Remove, Restore, Resilience & Ubuntu
I believe that we all have the ability to live a healthy and vital life. As a formulator, I practice
what I call Good Information; an appropriate blend of cutting-edge modern medicine with age-old healing techniques from the East, combined together so we can create our own personal health care plan.
For almost 30 years, I have guided and helped thousands of people feel healthier, look great, and increase energy and resiliency to better deal with life’s stresses. Passionate about helping others, my mission is to provide trusted guidance and information to make Good Information more accessible and attainable to all. In 30 years I have heard it all “The New Trends” or “The New Cutting Edge Ideas" but it has always been my belief and study that we need to blend Eastern and Western philosophies. For this I have kept my program “simple”. Remove what is harmful and toxic to the body and Restore what is beneficial thereby becoming Healthy & Resilient! This integrative approach takes into account your physical, mental, emotional, and social wellbeing.
In today's world we need to be more resilient than ever to set us up for life’s unexpected stressors. In the past few weeks, we have seen life as we know it turned upside down. Our foundations, and much of what we considered to be our basic reality, have been badly shaken.
Let’s try going deep into self-care mode
The mission: To use this time to do the things that improve health & wellness.
Though I don’t claim to have all the answers, here are a few thoughts on how you can support mind, body and spirit as we move through these times together:
Start each day with a calm foundation.
Mornings in the midst of the coronavirus can be extra stressful so get yours off to a good start. Upon rising, take a few minutes to be grateful for something or someone in your life. It’ll help you start the day in a healthy way – with a calmer nervous system, lowered blood pressure and less ratcheted-up state of mind. Now that you’re probably not rushing to get the kids off to school and yourself to the office, try and stay calm.
Design your 'New Normal'
Beyond our real concerns about catching or spreading this coronavirus, the sheer disruption of our everyday routines is apparent from the moment we get out of bed. Without the usual morning rush, school drop-offs, and office commutes, it’s easy to feel sad or depressed. Instead of heading down that slippery slope, create a new routine and stick to it. Don’t linger in bed, get up, take control of what you can and get moving. Shower, get dressed, have a to-do list and check off the boxes as you go. You’ll bring a sense of order, purpose and structure to the day – and give yourself a new routine to work with for the duration.
Control the conversation
Our social lives are going to be quite different for the foreseeable future, so consider keeping conversations with friends and neighbors on the lighter side to help keep anxiety levels down. If there are those in your life who enjoy deep dives on every possible doomsday scenario, and you don’t, allow them a few minutes to speak their piece and graciously change the subject. Recuse yourself from the conversation if they don’t take the hint. Got close friends who love to kvetch, (a person who complains) and now have more time to do it? Here too, be prepared to gently and politely steer conversations in a more positive direction or, if need be, end them a little sooner than you normally might. Remember, putting your sanity first isn’t a selfish act, it’s an act of self-preservation.
Manage your mind
Though the internet is a marvelous thing, it is not without its downsides. Right now, the volume of news, be it bad or good, real or fake, is exhausting our brains. And there’s no shortage of non-stop commentary, snark and negative chatter to be had on Twitter, Facebook, Tik Tok and thousands of other platforms. So how about letting go of a lot of it? Now is an excellent time to turn off the social media fire hose (or at least cut it down to a trickle) and give your mind the gift of more quiet time.
You’ve got to move it
No need to start training for a marathon when you haven’t moved off the couch in months but, in these challenging times, some daily exercise is essential for your physical and mental well-being. Keep your social distance by walking outside, chase the kids around the yard, dance around your living room or sign up for one of the thousands of live on-line fitness classes being offered on Zoom and Skype by temporarily displaced fitness instructors. Doing so will improve your circulation, get your heart rate up, help you look better and feel better. And better still, exercise will encourage the brain to release those happiness-inducing endorphins, aka ‘Mother Nature’s happy hormones,’ which help elevate mood.
Give to others
The relentless stress we’re under now can put people in a near-constant state of anxiety and exhaustion from riding multiple daily waves of negative emotions. One way to combat the emotional roller-coaster is to find some way of giving to others, or supporting an organization that is fighting the good fight. Though face-to-face contact is not an option at the moment, giving time (virtually) or money will help provide you with a greater sense of community – in the midst of this very isolating time – and help blunt some of those feelings of powerlessness and anxiety. On a more local level, if you can, pick up some essentials for a neighbor; walk an elderly person’s dog; or make daily check-in calls with those who live on their own and may be feeling lonely.
Spread Ubuntu, not anger
Ubuntu is more important today than ever, it means, “I am me …. Because of who we are – the humanity towards each other. My humanity is tied to yours. I am a person through other people.". When frightened, or angry, or depressed, some people will lash out, with or without good reason. You can overhear some of that in those long supermarket lines. Maybe you’ve done it yourself. But next time, instead of lashing out, look inward and practice the African spiritual practice of Ubuntu, remembering 'what makes us human is the humanity we show each other'. It’s about basic caring, having respect and compassion for others. Ubuntu helps build bridges between people instead of chasms, so practice daily!