We are 21 days in to Dry January! I’m wondering how you’re feeling. Excited? Free? Blissed out? Or not so much? When I first got sober some of the vitamin and mineral deficiencies I was suffering from kept all the shiny happy sober vibes from coming in. That’s why today we are talking about Magnesium! IF I were feeling kooky and felt the desire to pick a favorite mineral deficiency THIS would be the one! Why? The solutions are all of my favorite things! Before we get into that though.. lets look at the tell-tale signs that your body is crying out for magnesium.. Are you still feeling anxious despite having cut out the booze? Do you ever get that wholly uncomfortable (and truly annoying) eye twitch? Do you get leg cramps? Does your heart flutter or randomly pick up the pace out of no where? Do your feet go numb or tingle? Do you regularly feel exhausted yet have a hard time sleeping? If so - you might have a magnesium deficiency.

Why is magnesium important? Well, it is part of the electrolyte family. It regulates calcium, potassium and sodium in the body (this is where the leg cramping and eye twitching come in). It also helps the body absorb and utilize other minerals and enzymes which we know we need help getting our bodies back into absorption mode since alcohol really stifles that process. Magnesium is also necessary for over 300 biochemical functions and our bodies do not make this stuff - but Mother Nature has our back. Unfortunately over 80% of Americans suffer from this mineral deficiency. So.. that’s a lot of eye twitchy humans walking around. Try to keep this in mind and be patient with each other. I don’t know how this statistic of 80% correlates to alcohol consumption here in America but I feel certain that they are linked. This deficiency is also brought on by food choices - obvs - but beyond diet and alcohol consumption we can look to soil depletion, digestive issues and some medications as a root cause. So, what can be done? I’m glad you asked! We want to regularly be eating our greens. Spinach and chard have the highest amounts of magnesium and they are both cheap and easy to prepare. When I was chefing at the rehab we had rainbow card growing in the garden and it showed up in nearly every meal. Some clients got a little sick and tired of it but knowing that they showed up sick and tired of their own shit I felt it was ok to keep putting chard on their plate. So what else.. Pumpkin seeds! Snack on them. Double down and put them on your spinach salads, add them to your granola mix, make a seed cheese. They are delicious. Almonds, walnut and cashews, are solid choices too. I fully endorse almond butter - great for snacking, smoothies and even some sauces. Avocados! Go ahead and lean into your avocado toast desires. Bonus point for putting it on sourdough - your body digs that fermentation. Speaking of fermented.. yogurt and kefir are great sources of magnesium. Now we have arrived at my top two favorite magnesium sources… DARK chocolate and baths.. No, I’m not saying you should bathe in dark chocolate. That’s messy and a waste of good chocolate. Although.. given the opportunity I believe I would try it. What I am saying is treat yourself with a good quality dark chocolate bar (my favorites are pictured below) and take regular baths with magnesium flakes. Doesn’t that sound like an amazing way to wrap up the day? I do this a few times a week - lounge in the tub with a book and a dark chocolate square or two.. I sleep so well those nights and my body feels amazing in the morning. You could also forego your morning of coffee and make yourself a cup of Reality Check Hot Cocoa.. just a thought.

So I am curious - do you feel like you might have a magnesium deficiency? If so which of these delightful solutions are most enticing to you?

Oh and please share this information with anyone you know who is struggling in early sobriety. Since so many of us self medicate for our anxiety this can really help keep us feel calmer and potentially avoid relapse. Now.. chocolate!