What do you mean, holistic?
ho·lis·tic
/hōˈlistik/
adjective
characterized by the belief that the parts of something are interconnected and can be explained only by reference to the whole.
characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the symptoms of an illness.
In the field of mental health, we typically think of diagnoses, the evidence based treatment that’s used to treat those diagnoses, and setting specific, measurable goals. However, it's important to remember that mental health is not always black and white, there’s actually a lot of gray. Each person is different and will require a personalized approach to therapy or coaching. Focusing on overall well-being and self-care practices can be just as important as those traditional treatment methods. Ultimately, the goal is to support others in reaching their ACTUAL “I’m living my best life” moment in more than one part of your life (and for you to actually mean it and not be saying it sarcastically for once!)
Holistic mental health care is the ultimate rebellion against the oppressive forces that seek to keep us down. It's about taking control of our own well-being and saying "screw you" to the stigma surrounding mental health. It's about treating our minds, bodies, and souls as a whole, interconnected system that deserves to be nurtured and cared for.
Holistic mental health care is badass because it recognizes that mental health is not just about taking your meds and seeing a therapist. Even though both of those things are rad, holistic care adds another set of tools/self-care practices like meditation, movement, whatever flavor of (adaptive/positive) coping you enjoy. For example, taking care of my mental care entails all of the above, but it also includes listening to music, dancing and singing each day, connecting with my family and fostering new relationships, having a career I enjoy, and doing things in honor of my inner child (like going to see Green Day alone in the front row and bopping around). It can also be about seeking out alternative therapies like acupuncture, yoga, and energy healing to balance our energies and find inner peace. 11/10 Recommend acupuncture and yoga: check out The Won Institute in Warminster & We Be Yoga in Warrington to see what services these local spots offer!
So, let's break free from the chains of societal norms and embrace holistic mental health care as a rebellious act of self-love. Let's show the world that we are strong, resilient, and unapologetically badass when it comes to taking care of our mental health.
Taking care of you, CHOOSING YOU, is punk rock as hell. Building a life you want to live? Walking away from people, places, or bad habits that are no longer serving you? YES PLEASE!
Welcome to healing, besties. I look forward to entering a change of season and reminding myself that despite how scary change can be, how beautiful it can be on the other side, as the leaves on the trees change and so can we. And we can feel as though we have lost, grieved, died a million times, the leaves on the trees in the spring show us so much:
That you change. The world around us changes, so will we.
Change, yes scary, but you have survived many seasons of this before.
You can lose everything, feel like your falling apart, crumbling — and you can come back from that.
You can come back stronger than ever, even. Just see how the flowers bloom in the spring and the trees grow new leaves again, even though they have fallen and disintegrated a million times before.
