The great coffee debate

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Laura Minford

To coffee or not to coffee? That is the question. Whether you’re a one-a-day kinda person, an abstainer, or a chain coffee drinker, there’s no doubt you have wondered at some point whether the stuff is good for you or not. And if you drink it, how much of it is actually okay?

Caffeine perks
• Improves alertness and concentration
• Improves mood at a consumption level of 200mg (roughly 2 regular cups)
• Helps combat muscular pain by stimulating the release of B-endorphins and other pain-reducing hormones
• Improves endurance: consumed one hour prior to exercise, caffeine increases performance and can assist in weight loss and/or maintenance
• Helps prevent diabetes through the minerals and antioxidants it contains
• Helps prevent Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s by keeping dopamine molecules active
• Helps manage asthma if consumed moderately, and may be used to prevent an attack
• Enhances the effect of medication (eg. painkillers) through blood vessel constriction

Caffeine drawbacks
• Blood sugar swings coffee causes a temporary surge in blood sugar and a spike in insulin production, followed by a crash in blood sugar levels
• Adrenal fatigue coffee gets your cortisol going and stimulates your adrenals, leaving them flat afterwards. You get that ‘wired but tired’ feeling and crave coffee no2! Vicious cycle.
• Emotional disturbances: coffee can aggravate stress, anxiety, irritability and depression
• Sleep disruption: particularly if you’re an after-lunch coffee drinker
• Gastrointestinal problems coffee can cause heartburn/reflux and increase the risk of ulcers
• Nutritional deficiencies: it prevents the absorption of certain nutrients, particularly minerals
• Ageing: caffeine dehydrates and promotes the decline of anti-ageing hormones

Our verdict
Like many things, coffee is good for you in moderation. It also doesn’t agree with everyone so each case should be examined individually. If you do choose to drink it, stick to a max of two cups daily, before 2pm, and pick a good quality coffee (not instant), minus the frills – cream, milk or a good quality dairy alternative is fine but skip the sugar, artificial sweetener, syrups, etc.

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Healthy Eating to get that Sexual Drive up and Going and Going and….

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Pauline Howard (blogger from the wellbeing community)

Not many people like to talk about their sexual drive. If sex is discussed it’s either bragging or moaning (not in ecstasy) more as in ‘Do I have to…again?’

Initially whilst in the honeymoon period most will put rabbits to shame. Then the pressures from work demands, sickness, financial worries, lack of sleep, and children start to creep in. God I think I just lost mine thinking about it all. You name it, it will affect your sexual drive. So what can you do about?

Firstly assess what’s the cause. Is it because you are not fit? Remember it’s a physical work out and somebody’s gotta do the work. Let’s face it, its better if both of you actively participate. If its fitness, then find a fitness regime that will work for you.

Consider walking or running or join a gym. Whatever it is, it needs to be compatible with your busy life schedule that’s already stolen your sexual drive and now has its eye on your fitness levels. Don’t let it win! To bring back the groove you gotta move.

Secondly, are you getting enough sleep?  If not, why? Do you have a new born? Are you worried about finances? Is your sleep broken and if yes why? Is it hot flushes, a crying baby or nightmares? Or are you one of the many that’s hops into bed and just stares at the ceiling? Or do you suffer from excessive dreaming waking up constantly during the night? Poor sleep will have a negative impact on your sexual drive.

Thirdly let’s look at the diet. Everyone talks about oysters being an aphrodisiac. That’s only helpful if you like them and are neither a vegan, nor a vegetarian or don’t have a seafood allergy. Have you ever wondered how those slimy little buggers got their boastful reputation for improving your sexual drive? It’s the Zinc level.

If you work out the problem then a solution can be found. Perhaps it’s all of the above. So let’s see what can be done about it all.

Zinc is the power player here. It’s needed for healthy sperm. Helps reduce copper overload. Copper overload causes zinc deficiency, magnesium deficiency. It’s needed for healthy stomach acid levels. Poor stomach acid reduces absorption of nutrients and will lead to bloating and recurrent gastritis. Zinc is also required for healthy serotonin levels. Low serotonin levels will result in poor sleep and a flat mood. There are 200 enzyme reactions within the body that requires Zinc. Zinc is found in pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) sunflower seeds and red meat(remember to trim the fat) and eggs.

Water intake is important. If you are dehydrated you won’t want to do anything even if it may end with a smile. Please drink the right amount of water and it may be the thing to put a grin above your chin. Please find below a link to a hydration calculator.

http://www.wateraid.org/uk/get_involved/drink_more_water/1415.asp

Do you suffer from constipated? If you do I can understand why you wouldn’t feel like doing anything that uses any part of your body that’s close to the back log. Constipation can present with abdominal pain, lethargy and long term it may lead to disease.  You need a mixture of soluble fibre and insoluble fibre with the right amount of water to get things moving.  I recommend a serve of salad and a serve of cooked vegetables (preferable steamed) and three pieces of fruit , as well as a small amount of nuts and seeds such as almonds, brazil nuts (you only need four brazil nuts and no more) some pepitas and sunflower seeds. Excluding the Brazil nuts aim to have about 150gm of a raw nuts and seeds mix.

Iron– So important and quite often lacking in a diet.  Lean red meat is a great source. In the vegetable kingdom its beetroot and green leafy vegetables. Low iron will result in low energy, easy bruising and feeling very flat and changes in posture or movement can create dizziness. Try to have lean red meat two to three times a week. If you are vegetarian then beetroot and the green leafy vegetables will need to be consumed daily. If you like juicing perhaps try beetroot juice (30 to 50ml) to a mixture of equal amount of carrot and apple juice in a 200ml glass. Beetroot juice is very strong tasting so add it last and a little bit at a time until you get the taste you like. You can also add in celery juice to this mix.

Let’s not forget Omega-3. The two fatty acids of Omega-3, EPA and DHA both have great benefits for your libido. The DHA is needed for semen production and brain activity. Whilst EPA will help reduce inflammation and benefit the heart and help soften the skin. With an improved cognitive function you’ll offer stimulating conversation, think of sweet nothings to say and then you can woo them with your soft skin. The DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) will be lessened by the EPA component of Omega-3. Remember it is a physical work out.Sources of Omega 3 are sardines, salmon, trout, eggs and chia seeds. If you are concerned about eating eggs daily please click onto transcripts discussing why you can eat them daily.http://health.ninemsn.com.au/whatsgoodforyou/theshow/693988/are-eggs-bad-for-your-heart

Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin.  There are ads on the television stating it’s a common deficiency. It would be conducive for a healthy sexual drive to have a healthy vitamin D level.  Vitamin D deficiency will impact on the cardiovascular system, the nervous system, the endocrine system and the immune system. Fatigue is a common presentation in vitamin D deficiency. Please find a link below offering more information on the subject.http://www.d3drops.com.au/findout/optimum-d3-status

If sleeping is the issue consider the following


  • Reduce your coffee intake to no more than one a day and if you still find you can’t sleep then omit from your diet.
  • No refined carbohydrates such as biscuits, chocolate, sweet drinks, lollies and sweets.  Once you are sleeping you can reintroduce these items as a treat.
  • Do some form of continuous exercise for thirty minutes each day. Walking is ideal.
  • Have either a hot bath (not too hot just comfortable ) with a few drops of Lavender oil or a shower before bed. This will warm your body temperature and stimulate melatonin production. This is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in an area of the brain known as the hypothalamus. Melatonin is produced from the amino acid tryptophan. When your body starts to cool down you will feel sleepy.
  • Ensure your bedroom is dark. To produce healthy levels of melatonin during sleep your room needs to be dark.
  • A warm glass of milk and bananas both have tryptophan in them. This is an amino acid needed for melatonin production.
  • If your baby keeps you awake then seek help if both of you are suffering from poor sleep. Otherwise find someone in the family or a friend to babysit for the night.
  • If your partner snores then encourage them to lose weight or if it’s a sinus issue see a professional.
  • If its worries or nightmares stopping you from sleeping then please see a counsellor.
  • If its menopause symptoms then please see a naturopath.
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Making your family’s dental care more affordable! Part 2: think long term!

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Tijana

Knowing what we know about the cost of dental treatment should be an incentive enough for us to avoid any need for treatment. However, teeth and mouth are a part of the rest of our bodies and are usually the first organ to show signs of deteriorating health, unhealthy habits and unsustainable lifestyle. On the other hand, often, being healthy and extremely body conscious can also be detrimental to the health of our teeth (and mouth in general).

The only way to know if your mouth is truly healthy is to regularly consult a professional, or make that a team of dental professionals: a dental hygienist and a dentist.

Long term view for your health can save your teeth and your wallet!

If you view dental health as an essential component of your overall health, you need to adopt a view that you want to remain healthy not just until you are no longer concerned about your smile or your ability to eat barbecue steak, but well into your old age. As such, you need to understand that there will be some maintenance (or to use a car analogy: ‘service’) costs along the way.

  • Educate your children about the importance of good nutrition and good oral hygiene. The earlier they begin to understand that teeth need to be looked after, the easier it will be for them to make healthy choices later in life.

The more regular your visits to the dentist, the earlier the diagnosis of any problems. This means: earlier intervention, less complex and less invasive treatment and less cost (back to the car analogy: regular oil change is far less dramatic than an engine change).

    Find a dental team you are comfortable with. Establish a good relationship with the whole team at your dentist’s practice. Make them aware of your intention to keep your family’s teeth healthy for the long term and your commitment to regular preventative care. Ask them to give you a detailed account of your current condition and all your treatment options- both short term and long term.
  • Take your children to the dentist from an early age. Get them used to the environment and a non-threatening preventative care approach. They will find it fun and novel. Hearing how important teeth are from other people will only confirm what you have been teaching them at home and make it easier for you to reinforce the message at home.
  • Model healthy choices and responsible behaviour by visiting the dentist for preventative care (maybe even taking the kids along to see that you have to do it too). Often, mums will sacrifice their own visits to the dentist in order to cover the children’s expenses. If the children don’t ever see you do it, they won’t keep it up for long, either.

Most dental practices offer some concessions for children and families of their patients. The more family members attend the practice and the more regular the visits, the more likely the practice is to reduce their fees for the family. Having whole families as clients is a big compliment to any practice and they make sure you are well looked after!

Importance of ‘Treatment plans’

As you age, your dental restorations will age, too. They will need to be replaced over time and eventually, will become more complex. When you need to ‘catch up’ on your dental health (e.g if you haven’t seen a dentist for a number of years and some treatment will be needed soon), you will need a ‘treatment plan’ from the dentist.

The best definition of a treatment plan I can come up with would be that it is ‘the most appropriate course of treatment which dentist and client arrive at after considering the client’s overall set of medical, practical and financial circumstances’. These plans are ‘blueprints’ for long term health and don’t always have to be completed quickly, so ask your dentist to prioritise the recommended treatment for you.

Your dentist can also construct a ‘long term treatment plan’ for your reference. This type of treatment plan would contain problems or treatment you can anticipate over the long term (usually about 2-5 years) instead of items which have to be addressed immediately. Some people find it confronting to see the total cost of all this future treatment, but you must remember the need for treatment will be there regardless of whether you do or don’t know the cost well ahead of time.  Instead of worrying about it, anticipate these costs in your family’s budget and prepare for it years in advance.

Your dentist can help by updating your long term treatment plan every year, every couple of years, or as needed.  Having a treatment plan you can keep enables you to refer to future costs of treatment and plan for them in your family budget well ahead of time. It also helps when choosing the right private health cover, upgrading cover or obtaining a quote from your existing health fund on your future rebates. Most health funds have 12 month no claim (waiting) periods on major dental treatment, so planning ahead is essential.

We will discuss treatment plans, health funds and some tips on saving costs and budgets in the next instalment of this series.

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Do you have diverticulitis? What are your symptoms?

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Jenetta Haim (blogger from the wellbeing community)

Diverticulitis is a common disease which happens often to the elderly when the large intestine wall becomes weak, forming sac-like pouches into the intestines. These pouches are called diverticulum or diverticula if there are many. If these become infected due to faeces trapped in there, it’s called diverticulitis. However diverticulitis not only happens to the elderly depending on the state of your intestines.

Often it shows no symptoms and can be mistaken for a stomach bug or something else. Some of the symptoms can be stomach cramps, constipation, diarrhoea, sore stomach when touched, fever, nausea, bloating and wind which are common symptoms for a whole lot of health issues so it can go unnoticed for some period of time.

However it’s not good to let it go because it can lead to fistulas (one organ having an opening into another), holes in the colon, narrowing in intestines and abscesses.

Diet changes are very important to assist in treating this and if it becomes really bad then a course of antibiotics for the infection or surgery may also be necessary.

If you have diverticulitis then you should avoid peas, popcorn, dried fruit and certain grains. Soup is good to add to the diet as it is easier to digest than many other foods and you are still getting the nutrition. Similarly, foods that are warm are easier to digest than cold food, cold drinks and raw foods.

Assessing how your digestion is working is important. In Chinese medicine warm food and drink is considered much easier on the digestive system so why not give that a try. Ironically Chinese medicine considers its cause is due to too much heat in the body and large intestines.

I cannot emphasise enough the importance of taking digestive enzymes and not laxatives or excess fibre drinks. You do not want to push the bowels. You want to increase your metabolism and digestion. These are two different things and work differently and many people do not take note of this difference. It is very important. Pushing the bowel can lead to all sorts of illnesses in later life.

Remember also if you have ongoing bowel problems for a huge part of your life that this is not going to disappear overnight. Give your system time to develop new habits and give yourself time to make the diet and exercise changes. Don’t throw in the towel just because progress seems slow.

Remember also to look for parasites in the bowel. Many of us have these without realizing it. Your natural therapist will be able to assist you with what to take to clear your bowels of these problems.

The combination of changes in both diet and exercise will often help with the symptoms and remember to drink enough water. Also colonic irrigation is a great way to rid the bowel of the toxins and mucus it has accumulated. However you need to consult a specialist in this area before you think of doing that. Acupuncture can help with changing how the metabolism and digestion works and a supervised detox by a qualified natural therapist will help your bowel and digestion get some semblance of normality. As always it’s important to do research and follow whichever modality works best for you.

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Swimming for slimming

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Felicity Daley (blogger from the wellbeing community)

Swimming is a great way to increase your cardiovascular fitness, burn calories and improve your upper body strength.  As it is low impact, swimming is a fantastic option for those who are injured and provides a great cardio workout for those who have a large amount of weight to lose, and want to avoid the strain on joints, ligaments and tendons experienced during higher impact exercise; such as running.

A person weighing 60kg will burn between 350 and 700 calories an hour when swimming, depending on the intensity and the swimming stroke. This is comparable to the calorie expenditure achieved during jogging/running, with a lower chance of over use injuries and strains.

Swimming can also be a good opportunity to relax and unwind, or to grab a group of friends and socialise while working out. It’s a refreshing way to shed kilos over Summer while others pound the pavement, pouring sweat, and in Winter there’s always the option of a heated pool.

That said, i might head down to Dawn Fraser Baths for a few laps now!

Felicity.

It is important to remember that (although swimming is excellent exercise) it is non-weight bearing, and because of this it does not increase bone density. To improve bone density, some form of weight bearing exercise should be included in your training routine.

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A few random health facts…

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Laura Minford

What does your sandwich say about you?

According to a survey by UK neuromarketing firm Mindlab, what you put in your sandwich says a lot about the kind of person you are:

• Cheese and pickle = high IQ
• BLT on seeded bread = opportunist
• Ham salad on white = forward thinker
• Beef roll = impulsive
• Egg mayo = quiet homebody
• Tuna and corn = highflyer
• Prawns on brown = sensitive soul
• Chicken and salad wrap = extrovert

Position is key…

Fact. We are more likely to favour items in the middle row of our fridges and pantries. It’s not just about buying healthy food – we also need to place it strategically in that ‘easiest to reach’ drawer or shelf. Keep the naughty items tucked away, out of reach.*

* Study in Applied Cognitive Psychology.

Do we know how fat we are?

USA
• % of overweight people = 64%
• % of overweight people aware they are overweight = 43%

Australia
• % of overweight people = 60%
• % of overweight people aware they are overweight = 33%

UK
• % of overweight people = 59%
• % of overweight people aware they are overweight = 40%

NZ
• % of overweight people = 59%
• % of overweight people aware they are overweight = 41%

China
• % of overweight people = 21%
• % of overweight people aware they are overweight = 25%

Yep, there’s no avoiding it. Us Aussies are in denial about our expanding waistlines. The (pretty scary) stats above are from a 2011 ‘Health Pulse’ survey by leading healthcare group BUPA. Time for a reality check!

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Making your family’s dental care more affordable! Part 1: Why is dentistry ‘expensive’?

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Tijana

Dentistry in Australia is provided mostly in private dental practices. The public health system cannot cater for the demands of even the most disadvantaged parts of our society. Partly, this is due to the fact that dental disease is a chronic disease that most people suffer from and with an ageing population, this demand is on a steady increase, yet government funds are in decline. The other reasons why public dental clinics cannot provide their services to more people may also be the high complexity and high cost of running efficient dental clinics. Dental care is, therefore, left to the private sector, where the cost of running a dental clinic is incurred by the private owner. These practices (and their owners- be it private individuals or corporations), have duties and responsibilities to their customers, their employees and their shareholders. They determine their fees based purely on these responsibilities and their ethical duties to continue to provide this essential health service, with little or no help from the government.

Dental practices are extremely expensive to run as they have notoriously high overheads:

  • Highly sophisticated, specialised materials and equipment used in dental practices are very expensive and need updating on a regular basis to ensure quality care
  • Retail- or hospitality-like opening hours mean that staff need to be well looked after to remain motivated and productive
  • Income of dental practices is highly unpredictable and can be dependant on the seasons, days of week, their client base’s socio-economic make up, overall state of the economy, availability of disposable income and that popular phenomenon “consumer confidence”
  • Dental visits can last a relatively long time, compared to other health consultations (think about your last visit to your GP or chiropractor) and they usually involve two people: a dentist and a nurse, servicing one patient.

Even if high quality dental care seems completely out of reach, there is hope. There are things you can implement in your daily life which can help you afford best quality dental care, whilst ensuring that you minimise any need for extensive treatment. You don’t need to ‘shop around’ for the cheapest dentist or wait until a painful problem appears, to seek advice or treatment. In this series of articles, we will give you some advice on how to take responsibility for your family’s dental care while keeping your bills and your dental problems at a minimum, which almost anyone can afford.

If you wish to know more about what “The Dentist at 70 Pitt Street” do for our clients to help with their dental expenses, you can contact us on (02) 92326367 or visit our website www.thedentist.net.au

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Natural Products to Assist Your Daily Living

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Jenetta Haim (blogger from the wellbeing community)

Quite often we dismiss natural products as a first measure to use when we are ill. We have perhaps been programmed to some extent to expect quick relief for pain and to use other prescribed medications and we don’t think about natural remedies as being able to assist us in our daily living, but they can often help with many problems so we are not as reliant on drugs.

Natural remedies can assist with a number of issues in our daily life –for example Cramp Bark (otherwise known as Viburnum opulus) is a great alternative when you have period pains as it relaxes all the muscles rather than just numbing away the pain as common pain killers do. It is best in a tincture for this reason as it goes easily into the bloodstream.

Whilst on the subject of pain we need to also look at Arnica which is great for removing bruises, puffiness and swelling as well as easing pain. It can also be used to help with headaches if taken internally and to calm your nervous system in the case of trauma.

Lavender also is a good remedy for a headache or if you are feeling stressed and down. You can rub it in your pressure points – wrists, temples, small of the throat, under your nose. It will assist you to come into emotional balance but don’t use too much of it as that can have the reverse effect. Also remember that Rescue Remedy is a flower essence mixture you can buy in health food stores to help you stay calm, ease shock, relieve emotional fatigue and it can also assist with calming the nervous system during panic attacks.

If the pain you have needs numbing however as in the case of a toothache remember the old remedy of clove oil which will numb your mouth as well as prevent tooth infections from spreading as it has anti-bacterial properties. It can also numb the skin if that’s what you need but remember it should not be swallowed.

More commonly during those winter months Echinacea, a natural boost for your immune system due to its antibacterial and antibiotic properties, will help you if you feel as though you are getting cold or flu. If you have a sore throat just start dosing yourself up with about 5000mg twice a day. Combine this with a Vitamin B and C and you will find you will often ward off the worst of colds and flu. Even if you don’t, the immunity boost will help you get over it quicker. Follow that with a cup of sweet licorice tea for a sore, dry, scratchy throat.

Goldenseal can also be added to the Echinacea as this herb is also antibacterial and antibiotic. Used topically and applied to open cuts it can stop them from becoming infected and is good for the digestion in that it can ward off parasites. Mix this with Ginger it can be very soothing for nausea or an irritated stomach. Add to this Peppermint tea for bloating or flatulence and Licorice to get your bowels moving and you will find very soon your stomach problems will be a problem of the past.

Tea Tree Oil is our very own well known Australian remedy which is a disinfectant so it can be used to clean scratches and cuts, on face pimples and in a neti pot to clean the sinuses. It is strong so it needs to be mixed with water. It reduces fungal activity so you can use it for tinea or anywhere the body needs to be cleansed. It can make a good natural mouthwash and you can combine it with Prunella vulgaris which is also antibiotic, antiseptic and astringent to help cuts heal faster and prevent infections. Add to this some Aloe Vera which is great for the skin in general – especially if you accidentally get sun burnt.

Lastly we cannot forget Neem which is a sacred plant in India used for all sorts of things from top to toe. When applied to your feet it can abate tinea and brushing with it will keep your teeth healthy. It is a great air freshener or insect repellent but it has a strong medical smell so you may want to think where before you use it.

Remember it is also important to drink lots of water to flush the toxins out of the body when you are using natural remedies to assist in general with your healing.

The above makes quite a list of natural products which perhaps you may not have thought of using. So next time, before you reach for the pain killers, have a think of where the discomfort is, and if there is a natural remedy for it. Or better still, why not stock up with a few things in your cupboards now, before you get ill? I am sure you will be in no mood to look for Cramp Bark or Lavender oil if you have a heavy period or a bad headache.

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Gardening – A Fun Way to Learn About Nature

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Rodrigo Roman

For many years now I have wondered how perceptions of our surroundings have changed. Nowadays, children play indoor games rather than staying outside and getting dirty. I am not against technology and no one can deny that new devices have improved our condition of life but I truly believe that we are becoming more and more disconnected from nature.

Regarding that matter, a few years ago, I had an experience that really shocked me. During these years I was doing a workshop with a group of children in my farm school and several children were astonished just to see how a flock of parrots grew up. Others thought orange juice came from a carton instead of from fresh oranges! I noticed that this kind of knowledge came from children from the age of six to ten, who lived in bigger urbanised cities.

This matter is not surprising if we think about how these children have been isolated from nature since they wereSustainable gardening born. Along with this, the real worry is that they will soon become adults and they will not have any value regarding environmental issues if they are not encouraged to pass this topic onto their children. This involves such things as the care of water, pollution and care of soil – environmental matters which ordinarily can only be assumed when you have lived for any time with nature, as I have for many years in Chile on the Farm school.

At the same time that I was pondering all this, I also realised how the elderly found joy in picking fruit off trees or just planting some particular seeds.  For some of them, these activities brought memories about their childhood and for others, it was just a pleasant moment where they were concentrated doing a job outside the house, breathing fresh air and doing some light physical exercises.

In my experience, one way to learn and care about the environment is to know the process that sustains it, such as, the interaction of species or how a plant or insect grow up and occupy a niche that is not used for any other creature. However, the only way to live such experiences is to get involved. You cannot ask a boy to enjoy soccer if he has not played a soccer game or hit a ball before! The same happens with nature, you must walk, get dirty or to be simpler, put a seed in the ground and see how it becomes a nice plant from which you can taste a delicious fruit.

I have spent more than ten years working in environmental assessment and education. I started in Chile, my native Country, doing terrestrial and mainly marine jobs. As you can imagine, my work involved a lot of analysis and computer work, however, my favorite tasks are those which concern field work.

Gardening or planting some vegetables in your own garden can bring pleasant moments that you can spend with your children or just on your own – not  to mention the advantages in terms of saving money and the health benefits. Growing totally organic vegetables is not limited to a certain age or gender, neither does it require a lot of time. It just needs the desire and the want to do it.

Therefore, I invite all of you to follow my column in the next weeks where I will start giving you some tips on how to prepare the soil, what is compost and how to prepare it, what type of vegetables you can plant during the appropriate seasons and which herbs are beneficial for you.

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SEX IS GOOD MEDICINE

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Matty Silver (blogger from the wellbeing community)

It is said that laughter is the best medicine.

What can be said about sex? Just like laughter it produces feel good endorphins amongst all the other benefits. Endorphins are defined as hormone-like substances that are produced in the brain and naturally relieve pain.

When people are ill or have physical ailments that bother them, too often they just don’t feel like sex and intimacy may take a back seat. But maintaining a close bond with your partner is essential. It is important to note that sexual intimacy is a broad term and does not always means “intercourse”.

There are also times when ill health diminishes one’s desire or even make it physically unattainable, yet there are many ways that sex can be enjoyed when one is ill. Talking about sex can feel threatening or uncomfortable, but by telling our partners what feels good and what does not, will help.

You may find that maintaining sexual intimacy with your partner during your illness is important to you. If so, don’t let symptoms of your illness or its treatment get in the way it can help foster the important physical bond you share with your partner. It may sound silly to plan a time for sexual intimacy, however, discussing how and when you will be doing it can be beneficial on its own.

On the day of your “scheduled” intimacy, be sure to get plenty of rest. Conserve your energy by eliminating unnecessary activities. It is important to understand that pain is a huge barrier to sexual arousal and performance so continue with your pain management medication.

Try using romantic music to both set the mood and distract from pain. Experiment with several positions to find something that feels good and doesn’t aggravate your pain. Try using pillows to aid in positioning and comfort. Of course there are other alternatives to be sexual like manual stimulation or oral sex.

Taking a warm bath or shower before sexual involvement can help reduce pain and, if you do it together, can be a wonderful part of foreplay. Gentle massage also can ease discomfort and promote arousal.

If all else fails and sex is just plain painful, experiment with other means of physical intimacy that doesn’t include intercourse. Gentle caressing, cuddling, kissing and hugging are wonderful ways to feel physically and emotionally connected to your partner.

The other benefit of engaging in sexual intimacy during illness is that it keeps you enjoy fully occupied so that you can focus on what feels good and distance yourself from the challenges of illness.

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