - my Spoonk mat:

Pardon my lily-white legs!  And I definitely recommend socks when standing on the mat!

Yep, I know.  This looks like a device of torture - a literal bed of nails, if you will.  But it's actually quite the opposite.  Working on the principles of acupressure and shiatsu massage, the Spoonk mat offers you the ability to receive the effects of the above mentioned therapies without having to travel to a therapist - and you can take it with you wherever you go.  It energizes muscles and gets the blood flowing, but can also be used to relax muscles after a workout, help relieve headaches, and increase relaxation. Maybe it works because it distracts you from thinking about other aches and pains when those SHARP little pointy discs are digging into your skin ;-), but honestly, I find it to be extremely effective - and surprisingly, a "good" kind of pain. Again - NOT being paid to endorse this - I just honestly love the positive benefits I've derived from it!

All dressed and ready to go, it was down to the kitchen for a green smoothie, and to prepare a meal to take for lunch in my mini-crock pot, (which I wrote about here).

I'll admit, I don't always have the time to fit all these things in every day - most days it's a mad scramble out the door for the commute to work - but I find that when I DO have the time for these simple morning rituals, my day overall is better for it.  At least I think I look fairly happy as I'm about to head out the door...better to start the day with a smile on your face! :)

How about you?  Do you have any morning routines/rituals/products that get YOUR day off on the right foot? :)