healingways
RECLAIM VITALITY!
by Catherine Guthrie
Reap the Benefits of Enhanced Life Force
something; they stand out from the rest like shiny pennies.
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Why do some people have more vitality than others? Vitality is often broadcast via physical traits—sparkling eyes, radiant skin or an energetic demeanor. It’s tempting to chalk it all
e know vitality when we see it. People with vitality overflow with that special
up to good health, but there’s more to vitality than robust physiology. Not all clinically healthy and ostensibly fit people seem especially vital, while some physically frail individuals still manage to emanate an extraordinary
life force and joie de vivre.
In the West, vitality is often associ- ated with a strong supply of physical energy, vigor and resilience. In the East,
Click on “Vitality Compass” at
BlueZones.com to take a free longevity quiz based on vitality indices ranging from diet and exer- cise to spiritual practices and connection with family and community.
what the Chinese call chi and healers in India call prana relates more to an ineffable life force, currents that suffuse and sustain both the physical and non- physical aspects of every living thing. The popularization of Eastern
practices such as yoga, Tai chi and meditation now offers more Ameri- cans a taste of life habits that can help us understand and cultivate this sort of vitality. Yet in America, vitality is still viewed as the frosting on the cake of life—and not, as in Eastern cul- tures, its main focus. While good health enhances and
helps signify vitality, it can’t deliver all of vitality’s benefits. So, what is the secret to sustaining our vitality or get- ting it back?
Reconnecting with What Nourishes
Dan Buettner, bestselling author of The Blue Zones, is an expert on human longevity and vitality. He’s found that vitality has as much to do with social, emotional and mental health as with physical habits. For instance, diet and exercise play a big part in vitality, but so do things like a sense of life pur- pose, spirituality and community. Identifying vitality zappers is
36 Lehigh Valley
www.healthylehighvalley.com
equally important. Constance Grauds, a registered pharmacist, shamana (female shaman) and author of Jungle Medicine, explains that traditional medicine men believe human disease and suffering is caused by disconnec- tion and that its root is a core fear, or susto. She believes that most Ameri- cans are chronically afflicted by susto, living in the grip of one type of fear or another virtually all the time. Grauds suspects that Americans’
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