The problem isn’t that people can’t achieve a state of health that allows them to live an optimal life. The problem is that millions of people are being sold a message that doesn’t promote health. This leads them down the wrong path chasing something that won’t give them what they want.
For years I thought health was having six-pack abs, being able to run 5 miles, do 100 pushups, and look good in a bathing suit. These don’t equate to good health, just the result of good physical fitness.
I saw athletes on TV transform their physical state to lean down and bulk up to run faster, jump higher, throw farther, and achieve more. These athletes looked great, moved well, and appeared healthy. However, most were not expressing true optimal health. Countless athletes suffer from depression and anxiety. They have a difficult time regulating their emotions and often their relationships suffer. Off the field, their lives are anything but optimal.
Getting the Wrong Message
In 2020, pharmaceutical companies spent $4.6 BILLION on TV advertising in the U.S. alone! The result is 3 out of every 4 ads we see on TV are advertising some form of pharmaceutical drug.
The message from these ads is clear, if you have a symptom, you take a pill. At first, this message may not seem like an issue. Subconsciously what this teaches is, if you don’t have any symptoms (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, pain, fatigue, constipation, poor sleep, etc.) then you must be healthy. And, we can’t live an Optimal Life without Optimal Health, right?
So we follow this path, in an effort to live a life we desire and dream of.
What they don’t want you to know is that these drugs don’t actually make you healthy. Optimal Health is a complete balance of physical, mental, and emotional well-being, not merely the absence of symptoms.
Our current model of health is fantastic for treating trauma, illness, or disease. However, it’s not ideal for achieving an optimal state of health to live an Optimal Life.
What’s more is, as we go through life, we learn to cover up any uncomfortable sensations, which only increases our dependency on prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicine, or self-medicating in the form of alcohol, food, working out, Netflix, etc. None of which creates Optimal Health within.
In fact, this only leads to dis-ease within our mind, body, and spirit. It prevents us from actually healing and disconnects us from our power and life potential.
Albert Einstein defines insanity as, doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. In order to live our Optimal Life, we must be willing to do something different.
A New Model of Health
Nothing outside of you can create Optimal Health within you.
No drug, supplement, modality, therapy, or doctor creates health within. That power and potential reside in you! How do we activate it? By FEELing.
That’s right, the exact thing our current model teaches us is “bad”, is what we must do to live our most Optimal Life. Feeling is healing.
The intelligence that created us, did not abandon us after we were born. Every symptom, sign, and sensation we feel is a signal to go within and trust. We must look within and peel back the layers to heal, grow, and evolve into more of who we were designed to be.
We must be willing to let go of what we think “health” is and see the connection that our mental and emotional well-being plays in our overall health. The more emphasis we put on one over the other, the more dis-ease we create within our system.
Optimal Health isn’t seen on paper. Diagnostic tests, scans, and readings can be within an ‘optimal range’ but, on the inside, someone can still feel anxious or even depressed. They experience low energy, low drive, low self-esteem, and brain fog. This leads to the inability to take action toward our goals and creates a disconnection from who we are and who we want to be.
Each person’s journey will be different. Therein lies the beauty. Your journey gives you exactly what you need in order to experience more of what life has to offer for YOU.
This new model of health may get uncomfortable, we must learn to embrace it and not cover it up. Here is a breakdown of the 5 most impactful things you can do to create a state of Optimal Health and well-being.
Steps to Follow
Take full responsibility for your life.
This is not meant to make you feel ashamed, guilty, or defeated but rather to feel the opposite. Taking responsibility for where you are and everything that has happened to you empowers you to know that you can change. If you got yourself into this situation, then you can get yourself out of it. Be willing to look at EVERYTHING in your life and ask the question, “how am I creating this?” This new paradigm serves as the catalyst for change.
Connect with your body and get uncomfortable.
First and foremost, discomfort is different from harm. If something is harming your physical, mental, or emotional well-being, change it or stop it. As you learn to connect with your body, you will become more aware of physical sensations. Sit in a quiet place with your eyes closed for 10-20 minutes 2 times a day. Lean into any sensations you feel. Don’t judge them and be willing to listen to any thoughts or emotions that come up. Journal these thoughts to help get a deeper understanding of how your body, and the intelligence within, is communicating with you.
Practice gratitude.
Often we create resistance in our life because we think something should look and feel a certain way. this only leads to more dis-ease within our mind and body. Embrace your current state of health and well-being. Every Sunday night, choose 5 things you are grateful for. Every night choose one of these things and practice FEELING the emotions this thing brings you. The more you can feel, the more you strengthen this muscle. Soon you will begin to see all of your past
Learn to process your emotions.
Our emotions are the language of our nervous system. When we feel an emotion it is our nervous system moving energy throughout our body (energy in motion=E-motion) The more we cover up or resist the emotions we are feeling, the more we become dependent on something outside of us to make us feel better within. Write out what you are feeling on a daily basis. Connect with these emotions and notice when you feel them and why. The better understanding we have around why we feel a certain way, the better we can begin to process and heal
Get nutrients.
Forget about keto, paleo, Mediterranean, Atkins, etc. Focus on giving your body and cells what they need, nutrients from whole food from the Earth. Aim mostly for a wide assortment of fruits and vegetables of every color. When possible, eat according to what is in season for the most nutritional benefit. Our cells and tissues regenerate every 4.5 years, if they are not getting what they need they will begin to misbehave and degenerate leading to dis-ease within our physical body. It is also a good idea to get 10-15 minutes of direct sunlight on most of your body every day, along with 2-3 liters of filtered water.
Write out your commitment to this process, or one similar to this. Make a promise to yourself that you are going to follow through and don’t give up.
You are bound to experience some discomfort but remember, only you have the power and potential to create Optimal Health and live your most Optimal Life!