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Eight Simple Ways to Combat Depression and Anxiety

6/20/2017

 
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Here are the some easy and effective ways to help combat acute depression and anxiety naturally.

1. Exercise. 
The very best thing you can do for yourself is to get up and start moving. This does not mean running around with your kids, no, not the same thing. This means taking at least 30 minutes for yourself to decompress without distraction. The movement helps to get the anxiousness physically out of your body, while at the same time suppressing stress hormones and releasing feel good hormones and natural pain killers. Daily FitBot gives you daily workouts that don't require a gym!

2. Meditation. 
Constant thoughts of the past and worry of the future are the hallmark of anxiety, which is why clearing your mind through meditation can be so effective. Give MeditateBot a try and start forming your daily meditation habit today!

3. Yoga. 
Also considered a type of meditation, focusing on your breath with movement helps to relax tense muscles and clear your head through the mind-body connection. Taking a deep breath also allows more oxygen into your body and to your brain to allow you to think more clear.

4. Make plans. 
The worst thing you can do is sit at home by yourself thinking about how depressed you are or going over and over something in your head. Get out and check out that new band, meet up with friends for brunch, whatever it is you like to do to, get out of your apartment.

5. Watch your favorite show.
Reality TV gets a bad wrap for being brainless and mind numbingly dumb, but sometimes you just don't want to think, and the best thing you can do for yourself is to sit back and relax and watch something ridiculous that has nothing to do with real life.

6. Eat healthy. 
Many people will turn to unhealthy food when they are feeling down or anxious. Think about your future self and how much worse you will feel after inhaling a pint of ice cream or pizza. You may not feel amazing after eating a bowl of vegetables with a lean protein, but you certainly will not make yourself feel worse. For a daily reminder to be "Healthy", try out HealthyBot today!

7. Avoid the news. 
Turn off CNN and avoid trolling through Facebook or your Twitter feed, because chances are you are going to see something you do not like. Studies have shown that Facebook can cause feelings of depression and even more loneliness due to the social comparison.  And if you do find yourself down a Facebook hole, just remember that Facebook is not reality, it is a place for people to present their best self (in most cases), and no everyone is not always on vacation or getting engaged.


8. No binge drinking. 
A glass of wine or two a day is considered to be heart healthy. However, many people turn to excessive alcohol intake to "numb feelings" or to be able to sleep. This will make you feel a thousand times worse the next day for a couple of reasons. One, alcohol is a depressant in itself and will make you feel more depressed. Two, when you drink alcohol before bed this inhibits deep REM sleep, and you will wake up less rested and more anxious the next morning regardless of how many hours you spent in bed.

Sarah-Kate Rems, NP
Co-founder, The Mindful Tech Lab - Check out all of our amazing apps to help improve your life here

How to Prevent a Hangover

6/14/2017

 
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I can imagine that just about everyone who has drank alcohol before has experienced a hangover at some point in time. Hangovers range in quality and severity with symptoms such as fatigue, nausea, headache, shakiness, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, anxiety, and depression. The only real way to prevent a hangover is to not drink alcohol, but here are some tips that can make it less likely that you will experience a hangover, or at least ways to prevent its severity.

1. Eat a fatty meal before or with drinking.
Fat is the slowest macronutrient to be broken down and absorbed (compared to carbs and proteins), and will slow your digestion of alcohol. Think healthy fats such as avocado, nuts, hard cheeses.

2. Drink a glass of water with each drink. 
Hydration is key. The main cause of headache and overall nausea can be much attributed to dehydration.

3. Eat a salty meal before or with drinking.
Not only do you lose water when you drink alcohol, but you also lose essential electrolytes, most notably sodium which helps to keep your body hold onto water.

4. Get plenty of vitamin B.
In addition to losing electrolytes you also lose essential vitamins and minerals when you drink alcohol. The B vitamins are especially vulnerable to depletion and being deficient in one or more of them can contribute to symptoms such as fatigue, depression, and anxiety. Take a vitamin B supplement daily and/or eat foods rich in B vitamins such as eggs, chicken, turkey, and dairy products to help prevent the development of a hangover.

5. Sleep.
Try and go to sleep at least a couple of hours after your last drink. Alcohol can definitely put you to sleep, but it prevents you from getting into deep sleep or REM sleep, making you groggy the next day.

Sarah-Kate Rems, NP

Co-founder, The Mindful Tech Lab - Check out all of our amazing apps to help improve your life here

6 Quick Tips to Keep Your Diet in Check While Eating Out

6/5/2017

 
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1. Get your dressing on the side
Most dressings are high in fat, sugar, and salt for very little servings sizes (think size of a ping pong ball). Get more bang for your buck with dressings that are great in flavor and have a better nutritional profile such as hummus, hot sauce, soy sauce, or balsamic vinegar. Always ask for dressing to be on the side, you are more likely to use less of it.

2. More vegetables
Vegetables fill you up due to their high fiber and high water content. The body cannot digest fiber and so it takes longer for high fiber foods to pass through your system, thus keeping you fuller longer while at the same time causing your body to absorb fewer calories. Fiber also keeps your cholesterol  in check by binding to cholesterol and literally expelling it from your body with each trip to the bathroom.

3. Ask for the bread or bun to be non-toasted.
Toasted means buttered, in most cases. The majority of restaurants will default to toasting your bread while also adding butter, resulting in more calories and fat added to your meal without you even realizing it.

4. Go open face on your sandwich 
You will not miss the top piece of bread from your sandwich. Most breads from restaurants are low in fiber, high in empty carbs and won’t do anything to help you stay full. Instead, pile on the protein and vegetables, these will fill you up more than an empty calorie extra piece of bread will.

5. Poach the eggs. 
Poached means eggs are cooked in water without anything else added to them. Rest assured your poached eggs will not have vegetable oils added them.

6. If you go omelet, ask how it's made.
Make sure to ask how the omelets are made. Restaurants may other inflammatories such as milk that may be problematic for you. And of course always add vegetables!

​Sarah-Kate Rems, NP
Co-founder, The Mindful Tech Lab - Check out all of our amazing apps to help improve your life here

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