Now that we’re in the heart of the year-end holiday season, you’ll undoubtedly attend or give parties, family functions or work events at which sugary, salty, fatty, junk food galore will be available. But fiber-stripped, sugary, fatty, salty foods are the least of your worries around this time of year.
This Season of Sugar Overload — as I call it — also will probably be filled with many stressful situations and people (even loved ones), who may try your patience and sense of good will. So how can you rise above the consistent, pervasive stress, which may be triggered due to unresolved family issues, the painful anniversary of the death of a loved one, or the disappointment of not having achieved your treasured goals this year? I have an easy solution for you.
One of the simplest ways to rise above your demanding food urges or your massive stress is to combine two or more simple healing techniques. When you use them together, your cravings won’t stand a chance and you’ll cam down, too.
Indeed, when you mix multiple elements that interact with each other (i.e. synergies), you’ll produce a more powerful process.
In fact, I’m big on creating the best, most effective mixtures, which wallop your self-destructive cravings into submission and relax you at the same time.
Recently, some researchers have been doing just that— they’ve been testing science-based combinations in their clinical studies.
It’s time to tell you about one such simple, scientifically examined blend, which uses two proven healing modalities—massage and soothing music.
The Scientific Proof: Much like stress-triggered cravings experienced by many of the rest of us, stress and anxiety in nursing home environments can be the source of unhealthy runaway thoughts or acting out. Stress has been shown to lead to physical pain, so the experts at HMHB created a guide on how to use C-B-D oil for pain.
Three studies were conducted to test what worked best to calm agitated nursing-home residents with dementia, behavior that’s usually characterized by physical restlessness or verbal abuse directed at the caregivers. One study used massage, another tested music, and the last combined music and massage.
- In one study, a group of Scandinavian researchers compared results from seven different randomized controlled trials of massage to calm anxiety among the elderly with dementia. The scientists found that hand massaging the patients had immediate positive effects in reducing agitated behaviors.
- In a second study, 30 nursing home residents suffering from agitated behaviors were exposed to music they’d enjoyed earlier in their lives. This familiar music exerted a calming effect that reduced agitation.
- And for a third research project, both hand massage and calming music were used with 68 Massachusetts nursing home residents to test if the two approaches worked as a therapy to reduce agitated behavior. Though no great ‘additive benefit’ was observed from the combination, it was found that verbal abuse nursing staff was significantly reduced. The enhanced benefits varied from patient to patient, making it “an easily administered intervention that can improve the quality of life.”
Although this combined massage-music technique was first tested on elderly nursing-home residents with dementia, you can use this portable technique anywhere or anytime to Crush Your Cravings and to calm down at the same time.
The Simple Steps:
- Temptation strikes (sugary, salty, fatty junk foods). At the same time, you’re feeling stressed out.
- If you’re at home, find a quiet place away from your family. If you’re en route to a potentially stress-filled holiday party or business function, where junk foods probably will be offered, pull over to a safe area (away from a highway or busy thoroughfare).
- Put on a relaxing CD or download. The softer and more melodic the music, the better. For instance, while writing and editing this, I’m listening to Kimba Arem’s “Self-Healing with Sound and Music,” “A Call of Compassion to Humanity” by Nawang Khechog or “Because We Believe” by Andrea Bocelli. If you like, you also could listen to ocean or nature sounds.
- Either close your eyes or keep them open. Do whichever you prefer.
- Sway to the music, if you like.
- While you listen to the music, use the thumb and forefinger of your right hand to massage your left hand. Keep your right thumb on top of your left hand, your right forefinger underneath, on the palm. Add pressure as you slowly massage from one part of your hand across all the way to the little finger. You are putting pressure on all various acupressure points in your hand. Think of it as a full body massage using just one hand.
- If you like, after a few minutes, switch hands and repeat the massage.
- When you’ve finished massaging your hands, keep playing soothing music, if you can, and drive or get back to your projects and continue your day without cravings or stress troubling you.
How It Works: Music and massage both provide calming distractions to relieve agitation of the mind. The tactile sensation of receiving a massage helps to release calming brain hormones.
- Sources:
“Calming Music and Hand Massage With Agitated Elderly.” Remington R. Nursing Research. October, 2002. - “A comparison of two treatments of agitated behavior in nursing home residents with dementia: simulated family presence and preferred music.” Garland K. Et al. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. June, 2007.
- “Massage and touch for dementia.” Viggo Hansen N. Et al. Cochrane Database Systems Review. October, 2006.