My life priorities in these unprecedented times – covid -19

25/05/2020 / Peak Health / 1 Comment

MY LIFE PRIORITIES IN THESE UNPRECEDENTED TIMES 
by Warun Mehta – Nutritionist | Peak Health Coach | Ecologist

 

A lot of people have contacted me asking about what I am doing to protect myself in these extraordinary times as well my thoughts on how best to navigate the current situation. I thought about how I could describe it and came up with this pyramid that illustrates my life priorities nowadays. I hope these can be of help to you. Do remember that our priorities should remain dynamic in response to the changing times. 

 

Extraordinary times call for a special set of life priorities. Here are mine

Protection

I absolutely honour the advice from the World Health Organisation, local Governments and the medical establishment with regards to social distancing, staying at home and maintaining basic cleanliness and body hygiene (frequent and thorough hand washing and watching out for fomites). These suggestions are pretty solid for the current scenario, not the long term, especially the sanitisers and soaps (I will do a follow up post after the pandemic is over in which I will explain why). For now, very apt. As I said earlier, extraordinary times call for different priorities. Hence these measures are the first and second priorities. 

Our body’s building and repair functions take place during Sleep. Only in sleep the liver and kidney can do purification of blood. 70% of our immunity is in the Gut. A minimum of 8 hours sleep in the dark helps our Gut filter the toxins, bring down inflammation caused by the many stressors (dietary and non-dietary) in our lives, regulates our temperature, lets the body perform all necessary functions for our optimum performance during the day and most importantly, builds immunity cells. Quality sleep and rest during the day is absolutely fundamental to enhance our Immunity. Naturally, it is next on the priority list. If you’re having trouble getting quality sleep, you can contact us and we can help you out. 

Any Virus, and that includes the COVID-19, can survive and multiply only in an acidic medium. When we keep our body and our psyche (everything that is not our physical body i.e. our mind, soul, spirit) alkaline, we are essentially stripping the Virus of it’s breeding ground. Alkaline Nutrition implies more fruit (especially citric nowadays) and veggies, zero processed foods, smoking and alcohol out and minimum inflammatory foods. Nutrition is a vast subject but let’s focus on the basics for now. If you are facing a challenge procuring seasonal fruits and veggies, go for dried fruits and roots and tubers. Consume more sprouts, nuts, pulses and beans. These non-perishables are also very useful. If citric fruits are not easily available, substitute with lime and lemon. Naturally obtained Vitamin C is crucial in fortifying your internal defence system. During this period, it is a good idea to stay away from all animal based foods, even dairy, as they hinder the absorption of Vitamin C in the body. 

Remember, COVID-19 enters our body through our respiratory tract. The stronger our lungs and our respiratory system, better equipped we are to fight the infection. I do a solid round of breath work (Pranayam) every day while getting my morning Sunlight (super important for the body, especially nowadays) to strengthen my respiratory system and to get some fresh oxygen in. I also bolster my immune system specifically against respiratory infections by consuming some home brewed herbal concoctions. A strong immunity is not built overnight. It takes months. However, there are some specific steps one can take to keep viral and bacterial invasions at bay and above are a few of them. Not all solutions are found in the conventional medical system. 

 

Happiness

The next step in my Pyramid is Mind-Body connection. Do recall what I mentioned in the Alkaline section – to keep your psyche alkaline as well. Don’t let Fear overtake you. There is a huge Mind-Body connection. I cannot overstate it. What we expose ourselves to regularly creeps into our daily conversation, becomes our self talk and eventually our reality. Insulate yourself from the constant bombardment of news, statistics and sensationalism. The Truth is that this too shall pass and good times will return. I have no doubt about that. Help your body release Happy chemicals like dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin naturally and frequently. This is done through rest, laughter, exercise, sunlight, music, dance, bonding with family, a hug of a loved one, connecting with friends, being kind, doing what you love, engaging in a creative pursuit. All these help in keeping our Stress levels low and our overall disposition happy. 

 

What Really Matters

Pay attention to your Primary Food. Look, what’s on our plate is Secondary food. Primary Food also nourishes us and on a much deeper level. It is what makes us human. It includes – 
❖ Investing time in and deepening your core relationships. Basking in love, joy and connection.
❖ Staying active and incorporating fun exercise (whatever is fun for you) for a minimum of 20 minutes every day based on your capability –  from light movement to intense. There are plenty of these online. 
❖ Cultivating or deepening your spiritual practice. I will talk more about it later in this post. . 
❖ Taking what you do for a living to the next level or make the required course correction. Your Work defines you in the eyes of the world. This is the time to analyse and make the changes if required, sharpen your skill sets and ensure that your work is meaningful and fulfilling for you. It is also time for planning, dreaming and creation in the context of your work. 

What really makes our lives worth living is a strong sense of Purpose. Continuing from the previous point about work, it becomes a blessing if we can align our work with our passion, our calling and our Soul’s purpose. Use this gift of time to do some Deep Work on this. Reflect and make the required changes. Also do what you love but haven’t been able to. it is deeply nourishing and healing for the Soul. Think of the current scenario as Nature’s way of gifting us a Reset button. What we do with it will determine our future course as a new world order emerges. Make no mistake, it will be a new world order from here on. My wish for you is that you are ready for the new paradigm.    Give what you want   And finally, as I always say, the quickest and surest way to get what you want – in this case, Peak Health and keeping the Virus at bay, wish the same for others. Sit quietly every day, pray for the world and send healing, loving vibes to all those affected by it (and their loved ones) around the world. Give the gift of health.   Also use this time to connect with the Universal energy, beauty and all creation in the world. Have Faith that something good is going to come of it. Seek strength to get through it. Focus on the bigger, brighter picture, laughter, joy, gratitude, family, self reflection and becoming a Light unto the world.    My goal is for you to emerge out of the current situation happier, healthier, leaner, fearless, passionate and filled with compassion and kindness for yourself, your fellow beings and the Planet.
   

In Peak Health,

Warun Mehta

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