I am so excited to be starting my health and wellness portion on this blog. I have always been afraid to open up and talk about my IBS because I never wanted to play the victim card but truth is, having chronic illness sucks and sometimes that is okay to share. I will be diving in next week on my IBS journey but I wanted to make my first post about something that will be positive and helpful to those who also suffer.

Pretty much everyone in my life and my family’s friends of friends of friends all know about my irritable bowel struggle so that is how I discovered this smooth tea. My grandmas friend actually told her about it and after giving it a try, I wanted to share it with you because it did work. If you suffer with IBS-C, then listen up. This is the part of my blog that isn’t so glamorous. So, I will apologize in advance but guess what..we all poop. But those with IBS-C sometimes are on the struggle bus and that is where this tea comes into play. If you’re having problems with becoming more regulated, I would definitely give this hot tea a try. You are supposed to drink a cup at bedtime and after doing so for a few days you will notice that you will become more regulated. And in my opinion, it actually taste pretty good. I drink mine by itself with no sugar or honey but you can always make it to your liking. With my experience, it worked for me and was not harsh on my stomach like other laxatives can be.

Let’s be honest, having bowel problems isn’t cute or fun but it is something that is becoming more and more common. I have met so many girls that also struggle with irritable bowel syndrome and or something similar so I am here to get the word out and stop the stigma of keeping your mouth shut. IBS is becoming such a common problem and we need to all come together, hop on that struggle bus, and find the road to relief.

Happy Wednesday! Today, I wanted to share with you my experience with halotherapy/salt cave session. If you’re not familiar with halotherapy, it is an alternative treatment that involves breathing salty air. Himalayan Salt, the purest salt in the world, is a natural antiseptic that reduces inflammation as well as opens up breathing passages. Some benefits from halotherapy are that it thins mucus build-up, eliminates allergens, improves lung function, benefits skin, increases immunity, stimulates metabolism, improves concentration, and decreases fatigue. One nice thing about halotherapy is that it is a more holistic/natural type of treatment. In other words, no drugs needed. If you’re from the Pittsburgh area and are familiar with Mcmurray, you may have heard of Salt of the Earth. That is where I had my session which consisted of 45 minutes in the 72 degree cave. It was absolutely gorgeous inside but not nearly as big as I thought. Not a negative, but I had a different picture in my head. I ended up going with my Mom so we were the only ones in the session which was nice. You were not aloud to wear shoes or take a phone inside. It was pretty cold although the worker had stated it was 72. Thankfully he gave us a blanket. He sat us in the zero-gravity chairs, leaned us back, then exited the cave. The lights were dim and they had relaxing music playing. We sat in front of the graduation tower which I believe helps with mist being dispersed throughout the cave. It  basically was running water over small branches if you need a mental picture. It was very relaxing to say the least but after roughly 10 minutes I was ready to be done. I can not relax so that was basically just my own issue. Lol! One thing that I thought was cool was the floor which was little salt pebbles. It was weird but oh so satisfying to walk on. I wish I could of taken pictures but I wasn’t aloud to bring my phone in. Here’s a few pictures from their website! I personally didn’t notice a difference in my breathing but you may have to go to a few sessions to get the full affect. Regardless, it was a really interesting experience and I’m glad I gave it a try!