By: Dana Brown, HealthConditions.info
You’re busy. Between appointments, long days – and nights – at the office, and maintaining a well-ordered household, it can sometimes be difficult to focus on your own mental and physical well-being. It’s important to take a few moments every day for your health, but in our fast-paced lives, finding a few moments may be asking for too much. Therefore, we look for small, meaningful ways to incorporate healthy strategies into our everyday lives.
Self-healing expert Dana Brown offers a few easy things to keep in mind as you embark on a healthier journey:
Mind: Maintain a balance
Certain health strategies help reduce the risk of disease. That includes a good relationship with your mental health, as well. The National Institute of Mental Health reported in 2019 that nearly one in five adults in the U.S. lives with a mental illness, and generalized anxiety qualifies here.
There are a few easy ways to incorporate better mental health strategies into your busy day-to-day activities. Guided meditation apps, for instance, only take a few minutes and can have a huge impact on your ability to be mentally present and secure.
In addition, getting plenty of exercise and sunlight can contribute to a stronger mental health response to stressful situations. In fact, a lack of exercise has been linked to poor mental and physical health. Easy changes like walking during your lunch break or incorporating a standing desk into your office design can help in this area.
Environment: Keep your home clean
Meditation isn’t the only way to keep your anxiety in check. Stress can also be managed by keeping a clean environment in your living space. Physical and mental health are tied into household cleanliness, in somewhat of an ouroboros. Stress can cause headaches, muscle tension, fatigue, and more irritating physical symptoms, and these things put a damper on your mental stability as well. But by exerting control over the parts of your life that you have the ability to impact, such as the state of your immediate vicinity, you can self-soothe and limit the power that anxiety has on your mind.
Certain parts of your home may need more attention than others, and it may be prudent to hire professionals for this sort of work. For instance, for stubborn stains and dirt that won’t come out of your carpet (even though you’ve blotted them instead of rubbing, used club soda, and tried shaving cream), carpet-cleaning services can be a time- and money-saving option.
An average carpet cleaning can run you around $25 to $75 per room depending on your location and the size of your home — possibly more affordable than all the other options you would consider. Some services may charge you a flat fee based on the square footage you are looking to clean. When hiring a carpet cleaning professional, be sure to ask what cleaning method they use (e.g., steam cleaning or dry cleaning) and ask if they are insured. (Asking these questions will also help with your stress levels!)
Body: Be mindful at the grocery
Being healthy is an exercise in what we put into our bodies, as well. According to research from the CDC, people who don’t smoke, drink alcohol only in moderation, and consume healthy foods live longer and have a lower risk of heart disease. Therefore, being mindful of what you put on your grocery list can have a lengthy list of benefits that will help you in the long run. The Annals of Oncology reported that cruciferous vegetables (e.g., kale, broccoli, bok choy, or cabbage, among others) lower the risk of breast, colon, oral, esophageal, and kidney cancer by varying percentages.
You’re already at the grocery store, so instead of grabbing a quick frozen pizza or fast food on the way home, take a few extra minutes to plan out a vegetable-heavy meal. Some fast, easy recipes you can turn to when you don’t feel like cooking a five-course meal include soups, one-pan chicken-and-vegetable recipes, simple fajitas, and spinach quesadillas. All of these foods can be prepared in 30 minutes or less, with little fuss.
Start small and see big benefits
By making small changes in the way you think, the environment around you, and the foods you consume, you can absolutely be a healthier, better version of yourself — despite how busy you are. In fact, incorporating these easy strategies into your everyday life can help you be more accomplished and productive, and it doesn’t take much time at all. Start small and build up to the healthier person you want to be.
For more insight into how to take care of yourself, for mind, body and spirit, turn to SaraTeller.com.
About the Author
Dana Brown is the creator of HealthConditions.info, which aims to provide Internet users with helpful content and resources that will lead them to making healthier decisions. She has 15 years of caregiving experience, and after seeing some patterns of poor health she became determined to help inform people about healthy living.