Now it’s time to get the brain on board. I call this the Free Spirit section. When we clear our mind and emotions of negativity such as stress, anger, anxiety, resentments, fear and depression we Free our Spirit for more positive emotions and thoughts to enter.
When the mind is free, calm, clear and focused on positive thoughts, we have a much greater ability to accomplish our goals. Deep breathing, meditation, prayer and counselling are some examples of Soul Food that help to Free the Spirit.

Soul Food recipes are very simple!

SOUL FOOD

Breathing: is an inconspicuous activity we do every few seconds, but we tend to inhale just the minimum amount of oxygen to keep us alive. During times of anxiety or stress, our breath becomes even shallower. Try taking a few long, deep breaths to reduce anxiety and tension, which in turn encourages more deep breathing. Remember, air is a good thing! To take it a step further, try meditation and mindfulness as tools to enhance deep breathing. Both result in a calm, focused mind over which you will have more control.

 

  

Mindfulness: means being aware of the present moment and not worrying about the future. For meditation, there are a variety of styles you can experiment with; try one of the many books and instructional videos available to learn different styles.

 

 

Meditation: is focused mind clearing. There are so many types of Meditation! I recommend choosing a Meditation APP platform and experimenting with different styles of Meditation until you find one or two that resonate with you.

 

 

Taking Inventory: of our thoughts and consequential behaviors is a great way to examine the mental chatter.
Affirmations: are positive replacements for reprogramming our negative thoughts. If a negative thought comes in your head, such as “I’m undeserving”, then replace it with “I deserve good things in my life” or “Dang, I’m good!”. With practice over time, you will have a stronger tendency to think that positive thought first, not second.

 

 

Prayer: is another soul food that connects us to a higher spirit. It may be part of your religious practice or maybe it is just a positive thought or word. It’s an excellent way to give your worries and concerns to a higher power, helping to reduce the burden you may feel. Be sure to integrate forgiveness into your prayer; it’s an essential part of the detox process.

 

 

Relationships: The detox is also a great time to clean house in relationships. Perhaps you need to express things that you are holding in such as anger and resentments. Or maybe there is a certain person that you need to forgive, yourself included. Let go of negative relationships that may be draining your energy. This creates energy for new relationships, which are more supportive and uplifting.

 

 

Therapy: This may also be a time to see a psychotherapist or counselor to address any personal issues that you feel could be improved on, or challenges that you would like to overcome.

 

 

Sleep: Perhaps the most important Soul Food is sleep. Yes, catch some ZZZZZZZs. During your cleanse, aim to get at least eight hours of sleep per night, and up to 12 if your schedule allows it. The body uses its downtime to focus on immune and detox activities, so more sleep equates to a better detox. You may find that you feel more tired during this time, and it may be easier to sleep more than usual. Enjoy the downtime; you are still accomplishing something.

 

 

 

Ok Free Spirit, Now that you have Freed Your Mind....

let’s move on to the final stage of the Detox…Detox your home and lifestyle!