By Cylleria Johnson
Do you wake up full of energy and excitement for the day? If you answered no, you are not alone. We Americans work hard and play hard, which usually leads to depletion on many levels—physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. I know this all too well as I am a recovering Type A personality who burned herself out at a young age. Chronic fatigue and depression were a constant in my life for more than 10 years.
My search for wellness and my spirit has been a long journey of trials and teachings. I wish I could say that the process was always magical, but it wasn’t. Most of the time it felt like walking through sludge one step at a time, but the twinkling light of my spirit kept pulling me forward, and today I share with you what the great teachers of chronic fatigue and depression have taught me.
It seems that most humans learn best through their struggles. Oftentimes, hitting rock bottom gifts us a strong desire and willingness for change.
These experiences are the opportunities from which we deeply learn and transform. The chronic fatigue eventually helped me to learn balance in all areas of my life and encouraged me to nurture myself. Depression taught me about the power of resistance and inviting in its counterpart, flow. By incorporating the following practices and being open to the natural flow of my existence, today I can happily say that I am thriving and no longer just surviving.
You deserve to be full of energy and joy. It is your birthright. The bonus is that as your energy raises the Earth vibrates higher, and healing is able to flow more easily to all beings—what a beautiful win-win for all.
Here are 21 Energy Boosting Strategies you can begin today—right here, right now. Notice which of these solutions pops out at you and experiment with them for a week or so. Keep what you like, discard what you don’t, and then add in a few more as you build your thriving practice of health and wellness.
1. Start your morning with an ancient Ayurvedic remedy—a cup of hot water and lemon. It is a gentle detox that stimulates the bowels for elimination.
2. Drink water—half of your body weight in ounces. For example, a 150-pound person ideally should drink 75 ounces of water daily. Your body is made of 75 percent water, so this should be your first beverage of choice.
3. Reduce your caffeine intake to 1 or 2 daily beverages. A little bit goes a long way, but a lot has the opposite effect because caffeine is taxing on the adrenal glands.
4. Exercise. Some say it even triumphs over nutrition because it boosts oxygen and the circulation of the blood that transports vital nutrients. Plus, you’ll look and feel good.
5. Rebound on a mini-trampoline. This is one of my favorite exercises. Your entire lymph system is flushed in just 2 minutes of it!
6. Eat a diet of 70 percent whole foods. This means food is in its natural state and has not been processed or refined. On a whole foods diet, you will eat less, crave less, and have more energy.
7. Practice portion control. Eat only when you are hungry and not until you are stuffed.
8. Balance your brain chemistry. Discover your brain chemical profile and work with a trained coach to determine ways to balance it naturally.
9. Take a whole foods based multivitamin with probiotics to ensure absorption.
10. Go on a 30-day thought pattern detox. Ask your friends and family if they notice something you say regularly. Do you complain, talk about money issues, say how you are always tired, etc.? Then, after you find your pattern, tell your friends and family that you are not going to talk about this for 30 days and ask them to help hold you accountable.
11. Go on a one-week negative media cleanse. Don’t read, watch, or talk about anything negative. Invest this attention on you instead.
12. Develop your authentic self. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Work on getting to the root of issues and letting go of the drama.
13. Create healthy boundaries. Practice saying no, especially to people and things that are draining you.
14. Discover your own spiritual practice whether that is yoga, meditation, church, or simply walking in your truth.
15. Embrace your shadow, but keep your eye on the light. What you resist persists so observe and take notice of your shadow. What is it saying to you? Once you shed light on it, doors will open and miracles may happen.
16. Journal. Your journal can be your best therapist if you allow yourself to let go and write from your heart. You can keep it short and sweet too; perhaps by writing three things you are grateful for each day.
17. Volunteer. Sometimes the best way to get out of your head is by helping someone in need. This is a beautiful way to help yourself as well as another.
18. Breathe deeply for at least five minutes a day. Your breath is the connection to your spirit. Deep breathing is an easy way to center yourself and clear the gunk out of your energy centers.
19. Practice the mirroring process. When someone upsets you, take a few breaths and ask yourself, “What is this person triggering in me? Are they bringing up an emotion from my past that I have not healed?” Most of the time, it is about you, not them.
20. Set small, achievable goals to set yourself up for success. Hire a coach to cheer you on and help guide you with goal setting.
21. Trust the process. Rome wasn’t built in a day and things take time, so go easy on yourself. Taking small positive steps do add up and one day you will look back and not even recognize the old you.
Cylleria Johnson is a Certified Health Coach trained at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition as well as professionally trained in the Brain Chemistry Optimization Profile. Cylleria’s love of spirit and personal development also led her to study with a shaman for 3 years. Combining her body, mind and spirit experience, she loves to inspire health and wellness in people ready to create powerful changes. While most dietitians dwell on calories, carbs, fats, proteins, and restrictions, she works with you step by step guiding you in designing a healthy and flexible lifestyle for your most authentic life. You can contact her at Cylleria@yahoo.com and visit her website at www.cylleria.com
