Everything On It - A Holistic Approach to Health and Wellness

Don't you ever wonder why, despite their effort to eat right,  some  people still get sick?
Here's the thing about staying healthy - everything contributes to it.  You know, not just your food.  It's your lifestyle - your food, your job, your residence, your activities, your relationships, your soap,  your makeup, etc. etc. etc.

Yup.  You heard it right.  Why do I say this?  Because it is the truth.  The decisions you make determine your health.  Thus to me, health is a matter of choice.  Decisions are done every single minute of your life.  When you eat, you decide what to eat, what time to eat, where to eat, who to eat with, to clean the dishes right after or not.  When you walk, you decide to go left or right, go up the stairs or ride the elevator, go to the park or to the mall.  When you work, you decide whether to call someone first or write an memo, to type for the boss or remind him of his next appointment;, for artists,  to draw a dribble line or dribble; for nurses, to give this guy his meds or to check on the vital signs of another.  When you go home, will you ride the bus or a taxi? Will you go straight home and buy Junior's school supplies at a nearby store, or buy them before you go home?   Those are but a few choices we make each day.

For a healthy lifestyle, I constantly remind myself (and bug my family with it) everytime:

1.  Diet - low fat (except for kefir and yogurt), low salt, moderate sugar, high fiber, all natural.  But, I take soda once a month and indulge in some dessert that I love every 2 weeks.  Otherwise, a bite or two of anything sweet will be enough for me in a day. I take a dose each of garlic, papaya and herbalberry capsules every single day 15 minutes before breakfast.  Of course, I take my milk kefir.  2 cups at least a day.  when I don't feel well, I take an additional 2 cups.

2.  Exercise - a few minutes of dancing to my favorite music specially the ones that my zumba instructor plays, house chores, walking the dog,

3.  Work and relations - I choose to make and deliver yogurt and kefir where I get to meet other people.  I feel good when I am able to help others.  When I want to cry, I do.  Crying releases the endorphins which ultimately lessens stress.  The trick is to choose to do what you enjoy doing.

4.  Hygiene  and beauty regimen- the daily bath, kefir on face and body, use of all natural soap, shampoo, feminine wash, body scrub and honeymilk lotion are part of what I do. I use my daughter's lip gloss.  She makes them with vit. E, beeswax, virgin coconut oil and non-toxic crayons.  The chemicals you get yourself in contact with will definitely end up in some part of your body which will most likely give you a not so pleasant reaction.

5.  Home - we recently transferred to a place that has lots of trees, minimal air and nose pollution, with a friendly neighborhood.  How does this affect health?  Well, it's stress free living in a clean environment.

6.  Leisure - watch a movie or go to the beach or just a nice walk uphill with family is what I love doing.  It's is fun and not stressful.  When some people cause me stress, I shut them out for a while and deal with them at a later time when they are calm.  This way, it is less stressful to both of us.

7.  Rest and relaxation - note to self: you need a lot of rest.  You see I am the energetic type of person.  My day starts early and ends late.  Lately though I feel tired and sluggish.  I realized it is because I don't sleep enough.  sleep allows the cells to repair, rebuild and regenerate.  I write my blogs when I have the urge to.  These make me think but they don't stress me out.

8.  Music - I love to hear jazz, mellow, classical, broadway and nature sounds. Those relax me.  When I want to dance though I love the upbeat ones.  But then I revert back to the ones that keep me calm.

9.  Aromatherapy - the scent that we use at home are eucalyptus, lavender, peppermint and green tea or tea tree.  Those according to some have calming effects.

  Even the switch I made with my wifi connection is part of it.  Lesser stress means lesser chance of getting ill.

Now you know my secret.  Mind you I haven't gotten ill for the longest time.  Just a few hours of cold or cough.  But that's about it.  And I'm fifty. Lol.    How about you?