The Mind-Body Connection: Managing Stress with our Naturopathic Doctors

Life is busy, and on-going stress has become an intimate friend for many of us. Demanding work, school, and personal schedules & responsibilities make it easy to feel overwhelmed and out of balance. Finding peace and contentment in the chaos is a powerful tool for stress management - meet the mind-body connection. We’re going to dive into this very important link between our mental and physical well-being. Find out how our Naturopathic Doctors (NDs) often treat stress! 

The mind-body connection is the relationship between our thoughts, emotions, and physical health. Research has shown that our mental state can profoundly impact our physical health, and vice versa - we see this in practice where chronic stress manifests as headaches, muscle tension, digestive issues, and weakened immune function. On the flipside, chronic illnesses or physical discomfort affect our mental well-being & quality of life. 

How We Help

Our naturopathic doctors recognize the deep connection between the mind & body. By bringing the physical body closer to a place of balance and addressing the impact of stress on mental health, we help you build resiliency to the inevitable stressors in your life, and provide you with tools to manage more immediate stressors when they show up so that you can have better control of your overall health. When it comes to stress management, we have a wide-range of treatment options to support you in bettering your health moving forward, and in feeling more like yourself right now:

• Nutrition: Eating a balanced diet rich in whole foods nourishes the body and supports optimal brain function, energy, and provides building blocks for mood-stabilizing chemicals like serotonin and dopamine. It’s also important to consider nutrient intake, like protein, because our requirements increase when we are stressed. We turn to nutrition as a foundation of optimal health, we see profound impacts in blood sugar regulation, mood, sleep, digestion (to name a few) when we dial in nutrition for folks experiencing elevated stress levels. 
• Botanical Medicine: Botanical Medicine is very close to our hearts as NDs. Herbs are fantastic for helping combat the effects of stress and helping our bodies adapt to stressful situations so that they impact our mental and physical health less. That being said, it’s important to get to the root of WHY you’re feeling such stress and what aspects of it are manageable. Herbs are a great tool to help promote relaxation, reduce anxiety and nervous tension, and support the adrenal glands (they work overtime when we are stressed, and we don’t want them getting too tired!). We turn to herbs like ashwagandha, rhodiola, holy basil, passionflower, oatstraw to name a few - the beautiful thing about herbs is that there is a wide range available so we can pick the best option for you! Maybe you need more energy, or maybe you’re wired but tired - we got you! 
• Counselling: Our NDs often refer to our counselling team, because our counsellors are incredible resources to equip you with skills and habits that help manage stress. Mindfulness practices, including meditation, deep breathing exercises, and yoga, can help quiet the mind, reduce stress hormones, and promote a state of relaxation. We love incorporating these techniques into treatment plans to help you cultivate greater awareness and resilience toward stress. Meet our counselling team and explore their approach here!
• Supplementation: Long story short, when we are stressed, our bodies use larger amounts of specific nutrients to fuel the production of stress hormones, and combat the physical effects of stress. We often find magnesium, omega-3 fatty acids, B-vitamins, Vitamin C, and zinc can help support the body's stress response and promote overall well-being. We consider the range of symptoms that can arise from being stressed - weakened immune function, anxiety & overwhelm, low energy - and taking these into account helps us pick the best supplement for you!
• IV Therapy: Quite simply, IV therapy provides better and more rapid absorption of vitamins, and a small dose of hydration! Exploring all of the nutrients we mentioned above in supplementation, we are able to customize an IV bag that is unique to you and what you need. By delivering these nutrients directly into the bloodstream, we by-pass any losses that can occur in the digestive tract during the breakdown process! Learn more about IV therapy here! 
• Acupuncture: there is nothing quite like an acu-nap (if you know, you know!). Acupuncture has long been used to help regulate the nervous system aka our stress response by calming the mind, increasing resilience to stress, providing a safe space for you to exhale and rest, but more than anything acupuncture helps gently guide our body back to balance. We love acupuncture for supporting our mental & physical resilience to stress.
• Lifestyle: We can’t talk about stress without addressing sleep quality, physical activity/exercise, and your community of support systems. These all play a significant role in managing stress, and helping us navigate our perception of stress. This is typically a big conversation in our appointments, because these foundational aspects of health set the stage. 
• Medical aesthetics: if you’ve heard the expression wearing stress on your face, it’s a thing! Microneedling sessions can help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and our gorgeous B-serum is a natural retinol alternative (Bakuchiol) that can help brighten the skin and reduce the effects of oxidants/inflammation on our skin. Does stress trigger acne flares? Have you been feeling like you’re wearing your fatigue? Come chat with our team of expert aestheticians. Feeling confident inside and out is so important! Find out more about our various aesthetics services!

By addressing the underlying imbalances that contribute to stress and supporting the body’s ability to heal itself, our naturopathic doctors empower you to take an active role in your health and well-being. What parts of your life feel overwhelming? How do you perceive your current stress levels? How long have you been feeling this way? We’re here for you. Addressing the mind-body connection is critical in managing stress in our lives - the thoughts we think, and how we perceive our stress can affect our health just as much as the actual stress. 

If you're seeking stress relief or want to enhance your well-being naturally, consider booking a consultation with one of our naturopathic doctors to explore personalized solutions tailored to you. True healing begins from within, and by nurturing the mind-body connection, you can embark on a journey toward greater vitality, resilience, and balance! 

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NATUROPATHIC MEDICINE 

Learn More About Naturopathy at EASTND!