We’ve made it to the last pillar! Supplements are listed last because their effectiveness depends entirely on the implementation of the previous pillars. The central theme I’d like you to keep in mind with supplements is:
“You can’t supplement your way out of a unhealthy lifestyle.”
BUT, supplements can help you get to where you’re going.
The only “supplements” that I recommend universally are sleep and magnesium. Overall, there are just too many supplements on the market and each person’s biological requirements varying so much, we won’t be diving into all the supplements. The ones we’ll cover are:
– Sleep
– Magnesium
– Chromium
– Vitamin D
– Essential oils
1. SLEEP
Sleep is not really a supplement but a lot of people don’t get enough of it so I’ve included it here. Sleep controls so many aspects of your overall well-being (physical, emotional and mental). Having a regular bedtime routine and getting enough quality sleep can literally change your outlook on life just because you’re rested enough.
A lot of the misery we feel is self-induced and lack of sleep is the biggest one. Sleep controls your hormones, your mood, your appetite, your critical thinking skills – just to name a few. To top it off, it’s SO MUCH EASIER to maintain a self-care lifestyle that includes the previous pillars when you’re well-rested.
Living in a world where exhaustion is a badge of honor, it’s a radical act of self-love to sleep. It leads us to be more productive (vs.being busy), have more fulfilling relationships, be less stressed, handle the stress we do have better – I could keep going.
The most common theme among those with any type of mental illness is sleep irregularities. That’s not a surprise since sleep is imperative for the brain to be able to detox and regulate itself.
Sleep is where your body is able to heal itself. It can detox, cleanse, restore and repair anything as long as it’s getting the proper amount of sleep.
No matter how much you may be struggling now with sleep, it’s important that you implement a bedtime routine and stick to it until your sleep cycle is restored. Here are some tips:
1) Stop eating at least 2-3 hours before your bedtime. If you eat too close to bedtime, you may pass out but you won’t sleep well because your body will be too busy digesting food instead of repairing your body.
2) Stop using screens at least 1 hour before bedtime. Read a book, meditate, listen to music but eliminate screen time before bed. Screens of any kind emit blue light that messes up melatonin production, tricking your brain into thinking it’s daytime when it’s not.
3) Sleep and wake up at the same time every day, when possible. A lot of us think it’s normal to sleep in on the weekends or our days off but unless you’re sleep-deprived, it’s not a healthy habit to continue. Your body runs on a clock and that’s primarily dictated by your sleep schedule. Use your weekends to laze around in bed, if you’d like but try not to sleep unless you’re tired.
4) Make your bed a place you want to be in. Get nice sheets, have comfortable pillows and blankets, wear your favorite pajamas. The more your bed and bedroom are a place you want to be, the more likely you are to enjoy going to bed.
2. MAGNESIUM
Magnesium is a supplement that comes in a powder or capsule form. It’s a mineral that we’re chronically deficient in because the major source of it is vegetables (particularly green vegetables). Most of us don’t eat nearly enough green veggies and even then, the soil they’re grown in doesn’t have the appropriate amounts of magnesium in it. Almost across the board, magnesium supplementation helps everyone.
Magnesium is the most abundant mineral we have in our body and performs over 300 functions. Being deficient in it can cause anxiety, muscle spasms, muscle tightness and fast or slow heartbeat, just to name a few.
There are a lot of forms of magnesium on the market. When searching for one, you want to keep these criteria in mind:
1) Bioavailability – is the Mag in a form that your body knows how to use easily?
2) Purpose – what’s the primary relief you’re looking for? Anxiety? Sleeplessness? Muscle spasms?
3) Cost – Some forms of magnesium are much more expensive than others. But price doesn’t mean it’s better than a cheaper option. Use the first 2 criteria as a guide and see if there’s a form of magnesium that is affordable AND performs the way you need.
I’m not going to go into each different form of mag on the market right now but here’s a quick cheat list for the most popular ones available:
– Magnesium citrate: high bioavailability, low cost, works well for constipation and muscle cramps
– Magnesium sulfate: also known as epsom salt, high bioavailability, low cost, does well for muscle soreness
– Magnesium bisglycinate: highly bioavailable, good overall formulation that limits gastrointestinal side effects
– Magnesium threonate: crosses blood-brain barrier, useful form used for anxiety, sleep and other brain conditions
3. CHROMIUM
Chromium is not a supplement you’ll hear about everyday but can be a crucial one that helps tremendously. In the body, chromium is used as a co-factor for the hormone, insulin. Insulin’s primary function is to move glucose out of the blood and into neighboring cells (either muscle or fat).
If you’ve read my previous blog posts, you’ll know that the biggest problem we face right now in regards to our health is sugar. It’s in everything and takes a huge toll on the body. One of the side effects of the Standard American Diet has been a sharp increase in insulin resistance, where the body becomes desensitized to the effects of insulin because it’s being pumped out too much. This eventually can lead to diabetes.
Chromium helps insulin do its job. There’s isn’t a lot of chromium in the SAD which means that insulin and your pancreas have to work even harder to get the massive amounts of sugar out of your bloodstream so it doesn’t poison you. Foods high in sugar tend to also cause chromium excretion (meaning the body leeches out chromium). A biological DOUBLE WHAMMY!
When you change your diet to one consisting of more vegetables and fruits, it can still take at least 3-6 months for your body to become properly sensitized to insulin again. A good chromium supplement can help speed up this process as well as normalize your chromium supply.
Food sources of chromium include green beans, broccoli, egg yolks and nuts. As a supplement, you want to look for “glucose tolerance factor chromium” or “chromium picolinate”. Some sources say that 1000mcg a day is safe for GTF Chromium but I always advise to start low and move up. More isn’t necessarily always better.
Start with 200-500 mcg of GTF chromium or chromium picolinate and see how your carb cravings are and how your blood glucose is. If you’re not seeing the changes you’re looking for after 10-14 days, increase the dose by 200 mcg for another week and check again. (It really helps to work with me or a practitioner you trust when determining the dose of a supplement. Check out my session options here).
4. VITAMIN D
Vitamin D is not named correctly. While technically it is a vitamin, it’s also a hormone. That’s why when you have low vitamin D, you experience a lot of changes that are mistaken for other hormone problems.
Vitamin D is created when the sun hits your skin. Your skin cells take the sun’s energy and uses it to convert cholesterol to vitamin D. Vitamin D then helps create strong bones and teeth (vitamin D deficiency can result in rickett’s, a bone disease).
Because it functions like a hormone, low vitamin D can also cause mood imbalances. This is seen primarily in Seasonal Affective Disorder (“winter blues”).
Before starting vitamin D supplementation, it’s important to get tested to see what your current levels are at. This helps determine what your dose should be because too much vitamin D has its own set of problems.
If testing is not a possibility right now, start at a low dose (200-500 IU per day). Make an effort to get sun exposure, especially in the afternoon with your skin exposed. Use a sunscreen that blocks out UVA rays but allows for UVB rays, as those are the one that allow for the creation of vitamin D. Look for Vitamin D3 as the supplement because that’s the most bioavailable one.
5. ESSENTIAL OILS
Essential oils are concentrated extracts of plants that help you on your wellness journey. Like with all supplements, essential oils won’t work on their own but in conjunction with the other pillars, they can make a huge difference in maintaining your energy and vibration.
Think of essential oils as plant medicine – small doses to use when you need them that can help you go from great to fantastic!
There are SO MANY types of essential oils and proprietary blends created by companies that it can get overwhelming to know where to start. Below is a small list that’s great for starters and multipurpose as well:
1) Lavender – great for relaxation and sleep, helps with stress relief
2) Lemon – uplifting and boosts energy
3) Orange – uplfting, increases libido and creativity
4) Frankincense – grounding, helps reduce stress reactions, boosts immune system, improves memory
5) Peppermint – stimulates and calms the mind, respiratory relief, opens up throat chakra
6) Rose – helps foster unconditional love for self and others, opens up heart chakra, used as perfume
Understanding the chakra system can help in navigating to which essential oil is right for you. The color of each chakra matches the color of the plant that can help it the most (i.e. orange EO for orange sacral chakra).