Good Morning!

If you're having trouble rising and shining, try these simple strategies to help you look and feel more awake and alert. 
Waking up doesn't have to be hard to do!
Whatever your reasons for not getting enough sleep — partying, studying, or dreaded insomnia — there are days when morning just comes way too early. But before you reach for a triple espresso (a recent study from the U.K. found that the buzz we get from caffeine may be more mental than chemical, anyway) try these tips (Given by Dr. Hirsch) for looking and feeling awake and refreshed:

 

* Give your skin a chill-hold a cold washcloth over your eyes-refreshes and          reduces swelling

*Pay extra attention to your eyes-use eye cream to keep them hydrated and wrinklefree

*Skip the salt-avoid salt as much as possible especially after 6pm to avoid bloating

*Bend over backwards-literally, bend backwards along the side of your bed getting heart higher than your head

*Wake up and Smell the citrus-and eat the orange too!  Certain scents stimulate the brain and can make you feel more awake and refreshed, says Alan Hirsch, M.D., founder and neurological director of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation. Three that do the trick: jasmine, which increases beta waves (the brain waves associated with alertness), and citrus and peppermint scents, which induce wakefulness by stimulating the trigeminal nerve (the same nerve that's activated when you're revived with smelling salts). So peel and eat an orange for breakfast, deeply inhale as you drink a cup of peppermint tea, or lather up with a citrus-scented body wash in the shower.

*Wake up to fresh flowers- Keeping fresh flowers in your home can make you feel more energetic, enthusiastic, and happy at home and work.

and of course if all else fails, 

*Find the bright side-use highlighter/whitener under your eyes and eyebrows to hide the dark circles under your eyes

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * *

Good Morning

This  morning  when I awoke

And saw the sun above,

I softly said, “Good morning day”

The one I truly love.

Right away I thought of you 

And said a loving prayer,

hoping you would smile too

And keep you free from care.

I  thought of all the happiness 

A day could hold in store, 

I  wished  it all for you because 

No one deserves  it more. 

I felt so warm and good inside, 

My heart was all aglow.

I know someday you'll feel the same

because, happiness spreads, 

you know.

From the book "Awakening Love"

Written by Yolanda Pacheco Garcia

www.victoryp.com