anxiety

Leave a comment Posted on February 4, 2016February 4, 2016 Insomnia

Over three quarters of us experience problems sleeping – Read our interview with sleep expert Sammy Margo for some great tips

Sammy Mango

We’ve all heard the theories of what can help and hinder you having a good night’s sleep, but how much of what we all believe is fact and how much is fiction?

A new survey released today put a number of truths and untruths around sleep to respondents to see how clued up the public is about sleep:

Only 12% believe the theory that eating cheese before bed gives you nightmares – Certain cheeses do give you nightmares, Stilton cheese for example has proved to give people vivid dreams

One in seven think going to the gym in the evening helps you sleep – This is a myth, as the body will be overheated meaning people would have trouble going to sleep. Going to the gym during the day though would definitely help you have a better quality night’s sleep

One in seven believe you can catch up on sleep at weekends – This is a myth, the only way people can catch up on their sleep is by having early nights

One in eight believe watching TV helps you sleep – Yes and no. It can help you sleep and relax you, though the blue light can disrupt somebody’s sleep

One in ten believe drinking alcohol will give you a better night’s sleep – Drinking alcohol will help you sleep but it will prevent you from having a good quality night sleep

Almost 60% believe caffeine keeps you awake – yes it does keep you awake, but it also differs from person to person. People are advised to not drink it after 11pm

Almost a quarter of people believe everyone needs eight hours of sleep a night – This varies from person to person, the average amount of sleep is between 6-8 hours

In fact, the research by Intel saw almost 30% say they need more than eight hours sleep, while almost a quarter say they need less than seven hours.

The survey also saw over 80% say they have experienced sleep problems, with one in five saying it is an ongoing problem. Over a third of Brits (38.8%) are also saying that they believe their bad sleep quality and duration are factors affecting their health.

When it comes to what people believe are the best ways to get a good night’s sleep, regular exercise, a warm bath, a healthy diet, listening to relaxing music and avoiding technology topped the list – but do all these methods work?

Sleep expert Sammy Margo (Author of the Good Sleep Guides for adults and children, and qualified chartered physiotherapist) talks us through sleep fact and fiction and reveals the nation’s 2016 surprising resolutions.

Patient Talk – So what constitutes a good night sleep for a child and adult?

Sammy Margo- A good night sleep for a child an adult is fundamental and important for your general health and wellbeing. A goodnight sleep is all about a blend of quality and quantity sleep. And some recent research carried out by intel using 2000 respondents looked at understanding what is considered to be a good night’s sleep. And many people believe that a good night’s sleep is somewhere in the region of 8 hours sleep. But in fact that’s not quite true, this varies from person to person. The average amount of sleep is between 6-8 hours but the reality is that it’s very personal, so, if I say to you “how do you feel when you wake up in the morning?” and you feel fabulous and you’ve only had 4 hours of sleep that suits you, however if I say to you “how do you feel in the morning?” and you’ve actually only had 8 hours of sleep and you feel rubbish it may be that you’re not getting the quality and quantity sleep that you need.

Patient Talk – What are the benefits of a good night’s sleep both in terms of health and wellbeing?

Margo – The benefits of a good night’s sleep both in terms of health and wellbeing range from the fact that you feel great, you look good, you perform well at work, you’ve got a good memory, you’re sharp, you’re happening. Your weight is well under control, it can be because the hormones are affected, your sleep hormones affect your weight. Generally over rule your life is a better place to be. We also know that there is a strong correlation and there’s a huge amount of research around depression and insomnia or insomnia and depression, we’re not sure which comes first, the chicken or the egg but we know that there is a strong correlation between the two.

Patient Talk – What problems may arise from a poor night’s sleep?

Margo – A poor night’s sleep may well mean that you can’t concentrate, you’re irritable, you don’t feel great, you feel edgy. But over a long period of time these may well result in more severe consequences. And bearing in mind that we spend 1/3 of our lives asleep and 2/3 of us are struggling to get a good night’s sleep, and there are many health conditions associated with this we really need to take sleep very seriously.

Patient Talk – What are the main causes of a poor night’s sleep?

Margo – the main causes of a poor night’s sleep are often related to anxieties, concerns, worries, that’s the mental side of things. But also may be due to poor sleep hygiene, such as not having a bedtime routine, not sleeping in a decent bed, with a pillow not being in a good position, being uncomfortable, aches and pains, and other medical conditions or snoring. There are so many causes of a poor night’s sleep and these really need to be addressed.

Patient Talk – How should a person prepare for a good night’s sleep?

Margo – As a sleep expert one of the most important things that I encourage is setting yourself aside time for a bedtime routine. Many of us are so busy leading 24/7 lifestyles we’re sedentary, were mentally overactive and physically underactive, so definitely setting aside time for a bedtime routine which includes a hot drink, a warm bath, listening to some audio be it on the radio or audio book, and then dimming the lights and going to sleep. That really is how to prepare for a good night’s sleep. However, for some people buying these activity and sleep tracking devices such as the basis peak (?) can help you understand your statistics for your daytime and night time. And by using one of these devices this will actually allow you to accumulate data so that you can then move on to impacting on different aspects of your life. So for example if you’re a coffee drinker and you reduce the amount of caffeine that you’re drinking and you check in with your basis peak you may well understand that caffeine impacts your sleep in a major way and you can do something to change it. So anything that you can measure, any data that you can measure and correlate you can then have an impact on and it’s a really useful tool to use.

Patient Talk – What’s your views on napping during the day?

Margo – I’m a big fan of napping during the day. And this is something that’s culturally done in Spain and in Japan. However, what I will say is this is a bit of a tricky one when you’re a busy working person, it’s virtually impossible. And the way our culture works, although I have to say it’s changing, is that were not geared up to nap during the day. I am a big fan, so if you’re planning on napping, nap between 12 and 2, um somewhere in the region of 30 min to an hour is absolutely fine for a nap. Try not to nap too close to your bedtime because that may well disrupt your night’s sleep and you need to do it on a regular basis in a regular position so I’m a huge fan, there’s lots of different styles of naps and think about doing it but obviously for those you who are working it’s very difficult to nap.

Patient Talk – What myths are there about sleep that you would like to see, so to speak, put to bed?

Margo – There are certain myths that I need to put to bed and I’m going to read them to you, and this is based on research that’s been carried out by intel, so this research found that only 12% believe the theory that eating cheese before bed gives you nightmares. But in fact certain cheeses do give you nightmares, stilton cheese for example has been proven to give people vivid dreams. And this research carried out by intel, says that 1 in 7 people think that going to the gym in the evening helps get you to sleep but this is a myth as the body will be overheated meaning that people would have trouble going to sleep. Going to the gym during the day though would definitely help you have a better quality night’s sleep. And 1 in 7 people believe that you can catch up on sleep on the weekends but this is a myth, the only way people can catch up on sleep is by having early nights. 1 in 8 believe watching tv helps you sleep, yes and no, it can help you sleep and relax you, though the blue light can disrupt somebody’s sleep. 1 in 10 believe drinking alcohol will give you a better night’s sleep, drinking alcohol will in fact help you sleep but it will prevent you from getting into the deep quality, the deeper stages of sleep. And almost 60 % believe that caffeine keeps you awake. Yes it does, it does keep you awake, but it also differs from person to person, people are advised not to drink after 11 am. And almost ¼ of people believe that everyone needs 8 hours of sleep. This varies from person to person, the average amount of sleep is between 6-8 hours. These are some of the myths that we’ve had to shatter based on the research of 2000 respondents carried out by intel.

Leave a comment Posted on February 1, 2016March 7, 2017 ADHD, Autism

Improving Social Skills: How to Raise a Socially Intelligent Child

How well your children use social skills, determines how well they function in society. Raising social intelligence lets kids interact with friends, family, and teachers. By knowing how to communicate and behave around others, they can connect with people. And all kids deserve the same chance at achieving social happiness. Kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Down syndrome, Social Anxiety, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), just need a little bit more patience.

Teach your kids to treat others, the same way they would want others to treat them. When kids adopt positive social values, people will feel good around them. To achieve this, be smart about how you teach your kids to be social intelligent.

Improving Social Skills: How to Raise a Socially Intelligent Child

During childhood, kids look to parents for guidance. But, what kids never tell you is they also observe your every action, and learn from it. How you conduct yourself in everyday situations can influence your child’s social intelligence. Teaching kids social skills can be as simple as being well-mannered yourself. By being exposed to this, kids will reflect your character traits as their own. They will become thoughtful, respectful, and polite to others. It is also important to express those values when interacting with your child. This is especially true for kids suffering from autism and social anxiety. By exposing them to constructive behavior, kids will learn to overcome personal setbacks with positive social values.

Play to Learn

Improving Social Skills: How to Raise a Socially Intelligent Child

Play games to help your kids develop complex social skills. This can be a great informal learning method, which can benefit kids’ with ADD. A familiar activity can help with abstract notions of personal space, and non-verbal communication. Role playing is a great way of teaching kids how to act in various situations. They will become socially polite, and learn how to read body language. Create cue cards, to help kids learn how to read facial expressions through reenactment. While kids with autism and social phobia can practice maintaining eye-contact with a simple staring game.

Communication

How well you communicate with your child, reflects how well they interact with others. Use positive reinforcement, to encourage kids to engage in conversation. This reflects your affection and interest, teaching them to be comfortable when expressing ideas. You should also listen to your kids when they talk. Knowing to contribute to a conversation, will create an air of confidence around them. But, they need to listen as well. This can be hard for children with Down syndrome and ADD. So, let them initiate the conversation, and then speak your mind to keep their focus. When addressing bad behavior, always use assertiveness to convey your point. Assertive communication will divert their actions from bad to good, without bruising their self-confidence. And when they learn to use it, they will be able to successfully manage conflict situations.

Throw a Party

Parties play a significant role in rewarding children’s milestone achievements.

Autism

But, they also provide the perfect opportunity for improving social skills. Children have a chance to practice what they have learned, while having fun with friends. Parties are also the perfect place to meet people, and create new friendships. With everyone celebrating your child, parties can also boost their self-confidence in public appearances. Thus, parties can have a positive effect on children suffering from autism, depression, and social anxiety. Arrange a costumed superhero party as a way of overcoming psychological barriers. By adopting the role of their favorite superhero, socially impaired kids can neutralize differences, and defeat their fears.

Take a Step Back

Taking a step back may be hard, but sometimes it is the only way your children can learn. Letting kids experience social interaction first hand allows them to discover how things work. They will rely on themselves to experiment, refine, and implement the skills they gained. It will be a chance to build their self-image, and find ways to connect with people. They will learn to overcome the fear of rejection, and to cope with setbacks. A thicker skin will let them search for social acceptance, and affection they receive from you. And when they realize their full potential, kids can achieve social happiness.

In learning to accept themselves, they can overcome any personal difficulty. Using social skills intelligently, will allow them to find people who appreciate them. In doing so, they can achieve love, happiness, and friendship throughout their life.

About author:

Tracey Clayton is a full time mom of three girls. She loves cooking, baking, sewing, spending quality time with her daughters and she’s passionate for writing. Her motto is: “Live the life you love, love the life you live.”

Leave a comment Posted on December 10, 2015December 8, 2015 Weight Loss

How Regular Exercise Helps Lose Weight

Regular activity is very vital for good health and is especially much important if one is trying to cut off excess weight or to maintain a healthy lifestyle and healthy weight levels. More body activities are needed when one intents to loose weight. The reason behind this is that physical activities increase the amount of calories your body uses for energy. The burning of calories through physical activities together with reduced amounts of calories intake creates caloric deficit that results in weight loss.

Accelerates Burning of Calories

Fitness and Weight Loss

According to latest weight loss news & tips most of the weight loss occurs due to reduced caloric intake. However, evidence shows that the only way to lose drastically is to get engaged in regular physical activities. Regular physical activities can also reduce the risk of cardiovascular and diabetes apart from weight loss. Physical activities also help reduce high blood pressure, minimizes chances of contacting type 2 diabetes, heart attack and several forms of cancer. They also reduce the risk of arthritis, pain and associated disability, reduce the risk of osteoporosis and also minimize symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Weight loss activity has for a long time been confused with a pack of myths that have no scientific proofs behind them. However, there a few tips that are mainly based from scientific findings by some of the world’s most qualified scientists and have been rated with positive implications towards weight loss approaches. This is a high time to dawn light broadly to everyone that regular exercises works out perfectly with the combination of the following latest weight loss tips. Here are some of the latest lifestyle news and tips for weight loss that are worth trying:

Drink much water prior to mealtime

This is an open truth and for real drinking water before meals works out perfect to enhance weight loss. One boosts metabolism by 24 to 30% over a period of 1 to 1.5hours by drinking water. This helps in burning excess calories. Drinking water about half an hour before meals helps dieters eat fewer calories and loose approximately 44% more weight.

Consume protein-rich breakfast

Apart from nutritional benefits that one gets by eating eggs, it also helps him/her lose weight. Numerous studies have found that replacing a grain-based breakfast with eggs help you eat fewer calories for the next few hours. You will also feel satisfied for the better part of the day before main meals. Won’t this prevent you from reaching out to unhealthy snacks? This helps one lose more weight and body fat. If at all you can’t eat eggs at all, any source of quality protein for breakfast can tickle out the trick.

Make black coffee your favorite beverage

Coffee has been unfairly demonized over years and for real quality coffee is loaded with antioxidants that that contains lots of health benefits. Research shows caffeine in coffee can boost metabolism by 4-10% and thus increase fat burning up from 15-30%. However, it is recommendable to avoid using too much sugar because it is rich in calories which can completely negate all the benefits you may expect from the coffee. In addition, taking green tea also works out in a similar way as coffee since it contains some fractions of caffeine that works in synergistic ways to enhance the burning of excess fats. It can be taken either as a beverage or green tea extract supplement.

Use coconut oil in all your meals

Coconut oil is very healthy and its high in special fats called medium chain triglycerides which are metabolized differently than other fats. One should replace his/her current cooking oil with coconut oil and this will boost metabolism by 120 calories per day, reduce appetite to the extent that you start eating 25% fewer calories per day.

Take supplements

In reference to online publications of the latest lifestyle news and tips, supplementing has always been an option for those who can’t have access to balanced diets that are rich in minerals and essential nutrients. There are many supplements that are rich in fiber, which helps to absorb water and sits in the gut for long hours, making you feel fuller and helping you eat fewer calories.

Additional Tips

In addition to the above factors, one should also cut on added sugar, eat less refined carbs by switching to a low carb diet, exercise portion control or count calories, keep health food around in case he/she gets hungry and above all, use smaller plates that makes you get used to eating small amounts of food. This will ensure that you are burning more calories than you eat.

Conclusion

Excess weight comes about as a result of poor eating habits that result in excess calories. No one enjoys it when he/she is reading overweight. This makes him or her uncomfortable and this limits the social life that one lives. Therefore, for comfort, regular exercises and better eating habits help one to live a healthy and happy life.

References

https://www.consumerhealthdigest.com/fitness/

https://www.glozine.com/lifestyle/health

2 Comments Posted on November 26, 2015March 8, 2017 Autism

Selective mutism – find out more and share your story

As many of my readers will know by now I am the father of a nine year old boy with classic autism. Our ASD journey has opened my eyes to a number of different but , in some ways , related conditions of behaviours. From example last week we looked at Fragile X Syndrome. Today I would like to focus on Selective Mutism.

Affecting about 1 in 150 children Selective mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder that stops children speaking in certain situations, for example when they are in school or out and about in public.

But they are able to speak to family and their friends when nobody else is listening. So for some children on the autism spectrum Selective Mutism can be a symptom.

As the UK’s NHS say “the child is not voluntarily refusing to speak but is literally unable to speak, feeling frozen. In time, they learn to anticipate the situations that provoke mutism and do all they can to avoid them.”

As with autism many children learn to cope and overcome a lot of the problems created for them by SM. However they will often be more reserved than their peers.

To help raise awareness of Selective Mutism we are sharing this great infographic produced by Kathryn Harper. You can read here blog post on SM here. Harper’s blog is one of the best sources of information on SM and is very well worth a read. That being said if you know of any good links please do share in the comments box below.

It would be great if you could use the comment box to share your Selective Mutism story. Anything you have to say is of great interest but you might want to focus on the following questions:-

a) Is it you or a family member with SM?
b) At what age did SM appear?
c) What therapies were employed and how well did they work?
d) What was the long term impact of Selective Mutism?
e) What advice would you give to a family where they has just been a diagnosis of Selective Mutism.

Thanks very much in advance for your help.

Selective mutism infographic

4 Comments Posted on November 11, 2015February 5, 2017 Pain Management

Migraine and Anxiety Treatments – Are Daith Piercings an effective treatment for both? What do you think? Take our poll!

Now Updated

Are Daith piercings an effective treatment for migraines and anxiety?

Daith Piercing

If you had asked me this question 24 hours ago I would look at you in a dazed and confused fashion.

But the subject has been brought up twice yesterday in two of the Facebook pages we run. On one page Kim asked “Has anyone tried a daith piercing for migraines? Has it helped?”

It turns out that a Daith piercing is getting your ear pierced through the ear’s innermost cartilage fold also called the crus of the helix. You know the bobbly bit.

Anyhow it seems that some people are claiming it as a treatment for migraines. You can read an article which was posted on one of our pages here.

In fact you can see a picture of a Daith Piercing via the link.

Anyhow it does seem to me to be a bit of a far fetched claim. It also occurred on the best people to ask were you. You know the wisdom of crowds and all that!

So I’ve set up a quick poll to find out. so please feel free to take part even if you have not had the piercing.

If you would like to share your experiences of getting a Daith Piercing please feel free to use the comments section below.