Healthy eating/gardening/anxiety

[rainbowninja]

Is anyone interested in joining a thread about the impact of healthy eating on their mental health?

I've suffered from anxiety for years but it's been a lot worse since I became a mum.

With lockdown in the mix I just feel physically and emotionally depleted.

I've had some tests done and I know that I am low in certain vitamins etc. I've been recommended supplements to take and to 'eat the rainbow' (basically eat shed loads of veg). I want to give it a go for my own sake and my daughter because I know I'm not being the best mum to her. I'm anxious and irritable.

It feels quite overwhelming but I am quite interested in learning about nutrition, I also quite like the idea of having a go at growing some of my own veg as I've been enjoying being outside lately and I know it helps me.

I don't want to do it on my own though so I wondered if there were any other anxious mumsnetters out there that would be interested in learning/growing with me. No pressure to change anything overnight, maybe we could just cheer each other on for drinking an extra glass of water or something?

Healthy eating and exercise have made a big difference to me. I think it's easier to put people on medication. I prefer the natural approach, even though it's a lot harder.

At least you tried to get your 6 yr old to eat veggies. Have you tried roasted parsnips?It's a bit like having chips. Even a fussy eater would probably love it.

I watched Rich kids go Skint tonight. It's one of my favourite programmes.

How are you doing rainbow? Healthy eating is a bit hit and miss at the moment. I've had a sore throat for 2 days and started coughing yesterday. I just feel hungry all the time and craving junk food. I feel rubbish, so just having bits of whatever I fancy.

I'm stuck at home waiting for the result from my covid test. Hope it doesn't take long 🤞

Hi @Lokikitty sorry to hear your feeling poorly. I've been a bit premenstrual this week so haven't been feeling quite so motivated myself although I seem to have stuck to it reasonably well.

When do you get your test result? Fingers crossed for you. It's hard when you're feeling rough to keep it up, you sound like you need to just eat whatever you fancy right now but maybe just try and have a vegetable with it! Take care of yourself and keep me posted!

It's a shame we don't crave vegetables! I had plenty of fruit with my pancakes this morning. My dd got me sausages for my lunch. I hate being stuck at home.

Tell me about it! The fact we seemed to be designed to crave the wrong type of foods seems really unhelpful 😂

I know what you mean about being stuck in, way too much time to overthink stuff in my case.

Sounds like your daughter is looking after you 😍

My covid test result was negative 🙂. I can go back to work tomorrow. Then go to my mum's to celebrate Eid in the evening .

Having a late night. Just got back from emergency vets. My cat hadn't used her litter tray all day. Didn't want to leave it in case it was something serious. Vet seems to think that it's likely to just be an infection .

Oh I'm really glad to hear that Loki and I hope you enjoy your Eid celebrations with your mum 😍. Is your cat ok?

DH had a friend round earlier and they drank a bit too much wine which always raises my anxiety levels. They ordered a takeaway pizza but I didn't have any. I made some soup which didn't turn out that nice (mainly tasted of veg stock) but I genuinely didn't fancy the takeaway food now I know it's probably contributing to my anxiety.

My cats got some pain relief and antibiotics. She should hopefully be okay in 5 days.

That's a shame about your soup. I find soups tricky. I don't know why.

I've had a creamy dessert, cookies and lots of biryani today. Back to healthy eating tomorrow.

Glad your cat is on the mend!

The biryani and the dessert sound delicious! I think I need to eat more dishes with rice. I'm considering trying going gluten and dairy free but it seems like quite a big leap. I've made some batter for some chickpea flatbreads tonight which I'm going to try tomorrow.

How did the chickpea flatbread turn out Rainbow? I still don't feel well, so treated myself to pizza and brownie last night.

I got a Hairy Bikers' cookbook from WHS today. It was reduced from £20 to £3.50 🙂
It's got some good bread recipes in it . Been meaning to have a go at making bread.

Wasn't sure about the chickpea flatbread, it was literally chickpea flour and water. I think it needed some more seasoning and to be made a bit thinner. I feel a bit exhausted to be honest, think I might be trying to change a bit too much at once.

That cookbook sounds like a great find, they can be so expensive when they first come out. I think I've got a hairy bikers book somewhere. Bread making sounds like a really relaxing activity.

That's a shame about the chickpea flatbread. I know what you mean about the exhaustion. I've had a break from the healthy eating and exercise since Wednesday. Going to wait until my cat is better before I go back to it.

I've cooked biryani and made bread today. Biryani turned out nice . Bread is in the oven, will be done in a few minutes. It took absolutely ages to make, so hope it tastes good. Neither recipe is healthy because of the amount of oil, salt, sugar and white rice in them but I'm not fussed today. Just needed to keep busy and needed comfort food.

The bread tastes good 😋

Yeah it's all a learning curve I guess so just need to not be put off. Had a nice tea - steak, broccoli, tomatoes and sweet potato salad.

I wouldn't be deterred by the seemingly not so healthy ingredients, home cooked food means far less artificial sweeteners etc and you've enjoyed the process too!

Ooh a picture! Yay 😀 your bread looks great! Do you have a bread maker?

No, I don't have a bread maker. Maybe it's something to think about getting. I always thought making your own bread would be really complicated but it really isn't.

Doesn't sound like you need a bread maker! I keep meaning to give bread a go with my daughter but I haven't done it since I was at school. Maybe I'll give it a go. Any tips?

Tips? Make sure you have plenty of spare time 🤣. And somewhere warm for the dough to rise. I put mine on a chair near the kitchen radiator.

I don't get out much at the moment so time not an issue 😂

Tonight I'm doing lamb meatballs and might have another go with the chickpea flatbreads 🤔

Hope the lamb meatballs and chickpea flatbread goes well. I struggle make meatballs. They are so fiddly and I can't get the seasoning right.

I've made fishcakes for tea. Just wanted to make something simple.

I didn't sleep well last night. My cat is better now, so should hopefully get a good night's sleep tonight.

Hope you get a better nights sleep tonight @Lokikitty I'm glad your cat is doing better

I forgot about the flatbreads and did one of those microwavable rice pouches with the meatballs. The meatballs were nice, haven't had them for a while so it was a change too.

I'm tempted by your fish cakes even though I don't really like fish, feel like my body must be telling me something 🤔

It works and helps

I started a wellness challenge and upped my veg
Recently I’ve been really low and eating white carbs
And yeah , feel worse

I’ve given up on growing veg but I totally agree that outdoor time and eating the rainbow does more good than we realise

I’ll check in later !

Thanks for reminding me

Thanks @Thisisworsethananticpated I totally agree, it's not a quick fix but it does make a difference.

I haven't made much progress on the growing front, herbs in pots might be the limit of my ability. May yet have a go with tomatoes 🤔

Please do check back in! It's definitely helping me stay motivated.

I mowed the
Lawn today
And glad that I did x