Health Beyond Food

Welcome to my bathroom!

I’ve been thinking about doing this post for a while. I wanted to cover some other ways we can achieve better health and really feel this is the best way to do so. For me, personally, it was a while before I really began to connect the dots with products I was using and my health. I want to say upfront, I have not arrived in any fashion. Like everyone else out there, I’m a work in progress. But if we wait until I’m perfect, you’ll still be waiting long after I’m gone. So I’d like to share with you the things I DO know.

This is my shower:

If you pull back the shower curtain, you’ll see this:

See that white thing attached to the shower head? That’s a filter. A chlorine filter, to be exact. Did you know that when you shower with chlorinated water for 15 minutes, it’s like the equivalent of drinking eight cups of chlorinated water?! Imagine the heat opening up your pores and all that chlorine being absorbed into your body. Not to mention the dangers of inhaling it! Vaporized chlorine is 100 times greater through inhalation in bathing than compared to drinking it! I got this information from Sean Croxton of Underground Wellness. Here’s his blog post with a video about this subject: How to Filter Your Shower Water. Sean has tons of good information. He recently wrote the eBook, Dark Side of Fat Loss. (You know, the one with my recipe in it)
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You should link up to his blog and Facebook page to stay abreast of some really important subjects. Just be prepared, every video begins with a loud, “Yo! What’s up y’all?!”

Okay, back to the filter. Sean recommends picking one up at Whole Foods. That’s probably because a lot of people shop there. I don’t happen to be one. A) Because I moved to Fargo, and there isn’t one here and, B) I prefer to give small businesses, farms, farmers markets, etc, my money. The problem is, none of those places sell shower filters. So I did what I do when I need a non-local item. I got on Amazon. There I was able to find the same filter sold at WF ($50) for $30. I don’t know how much difference there is in the various brands, but I’m happy with the one I have. I can tell a big difference. Before the filter, I would feel like I was suffocating in the shower and my eyes would really burn. And it’s not like I feel it just because I’m aware of it. This used to happen all the time in our old house, long before I was wise to it. (I’m sensitive, what can I say?) Now, nothing like that happens. For this reason, I will share the name of the brand: New Wave Enviro. Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t try another brand; I’m just sharing my experience with this one. Which brings me to the next subject: coconut oil.

I gave up lotion quite a while back and started using coconut oil. I use it all over my body and even use it for deodorant. Even though it seems like it would be greasy (and I don’t like greasy things), it is quickly absorbed and doesn’t leave a greasy feel. I mean, with what other product can you moisturize your hands while cooking? I was having a little trouble with some dryness later in the day, until I heard about the way someone else applied it. She turns the water off and while still in the shower and still wet, puts the coconut oil on. So I decided to try it that way. I love it! I just take a quick swipe at the water, so I’m not quite as drippy, and then start putting the oil on from top to bottom. It’s like it helps trap moisture with it. In fact, it was this very reason I stepped up the purchase of a shower filter. I hated the idea that I was trapping even more chlorinated water in my body. And I love the smell of coconut oil on my skin (even though it quickly fades). It reminds me of that expensive tanning oil I never could afford. I have a little container that is for brewing tea that I keep it in. When I am about to shower, I take the lid off and set it on the side of the tub. The heat from the shower helps to soften it.

Let’s pan up a little. The way we opted to mount the shower filter caused me to have to find a new home for the shampoo/soap holder. I decided it would work just as well at the back of the tub. Actually, it works better there, because I can reach the top shelf better.

So what kind of shampoo do I use? Well, one that’s probably better than the popular brands, but I’m pretty sure I could upgrade. It has ingredients I can’t pronounce. I don’t like that. At some point, when I become truly “crunchy” I will dispense with shampoo, or “poo” as the crunchy crowd calls it, and make my own out of baking soda. Anyway, I have two types of Giovanni shampoo there; one called 50:50 Balance and one called Smooth as Silk. Here’s a link to the 50:50. I also have a tiny bit left in another bottle. The name of that one is Tints of Nature. As I said, I haven’t arrived.

Also up there with the shampoo is my soap. Now my soap I will brag about! I love this soap! And I love that I know the person that makes it. And she has the cutest names for them. Like this one:

Seriously, how cute is that?! I’d recommend you go join her Facebook page. Sometimes you can get a really good deal. And in case you are wondering, my husband uses the Giovanni shampoo and Country Bubbles soap also.

Panning to the left of the shower, not that it has anything of value to offer this post, but just for people (like me) who have curious minds, we find the towel hook, the towel rack, and my nemesis (aka The Scale). It’s that very slim thing leaned up against the cabinet. It must be broken, because it’s been stuck on the same number for quite a while. One of these days, I’ll throw it out. And buy something cute to put in that spot.

Yes, moving right along we come to the cabinets behind the bathroom door. I love these cabinets. You can stash a lot of stuff in there. Which is both a pro and a con. Because there is a lot of stuff in there that should be in the trash. It’s what happens when you unpack in a hurry. I’m only baring the contents so you’ll know I’m a real person with real faults.

This is the bottom section. I could have straightened it up before taking a picture, but I don’t want to perpetuate any myths that my cabinets are perfectly organized.

See that deodorant? Well, that’s for emergency or extreme situations. Like, when I’m pretty certain the coconut oil will fail me. It doesn’t happen very often and I ALWAYS make sure I have coconut oil on first. That way I can reason that it’s not quite as bad for me. One day I’ll experiment with adding things to the coconut oil (again, baking soda) to see if it helps. Or use cut citrus on my pits first. Something.
See the little bag next to the vitamins? It’s my make up bag. Why it’s in there I have no clue. I have two different beauty routines. If I’m going somewhere that people know me, I apply a touch of powder to my nose (some organic type of mineral powder that I forgot to take a picture of, but will update soon), along with a quick brush of some name brand long-lasting lipstick and a little gloss on top, then a tiny bit of black eyebrow pencil over the worst of the gray eyebrow hair. That’s mostly on the innermost corner of one eyebrow, sort of like Ron Paul’s.
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If I’m just going to the store where no one knows me, I skip the powder. My longest beauty routine is about 38.5 seconds long.

The top cabinet is mostly my husbands stuff and stuff we hardly ever use (and should probably get rid of). He takes several prescription drugs, but we are working hard on correcting those problems and believe he will get off of them. Sooner than later. I hope. And most of our vitamins and supplements. Which he mostly takes.

I will definitely keep those two water bottles (top shelf) here in North Dakota. Once in a great while, when I’m cold and can’t warm up, my sweet husband will go fill them and bring them to me. He’s very nice like that. 🙂

Continuing the tour, we come to the sink area.

I just HAVE to stop at this point and say something about the decor. My ego forces me to say it. We rent. I’m using stuff I brought from our old house. I’m going to change it, one of these days. But it may not be until we move into a more permanent situation. Like a cute little farm, with a place to garden and room for a cow and a pig and…oh, pardon my daydream!

I love this flashlight/nightlight my husband bought. It gives off a nice light at night while charging.

And, of course, there are our toothbrushes and toothpaste. Fluoride free, always!! I’ve been using Jason brand. My husband is happy with it, so that’s a plus.

Here’s a close up of my coconut oil container and my oregano oil:

And my hairspray full of icky stuff. I will research that next. Mostly for my husband, because I rarely use the stuff. In fact, the only reason I’m using this one is because I bought it for him and he didn’t like it and I hate waste. How dumb of a reason is that to put toxins on my body?

Here’s the shelf above the toilet with my husband’s hairspray that I will hopefully replace soon, along with some icky candle that can’t be good but has never been burned, I just like the color:

And now, for the piece de resistance: the throne.

In case you haven’t heard and don’t know, how we “go” can have a very large impact on our health. See that cute little stool? I’m going to get very personal now. It’s called…

the Squatty Potty. See how it fits neatly underneath there? If you aren’t using it (because it’s only used for one thing), you hardly know it’s there. Very handy. To use, simply pull it out away from the toilet:

It’s very stable and those little gray circles are grippers. I’m forced to say this: gripping, you know, for keeping your feet from slipping. Since this is such a delicate subject, I am going to direct you to the website where you can read all about this little stool and why no bathroom should be without one. That way I can end this post with some dignity left.

Squatty Potty

Sorry the website is feet up butt down. I can’t do anything about that. I wouldn’t recommend it, though, if I didn’t think it wasn’t important. (Did I say that correctly?)

For more information, you can always see this post by Sean Croxton (where I first heard of the SP). He has overcome his, um, shyness in regards to this issue and, as always, has tons of important information.

This is the brochure that came with the product, which helpfully explains why the product is important:

Back cover:

Gee…I wonder if that’s a copyright issue. Hmm…

Well, on that note I conclude this tour of my bathroom. I hope that you have found something of value here. They say knowledge is power; let’s use that power to better our health.

This post is part of the following blog carnivals:

Healthy 2day Wednesdays hosted by day2day joys.
Fight Back Fridays hosted by Food Renegade.

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