Our physical health is declining, and the 2017-18 Australian Bureau of statistics showed that 67% of Australian adults were overweight. The rates of diabetes has also tripled over the last 3 decades (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare). According to the Black Dog Institute, 1 in 5 Australians experience mental illness and 54% of those do not seek help. Missions Australia’s latest survey states that 1 in 4 young people are at the risk of serious mental illness. Another alarming statistic is that young people seek help reluctantly and go through this challenging period of their lives feeling very alone. We need to take a stand in how we are supporting, dealing and creating solutions to reverse this issue. We need to step out of contemplation and directly into action.

A large portion of how we are managing our lifestyles is impacted by stress and lack of true connection. This us where the solution lies. We need to stop focusing so much on the unwanted or unhelpful behaviours and look deeper into what is driving that behaviour.

What is driving the need to drink a bottle of wine every night? What is driving the junk food binges? What is driving the insomnia, the headaches, the chronic pain? What factors are driving the multitude of addictions that we have in place to make our lives feel more manageable?

Dr Mark Hyman states,‘95% of all illness is either caused by or worsened by stress.’ So, I ask you to stop for a moment today and question how much stress do you have in your life and how much is this stress negatively impacting you? Do you feel exhausted and completely stressed out when you come home from work and the thought of preparing a healthy meal is the last thing on your mind? Are you desperately seeking to lose yourself in binge watching Netflix with your favourite chocolate bar and bottle of wine until its time to repeat the cycle again? How are you consciously choosing to re-calibrate and reset your stress levels?

Most of us have some sort of power in this situation and once we have contemplated how our current lives and automatic habits are not serving us, we can then start creating actionable steps and seek support. We can ask for help and we can choose a healthier path.

Remember the quality of our lives will be shaped and impacted by the quality of our habits. What are the daily habits that are shaping your life?

As Victor Frankl states, ‘When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.’

My own journey has taught me this. Above all else, I choose to value my mental, emotional and physical health. I choose to be aware of how my daily habits are taking me towards being my MEGA SELF. I need to constantly focus on my reason WHY and the benefits in prioritizing the time to create habits that take me towards my WHY.

WHY do I choose to live a life that is in accordance with my values? Why is health so important to me? How does everyone around me benefit when I am creating a life that honors my WHY?

Today I would like to share with you my MEGA SELF INITIATIVE – simple strategies that have had a huge impact in creating balance and emotional well being in my life and those of my clients. I will continue to write in more depth about the value and evidence in each strategy. For now however, I would invite you to think about which aspects, you could include in your daily life, to becoming your MEGA healthy SELF.

This framework is the basis for change, the basis for health and the basis for living a more conscious life. At its epigenetic core, it is a framework to program our DNA for health from the inside out.

Perhaps we can’t change our circumstances, or at this exact time, where our society is headed. But we can change our internal response and how we choose to live our life. This isn’t about creating a life that isn’t devoid of stress and challenge but a life in which we feel empowered to move consciously through the stress and challenge in a way that take us towards our best life.

Work with Michele as your personal health coach – Book a FREE chat HERE.

Book Michele to talk at your workplace or school HERE – The space between stimulus and response – Becoming your MEGA SELF every day.

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