Part 2 in free mini series: Holistic Nutrition
How we feel about ourselves, will be reflected by how we nourish ourselves.
Read that over. Feel it.
And now, dear one, consider your current eating habits. Self enquiry. No judgement. Just curiosity. Habits are easy to form....not so easy to break.
Your belief system inform your habits. Getting to the root of the matter. That's what sparks change.
Let's talk the 7 principles of naturopathic medicine:
1 First do no harm
2 Nature has healing powers - you ARE nature
3 Identify and treat root cause
4 Treat the whole person
5 Physician as teacher - helps you awaken your inner physician
6 Prevention is best cure
7 Establish health and wellness from within
Growing and learning through my own private practice of 8 years, I know directly the benefit of these principles. A whole hearted approach, helps transformation. I've seen it happen over and over. When someone makes the connection for themselves as to why they had a certain habit. It is powerful.
If a person comes to see me, stressed out, deeply traumatised, substance dependent.....and I tell them to cut out sugar, alcohol, gluten etc etc. That is not helpful. It provokes deeper fixations. First do no harm.
This is GREAT news! Because it empowers you to know - small changes make BIG differences. You do not need to change everything at once. Alchemy happens in the day to day fabric. And you know best. You ALWAYS know best - what works for you.
I feel the value of the holistic approach. It's what I experienced with my own doctor in South Africa as a child. And it is what people need.
Attending the Yoga in Healthcare conference last year, Duncan Selbie, Chief Executive of Public Health England, spoke to us on the four biggest risks to public health:
1 Smoking
2 What and how much you eat
3 Exercise
4 Alcohol
A holistic approach asks you to look at all those risk factors.
So, you might be surprised that today, I haven't given you a list of things to eat or not to eat. My interest is in helping you to awaken your inner physician. To enquire first and recognise patterns.
Then change comes more freely. These times ask us to go into the deeper reflections. We have to go to those places, to heal from the inside out. Healing happens in many forms.
Dive into the reflective spaces. Get quiet. Listen. In the now.
This is why new year's resolutions tend to fall away very quickly. Because we haven't gone into the honest self enquiry. Why we are comfort eating, or drinking wine to medicate our intense emotions, or eating a packet of biscuits after a turbulent encounter at work.
You know what I mean. We all do it. We're all human.
So.
Change ONE thing today. Start now and commit to it. That's all I ask.
Read this over as many times as you need, and let the one change come from inside of you.
It might not be directly related to food. It might be activity levels, or easing off booze or sugar. Let it arise from within - your own unconscious - to bring it in your conscious awareness.
Write it down. Say it out loud to a friend. This all anchors it and sets your neural pathways to make it happen.
Reply to this now and let me know what it is.
That will also help to make it a reality. You're accountable.
Change your habits. Change your life.
AND GO!!!!
So much love.
Ciara
Ciara Jean Roberts
Holistic Health Expert, Author, Naturopathic Nutritional Therapist, Yoga Teacher & Tedx Speaker