Part 2 of my 4 part series: The key to lasting wellbeing and happiness
Cultivate resilience by nurturing your inner life
I often refer to resilience as our ability to bend instead of break. Quite often throughout our life we are thrown a curve ball, or two (or three or four or five!); a specific incident or accumulation of experiences that bowls us off our feet, takes the wind out of sail, and makes us acutely aware of our own fragility and vulnerableness.
Stress, heart ache and trauma comes into our life in all different ways. It could a significant set back like illness, a relationship breakdown, death, a life limiting disease, injury, financial crisis, or the loss of a job. Other times it’s a gentler tug like loneliness, resentment, rejection, mistrust, disappointment or an accumulation of difficult life events.
No matter what the challenge might be, the common thread of all of these experiences is that they push our pain buttons, and pull and tug at our inner sense of balance and resilience.
So what helps us deal with these challenges a little easier, and how do we cope more effectively so that we are able to bend instead of break?
Throughout my personal journey, and my professional experience as a therapist working with thousands of individuals who have trodden this path, I have learnt that at the core of building resilience is nurturing and nourishing our inner life; fostering an intricate, robust and well-grounded ‘root system’.
Nurturing our inner world is about looking after all aspects of ourselves, including the often neglected emotional, social, and spiritual sides, and treating ourselves with the care, compassion and kindness our heart truly yearns for as we travel our life path.
“To only address our physical fitness or treat our physical symptoms would be like pruning the branches of a tree without cultivating the soil or nourishing its roots. No matter how much physical pruning and ‘outer work’ we might do, if we don’t nurture our intricate root system; our inner-life, we will eventually wither and fade, and lose our inner force and strength with the next gust of wind or powerful life surge”
I believe nurturing our intricate root system is the key to health, happiness and living a vibrant, fulfilled life. My whole-life wellness philosophy embraces this by focusing on not just our physical health, but also our mental, emotional, spiritual and social health.
When we look after ourselves in this integrated, holistic way; like a well nourished tree we are able to thrive, enjoy good health, and recover from adversity. And even if we do lose a few branches along the way, a well nourished strong base means we can remain firmly ‘rooted’ to what matters, and enjoy the good things in life. We will bend, instead of break.
Let me briefly introduce you to my Whole Life Wellbeing philosophy…
A healthy, balanced lifestyle engages all 7 domains of the Whole-Life Wellbeing framework. Take a look at each of the areas below to see which aspects of your life might need a little more nurturing attention.
Emotional Wellbeing - emotional health, activating your heart-mind, connecting with your values, and bringing a sense of play, creativity, gratitude and optimism into daily life
Mental Wellbeing: fostering focus and stillness, feeding your brain with active learning and positive stimulation and using your mind as a tool to make wise choices
Spiritual Wellbeing: seeking out meaning & purpose in your life, connecting with your ‘inner essence’, spiritual inter-connectedness, meaningful spiritual practices and spiritual integration
Social Wellbeing: fostering meaningful relationships, connections, and community, cultivating fun, love and connectedness in your life
Physical Wellbeing: nourishing your body, engaging in regular physical activity & mindful movement, looking after your health and fitness and hydrating your body
Environment: looking at how your outside world (physical, social, sensory, ecological, natural etc) effects your inside world, and visa versa. It’s also about acknowledging any wider external influences (social, culture, politics) that might be effecting your health and day to day living.
Rest / Mindfulness: engaging in mindful practises, meditation and breath work to promote deep rest, and inner nourishment for the nervous system. Getting good quality deep sleep most nights of the week, and making time for relaxation and self-nurture.
Embracing and nurturing good health and a healthy engagement with life is about fostering balance.
I have put together an easy to follow practical guide on how to work towards achieving more balance and wellness in your life - my ‘Unlock your Ultimate Wellbeing’ ebook. You can grab your FREE copy of this by signing up to my mailing list on my home page.
Here are some questions you might want to ponder this week.
How can I nurture my inner life more?
Am I looking after my emotional health, and giving myself adequate time to rest, be in the moment, and be still?
Am I making time to connect with the things that matter most to me; the activities and experiences that bring a sense of flow, joy and deep aliveness?
What are some things I can do in the next few weeks that will foster and nurture my inner wellbeing?
Wishing you many blessings and inner nourishment.
P.S Keep an eye out for my third instalment of my 4 part wellbeing series in the next couple of weeks.
Much love.