A guide to holistic health & nutrition: forming healthy rituals

Forming healthy boundaries and creating a sense of ritual in our daily lives has infinite benefits. From anxiety reduction to burnout support, routines and rituals help us cope with change and take on our busy modern lives. It takes roughly two months to form a healthy routine you’re likely to stick to. What we see reflected in our skin, bodies, and minds results from what we do most often—change comes from consistency. With everything from skincare to diet shifts, daily habits need to be nurtured and upheld in order to make a difference.

With the help of health & nutrition coach Camilla Schmidt, we’re sharing some key behaviors that form the foundation of a healthy ritual in part II of our Guide to Holistic Health & Nutrition. Whether your goal is to achieve glowing skin from the inside out or to simply establish some new priorities as we head into the busy holiday season, we’ll be sharing Camilla’s tips for stress management, lymphatic drainage, sleep, and exercise.

Stress Management

Stress isn’t just a mental state, it’s a physical response that travels through the body. While temporary bursts of stress can be beneficial, leading to extra energy and focus for a specific task, the problem occurs when stress responses get activated too often or over a long period of time. Since our various systems are so interconnected, the gut and digestive systems are extremely sensitive to stress and a great indicator of when you’re feeling stressed. You might feel that when you’re stressed, your stomach behaves differently—you may become bloated more easily or have a hard time going to the bathroom. Prolonged periods of stress can manifest themselves in all shapes and sizes from fatigue to organ malfunction, weight gain, hair loss, and accelerated ageing.

Luckily, we have lots of tools at our disposal for stress management that help us to create a state of homeostasis — a sense of home and stability in the body. Routine building is one of these tools. Forming consistent routines around stress management, whether that’s exercising, integrating adaptogens (read on), or being rigid about your sleep schedule, is a great first step to a less stressful life.

One of our favorite ways to manage stress is through the use of adaptogens. Adaptogens are power herbs and mushrooms that help our minds and bodies achieve a state of balance. They’re potent plants that thrive in very resilient environments and have been used for centuries across the world—some have even survived the ice age. Adaptogens increase our resistance to different kinds of stressors like physical, biological, emotional, and environmental ones. They are non-stimulant, non-habit-forming, and have the power to lend you stamina, calm the mind, stabilize the mood, and balance the skin. 

Tips for managing stress:

• Look for the signs. Sometimes it’s hard to identify when we’re stressed which is the first step in managing it. Look for other physical manifestations such as stomach pain, irregular bowel movements, difficulty prioritizing regular tasks, and interrupted sleep.
• Find a routine. Daily routines and rituals provide us with an anchor during hectic times—allowing our bodies and minds to regulate themselves. However, in order to see results, we need to be patient and consistent with our routines.
• Discover movement that inspires you. Movement is an excellent tool to release stress. Whether it's a date with your favorite online The Class teacher or making an afternoon walk a mandatory part of your work day, create space for it.
• Integrate adaptogens! Reishi mushrooms help to support a healthy sleep cycle, manage stress, and have a calming effect.