News and Events
During Organic Fortnight, from
6-21 September 2008, the Soil Association will
be raising awareness of the benefits of organic production
with a range of celebrations.
Find out what events are happening in your area, promote
your own event, and get involved. Visit www.soilassociation.org/organicfortnight.
21st September is International Day of Peace. Established
by the UN in 1981, International Day of Peace is a Day
of Ceasefire – personal or political. Take this opportunity
to make peace in your own relationships as well as impact
the larger conflicts of our time. With 328 global political
conflicts raging around the world, imagine what a whole
Day of Ceasefire would mean to humankind. www.internationaldayofpeace.org.
22nd September is World Car-Free Day. Find out how to
revitalise our towns and cities and create a sustainable
future with alternatives to using your car. In addition
to serving the carfree movement, www.worldcarfree.net offers
resources for architects, planners, teachers/professors,
students, decision-makers and engaged citizens.
Why do we need to heal? What is
it about being in the rat race that causes us so much
discontentment and dis-ease?
With some studies showing that over 70% of office workers
in the UK are currently suffering some form of ill health
as a result of their jobs, it seems pertinent to explore
downshifting as a healthier alternative.
Downshifting in a nut shell is about choosing to trade
some of our income for simplicity and time. When we engage
with those things, simplicity and time, in a wholesome,
life-serving way, they have the potential to heal us
in body, mind and spirit and also to maintain us in that
healthy state.
Healing Your Body.
What are the physical stresses we impose on our bodies?
In a fast paced, achievement focussed, money-driven existence,
we snack on junk food, eat for comfort, forget to exercise
and do not give ourselves permission to relax. The result
in the extreme can be heart disease, cancer, diabetes,
arthritis and chronic fatigue states.
Downshifting can free us up to
make dramatic improvements to our health and wellbeing.
In setting aside some time
to pay attention to our nutrition, for example, we can
decide to return to eating freshly prepared, nutritious
food at regular meal times that are in alignment with
our body’s needs. We can seek support in returning
to or setting up regular and enjoyable exercise habits.
We can attach some priority to relaxation as an essential
part of every day, valuing the regeneration work that
our bodies are programmed to do for us, once we stop
rushing around and start resting.
Healing your Mind
Being in the rat race can set up numerous emotional
stresses, from pressures on our time and energy, to office
politics and unrealistic expectations that we and others
may have of us. If left untreated, these stresses can
lead to depression, anger, insomnia, resentment, addictions
and confusion.
How do we simplify what is going
on in our minds? Stress is not what other people do
to us, but rather how we
respond to what they do. Pain is what happens, suffering
is our response. So, we can relieve the stress by deciding
to change how we respond to the mental pressures on us.
Downshifting happens on a mental level as well as in
the physical realm, by focussing our minds on what is
truly most important to us. I do a lot of values and
beliefs work with my clients, much more process work
than goal setting, just as much looking at how to "be" as
working out what to "do". This is the nature
of downshifting our mental processes – giving ourselves
the time to uncover our core values and then deciding
to focus on them. This mental simplification in turn
frees up our time – time to think, to prioritise,
to be grateful, to unwind.
Re-discovering your Spirit
What do we feel in the spiritual
part of our being that seems like stress? If you’re
feeling disconnected, lethargic, uninspired, not truly
present in the world,
or reluctant to take responsibility for yourself, then
you could well benefit from paying more attention to
your spiritual side.
How do we do that? There are two
remedies I would suggest for re-kindling that pure,
undamaged spark of life that
is present in all of us. The first is through adopting
some form of spiritual practice, such as T’ai Chi,
Prayer, Qui Kong, Yoga, or Meditation. The second is
through finding out what inspires you and making a habit
of it. This might be spending time in nature, reading
particular books, watching inspiring films, spending
time with inspiring people etc. The key to optimising
your spiritual wellbeing is to view these kinds of activities
not as luxuries, but as essential parts of your life.
For many of my clients and downshifted friends, those
two remedies go hand in hand and the best results, in
terms of personal happiness, are obtained by adopting
both of them together.
Conclusion
The stresses imposed on our body, mind and spirit by
living in the rat race can lead to ill health that affects
every part of our being. In contrast, by simplifying
our lives and freeing up our time, we have the potential
not only to heal ourselves, but also to maintain our
optimum wellbeing and thus increase our overall happiness.
