Stress, it seems like we feel it now more than ever. The good news is you’re not alone. In fact, according to a starting Gallup poll from 2017, eight out of ten Americans are afflicted by stress.
While periodic stress can lead to temporary mood swings and headaches, chronic stress is linked to lower immunity and serious health conditions such as cancer, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, and more.
With the demands from home and work, it’s no wonder stress is on the rise, and while we may not be able to control what comes at us at times, we can take control of how we respond. With a grounding routine consisting of science-backed tools including meditation, yoga, and CBD, you can take control of your stress and lead a healthier life.
How can we work with our bodily systems?
Your body has the ultimate system that can help you on your journey to mitigate stress as long as you equally care for it: your endocannabinoid system (ECS). This is possibly the most ubiquitous and important neurological system in your body that helps maintain many physiological processes including immunity, mood, and overall health. Cannabinoids like CBD are considered a literal bridge between the body and mind, and can help maintain a healthy ECS through promoting homeostasis across bodily systems. Numerous research studies indicate that CBD can provide relief for a variety of conditions―one of the most well-supported of which, is stress. You can head over to our ECS blog for a deeper dive as well as our blog on top nutrition tips for a healthy ECS. In short, since your ECS is your biological response system, it can be affected by everything from your diet to exercise to your environment. Thus, caring for your ECS requires an Integrative Health Approach. What is Integrative Health? According to the Institute for Integrative Health, it is a “state of well-being in body, mind and spirit that reflects aspects of the individual, community, and population. It is affected by 1) individual biological factors and behaviors, social values, and public policy, 2) the physical, social, and economic environment, and 3) an integrative healthcare system that involves the active participation of the individual in the healthcare team in applying a broad spectrum of preventive and therapeutic approaches.” Our Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Nathan Walworth, is working with the USC Institute of Integrative Health to conduct studies that integrate CBD into wellness routines involving practices like meditation, yoga, and beyond.
An Integrative Health Routine that works for us
When something works, we share the wealth. That’s the culture of Integrative Health and Asha Apothecary. Our routine involves the powerful combination of CBD, yoga, and meditation. Now, every body is different, so you may have to slightly tweak different parts of this routine for you from the amount of CBD to the length of time you meditate. Our team loves the following:
CBD: 1 dropper full of either the 250mg or 500mg Asha Apothecary Broad-spectrum CBD tincture.
YOGA: Sink into a yoga session – the type and length depends on how we are feeling on this day. There are lots of great (free) yoga videos on YouTube and on various apps that allow you to practice yoga at home!
MEDITATION: Now, if you are new to meditation, it can sometimes be difficult to sit still and quiet the mind. Like with anything transformative, it takes consistency and practice, but over time the effects are priceless (read below). Newcomers can meditate for just 5 minutes and increase over time. Again, there are excellent YouTube videos and apps that can guide you through your meditation sessions – we highly recommend trying one if you’re new to meditation.
Yoga
According to India’s Ministry of External Affairs, yoga is “a spiritual discipline based on an extremely subtle science, which focuses on bringing harmony between mind and body.”
It was first practiced over 5,000 years ago in Northern India and later incorporated into the religious practices of Hinduism. Today, heath experts and citizens worldwide praise yoga for its health benefits including enhanced awareness and concentration, improved balance and posture, improved sleep and stress relief.
Yoga is also commonly practiced in conjunction with breathing exercises that are known to deliver benefits such as enhanced energy, improved cardiovascular functions, and of course, stress relief.
Meditation
Meditation and yoga are inextricably linked and commonly practiced together. There are different types of meditation but they are all generally intended to develop concentration, clarity, emotional positivity, and mindfulness.
Concentration-based meditation centers on endured focus on a single concept or object like a candle flame or your breath.
Mindfulness meditation centers on immersion yourself in the present and maximizing your awareness and acceptance of your current mental, physical, and emotional state.
Over time, mindfulness will naturally improve. While this makes sense, it is also backed by science. For example, Health Line published an article on the benefits of meditation highlighting scientific studies validating specific benefits including stress relief, emotional health and wellbeing, improved sleep, and increased memory and attention were among other benefits. Sounds pretty integrative to us 🙂
Your grounding ritual
Based on the three pillars outlined above, CBD, yoga, and meditation are science-backed life ingredients that can be integrated into a holistic lifestyle that promotes stress relief, emotional well-being, physical health, improved sleep, and increased memory and focus. This powerful combination can give your ECS the ultimate defense and leads to an enriched life full of experience and connection.
This practice requires dedication even though at times it can seem difficult. But in a world of chaos, rituals like these can ground you and create calm amidst uncertainty. With consistency, you can turn a new chapter and rise to each challenge day by day as you move towards a sense of inner peace and clarity that allows you to focus and be a positive force for others. After all, it can be hard to act for the health of our planet if we cannot first help ourselves and those we love.
We thank you for reading and hope this information can help in some way as it has done for us. Much love from all of us at Asha.