What is holistic wellness? And why you should care

Are you finding it harder and harder to feel really and truly healthy?

At a time when finding balance can be a very real struggle, a holistic approach to wellness offers us a way toward total harmony and well-being - in our minds, bodies, and spirits.

I've been drawn to holistic health practices for a long time. For my therapy clients who were coping with anxiety, depression, disordered eating, and chronic fatigue. For myself, as I learned to heal my auto-immune condition, grief, and burnout. I became determined to find solutions. The things is, though. We're not problems to be solved.

I came to realize that there is no quick fix, no one thing that can make all the difference and improve our life.

Why? Because it's all inter-connected.

We could be physically well, but constantly pushing ourselves with negative self-talk that messes with our minds and moods. Or, we could be spiritually grounded, but depriving our body of deeply nourishing food or rest.

When we aren't meeting our needs in all areas, we eventually fall out of balance. We feel off. Over time, we can become unwell. Each part holds information and wisdom. Each part needs attention and care.

Turning points for myself and my clients came when we made positive changes in all areas. When we created routines that took care of our bodies, minds, and spirits, they generated an upward spiral.

This is why I've become so passionate about holistic wellness.

In this post, I'll cover the core elements and share some doable ways to begin incorporating practices into your daily life.

What is holistic wellness, anyway?

A holistic approach to wellness is one that respects our whole being - mind, body, and spirit. It's rooted in the understanding that each of these areas influences our overall health. And that they interact with each other in circular, overlapping, and interconnected ways. When we understand how they work together, we can take care of ourselves more broadly and more deeply.

The goal of holistic wellness is to seek balance and harmony. To get to the source of dis-ease, rather than target a symptom. There's no one-size-fits-all formula. This approach honours that we're each unique, with our own genetics, histories, needs, and goals.

The core areas of holistic wellness

Now you know the three areas that are intimately connected to our overall well-being. Here they are in more detail:

Mental wellness -

Mental wellness is about supporting a strong and healthy mindset. A mind that is positive, flexible, and sharp. It means finding ways to balance mental and emotional health. Being mindful of self-talk and the beliefs we hold, managing stress, tending to our feelings, and looking ahead with optimism.

Physical wellness -

Physical wellness comes from providing our body with what it needs to function optimally. The health of our body is directly influenced by our habits around things like nourishment, movement, rest, sleep, and environmental variables such as self-care and home-care products.

Spiritual wellness -

Spiritual well-being is about finding ways to nurture our essence, our soul. This can include such factors as connecting with others, finding purpose, making meaning, and spending time in nature to be a part of something greater than our selves.

The positive impacts of holistic wellness

So what's the point of all this, you ask? Why should we care?

When we approach ourselves this way, we experience incremental improvements in our quality of life. Benefits like more energy, enhanced immune function, mental clarity, lower stress and overwhelm, better sleep, greater contentment, increased self-awareness and trust, and a more vibrant and full existence.

How to bring holistic practices into daily life

Following are some basic ways to begin incorporating holistic wellness practices.

Mind -

Press pause. Throughout your day, check-IN for a moment. Take 5 slow, deep breaths into your heart centre. Just BE. Return to yourself over and over.

Mind your mindset. Speak kindly to yourself. Inside your head. Catch your self-talk. Consider ... Is it kind? Is it helpful? Is it true?

Be grateful. It's been said before. But, really, look around you. There are countless things to be thankful for. Be prepared to feel better for noticing and acknowledging them. Often.

Stay sharp. Try to learn or do something new each day. It doesn't have to be big. Learn a new word or fun fact. Do a puzzle. Exercise your brain.

Body -

Move. Do anything. Every single day. Mix it up. Find balance between motion, strengthening, lengthening, and simply strolling (not scrolling). Mostly, move in ways that you enjoy.

Nourish. Eat lots of real, whole foods. If you're a long way from this, try replacing something processed with something real every week.

Hydrate. There's no perfect amount. On average, aim to work toward about half of your body weight in ounces of clean, filtered water per day. Not from a plastic bottle.

Rest. For me, this is sometimes as simple as laying down on the floor for five minutes to reset my nervous system.

Spirit -

Go outside. Time in nature, without technology, can help you get in touch with yourself, other beings, the larger world, and beyond.

Journal. Set an intention for your day or week. Reflect on your hopes and dreams. Jot down what you see, hear, smell, feel. Free flow. Connect within.

Create a vision. Find quotes and images that inspire you. Create a vision board and put it where you can see it often. Update it as your aspirations change.

Allow yourself to feel joy. Give yourself permission to feel happy. And fully savour moments of contentment and joy when they occur.

These are just a few examples. But, as you can see, it doesn't have to be complicated.

Some final thoughts

The journey toward greater health and wellness is about making progress, not arriving at some unrealistic "ideal". The ultimate goal is to seek balance. This takes small, consistent actions over time. We begin, test, make tweaks, and witness the transforming effects of tending to ourselves as whole and unique beings. These transformations, in turn, motivate us to keep going. Keep seeking.

Looking for more holistic wellness practices - big and small? Everything on WBi is carefully researched and shared with the intention of helping you spiral upward. I hope you enjoy the journey.