Why Wellness Doesn’t Have to be Perfect

Why Wellness Doesn’t Have to be Perfect
Wellness is my passion—it’s one of the pillars of this site and my career, and I’m truly in love with the message behind it. It’s such an exciting time, too, as society is becoming a more health-conscious place, but I’m noticing a different kind of shift, too. A less valuable one.

To me, wellness or living well used to be small positive practices that were making me feel wonderful. When I began changing my diet to include mainly clean foods, I felt energized and light. When I became obsessed with swapping out toxic beauty products for natural choices, I felt like I was doing my health a huge favor. When I would run a bath for myself after a long day (aka self-love), I felt at peace.

And as I push on with just as much wellness as ever—more than ever—the sense of doing something good for myself has dimmed and the pressure to make every decision perfect has heightened. Now that wellness is such an integral part of my world, and the world, it’s lost some of its initial satisfaction.

I find myself getting down if I can’t fit in the perfect morning wellness routine (consisting of a combination lemon water, meditation, dry brushing, yoga, bullet coffee, journaling, green juice, and an Insta-worthy breakfast) when I used to beam after doing just one of those things. Or that my smoothie all of a sudden isn’t healthy if I’ve run out of bee pollen—though I’ve got spinach, fruit, flax, chia seed, collagen, nut butter, and hemp oil.

It’s like we’ve—or I’ve—striped the good out of wellness intentions and instead have created a new to-do list for ourselves. And I’m sure a lot has to do with social media. Even the biggest wellness people in the game likely are “messing up” from time and time and not living a wellness-chock life 24/7 like their feeds suggest. I’m probably victim, too.

And don’t get me wrong; I’ll never stop caring about wellness. It’s scientifically proven to living a healthier, happier, longer life and the individual practices are essential to what makes me feel my best. But I’m vowing to stop beating myself up if life—including TV instead of meditating when there’s a show on that I’m looking forward to or grabbing something from Starbucks if I didn’t have time to whip up a chia smoothie—happens, because it will. And remembering that leading a life full of wellness doesn’t have to own each minute of my to-do list. Wellness can still be amazing without being perfect.

I’d love to hear how you feel about the pressures of perfectionism that come with wellness. Do you agree and feel the same way? Or have you found a way to put less pressure on yourself while still living well?

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15 comments

  1. I agree 100%. I think there is a fine line between living well and over-complicating your wellness. I try to be mindful of what trends or new ideas I’m adding into my routine, so I’m not adding or trying too much at once. I want to really know what works for me, my lifestyle and my goals. There are practices that I only need to incorporate as needed, not as a daily activity and I think that distinction is important.

  2. You are sooo right! I definitely think social media has upped the ante considerably. But you are doing an amazing job! I, on the other hand, am newer to incorporating wellness into my life. I am striving to eat a little cleaner, take a little more vitamins, do a little more yoga and see where it takes me. So just know that you are doing more than the average joe, and you should be proud of how much self-love you possess! Thanks for sharing!

    Xo,

    Megan at Lush to Blush

  3. I think you’re right that social media and the constant drive to be better makes wellness a weirdly competitive and perfection driven pursuit. I’m trying to remember that wellness for me is just going with what your body and mind need and listening rather than doing something in a certain way.

    – Natalie
    http://www.workovereasy.com

  4. I’ve started my “wellness journey” so many times only to be disappointed and drop off all together. This was a few years ago and I finally found that it was because I wasn’t giving myself any grace. Some weeks I may only be able to work out once, and beating myself up about it won’t do any good. Same thing with eating clean…sometimes that piece of chocolate cake needs to be celebrated. It’s okay! That’s why it’s called a journey!

  5. I feel like everyone has their own thoughts on health and wellness, so we should just focus on ourselves and what makes us feel great ♥

    Amy // snippetsofamy.co.uk

  6. Whenever I tried to “get healthy”, I’d immediately quit at the first sign of “failure”. I’d think “Oh, I already ruined it. Might as well ruin it big.” But since this past summer I’ve made a concentrated effort to exercise and eat better, and when I don’t work out or I eat pizza or what have you, I don’t just throw it all away. I know it’s all a continuous journey and I can get that work out in and eat that fruit tomorrow. It doesn’t have to – and shouldn’t – be an all or nothing thing. <3
    http://www.wonderlandsam.com

  7. We live in such an all or nothing world, don’t we? We think if we’re not doing something like wellness perfectly, that we’re just all around failures. I’ve learned to take things in stride. Feel proud of the good things I’m doing. Not hang onto the bad things. I think wellness in general can overwhelm people because truly, it encompasses so much – from your diet, to your fitness routine, to the way you manage your personal thoughts and emotions. Every act of putting yourself first counts for something. Even if it’s just a 10 minute walk or having a nutritional meal you make fresh for yourself over fast food.

    xoxo – Kelly
    http://www.dreaminlace.com

  8. I agree with you! I think finding the perfect balance between being happy with your life without putting too much pressure on being perfect and having a healthy lifestyle should be the key. Because even though you’re healthy but if you’re not happy or simply stressing out about the need to do things a certain why, it can also slowly deteriorates your body.

  9. Totally agree with this! I’m such a perfectionist at heart that I get discouraged by the one thing I do wrong even if I’m doing tons of other things right. I think for me, what’s worked is focusing on the big picture and realizing that I’m so much healthier and happier than I was a year ago. That kind of snaps me out of feeling down if I can’t do everything I want to.
    -Sisi
    http://www.modernbeautygirl.com

  10. This is so true! Like you, I used to be satisfied with little wellness victories; but recently, I feel so annoyed if I don’t get to tick off everything in my list. It can get toxic. It makes me want to give up because what’s the point if I can’t commit to a perfect daily routine?

    When I catch myself thinking this way, I remind myself that as imperfect as my process may be, at least I’m not where I used to be. There’s still progress! I just have to work on making this a mindset, rather than a thing to remind myself.

  11. I love your blog and completely agree with what you said about wellness. I was obsessed with trying to do everything perfectly when pregnant a year ago because the hype about being the perfect wellness person was so big. I also followed a few people who shame you if you don’t do everything perfectly! I found great brands while pregnant (that I continue to use) and I do what I can. My son is very healthy and happy. The more use you get out of a product or food, I think the more you should try to switch to a healthy alternative. Thank you for posting this!! It’s perfect!

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