What Does “Wellness” Really Even Mean?
The words health and wellness have been popping up on my news feeds more than ever these days.
People are searching for answers to big questions.
Why don’t I have any energy?
What do I put in my body to help me feel better?
How can I balance my hormones?
This search usually comes about because something is broken: an individual realizes they are not well and sets out to fix the problem.
Unfortunately, the health space can be a horribly confusing, seemingly unnavigable place. This individual will immediately be swept up in a sea of “solutions”, i.e. quick fixes, fad diets, and backless claims.
Like so many before, this individual will likely glom onto a particular school of thought, swayed by Kool-Aid drinking friends or sexy marketing, without taking into consideration whether this particular school of thought is best for THEM.
They will blame themselves if things don’t work out because if that thing was supposed to be the magic fix, then surely they must be the problem.
Eventually, they might pick themselves up by the bootstraps and hop aboard a new ship they hope will steer them to the proverbial wellness they seek.
Or worse, this person will give up altogether and succumb to a life bingeing Crunchwrap Supremes in front of the television for all of eternity.
Is this drawn up scenario a bit dramatic? Maybe so. But does it hit close to home for many people? Heck yes.
The problem is that wellness has been made out to be something it’s not.
Wellness is not “one size fits all”
There is not one way of eating, moving or living that works for everyone — so it’s frustrating to hear something be proclaimed the only truth.
If paleo works for you and makes you feel amazing, I think that’s amazing.
If you want to share your experience and educate others about paleo, I think that’s amazing too.
But suggesting that paleo is the only way to achieve optimal health and every single human should eat like the cavemen did? That’s, well, less than amazing.
We are all different people with different family histories, cell structures, metabolisms, habits, lifestyles, hopes, and dreams. Thus, what works for me is not necessarily going to work for Joe Shmoe.
So then what is wellness?
You get to decide. What wellness looks like for you is up to you.
Sure, others can help you figure it out, but at the end of the day you are the one who must decide what you want out of life — what your ultimate goal is.
Is it peace of mind or healed ailments? To live a long life? Freedom from addictive behaviors? The ability to run an ultramarathon or the stamina to run after your 3-year-old? It’s different for all of us.
Once you decide that, here’s the fun part: you must do the work to determine what your body needs in order to achieve your goals.
This may require some (or a lot of) soul-searching, research, trial and error, blood, sweat, and tears.
It may also require the support and guidance of trained health professionals.
But, it will be worth it.
AND, I think you’ll find there’s a lot to be gained in the process, too.
So don’t let someone else’s “solution” deprive you of exercising your own intuition, mindfulness, and grit on your path to wellness.
