7 Ways to Walk in Wellness Freedom

by Julie Mitchell

The Fourth of July allows us the celebration of the beginning, the foundation, of our great country. On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress gave its stamp of approval to the final draft of the Declaration of Independence. A document that wasn’t perfect but one that gave room for growth, creation, and deliverance. Moving into freedom means moving out of oppression.

Webster defines oppression as
a. unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power.
b. a sense of being weighed down in body or mind.

Here are a couple of questions to ponder, “have you ever been bullied”, “have you ever been a bully”, or “have you ever seen someone being bullied”? Inevitably the answer is, “YES”. A bully is over-powering, cruel, mean, over-controlling and doesn’t listen. A bully suppresses freedom.

Are we a bully to ourselves? If we have any symptom at all, be it a headache, constipation, fatigue, reoccurring infection, itching skin, frequent urination, leg cramps, poor circulation, the list could go on and on…The body is giving us a clue that things are out of balance. If we learn to stop and listen to our body, we may be able to begin the process of understanding our body’s voice that is speaking. To deny the voice, is to bully ourselves, inflict unjust or cruel exercise of authority and power. If we had the power to give a thirsty 5-year-old a drink of water, but denied access, that would be cruel. What things are we currently denying or doing to ourselves that would be considered mean, cruel, overpowering, and oppressive when it comes to our state of wellness? Consider these:

5 Ways Bullying Overtakes Wellness

1. When we are fatigued, we grab for stimulants like sugar, caffeine, salt, or nicotine. The body is begging for something of value, and these are not them.
2.  We don’t allow ourselves opportunities to drink the water our body needs to run the multiple systems that require hydration for optimal performance. Coffee, tea, soda, bottled juice, artificial flavored drinks, and sports drinks do not count for the water intake and add to the toxic burdens on the body.
3.  We overwork without giving ourselves a break. This causes over-firing of stress hormones which compounds fatigue, digestive and sleeping issues to name only a few.
4.  Instead of building relationships around us in the physical, we spend time on social media or computer games. Isolation is cruel, we are made to co-exist in meaningful relationships.
5.  We allow our blood sugar to drop by skipping meals and snacks…let’s just say fat storage opportunities abound here.

Like our country’s Declaration of Independence, we need to form a lifestyle (a powerful document) that allows freedom to be well in our body, soul, and spirit. Here are some ideas to get you started:

7 Ways to Walk in Wellness Freedom

1.  Eat every 3-4 hours, including some form of protein.
2.  Drink half our body weight in ounces of water daily.
3.  Take breaks throughout the day, even if its 5 minutes, and include a lunch break away from our work area.
4.  Purpose to belly breathe throughout the day to help adapt to daily stress and increase mental clarity.
5.  Spend time in physical conversations/quality time with friends and family for minimum of 30 minutes a day. Limit social media/computer games/tv to equal time.
6.  Formulate a plan for personal development like learning a new skill, group book study, read inspiring books, etc.
7.  Budget for wellness that may include lifestyle coaching, nutritional supplementing, colon hydrotherapy, massages, chiropractic care, acupuncture, ionic foot cleanses, infrared sauna sessions, neurofeedback training, etc.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27