Steps to WELLNESS

Water 

It is essential to get enough. The eight 8 oz. glasses of water a day is a minimum-not the optimum. It has been stated that our body is 75% water and our brain is 85% water. That could explain why drinking water can improve your aches and pains as well as improve your mental function. It is best to drink your water between meals (1/2 hour before you eat and 1 hour after you eat). If you drink with your meals you may reduce your digesting ability, and possibly lose some of your nutrients. It may take a week or so to adjust to drinking larger amounts of water, but once you do you will not want to go back to being dehydrated. Feeling thirsty is one of the last signs of dehydration, and for some people that signal has given up on getting your attention. You need to be aware of some things that can sabotage your idea of taking in enough water. Drinking caffeinated beverages actually dehydrates you, taking out more liquid per volume than you have just taken in. Drinking juices and milk are not seen the same as pure water is to the body. You can still drink juices, but substitute them for water. It is also important that you drink pure water. Considering how much of it makes our whole, you will want the best, which means tap water is out. Any type of filtration system is better than taking in all the chemicals and such that tap water gives you. Well water should be filtered as it can contain bacteria as well as heavy metals.

 

Exercise 

Exercise is not just for looks, although that is a nice benefit. Many people only get exercise in the way of jumping to conclusions and running off at the mouth, neither of those are beneficial. I am talking about getting your body moving, which gets your circulatory system flowing. If your blood is moving all around you get nutrients and oxygen to all parts of your body. There is also the improvement of lymphatic drainage, which takes bad stuff out of our systems. I am also talking about gaining strength, not just for looks, but for easier everyday tasks, improving bone density, and to lessen overall risk of injuries. Rest is the balancer of all the work and exercise we do. Our Creator said "six days you shall labor and do all your work, and on the seventh day, you shall rest." Studies have proven that indeed we are designed for this plan. They have found that being active six days and then resting on the seventh increases productivity both mentally and physically. So, remember that it is as important to rest as it is to exercise. This rest also includes getting enough sleep at night. The time you get the sleep can be more important than the amount you get. Based on the circadian rhythm studies, which is our bodies clocks, every hour of sleep that you get before midnight is worth two hours of sleep after midnight. What this means is that your body does most of its regeneration, restoration, repair and true rest in the earlier hours of sleep. If you don’t get that quality sleep you could be aging faster and setting yourself up for disease, that your body would normally be working against.

 

Light

Sunlight is not something to be avoided. There has been much confusion regarding this beneficial blessing. We need sunlight to be healthy. If you took a plant and put it in a dark basement, it would die. Every living thing needs sunlight. Sunlight is needed for us to make vitamin D. We also get Far Infrared Heat from the sun, which has been reported to benefit a wide variety of ailments. Be aware that most of the SPF products on the market cause many skin problems by clogging the pores with chemicals. Exposing as much skin as you can to the sun at least ten minutes a day is the minimum of what we need for basic function. [ Our Consumer Aware Newsletter will discuss sunlight more this summer ] While we are outside getting sunlight we get another benefit, air. This is of course another important part of our health. People who are cooped up indoors with no fresh air, suffer from more ailments than those do who get out and get a fresh exchange of air/oxygen. Even when it is not ideal weather conditions we can benefit from a short walk outside everyday (away from car exhaust of course).

 

Love

Anyone who has been in love can tell you they feel better, life is better. However, you don’t have to be married to enjoy the benefits of love. Allow yourself to love friends and family. We were created by a loving God, it is part of who we are. To love and be loved can be one of the most powerful healing aspects to one’s life. Don’t limit yourself to the love of a "soul mate". Allow yourself to love and be loved by friends and family. Part of loving someone is allowing them to be just who they are without requiring them to change all the while supporting them to become who God planned for them to be. It is so rewarding to be a part of that type of relationship.

 

Nutrition

It is vital to give your body all the components it needs to function. At the same time it is important not to put damaging things into it. Let’s say you just bought an expensive car, and the manufacturer guaranteed it would function as designed for as long as you followed the specific instructions on how to maintain it. You would do you best to follow those instructions to keep the car running well. Our bodies are like that car, our creator gave optimum instructions on what to consume and what not to consume. It is interesting to me how modern science is just now catching up to what the bible said about what we should eat. It has been found that a diet in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, beans, and grains has provided all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients that our bodies need. It has also been found that eating these foods while at the same time avoiding; animal products, sugar (other than from fruit), alcohol, and tobacco can protect us from disease. There are many supplements on the market that are promoted as a good basis for any healthy program. We have found Earth's Nutrion to be the best nutritional supplement available (see products page).

 

Emotions 

All of us appear to handle our emotions differently, but internally, bad emotions and attitude can be detrimental to any of us. How we think and react can have as much to do with the making us ill as consuming a toxin can. They have now proved that negative thinking suppresses the immune system. (as if the environmental chemicals, food additives and sugar weren’t enough) This is the one health factor that is about choosing yes or no. I agree that life is not always as it should be, however we get to decide how we react to it. Success in life is 10% circumstance and 90% how we choose to react to it. We have become a society that is overwhelmed with stress, any psychiatrist will tell you that the way a person thinks about something can determine if it stresses them or not. Prioritize that which is really important (what will matter 50 years from now?) and let the rest fall where it fits. Stress has been blamed for everything from cancer to murder. It is important to seek peace and balance in your life to be whole.

 

Someone

Someone should have shared these things with you sooner. However, either that did not happen until now or you have just heard it clearly for the first time. People ask "why wasn’t I told any of this before?" My answer to them is; they didn’t have anyone share this with them either. Now, in light of this atrocity (that no one knows any of this), we must tell someone what we have learned. The gift of health is not just for the rich. We must realize our society is only as well as the involvement and care/compassion of those that are in it.

 

Savior

We at Bright Beginnings Wellness believe in caring for the whole person; physically, mentally and spiritually. All that I have shared with you in the steps to WELLNESS, has had its basis from the bible. God put forth guidelines for our good in regards to what we take in and how we interact with others. He gave us Jesus Christ, who can be the best friend we have ever had to love and be loved by. He gave us the Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us. If you have tried all else, try God, He will not fail you. Even if you don’t know it, you need a Savior. In this space here, I can not possibly begin to share with you the difference I have experienced in my life since I sought out a relationship with Christ. We have a free book, Steps to Christ, if you like or I am willing to talk more about this to those that inquire on our Contact Us page.