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| Living Wellness: The dark side of the sun |
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By Deborah Adams Summer is in full swing and those warm rays of sun are being soaked up by the many who feel sun-deprived most of the time in Basking in the warm glow of the sun can make us feel good in the short term, makes us look good too, but the cumulative effect of sun exposure puts us at a much higher risk of cellular damage, early wrinkling, age spots and skin cancer – including melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer. I know, you’ve heard all of this before, many times I’m sure. So why aren’t you taking it seriously? And if you are, congratulations, you’ll probably be able to buy a car with all the money you’ll save from skin care medical bills and anti-aging beauty treatments to try to repair all that sun damage as it catches up with you. Here’s the discouraging part: Sun damage is irreversible and gradually intensifies with continued exposure to the sun. And contrary to popular belief, UV rays from tanning beds are just as dangerous as those soaked up from the real sun itself. So why read another article about sun exposure? Because I am a 40-something past sun-worshipper that would bask in the sun for hours every day, starting the season slathering myself in baby oil to get that good “base burn” to kick off the sun-torching, skin-bronzing season, and now I have all those skin aging effects to show it. And I am in the business of beauty and wellness! All I can do now is educate people on the hazards of sun-worshiping and try to help them prevent the expense of trying to hide those wrinkles and damaged skin once it’s too late. People, women especially, spend a small fortune on facials, peels, microdermabrasion, Botox, even face lifts to help slow the appearance of aging on the skin. If we would have known 20 years ago that the golden color we were trying to gain would show its ugly self two decades later as sagging, old, damaged skin, we probably would have changed our sun bathing habits. More than 80% of the signs of skin aging in adults result from their tanning practices as teenagers. So those responsible for younger people need to start educating and taking care of their skin right now, as well as preventing future damage for yourself. Knowledge is power; it can teach us ways to prevent horrible things from happening to us if we take that knowledge seriously. Just like many diseases that are preventable such as lung cancer, heart disease, type-2 diabetes, sun damage and sun diseases are completely preventable with a little attention to skin care every day. Here’s your Skin 101 lesson (by the way, why don’t they teach us this in high school or earlier? Seems more useable than geometry). To keep it simple; there are two main layers of skin; the dermis is the lower or inner layer of cells that contain blood vessels, lymph vessels, hair follicles, sweat glands, and sebum, an oily substance that keeps the skin from drying out. The epidermis is the upper or outer layer of the two main layers of skin and is mainly made up of scale-like squamous cells, but it also contains melanocytes which produce melanin also responsible for giving our skin its color. When we wash our face or get a facial to slough off dry or dead skin layers, we are getting rid of a layer or two of the epidermis. Chemical peels or microdermabrasion treatments are more aggressive facial exfoliators and are usually done by a medical esthetician or medical doctor. Though these treatments can help get more layers of the epidermis off to reveal softer, smoother skin underneath, if done too often or too aggressively, they can actually harm the dermis layer which contains collagen, elastic fibers and extrafibrillar matrix. Caring for your dermis layer is going to be very important for a lifetime of healthy, young-looking skin before you have to try to “fix it” when you’re older – remember the effects of sun-damage to the skin is irreversible and sorry, but there is no such thing as a “safe” tan. Tanned skin may be revered as beautiful but that golden color you see is the result of injury to the epidermis, that top layer of skin. The more exposure to the sun, the faster you accelerate your skin’s aging process. The sun’s rays make our skin look old and wrinkled years before it should because over time, the sun’s ultraviolet light damages the elastin fibers of the skin in the dermis layer. When these fibers break down, the skin begins to sag, stretch, and lose the ability to go back into place after stretching. Too much sun also causes irregular coloring or pigmentation to the skin as well as permanent stretching of small blood vessels giving your skin a reddish appearance. What’s worse, the damage caused by the UV rays of the sun affects our deep dermis layer, but unlike the burn or color you see affecting the top epidermis layer, the harmful effects to the lower dermis layer does not show up for close to 20 years! The main cause of that sun damage is simply prolonged exposure to the sun and most damage is shown to occur during the first 18 years of our life – that’s why we start frantically searching for the most advanced anti-aging serums and creams in our late 30s and early 40s, we are finally seeing the effects of our sun-worshiping from years past. So what can you do right now to protect yourself while still enjoying a It’s best to apply a sunscreen to your face year round; make it part of your morning routine, just like brushing your teeth, that way you’ll never get caught out in the sun without protection. Even though you may have previous skin damage, taking steps now to prevent future damage will not only slow the aging process of your skin but prevent you from more serious effects like skin cancer. If you are a parent or in charge of watching over children, give them a fighting chance toward youthful, healthy skin by always applying a sunscreen on them before they go out to play in the summer sun. They might complain about it now, but they’ll be thanking you 20 years from now for teaching them the importance of keeping their skin sun-free and healthy. Eating for Wellness Aaahhhhh, summer, finally! Almonds May 2010: The power of yin By Deborah Adams Yin is mysterious and gentle, a quiet coolness as refreshing as wading in a clear blue stream. Yin is our female energy. Yin is earth and all the nurturing birthing potential it promises each spring. Pay tribute to your Yin self, whether you are a man or a woman. In the early 20th century Dr. Sigmund Freud pointed out that women had “penis envy” issues and everything remained in the power of the man.  Throughout history, men have made the front page of sporting magazines, science journals and the New York Times multitudes of times more than women, while women are left to remain as Aphrodites to be viewed in scantily dressed fabrics, airbrushed to perfection on the covers of magazines touting the latest fad diet. Sex sells when promoting a product or business, there is no denying that. But if we step back from all of that for a moment and look into the base of the female energy known as Yin, you will see there is much more than beauty and sex appeal. Take our earth for example; it fills us with nourishment from delicious fruit-bearing trees, crops shooting out of the soil to feed our body, a variety of flowers, scrubs and grasses that feed our soul. Lying below the shade of a large leafy tree, feeling the coolness of the ground below us, listening to the sound of the waves in the vast water on this planet, these are all powers and pleasures that the earth gives us freely, whether we appreciate it or not, she offers it graciously for our benefit and enjoyment, not asking anything in return. Just like mom. Mothers bear children through all sorts of difficulties and hardships. Childbirth itself is a pain that most men will fully admit they do not need to experience for themselves, especially if they’ve seen it firsthand. Some women endure hours, even days, of labor and horrific pain simply bringing that special new being onto this earth. But as many women will agree, that pain is minimal to the pain a mother endures raising those children, nurturing them with trust and compassion, rules and guidelines, constant forgiveness and forever love. A mother’s love never runs dry, just like mother earth. Yes, there are times of drought, times when the earth swallows its own self through violent earthquakes or erupting with angry volcanoes, letting us know she has had enough, just as any mother has lost her cool when her teenager has tempted the fates one too many times. But just as the earth composes herself back to a constant loving mother, so does our mother, returning to a source of nurturing and life-giving energy. There are plenty of adults (still their mother’s child) who haven’t talked with their mother in years because of past experiences they cannot forgive. I understand why people are angry, why they feel they cannot forgive, but that is their strong Yang energy standing up for itself, not balancing their own self with the Yin of forgiveness and compassion. Recently my oldest daughter, now a teenager, gave me the “I hate you” look (one every mother has surely seen). Though it was a painful thing to receive, especially when you pour your heart and soul into the development of your children, I realized the sadness I felt was not simply from my daughter, but rather that I made my mom feel the very same way when I was a teenager. When my first daughter was born, I finally realized how much my own mom loved me. I don’t know if we realize how much our mother’s love us until we have a child of our own and feel that same unique bond of love. I cannot help but see how much my mother had to endure with my childhood, how much pain she must have felt, how much she had to stand back and watch so I could make my own mistakes, how many times she had to turn away rather than run to my rescue to ensure I would be self-sufficient as an adult someday. Yin energy in perfect working order. Listening to stories of mothers who have lost their children to terminal illness, the effects of war, the stupidity of a drunken driver – there is a part of that mother that will never be repaired, never be completely whole again. A mother and child will always, whether they get along or not, be connected. Their energies were one and will always remain that way. That is why a child or parent know the second the other dies, they can feel it in their soul. Life is short and time is precious. Use your time wisely. If you have not spoken to your mother in years, be the one to make the step toward forgiveness. If you see your mother daily, do not take that for granted. Your mother gave you “the gift of life.” She nurtured and cared for you best she could, best she knew how. This mother’s day, give your mother grace, forgiveness, compassion and anything else you may have been holding back. Treasure her as she deserves. A mother simply wants to feel the love they feel for their own children returned back to them. Love your mother, the Yin in your life that helps complete you, whether she is still with you physically on earth or whether her spirit is still with you after she is gone. Take time to honor her. It will free your heart and give you a sense of completeness and wholeness. My daughters reminded me how valuable my mother is to me. Find what motivates you to send gratitude and blessing to your mom and thank her for sharing her power of Yin with you. April 2010: Clear the monkeys from your brain
By Deborah Adams So many past memories, so many plans for the future; our mind never has the opportunity to spend time in the present moment, the here and now. What are you thinking right now? Yes, you are reading this, but your mind is likely still thinking about something else at the same time. Our mind is an amazing creature, capable of holding so much information, so many files to sort through, so much downloaded onto our internal hard drive. Our mind can recall memories from decades past, down to the minute detail as to what you were wearing, what you could see, smell and the emotion you felt along with it.  Our mind loves to dwell on our mistakes, our shortcomings, our “what if I would have…” and it continues replaying and reminding us of our past, a past we cannot change, no matter how many times we repeat it in our thoughts. This behavior keeps people awake for hours on end, usually in the wee hours of the morning, affecting sleep, disrupting our health and interrupting our lives.
Our mind can plan a vacation, plan a wedding, plan for school, plan for a new home, dream car, dream date…it loves to think about what might be, what could be. The mind can think and think and think, in fact, sometimes it doesn’t want to stop thinking. It thinks about “when I lose weight,” “when I get that new house… new job… get married…retire…” the “it will be better when” syndrome. What about if you are struggling in this economy, interrupting your life with constant worry and fear of what lies ahead, stressing where you will get enough money to pay your next mortgage payment or even have enough to fill your gas tank for the week. Though there is nothing wrong with a good day dream or planning some goals for your future, worrying about your future, especially if you feel like you are in a ‘survival mode’ can cause some very serious health problems. In fact, the American Psychological Association reveals that 43% of U.S. adults suffer adverse health effects from stress and worry. Stress affects our immune system making us much more vulnerable to illnesses, it puts us at an increased risk of allergies, heart disease, can be a trigger for diabetes and accelerate aging and aging side effects such as osteoporosis, mental decline, even Alzheimer’s disease. People of all ages are suffering from too much living in the past and too much worrying about the future and as a side-effect are using a multitude of medicines and drugs to help them break free of this chronic stressful place that the mind lives. But instead of turning to prescription drugs (or illegal ones for that matter), do something for yourself to keep you in the present moment, the here and now. The Chinese label this chaotic mind busyness or craziness as “monkey brain” and have specific martial art and Tai Chi exercises to clear out the monkeys in your mind – you know, those crazy mammals that clutter up your head so you can’t listen to current conversations or can’t sleep at night because the “monkeys” are loose and on the run, thrashing around in your head, driving you crazy. The Chinese, and many other cultures, have produced certain exercises, repeated meditation mantras, and focused guided imagery to clear the monkeys out of your mind, making you spend time in the present moment. In fact, getting yourself to be right here, right now can be a creatively empowering time in your life, a time when new ideas surface and a time when you can produce solutions to problems easily and clearly. Living life in the present moment can be life changing. Ninety percent of all visits to primary care physicians are for stress-related complaints. Disabling stress has doubled over the last six years as well as depression doubling with every generation since the 1920s. On average, one million people in the U.S. are absent from work due to stress-related disorders, yet just a decade ago, only a handful of people were proactively working on their self-preservation and wellness, especially when it came to specific mind de-cluttering exercises. Luckily, people today are becoming quickly aware of the healing health benefits of Tai Chi, yoga and/or massage for relaxation, and now about 45% of Americans use some form of stress management techniques on a regular basis. If you are ready to get the monkeys out of your head and start thinking clearly, find a stress management program that not only incorporates your body, but also makes you focus all of your attention on the present moment. Keep your mind out of the past and the future and focus your attention on what is happening right now. The reason Tai Chi or Qigong works so well for clearing “monkey brain” is because it gives you specific movements to do while you are calmly moving and breathing, giving your mind something to focus on so it does not wander back to the past or start to worry about what will happen next. It takes your body out of the stress response state and puts you into a natural healing mode. Harvard has named Tai Chi “medication in motion” due to the amazing results people are seeing and feeling in their overall health. Like to try it for yourself? Many martial arts schools or YMCA’s offer Tai Chi, or try it Free at The Wellness Spa in Stevens Point every Tuesday from 5:30-6:30 p.m. – free and open to the public, no experience needed. |
