334: Managing Stress and Downshifting for Improved Well-being

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  00:00

If you study these blue zones, so what we've been talking about, and these five different areas in the world will be they're not following some sort of blueprint. They're not looking at scientific studies. And no one's telling them, this is just their culture. It's the way they live. Yes. And this way has been passed down, generation after generation. And

Maya Acosta  00:22

this is the healthy lifestyle solutions podcast, and I'm your host, Maya Acosta. If you're willing to go with me. Together, we can discover how simple lifestyle choices can help improve our quality of life and increase our longevity in a good way. Let's get started. Welcome to another episode of the healthy lifestyle solutions Podcast with your hosts Maya Acosta. And Dr. Risk Today is Monday Dr. Risks, you know what that means?

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  00:52

That means it's time for another episode of

Maya Acosta  00:55

softer in the house. And this is where we speak with our guest expert, Dr. Rizwan Bukhari. And we hope that you've enjoyed three episodes now of Blue Zone living, we've been talking about the sense of community and how important that is for our health. We spoke about moving naturally in our environment. We last week spoke about nutrition and how important a plan forward diet is. And in this episode, we're going to talk about downshifting. In other words, reducing our stress.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  01:29

Are you ready? Yes, ma'am.

Maya Acosta  01:31

Okay. All right. Dr. Woods, I have a question for you. I have an icebreaker. If you could have a meal with someone from a Blue Zone, who would it be? And why? What healthy and delicious dishes would you like to share?

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  01:46

Hmm, well, I mean, I think because we talk about the blue zones as being a areas in where we see a statistically significantly higher proportion of centenarians than everywhere else in the world, I would enjoy sitting down with a centenarian. You know, I actually get to deal with elderly individuals regularly in my in my practice, and I very much enjoy sitting down and talking with them and hearing about their life experiences, and they've lived such a long, rich life. It's it's fun to hear what they've been through and what they've seen. So I that's what I would enjoy. And then as far as the second part of the question, which was,

Maya Acosta  02:31

what foods would you eat junk food?

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  02:33

You know, I, I've, or in one of the other episodes, I alluded to the fact that probably I think my favorite Blue Zone would be Costa Rica. And I'm partial to black, black beans and rice. And I think that's very much a and tortillas. Yeah, so that's very much a staple of the Costa Rican BlueZone diet.

Maya Acosta  02:53

Oh, yeah. I remember before I went vegan, I had their typical breakfast, and it had that guy yo Pinto. But it also had other you know, it had animal foods. I don't eat that anymore. But I still remember feeling like, wow, this is like the freshest food I've ever had. It didn't taste. Most of the meats that people eat have been frozen, and store for quite a while. But today, yeah, they have such delicious. You know, I've traveled there now as a vegan plant based person and still enjoy the food. I don't have a problem with that. That's a good question. Okay.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  03:27

Okay, so now it's your turn. Okay, if you could live in a blue zone for a week, which healthy habit would you be most excited to adopt? And why?

Maya Acosta  03:36

Okay, I felt like this is similar to what I've already answered. So the healthy habits are about food moving naturally downshifting. And kind of building a sense of community, I think downshifting would be the one thing that I would really enjoy doing, and just relaxing, maybe mingling with the locals. That's one thing that I really do want to be able to do more often when we travel is meet someone that is local to the region, because then it makes the location that destination a lot more meaningful. So yeah, that's pretty cool. All right. So welcome to the fourth and final episode of The Blue Zones lifestyle series, where we uncover the significance of stress reduction and practice of downshifting. Inspired by the wisdom of the Blue Zones, we explore how managing and reducing stress can contribute to a healthier, more balanced and fulfilling life. If you're just joining us for the first time. We want to tell you what Blue Zones are. These are areas throughout the world where people live the longest without chronic disease.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  04:41

Now, it's areas in the world where people live the longest and healthiest and they have a statistically significantly higher proportion of people who live to be 100 and healthy than anywhere else in the world.

Maya Acosta  04:54

That's right. So National Geographic fellow. Dan Buettner was the one that set out a few years ago. To discover these areas, and he took demographers and scientists and a whole entire team to document and interview these individuals. And so we're covering lessons from the Blue Zones and how they reflect lifestyle medicine, the other things that we teach on this podcast. And so today we're talking about stress management.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  05:20

So what I think is interesting about these blue zones is that they're come from a variety of places in the world, different ethnicities, maybe even slightly different genetic makeups. And yet, they identified nine principles that are common to these areas that they think are largely responsible for the longevity and health benefits. That's right.

Maya Acosta  05:43

So lifestyle plays a significant role. In today's fast, fast paced world, stress has become a common companion of many chronic stress can have detrimental effects on our physical and mental well being leading to various health problems, including heart disease, depression, and weakened immune system. The Blue Zones, communities teach us the importance of adopting strategies to effectively manage and reduce stress in our lives. So I mean, when I think of stress is not just the stress of keeping busy, but also how it affects sleep. And while we're not having a separate episode on sleep, I think we can kind of say that, when we have stress, how we eat is affected, how we act exercise, whether we exercise at all is affected, we lose sleep, I got microbiome gets affected by the stress, our moods are affected by stress, downshifting can contribute to overall well being, let's talk about some of the detrimental consequences of having too much stress in our life.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  06:46

You know, stress is actually a part of our lives. And it's an important our stress, we have stress responses. And it's those those responses are important, but we kind of developed to experience the stress to deal with it, and then let it go. And so a that's stress was supposed to be more episodic in nature. And but you fast forward millennia, or to our current lifestyles, and we're all under constant in constant states of stress. And what what that does to us is we release stress hormones, and it affects our bodies in a certain way. And so we're just constantly under stress and, and that impacts our physiology. And then of course, if it impacts our physiology, it impacts our health. And the interesting thing is that it can impact our health and a variety of ways, both our mental health and our physical health, cardiovascular disease, anxiety, depression, a weakened immune system, mental health disorders. So constant stress is not good for us. Yeah. And so learning to effectively manage our stress in this modern lifestyle is very important.

Maya Acosta  07:55

Leave us comments in the comment area below and tell us how you have recently been experiencing stress. I know that a lot of us have sort of come out of this pandemic period of two or three years and still feel some of the tension in our body, or just the awkwardness of socializing again and getting out there in public. In gatherings that can also be stressful. Now. Let's talk about downshifting. downshifting refers to intentionally slowing down simplifying and creating space for rest, relaxation, rejuvenation, and thinking about how we recently did restorative yoga at the studio next to us.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  08:40

Yeah, you know, so earlier on another episode, we talked about sailing. And how important that us is, is to us from for a downshifting. But I would like to point out that that's more episodic, you know, you don't, you shouldn't work for six months just to go on your one week trip, so that you can downshift and just for that one week, just taking it easy, whether it's on the beach or sailing a boat or in the mountains and enjoying, I think that it's important to understand that this downshifting that we're talking about is incorporating that concept into your daily practice. And that's going to be more meaningful and help you manage your stress much better. So you know, I think that there are different methods and different ways you can do this. Yeah,

Maya Acosta  09:24

that's an excellent point. I have often said that I don't want to wait to relax till I go on vacation. I want to feel I want to know how to downshift at the end of the day to relax a little bit more. So feeling calm and being more present in everything that I'm doing it whether I'm interacting with someone or I'm just washing dishes, I want to be more present. And so we're going to talk to you about some of those strategies that you can use in terms of downshifting to reduce the stress that is currently in your life. Recently, I started using the Calm out, mainly because you told me that you were using the calm app. And I purchase the full app. And it tracks when you're using it. And I have found that I'm using it almost every day. And it helps me to sleep as it helps me to calm my mind. At the end of the day, you can do all sorts of practices with that calm app. But you can end the day with gratefulness, feeling grateful and thankful for what you have. You can also use it to calm your mind, when you're having a panic attack. At least I've done that so that it has many different tools. So mindfulness and meditation, engaging in mindfulness and meditation practices, such as meditation, or deep breathing exercises, to cultivate present moment awareness and reduce stress. Those are excellent tools, set aside dedicated time each day to disconnect from distractions and find inner calm.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  10:59

Yeah, I think mindfulness and meditation are really gaining some traction in our, in our world. Maybe if you go back a decade, or 15 years ago, it's very unusual. But people are steadily beginning to recognize the importance of incorporating this kind of stuff in into your lifestyle and into your daily practice. And it doesn't take much, you know, it doesn't have to be that kind of old romanticized stuff that you see on TV where you think someone's sitting with their legs crossed for 30 for 30 minutes, 45 minutes or an hour, and suddenly, they're meditating so well, that they're floating in the air. It doesn't have to be that it's whatever resonates with you, and just taking a few minutes out, it can be three minutes can be five minutes, it can be 10 minutes, it can be in the morning, right? It can be at lunch, when you have a little bit of a break, it can be at night, and or it can be all and end all it is is you entertaining mindfulness practices, and I love the apps, so you can do it on your own. Or, if you're like me, I like to have guided meditations or guided things that kind of helped me. And so it can, it can work anyway. And I don't think any is better than the other. It just again, what works for you. And so three minutes can be good. And you can do different things, there can be affirmations, there can be you know, things to get your energy going are things to take slow you down. And, or there can be things to get you, you know, all excited about the day or gratitude. You know, there's so many different opportunities. And that's, again, why the apps are great, because they've explored all of these for you. And there's all sorts of categories. And so many things to choose from that there's, you can almost always find something that you want to do. Some people do the same thing every day. And others do something different every single time. So again, that's the I think the app is a great way to get into the mindfulness and meditation space. Yes,

Maya Acosta  12:58

absolutely. And many, many years ago, when I used to have a lot of more anxiety during the day, I started using a recording that was mainly used during walking. So like a walking meditation, guided meditation, so that wherever you are, you're being very deliberate in your steps, noticing your surroundings, it's all about raising awareness and calming the mind. So often on the podcast, I talk about self care as well. So prioritizing self care. So taking time to self care to have those activities as you nurture your physical, emotional and mental well being. And again, this could include like a hobby of yours, like if you like painting or coloring nowadays, or how coloring books for adults that are really calming and soothing, gardening, gardening, relaxing baths, practicing yoga, doing nature walks. But I once had a guest who said you know, self care is not just about taking a bubble bath. It's for for many self care is also about doing the work during you know, the inner work to take care of yourself setting strong boundaries, so that you're not burning the candle at both ends, using your voice so that you don't feel that you're being taken advantage of. So those are other ways that we care for ourselves. And we often talk about that here on the podcast. Oh, look at that establishing boundaries is on this list.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  14:30

And we talked about practicing gratitude. Yes.

Maya Acosta  14:33

So let me go back to boundaries because we did talk about caretaking when we are responsible for either caring for loved ones, children, or parents that now need that. So set clear boundaries between work in personal life. Avoid excessive work hours and create time for your relaxation, your hobbies and learn to say no to commitments that drain your energy and prioritize activities that bring you joy. That's one of the things that I'm going to be working on more this year is learning how to say no to, you know, because we're always invited to be part of something. And it can be overwhelming by saying, No, we're protecting our energy and prioritizing ourselves. And then you know, seeking support, there's nothing wrong with getting a therapist or a life coach to support you in personal growth.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  15:26

Absolutely. And, you know, you said therapist, and life coach and mentors, I think those are all important in, in helping you discover what's important, there's nothing wrong with seeking the wisdom of those who've got more experienced than you.

Maya Acosta  15:41

Yep. And people that that you believe are supporting you. So as we conclude our Blue Zones lifestyle series, we recognize the importance of stress reduction, and downshifting and cultivating a balanced and fulfilling life. By adopting strategies to manage stress, practicing downshifting, and prioritizing self care, we can enhance our overall well being resilience and longevity. Can you think of other ways that you can downshift or feel good?

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  16:11

Yeah, I think it's just anything that gets you out of your mind, and takes you away from from kind of the, the stress that we experience on a daily basis, you know, you know, changing your speed when you get home from work, you know, some maybe doing something that just kind of gets you out of that work mode. You know, whatever that might be going through, doing some exercise. You know, there's so many different things. Yeah,

Maya Acosta  16:36

I one thing that I like is when I'm at home, working a lot nonstop, and very focused. I like when I take a walk with Bobby, because I can just like, let it go. Yeah, I think I'm out. I'm out of the office. I'm letting it go. I look around and look at the sky, the trees, the grass. And I'm, I'm also imagining what it's like for him because he's a very present creature.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  17:00

Yeah, I love dogs, because they live in the moment. And they teach us to do so to thrive, we are open to the message. And I think that the thing about is that what are what I'd like to say is, there's no one way to do it, is whatever resonates with you. And I think but and really more important than anything else, just have some intention in it. So that you understand that you recognize that that's what you're trying to do. And and so then you can do it many different ways.

Maya Acosta  17:28

Absolutely. And as we're wrapping up, you know, I want to remind you again, that what we see, you know, lessons from the Blue Zones is that in these communities, people take the time after like in the evenings to come together and mingle in their community. I know that at one time, my sister lived in a certain part of Mexico, where the whole town comes out and walks in the plaza in the evening. It's just how they downshift. It's not like us, like we're nonstop working all day long. There are communities throughout the world where people just know when to quit work. And they value community.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  18:04

You know, what's interesting about that, so if you go to, if you study these blue zones, so what we've been talking about, and these five different areas in the world, well, they they're not following some sort of blueprint. They're not looking at scientific studies. And no one's telling them, this is just their culture. It's the way they live. Yeah. And this way has been passed down, generation after generation, and that's the way they live. And so it's not actually a very, it's not a deliberate thing. And we're talking about being deliberate because we live in a different world where we kind of live so contrary to those concepts, that we have to be deliberate about it. Yeah. Although I would say that once you start to incorporate these and make it your daily practice, and it becomes a part of your lifestyle becomes easier. And you have you don't have to be as deliberate about it. Right. So it's kind of interesting to me, that that's just their lives. That's just the way they're living just the same way we're living the way we live. That's right. Although I think we need to be more deliberate just because we're not necessarily living the healthiest approach to life.

Maya Acosta  19:06

Yeah, I mean, we enjoy sunsets and I the sunsets no matter where you are in the world you don't have to see it set over the horizon at a beach the sun will set somewhere and you know, there are times when I've been on the road and I'm watching the sunset behind what's in front of it are buildings and the you still see this golden color across the sky and and I think god there's so much beauty and so all we have to do is just go like to White Rock Lake where I think you said at one point you used to watch the sunset. So there are places where you can just enjoy the beauty in your area without having to travel five hours to a destination for example. And so yeah, we we you know how they say we learn what we need to do. We teach what we need to learn the most. Part of what I like about the podcast is everything that I share I'm trying to implement for myself to lifestyle medicine is very important for me too. So managing my stress, setting boundaries, prioritizing myself, all of that stuff is part of what I'm working on to. And so that's our goal by us sharing the Blue Zones, we're not just sharing it for the sake of it. These are important principles and lessons that we want to implement in our lives as well. Well, yeah. So friends, we hope that you have enjoyed this series, we had a lot of fun putting it together. Tell us what you thought about it. What are the topics should we talk about? We know we we teased previously about you talking about longevity or intermittent fasting. But there are so many ways that we can improve our quality of life. I'm going to work on an episode on forest bathing, which again, takes you back to using nature as medicine or nature therapy. So if you have any other ideas for us, let us know. Because we do we like recording these doctor in the house episodes.

Dr. Rizwan Bukhari  21:08

All right. All right. Goodbye.

Maya Acosta  21:10

You've been listening to the healthy lifestyle solutions podcast with your host Maya Acosta. If you've enjoyed this content, please share with one friend who can benefit. You can also leave us a five star review at rate this podcast.com forward slash H L S. This helps us to spread our message. As always, thank you for being a listener.