The Heart of Living Well

One glance at the The Heart and Living Well and you will know it is not your run-of-the-mill book on health.  Just as beautiful inside as it is on the outside, The Heart of Living Well eloquently and honestly speaks to the real meaning of health.  Abandoning the singular focus of most health books, The Heart of Living Well combines the latest research and best advice on all aspects of a woman’s life including mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health.  Recently becoming one of Amazon.com’s top 100 bestselling new and future releases in the Healthy Living category, The Heart of Living Well is an inspirational guide filled with practical tips and tools for making wellness a core part of your life.

I recently had the opportunity to chat with author Judy Lubin, MPH, about the message in her book.

What gave you the impetus to write this book?

I started writing the book after my own experience of being burned out and just wanting more for myself. I decided to go on a hiatus and stop and think about my life. My career has been about helping others to live healthier, but I was not feeling well, well in the sense of being whole and complete. For years, I carried around emotional baggage and sought resolution for chronic aches and muscle tightness through a variety of alternative health treatments. But as I began to think more deeply about what it means to truly be well, and seeing a transformation happening in myself as a result of journaling, psychotherapy and yoga—a new way of looking at wellness emerged for me that is grounded in the connection between one’s mind, body, heart, and spirit. The idea that wellness could be a path toward wholeness and being fully awake in our lives, is a conversation I want women to have with ourselves and each other.

What do you want for your readers?

I want to encourage women to move toward wellness and to find the fullest expression of who they are.  I want this book to remind readers that they intuitively know how to be well and that it is okay to give ourselves permission to heal from the stress of daily living and the emotional roadblocks that get in the way of making positive, lasting change. My hope is that readers will walk away with a feeling that they are supremely capable of living a healthier and fuller life. 

The Six Principles

1. Open Your Mind to Wellness. Create space in your mind and your life for greater health and wellbeing by letting go of limiting thoughts and beliefs. Believe in your inner beauty, wisdom and power.

2. Find Your Balance. Simplify your life and keep stress at bay so you can direct your energy toward people and activities that nourish and uplift you.

3. Feed Your Spirit. Enrich yourself through practices and rituals that build your connection to yourself and the world. Reconnect and commit to your values so your lifestyle choices become clearer and easier.

4. Open Your Heart. Tune in to your emotions and live from your heart by following your passions, and practicing forgiveness, gratitude and compassion for yourself and others.

5. Honor Your Body. Respect, love and appreciate your body. Find new joy in exercise, eating and self-care by listening to your body and the natural rhythms of life.

6. Live in Beauty. Reclaim your inner radiance by celebrating and connecting with the beauty and greatness within and around you.

Why are woman hesitant to use their inner wisdom?

Women have huge barriers when it comes to seeing and appreciating our innate beauty, wisdom and power.  At a very early age, women learn to adapt their behaviors to gain approval and to please others. We’re also inundated with messages that suggest that we are lacking or missing something. We often internalize other people’s ideals, believing that we’re inadequate or need to look outside of ourselves for affirmation of our beauty and power. On top of that, the high-stress that characterizes so many of our lives forces some of us to tune out the natural instincts (such as sleep) that lead us to balance and good health. My book offers simple and practical ways women can reconnect with the innate wisdom inside each of us.

How has writing this book changed you?

This was a healing journey for me in the sense that I had to stand in my own truth. I was not sure that I was ready to share my story, but with some coaching, I realized that my story, like those of so many other women, needed to be shared. We learn so much from sharing and listening to each others’ stories. The Heart of Living Well is about opening up to the beauty and greatness inside, so I had to open up my life and share some my struggles to reinforce the book’s message.

So brag about the book!  What do you love about it?

The Heart of Living Well is written in a flowing and conversational style.  It is extremely easy to read. You can get something out of it even if you just have a few minutes to browse through it each day. The response has been very positive. It’s wonderful to hear that the book is helping women commit to making health a core value. The path to living well begins when we decide to honor the vision and values that we have set for ourselves. The book helps women stay focused, motivated and connected on their journey to optimal health and wellbeing.

You may purchase The Heart of Living Well from this site (link is to the right). 

Be sure to visit the website at http://www.heartandstylewoman.com/books