Feeling Stressed Out and Overwhelmed? Two Ways Natural Remedies Can Help You Write Your Nonfiction Book.

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Writing a book, especially your first one, can be stressful. That’s why I always advocate building a solid foundation before you start writing. This is something that I help my clients do so that they can move forward and write and finish their books. Having a plan reduces stress, anxiety and overwhelm and makes writing faster and easier.

Establishing a foundation includes 1-2-3 which I often talk about:   

🌿 The Idea:

1. An idea based on a problem that you can solve for the reader.

​​🌿 The Method:

2. An effective method, plan or approach that helps readers feel better mentally, emotionally or physically or maybe all three. 

🌿 The Structure: 

3. A Table of Contents based on your method, plan or approach that makes writing easier.  

The first way that natural remedies can help you write your nonfiction book is by following the example of my natural health self-help book with Brigitte Mars Natural Remedies for Mental and Emotional Health: Holistic Methods and Techniques for a Happy and Healthy Mind (Healing Arts Press).

Here’s the 1-2-3:

🌿 The Idea:

1. Is based on Brigitte’s deep well of knowledge and work with clients, that show that natural remedies can often be better solutions for mental and emotional problems..

🌿 The Method:

2. Is to combine modalities to achieve a synergistic and holistic effect. To this end, we include a wide range of healing methods, from herbs to food, from flower essences to mediation.

🌿 The Structure: 

3. Is based on the range of mental and emotional problems that we wanted to cover from stress and  anxiety to cultivating joy and happiness. Each problem/condition was a chapter within five sections: Rebalancing, Resilience, Restoration, Revitalization and Remedies.   

Taken together, the idea, method and structure created a solid foundation for our book. Each chapter flows to the next, the content is coherent and consistent and adds up to a reader-friendly and market-friendly book.

The second way that natural remedies can help you write your book? Natural remedies can help to soothe stress, ease anxiety, boost mood and make room for joy and happiness. This helps you feel better and more motivated to tackle what’s meaningful to you – like writing a nonfiction book. Taken together, you’ll have a whole solution, not just for writing your book but for the stresses of daily living.

Here you’ll find a few natural remedies from our book. Why not give one or two a try?

Eat a Whole-Food Diet

You are what you eat, especially when it comes to handling stress. Eating a naturally colorful whole-food diet that includes organic vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, seeds and oils provides the nutrients, fiber and phytochemicals needed to improve defenses against stress. Choosing organic helps avoid toxic chemicals that may be harmful to mental and emotional health, as well as the health of our planet.

Choose Stress-Soothing Foods

Oatmeal and yogurt are easy to digest and rich in calming calcium. Other good foods include almonds, raisins and sunflower seeds. Onions contain tension-relieving prostaglandins. Hemp seeds and chia seeds provide brain-nourishing omega-3 fatty acids.

Avoid Negative Influences

Reduce the effects of stress by avoiding alcohol, caffeinated beverages, fruit juices and sugar. Common food allergens—gluten, dairy, corn, soy, shellfish, yeast—can trigger inflammation, which can lead to an autoimmune response, mental/emotional disharmony and even brain inflammation. Also, nix toxins in the environment, such as those found in cleaning products and personal-care supplies.

Add Supplements for Well-Being

Stress depletes the body’s reserves of vitamins and minerals. Vitamin B complex and vitamin C not only nourish the nervous system but also give you the energy needed to deal with life’s problems. Calcium and magnesium help ease tension and irritability. Chromium can help balance blood sugar.

Use Herbal Remedies to Soothe Stress

You can take herbs as supplements (tincture or capsules) or drink herbal teas. Good choices include: 

• Ashwagandha: Builds chi and helps lower cortisol levels.

• Chamomile: Tones the nervous system.

• Ginseng: Helps the body adapt to stress.

• Hops: Contains lupulin, a strong but safe and reliable sedative.

• Lemon balm: Its volatile oils help protect the cerebrum from excessive external stimuli.

• Valerian: A strong central nervous system relaxant.

Try Aromatherapy

Many essential oils have stress-relieving effects. Put them on your pillow, in a warm bath or in massage oils. Try lavender, lemon balm, jasmine, sage and ylang-ylang essential oils.  

Practice Self-Care with Mind-Body Therapies

Mindfulness, self-compassion, deep breathing, guided meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, visualization, peaceful mantras (ommmm), yantras (sacred geometry art), yoga and prayer all nourish and calm the spirit. Explore these options to see which work best. Find meditations and more on the Insight Timer app (InsightTimer.com).

Tap the Power of Nature

Spending time in the garden is one of the most enjoyable and effective ways to reduce stress. Plants reduce blood pressure, increase concentration and productivity, and help recovery from illness. Forest bathing, known in Japan as shinrin-yoku, helps lower cortisol levels and gets you out of the fight-or-flight mode. Forest bathing is much like how it sounds: taking a walk in the forest and soaking up the sights, sounds and scents found there.

Slow Down

Do what you need to do, but do it more slowly, whether it’s eating a meal, walking or driving. Even speaking more slowly can have a calming effect. Slow hobbies such as knitting, painting, sculpting, sketching, crocheting or quilting have a meditative quality that can reduce stress and help you relax, along with improving focus and concentration.         

Count Your Blessings 

Most importantly, be patient with yourself as you adopt the practices that work best for you. Over time, you will find that you feel calmer, less stressed and more in control of your emotions, your days and your life.

Want to reduce the stress of writing a book? You need a plan. Visit https://www.thenaturalhealthbookcoach.com/freebookstrategycall to sign up for a free book coaching strategy call to explore working together and learn more about how to turn your idea into a reader-friendly and market-ready manuscript.