Women’s bodies are amazing. Besides the ability to produce life, studies have shown that the female body is capable of great things. This includes strong immune systems, greater muscle endurance than men, and better memory. With all these amazing abilities, Women’s health is of the utmost importance.
With National Women’s Health Week, May 8th -14th is a time for women everywhere to focus on themselves. To start paying attention to their mental, physical, and emotional health, here are seven ways to get started. If you are a woman reading this, you are encouraged to choose at least one health topic to focus on for this month.
Stop normalizing stress: If a woman has a job, a family, or is an active participant in society, chances are she is under a great degree of stress. In fact, according to a study done on LinkedIn that surveyed over five thousand people, 74 percent were stressed due to work. In addition to stress from work, women take on more emotional labor.
This is unpaid and often unnoticed work of suppressing certain emotions to meet the demands of others. This can occur in the workplace, along with social or domestic situations. For example, always having to smile regardless of how rude a customer acts. Enduring high levels of stress is unnecessary and harmful. Although it’s impossible to cut all the stress in your life, you can take sts to reduce it. Here are some ways to do so.
Exercise: Working out helps release endorphins which are hormones that elevate your mood. Also, exercise can relieve muscle tension accumulated by stress. Now, before you start stressing out about making time for the gym, you can try making fitness a daily part of your life. Consider taking a walk during your lunch break. Working out first thing in the morning or even switching to a standing desk can make a difference.
Build strong friendships: Humans thrive from social connections. Having friends who will listen and encourage laughter is a great way to relieve stress.
Self-care: This has become a buzzword over the last few years. Yet, it’s important to remember that self-care isn’t limited to a bottle of champagne and facial masks. Self-care is taking time to do the things that you love, putting your needs first, following passions, and setting boundaries.
Positive self-talk: Everyone has a negative Nancy voice that lives inside their head. That negative voice can account for 70 to 80 percent of the 50,000 thoughts we think every day. No wonder women are stressed out. To shift that percentage, focus on more positive self-talk by checking in with yourself daily. If you started noticing negative thoughts, try to shift your focus to something positive.
Maintain a healthy diet: Society has often put limitations on what women should or shouldn’t eat to agree with particular waist sizes. All the diet fads and weight lost teas may make women thinner, but are they improving their health? Instead of avoiding the f- word, fats, health professionals encourage women to incorporate more good fats. Healthy fats from avocados, nuts, and fish. Along with eating lots of leafy green vegetables.
Ensure you’re getting enough calcium: Calcium is an essential mineral that women seem deficient in. Calcium is an essential mineral that aids in absorbing vitamin D that promotes strong bones. Calcium can be acquired through supplements or dairy foods, beans, and almonds.
See a doctor before and if you have health problems: Although the expression says, if it isn’t broken, don’t try to fix it, this doesn’t apply to your body. There are many reasons to visit a doctor before you start having aches and pains. Many times when you start having health problems, your body is telling you that there is something wrong. Regular checks ups with the doctor help identify low-risk health factors that can prevent major health problems in the future.
Get a pap smear: An estimated 341,831 women died from cervical cancer worldwide in 2020. Thus getting your pap smear, a test proven to help prevent cervical cancer by finding it early, is essential to your health as a woman. Pap tests only need to be done every three years and could save your life.
Add joy into your life: Being happy not only affects your mood, but helps you take on healthy behaviors and habits. Often the things that make you happy positively affect your health. Things such as dancing, being outside, and riding a bike. The happier you are, the better choices you make. The more joy you experience, the more inclined you are to maintain that joyous state.
Set realistic health goals: Weight loss has been a central focus around women’s health. Yet, setting a goal to lose 10 pounds isn’t always the best for your health. Instead, try creating realistic health habits. For instance, drinking more water, eating leafy greens, and exercising for the sake of exercising. Stop trying to reach health milestone that has been perpetuated by swimsuit companies. Choose healthy activities that work for your lifestyle.
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