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Independence Day—the day we celebrate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress back on July 4, 1776.
My challenge to you is to make July 4, 2017, be the day you declare your health independence.
Health independence simply means taking personal responsibility for your health. We’re not talking about the need for immediate professional care. Rather, we’re talking about taking stock of your everyday wellness.
What’s this declaration going to take? Well, first off, you’ll need to make a commitment to yourself. Secondly, you’ll need to take a look at your current habits and give them an honest critique. Finally, you’ll need to seek out credible resources that will help you build on your self-health knowledge. Let’s dig a little deeper into each of these.
Make a commitment to yourself. Start by asking yourself what you want to get out of this process. Are you hoping to increase your overall wellness, or has a particular issue been nagging at you for a while? Whatever it is, make your declaration. Tell your family. Write it down on lovely note cards and post them on your refrigerator, bathroom mirror, and other places around the house. When you know what you’re trying to accomplish, you’ll know when you get there.
Next, take a look at your current habits. I always recommend going at this from a positive perspective, so start by making a list of everything you’re doing right. Eating fermented foods regularly? Put it on the list. Growing at least some of your own food? Ditto. You get the idea.
It’s equally important to examine the flipside. But that doesn’t mean writing down everything you’re doing wrong. Rather, make a list of what you want more of in your daily life. (Feel the difference in this approach? Good.) Want more exercise—at least five days a week? On the list it goes. What about more houseplants to improve the air quality in your home? On the list. (Houseplants also make great gifts, so if you keep a running list of gift ideas for others, jot it down there too.)
Now you need to work at making it happen. Do you like the beauty of baby steps, or do you enjoy jumping right in with both feet? Choose the method that works best for you. You’ll need motivation as you work toward your goal, so think about what’s kept you going in the past. If crossing items off a list gives you more satisfaction than anything else in life, by all means make yourself a list. If you need to see concrete proof of the progress you’re making, start by recording some baseline measurements or starting points for your goal (sleep quality, waist size, blood test markers, etc.) and determine realistic timeframes for checking on them.
Finally, make sure you have credible resources. Don’t just take someone else’s word for anything. Trusted resources (unlike fads, gimmicks, and click-baity “health” websites) can help you every step along the way.
Here are a few wonderfully informative self-health resources that I refer back to again and again:
- Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is! by Stephanie Selene Anderson
- Health is Simple, Disease is Complicated by James Forleo, DC
- Weston A. Price Foundation Shopping Guide
Each of the above offers practical knowledge that will put an immediate charge in your everyday wellness.
Once you declare your health independence, you’ll be amazed at how invigorated you feel. And you’ll realize you had the power all along. It will keep you celebrating for years to come.
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Paula Widish, author of Trophia: Simple Steps to Everyday Self-Health, is a freelance writer and self-healther. She loves nothing more than sharing tidbits of information she discovers with others. (Actually, she loves her family more than that—and probably bacon too.) Paula has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Public Relations and is a Certified Professional Life Coach through International Coach Academy.
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health goals | holistic nutrition | self-health
