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By Sally
Lever
About 17 years ago, I consulted a Complementary Therapist for the first
time. I had decided to take a different route and try out what was for
me an unknown and unexplored alternative to the conventional medicine I
had always relied on in the past. Why? Because I was pregnant for the
first time, suffering chronic morning sickness (of the all day
variety) and unwilling to risk harming my baby by taking conventional
drugs.
This experience was to be a revelation for me and my introduction to a
totally new way of viewing my own health and wellbeing, as well as that
of my child.
Priorities and values
Suddenly, with the prospect of being responsible for someone else s
life, my priorities had changed. No longer did my health come second to
my availability to work and earn money. Some would say that my behaviour
was a natural reaction to surging hormones nature taking over and
asserting itself. I prefer to see it, with hindsight anyway, as the
start of a shift in my priorities and values.
When we choose to prioritise our quality of life above our money
earning capacity, magical things can happen with respect to how we treat
ourselves. For most who downshift, improving health and wellbeing take a
driving seat, often where it has previously been denied or ignored. And
for those who are forcibly downshifted through ill health, this change
in circumstances can be very challenging indeed. For those who take the
route of voluntary simplicity and decide of their own accord to slow
down their pace of life and reduce their stress levels, miraculously, it
seems, health issues suddenly seem to become less of a problem. How does
this happen?
Trading money for time.
The answer is very simple. Downshifting involves deciding to accept a
lower level of income in return for more time to spend as we want to
spend it. In order to practice preventive medicine and optimise our
health and wellbeing, time is exactly what is needed.
Spending more time on ourselves benefits our nutrition. Real food,
home cooked, is higher in nutrients, lower in harmful additives and
costs less than convenience food in money terms. Growing and preparing
food can also be an enjoyable experience for many, rather than just a
means to an end. Thus, the process of looking after ourselves in itself
becomes a stress-relieving activity.
By reducing our stress levels, we strengthen our immune systems and
are therefore less likely to succumb to infection or contract
stress-induced chronic conditions, such as heart disease, cancer,
depression, chronic fatigue states or diabetes.
When we spend more time on self-care, we are more likely to find a
form of exercise that suits us and that we find enjoyable.
When we are ill, time gives us the opportunity to explore the options
with respect to treating the illness. We can choose to take a more
holistic approach through diet, exercise and rest, alternative or
conventional therapy or lifestyle changes.
During the pregnancy that I mentioned above, one thing I came to
realise was how incompetent I was as a patient! I was so lacking in
self-awareness that I didn t have the first idea how to answer my
homeopath s questions. Ok, to be fair to me, they did seem to be rather
odd questions, like How do you feel in a thunderstorm? What on earth
did that have to do with how long I could keep a meal down? I got
impatient with her and wanted a quick fix, when really what was needed
was my cooperation and thoughtfulness. Often I felt like cutting out the
middle man and just throwing my carefully prepared platefuls of food
straight down the toilet! I was afraid that I would not cope with the
situation and that my baby would not survive. My anger soon dissipated
when I realised the homeopathy was working and I was starting to benefit
from giving myself time to be more self-aware rather than fighting my
affliction or denying it existed.
What other aspects of downshifting are beneficial to our health and
wellbeing?
Trading an unhealthy environment for a healthier one.
One of the parts of our lives that we attempt to optimise when
downshifting is the way in which we earn a living. Hopefully we will
take steps to modify our employment to suit our values and minimise
stress levels. Looking at our working environment can be part of this.
What effect does working in an air conditioned office have on our
well-being? What about fluorescent lighting, noise levels, access to
sunlight, fresh air and water? Trading an unhealthy environment for a
healthier one can benefit our wellbeing by reducing the physicals
stresses we have to endure and by bringing us into contact with fewer
infections.
Reclaiming the responsibility.
In my experience, many downshifters discover during the process of
changing their lifestyle that they feel more able to accept
responsibility for their own health and wellbeing. They learn to face up
to the challenges of making self-care a priority
One of the advantages of working from home (and home educating) that
I m personally very grateful for is that when I or my sons are ill,
there s no one putting pressure on us to return to work or school. When
we need to rest, wrap up warm, take extra fluids or get more fresh air,
we can adapt our day to incorporate this and recuperate in our own time.
Ultimately, it s not up to our physicians, our bosses, our family or
anyone else to keep us well. It s up to us.
© Sally Lever 2005 http://www.sallylever.co.uk
Sally Lever is a Sustainable Living Coach who specializes in
supporting those who are downshifting or otherwise moving towards a more
sustainable way of life. She offers one-to-one coaching, teleclasses in
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