The healthy fats in avocado can help you stave off hunger. As a result, you'll be less likely to snack in the afternoon. However, you still need to pay attention to how much avocado you eat, as they are high in fat, and therefore high in calories. Soups and stews contain more liquid than other foods. Therefore, you fill up faster and stay fuller for longer while consuming fewer calories. Make sure that you choose broth-based soups, not cream-based soups. Lean protein is one of the most effective foods for keeping you from being hungry. Try eating fish or chicken or vegetable-based proteins such as lentils or beans. Start your day off with protein to feel fuller throughout the day. Try eating boiled eggs or Greek yogurt for breakfast. Whole grain is always best, but when trying to decide between these two whole grains, you might consider choosing rye bread now and then. This grain has been shown to naturally suppress your appetite, and it's even being made into foods such as pasta and oatmeal.

Summary: Try half an avocado at lunch. Eat soup. Increase lean protein in your diet. Include rye bread to help with satiety.


Put one tea bag of chamomile in a cup of boiling water. Allow to to steep for five minutes and cool slightly before drinking. Swish the tea around your mouth to sooth your gums before swallowing.  Aside from chamomile's anti-inflammatory, anti-spasmodic, and muscle-relaxing properties, it can also be used as mouthwash to treat inflammation of the gums and supporting structures of the teeth.  Its active ingredients come mainly from its leaves, which contain 1-2% volatile oils, flavonoids, luteolin and quercetin. Mouthwash made from saltwater can be effective in treating red and inflamed gums because it will cleanse the area and help to kill the bacteria that is causing you discomfort. Simply add a teaspoon of salt to a cup of hot water, stirring it until it is dissolved and then swishing it around your mouth as soon as it is cool enough to do so. Make sure that you don't swallow the saltwater. Simply spit it out when you are done swishing it around your mouth. Peppermint extract has 0.1-1.0% oil that is made up of menthol and menthone. These oils act as an analgesic that reduces pain when applied to an inflamed area, such as the gums.  Use 3 to 6 grams of peppermint tablets or capsules and dissolve in 10 ml of distilled water as mouthwash. Use once a day. Caution: If you have gallstones, consult your physician first before using peppermint extracts. Sage leaves can be used to treat inflammation inside the mouth, throat and tonsils. To make mouthwash, put 2 tsp of chopped leaves in half a liter of water and bring it to the boil. Let it cool down for 15 minutes before using as mouthwash. Swish for 5 minutes several times a day. Sage contains alpha and beta-thujone, cineole, camphor, rosmarinic acid, flavonoids and tannins. These ingredients have antibacterial and antifungal properties. The use of myrrh in mouthwash has soothing effects on inflamed tissues inside the mouth. Myrrh can also be used to treat pharyngitis, tonsillitis, gingivitis and ulcers. It can be applied topically to mildly inflamed areas inside the mouth.  Myrrh contains resin, gum, and nonvolatile oils. The resin component has antimicrobial properties which help the immune system by stimulating activity of the macrophages (type of white blood cell). To prepare the mouthwash, add 30 to 60 drops of myrrh tincture to warm water. Swish around your mouth for 30 seconds. Alternatively, myrrh tincture can be applied directly onto sore parts of the gums. Use a q-tip to directly apply extracts of myrrh. Aloe vera can be directly applied to red and inflamed gum tissues. It can also be used to cure viral oral lesions, ulcers, and gum abscesses.  After brushing your teeth, apply a small amount of natural aloe vera gel directly to the inflamed gums. They will feel instantly soothed. Apply the aloe vera solution twice per day until the inflammation subsides. Natural, untreated manuka honey, from New Zealand, has antimicrobial and wound healing properties. It helps to keep the gums stay moist and provides a protective barrier over them.  Honey can produce hydrogen peroxide and kill bacteria by dehydrating it. It can be used to treat sore gums, ulcers and other problems inside the mouth. Use a q-tip to apply a small amount of 100% pure honey to sore areas inside your mouth. Do this three times a day for five days.

Summary: Soothe sore gums with chamomile tea. Prepare a mouthwash of saltwater. Use peppermint tablets or capsules. Use sage leaves. Make mouthwash from myrrh tinctures. Apply aloe vera on sore gums. Help gums heal with manuka honey.


Make a list the night before of the day's tasks in order of urgency and importance.  If you have a smartphone, then you have a powerful organizational tool at your fingertips! There are many useful apps for creating a concise and helpful to do list. Using an app can also help you keep your lists organized, rather than creating a sea of paper.   Remember, put the most difficult tasks at the top of your list. Starting the day with a positive accomplishment, however small, gets the ball of accomplishment for the rest of the day rolling. Then look at your prioritized list. Take each item one at a time, and let each task completed be a segue into the next. After each task is accomplished, the next words out of an effective and serious person's mouth are, "what's next?". Let that be your mantra. Always ask yourself, "what's next?". But don't get sidetracked! Specify what your break will entail. Think, "I'll finish this episode of my favorite show while I eat this banana, then back to the task at hand." Stick to it-once you let yourself slide off the schedule, it's a slippery slope to accomplishing nothing at all. Recognize that time is finite, and think of it as a resource. Be aware of the time you spend on a task. Don't become so swept up in mundane details that you waste time on things that don't matter. Ask yourself, "how is the time I'm spending on this advancing me toward my goal?   Be able to put things aside that are holding you back from accomplishing what you set out to accomplish, or, if the way you've chosen to go about a task isn't working, try something else. Be flexible; be malleable. Be able to bend without breaking. Knowing your limits isn't limiting, but freeing! Accepting that you have accomplished tasks to the best of your abilities is hugely rewarding. Remember, completing any task gives you a boost to accomplish more. Take simple steps, and continue to do so, and over time you will accomplish a great deal. Some rules can be changed and others cannot. Having the grace to change what you can and accept what you cannot is huge in being a more serious person. To fret over mundane details of life you wish could be different, but know deep down cannot, is to limit yourself. When you come upon an immovable obstacle, go around it, and proceed on your course.
Summary: Make a list. Get up in the morning and make your bed. Allow yourself a short break from time to time. Use your time wisely. Know how far you can go. Understand the rules of the game.