By Guest Blogger on November 4, 2010

3 Causes of Illness (and 10 Tips to Overcome Them)

Some people who eat a very clean diet think that a “perfect” diet = perfect health.

It would be easy to believe that if you just maintain an extra clean diet most of the time, all bodily ills can be avoided. Unfortunately this is just not the case. While what you do and don’t eat plays a huge role in how good you feel, it is not the only factor in staying symptom- and disease-free. Aside from a poor diet, here are three things that can be a recipe for illness:

1. Stress
2. Emotional pain
3. Not supporting the body to remove waste and toxicity

All three are often overlooked, but today we are going to discuss the first two. Mental and emotional stresses are hugely influential in how healthy and happy you feel, and yet so often management of these very vital aspects of health can fall to the wayside. We can forget that truly wonderful health is experienced when all of these components of our well-being, along with diet, are given attention.

In small amounts, stress can be useful. It can give you the buzz, motivation and focus to get things done. But more often than not, stress just gets ugly. When the stress that gives you the kick in the bum to keep moving changes to tension throughout your body, irritability, or reduced physical, mental, or emotional health, then you know it has gone too far. Stress is extremely acidic in the body. Our bodies need to maintain an alkaline state to remain or become healthy.

Emotional stress will have the same impact, as will working far too long and exhausting yourself, and not having a balance of rest, movement, play and work.

So other than maintaining a very clean, alkaline diet that will help to minimize acidity in your body, what can you do? Here are a few suggestions.

1. Create a balance of work and playtime every day by setting boundaries of what time you will work and (just as important) not work. Allow time to exercise, meditate, juice, cook, connect with loved ones, get fresh air, have sex, buy fresh produce and whatever else is important to you.

2. Make the time you do work as efficient and productive as possible. Don’t procrastinate or multi-task. Focus on one task at a time and do it with your whole focus. You will get a better result.

3. Pick the most challenging, important or profitable task to do first in your workday. Once this is achieved, the other tasks can be more easily managed and with less stress. You will find it much easier to switch off the stress beast with your biggest tasks behind you.

4. Breathe deeply. Even if it’s just taking 10 deep breaths where you breathe in through the nose for four counts and then out through your mouth for four counts, it will help to calm your mind, bring you back into your body and center youself. You can take it further by noticing where you are holding tension in your body as you do your deep breathing and actively releasing it.

5. Meditate regularly. Even if it’s just by paying attention to your breath with the breathing exercise above, meditation can completely transform mental and emotional stress. Guided meditations are particularly helpful if you find it hard to turn off mind chatter. Having a voice guide you into a state of meditation can be easier than trying to get yourself there.

6. Get enough sleep. How can you expect yourself to feel calm, centered, balanced and happy when you are running on only a few hours of sleep? You know what I’m talking about. ‘Nuff said.

7. Release to your journal. If you are feeling emotional, releasing your thoughts and feelings to a page can shift emotional energy out of you. It can also help to clarify your thoughts and feelings by having to become consciously aware of them to express them on paper. Your journal is a safe place to release; it won’t judge, talk back or criticize you.

8. Get out, connect with friends and loved ones, and laugh! Forcing yourself to get outside, particularly into nature, can completely shift you out of your own pain and back into the world. Seeing people walking around, animals, beautiful scenery and a world outside of your own can remind you that there is more than what’s in your head, and there is a lot to be grateful for. The same thing applies to seeing friends or loved ones. It reminds you that there is more out there than your own stress. There are other people to connect and laugh with.

I know I said we are talking strategies to cope with stress and emotional pain that aren’t food and movement related, but well, they are so important that I’m putting them here anyway!

9. Eat whole foods. If you are eating a diet full of processed foods, sugar, stimulants (coffee, cigarettes, chocolate and caffeinated tea), then you are going to be causing your body serious amounts of stress, imbalance and moodiness.

10. Move your body! Of course, moving your body is also an amazing stress reliever and extremely alkalizing. Exercise is stimulating in a natural and nourishing way, unlike processed foods and chocolate, which are acidic and falsely stimulating.

Casey Thomas, Raw Lifestyle Coach and Detox Counselor, publishes “Bloom Time,” a free monthly eZine for health and energy seekers and raw food lovers around the globe.

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