NOURISH: Your Mind

Good evening, it is April 26^th 2022. I am Dr. Aneeta Madhok, Coaching Psychologist and Integrative Nutrition Health Coach.

I am an Integrative Nutrition Health coach qualified from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in the US. By profession, I am a Coaching Psychologist and I went through a self-healing health transformation a few years ago. I coach people to lead healthy and vibrant lives, with a special focus on diabetes and obesity. Because I am a psychologist, for Health Coaching I focus on the mind-body, Heart and Soul of my clients. Each client is on his or her own journey and the coaching helps achieve many milestones along the say.

The topic for today is NOURISH:  Your mind.

This is the first of a four part series on NOURISH Your Mind, Body, Heart and Soul. I will invite all who are present, to actively post their comments in the space below.

How I differentiate the MIND from the Heart, soul and body is that the mind is the thinking part of who we are? We can learn some of life’s most important questions through a thinking process. We can think through our feelings, and gain insights into our purpose and learn from thinking process.

There is a book by Harold Percival called “Thinking and Destiny” which outlines the “Law of Thought” Some words that are attributed to the Buddha are

            Watch your thoughts, for they become your Words

            Watch your words, for they become Actions

            Watch your actions, for they become Habits

            Watch your Habits, for they become Character

            Watch your character or they become your Destiny.

So your thoughts become your destiny.

At Integrative Living, when I coach my clients towards better health, I go beyond simple food and diet and exercise changes for better health. I encourage and facilitate the client to explore their thinking patterns and reflect on their own story. Sometimes I precipitate change by encouraging clients to write a new story for themselves and create new thinking patterns around what their life is about. In scientific terms this is called neuro-plasticity. The creation of new neural networks to achieve transformation of thoughts and consequently, whole person health transformation at all levels.

So, Nourishing your mind is about nourishing your thinking patterns so that they create energy and good things like positivity and optimism in life, sense of well-being and an acceptance, non-judgemental equanimity in one’s outlook in life.

Nourish your mind with eight tips from me:

1. Be better informed about your choices (read everything before doing anything). Whether you are choosing the food on your plate, or the job you are going to do, or what you are going to do with your time, or career, or anything major in life, be better informed. Take into account both sides of the issue and then take a stand and decisions based on what you truly believe in. Seek advice from many, adopt some of it into your own thinking and then take steps forward in a considered manner
2. Validate your assumptions (introspect)

Think about the assumptions you make about people, places, events, and even about yourself. Last week a client was sharing how he wanted to take a plunge and leave his job to start a business but did not have the guts to do so. He tells himself the same story each time he has to take the decisions in life :  He keeps telling himself, “I don’t have the guts to do this”. There are a whole lot of assumptions underlying this thought. When we introspect we observe our thoughts and examine our assumptions. When we do this and clarify our thinking, we change the story of our life and align. So, Introspection is nourishment for the mind

3. Be curious about life and other people (discover)

The world is a big place. So many people on a journey of their lives. So many different stories…. Its fascinating! Just observing others, its amazing what we learn. The most fascinating feeling is the feeling of discovery! Its new, its novel, eureka, enlightening. The mind is energised, refreshed, re-engineered. New connections made in the brain. So, discover new people, places, events, food, thoughts, and everything possible in the world.

4. Understand yourself (without judgment)

You just have to know…. Only know, yourself. Just observe and find out what you are. Nothing wrong with you at all…. And nothing superior about you either. You are just what you are. That is a thought that doesn’t come easy. As we are born, we are passed on judgment and labelled with good and bad qualities. Strengths and weaknesses…seriously, I feel its so funny when others take it upon themselves to approve or disapprove of any person, situation or thing. Things are what they are? What is the need within you to give it a good or bad connotation? Maybe the answer to this question will encourage the mind to nourish itself and grow to the next level. i

5. Withhold judgment of others (acceptance)

Train your mind not to pass judgment on others. The act of separating good and bad based on your internal dynamics depletes the mind of positive energy and infuses negative energy.

6. Listen well (wait and watch)

There is an interesting acronym I believe in: WAIT. Why Am I Talking? Do I need to intervene? When I speak, what is the context in which I am entering? Who are the other players? Do I need to interrupt at this point? Would it be better if I did not speak now? Choose your moments of interaction strategically and wisely

7. Act according to your intentions. We lose sight of our intentions often. What is the purpose with which we started out? What would be achieved by meeting that purpose? How is this important to me? How will it change my life for the better?
8. My last tip for you is to GET A HEALTH COACH WHO BELIEVES IN YOU: NOW!!! WE could all do with a coach who understands, and gently nudges you in the right direction. So, an Integrative Health Coach is one who puts the integration into your health. Integration of mind-body, Heart & Soul

April 26^th, 2022

Aneeta Madhok, PhD