Restorative Living

Hi <3

Today I wanted to share about my restorative habits.  The way I live is pretty different to many people.  Its intensely restorative.  You know when you decide "tonight I'm going to pamper myself".  That's me everyday.  Yes it does take work.  And its very worth it.  I hope this post inspires you to incorporate something that speaks to you.  We can all improve no matter where we are at.  And don't forget you are perfect the way you are ;) Both simultaneously.

Lets start with bathing.  
Epsom Salt Soak
Taking a bath vs. taking a shower only takes 5-10 minutes longer than a shower - if you are so lucky to have a bath tub *with no water usage restrictions* like in norther California.  But most of us could still afford to indulge in a bath once a week.

If you take a shower you can still incorporate epsom salt into your routine.  I would mix half coconut oil and half epsom salt.  You get a delicious scrub, while also getting the benefits!

​Why?  Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate.  A mineral that our body needs. Our body burns magnesium as a stress response, and its required for about 600 different cemical processes in our body.  Almost everyone is magnesium deficient, and the best way to get it is through our skin, a soak is perfect.. like a bath!  I learned these facts from podcast interviews I'm sorry I don't know the exact person, but I'll include my playlist at the end.

One of the experts said we should be doing an epsom salt soak every day both morning and night.  What's beneficial about using epsom salt vs. taking a magnesium vitamin is that you can't accidentally take too much and require immediate time in the bathroom.  Your body will not soak up more than it needs, but it is possible to swallow one too many vitamins; funny but not funny.

While it is unrealistic to take time to do a soak; bath, or foot soak twice a day, you can add a cup to your bath, or use it as a scrub in the shower every day :)
I like this one, from Amazon

Clean Soap
What does that mean?? lol  When I say clean soap, I mean no harsh chemical.  You can still get perfectly clean and smelling nice without the intense perfumes put in regular soap that are actually not good for you.  I LOVE EWG you can check your products to find out its toxicity rating.  In this case you want a 0.  The lower the number the better.  
When bathing, you don't want to add more chemicals that you got in there to wash away.  When I went through and edited all my products it did take a long time, but if you just do one item at a time its doable.  And your skin will get better!

Here are the two that I use
Bar soap
Liquid soap

Essential oils... Do I have to say why essential oils are amazing?  They smell delicious!  The way I use them most often is as a cleaner, and I spay the walls of the shower before getting in.  Occasionally in place of perfume, and very often in a diffuser just because I like the smell!

For my cleaner, I fill the bottle with mostly water, then put about 10 drops of either peppermint or eucalyptus, sometimes lemon and a little rubbing alcohol.  Because those ones are anti microbial.  I learned this while working at a yoga studio.  It was fun to clean, because it just kept smelling better <3

There are millions of ways to use essential oils,  - enjoy!

Hair mask
If you can eat it then its also good for your outsides :)  Mostly.  When it comes to hair masks, I have tried everything.  Seriously.  The easiest and cheapest for its power is Olive Oil.  Put a good amount of olive oil in your hair lets it sit for at least 20 minutes before washing it out.  Bam amazing hair!

Here my (newbie) video about it  
My Amazing Hair Secret!

Skin Care
sorry to say my skin care has gotten increasingly simple over the years.  You don't need the expensive products in the pretty bottles.  Just something scrubby and a really thick moisturizer.  On my body I scrub with epsom salt.  And on my face, now its just a wash cloth.  

Why?  Because I have learned great skin is not about what you put on it.  Its about what you eat.  Or what you don't eat.  When I eliminated sugar, I could not believe how great my skin got.  So if you have bad skin I'd bet (a lot) that you are eating something not good for you.

And now most of the time my moisturizer is castor oil.

Diet
​The way you eat is pretty important (I believe).  But what's healthiest for you is not necessarily the best for your neighbor for example.  I was vegan for a long time, and that did wonders, until my energy crashed, then I found Keto to heal my gut and fatigue - if you want to condense 15 years into a sentence ;)  Now I eat some variation of the GAPS diet - to keto, with an occasional cookie or ice cream.  Occasional meaning maybe three times a year, knowing I will pay for it later, and that I'll have to return to super strict for a few days.  The point is try out a few different diets, figure out what works for you.

Side note, track your cycle (for women) and the time of year/how much sun exposure you are getting, this influences how your body handles certain foods.

Another side note, part of my "diet" is getting A LOT of outside time.  No sunglasses, no sunscreen.

Because this book was such a game changer for me I recommend it to EVERYONE; if you don't know where to start, and want to try a healthier diet.
The Plant Paradox Cook Book
I didn't realize I had chronic joint pain, until I realized "oh I don't need to take turmeric anymore to make my elbow stop hurting".  My gut dysbiosis immediately got better, and I didn't feel like I would throw up if I ate the wrong thing, and this diet was key in me healing my fatigue.  Oh yes! And good bye chronic headaches, that I later realized I had migraines since I was 12!  The point is, diet is powerful, find your right diet <3

Books!
carrying a book around in my bag and reading it anytime I was stuck waiting really kept me relaxed the whole day.  Now that I have a baby... this habit will have to be put on hold for a while.  But try it out!
​Check out my favorite book on my affiliate recommendations page

Finally...
A commitment to your own personal growth. whatever that means to you.  Seriously it can be as little as 10 minutes a day.  Although I love intense overhauls!  Not everybody does...  Nor may it work for your life.  But you can do something.  And exactly where you are is the perfect place to start <3
​If you don't know where to start check out my self study page

Finally - again ;)  here is my forever growing youtube play list about health and living as your healthiest.  I have learned and incorporated a lot from these interviews.
Ultimate Health Playlist
​
There's a lot in hear...
Hope something stood out and felt inspiring,
sending love, Jessica