From the moment we took
our first breath on this Earth we were given the most precious gift of
life. For this privilege, and
unbeknownst to us at the time, we made a contract with God (however you call or
honor this higher being), the rest of the world, and the Universe to do what we
need to make this a better place live. Most
notably, in peace and harmony with each other.
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| The Holistic Triangle |
Every day the mass media presents us with
stories of fellow beings who abuse this privilege and do not honor their end of
the contract. However, this does not
mean that we should follow in these same footsteps. Quite the contrary, we must do what it takes
to live a more balanced life with respect to the mind, body, and spirit
paradigm (our holistic triangle). Our
very existence is predicated upon the fact that we are all energetic beings who
can project both the positive and negative aspects of ourselves onto
others. Let’s take a look at how this
happens, and what we can do to right the ship (so to speak). Remember this: an imbalance on one side of
the triangle that goes uncorrected, will ultimately lead to an imbalance of the
other two sides, as they are all interrelated.
The
Mind
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| Mind |
Life is not easy, and no one ever told us
it would be. In fact, it can become very
overwhelming and lead to various psycho-emotional conditions such as: anxiety,
panic attacks, depression, and anger management issues just to name a few. These conditions can lend to the projection
of negativity onto the world. Other people can, and do, absorb this type of
energy. Can you remember a time when an
angry co-worker entered the workplace and the entire mood of the group
immediately changed? How did you feel:
ramped up, drained, exhausted? How do
our own moods affect others?
Our life contract asks us to improve the
world in a positive way. One way we can
do this is to seek help. Professional counselors or peer support groups can
assist us in finding ways to balance our emotions, and turn negatives into
positives. If we learn to quiet the
mind, the soul will awaken to a more balanced existence.
The
Body
We often hear fitness
gurus quoted as saying the body is a temple and should be treated with
respect. When it comes to the physical
aspect of our being, we veer off course quite frequently and lose our way. There are only 24 hours in a day and regular
exercise/good nutrition often take a back seat to a job, family
responsibilities, and a multitude of other activities that are connected to the
same. In today’s society, we often reach
for comfort foods, high caloric cravings (refined sugars, processed foods),
alcohol, or soda pop that temporarily numb the ramped up stress response.
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| Body |
Inevitably, our sedentary life style leads
to weight gain, and potentially a negative self-image when we look in the
mirror. We can become depressed (which
brings us full circle back to the mind), become more stressed, eat more, and
continue this vicious circle until the body says “enough!” An unbalanced mind can also lead to the above
scenario, as well as opposing eating disorders such as anorexia and
bulimia. Keep in mind that everything
relates to everything else (rule number one of an anatomy and physiology
class).
So how can we turn this negative into a
positive? Once again, we can turn to
professional counseling or support groups that can assist us in treating the
mental imbalance which may be the underlying cause of our physical
ailments. Also, consider working with a
trained exercise professional, nutritionist and/or dietician who can help you
set and remain accountable to your goals.
Sometimes, all we need is a little encouragement to push us from the
nest, and away we fly. Even the slightest
improvement in our self-image will lead to the positivity that our life
contract with the world asks of us. Lao
Tzu once said: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Be willing to take that first step and the
world will thank you for it.
The
Spirit
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| Spirit |
You can agree or disagree with me on this,
but I truly believe that it is the spirit which drives our very existence as human
beings. Think about the last time there
was a tornado that tore through a small bedroom community. The first images we see are of the extent of
the destruction, as well as the emotionally overwhelmed citizens of the
affected town. The cameras capture
the utter agony as people search for lost loved ones or a family pet(s). Some of the first utterances are “I don’t
know what we are going to do next” or “How are we going to survive?” That my friends, is a broken spirit: one in
which you start thinking that you will never see the light at the end of the
tunnel. I can recall countless stories
like this one, which are revisited by the media on the first anniversary
following the disaster. Curiously, I
observe the same thing: no matter how broken the spirit was initially, and like
a phoenix rising out of the ashes, these communities always rebuild the
foundation from the ground up. The
common thread that bound them to each other was, you guessed it: positivity.
Not every one of us will be faced with a
natural disaster, but a series of events (several deaths or illnesses in the
family, divorce, loss of a job) in a short time span can most assuredly break
the spirit. In order to ground ourselves
once again, we need to nourish the spiritual side of our holistic
triangle. In addition to professional counseling
and support groups, there are several holistic modalities that you may wish to
research and pursue to assist you in lifting your spirit from the ashes:
acupuncture, reiki, massage therapy, chiropractic care, prayer, yoga, and
meditation.
We all have a personal responsibility to
the world, and the best way to live up to our end of the contract is to follow
self-care or preventative maintenance practices to balance the mind, body, and
spirit. Start from where you are and move forward, but do not compare or compete with others. Next, assemble
the best team possible (of your choosing) to help you with these endeavors. This year, I am going to hit the streets and
interview several holistic practitioners who can provide you with the nuts and
bolts of their respective professions. This,
in turn, will give you the knowledge necessary to make an informed decision regarding
your own self-care strategies. Taking
care of ourselves is the best way to make this world a better, and more
positive place to live.
In health and wellness,
Tim
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