Radical Wellbeing

“Wellbeing is an Act of Revolution. Only you can define what ‘well-being’ means to you.”

In a world that relies on us to be sick, being healthy and well can feel illusive. Global health and wellness is a massive industry valued at $5.61 trillion and is projected to grow to $8.47 trillion by 2027 (Statista). Our entire society is engineered around the continuous consumption of goods and services. Which means products and services are also engineered to provide ‘band-aids’ to human health and wellness concerns to keep people continuously buying their products and services for maximum revenue streams. Marketing is so incredible (and majorly under-regulated) that people will buy products filled with chemical toxins and junk for premium prices for a false promise of enhanced beauty, health and well-being. Products claim to provide fast and transformational results, while the effects of the long-term are severely damaging for human health and our environment. People will pump themselves with toxic skin products and serums to try to fix old skin layers (which in the long-term is pointless), inject themselves with botox (which is a toxin that causes a life-threatening type of food poisoning called botulism), will undergo unnecessary surgery to enhance their physical appearance (which in the long-term scrambles the energy meridian lines in their bodies), or will consume artificial supplements and protein powders (filled with questionable pulverized ingredients and hundreds of unregulated toxins) all in the name of beauty and wellness. Our society has a messed up idea of what health and wellness is. The reality is that a majority of products on the market are engineered for the cheapest and therefor most toxic ingredients. The majority of food and produce available on the market are also engineered for the cheapest manufacturing methods rendering food absolutely nutrition-less and actually toxic to the system because it is filled with artificial ingredients, toxins, growth hormones, antibiotics, etc. There is a reason why products are so cheap (or actually not so cheap) in a world where natural resources have been depleted centuries ago. So companies make due with what is available and create cheaper and more toxic products with really good marketing. This is the secret that no one wants to acknowledge. Governmental regulations for consumer products are under-regulated to promote capitalism. We believe that products are safe for consumption but they’re not. We believe that nutrition labels tell the full story of what we’re eating but they don’t (they don’t account for all ingredients and toxins). We believe that what is listed on ingredient labels are safe but most are not (it’s just all relative). Any product or food item made to sit on the shelf for months or years will need to include ingredients that preserve it to make it ‘shelf stable.’ Read any conventional ingredient label and you’ll find that a majority of the ingredients listed are mostly artificial ingredients and preservatives. And when you consume them (either orally or cosmetically), you are putting those same toxic ingredients into your blood stream. On top of that, a majority of produce and food items are grown in soils that are nutrition-less and processed and manufactured in methods that render it completely devoid of nutrition.

Our bodies are natural organisms that are meant to function via the removal of waste, and the replenishment of nutrients and ingredients necessary for healthy and natural functioning. When we overload our body’s system with junk, toxins and waste (via consumption through eating/drinking, application cosmetically or via our skin, or environmentally via breathing, etc), our body spends more energy trying to remove the waste. And when the majority of food items and products are lacking in active / alive nutrients, bodies cannot replenish, refuel, nor repair itself. The aging process is accelerated because the body is breaking down at faster rates. The body is just spending what little energy it has removing more and more waste with less and less resources and energy.

The solution is to minimize or avoid the consumption of artificial, manufactured, and conventional products and food items found in stores and restaurants. These products have little to zero nutritional value per dollar. You’re purchasing low-quality, empty calories. Essentially the fuel type is crap. Instead, purchase high quality produce and food items from local farms that exercise regenerative farming—they take the time, money and energy to nourish their soils so it it is replenished with minerals and nutrients. When the soil is healthy, the crops are healthy, and therefor they won’t need the use of chemical toxins and sprays to avoid pests (which goes into the food). This also applies to meat, dairy and seafood. The quality of the upbringing matters—if the animals are nurtured with enough sleep/rest, high quality, natural environments, and high quality, natural grazing and food, the animal will have higher quality energy (or fuel) that will pass down to you when you consume it. If the animal is healthier and stronger, there will be no use for antibiotics (to address disease and infection) and growth hormones (to make it grow despite it being fed little nutrients).

Higher quality food with energy and nutrients take time and high quality energy to create it. The value of energy per dollar is actually present, therefor the price of the food item or product will be higher to reflect it. Spend your money on high quality food with energy and nutrients, instead of low quality, nutrition-less products that falsely promise health and well-being (they don’t). So next time you go to a farmers market, respect the appropriate prices. Pay the extra few dollars to actually nourish your body with high quality energy and nutrients. The price you find at a store for processed and manufactured food is actually not as cheap as it should be, and you’re basically paying money for low quality fuel devoid of energy and nutrients your body needs for healthy functioning. $10 for a dozen of eggs will go a lot further than paying $100 for a fancy face cream. Additionally, support the kind souls in your community trying to make a meaningful difference in the world, by working incredibly hard to create a healthy alternative for people. I guarantee you that these people are not in it for the money. They actually probably don’t charge nearly enough to compensate for the time, energy and resources they put in to create a high quality, nutritious product for you. They keep the prices as low as they can to make it more accessible to people, and probably don’t make much of a profit margin for themselves. They do it out of love and dedication to the mission of helping people and creating a sustainably healthy ecosystem. That good intent goes into your food. Support that vision by supporting their efforts. It’s pretty much guaranteed that any corporate agricultural or food manufacturer has zero intent of providing high quality, high nutrition food products to consumers as their focus is on maximizing revenue.

‘Wellness’ is a marketing term. It’s a term that is employed in society to frame health and well-being as something that can only be obtained externally, typically through purchasing or consuming a product or service. But wellness as defined by society is founded on the concept of band-aids. Go to a spa, sign up for a week-long retreat, do a juice cleanse, buy some products to reverse the signs of aging. But all of these things do not change the fact that a body is under-rested, under-nourished, and over-loaded with waste. The basic care for human bodies is actually quite simple. Give it plenty of sleep and rest, clean air and oxygen, sunlight, a natural, peaceful and healthy environment and home, high quality food and nutrients, regular cleaning and waste removal, and a clean soul, heart, body and mind. The effort and energy required to ensure your health and well-being comes from you. All of the products and stuff is just noise and waste for the body to process and remove.

I say that well-being is an act of rebellion because actual well-being requires you to go rogue. As a human being living in this world, you have to exercise increasingly more discernment and inner strength to continuously educate yourself, connect with yourself, reinforce your boundaries, meet your own needs, experiment, and learn how to properly care for and nourish yourself in the way your mind, body and soul uniquely needs…despite all that is conventionally reinforced and offered in the market. Every single human being and soul is different in terms of the requirements of care. So forget all of the external garbage messaging, societal norms and expectations, marketing and media that do an incredibly good job of convincing people what wellness looks like. They have no clue. Their job is just to sell. It is why it is so incredibly important to learn how to connect with your true self or soul, to begin to understand your own requirements of care and from there you create and live the life of health and well-being that you need and deserve.

Resources

Learn More About Regenerative Farming and Why It’s Important to Eat From It: http://www.netflix.com/title/81321999

How to Find Local Organic, Regenerative Farms:
http://organicconsumers.org/regenerative-farm-map/

How to Find a Local Farmers Market:
http://nfmd.org/
Farmers Market / CSA/ Farm:
http://www.localharvest.org/

How to Find a Local U-Pick Farm:
http://upickfarmlocator.com/

How to Find Local Meat, Seafood and Dairy:
http://www.eatwild.com/products

How to Eat Seasonally and Locally:
http://www.seasonalfoodguide.org/

How to Track Food Nutrients:
http://cronometer.com/

How to Find Clean-er Products: (learn more about toxicity of ingredients)
http://www.ewg.org/ewgverified/

How to Find Clean-er Food Labels: (limited products and labels)
http://cleanlabelproject.org/

How to Learn More About Your Local Food Community:
http://www.ediblecommunities.com/edible-communities/find-your-edible/

How to Learn More About The Modern Food System:
http://foodtank.com/news/2023/09/eye-opening-food-systems-documentaries-to-watch/

How to Learn From Indigenous Food Systems:
http://foodtank.com/news/2021/08/podcasts-and-films-celebrating-indigenous-foodways/