Steps to True Health #5: Maintain Balance

You’ve done it! You have chosen how to eat, how to move, and how you are going to view your symptoms (friends, not enemies, right?). So, now what? Now it’s time to maintain the balance you have been able to achieve. In this fifth and final step, I’ll give you some ideas about staying healthy and vibrant for the long haul.

Pick a Modality

There are so many different areas you can study and master to help keep yourself healthy. I suggest choosing just one and sticking with it for a while. I have been studying homeopathy with pretty good focus for about 5 years. And part of what I love about it is that there’s always more to learn!

However, I have also dabbled in several other modalities, just for the fun of it. We are using at least one of these in our house every single day. When someone feels a little off, we’re taking herbs and/or homeopathy. If we’re all generally well but had a long weekend, that’s usually homeopathy. If we haven’t been sick for awhile but I just want to continue to improve our health, I look more to gemmotherapy or Bach flowers or cell salts. So many choices, and I love them all! Here are some of my favorite online resources.

Homeopathy: True Health of course! I know there are others, but I really do want to create a space here where you can find whatever homeopathy information you need when you need it most. Remember to use low potencies for ongoing support (as opposed to acute illnesses).
Herbs: I love the educational resources put out by Mountain Meadow Herbs and Earthley. I learn a lot just by searching and reading their product pages.
Essential oils: Dr. Axe is one of my favorite resources. Dr. Z has great EO information as well.
Gemmotherapy: Lauren Hubele is my go-to for gemmos!
Bach flowers: This is a great site with amazing information. The sister store, Directly from Nature, is where I purchase my flower essences.
Cell salts: I have used and enjoy the information provided by this website to expand my knowledge of cell salts. This website is older but also good. You can do so much with just these 12 remedies!

Pick a Practitioner

I have been told a few times that even a homeopath needs a homeopath. I have found this to be true but not in the way I was expecting. Being my own homeopath has been very helpful in the study of chronic conditions and the application of homoeopathy in those cases. However, when the acute flare-ups strike, it’s like my mind goes completely blank!

I want to note that memorizing my remedies has been very helpful during those times, especially when I’m trying to choose remedies for my children. But if I haven’t read about what I’m experiencing before and I can’t retrieve the information I need without looking it up, I find someone to consult with to help me sort things out. I have consulted a few different kinds of practitioners and recommend the following:

Health Coaches: Often, individuals will practice as a “health coach” to be able to build a practice around the kind of health care they truly believe in. For example, my state does not allow me to assume the title “homeopath” without also having a naturopathic doctorate, so I simply practice as a health coach who uses homeopathy. The same goes for Dr. Krista, who practices online as a holistic health coach but is actually a licensed physical therapist with over a decade of experience. On the flip side, anyone can claim to be a health coach, so be sure to look in to where they received their training before paying for services.
Chiropractors: I have a local chiropractor who is great with kids, so we visit about every 6-8 weeks for a tune-up. He is also a functional medicine doctor who allows me to ask a million questions every time I’m there. The chiropractic profession is growing, so you will likely be able to find one that suits your needs and personality.
Acupuncturists: Getting tune-ups using acupuncture is one of my favorite things. My chiropractor also happens to do acupuncture, so it’s very convenient. I especially like to get work done while I’m pregnant.
Other Body Workers: Before meeting Dr. Krista, I would have never have thought of seeing a physical therapist on a regular basis like I see the chiropractor. But experiencing her strain-counterstrain work (something similar to cranial-sacral therapy) opened up a whole new world for me! If you are fortunate enough to be local to Dr. Krista, or another similar therapist, I highly recommend trying it out. Side note: I have also heard great things about foot zoning and reflexology but have not tried those myself.

Pamper Yourself and Your Family

My final bit of advice for maintaining emotional and physical balance in your life is to find regular ways to take care of yourself that promote natural detox and well-being. These are some of the favorites that I do for myself and children on a regular basis at home:

Acupuncture Mat: I learned about this mat here (#29) about a year ago. I haven’t used it as much as I’d like so I don’t have a complete review of how it works. The concept makes sense to me and I hope to use it more as my kids get older and don’t climb on me while I’m laying on the mat.
Raindrop Massage: I did some basic research on how to do the raindrop essential oil massage, purchased some KidSafe versions of the suggested oils, diluted them, and do this with my kids whenever I think of it. I used to do it once a week and even the 18-month-old laid still while I went through the massage.
EFT Tapping: I have used this on myself more than my children and I absolutely love the results. Tapping doesn’t eliminate negative emotions, it helps your mind reframe them! It is an extremely useful tool to have in your toolkit.
Ionic foot baths: I started doing ionic foot baths on a whim while I was nursing baby #3. The results were amazing! I slept so good and felt so refreshed that now I do a 30-minute foot bath once a week if I can. I convince the kids to sit and soak their feet for 10-15 minutes about once a month.
Epsom salt soaks: Before I discovered the ionic foot bath, I used to soak my feet in Epsom salt baths several times a week. I still put Epsom salt in my children’s baths about 3 times a week, just as a bit of a gentle detox as well as a way to get some extra magnesium into them.
Skin Brushing: This has been recommended by some of my favorite teachers. We have a skin brush for everyone in our family and I try to make sure it happens before showers about once a month, although you could do it every day to help keep the detox pores open on your skin.
Gratitude Journaling: I learned almost 10 years ago about the benefits of practicing gratitude every day from this book. When you focus on what you are thankful for, it completely changes how you experience life. You can really get creative on how you do this; I think there are even apps for it! I have my kids share their “thankful thoughts” at bedtime every day and I combine my daily Scripture reading with prayer and gratitude journaling. (My journaling includes hand-lettering and drawing because I want to intentionally find ways to be creative as another way to relax and enjoy daily tasks.)