Overcoming Anxiety the Natural Way
On this week’s episode we talk about natural options for anxiety relief. After last year, more people than ever are suffering from anxiety. From pandemics, forced isolation, a lack of normal, political and social unrest, there were plenty of reasons for people to feel a little anxious. But sometimes there’s no rhyme or reason to anxiety, it just simply exists and won’t go away. Whatever the case may be, we take a look at some supplements and practices that can help you along the way.
Meet Chad:
Our guest, Chad Kelly, is a national educator for NutriGold. He’s a veteran in the supplement industry with close to twenty years of experience.
Some Points We Discuss:
What is anxiety? (6:14)
What are some supplements we can take to naturally get our system in balance to help relieve anxiety? (9:25)
What type of ashwagandha should you look for? (12:03)
How to read a fish oil label so you know you’re getting a potent dose? (27:02)
How do EMFs impact anxiety? (32:11)
What are some of the natural quick reliefs for anxiety? (37:42)
Some Key Takeaways From This Episode:
There was more Xanax prescribed in 2020 than any other year. (5:13)
Ashwagandha not only can help us lessen the negative feelings of stress, but also protects the body from the physical damaging effects of that stress, because it's a powerful antioxidant, as well. (11:25)
Anxiousness will tighten us.. And magnesium has an effect, to loosen and lighten and relax and allow more flexibility in much of the structures of the body. (15:32)
We can't make ATP from the food that we consume, without B vitamins. (20:37)
You only get the benefits of something, if you actually are able to absorb it. (25:22)
Products + Resources:
Thank you to this episode’s sponsor: Nutrigold
Get Social with Chad:
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL SHOW TRANSCRIPT
Brian Strickland 00:00 This episode is brought to you by Nutrigold. Nutrigold is a family owned mission driven wellness company powered by integrity. They're on a mission to educate and empower consumers make informed supplement decisions and make products that can improve and nourish health and do it in ways that respect and protect our planet. They offer some of the cleanest supplements available far exceeding the FDA guidelines for good manufacturing practices. In fact, every ingredient in finished product is tested using independent labs so that you can buy with confidence from essential vitamins and minerals, fish oil and botanicals. Nutrigold has you covered. You can learn more at nutrigold.com Hey everyone. Welcome back to the Holistic Navigator Podcast where we believe in the body's capacity for self healing, if it's given the proper nutrients and care it deserves. My name is Brian Strickland. I'm the producer of the show. And here with me in the studio today, as always, is your host, Ed Jones. On today's episode, we're talking all about anxiety. Now, if you've suffered from anxiety, you know just how bad it can be shortness of breath, the overwhelming sense of dread and despair. But we're thankful that we have natural remedies that can help us function and make it through the day. Today, we're talking with Chad Kelly, who is a national educator for Nutrigold. And he's going to walk us through some of his favorite supplements, and practices to help reduce anxiety naturally. We've got a lot packed into this episode. So let's go ahead and get started. here's your host, Mr. Ed Jones.
Ed Jones 02:10 Thank you, Brian, as always, and yes, we are back again, this is Ed Jones with The Holistic Navigator. And we have an exciting episode today, it's could be probably the most necessary one over the considering the history over the past 14 months on anxiety. And some of the solutions that most people are not aware of. And certainly people in the traditional medical field are generally not educated on these options, either. And I'm very happy to have a kind of companion from the industry with me today. Chad Kelly, and he's the national educator for Nutrigold and has been in the industry since about 2003. And I've known him for probably about that long. So welcome to The Holistic Navigator, Chad.
Chad Kelly 03:02 Thank you so much for having me, I have to tell you, it's quite an honor to be with you today. I have to tell you, Ed, you are such a pioneer in the world of health food. You have this incredible amount of knowledge that we're all blown away by. But something that really stands out to me about you is you not only know how to inspire people, you inspire me, but you always provide a roadmap for people to follow. And I'm often reminded when I listen to your podcast and see your videos, all the knowledge in the world doesn't always matter that much unless you give people a roadmap. And that's what you do so well. So thank you for for having me today. Really appreciate it.
Ed Jones 03:46 Wow, that just made my morning. I thank you, Chad. I I never think about those things. But you're exactly right. Execution properly done is the only way to actually reach the goal. And I don't care if it's building a business or building your health and your right. I mean, we're overburdened with information today. But we also don't have roadmaps because then we get overwhelmed by 50 options, and then we give up we throw our hands up. And that's true of this topic of anxiety. And you know, being in the business that I am in the fact that I see so many people and I have my own issues. Certainly I am not immune to the feelings of anxiety, anxiousness, anxiety, poor sleep because of it. I, I certainly learned a lot just by dealing with my own issues. I am very, very thankful for this industry and the teachings it has offered me over the past four plus decades to have a toolkit. I mean, if you you know if you travel in a car. In fact, actually I'm going to I've got plans to fly my small airplane to Alaska next April. Well, guess what? I'll have a plenty of different tools in that plane because if you don't have the toolkit, you may get stranded and you won't be going anywhere that's true of your health, especially when you have episodes of things like anxiety. And, you know, an interesting story to show you how, how terribly epidemic this is. I have a friend who's a pharmacist and he actually is in a town a little north of Chattanooga. Town probably has 100,000 people in it. Maybe not even. And he works at a drugstore. Well, he told me in 2020, that that one single drugstore, filled 900,000 pills of Xanax. Almost a million pills in that one small town drugstore. That shows you the epidemic of anxiety in this country. And I must say, Xanax, used in a panic attack, used occasionally is a lifesaver. But it is one of the most addictive drugs that ever has been invented. And once you're on it for about two or three months, regularly, you got to wean off. And it takes a lot of effort to do that. Because the brain gets wired for it. It is not the answer. You do not have a Xanax deficiency. Yet, in a panic situation, I think they're good to have if you're really going down fast, and you need something to stop that. So what is anxiety? I mean, a lot of people certainly have the feelings of it, and they know what it feels like. But the you know, the official symptoms are excessive worrying, feeling agitated, restlessness, fatigue, a lot of people don't realize the amount of energy that is consumed when we are chronically anxious. It drains us. Unlike almost any other emotion, difficulty concentrating, irritability, tense muscles, trouble falling asleep or staying asleep. Those are huge issues. People don't put their finger on that one also. So you know, there are so many different methods to help balance this unbalanced system. And what is that system? It is actually called the autonomic nervous system. So don't let those big words turn your brain off. It's very easy, I want to tell you very quickly, what is the autonomic nervous system is the actually the regulation that the body does with unconscious actions, heartbeat, digestion, some of your emotions, the way your hormones are produced 100 different functions that are not in your direct control only in your indirect control. And the last piece to this biochemistry is there's two parts to this problem that we have under this autonomic nervous system. It's called sympathetic and parasympathetic. And I use the analogy that I just actually thought of this morning, you know, we all grew up riding bicycles. If you're riding your bicycle, and you're pumping hard, and you're kind of going up a hill, and you're trying to get from point A to point B to your friend's house, that's really the sympathetic nervous system. It's putting out whatever it takes to have effort and energy and reach a goal. That's when the lion is chasing us back in the jungle, that's when the phone rings. And it's something urgent, those are what stimulate the sympathetic nervous system. The other part parasympathetic is like when you're coasting on that bike, or you're actually putting the brake on slightly. So there's a balance between that. You can't pump that bicycle constantly, or you will fall out with exhaustion. And you also can't just ride down hills constantly, or you'll never end up reaching your goal. So what's happened today is the sympathetic nervous system is so over stimulated, that we have a massive imbalance between those two systems. And the great news is that we have a roadmap, as you said earlier, Chad, that can truly help the physical and emotional, and almost even spiritual body to come back into a balancing act of pedaling when we need to, and coasting a lot more than we are in this world today, especially after 2020. So I know that and of course, I'm a huge supplement user, myself and my whole life, if I lived another 100 years, it will never change because I've seen the benefit the safety of it, and use properly it is life changing. And so I've got like, two parts of this. I think like all things we have to take the long approach, which is what are the options to really set the body up for success, but they're not quick acting. And I want to throw out a few of these things to you check because I know you've got a lot of experience to on your, like personal life using nutritional therapies for balancing and helping your health and plus you've studied it for many, many years. But let's talk about the herbs ashwagandha and also magnesium, B complex, omega three, and five HTP. But ashwagandha it continues to stun me the research that comes out that showing the benefit of this almost magical herb. Don't you agree?
Chad Kelly 10:12 I you know what I totally agree Ed. And I think back about the you know, because I grew up knowing nothing about nutrition, knowing nothing about the healing botanicals that have stood the test of time. And I remember when I first walked into a health food store back in the day, kind of being overwhelmed by all of the options, all the tools, all the choices on the shelf. And since then, what's really come to help me so much is zeroing in on those botanicals, herbs that have really stood the test of time, that date back to those ancient systems of medicine, but then that also have modern scientific validation behind them and that is certainly the case with ashwagandha. If you go back to those ancient ayruvedic practices of ancient India, it was often referred to as the prince of herbs, so highly revered. And today, we often refer to ashwagandha as an adaptogen. And truly helps us adapt to the stresses of life. That's what we're talking about today, finding that balance both on the emotional side, and the physical side. And something and I know we'll kind of dive into the specifics of it. But something that I think is so cool about ashwagandha is it not only can help us lessen the negative feelings of the stress, but also protects the body from the physical damaging effects of that stress, because it's a powerful antioxidant, as well. So truly helping us reclaim that balance that focus that energy that our bodies need.
Ed Jones 11:50 That's a great explanation, it is something that I have been taking for several years and will continue to do so because I see the not only ancient wisdom, but the current scientific knowledge that is backing this up. Now, again, all the devils in the details on so many parts to this nutrition puzzle, and I know many brands are out there, some of which I do not recommend, some of which I do I know Nutrigold has such great transparencies, great sourcing, checks everything and they do offer ashwagandha. How would a person know if they were kind of walking into a store? Which brand to get? Or what would it say on the bottle?
Chad Kelly 12:33 Well, I tell you what's important to me when I'm looking for a specific health benefit. And I would be willing to guess the customers reaching for ashwagandha. They're looking for specific benefits, right? Stress relief, focus, mental clarity, sustained endurance? And how do we know what benefits we're going to get if it's not clinically researched? If it's not a clinically proven extract? Or how do we know how much we need to take to get that proven benefit. So with Nutrigold's product ashwagandha gold, it does feature what's called KSM 66, which currently is by far the most researched ashwagandha extract on the planet. They're up to 22 Gold Standard human clinicals now. So research for stress management, energy endurance, muscle strength, healthy testosterone, memory and focus mental clarity. I know you mentioned sleep a little bit earlier. Multiple clinicals now assessing us wygodne has effects on sleep. So we can dive in a little bit deeper into to how it directly impacts stress, and sleep. But something you will notice with Nutrigold's ashwagandha product, not only is it clean manufactured so you don't see any chemical additives, and that other ingredients section. But you have that third party testing to backup every lot for the purity for the potency. And one of the coolest things that I love about Nutrigold products, anytime you see clinically proven on an ingredient on the label, the amount that you get within that serving within that suggested use is the exact amount that was used in that human clinical research. So you can put a lot of confidence, a lot of faith in the potency that you're getting.
Ed Jones 14:24 You know, that's something I had never thought about and what a wonderful testimony to Nutrigold because we I do know very well that a lot of companies are borrowing the science I guess I'll say. They'll look they'll say reference to a study but they're using 10% of what the study showed and I mean like arginine like in the old days. Arginine and nitric oxide, you know would sell a bottle of Arginine you know, take one pill, well that was about 5% of what the studies showed what was necessary. And I know what with all the things Nutrigold's quality, that applied to some of the other things where I want to just at least mention, like the magnesium. And I did a podcast on magnesium on the Holistic Navigator. It's one of the most needed minerals in the human body has over 300 functions. But I want to go back to again, anxiety, one of the things that happens with anxiety is it constricts. It makes things tight, gut wise, physical, muscles, you name it. Anxiousness and anxiety will tighten us, we feel it. And magnesium has an effect, to loosen and and lighten and relax and allow more flexibility in much of the structures of the body. But it has to be a good magnesium. I don't particularly like people to use straight magnesium oxide because it tends to stay in the gut, we need better forms of it. And I know what what form do you recommend Chad?
Chad Kelly 14:25 Yeah, well, and first, and we can talk about that. First off, I love the way that you just described magnesium as effects in terms of loosening, relaxing, I often, you know, a lot of people haven't experienced the benefits of a good magnesium supplement, which we'll talk about. But a lot of people have had the experience of taking a really good Epsom salt bath, which is magnesium sulfate. And it's the magnesium in that Epsom salt that has so many of those therapeutic relaxing benefits. So it's a good way for people to kind of connect to some of the benefits they can feel of magnesium. But as you said, Ed, you're only going to get the benefits of a magnesium, if it's in a bioavailable form. And quite honestly, a lot of the magnesium supplements that people take behave more like a laxative, and they do a therapeutic mineral. So what I like with the Nutrigold magnesium gold product, is it's actually a full spectrum chelate. The magnesium is actually fully bound to organic rice protein. So rather than chelating it to a single synthetic amino acid, you naturally have a complete protein, all of the essential amino acids within that rice protein, the same ratios you'd find in nature. And why is that rice protein so important? Well, it stabilizes that magnesium for its journey through the digestive system. So it can remain in a recognizable form in the body and be bioavailable. So I you know a lot of people actually come in to buy magnesium as a laxative, because so many of them are not bioavailable. So I always remind people, if you're looking for a laxative, do not buy magnesium gold from Nutrigold. You're going to be very disappointed. But if you want the true benefits in magnesium, the muscle relaxation, you mentioned, bone, heart, muscle health, really gentle, really bioavailable form.
Ed Jones 17:24 That's perfect, because I like the fact you said that you know if you tell people if you need a laxative don't buy Nutrigold. That is good advice. Because some people just grab it again and the devils in the details, they don't realize the differences. And of course, that's why I'm here to help educate people. The next one is of course the the two big ones B complex and omega three and we know that B complex has a role in the nervous system, it converts food to energy, it helps balance some of the brain neurotransmitters. And it has to do with genes like mthfr it's an interesting little remedy because it's inexpensive, generally very, very safe. You might have a slight discoloration of the urine is about the only thing you get but it is it's so vital to optimal function of the of the body and the brain. And so I now I recommend a lot of times people to do it twice a day because it's so watersoluble a morning and an evening dose. If they have trouble sleeping and they're worried about that, then I'll say morning and noon dose. But is that kind of your take on B complex too?
Chad Kelly 18:05 Well, and you know, first off, I love You're a big supporter of the idea of having a daily core four. You know, building that nutritional foundation. And a big part of that core four is a daily multivitamin that has bioavailable forms, which should include those eight B vitamins that B complex. But as is often the case if we're in a state of worry and a state of nervousness, a lot of those micronutrients like Bs, like magnesium that are required for daily functioning, oftentimes, we're at a greater risk of deficiency. Our bodies using those nutrients and higher level so sometimes, and additional b complex on top of a daily multivitamin is warranted after periods of nervousness, anxiety, exhaustion, adrenal fatigue. You name it. And that's for getting an extra B complex really, really comes in and handy. But, as you mentioned, B vitamins, they're essential micronutrients, they're not optional for the human body. We have to have them as humans for all of our trillions of cells to function. And you think about some of the main symptoms you talk to customers about all the time. Everyone says they have fatigue, they've lost their drive. People are experiencing nervousness, anxiety, they lack of focus, lack of clarity, all of those can actually be symptoms of a B vitamin deficiency. We can't make ATP from the food that we consume, without B vitamins. You mentioned balancing the neurotransmitters, we often hear about serotonin, that neurotransmitter that's associated with feelings of contentment, balance, calmness, certain B vitamins like b six, b 12, direct cofactors for serotonin creation. You think about memory, and focus, you know, brain health is a major component of helping with stress, we often hear about acetylcholine, often called the memory molecule, B vitamins like B five required to create acetylcholine in the body, saving memory attention, helping you learn helping you remain focused, and alerts and pretty much every piece of the puzzle, every symptom that people are discussing these days, there's that component that goes back to B vitamins in the body.
Ed Jones 21:36 That's a very well done explanation, because I think many of us kind of know B complex is important, but we don't really understand the depth of that. And again, we're talking about options that are to help us set ourself up for success. Like you wouldn't be having a panic attack and expect to run into a nutrition store and grab a b complex. You know, it might be a little helpful, but no, we're talking a little bit longer term plans here. We're gonna get to the short remedies in just a bit. But this great explanation for that. And we did you did mention very well, a serotonin connection. There is a product called 5 HTP is actually a tryptophane type of product. Just gonna hit real quickly here, I think. And I've seen the results of this. Many times, not always, when you deal with neurotransmitters, sometimes it's a tricky deal, because it's very, very complex. But the thing is 5 HTP helps make more serotonin. And I would say that I repeat the same statement that I kind of came up with long ago, depression and anxiety are cousins to each other. And generally, they kind of walked down the same path. So some people who are extremely anxious also have depression, and they don't recognize it, or vice versa. Well, 5 HTP is the same end result is the same that doc's are trying to do with antidepressant medications, which of course have a litany of side effects. Sometimes they're necessary, not saying they're not, but many times they're not because they people didn't experiment with other methods. Now, omega three, I mean, I think even the least read person probably knows that fish oils omega three, or even omega three from algae is a component of the brain. I mean, the brain cells have membranes, those membranes are where kind of the communication or I guess, would say the cell phone connections come from those fatty layers that are surrounding each of the membranes of the brain cells. And omega three is the most important fatty substance that this human body can't make itself. But we have to put it in there. And when you have a deficiency of omega three in the brain, you're not looking in the right place, and bad things are gonna happen. In fact, I do an omega three testing on myself is a finger prick test. I've done it off and on for many years. And I know that, in fact, I just put the plug in for Nutrigold. I take Nutrigold's omega three at this time, and it has given me the best blood test. I'm over 8% on the index form, which is what I shoot for, but the purity of omega three and I want to make it quick, but we have to be super cautious about the brands that you purchase. Because if the fish swim in polluted waters, you're going to get it. If the product is rancid, it's going to cause free radical damage. There's so many parts to this omega three conversation and I know that you are a big believer in the pure product.
Chad Kelly 24:39 Absolutely. And hey, first off, congratulations on an over 8% omega three index there that is a I love that test because it really I feel like information is power. You know only if we know what's going on in the body can we really kind of take control of some things and actually bring some balance back to the equation. So congrats on your good score there. But you're so right quality is key. Something that I look for in a fish oil and what Nutrigold provides is an omega three fish oil that's 100%, USA sourced 100%. USA made, that's not an easy. That's not easy to find in this fish oil category. Kind of going back to what we were talking about with magnesium, you only get the benefits of something, if you actually are able to absorb it. I love that Nutrigold fish oil is in that triglyceride form. That's the way you find omega threes in nature. That's what the human body breaks down recognizes and absorbs most effectively. You also think about the potency. I hear all the time, you know, people want the benefits of a supplement but they don't want to have to take 15 pills to get that benefit, right. So as you know, Ed achieving that great omega three index that you've achieved, you can get that without having to take a bunch of pills, very nice and potent. And actually speaking of that potency, and going back to what we're talking about today, anxiety and stress, I was actually looking at research was published back in 2018, in JAMA. And it was actually it was a meta analysis of 19 separate clinical trials. So we're talking about over 2000 participants they were looking at, and what they found, after looking at all of this research, is that the people that were consuming more than 2000 milligrams each day of omega threes, it was linked to having a higher anxiety lytic effect. So a direct reduction in symptoms of anxiety. So if you were to look at Nutrigold's triple strength fish oil, what do you get in one serving to softshells 2100 milligrams of those omegas three. So actually meeting that mark, and a small serving size, so nice value, nice potency, and all the quality distinctions that you look for.
Ed Jones 27:02 Wonderful explanation, very important, because I tell people with advice, they'll call me or they come by and say I am taking 1000 milligrams of fish oil, I said, Let me see the label. And of course, it's confusing because many brands list 1000 milligrams of the front label because that's the size of the capsule, not the active ingredient. In some cases, not all you need to turn the ball around and add up the two things EPA DHA and I say flatly, everyone needs 2000 milligrams at least and then get an omega three index test after that to ensure that it is actually adequate. And I want to put my normal recent plug in. Do not purchase these things from Amazon. Why? Because one is you have resellers, you have no idea where these products are stored, what kind of heat they're exposed to. And secondly, because we are partnering with nutritionw.com they are the only company online that I know about that offers cold packs with every single shipment for $1 per cold pack. What that means is when that is shipped out, without cold packs, one day in UPS truck, you can have rancidity in any product but especially oils. So please people go to your local health food store, order from nutritionw.com do something other than Amazon. It is simply not a trustworthy place for perishables simply not.
Chad Kelly 28:35 Yeah, really great point there add on rancid fischels I have found so often and so many people that I come in contact with. And it always makes me sad because as you stated omega threes couldn't there couldn't be a more core nutrient to take. I mean there's direct components of our cell membranes are not optional, but so many people tell me they don't take this soil because they have a trauma leftover from their childhood being forced fed rancid cod liver oil, right? So what we're talking about today, it's not the rancid fish oil of the past this is high quality pure absorbs well you get the benefits.
Ed Jones 29:16 Bingo. Absolutely. Next you know so basically we've covered a partial and I love the fact you mentioned the core four because that was something I came up with years ago. You know our bodies operate with a not like a Ford F 150 truck where when the carburetor breaks, you know you just replace one part. We are systems that rely on systems upon systems is actually a very intricate interconnection between so many different bio chemicals and emotions. Well saying all of that we we need to make sure that we put all of these pieces together in order to allow the harmony to come back into place. But the herbs of choice at this point and other nutrients was the ashwagandha, the magnesium, that B complex, the five HTP and the omega three. Now, we all have almost it seems trouble with sleep at times got to make this a quick conversation. I did a podcast that I still recommend highly to everyone who comes in and speaks to me about the chronic insomnia is on The Holistic Navigator under sleep. And there I'm certainly can't get into at this moment, most people have not much trouble going to sleep, they have the trouble staying asleep, they wake up and then they're in that light stage for many hours, they don't get rested, I am raising my hand because my number one demon has always been since my daughter was born. She's now 31 years old, actually, this next weekend. And I don't know I got to be an overprotective parent and listening and it just wired me differently. So I have to use my toolkit to help me sleep now. I recommend please anyone who has this to listen to my podcast because it's a little bit too extensive for anybody to for me to speak at this moment. But the two key points in my podcast and these are not the complete fix now people but I have to have something called GABA next to my bed. I take 1000 to 1500 milligrams upon awakening when I since I'm not going back to sleep. GABA alleviates anxiety a little and also lowers fear levels at but big time helps to lessen what I call cognitive popcorn, the thought process that the brain is just popping out these thoughts. And generally we don't solve anything at midnight to four in the morning. It just is a is a noise that comes out. So I and the second part to my sleep book, you have to do something that's really weird, which is type your mouth shut. Mouth breathing is devastating to brain chemicals. Nutritionw.com sells the special type so it doesn't pull off on your lips. And it has been life changing for so many people. It's easy to do. If you listen to my podcast, I explain it. So we got to move on from there now that you know a lot of people don't talk about EMF electro magnetic fields. But I don't know about you, Chad, I would guess that you are aware of this. And I'm probably do some things to help protect yourself. So why would we want to? One is these emfs do alter brain chemistry. How do they do it? They actually do something in the body is called voltage gated calcium channels. So what it's doing is it's actually allowing calcium to leak into the brain. What is calcium do? It's a constrictive mineral, like I said earlier, and you did to magnesium is the relaxing mineral is the opposition to calcium. It's got like that sympathetic, parasympathetic, sympathetic nervous system I spoke about, it's all great as long as it's in balance, well, when you release calcium from brain cells, it is creates inflammation, it creates a type of constructiveness. Well, all of that can lead to very much anxiousness and anxiety. So putting all of your electric appliances, even lights, of course, cell phones, iPads, everything, at least five feet away from your bed at night is extremely important for helping to create what I call a sleep sanctuary. And that's part of the helping sleep but it's also going to be part of that is due to the emfs and you know, you know, we all live in places that have I mean a router itself as a cell tower, so we can't get away from it, but we do the best we can to lessen it. I do have a pendant that I wear and I did a podcast on this about 20 podcasts ago that has a enough benefit that I'm justifying wearing it and I do recommend it doesn't fix everything but it does give me some peace of mind. And so I want to get down tojust a few other lifestyle things. Then lastly, you and I Chad are going to talk about the quick acting remedies you know the type that oh hell I've just had a awful something stress or this or that and and my heart's beating and I can't think straight and my shaking and I know I'm not going to sleep. What do you do in those cases but before we get to that the few other things that I wanted to ask you how you embrace this in your life. Moving that electronic appliances away one. Exercise that takes the overwhelmed system and takes it down somewhat back to the balancing point. By the fact that cortisol the stress hormone is lessened when we exercise. Yoga is another part to that peace meditation which I'm a hugely invested in. And then lastly, I am very much into a certain breathing technique called Butekyo breathing as a Russian physician back In the 60s, he actually taught this breathing method to cure patients of asthma. It's totally different than what people have been taught about breathing. It's on my podcast, the Holistic Navigator, go back to the breathing episode. And lastly, is grounding, that you know what the earth has a negative charge. When we put our bare feet on the earth for 15 minutes, we actually received some of this, this positive influence of these ions. This is why and people don't get this and I didn't either. But you know, we go to the beach for a vacation. Well, we always come back generally feeling better, more rested and more energetic. Well, part of that is where we are sleeping more, and we're resting. I think the bigger part is that we're barefoot on the beach? And do you do grounding and stuff like that, Chad?
Chad Kelly 35:47 It's such a great reminder. I should, I wish, I wish that I could tell you I made a better practice of that. But that is the goal. I love what you're saying it's making when you say grounding, it's making me think, you know, we all have to do what works for us individually in terms of stress relief. What works for one, it's not necessarily what always works for the other person. But I know for me, what works better than anything to reclaim my focus, my clarity, helping with stress is getting out in nature. And you said it being right there by the sea, those wonderful ions coming standing there in the sand grounding, or being out in the dirt in nature, listening to the birds observing nature, nothing works better for me than then to quiet the mind and focus on something other than all this stuff going on in the world that I can't really control anyway, right? So I love that you've you've inspired me. Grounding is going to be my, my new goal for this year.
Ed Jones 36:52 And you know, I'm like, you also. You and I have big toolboxes of of options. And sometimes it's almost, we forget some of the other ones because there's so many options for people like us who tend to study this as a lifelong passion. Now, one little tip on grounding, which I was reminded of before this podcast. And if you're standing at the sink, let's say a man shaving or a woman brushing their teeth, you take one of your hands and place it on the faucet as the water's running, because the water and the faucet and the plumbing all go into the earth, you're actually grounding. So I actually can shave and ground at the same time if I place the other hand on the faucet. So that's a cool little tip that I've passed along every now and then.
Chad Kelly 37:41 It's very cool.
Ed Jones 37:42 Well, I want to get down to the bitter, nitty gritty here of things that I certainly have had to use at moments, I'm really actually much better than I used to be. You know, struggling in life having relationships that are impossible having certain situations, it's almost there's no absolute fix. But sometimes we have to get out of the storm with wise decisions. And that may be the ultimate solution. But during those times, during any times when we have cumulative stress, and we feeling this anxious anxiety, especially if it's bordering on a panic attack, I better have me some options. And here's what I go through with people when I really sit down with them. You know, the world was of CBD certainly is far different today than it was say five years ago when we didn't even really have CBD. And it wasn't really a legal substance. I've done three podcasts on CBD on the Holistic Navigator. It is a very complex subject. But to make it very simple. You just need to find the brands that work for anxiety. CBD has a different component make up that there are some that work better on pain, some better on calming, some better on anxiety. Just find the brands that work for you by talking to a professional or someone who does this has enough knowledge to give you the advice. Don't just order again from Amazon and expect to get what you want. In fact, Amazon is the worst place to order for CBD, they really have poor quality. And then using it like last night, I'll just be honest with you and you know, I'm going through and it seemed to come in cycles for most people. I'll have a few weeks where it's sanely calm seas, and then I'll have a few weeks for the sleep is really disrupted. The brain doesn't want to calm down and I'm really good at being meditative breathing, and I'm functioning very well only because I know what to do, but it's still not always easy. So I have my CBD in the kitchen. Don't turn the lights on because that'll wake you further up. So I go in I know just where it is. I to do two eyedroppers of CBD not one. I'm a huge fan of big dosing. This not going to hurt people that low dosing is not helping in many cases. So I do two full eyedroppers and I'd say half the time within 20 minutes I get back to the restful sleep, but sometimes I don't. So what do I do when the other I take GABA. As I mentioned, I will do 1000 milligrams of GABA and CBD, that's my general fix it at this point. But here's a couple other options that I want you to comment on. I'm just gonna go through the list. So we've got CBD, we've got GABA, but then theanine is kind of like GABA, but a little different. Valerian root is certainly an herb most people know. Kava, hops, lavender essential oil can be very beneficial. On this part of essential oils, very cautious about brands because many smell the same, but they're not active ingredients any longer. I did a podcast with pranaromthey're actually prescription in France and I love that brand. And the here's the deal, I don't really feel the effects as much if I just smell it as if I will put it on my wrist and on the bottom of my feet. So having lavender handy can be very beneficial especially for children. And then lastly, there is a brand that is made by a certain company called Anxiocalm. It's a little tiny white pill and it is a an herbal botanical and I have found the research to be very solid on the fact Anxiocalm and has been quite helpful in some cases. So do you do you ever use theanine, GABA, valerian, Kava, all those things, Chad?
Chad Kelly 41:33 Well, yeah, a few things that first off, rarely do I go to bed without putting lavender oil on my temples. It's not only do I love the smell, but it's that nightly signal to my brain. Okay, Chad, this is your time now. It's time to put everything at rest in the brain. And it's time to recalibrate, and heal for sleep. So I use lavender oil nightly. But you mentioned GABA, that wonderful. It's so calming to the brain helps us with focus. And there's also that core nutritional component there going back to magnesium, having adequate magnesium levels in the brain. Those magnesium ions actually attract GABA to those receptor sites, think of magnesium like a magnet for GABA. So helping us utilize that GABA that we're creating, or taking as a supplement more effectively. So yeah, I absolutely love the effects of GABA. Something else too. You mentioned theanine. And I believe, as the richest food source that we know of theanine is green tea, right?
Ed Jones 42:38 Yes.
Chad Kelly 42:39 Yeah. and promote those alpha brainwaves. Those same types of brainwaves that are created when we're meditating, or we're in yoga, to calm the focus. And I have found is as wonderful as coffee is, and we're finding out new health benefits all the time on that that morning coffee, when I'm in periods of higher stress, anxiety, I skipped the coffee, that's not good for me. And I do a good cup of green tea or matcha instead, because it gives me the focus without the jitters. And I think a big part of that is that wonderful, natural theanine amino acid that's so common that it naturally contains.
Ed Jones 43:16 I love that advice, because it's exactly right, I love my coffee. But again, we're dealing with a stimulant, moderately used is perfectly fine. I do it every single morning. But again, it's the balancing between cortisol, sympathetic, parasympathetic, and we have to tweak it probably each and every day based on where we find ourselves. And I love the fact that you said something about the lavender, you were talking about setting up a ritual to recalibrate. One of my best books I've ever read on sleep is named the yoga of sleep. And the guy and the guy had a and I love to listen to it. If someone wants to really delve into something, don't read it, but get the audio book. It's just a wonderful insight into why we don't sleep from a totally different angle. But what I liked about it the thing that's one story like he tells when you come home in your car at night, and you're driving down the road, and then you get to your subdivision and then you go down in your your road where your house is, you don't pull into the garage at 40 miles an hour you start slowing down way before your house so that you can pull in at a much slower speed. Well, many of us was sleep and things we work, work work or we watch TV or we stay super busy. And then we expect to put our head on the pillow and go from 100 to one mile an hour. No. I love the fact that you do this ritual in like lavender, we all should set up some kind of slow down ritual process. So that is a wonderful piece of information. Well, Chad, I think we have covered it quite well. I hope people understand that they are not powerless, that they actually do have options but it takes some steps. Some action, I think that you have informed people very clearly have a really cool list of toolbox items. And if there's not anything else, do you have any other points you'd like to make before we close?
Chad Kelly 45:15 Well, Ed I just appreciate your time this morning so much. I have to say that I've taken away so much from our conversation. I will hold on to that garage analogy for the rest of my life slowing down before it's sleep time, I will hold on to that. But yeah, you just said it's not about making overwhelming changes. It's all of those small changes, that collectively really do add up that really bring balance back to our body. So thank you so much for all that you've brought this morning. I really appreciate it.
Ed Jones 45:48 And thank you, my friend. And the last two things I want to say is that, you know, this anxiety thing, of course, I think all of us know, common sense was, it's connected somewhere in the picture to fear. And I've always been a fan of Rumi and I read this just yesterday, under Rumi, what is fear is the non acceptance of an uncertainty. If we accept uncertainty, it becomes an adventure. And I really liked that because if I can twist a little bit tweak my fear that I'm feeling of danger or risk or, or bad outcomes, and kind of turn it into an adventure, because most things do not in horribly most things we work through. And we actually laugh about him when we stand back and then look back. But you know, putting that in perspective of instead of of being a dis potential disaster, let's make it an adventure. So I'm going to try to remember that one myself for more. And lastly, I'm just thrilled to be the host of the Holistic Navigator and I want to continue to help people become empowered with wisdom, not just knowledge. Both of those are the powerhouse. And if you add that plus a tablespoon of daily discipline, miracles can be yours for your health. Thank you everyone for listening. We'll be back here next week for another exciting episode.
Brian Strickland 47:13 The information on this podcast and the topics discussed have not been evaluated by the FDA or anyone of the medical profession, and is not aimed to replace any advice he may receive from your medical practitioner. The holistic navigator assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever on behalf of any purchaser or listener these materials. The listing navigator is not a doctor nor does he claim to be please consult your physician before beginning any health regimen.