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25.01.2022 Day 33 Tip 33 To supplement or not? Alternative pharmacotherapy is difficult to support given the dearth of quality evidence convincing for its use. But the best evidence is your lived experience. So keeping an open mind around alternatives is skillful. ... If you are considering a natural medication to support your wellbeing inform your doctor to ensure you won’t run into any drug interactions or complications specific to your unique health status and any prescribed medications. For example St John’s Wort affects many prescribed drugs like Digoxin. Consider the costs. If there isn’t much evidence for it be wary. The wellness industry is expensive and supplements are one of the biggest money makers. Consider the science. Many supplements don’t have the evidence to back their use but they are marketed with proposed scientific mechanisms that are theoretically possible. If the science makes sense and the mechanism is relevant to you then that is at least promising. By being aware of this pathophysiology you may have more chance of an effective placebo effect from the drug even if the drug itself has not beneficial effect. Check the source of your facts. There are some organisations that share information unbiasedly. It makes sense that any data from a retailer will have a conflict of interest so neutral sources may be more reliable. Lastly think about the production and quality of the product. Seek reputable brands and products that meet the regulators standards.

23.01.2022 Day 28 Tip 28 Eat food, not too much and mostly plants Michael Pollan. Nutrition is best kept simple. Try not over think it or complicate it. ... Do yourself a favour and don’t waste your precious time counting calories and macros. But do spend some time educating yourself on the science of nutrition and what a balanced diet looks like. Look at your plate and aim for a portion of lean protein, 1/3 veggies, a small serving of whole grains and a little fat. Eat to fuel yourself, meet nutritional requirements and for satiety. If you can keep hydrated and mindful you will be more likely to notice and dismiss urges to eat to palliative thirst and emotions. Try to get 20gms protein per meal (3/day), 3 serves calcium/day, high fibre and vegie intake and avoid processed high sugar foods. Don’t buy too much from the aisle section in the supermarkets and instead make your own sauces, healthy snacks, treats and cakes. Home cook and meal prep to avoid eating take out and ensure most of the food you eat is made with love and good ingredients. If you feel you don’t have time to eat well invest in a blender and try quick, nutritious and delicious smoothies (you can keep all the ingredients ready in your freezer). Spend a Sunday arvo shopping and food prepping the week aheads lunches and dinners. You can freeze batches of soup, casseroles and you can store salads ready to eat in your fridge. Use this time for mindful self care. It may seem like a big investment of time but after a week of eating well you are likely to function more efficiently and effectively saving you time! If you eat a balanced diet there is no need for supplements unless your doctor has prescribed these. Save your money on all that stuff and instead indulge in quality ingredients that you deserve to put in your body and enjoy eating!

22.01.2022 Day 29 Tip 29 Nurture your self worth. Simply put your sense of self worth is your subjective opinion of yourself based off your perceptions, interpretations and focus of your performance and function in life and the opinions of others about you.... You can rely on external sources of self worth like fame, money, achievement and aesthetic. Or you can have a sense of personal worth from your values and traits and your ability to live aligned with them. Many people suffer a lack of self worth so you wouldn’t be alone if you do. The great news is that It can be developed and nurtured with wellness mastery. There’s 3 way to cultivate self worth: 1) express your authentic self to those around you and be yourself! 2) do take care of yourself and make parent-like choices around your self care. 3) use CBT to manage your perceptions and interpretations. If you work on these three things even the smallest changes help improve personal worth.

20.01.2022 Day 36 Tip 36. Be mindful. Mindfulness is paying attention on purpose on the present moment without judgement and with a sense of open curiosity. Dr John Kabat Zinn... Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction is an evidence based therapy created by Dr Kabat Zinn that helps manage the stress of everyday life. One excellent and super easy skill taught is the STOP technique. STOP is an acronym to help you: S: stop what you are doing every now and then T: take a breath O: observe what is happening around you and going on within you. Notice your experience in this moment. P: proceed forward with something that will support you in this moment. If you are going through a stressful day try the STOP technique a few times spread out to remind you to pause, breathe and notice the present moment and continue your day in a useful and nurturing way.

20.01.2022 Day 30! Tip30! Time flies when you’re living well. Factor in at least one pleasurable activity into your everyday. This could mean a gym sesh, getting a massage or simply 20mins of lying outside listening to the birds.... These little moments of pleasure are much needed respite, self-care and opportunities for mindfulness. Life is too short not to enjoy it.

19.01.2022 Day 41 Tip 42. Self-compassion and self acceptance 1st line goal for wellness. Your acceptance of your human-ness is an essential part of living optimally. Part of achieving this is self compassion.... Self-compassion means understanding the shared pain of all humans. It means having a sense of connectedness to other beings and the ability to flexibly adapt and be kind to ourselves for being human. Keeping well and living optimally is not a perfect road. As a human you inevitably make mistakes, relapse or loose control of your behaviour occasionally. This is when you assert you skill for self-acceptance and self-compassion. Then you continue to live well and aligned with your values and priorities. There’s a lot of support and resources out there to develop this skill. DBT’s radical acceptance helps with self acceptance (see previous tip) and meditations in loving kindness help with the neural wiring for self- compassion (google this for a million links to examples). Be kind. Be real. Keep on.

18.01.2022 Day 34 Tip 34. Keep social to stay well. There’s a lot of evidence supporting the need of social interactions for optimal wellbeing. Hanging out with loved ones and friends fuels out vitality feeding our soul with a bunch of good stuff that benefits holistic health and longevity.... Schedule in time with family and buddies not just for fun and to be a good friend to them but also for your wellness! But it need not be close social relations. There’s evidence to suggest even interactions with aquaintances is good for your health. Reach out, engage and connect with other beings. For some this may mean their family, besties, pets, neighbours or mates they do hobbies with. But also consider saying a little hello to your local grocer, Uber driver and that stranger you see about within your local community. Not only would of be good for you but it might just help their health too.

17.01.2022 Day 32 Tip 32 Progressive muscle relaxation. This is a physical relaxation technique you can use when needing to wind down and relax. It is great because it is free, doesn’t give you a hang over the next day and may even improve your sleep.... Try it As you inhale contract a muscle group for 5 seconds. As you exhale let go of the tension and enjoy the experience of physical relaxation for 10 seconds. Then move onto another muscle group. As you get the hang of it and your system calms work towards a 10 second inhale and 20second exhale. Use your mindfulness skills to notice the details of the sensation of relaxing your body. Relish in these pleasurable feelings. You can work your way from your head to your toes or in whatever order you like. If your mind is busy add in some mantra I’m relaxed, I’m safe, I’m peace. Or you could use mental imagery to envision a calming scene.

15.01.2022 Day 37 Tip 37. Give yoga a try. Yoga means union. Aspects of yoga aim to unify our awareness of our breathe, mind and body. A yogic lifestyle incorporates philosophy and practices. The yoga sutras are wise guides to human mastery. The asanas are postures that not only keep the body healthy but also the mind as they show us our inner world patterns and goings on.... If you are lucky enough to resonate with a yoga asana practice then you will know how it is so much more than simply exercise or stretching. These classes build emotional resilience, self awareness and self understanding along with self acceptance but also determination. Being on the mat moving about may seem simple enough but what is happening within us during a class may be quite complex and at times even hectic. Yoga may serve as your morning spiritual commitment or moving meditation. It may be your opportunity for self-reflection and it may be your escape and energetic release after a long day. What you may find is that your yoga practice changes over time along with your evolving needs. But what stays true is it unifying nature that has the capacity to reset your energy and settle your soul. If you do your own practice that’s wonderful and if you need a group that community feeling and sense of belonging will serve you well too. There’s no right or wrong way to do yoga. Simply work out what works for you and do that. Yoga is not for everyone yes. But it is a skillful healing practice that serves wellbeing and so worth taking a look into. Give it a go. Be sure to try many studios and all the different styles. Don’t be put off if you don’t resonate with a teacher or particular class it can take some time to find your fit. Introductory passes make doing this affordable. Namaste.

09.01.2022 Day 31 Tip 31 Get a team of support and resources to call on to nurture your wellness when you need to upgrade your self care. Despite best efforts we are, as humans, vulnerable to challenging times where our wellness can be jeopardised. During these times allow yourself to seek the extra and expert help you need to get back on track.... There’s no shame in reaching out for help, leaning on other and tapping into extra wellness resources. Rather, recognising your need for more self care and being able to meet it is a skillful and wise wellness act. It shows Your team may be doctors and traditional allied health but it could also consist of alternative health practitioners and practices. Taking a holistic approach to your wellness usually works best so keep an open mind to experiment but also informed to make sensible choices. Hugs are also good

07.01.2022 Day 40 Tip 40. Dialectic Behavioural Therapy is another AMAZINGLY USEFUL evidence based psychology tool. The DBT Chain Analysis technique is a skill to employ when you are embarking on behaviour change that helps highlight the underlying root cause of your reactions and actions. By identifying triggering events, thoughts, emotions and urges you highlight the patterns and predictable trips of your behaviour.... Sure this isn’t a quick fix pill and it can be painful to reflect on these things but it works. Unfortunately the only way to change yourself is to understand yourself, notice yourself and commit to that change. No pill or other being can do that for you. But this tool will help you to do it for yourself. Now that’s real wellness!

06.01.2022 Day 35 Tip 35. Work on your spirituality Being able to recognise that there is more to this life than are own and that we are all deeply connected to each other provides a sense of perspective and diffusion from our human suffering. Spirituality is a fundamental part of wellbeing. It is a gateway to relief, peace and surrendour.... Having a sense of spirituality need not require a faith in god or the afterlife nor a belief in past lives. Rather spirituality can simply mean for you having an awareness of the interconnectedness of life and existence beyond your own. This awareness can be cultivated by practices that provide an experience of metacognition and that mindful state where you get distance from your ego and cognitive narrative. Having the ability to take a helicopter view of yourself helps you see that you are more than your thoughts, feelings, urges and emotions. Getting out in nature reminds us of the natural world. There’s spices, ecosystems and complex worlds beyond our own. Whether you touch base with the stars, waves or your own garden being in nature provides an exit from ourselves and entry to the possibility of so much more. Living through grief and the loss of a loved one is painful but may be rewarding if it serves as a reminder that our human lives are fleeting to increase gratitude for living. This understanding, acceptance and gratitude for our lives helps develop that sense of spirituality.

05.01.2022 Day 39 Tip 39. Acceptance Commitment Therapy is an evidenced based psychology tool. The ACT Willingness and Commitment Action Plan is a super useful skill to keep up your sleeve. Use this when you need to do something challenging. Maybe there’s a task you’ve been putting off or a habit your struggling to commit to reduce? If so, this is the tool for you!... It walks you through a self-proclaimed contract acknowledging the challenge ahead but committing anyway. The Willingness and Action Plan My goal is to (be specific): The values underlying my goal are: The actions I will take to achieve that goal are (be specific): The thoughts/memories, feelings, sensations, urges I’m willing to make room for (in order to achieve this goal):- Thoughts/memories: Feelings: Sensations: Urges: It would be useful to remind myself that: If necessary, I can break this goal down into smaller steps, such as: The smallest, easiest step I can begin with is: The time, day and date that I will take that first step, is: Using this tool you are full aware and informed of the struggle ahead but willing to press forward all the same. Want to learn more about ACT? https://www.actmindfully.com.au//2016_Complete_Worksheets_

01.01.2022 Day 38 Tip 38. Be of service. Everyday try to find the time and some way to be of service to another being. ... This altruistic act provides nourishment to your wellbeing and a sense of belonging, connection and community. It also helps take one out of their own struggles and focus on another’s providing respite from any fusion with personal suffering. Whether it’s volunteer work or simply checking in on a loved one, being of service to another will fill your heart and soul.