“I have been given this product as part of a product review through the Chronic Illness Bloggers network. Although the product was a gift, all opinions in this review remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.”
Something about Whole Health Life resonated with me — well, a lot of things. While the topics that author, Shannon Harvey, writes about are nearly identical to the founding principles of Strength/Flexibility/Health/EDS, the validity of each has been personally humbling — especially over the last two years. One topic discussed in Whole Health Life that stuck with me the most is the principal of moving more and moving better and why it’s critical to helping you climb out of what I refer to as the “The EDS Spiral.” The EDS Spiral refers to the deconditioning of multiple body systems that can happen with multi-systemic chronic illnesses — specifically, with Ehlers-Danlos syndromes. Of course, the author was personally diagnosed with an autoimmune disease versus Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), another type of hypermobility syndrome, or the common “trifecta” that many of us with EDS have. However, despite different labels, there are often underlying links between chronic medical conditions. There are also similarities in the ways that we find stability — or, our body’s new “homeostasis.” Many of us with EDS have also been diagnosed with an autoimmune condition in addition to EDS and its common comorbidities. Some of us are lucky enough to have more than one autoimmune condition, EDS and several of comorbid conditions — the fun part of “living with EDS and the whole shebang.” As several of my physicians have stated, “these conditions tend to travel in packs.” Either way, moving more during the day (not just attending a fitness class for 1hr and then sitting at a desk or on the couch the rest of the day) can help prevent the spiral from propelling further that it should. It can also help you climb out slowly — i.e. “Go slow and go low.” (Dr. Pradeep Chopra).
Whole Health Life discusses how walking outside can help boost your disease preventing cells, which essentially overlaps with the biomechanical and biochemical foundations of natural movement and corrective/restorative exercise. The post ‘My butt is flat! Why sitting too many causes chronic pain, muscle atrophy, and problems moving around‘ shares the same sentiments as well. Similarly, natural movement and corrective exercise/restorative exercise can help you determine ‘what hurts and why it’s important to helping manage chronic pain,’ especially if practiced in conjunction with meditation and a good night sleep — topics also discussed in Shannon Harvey’s revolutionary book. Whole Health Life gives impactful evidence on why “sitting is considered the new smoking,” the healing power of meditation, the life-sustaining importance of a good night’s sleep, and much much more.
Considering the life expectancy for the US dropped for the first time in decades, and children are sicker than their parents, Whole Health Life is one of life’s essential tools for our illness-preventing “tool box.”
About Whole Health Life:
“Being healthy in this crazy, busy, modern world is not easy. For journalist Shannon Harvey, finding a solution to this problem became personal when she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that had no known cause or cure. After being told by her doctor that she could end up in a wheelchair, she realised she had to take action. This inspired a ten-year journey, where she spent more than $30,000 on conventional and alternative treatments, searched through thousands of scientific papers, and traveled the world to interview dozens of pioneering health researchers from leading institutions such as Harvard and Stanford. On her road to getting better she met people with remarkable stories of recovery, discovered the truth amidst conflicting medical advice and sorted the quacks from the experts. She has now compiled the latest evidence and her personal experiences into one book to help you find the answers to good health.
Discover why:
Meditation can turn off genes affecting disease.
Sitting is considered the new smoking.
One simple change to your diet can add years to your life.
A walk in nature can boost your cancer fighting cells by more than 50%.
Getting enough sleep makes you smarter, faster, and even better looking.
Being positive can help you heal more quickly from a wound.
Loneliness is on par with obesity and addiction as a leading risk factor in chronic disease.
And much more…
From dealing with work stress, to improving your relationships at home, or making healthy habits stick, understand how your mind, body, and the world around you influences your health more than you think. Whether you are struggling to get well, or simply want to know what you can do today to stay healthy, this book is filled with real-world, simple, evidence-based solutions to improve your health from every aspect, adding years to your life and saving you thousands of dollars in medical expenses.
This is a guidebook for anyone who wants to get healthy, find balance, and live better.”
About The Connection:
“The Connection is a feature documentary that uncovers the latest science in mind body medicine and proves we have much
more to say about our health than we thought possible.
After being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, Australian journalist and filmmaker Shannon Harvey traveled the world in search of the missing link in healthcare.
From interviewing world leading scientists to meeting people with remarkable stories of recovery from severe back pain, heart disease, infertility, cancer and multiple sclerosis, this documentary delves into the link between our mind and body.”
About Shannon Harvey:
“Shannon Harvey is an investigative journalist and filmmaker from Sydney, Australia. She spent many years working for the leading news organisations in Australia such as ABC and Fairfax. In 2014 she released her first feature documentary, The Connection, about the link between our mind, body and health. She now writes for publications such as MindBodyGreen and her own popular blog while balancing her health, work, and being the mother of two adventurous boys.”
Whole Health Life Links:
The Connection: – https://theconnection.tv/
The Connection on Amazon.com – https://www.amazon.com/Connection-Alice-Domar/dp/B019RGCZ0K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491027996&sr=8-1&keywords=the+connection+dvd
Whole Health Life on Amazon.com – http://amzn.to/2kY7S53
Whole Health Life Website – https://www.thewholehealthlife.com
Whole Health Life Blog – https://www.thewholehealthlife.com/blogs/blog
Whole Health Life Documentary – https://www.thewholehealthlife.com/pages/the-connection-documentary
About Whole Health Life Book – https://www.thewholehealthlife.com/pages/the-whole-health-life-book
Resources:
‘Life expectancy set to hit 90 in South Korea’ (Nature, 2017) – http://www.nature.com/news/life-expectancy-set-to-hit-90-in-south-korea-1.21535
‘Rural Americans at higher risk of death from five leading causes’ (CDC 2017) – https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2017/p0112-rural-death-risk.html
Nutritious Movement by Katy Bowman
EDS Wellness