Health is often believed to be the absence of disease or sickness. While this is true to some extent it lacks the broader approach to health and fitness which is addressed by the concept of Holistic Health and Wellness (also sometimes referred to as Natural Health)
Holistic Health and Wellness is an approach to life. It emphasises the connection of mind, body, environment and soul. Holistic health considers the person as a whole and how he interacts with his environment. It addresses the root cause of the problem rather than treating the symptoms. As a result, it can help you achieve long-term & sustainable weight loss. (Also Read: Fitness and Nutrition- Five tips to achieve long term, sustainable Fat Loss)
To stay fit and healthy while achieving sustainable weight loss in the long-term one should focus on a holistic approach to his health which involves the following four pillars:
- Physical & Nutritional Health
- Emotional & Mental Health
- Social & Environmental Health
- Spiritual & Intellectual Health
It is important to understand that your journey to wellness is not “one size fits all”, rather it is unique for each individual. Your personality, environment, biology, & spirituality will determine your path to wellness. To determine your personalised approach to wellness, reflect on these 4 fundamental pillars of holistic health and wellness and figure out with one requires most of your attention span while strengthening each pillar individually to realise the healthiest and most meaningful life possible.
4 Pillars of Holistic Health and Wellness
1. Physical & Nutritional Health
The physical health dimension includes the following:
- Daily physical activity like exercise, sports, jogging, or any physical activity which is a part of your daily lifestyle.
- Healthy Diet and Nutrition like eating wholesome, unprocessed, organic food & having a balanced diet, focussing on portion control, eating as per the hunger, eating the meals on time, spreading your meals across the entire day, eating 2-3 hours before sleep time, and keeping hydrated etc.
- Sleep and rest: Sleep and rest are the most important factor for achieving good physical health. Ask yourself if you are getting good quality sleep? Are you taking proper rest and sleeping on time and getting up on time?
- Digital Detox, Forest Bathing & Nature Therapy: Reducing your screen time before sleeping, and going back to paperback editions of books if you are fond of reading is a good idea. Reduce binge-watching habits, and rather engage in forest bathing by observing nature around you is recommended to have good mental and physical health.
- Hygiene and Sanitisation: This means keeping your body and surrounding clean by engaging in hygienic practices to avoid contamination and spreading bacteria and viruses. Such behaviour improves the cleanliness and your overall health.
- Medical Condition: Check underlying medical issues like depression, hormonal imbalances, indigestion, diabetes, and heart problems for example that may be impeding your weight loss or health and fitness regimen. Check with your GP or doctor on a regular basis and get full-body health check-ups done. Get underlying health conditions treated and make necessary changes in your lifestyle thereof.
Engaging in a healthy lifestyle and habits will lead to good physical health. (Also Read: The 10 Fundamental Rules of Health and Fitness to Stay Fit & Active Forever )
2. Emotional & Mental Health
Emotional health is often overlooked. But It is as important as our physical health. Emotional Health can affect our physical health if not taken care of in a proper manner. This involves:
- Navigating our feeling and coming to terms with our own fears, anxiety, dissonance, and frustrations. This also means we should introspect, process and accept our innermost feelings & conflicts while keeping the negative emotions under check and consciously choosing happiness. (Aldo Read Happiness is a choice, choose to be Happy – 11 ways to choose happiness today).
- Actively sharing our emotions and feelings with others like our family, friends, social engagements etc.
- Seeking out therapy when needed as it is an essential part of supporting our emotional health.
- Practising mindfulness, managing daily stressors, and focusing on habits that may help in leading a meaningful and stress-free life.
- Keeping a record or journal of your thoughts and feelings- to record how blessed and grateful you are and how positive your life is.
3. Social & Environmental Health
Social & Environmental Health and wellness are all about connecting with others in our social circles to form positive and meaningful relationships (Also Read: 5 Tips for Choosing your Friends wisely) along with the larger community in which we survive and operate. This helps us create a social support system, to tide past all the struggles from time to time. This also means resolving conflicts with people who matter to us in a constructive way. It is a proven fact that people who spend time with others and socialise record a greater level of happiness as compared to those on the other side of the spectrum.
Environmental wellness is determined by the reciprocal relationship between you and your environment. How do you support your environment? And in return, how does your environment support your health, well-being, and safety?
Some tips for achieving optimal social & environmental health:
- Surround yourself with people who care for you.
- Seek out activities to meet new people and make new social contacts
- Connect with your old friends, family, contacts & loved ones and revive old contacts.
- Invest in your relationships by giving them time, lending them your ears, and showing gratitude.
- Take care of your family, neighbourhood, and the larger community of which you’re part of.
4. Spiritual & Intellectual Health
Spiritual health does not necessarily mean that you need to become religious. However, this may mean some overlapping practices and principles with one’s religious beliefs. The spiritual health aspect is different for each individual as every person’s spiritual quotient is different from one another and depends on how each person defines it. This means:
- Connecting with your inner soul by spending quality time with yourself and prioritising yourself over others. It is advisable to observe daily ‘me-time’, meditate, and introspect.
- Connecting with the world around you by taking care of nature, animals and human beings around us by being empathetic and kind.
- Practise spiritual cleansing and energy healing by being honest, and removing the discord between who you are and what you think, feel and do. This involves listening more to your heart rather than your mind. This also means defining your values in life and sticking to your value system.
- If you are religious, practising your religion & faith in the true sense will lead to better spiritual health.
Intellectual Health involves engaging your mind actively and continually to strengthen this pillar of holistic health and wellness. Some tips for reinforcing your spiritual health involve:
- Developing and building new skills and knowledge that inspire and challenge you.
- Keeping your mind sharp by providing it with enough food for thought like brain games, puzzles, life philosophies, questioning norms and behaviours, engaging in stimulating conversations and debates etc.
- Travelling on the path of self-discovery, personal growth, academic advancement etc.
Holistic Medicine & Holistic Health and Wellness Practitioner
Holistic Medicine is a type of healing that considers the person in totality – body, mind, spirit and emotions for achieving optimal holistic health and wellness to gain proper balance in life.
Holistic Health Practitioners believe that unconditional love and support is the most powerful tool to heal a person while also believing that a person is ultimately responsible for his own health and well-being.
They believe:
- All people have innate abilities to heal themselves
- The patient is a person and not a disease
- The healing takes place by addressing all the aspects of a person’s life like body, mind, spirit and emotions
- The treatment majorly focuses on treating the cause not the symptom
Types of holistic treatments
Holistic practitioners use a variety of treatment techniques like
- Educating the patient on lifestyle changes
- Self-care to promote wellness like diet, exercise, relationships, spiritual counselling etc
- Other therapies like naturopathy, massage therapy, acupuncture, acupressure, homoeopathy etc
- Western medicine and surgical procedures are also used in extreme conditions
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