Begin Again

By Chris Coward, VP of Coaching for Apollo Health

In one of the meditation apps I use, the teacher, Sam Harris, often will say, “and for the last minute of this meditation, begin again.” At the moment right before he says this, I’m usually captured by thought and down a rabbit hole of thinking about my to-do list, a conversation I need to have, and a variety of other thoughts. When Sam says, “begin again,” I let all of that go and go back to my breath as a point of focus. What a powerful reminder that we can always begin again when practicing a new skill or habit, and I see this relating to following the Bredesen Protocol®.

I recently returned from a long weekend out of town with my husband. We couldn’t cook, so we went out to various restaurants. Sometimes this goes well for me, or well enough, in that I choose healthy dishes and avoid things that don’t work for my system, such as gluten. Not this time!  Everything tasted delicious, but by the end of the trip, I felt bloated and knew my food choices were not so good for me. In fact, I knew this during the trip but told myself, oh well, it’s just for a few days, so I’m not going to worry about it. As we were driving home, I heard Sam’s voice in my head saying, “begin again.”

What did beginning again look like for me? First, I embraced the mindset that I chose to throw culinary caution to the wind over the weekend, and it was fun, albeit not without consequences. And that I could make a new choice or series of choices to eat the foods while back at home that treat my body well. Second, once I got home, I started asking myself a question before planning each meal. That question was, “does this meal bring me toward optimal health or poor health?” This question is one that works for me personally because optimal health is important to me. If it wasn’t or if there was a higher priority in the moment of asking, the question may not have led me to better choices.

As a coach, I frequently operate in question mode, both for my clients and myself. I find that questions open us up to what’s most important and the concept of choice. Plus, questions can empower us to reflect in the moment instead of being on autopilot. For those of us who do not like being told what to do, questions put us in the driver’s seat versus someone else. 

So here we go:

● In your ReCODE or PreCODE Program®, where can you begin again?

● Is there an area of the Bredesen Seven that you are discouraged about or have given up on? What would it be like to take a small step back into that area and begin again?

● What support do you need to begin again? This could be a ReCODE Health Coach, a ReCODE Practitioner, or a Nutritionist, but your family and friends could also support it. It could also include joining one of our education or support groups: apollohealthsupportgroups.com.

● Is there information or data that is missing that is preventing you from beginning again? How can you obtain that information? I encourage you to dig into the multitude of guides and resources in your ReCODE or PreCODE member account.

● Is there a new skill that you want to practice and uplevel? I finally switched to using BrainHQ, and boy, is it humbling! But every day, I practice, and it’s paying off. If I backslide in a certain game, the next day, I begin again.

I challenge you to play with this concept of “begin again” as it applies to your health and life. As always, we are here to support you and welcome your questions and feedback.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday!