
4 min|Dr. Alex Chan
Where Science and Ritual Align for Your Health
Wellness, Mind HealthRetreat — an act of moving back or withdrawing.
In our modern society that praises accomplishment, engagement and advancement, taking time to journey inward with quiet intention has to be marked as a priority or it is relegated to the sidelines. We can get caught up in the busyness and routines of daily life, checking off lists of responsibilities without engagement. If we do not have a core understanding of our internal compass with our unique set of values and desires discovered it is challenging to move forward with purpose and fulfilment. Reconnecting with this purpose takes conscious effort and dedicated time.In my naturopathic practice at Integrative I am honoured that patients share their health stories with me during our appointments. In this context, we are able to explore their situation and work together to discover any causative disease factors, contributing lifestyle behaviours and develop a treatment plan. This plan often includes intervention through supplements or dietary modification but also changes to the home routine. These routine and lifestyle changes are often at the core of disease modification but can be the most challenging aspects to address. For example, some of the most common health concerns I see revolve around fatigue, poor sleep quality and high stress levels with negative mood impacts. While we can work with targeted external interventions like supplements to stimulate energy and boost mood, this is much more effective if we can modifying the internal environment of lifestyle patterning that may be driving stress and preventing engagement of the relaxation nervous response. Exploring these changes may extend beyond the context of our in-office appointments. Sometimes patients are well prepared to do this discovery on their own but other times providing a container for this work to occur can be transformative.
To this end I am expanding my medical knowledge and skills into the realm of health and wellness retreats. I think there is a hunger for this longer period of rest where the purpose is for you to receive care, have your physical needs of nourishment and comfort attended too, and be gently prompted to explore you body and spirit through mindfulness and therapeutic movement. Deep rest can lead to deep rejuvenation-and with dedicated time you can unravel some of the patterns that may lead to discomfort and disease. There are many retreats that focus on one specific modality like yoga or meditation, and while these can be beneficial there may be a barrier to entry if you don’t already have a specific practice or familiarity with that particular skill. Instead, during the retreats I am planning I want to connect our brain’s scientific understanding of “why” particular techniques work to change our neurobiology with the deep heart-connection of how this feels in our body. We will still incorporate mindfulness and movement techniques but I want to provide a variety so that you can adapt the options and bring them from the retreat back into your daily life.
Research also supports that wellness retreats can have the following benefits:
• Emphasizing mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques like gentle movement, meditation and breath work are directly linked to overarching stress reduction and improved mental health
• Promoting an environment that is away from screen time, scheduled around good sleep hygiene and provides nutritious meals at regular intervals reduces insomnia and improves sleep quality.
• Including therapeutic movement and physical activity like yoga and stretching, especially in the daytime can help regulate blood pressure, stress response and reduce risk factors for heart disease and diabetes.
• Movement is a key tool in pain management, especially as associated with sedentary lifestyle. Having multiple times of day dedicated to activity alleviates associated soreness and stiffness.
• Through self-reflections and emotional awareness that connects use with personal values we can foster deeper emotional resilience and overall well-being.
• Encouraging healthier routines and self-care practices can lead to long-term behavioral changes.
If you are intrigued at exploring your health outside of the traditional naturopathic visit I extend the opportunity to consider how the opportunity to Retreat may benefit you.
Upcoming Ritual & Science Retreat:
Join cancer-survivor and visual storyteller, Anastasia and me on Galiano Island for an immersive 4-day/3-night experience that weaves intuitive healing practices with modern medical understanding. Together we can set intention, practice mindfulness, explore therapeutic moment and create a space to honour both body and spirit.Click Here to Learn More or Register
References:
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272735813000731• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38721982/
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21944658/
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10317209/
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36181030/
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29316909/
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33556137/
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5312624/