Spiritual Health is a term often used these days. But what does it mean, “Spiritual Health”?
Spiritual health, or spiritual wellness can be described as a sense of interconnectedness and oneness with all life, a feeling of belonging, of being part of something greater than yourself. Spiritually healthy people have a clear purpose in life and are able to reflect on the meaning of life events, both as they happen and from the past. They also have clearly defined ideas of what is morally right and wrong and are able to act accordingly. Some spiritual people man choose to follow specific religious practices, while others may simply pursue a general sense of self awareness, life balance and harmony.
How To Take Care Of Your Spiritual Wellbeing
Much attention is focused on the importance of our physical and mental health, but what about our spiritual health? Below are some of the ways in which you can encourage spiritual wellness;
- Regular meditation is always a good idea, to focus your mind and tonify your energy fields,
- Live in the present (easier said than done), don’t worry about a future that hasn’t happened yet or a past where things are already done,
- Think positively. Try not to dwell on the negative, this can actually make it more likely to happen. Reframing your perspective will naturally relax your mind and body and make any situation easier to deal with,
- Be authentic, open and honest in everything you do. Stand up for what you believe in and become comfortable with the fact that some people just may not like you,
- Focus on doing what you enjoy. Exploring your creative side is balm to the soul, if you enjoy doing it, do it,
- Spend time in nature where you can ground yourself on a regular basis.
Make A Gratitude List
Think about all the things in your life for which you are grateful or thankful for, when you do, you will see how good things there are in your life. This practice isn’t just about reducing negative thoughts, it’s more to do with changing the way you think about and perceive things. The more negative we are, the more difficult it is to see the good in ourselves, in others and in the world. Every now and then take a quiet moment to sit down and write a ‘gratitude’ list. I personally like to lie in bed and take a few minutes before I go to sleep, to look at the things/happenings I felt thankful for in that day. This puts me in a positive space as I drift into sleep and I find I rest better and wake up in a more positive mood. Gratitude makes me focus on the positive side of my life, helping me become more joyful in my life and at more at peace within myself.
Possible Signs Of Spiritual Distress
It is not unusual to see someone suffering from debilitating feelings of hopelessness, insignificance and/or inadequacy. This is a common occurrence in this modern world of insecurity, threats to freedom, property and family. This spiritual distress can affect your entire sense of being, presenting as emotional disturbance such as a fear of dying, anger, rage, extreme anxiety, a sense of hopelessness or even depression. Some of the more noticeable signs of spirituasl distress include;
- Loss of direction or focus in life
- Sense of emptiness or of feeling alone in the world
- Feeling hopeless and helpless
- Withdrawal from family and friends for unknown reasons
- Self-destructive language
- Being fearful, edgy or anxious
- Experiencing s sense dissociation/disconnection
- Anger at God or a higher power.
“How totally different did the world appear to medieval man! For him the earth was eternally fixed and at rest in the centre of the universe…Men were all children of God under the loving care of the Most High, who prepared them for eternal blessedness; and all knew exactly what they should do and how they should conduct themselves in order to rise from a corruptible world to an incorruptible and joyous existence. Such a life no longer seems real to us, even in our dreams.” (Carl Jung, The Spiritual Problem of Modern Man)
Carl Jung believed that this distress was brought about by the decline of religion. That man had lost a basic foundation to his existence and a source of answers to his spiritual questions. At the same time, the rise of the modern scientific mindset was prevalent and an attitude of “if you can’t touch it, see it, hear it or smell it, it doesn’t exist” was gaining ground making the spiritual side of life became ever more distant.
To the ‘powers that be’ who decided to remake society, the world, fully based on only rational scientific principles, the uniqueness of the individual must be denied and nullified. These ‘elites’, also called technocrats, favoured data sets and statistics above individuality and their manipulations are still being enforced today, we see it in the way money, and the accumulation of money, has become the new religion.
But there is good news. Once a man or woman experiences even a moment of spiritual clear seeing, it can never completely close down again. Once awoken, our awareness remains, it may be battered and beaten at times but it remains, seeing clear.
How To Regain Your Spiritual Awareness
Another title for this paragraph would be “How To Reconnect With Your Heart”, for that is what regaining spiritual awareness has meant to me. Regaining connection with my heart, where my true spiritual power lies, regaining agency over my own life. This reconnection is available to anyone who chooses it. Below are some of the practices I use when I need to reconnect;
- Focus On Breath: A very powerful tool, your breath can bring you to awareness of the present moment. Relax, breathe deeply and slowly and focus your attention on the feeling of breath passing in and out of your body. Focus more deeply, become more aware,
- Clear Limiting Beliefs: Take a deep look at yourself and how you view the world. We unconsciously follow the conditioning passed on from generation to generation and believe them to be our own. See them, question them and become aware of how well, or not, they serve you. If they do not serve you, let them go,
- Focus On Your Gut: Our physical health affects our mental and spiritual health, and vice versa. Examine your relationship with food. Do you eat for health or for emotional reasons? Stress eating can lead to an inflamed gut, diminishing your immune system and affecting your nervous system (see Leaky Gut Syndrome),
- Get Moving: Emotional traumas can be stored in your physical body, even when your brain can’t remember them. Movement allows our bodies to release stress as well as helping flush out toxins and pollutants. It’s common to feel a need to move when under severe stress,
- Practice Forgiveness: Learn to forgive yourself for all the things that you have done to hurt yourself and others. Learn to forgive others for the pain they have caused you. To forgive is to look past the act and see the actor, in all their human frailty. In doing so we cultivate emotional agility, strength and resilience.
- Cultivate Creativity: Reconnect with your inner passions, the things you love and enjoy. Use these things to tap into your ‘flow state’, your ‘samadhi’ a state where doer and doing are both one and the same. When you capture that, even for a moment, THAT is pure freedom,
- Release That Which Doesn’t Serve You: Be it objects, relationships or situations, if it doesn’t benefit you, let it go. Release anything / anyone in your life that drains your energy, makes you feel negative, binds you or does not support your growth and transformation. While it can be painful to let go of toxic relationships, it will ultimately open up space to attract people into your life that will support you and help you to continue to rise in your power,
- Set A Daily Intention: What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning? Check your phone? Look at the alarm clock? Instead take a few minutes to think of your day ahead, How will you meet the day? Set a positive mind and create a positive focus. Think about what look you want to project, what will you wear, eat for breakfast? Intention allows us to approach each day with a sense of curiosity and anticipation.
Live All Your Lives
Sometimes we can get stuck in believing that we have to behave in a certain way or do things in a specific order because that’s how we have always done it. We are afraid to step out of the mold, come out of the pigeonhole, because we do not want to attract attention, we fear being thought of as different, fear being censured, being isolated. But this fear limits us, keeps us stuck, prevents us from expanding into our true selves.
Instead of limiting yourself to one version of you, allow yourself the freedom to live all your lives in one. Give yourself the space to experiment, test your boundaries, play, be whoever you wish to be, without limits. Our nature is to be always changing and growing and giving yourself this freedom is the greatest gift you can give, and receive.
Have you had / are having a spiritual experience? If you would like to share, please leave your story in the comments below so others can read it.
If you have any questions please contact us and we shall do our best to answer. The Health Collection Team.
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