Why I’ve Chosen a Holistic Lifestyle and How You Can Too
How It All Started
Growing up, my parents were incredible holistic lifestyle role models. My mom fully believed in the phrase “my body is a temple” when it came to her pregnancy with me. She cut out all soda, caffeine, ate really healthy and exclusively listened to classical music. We love to joke that my attraction to the holistic lifestyle manifested in the womb. Once I was born she continued this trend and had me in cloth diapers, and was very mindful of the products she was using in our home. As I grew up my parents always had a well balanced, homecooked meal on the table and my mom was so serious about this that I wasn’t even able to eat Cheerios as they are sweetened with cane sugar. When I was in middle school was starting to make my own decisions when it came to products I used and food I ate, I naturally wanted all the same things that my friends had which weren’t always healthy. This included the classic Tresemme mouse and often found myself coming home from sleepovers with belly aches following a weekend of binge eating processed foods that my body just wasn’t used to. One day when I came home with a fresh bag of toxin filled beauty products, my dad stopped me on my way to my room and asked “Hey, can you drink those?”, I looked at him incredulously, absolutely not, and he replied “then you shouldn’t be using them on your body”. At the time I rolled my eyes and ran to my room to test out my products but looking back in hindsight, I wish I would have listened then and followed my parents’ lead into the holistic lifestyle.
After college is when I started to notice the way that toxic ingredients were starting to effect my health. I had acne, dull skin, and never felt like I was fully rested. This is when I started to go back to my roots and embrace the art of living mindfully, and focusing on cutting out toxin filled products and instead reaching for more natural options. During this transition I re-fell in love with food! Growing up in a Sicilian household our lives revolved around the kitchen, from cooking together to working in the garden. Re-falling in love with cooking, tasting new dishes, and even growing my own food has truly fed my soul in a way nothing else ever has. As the years go on, I have found so much satisfaction, purpose, and true connection to the world around me by making mindful changes that support a healthy holistic lifestyle at every stage of life. By making small changes overtime you’ll be surprised to find how good you feel, and how easy it really can be!
What is a holistic lifestyle?
Living holistically can look different for everyone! Holistic living can seem complicated at first but when you break it down, at the core, it involves nurturing the mind, body, and spirit by prioritizing balance, mindfulness, and well-being through healthy eating, regular physical activity, emotional awareness, and natural living. It emphasizes conscious choices, like using non-toxic products and practicing self-care, to create harmony in all areas of life. For me and my family we are focused on reducing toxins in our home, eating whole foods preferably sourced locally, and making our day-to-day more mindful through our daily routines and practices.
My journey to holistic living
When I started to embrace my roots and come back to the holistic lifestyle I was overwhelmed with all the areas of focus. I was a burnt out college graduate jumping right into a full time job, trying to figure life out on my own and I didn’t know where to start. Naturally I felt pressured by our consumer culture and felt like I needed to go out and buy all the new things that would support this transition. This was completely false. Instead I broke down my life into three categories: products, food, and routines. This worked really well for me and helped me to look at my life big picture and then overtime it has allowed me the time and space to dive deep into each category, research, and make small changes in each category. Within each category I then took it deeper and have continued this practice as I learn more about how to live healthier and happier.
How you can start your journey - first steps
If you’re feeling pulled towards a more holistic and mindful lifestyle I would highly recommend starting small and working your way through your own life in small steps. This will help you feel less overwhelm and will make the changes more sustainable overtime. Start by journaling about your current life. Look at each of the three areas (products, food, and routines). Ask yourself what your goal is for this transition and get real with yourself on why this feels important to you. Once you’ve identified your “why” you can start to dive into the categories deeper.
Products
Start here by digging into the ingredients on the labels. Research the source and look into alternatives for ingredients that may have negative impacts on your health.
Beauty products - I would prioritize this area first since your skin is your largest organ and is highly absorbent
Cleaning products
Laundry products
Fragrance products
Food
Where is your food coming from?
What is the dirty dozen?
What is the clean fifteen?
Are you eating with the season?
How does the food you’re eating make you feel?
Routines
Morning routine
Evening routine
How are you spending your time?
What is your exercise routine?
What do your weekends look like?
There are many ways to start transitioning to a more holistic lifestyle so I encourage you to start small and find a way that works for you! The journey towards a more holistic and mindful lifestyle takes time and doesn’t have to happen all at once. Making small changes overtime will make the process more fun and easier to maintain. As always, I’m here to continue to support you on this journey and share pieces of my journey in hopes of inspiring and encouraging you as you begin to embrace this beautiful way of life as I too, continue to learn and grow. Start by embracing small changes today and experience the benefits of holistic living for yourself!
