Hippie Shit I Do to Be Healthier
If you told me when I was growing up that at 37 years old I’d become a fucking hippie who believed in the idea of “grounding” by putting my un-shoe’d feet on the ACTUAL goddamn Earth while listening to whale sounds and drinking chlorophyll during my daily 6 AM walk, I would have barfed in your face, because nothing could have been more revolting, or farther from my identity. Damn, if you told me that 6 months ago, I would have thought you were cuckoo bananz.
Okay, so maybe I’m not a full hippie yet - if you ever see me even procure incense, it’s only because I’ve decided to burn my house down, with me in it. But I’ve adopted some New Age-adjacent practices because I am a high stress bitch.
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I don’t need to tell you the risk factors associated with high levels of stress…
BUT I WILL ANYWAY! Some of the problems that develop from heightened stress include:
Fatigue and disrupted sleep
Overeating or weight gain
Undereating
High blood pressure
Low sex drive
Gastrointestinal issues, like constipation, diarrhea, and nausea.
Chest pain
I’ve experienced a lot of these over the past few years, and now that I’m looking down the barrel at 40, I realized I can’t just play fast and loose with my bullshit anymore if I want to live a long, healthy life. My shift to a hippie lifestyle has been gradual, kind of like the boiling frog allegory. It started with my diet many years ago, which then led to my exposure to things like the importance of sleep, which parlays itself to meditation (spoiler alert: I still don’t have a meditation practice, but I’m sure I will by the end of the year), and so before you know it, you’re up to your hairy armpits in Ashwagandha, sound bowls, and questionable mushroom choices.
Ultimately, we’re talking about healthy practices, and they’re not just for hippies anymore, thank god, cus I really like showering. My focus on implementing these healthy practices really started to crystallize earlier this year. I was finally settling into the routine of caring for a child (how the government just lets people procreate without any kind of tutelage is truly a mystery for the ages), but I still hadn’t figured out how to incorporate my makeup and hair routine in the day. Like I said…I’m never gonna be full hippie.
Goldie is still clingy and not interested in solo play for more than 35 seconds at a time, so bringing her into my bathroom while I do my makeup wasn’t an option since it would quickly devolve into a rousing game of “NOT FOR GOLDIE,” interspersed with long stretches of holding her while trying to do my entire face one-handed. And while she does take a nap, I don’t want to use the one chunk of time I get to relax to groom. Like, yes, I very much enjoy grooming, but I also enjoy sitting on my ass eating an uninterrupted meal and watching Real Housewives of ANYWHERE in goddamn peace. So, I had to succumb to my new reality and was essentially forced to waking up before my kid.
I guess he got sick of my shit, so Kyle suggested I listen to a podcast called Lifespan – he thought it might help me understand the benefit of an earlier wakeup time, outside of just getting my eyeliner gooped and gagged. As unbelievable as becoming a hippie was, the idea of waking up at 6 AM was even more impossible to believe…unicorns would have been more possible to me! And yet, here we are. I am now a person who wakes up at 6 AM every.single.day. But that’s just where my new healthy routines begin.
Here is a list of the things I’m doing currently to life a healthier, longer life:
I use a light alarm clock, so instead of a horrible jolting sound, I wake up to a light that simulates the sun, helping to reset my circadian rhythm.
My phone is no longer next to my bed. Instead, I plug it in at the opposite end of the bedroom or in the bathroom. This way, I can’t do shit on my phone unless/until I get out of bed. Works like a charm.
After peeing, brushing my teeth, and applying sunscreen, I pop on my favorite eye patches (and sometimes white strips) and put on my workout clothes.
I fill a large tumbler with ice and water and add Chlorophyll drops to the water to help with liver function, digestions, and inflammation. They’re tasteless and turn your water green, which, I’m sorry, is just FUN!
Then, I go on my 20-minute morning walk. Why 20 minutes? Cus it’s what I have time for. I would love to do 30 minutes or even an hour when the weather is nice, but since it’s before Goldie wakes up, I have limited time to work with. Sun exposure first thing in the morning is proven to activate your circadian rhythm and ensures you get a dose of Vitamin D (just make sure you’re properly protected and wear sunscreen!). On this walk, I’ll often listen to 528hz frequency. Basically, if you’ve ever been to a spa, you’ve heard 528hz frequency. It’s not really music so much as tones. I guess it emulates whale sounds or some shit, but it’s been known to help with relaxing your central nervous system and even repairing DNA. Idk, but I figure it doesn’t hurt and it *is* relaxing.
I have childcare during the day on Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays, so I’m always able to get a solid workout those days. I follow a weight training program that I do in our home gym. I almost always try to talk myself out of it, but I don’t, and when it’s over, I feel SO good. I know you’ve heard it a million times, so let this be the millionth and first - working out reduces stress.
I’ve been doing 16–hour fasting windows. According to the research that Harvard Medical school professor David Sinclair has conducted on longevity, fasting at least 16 hours has proven to activate sirtuins which help with increasing life span. So, I usually eat my first meal of the day around 10:30 AM (assuming I finish eating at 6:30 PM).
I’m simplifying my daily menu a LOT. I used to believe I needed to eat a ton of variety – I also used to have a lot more time on my hands to make whatever the mood struck that day. These days, I realize that the more latitude and ambiguity I give myself, the more likely I am to deviate from my healthy eating intentions. So, my first meal of the day is one of two things I like to eat best: avocado toast (which I usually add ham to for protein) or oatmeal (which I add protein powder to). For lunch, I’m switching to protein shakes because like I said, I have much less time on my hands. Plus, by eating my first meal later in the day, I’m not as hungry mid-day, so protein drinks are a great compromise.
Goldie is obsessed…like, serial killer–level obsessed with being outside. So, in addition to my solo morning walk, we usually take two more walks outside during the day. One in the morning and another in the afternoon. Again, I apply sunscreen to us both, but I find it healing to be outside so much. In fact, being outside is a big reason we wanted to move back to Virginia after living in the crotch of America for 4 years. I love that she likes to get out so much. Even though it was important to me to take advantage of the nature we live in, I definitely would stay inside a lot more if it weren’t for her. It means more movement, more Vitamin D exposure, and more opportunities to relax my reptilian brain, which ultimately means lowered stress levels.
I learned the hard way that trying to start making dinner at 5 PM is a recipe for disaster and spiked cortisol levels. So now, I start making dinner sometimes at 8 AM. Usually, I roast vegetables in advance of dinner, or at least prep them so all I have to do is put them in the oven 20-30 minutes before we want to eat. I take advantage of Goldie’s nap times, or the weekend when Kyle can be on her, to rinse, peel, and chop veggies we want to use that week (for example, I chop my brussel sprouts before I put them in the fridge, and I peel and chop carrots and celery then place them in a tupperware with an inch of water for easy use throughout the week). This helps meal preparation go a lot quicker and more relaxed.
I’m a Cancer, which apparently means my home is very important to me. This feels very accurate, so I tend to believe it. Like, I can not relax if my house is a shitshow. So, after dinner, I take time to clean the kitchen, put Goldie’s toys away, and do any laundry that’s left from the day. While Kyle gets Goldie ready for bed, I also prep our bedroom – kinda like a hotel turn-down service. I get the pillows the way I like, turn the sheet back, clear nightstands, set the alarm, pull down the shades, and light a candle, so that when we finally go to our room, it’s relaxing and inviting. This is kind of a new thing, but goddamn I love it!
Once Goldie is down, we finally have time to ourselves. And the first thing we almost always do is a 20-25 minute sauna. I also like to play 528hz music while I sit in the sauna. It’s a real privilege to have a barrel sauna in your home, and we don’t take a second of it for granted. Heat therapy like a sauna is renowned for its impact on your cardiovascular system, and thus, longevity. It’s also just hella relaxing. Both Kyle and I have noticed how much better we sleep on the nights we sauna.
After the sauna, it’s a tepid shower (I’m not quite ready for cold showers yet). I try to keep lights low to help with my circadian rhythm. After that, I do my nighttime skincare, take a melatonin, and often get into bed (that I’ve previously turned down for myself) and watch crap tv. I realize tvs in the bedroom are highly problematic but like, let me live, fuck. It’s only like 8:30 PM when we do this. We keep it light and watch Good Mythical Morning or Buttery Brothers to keep our energy light. Sometimes Kyle shares his Beam with me, which works so well, I hate to admit it.
I’m usually asleep by 9:30–10 PM and for the most part, sleep uninterrupted through the night.
AND THEN I WAKE UP TO MY SLEEP PARALYSIS DEMON!!
Just kidding, but wouldn’t that be ironic?!?! A couple months ago, I also did a sleep hypnosis session that was really interesting. It was essentially a tailored, guided meditation and came with a recording so I could listen to it as I went to sleep. In addition to the meditation itself, my hypnotizer…hypnosee…HYPPIE??!! also helped me set some intentions and create affirmations that I still use today.
I’m going to be incorporating other healthy practices like grounding myself, journaling, meditating, and really dialing in my nutrition with supplements, but I haven’t started on those yet. I also started seeing a functional medicine doctor and I’m super excited to share more about that experience and how it affects my overall health and state of mind. That said, the list here has already been transformative to how I feel. Kyle and I even continued to keep up with the elements we could (like fasting, daily movement, early wake up, etc.) when we went to Miami earlier this month.
I can’t say any of these things will work the same way for you, and as with anything you do to impact your health, speak with your physician and use your own judgment. But as one highly irritable and stressed out bitch, I’ve felt a huge shift in my energy in the last month since adopting these practices, and I think the fact that I just described “my energy” at all tells you everything you need to know about my new hippie lifestyle.
