Experience has taught me that the four cornerstones of good health are physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Physical health is foundational, and most agree that a balance of good nutrition, exercise, self-care, and rest are essential elements to overall well-being.

This winter, I organized and repainted almost every room in my home, including my art studio. Being busy helped me accomplish needed tasks and remake my home for this newest chapter of my life. With the onset of spring, I turned outdoors and began the process of grooming my yard by raking out the lawn and beds and collecting fallen limbs. I am anxious to see the 180 daffodils and 180 irises I planted in November, bloom. The busyness that was at one point a needed coping mechanism has now become a dangerous habit. Too much activity has escalated my aches and pains to a new level.

My 66-year-old self has a 33-year-old brain.

“I can do this.”

“OK, now I should do that.”

“Wouldn’t it be great to do this as well?”

“I will just do one more thing.”

“One more thing.”

“One more thing.”

After months of powering through activity after activity, my body decided to no longer cooperate.

Inflammation is the healthy immune system’s response to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, like viruses and bacteria, damaged cells, and toxic compounds. When inflammation happens, chemicals from your body's white blood cells enter your blood to protect your body from invaders. This raises the blood flow to the area of injury or infection.

Sometimes, inflammation persists, even when the body is no longer threatened by a foreign invader. That is when chronic inflammation becomes the enemy. Chronic inflammation is linked to a host of diseases. For me, emotional stress combined with unrelenting repetitive physical activity resulted in intense pain and chronic inflammation.

Doctors are learning that one of the best ways to reduce inflammation is not in the medicine cabinet, but in the refrigerator. Lifestyle changes that include anti-inflammatory foods; reducing sugary, salty, fried, processed foods and red meats; increasing fiber, limiting alcohol; being physically active; and getting good quality sleep can decrease or eliminate inflammation over the long haul. An anti-inflammatory diet can relieve chronic inflammation.

One Day At A Time

When I hear the word diet, I balk. I focus on my numerous failed attempts to lose weight to counteract poor eating habits. What has worked for me over these past months as I have walked through a grieving process resulting from a profound loss, is to focus on doing my best, putting one foot in front of the other, one day at a time. And I am learning to accept that today’s best is good enough. Based on the positive results of this strategy, applying it to new lifestyle changes seems like a great idea. Pain is a great motivator of change.

Anti-inflammatory foods include green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, and collards. Nuts like almonds and walnuts. Avocado, tomatoes, mushrooms. Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, tuna, and sardines. Fruits such as strawberries, blueberries, cherries, grapes, and oranges. And my new favorite, dark chocolate.

Omega-3 fatty acids are ‘healthy fats’ that may support your heart health and lower cholesterol. Polyphenols are organic compounds found abundantly in plants. Growing research indicates that polyphenol consumption may play a vital role in health through the regulation of metabolism, weight, chronic disease, and cell proliferation. Antioxidants are found in plant foods. They are natural molecules that help neutralize harmful free radicals, a type of unstable molecule that can cause cell damage and disease.

In addition to fish, eggs, and olive oil are an effortless way to get my omega-3s. Bananas, high in magnesium, help strengthen bones and alleviate arthritis symptoms. Spinach and kale also contain iron that helps fight anemia resulting from anti-inflammatory medications. Low-fat yogurt can reduce inflammation by improving the integrity of the intestinal lining. Bolstering this layer of tissue prevents toxins from crossing over into the bloodstream and promoting inflammation.

A Favorite Comfort Food

Chocolate is my favorite comfort food. Giving it up is currently not an option. I learned that quality dark chocolate with a high cocoa content is quite nutritious. It contains a decent amount of soluble fiber and is loaded with minerals, reducing the risk of heart disease and diabetes, preventing blood clots, improving memory, lowering cholesterol, and even preventing certain types of cancer. It can improve sleep quality by increasing the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter linked to feelings of calmness and relaxation. The antioxidants found in dark chocolate can reduce stress levels and help reduce the time it takes to fall asleep. While I may need to limit quantities to watch my waistline, knowing a favorite treat has health properties is great news.

My one-day-at-a-time lifestyle is now a one-meal-at-a-time strategy. I have substituted my favorite milk chocolate (one that I eat in excess this time of year) with organic dark chocolate nonpareils. The same store also had fresh spinach from a local farm on sale. Across the street, my favorite cheese store was calling. While most dairy can cause inflammation, limited amounts of aged Roquefort can help lower cholesterol levels, prevent artery inflammation, and blood clotting in veins or arteries. At the grocery store, I bought strawberries, frozen mixed berries, and clementines.

When I got home, I made a fruit salad with an apple, clementine, and banana I had on hand, along with the strawberries. A handful of walnuts and six multigrain crackers with cheese made a satisfying snack while watching golf on TV. I baked the salmon for dinner with lemon juice and olive oil and accompanied it with a spinach salad topped with slivered almonds. I still enjoyed my blue cheese dressing but thinned it with low fat raspberry vinaigrette, which I also had on hand. I am content to improve my nutritional habits incrementally by including satisfying options to keep me moving in a healthy direction.

And, Yet ...

And yet, last night, I did not sleep well. My aches and pains kept me awake. One day of an anti-inflammatory diet is not going to heal me, but a sustained effort to add more anti-inflammatory foods to each meal will. My desire to reduce the pain will keep me willing until new habits become second nature.

This morning, I woke up and made myself a Spinach and Berry Smoothie and a toasted piece of my friend Bev’s Irish Soda Bread. The smoothie was surprisingly delicious. The extra I saved for tomorrow allows me to have a healthy option on hand as a snack alternative. I was surprised to learn of the health benefits of Irish Soda Bread. Low in saturated fat and cholesterol, high in fiber, and sugar-free, it reduces the risk of inflammatory diseases, heart disease, and diabetes while helping with weight maintenance.

Just as important, I am making a concerted effort to drink more water and take multivitamins daily. Willingness, consistency, and an honest desire to be my best self is the best self-care recipe I can use as I continue to walk this journey called life.

Juice and Tea Anyone?

You can make your own anti-inflammatory juices and teas at home.

Ginger Apple Juice

The health-promoting properties of ginger are well known. The anti-inflammatory effect of ginger can reduce muscle pain after intense physical activity.

Add to a juicer, a high-speed blender, or food processor:

TIP: If you use food processor or blender and don’t want the pulp, you can strain the juice after it liquifies.

Pineapple Peel Tea

Bromelain, the digestive enzyme in pineapple, has anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving properties. This helps when you have an infection, like sinusitis, or an injury, like a sprain or burn. It also offsets the joint pain of osteoarthritis. The vitamin C in pineapple juice also keeps inflammation levels low.

Add to a spaghetti pot:

Bring to a boil and let simmer until tea has a rich color and taste. Strain. Pour in a glass jar and refrigerate for a week to 10 days. Reheat in microwave or stovetop.

TIP: Pineapple frequently goes on sale and is pound-for-pound cheaper and healthier than canned. Pineapple is ripe and ready to peel and eat when one of the leaves pulls out easily.

Spinach Berry Smoothie

The best smoothies are the ones that taste good to you. Experiment. Add fresh or frozen berries for sweetness, bananas as a thickener, milk, yogurt, and/or fruit juice for consistency, spinach, kale, ginger, and protein powder, flax or wheat germ for an added digestive boost. I made this one for breakfast this morning and had enough for two servings.

Add to a blender:

Use the ‘liquify setting’ to combine all ingredients. Store leftovers I a glass jar or airtight container.