How Digestive Enzymes Have Helped Me

            So far, I have been able to figure out my health issues with the help and guidance of my naturopath Mariola Livernoche and my chiropractor, Dr. Jean Luc Flipo. I have learned so much from them.

            Recently, I noticed that one of the problems I have been trying to solve was not going away. From time to time I get these terrible attacks. They consisted of severe gas and bloating, it feels like an outrageous pressure pushing down inside of me. I found this strange because I had been eliminating gluten, dairy and nuts (which also stopped my migraines) and that was supposed to stop my attacks, but it didn’t seem to be doing the trick. This then led me to the conclusion that I must not be digesting my food like a normal person, which is not a surprise since I’ve had stomach issues my entire life.

            I decided to try and solve this problem another way, by getting really strict on my enzymes. Doctors tell us that we loose enzymes as we age as well as the more stress we have, which is a problem for me since I’m caring for my mother that has Alzheimer’s. Therefore, I started taking my enzymes, to replace the ones that I had been losing, and with my first bite of food suddenly everything would calm down

            There are many kinds of enzymes on the market but I just tried to figure it out myself, I took more at first and then readjusted. Sometimes I open the capsule and spread it over my food, which works even better. I will go into further detail about enzymes in my next blog.

            We have to change the way we eat and take care of ourselves, more than before. The world will continue to have an increasing amount of toxins, but it’s up to us to eliminate the amount that goes into our bodies.

Other Tips & Tricks

•            Lemmon and hot water rectifies everything to make you more alkaline.
•            Apple cider vinegar before a big meal helps digest.

Listen to your body; it's talking to you

Lately I have been getting migraines quite frequently and I’ve been trying to pinpoint the cause, but it’s not easy. I decided I needed to go over my diet. I realized maybe it could be something as slight as the aged cheese that I have been eating because I am gluten and lactose intolerant. Sometimes a solution to one problem could cause a problem. It happens to be I was right, aged cheese had been the trigger to my migraines. I cut out all cheese and later found out that nuts were also the problem. I thought I could eat aged cheese because easier to digest but I was wrong.

Wow! I went from waking up with migraines every morning, to none. I realized my body is talking to me! You really need to listen to your body. You can help yourself before going to the doctor to get prescriptions. I never thought in the past that I would go this route, but it sure works for me and I want to share it to many others who suffer.

Dr. Oz offers a great and easy gluten diagnosis. Click on the following link to find out what foods may bother you: www.doctoroz.com/article/gluten-symptom-tracker He gives you a list of high FODMAP foods, which is the food you will give up for 10 days to see if you could be given the new gluten diagnosis. Chances are if you are gluten intolerant, you have other intolerances too.

All this to say, no matter what the problem is, you have to search for the answer yourself first, most of the time you can find it on your own. The only migraines I cannot stop are when I am very stressed out. So I try to find a way to meditate and keep calm. My father used to meditate a lot and now I know why.

Sleep Apnea

This summer was an experience for all my family. Let me start off by saying my mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and has many other problems such as limited mobility. My mother had been making loud noises and snoring while she slept for many years, but it was only once I started sleeping next to her every night (because she has trouble getting out of bed on her own) that I noticed how bad it really was.

I decided to ask my chiropractor his thoughts on the matter (by the way he is the best chiro on the universe) he put a pulse oximeter on her finger and found her oxygen a bit low. My family and I noticed she began to be more and more confused and wanted to sleep all the time. I decided to have her tested for sleep apnea. I went private because I was able to schedule a test the same week. If she were to have it done through Medicare, in a hospital, the wait was a year, minimum. She had time to die before getting to the bottom of it. She was going down very rapidly. I love my mom and would do anything to keep her alive. Finally her score was so high, she stopped breathing 59 times an hour, grasping for air. My family and I were in shock. We quickly got her a sleep apnea machine and she started to improve. Imagine, your brain not getting enough oxygen and your heart was working so hard, that it was a matter of time before your body was to shutdown.

It was thanks to my Dr. Jean Luc Flipo, my chiropractor, Micheline, my naturopath’s secretary, and Mariola Livernoche, my naturopath that I was able to really help my mom. Mariola saved me when I was at my worst with all my food intolerances and way of life and Dr. Flipo helped me with my migraines from 15 years ago. If I hadn’t seen them, I would have been in terrible shape and on so many prescription drugs by now. (Pills are a life savior only in severe cases) I don't do anything before consulting my team, as I like to call them. They sure know their stuff.

Sleep apnea affects more people than I thought, anyone from a young adult to a body builder. It is my suggestion to keep a pulse oximeter in your house and use it on your family, just to see what your oxygen level is and make sure there are no problems. They are not expensive and can be easily purchased online, either on amazon or eBay.

Cheers to better living

Jacqueline

Fall/Winter Skincare Solutions

Now that summer is almost over you may want to change skincare for the fall/winter.  Two devices that cleanse your skin very well are the Clarasonic that you can use with your own cleanser every night and once a week or once a month you can use the crystal lift machine to do microdermabrasion in your own home.  These make your skin super soft and a perfect canvas to apply your make-up. What's great about this is, you decide what and when you want to do it and there is no going to pricy salons and paying their outrageous prices. We are in an era that we do what we want to look good. The clarasonic, you can buy it on the shopping channel or at Sephora. For the crystal lift machine, you can go to www.crystalift.com

Facial Machines & Creams

My face machine picks

For women out there who want to look amazing without paying the big bucks, I will tell you all about my favourite machines. You can use them from the convenience of your own home at the time you want.

1) Suzanne Somers’ Face Master with conductive solution. 

I cannot live without this machine. I use it every morning before my make-up; it’s like getting a workout at the gym but for your face. Your make-up goes on smoother and your eyes as well as jaw line start lifting. For women who have had a facelift, it just maintains everything. I use Suzanne Somers Organics Aqua Peptide Firming Eye Gel around the eyes in combination with her Organics Lip Wrinkle Cream around the mouth for lines on top of the lips. I then put the Face Master on feathering mode and the cream is absorbed much better into the skin. As we age, gravity sets in, especially over 45 years of age so this machine perfect to maintain the face. I use it everyday for half an hour to see great results but if that's too much for you, you can use it three to four times a week for twenty minutes each time.

You can get this machine at suzannesomers.com

2) The DermaWand

I start by putting my favorite cream then pass the DermaWand over and this targets large pores, fine lines and wrinkles. I use it in the area that bothers me more like the lines on top of the lips after I’ve applied Suzanne Somers Organics Lip Wrinkle Cream. You can use it around the eyes, on the forehead and even on your laugh lines. It’s also used to keep your face from collapsing. When I want a fast fix before an event, I use this machine and follow it up with the Face Master to really see the effect. It all depends on the time you have, but if I were you, I would try my best to make the time. If you do nothing about the way you look, you will age a great deal sooner. The more you use it, the softer your face will be. It has a different smell than most, the reasoning behind this is that its stimulating collagen on your skin with thermal energy. This helps reverse the signs of aging as much as possible!

You can get this machine at www.dermawand.com

3) The Nono Glow

This one should be used on a regular basis to make your creams sink in better as well as give you a better glow. You must use it regularly to see results. It has advanced light and heat energy technology. Slightly different from the DermaWand because it gives a lifting effect where as the Nono Glow gives a great glow and helps speed up the process to get rid of a pimple. Therefore what machine you want depends on what you want to target.

You can get this machine at www.howtonono.com

4) Laser FX

This machine is a little similar to the Nono Glow because they both make the creams sink in. This machine gives slight heat to the skin where as the Nono Glow gives hot and cold sensations to the skin. The laser FX has red light therapy and goes two to three millimeters underneath the skin, below the epidermis. It works the collagen inside out. This one too makes your creams sink in better. It’s a matter of choice. You either get this one or the Nono Glow.

You can get this machine at www.silkn.com

 My picks on what creams to use in conjunction with the machines listed previously

1)   Suzanne Somers

As mentioned earlier, Organics Lip Wrinkle Cream, Organics Aqua Peptide Firming Eye Gel and Organics Anti-Aging Eye Cream.

2)   Caudalie

Premiere Cru The Cream targets all the signs of aging. A little pricy, but you don’t need to purchase anything else. Although their eye cream is amazing, you can even use this one around the eyes, which works just as well. I use this with the DermaWand and the Nono Glow.

If lines above the lips are bothering you, their Polyphenol C15 Anti-Wrinkle Eye and Lip Cream smooth’s them out as well.

3)   Bite Beauty

For my lips, I love their Whipped Cherry Lip Scrub and their Agave Lip Mask. I put them on at night before bed and my lips are extremely smooth the next morning. Your lips will look more soft and full. 

Final Thoughts 

Both Caudalie and Bite Beauty can be bought in store at Sephora if you don’t want to pay extra for shipping. 

Steer away from products that claim to give you instant results. You want to use products that are long term. The chemicals they use in instant ones are very bad because they disrupt a woman’s hormones, especially if you are in perimenopause or menopause, which is 35 years and on now a days.

You don’t have to be a movie star to get these treatments. You can do them in the convenience of your own home and at a fraction of the price. I give you the best of what I use so you don’t have to break your head like I did. I try to find the safest ingredients and yet still the most effective products. Women now want to look the best they can and why not? You only live once and who’s to say you can’t start at fifty?