Since human life began, we’ve slowly been creeping along a path that gets ever more distracting by the day. At the same time, the environment is becoming more and more polluted as the industrial demands of the modern age take a toll. Inefficient and out-dated farming practices have even put our food and water supply in a precarious position.
For the sake of your health, it’s important to take a step away from these pollutants of the mind and body. No matter how resilient you are, constant exposure will leave anyone run down and exhausted. Whatever ails you, there’s a way to detoxify and get back to a better state.
Why is Detoxing So Important?
The human body is the filter through which we experience the world. Taken literally, the human body is, in all its complexity, a marvelous filter. Everything from light and sound stimulation filtered through the brain to gourmet meals and alcohol filtered through the digestive and excretory systems, your body does a lot for you on a day to day basis. Detoxing gives it the chance to repair without the constant assault of new stimuli.
No matter who you are, you could use some sort of detox. Maybe you have unexplained breakouts or need to reboot your skin’s natural barrier layer. Perhaps you’re worn out mentally- your thoughts are all out of focus, and you can’t concentrate. Maybe you’ve fallen into a few habits you need to break or drop a few pounds. Detoxes have been used to fix all of these issues. Perhaps they can fix yours.
Clearing Your Mind – Detoxing for Focus
Detoxing your mind is the best place to start- and the easiest. It requires no special tools (except perhaps a notebook and a pen.) The is the most introspective part of the Detox Spectrum, but shades of the primary exercises and principles found here will cover the length and breadth of it.
A mind detox can be many things but will primarily focus on building up willpower and confidence while breaking down negative thought patterns. Building a meditation practice, working with a cognitive behavioral therapist, and removing yourself from digital distractions for a weekend while you re-center are all excellent examples of a mental detox. If you just need a quick break from your thoughts while you calm down- any simple, repetitive task can do the trick- even washing the dishes.
Once you’ve sorted out anything that was making you feel mentally stuck, you may be back on track and think that no further work is needed. If you’re still feeling “off,” not to worry. A detox spectrum is a prominent place, and it’s possible that your diet is what’s affecting your mood.
Balancing Your Body – Detoxing For Better Skin and Energy
There are two main components to a skin repair “detox.” The first is the nutrition component or what you put in your body. The second is the skincare component aka what you put on your body.
A nutrition detox usually has you cut out a specific food or class of foods. It may have you focus on working a particular food into your life. Juice and smoothie cleanse belong here. When you first start changing up your nutrition, there will be a learning curve. You’ll learn which produce has the most pesticide exposure and then learn to tell the difference between organic and non-GMO.You might even start seeing a nutritionist.
The skincare component is less talked about. To perform a full skin cleansing detox, you will have to scrutinize your routine from top to bottom. Are the ingredients in your shampoos and lotions helping or hurting you over time? Is what it says on the label actually correct? Once you’ve made your product choices, you may go through a transition period. During this time, you need to pamper and cleanse your skin. To do so, you could book a trip to the spa or stay in and apply a green tea detox mask.
Clearing a Path – Detoxing from Indulgences and Bad Habits
From being chronically late to never getting enough sleep, bad habits affect everyone to some degree. These patterns hold us back and prevent our full potential from being realized. For many, it may even be hard to name all of your bad habits (and it can be too much pressure for a friend to point them out.)
That’s where a lifestyle detox comes in. It starts out simply enough. You make lists. Lists of things that don’t add to your life, lists of the things you want to change. And then you start by getting rid of things. If you wish you could keep up with the dishes, you pare down to fewer dishes. If you want to focus more on business, you get rid of the game console. Only once you’ve taken as much away as possible do you begin to realize how much of your behavior was tied to stuff.
The Strong Stuff – Detoxes and Addiction
Any time a person is affected by addiction, the detox process is serious business. A professional should be involved at some stage during the process. If the dependency falls under more of an emotional or intangible sphere, a counselor or support group leader may be all the help you need. However, if the detox you’re looking for is for something tangible that has had time to damage your physical health, medical professionals need to be involved.
Whether you are looking to begin an alcohol detox or detox from amphetamines, you should have someone act as your support. Not only will they keep you on track but once the detox begins, you may not be yourself. With all detoxes, you go through a phase that makes you want to give up. The worse the damage you’ve endured, the longer that dip is. The climb back to a healthy, balanced state isn’t easy either. Detoxing with someone to support you, either a friend, family member or professional, is critical.
The Detox Spectrum Has a Place for Everyone
If you want to get to a better state, mentally or physically, starting with a detox of any kind is a good idea. Bad habits, whether they’re thought patterns, learned behaviors, or daily indulgences, are hard to break. Once you can get past them, your way ahead will be nothing but smooth sailing.