5 Ways to Positively Affect Your Environment In Which You live

The Environmental dimension of the 8 Wheels of Wellness is defined as:  “good health occupying pleasant and stimulating environments that support well-being. Experiencing environmental well-being is both nature and nurture, the experience of the outdoors as well as the environments which we create and interact with. Our thoughts, our emotions, and ultimately our sense of self and well-being are intimately tied to our surroundings. 

As a recourse to the boredom and monotony that the COVID-19 shutdown has produced, my daughter and I have been exploring new trails and places to hike enjoying the beauty of creation. We make it a practice to stop and take in all of the sights and sounds of nature; the birds, feeling the gentle breeze, the beauty of the trees, fresh smells, enjoying the delicate brightly colored wildflowers and reaping the supplemental nutrients from the sun. All of our senses come alive. We comment on the vastness of the open sky; in a word, we experience awe. We are reminded of a God who is bigger than ourselves; who clothes the sparrow and in whom our soul can find rest. “The Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” The beauty of creation is for our enjoyment. Our mind, soul, and spirit have been perfectly created to interact with nature.

Nature Rejuvenates Your Mind and Body 

Perhaps the last time you were outside enjoying nature, you found it easier to relax, felt more at peace, and experienced connection with yourself. This feeling of “bliss” isn’t just in your head. Time spent in the great outdoors has been scientifically proven to help you find clarity, better-focused attention, rejuvenate your mind and body, reduce stress levels, and increase your serotonin. It also is proven to elevate your immune system which affords you the ability to fight off infections, lowers your chances of contracting diseases, and helps you bounce back from any ailments you may be confronted with. Nature holds a special kind of energy: it is pure and wild and spirit-renewing. As an immune booster, spending time in nature switches the body into a parasympathetic mode“rest and digest” mode – opposite of sympathetic  “fight or flight,” a well-known immune system killer. When we feel content and safe — and not fixated on a problem — the body can invest more energy and resources toward the immune system, rather than wasting all of that precious energy on our problems. During this tumultuous environment that we find ourselves in, engaging in steps to achieve emotional well-being has become a high priority. 

No matter whether you are an ocean person, a mountain person, or just a backyard garden person, the important thing is that you spend ample time in nature. If you don’t have access to a completely natural setting, simply get out for a walk, sit under a tree, put your bare feet on the ground or dig in the soil. Bring live plants or a fish aquarium (also found to improve mental health) into your home. Connecting with nature is a basic human need that reaps enormous health benefits for both the body and the mind.

A Healthy Environment Supports our Well-being

Just as the beauty of nature provides a beneficial environment to which we can experience good mental health and wellness – as important are the environments in which we engage in on a daily basis as well as the environments we create. These environments are inclusive of our home, our workplace, spaces that we spend a lot of time in as well as our internal dwelling. A healthy environment supports our well-being. 

Creating a healthy home environment is vital in the development of children and grownups. Key ingredients promoting good mental health and well-being include a loving attentive atmosphere, good communication, a place where people feel safe to be seen and heard, interaction with each other, and conversations. Your home should be your sanctuary. When you are in a home atmosphere where you are accepted and people in the home are happy you are there, you are able to build wellness equity that will sustain you through life’s difficult challenges. When the difficulties surface, you can face them with confidence, creative solutions, and the perseverance to stay present through it. This is resilience in action. In contrast, an unhealthy home environment can be toxic creating undue amounts of stress which affect your ability to make good decisions, problem solve, and result in feelings of being overwhelmed. During this difficult time, feelings of frustration and uncertainty are permeating the atmosphere inviting fear and insecurity into your front doors. It’s important that you become aware of the environment in which you are living in. Toxic environments are known to cause depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms. What is the atmosphere of your home? What kind of environment are you providing for your family? If you are struggling with your home environment, the first place to start is by turning inward.

Living From A Place of Peace

We are wired for peace. We are at our best when we live from a place of rest. Rest does not indicate a lack of productivity but creates space for you to engage in life from a place free of striving, earning, manipulating, or coercing. We create internal well-being for ourselves when we are occupied by love, humility, grace, and gratitude. Possessing these traits derails our victim thinking and negative outlook giving us the opportunity to see difficulties from a different perspective where we find creative solutions. We keep our eyes on Jesus and accumulate a history remembering and rehearsing His goodness. “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” (Isaiah 26:3). Peace in the Hebrew meaning:  “destroying the authority that attaches itself to chaos.” Many of us who live in internal chaos and uncertainty feel very unsafe with ourselves. We see this manifested in the environments that we create. When our internal well-being is compromised or toxic, just as in the external, it affects our ability to make good decisions by overreacting, interacting in destructive ways, and tend to say and do things we later regret. Taking corrective measures in your internal belief about yourself is the first step in turning it around. When you feel safe with yourself, you are able to make wise decisions, extend yourself and others grace and deal with difficulties in authentic ways. 

5 Practical Tips to Improve Your Environment

So what are some practical steps you can take to create and maintain a healthy environment both externally and internally ensuring good mental health and well-being?

1. Spend time in nature – take a walk amongst the trees, dig in the soil, allow yourself to experience a sense of awe as you enjoy the beauty of creation. Having a particularly hard day? Get out in nature, it decreases negative thinking and is a mood booster. 
2. Go outside and soak up the sun rays, breathe in fresh air, and boost your immune system. It has proven to increase your serotonin (happy hormones) and gives you a better perspective in life. 
3. Make the necessary changes to create a sanctuary atmosphere in your home. This includes cleaning and organizing your house which reduces stress and anxiety. Be mindful of your tone – find your humor. Laughter is the best medicine. 
4. Institute your home as a “safe zone,” where members are loved, accepted, seen, and valued. Refrain from yelling and chaotic interactions. Set a tone of peace. 
5. Evaluate your internal dwelling place. Do you feel safe with yourself? If not, take proactive steps to address the unsafe places within your heart and mind. Call a friend, spend time in prayer, make an appointment with a counselor. 

Contribute to the environments in which you participate in by choosing to be kind to those you come in contact with, make eye contact, and smile. This small act of kindness has two-fold benefits; yourself and others. Take a deep breath…allow yourself to breathe. 

Next week’s blog: 8 Wheels of Dimension: Financial well-being. How do you interact with finances? Do you manage your money or does your money manage you?