Practical Relationship Advice

http://www.choosing-life-my-way.com/relationship-advice.html

Here are some fundamental pieces of relationship advice;

• Don’t make assumptions. No matter how well you (think) you know each other, don’t try to read your partner’s mind. The raised eyebrow you may think means he disagrees with what you just said may simply mean ‘I don’t know.’ The only way to know what your partner is thinking is to ask, but in a gentle way, rather than in a defensive or accusing tone.
• Don’t take each other for granted.
• Communicate openly and honestly, but early in a relationship don’t over-share. Think about what is really necessary to communicate at any stage of a relationship, and whether what you are going to say is helpful and kind. Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and really listen to your partner.
• Don’t bottle things up.
• Don’t smother or try to control your partner.
• Don’t try to change someone else. The only person that you can truly change is yourself.
• Look before you leap. The old saying goes, “marry in haste, and repent at leisure.” This doesn’t mean you need to take forever to make up your mind. Sometimes a relationship is so clearly right from very early on, but the key is to really look and not be blinded by the good feelings that romance can bring.
• Nurture your relationship with yourself.
• Nurture your relationship with each other.
• Make time to talk with your partner, have a little fun, and have intimacy no matter how busy you are.
• Focus on the good in your partner and the relationship instead of what’s wrong.
• Be clear about, and willing to state, what you need from the relationship and in your life.
• Make sure that you are getting what you need.
• Have common goals.
• You don’t have to do everything together or be everything to each other. It is healthy to have outside interests and to get some of your emotional needs met by friends or family members. Just make sure to keep the balance so as not to tip into the relationship danger zone of living separate lives.
• Work together to make your relationship and life together happy. If you don’t have a feeling of teamwork and being on the same side, you can begin to feel that you and your partner are being pulled apart. It is vital to deal with the factors that are causing this feeling of separation and find a way to get back on the same side.
• Be flexible in regard to your partner’s different ways of dealing with things.
• Appreciate the differences between you. Contrasting personalities can make a great team. A more vivacious partner can liven up a quieter mate, and in return the mate can bring a level of calm to the relationship.
• Accept that there are many ‘right’ ways of doing most things, and that you and your partner don’t have to do everything the same. If you are parents together, your children can benefit enormously from learning different ways of doing things, and dealing with the many variables that they will encounter in life. Different is not good or bad, only different.

10 foods to keep you young

Posted by Sarah Brooks-wilson for Health + Wellbeing - Wed, 04 May 2011 14:52

They say an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but it also keeps the skin and body younger for longer too. Anti-ageing proponents and nutritionists have long promoted the benefits of a good diet rich in fruits, veggies and whole foods, but now research has uncovered the specific health benefits of many anti-ageing foods too. Below is a list of super foods that will keep you looking younger, fresher and glowing at any age. So start including them in your diet and you may even notice fewer lines and an improvement in your overall health.

1. Apples – They are one of the richest sources in the diet of quercetin, a type of flavonol (natural chemicals in the plant world) that helps prevent blood clotting, strokes and narrowing of the arteries. They also contain pectin, which helps lower blood cholesterol levels and remove potentially cancer-causing toxins from the body.

2. Apricots – are great sources of the anti-oxidant beta-carotene, the natural plant pigment that gives apricots their colour. Antioxidants combat free radicals the unstable molecules that play a big role in many diseases. The body can also turn beta-carotene into vitamin A, needed by the immune system to help keep eyes healthy and bright.

3. Bananas – Great source of potassium to fight rising blood pressure, which increases with age. Also rich in vitamin B6, these vitamins are needed for releasing energy from food during digestions for healthy nerves.

4. Brazil nuts – These nuts are the richest food source of selenium, which neutralises free radicals. Selenium is also needed to produce sperm, and by the thyroid gland for the use of iodine and to help control hormone metabolism.

5. Broccoli – If eaten regularly, broccoli is consistently associated with a lower risk of cancer.

6. Beans – Kidney beans, butter beans and haricot, soya and runner beans are powerful against the many symptoms of ageing because they contain a lot of phytochemicals (naturally occurring chemicals in plants). Among these are plant sterols and saponins to help lower blood cholesterol levels.

7. Grapefruit – This sour fruit is a good source of vitamin C and betacarotene and is particularly anti-ageing because it contains flavonoids that work with vitamin C to enhance its antioxidant effects.

8. Peas – Believe it or not frozen peas are among the world’s most nutritious convenience foods, often even richer in vitamin C than freshly picked garden peas. Also high in fibre they help lower cholesterol levels and release energy slowly so they don’t disrupt blood sugar levels.

9. Watercress – Is a good source of chlorophyll, which may protect you against the DNA damage that can lead to cancer.

10. Yoghurt – Has healthy bacteria that neutralise and transport carcinogens out of the body and produce anti-cancer chemicals such as butyrate. This bacteria also stimulates the immune system.