Available for Interviews: Dr. Alice Fong
Alice Fong, ND, is an integrative naturopathic doctor specializing in stress, integrative medicine, diet & weight loss, and is a business growth consultant for holistic healthcare providers.
What Dr. Alice Fong can say in an interview on
Breaking Free From Stress and Anxiety Naturally:
When your body or mind is stressed, your “sympathetic nervous system” is activated. It is better known as the “fight or flight response.” What happens to our bodies when we’re in this “stress” mode is our heart races, pupils dilate, we sweat, and our blood pressure and cortisol rises. It’s an important system to have to be able to exercise or handle dangerous situations. However, the problem is, if we are ALWAYS in this “stress mode,” it overworks our adrenal glands, which is responsible for the output of the hormone cortisol in our bodies. Eventually the adrenal glands will be depleted over time, which can lead to the brain fog, fatigue, sleep disturbances, weight gain, and it makes us more susceptible to getting sick.
5 Steps to Break Free From
Stress and Anxiety Naturally
1) Build a strong foundation of health. You would not want to build a house on an unstable foundation. We have to make sure the foundational components of health are strong and in place before we do anything else. That would include good nutrition, exercise, getting enough sleep, and drinking enough water.
2) Practice mindfulness. Mindfulness and meditation is not just for monks or hippies. Every person has tens of thousands of thoughts every day, and a lot of those thoughts are not productive to our goals, because we often dwell in thoughts from the past, or worry about the future and the things we need to do. It takes training and practice to live in the ‘present’ moment and go from having a mind “full” of thoughts to being mindful. Studies have shown that a mindfulness practice can increase focus, productivity, performance, and a sense of happiness and wellbeing.
3) Work with a naturopathic or functional medicine doctor to explore any underlying health conditions or biochemical imbalances that could be contributing to the stress or anxiety. No, anxiety isn’t just “all in your head” sometimes. There are many health conditions that could be causing or contributing to high stress and anxiety such as thyroid disorders, autoimmune diseases and chronic infections such as lyme disease. We want to either rule out these conditions OR address the conditions to help alleviate stress and anxiety.
4) Examine the source and root cause of your stress and anxiety with a professional. There is only so much you can do inside your own head. Sometimes getting a professional involved such as a counselor or therapist can give you some perspective on the validity of your negative thought processes as well as help you understand where those stressful thoughts come from.
5) Take time for yourself to decompress and take care of yourself. Smartphones these days DO a whole lot of processes and functions. It’s pretty miraculous all the things a phone can accomplish. But can a phone do any of those things if you never charge it? NOPE. Same goes for your body. If you are running, going all the time, and never take time to reset and recharge, guess what? You will not function very well or very fast, and maybe just not at all. So do not feel guilty if you need to take a moment to breathe or go on a walk if you start to feel you are being run ragged. Those moments of rest can give us the energy to get back in the game of life and deal with whatever it throws at us more powerfully and confidently.
The Truth About Stress
Prolonged stress and anxiety can impact the body in many negative ways such as weight gain, fatigue, diminished immune function, elevated blood pressure, disrupted sleep and digestion, to name a few! It can ALSO have a negative impact on your mind . . . making it hard to focus and remember important tasks, stops you from pursuing big goals and dreams because of the worry and fear, and leaves you feeling resigned and depressed about your life. Taking the steps above to reduce overall stress will improve one’s life in tremendous ways.
Interview: Dr. Alice Fong
Known as the “Virtual Stress Doc,” Alice Fong, ND, helps busy professionals break free from their stress and anxiety so that they can focus on what matters to them using a 5-step holistic approach. She is the founder and CEO of Amour de Soi Wellness, which offers one-on-one wellness programs, corporate wellness workshops, e-learning, and resilience training courses.
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