Is the amount of negative information around health beginning to make you feel like it’s all a lost cause? In this post I look at reframing perspective and how to take steps in the fact of what seems useless at times.

I was working on the next entry for the toxic burden blog and it made me think back to a day last week when I experienced extreme overwhelm. You see, I receive daily emails from a multitude of sources regarding health, nutrition, environmental toxins and pollution, etc. I like to wade through them to provide you (and me) with cutting edge research and information on wellness.  Some days it gets me down. I get overwhelmed by the amount of information and the direness of it all; or so it seems.  I wonder if all the work I’m doing is worth it.

I imagine you too may find yourself asking, “if everything is so bad, what’s the point of trying?” Believe me, I’ve had those same thoughts. So rather than dive into another blog about how we’re filled with chemicals, I wanted to take a step back and regain perspective.

It’s true that we are living in a chemical soup. Not all the chemicals remain in our bodies, and not all are individually toxic. Certainly, we can’t live in a bubble to avoid them. But I don’t want you to live in extremes either. We can’t stress over every little thing.  We also can’t just throw caution to the wind and hope for the best.  Both extremes are doomed for failure.  The first will create stress levels that will raise stress hormones and sabotage all the good work.  The latter will leave you in as state of chronic disease, not living life to your fullest potential or happiness.  However, I still feel knowledge is important to being healthy, simply because there are so many accumulating negatives around us.  We just need to temper our resolve to a healthy level.

The question becomes, what can you do to be well without stressing about whether it matters. I can’t give you a measure. It’s just not possible. I can give you tools and recommendations. That’s what I do.

1.     Small changes yield huge results. Think about how much you know today versus 5,10 or 20 years ago. When I look back at the diet I ate as a child, teen and adult, I don’t wonder why I’ve suffered through aches, pains and illnesses. I know that we can’t reverse all the damage overnight. That’s okay. Unless you are in such poor health, or have been diagnosed with a serious illness, you don’t need to take extreme action.  Take it one day at a time, and make gradual changes. Incorporate permanent changes slowly and consistently to achieve life-long results.

2.     Know what you can and can’t control. And then work within your own parameters. For example, you can’t change your water source at home, but what could you do? Can you filter it to any degree? Even for drinking and showering? You don’t need to filter all your water if you can’t afford to, but at least take steps to filter the sources that cause the most harm. If you can’t go completely organic, can you buy organic where it matters most, like the dirty dozen and animal products?

3.     Get moving. Physical activity helps your body in so many ways. They say sitting is the new smoking. Our sedentary lifestyles, polluted environment and lack of adequate nutrition have created a society that looks very different from 100 years ago, or even less. Daily physical activity boosts the immune system, and moves the blood and lymphatic system which aids the body in eliminating all the chemicals we take in either voluntarily or involuntarily. It strengthens the heart, lungs, muscles and bones. It combats stress, fatigue, insomnia and depression. Walk more; take the stairs. Adding activity into your day will repay you handsomely.

There are many steps you can take to reduce your exposure and ill effects. Although it may seem overwhelming at times, don’t let it keep you from making changes. Every little bit counts.

Yours in Wellness,

Jackie