Managing Anxiety and Stress

You're not alone.

Remember, you are not alone.

With the current state of things, anxiety and and panic strikes are happening more frequently.

Make no mistake, your concerns won’t magically go away with any method or technique, but there are ways to help you cope and manage anxiety and stress.

Yes, we are all aware of the power of crystals, smudging and meditation, they are very effective ways to deal with anxiety, but there other things you can do as well.

We may sound like a broken record but we strongly encourage everyone to get in touch with nature.

When we reconnect with nature we reconnect with ourselves, that's where our strength comes from.

The strength to deal with anxiety doesn’t come from social media, political or religious agendas, it comes from within you.

It’s already there. 

As you reconnect with nature, you reconnect with those inner powers to cope with stress, negatively and anxiety.

From Power of Positivity we read:

From Even though we live in a concrete world, we can all find a patch of greenery nearby to clear our minds and refresh our souls. We lead busier lives than ever, but that doesn’t mean we should neglect our basic needs, one of which is breathing fresh air and connecting with the Earth.

According to a study published by the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, people today spend 25% less time outdoors than they did 20 years ago. It comes as no surprise that rates of anxiety and depression continue to rise as we move farther and farther away from the way nature intended for us to live.

Walking in nature doesn’t just give us a break from the hectic city life; it can actually change our brain chemistry, too. 

HERE’S HOW SPENDING TIME IN NATURE EVERY DAY CAN REDUCE STRESS AND ANXIETY:

Related article: 10 Surprising Health Benefits of Walking Barefoot

It’s no surprise that living farther away from nature surrounded by buildings and city noise can increase your risk of anxiety and depression, but spending time in even the smallest patch of land can do wonders for the brain.

New research out of Stanford University found that spending time in nature can actually alter the chemistry in your brain, leading to mental clarity and peace of mind, and alleviating anxiety and stress. As Gretchen Reynolds explains in the New York Times, graduate student Gregory Bratman, who attends Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources at Stanford, analyzed the brains of 38 adult city slickers who went on a 90-minute nature hike. Bratman found that these individuals had lower brain activity in their subgenual prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain that focuses on “morbid rumination,” than the participants who trekked along the side of a nearby highway.Those who spent time in nature at least once a day didn’t dwell on the negative happenings in their lives as much, Reynolds reported. These results suggest what many of us probably knew all along – that everyone can benefit from spending more time in nature, and less time in the concrete jungle.

Nature can do wonders for your mental health, so if you have neglected your time with Earth lately, here are a few more reasons to hit the trails again that we didn’t mention before.

1. NATURE CAN BOOST YOUR ENERGY LEVELS.

After spending time outside, have you ever noticed that you feel more lively, cheerful, and refreshed? Well, there’s actually a scientific reason behind that. Several studies have confirmed that spending time in nature increases vitality, and the research finds that just 20 minutes a day out in nature can significantly boost energy levels. Richard Ryan, lead author of the scientific studies mentioned above and a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester, says, “We have a natural connection with living things. Nature is something within which we flourish, so having it be more a part of our lives is critical, especially when we live and work in built environments.”

2. NATURE CAN MAKE YOU MORE CREATIVE.

A study published in the journal PLOSone indicated that immersion in nature can boost creativity by as much as 50%! Participants in the study had to spend four to six days in nature, completely disconnected from all technology. Psychologists explained that because of the gentle, more relaxing stimuli in nature, people’s attentional system becomes rejuvenated and able to function correctly, whereas in modern society, we constantly have to switch between tasks and become bombarded with loud, sudden noises.

If you have been struggling to bring out your creative energy, try spending more time in nature!

3. NATURE ELIMINATES STRESS.

Numerous studies have found that time spent outside can greatly reduce stress. For example, a study published in 2012 in the journal Landscape and Urban Planning revealed that out of 25 healthy adults living in Scotland, those who lived in areas with the most greenery had lower levels of cortisol.

Stress can increase your risk of mental and physical illnesses, but among all remedies, nature is one of the easiest ways to heal the mind and recharge the soul.

4. NATURE CAN IMPROVE DEMENTIA SYMPTOMS.

Along with all the other benefits of nature, a bit of greenery can go a long way in helping those who suffer from dementia. Researchers at the University of Exeter Medical School discovered that when gardens were placed in nursing homes, the patients showed less agitation, more relaxation, and appeared to be more stimulated mentally.

Grounding or Earthing is when you have direct contact with the earth — like walking barefoot. 

There might be those who just can't believe that walking barefoot could actually help, but there are real scientific reasons grounding works. 

Because the earth emits negative electrons, they penetrate our bodies when we walk barefoot and these electrons have remarkable benefits.

They reduce free radicals and inflammation in your body.

Free radicals are necessary for metabolic processes, but too many free radicals can hurt our bodies and cause chronic diseases.  

It may be impossible to avoid bombatment of free radicals but there is plenty of evidence indicating that antioxidants neutralize free radicals that contribute to our body’s inflammatory responses. 

Because grounding has antioxidant effects, it can disarm these free radicals, thus reducing inflammation.

Grounding will improve your mood.

According to a study by Gaétan Chevalier, participants who were grounded for only one hour reported improvements in their moods, as opposed to those who were not grounded. 

The study notes that additional studies will be conducted, but if the positive effects are confirmed, grounding could be an easy way to decrease depression, anxiety, and stress.

It will improve your sleep because grounding might help you get the sleep you need by reducing cortisol levels. In a study published by The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, subjects that grounded during sleep by using a conductive mattress pad had reduced nighttime levels of cortisol and their 24-hour circadian cortisol profiles became closer to normal. Cortisol has been called the “stress hormone” that can lower our quality of sleep.

It will accelerate tissue repair and wound healing

It has been reported that Tour De France racers have successfully used Earthing Recovery Bags for tissue repair and recovery with amazing results. The Earthing Recovery Bag, which resembles a sleeping bag, cocoons the athletes in energy to provide healing properties. With this being said, if you want to speed up tissue repair, try exercising, meditating, or practicing yoga outdoors while barefoot. 

It’s an inexpensive way to incorporate grounding into your daily life and reap the benefits that these elite athletes have experienced.

These are just a few examples how grounding can improve your life.

Give it a try, see what it can do for you.

The Summer Solstice

 

The word “Solstice” comes from the Latin words, sol sistere – “sun stand still”. 

The sun does seem to stand still as it reaches it’s furthest point from the equator. 

Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year, when warmth shines upon the land.

There was a time pagans didn’t celebrate “midsummer” as the first day of summer—after this longest day the daylight gets shorter! 

So our ancestors honored Summer Solstice as the beginning of the END of summer.

But regardless as the night of the Summer Solstice approaches, the pagan fires will burn brightly in honor of the sun. 

This is a time to strengthen the bonds between the participants as they offer thanks to Sol’s continued service to the earth and it’s creatures. 

As the summer solstice approaches, the days get longer and the urge to make the most of all that extra sunlight rises. 

In fact, even this month's full moon celebrations revolve around our daylight hours: Whether you perform a full moon ritual or simply hang out with friends on the patio, you're encouraged to spend the whole day of the Strong Sun Moon in nature, embracing the sun and its fiery energy.

Here's a great loaf cake, perfect for the celebration...

 

FLORAL ADVENTURES: LAVENDER LEMON LOAF CAKE

PREP TIME

20 mins

COOK TIME

45 mins

TOTAL TIME

1 hour 5 mins

Lavender Lemon Loaf Cake

Author: Spice In The City

Serves: 8

INGREDIENTS

• 1 & ½ cups All-purpose Flour
• ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
• ⅛ teaspoon Baking Soda
• ¼ teaspoon Salt
• ½ cup Butter, softened
• 1 cup Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• ¾ cup 2% Greek Yogurt
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest
• 1 tablespoon dried Lavender

For the Drizzle:

• ¼ cup Icing Sugar
• Juice of ½ Lemon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 160 C / 325 F. Grease one 9 x 5 inch loaf pan and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter. Gradually add the sugar and cream until light and fluffy, about 7 minutes.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing each until fully incorporated.
5. Slowly add the dry ingredients, alternating with the Greek yogurt, to the creamed butter and sugar and mix just until incorporated.
6. Add the lemon juice, vanilla extract and lemon zest and beat on low just until blended.
7. Gently stir in the lavender.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake for about 45 minutes until the edges begin to brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
9. Cool in the loaf pans for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
10. For the drizzle, take the icing sugar in a bowl and add lemon juice little by little till a pouring consistency is reached. Drizzle over the cooled cake.

Summer Solstice Floral Crown

If you want to celebrate the Summer Solstice with natures beauty, there's no better way than a "do it yourself" floral crown, here's how: 

What you need:

A variety of fresh flowers, trimmed them down to 3-inch stems

2 pieces of 16-gauge floral cloth wire

Green floral tape

Floral sheers would be great, but you can use good scissors.

Now bend the two pieces of floral wire together and make a circle that will fit the intended head.

Then use tape to wrap the overlapping sections to create a base for the crown. 

Design 15 small clusters of 4-5 flowers and wrap the stems together tight with floral tape. 

Position flower clusters to the wire base  and wrap tape around the stems so they hold on.

Continue layering each cluster around the wire base until it’s filled.

As The Wheel Turns - The Summer Solstice

The Summer Soltice is on the way.

The gardens are beautiful, and summer is almost here.

There are picnics, the hiking, walking in the park, swimming, the barbeques, the joys of Midsummer.

Litha, the summer solstice Sabbat honors the longest day of the year. 

There are many different ways you can celebrate Litha, but whatever celebration we choose, the focus all about the sun. 

Because of the sun, the crops are growing and we can watch nature bask in the long sunny days as we enjoying the outdoors, spending more time with nature.

Midsummer marks the beginning of the Sun's dying strength before beginning its slide into darkness and we experience the longest day and shortest night of the year.

Welcome May

The month of May was named after the Greek goddess Maia, who was associated with spring and growth.

Full Moon Release

The Moon

Choose a Moon, pick one of the six pictured here that you connect with…

We know of the moon’s significance in Pagan beliefs.

Many of us are drawn to Lunar activity, Sir Isaac Newton, for instance, was the first person to explain the connection between the moon’s gravitational pull and position as well as the ocean’s tide. 

After all, our bodies are made up of fifty five to seventy five per cent water.

As a result, the moon has been shown to have a major effect on the human body. 

From sleep and menstrual cycles, the moon has been scientifically linked to nearly every bodily function. 

Given its scientific, spiritual, and astrological significance in the bodies of ours, it is only natural that our visual preferences of the moon is able to reveal a lot about the personality of ours. 

That brings us to our Moon experiment, a simple test that may reveal a lot about you.

We were skeptical at first but actually it was pretty accurate.

So choose the moon in the picture above you like the most and read your result below.

1. The Achiever

The life history of yours is goal and achievement oriented. 

Effectiveness is actually a companion that follows you. 

A proper level of self confidence is actually fueled by your optimistic, outgoing, and energetic outlook on whatever the plate of yours may hold in the moment. 

You favor stability and safety over letting the good times roll you out, and you are prepared to work incredibly hard to create an environment you believe you are able to thrive within.

What you might be ignoring is you’re often the own harshest critic of yours and personal execution squad. Be much more kind to yourself when you make a huge mistake. 

Perfection is an unobtainable goal since it just does not exist. 

So, set the goal of yours to be the very best you possible, not an imaginary infallible version of yourself that you will never achieve. 

Learn from the mistakes of yours, and allow mistakes to be yet another fuel you make use of for achievement.

2. The Creative

Your environment is highly aesthetic, tangible, and emotionally based. 

The astute, tender, and mental side of you can make you very aware. 

Nevertheless, your sensuality leads you toward excess and materialistic endeavours over practicality. 

Life is actually likely a high and low rollercoaster of altruism and self indulgence toward others.

What you might be ignoring is actually that the excesses in life might be holding you back from the full potential of yours. 

Do you spend long hours at play, overeat, or perhaps overly indulge in pleasures? 

All of the excesses can quickly use up your creative, productivity, and energy juices. 

It dulls your natural brightness and stifles the time management of yours of living. 

Try moderation and bringing down the intensity so you’ve the energy reserves for the things that will further you in the long run of life, not only give you instant gratification.

3. The Energetic

You’ve a zest for life and a solid character to help you juice whatever lemon or perhaps lime you are given. Your even temperament makes you a reliable and steady worker, mate, and friend. 

Your energy translates into maintaining an environment of well being for yourself and loved ones; you want to make sure everyone has all they need. 

There is a powerful sense of loyalty when you are looking at choosing who you surround yourself with, and your relationships are never something you take lightly nor for granted.

What you might be ignoring is the fact that the strong sense of yours of loyalty can be making you very standoffish to and distrustful of the unknown. 

Without risk, can there be a reward? 

The greatest internal fear of yours is actually betrayal, and that often includes a betrayal by the own senses of yours. 

Being distrustful can be mentally and emotionally exhausting, and you usually do not even consciously realize exactly how this constant state of on guard is impacting your happiness, health, and life. 

Add calmness to the life of yours by giving some leeway for innocent until proven guilty. 

Add fullness to the life of yours by entrusting the own senses of yours as a trustworthy and capable judge and jury. 

A number of risks are worth taking.

4. The Compassionate

The sensitivity of yours to the world’s plight makes you an incredibly kind, generous, and loving member of society. 

You’ve a gravitational pull to meet the needs of others you see are not being met otherwise. 

You may have just enough to get yourself through the week, but, in case you see someone hungry, then you will sacrifice your own meal to ensure that they will not go without. 

The selflessness of yours in life is probably the most noteworthy characteristic folks use to describe you.

What you might be ignoring is you’ve your own desires, needs, feelings, life and talents in general to live. 

You could become so hyper focused on others that you lose who you’re, fail to nourish your own personal life to thrive, and even become dependent on living vicariously through those you help. 

Make time to remember your very own unique importances, explore and utilize the talents of yours, and create the own environment of yours of well being.

5. The Wonderer

This peculiar world amazes the curious mind of yours. 

You probably find your brain is always wondering and wandering, which has led you to be quite versed on an array of topics. 

In a constant state of observe and research, you have likely become quite cultured and mannered. 

Nevertheless, you may often wonder why you seem so emotionally unintelligent to others. 

While you are able to be friendly and certainly converse in most any circle and the mind of yours might be a wanderer, you probably physically prefer to be by yourself or perhaps with your closest loved ones. 

This’s very likely since you get a feeling that individuals who do not know you very well either do not understand you or perhaps become intimidated by you.

What you might be ignoring is actually the stress and sleeplessness caused by your overbearing mind. 

You rely almost exclusively on your brain to do life’s play and work. 

It is tired, and it needs help. 

Your soul, body, heart, and mind should all be in positive harmony with each other. the mind of yours might have the ability to overcome obstacles alone, but such can be solved a lot quicker and easier when you allow the heart of yours and soul intuition to give your mind a helping hand. 

Additionally, the intuition of yours can often counteract the worldly notions that usually bog down the head of yours and lead you astray from reaching the own true happiness of yours and satisfaction. 

Experiment with using your soul and heart as the compass of yours and the head of yours as a guide to be less stressed, more rested, and greater satisfied.

6. The Tranquil

Simple pleasures in life give you probably the greatest joy, which makes you an easy and pleasurable person to be around. 

You are not needy or perhaps demanding. 

You are perfectly content in an uneventful and quiet environment, like sitting on the couch with a buddy watching television or perhaps a date that is just a stroll in the park. 

Harmony, peace, and tranquility are actually what you surround yourself with since you hate the hectic chaos of the world, but you spend a great deal of time thinking about the’ what ifs’ as they apply to the things you aspire to be, do, and see out in the world.

What you might be ignoring is how the’ what ifs’ are actually detrimental to your productivity, well-being, and health. 

You’ve a great deal of untapped skills you are not utilizing. 

This likely frustrate you; can make you anxious; and makes you turn to spend hours upon hours pondering the’ what ifs’ of tomorrow and yesterday for solutions, right? 

Spending all this time on what might and could diminish your incentive, effectiveness, and energy for productivity. 

Try staying in the current present moment. What, as the owner and captain of the own life of yours, can you do right here and now to make yourself useful, fulfilled, happy, or perhaps enlightened?

Our Beltane Best Wishes

Energy, People and Detachment

Your Vibration

By raising your vibration your environment reaches higher levels and your life will begin to detach from those things that drag you down. 

Whether you are a Pagan or not, we may be in the world, but we don’t have to be of the world and it’s influence.
Fix the environment you surround yourself with.

Believe in Yourself

We were astonished by an article written by Pastor Brad Larson suggesting self empowerment is a bad thing.

We aren’t looking to pick a fight with the Pastor, but his thoughts on self empowerment may be one of the reasons people are leaving church.

Granted, these comments were made a few years ago, but we haven’t seen a retraction, so we can assume he still teaches this stuff.

First, he says, "since we have deceptive, dark hearts (Jer. 17:9), there is danger lurking in the self-improvement space. 

Since we worship what we believe will satisfy us, improving ourselves can become idolatry faster than we can say “positive mental attitude.” 

He goes on to say, "self-help can become a self-glorification mission that, in the end, robs us of the joy of beholding Jesus as our treasure, our Savior, and our helper."

While we feel people can believe whatever they choose, we always surprised when we are warned that we are powerless and helpless.

We believe the exact opposite is true, we aren’t powerless, we are “something” powerful because we believe in ourselves.

Brad Larsson warns us that by helping ourselves we become prayer-less, not asking God for help.

Much of self-help includes making aimless plans for our lives, but we don’t control  our lives because we are powerless.

Plan as we may, we are not the architect of our destiny, only worshiping God secures who and what we are.

In contrast, Pagans believe that we are responsible for our own lives, because life is a do it yourself job.

Yet, the criticism of self empowerment is that it focuses on the self and while it encourages introspection and that can be helpful, too much navel gazing is not. 

Mr. Larson  says self empowerment wrongly assumes you have the ability to change yourself.

He says, "we can change our habits and make healthy choices, but our souls only change when we encounter God. 

We do not need to focus on cleaning the outside of the cup, but rather the inside (Matt. 15:17–20; 23:25–26).

So, he believes it's a bad thing to shepherd ourselves.

The premise of self-help in Christian circles is that God helps those who help themselves. 

The gospel of Jesus Christ, though, is that God helps those who cannot help themselves."

That's just it. As we've said numerous times, nature speaks to us, it has the answers, we just have to listen.

We are nature, not separate from it, as we reconnect with nature we will reconnect with ourselves.

By letting go of the everyday clutter and embracing the power of nature, your life will instantly be enriched because you'll see the world and yourself differently.

There is no complicated or confusing comprehensive solution when searching for answers. In reality, it’s often just paying attention to nature as it speaks to us.

By doing so we stay grounded with the energies of the earth and begin to learn who we are.

As Pagans we don't seek forgiveness or salvation, we search for the inner strength  that exists within.

We are responsible for our decisions and from those choices we grow, become wiser and learn to trust in our self empowerment.

We keep hearing, with faith anything is possible, okay, but faith in what, in who?

If they mean faith in your own abilities, in the person you want to become, we would agree.

But sermons on faith usually have little to do with self empowerment.

It's amazing how people are willing to believe in something invisible but not in the things that are right in front of them.

The power of nature is all around, we can see it, touch it and learn from it.

But many choose to ignore it and believe in the traditions of dogma.

As Pagans we believe in self empowerment, we are responsible for our own lives, we are at the helm, captains of our own journey, surrendering our power to no one.

We are told to trust the unseen, have absolute faith and hand over all personal power because God is in control of everything.

If we surrender and allow God to work his miracles, everything 

will be just fine.

Telling us that God is in complete control is difficult to understand, where does that leave us?

How do we grow or get stronger if we think someone or something is to to carry us every time we experience life's struggles?

Our advice: learn to believe in yourself.

Happy Beltane 4 days away

Trees go to sleep at night, study shows

The next time you camping in the forest sleeping in your tent, remember, the trees are sleeping as well.

That's the conclusion of a team of scientists from Austria, Finland and Hungary who wanted to know if trees followed day/night cycles similar to those observed in small plants. 

Using laser scanners pointed at two birch trees, the scientists recorded physical changes indicating a nighttime sleep, with the ends of the birch branches drooping by as much as 4 inches towards the end of the night.

"Our results show that the whole tree droops during night which can be seen as position change in leaves and branches," Eetu Puttonen from the Finnish Geospatial Research Institute said in a statement. "The changes are not too large, only up to 10 cm for trees with a height of about 5 meters, but they were systematic and well within the accuracy of our instruments."

A birch tree at night (left) experiences more branch dropping than during the day (right).

 (Photo: Eetu Puttonen/Vienna University of Technology, TU Vienna)

The scientists explained how they scanned two trees, one in Finland and another in Austria. 

Both trees were scanned independently, on calm nights, and around the solar equinox to ensure a similar length of night. 

While the tree's branches were shown to droop lowest just before dawn, they returned to their original position in only a few hours.

"It was a very clear effect, and applied to the whole tree," András Zlinszky of the Centre for Ecological Research in Tihany, Hungary, told New Scientist. "No one has observed this effect before at the scale of whole trees, and I was surprised by the extent of the changes."