EiR Blog

College years are amazing - but they can be very stressful too. A number of projects and writing assignments might seem overwhelming to many students, especially if they didn’t have such workload at school. Add spending time with friends, taking care of various daily tasks, and even working sometimes - and you wouldn’t be surprised that some students find it incredibly hard to get through their college years without having their grades dropped. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Successfully combining college, personal life, and even work is totally possible if you learn how to organize your time right. So here are some tips that will help you become a more productive student.   1. Learn where does your time go.   First, spend some time analyzing your daily routines and studying. Try to find out how much time it takes for you to write a definition essay,...

After being chronically ill for 20 years, having been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) at the young age of 11, I have grown increasingly interested in psychology and particularly the traits required to survive an illness that robs sufferers of so much (what I would give to be able to just go for a run). My ill health has also included multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), seasonal affective disorder (S.A.D.), and adrenal fatigue, which are all terrible things to deal with in themselves and have forced me to draw on every last bit of inner strength I could muster to keep going despite a distinct lack of enjoyment in life. Rather than crushing my spirit however, these trials and tribulations that have shaped my life, have actually strengthened my resolve, given me greater confidence in myself and my abilities, and changed my outlook on life for the better. When one...

So, I again find myself writing on my positive experience with a LifeWave patch...this time the new Aeon product which is aimed at reducing stress and its consequences, both as a standalone product, or as part of LifeWave's Y-Age system which also incorporates patches designed to increase levels of glutathione and carnosine in the body. Having last year completed a Bachelor of Science degree in nutritional medicine, including a dissertation which involved performing a systematic review of the medical literature, I am quite familiar with the 'hierarchy of evidence' which is revered in academia, and perhaps most of all in medicine. In modern medicine if an intervention does not have numerous randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews of such trials supporting its use it is dismissed as useless or a scam. Now I understand the rationale behind this system and to a point agree with it. Living with a...

 There is no doubt that chronic illness involves a lot of suffering, a lot of soul searching, and a great deal of loss, both of one's capacity to continue doing all the things that bring enjoyment and of self-esteem and fulfillment in life. But what if chronic illness could be turned into a positive experience? This summer I completed a bachelors degree in nutritional health and was awarded first class honours by the University of Greenwich, London. At 31 I was beginning to think I would never obtain a degree after being forced to drop out of a computer science course at the University of Sheffield aged 19 due to ill health - this was therefore a great achievement for me. However, the degree was supposed to be followed by a year of clinical training to become a nutritional therapist/nutritionist. A recent downturn in my health as forced me to...

 I feel I must apologise for my recent lack of blogging activity but I'm sure when I explain why you'll understand - plus the reason has given me the inspiration for this post! As regulars will be aware I have suffered from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) for a long time - since I was 11, so 20 years now. Like many ME/CFS sufferers I am also burdened by adrenal fatigue, low thyroid function, hypoglycaemia, Candida and Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) amongst other things. I also suffered from severe Multiple Chemical Sensitivity for a number of years in my early 20s but thankfully was able overcome it (touch wood)! Like most suffering from environmental illnesses (or more appropriately here 'invisible illnesses') I have been constantly frustrated by the absence of any abnormal findings on conventional medical tests over the years. After all, if the standard lab tests are normal there can't possibly be anything wrong...

Stress commonly triggers or exacerbates symptoms of chronic illness. This is especially true of conditions including chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and depression/anxiety, in which changes in levels of stress hormones (e.g. cortisol, DHEA) and neurotransmitters (e.g. serotonin, dopamine, noradrenaline) reduce the sufferer's natural ability to cope with external stressors. Having suffered from chronic fatigue syndrome and associated conditions and symptoms for 18 years now I have found various ways to reduce the impact that stress has on my life. Today I thought I would share with you those that I have found most helpful:   1. Sleep The importance of a good night's sleep cannot be underestimated when you are chronically ill. This is the time when the body is in an anabolic state, detoxifying and cleansing itself of toxins and repairing wear and tear sustained during the day. I'm sure you will recognise that you feel worse after a poor...

Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, is a very common problem and cause of symptoms in those with environmental illness. Blood sugar levels are usually carefully controlled by the hypothalamus in the brain (a major control centre) which through a series of steps causes the release of two hormones from the pancreas; insulin, which lowers blood sugar by increasing uptake by cells, and glucagon, which increases blood sugar by releasing stored glucose (as glycogen) in the liver and increasing the generation of new glucose from substances such as amino acids (the building blocks of protein). Unfortunately for those of us who experience hypoglycemia this intricate system of balance is disrupted so blood sugar levels vary more than they should and often dip too low. It is well known in chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) for example that the hypothalamus which controls the whole system does not function correctly. This results in hypoglycemia and a whole host of...