We all know that water is life, but what makes it so hard for us to prioritize nourishing our body with it? Why are we running from one meeting to the next, absent-minded, where the last thing we think about is our bodies? Why do we feel so exhausted that we drink one cup of coffee after the next to keep us pushing through the day?
I used to think of a successful day as one where I accomplished the maximum possible number of tasks even at the price of my health. As long as the body was seemingly functioning, there was nothing that demanded my attention. If something broke, I would take it to the doctor and move from there. When I saw that this strategy simply led me to medications and surgeries, I decided that I would take back control of my health.
This new mindset completely transformed my view of health. I noticed that simple changes can actually lead to miracles. I discovered that our bodies can heal themselves – that I could be my own healer. We just need to give our bodies the chance and the proper environment that includes rest, water and air – three incredible free hacks.
When I prioritized sleep, drinking water and having mindful breaths throughout the day, I started to discover a new level of energy that I have never experienced before. I became amazed that the tools that healed me and optimized my wellbeing are all within reach and FREE for most people.
1st Hack: Water
Water is the basis of all life including our bodies. Our muscles that move our body are 75% water, our blood that transport nutrients is 82% water, our lungs that provide us oxygen are 90% water, our brain that is the control center of our body is 76% water, and even our bones are 25% water.
Dr. F. Batmanghelidj, who devoted his life to studying the healing powers of water, discovered how the body manifests dehydration in so many ways that are labeled in medicine as diseases. Dr. Batmanghelidj showed how water helps prevent and cure heartburn, arthritis, back pain, migraine and many other diseases. He shares that toxic chemical waste builds up when we don’t drink enough water. If there is not enough water to wash away the chemical toxic waste from an area that is still actively metabolizing, then toxic waste builds up.
So let us all get more water. Here are some tips on drinking water:
- Water before breakfast: Drink two glasses of water first thing in the morning. It’s the best laxative there is.
- Water before food helps with the act of chewing, swallowing, breaking down food, and absorbing and metabolizing the particles.
- Water before exercise helps protect the body from dehydration. When you sweat, you become very quickly dehydrated.
- Water before sleep: You need water before you sleep because for eight hours you are gradually losing water through perspiration and respiration. You also manufacture urine even though you don’t evacuate it until the morning making you dehydrated by first thing in the morning.
2nd Hack : Sleep
Some people consider sleep as a waste of time. I certainly used to think that way until I was forced to pause and sleep. Sleeping is a way that our body repairs itself. Sleep deprivation leads to high blood pressure, heart disease, accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles leading to muscle spasm, dysregulating our appetite hormones, decreasing our lung ability to expel carbon dioxide and much more.
During deep sleep, we improve our immune system function. It is the very best health insurance policy we can wish for. REM sleep acts as a soothing balm taking the sharp edges of those difficult emotions so we feel better the next day. It is not that time heals all wounds but time during REM that heals. We need to take advantage of this therapy to gain revised mind web when waking up.
Here are some tips to help you sleep better:
- Regularity: helps anchor your sleep and improve the quantity and quality of sleep.
- Wind down routine: Light stretching, warm shower, meditation, journaling to help the body power down.
- Lower room temperature: allow the body to drop its temperature to stay asleep during the night.
- Darkness: Helps release melatonin. Try to dim down the lights in your house and have as much exposure to light as possible in the morning to keep the circadian rhythm regular
- Avoid caffeine in the afternoon
- Dedicate the bed solely to sleep and intimacy. Avoid watching TV on bed to not confuse your brain. You need to break all brain associations with other activities. Your bed is the place for sound sleep
3rd Hack: Mindful Breathing
We all have to breathe to stay alive but this tool remains untapped in the lungs of stressed out, overworked people all over the globe. Our modern lives make us operate in a constant state of emergency. Many of us don’t physically dispel stress hormones or take the time to resolve real problems. Mindful breathing has the power to immediately shift thoughts and energy and would allow you to reset at any moment of your choice.
Our lungs are important detoxification organs. They absorb oxygen from the air and expel carbon dioxide from the body to keep red blood cells functioning. The more oxygen the lungs can take in and remove carbon dioxide, the more energetic we will feel and the better our bodies will function. It is far more beneficial to breath through your nose than your mouth. Some estimate that around 50% of us breathe mostly through our mouth caused by stress, pollution and medical conditions. The nose cleans the air, heats it and moistens it. Breathing deeply through the nose lowers blood pressure, regulates heart rate, and much more. When you take in unprocessed air through your mouth, you get none of these benefits.
Mindful breathing allows us to build greater self-awareness. Research shows that when we see ourselves clearly, we are more confident and more creative. We make sounder decisions, communicate more effectively and build stronger relationships. Here are some tips on mindful breathing:
- Own your breath so you can own your peace: Your breath practice is yours. You don’t need anyone’s permission or acknowledgment.
- Self-awareness check-in habit: Stop and be still, close your eyes, take three deep breaths and scan your body for any signals of stress and listen to your thoughts. Take a few more deep breaths to settle in.
- Program reminders on your phone: Make sure to include one upon waking up and one before sleep.
- Attach the check-in to another activity that you already do daily.
- Be patient with the process. Self- awareness is not a switch that you can immediately turn on and you develop it through practice. Let breath become your comforting friend and take this moment as you read this to pause, close your eyes and take three deep breaths.
If you need help incorporating these hacks into your daily routine, please don’t hesitate to contact me using the form below. May you embrace being your own healer!
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