It’s that time of year! The cobwebs have long outlived their stay. There’s a generous smudge of dirt on the blinds and in the shelves. Corners in some rooms of the house have been neglected in unimaginable ways.
There is nothing better than a cool spring breeze through the open windows and clearing out the house of clutter collected over months of being stuck inside. It feels so good and is no doubt, a major accomplishment.
How often do we think about the need to Spring clean our bodies? From Halloween thru Easter, it’s a revolving door of treats, neighbor gifts, rich food and countless trips through the drive thru. Life is busy and rarely do we hear our bodies screaming for help, a little break from all that we require of it. From environmental toxins to everyday stress, we accumulate these things and more and over time, some of our most vital processes breakdown.
It’s a perfect time to reset and restart the good habits we know will better our health and our mind. Humans are terrible when it comes to investing in our health. We will invest in our symptoms and ongoing disease, and do just about anything, to not be bothered by the discomfort poor health brings. Even when we do recognize the need to adopt better, healthy habits, we find ourselves remaining stuck in old patterns.
How do we start a Spring Self Cleaning?
Before starting any new lifestyle changes, we must first recognize the areas of our life that need improvement. It’s different for everyone. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself that might tip you off to the critical place you could begin your self cleaning.
- How is your sleep? Do you get at least 8 hours of sleep a night? If the answer is ‘No’, then ask yourself, ‘Why?’. Do you have a new baby that has days and nights confused? Is social media just too tempting at the end of the day? Are frequent nighttime trips to the bathroom getting you down? Is menopause messing with your temperature and pain? Are you fighting chronic pain from inflammatory diseases? Is your brain in an endless loop of worry and wonder?
- How often do you move? Not enough? The people in the know, claim 8000-10,000 steps are the sweet spot for moving. If that isn’t happening for you, why? Are you stuck at a desk job in which your spine has adopted a natural curve from desk slumping? Are you too tired to move? Are you plagued with joint and back pain? Are there just enough hours in a day to survive, and do nothing more? Is it important but not pressing enough to make a priority?
- What does your diet look like? Are you like a college freshman and have to clear a path of fast food containers to get through your room? Are you into extreme diets where so many food groups are off limits? Do you limit your calories to that of a bird in hopes of dropping a pound or two? Do you face bloating, burping and belching after every meal?
- Speaking of a pound or two…where is your weight? Are you in a healthy range or could you stand a little work in the weight department?
- Another important measure of overall health is your immune system. Do you catch every little bug that comes along? Does it seem like your head cold is on repeat but that couldn’t possibly be so you pass the runny nose off as “Allergies.”
These issues we’ve highlighted above, may seem inconsequential, even little annoyances you have come to accept as being human, but this isn’t the best way to live. We are so good at settling. We live far below our healthy means.
Join us in the next blog where we highlight ways you can start now, to ensure better health sooner than you think.