We have all heard the expression, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” I’m convinced life hands us lemons every day. So make lemonade.

Every day.

In that expression, there are a million types of lemons and a million types of lemonade. Maybe the lemon life handed you today is that you broke your favorite coffee mug. Or a piece of your door handle broke and you have to leave or you’re going to be late to work, but you don’t want someone to have free reign to your house.

Maybe you woke up feeling horrible and had to cancel plans you were excited about. Maybe you have workplace drama and experience chest pains every day that you’re driving to work (you need a new job!). Maybe someone you care about is upset with you for no good reason. Or you had two back to back events that totally tapped out your emergency fund.

And maybe you were on your way to an evening out, felt around in your purse for your favorite lipstick (I know my lip products from the packaging) and put it on in the dark, but it was actually that new dark blue lipstick you just discovered instead of the soft nude you thought you grabbed, and then you wondered for an hour why you got funny looks until you, yourself, froze when you caught a glimpse of your lovely navy lips in the mirror–and you see that you colored outside of the lines just a little.

Funny things aside, from tiny stressors to bigger, more serious ones, we all have things in our lives that cause stress. The way we handle that stress is key. That, my friends, is the lemonade. Does your favorite lemonade come in the form of laughter (I watch episodes of The Office when I need a good laugh, and each episode is only ~20 minutes)? A relaxing bubble bath with a glass of wine? Sounds like a good ad for a winery… “Rosé your stressors away…” Prayer and/or meditation? Exercise?

How many of us use nutrition to combat our stress? Like, “Oh, these terrible things happened. I think I’m going to go eat a salad now.. with extra broccoli and kale.” Or, “My life is totally falling apart. I need some blueberries, stat.”

Sounds totally silly, right? Sounds like a recipe to be forever used by your friends to tease you. Most of us grab the ice cream. The mashed potatoes with heavy butter. Chips and some heavy cream cheese-based dip. Pizza. Perfection at its finest, in that moment.

In other words, we grab comfort foods when we’re stressed. So when we face stressors every day, it’s not always feasible to grab comfort foods on the daily, are you with me? I’ve been there. Little Debbie has been instructed to hide somewhere in the kitchen more than once, which she will do, but I promise, she doesn’t stay hidden for very long.

When you make lemonade from the lemons life hands you, it literally means to make something good of a bad situation. If you can’t change the situation, that doesn’t mean you can do nothing, however–the things you do have control over may be limited, but you almost always have some control over what it is that you put into your body, the things that nourish you, the things that help you combat the physical symptoms of stress.

Stress can take a toll on the body in many ways, but the good news is that we can do things to minimize that stress, oxidative stress, in particular. You guys have heard of oxidative stress–it’s a totally normal pathway. We have oxidative stress from exercise, food metabolism, breathing, etc. It can do major damage to our DNA, which can do major damage to our bodies, in general. It’s why we need antioxidants, which come primarily from plants.

I could talk about that in much more detail, but for now, I just want to share a simple thing I do each night before bedtime, a cup of hot/warm lemon water. Our bodies are undergoing repair while we sleep, and it can only repair with the ingredients and tools you have provided it. Are you ready to make lemonade?

Ok, it’s not lemonade in the sense that we typically think of, but you may have figured that out already. Confession: I used to think lemon water was weird, and I didn’t understand how/why people drank it. I was a server in a restaurant, and I was never going to be the person that ordered water with lemon (fast forward, I have…many times now).

I also needed time to come around to the idea of warm lemon water…I had only had it warm if it had whisky and honey… more commonly, a hot toddy.

I love having a cup of hot tea (decaf, of course, since it’s nighttime, and I want to sleep) or a cup of lemon water before bed. It’s relaxing, and it gives you a good shot of some good-for-you ingredients before you nod off.

This week, I’m having rose hip tea with lemons, which you will see pictured, but I often leave out the tea altogether and just do the lemon water, which is where my main focus is for this post.

What you’ll need: hot water (approx. 8 -10 oz), 1/2 lemon, and obviously, your coffee cup, or teacup. If you’re afraid of getting too much lemon flavor at once, you can always start with a smaller amount of lemon.

As far as choosing lemons, you want ones that are juicy; don’t have a ton of blemishes; all or mostly yellow in color; and when squeezed, they feel firm, but give a little. If the skin feels thin and is a little wrinkly, I pass.

Start with getting your water into the tea kettle & turn it on. Slice your lemon while the water is heating (or juice half a lemon. I prefer the slices because the warm water will also draw out some of the beneficial oils from the rind of the lemon). I do not like to let my water boil because it’s so hot that it will destroy some of those very antioxidants we’re wanting to get. So I just let it get hot & pour the water over the lemon slices…and that’s it. You could add a sprig of mint, as well, if you like.

Why it’s good for you:

Limonene, found in both lemons and limes, as well as other fruits, have been shown to be protective against cancer.

Vitamin C, which many of us associate with citrus, has powerful antioxidant properties, protects against illness, boosts immunity (your white blood cells need Vitamin C to properly perform and protect your body), enhances iron absorption (especially important for women), and is associated with improved cardiovascular health, among other functions.

The very scent of both lemons and oranges helps to lower stress and improve overall mood, which is also a benefit of infusing lemon essential oil. Who doesn’t love that uplifting, clean scent? I know I do!

Many people report a diuretic effect of lemons, which may be true, but you will obviously lose more water if you take in more water, as long as everything is operating as it should.

And as long as you’re drinking lemon water, you are getting more water, which is good for your cells, digesting food, helping fiber move along in your gut (very important), and to, overall, stay hydrated.

Lemons have potassium citrate, which may help prevent the formation of kidney stones.

As you can see, lemons are full of flavonoids and compounds that promote general well-being, healthy skin (some report it helps clear their acne, both by consumption and when applied topically–if topical, make sure it’s at night only, as it has photosensitive properties and may damage your skin), protect your organs, and as for myself, I sleep better, as well.

Enjoy.