This One’s To New Beginnings!
Do you ever go to the doctor for one illness and that’s all they treat, regardless of what they may find? Holistic Health is different. We focus on the entire individual; mind, body, and spirit. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, about 6 years ago, and the doctors wanted to fill me with pills to only ease the symptoms. It was at that point, I decided to heal myself the way God intended. So for 6 years I have been actively living and continually pursuing a lifestyle of holistic health and wellness.
Dealing with sickle cell anemia, Crohn’s, allergies, and asthma is what prompted me to change my life. I see the struggle with others and myself and want something better. I wanted a life that wasn’t dependent on get-rich-quick schemes for the pharmaceutical companies. I wanted a life that was simple, but effective. I wanted a life that focused on me in my entirety and not just parts of me. I decided I wanted to live. I started to pursue doctors who focused on integrated health, such as acupuncture. I saw specialists who healed with the types of foods we eat. Additionally, I began looking at my living environment and ways to naturally eliminate stressors in my daily life.
When I first started down the holistic healing path, I went with what I thought, at the time, was going to be the easiest. A change in my diet. Boy was I wrong. It is not as simple as waking up one morning and deciding to drink only water and homemade juices; it’s not that easy to go cold turkey and cut out all the foods you enjoy such as pizza and cheesecake. In fact, the hardest part was the meal prep itself and getting creative.
In my first week, I was so frustrated. I had headaches, I felt my energy depleting. I wasn’t motivated, because the thought of how difficult the first week was deterred me from even trying harder. I saw myself going right back to my old eating habits and changing nothing. I was off to a rough start initially, but it got better. The headaches and fatigue were less frequent, the mood swings were getting better and my energy levels started increasing. It took commitment and patience, but it was all well worth it. The hardest part is just starting.
Most ask, where do you even start. For me, it started with a health and wellness specialist. I had blood work done to see what I did or did not have food allergies to. Turns out there are so many more foods causing flares to my Crohn’s and leaky gut than I imagined. After getting those results and making a commitment to what is now called an Elimination Diet, I experienced noticeable results in the areas of weight loss and overall health. From there, I started to read the book Eat Right for Your Type, which is a book that focuses on blood type and the types of food people with certain blood types should eat. Finally, because of my faith, I also chose to read Back To Eden, which provides a more spiritual and holistic approach to eating the way God intended, through the elimination of meats. Overall, there are so many options to choose from when trying to discern what is best to eat for your body type. I will go ahead and link below the books I’ve mentioned, so you can see if there is one that interests you.
Who would have ever thought that I would have a green thumb? Turns out my daughter and I are both natural gardeners. We have both started down the path of health and wellness together and engaging in activities for our own health benefits. This includes gardening, workouts in the morning, and coming up with creative food ideas that we can both enjoy by staying active and having accountability. I find myself being highly motivated, encouraged, and actually enjoying the process. Yes, it gets hard and some days are worse than others, but that is why having an accountability partner or coach makes it all worthwhile. For that reason, my daughter and I are starting a movement, which we will discuss later on in another blog. We encourage everyone to join. As for now, we listed below a few smoothies we’ve been loving. It has become a morning staple and delicious method for getting our morning protein.
Heather Robertson has become a part of our daily routine during the week. She has neatly curated a playlist for any workout you’re looking for that day, separated by time, intensity, and even muscle group. During a normal video, Heather opens with a warmup, guides you through the workout, and closes with a full-body stretch, but she also has videos you can add on as finishers if you have a bit of spare energy leftover.
MissFitAndNerdy has been our fitness guide to learning more about our bodies and holistic fitness. Her channel has created a community where you can grow your knowledge on how to eat sustainably and for your body type. She also offers workouts and information on fat loss.
Growwithjo was a great addition for us as we began our journey. Using a variety of workouts, Jo was able to crank up our heart rates and work up a sweat. As we stated earlier, Jo is great for beginners, ranging from simply walking to HIIT. Jo also has a selection of workouts, for women that are pregnant as well.
Now if you are still unsure if holistic health is for you, we encourage you to perhaps consider its benefits on your spirituality. For the longest time, I believed I was spiritual; I thought that having faith in God was enough. However, when it came to my health I started to study the Bible more and understand all the things God wanted me to see for my mental, physical, and most importantly spiritual health. The one item that jumped out the most was that God allowed me to see that faith without deeds is dead. Did I believe that God could truly heal and help me? If so, why wasn’t I following God’s instructions to take care of my flesh, to care for my mind and thoughts (think positive), or to study His word more for my spiritual growth? Spirituality, to me, has become more than just having faith; it has become an embodiment of doing what I truly believe... By following God’s word, my faith in God has truly grown, because I am experiencing the results.
That was my personal journey, but yours may start somewhere else. Maybe you’re looking to find your own identity. Maybe you’re looking for inner peace. Whatever it is, there are two tasks, you should strive to practice every day. The first task is to take the first 10 minutes of every day and meditate. Create some time for peace and release yourself from daily stressors. The next task is to intiate small acts of kindness, within your means. We’re not asking you to pay for the person’s coffee behind you in the drive thru, with the last $5 in your account, but flash a smile to the service worker in the window to brighten their day. Compliment a stranger. Keep it simple.
Holistic Health, unlike the traditional medical practice, truly focuses on your entire self, both the seen and unseen. As we have revamped our program and our site, we encourage you to take this journey with us. The journey of improving our whole self; mind, body, and spirit. We will look at fun and healthy recipes, including smoothies, liquid diets, and healthy desserts (provided by my daughter’s catering and recipe service). We will look at gardening indoors and outdoors. You can also take a walk with us on some of our favorite outdoor trails and experience not only the physical but mental and spiritual benefits of pushing yourself outside of your norm. We will look at some of our favorite workout videos and hope that you will follow them and share your experience with those workouts. Lastly, we will also create and grow spiritual connections, with each other and ourselves.
Remember, James 2:14 states “for as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead”. We cannot simply say we believe that with proper diet and exercise, we will lose weight, if we truly believe such, we will do what we believe. We cannot believe that eating better will help our overall health and wellness, we must actually eat better. With this in mind, if you believe all these things, if you believe that you can take a holistic approach to health for a better lifestyle, then complete the first challenge. Like our page, leave a comment below on what you want to see or hear more about, visit our website, and share with friends. We look forward to taking this trip with you.
