The Healing Mindset

Before you start doing anything though, your mind must come on board. Otherwise, you’ll be resisting the process all the way!

When I teach healing mindset or business mindset to my clients, I make it very clear that there is nothing to do yet. There is only a different way of being with yourself and with the world around you. For instance, if you find yourself to be a victim of circumstance in life, you now want to find yourself as a leader of your life. That requires nothing of you except that you choose to see yourself differently. Or, if you always predict the worst outcome of every situation, you now want to give yourself permission to play with the best possible outcomes. Those are examples of a shift in mindset. You are simply becoming aware of your current state of mind and realizing that this state may not be serving your highest interest, and then exploring a better state of mind that is more useful and beneficial.

As Eckhart Tolle tells us in his beautiful book, “The Power of Now,” “If you get the inside right, the outside will fall into place.” So we first have to change our inner state, and that is what I refer to as mindset here.

What Does a Healing Mindset Look Like?

How you feel in your body is the biggest indicator of your health and your mindset.

Your mind has a big effect on your physical self. For instance, if you’re eating healthy and exercising and taking care of yourself but you still get down on yourself, criticize your efforts, and think it’s just not enough, your mindset is working against you, and you still may not experience well-being in your body. If, on the other hand, you have a weight challenge or are working through a health issue, and yet you are calm and confident that all your work will pay off, and you are staying generally positive, and applauding your self-care efforts, you likely feel well on your way to physical health and well being.

When your mindset works for you, this is a healing mindset, and this plays a large role in your body’s healing as well.

Use these questions to give yourself a quick assessment. On a scale of 1–10 where 1 is poorly and 10 is wonderfully, give each question a score.

Note: Poorly can be interpreted as fatigue, low on energy, stressed, anxious, unhappy, achy, or sluggish. Wonderfully can be energized, clear in the head, relaxed, focused, content, strong, healthy, vibrant, and happy.

How do I feel every morning upon waking up?

How do I feel after eating breakfast?

How do I feel midmorning?

How do I feel after a full day of work and play?

How do I feel after my workout or exercise routine?

How do I feel in the evenings?

How do I feel before sleep?

How do I feel overall about my health?

How did you do?

If you had more than four answers with scores between one and five, then your mindset is not contributing to your healing and it may even be a detriment to it. There is much room for you to incorporate more healing in your life and tip the scale to the other side.

If you had more than five or six answers closer to the full 10 score, then you are doing wonderfully indeed, and yet, you will find that even you can take your healing to the next level.

The scale is only useful in helping you determine where you’re starting from. It is not a score to make you feel good or bad, but simply to make you aware. Remember that! This healing mindset starts and proceeds with positivity all the way.

The most helpful attitude is curiosity. Get curious and wonder why you are not a ten more often than not, which is your natural normal state of existence. In our fast-paced society and our digital age, millions of fun distractions are constantly taking up your time. Healing is about tuning in with your body, slowing down the insane race of life, and having a deeper and healthier relationship with yourself. Yet, that’s not the normal flow of work and societal pressures. Still, you’re in charge. When you put your own health and well-being first, you will have taken care of your most precious asset. When you feel good, you’re best equipped to take care of your life responsibilities such as family, job, parents, pets, hobbies, community, and causes. But when you live a life when your health and well-being are more of an afterthought, you will suffer consequences in all areas of your life.

The priority has to shift first if you want to adopt a true healing mindset.

Start Here: Healing Water

We won’t list all the crucial reasons that drinking sufficient clean filtered water is absolutely essential to your well-being. I will simply list my favorite reason: The best motivator for drinking more water is for proper and regular elimination of your body waste, a key indicator of your overall health. This particular body function may be one that we’d rather not discuss or think about, but that doesn’t change its critical and permanent role in your health. There is a yogic belief in Kundalini yoga, which says that it’s not so much the food you consume that matters but rather your body’s ability to efficiently and properly digest and eliminate waste. If you don’t have regular—as in daily, or at least every other day—elimination, the first place to start is improving the state of the matter is in your hydration. Water is the primary way to hydrate your body.

How much water are you drinking? Actually keep track for a day so that you can’t fool yourself into thinking you’re drinking more than you are. Water is not very exciting, yet drinking enough of it could be the one change you make that will shower you with wonderful good health.

Drinking more water is not exactly rocket science or a secret, and yet according to Medical Daily, up to 75 percent of Americans may be suffering from chronic dehydration. Just because we know better does not mean we do better. Why is it so hard to drink our daily dose of water? According to that same report, you only need to drink ten cups of water per day. That is about 2.35 liters of water.

After my doctor visit, I have been drinking a minimum of 3 liters every day, and more if I’m particularly active or spend time in the sun. I don’t exactly win a medal for it, but the sweet rewards my body gives me from doing just this one thing are extremely encouraging. Sometimes, drinking plenty of water is the only thing I can do to keep up my health habits, especially when we are on the road and eating poorly or not getting enough rest. The rewards of adequate hydration include the stuff that makes you smile: glowing skin, more energy, better sleep, regular elimination, and more intentional versus impulsive eating. Building your water habit and sticking to it may just be the key to healing yourself.

How Not to Drink Your Water

1. Say no to plastic bottled water

We don’t need a degree in environmental science to know that bottled water is terrible for the environment and that most bottled water tastes stale and of plastic. No matter if the bottled water companies use BPA-free plastic, if those bottles have been exposed to heat or sit around for a while, some chemicals may still seep into the water. While the studies of plastic bottles and their health impact may be inconclusive at the moment, there is no doubting the environmental impact of plastic bottles.

Plus, bottled water is a complete waste of your money. When filtered properly, tap water is not only safe and practically free, it’s delicious and you can feel better about being more responsible with your plastic usage. If you are on the go, you can carry your water in a stainless steel container of your choice, which looks so much nicer than having a plastic bottle in your hands.

2. Don’t drink it ice cold

I have never understood America’s obsession with filling up a glass of water with tons of ice. While the contrary effects of drinking volumes of ice-cold water aren’t scientifically proven, you may wish to consider switching to cool water or water at room temperature. Ice-cold water can be useful to prevent your body from overheating if you’re doing lots of cardio exercise in the heat, but here are some of the negative, albeit unproven, claims against drinking ice-cold water:

• It is not good for your vocal cords. My voice teacher was adamant about not drinking cold water, especially if before a long conversation or a talk.
• It can hurt your teeth, and chewing ice is not good for your teeth.
• It can be hard to swallow if you have a sensitive or inflamed throat.
• It can decrease your heart rate.
• Plus, it is much harder to drink 3 liters of water at ice-cold temperature than at room temperature or slightly cooler.

If you generally drink your water ice cold, I’m curious: Do you enjoy drinking your water this cold? Is your body getting all its water needs met that way in an easy and efficient way? I found that this is one of the reasons many people don’t drink their allotted water and if you think, “Ah! Ten cups a day is so much water! I can’t possibly drink that!” the water temperature may have something to do with your difficulty. So, just as an experiment, switch to cool or room-temperature water for a while to see how it feels. Let your body decide!

How to Best Drink Your Water

Here’s how I drink water. You may prefer different routines, but I’m sharing what I do in case it’s helpful. I drink primarily from a 27-fluid-ounce stainless steel water bottle. My favorite brand is Klean Kanteen, but there are many on the market. Using the same container helps build the habit. When I travel, I often take the container with me. I drink a full bottle four times a day, roughly at 7 a.m., 11 a.m., 3 p.m., and 7 p.m. I may take anywhere from five to fifteen minutes to drink each container while engaging in other light activities. I use the Brita to filter our water and store our regular water at room temperature, while also making a pitcher of water with a few thin slices of lemon. At times, I make infused water with other fruits and some herbs. I’m careful not to make the water so acidic that it messes with the natural pH balance of my body, but it is so much easier for me to drink my water with a little natural flavor.

Drinking plain filtered water at room temperature is really best, and that’s my husband’s go-to method, but do what you can to get the habit going first. My hygienist reminds me during every visit: “Don’t forget to drink regular water after you drink your juices or your teas. You need to reset your pH balance and plain water is the only answer!” I’m sure she’s right, but for where I’m at right now, having some flavor in the water helps me drink enough of it. If you’re drinking your water, even if it’s ice cold, purchased in a bottle, or with some natural flavor, you’re getting the massive benefits of hydration and that’s what matters most. Any refinement is a bonus!