Spiritually-Guided Methods For Integrative Wellbeing (3 Strategies)
8 years ago I would have never said I was a spiritual person.
I grew up for a part of my childhood going to church on Sunday’s.
I would attend special services on Easter and Christmas.
I even prayed quite a bit at night.
But I was never really taught what it all meant.
I often wondered but rarely inquired, ‘Why were we going to this big building with a bunch of strangers and listening to a guy speak about the word of God.’
I would hear the word spirit scattered throughout the sermon, but never knew what it meant.
And I was always curious who this God was.
My Understanding
In Christianity, God is, in my understanding, defined as the eternal, omnipotent being who created and preserves all things. God is understood as a Trinity consisting of the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit.
(There’s that word spirit again.)
The church that I went to was a Christian church, and the way in which the pastor would speak about God made me feel as though he/it was something outside of myself.
This idea that God created and preserves all things really didn’t sound like something within me.
I never knew if he was speaking about a real person, or if he was referring to a concept or an idea.
Quite honestly, I was often confused thinking Jesus was God or God was Jesus.
This conflict in my head as a young boy is something that I have come to understand later, as a core conflict in culture and something that seems to divide religious-minded folks from the spiritually inclined.
I’m not opposed to the idea of religion or Christianity in general, in fact I believe that the decline of religion in culture is something that has negatively impacted our society.
Churches have always been a really important form of community and religion seems to give people something to believe in. Community and belief are at the core of our being. So is spirituality.
Take This With A Grain Of Salt
I am no means pretending to be an expert in religion, or spirituality, I’m just a curious guy exploring the human experience. I have a very cursory level of knowledge on both of these topics (which may in fact be one?)
In fact, up until recently, I would have described myself as an atheist walking around the world with only a floating head.
I individualized and intellectualized everything.
I only heard the narrative of my ego pounding against the walls of my skull, disconnected from anything else that wasn’t my own, often angry, little mind.
I wasn’t connected to my body, I wasn’t connected to others, I certainly wasn’t even close to connected to a perception of what spirituality meant.
But as of late, I find myself connected to spirituality and maybe even some religions, in a really curious way.
Lately, I’m reflecting on how the impact of spirituality and a connection to one's own spirit has on our wellbeing.
With any element of health or wellbeing I always have this constant desire to improve or get better at whatever it is that I am focused on.
I’m always trying to improve my diet.
Improve my meditation practice.
Or get physically strong.
I’ve always had this mindset of growth and improvement as a core belief when it comes to wellbeing.
This concept of more, more, more; better, better better, is a really strong programmed belief ingrained in our western consumer-driven culture (a topic for another time).
But I was recently stirred up by a lecture from Alan Watts where he said,
'The part of you that is supposed to improve you, is the exact same part of you that needs to be improved.’
It presented me with a paradox. I started to realize that the pursuit of betterment itself needed to be reformed. At least in my own mind.
It got me questioning whether the real idea of growth and transformation might actually come in the simple embrace and understanding that the innate completeness of our present state, rather than the relentless striving for an idealized future is what it really means to be well.
So, how then might I become more aware of and nurture this intrinsic wholeness and capability within me to shift my approach on personal growth, wellbeing and spiritual connection?
Here’s what I’ve come up with…
Understanding Wholeness
Where I think Watts was going with that quote is to present a new idea that helps us to see ourselves from a place of wholeness.
He often says things like ‘you are all as much extraordinary phenomena of nature as say trees, clouds, the patterns in running water, the shape of fire, the arrangement of the stars, the shape of the galaxy… you are all just like that. There is nothing wrong with you.’
What he is getting at (in my opinion) is that in order to embody wholeness, we must truly see ourselves as part of the natural world, because every version of ourselves is correct. We are the way that we are, physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually and no version of us could objectively be better or improved.
But What About The Pursuit Of Better?
When I really sit with this idea, I start to understand that what Watts is saying is not ‘don’t improve’, but rather move beyond the myth of the fractured mind that makes me think I am separate from my ego that wants me to improve. This conditioned part of myself that is telling the impulse part of me what to do.
That part of me really is me too.
The part of me that wants to fix, optimize and grow is a useful part of me that helps me take care of this body and mind that I have for as long as I am here.
The parts of me that believes all of my mixed up thoughts, emotions and illusions of myself are also useful.
What’s different now is that by embracing all of these parts as natural, I can live a little more presently in the here and now, embracing the ups and downs much like the crashing of the ocean waves or the calmness of a flowing stream. None of which I try to control.
Philosophy-First
Now, let me put into context the idea of ‘Integrative Wellbeing’.
This is the philosophy that every aspect of our being; the mental, physical, social and spiritual are all part of a coherent whole. By nurturing each element, we create harmony and balance of the whole and live a more present and fulfilling existence.
Let's look at the strategies.
[The Strategies]
3 methods for cultivating an integrative living practice.
After years of exploring various approaches to spirituality and present moment awareness, I have developed a set of practical methods that have had a profound impact on my overall health and wellbeing.
[Tools:]
Calendar app
Journal
Timer
[Strategy 1: Take A Mindful Moment]
Intention: Free up your energy by letting go of judgment.
Set a calendar reminder during a part of your day where you know you won’t skip it.
Set a timer for 5 minutes.
Pull out your journal and reflect on this question:
Where in your life would accepting yourself just the way you are enhance your state of being?
Consider aspects of your personality, your body, your psychology, your performance at work or your relationship.
[Strategy 2: Balance Your Relationships]
Intention: Free up your energy by confronting resentment.
Identify one relationship in your life that feels unbalanced or causes you stress.
Initiate a conversation with this person, aiming to express your feelings and needs openly and honestly.
Reflect on this prompt before and after the conversation:
How does maintaining authenticity in my relationships contribute to my sense of acceptance and wholeness?
[Strategy 3: Engage With Nature]
Intention: Reconnect with the natural world to understand the balance of positive & negative and what natural wholeness looks like.
Set a time this week to take a 1 hour walk in nature.
As you begin your walk, reflect on this quote by Lao Tzu
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”
Contemplate where in your life you are hurrying, or forcing. What is being pushed or pulled too hard?
When embracing these strategies, remember that integrative wellbeing is a process of learning, awareness and gentle adjustments.
That’s it for now.