Storm Recovery for Your Body and Mind

When it comes to storm recovery, everyone is focused on cleaning up debris, repairing houses, and moving furniture back into lower levels now that it's safe.

One of storm recovery's most overlooked and crucial aspects is the self-care we all need to heal and recover. This self-care is essential for managing the aches, pains, and stiffness that result from the intense stress and overuse during a storm, preventing you from feeling like you've been hit by a train.

Among most victims of back pain, tension leads to a physical process involving the muscles and nerves of the neck, shoulders, and back. This condition is known as TMS (Tension Myositis Syndrome).

What does tension myositis feel like?

TMS symptoms include pain, stiffness, weakness, tingling, numbness, muscle contractions/spasms, muscle cramps, or other negative sensations.

TMS isn't limited to the neck, shoulders, or back. The pain patterns are varied and usually include the shoulders, upper and lower back, hips, knees, legs, arms, wrists, and hands.

“Storm pain,” like the kind that many are feeling after the last two hurricanes we just experienced, can exacerbate aches and pains, even if you do not have to do any heavy lifting or debris cleanup. The barometric pressure triggers aches and pains, especially if you have had surgeries, joint replacements, arthritis, or tendonitis (itis simply means inflammation).

Your goal must be to regulate inflammation (inflammation also causes digestive upset, constipation, diarrhea, acid reflux, and other gastric issues such as upset stomach or decreased or increased appetite, all of which create the perfect storm (pun intended).

This also applies to those who didn't experience the hurricanes but struggle with chronic aches and pains. Pain is the #1 health complaint, and it can take its toll on the quality of life and, in some cases, dictate and dominate how you live.

Pain and the fear of pain cause most people to freeze up and stop moving and limit physical activity, which is the worst thing you can do when you're in pain.

Over the last 35 years, working with professional athletes, musicians, and Martha Stewart and studying “brain pain,” I've learned and witnessed amazing self-healing. Our bodies have an amazing capacity to heal themselves; however, these miraculous healing powers must be addressed in the right way to unleash self-healing.

Regardless of why you ache or have pain, the following tips can help you win the fight and stomp out your aches and pains. These simple steps are the best medicine for releasing your body's built-in natural healing potential to heal itself. It's a do-it-yourself pain relief that helps keep your body in working order as you age. It's mandatory if you want to feel good.

1. Improve sleep quality. Sleep is where we heal physically and mentally and our bodies and minds recover. Prioritize sleep quality over quantity for maximum physical and emotional strength recovery. Swap out over-the-counter sleep aids for LynFit Lean Sleep Advanced for a natural approach that works with your body, not against it. Lean Sleep addresses the underlying reasons you can’t sleep, from a busy racing mind to muscle spasms, restless legs, or out-of-balance stress hormones that can affect your sleep.
2. Nourish your body the right way. Swap out over-the-counter NSAIDs or prescription muscle relaxers for a natural approach that addresses the underlying issues, providing nutrients that heal and restore by providing your body with the specific nutrients it needs in the proper ratios. When your body gets what it needs, you can feel relief. This is even more important if you're using NSAIDs, prescription painkillers, or muscle relaxers. Vitamin C, chondroitin, glucosamine, and amino acids all promote healing, so you heal and recover faster. You'll also have more energy, and your mood will improve.
3. Walk it off, then stretch it out. Keeping your body moving is the most underrated, underused pain-relieving method. A body in motion stays in motion. No matter how achy your body feels, you must keep it moving—walk, walk, walk. Remember that if you “rest, your body rusts,” which is why we become more stiff and achy and our pain escalates.
   
   Walking greases your body and keeps muscles, joints, and ligaments in working order. Walking is much more powerful than most people realize. It improves circulation, preventing clots from forming. The blood flow delivers nutrients to the areas that require additional nutrients to begin healing (vitamin C, chondroitin protection, collagen, etc.). If your body is tight and achy and you don't move, the healing nutrients, NSAIDs, and prescription pain relievers (which I don't suggest because they block the healing process) can't reach the areas they are most needed. Think of it like a fallen tree that blocks your ability to drive down the street.
   
   Walking also helps boost endorphins, dampening pain signals so you will feel better quickly.
4. Stretch yourself. Simply lying on the floor with your legs up, keeping your legs up and your knees at a 90-degree angle, relieves and relaxes back muscles, easing aches and pains. Try giving your knees a big hug before you get out of bed and throughout the day to keep back muscles limber and blood flow circulating, helping keep muscles nourished and flexible.
5. Ice, ice, baby. If it hurts or aches, ice it! Ice is the most underused pain-relieving remedy you'll ever use. Place it right where it hurts for 10-20 minutes, three or more times daily, and after 24-48 hours you can rotate heat with ice to flush toxins out. Be sure not to place ice directly on the skin. Use a towel to avoid burning your skin. It works 10 times better than any drug , chiropractic adjustment, or massage that can irritate tense sore muscles more, leaving you worse.
6. Adjust your attitude. As soon as your feet hit the floor, count your blessings. As bad as it is, things can always be worse. Studies prove that gratitude helps you feel physically and mentally better almost immediately. Don't downplay your losses; they are real. Focus on the positive aspects of your life.

When you combine all of the stress (physical and emotional) and financial stress, it's easy to start to feel defeated and depressed. When you add all the heavy lifting and cleaning we all had to do; our bodies feel like they were run over by a train. If you're like me, and your body and mind just shot down entirely, and you feel exhausted, remind yourself that this isn’t forever.

YOU CAN DO THIS! Focus on your breathing and take it one day at a time. When that’s too much to handle, take it one hour at a time. Start taking baby steps, implementing the simple steps mentioned. If you need help, support, or someone to talk to, please email me at support@lynfit.com. I'm happy to help in any way that I can.

We are stronger together 🙏💪