Hello All, 

My Favorite Bit of Information From The Week:

Food and Mental Health

Introduction:
The research is strong with this one, food and mental health are connected. Diets high in sugar and processed foods aggravate, and even help develop, depression and other mental health struggles in the brain. I have found this to be very true personally. When I am eating lots of greens, varied vegetables, fruit, nuts, and healthy fats ( more nuts,  avocado, hummus, and occasional butter and cheese- YUM!), there is a marked difference in my mental state. 
What I notice perhaps more though, is how much worse my mental status is when I am eating lots of sugar or processed foods (ice cream is my main sweet craving). I become depressed, irritable, and heavy. It is harder to get out of bed, and harder to see things clearly. 
This week is not a diatribe about how you should eat, or how you should cut things out of your life (I still eat ice cream). This week is about my sharing some of the research out there on food and mental health. Why? Because I have found it empowering to make decisions about my body from an informed place, and I care about you I and want to share this feeling and information with those I care about. So, here we go. 

Articles on food and mental health: 

1. Forbes article: I believe this piece really breaks down the research on mental health and food in accessible way. 

2. How to Eat Your Way To Happiness article: This piece is listed in the Forbes article above, but I believe it is worth reading in an of itself as well. Here is a taste: “There is a misconception that nutritious foods are expensive and therefore rates of poor diets are higher in low socio-economic households, but Prof. Jacka says that her team’s modelling has shown that this is not necessarily the case.” 

3. Healthy Habits Article: This post lists three things that help when starting a new habit, in case eating cleaner is something you are interested in trying. I am not familiar with James Clear’s work outside of this article, but his advice in this particular piece really resonated with me and I found it helpful. 

For a link to a free healthy online cooking class and other resources, please go to the bottom of this E-mail!

Update on my Show:

Youth Mental Health First Aid: I went to a free 8 hour course on youth mental health First Aid this past week. It was informative to me as a creator for this project, but also as a human in the world. If you are interested in taking a similar course, or having them come into your place of work and lead a seminar, please click here for more information. 

A bit more about the course: Mental Health First Aid is an 8-hour course that teaches you how to help someone who is developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. The training helps you identify, understand, and respond to signs of addictions and mental illnesses.

Note: There is an adult course and a youth course. I took youth mental health first aid, which is specifically for helping those under 18. There were many teachers, mental health professionals, and parents involved in my course. If you are interested in being a support to the youth in your life, I think it is very helpful. They also have an adult course that I will be taking. 

Please check out the One Woman Hamlet Website: 
www.onewomanhamlet.com

AND! my update Video.

Many, Many thanks: Margo Siwak and Joe Siwak for the design of the logo, and to Jillian Best and Bill Best for the Website creation and Design! I feel very blessed to have such beautiful humans in my life.

Thank You: Thank you VERY much to all who have donated thus far, making this project possible. 

Ways to Support: If you would like to donate to my show, share this project with a friend, or find out more about it please check out my gofundme here: https://www.gofundme.com/one-woman-hamlet

Resources

New Resources From Last Week:

1. A free course on healthy cookingthrough Coursera! It is geared towards cooking for a family, but I am almost through the course now and I think it is applicable to all ages and situations, it is also very informative. You can sign up for FREEhere. 

A short breakdown on the course: The course is taught by Dr. Maya Adam, a Stanford professor and the founder of Just Cook for Kids. Although the course, Child Nutrition and Cooking, is targeted towards parents in particular, the videos could benefit anyone with an interest in cooking healthier meals.

2. Pinterest has been surprisingly helpful for cheap and easy healthy recipes! 
Here are two of my favorites: 
Vegan Loaded Sweet Potato: (If you are not vegan, I like putting an egg and hot sauce on top).
Easiest Slow Cooker Taco Chicken:  I love to add tomato, avocado, cheese, and beans to mine,this also goes great on salads, or on top of sweet potatoes. 

My personal favorite recipe, I eat this almost daily: Ingredients: 

1. A sweet potato 2. Kale3. A bit of butter4. an egg5. Hot sauce 6. Sauerkraut or pickles ( anything fermented really)7. Lemon 8. Salt and pepper
I cook a cut up sweet potato in olive oil in my wok (You can use a pan as well), then I cook an egg sunny side to place on top of the sweet potato, I dash a bit of hot sauce on top- I like this brand.You can get the hot sauce for a few dollars in most grocery stores. 
Kale cooked in a bit of butter (you don’t need much) then I sprinkle salt and lemon on top- I usually cook this at the end, while the sweet potato is cooling off so that the greens are warm when I eat them, they usually take just a few minutes to prepare. 

Note: If you don’t feel like cooking the greens, I love softly rolling the kale (you can also use spinach) between my hands until it is soft and then I put a bit of olive oil, lemon, and salt on top- it’s delicious. 
Lastly, a bit of sauerkraut or pickles next to the kale. 

All my best and heart to you, 

-Kate