Medicine Comes in Many Forms

When you think about "medicine" what images come to mind? Maybe it's counting out pills for morning and evening doses? Maybe it's something that will save your life once or that you take sporadically when you're not feeling well. Maybe it's an old white guy in a white coat writing prescriptions that Big Pharma will give him a kickback for? Perhaps medicine is acupuncture, reiki, aromatherapy and massage. Maybe medicine is what you create or what is given to you. You might be the person who is creating medicine and sharing it with others as a doctor, nurse or other healer. 

Wikipedia says that "Medicine is the science and practice of caring for patients, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health"

I believe that health is wealth. That our ability to experience everything we can on this weird and wild little rock floating through space is amplified when we are healthy. And to be healthy, medicine is required, nourishment is needed.

For me, medicine can look like many things but I have distilled it down to these 6 essentials: 

Movement

When I move my body, especially in the morning I just feel better. It might be a walk / hike / run or perhaps a yoga flow or dancing or paddling. When I dance in public or in my home it feels different, just like when I hike solo or with friends. Strength training makes me feel different than playing pickleball. I love to run and I love to sweat in a hot yoga class. I love an evening walk after dinner to aid digestion and balance blood sugar. All forms of movement are valid and necessary, I don't put them in a hierarchy. I know that movement shakes me up or grounds me..it's just finding the right form. With health coaching clients, rather than asking "What do you do for exercise?" I like to ask, "How do you like to move your body?" Doesn't that sound more nourishing? So that the movement isn't punitive, it's supportive. "Exercise" feels like something you "should" do so that your body looks a certain way, whereas "movement" is a way to flow with your body that feels good for you in the moment. It's the connection to self (and potentially others too) that feels like good medicine.

Nature

Like you, I go through bouts where I feel cranky, fatigued, annoyed and sad. But rather than taking a pill which has a slim chance of helping to eliminate these feelings, I turn to the Nature Cure. Research shows that time in nature, including forest bathing (the Japanese call this "Shinrin-yoku" and it's actually a prescription!)  just as effective as SSRI's in treating depression. But I don't need science to prove what I feel in my own body. Nature was my nourishment as a child and I remember long afternoons playing in the woods and climbing trees. I talked to plants, looked for fossils and felt connected to the earth. From an early age, I knew that nature would help me to feel better. Getting outside at sunrise and sunset in particular is so necessary for aligning to the flow of energy. I feel different in different forms of nature and seek them out depending on what balm I need. The forest has a grounding effect for me, the ocean is cleansing. If I have too much screen time or forced AC, I know that the cure, the medicine I need, is staring at the trees / clouds / ocean. No co-pay needed, this pill is free! When I'm in the forest or at the beach I can actually feel myself slow down, feel my heart rate lower and my brain chemicals balance. This happens in as little as 20 mins although sometimes more is needed...just like multiple doses of an antibiotic. 

Community

Being with good humans just makes me feel good. I can energetically feel my body moving towards the humans that light me up and I feel myself closing off from those that don't align with my values. When I don't vibe with someone I will feel depleted afterwards. But when humans energetically match up with me then we both leave the interaction feeling nourished. And so it is critical to foster a community that is safe, inclusive and welcoming. In community we share our stories, our fears, our joy. In community we are mirrors for each other, we are deeply connected. I am intentional about the communities I cultivate. This is more than an active group chat (although shoutouts to my 7+ group chats who make me giggle and support me in a deeply nourishing way. Is 7 a lot? Sorry, I'm a Gemini...I just can't help myself) it's having people you can rely on when shit gets tough. Humans are the most social creatures and we're supposed to live together and be in community for our health and wellness. The power of human interaction is balm that I know I can count on. 

Solitude 

If I'm not with other humans then I go to the other end of the spectrum. I want to be alone. I want to have all the time I need to listen to myself, not check in with someone else's needs. Being alone is very different from being lonely. I have been lonely in a bar or at a house party full of people. But finding solace is a different vibe. It's turning inward rather than gazing outwards. Solace is about finding our own guidance when we turn down the volume on everyone else's thoughts and opinions. When I'm alone, I can loosen the mask. I have had some of the most profound downloads while alone, usually in nature. Being alone intentionally sometimes takes work so I often resist this medicine. I know that when I run out of egoic excuses, I will just be with myself and that space can be scary. But once I'm in it, once I drop into the present I know that's just what I need (despite my initial resistance.)  When I stopped drinking in 2019, solitude was the 1st medicine I had and it sureeeee did burn going down. I had to get quiet, get comfortable being with myself and not hiding behind a mask. That shift really started to change me in a profound way so now I know when to take this medicine. 

Music

As Bob Marley sings " One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain"  As someone who is obsessed with live music and has been to more festivals and shows than I can count, music hits me in a way that lights me up and gives me the medicine I need. Laughter, tears and all ranges of emotions course through me when I listen to music, but especially when I see live music. Music picks me up, it drops me down. I feel it in my feet, my pelvis, core, throat or head. And when I feel it in a particular body part, I call it out to myself, so that my body can remember the medicine. Music now sounds better without booze (because as you know, alcohol numbs)  and so when I stopped drinking in 2019 I loved music as medicine even more. I want to feel the music in my body, not just my ears. As a sound healer I have learned the deep benefits of offering this medicine to others. I ask folks to feel the vibrations in their body, to let go of criticism and judgement. To be fully present with music tastes so good, sounds so full. 

Laughter

Tell me about a time where you laughed your ass off and didn't feel better afterwards? I'll wait. Oh that's right...it's never been done. Laughing is something so fully human that we do it as babies and keep doing it our whole life. Some of the most nourishing experiences of my life have been when I'm laughing so hard I can barely breathe with my husband or friends. When my niece and I get giggling about who knows what (literally, I have no idea...we're just geeking out in the grass) it feels like connection and love. Slapping my knee, the table or someone else's back with the feeling that the laughter is pouring over me is like a protective layer. When you wake up the next day and your cheeks hurt and you feel like you've done 444 sit ups, that is the medicine of laughter. I love this medicine so much that it was actually the topic of my Senior Speech (required at my all-girls school in 2001.) I seek out people and situations that make me laugh. I find so much joy in the moments where I invite this medicine to my body and heart. 

For me, the potent formula is when I combine 3+ various medications. Some examples include: 

1. Dancing at a festival with friends is like taking 4 pills: Movement, nature, community, music

2. Hiking to a hidden lake to journal: Movement, nature, solitude

3. Walking the dog with a friend and giggling about something we both love: Movement, community, laughter 

4. Sitting on the porch with tea and friends at the beach house: Community, laughter, nature

5. Playing my sound bowls outside on my rooftop at sunset: Music, nature, solitude 

The number of "pills" isn't the thing I go for. More isn't always better. And different medicine is needed at different times. Sometimes I don't need to be outside, I need to be alone on my couch listening to music, crying my eyes out. Sometimes I need silence while sitting next to a friend staring at the sunrise. How beautiful that these variations are available and can be used in different situations...just like the medications from a doctor. 

Please note, I'm not anti-medication. I just invite you to think of medicine coming in a variety of forms from a variety of sources. 

So where do you find medicine? What  are the ways you care for yourself? Maybe it's one of these 6 areas I discussed, maybe it's something else. I would love to hear from you!