Small Things That Can Have a Big Impact on Your Spiritual Wellness
Spiritual wellness can mean different things to different people, but in general, to be spiritually well is to live a life that is true to your core values and beliefs while continually striving to better yourself, and find inner peace and stability. Seeking wellness not only involves religious practices like prayer and worship, but also improving your own physical and mental health. Here are some small things you can do to boost your overall health and push yourself down a path to increased spiritual wellness.
Practice daily meditation
Mental Health America says that over 600 studies have confirmed the positive mental health benefits of transcendental meditation, but any form of meditation, from freeform to guided imagery, has been shown to reduce stress, help with chronic pain, and diminish depression and anxiety. This makes the mind a more fertile ground for spiritual experiences. Just take 15-30 minutes a day - that’s all you need.
Make your home a temple
Having a cluttered, messy home isn’t just embarrassing when you have guests over - it can negatively affect your overall wellness. Studies have linked clutter with anxiety, fatigue, depression and poor physical health. Having a cluttered home has also been linked to overproduction of the stress hormone cortisol. Decluttering your home and making it a practice to keep it that way every day can help battle these negative effects and put you in a better place to be mindful.
Take small steps to make your body a temple, too
A sound body helps form a sound mind, which in turn helps one achieve greater spiritual wellness. A sound body is a healthy body, and the number one factor in having a healthy body is being mindful of what you put into it. Here are some small ways to make this happen:
Aim for three well-rounded meals a day - doing so has been shown to not only keep your weight stable, but also to reduce stress
Moderate your alcohol use
Decrease your intake of sugary sodas and other empty sugar carbs
Up your intake of foods full of brain-happy omega 3s, including nuts and fish
Eat the rainbow - if your day includes whole foods that are red, blue, orange, green, yellow and purple, you’re on the right track
Drink more water
Practice living in the present
Some describe the art of living in the present as mindfulness, connecting to what’s around you right now and living in the moment. It’s important for your overall wellness, because when you center yourself in the now, it’s much harder to feel regret, shame or embarrassment about the past, or feel stress and anxiety about the future.
Give yourself an outlet to express yourself
For many people, the best way to get their daily thoughts out is through writing in a journal or diary, but self-expression can take almost any form - dancing, drawing, or playing music, for example. Since life is inherently complicated, it’s often difficult to make sense of what goes on in your life on a daily basis, but you need to try in order to boost your mental health and spiritual wellness. Think of it as a more proactive form of daily meditation.
Since the road to greater spiritual wellness is a long one, and one that you’ll most likely be on your entire life, the methods available to push you further down that path are often incremental. Try some of these small but meaningful steps to better your physical and mental health, and you will make your body and mind and better place for spiritual growth.
Guest article: Jennifer McGregor