Recommendations For Wellness

Avoid standing for prolonged periods of time. If this is unavoidable, move your legs often. Stretching and flexing your ankle will work to pump blood out of your legs and get it circulating again.

If you find yourself sitting for extended periods of time, get up and move around every 35 to 45 minutes.

Take regular walks to help exercise muscles of legs and increase blood flow.

Avoid clothing that may restrict blood flow.

Keep your weight down. This can help to reduce pressure on your legs.

To help prevent leg and ankle swelling, reduce your salt intake.

Elevate your legs whenever possible especially when sitting.

Topically, witch hazel can be applied to legs to ease discomfort.

Butcher’s broom has historically been used when dealing with circulatory ailments such as varicose veins.

Supplements such as ginkgo biloba, gotu kola or capsicum have been shown to improve circulation.

Coenzyme Q10 also improved tissue oxygenation and increases circulation.

Vitamin C with bioflavonoids and rutin can help this condition by reducing blood clotting tendencies, promoting healing and helping to strengthen blood vessels.

White oak bark can be used to help reduce inflammation of veins as well as to tighten tissues and strengthen blood vessels.

Essential fatty acids such as omega 3 or flax seed oil can help to reduce pain and inflammation associated with varicose veins.

With all our blood rushing to our extremities, our brains are getting leftovers. This is worst possible time for us to be logical. When we're angry and that adrenalin is surging, we're far more likely to say things we'll regret and to make decisions that will have us shaking our heads later. If you react verbally or respond intellectually in that adrenalin moment, you're going to have some clean-up in aisle 12 later-- apologies and general repair of relationships and projects.

Most of us have learned that we need to step back when we're really upset in order to avoid making a mess of things. Here's something you may not know: it takes a full 90 minutes for your body to get back to normal after experiencing a blast of adrenalin.

Ninety minutes. That means that a simple "time-out" for your child isn't likely to relax him, and postponing that important meeting for 10 minutes while you cool down isn't going to guarantee that you'll be fully capable of handling your issue in a level headed way.

If you really want to take advantage of your body's natural mechanism for survival, you might as well learn to work with it. The good news is that, with a little flexibility, we can use our physiology to help us thrive and even make us healthier.

You've got to move, and you've got to breathe. Isn't it convenient that those two go together so well?

Here are four best strategies for surfing your adrenalin wave: *Paddle. Your arms and legs need movement, so look for acceptable ways to get active. Go to restroom and do some jumping jacks if you can't sneak away for a walk or head to gym for a workout. Move some boxes. Sort recycling. Reshelve some books. Beat rugs. Shake out comforters. Go for a run. Crank up your stereo and dance with kids in living room. Jump on exercise bike or go cycling around neighborhood. Walk to another part of building. Find a corner and do some push-ups. Activate those appendages!

*Laugh. When we're angry, our bellies tighten up. We take shallow breaths at chest level. This just adds to brain drain! We need to relax enough that our bellies can move freely as we breathe, and if we don't get that by doing some cardio that makes us huff and puff, next best thing is to laugh. Get a laugh partner, and agree to call and guffaw--no talking allowed. Bust a gut, and breathe deeply.

*Sing. You need some serious exhalations, so jump in shower and blast out your favorite power ballad. Get in your car and sing along with radio. Releasing sound is therapeutic in itself. Throw in some dance moves, and you've got it covered!

*Avoid meditation. Ignore what you've heard about thinking through your anger. Mindfulness is immensely valuable, but trying to meditate when you're really angry is not realistic or helpful. Be active first, and then sit. The only way to handle that adrenalin in a healthy way is to engage physically. You've got to be calm to be mindful. Get control of yourself physically before using your mind to address a problem.

Next time you get mad, get moving.

Work with your body instead of against it. Learn to surf that adrenalin wave, and you'll become a better decision maker, a more relaxed parent, and a healthier human.