When symptoms are noticeable, you might find it difficult to maintain a gut-level knowing that you will heal.

I invite you to try out this 3-minute recording of health affirmations. Take what you like and leave the rest.

I heard someone say that one way to think of affirmations is that they are like seeds that you’re planting. They need to be nurtured to mature.

Have you heard of Jon Kabat-Zinn? He’s a pioneer of the Western mindfulness movement, and has spent more than 40 years studying, teaching, and advocating the benefits of mindfulness.

In fact, he’s the founder of a world-renowned Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Clinic.

Jon’s 29-minute guided body scan meditation is suitable for those on a Mineral-Nutritional Balancing program because it encourages acceptance of our body, which is important even while we’re consciously making changes.

A phrase I consider both humorous and touching in this meditation is “From the perspective of mindfulness practice, as long as you’re breathing there’s more right with you than wrong with you, no matter what the condition of your body and its history, and no matter what you are facing in this moment.”

Do you know your body can’t tell the difference between fake laughter and real laughter? Indian physician Madan Kataria put this fun fact to good use when he developed Laughter Yoga. It combines laughter exercises with yogic breathing.

Among its many benefits:

• when we laugh we naturally exhale longer than inhale—this releases more carbon dioxide from our lungs than with usual breathing and increases our capacity for taking in oxygenated air (see Kataria illustrate it in this 10-minute video)
• it encourages deep breathing using our diaphragm (versus shallow breathing from our chest), which activates the parasympathetic (rest and digest) branch of the autonomic nervous system
• And because Laughter Yoga is typically done in a group setting (in person and online), fake laughter often turns into the real thing when you see others laughing too.

More at Laughter Yoga International.

Jessica Maguire is a physiotherapist who has also studied neurophysiology, learning from pain researchers, professors in neuroplasticity, neuroscientists, and psychologists as to how the brain and nervous system change from stress, trauma, and chronic pain.

One of the most common questions that she gets asked is why some tools, classes, or resources can make nervous system dysregulation worse.

Jessica responds to this question in the video below.

Near the end, she explains that the nervous system loves choice, and regulation comes from listening to it and from honoring its needs. Jessica developed a worksheet that illustrates “if then” statements, and gives you space to write your own.

If you visit Jessica’s website, you’ll see that she offers a course and masterclass. I’m not connected with these. I’m sharing the video and worksheet with you because on their own they are informative and practical.

Dr. Paul Eck (founder of Mineral-Nutritional Balancing) once said, “He who hesitates is lost. You can strengthen your adrenals through nutrition and supplements. But you can also strengthen your adrenals by making a decision. Action frees the adrenals; indecision poisons the adrenals. Indecision is like stepping on the gas and the brake at the same time. The more you analyze and waver, and question your decision, the more you weaken the adrenals. That’s why analysis breeds paralysis.”

When you get overwhelmed by making a choice, when you can’t decide between A and B, you often settle for C or you end up paralyzed, procrastinating, or making no decision at all.

In this 13-minute video by therapist Emma McAdam of the Youtube channel Therapy in a Nutshell, you’ll learn the 3 underlying causes of decision paralysis, and 2 keys to overcoming it.

Have you heard of Polyvagal Theory?

If your response is “poly what?”, you are not alone. Or you may have heard the term, but not a clear explanation.

The theory was developed by Stephen Porges, who revolutionized how we see our body’s stress response, and how we process stress in our bodies.

Although the theory is applicable to anyone, people with any of these patterns on their Hair Analysis chart—Bowl, Calcium Shell, Four Lows, L-shaped, Lifestyle, and Three & Four Highs—could find it particularly relevant.

I have chosen four videos by Sukie Baxter of the YouTube channel Whole Body Revolution because she offers a simple explanation plus three approaches to incorporating the theory in a practical way.

There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than breathing. Yet—as journalist James Neston concludes after travelling the world—we have lost the ability to breathe correctly. Fortunately, modern research is showing that making even slight adjustments to the way we inhale and exhale can jump-start athletic performance; rejuvenate internal organs; halt snoring, asthma, and autoimmune disease; and even straighten scoliotic spines. Neston covers this and more in his book Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art.

Intrigued? The publisher’s site offers an excerpt from the print version and a clip from the audiobook.

In this 12-minute video, the author describes simple ways to improve your breathing.

Walking barefoot, working in soil with bare hands, and sleeping in contact with the ground was an ordinary part of life in the past. It allowed the transfer of the Earth’s energy into the body.

When is the best time of year for you to comfortably expose some of your skin outside? That’s the ideal time for earthing/grounding, a practice that fits into my strategy #2: Bodymind Balance.

Here are a few tips:

• Put bare skin (e.g. hands, feet, legs) on grass, soil, sand, stone, brick, unsealed gravel, or unpainted/unsealed concrete built directly on the earth.
• The transfer of energy happens more easily on moist surfaces (e.g. wet grass).
• Immerse yourself in water that conducts energy (e.g. ocean, mineral hot springs, mineral-rich lake).

Learn about the benefits of earthing plus more on the Earthing Institute website.

Are you an ‘asker’ or a ‘guesser’? Why does it matter? You’ll find out during this 15-minute video by therapist Emma McAdam of the YouTube channel Therapy in a Nutshell.

With her relaxed and humorous approach, Emma shares several scenarios to illustrate the asker/guesser concept, and then considers the strengths and limitations of each. Finally, she offers 5 tips on how to use this awareness to benefit your relationships.

Gabor Maté MD is an author, speaker, and thought leader in the fields of addiction and trauma, and is well known for his research into the connection between mind and body health.

His book When the Body Says No: The Cost of Hidden Stress is filled with moving stories of real people. He explores how emotion and psychological stress play a significant role in the onset of chronic illness. Maté demystifies medical science and invites us all to be our own health advocates. This book fits into my strategy #2: Bodymind Balance.

Interested? The Mind/Body Health page on Maté’s website offers numerous resources on this topic.