My health journey started about 8 years ago when my boyfriend and I turned to a plant-based lifestyle. We were living in Singapore then.
I don’t think at that time, I realised that it was actually possible to feel as joyful as I do at right now! Back then, I remember being angry, stressed out, and mostly sleepless. My skin was also breaking out quite a fair bit. I had just switched careers from being a flight attendant in Singapore to a full-time job in corporate banking, so that, too, added quite a lot of stress to my mental state.
When we were introduced to The China Study, a book by T.Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell, we felt called to make a switch in our lifestyle. We dived straight into a plant-based lifestyle. I was never a meat person, but I did love my fish, eggs and ice cream. I was looking for ways to improve my mental,
emotional & physical state and so I gave up eating meat. I wouldn’t say that it was the hardest thing to do (to switch our eating habits), and I must admit that I also had my cheat days.
I think there is something rather healing about ‘dipping your hands in the ‘clay’. In this instance, the ‘clay’ was the act of washing, cutting and prepping the fruits and vegetables and subsequently, even creating my own herbal blends of teas.
Interestingly, though I did not realise at the time – how a simple choice of deciding to fuel your physical body with better food can have such great impact in the quality of one’s mental and emotional state, and in turn, one’s life trajectory.
I started feeling lighter. Then, I found myself less angry. Things and people that would have annoyed me in the past suddenly didn’t irritate me as much as it used to. I started to also sleep better, and my skin started to clear out. I started cooking and prepping my own meals and that was where magic happened.
It’s fascinating how a simple choice of deciding to fuel your physical body with better food can have such great impact in the quality of one’s mental and emotional state, and in turn, one’s life trajectory.
I think there is something rather healing about ‘dipping your hands in the ‘clay’. In this instance, the ‘clay’ was the act of washing, cutting and prepping the fruits and vegetables and even creating my own herbal blends of teas. I discovered that there was something rather romantic and nourishing about putting on the kettle and preparing a cup of herbal tea after long hours at the office.
I started to enjoy the herbs and plants that we grew on our balcony in our apartment in Singapore. At that point, the shift in my eating preferences created a shift within myself, and that allowed me to see and enjoy the simplest things that I wouldn’t have noticed before. For example, how having over-processed foods too often would cause a feeling of ‘acidity’ in my polar plexus. Amazing, how a simple shift from cups of coffee to pots of herbal tea made me less anxious, allowed me to sleep better and allowed me to be a less agitated version of myself!
As I learnt to embrace the change and the mindset shift that was happening to me, I also found myself growing into the person I am meant to be.I started to find myself saying yes to things that I would have been too scared to even consider before, for lack of confidence or fear of failure. I started to make better choices for myself, from a place of joy and curiosity.
Don’t get me wrong, there are still bumps on the road, but at least I tackle them now with courage (well, most days anyway). I am still a work in progress, I don’t think wellness is something that you can just purchase from a grocery store and it stays with you in your pocket forever. You have to continuously work at it, Every. Single. Day. As long as I continue to contribute From a space of gratitude and helping others, I believe I’m growing in the right direction.
Today, I am convinced everything is connected. What we choose to eat and feed our physical bodies, will eventually manifest into what we create in the world. Here’s to growing into our best possible selves and being guided from our heart space.
Feature article by Ping Gan / @zippsparkles
Feature article taken from inside Thrive Magazine Winter issue 2018. To grab your copy head over to: thrive-magazine.co.uk/themagazine
