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51 Best Ways to Use Baking Soda Naturally

November 16, 2018 by Power of Positivity

If your baking soda or saleratus is always waiting for baking days, you should know there are more baking soda benefits. The benefits are natural without any side effects.
Here are 51 best ways to use baking soda naturally:

1. Fire Extinguisher

Baking soda can aid in the original handling of little grease and electrical kitchen fires since it releases carbon dioxide when heated, assisting to smother the flames. Minor cooking fires involving grills, broilers, frying pans, and ovens need you to switch off the electricity if possible before sprinkling saleratus on the firebase.

2. Septic Care

Using saleratus regularly on your drains can aid your septic system to flow freely. A cup of saleratus every week will assist in maintaining a favorable pH in the septic tank.

3. Vegetable and Fruit Scrub

Using saleratus is a safe method to clean residue and dirt off fresh vegetables and fruits. Clean by sprinkling some saleratus on a clean wet sponge to scrub and rinse your fruits and vegetables.

4. Deodorizing the Refrigerator

Saleratus is ideal for eradicating foul smell from your fridge. Mount an open box at the fridge’s back, and it will neutralize any odors.

5. Deodorizing the Cutting Board

Cutting boards are used for chopping off all sorts of foods, and it can get some dirt and foul smell. Sprinkle some saleratus on your cutting board, and then scrub and rinse it.

6. Deodorizing Trashcans

Sprinkle the saleratus at the trashcan’s bottom to remove bad smells.

7. Deodorizing Recyclables

Clean the recyclable container regularly by applying saleratus on a wet sponge and wipe it before rinsing it.

8. Deodorizing Drains

To deodorize your tub drains and sink, and prevent lingering odors from ruining your home, put half a cup of saleratus down your drain as you run warm tap water. It will help to neutralize basic and acidic odors to give a fresh drain.

9. Cleaning and Deodorizing Dishwashers

Before using the dishwasher, use saleratus for deodorizing and as a gentle cleanser as you clean dishes.

10. Deodorizing Garbage Disposals

Put some saleratus on the drain and run warm tap water to remove bad odors and deodorize your garbage disposal.

11. Deodorizing Lunch Boxes

This is one of the best baking soda benefits. Between uses, put a bag of saleratus that cannot spill in your lunchbox to remove bad odors.

12. Eradicating Carpet Odors

Apply saleratus on your carpet and let it sit overnight. Then sweep it up in the morning and vacuum your carpet as usual. Your vacuum cleaner bag will fill up heavily. This will remove bad smells from your carpet. This will also deodorize and remove bad smells from your vacuum cleaner.

13. Making Your Closet Fresh

Mount a box of saleratus on a shelf in your closet to keep it smelling fresh.

14. Deodorizing Cars

Bad smells settle on the car carpet and upholstery. Hence, whenever you get in your car and sit, the odors get released into the air. Remove these odors by applying saleratus directly on carpets and fabric car seats. Then wait for fifteen minutes and then use the vacuum to clean your carpets and seats. In case the odors are strong, wait for longer before vacuuming.

15. Deodorizing Your Cat Box

Cover the pan’s bottom with saleratus before filling it with litter. Freshen between changes by sprinkling saleratus on the litter’s top after an intense cleaning. Green tea can also help.

16. Deodorizing Pet Bedding

Remove odors from the bedding of your pets by applying saleratus to it. Vacuum up the bedding after fifteen minutes. If the odors are powerful, you can wait longer.

17. Deodorizing Sneakers

Prevent your sneakers from smelling by applying saleratus to them whenever you are not using them. Shake out prior to wearing them. But when your sneakers can no longer be worn, dispose of them.

18. Freshening Linens

Include half a cup of saleratus to your towels and sheets as you wash them for a fresher feel and smell.

19. Deodorizing Your Wash

This is another one of the best baking soda benefits. Add a half cup of saleratus to your washing cycle as you clean gym clothes and other smelly clothes. Baking soda will neutralize the bad smells.

20. Freshening Stuffed Animals

Clean your toys, especially stuffed animals using dry saleratus. Apply saleratus to your stuffed animals and allow it to remain for fifteen minutes. Then brush off the powder.

21. A Surface Soft Scrub

With a wet sponge and some saleratus, scrub the bathroom tubs, sinks, and tiles as well as glossy tiles and fiberglass. Afterward, rinse well before wiping dry. You can clean even better with a mixture of baking soda, liquid dish soap, and coarse salt.

22. Hand washing Pans, Pots, & Dishes

Together with your typical dish detergent, include two tablespoons of saleratus to the dishwater for removing foods and grease left on pans, pots, and dishes.

23. Freshening Sponges

Soak sponges with bad odors in a mixture of water and saleratus to remove the stale smell. Disinfect thoroughly using a microwave.

24. Polishing Silver Flatware

Make a mixture of saleratus and water in a ratio of 3:1. Then use a clean sponge or cloth to rub the paste on your silver. Then rinse with clean water and dry before shining.

25. Cleaning the Tea and Coffee Pots

Remove tea and coffee stains as well as bitter tastes through washing coffee makers and mugs in a solution of one quart of water and a quarter cup of saleratus. Stubborn stains can be removed by soaking the utensils overnight in the solution.

26. Cleaning the Oven

Apply saleratus on the oven’s bottom and spray water on it to make it wet. Allow it to remain overnight and scrub the oven in the morning before removing the baking soda with a sponge or a vacuum cleaner. Rinse with clean water.

27. Cleaning Floors

Saleratus can be used to remove grime and dirt from tile and no-wax floors. Mix a bucket of warm water with half a cup of baking soda for mopping and rinsing the floor. Use a wet sponge and saleratus to remove scuff marks before rinsing.

28. Cleaning Furniture

Sprinkle saleratus on a wet sponge and then rub your furniture gently to remove dirt and marks like those made by crayons. Then wipe off with a dry and clean cloth.

29. Cleaning Shower Curtains

Apply saleratus to a clean wet brush or sponge. Then scrub your shower curtains, and then rinse clean and hang to dry.

30. Boosting Your Liquid Laundry Detergent

A half a cup of saleratus will make your liquid detergent more powerful. A great pH balance in the wash cycle makes your clothes cleaner, brighter, and fresher.

31. Gently Cleaning Baby Clothes

Baby skin is sensitive and only requires gentle cleansers, which are usually available. However, stain and odor fighters are frequently harsh. Include half a cup of saleratus in your wash cycle as you clean baby clothes to deodorize them and remove tough stains.

32. Cleaning Cloth Diapers

Mix two quarts of water with half a cup of saleratus and soak the diapers.

33. Freshening and Cleaning Your Sports Gear

Mix one quart of warm water with four tablespoons of saleratus to deodorize and clean sports equipment with bad odor. You can apply baking soda to gym bags and golf bags to deodorize them. You can also use a mixture of baking soda and water in a ratio of 3:1 to clean golf irons. Afterward, rinse thoroughly.

34. Removing Grease and Oil Stains

Use saleratus for cleaning light grease and oil spills in your driveway or on your garage floor. Apply saleratus to the spot and use a damp brush to scrub it.

35. Cleaning Batteries

You can use saleratus in neutralizing corrosion of battery acid on mowers, cars, and more due to its mild alkalinity. Ensure the battery terminals are disconnected prior to cleaning. Mix saleratus and water in a ratio of 3:1 and use a wet cloth to scrub the battery terminal corrosion. After cleaning and reconnection of the terminals, apply petroleum jelly to prevent corrosion in the future.

36. Cleaning Your Car

Mix a quarter cup of saleratus with one quart of water and use it with a wet sponge to clean floor mats, vinyl seats, tires, chrome, windows, and tires to remove tar, bugs, tree sap, and road grime.

37. Freshening Your Mouth

To neutralize mouth odors, mix a teaspoon of saleratus with half a glass of water to rinse your mouth.

38. Soaking Oral Appliance

Make a solution of warm water and two tablespoons of saleratus to rinse dentures, mouthpieces, and retainers to keep them fresh.

39. Using as a Body Exfoliant and Facial Scrub

With a paste of one part water and three parts saleratus, rub it gently on your body and face to exfoliate the skin.

40. Skipping Harsh Deodorant

This is one of the most important natural baking soda benefits. Neutralize your underarms by wiping them with saleratus.

41. Using as an Antiacid

Saleratus can be consumed to relieve heartburn, acid ingestion, or sour stomach.

42. Treating Itchy Skin and Insect Bites.

Make the skin wet before applying some saleratus on it.

43. Making a Softener and Hand Cleanser

Deodorize and neutralize odors on your hands by using saleratus to scrub them.

44. Helping Your Hair

Wash your hair with some saleratus together with your shampoo for a fresh smell.

45. Cleaning Combs and Brushes

Soak combs and brushes in a saleratus solution to remove hair product residue and natural oil build-up.

46. Making a Bath Soak

Neutralize acids on your skin by adding saleratus to your bath water.

47. Soothing Your Feet

Scrub your feet in a solution of saleratus for soothing effects.

48. Keep Flowers Fresh

By adding saleratus to a flower vase, your flowers will live longer.

49. Neutralize Beans

To prevent bloating by beans, soak them in a saleratus solution.

50. Get Rid of Ants

A mixture of saleratus and salt helps to keep ants away.

51. Making Fluffier Omelet

For a fluffier omelet, add a teaspoon of saleratus to three eggs before cooking.

Conclusion
These baking soda benefits will make your tasks at home easier, and you will not have to buy expensive chemicals for cleaning and so on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klnkeaa3pZw

Science Explains How to Never Lose An Argument

November 16, 2018 by Power of Positivity

No one sets out to lose an argument. We all want to be right when engaged in a verbal battle. Sometimes, it can get emotional or heated, and losing an argument can be a brutal blow to one’s ego.

The word “argument” has a lot of negative connotation to it, often bringing to mind ideas of shouting, slamming doors, and red faces. But arguments aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes, they are merely simple discussions over disagreements of opinion or debates about the next best course of action.

Still, regardless of the nature of an argument, your goal, if you’re one of those participating, will likely be to win. But you may have noticed that some people naturally win arguments, while others need to put in a little more effort to win.

The good news is that there are scientifically proven ways that guarantee you won’t fumble on your words or let your emotions get the best of you. It’s all about understanding yourself, your opponent, and proper debate etiquette. Here is the way science explains how to never lose an argument.

Science Explains How To Never Lose An Argument

“Raise your words, not your voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.” – Rumi

1. Start Off On The Right Foot.

If you don’t start the right way, finishing as a victor won’t be nearly as easy. If you don’t want to lose an argument, pay attention to how you get into one in the first place.

First, get yourself in the right frame of mind. Be aware of the context of the argument about to ensue. Essentially, you need to approach the argument keeping certain situational factors in mind.
Prepare your tone and points based on the situation and the person you’re arguing with. For example, you wouldn’t argue with family in a private setting the same way you’d argue in a public setting with a colleague. This is as important as the statements you choose to contribute to the argument.
The next thing you’ll want to do is ask the person you’re arguing with to expand on their own points first. Ask them questions that are open-ended and coax them into giving you a full explanation.
Get your opponent to expand on their thought process and point of view. This will set the precedent for the rest of your argument.
The person will recognize that you value their thoughts and are truly listening to them, which will cause them to be more open to listening to you. It will also give you the chance to properly understand their points and formulate a good response.

2. Pay Attention To Body Language.

Body language is highly important in communication. Most experts believe it’s just as important as verbal communication. If you’re trying to win an argument, you’ll definitely want to keep this in mind.

For starters, mirror the other person’s general body language in a subtle way. This can be as simple as crossing your legs shortly after they do or nodding at the same time. Don’t overdo it, of course! You shouldn’t be constantly copying every move they make or they might feel you are mocking them.

Done in the right way, mirroring can increase your opponent’s feelings of trust in you. This means that when it’s your time to start speaking, they’ll be more likely to believe you and find your points dependable.

You’ll also want to be mindful of the level of eye contact you maintain. It’s a common misconception that persistent eye-contact makes you more persuasive and your opponent less persuasive. Studies have shown it’s actually the exact opposite.

So if you don’t want to lose an argument, don’t be too intense with your eye contact when you’re explaining your points, but increase your eye contact when your opponent is trying to persuade you. According to one study, this will ensure you’re persuasive enough while your opponent becomes less convincing.

3. Know Your Opponent.

Your opponent in an argument isn’t necessarily your enemy. That said, “Know thy enemy” still applies here.

Knowing the personality of your opponent in an argument can help you understand how best to speak to them. There are some people who tend to be more reactive when responding to arguments. Essentially, appealing to emotion works best with them.

Then, there are others who are more analytical. With these people, you’ll want to make sure your facts are well supported and pay more attention to this than trying to get the opponent to empathize.

It’s also a good idea to keep in mind what your opponent’s moral alignment is. This includes their political preferences and ideologies. This can be complicated. Since there are so many things people can believe in, let’s make this simpler!

According to a framework created by social psychologists known as the moral foundations theory, people tend to see the world through binaries. This means they view things through very obvious positive and negative sides. The six most common of these binaries are:

Fairness and cheating
Authority and subversion
Care and harm
Loyalty and betrayal
Liberty and oppression
Sanctity and degradation

Use these binaries to your advantage. As an example, an individual who is of a liberal political view will probably consider care vs harm and fairness vs cheating their go-to subconscious binaries. Meanwhile, those who are conservative in their ideals may see the world through loyalty vs betrayal and authority vs subversion binaries.

Being aware of these binaries will help you to present good arguments designed to appeal to your opponent. Instead of explaining things using binaries they don’t relate to, you’ll be appealing to your opponent’s ethics, helping them see things from your side.

Of course, we know you can’t always know a lot about your “sparring partner” beforehand. But if you do know them, use that to your advantage!

4. Understand, Use, and Appeal To Emotion – Within Limits.

Although more analytical people prefer facts over emotional appeal, that doesn’t mean they aren’t still human. If you argue without any emotion, you’re showing yourself as more of a robot than a real person. This is a surefire way to lose an argument.

All arguments have emotional sides to them, even when they are primarily based on fact. As such, it’s alright to mention personal feelings or feelings of others. With personal, private life arguments, talking about the emotional aspects may actually help the root of the problem emerge more easily.
Don’t go overboard on the emotion when you’re in a workplace or other professional environment.
Appeal to empathy to some degree. For instance, you can personify your argument through the example of a real person.
Research has shown that people are more likely to empathize with sole individuals than groups of people, so use this to encourage your opponent to fully empathize with you.
Don’t use big examples unless you want to lose an argument!
Additionally, don’t be afraid to contextualize an argument through storytelling. A prime example of how effective storytelling can be is seen in TED Talks. This is because telling a relevant and well-delivered story mixes fact and emotion together in a winning combination.

In a nutshell, arguments based entirely on fact alone will fail, yet those based entirely on emotion fail, too. Keep a balance of both to win an argument.

5. Subconsciously Influence and Persuade The Argument.

There are plenty of ways to use cues to get an opponent in an argument to nod along. These subtle actions will influence your opponent on a subconscious level, persuading them without them even realizing it.

As mentioned previously, this research also concludes that mirroring body language correctly is a surefire way to never lose an argument. Mimic their movements and posture in balanced, subtle ways to encourage the other person to connect with you.

In addition, you can provide a prompt to your opponent to encourage them to agree. Use phrases like:

…isn’t it?
…wouldn’t you?
…don’t you think?

These types of prompts will allow your opponent to naturally try to see things from your perspective. In all likelihood, they will nod along, and this can even cause them to concede, giving you the positive outcome you desire.

6. Argue Maturely and Smartly.

Arguments can get emotional, but don’t let them get to you. Learn to argue and present points intelligently and in a calm, responsible manner.

Practice good argument etiquette by showing you care about what your opponent has to say. Before you present your counter-argument, positively acknowledge what they’ve said to you.
Paraphrase what you understood from their perspective to show you have listened well. This will help your argument opponent to feel a level of trust towards you. They will feel understood and will likely listen to you more easily, and it will be easier to persuade them to your side.
Acknowledging the validity of your opponent’s perspective is crucial when you don’t want to lose an argument.
It’s natural to launch into a counter quickly and on instinct, but this stops us from fully listening to the other person, preventing any progress from being made.
If you find yourself agreeing with some parts of what your opponent says, tell them that you do and explain why. They are then more likely to be more open-minded when listening to you. They will probably find things they also agree with and will maintain more positive thinking overall.

Don’t forget to keep the atmosphere around the debate nice and positive. Find ground and beliefs that overlap and that both of you share. This can drop someone’s defenses, allowing them to be more easily persuaded. It also keeps the relationship you have with them intact!

7. Keep It Civil and Be The Bigger Person.

When in an argument, always stay calm. Use a low, gentle voice and stay relaxed, speaking slowly and clearly. This will help you tame your personal emotions, especially if you tend to be a little hot-headed.

Raising your voice too much can trigger a fight-or-flight response in the person you are arguing with. This will immediately put them on the defensive and more difficult to convince. They will also probably find you less appealing and consider your overly emotional points less valid.

It’s important to keep in mind, of course, that not all arguments have to end with someone being right. Try and keep your frame of mind clear and practice positive thinking. Don’t focus so much on winning; treat debates as mere conversations. That way, you won’t be constantly worrying about the chance that you will lose an argument.

Finally, know when it’s time to walk away. Sometimes, an argument just goes nowhere. Ask your opponent if you can do anything that will help to change their mind. If they insist there is nothing, there is no point in carrying on the debate.

In addition, if things get ugly and your opponent becomes too aggravated, stay calm and walk away. You don’t want to get drawn into a full-blown shouting match. You can’t win every single argument you have, but there is no shame in a draw!

Final Thoughts On How To Never Lose An Argument

Most people don’t actively set out to engage in an argument. Sometimes, you just find yourself in one with no easy way out. Of course, you’ll want a positive outcome – no one wants to lose an argument, even if they prefer pacifism!

As with everything else, even arguments and debates are a science! By understanding the scientific ways that guarantee a positive outcome your arguments – or at least that you’ll emerge the bigger person – you’ll achieve victories with dignity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=JQszREVJSmU

Why Depression Makes People Angry, According to Science

November 16, 2018 by Power of Positivity

Depression is far more common than many people can fathom.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 300 million people worldwide suffer from depression. It is the leading cause of disability globally and, at its worst, can lead to suicide. However, there are effective treatments for depression, including prescription medications and therapy. Common symptoms include:

A loss of energy
A change in appetite
Sleeping more or less
Anxiety
Reduced concentration
Indecisiveness
Restlessness
Feelings of worthlessness, guilt, or hopelessness
Thoughts of self-harm or suicide

You might notice that anger isn’t on the list of common depression symptoms, but some sufferers do become angry as part of their disorder. In this article, we will go over why exactly people with depression might feel angry and how they can deal with this feeling.

Let’s discuss why depression can make people feel angry.

The Role of Anger in Depression

“I’m exhausted from trying to be stronger than I feel.” – Unknown

According to an article on the National Center for Biotechnology Information website, depression is much more than just sadness. Some people with depression do present with overt or suppressed anger. Pharmacological treatment can help greatly with depression, but medication doesn’t really address the anger associated with depression.

However, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been known to be effective in both depression and anger management. Still, it isn’t often used in cases where anger is a symptom of one’s depression. Several clinicians have posed that difficulties in dealing with anger play a role in the onset and persistence of depression, and the illness has been described as a “kind of self-directed anger.”

This makes sense because many people with depression suffer from low self-esteem and poor self-image, and these feelings can lead to a lot of internal anger.

However, people who have depression are often not just angry with themselves; they are angry with the world. Depression sufferers tend to have a negative worldview, which can lead to feelings of rage due to not being able to change the global challenges we all face.

Depression and the Fight-or-Flight Response

In a sense, depression occurs when people begin to lose hope in the world and feel that they cannot make a difference. This can sometimes lead to apathy and sadness, but it can also lead to anger. When someone on Quora asked, “Is getting angry when I feel sad normal since I have depression?” Tracy Jensen, a Quora user, answered it perfectly:

“Humans are biologically predisposed to respond to stress with a fight or flight response. Stress can be almost any form of threat, from actual fear, to something that makes us feel vulnerable. Sadness is a very vulnerable feeling. Often with depression, the response can be to withdraw, which is on the “flight” side. But it is very normal to become angry instead. This is the “fight” response. You see the same thing happen when someone hurts your feelings. It is painful, but being hurt/sad is a vulnerable response, and often anger, the more powerful response, takes over.”

So, getting angry could be our natural fight response to depression. Sometimes, people with depression feel so fed up with themselves and the world that they decide to lash out, either verbally or physically. In fact, Sigmund Freud used to conceptualize depression as anger turned inward.

Clinical psychologist Lisa Firestone has worked with depression patients for over 30 years and witnessed the common struggle her clients face when it comes to dealing with anger. She says that many of her patients don’t recognize the negative way they treat themselves and that they are more critical of themselves than they are of others.

Inner Voices

Dr. Firestone goes on to say that people with depression usually have “critical inner voices” that make them feel even more unworthy and shameful. In other words, they have to fight with their minds daily, which can cause them to lose the battle against this condition. The “demons” within the mind of a depression sufferer can make a person get angry and lash out against themselves and others.

There are two types of anger: maladaptive and adaptive anger. Adaptive anger motivates you to act against something that causes pain or suffering. For example, if you recognize the harsh inner critics in your mind and express that anger through a creative outlet, you are doing something to direct and respond to that anger. However, maladaptive anger can lead a depression sufferer to sulk and draw inward. Firestone believes this response occurs because of traumatic experiences in our past.

In other words, a person suffering from depression might become angry due to not knowing the right ways to express their anger. Maybe their parents didn’t teach them how to deal with their emotions, or maybe the parents had anger issues themselves that they directed at their children. This might’ve led the children to hide their emotions for survival.

One 2016 study found that anger as a symptom of emotional disorders has “negative consequences, including greater symptom severity and worse treatment response.” Researchers concluded that “based on this evidence, anger appears to be an important and understudied emotion in the development, maintenance, and treatment of emotional disorders.”

How to Cope With Becoming Angry Due To Depression

As you can see, depression is a complex illness and can be caused or exacerbated by a variety of situations and experiences. In Dr. Firestone’s therapy sessions, she gets people to understand their self-directed anger by having them address themselves in the second person. The client will verbalize their thoughts so they can start to get insight on where these thoughts come from and become an observer of their thoughts rather than the instigator.

She says talking to themselves in the second person shows them how it would feel if someone else told them the negative thoughts and helps them have more self-compassion. Externalizing negative thoughts and anger can help us to have a more compassionate stance toward ourselves and begin seeing ourselves as a friend rather than an enemy. However, this doesn’t mean we should be in denial about our problems; rather, we should start to embrace self-love to deal with our problems.

The Importance of Self-Compassion

According to researcher Kristin Neff, self-compassion involves three main elements: self-kindness, mindfulness, and awareness of common humanity.

Research has shown that self-compassion can greatly reduce feelings of depression. Another study found that maladaptive beliefs can lead to depression. When self-compassion helped alleviate these negative thoughts, the relationship between depression and critical thoughts lessened. This same study concluded that “… the self-kindness component of self-compassion” helped moderate “the irrational belief-depression relationship.”

So, one way of dealing with feeling angry due to depression is to analyze your negative self-directed thoughts and figure out where they come from. Then, begin seeing yourself as a friend, and think about how you would feel if a friend spoke poorly of you. As you develop a genuine friendship with yourself and practice self-love and compassion, you’ll notice the negative thoughts start to die down.

This doesn’t mean you should deny your emotions. Rather, try to detach yourself from your thoughts and become an observer of them. This will show you that your thoughts don’t have as much power over you as you might’ve thought previously.

Other Ways of Coping with Anger

In addition to self-compassion, there are a few ways to channel anger:

Exercise: Moving your body is a beautiful way to release endorphins and lower stress levels, which will help balance out your mood and eliminate negative feelings. When we’re stagnant, we begin to dwell on the thoughts in our heads, but movement helps to counteract this fixation and gives us a place to channel our energy.
Journal: Creatively expressing negative emotions can help you gain a new perspective about your anger. Writing down your thoughts can allow you to figure out where your anger comes from. It can aid you in determining how to manage it better.
Talk to someone: As mentioned above, getting professional help is nothing to be ashamed of. Talking about how you feel with a therapist or loved one can lift the weight off your shoulders. They may help you find safe outlets for your emotions.

Final Thoughts on Why Depression Makes People Angry

Feeling angry due to depression is normal, though it is less commonly talked about than other symptoms of depression such as a persistent feeling of sadness and fatigue. Anger is a natural response to stress. When your body is in “fight” mode, it wants to find a solution for that feeling. Listen to your body and figure out the source of the stress.

Denying your feelings or trying to hide them will only make the symptoms worse. Bottling it all up will likely lead to an explosion of emotions later on. Self-compassion, exercise, journaling or some other creative activity, and talking to a loved one or therapist can help you figure out why you feel angry. These steps can also aid you in learning how to cope.

12 Ways Yoga Helped Me Recover From A Broken Heart

November 16, 2018 by Power of Positivity

As wonderful as life is, it has its heartbreaking moments. A breakup, an unfortunate medical diagnosis, the loss of a loved one or a job are all things that can break your heart. To move past a broken heart, it’s important to heal your mind and your heart.

Yoga may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you need to heal a broken heart, but it does so by teaching us to stop trying to change the things that are out of our control. When we focus on fixing or changing things that we have no control over, the parts of our life that we do control fall by the wayside. The focus on fixing something or changing it delays healing.

To recover from a heart break, turn to your yoga practice and embrace its principles.

These are 12 ways that yoga helped me recover from a broken heart.

heart is broken

1. By Practicing Alternate Nostril Breathing

In most situations, you are entirely in control of your breath. When we go through a yoga practice, one of the things that we focus on is uniting the breath and the movement. If you’re successful, then your mind will be in the present moment.

Practicing alternate nostril breathing shows you that everything you need to be okay is already a part of you. Focused breathing slows down a busy mind, one that might be unsettled following a broken heart.

Alternate nostril breathing can decrease your heart rate. It even lowers stress and reduces anxiety in the body and the mind. This is a yoga tool that can help you get through hard times.

2. By Refocusing My Mind

Yoga practically forces you to refocus your mind. How does it do this? It does it by requiring you to move your body in challenging ways. To stay upright and avoid falling, you must focus on your body instead of your thoughts.

During a practice, you connect to your body. As your mind focuses intently on the poses, you relax, in a way. For instance, instead of thinking about the could haves, would haves and the should haves, you’ll be thinking about leveling your hips in warrior three. Yoga helps you focus on:

• Your movement
• Your breathing
• The moment

3. By Teaching Me How to Do Warrior Poses

Yoga has four warrior poses: warrior one, warrior two, warrior three and reverse warrior. Each one can make you feel powerful and in control of your broken heart. While in a warrior pose, consider repeating a mantra, something like “I am a warrior. I will get through this. I am enough.”

When you repeat a mantra or a positive affirmation, you’ll be working to reprogram your mind as you recover from broken heart emotions. Stand strong in your warrior poses and speak positively to yourself. These steps can heal you by emphasizing important and positive things about you that you may have forgotten.

4. By Inspiring me to Try Meditation

A broken heart can be mended with meditation. According to Tantric philosophy, people contain a great deal of prana shakti, which means soul power, when they experience pain. If we stay close to the experience, we can release the energy and obtain a deeper insight into the essential nature of reality in addition to the underlying beauty constantly at work, even during our heartbreak.

The meditation can be done sitting or lying down, but be sure to bring your feet together for connection. You may find that your heart heals more readily when the Earth is supporting it. As you lay upon the ground, the Earth is holding and softening your heart.

A heart healing meditation requires you to visualize the space above your heart and imagine a light drawing into the area. To recover from broken heart sadness, try meditating for at least 30 days, and be sure to dedicate 15 to 45 minutes to the meditation practice.

5. By Challenging Me to Do Handstands

The asana part of a yoga practice may involve a number of different poses including handstands and other inversions. Inverting the body not only has the possibility of flipping your physical perspective, but the action can also flip how you feel about your broken heart.

At first, handstands are scary. As you send your feet to the sky, your heart may start to race while your brain works to orient itself. The more that you practice it, the more you’ll realize that you’re growing stronger through the experience of your heartbreak. Allow yourself to heal.

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6. By Giving Me a Safe Sanctuary

Once you have established a regular practice, your yoga mat will become a safe sanctuary, a place where you can heal. On your mat, you can let your emotions in without feeling judged. The mat is even a place where you can reveal the rawest part of yourself and still feel safe, supported and held.

For people who practice yoga, the mat is their security. It is always there to catch you. While practicing on your mat, you can just be. You can just be sad, or happy or in a state of healing.

7. By Offering Grounding Poses

In yoga, we practice grounding poses that include bringing our hearts closer to the Earth. Tortoise pose and pigeon are just two of these. In Yoga International, an article about healing a broken heart says, “The chakra associated with the heart center is the anahata chakra. Anahata translates roughly as “unstruck sound.” The rishis, or seers, of the yoga tradition glimpsed that within the heart center resides the innermost self—a self that is completely whole and can never be broken.”

As we let our hearts sink toward the Earth in tortoise and pigeon, we’re deepening our connection to our own inner sage. When a tortoise draws into the safety of its shell, it is feeling threatened or startled. Mimicking this action helps us feel safe.

8. By Including Savasana

When people start practicing yoga, they often struggle the most with savasana. The reason for this varies, but for many of us, laying silent with ourselves is especially challenging. Many yoga instructors point out that is one of the most important poses.

How can savasana help you recover from a broken heart? It works because when you relax into savasana, you’re in a place where you can surrender to your heartache and let your inner healing power begin to restore your peace. A heartbreak is a wrenching thing to experience, and often, our brains try to fix it by fighting our way through it.

In yoga, we heal by surrendering. When you’re in savasana, you’ll practice the surrender, and this will help you to let go of your pain to find peace.

9. By Facilitating a Balanced Emotional State

A consistent yoga practice increases your breath and body awareness. As you gain this awareness, you’ll start to shed emotional weight. While practicing, you will start to notice unconscious patterns that are present due to your heart break.

During your yoga practice, you’ll be moving your body in ways that support a balanced emotional state, which can also open up your heart, helping it to heal. Setting an intention for your yoga practice is another way to recover from a broken heart.

To set a healing heart intention, ask yourself, “What does my heart need to heal?” Then, take a moment and listen. It might need:

• Forgiveness
• Self-love
• Courage
• Acceptance

10. By Instructing Me on How to Open My Heart

A yoga asana practice will often include heart opening poses such as camel. While in heart opening poses, you’ll be focusing on your breath and deepening into the body movements. Some heart opening poses are empowering, and they’ll help you regain your confidence.

Other heart focused poses release powerful emotions like:

• Sadness
• Fear
• Anger

Along with being powerful, these emotions are negative. Doing poses like pigeon can help release them.

11. By Helping Me Reach a State of Forgiveness

Yoga has a way of reaching inside the soul and helping you come to realizations. It helped me forgive. The thing about forgiveness is that it’s for you and not the person who hurt you.

There is a Buddhist saying that goes, “Anger is like grasping a hot coal to strike another; You are the one who is burned.” When you let go of your anger and forgive, your heart will do the same.

12. By Showing Me How to Choose Love and Compassion

When we are in the middle of an emotional battle, one filled with loss, abandonment or rejection, it’s easy to lash out at others in an attempt to make them feel as we do. This is when the yoga principle of “ahimsa,” which is nonviolence, is important.

Repeat the nonviolence mantra to yourself as a constant reminder to be kind to yourself and others. It can also remind you that the right way will always be the one with love and compassion.

Final Thoughts: You Will Recover from A Broken Heart

A broken heart is a tough thing to recover from, but you can do it. Talk to those you love and cultivate your yoga practice. Yoga gives you the chance to ground and regroup. A regular yoga practice will help you foster positivity and peace while helping you rebuild your faith in yourself and others, making it possible for you to open your heart again.

12 Heart Attack Symptoms (and 5 Recovery Tips)

November 16, 2018 by Power of Positivity

Did you know that one of the leaders in global fatalities is heart attack? Studies have proven that approximately half a million people in the US alone are hit by myocardial infarction every year, and from this number, only about 300,000 recover from it.

Myocardial infarction (MI) is another name for heart attack. A myocardial infarction happens when blood flow to the heart suddenly stops. Without the blood flowing in, the heart can’t access oxygen. If not treated immediately, the heart muscle begins to die slowly.

According to the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care, early heart attack symptoms occur in 50 percent of all people who have myocardial infarction, but if you do get immediate treatment, you may be able to prevent or limit damage to your heart muscles.

Heart attacks are thought only to affect people of older ages, as seen in most current cases. Medical studies have proven differently by stating unequivocally that heart attacks have no age discrimination. However, most of the factors that could determine whether or not one would experience a myocardial infarction are mainly common among the aged.

Heart attacks can and should be prevented and their fatal outcomes controlled in some ways. Knowing and understanding the symptoms of a myocardial infarction could go a long way in saving a person’s life – and who knows – maybe yours.

Most common heart attack symptoms

1. Lifestyle

Living an unhealthy lifestyle and gaining more weight is a proven reason for heart attacks to occur. You wouldn’t avoid exercise and eat food with a lot of calories and expect to escape a myocardial infarction. Your way of living is a direct translation of your body’s health. It is important to note that this is a sure sign that you will become sick.

Lifestyle is a major cause of heart attacks, especially in women.

2. Chest discomfort

Chest discomfort often occurs the center or left side of the chest. It usually lasts for a short period of time. It is recurrent–it, disappears and may or may not return. Chest discomfort can feel like pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain. This chest discomfort can also feel like passing heartburn or indigestion.

People describe the pain to their doctor explicitly and in different ways.

3. Fatigue

When fatigue is experienced for no apparent reason, or when normal, usual day to day activities make you unreasonably tired, you should be concerned. Stress on the heart may be reflected as heart attack symptoms in other body parts since their energy is not being replenished.

These mirrored symptoms usually seem to have no conclusive reason. The fatigue might also be a symptom of a silent myocardial infarction.

4. Shortness of breath

Sometimes this might be the only symptom of an impending myocardial infarction. It may happen before or during recurring chest discomforts. Shortened breaths usually happens when you are resting or doing usual physical activities.

Just like fatigue, the increased stress on the heart causes a shortage and leads to seemingly unrelated symptoms, like shortness of breath.

When the heart is unable to supply the body with the blood it needs to function normally, it follows that the cells of the body are also not receiving sufficient oxygen, causing them to fail or die.

5. Discomfort in the upper body

Pain is felt on one or both arms, the back, shoulders, neck, jaw, or upper section of the stomach.

6. Nausea, vomiting or indigestion

Myocardial infarction may be mistaken for indigestion, and similarly, indigestion may be diagnosed as myocardial infarction. This is where family records come into play.

Studying your family history may go a long way in finding out whether or not the symptom is a heart attack in waiting. While our diet may always be blamed, it is important to note that it is not suspect for nausea, vomiting or indigestion symptoms.

Most of us have a good record of the foods which cause indigestion, nausea, and vomiting, and we take great consideration when eating, be it at home or in a typical restaurant.

Nausea, vomiting or indigestion are all warning signs that should be taken seriously.

7. A rapid, irregular heartbeat

When the heart functioning is limited, its natural design tries to make up for the deficit by increasing its work rate. The increased work rate appears as a rapid heartbeat, with a massive deviation from the usual charts.

Although it is commonly known that heartbeats are bound to increase in rate when the body increases energy requirements during physical activities, once the operation ends and one is relaxed, the heartbeat returns to a reasonably steady rate.

When your heart rate doesn’t return to normal when at rest, it can be a sign your heart may not be functioning correctly, and you should seek help immediately.

8. Sweating

At times, one may break out into a cold sweat. This is not the normal body sweat that occurs during hot days and exercise or body exertion periods. You might even be sweating during winter. Sweating could also be accompanied by some of the myocardial infarction symptoms.

9. Lightheadedness or fainting

Lightheadedness is a feeling that occurs due to lack of proper oxygen supply to the brain. For people with a history of fainting, this might be normal, but a red flag should be raised once this occurs for a person with no apparent medical history to faint.

10. Severe anxiety and sleep disturbances

One of the things that is affected when one is sick is sleep. Restlessness might be a symptom of many body disorders, but not ruling out heart attacks, especially silent ones, is critical.

11. A cough that won’t quit

A cough that won’t quit in many cases does not necessarily spell trouble. This is primarily for people who don’t have heart complications. On the other hand, if an individual has heart complications, they should seek medical attention immediately. This cough could be accompanied by a white or pink mucous indicating warning signs of heart failure. One should visit a doctor and inquire what’s causing the cough.

12. Cold and clammy skin, gray pallor

Cold skin is a more severe visual appearance of illness. If your family has a history of experiencing heart attacks, then your chances of encountering one are increased compared to that of a person whose family has no record of heart attacks.

This does not mean that you will eventually get one, but is a good enough reason for you to go for regular medical check-ups; as they say – prevention is better than cure.

All these are but a few symptoms of impending heart attacks. It is essential to note, however, that the symptoms may vary from one person to another.

Having a symptom from this list wouldn’t necessarily mean that you are about to experience a myocardial infarction, and at the same time, the symptoms may also be a sign of another illness.

Heart attack recovery tips

No matter how fatal heart attacks may be, it is important to note that a good population of people recover from them. The American Heart Association states that most people who experience heart attacks eventually recover from them.

A full recovery is defined as a return to normal activities. This will depend on how active you were before the myocardial infarction, the severity of the offense, and your body’s response/adaptation to it.

Some of the ways to recover are:

1. Diet change

Diet links to more than half of known heart diseases. Well, as the saying goes, take care of your body, and it will take care of you. Changing bad eating habits could go a long way in aiding in recovery. Eating healthy foods and avoiding fatty foods is a good start in myocardial infarction recovery.

Here are good ideas for impressive diet inclusions that are known to take care of the heart. Vitamin D is primarily known to prevent most heart diseases.

2. Exercising regularly

Exercising regularly is an excellent way to improve blood circulation and also help you get rid of excess body fats that would otherwise end up constricting blood vessels and cause a repeat myocardial infarction.

Working out is also a known way of getting back into shape, especially after a myocardial infarction. Researchers have also actually proven that not exercising could be worse than smoking.

3. Regular health check-ups

Regular health check ups are important to be ready and also to prevent another myocardial infarction occurrence; it is wise to visit a physician for regular health check-ups. Doctors run diagnostics to understand if any of the symptoms you experienced is a myocardial infarction, and this is necessary for real planning to avoid future occurrences.

4. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR)

Cardiac rehabilitation helps with optimizing physical function in patients with cardiac disease or recent cardiac surgeries.

CR services can be provided during hospitalization for the event or in an outpatient setting. This is a good thing since everything you need to get and stay healthy is in one convenient location.

5. Pace yourself

Healing takes time. Do not be in a hurry to get yourself fully functioning after the myocardial infarction. Take essential steps to resume normal activities and do not be disappointed when the body fails you. Do not sink into depression and start seeing yourself as weak or frail.

Final thoughts on heart attack symptoms and recovery tips

You can prevent these outcomes with proper prevention. Here’s a good site with more than enough useful resources for a healthy life.

Doctors and therapists overwhelmingly encourage people to get help if they suspect they’re experiencing early myocardial infarction symptoms. Even if you’re wrong, going through diagnosis is better than suffering long-term heart damage or other heart attack related health issues because you waited.

Prevention is always and will always be better than cure.

Heart attack symptoms and recovery methods vary from person to person and even from one heart attack to another. The important thing is to believe in yourself. Trust your instincts. You know your body much better than anyone. If something feels wrong, get emergency care right away.

Better safe than sorry.

As much as it is ‘one hell of an experience’ going through a heart attack, scientists have proven time and again that most heart attack cases are recoverable. Fatalities could have been prevented had the affected persons known mentioned symptoms and recovery tips.

Well, with all this knowledge on heart attack symptoms and recovery tips, we believe that heart attacks are more recognizable and recovery is just but a glimpse away.

31 Low Carb Breakfast Recipes To Lose Weight Naturally

November 15, 2018 by Power of Positivity

Whether you’re on Atkins, a ketogenic diet or are sensitive to carbohydrates in general, we have you covered with 31 breakfast recipes. There’s no need to run out of delicious breakfast ideas. Going low carb doesn’t have to be stale.

Consider these yummy breakfast options to get going in the right direction.

1. Bacon Tacos

This is one of the more exciting breakfast recipes to try. Bacon tacos are fun and delicious. You want to make your shells from bacon by weaving several pieces together. You can cook your bacon in the microwave on a plate, in a pan or in the oven. If you choose the oven method, cook your bacon at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Flip the bacon over after 11 minutes. Fill your taco with eggs, beef or anything else you desire. Salsa, onions and sour cream is recommended.

2. Eggs in a Blanket

For this recipe, fry an egg. After it has cooled, roll it up in a piece of bacon. Pan fry your creation. Cover in Hollandaise sauce or with cheese.

3. Omelet

The omelet is one of the “go to” breakfast recipes because they’re customizable and easy to make. Mix your egg mixture and pour into a pan. You can cook your omelet in a couple of ways after this point. You can sprinkle a little bit of water on top so that the top cooks, or you can flip your omelet over to cook the other side. Fill up your omelet with what you’d like.

4. Steak and Eggs

Steak and eggs makes for a delicious and filling healthy breakfast. You can marinate your steak the night before if you desire. You can either pan fry your steak, or you can cook it in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

5. Creamy Sausage Soup

This recipe is excellent for cold mornings. Fry up sausage patties or links. Remove from the pan, and pour in an equal mixture of half-and-half and heavy whipping cream. Add butter, leeks, salt and pepper. You can add garlic if you so desire. After the leeks have cooked, add your sausage into the mixture. Top with Parmesan cheese.

6. Sausage, Eggs and Cheese

Whether you like McDonald’s or not, there is something about their Sausage McMuffin. You can make your low carb version at home. Fry two eggs, and place a cooked sausage and piece of cheese in between your eggs. Your fried eggs serve as the muffin.

7. Chorizo and Eggs

There are a few types of chorizo. There is a solid form of it that is similar to other types of sausage, and there is a soft kind. The soft kind can be mixed into eggs, but you will need to cook it first. Add eggs and scramble. Top with cheese, salsa and sour cream.

8. Sausage and Any Low-Carb Soup

This is by far the easiest of the breakfast recipes mentioned here. Buy any low carb soup from the store. Cook your sausage ahead of time, and add it to your soup.

9. Hamburger Patties

There isn’t any reason you can’t choose to have heartier foods earlier in the day. Fry up hamburger patties to your liking. Eat with lettuce as a wrap, bacon, cheese, onions, pickles and anything else you’d like.

10. Sausage, Refried Beans, Salsa, Cheese and Eggs

This is a scrumptious treat you eat in a bowl. If you can afford to have some carbs in your healthy breakfast, include refried beans. Fry up sausage and cook one or two fried eggs. Put refried beans in your bowl first. Follow with sausage and your eggs. Top with cheese and salsa. Mix up your bowl as you eat this healthy breakfast.

11. Egg and Ham Roll

Cook your eggs to your liking. Scrambled is a good idea for this recipe. If your ham is sliced thin, roll up your eggs inside of your ham. If your ham is thicker, you can fold it into a taco shell. Shredded cheese tastes good with this morning recipe.

12. Mushroom, Steak and Eggs Wrap

Sautee mushrooms in butter or oil. Cut steak into small strips and scramble eggs with desired spices. Use romaine lettuce to wrap up your mixture. You can add cheddar cheese and sautéed onions to the wraps as well.

13. Fajitas in the Morning

Use your favorite marinade, or marinate your meat in lime juice, olive oil, garlic and a pinch of cumin. Some people like to add Worcestershire sauce. Put oil in a pan and begin cooking your sliced onions and bell peppers. Add your steak pieces. Serve with guacamole and cheese. If you have low carb tortillas, you can use those. However, you can always roll up bite-sized pieces in spinach leaves or lettuce leaves.

14. Chicken Casserole

Once you realize how versatile cauliflower is, you might start using it in almost every meal. For this recipe, cut up small pieces of cauliflower. Cook it in a pot with butter until it softens a bit. Add half-and-half and sliced leeks to your pot. Add salt, pepper and cooked chicken. You can add cheddar cheese and top with Parmesan. You can also add squash to this dish if you desire something heartier.

15. Ham and Egg Mini Muffins

Place pieces of thin-sliced ham into a muffin tin to form little bowls. Crack open an egg and pour inside each piece of ham. Add your desired spices.

16. Guacamole Tacos

This healthy breakfast is on the lighter side. Mix avocados with guacamole mix. Add cooked black beans to your guacamole mix. Serve with cooked chicken and cheese in a romaine lettuce leaf.

17. Ham Burritos

Use sliced ham in place of tortillas. Make a mini buffet with different ingredients to put in your burritos so that everyone can choose what they want to eat. For example, you can choose cheese, onions, crushed bacon, ground beef, carnitas, scrambled eggs, salsa or chili peppers.

18. Shepherd Pie in the Morning

You can make mashed cauliflower by either boiling your cauliflower or grating it, covering it in a container and microwaving for about eight minutes. Cook ground beef with onions, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Add peas and carrots. Top with mashed cauliflower and cheese on top of the whole shebang.

19. Ham and Low Carb “Macaroni”

You can substitute cauliflower for noodles. You can also cheat on your cheese sauce by using nacho cheese. Add cut up cubes of ham.

20. Chicken Chowder

Pan fry pieces of chicken with desired spices in butter. Add an equal amount of half-and-half and whipping cream. Add onions, leeks and any other vegetable you’d like to have, but steer clear of potatoes or corn.

21. Mexican Squash and Ground Beef Casserole

Cook ground beef in a skillet. Remove it when cooked. Then, cook sliced squash, onions and garlic until tender. Put everything in a casserole dish with chili powder, salt, pepper, paprika and cumin. Mix well. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

22. Crockpot Egg, Sausage and Bacon

You might be hooked on this one for the rest of the season. You prepare it the night before. When you wake up, you are in for a fully satisfying feast. It’s slightly intensive, but you don’t have to do any of it in the morning. Cook up ground sausage – or any sausage of your choosing – and bacon. Put butter or spray in your crockpot. Mix eggs with milk and desired spices and pour some in. Add bacon pieces, sausage, peppers, onions, cheese and anything else you’d like to have in layers. Add the remaining egg mixture, and top with cheese. Cook on low between six and eight hours.

23. Morning Pot Roast

This recipe can get started the night before. Fill up your crockpot with your roast, a little bit of water, any veggie of your choosing and your desired spices. If you cook this on low for eight hours, it’ll be ready for you when you wake up in the morning.

24. Pizza in a Bowl

Cut up pieces of cauliflower. Cook in a skillet with a drizzle of oil. Add marinara sauce. Add cooked sausage or bacon, pepperoni, bell peppers, olives, tomatoes, squash and anything else you desire. Top with mozzarella cheese.

25. Mongolian Beef

This is one of the most delicious of these breakfast recipes. Mongolian beef is typically prepared with brown sugar. To go low carb, use any sugar substitute you like. The rest of your marinade will consist of soy sauce, chili peppers and ginger. You can also use sesame seed oil if you desire. Cook the meat, marinade and scallions in a skillet.

26. Meatball Marinara

Premade meatballs are somewhat loaded with carbohydrates, so you’ll want to make your own. Mix ground beef or ground pork with dried basil, oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, eggs and Parmesan cheese. Cook pieces of cauliflower in oil. Cook your meatballs separately and add to the cauliflower when it’s ready. Mix in marinara sauce and top with mozzarella cheese.

27. Beef and Broccoli

Use a meat tenderizer to soften your beef. Cook beef in oil, ginger, rice wine and sesame oil. Add cooked broccoli to your meat.

28. Egg Pizza

For this healthy breakfast, blend up eggs and add spices as you would for scrambled eggs. Then add toppings as you see fit. You can add cooked bacon, mushrooms, spinach, onions or anything else you desire. After removing your eggs from the pan, cut up into pieces. You can serve it with cream cheese.

29. Prosciutto Cotto and Eggs

There are two types of prosciutto. Use cooked prosciutto for this healthy breakfast. Use it to wrap up eggs and anything else you’d like to put inside. Spinach or mushrooms go well with prosciutto.

30. Bacon and Egg Muffin Cup

This healthy breakfast idea is fun to make. You line your muffin tins with slightly cooked bacon to form a bowl after spraying a nonstick spray inside. A great thing about this recipe is that everyone can choose the spices they’d like to have. Crack an egg and fill up your bowl. Top it with any spices you’d like to have. Cook for about 20 minutes.

31. Squash Curry With Cauliflower Rice

If you love cooking interesting breakfast recipes, this is one to try. Sautee onions in coconut oil. Add cut up squash and anything else you’d like to add. Sautee until tender and pour in coconut milk. Boil the mixture until it thickens. Using a cheese grater, grate cauliflower. Put your grated mixture into a covered bowl and microwave for a few minutes.

These breakfast recipes will keep you going for a month strong. When the month is over, start all over with these breakfast recipes again. If you can work in low carb toast or tortillas, more power to you.