11 Steps To Detox Your Mind

Discover some simple but powerful tips on stress reduction to effectively detox your mind. Implementing even three or four of the protocols below can change the quality of your life!

How to detox your mind? 

1. Honour your body’s need for rest

Rest is essential to life. Your body works so hard for you all day every day, you need to give back and give it some time to replenish. Recognize and accept your limitations and make sure if you come close to burnout, you never cross that line and give yourself sufficient rest immediately to restore your vitality. Pushing your body into overdrive will also manifest physically through tight neck and shoulders and usually, digestive malfunctions such as gas, bloating, acid reflux and an imbalance of gut flora.

2. Put yourself first

It might sound like a cliché, but you need to look after yourself in order to achieve your life’s goals. Whether kids, marriage or a job is your priority, keeping yourself in good physical and emotional shape will allow you to be the best at all of those roles. Be selective about what you take on and say no to things that will unnecessarily add to your load.

3. Stick with light exercises 

Do not push yourself too far and exceed the limits of your energy. Beneficial activities for include: yoga, Qi Gong, Tai Chi, walking, short hikes, golf, and dance.

4. Work with the cause of your stress by meditating

Doing cognitive therapy or manifesting positive outcomes. To work with fear you can do one of the following:

- Accept rather than fight it. Imagine it happening 10 times stronger than your worst fear, accept the outcome. If you truly accept it, the fear will go away.

- Create a list of alternative options if your fear materializes. There is often a lot of things you can do to correct/improve/or even prevent the outcome. The longer your list the more in control you are going to feel and fear will stop chasing you.

5. Practice acceptance and gratitude

Accept your limitations, and allow yourself to do nothing from time to time. Love yourself when you are tired, sad, angry or bloated. There is an inner critic inside of us trying to keep us small and safe. The downside is this also stops us from living a full life. Find your happy place. Where’s the one place you feel totally at ease, calm, happy, positive, and high on life? Go to that place when you are going through hard times, or imagine yourself being there. Think about how it feels, what it smells like, what it looks like. 

Celebrate your wins no matter how big or small. Find something to be grateful for every day. It’s inevitable that you are going to have your down days. This is fine and very human. It’s especially important on these days to find at least one thing you are grateful for as it helps to shift your mind and energy around what’s going on.

Find a mindful activity that supports your emotional, physical and mental balance. There are many ways of increasing mindfulness, including qigong, reiki, earthing, breathing exercises, yoga and meditation. It can be as simple as going for a walk, taking a relaxing bath or listening to singing bowls. It has to be enjoyable and easy to incorporate into your daily routine.

6. Earthing

I like this website which explains the benefits of earthing/grounding in a simple and intuitive way. You can combine earthing (standing barefoot in the garden) with breathing exercises. You only need to do it for 15 mins to switch your brain to rest and digest parasympathetic mode: 

The benefits of earthing/grounding 

And also this video, which talks about the science behind it and reveals the results of clinical trials: 

The science behind earthing/grounding

7. Breathing exercises

Pranayamas are breathing exercises developed by the ancient yogis for purification of body and mind. Prana is the universal life force. It is the vital energy needed by the physical and subtle layers of your being. Prana flows through thousands of subtle energy channels, called ‘Nadis’. The quantity and quality of prana, and the way, in which it flows through the Nadis, determine your state of mind. Researchers have documented the benefits of a regular practice of simple, deep breathing which include reduced anxiety and depression, stronger immunity, lower/stabilized blood pressure, increased energy levels, muscle relaxation, and decreased feelings of stress and mental exhaustion. 

In addition, breathing can have an immediate effect on diffusing emotional energy, so there is less reactivity to our emotions. When you breathe deeply and slowly, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which reverses the stress response in your body. Moreover, with deep breathing, you engage the abdominal muscles and diaphragm instead of the muscles in the upper chest and neck. This conditioning of the respiratory muscles results in improved efficiency of oxygen exchange with every breath by allowing more air exchange to occur in the lower lungs. It also reduces strain on the muscles of the neck and upper chest, allowing these muscles to relax. In short, deep breathing is more relaxing and efficient, allowing higher volumes of oxygen to reach the body’s cells and tissues. 

The link below has a selection of main pranayama techniques, you do not need to watch/do them all at once and can break them down into energizing exercises when you start your day and relaxing sleep-enhancing exercises when you go to bed:

Pranayama breathing techniques

If Pranayama is too complex, check out WimHof method, which is simpler but very effective:

WimHof Method Breathing Techniques

8. Self-massage

Self-massage of the body with warm sesame or coconut oil and then leaving the oil on the skin for 15 minutes every day before a bath or shower improves the skin, tones muscles and blood vessels, and has a soothing effect on the nervous system. If short of time, you can simply drop a little sesame oil in your ears and massage the neck, head, spine and soles of the feet. Even done three times a week, an oil massage will have a beneficial effect, particularly for stress.

9. Enjoy yourself

Participating in activities that you genuinely enjoy will release dopamine, the feel-good chemical in the brain. Cuddling, kissing, hugging and sex can all help relieve stress. Positive physical contact can help release oxytocin and lower cortisol. This can help lower blood pressure and heart rate, both of which are physical symptoms of stress.

10. Sleep hygiene

Establishing healthy sleep hygiene can significantly improve our quality of life, restore our body’s emotional and physical energy and aid recovery from stress. Avoid/limit any stimulants in the evening. Caffeine and alcohol both disrupt sleep. While alcohol may make you drowsy and induce sleep initially, it disrupts your sleep in the latter part of the night –preventing you from getting essential amounts of REM and deep sleep. On the flip side, caffeine is a stimulant. Start going to sleep around 10pm when melatonin production starts to raise. Melatonin is a natural sleep hormone made by your body's pineal gland. During the day the pineal is inactive. When the sun goes down and darkness occurs, the pineal is "turned on" by the SCN and begins to actively produce melatonin, which is released into the blood. Usually, this occurs around 10pm. If you fall asleep after 2am, you would have missed the peak in melatonin production, which would affect the quality of your sleep. Factors inversely affecting melatonin production: age, shift work, alcohol consumption, evening exercise, caffeine, pharmacologic agents such as antidepressants, beta-blockers, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Keep a diary (document diet, exercise, stress levels). Everyone is individual, you will need to find out what factors make your sleep better or worse.

Additionally, melatonin is a naturally occurring anti-oxidant and protects against DNA damage acting as a scavenger of free radicals, so don’t miss out on its anti-aging effect amongst other benefits! 

11. Establish a regular relaxing bedtime routine. 

A regular nightly routine helps the body recognize that it is bedtime. This could include taking a warm relaxing bath with essential oils or Epsom salt, reading a book, meditating, listening to reiki music or doing breathing exercises. 

Make sure you have a restful sleep in a pleasant environment. Your mattress and pillows should be comfortable. The bedroom should be cool –between 16C and 19C degrees –for optimal sleep. Consider using blackout curtains, eye shades, ear plugs, "white noise" machines, humidifiers and other devices that can make the bedroom more relaxing. 

One of the best Ayurvedic recipes that help to reduce inflammation, wind down, reduces stress and promotes restful sleep is Golden milk with Ashwagandha.

Ingredients

1 cup milk, or unsweetened non-dairy milk

1 tsp ashwagandha powder

1/2tsp cinnamon powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 (1/2-inch) piece of organic ginger unpeeled, thinly sliced

Pinch of black pepper (increases bioavailability or turmeric)

Preperation

Whisk milk, or non-dairy milk, cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, pepper, and ashwagandha in a small saucepan; bring to a low boil. 

Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Alternatively use milk frother to whisk the milk and mix the powder into it. (Best non-dairy milk for frothing is Oatly Oat Drink Barrista Edition) 

Go easy on yourself!

Following these many recommendations can already be stressful. Pick the ones that are easier for you to implement and add gradually to your everyday routine. It's more beneficial to devote even 15 minutes a day to yourself than delay everything until you find time and energy.

Are you interested in learning more about detoxing? Perhaps you're ready to invest in your health this New Year and finally put yourself first. 

Join my 30-day detox programme and get your power back!

What's included?

★ 1 x consultation with an in-house herbalist including an individualised diet and wellness plan ★ 4 x infrared sauna sessions ★ Herbal supplements and a dietary plan included ★ Ongoing WhatsApp support during the program ★ Plus a complimentary massage BONUS worth £135 - 1 x detoxifying massage at our premium spa ★

Offer valid until February 14th, 2023. The first 5 bookings will receive a gift of a Body Brush for at-home lymphatic drainage.

Price £499, with a free bonus worth £135!

If you'd like to learn more about detoxing and to discuss the programme in more detail, click below to book your complimentary 15-minute discovery call with me:

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Author: Jenya Di Pierro

Founder, Naturopath & Herbal Medicine Practitioner

BSc, MSc, DipCNM, AMH, ANP