Polaris

Starting Your Wellness Journey

Chris Peloso — Fri, 17 May 2024 00:47:41 +0000

Sometimes the way you are living your life just isn’t working out anymore. Maybe you aren’t feeling as well as you think you could, or you have problems managing certain areas of our lives.

Realizing that there is a need to change is the first step to actually changing, and if you’ve taken that first step you may be wondering what’s next for me on my journey to wellness?

Here we will share with you the foundation of starting your wellness journey so that you can begin on the right foot.

Assess and Reflect

Once you have made the decision to embark on your wellness journey you will need to sit down with yourself and reflect. What habits do you currently have? Are they healthy or destructive? What kind of people do you surround yourself with? Do they lift you up and support you or do they lead you down a bad path? What is it that I really want to do with my life? What is wellness to me?

When you ask yourself these questions, be totally honest. Lying to yourself will not help you grow. Think about what parts of your life are aligned with what you truly aspire to achieve and which parts are harming you or that you think you could improve on.

Writing down your thoughts is a good way to keep things organized and get them out of your head. Daily journaling can also be a great tool to utilize along your path to wellness as it can help you to regularly reflect on your current situation and emotions.

Define Clear Objectives

After thinking about what you’d like to change in your life, it’s time to focus on how you will go about accomplishing your goals. You need to think to yourself ‘How can I get from where I am now to where I want to be in the future?’.

The best way to do this is to make your goals as defined and clear as possible. For example, if your goal is to lose 10 pounds, you can set a goal to fast for six hours every other day or to replace an unhealthy snack with a healthier alternative once a day. Whatever your goal is, you need to set objectives that are measurable so that you can keep track of your progress and reach a defined endpoint.

Designing Your Plan

Once you have established your crystal clear goals, it is time to begin actually creating the plan for your wellness journey. This plan should mainly be centered around the goals you have made for yourself, and how you are going to set yourself up to achieve these goals.

A well designed wellness plan incorporates many spheres of life, such as nutrition, sleep hygiene, exercise, mindfulness and self-care. Think about how each of these categories affects our ability to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Getting adequate amounts of sleep and exercise will elevate your mood and give you the energy to confront the challenges of everyday life. Using mindfulness to reduce stress and remain grounded will do wonders for your mental wellbeing. And of course, eating a balanced diet will result in you feeling your best and keep your body functioning at its peak.

It is always a good idea to seek guidance from a counselor or other professional who can help you form your plan based on your own personal objectives and help you with your specific struggles.

Building and Maintaining Healthy Habits

Building habits takes time, and that’s okay. When going through the process of making a change it is important to take it slow and start off small. While it’s tempting to go from 0 to 100, making small adjustments over larger periods of time will help you to form and maintain a habit that will last over time.

Consistency is the key with habits, so it’s important that you make it a point to engage in whatever activity you want to make a part of your routine daily. If you happen to mess up or forget a day, don’t worry too much. Just pick up where you left off and remember that every mistake is an opportunity to learn.

Nurture, Support and Adapt

No one can do everything by themselves, can they? Everyone needs a helping hand every now and then and having a support network is always a good thing. You’ll find that on your wellness journey the advice of a trusted friend or the family member who is always available to listen to your struggles will make all the difference in your level of success.

Letting your friends and family know that you are actively changing your lifestyle and asking for their support will help you to stick to your word and go through with the plan. You can also find communities who share the same values and work towards the same goals as you to find additional support on your wellness journey.

Also know that sometimes plans can change, and just because you started one way doesn’t mean you can’t adjust according to your needs. It’s a good idea to reflect every few weeks or so on your plan to see if it is still working well and whether or not you think you need to make any changes.

Take the First Step

Starting your wellness journey may seem challenging at first, but striving to live a balanced and healthy life is something achievable by all. If you are willing to put in a bit of dedication, never give up and forgive yourself when you fall short then you are well on your way to a better life. Here at [Polaris Counseling & Consulting] our hand picked team works seamlessly together to provide you with the high-quality and professional grade service you deserve with the personalized, authentic style you desire. We will work with you to confront your issues, move past your challenges, know what it takes to get you beyond your difficulties, and inspire you to achieve your fullest sense of self and discover true wellness.

Looking to book an appointment? Get started on your path to a healthier tomorrow here.

The post Starting Your Wellness Journey appeared first on Polaris.

Mind-Body Wellness – What it is and Why it Matters

Chris Peloso — Fri, 17 May 2024 00:36:00 +0000

Defining Mind-Body Wellness

Practicing mind-body wellness can bring forth a slew of benefits for the mind and body, including reduction of stress, improvement in depression and even helping with tobacco addiction.

How Are the Mind and Body Connected?

It may seem at a first glance that the mind and the body are two separate entities, each having their own distinct functions, problems and methods of care. The reality however, is that the mind and body function in a symbiotic manner, each one contributing largely to the other. This connection can be seen for example, when completing a good workout and noticing the shift in mental perception as a result or how when the body falls ill there is often a negative change in mental well-being too.

The reverse is true too, your emotional and mental states have a direct impact on your physical health. C ertain mood disorders such as depression can manifest themselves as physical discomforts and pains in the joints, limbs and gastrointestinal systems. An important part of emotional well-being is having quality social bonds, and studies show as well that a lack of social interaction and satisfaction lead to negative physical health outcomes.

How to Practice Mind-Body Wellness

The strong connection of the mind and the body can not be overlooked. Fostering a healthy mind will lead to an improvement of physical health and in turn taking care of your body will result in a happier and healthier mind. So how does one put into practice mind-body wellness? Here are some techniques and practices that you can implement to bring balance, peace and health into your life.

Meditation and Mindfulness

Meditation is the act of intentional redirection or focus of the mind on a specific target to improve concentration, promote mindfulness and lower stress. There are many different variations of meditation but at its root, it is a way of training the mind and bringing about a greater sense of peace.

The power of this practice can not be understated and benefits range from reduced stress, greater awareness of oneself, improved emotional regulation and concentration and a more resilient mind.

There are also some physical benefits to meditation as well, such as lowering the risk of cardiovascular incidence, reducing the perception of chronic pain and in certain forms of meditation which focus specifically on breathwork can help to improve respiratory function.

The good news is that you don’t need to be a yogi or a monk to reap the benefits of meditation – anyone can do it and it doesn’t need to take up long portions of your day. Studies have indicated that just 10 minutes of meditation daily may have an impact on brain functionality.

In order to make meditation a part of your daily life, it is recommended that you find a time in your day that you will be able to dedicate to meditating and adhere to that schedule. For example, you can make a 10 minute meditation a part of your morning routine, or try a quick session as you wind down during the night. The important part is that you stay consistent and set up a window of time in which you can reliably commit to.

Yoga

Originating from ancient India, the practice of yoga is now widespread on a global scale and a very popular way to keep the body and mind healthy. Yoga is a conglomeration of various poses and breathing patterns, sometimes including mantras designed to unite the mind, body and spirit.

Adding a yoga routine into your life can bring a surprising amount of benefits. From a physical standpoint, yoga can help aid in relieving certain body pains such as in the back or helping to alleviate arthritis complications. It has also been shown that yoga promotes a healthy heart through the reduction of inflammation, lowering of blood pressure and loss of excess body weight.

In terms of mental health, yoga aids in elevating mood and increasing energy, relieving stress and even helping to relax before heading off to bed for the night.

Not only does participation in yoga have numerous beneficial outcomes for both the mind and the body, but there are an infinite amount of possibilities when it comes to each individual session. Some forms of yoga include hatha, yin and restorative. Each person will have their own ways of doing yoga that bring them the benefits that they need, so exploration is highly encouraged.

Breathwork

Breathing is something that we do automatically without fail day in and day out without much thought. The way that we breathe however, can actually have a profound effect on our mind-body wellness. By focusing on the breath, one can actually bring forth a state of relaxation and lower the levels of certain stress hormones such as cortisol and reduce muscle tension.

Practicing breathwork is relatively simple. For example, deep breaths taken slowly through the diaphragm and inhaled at an even slower pace are good for putting the body into a relaxed state. To reduce anxiety you can utilize alternate nostril breathing, which involves gently covering one nostril and breathing deeply, exhaling, and then repeating with the other nostril.

Nutrition and Mind-Body Wellness

There is an old saying that says ‘you are what you eat’, and when it comes to nurturing mind-body wellness it couldn’t be more true. What we put into our bodies on a daily basis makes a big difference in the way that we feel, look and even act. For example, it has been shown that excessive consumption of high sugar food and beverages is linked to mood disorders such as depression.

So how can we ensure that we are eating a balanced and healthy diet to promote our best selves? It’s always a good idea to minimize intake of highly processed foods such as cookies and cakes, frozen convenience foods like pizzas or TV dinners, and salty snacks like potato chips. These foods can have detrimental effects on health with their intake shown to cause serious issues including high blood pressure, obesity and heart problems.

In place of eating these kinds of foods, try and replace them with the highest quantity of whole-foods that you can get your hands on. Fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains are all great options that provide plenty of nutrients while keeping the calorie count low. Fish and lean meats such as turkey and chicken also make for excellent sources of protein and will help to keep you satiated longer.

Of course it may seem difficult to stick to a strict diet without any room for a treat every now and then. Clearly you will be at your healthiest if you were to eat only clean whole-foods all the time but it can be nearly impossible to achieve such a goal and allowing yourself some wiggle room can allow you to maintain an overall healthy diet. A good rule to follow is try and keep 90 percent of your diet clean and unprocessed while giving yourself the other 10 percent to indulge a little.

Physical Activity and Mind-Body Wellness

Human beings were designed to move, and it turns out that when we don’t do so enough there are negative consequences. We all know that exercise is a key component to staying slim and building muscles, but did you know that leading a sedentary lifestyle can lead not only to weight gain, but to a reduction in emotional wellbeing, high blood pressure, diabetes and even cancer.

Physical activity is paramount when trying to improve mind-body wellness, and the lack thereof wreaks havoc upon an individual. The good news is that adding exercise into your routine doesn’t have to involve going to the gym for hours or running a marathon every day.

Any amount of exercise will benefit you in the long run but studies suggest that getting at least 150 minutes of exercise weekly will keep you relatively healthy. Increasing that amount to 300 minutes or more will put you in position to extend your life and feel your best.

Aside from the physical benefits that come with being in shape, exercise is also thought to help us feel good by increasing blood flow to the brain and affecting the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The mental effects are astounding, ranging from boosting mood and reducing symptoms of anxiety to even reversing self-isolation and improving cognitive function.

Daily exercise can be as simple as taking a few 10 minute walks when the opportunity comes around or as complicated as taking on a full-body workout routine six days a week. It is important that you evaluate your schedule and find a way to incorporate at least a small window for exercise everyday to keep your mind and body functioning at their peak.

Mind-Body Wellness - Something to Strive For

Now you know that the mind and the body are vastly intertwined, and that caring for one is equally as important as caring for the other. There are many habits and activities one can do to ensure that their mind and body stay as healthy as possible, and with a little planning anyone can achieve a positive lifestyle that supports their aspirations, whatever they may be.

It can be a little daunting trying to work out all of the details, making the changes that are necessary to push forward and live the life that you want. Here at [Polaris Counseling & Consulting] our hand picked team works seamlessly together to provide you with the high-quality and professional grade service you deserve with the personalized, authentic style you desire. We will work with you to confront your issues, move past your challenges, know what it takes to get you beyond your difficulties, and inspire you to achieve your fullest sense of self and discover true wellness.

Looking to book an appointment? Get started on your path to a healthier tomorrow here

The post Mind-Body Wellness – What it is and Why it Matters appeared first on Polaris.

What is Holistic Counseling

Chris Peloso — Fri, 17 May 2024 00:29:01 +0000

Holistic counseling can best be described as a form of therapy which seeks to find healing through the uniting of various aspects within the human condition such as the emotions, mind, body and spirit. Drawing from a wide variety of techniques, holistic counseling aims to find a healthy balance between the complicated and delicate facets of an individual’s life.

When considering which treatment may be best for you, it is important that you understand what each variety is and what it has to offer. Here you will learn exactly what holistic counseling entails and explore in detail the many benefits that go along with this therapeutic approach such as its focus on personalization, prevention and empowerment.

Key Components of Holistic Counseling

There are many aspects that join together to form a comprehensive holistic treatment approach. One important feature is that a holistic viewpoint will strive to look at an individual as a whole of their unique circumstances. This means that the patient will not only be asked about their symptoms, but about the totality of their life which in turn will help to make the healing process more effective and streamlined.

Other beneficial qualities include the personalization of holistic programs, the emphasis on prevention of future problems and the importance of the mind-body connection. These are all points of focus that differentiate traditional counseling from a holistic approach. Typically, traditional counseling tends to utilize conventional techniques and is more concerned with addressing a specific problem while failing to take into account the totality of the situation in which the patient finds themselves.

The Benefits of Holistic Counseling

So why choose holistic counseling over a more traditional approach? Here you will learn of five major benefits that pertain to holistic counseling and how they can help you to make the change that you need in your life.

Comprehensive Healing

The road to recovery is one of many winds and turns, and as such it is not always easy to navigate. When beginning on that journey, it is critical that you seek to address whatever issues you may be experiencing as a whole. Holistic Counseling seeks to put the pieces of one’s life together and tackle the whole picture. This is done through joining together the mental, emotional, physical and spiritual aspects of a person and working to see how these planes are interacting with one another.

Undoubtedly, if someone is experiencing issues with their physical health, those issues are likely to affect other parts of the individual such as their emotional well-being or their mental functionality. For that reason holistic therapy tries to broaden the picture and offer a comprehensive approach to wellness.

Personalized Treatment

An important component of holistic counseling is its focus on personalized treatment. Every person and every situation is unique, therefore the idea is to construct a plan of action and work towards a customized set of goals that best suit each individual. It makes sense that to resolve complex problems, an equally complex and well-thought out solution is necessary!

No two patients’ treatment plans will look the same when working with a holistic counselor. The counselor will work closely with the patient in order to blend together the ideal combination of treatments and lifestyle changes that will benefit them the most. This unique method of healing allows the client to receive their ideal course of action and lead them to be their healthiest and happiest.

Focus on Prevention and Wellness

When it comes to holistic counseling, one of the main objectives that is focused on is the importance of overall wellness as a means of prevention. Think of it like you would a car, if you do all the proper maintenance, treat it with respect and keep and check up on all of the different components regularly, then you can expect that aside from major unforeseen events that everything will continue to function well. In the case of humans, if we eat healthy, sleep well, do our exercise and regularly check up on our emotional state, then the chance of major problems occurring are much slimmer.

In a holistic setting you will be guided to identify the parts of your life that you would like to change, and to do so in a sustainable fashion. This ensures that you will be able to actually live out and follow through outside of the office space.

Empowerment and Self-Awareness are Crucial

Fostering a sense of empowerment is a major element of holistic counseling. Through the guidance of a counselor, the client is faced with new insight and deep reflection into their own personal realm. From these new revelations often come the answers to why one feels a certain way or what exactly is causing a harmful behavior. Self-Awareness is the first step to building empowerment which is why self-reflection is such an important part of holistic therapy.

The idea is that once the true roots of an issue are discovered, a counselor may better be able to help you find coping mechanisms and guide you towards the means to an autonomous and sustainable life. This collaborative approach helps the client to feel more in charge of their own journey, as the counselor works with the patient to determine the best options for them personally.

Takes Into Account the Mind-Body Connection

Some may think that mental health and physical health are two completely unrelated things, but did you know that the two actually influence each other? For instance, those who suffer from depression have a higher risk of developing all sorts of physical ailments such as diabetes or stroke. On the other hand, suffering from a chronic physical condition can increase the risk of developing mental illness.

Taking this into consideration, holistic therapy is interested in harmonizing the two sides of well-being to form an overall happier and healthier whole. Certain techniques and activities that can promote this balance include yoga, breathwork, mindfulness and meditation. Utilizing such strategies help to get the mind and the body working together and can help alleviate physical and mental stress while focusing the mind.

How Can I Find a Holistic Counselor Near Me?

Your life and your journey are unique and important, so it is important that you take the time to find out what kind of counseling is right for you. The holistic approach is centered around providing a comprehensive approach to healing that seeks to have the client come to their own realizations and give them the empowerment they need to make the changes that they desire.

Here at [Polaris Counseling & Consulting] our hand picked team works seamlessly together to provide you with the high-quality and professional grade service you deserve with the personalized, authentic style you desire. We will work with you to confront your issues, move past your challenges, know what it takes to get you beyond your difficulties, and inspire you to achieve your fullest sense of self and discover true wellness.

Looking to book an appointment? Get started on your path to a healthier tomorrow now.

The post What is Holistic Counseling appeared first on Polaris.