By Dr. James Mayne, DC ~ Vernon Chiropractor

I have long stated that through observing my elderly patients, by far the happiest seniors are those who have walked every day. With the chaos of a world pandemic on our doorstep, stress and anxiety have become a daily occurrence, and more so the more we read. So, with this current climate in mind, I decided to do a little reading into some recent articles and summarize some simple things we can do to help relieve our anxiety the way my well-balanced older patients seem to be able to do.

Simple things to do to relieve anxiety in Vernon

Let’s start with the obvious, going for a walk. Many articles in the scientific community have recorded the effect of an improved mood with going out for a walk. And not just a walk—a bike ride, a swim. Basically, any exercise you do will get blood to your brain and tissues and help with your overall mood.

The next thing to consider is the effect of sunshine. Getting outside in the sunshine has been shown repeatedly to improve mood. If you think about how many people come out of their winter isolation in the spring sunshine, we are basically solar-powered. Mood, hormones, and energy all improve when we are in the sunshine.

Other studies have identified the benefits of just being in nature. Japan is one of the leaders in natural therapy, were having walking trails through green spaces has been shown to decrease stress and anxiety while increasing overall mood.

And then there is technology. If we use technology properly it can definitely help with mood and anxiety. Our phones and watches can have step counters, motivating us to get in a set amount of walking each day. There are even companies out there developing robot walking partners to help motivate seniors and people in isolation to go outside and walk. Wow.

So, to summarize, if we want to do something to help with our stress levels and improve our overall mood, the research tells us to go for a walk, in the sun, preferably in the forest, and to use our phones to help motivate us. Um…that sounds quite doable. Just off the top of my head, I can think of about 100 local places where we can do this, all while maintaining our social distancing. If we have to survive a pandemic, the Okanagan is a pretty good place to ride it out.

To make an appointment with Dr. James Mayne, please call (250) 275-7616.