The Regenerative Spirit of Community

14 Nov 2022
The Regenerative Spirit Of Community
Read time: 10 min
Category: Wellbeing

At Hippocrates Wellness, we believe a community is so much more than a group of people. It's a sense of belonging – a primal, essential connection and interaction with others to feel accepted, supported, and loved. When we lack a communal network of togetherness in our lives, we embark upon a challenging road of loneliness and isolation, profoundly impacting our mental health, self-worth, and wellbeing.

Communication leads to community. Togetherness promotes and encourages feelings of safety, and self-expression, boosting motivation and cultivating positivity both within and out.

Every new person we meet presents a beautiful opportunity to acquire new skills and lifestyle habits with the potential to transform from who we were to who we are becoming and to see ourselves in a different light. Still, we all need guidance, help, and support along the way.

As human beings, we are inherently social, sharing similar aspects of social behaviors with other animals, such as aggression and the fear-driven need for hierarchy and territoriality.

There are numerous conditions and personality disorders that can impact upon social situations. Neurodiversity means that we all act and react differently socially. As part of a community, we must continue to work towards social balance and togetherness with everyone. Such social harmony is essential to our overall mental health and wellbeing.

We Become What We Believe

Imagine negative thoughts as a scratched record relentlessly repeating the same words over and over again in our minds. With this repetition, we can become overwhelmed and start to believe our own destructive narrative. When we connect with others, we can gain perspective on ourselves and see how we are loved and valued by others, allowing the music to play freely once again.

When we invite new people into our lives, we embrace new feelings, new challenges, and a renewed positive sense of self, boosting motivation and creating lasting memories and lifestyle habits to accompany us into the future. It has been proven that diversity in groups can stimulate creativity and a desire to work harder, opening our minds and helping to replace negative thoughts with positive ones.

Aristotle believed that humankind by nature are "social animals".

Philosophers and scientists continue to explore the social nature of the human being and what distinguishes us from other species. There's no doubt that humans are part of a very sociable group, the primates, relying upon interaction and communication for survival. Our inner ape longs for companionship and acceptance, helped by our innate, remarkable talent for adapting and innovating.

Our ability to evolve into a species that creates language and culture is further evidence of our profound desire for social interaction and to be part of a community. Even the fact humans love games proves our social desire to interact. Our exceptional anatomy and abilities are reflected in such things as our ability to speak, hold an upright posture, reason and make decisions, possess opposable thumbs, control and use fire, and one of the stranger characteristics: blush - which Charles Darwin referred to as "the most peculiar and the most human of all expressions."

Human Consciousness - The Power of the Mind

One of the many magnificent proven traits humans have is the ability to think and feel beyond the limits of their species. The extraordinary cognitive capacity to plan, apply logic and reason, learn from experience, and be able to think about thinking reveals a level of intelligence unmatched elsewhere in the animal kingdom.

Humans, unlike other animals, also have a conscious awareness allowing us to live in the past, present, and future, giving us two ways of perceiving events, instinctively and intellectually. Our ability to contemplate how potential present actions and decisions can become future consequences has led to the development of the complex societies and cultures we live in today. It also allows us to manipulate our environment and communicate with others across distance and time - which is appreciated more than ever when we cannot be with our loved ones.
Other animals have neither the "theory-of-mind" capabilities humans have, meaning they are not conscious of what others are thinking, nor the capacity for higher-level reasoning.

How often have you imagined the future,sourced memories from the past, and instincts from the present to influence how you'll act?

Our ability to think leads to our natural impulse to worry about the future and our survival, reinforcing the notion that our emotional and physical survival is strengthened and possibly reliant on being part of a group. So much worry derives from a fear of 'not being ok' in the future. The fear of not having enough or not being enough can hugely impact our psychological wellbeing, triggering the 'fight-or-flight' response.

Teamwork makes the community work

From birth, our existence relies upon teamwork – a complex system of living organisms working together to create new life! It's nothing short of a miracle.
For civilized life to exist, we must all become part of a social system that relies on teamwork.

Every system, such as procreation, the economy, education, the arts, law, competitive sports, agriculture, and even something as brutal as war, depends on us coming together and agreeing on the same goals and objectives.

Did you know that much of our neural network focuses on group communication? Our brains are still an enigma, yet memory perception, association, and empathy are key to processing information and communicating.

When we come together and share our worries and stresses, we soon realize that we are all in the same boat and that with support and love, we can overcome any obstacles better when united. When we share our feelings, experiences, and thoughts and listen to those of others, we can tap into our empathetic selves and embrace our urge to help not only those we know and love but also strangers. We instinctively know that by helping others, we ultimately help ourselves.

The Healing Circle of Community Spirit - Hippocrates Wellness

Life is a celebration and a delicate balance between what we feel and think. At Hippocrates Wellness, we believe in creating a supportive community where people can fully express themselves and be themselves. An environment where the norm is sharing and that being at peace with the inner self is paramount to self-healing. When we allow ourselves to feel, our true healing can begin, and we can start to make sense of our place in this big wide world. Hippocrates is a retreat that can help you to focus on yourself and work on your relationship with food and your lifestyle. Our Healing Circle invites you to drop your mask and heal to realize that others are going through the same challenges and are also in need of comfort and companionship.

So many guests have left the Hippocrates campus, having made friends for life. Our globally-renowned Life Transformation Program addresses the whole person - mind, body, and spirit, offering protocols that embrace mindfulness, fitness, immunity, and regeneration. Along your journey to wellness, you'll meet people who are a little further down the path and can act as a mentor, guiding you empathetically and safely with valuable experience and understanding.

Sometimes it can feel like we are the only ones going through the life challenges we face, but in truth, everyone is, in their own way and own time. Others can lift you up and out of your own self-deprecating beliefs that are simply a false narrative your mind tells you. To immerse yourself in a community that nurtures others who share similar goals increases the potential to connect and bond.

Festive Union - Holiday Season at Hippocrates

At Hippocrates, we want our guests to make their stay their own. For over 60 years, we have seen those who have contributed to the community spirit add so much value to each other's lives. The more you do something, the easier it gets because it becomes habitual and, therefore, natural to you. Change is an organic process that begins within. When you make positive choices, regardless of what your thoughts are telling you, you start to feel better, stronger, and happier. This sense of empowerment stems from taking control of your life, health, and emotional wellbeing. Choose to have faith in your transformation, commit to it, and allow your healing process to unfold.

Philosopher Alan Watts once said: "You're under no obligation to be the same person you were five minutes ago."

Let go of the negative thoughts and visions you have of yourself. Dare to take risks and make mistakes because herein lies the magic of pro-activity and self-belief. Everyone gets lonely, makes mistakes, and craves companionship and a connection with others who understand and accept them.

The magic truly happens when people come together to help, love, and support each other. The connections made at Hippocrates are the root source of their healing. The greatest gift we can give each other is our attention, kindness, compassion, and understanding.

The festive period can be a testing time when nostalgia and expectation soar. Some people hide away in the thought that they don't need anyone, and others feel isolated and powerless as if no one is there to share it with them. Our doors are always open to welcome you, to allow you to be yourself, and to become part of the community spirit that will help free you from the restrictions, boundaries, and damaging self-beliefs you place upon yourself. We know that the pressure of togetherness can weigh heavily during the holiday season, but we are here to lift you up.

Don't hesitate to contact a member of the Hippocrates community now and book your free consultation so you can take the first step toward the future you desire.

Remember, a stranger is just a friend you haven't met yet!

Share article: