Do You Sabotage Your Health?

by Glen Depke

Think about it, with the Internet, there is no shortage of information available. Most people understand on some level what they need to be healthy. We often know what to do, so why can't we achieve the health and happiness we desire. The answer more often than not is your saboteur.

You know the saboteur. This is the part of you that tells you to smoke a cigarette when you they can kill you. Tells you to over consume junk food when you know it is nutritionally void. Tells you to watch TV when you know you should be exercising. Tells you stay up late when you know you need a good night's sleep. Tells you to blow money on something you do not need, when bills are piling up. Tells you to lash out at your spouse when they have not done anything wrong. Tells you to eat gluten when you know it creates issues for you. By now, I think you get the picture.

Well here's my take on this as I see it with my clients over the years. 

I look at saboteur as a part of you but not you. We could compare this to a parasite. A parasite can be inside of your body but it really is not a part of you. It is simply living within you, feeding on you and using you as a host while damaging you at the same time. Think about it. Your own personal saboteur is doing he same thing. It is living within you, feeding on your mind, and using you while damaging you at the same time.

So how do we become infected by this saboteur? I believe this infection starts with our domestication. For those that have not heard me talk about domestication in the past, look at it this way. We are all born wild human beings. From here we are domesticated on every level. We are taught what to say, how to say it, how to react, how to interact, what languages to speak, what religions to follow and the list goes on. 

So who do we learn this from? Well actually we learn this from every single person we come in contact with. Each teaching us their own interpretation of the rules of life, the domestication, and often the infection. The most significant influences on teaching us this saboteur is our primary care givers, which is most often our parents.

While I know that our parents have the best intentions, but they are only teaching us the very domestications that they were taught themselves. They are just passing along the patterns of sabotage they plague themselves. Understand also that what we learn from the time of conception until about 5-7 years old, becomes a part of what I consider the old brain. This aspect of self forms the patterns that we live our lives by. Do you ever wonder why we consistently make the same mistakes? You would think we learn from our past mistakes but we often keep making the same mistakes over and over again. 

Don't be too hard on yourself though. We are all trying to muddle through the same challenges. The biggest difference is that some of us are aware of this while most are simply ignorant to these domestications. It is often hard to see what is challenging you when you are living in the midst of it.

Well, if you at least have awareness of the saboteur, you are at least at the first step. If you were not aware in the past, I would hope that you are aware at this point in this article. So not that you are aware what can you do?

The first action to take is to stay present. Break down your life into the only moments that truly exist. This would be right now. The past is over and the future is not here yet. Be in this moment! When we are not in the moment we are typically agonizing over the past or portraying our past trauma into our future. Sounds like tons of fun right? So much fun, most of us live in these states most of the time. It is time to be in the moment!

Once you can be in the moment, the next action step is to chose what is empowering to you and those around you. Do this in your moments. As you are making choices throughout your day ask yourself this simple question all the time. Is this choice empowering me and those around me or is this disempowering? If it is disempowering your option is very simple. Chose something else! But of course be sure your next choice is empowering.

From here it is important to allow others around you to "be". To explain this let me give you an example. Let's say that your spouse is having a bad day and you feel that he/she is taking it out on you. From here you would typically take it personally and feel the need to attack back. It would be much easier to understand that your spouse is simply dealing with a tough time and allow him/her to be with their issue. Taking it personally can be so damaging to us. Stop taking everything so personally! Allowing others to "be" is so healing for us and for them.

To put this all together, let's look at an example. Let's say that an area that you typically sabotage is by eating junk food when you know it is damaging you. You find yourself at a party and it seems that all the have available is junk food and alcohol. Remember to first be in the moment. You do not have to make a choice based on what you have done in the past. Recognize that it is not your problem that the host decided to only offer poor quality food and alcohol to you. You can let this continue to be the problem of the host and not yours. Then ask yourself the question, is eating the junk food and having a cocktail empowering or disempowering? From here, I would simply recognize that whatever you chose is perfect. 

If you chose the junk food and alcohol, don't beat yourself up with guilt and negativity. This simply feeds the saboteur, feeds the infection. Know that you can chose differently next time.

On the other side of this equation, let's say that you chose to ask for a glass of ice water with lemon and you found some nuts and cheese to snack on. The host or others at the party might give you a hard time for not indulging but remember, you are not allowing their problems to be yours.

Follow these simple steps and watch your saboteur dissolve before your very eyes. Watch your "perfect" shift and change. Witness yourself living the life of health and happiness. The life of your dreams!

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this article, leave a post below and I will answer this personally.

Resentment...the Silent Cancer

by Dawn Depke

*within this article, all examples are about and for the average person, not someone who is abusive, that has a chemical imbalance or a diagnosed mental/emotional issue.

Have you ever wondered to yourself, “Why isn’t my relationship the way it was in the beginning?” (So loving and amazing, you saw the best in your partner and they saw the best in you.)  Have you ever found yourself not as happy now as in the beginning of your relationship and you wonder “what happened to us”? 

Do you want to know a secret?

Relationships teach us many things about ourselves, especially if we are open to learning.  Relationships are our greatest teacher and gift.  So in the case that our relationships deteriorate over time is due to resentment that builds and grows and becomes a “silent cancer” destroying a once healthy, loving relationship. 

Resentment is birthed because of personal perception.   Perception changes the minute someone “hurts us”.  That person is the same person they were 5 minutes ago, you just look at them differently now.  When you perceive what they did or said was “wrong, bad, hurtful, inconsiderate or mean, your perception of that person automatically changes.  Then resentment is created.  Resentment is created when we take something personally that someone said or did to us.  Or in other words, resentment is created when our perception of what someone said or did hurt us.

Now to stretch you even further, imagine that no one can actually hurt you.  No one can make you feel sad, mad or glad.  Have you ever had two people tell you the same thing and one made you mad, but the other you took as constructive criticism?  They told you the same thing, but your perception was different based on how you feel about the person and what they have done and not done to you in the past.

If you find yourself saying things like, “He makes me so mad!!!!” I challenge you to look at yourself.  First look at what actually happened.  Then feel what emotion ignited within you and what you are “so mad” about.  Look at what they said or did and ask yourself, “did they really do this (say this) to make me mad?” and usually your answer will be “no”. 

An example that happened to me this weekend was when my husband and I went to a social event and he got in line for drinks for us because I had our dog with me and the dog was not allowed to enter.  He asked me if I wanted to go first and I said no.  He came back without anything for me. I got upset because he has never done that before.  My perception was that he was being selfish and inconsiderate.  I thought it was weird that he only “took care of himself” and that is not like him.   So as I thought about what this was bringing up for me, I realized that I made his actions mean that he didn’t care about me.  When I could separate what happened from what I was feeling, I could see that he was not being selfish nor inconsiderate, that he didn’t do it to hurt me.  My perception was not true, and when I broke it down, I realized that it was just a miscommunication and that he does love me. 

Silly, right?  Well we do it all of the time, but as long as we can separate what happened from how we are feeling, and then ask ourselves why we are really feeling that way, getting to the core of our own issue and realizing our perception about the other person is really about something within us, perhaps insecurity.  Reminding ourselves when these feelings arise within us, it is not about them, it is about ourselves.  We can only feel something that is inside of us.  Again, no one can make us feel a certain way.

To help you understand this further here is an example.  No one can feel jealous unless they have some amount of insecurity.  Jealousy attaches to insecurity.  If someone is secure they will never experience jealousy. 

So my challenge for you this week is to look at the relationships in your life that “push your buttons” and get to the core of what is going on inside of you that allows those buttons to be pushed and see if you can begin to look at that person in a different light or perception and see your world change in an instant.

If you have any questions or comments about this article, please leave this below for Dawn to address personally.

OMG...was that Migraine Intense!

by Glen Depke

Last night I recognized that I had a headache as I went to bed but felt assured that I would go to bed and wake up just fine. Not so...

I woke up about 2 hours later with intense pain that was almost unbearable. Regardless of what I tried, the pain did not subside and seemed to even intensify. It was so bad that I got dressed and got in my car to drive to the our office to sit in the massage chair. My hope was that the massage chair would help work this out. I honestly was not expecting to recognize that it was also agonizing to drive. The lights, the movement and just dealing with the pain was so intense that it made a 7 minute ride seem like it took an hour.

FYI, this was also about 12:30AM at this point.

I made it to the office and my body needed to immediately evacuate the bowels which was very unusual for this time in the morning. I got in the massage chair, which I generally love the intensity but in this moment it felt like it was killing me. After just a few minutes in the chair, I was back in the restroom again to vomit. It was like my body was evacuating everything it could to use all the possible energy to deal with this migraine.

Well, to make my long story short, after 2 hours in the massage chair constantly adjusting the settings to find whatever comfort I could, I finally felt that I could make it back home. Fortunately by my being at the office, I was also able to take 4 teaspoons of a supplement called Nitric Balance that has an immediate impact on increasing blood flow to the brain.

Between the evacuation of waste by my body, 2 hours of massage and the Nitric Balance, I finally had to confidence to get back in my car and make it back to bed for some rest.

Wow, was that intense! I have another appreciation for my clients that share their migraine experiences.

So why did this happen?

As I always share with my clients, it is generally never one thing. Typically a combination of multiple challenges. With recent home and office moves, and maybe burning the candle at both ends and at the middle lately, I have put my body in a compromise position. I also ignored the feeling of a need to be adjusted by a chiropractor that I was feeling last week. I also have not been taking care of any build up of tension in my upper back and neck as I usually do with massage. Basically, I set myself up for the migraine and yes...I learned my lesson.

Thankfully I was able to get in with one of my friends today that is a Chiropractor to address what I knew I needed last week. Thank you Dr. Brad Miller!

I also cancelled all my appointments today to honor my body's need for rest and I will commit to maintaining regular massage to work out the tension in my upper back and neck. I would be very happy to never experience this again and will do everything within my power to take responsibility for this and make the changes I need to make.

So what can we learn about migraines?

First of all let's recognize that a migraine is a type of recurrent, throbbing, vascular headache. They are characterized by changes (constriction followed by dilation) in the cerebral blood vessels.

Migraines affect about 10% of the population - 17% of women and 5% of men. The largest suspect group are between the ages of 25 and 44. There is also a very strong genetic element in the likelihood of an individual experiencing migraines. I am not so sure how much of this is truly genetic vs. learned behaviors. This may be a subject of another day. Lastly the typical migraine attach, yes it feels like and attack, will last for anywhere from 1 to 72 hours and generally occurs approximately once per month.

I wanted to list some substances that may assist in alleviating or prevent migraines:

• 5-HTP
• SAM
• Tryptophan
• Melatonin
• Progesterone
• GLA
• Omega 3 fatty acids
• ALA
• EPA
• Calcium
• Lithium
• Magnesium
• Serotonin
• MSM
• Vitamin B2
• Vitamin B3
• Vitamin B6
• Vitamin D3
• Feverfew
• Ginger
• Ginkgo biloba
• Lavender oil
• Fish oil

 Here is a list of substances that can cause or exacerbate migraines:

• Caffeine
• Tyramine
• Tyrosine
• Arachidonic acid
• Copper
• Alcohol
• Coffee
• Cocoa
• Cheese
• Dairy products
• Gluten
• Aspartame
• MSG
• Sodium nitrate
• Citrus fruits
• Conventional bacon
• Chocolate
• Ham
• Onions

Other factors that can trigger migraines:

• Excessive consumption of fried foods
• Fasting
• Allergies
• Inflammation
• Fatigue
• Major Depression
• Stress
• Dehydration

With this information you can possibly address this with your health care practitioner. If you would like my assistance with migraines, feel free to call me directly at 949.954.6226.

As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave these below.

Is Inflammation Really at the Core of Everything?

by Glen Depke

Inflammation is the buzz word these days. It does not matter what direction you turn, it seems that everyone is saying that inflammation is the core of everything.

Let's look at this a bit deeper.

Saying that inflammation is the problem is like saying cholesterol causes heart attacks. Another subject in itself.

First it is important to recognize the inflammation is a natural part of the healing process. When the need presents itself you truly want inflammation to assist in this process. The challenge though, is when the inflammation is no longer an acute reaction and this becomes chronic. This is when inflammation becomes a challenge. The chronic inflammation can lead to an autoimmune reaction in your body and eventually lead to tissue destruction. Yes, that means your body attacks itself. Sound like this comes out of a science fiction thriller.The invasion of the inflammatory body destroyers. It's not far from the truth.

So why does inflammation become chronic? There are many reasons for this but let's discuss a few.

While there are many functions of your body, recognize that your adrenal glands produce the hormone cortisone. Cortisone is your body's natural anti-inflammatory. So with this in mind, if your adrenals are exhausted, can you see that this may lead to chronic inflammation? Remember from past posts that most of the clients I have seen over the years have some level of adrenal exhaustion. When I say most, I actually mean about 98%. So on some level this lack of adrenal balance is impacting inflammatory states.

The other area of challenge is your body's immune function. When your immune system has been challenged long term, this leads to an imbalance in what is called your eNOS and iNOS. The eNOS response is an anti-inflammatory response while the iNOS response is pro-inflammatory. Long term immune system imbalances lead to an iNOS response and further inflammation.

So why would the immune system be so challenged? How about the fact that almost 80% of your immune system actually originates in your gut and the fact that most health challenged individuals have significant gut issues. This in and by itself can and does lead to inflammatory states. If you want to balance your immune function, you have to fix the gut!

The other tie into inflammation is the direct relationship that your brain has with the gut and the immune function. About 90% of your brain function finds its way through the Vagus nerve and into the gut. As your gut goes, so goes the brain and likewise. Many times a person will have a brain issue that shows up as a gut symptom or a gut issue that shows up as a brain symptom. The one aspect that is real for both of these is the fact that either or both will affect your immune function. Remember that this will lead to further inflammatory issues.

So what do you do with this information?

Unfortunately there are many that will do nothing, or potentially even worse, they will focus on anti-inflammatory drugs that may have an effect on the inflammation, but nothing in regard to the underlying cause. The thought behind this is that the problem is the inflammation, when truly the inflammation is just your body's reaction to the problem.

If you want to address the inflammation at the core follow these steps.

• Get your fundamentals of health in order
• Eliminate any foods that create an intolerance for you
• Eat according to your Nutritional ID
• Add an omega 3 fatty acid such as Krill-plex to your diet
• Test your adrenal function and address this accordingly
• Address and GI dysfunction
• Balance your immune function
• Heal the aging brain

From a nutritional perspective you can do some things quickly that has the potential to make a significant difference.

First assess Gluten Intolerance. Once you go to the Gluten Intolerance page on DepkeWellness.com, go to the bottom of the page and take the questionnaire to assess this challenge for yourself. If you find that you are somewhat likely or very likely gluten intolerant I would eliminate this for at least 60 days. There is also a Gluten Foods in categories list for you to review for free.

I would also suggest that you add a quality omega 3 supplement to your diet. When you are deficient in omega 3s this can create and inflammatory state. I recommend Krill-plex for my clients as well as use this personally in my home.

If inflammation is a challenge for you, feel free to register for a FREE phone consultation with me personally to understand the life altering anti-inflammatory protocols used by Depke Wellness.

As always, feel free to leave a comment below if you have any questions. I will answer this for you personally.