When Daily Routines Are Abruptly Disrupted

Understand what really happens to your body and how you can maintain your health 

I feel blessed to have had parents who taught me many important concepts, practices, healthy habits, and values in life. As I was growing up, my parents emphasized how daily routines, timing, and moderation were important for good health. They had a unique understanding of the proper timing of sleep and meals—on par with the research of today—most likely obtained from Dad’s love of reading and their keen deduction skills. And being a sportsman and a very active person for most of his life, Dad stressed the importance of exercise, deep breathing, posture, and more.  

Especially as people advance in years, following a daily routine or a predictable schedule that they have honed over the years to best suit their needs is key. Once that is disrupted, they feel the difference. It may not be in the first few days, but the change of pace eventually gets their attention.  

When schedules are thrown off

Anything that throws your rhythm off is a stress to the system. What more, given short notice to evacuate your home due to a flood or a fire? Some unexpected changes can cause your breathing to take on a different pattern.  

Shallow breathing and its consequences   When in distress or under prolonged stress, you tend to breathe faster and with shallower breaths. This causes you to take in less oxygen and expel carbon dioxide less efficiently. This, of course, impacts your cognition as well. That’s why most of us can’t think properly in a highly stressful situation.  

With this pattern of breathing, your body is in a heightened state of alert, your nervous system is on edge, and the stress response continues. This can lead to increases in heart rate and blood pressure.  

Besides, the chest muscles being activated more than they should for this inefficient type of breathing can lead to muscle tension in the back, shoulders, and neck.

In shallow breathing, you rely less on the movement of the diaphragm. As a result, your internal organs don’t get the usual massage therapy they are used to. You know that massage gets things flowing. So now, what happens? Digestion slows, and you could even experience acid reflux or irritable bowel syndrome.  

What’s one important thing you can do to not let shallow breathing take hold of you? Stretch, shrug your shoulders, roll them back, and try to maintain proper posture. This very act allows your diaphragm more space to move and can facilitate easing you back into diaphragmatic breathing—the breathing we are meant to do.  

For those who are less mobile, less movement of the diaphragm also impacts their lymphatic drainage. The lymphatic system is most often glossed over. But it is such an important system, so critical to waste removal, in ways we don’t realize.    Now here’s an important fact: A major part of the lymphatic system surrounds your digestive organs.   What are the consequences of reduced lymphatic drainage?   Swelling in the arms or legs. That can be uncomfortable and even painful. The efficient system that removes toxins is clogged, so fatigue sets in. This can cause more stress and exacerbate the situation. With the immune system compromised, it sets the stage for infections to take hold more easily.  

How can you improve lymphatic drainage?   Lymph, the clear watery fluid that circulates in the lymphatic system, is contained in vessels, which are tiny tubes, much like veins and arteries. But, unlike the cardiovascular system, which has the heart as a pump and moves blood through the veins and arteries, the lymphatic system lacks a pump. So, we must make sure we pump it. Now, you might tell me you never pumped your lymph in your life up to now, and everything works fine. And you might think I am a maniac. But I have to tell you—you have pumped lymph without knowing it. Each time you move—when you walk, when you do a jig, when you raise your arms in the air in victory or frustration, you have pumped lymph.  

Yes, every walking, talking, deep-breathing human is an efficient lymph mover. So, just keep moving!   Lymph moves only when you move. And when lymph moves, waste collected in lymph has a chance to get to places where it can be safely removed from the body. So, the more walking and arm movements you do, the better. The larger muscles enable lymph to move more efficiently.  

You can also use this essential oil blend, which also facilitates lymph movement.

When anxiety takes hold, and shallow breathing can’t be controlled 

Now, coming back to sudden stressful situations, especially for older adults and those who are already in poor health. They may not be able to control their emotions, their thinking, and their body as well as someone in better health, and they might be in a state of anxiety.   If you happen to be with someone like this, encourage them to move. If they can’t or refuse to, at least, take their arms and do a little sitting dance. Try to make it fun. This can ease their anxiety. Move their arms as best as you can in all directions. This passive movement on their part also gets their lymph moving. If they happen to be lying down, gently move their legs in a knee-to-chest movement and back a few times.  

Movement also gets blood flowing. Better nutrient delivery, better oxygen delivery, and better lymph flow—it’s all systems a-go!

If you sense that they are more willing to follow your instructions, have them lower their anxiety and stress levels even further by doing the effective breathing technique you can follow along in this video.

Essential oils are a big help for relaxation and anxiety relief. Parasympathetic is a great blend that helps relieve stress and anxiety and can also improve sleep. Circadian Rhythm is a blend prized for its ability to help you regulate your sleep cycles, especially when schedules are out of whack.

Health can be nudged and coaxed to a higher level. And getting back to daily routines and healthy habits sooner than later—well, as soon as you can—is important.

But most importantly, you can let them know—they are never on their own. Even when you can’t be with them, there is a powerful, loving, and caring God watching over them. They are safe. 

DISCLAIMER: The content I share is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any disease. If you purchase products linked from these blog posts, I may receive a percentage of the proceeds. These affiliations help support my work.

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