Notice: I’m an affiliate for Amazon as well as other companies. Any links in this article may be affiliate links. I always appreciate it if you purchase something using my affiliate links. Doing so helps me to raise a little extra money that pays for the costs of running this site. And it allows me to continue bringing you quality content, all without costing you a thing! Thanks!
Have you ever noticed that there is a dark side to the real food and natural health world? There is….and it’s time we addressed it!
Pretty ominous title to this post, isn’t it? For those of you who have been friends of mine over the past several years, you are well aware of the difficult few months that I’ve had. Of course, I lost my Mom to cancer in August and the stress of that made me sick and so I lost my voice for more than five months.
Now, trust me when I say that I’m not looking for a pity party. You see, I have seen an amazing amount of beauty that has come from the ashes of these events. It has forced me to really take a long look at myself and my life and to really re-evaluate things. I have taken a look at what is truly important to me and what my priorities are. And I discovered that I truly want to live my life in joy. Unabashed, present, and awakened joy.
All about negativity…
So, what does that have to do with the dark side of the real food and natural health world? Well, there is pervasive negativity that completely saturates this world. Bloggers, natural healers, and “experts” in the field are all busy talking about which foods or toxins you should avoid or risk harming your health, focusing on how bad the food world is, and sharing about all of the horrific health issues that are plaguing the world these days.
There are lots and lots of “don’t eat this”, “don’t use that”, and “don’t do that” types of rules, many of which contradict one another! And let’s face it, I am just as guilty as everyone else, writing articles and acting like the world will come to an end if we keep eating gluten and using store-bought cleaners. There is a great sense of doom and gloom in so much of it and as a result, there are a whole lot of people who are living in fear every time they eat a meal, clean their house, or take a shower.
Do articles like that make you feel good? Um, no! I know that I often feel angry, frustrated, or sad when writing posts like that. And it’s really difficult to connect with a joyful life when you are focused on the negative!
Focusing on the negative
When we focus on negative emotions (fear, anxiety, sadness, guilt, frustration, anger), it causes us stress. And stress contributes to 90% of all chronic illnesses. So why would we want to stress ourselves out? And doesn’t it really go against what I am wanting to do to help others to reclaim their health? If I continue to write articles with a negative focus, then I am completely going against my goal of helping people to be healthier and I become a part of the problem…not part of the solution!
What I’m seeing and hearing from those who are following so many natural health and real food blogs is that they are frustrated. There is so much focus on not eating this food or that food to the point that people don’t know WHAT to eat anymore. Moms are frustrated because they read about all of the toxins in every product out there….so much so that they don’t know how to get all of the toxins out because it seems like it is far too daunting a task.
Not feeling good enough
They see all of the pretty pictures on Pinterest and feel like they are inadequate because they can’t live up to that standard and can’t do everything to help keep themselves and their families healthy. So there is nothing but overwhelm, anxiety, frustration, feelings of inadequacy, and of course……STRESS!
Well, I don’t know about you, but I am tired of feeling all of the bad, negative emotions. I don’t want to feel stressed out. I don’t want to feel overwhelmed or not good enough….and I never want you to feel that way either! It is far too easy to get bogged down in the negative, and it’s impossible to live a joy-filled life if that is your constant focus. What I want to feel, and share with everyone else are positive solutions. Living a life that is positive and healthy. Removing the stress and the pressure. To focus on things that make us feel good. To get back to the name of this blog…..simple. clean. living.
Focusing on the positives of natural health
So I want to walk out from the darkness of the real food and natural health world into a world of light….a world that is based on hope, positive solutions, and simplifying life so that you and I can experience real happiness….not stress.
I want to help you to rediscover the bliss of eating a meal that is incredibly tasty…and simple to make too. I want to help you to understand that cooking from scratch doesn’t have to feel like a chore, but that it can feel like an expression of love for your family and yourself. And I want to help you to look at your life the way it is now and help you to weed out the things that don’t serve you so that you can have more time to fully connect with joy again. I want to inspire you and encourage you.
So today I am choosing joy. What about you? Are you ready to make a choice to choose joy, simplicity, meaning, health, and real life? Then let’s go!
(And by the way….this post felt REALLY good to write!)
