Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 3 i WellBeing Being

Have you ever had a “spark” of genius — that great idea for a book, podcast, painting, business or community project, but then found yourself getting in your own way? Has self-doubt made it hard for you to start or finish projects that matter to you? Having great ideas that only reside in your mind and unfinished projects in a notebook or computer are all signs that something is getting in the way of your creative endeavours. One of the biggest culprits behind procrastination and unrealised dreams is perfectionism. While perfectionism may seem like a good attribute at first glance, the underlying driver of perfectionism is often fear. The fear of not being good enough that sits below perfectionism can swallow up your ability to create. While perfectionism may be…

The events of 2020 have drastically affected all of us. From one disaster to the next, never before has the fast-paced modern world been so dramatically stopped in its tracks and forced to modify how it operates. Perhaps it has caused you to pause and reflect, and to reprioritise what is really important to you. It’s a time to ask some big questions about how we’re living and to listen deeply for the answers. Is it possible that the great speed at which we live our lives with such busyness is a big part of many of the challenges we face today? It’s certainly part of our personal wellbeing story, and it’s part of our planetary wellbeing story, too. When we are busy, distracted and rushing, we are not able…

Consider, for a moment, the thought of sitting in silence — perhaps in a mountain cave or in an empty house. Unless you’re one of the relatively few people in the Western world whose days aren’t punctuated by sounds of traffic, sirens, radios, TVs and phone alerts, this thought is probably either fear-inducing or enticing. Of course, noise has always been a component of human life, but never in the history of humanity has silence been so hard to come by. With the advent of certain technologies, busier lives and the fact that there are literally more people walking on the planet than ever before, moments of silence are becoming more and more elusive. Perhaps it’s precisely because of the uncommonness of silence that we resist it. As a species…

The proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child” is a widespread sentiment throughout African cultures. Though there are many variations of the phrase, they all point to one philosophy: having an abundance of parental figures and influences is essential for raising happy and healthy kids. Let’s be honest, no matter where in the globe you reside, parenting can be a tough gig. I would know — I’m a hands-on aunty to two wild little boys. I’ve been called “Mama Jess” more times than I can count and I’ve spent more hours than I’d like to admit hanging my head in my hands, post toddler-tantrum, poring over where I went wrong. I’m intimately aware that parenting is simultaneously rewarding and thankless; equally terrifying, boring, exhausting and exhilarating. And that’s…

“Isn’t it incredible?” the shopkeeper said as I admired a deep-green, celestial formation. “Go ahead and hold it,” he enthused. I placed the rock in the palm of my hand and, within minutes, I felt a wave of warmth and a slight light-headedness rush over my body. My palm was warm and buzzing, and my heart and third eye chakra started to pulsate. I couldn’t comprehend the intensity that was emanating from this glass-like rock. “I feel a warmth in my head, almost like I’m dizzy,” I said to the shopkeeper. He chuckled and nodded. “That’s what we call the moldavite flush,” he replied. “Moldavite is an extremely rare crystal and although it’s smaller than a 50-cent coin, it’s one of the most powerful crystals I’ve ever come across.” A…

Get outside According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the average American spends 93 per cent of their life indoors (6 per cent of that is spent in automobiles, which doesn’t really count as being “outdoors”). That’s a whopping 7 per cent of time spent outside. And according to studies conducted by the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, getting outside for as little as five minutes at a time improves mood and self-esteem. So what are we doing? There’s a whole world out there! There are beaches to drink margs on, birds to hear chirping, butterflies to chase, trails to hike, pool parties to be had. Try out forest bathing What is “forest bathing”? Amos Clifford, founder of the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs and…

Created at a time when healing through food, environmental awareness, sustainable living and holistic medicine were fringe concepts, WellBeing celebrates and encourages personal and planetary health. Within every issue you’ll discover well-researched, thoughtful articles written by top industry experts that offer practical information, tips and advice on beauty and health, body, mind and spirit, home, parenting and relationships, planet and travel. This publication is for that quiet corner where you can relax and reflect — something special awaits. Join the EatWell community! Featuring more than 70 recipes in each edition, EatWell offers you quick, tasty and healthy meal solutions in a beautifully designed magazine. Discover fantastic tips and tricks from well-known chefs, nutritionists, naturopaths and food bloggers who are passionate about good food and health. Are you one of the…

For ease Embrace Your Weird Hosted by Canadian-born and US-based yoga teacher, former child actor and author Lisa Jakub, the Embrace Your Weird podcast picks up from her second book, Not Just Me: Anxiety, Depression and Learning to Embrace Your Weird. With episodes focused on taming the inner critic, working through performance anxiety, cultivating mindfulness, slowing down and establishing a holistic way of eating, Lisa and her guests create a welcoming environment where you feel as if you’re listening to friends. Whether or not you struggle with anxiety or depression, Embrace Your Weird is a fantastic listen that’s focused on authenticity and connection. You can catch seasons one and two on iTunes or Stitcher. Samantha Allemann For balance How’s Work? If you were riveted by Belgian psychotherapist Esther Perel’s podcast,…

Thanks to online dating, it has never been easier to find your perfect match. But with this increased opportunity for connection, and so many “options” at your fingertips, you may also experience a paradox where you are left feeling confused, disconnected and disheartened. Humans need intimacy and meaningful connections to survive, but we can often look for these things in the wrong places. Whether you are swiping mindlessly on Tinder, fantasising about meeting your future partner at the supermarket, waiting for that text message after a date, entangled in past relationship hurts, overwhelmed by feelings of loneliness and rejection or swept up in feelings of hope and excitement (those butterfly feels), it’s easy to be taken away from the present moment. Clinical psychologist and co-developer of The Mindful Self-Compassion Program,…

It feels like we are in a period of existence where mindfulness couldn’t be more needed. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many of us to slow down, reflect and go inward. Restaurants and cafes have had to adjust how they operate, which has offered us a great opportunity to practise mindful cooking at home. We can do this by exercising our mind to be fully engaged in the task of preparing, cooking and eating our food — a form of active meditation. Slowing down and taking the time to nourish ourselves is an act of self-care and worthiness. It is a gesture of love for those we are cooking for. Home-cooked meals can give us a deep sense of belonging and connection. When we perceive cooking as a chore or…

We need the yin to be able to sustain the yang just as much as we need the yang to appreciate and fully savour the yin. Busy is just a natural state of life as is kicking back and waiting with intention. It’s the inclusiveness of both states, and everything between, which makes life so beautiful. What does “balance” mean to you? Have you ever achieved it and, if you have, have you managed to sustain it? I liken the notion of balance to perfectionism in the sense that it’s just another form of control; holding a state of balance is impossible if we’re living in the moment because the moment often calls for us to swing into “doing” mode — and with vigour — just like the moment can…

It’s early November and, although many Australians are making a beeline for the beach, I’m layering up from head to toe as the snow has arrived early in Norway’s capital, Oslo. Despite the limited hours of daylight in Scandinavia right now, Norway is marked as one of the happiest countries in the world due to the slow and conscious rituals Norwegians embrace that encourage a way of being with balance, ease and calm. Connecting with cosiness Hygge n. Danish & Norwegian “the practice of creating cosy and congenial environments that promote emotional wellbeing” My first few days in Norway are spent in a plant-filled co-working space in Oslo where I find myself exposed to hygge, the Nordic concept of cosiness. Root vegetables are roasting with rosemary in the open-plan kitchen-cross-office…

Have you ever found respite from an overloaded mind simply by using your hands? Perhaps you chose to bake or paint, to pick up a musical instrument or dig in the soil. By using our hands creatively, not only are we providing a distraction from our thoughts, we can move from a place of overwhelm to a state of flow. The hand-mind connection is powerful in quietening the mind and easing the flurry of thoughts many of us have. In an interview with CBS, neuroscientist Kelly Lambert explained that, “When we move and engage in activities, we change the neurochemistry of our brain in ways that a drug can.” And it can last longer than it takes you to whip up a scarf; craft hobbies can improve our health and…

Women’s circles, if you’ve never been to one, can seem a bit out there. What actually happens? Are there crystals? Do I have to talk? The answer is pretty simple: we gather as women to rest, restore and connect. Perhaps there’s meditation, often there’s intention setting and the moon gets talked about a lot. They are a powerful space where creative ideas are born, stories are shared with zero judgement, wounds are healed and we leave feeling seen, heard and understood. I attended my first circle in 2014. I had no idea what to expect, was super nervous beforehand and almost backed out at the last minute. But I am so glad I went. The energy in that room was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. As women, we have a…

“Books are a uniquely portable magic.” Stephen King For balance Simply Living Well: A Guide to Creating a Natural, Low-Waste Home by Julia Watkins Hardie Grant We all know we should be reducing waste, yet it can feel overwhelming to even get started. You don’t have to look far in Simply Living Well for tips on easy swaps to make, with the opening pages of the book containing a list of items we could choose instead of the common items we reach for (beeswax wraps over single-use foils or wraps, newspaper bin liners instead of plastic bags, etc). There are easy-to-follow instructions on how to make many of these items yourself, as well as lots of food, medicinal and cleaning product recipes, storage tips and sensible pieces of advice on…

“The best journey takes you home.”— Harold B Lee Every adventure you embark on can elicit some kind of inner awakening that connects you more intimately with the things you’ve disconnected from, both in your internal world — your home within — and your external world. And perhaps in order to reconnect to the home within yourself, you need to remove yourself from your physical abode and embrace whatever adventure presents itself as you journey back. I recently put this contemplation to practice within the four walls of a kombi van. The journey begins An array of bright-coloured Volkswagen kombi vans are dotted across the property making up the fleet that Alyce Georgievski and her husband (an experienced VW mechanic) George, the founders of Hire a Kombi, have been growing…

“What should young people do with their lives today? Many things, obviously. But the most daring thing is to create stable communities in which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.”— Kurt Vonnegut If you feel lonely, ironically you’re not alone. When it comes to loneliness, it seems people in their twenties and thirties feel it the most, with a 2019 YouGov report finding that three in 10 millennials always or often feel lonely. The millennial generation (born from the start of the 1980s to the mid 1990s) also reported having fewer acquaintances and friends compared to other generations. Loneliness is often blamed on the prevalence of technology, yet tech can be an important source of socialisation (especially for those who struggle with social anxiety). Whether or not the…

Australians have long embraced the health foods of immigrants from all over the world as well as international imports like chia seeds, goji berries and matcha. But when it comes to native foods, we have often neglected the abundance of superfoods in our very own backyard. We’re lucky to live in a country that has thousands of edible and highly nutritious native ingredients on our doorstep — some that you can’t find anywhere else in the world. Julie Merlet, owner of Natif, Australian Native Superfoods, stresses the importance of native foods for our health and the environment. “Adding native foods to your diet supports native food farmers and wild harvesters all around Australia,” she says. ”Since these foods are adapted to the harsh ancient Australian environment, some of their fruits,…

The southern coast of Australia is a remarkable region lined with an endless coastline of beautiful beaches. It’s also the place we are blessed to call home. Each day, its cold and crisp Tasman Sea beckons us. The roar of the waves, the touch of the sand, the fresh ocean breeze and the endless blue horizon never cease to lift our spirits. There are no thoughts of life on land — no stress, just pure connection and vitality. These photographs, to us, represent the sense of ease and calm we experience when plunging into these great southern waters. Don’t be fooled by the water clarity — these swims were seriously cold! But there’s absolutely no denying the restorative effects of these cold waters. Ready to dive in? Grab a buddy,…

Perhaps you instinctively know that what you eat affects how you feel — for instance, that when you eat plenty of vegies and are well hydrated, so too are you energised and balanced. Alternatively, when you go a little crazy on the sugar, you might see that reflected in your behaviour, your mood or your digestion. And now there is solid evidence that diet can directly affect mental health, supported by specifically designed intervention trials. A nutritional perspective B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin D, magnesium, iron, calcium, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids work together in critical roles such as manufacturing key neurotransmitters, dealing with stress and its effects, enabling proper communication of neurological messages and producing a calming effect on the body, and are absolutely essential for healthy brain function.…

Wabi-sabi The Age of Warring States had a significant impact. The constant state of warfare for nearly 150 years left an indelible mark on the Japanese psyche, which manifested itself in a cultural and philosophical metamorphosis. To grasp the topsy-turvy nature of the era, it’s important to know that at the end of the era, Japan’s leader was Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537–1598). He had been born a peasant and rose to the top to unify the country. He ordered the invasion of mainland Asia, bringing war to Korea. Japan is said to have possessed the biggest firepower in the world by the end of the period. Like Europe, where civilisation developed at breakneck speed through the constant warfare of the 16th–18th centuries, Japan went through an unprecedented transformation. To support the…

This inspiring deck of cards invites you to return to the present moment by cultivating mindful and meaningful moments in your day through simple phrases and easy-to-implement practices. The cards are divided into four colour-coded categories: Rest and Balance, Insight and Awareness, Curiosity and Joy, and Kindness, with the different categories encouraging a balanced mindfulness practice. You may use them to set daily intentions, for some quiet introspection or carry one with you as a gentle reminder. These exercises are likely to leave you feeling more connected to yourself and others, allowing for a greater sense of balance, ease and calm. Kaitlin McManus…