As I conferenced with my neurologist the other day, he didn't hesitate to mention my steady weight gain since the onset of my diagnosis.  Twenty pounds in 10 years.  

I had been complaining of fatigue and irregular heart palpitations possibly due to food or stress.  It can be so frustrating when you are already incorporating a diet and a bit of exercise that won't knock you to the ground.  

But somehow I didn't associate these recent "add-ons" to weight gain.  After all, it has been steady, not a noticeable dump.  

I got to thinking, "I wish there was an app out there that would literally make my plate.  An app where I don't have to think and prepare meals.  Meals that are simple to incorporate into my daily routine.  I'm not a restaurateur by any means as the budget won't allow this.  I wanted staples I could keep around the house that would be easy to create in a pinch.  

I found it searching my apps.  Eat This Much was a perfectly balanced app that allows you the liberty of creating simple, nutritious meals that target weight loss.  I was in heaven!  Best of all I could utilize days in the past to incorporate a meal plan for FREE.  And, I could add my own personal recipes to the app to analyze nutritional indexes. You can pre plan one day for FREE, too.  

​Put your diet on autopilot with Eat This Much. Tell them your diet goals, the foods you like, your budget, and what your schedule looks like, and they'll automatically generate a complete meal plan to meet your targets. It's like having a personal diet assistant.

They offer both free accounts and premium accounts. As a free user, you can create a day's meal plan and completely customize it however you want. Each meal can have different preferences, and your nutrition targets can be whatever you like.

As a premium user, you'll automatically generate a week of meal plans and send them to you with a grocery list via email. As you follow the plans, you can track what you did or didn't eat, and if you deviate from the plans, they make it easy to readjust your targets for the next week to stay on track. Try out the free account to see if our meal plans appeal to you, and upgrade when you're ready.

- Follow any eating style or create your own (works for keto, paleo, vegetarian, vegan, and more)
- Hit your macros and calorie targets every day
- Empower yourself with automatic control over your diet
- Take the anxiety out of picking what to eat
- Personalize any of our recipes and they'll replace the original
- Reduce food waste
- Don't like our suggestions? Easily swap them out or configure the generator to only use foods you like
- Manage your virtual pantry (with a premium account)

Normal calorie trackers force you to add foods into your diary one by one. And by the end of the day, there's no guarantee that you'll be anywhere near the nutrition targets you're trying to reach. With their automatic planner, there's nothing to track because everything is already entered for you, and all you have to do is follow the plan.

Subscription options:
- You can download the app for free and create/customize as many unique meal plans as you want, and save one to your account.
- To unlock the features of Eat This Much Premium, you can subscribe for either the monthly or yearly description.

Last year I took the plunge and downloaded the Headspace app.  Does it work?  I can say an outstanding, "Yes!"  Originally, I paid for the promotional yearly rate after trying the app for several weeks free.  

It only took a few weeks to attain better, more thorough nightly sleep, calmed jittery nerves, and a more focused daily outlook on life.  In fact, it worked so well that I gladly paid the usual yearly fee when it was up.  I just couldn't be without it!  My daily sessions after coming home from work were gladly anticipated and rigidly fit into my schedule so that I can maintain that balance.  

The history of meditation is deep, stretching back to before the beginning of the Current Era. Without going too far into the weeds, it's important to understand the difference between meditation as part of Hindu and Buddhist traditions on the one hand and secular mindfulness meditation on the other.

Headspace doesn't purport to offer enlightenment or to explain the concept of Samsara — the endless cycle of suffering, death and rebirth that is at the center of those Indian religions. Instead, the app aims to teach "the essentials of living a healthier, happier life." 

Though the principle of the practice is very similar — watching your breath — the underpinnings of each are drastically different. Headspace is based in modern science, while Buddhist and Hindu meditation is based on the writings and teachings of various spiritual leaders.

In many ways, Headspace feels like Buddhism-lite. It's got all the flavor of spiritual meditation with none of the religious underpinnings. That's not a huge surprise, as one of the app's founders is an ordained Buddhist monk. His goal with the app is to bring meditation to people who might not have tried it otherwise.

Headspace boasts, "Any time, any place, anywhere. On your mobile and tablet, you can listen to Headspace on the go and download sessions to use offline. On your computer, you can play any session, any time."

I have to admit one of the more horrific nuances of fibromyalgia has to be the electrified nervous system we inherit when first diagnosed.  In the beginning, I couldn't make heads or tails as to what was happening to me. If an unexpected bill came in I'd focus on it for hours.  I had to take care of it, complete it, get rid of it, or make it go away before I could get on with my afternoon.

This insanity reached further when things broke in my house.  The septic system needed to be pumped and $300 had to be found quickly.  A tire blew and another $100 was placed on the credit card.  The other day my insurance company sent me a notice that my insurance premium hadn't been paid.  This is directly connected with my mortgage company and shouldn't be happening.  I had to call immediately! It was one minute to 5:00 PM.  Nonetheless, I had to get through! How could I get on with my night if I didn't connect to take care of this in the present moment?  I got through to the secretary, who forwarded me to my agent, who I'm sure left in that last minute.

But there was the ability to leave a recording. I had to leave a message!  I spoke of my disappointment as to why this bill wouldn't have been paid in a timely manner.  I couldn't understand why they would send me a bill notice that they clearly were supposed to pay.  As I'm doing so, I'm frantically looking through my mortgage app to find out when that bill was paid from their end.  AHHH HAH! It was paid 10 days prior.  I made sure I left that in the message making note of their incompetence.  

I thought I left a decent message that explained my dilemma.

In the morning I received a message from my agent, "Valerie I got your message last night and since you sounded so frantic, I wanted to call you FIRST before I returned any of my other calls.  It is now 8:05 AM, and I'm letting you know that bill has been paid.  It must have crossed in the mail with our billing department."

Frantic?  Did I sound frantic?  I must have.  Why else would he have mentioned that?

I don't want to sound frantic.  I used to sound concerned.  Lately, frantic has been used more often.  

I have been dabbling with apps these last few months trying to redirect my mind.  There was a day when I could easily calm my central nervous system.  Now, it seems to get the best of me.  There has to be a way to re insulate my wiring.  It seems my wires are fraying with little direction.  When wires fray, anxiety kicks in, and sleep is lost.  

About a month ago I found Headspace.  I immediately fell in love with the animated figures.  They were unique and talked to my heart and mind.  I tried other apps that boasted delightful nature scenes but fell short of motivation and direction.  Headspace offered that.  I downloaded the app.  It was free to start.

For the first 10 days I watched one minute videos and completed a three minute meditation daily.  I felt a difference.  There was a sense of calm blanketing me while I slept in the afternoon again.  I woke up calmer and refreshed from the day at work.  I also noticed I didn't feel those initial triggers that mounted all day long while dealing with a special needs community.  I was tapping into peace again and with little time and effort.

I don't get sold easily, but I did with Headspace.  I am usually a scavenger for all free downloads I can apply to my life.  This was different.  I wanted to delve into their library to see what else I could connect with to enhance more of this peace.  It's been a long time since  I've held hands with this friend and I wanted more.  So I bought into the year subscription.  It was reasonable, but most of all it was resonating a sense of well-being that I apparently lost upon the way.  

It’s hard to talk about Headspace without talking about Andy Puddicombe. So let’s start there. In his early twenties, Andy cut his Sports Science degree short to become a Buddhist monk. For over 10 years, his meditation training took him across the world to Nepal, India, Burma, Thailand, Australia and Russia. Eventually, he was ordained at a Tibetan monastery in the Indian Himalayas.

After completing his monastic commitment, Andy returned to the UK with the huge-yet-simple goal of teaching meditation and mindfulness to as many people as possible. To demystify the mystical, Andy set up a meditation consultancy and began working with politicians, athletes (that sports science background finally came in handy), and business leaders.

That’s when Andy met Rich Pierson, who needed help dealing with the stress of the advertising world. Before long, Andy and Rich were skill-swapping meditation for business advice. That’s when Headspace was born.

​Headspace was officially launched in 2010 as an events company, but attendees wanted to take what they learned home with them. Andy, Rich, and a small team decided to make Andy’s techniques available online so more people could experience the benefits of meditation anytime, anywhere. And that blossomed into the Headspace you see today: guided meditations, animations, articles and videos, all in the distinct Headspace style.

​Headspace has one mission: to improve the health and happiness of the world. And with millions of users in more than 190 countries, we’re well on our way. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, we also have offices in San Francisco and London.

You can try Headspace for yourself and learn the essentials of meditation and mindfulness with our free Basics course. If you enjoy it, then it’s time to subscribe. Once you do, you’ll have bite-sized minis for when you’re short on time, exercises to add extra mindfulness to your day, and hundreds of meditations on everything from stress to sleep.

I receive no royalties from Headspace.  I am so impressed with the overall detail in the site that I want to share it with my community.  Most of all, if I can make your life easier and a bit calmer than I've done my duty as your blogger.  Try it to today.  Download it for free, no credit card required, and see if you can gain a sense of semblance once again.