Hip health stuff & more accessible alternatives
There have been many a day where I’ve wondered how to talk about “health and wellness” without giving myself the ick—especially when I compare what I thought it was back when I was a bright-eyed wellness newbie to what I’ve come to understand it to be after 13+ years of personal experimentation and study (the answer is: pancakes).
I’ve written about this ad nauseam, but since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, it felt like another good time to encourage exploring health and wellbeing in our own unique ways. This is not to dismiss experts or research—they matter—but to adapt and personalize the process if the mainstream version doesn’t quite align.
Maybe this is also a semi-triggered response to the constant barrage of wellness content online and in podcasts—it has a tendency to feel overwhelming and exclusive, which can cause a lot of should-ing. That’s also kind of the point: We don’t have to do every single trending health thing in order to be well and feel good. I digress…
You might think health and wellness looks a certain way because of what you see online—or from people whose own ideas are shaped by the same relentless content and media-heavy culture.
Coincidentally, I’ve also recently seen posts from a few wellness influencers called “Propaganda I’m not falling for,” which is interesting because some of their points completely contradict each other… I digress again—to each their own!
This doesn’t make anyone’s perception wrong, but instead of boxing ourselves into a corner with limited, sometimes inaccessible options, we can also create other possibilities with the same or similar benefits.
Working with a doctor, health coach, or other trusted professionals can be helpful if it’s an option for you. I genuinely recommend it when possible in lieu of always making yourself a Guinea pig based on minimal knowledge from a quick TikTok clip, or trying something blindly because someone told you it would result in XYZ .
If you’re overwhelmed by or can’t feasibly source all the products and do all the practices you feel you “should” be doing, ask your provider—and yourself—what 1-3 of the most impactful options would be based on what’s possible for you.
And when in doubt, just observe the ones that have been doing wellness for decades—like Blue Zone centenarians. Living amongst many older yet incredibly active and capable retirees in Southern France has shown me that true wellness doesn’t have to mean chugging veggie juice or having a perfectly optimized supplement stack.
All of that stuff can be beneficial, but I’ve realized that the original form of wellness is really just to live a balanced life: Eat unprocessed seasonal foods, spend time in nature, move the body regularly, practice some form of spirituality or inner work, engage in community. I like a life where good wine and dessert are not excluded.
Although new-age wellness trinkets, tinctures, elixers, potions, and powders are intriguing and incredibly enticing—product marketing is very convincing!—we’ve made it all a little complicated, and we can simplify if / when needed.
No need to be down on yourself if you’re not doing any of these things right now, either—health and wellness is so personal. Stay true to yourself and your values!
What healing and wellness might look like in the media—and what it can also look like in real life:
- Juices, smoothies, and superfoods—probably spiked with CBD if you’re in California. I definitely indulge in select carbonated drinks when I visit the US.
- Try also » Nourishing, whole-food meals and drinks that support balanced mood and digestion—even if it’s just a sprinkle of sea salt or citrus in your water. Maybe it’s also not constantly feeling the need to cleanse, detox, or drastically change your diet just because someone else says you should—unless of course you are guided to do so by a professional, or want to do so for personal health goals.
- Fancy supplements and powders with scientific-sounding names that sound either healthy or lethal. Many of them might in fact be helpful, but how and what to choose can be over-stimulating.
- Try also » Time-tested healing herbs and spices as needed, maybe just in cooking or as tea. Refer to traditions like Ayurveda or Chinese Medicine for insights.
- Extreme food rules. So much protein! No gluten! Dairy is confusing!
- Try also » Not demonizing entire food groups and figuring out what works for you personally. Keep mind-body health and ecological wellbeing as part of the equation. Enjoy your favorite things, so long as they don’t cause harm. Take blanket statements around generalized health rules with a grain of salt.
- Hardcore workouts and highly structured regimens with Intense-Power-Names.
- Try also » Effectively moving and rehabilitating joints and muscles via physical therapy, yoga, walks, dancing in the living room, going up and down stairs, resistance bands, lifting something heavy a few times a day—whether a baby or groceries or a kettlebell. Move in ways that bring you joy and challenge you. If you menstruate, take your cycle and energy levels into consideration.
- Cold and heat exposures like plunges and saunas. Both are great, but although sauna blankets exist, we can’t all fit an ice tub in our apartment. There’s also debate on if extreme temperatures benefit men and women in the same ways.
- Try also » Turning a hot shower to cold for a 10 seconds, or as long as you can handle it to the point where you’re a little uncomfortable. Some practitioners recommend dunking your face in a bowl of ice water—which doubles as a skin treatment and nervous system reset.
- Red light devices like face masks and walls that look like they belong in a Christmas or Halloween store. I’d like to use them someday, but not everyone can budget for these types of gadgets—it’s worth investing in legit, quality brands, too.
- Try also » Early morning and late-afternoon / early evening sunlight. Sunrise or sunset walks are physically and mentally restorative for me. I also dig blue light blocking glasses that give Tony Stark vibes—they help me wind down at night.
- Transformative psychedelic healing journeys like various doses of mushrooms, all-night plant medicine ceremonies, hours of meditation, intense breathwork, or MDMA. These can all be amazing (Cc: The Man, Michael Pollan), but if you don’t have trustworthy or affordable access, you can still receive deep healing.
- Try also » Daily self-inquiry, reflection, and conscious pauses like journaling or meditation—even if brief. Other consciousness practices like simple breathing exercises, basic awareness of surroundings, binaural beats or meaningful music, being in nature, contemplative walks, and somatic healing work are all accessible and effective. Find content from reliable sources on the interwebs. Remember that healing doesn’t always have to be big or mind-blowing.
- Heartfelt buzzwords that have deep meaning, but can feel flighty. For example: Hold Space; Set Boundaries; Let Go; Step Into Your Power; Create a Sacred Container; even Wellness. I occasionally use these or similar phrases depending on the topic and who I’m talking to, I just find that some wellness-related jargon can often be used without much context, which can feel performative even if it comes from a genuine place. And whatever’s floating around the social media quote zeitgeist might confuse or not land with you, which might feel non-inclusive.
- Try also » Doing the internal work behind the words, and using your own words to help you understand your experience. Shifting habits and reactivity—and clarifying trending statements—could be: Creating intentional solitude vs filling up your time and space. Being kind, but honest and direct. Learning how to self-regulate and sit with or navigate uncomfortable emotions instead of ignoring them—whether they’re your own or someone else’s feelings. Setting boundaries when needed, but not completely avoiding challenging interactions. Etc etc.
To be clear again: I like many of these things and have benefited from some of them! I myself sometimes promote practices, products, and brands I love. I don’t believe in harping on stuff that works well for people, or shaming anyone for what they like.
I do feel, though, that we can create simplified, personalized, more realistic versions of wellness that work for our lifestyles—especially if and when the trending version doesn’t feel aligned or financially feasible.
My morning matcha, for example, is not exactly thrifty, but I cherish it. It’s a ritual that feels good and is worth the investment (Luv U Matchaful)—even if that means temporarily skipping out on other hip wellness things I’m intrigued by.
I also don’t love the idea of overloading the body with a ton of supplements, especially if herbs are mixed into some form of concoction that is new to our system. I once added moringa to matcha—both of which have many health benefits—and thought I was going to either melt or skyrocket into the ethers, but my friend felt fine.*
*Life Lesson: We’re all unique.
I do believe in investing in our health in whatever ways we can, it’s just unfortunately easy to make excuses to avoid taking care of ourselves if and when we might not have the means to do so for whatever reason.
This is why finding other alternatives is essential—whether we’re caring for ourselves or others; whether we’re tending to the wellbeing of our body, mind, or planet.
So when it’s not always feasible to purchase the wellness goodies or do all the things, remember that there are always other alternatives that are important, effective, and sustainable for mental wellness, digestive or nervous system support, and so on.
CliffsNotes: Wellness can be accessible, personalized, and enjoyable.
Sound cheesy enough?
Reach out for 1:1 support—coaching intro calls are free.
What wellness practices or beliefs work well for you lately?
Take good care,
S
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