An Introduction to Holistic Women’s Wellness: Engage Your Mind, Fuel Your Body, and Nurture Your Spirit
Being a woman is complex and extraordinary, as is wellness. Unfortunately, these two things don’t often sit together at the table, thus leaving women's wellness widely mismanaged and misunderstood. With the ebbs and flows experienced in our monthly cycles, and, well....life, it can be difficult to find balance. Where does one begin in an era filled with self-help fads? The answer is ironically simple: you — the true expert who is often forgotten. As a therapist, I often help women connect with their internal compass by utilizing a holistic approach to wellness — one that emphasizes the mind, body, and spirit connection to achieve alignment in all aspects of their lives.
The mind component of wellness encompasses both our thoughts and feelings. According to the National Science Foundation, 95% of our daily thoughts are repetitive and 80% of them are perceived as negative. Psychology has long studied the thinking-feeling connection with hopes of becoming aware of this subconscious process. The process of becoming aware of our thoughts is more challenging for women who are subjected to higher scrutiny, often having others’ thoughts and opinions thrown at us. As a result, we expend too much energy carrying thoughts and feelings that are not ours, leaving us overwhelmed and exhausted. Working toward the ability to separate our own musings and emotions away from others allows us to let go of what doesn’t belong to us while creating space to explore and cope with what does.
Holistic ways to care for your mind:
Therapy
Journaling
Mindfulness (meditation, guided imagery, coloring, breathing exercises, etc.)
Reading
Learning (knowledge and new skills)
The most popular wellness component is the body with priority given to physical appearance at the expense of our wellbeing. This is especially true for women who experience intense and relentless pressure to look a certain way. Moreover, both the recommended internal and external body care techniques are based on men (i.e., women were not included in medical research until 1993, per the National Institutes of Health). Generally, there is a push to develop static wellness routines, which doesn’t align with our monthly cycle. Approximately every week, we enter a different phase, meaning our physical needs change just as often. This requires us to modify both our nutritional needs (e.g., nutriment and supplements) and exercise routines (e.g., mild to strenuous with rest included). Becoming aware and informed of our biological processes will foster an alliance between internal and external routines/regimens for the sake of our wellbeing.
Holistic ways to care for your body:
Cycle tracking
Exercise (from yoga to high intensity interval training)
Rest
Massage
Supplements
Nutritional lifestyle
Western and Eastern medicine practices
Last, and certainly not least, is the spirit component. Typically, this component is associated with religion. However, in hopes of an all encompassing interpretation, I describe this part of wellness as unconditional joy. Simply put, it is an active effort to engage in activities that have no other purpose than to provide you with joy. Living in a society that values doing with our lengthy, ongoing to-do lists, there’s very little time for play. Many of us have disconnected from our playful selves in our transition from childhood to adulthood, making the questions “what brings you joy/what do you do for fun?” challenging to answer. While some of our daily tasks can very well be enjoyable and enhance our spirit, I urge you to take it further. Quiet the external noise, unite with your childlike essence, and revel in the joy.
Holistic ways to care for your spirit:
Volunteering
Connecting with others (church, spiritual group, etc.)
Connecting with self (exploring values, morals, beliefs)
Connecting with nature
Engaging with a favorite hobby (music, art, crafting, etc.)
Alignment is an ongoing journey, and it is imperative that we constantly check in and assess our wellness (mind, body, & spirit) routines. My hope is that this information will help you to get to know yourself more intimately and empower you to reflect and take necessary steps to develop/evolve in your very own wellness routine(s): ones that engage your mind, fuel your body, and nurture your spirit.
Written by Kelsey Reep, LCSW, LCAS
Contact Information:
Kelsey Reep, LCSW, LCAS
www.instagram.com/aligynedcounseling
828.536.0472