International Well-Being Rituals to Try at Home

Taking good care of yourself involves more than just doing things to improve your physical health. Sometimes we need more than just a massage gun to help relieve stress. Incorporating healthy daily habits and rituals can have a profoundly positive effect on your mental wellbeing, too. Whether your goal is to improve self-care or increase relaxation, many cultures around the globe practice important wellness rituals that anyone can try. Once you find the right rituals and make them a habit, you’ll notice an immediate improvement in the way you feel mentally, physically, and spiritually. If you’re ready to start a few wellbeing rituals at home, read on to learn more.

The Power of Rituals for Your Wellbeing

Practicing wellness rituals can have a powerful impact on your well-being. Here are a few ways that these rituals can transform and improve your life:

• Actionable values: Once you develop a ritual, you’ll be able to turn the things that are important to you into actionable habits that become part of your daily life. Whether it’s spending more time with your family or working on a hobby, creating a ritual will allow you to put your thoughts and dreams into real, tangible actions that matter.
• Structure: Daily rituals provide you with structure, a vital component of good mental health. Make sure you set aside a bit of time each day to practice your rituals so that it becomes part of your daily schedule.
• Real change happens: When you implement a ritual, it becomes a habit that can positively change your life and well-being. Make these positive rituals a habit, and you’ll begin to notice amazing changes for the better.

Why Rituals Are Good for Your Health

Wellness routines can have a marked improvement on your health. Here’s why these rituals are so vital to promoting good health and well-being.

• Lower blood pressure: When you implement wellness rituals, you’ll notice that you feel more relaxed and calmer. This can have a significant impact on things like your blood pressure levels, which may also reduce the risk of various cardiovascular and stress-related diseases.
• Improved immune system: Practicing self-care helps you mentally and physically, which can also help boost your immune system to help you fight disease.
• Healthy habits: Things like daily meditation and exercise help you develop lifelong habits that improve overall health. Regular workouts, getting good sleep, and eating a healthy diet are great for your mental health but even better for your physical health as a whole.
• A positive outlook: Performing healthy rituals will improve your outlook and attitude. When you make these rituals a habit, you’ll notice that it’s easier to deal with stressful situations and hardships. It also helps prevent overthinking and worry over things you can’t control.

Wellness Rituals from Around the World to Try at Home

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Now that you know more about the benefits of rituals, here are some ancient practices and global rituals that you can try yourself at home and improve your well-being:

• Temazcal – Mexico: This sweat lodge ceremony is used throughout South America, particularly in Mexico. Participants go inside a small sweat lodge for a few hours as a spiritual healer or shaman leads them. The idea of Temazcal is that sweating cleanses the mind and body, helping you to prepare for difficulties. You can recreate this ritual at home, even if you don’t have your own steam room. Turn your shower on to the hottest setting and let your bathroom fill with steam. Relax and listen to soothing music, do some meditation, or simply sit with your eyes closed as you let the steam surround you and soak into your skin. Use herbs for aromatherapy and to increase relaxation. You can also look for a local spa with a steam room for a more authentic experience.

• Hammam – Turkey: The Hammam ritual aims to improve sleep, cleanse the skin, and relax the muscles. It starts with a hot steam room, then a warm bath, and finally a cool relaxation room. Do this ritual at home by running a steaming shower, then using an exfoliating and detoxifying body scrub. Use a scrubbing mitt to remove dead skin cells, then slather yourself in moisturizing body oil and put on a soft, long cotton robe. Sip on some fresh mint tea during the cooldown to help you relax.

• Parenie – Russia: This Slavic ritual hails from the 10th century and is typically performed in a communal bathhouse where birch or eucalyptus twigs are used to press steam into the body. After the steam is produced, you submerge yourself into a cold plunge pool, and honey and salt or coffee scrubs are typically added. You can do this ritual at home by creating a spa-like experience in your bathroom using fresh eucalyptus branches and taking a hot shower. Then, make your own honey and salt body scrub and hop into a cold bath. The ritual is said to improve circulation, reduce stress, and relieve muscle tension and joint pain.

• Gua Sha – China: The Gua Sha ritual is a traditional Chinese medicine practice to help release blocked energy flow. It’s said to improve things like pain, illness, or fatigue. This ancient self-care ritual was designed to “scrape” any redness off the skin. Do this ancient ritual at home by gently using a jade or quartz roller or Gua Sha stone on your face and body. Finish the ritual by applying soothing antioxidant body or facial oils onto the skin to help release muscle tension and improve oxygen levels.

• Shinrin-Yoku – Japan: This Japanese ritual of “forest bathing” was developed in the early 1980s and encourages people to get in touch with nature by using all five senses. It helps clear the mind, boost your immune system, and improve sleep. If you can’t bathe in the forest, recreate the experience in your own bathroom by using bath and shower oils featuring a rich, earthy scent. Light a candle and use an essential oil diffuser to give your bathroom a boost of aromatherapy. Other ways to indulge in this ritual include spending time outside by walking in the woods or hiking and by bringing in some houseplants to fill your home with organic elements.

• Activated charcoal – Argentina: Activated charcoal is created by burning wood or coconuts at a very high temperature to make the particles more absorbent. The fine powder is used throughout Argentina to help remove toxins in the skin and body and draw out congestion and pollution. Look for products containing activated charcoal like a mask or scrub and use them daily to create a healthy ritual that leaves you feeling clean and detoxed.

• Laughter Yoga- India: Unlike traditional yoga, which tends to be serious, Laughter Yoga is an Indian ritual created in Mumbai in 1995. This practice involved meditation, followed by a session of laughing hilariously. Studies show that laughter can reduce stress hormones called cortisol, promoting better relaxation and feelings of calm. If you’d like to try this ritual at home, look for Laughter Yoga classes or groups that you can participate in online. You’ll notice an instant mood boost and better mental wellbeing.

• Singing Bowls – Tibet: Buddhist monks have used singing bowls for centuries to help them meditate and heal. These metal bowls create vibrations that may help to balance, heal, and restore parts of the mind and body by restoring balance. Use a singing bowl to help reduce stress and improve focus or relieve pain. You find singing bowls at many retailers online or at many local stores. Practice with your singing bowl daily to start reducing stress.

How To Use Wellness Practices to Boost Productivity Levels

These global wellness rituals can improve your mental and physical health, as well as your productivity levels. Here are some ways that rituals may help you be more productive.

• Positive attitude: Rituals like Laughter Yoga can help you develop a more positive attitude. When you’re feeling good, you’re much more likely to be productive, stay on task, and engage more in the work that you do.
• Better alertness: Relaxation and better sleep can help you feel much more alert and awake during the day. When you’re feeling well-rested, it’s easier to focus on the task at hand, which in turn improves productivity.
• Lower stress: Feeling stressed out or overwhelmed can do a number on your productivity. Practice some self-care rituals like Hammam to help you feel more relaxed and lower stress levels during the day.
• More breaks: Part of self-care includes remembering to give yourself a break. Ask for a day off, go on a vacation, and take time every day to relax and unwind. As a result, you’ll find that you feel much more refreshed and ready to take on your work when you return.

Whether you want to improve your stress levels or physical health, wellbeing rituals are a key part of self-care and improvement. Use some of these ancient rituals and global wellness rituals to help you unwind, de-stress, and form a more positive outlook. Once they become a habit, you’ll notice a significant improvement in your health and wellbeing as a whole.