The Optimise Health Blog

Forest Sunrise ©Ben Sinclair 2012 I've been looking into the Japanese practise of  Forest Bathing  which is a fascinating therapeutic activity. This is when individuals spend deliberate mindful time in the forest while allowing the environment to have effects on the body and senses.  A session of forest bathing may be made up of:  - seeing green trees and plants, taking time to note natural activity around you - touching the plants and trees, connecting to the ground - hearing wildlife and listening to sounds of the environment - breathing the air and noting the aromas given off by the trees and plants. My personal journey into integrated well-being began with a stress related illness (shingles and post-viral fatigue) during my A-levels. Ever since then I have been aware of the need to build activities into my life to improve well-being and combat the negative effects of stress. See my theory of integrated health here . View of t...

The concept of wellbeing and the inclusion of the Spiritual realm of health as a source of strength and balance are now more widely accepted in modern western culture and medicine, unlike when I first conceived of the pyramid more than 20 years ago , when spiritual care was nothing more than a nod towards the patients belief system. I was just embarking on my career as a GP entrepreneur back in 2011 when I last wrote of the Integrated Health Pyramid and my outlook and practise have undergone a few upgrades and bolt on interests since then. Creating space for new projects gave birth to new opportunities and experiences; these have shaped and refined my integrated health model further, as has working in personal and corporate health sector. Here is the refined version of the pyramid model, which currently represents an ugrade to the traditional Bio-Psycho-Social medical model: The Integrated Health Pyramid helps patients and clinicians look at the whole picture of health o...

© Lifesweetlifeblog In case you have being living under a rock or are colour blind (like me) you may not have spotted the gush of Valentines trappings that have saturated the high street and shopping centres across the country, but you would be in the minority. Although this is a time to celebrate love and affection for our loved ones, it can be a challenging and stressful time for some. The need to perform (cough cough) and to create a perfect evening can cause pressure both physically and mentally. See our top 5 tips for staying positive this Valentine’s Day: 1. Hugs We all know hugs have the power to destress and bring us together, but there are hard facts that back this up too. Hugs can increase oxytocin and serotonin levels as well as build trust and safety in a relationship. We suggest a good hug for all occasions, and especially when celebrating this day of love. If in doubt, hug it out! 2. Dark Chocolate Copious amounts of chocolate are inevitably going to be...