We all want things in life. We want to lose weight, be fit, make more money, have successful careers, etc.
But when we really tune into what we want, ultimately we all want happiness.
We think we will be happier when we lose the weight, get the promotion at work, finish school, etc.
The truth is that most of us are met with similar voids in life that we believe we will fulfill when we reach our goals.
We never end up enjoying the here and now because we are constantly striving for the next level.
In order to truly achieve happiness and contentment, we must understand three essential fundamentals of life:
1. We Must Appreciate the Dichotomy of Life
Everything is always 50/50. We are happy and sad, hot and cold, sick and healthy. Life is full of ups and downs, positives and negatives, light and dark, yin and yang, etc.
We must learn to embrace both. When there’s a death of a loved one, we want to be able to feel sadness so we can mourn. We know when things are bad, they’ll get better in time.
We must have darkness to appreciate light. Most of us understand this, but when it comes to actually experiencing the negative, we are constantly wanting to feel better and have happiness now.
We end up avoiding the present moment, waiting for the bad to pass so we can have the good, and we end up always living life looking at the rear view mirror, repeating the past.
2. Circumstances are Outside of Our Control
Spouses, economic market, weather, other people’s behavior, accidents, deaths, etc.
Things happen in life, 50 percent of the time they are good and 50 percent of the time they are bad.
3. We Have Control Over Our Outcome
What we think, feel, and do about these circumstances are our responsibility and we have complete control over this.
We have 2 choices.
We can take any obstacle or “negative” event in life as opportunities to grow and prosper. Or we can decide to be a victim to our circumstances and live at the effect of our circumstances.
All this to say, you have full control over the trajectory of your life.
I have a Psychology degree. I was drawn to the study of human behavior, mostly why we do what we do. There are many theoretical branches within the field of psychology.
There’s cognitive, behavioral, biological, social, forensic, developmental, etc.
I was fascinated by all the theoretical knowledge pertaining to psychology, but felt I couldn’t be a shrink because I felt it would be futile and unproductive to “listen” and alter the minds of many who are unhappy and troubled.
I knew early on that happiness was something you have to generate from within. Nothing outside of you can generate your happiness.
Brain as the Super Computer System
We now know the power of our brains in regards to health and disease.
Our brains have 100 billion nerve cells. The information in our brains travels 268 miles per hour which means it’s super fast at processing.
What we feed our brains is very important in determining its output. It has the ability to control your whole body by driving your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.
So rather than looking at the brain as just an organ, we can leverage its power to our benefit in creating exactly what we want.
Most of us don’t take ownership over this complex and highly intelligent computer system.
It’s always waiting for commands from us. But you know what we do?
We let the world and everyone outside of us control what comes in, and let it operate at the mercy of other people’s agendas.
It’s becoming more and more evident that taking control over our own minds and brains is key to creating long term success.
Brain Matter
Brain matter is soft tissue encased within the hard outer shell we call the skull.
It’s delicate and powerful. It’s only 2% of our body weight but consumes 20-30% of the calories we take in everyday.
At about 25 years old, our brains stop developing and when something stops developing, it starts degenerating.
Degeneration can be slowed down by what we do and eat, so let’s talk about what degenerates our brains and what enhances them.
What Degenerates Our Brains?
- Brain injuries:
We are seeing more research and awareness on the brain injuries that occur in football players.
There’s much more attention here, for good reason because when the brain is physically hurt or altered, it can create some behavioral changes that can be detrimental to others and self.
- Drugs and alcohol
Drugs and alcohol kill brain cells and we are actually accelerating its decline when we drink excessively.
- Obesity
It’s now evident that as we gain more weight, our brain matter gets smaller due to various physiological changes.
More calories are needed to support the growing tissue in our bodies than to support the function of our brain. Wanting to lose weight is no longer just a vanity issue.
- Smoking
Smoking shifts the oxygen saturation to the brain and this kills brain cells.
- Hypertension and Diabetes Mellitus
- Environmental toxins
- Lack of exercise
- ANTS: Autonomic Negative Thoughts
What Enhances Our Brains?
- Social connection – Yoga class, accountability, Church, etc.
- Learning new topics or subjects
- Alkaline Diet
- Sleep
- Exercise
- Meditation
- Gratitude
- Positive thinking and feelings
Social Psychology and Happiness
We humans are social creatures. We prefer and need social belonging and acceptance.
Leveraging this knowledge, we at Alkaline feel it’s best to create a community of like minded individuals who are always seeking to grow, get healthier, try new things, stand for positive social movements and innovation, and surround ourselves to elevate one another.
We want to be able to have difficult conversations that are considered taboo, but acknowledge that unless we bring awareness to the issue, we will never be free from the detriments of its effects.
For social change, we must start by changing one person, helping them take one step forward at a time.
We strongly invite you to consider being part of our Alkaline Transformation 2020 movement where we gather to create a strong community of those who are committed to taking responsibility for their health.
It’s Functional Medicine on steroids as we strive to make the journey towards health and wellness an affordable endeavor for those who have been slighted in the current medical system.
We want to help you to reach your health goals in 2020. Whether you’re looking to lose weight, eliminate symptoms, reverse disease, or simply take better care of your health, we’ve got you covered.
Please click here for more information and to sign up.
Thank you for reading.
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