{"id":4234,"date":"2013-04-18T12:01:17","date_gmt":"2013-04-18T16:01:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/?p=4234"},"modified":"2013-03-27T12:15:46","modified_gmt":"2013-03-27T16:15:46","slug":"do-you-know-if-youre-healthy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html","title":{"rendered":"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>I\u2019ve been posting articles lately relate to good health, since in my opinion, being healthy is a cornerstone for a happy life and a great act of self-love. Today my guest is Matt Mumber<\/strong><\/a>, MD who is an oncologist who along with yoga therapist Heather Reed wrote Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your Mind, Body, and Spirit<\/strong><\/a>. Here\u2019s what he has to say:<\/p>\n

Think You\u2019re Healthy? Would You Know if You Weren\u2019t?<\/strong>
\n7 Tips for Increasing Awareness<\/em>
\nby Matt Mumber<\/strong><\/a>, MD<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not too long ago \u2013 just after World War II \u2013 few people in the United States brushed their teeth with any regularity. Now, the mere thought of going an entire day or night without brushing one\u2019s teeth is simply out of the question for most. Hopefully, someday in the near future, a similar attitude will prevail regarding mental well-being.<\/p>\n

Human happiness and well-being are rudderless without awareness, which I define as the quality of paying attention to what\u2019s going on in the present moment from an inquisitive, nonjudgmental and focused perspective.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn easy way to think of optimal wellbeing might be to envision a three-legged stool,\u201d says my co-author, yoga therapist Heather Reed. \u201cThe three legs include physical activity, nutrition and that underappreciated component missing from too many Americans\u2019 lives \u2013 stress management, or a healthy mental state.\u201d<\/p>\n

After checking off a healthy diet and exercise from the list, how does one go about ensuring a healthy mind? The key is mindfulness – paying attention on purpose, non-judgmentally and as though your life depended on it. Framed another way, mindfulness means focusing on something without trying to change it, like the sky holding passing clouds without clinging to them.<\/p>\n

The states necessary for attaining mindfulness:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Beginner\u2019s mind<\/strong> is the ability to see things with new eyes. The Bible warns against putting new wine in old wine skins \u2013 doing so risks tainting the new stock. A beginner\u2019s mind opens people to the world of possibilities that exist in the present moment. That does not mean throwing away good ideas from the past; rather, it means to entertain new ideas with a truly open sensibility.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Trust<\/strong>: Believe in your authority to know your own body, thoughts and feelings. We need to have the confidence necessary to trust that our thoughts and feelings at any given moment have value.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Non-judging<\/strong> is the ability to see things for what they are, to hold an open and neutral place for whatever comes up within and around you, without thinking of anything as categorically better or worse than anything else.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Patience<\/strong> is a willingness to continue with the process of paying attention on purpose even when it appears that no progress is being made. Learning and growing through mindful practice happens with time, and we can\u2019t force the outcome.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Acceptance<\/strong> refers to allowing whatever comes up in the moment to be held in our field of awareness. This is not the same as giving up or being passive; acceptance is merely acknowledgement.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Letting go<\/strong> is refusing to attach to specific thoughts, feelings or behaviors. This can feel like losing something, but every time we let go, we open ourselves to something new and, potentially, deeper.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Non-striving<\/strong>: In our goal-oriented society, this may seem counterintuitive. However, non-striving refers only to practicing mindfulness without expectation of some future goal or dream, which helps us better live in the now.<\/p>\n

By having our three-legged stool firmly planted in awareness, we can drop into what we typically call a sense of spiritual wellbeing.
\n***************
\nCheck out Dr. Matt Mumber<\/strong><\/a>‘ and Heather Reed’s new book, <\/strong>Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your Mind, Body, and Spirit<\/strong><\/a>.
\n***************
\nJoin the Self-Love Movement\u2122<\/strong><\/a>! Take the 31 Days of Self-Love Commitment<\/strong><\/a> and get my book, How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways<\/a><\/strong> for free at http:\/\/howdoiloveme.com<\/a><\/strong>. Read my 2013 31 Days of Self-Love Posts HERE<\/strong><\/a>. Join the Self-Love Movement\u2122<\/strong><\/a>! on Facebook<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Please leave comments under my posts so we can stay connected.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been posting articles lately relate to good health, since in my opinion, being healthy is a cornerstone for a happy life and a great act of self-love. Today my guest is Matt Mumber, MD who is an oncologist who along with yoga therapist Heather Reed wrote Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[651,648,649,650],"class_list":["post-4234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-self-love-acceptance","tag-good-health","tag-matt-mumber","tag-md","tag-sustainable-wellness"],"yoast_head":"\nDo You Know If You\u2019re Healthy? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I\u2019ve been posting articles lately relate to good health, since in my opinion, being healthy is a cornerstone for a happy life and a great act of self-love. Today my guest is Matt Mumber, MD who is an oncologist who along with yoga therapist Heather Reed wrote Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lessons from a Recovering Doormat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-04-18T16:01:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2013-03-27T16:15:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/files\/2013\/03\/Sustainable-Wellness-cover.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Daylle Deanna Schwartz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat","og_description":"I\u2019ve been posting articles lately relate to good health, since in my opinion, being healthy is a cornerstone for a happy life and a great act of self-love. Today my guest is Matt Mumber, MD who is an oncologist who along with yoga therapist Heather Reed wrote Sustainable Wellness: An Integrative Approach to Transform Your…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html","og_site_name":"Lessons from a Recovering Doormat","article_published_time":"2013-04-18T16:01:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2013-03-27T16:15:46+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/files\/2013\/03\/Sustainable-Wellness-cover.jpg"}],"author":"Daylle Deanna Schwartz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html","name":"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy? - Lessons from a Recovering Doormat","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/files\/2013\/03\/Sustainable-Wellness-cover.jpg","datePublished":"2013-04-18T16:01:17+00:00","dateModified":"2013-03-27T16:15:46+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/#\/schema\/person\/4250884f68a588907744baa491f9df35"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/files\/2013\/03\/Sustainable-Wellness-cover.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/files\/2013\/03\/Sustainable-Wellness-cover.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/2013\/04\/do-you-know-if-youre-healthy.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Do You Know If You\u2019re Healthy?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/","name":"Lessons from a Recovering Doormat","description":"Beliefnet Voices - Daylle Deanna Schwartz","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/#\/schema\/person\/4250884f68a588907744baa491f9df35","name":"Daylle Deanna Schwartz","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/83b\/83ba6e1423377712fe408a5fab971bfax96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/83b\/83ba6e1423377712fe408a5fab971bfax96.jpg","caption":"Daylle Deanna Schwartz"},"description":"Daylle Deanna Schwartz is a speaker, self-empowerment counselor, best-selling author of 15 books, including Nice Girls Can Finish First (McGraw-Hill), All Men Are Jerks Until Proven Otherwise and founder of The Self-Love Movement\u2122 where she's giving away her 13th book, How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways, a She's appeared on hundreds of TV and radio shows, including Oprah, Howard Stern, and Good Morning America and has been quoted in dozens of publications, including the New York Times, Chicago Sun-Times, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Marie Claire, and Men\u00b9s Health. After being a consummate People Pleaser who felt unworthy of getting her own needs met for many years, Daylle found a path of self-love that enabled her to build her self-esteem and reinvent herself into a dual career. She learned to get taken seriously without being overtly assertive when she became one of the first women to start an independent record label (on a dare!) and learned to play ball nicely and successfully in an industry dominated by men. To help independent musicians empower themselves, Daylle writes music business books for Billboard\/Random House, including the very popular Start & Run Your Own Record Labe and I Don't Need a Record Deal! Daylle's books have been translated into over 10 languages and are popular around the world. She speaks for colleges, organizations and corporations. Through her company, Project Self-Empowerment, Daylle creates programs and materials to help people empower themselves. One goal is to raise the money to self-publish her book, How Do I Love Me? Let Me Count the Ways and give it away for free in colleges and through organizations, to give thanks for all her blessings. Daylle uses her writing and speaking to help others find the kind of contentment and empowerment that she has.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/author\/dschwartz"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4234"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4238,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4234\/revisions\/4238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/lessonsfromarecoveringdoormat\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}