When life's pace increases to the point where you rarely have time to stop and take a deep breath, it's a sign that - well - it's time to stop and take a deep breath. Phoenix doctors understand how detrimental a hectic lifestyle is to general health. Most patients with hectic lifestyles suffer from a similar list of ailments: headaches, acid reflux, insomnia, chronic fatigue, weight gain, and depression.  

The Balance of Doing and Being

"Constantly busy" is a dangerous mode in which to exist. You live outside of your body, avoiding moments to be present and evaluate how you're feeling and what needs attention.  Being present, or centered, allows you to feel sensations/ signals your body uses to communicate when things are off kilter.  Phoenix doctors with holistic health based practices can help you find that crucial balance between "being" and "doing".  Taking time now to find that balance can save you from chronic ailments and long-term disease. We made some recommendations on how to do this below. 

Breathe Well - Eat Well - Be well

It's important to remember that your body's systems are interconnected. Western medicine often isolates specific parts and treats them individually. However, modern research demonstrates that when one system is compromised - the entire body suffers. Let's look at some simple health concepts that demonstrate this interconnection. 

Breathe Well - Oxygen is the most important element to the human body.  You can live days without water and weeks without food. Within minutes of oxygen deprivation, your body begins a fatal shut down.  By taking deep breaths, filling your lungs with oxygen to nourish the brain and vital organs, you will feel an instantaneous difference. Breathing deeply and oxygenating your body also helps to eliminate toxins and waste products. The practice of breathing deeply keeps your brain focused, prevents sluggishness and depression, and can ward off headaches and insomnia. Some simple ways to enhance this is through exercise and meditation.

Exercise ensures your heart is pumping efficiently. With an efficient heart it will deliver plenty of oxygen to the body. One way to think about meditation is the practice of being consciously aware of your thoughts and actions, the passive observer. This is opposed to being intertwined in the story of your thoughts. With this view of meditation you can meditate virtually anywhere at anytime. When in a state of meditation your body takes over and breathing automatically becomes relaxed and deep, allowing for enhanced oxygen flow. 

Eat Well - Everyone knows that eating well is important, yet processed foods, sugary beverages, high fat/sodium fast food and pesticide-laden produce abound.  Eating healthy food prevents your organs like your kidneys and liver, from unnecessary overwork. Whole foods eating not only provide more nutrients and energy, they also prevent the excess burden of unhealthy foods.  Most acid reflux/stomach ailments, energy depletion, and headaches, are directly linked to the foods you eat.  Some people think they eat healthy because they avoid fast food, but the absence of fast food is not healthy eating.

Keep a food journal and write down everything you eat over the coarse of 7 days. Then in your spare time do some research on these foods and see if it is health promoting or health deteriorating. Many prepared foods marketed as healthy are not. Next journal again for another 7 days and see if you can correlate it with how your body feels. Simple changes in diet can go a long way to relieve long-term symptoms. remember the foods you eat and how they are absorbed have to be delivered to all the cells of the body for it to function.

Be Well - Get regular check ups and be honest with your doctors. Having a good repore with your doctor and having the time to explain your health issues can go a long way towards good treatment. Ensure your Phoenix doctors have a command of holistic medicine and / or integrative medicine practices so that your treatment options are not limited to medications.  Holistic medical doctors should take the time to evaluate your lifestyle and promote solutions for getting your life back in balance using minimally invasive techniques and treatments.

Some holistic treatment options for general health balance are yoga, Thai Chi, and meditation. These practices help your mind relax so it can be in balance with your body. Our culture is very mind dominate and this causes many of us to ignore the signals our body tell us. Sometime we may not even know we are ignoring these signals because we are so preoccupied with the contents of our mind, deadlines, etc. These practices allow our minds to be quieted so we can align with the functions of our body. 

For more information on our phoenix doctors and their tips on staying or getting healthy with integrative medicine, click on the link below. You will get a free consultation with a naturopathic physicians.