By: Sarah Grace Powers – Confluence Daily is your daily news source for women in the know.
The changing of the seasons – particularly the arrival of Spring— is such a great time cleanse, detox and clear out your system to reboot your energy and wellbeing. So, my last three articles in this series have included tips and ideas for detoxing your physical body. (See links to those articles below).
While it’s vitally important to pay attention to this physical vessel of your body and to nourish it wisely, even more crucial is to tend to your emotional, spiritual and mental bodies. These need a little cleansing and detoxing from time to time as well!
I believe that any cleanse, fast or detox must always include practices that support your mind and spirit as well as your emotional health.
When you give some attention to clearing out the ‘gunk’ in your thoughts, your emotional patterns, while making it a point to nourish and replenish yourself spiritually, mentally and emotionally, it becomes so much easier to care for your body wisely.
It’s also natural for old buried emotions and uncomfortable feelings to rise to the surface when you are doing a detox or cleanse in your body. It’s the ideal time to process this and let it go forever!
Below are five ideas for detoxing the mental, emotional and spiritual.
But—even if you’re not doing any sort of physical detox at the moment, you’ll still receive great benefit if you make regular time in your life for these clearing practices.
Ritual
I sit cross-legged on the floor, back leaning against the worn sofa, my journal open beside me. A burning flickers candle before me, smoke rising into the air. The unfamiliar but friendly black cat pads across my lap again, and I absently stroke her soft fur.
It’s the night before I am to begin a three-day juice fast and I’m on a solo retreat in a rustic cabin in the Trinity Alps of Northern California. The smoke lingering in the air comes not from the candle or a smudge stick, but from the mini conflagration I’ve created.
I’ve just written a list of everything I’m ready to let go of and held it to the candle flame.
As I watch the paper spark, curl and turn to ash, I affirm that I am done! Finished with these inner obstacles. The fears and habits that hold me back.
This is an example of an easy ritual to cleanse yourself on the inside. It’s wonderful to do it before embarking on a physical detox, but it’s also a great clearing ritual to do on the full moon – which his coming up!
There is power and energy created when you partake in an intended ritual. Creating ritual adds a sense of the sacred to whatever you are wanting to manifest or let go of. Rituals gather even more power when shared with other likeminded people.
EFT Tapping
Tapping is a daily practice for me, one that I use to clear out unwanted ‘stale’ emotions and thoughts. If you are unfamiliar with EFT, you can learn more HERE. It is an easy-to-learn modality that involves lightly tapping on specific acupressure points with your fingertips.
EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques, and when practiced regularly it can indeed bring more emotional freedom into your being. The modality has been scientifically proven to reduce stress hormone levels in your body, which will naturally lead to a more calm and relaxed state.
When you achieve that more peaceful state in your body it becomes easier to access the part of your brain, the prefrontal cortex, that allows you to take actions for your greater good.
I find it helpful to do a bit of tapping each morning, and again throughout the day if anxiety and stress levels rise. It’s a great way to set your intention for the day – especially if part of that intention is sticking to your detox!
Journaling
Keeping a journal is useful for much more than simply getting in touch with your emotions when you are cleansing or fasting. One good reason is that it’s just plain helpful to keep a record of what you did (or didn’t) eat each particular day and to track how you are feeling both physically and emotionally.
You can gain important information by doing this – especially if you are experimenting with a detox or fasting regime you haven’t tried before. How does your body like this plan? When you write it down each day, you’ll get a good sense of this after a few days.
But there really are no rules to journaling. Sure, it’s great to track your food, mood and physical well being, but if you don’t want to, don’t let that keep you from writing while you cleanse. You don’t need to be a writer either.
Write about how hungry you are, what you can’t wait to eat when you finish the cleanse. Write a list, draw a picture. You can write at the beginning or end of your day, or you can carry it around and write whenever you feel like. And your journal can just be a plain spiral notebook, or even a document on your computer. Don’t get hung up thinking you need some special, fancy book.
Just make a point to give yourself those moments to write in it. If you allow enough time you will find that you reach a little deeper – perhaps into the underlying emotions that trigger different food cravings. This can be so valuable.
Meditation / Prayer
Since fasting has its roots in religious devotion, prayer and meditation fit naturally.
But – wait! Don’t skip this part simply because you’re not religious or particularly spiritual! It’s about so much more than that!
The evidence is mounting that a regular meditation practice provides incredible health benefits as well as helping you to feel less stressed and more centered and relaxed. If you don’t already have a regular practice, this is a good time to try it out.
Lots of people imagine that meditation involves being able to sit still and empty their mind for extended periods of time. Well, guess what? That’s not the way it works for the millions of folks who are reaping the rewards of this regular practice.
Although it took me five decades to get serious about a regular meditation practice, I’ve always made time for it while I am clearing my system with a detox. It’s easier to find the discipline to take 10 minutes to sit and breathe during cleansing periods. And even though my mind was far from empty, the insights that came during those moments were often profound.
You can do this really any way you want. Sit on a chair, your bed, or the floor. Close your eyes and breathe. Or, use one of the kajillions of guided meditations that are available. Although I am currently practicing a new form of meditation that is silent, for years I loved the free meditations I could find on the Insight Timer app.
Reward Yourself
You are doing yourself and your body such a huge favor by embarking on a fast or cleanse. But sometimes it can feel miserable, like deprivation. Treat yourself when you can with healthful activities and luxuries that you love.
I’ve always liked to head for the sauna at least once a week while I’m cleansing. I enjoy the experience of sweating it out in the sauna, and of course that assists in the detox process.
More recent research is showing new, absolutely amazing health benefits to taking saunas regularly though! And, once a week might not really be enough to get some of those. Infrared heat is especially beneficial, but even a plain old-fashioned sauna, used regularly, can slow aging and increase your energy and vitality.
Many of us don’t have the space and/or the money to buy a sauna to keep at home. But, luckily there are usually many options for using the sauna at a health club, gym, or even the YMCA.
Hot tubs are another way to reward and thank yourself for making the effort to become healthier. This is one of my favorites!
A professional massage not only feels divine, but it will stimulate your body to release further toxins through the lymph system. It’s an ideal reward to yourself, and also a way to cultivate your best health.
A therapeutic massage is a wonderful thing to include while you are detoxing, but I suggest incorporating professional massage into your life on a regular basis. Consider it your tune-up for your body! Most of us wouldn’t consider letting our car run for a year or more without any maintenance – practice that same care for your body!
If the cost of massage is an issue, check to see if there is a massage school in your local area. Often these training programs offer low cost student massages – you can’t be as guaranteed as far as the quality of the massage. But I’ve actually had fantastic experiences with student masseuses. They are excited and motivated and are always careful to ask questions to ensure that the experience meets your needs.
Choose at least one of these and add some emotional detoxing into your life. I guarantee you’ll notice a difference!
Sarah Grace Powers is a Holistic Life Coach and the creator of The Ageless Body Blueprint. She works with women over 40 who want to embrace ageless living and who are ready to release the weight—physical or emotional— that holds them back from achieving their dreams and making their impact in the world. She is a certified herbalist and certified life coach with decades of experience. Download her free report: Five Surprising Mistakes That Sabotage Your Weight Loss Efforts When You’re Over 45.
More by Sarah:
Detoxing with the Season: Helpful Supplements and Herbal Teas
