At the root of Integrative Wellness (IW) are personal and cultural beliefs on whole body wellness (this includes the brain) and the use of mainstream medicine in combination with alternatives. These beliefs can dictate how we use healthcare, long term care, home remedies and complementary and alternative methods (CAM) such as acupuncture, acupressure, aromatherapy, massage, meditation, prayer, yoga, and many more techniques. These techniques can positively influence our well being.Integrative Wellness influences the mind, body and spirit. It can dictate how you navigate or prioritize your finances, treat the environment or further your intellect. Really IW is about how you balance and navigate the internal environments of your body and external components in your life through mainstream healthcare and CAM.Since it starts with you, think about what you eat, how you eat, how you sleep, what your daily movement activities look like. How do these things impact you and the world around you? What techniques are you using to support you in improving these areas of your life?Once these basic needs take place then we can move into how the external environment impacts our over all being, like noise, light, relationships? Healthy or unhealthy? And if unhealthy IW directs us to find tools to support us with meaning and balance in everything we do. Moving us towards healthier ways of living.So how do you do this?You start with yourself, listen to the chatter in your head, and body. Is what you are doing / experiencing serving you in becoming your best self?Identify ways to help feel calm. Maybe meditate, take a walk on a nice day, make sure to hydrate and care for yourself first.When we become more mindful about our own bodies and wellbeing, we can make wiser decisions in our daily life practices and needs.Why is this important as we age? Well we make some major decisions as we age, and if we are in a more relaxed balanced state of mind and body we can make wiser ones.There is actual science for this rationale. Starting with your autonomic nervous system which when in crisis or perceived crisis guides a systematic state including fight, flight or freeze which shuts down critical thinking. We often find ourselves in this unnecessary state due to the way we respond to stress.And lets face it life is stressful. It all depends on how we respond to stress. By practicing healthy ways to be in a parasympathetic state, a relaxed state of mind and body, we can clear our minds and open our hearts.Integrative Wellness can lead you into the place you need to be in any decision making process.Editors Note: This article was submitted by Hope Carwile LCSW, 200YTT, CCTP, with Vivage Senior Living and Wellage Senior Communities and can be reached at 303-815-9097 or hcarwile@vivage.com