The 411 on Wellness

How Chemistry Drives Behavior

Many people come to see me because they don’t feel well, they’re depressed or anxious.  Sometimes this is accompanied by physical symptoms, as well.  These clients tend to believe that the way they feel is their own fault, that they’re defective.  I’m here to tell you it’s not true! 

Chemistry drives behavior 100% of the time.

If your body’s chemistry is balanced, your behavior will be balanced.  Likewise, if something with the chemistry of your body is out of balance, some aspect of your behavior will be off balance.

Here’s an example:

You feel like you’re having a heart attack and you go to the emergency room.  They tell you there’s nothing wrong with your heart - it might be anxiety.  You’re alarmed by this because you are not anxious and you’ve never had a panic attack in your life.  What’s going on? 

You come to me, and I find that you have a lack of magnesium or not enough B vitamins, or that your hormones are changing, etc.  So what’s happened is your body’s chemistry has changed… maybe you are depleted in some nutrient.  I would simply give your body what’s missing, and you would feel better again.

So, it’s not really about you having panic or anxiety.

It’s about your body saying, “There’s something going on here, and this is what I’m feeling.” Your body’s symptoms are simply the language it speaks to get your attention. If you are willing to listen to your body objectively in this way, you can find ways to heal yourself while truly honoring yourself in the process.

Another example I could use is that your 12 year old can’t focus at school. Instead of rushing to put him on meds for ADD – you could maybe change his diet and even add a few brain nutrients such as fish oil and B vitamins.

So, it isn’t always about something being wrong with you or you being an emotional wreck.  It isn’t that there’s something wrong with your son because he can’t sit still and focus.  It’s often way beyond that.  That’s why I’m always looking for the root of the problem; if I can fix your chemistry, you can feel better, you can feel at peace, and you get to that state of health that you want to be in… that’s the take-home message here!

 

"After the holidays....."

I hear it in my practice all day long, and I am secretly guilty of this myself. What is “it” you ask?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is the line, “after the holidays”!

Just fill in the blank…I’ll go on a diet after the holidays. I’ll start exercising after the holidays. I’ll cleanse after the holidays. I’ll get organized after the holidays. And on it goes.

Why do we do this to ourselves? It seems illogical that simply because the date on the calendar says it is time for festivities, we just let ourselves go. Welcome to the human brain! We are such clever creatures that we are capable of rationalizing anything and everything.

Studying the brain is one of my favorite occupations, in fact I consider myself an expert at understanding what drives our thoughts and behaviors. It’s what I do, I help people balance out their brain chemistry so that their behavior is exactly that…balanced. But try as I might, I can’t overcome the procrastination and total abandon that happens this time of year!

This year I have a new strategy, want to hear it? Whenever someone comes in and tells me about how terribly they’ve been eating, or how they have quit exercising because there just isn’t time – I say “perfect, why don’t you start up after the holidays”. I am giving everyone, including myself, permission to indulge in life!

In the past, I strongly recommended to everyone that they should eat well all week and allow the indulgences just on weekends. I also wanted them to exercise even more to compensate for the richer foods. I harped on drinking water, taking their supplements, getting enough rest and even taking breaks from the chaos.

What was I thinking? The more I think about it, the more I realize I was out of line! Who am I to be sensible when the rest of the world is just trying to find a little happiness? So please, enjoy your holidays…in fact, I plan to enjoy with you :)