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Healthy Ideas

Healthy Ideas

How often do you take time to care for your own health and wellbeing?

Do you put off your own needs because you’re too busy caring for others? Spend some time on your own health and wellbeing here. There’s information about stress and relaxation, exercises you can try at home, complementary therapies, healthy food, getting and staying healthy in pregnancy, birthing options, and more!
Complementary Therapies
Complementary therapies focus on the whole person, not just on a specific ailment. They look for the root cause of a condition and seek to treat the whole person. The patient is also encouraged to take responsibility for their health and take an active part in the healing process.
Complementary therapies are becoming increasingly popular, with one in five people having tried them. Complementary medicine is used in the treatment and prevention of many ailments as well as being used to maintain good health. It can be very expensive to see a practitioner but where possible we’ve tried to show you how to benefit on a budget.

There is now a wide range of therapies available. The most well known are acupuncture, aromatherapy and massage, osteopathy, chiropractics, homeopathy and herbal medicine. There are many others such as naturopathy, nutritional medicine, crystal healing and energy work. Some therapies belong to whole medical systems such as traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurvedic medicine from India.

When selecting a therapist try asking around for recommendations as well as asking your GP and checking that the therapist has appropriate qualifications and membership of a professional body and professional indemnity insurance. Ask the practitioner about training and experience and how often they\'ve treated your condition in the past.

Questions to ask a therapist
1. Are you a member of a professional body? If so, which one?
2. What training have you received?
3. How long have you been practising?
4. Have you treated my condition before? If so, how long did it take and what was the result?
5. How many consultations will I need?
6. What will be the total cost?
7. Do you have professional indemnity insurance?
8. If relevant - are you willing to talk to my GP so the two treatments can dovetail well?

Complementary Therapies on the NHS
The NHS now offers some complementary therapies, depending on availability. Many GP’s are now trained in complementary therapies. If you\'re interested contact your GP who will be able to tell you what\'s available locally.
Stress & relaxation
Stress is described as ‘a state of emotional or mental strain or tension resulting form adverse or demanding circumstances’ in the Oxford dictionary. We hear a lot about stress these days but what makes you stressed? Most of us get stressed from time to time but all the evidence shows that exposure to continuous stress damages health. Stress leaves you feeling tense, anxious or worried. It's important to develop techniques to cope with stress and also to learn how to relax.
Pregnancy & childbirth
Finding out you’re pregnant is a very emotional moment. It may have been planned, it may be a surprise, you may have wanted to get pregnant and now be less sure, whatever your situation it’s important to take time to think about what’s best for you. If you’re pregnant and are uncertain about whether it’s what you want, it may help to talk to someone. Here are some support services.
Relaxation exercises
As much as we'd all love to be able to have our own masseuse and a life coach, in reality these are rare treats for most of us. But you can actually look after your own wellbeing without these expensive treatments. Many people now practice relaxation exercises to help them deal with stress or difficult situations. Try these exercises and see if you feel less stressed.
Exercise
Do you know that you can drastically reduce the chances of major illnesses such as heart disease by taking exercise? Exercise really does put a spring in your step.
General information
Complementary therapies focus on the whole person, not just on a specific ailment. They look for the root cause of a condition and seek to treat the whole person. The patient is also encouraged to take responsibility for their health and take an active part in the healing process.
Food
What do you think of when you think of food? Socialising, eating with friends, relaxing, comfort eating, dieting, arguing with children about vegetables? It may trigger memories of what you ate as a child, what your parents used to dish up, holiday food, or maybe the aroma of certain foods brings back vivid memories.
What do you think of when you think of food? Socialising, eating with friends, relaxing, comfort eating, dieting, arguing with children about vegetables? It may trigger memories of what you ate as a child, what your parents used to dish up, holiday food, or maybe the aroma of certain foods brings back vivid memories.

Whatever food makes you think of, it’s an essential part of everyday life, because, as the saying goes, you are what you eat. And for single parents, who may well be feeding growing children on a shrinking budget, food can pose many challenges.

Read on to find out more about diet and nutrition, vegetarian and vegan diets, African food, and more.