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Chocolate (Dark) and Anxiety

Dark Chocolate
Dark Chocolate

Hey Earth’s Enrichers 

It’s been a while, Earth Enrichers! How have you been? Well, we’ve been great and we have put together some new and interesting stuff for you. This week’s topic is dedicated to chocolate. Yes, we said it, CHOCOLATE. But not just any kind. We’re going to be discussing something revolutionary about the world’s most loved but underappreciated dark chocolate.

Why do we say dark chocolate is loved but sometimes unappreciated? Well, it has some amazing health benefits but it tends not to be the first choice for a common snack. Most would lean towards dark chocolate’s creamier counterpart milk chocolate, which is, in essence, not all that great for you. Now, dark chocolate on the other hand has some pretty nifty health benefits and uses.

For instance, it is known for being very good for the heart. In fact, in small doses it can lower blood pressure because it can improve the flow of blood in your arteries. With the increase of blood flow through the arteries and heart, it makes it easier for the brain to function. This can help prevent strokes…not to mention that there’s a supply of antioxidants per every deliciously rich bite.

Guys, if you haven’t tried dark chocolate, we’d recommend you give it a whirl. It couldn’t hurt! It might actually be good for you.

The EE 411: Dark Chocolate and Anxiety

There have been studies that show that dark chocolate can help relieve stress and anxiety. You see, it can release serotonin which relieves stress. In some cases, it can also give you that much needed woosah moment. You say you want more proof? As if serotonin is not enough, chocolate is also responsible for being a mood raiser. Theobromine, the stuff in chocolate that dogs are allergic to, is responsible for creating positive vibes. We don’t know about you, but dark chocolate is starting to look even better already.

(To also help relieve stress and anxiety try our Lavender of the Valley USDA Organic Skin Care Collection).

.Share with us: Do you like dark chocolate? why or why not?

(This post was brought to you by Earth’s Enrichments.  Similar posts can be found by visiting our Blog.  More information about our  company and products (USDA Certified Organic Soaps, Organic Bath Salts, Organic Sugar Scrubs, Organic Body Balms, Organic Lip Balms and Organic Hair Care) can be found on our Website. Thank you Earth’s Enricher!) 

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Healthy Lifestyle – Stress Defined

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Hey Earth’s Enrichers, what exactly do you know about stress? On a superficial note, you know stress is uncomfortable, unfavorable, and makes a day seemingly longer than necessary. You know that it can cause tension in the body, which leads to other forms of discomfort like headaches, muscle pains, and even nausea. We already have tools and means of relieving stress but how is stress defined. What is stress? What causes it? What types of stress are there? What are its short-term and long-term effects?  These are things you deserve to know!

What is stress?

Stress is the reaction the body has to being thrown off its homeostasis (balanced) network. It can have mental effects, which affect a person’s ability to function in everyday tasks. It can be a temporary but reoccurring state of the body. It can corrupt a person’s ability to deal with daily issues because the problem solving function is being corrupted by unfavorable distractions. It can also have physical effects on the body. These effects are usually unintentional on your behalf because you are not purposely causing your body pain. For instance, have you ever noticed yourself grinding your teeth or all of a sudden your neck starts to hurt out of the blue. This could be attributed to stress.

What causes stress?

In simplest terms, stress can be caused by stressors.  These could be anything from a certain individual to an accumulation of tiresome or irritating events. Anxiety can also play a big role in causing stress. In response to that stress, the body has what is called a stress response (go figure). These are mental, physical, or behavioral changes that take place because of the stressor.

What types of stress are there?

To be more specific about the type of stressors and what may cause stress, eustress and distress are two different types of stress. Eustress are stressors that are positive and promote improved quality in different aspects of life. Distress is not all that great, this is caused by negative stress.  This can be counterproductive and harmful.

What are short term and long term effects of stress?

Stress can cause short-term and long-term effects on the body. These effects vary on individual health. Some examples of short-term effects are migraines (headaches), backaches, neck aches, mood swings, and hyperventilation. Chronic stress, which is stress that can be detrimental to your health, can have serious long-term effects. These effects could range from heart disease, chronic pain, depression, and even reduction in the body’s resistance to diseases. It could worsen already existing illness as well like MS, blood pressure, and anxiety.

The EE 411: Stress – Looking After Your Environment

Now that you have a deeper understanding of what stress is and its effects, it’s time to apply some solutions to stress situations:

  • Laughter goes a long way- find your favorite comedy, or check out your favorite comical blog. It will help you relax because laughter releases endorphins into the body.
  • Detox- select a nice time of the day and produce a comfortable environment for yourself. For example, if you like long baths, you should take one.  Include in your bath water bath salts. Not only will the bath salts relax and release tension from your body, but the scent that they provide is also good aromatherapy which de-stresses the mind.  If you’re more of an active person, turn on your favorite music and jam. Make space for me time!
  • Re-evaluate your work load making sure you can physically and mentally handle everything you sign up for. If you can’t, it may be time to let some things go for your own benefit.
  • Take some time to do yoga and meditate; it can help you make time to think about the next few steps in your life.

(This post was brought to you by Earth’s Enrichments.  Similar posts can be found by visiting our Blog.  More information about our  company and products (USDA Certified Organic Soaps, Organic Bath Salts, Organic Sugar Scrubs, Organic Body Balms and Organic Lip Balms) can be found on our Website. Thank you Earth’s Enricher!) 


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Health and Living – Emotional Health

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There are six principles that develop a well-rounded, healthy life. These principles are physical health, intellectual health (mind), spiritual health, emotional health, social health and environmental health. In the past few weeks, we have covered physical, intellectual, and spiritual health. For each one of those principles we have explained what they entail and how they can easily be included into the healthy life that you deserve.

For this week we will be talking about emotional health. Of course, the majority of you are able to guess what this principle means. To elaborate, emotional health has a lot to do with how you feel about yourself and others. It incorporates your ability to maintain and create social and interpersonal relationships.

Analyze this for a second:  what does it take to build a relationship? Or rather, what does it take for you to build a relationship? This should be thought about in a personal way because not everyone is as good at being social as others. It depends on how outgoing you are or how much self-esteem you have. This is why emotional health is important.

Emotional health is the ability to cope with stress and achieve/maintain self-esteem. The main objective is to have emotional stability. For instance, patience (a virtue that can be hard to come by) is achieved when one is able to effectively deal with unforeseen events and not let stressful situations get overwhelming. This means staying calm when things get crazy and coming up with a solution.

The inability to handle day-to-day issues on a sustained basis can be a sign of poor emotional health or (if diagnosed by a professional) a sign of mental health illnesses.  We’re not addressing these more severe instances, but more minor irritations.  Day-to-day issues usually tend to be minor in scale like dealing with traffic, spilling a drink, or even dealing with difficult co-workers. If you deal with situations equivalent to these on a normal basis and all of a sudden they begin to get to you more than usual, perhaps it’s time to come up with a de-stressing hobby.

Now, sometimes emotional stability can be hard to maintain; after a while things that are deemed trivial could get on your nerves especially when you have more pressing issues to attend. If that begins to happen, try new means of relaxation. For instance, if you often do not take relaxing bubble baths, perhaps now may be a time to start. Or you could even start joining a fitness club to work out the stress. Burning energy is a great way to deal with stress and relaxing in a nice refreshing bath can help you detox.

Venting or expressing one’s emotions can also be a good way to balance your emotional health. This can be done verbally or can be written down. If something is bothering you, it’s okay to calmly talk to that individual about it. If you cannot talk to that individual, try coming home and discussing it with your loved ones or people you trust. Another way to deal with it is with an “angry letter.” This is something your write but you don’t send. It helps you vent in a way that doesn’t hurt someone else’s feelings and is best kept in a private place like a journal.

It’s important to not let your emotions get the best of you. If you are able to control them and maintain a calm demeanor when things go wrong, then you are at optimal emotional health. Everyone gets mad and makes mistakes’, we are all human. So when we do get mad, it’s best to find healthy ways to release those emotions. Doing this helps you build better relationships and better deal with your environment.

The EE 411: Stress Relievers and Emotional Cleansers 

Here are a few tips for stress relief:

  1. Counting to ten
  2. Taking deep breaths
  3. Keeping a Journal
  4. Venting in a healthy way
  5. Kick boxing or any physical activity like running
  6. Painting
  7. Playing or listening to Music
  8. Hanging out with friends or family
  9. Forgiveness (sometimes it’s easier to move on)
  10. Relaxing bath (Calming Spa Seaweed bath salts would be perfect for this! You can detox your mind, body, and soul)
  11. Meditating is basically good for everything

Emotional Cleansers:

  1. Treat yourself: have your favorite treat (dessert, food or even treat yourself by shopping). It’s okay to treat yourself to get your mind off it, just don’t overdo it.
  2. Reach out to someone and tell them how you feel whether it’s a friend, loved one, or a professional.
  3. Laughing is good for the soul.  If you have had a bad day, turn on your favorite comedy and cheer yourself up.
  4. Forgiveness: try to let things go and move on. Consider how things could have been done differently and do it better next time.
  5. Have an intense music session. If you must, sing to the top of your lungs, play air guitar, and dance your troubles away. You will soon be too exhausted to remember them anyway.

Share with Us: How do you deal with your emotions? What sort of outlets do you have?

(This post was brought to you by Earth’s Enrichments.  Similar posts can be found by visiting our Blog.  More information about our  company and products (USDA Certified Organic Soaps, Organic Bath Salts, Organic Sugar Scrubs, Organic Body Balms and Organic Lip Balms) can be found on our Website. Thank you Earth’s Enricher!)