Self Management: Detox Your Body, Detox Your Thought, Detox Your Life

I’ve never dieted in my life, I don’t believe in detoxes!

This was me up until 4 days ago. A whole new world has opened up since. I was the brekkie at noon kinda girl (and I still  may well be after the detox, but in a healthier, more aware of what I’m eating kinda way). I've learned that detoxing your body is linked to detoxing your mind and thoughts which in turn can help detox your life.

Have you noticed how your mind and inner being feel so much lighter when you’re healthier? What you put into your body and mind is what you get out of it. Squeeze the proverbial orange and you won’t get apple juice … y’know how that story goes.

But luckily, there isn’t just one way to do it. You can start with detoxing your thoughts and beliefs and let the ripple effects cascade into your life. Consciously choosing better feeling thoughts will give you more positivity, focus and gusto and this in turn will lead to you feeling more energetic.

Change what goes into your body to change what goes into your mind or vice-versa. Either ways, you win!

Fact is, most of what you eat, do, say, think, feel is a result of habitual patterns. You are living an unconscious life when you don’t take a minute to stop and ask what and why you’re eating, doing, saying, thinking and feeling what you are. How many unhealthy habits do you persist with because you have gotten too lazy, too careless, too comfortable with them?

Let’s start with thoughts! Do you know how many thoughts you have in a day? Anywhere from 20,000 - 60,000 apparently. And about 80% of that self-talk is “negative” (source: some scientific research I lost the link to).

Sound like an exaggeration? Consider this: within the span of a few seconds your mental chattering monkey jumps from : 'Wish I had my coffee' to 'I’m sick of this traffic' to 'I should have done/said/ xyz' to 'Why can’t I just stop thinking so much' to 'I hope we’re not having soup for dinner again'. Exhausting, isn’t it?

Truth be told, much of what you believe and think every day comes from societal and parental conditioning. But wait, there’s hope! Just like you can learn to think about the food you eat and what it does for your body, you can also start learning how to think in positive, inspiring ways. That’s right, this is how you can change your self-limiting beliefs to those that serve you.

Here’s the deal. Detoxing the way you think can be hard at first. Just like when you train your body to get rid of toxins and cravings, and don’t build muscles overnight in a gym, it’s the same with your thoughts.  Of course it takes a bit of effort and commitment to see results.

Want some tips to help you start rewriting your ‘story’ & detoxify your thoughts?

1) Practice Awareness daily - keep a little journal or notebook close at hand and as you think a thought, write it down. At the end of the day you’ll have a fair idea of just how much of your thinking is toxic and unproductive.

2) Start examining these thoughts - are they pointing to a deep rooted belief? What is that belief? Is it true? Or are you just used to thinking a certain way?

3) Open Your Mind - to new ways of thinking. Look at things and situations from more than one perspective. You don’t have to agree with another point of view but you’ll be training yourself to be curious and open to changing your beliefs.

Visit my website and join in the discussion around detoxing your body, mind and thoughts. What works for you? What doesn't?