A holistic approach to life, holistic health and holistic wellbeing have become new buzzwords, especially after the pandemic, when people started to look for a more comprehensive understanding of their health and wellbeing.

Yet, do we actually understand the extent to which everything is interconnected and mutually dependent?

Let’s start by discovering the meaning behind the word: HOLISTIC.

The term holism was adopted by Jan Christian Smuts (who lived from 1870 to 1950). In the book “Holism and Evolution”, written in London in 1926, he defined holism as a theory, according to which the whole (“holos” in Greek means the whole) is more than the sum of its constituent parts.

When you look at the meaning in the dictionary, holistic means “considering a whole thing or being, to be more than a collection of parts”.

So, holistically means looking at the whole and taking into account different layers and parts (physical, physiological, mental, emotional, social and spiritual) and the connection between them. 

A holistic approach to living, especially health, became very popular in the last decade. 

The Academy of Integrative Health & Medicine provides a list of principles of Holistic Medicine, some of which include the following:

==> “Holistic physicians embrace a variety of safe, effective options in the diagnosis and treatment, including: education for lifestyle changes and self-care, complementary alternatives, and conventional drugs and surgery.

==> Prevention is preferable to treatment and is usually more cost-effective. The most cost-effective approach evokes the patient’s own innate healing capabilities.”

Even the World Health Organisation (WHO) defines health in a more holistic way as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

The worldview is shifting, and some pioneers go even step further.

Have you heard of Dr Dispenza? One of his famous statements is that you can heal your body by thought alone. In his book: “You Are the Placebo”, Dr Dispenza shares the latest research in neuroscience, psychology, behavioural conditioning and quantum physics around the power of the mind. He outlines numerous documented cases of those who reversed cancer, heart disease, depression, and even the tremors of Parkinson’s disease by believing in a placebo. We definitely recommend reading this book. 

Dr Gabor Mate, an expert on trauma, addiction, stress and childhood development, is another amazing scientist that shakes the whole medical society. His ground-breaking studies on emotional stress being a major cause of illness and a lot of research he shares in his books (e.g. “The Myth of Normal” and “When the Body Says No”) prove the holistic interconnection of our physical, mental and emotional state.

We could look into many more studies, but let’s answer this vital question.

Knowing everything we know right now, how can we incorporate a holistic approach to our everyday life more intentionally?

1. NOT ONLY YOUR HEAD, BUT YOUR HEART MATTERS

We tend to use our logic a lot, disregarding what our heart and gut are telling us because it might not make sense at that moment. But did you know that your heart starts biting first when you are in the womb before your brain is even developed? Your heart knows a lot and can feel into many things, while logic might sometimes be affected by your conditioning and programming.

Listen to your intention, this deep inner voice whispering that something is not right and feel into your body.  

2. EMBRACE A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO YOUR HEALTH TOO!

When you struggle with some physical condition, try to get to the source of the illness and look from a broader perspective. Instead of immediately reaching for a painkiller anytime you wake up with a headache, pause and ask yourself: What is currently happening in my life that my body can’t cope with? How are my stress levels? What must I adjust to allow my body, mind and spirit to slow down and regenerate? It is about tapping into not only physical but also mental, emotional, and energetic wellbeing.

Remember, your body will first communicate DIS-EASE before DISEASE, so if you can grasp that and respond in time, you might save a lot of money on doctors and potentially avoid a severe disease. And your body has incredible healing capabilities! 

3. BUILD GREATER EMOTIONAL AWARENESS

You already know that your thoughts and emotions can significantly influence your physical wellbeing. So, you want to focus on understanding your emotional body and thought patterns.

Mindfulness and meditation would be the best and most transformational tools to do it. While practising a mindful approach to living, you invite more space to self-reflect and analyse your inner chatter. You will also be more aware of your bodily sensations. What happens in your body when you are stressed? What thoughts arise in your mind at this moment? How can you shift it? You can journal on these essential questions and get a much greater insight into your inner world.

4. BALANCE IS THE KEY

A holistic approach to living means balancing work and leisure time, activation and rest, time spent alone and socialising with others. Can you cultivate this balance more consciously? Ultimately, our body seeks balance and equilibrium all the time. This is its natural state of being.

So, can you make it your priority?

5. MANAGE YOUR STRESS EFFECTIVELY!

Stress is the 1 SILENT killer in the world. Chronic stress is associated with numerous health conditions, such as heart disease, digestive function, mental health, cancer, diabetes and many more. 

Good news: nowadays, we have access to many holistic wellbeing services to help you manage your mental health. Just to name a few, yoga and Pilates classes, massages, Infrared sauna sessions, cold immersions, sound healing, kinesiology, reflexology, energy healing, coaching, nutrition, acupuncture, acupressure…..and so on. Everyone can choose something that resonates with them.

Now, ask yourself how you can embrace a more holistic approach to your life?

If you want to be inspired on how to live holistically healthier and happier, explore different wellbeing services that Myall Wellbeing has to offer:

1. The movement classes such as many styles of yoga and Mat Pilates to strengthen, tone and stretch your body, 
2. Mindfulness and meditation sessions to calm your mind and regulate your nervous system, 
3. Therapeutic and remedial massages perfect if your struggle with aches and pains and store a lot of tension in your body,
4. Infrared Sauna to deeply detox, relax and rejuvenate,
5. Private and tailored classes as well as wellbeing coaching sessions to go deeper on your health journey,
6. And last but not least, different corporate wellbeing programs that support employees work-life balance and wellbeing.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us, so we can prepare a tailored and holistic health plan in alignment with your needs and desires.

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holism_and_Evolution

https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/holistic?q=holistic

https://www.who.int/about/governance/constitution

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6448020/

https://psychcentral.com/stress/is-stress-the-number-one-killer#can-stress-cause-death

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/12-benefits-of-meditation