Why Every Writer Needs to Meet the 4 Wellness Doctors with Francesca Hepton

Author and wellness mentor Francesca Hepton is a champion for health, well-being and a catalyst for personal growth. Her services include books, journals, and courses predominantly in the field of health, well-being, stress reduction, and life-style choices, as well as
workshops with associated course material in the form of manuals, storybooks, training manuals, videos, audios, and mentoring services.

Her How to… series of self-help books can be found here: Wellness and Writing.

Become your own wellness doctor and the only prescriptions you’ll be writing are the ones that come naturally or free: happiness, exercise, good food and meditation.

When I started going on about self-care over 10 years ago, most writers looked at me with a blank expression. They had come to my course or workshop to get their book written, not learn how to chant “om” or say no to greasy foods and coffee. After all it is the caffeine high and the extremes of delirium through lack of sleep and overthinking that squeeze miraculous and creative stories out of our pens. Isn’t it? It worked for the greats such as Balzac who is reputed to have drunk 50 cups of coffee a day, and Samuel Johnson or the renowned alcoholics who used drugs or booze as their muse, such as Scott Fitzgerald and Virginia Woolf. Why should we treat our bodies like temples and doom our readers to mediocrity—albeit a healthy helping of mediocrity?

Because You'll Burn Out

Now don’t get me wrong, I wobble along the fine line of sanity/insanity just like the rest of you creative geniuses. Monotony and consistency churn out grey content on my page and a yawn across my reader’s face, whereas unintentionally sliding into the shadows of sleep deprivation, overwhelm and fasting has always yielded some of my best work. That said, it is not sustainable. Nor would our text be very accurate or syntaxicombically correct if we were to follow this wayward and unregulated route all the time.

That is why I am here to introduce you to the 4 doctors—not to be confused with the Dread Doctors. I use them when I realise I am straying onto precarious ground. They can help haul my lazy, caffeinated or procrastinating ass back onto the path of solid writing to the destination of a finished manuscript. So, without further ado:

Dr HAPPY

First, ask yourself WHAT

makes you happy?
makes you feel good?
gives you a sense of purpose?
are you passionate about?
would be your chosen career?

Dr Happy is always there to lead us to a life that fulfills our individual wants and needs. Furthermore, he can advise us if we are leading a life that does not maintain our core values and if this appears to be the case then we feel in conflict with ourselves.

10 Tips on how to be happy:

wellnessandwriting.com/how-to-be-happy/

by Francesca Hepton

Dr DIET

We all know diet is a key part of our health and wellbeing. The quality of our food and drink we consume will affect our energy levels, emotions, physical health, mental clarity, productivity, performance, and overall health. When your diet is wrong, you don’t have enough energy or clarity of mind to initiate and sustain the changes needed for feeling well or motivating yourself. Discover the best diet for you: free ebook: wellnessandwriting.com/unlock-the-power-of-food/

Dr QUIET

This wellness doctor is the chief physician making it the most important of the 4 Doctors. He is responsible for energy management and recovery. One of the most common issues with Dr Quiet is sleep. People simply aren’t getting enough sleep. You can make some big improvements in your health if you get adequate amounts of sleep.

Meditation can also be very beneficial: https://wellnessandwriting.com/benefits-of-meditation/

Approx. 8 hours of sleep per night is recommended. Timing is also crucial because our body’s circadian rhythms are related to the rising and falling off the sun. 10:00pm is an optimal time to go to sleep, as the time from 10pm – 2am is the stage in our sleep of physical repair and 2 am – 4 am is dedicated to cognitive and mental repair.

Dr MOVEMENT

Do you work out? Or do you work in? “Working in” is the body accumulating energy through activities such as yoga, tai chi, stretching, massage etc. “Working out” is the body expending energy, such as cycling, lifting weights, running, or playing sports.

Often people are not getting enough of the above 3 wellness doctors and as a result they do not have the energy to work out. This is because their body is short of resources. However, when the 3 Wellness Doctors mentioned above are balanced, we can begin to exercise in a way where the body receives a positive response from exercise. Without the right amount of movement, we suffer not only physically but mentally, emotionally and spiritually. For more info visit:

https://wellnessandwriting.com/how-to-get-fit/

What Happens if You Don't Visit the 4 Doctors

This article just provides an overview. If you can tick the boxes for the bare minimum in our 4 doctors’ checklists then you’re on your way to a healthy output of writing, you will be able to sustain for the long term. If you are not well physically or mentally or even emotionally, this will block your creative flow—and probably your arteries. Some tell-tale signs in your performance as a writer include:

you procrastinate because you’re feeling insecure
you can’t focus because you’re tired
you are lethargic because you don’t have energy
you can’t sit because you’re in pain

If you look after yourself, the words will come flowing. Lift your spirits, eat well, be sure to relax and find time to move. Shortcuts like alcohol and all-night writing binges may work sometimes, but not all the time. And at what cost to your health? Having a healthy body, a healthy mind, makes for an unstoppable writer. If it’s a change you need or inspiration, you could give the extreme behaviour a miss and simply go for a change of scenery or doing something you don’t normally do. But more on that next time. For now, remember to find your smile, ditch the junk food, find some quiet time and keep moving.

Final Words

If we’re not careful, writing can be one of the most destructive jobs to our body. It’s not the sudden destruction of a roofer having an accident, but rather the gradual, erosion of the temple by constant weather. We often don’t notice until it’s too late. It’s not necessarily difficult to halt, or even reverse, the effects but it requires constant attention and maintenance, and listening to the four wellness doctors.

What is your experience with the four doctors? Do you have back pain from writing too long in your favourite chair? Do you feel sluggish from the downside of to much caffeine or snacking? Do you get enough exercise? Why not share your thoughts on our FaceBook page, the Utility Fog Forum.