These are a few of the questions our practice members seem to ask fairly consistently. When will I start feeling better? Will my dizziness continue to diminish now? Why is my boss such a jerk? How do I go about figuring out what I want to do with my life? What do I do to lose some weight? How can I get my husband in here? Do you have any suggestions on how I can be more patient with my kids? What can I do to strengthen my faith in a Higher Power? What do you do to stay positive when so many things in the world are so negative?

My initial response to each of these was one of the following questions – Are you exercising every day? How often do you breathe deeply? How much water are you consistently drinking each day? How many times per day would you say you have a good hard laugh? When was the last time you took just five minutes all to yourself? Do you think it’s true what Benjamin Franklin said – an apple a day keeps the doctor away?

You see the first thing to do when seeking answers to seemingly complex problems is not to employ some kind of sophisticated or far out techniques. The answer is to go back to the most basic and yet most profound advice that was ever given to us by Gandhi.

BE the change you wish to see in the world!

Dan Millman, author of The Way of the peaceful Warrior has called balancing your body the first spiritual practice. Your body is the only possession guaranteed to last a lifetime. We dream of traveling outside of the body – away from the seemingly inescapable fears and tears of the world. But we cannot travel out of the body and away from what we do not like in the world until we first fully engage in life! It is then that we will also have our eyes opened up to all of the beauty that exists right along side of the scary things.

In a balanced body, spirit and flesh join to create energy and abundance in our lives! Lord Chesterfield once said, “A light supper, a good night’s sleep and a fine morning have often made a hero out of the same person who by indigestion, a restless night and a rainy morning would have proved a coward.” Paul Dudley White, M.D. says that a vigorous walk does more good for an unhappy but otherwise healthy adult than all of the medicine in the world! And finally, Gabrielle Roth puts it this way, “Your body is a metaphor for your life. In the marriage of flesh and spirit, Divorce is impossible!”

It is true that health is the beginning of being able to handle and come up with solutions to all of the terrible things we see in the world each day. But a strong and healthy body is necessary for us to be able to begin seeing all of the beauty in the world as well! As my musician friend Marc Mileski says in one of his amazing songs, “When we open our eyes, we can see through any cloud.” Gradually increasing our level of health helps us open our eyes.

Spend some time each day in solitude connecting with your Source. Laugh as often as possible. Breathe deeply and drink lots of pure, clean water. Eat a high energy diet full of fruits and veggies and their juices. Get plenty of movement and an equal amount of rest each day. Exercise every day and keep the neurological CONNECTION between your brain and your body clear by visiting your chiropractor every week or two.

Health is the BEGINNING of fully expressing your purpose and potential in life. Balance your body. Trust its wisdom. From this foundation…all else follows.