I meet a lot of people who express interest in living more natural and being healthier. It seems weight, energy, sleep and just being free of pain are issues many of us deal with regularly. It’s these things I hear and see written on these kind yet stressed, tired faces:
I just wish I felt younger.
I want to fit into that pair of jeans tucked in the back of my closet again.
I want to enjoy my family instead of feeling winded and tired.
I want to feel good.
So what holds us back from having those things?
What is the Good Life?
Watching HGTV home buying shows make me laugh. Here’s a young couple just starting out in life. She’s a school teacher and he’s a IT programmer buying their first home with a $400,000+ budget. Seriously? On top of student debt they both likely have and car payments let’s add a 30+ year mortgage exceeding more than either will make in a given month. But hey it’s the “good life” right?
We have been fed lies about what a good life is supposed to look like. The perfect house in a nice neighborhood, near good schools, close to shopping and an easy commute to work. A loving spouse with a couple kids, a dog, couple cars and more stuff in our homes than we can ever hope to use. Lots of friends, busy schedules and the occasional girls night or weekend to get away from it all.
If our lives are so good why do we want to get away from them so often? Why is self-care such a hot topic lately if our lives are fantastic? I’m not saying self-care is bad but what I’m saying is we have distorted the intent and our view of what happiness and feeling good really feels like.
If your kids’ schedule is not jam packed with games and after school activities you’re failing them as a parent. If you’re not working full time and balancing it all at home gracefully then you are definitely failing. If you’re not having regular date nights with your spouse and scheduling self-care well just what kind of life you living there?
Is there anything in our life we’re feeling like we’re doing well regularly?
I am constantly battling the feeling of being overwhelmed by my to-do list every day and I know you are too. It simply is too much sometimes. If this is what a good life is then why is it so stressful?
Antidepressants are the number one prescribed medication in the United States. In 2010 they were number 2 behind high cholesterol medication. Over the past 9 years those 2 medications have remained at the top of what is prescribed in our nation and simply flip flopped back and forth for which one is number one. Even many children are now taking an antidepressant! How is this OK?
The stress of trying to live the good life as we are told it should be lived is not honoring our health. It is not honoring our happiness. It is not honoring our true wants and needs. It is not helping our children flourish or have better opportunities or do better than we did. If better is what has led us to where we are now as a society then we need a better definition of “better.”
Yet every day billions of people will pop these two pills and move through another day of trying to live up to these false expectations. We trudge along in pain, exhausted and detached. Have we really lost the ability to dream what a beautiful life could look like? Has it been so long that we don’t know what happy feels like?
Is this all there is to it? Just pop a pill and move on?
Why do we continue to allow that? We are literally killing our hearts and souls every day by limiting our lives to just what society says we should be doing.
I’m Waiting on Pay Day
When I meet someone new I am always asking questions to learn about them. What do they like to do? What do they do for a living? Do they have children? What ages? It’s fascinating to me to meet new people and learn what their life is like. Almost every conversation will eventually lead to something that isn’t right for them.
They don’t sleep well. They get heartburn all the time. Their lives are a stress ball of chaotic schedules. Their kids are having trouble focusing in school and they have yet another meeting with the teacher. Their back hurts. They are finding crows feet and gray hairs. They’re tired All. The. Time.
Knowing what that feels like and how I work actively to balance it all in my own life my heart does truly feel for them. That’s when however I ask this question: “Are you ready to change that starting today?”
Despite admitting to me they are in pain daily, don’t sleep well or whatever their situation is that is causing them these issues and they are ready to have that fixed when I ask if they’re ready to make that happen today, people will hesitate. Why?
Well I need to wait on pay day.
I’m a little short this month but I’ll get back to you.
We’re going on vacation in a couple weeks.
The kids just got new clothes and shoes so I need to save up again.
I’ve said these things myself sometimes and sometimes it was legitimate but in other cases I was lying to myself. What I’ve learned is that if we really want something we’re going to find a way to make it happen. Most of the time we will figure out how to make that happen quickly if it’s something we’re truly motivated by.
Trust me I get what it feels like to wait on pay day and sometimes that is the case but let’s get real for a minute what’s changing between now and pay day? You haven’t truly committed to improving your health and changing what is going on.
Where’s My Motivation?
Without our health we have nothing else. Without our health we cannot do all the other things on our to-do list and if we can we’re not performing at our best. That exhaustion, feelings of being overwhelmed, constant digestive problem and just not feeling good are SOS signals that your body is sending for help.
Too often we ignore those signals and go about our life every day. We don’t have time to be sick. We don’t have time to think about it — or do we?
I am guilty of buying a gym membership with a renewed focus to get healthy only to find I don’t end up using it. The intention was there but I was soon totally frustrated at the challenge of completing an exercise class because I didn’t have the stamina or strength to do it all. I felt embarrassed and wasn’t comfortable so I gave up.
Daily, consistent use of natural health practices has been the biggest shift for me to be able to have the energy to work out or just take a walk. It’s been the biggest game changer for improving the constant heart burn I suffered and stiffness I was starting to experience in my joints. When you feel better you have more energy to do things like exercise and build on the actions you want to take to improve your health. You eliminate some of the conditions that are preventing you from realizing the benefits of doing other healthy activities like eating better, exercising, improving your sleep and so on. These are the tools to support those other healthy desires and needs. To me and many others the motivation starts to gain momentum when we realistically address the discomforts in our body and mind.
Interested in more?
If we truly want to have the happiness and health that we envision the good life contains then that starts with us changing how that is accomplished.
I highly recommend as step one introducing natural supplements that are 100% food based and contain exactly what your body needs to support detoxification, regeneration and addresses common problems like heart burn, sleep and inflammation.
The doTERRA Life Long Vitality kit in the Health Habits Kit along with the oils and Deep Blue Rub is a complete package of support for helping you get started.
Order it here: dragonspitapothecary.com
If you have questions about this kit or other options to serve the needs of your health and family please reach out!
amyk@dragonspitapothecary.com
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