Achieving Perfect Balance
It’s the autumnal equinox today. The word “equinox” comes from Latin aequus, meaning “equal,” and nox, “night.” On the equinox, day and night are roughly equal in length. As I looked into the definition of the equinox, I was intrigued by the “roughly equal” part. I’m a numbers girl, after all, and I love to delve into spreadsheets and such. So I looked up sunrise and sunset times in Golden, and it really turned into a rabbit hole from there. Guess what? It’s never actually equal.
I’ll save you the details, but it reminded me of one of my core beliefs that gets me in trouble in the holistic healthcare world - that there is no such thing as perfect balance.
So many times people come in looking for balance - whether it’s their hormones or mood or work/life balance. And I have to break the bad news to them that there isn’t a static place where that exists. I compare it to a pendulum - it’s gonna swing no matter what, but we can do our best to keep the swing mild instead of wild.
So what are some things to keep that pendulum swing from getting too crazy? Here are just a few ideas to get you started:
Fuel your body with good, whole foods.
Stabilizing your blood sugar will lead to better balance EVERYWHERE else in your body. Whole, unprocessed foods will help you do this.
Prioritize sleep.
Our bodies have a natural wake/sleep cycle. Staying up too late, or just not getting enough sleep will throw off that cycle and cause problems. Nurture your body with good bedtime habits.
Limit your stress.
Turn off the TV, go for a walk in nature, connect with friends. Whatever you do, it will help regulate the stress hormones in your body.
Hydrate.
Dehydration causes problems everywhere and can really throw you out of whack. Just drink your darn water. Seriously. We’re talking about this again? 😂
Find joy in every day.
Consciously choose to find good in every day, whether it is the way the sun feels when it warms your face or a warm mug of tea in the evening. When you find even a little joy it releases feel-good hormones that help to regulate your body and mind.
Try these out and see how you feel! I bet you’ll be closer to that point of balance we all crave. 💓
