Restore trust in yourself to be well and healthy
The paradox is, trying to be healthy puts you in a physiological state of stress, and trusting in what your body, brain, and heart are saying right now puts you in the physiologic state of well.
As Goethe so wisely wrote, "As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live."
But how do we know how to live when we have so many conflicting messages about what to do and not do to be healthy?
In the news you hear of a scientific study concluding something is good for you one day, and then it seems like the next day's headline tells you the opposite advice. Influencers flood the media with their opinions based on either their own experience or what they are paid to tell you to do. This time of year, you are inundated with 'be healthy' programs that promise to keep you motivated to get to your goal.
Our foundation of trust in our body, brain and heart can be deteriorated by all these "shoulds" that distract from the skill trusting yourself.
I love learning about physiology, the study of how the body functions. It is so clear that each part of us is wired not only to survive but thrive. Every system, every cell contains knowledge about how to take care of you, so you can not only just stay alive, but thrive.
I love learning from psychology how we can use our brains to thrive, too. It's clear that as the "shoulds" accumulate, our brain struggles with listening to what we know in our body and heart. Maybe Goethe was able to see clearly the way to live because he was not influenced by the media messages.
His message to trust yourself so you know how to live is a nice concept, but really how do you do that? It starts by knowing "yourself" is not just what you know in your brain. In fact, that knowledge is highly influenced by the media and the design of your brain to seek and find threats to protect against.
It's easy to end up seeing your body and brain as threats to your well-being. When your body is in pain, tired, or gaining weight your body seems like a threat. When your thoughts and emotions keep you from doing what you know you should, even urging you to do the exact opposite, your brain seems like a threat.
I love taking the scientific truths about how our whole person is designed to thrive, and sharing it in a way that provides a clear path to restoring trust in your body, brain and heart.
Trust in yourself is the starting point of being well and thus being healthy.
I started the monthlong series with information about how to restore trust in your whole person's ability to Rest Well. This past week I shared information about how to restore trust in your whole person's ability to nourish well. As we finish this month, I will share how to restore trust in your ability to move well.
This is about so much more than getting enough physical activity and doing more exercise. That advice eliminates the meaning behind moving. As I shared in this article, meaning is the heart of well-being, and well-being is the start of being healthy. Moving well starts with trusting your body.
We will finish the year laying out the pathway to restoring a healthy connection with your body by getting out of the shoulds and clearing the misinformation so you can restore trust in your body, especially if it is limited by pain, fatigue, or medical issues.
Share this with someone you know who wants to celebrate December in the Well State.
Why wait until January? Be Well Now!
Exercising Well is so much more than an exercise program. It's a pathway to rewiring mindsets so you know how to Be Well Now. This is a short-term program that gives you lifelong skills for moving well, nourishing well, and resting well. Move on with confidence in your self-motivation skills. even when you are limited by pain, medical issues, stress, or lack of time.
