Let’s talk about Pain, Stress & Sleep
I’m pretty fortunate that I’ve been healthy my entire life. I don’t really have any health issues that I’m aware of, and I don’t have the typical aches and pains that seem to come along with getting older. I’m 51 years old, and while I’m not in the best shape I could be in, I’m healthy and I feel pretty good overall. But like I said earlier, feeling good just doesn’t happen by itself. There’s some things I’ve been doing lately that have helped. And some of the areas that I’ll be addressing in this video are related to Pain, Stress and Sleep because these all have a huge impact in how you feel not only physically, but mentally as well.
Stress
Let’s start with Stress. Stress is a huge component to how you feel on a daily basis. And for me personally, stress is a big one because ever since committing to this YouTube channel full time, every few days I have a deadline. I have to get videos out at least twice a week. It’s not uncommon for me to work 14 or 16 hour days, and I have a lot of people counting on me to get work done on time, most importantly you guys that watch my videos every week. Currently, I’m a one man operation and while I’m working on hiring at least one other person to help me, as of right now, it’s just a lot of work for one person.
Reduce stress
And while I’m certainly not complaining, because I absolutely love what I get to do every day. But as far as the feeling of stress is concerned, I feel it and I definitely know it’s there. And I know I need to do something about it. And that’s why, like I mentioned I’m working to bring at least one person on board to help. I’m gonna make a video pretty soon sharing more about the behind the scenes of how this channel works, what I actually do on a daily basis and some of the ways this channel earns revenue. So if that’s something you’d like to see, please hit the thumbs up button to let me know, and that also helps remind the YouTube algorithm that I’m still alive, I would appreciate that very much.
Get exercise
Just a few of the ways that I’m trying to reduce stress are exercise, taking time for myself away from work, saying no to things that I know are gonna be a time-suck, even if someone is trying to quilt me into doing it, and also setting myself up to get a better night’s sleep. For me, just the simple act of getting outside and walking 4-5 miles helps. Listening to a podcast or an audio book get’s me out of my own headspace and opens my mind to more creativity. Because there’s a lot of creativity that goes into making 2-3 videos every single week consistently for the last two years.
Just the other day I took the afternoon off and drove myself out to La Jolla to look at the ocean and eat Sushi. I spent a few hours all by myself and it was great. There were no distractions… I could do whatever I wanted and it just felt nice and relaxing to surround myself in a different environment for a couple hours and recharge.
Get enough sleep
The next way you can start feeling better right away is by getting enough sleep. Once again, this is a big one for me for a few reasons. First of all, I’ve never been a good sleeper. And also, like I mentioned before, I have a lot to get done and that weighs on me. But here’s the other thing, because I’m stressed out I tend to lean on alcohol in the evenings to help me relax. Now, I’m not getting plastered every night, but I will enjoy a glass of whiskey or a couple glasses of wine in the evening after dinner. The problem is, alcohol interrupts your sleep. It can help you get to sleep, but it disrupts your normal sleep pattern not allowing you to get the quality sleep that you need.
I don’t sleep well
And for me, since I don’t sleep well anyway, if I have a few glasses of wine the night before, I wake up really tired. And because I feel tired, it’s hard to get myself motivated for work. Another side effect is feeling like I’m in a fog and I can’t maintain focus. I know that I want to work and write out scripts for these videos, but I’m in a weird fog and it’s hard to focus. So, because of that, I’ve been reducing my alcohol consumption. I do feel better and I’m a lot more focused and motivated. Am I gonna stop drinking wine altogether? Heck no! But I’m a lot more aware of how it makes me feel and I’m reducing my overall consumption.
CBD tablets
So, because I don’t sleep well, I’ve been researching different ways to try to help. And one of the things I’ve been looking at for the last few months is CBD. My friend Aaron over at Alpha M has talked about CBD and swears by it and I trust his opinion. This is something where you need to do your own research and I’m not making any claims here that CBD will help with this or that. But it’s pretty easy to do a Google search and find a lot of the reported benefits. And some of those reported benefits have to do with helping with stress, anxiety, pain and inflammation, and also sleep.
So for me, if it helped with any one of those things, that would be amazing. The unfortunate thing is though there’s a lot of companies out there that aren’t delivering what they say they are. That’s why if you’re interested in possibly taking CBD, it’s important that you get educated on what to look for from the manufacturer. And in full disclosure, this video is sponsored by Asterra labs.
Asterra Labs CBD
Asterra labs is incredibly committed to quality, third party testing, and education. They have an enormous amount of data and knowledge on their website and they even provide a full breakdown of what they test for, why they test for it, and what that means for me as to consumer. They have sections on their website dedicated to regulations and safety as well as in-depth explanations of what CBD is and how it works.
Most of you guys know by now that I believe in vitamins and supplements. I’ve talked about the vitamins I take in several other videos, and it’s just something that I grew up with and it’s what I believe in. I won’t just put anything in my body, and after doing some research on Asterra labs, I learned that they use a third-party lab for their certificate of analysis. That’s basically an accredited lab that validates the product is what they say it is. Because there’s essentially two different types of CBD. One with THC, (that’s the ingredient that actually gets you high), and the CBD without THC. Astera labs CBD products contain Zero THC.
Again, there’s so much information on their website, and the internet in general, so if this is something you’re considering, I highly encourage you to educate yourself. And as for my specific results, I’ve only been taking CBD for the last four weeks or so, and I’m taking a fairly small dose. I can say that my sleep has gotten a lot better and my stress has dropped significantly. Please understand that this has only been my experience. However, I am seeing some benefits personally and I’m looking forward to exploring a slightly higher dose to see if my results are even better.
Back pain and knuckle pain
One interesting thing to note, I’ve been having some back issues very recently which is crazy, because I’ve never had back issues my entire life. I’ve also started having this weird pain in the knuckles of my thumbs at night and in the morning. I’m not exactly sure what that is, but once again, in the last few weeks of taking CBD, the pain has diminished. Now, I can’t prove that it’s in direct correlation to taking CBD, but the timetable definitely adds up.
CBD body cream
And of course, if you’re also curious like I was and you want to try some CBD body cream or tablets in either immediate release or extended release, they have different milligram doses available on their site. Here’s a link to Asterra Labs along with a special discount code: 40OF20 that get’s you 20% off.
Disengage from toxic people
The next thing you can do to feel your best at any age, is to disengage or eliminate toxic people and toxic relationships from your life. The older we get, at least the older I get, the less patience I have for drama. I don’t look for drama, and I don’t have time for it. I basically have a zero tolerance for useless drama. My priorities are more targeted at activities and routines that can benefit me and help me to be a better person. Hate breeds hate and Positivity breeds more positivity. And the more things you incorporate into your life that bring you joy and positivity, the better you feel. This I know for a fact.
Debbie Downer
Do you have those people in your life that are always a downer, or always in a state of crisis or whenever you’re around them everything is always about them and their drama? It’s like they thrive on the drama because they’ve been complaining about the same crap for the last year. It’s like, dude, what are you doing about it? What are you doing to fix it? Because if the answer is nothing, I don’t wanna hear it any more. I don’t have time for it. Because all it’s doing is dragging me down with you. And I’m not gonna let that happen.
Stretch and exercise from home
The next thing you can do to feel better, is to stretch your muscles and once again, get some exercise. Even if you don’t go to the gym regularly, try to get out and move your body every single day. If it’s bad weather outside, stretch your muscles and do something every day if possible to move your body. Exercise bands and dumbbells are a terriffic way to do light strength training at home.
Personal style
OK, the next item on my list, and I’m sure you knew this one was coming, but it’s too improve your overall style. I’m not suggesting that style needs to run your life or that you can’t walk out of your house without being completely polished from head to toe. But dressing with intent and wearing items of clothing that fit you well and look great on you has an effect on your mental state and how you feel about yourself. Because when you walk out the door knowing you look good, you project more self esteem and self confidence.
Leave a Reply