ELEMENTS OF RECOVERY

How to break food, drug and alcohol addictions, bite by bite.

Exercise to Lower Stress: Nose-breathing vs. Mouth-breathing

November 25, 2014 by Christina Santini in Biochemistry Balancing, Emotional Management, Transformation Keys, Addictions

It is well-known in addiction research that exercise can increase endorphins, which help take the edge off withdrawal symptoms and elevate mood. In other words, movement is a core component of every human beings health. When we were kids, we would spill over with energy and zest for life - like we were in a room without ceiling. We needed not be told what was good for us, we were so connected to our body, mind and soul, that we instinctively did what felt good. Addiction is a hunger for happiness, for wholeness, for meaning.... for something more. However, exercise can both REDUCE or INCREASE stress and the risk of relapse - in this article I go through 5 exercise styles that will help you thrive in recovery and actually achieve your body and mind goals faster. And no, the key is not harder, longer, faster.

Top 3 Fats That Heal The Addicted Brain.

November 18, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Binge Eating, Superfoods In Recovery, Biochemistry Balancing

Addictions - whether food, drug or alcohol - overlap in that they are all based in the brain. Addiction is not a willpower issue - it is a brain disorder. Addicts typically suffer from ragged nerves, anxiety and lack of impulse control. These are all issues tied to a weak brain. Mind you - NOT a stupid brain, or low IQ. Just a brain that doesn't have enough fat to protect the nerves from stress, trauma, toxins and high-sugar diets. Our brain mainly consists of FAT. The types of fats we eat directly impacts our brain health and ability to deal with stress, breaking addictions and minimizing withdrawal symptoms.

Why We Thrive on Different Diets

November 12, 2014 by Christina Santini in Biochemistry Balancing, Superfoods In Recovery, Eating Disorders

The debate of whether raw, vegan, paleo, high fat-low carb, low fat-high carb, Atkin’s, fruititarian, macrobiotic etc. is better, is a complete waste of time at best. Our body is constantly evolving and changing depending on our phase in life, environmental triggers, toxic exposure, stress levels, age – and obviously also our gender.

The Biochemistry of Violence

November 04, 2014 by Christina Santini in Depression, Biochemistry Balancing, Addictions, Eating Disorders, Emotional Management

Did you know that violent behavior whether leading to destruction against others or one-self, such as in addictions, is tied to specific nutrient imbalances that can be traced already in kids? We used to think that violent behavior, addictions, eating disorders and general social dysfunctional behaviors were a result of lack of supportive parental guidance and a good upbringing. Well, it has long been known in nutritional psychiatry, that terrible childhood actually has little to do with where people end up later in life. We are not our trauma, and we can transcend pain of the past, when we are resilient on a biological level.

What does it mean to be recovered from an Eating Disorder?

October 28, 2014 by Christina Santini in Binge Eating, Eating Disorders, Transformation Keys, Body Image

Any type of eating disorder takes your identity. The more you have an eating disorder, the more you lose your identity. There is a fundamental essence of you that is the same, but apart from that eating disordered people are very much alike during their illness.

More water is NOT the cure to dehydration.

October 21, 2014 by Christina Santini in Biochemistry Balancing, Superfoods In Recovery

Show me someone who has struggled with an addiction or eating disorder, and I will show you someone who is severely dehydrated. Dehydration is a major issue that we need to focus on immediately during early phase recovery. No healing can take place on a biochemical level, if we are not properly hydrated. Our cravings intensify, our mood becomes depressed and we just can't function. Our neurotransmitters and hormones require a stable level of hydration to function and communicate messages across the body correctly. Now one would think, well, I'll just gallon up then. No - actually drinking excess amounts of plain water is detrimental to your health. Your urine does not need to be clear for you to be properly hydrated - that is a complete myth.

10 Benefits of Walking Barefoot

October 14, 2014 by Christina Santini in Transformation Keys, Sleep, Biochemistry Balancing

Now you may be thinking what on earth does walking barefoot on the earth have to do with any type of recovery from drugs, alcohol or food. Well, any type of self-destructive behavior is a disconnect from our soul and the most basic things in life that help us to thrive. It is about tapping into our basic instincts. Walking barefoot helps to re-connect us with body-mind-soul in a way that any talk-therapy will not be able to copy. When we connect with nature, a profound level of healing takes place. For every ailment there is already invented a cure in nature - we just need to utilize it.

6 Ways Hugs Make Your Feel Better Biochemically

October 07, 2014 by Christina Santini in Biochemistry Balancing, Addictions, Binge Eating, Transformation Keys, Emotional Management

Hugs are one of the most simple ways to make you body release oxytocin. The more oxytocin your pituitary gland releases, the better you are able to deal with life's stressors.

Top 4 Anti-Anxiety Supplements

September 30, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Biochemistry Balancing, Superfoods In Recovery

One of the most frequent drug prescriptions today, are anti-anxiety drugs. There are many reasons for that, aside from that every addiction or eating disordered is always related to some sort of anxiety. And this regardless of whether one is aware of it or not. There is always an element of anxiety when we use food, starvation, overexercise or drugs to suppress this inner sense of "unsettleness". When we have an overexcited nervous system, always feel wired, work with technology all day, drink too much black coffee, get too little deep sleep before midnight in order to repair brain cells, and perhaps also struggle with a digestion not functioning due to painkillers and antibiotic popped like candy these day, we will feel anxious - or unable to be calm. Thus we look for an external fix

Are You Living Life As A Junkie?

September 23, 2014 by Christina Santini in Transformation Keys, Addictions, Emotional Management, Binge Eating

Cravings for drugs or out of control carb cravings are very similar in their neuropathway manifestation. This is also why you typically see recovered drug addicts dealing with food issues after they leave rehab. Thriving in recovery is not exchanging one addiction for another. Living a life as a junkie is not limited to those on drugs.

The No. 1 Reason People Fail In Breaking Addictions

September 16, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Transformation Keys, Eating Disorders, Self-Worth

Do you know WHY you want to change your behavior? This may seem like a ridiculous question. "Of course I know why", you might be thinking, and if so - great. What is your main reason for wanting to change now? Think about it and list your reasons, because if you can't be to-the-point of WHY you want change, you are not going to do what it takes to get there - a lot of us have wishes, but without action, nothing. And if our actions are not driven by emotions, that we can FEEL in our heart, there will be a dissonance between our heart and brain. This means that we will constantly struggle to move forward.

Strategies To Prevent Binge Eating

September 09, 2014 by Christina Santini in Eating Disorders, Transformation Keys, Binge Eating

When we struggle with eating, we experience a disconnect from our body-mind-soul at its most core. Not being able to trust our basic ability to feed ourselves, when we are hungry, and stop when we are not, makes for a deeply painful experience of not being able to trust in ourselves and in life - and this distrust reflects onto every relationship we have in life.

How To Have Faith When It Seems Out Of Reach

September 02, 2014 by Christina Santini in Transformation Keys, Faith, Depression

I want to challenge your perspective about what you consider as "bad" in your life right now. Keeping in mind, that our thoughts are what shape our emotions, and our feelings determine which actions we take - why it is so important to take back control of our mind, if we want to change anything in our life. When we categorize something as "bad" we often wish, that we had never encountered that experience. That life could have held a hand over us, and not allowed us to walk around seemingly alone and cold in the frostbitten storms of life.

How Emotions Manifest In Your Body

August 26, 2014 by Christina Santini in Emotional Management, Meditation, Transformation Keys

Many of us think, that we need detox diets to clean our bodies, and yes, sometimes we do after years of eating garbage and perhaps abusing drugs etc. However, more importantly though, we need to detox our emotions. Our emotions constantly set off a cascade of biochemical reactions in our body - promoting inflammatory responses and activating genes of disease.

How To Make Peace With Your Body - Guided Meditation

August 19, 2014 by Christina Santini

This week your recovery step is to change your body image - rewire the script that you tell yourself about your body.
Many of us - regardless of struggling with an eating disorder, addiction or other self-destructive behavior, spend a lot of time, whether we are conscious about it or not, on judging ourselves and constantly telling ourselves some type of condescending message daily, hourly.
Often times we don't even realize we do, because we've been playing the same self-abusive message on repeat for decades. We need to take control of our mind, or it will control us.

Biochemistry Balancing For The Addicted Brain

August 12, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Eating Disorders, Biochemistry Balancing

As you probably know, Robin Williams died this week due to addiction issues. Very, very sad. Not long before that, we lost Phillip Seymour Hoffman. And a couple months prior that, we lost L'wren Scott, Mick Jagger's latest wife. And a couple months before that tragedy, Peaches Geldof, Bob Geldof's 25-year-old gorgeous daughter kissed the dust. Every single one struggled with drug addiction. And died from that. It is not uncommon for those, who struggle with drugs, that they also suffer from different disordered eating behaviors as well, often overlooked and ignored due to drug use. Together they form a fatal combination, heart attack waiting to happen. A heart can only take so much stress before it gives up.

How To Shortcut Recovery

August 05, 2014 by Christina Santini in Eating Disorders, Addictions, Transformation Keys

When we are in pain, we all want to get rid of it. And preferably fast. We are obsessed with shortcuts. Diets. Instant-fix. Instant gratifications. Drugs. Alcohol. Food. Now now now. The thing is, that when we try to speed up recovery for the sake of shortcut, we miss out on the growth that comes only though pain. Our main growth in life happens through pain. That is why we should embrace pain, rather than just try to get rid of it as fast as we can. That, and the fact that what we resist, persists. So the only real shortcut is to embrace that which we fear. Why 95% of all diets fail and most people who are on a diet will gain weight. Being on a diet is the single dominant predicative parameter of future weight gain. Because shortcuts are not the solution to our struggles. Mastery is. And mastery is not something we learn overnight or by fearing failure.

Acceptance Comes Before Change

July 29, 2014 by Christina Santini in Transformation Keys, Self-Worth, Emotional Management

Today I want to talk about acceptance as transformation tool in recovery, and basically key for whatever change you are looking for.

As in accepting where you are at this point in time

As in accepting the person you see today in the mirror - yes today, not tomorrow or after some 5 lbs weight loss or whatever.

As in accepting your flaws as a human being in this skin we are in.

As in accepting that life will never be perfect, neither will your body, your family, your friends, your house or your bank account. Always something to tweak, always something we wish were different, than what we have. After every high (whether drug induced or work accomplished), always left with a feeling of a "is that all there is". Bottom line is, the void we seek to fill, will never be filled by anything from this transient time on earth.

When You Feel Like You Have Nothing To Give

July 22, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Eating Disorders, Self-Worth, Transformation Keys

That's exactly when is the perfect time to give back. Yes, at the point where you feel, you have hit rock bottom. Everything is against you and possibly everyone left you. This is when you feel that you cannot give anything to anyone. You feel like a used piece of tissue - wet, dirty and useless. The key to get unstuck of your misery, is to start giving in your weakest moment.

How To Manage Your Emotions without Drugs, Food + Alcohol

July 15, 2014 by Christina Santini in Addictions, Eating Disorders, Meditation, Emotional Management

Amber Valletta, ex-addict and supermodel, speaks out about the things she has found that she needs to do to thrive in recovery.

A key thing for Amber's ability to manage her emotions without drugs is mindfullness - her daily meditation practice. You can watch the video with Amber here.

This week I want to talk about the next step in recovery - and basically one of the most important steps for anyone dealing with wanting to change a behavior: building a daily meditation practice.