Mind, Body & Spirit: The Trio to Living a Long, Stress-free Life
In many cultures around the world, the mind, body, and spirit are treated as one. What affects one part trickles down and affects all parts. It has taken a long time for this approach to reach our mainstream society but there is a growing movement to use holistic treatment, instead of medical only, to heal the whole person instead of focusing strictly on one part.
When the term ‘holistic’ is used, it generally refers to treating all parts of a person. This includes the trifecta of mind, body, and spirit. Holistic treatments also address home life, work stresses, and outside environment. When a clinician sees all of these parts as integral to the healing of the patient, the patient is much more likely to heal. Very often when the patient sees improvements in any of these three parts, they will start to see improvements in the other areas, too. Our minds, bodies, and spirits are linked together in the very core of our souls.
The growing numbers of those living with anxiety and other mental illness show that more needs to be done to treat the person as a whole. While there have been great strides in treating physical illnesses, there still exists a certain stigma about mental illness. If our culture would accept that treating anxiety is no different than treating strep throat, more people would enjoy better health. The truth is that any sickness in any of the three parts-mind, body, and spirit-causes illness in at least one of the other parts.
Mind-Body-Spirit Connections
Think of how you feel when you know you have done something wrong. You feel anxious about someone finding out. It consumes your thoughts. Whenever you think of it, you get sweaty palms and a racing heartbeat. This is the spiritual side (guilt) manifesting in the physical body.
The fight or flight syndrome is well-known to most people. It means that when your brain feels threatened, it sends signals to your body to respond. For instance, your heart rate increases, muscles tighten and your blood pressure rises. All of these things work together to ensure you are ready to fight the danger that is coming. This is a clear example of how our mind and bodies work together.
Small amounts of stress in our lives are necessary. For instance, if you see something burning, you react quickly to put out the fire. If you moved slowly because you were not worried about it, the fire could get out of control. Continued and prolonged stress, however, can negatively affect our physical health. This is because our bodies don’t get a chance to rest and recover from the danger, whether real or perceived. It has been shown that chronic stress can lead to a variety of health issues, from heart disease to low libido.
How to Deal with Stress
We live in a fast-moving and increasingly stressful world. There is no one who does not experience stress, but what is stressful to one person is not necessarily stressful to another. This is why each person must learn to deal with stress in their own ways.
Common ways of dealing with stress include yoga, meditation, long walks, and other forms of pleasurable exercise. Some people may want to immerse themselves in a favorite book and tune out the rest of the world. One person may feel less stressed at home, while another feels less stressed away from home. Spiritual people find great comfort in praying and fellowship with other believers. You’ll notice that distracting your mind and/or spirit with something pleasurable will start to relieve the physical tension in your body caused by stress.
It is important to avoid trying to handle stress by consuming unhealthy foods and alcohol or tobacco. Adding these things to your day when already stressed will end up negatively affecting your body, which, as we know, negatively affects the mind and doesn’t help in the long run.
Finding ways that help you to personally avoid or reduce stress can take time but it’s worth the effort. Talk to your health care providers and those around you to help you figure out the best ways to handle the stress in your life. Don’t wait; start today if you feel anxious or stressed every day. Finding effective stress relievers will ensure you can lead a better life, with a healthier mind, body, and spirit.
