Wellness And Why It's Important For A Healthier Lifestyle by Kiara Williams
By Kiara Williams: Co-Founder of Warriors In The Garden
Am I the only one who feels as though 2021 has flown by? October already? Where has the year gone?
Wellness, amongst other things, is a component within self-care. Quarantine was a reality check for the global population, at least I would hope so. A few post-pandemic conclusions during my quarantine self-reflections were overworking, prioritizing other individuals and goals before myself, realizing that I’ve repressed a handful of emotions that were stunting my personal growth and the decline of self love in my everyday routine.
How does this relate to wellness? Each time I assisted others in solving their problems whilst negating my own and harming the relationships in my life, was a major disservice to my well-being. I began to be dishonest with myself, eventually feeling fatigued, numb, sporadic severe depressive episodes, lonely, out of touch with reality and to sum it up, robotic. I have Vitamin D deficiency, my immune system weakens during season changes, I like to skateboard for fun and I need breaks from work when I’m overwhelmed.
Learning whether we treat ourselves and our bodies good or bad, will determine how we ultimately navigate the world. This has enhanced a sense of balance that I’ve never experienced before the past two years. As an activist, I give so much energy to the community (gladly) but if I don’t take care of myself I won’t be able to do things I enjoy. Of course I’m not peachy keen all the time and there’s no shame in that. Everyone has low days and high days. My goal is definitely to experience more high days than low.
From me to you, I feel it’s vital to ensure you’re taking care of yourself because you’ll flourish into the best version of yourself. If you’re someone who is trying to grasp why you’re always tired even though you sufficiently rest or how come friendships are failing or why are you unhappy even though you’re stable financially, how have you been treating yourself lately? Wellness and self-care can be distorted on many sources of media such as TikTok, Instagram, fashion blogs, Twitter and just about any platform that uses words and pictures, but there are some trustworthy individuals out there when it comes to divulging in wellness.
I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Kate Glavan, co-host of What the F*ck is Sea Moss? Debunking the Wild World of Wellness and one of my primary sources for legitimate wellness content.
How would you describe wellness? What encouraged / inspired you to integrate wellness into your daily life?
“I got interested in wellness out of an effort to heal my relationship with my body after struggling with an eating disorder. I never wanted to feel the way I did in high school --depleted of energy and nutrition, unhealthy, moody, etc. Now I have routines and rituals that make me feel good. It’s become a commitment to myself to find healing practices -- making sure I take care of myself in order to work towards larger goals for a better world.” -K.G.
What are your favorite wellness brands, items, supplies, etc?
“I take a multivitamin by Ritual, probiotic by Seed. Those have been my staples for
sometime now. Magnesium is another really important supplement to me for stress and sleep. I try my best to diversify the brands I test out to see if there are any new things on the market that could help me feel my best. At the same time, I try to view wellness outside of consumerism. It’s so frustrating that a lot of self-care has been co-opted by consumerism. Thus things like going on walks, building community, staying connected with the world around me are also practices of “wellness” to me.” -K.G.
How do you navigate wellness when you're feeling depressed and/or just not in the mood for self-care?
“It honestly depends. Sometimes “self-care” is lying in bed watching TikTok for hours, sometimes it is lacing up my shoes to go on a run even when I don’t want to do so. Allowing myself a range of options when the depressed slumps hit, is one way to give myself a toolkit to get through those times.” -K.G.
Could you share 3 to 4 wellness tips / advice for the audience?
1.Integrate new habits into your existing routines. It’s not going to be sustainable to try to imagine yourself running 12 miles tomorrow if you’ve never done so. Think about a few areas you want to work on -- see how you can upgrade what you’re already doing so it’s not as overwhelming.
3. Only supplement for targeted health concerns. Supplements are not regulated by the FDA, thus there is so much opportunity for brands to prey upon trends and buzzy wellness topics -- making us think we have health problems we don’t really have.
4. Make sure you’re addressing actual health concerns, vetting brands you purchase, doing your own research since it is the wild world of wellness. K.G.
What works for Kate may not work for me and you or what works for Kate may work for all of us. You’ll never know until you venture and want to experience better. All individuals are different. So research wellness, get a check-up to figure out what you’re struggling with health wise and discover the sources of your less happy emotions and body aches. The work of integrating wellness into your livelihood begins with you.
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