Lifestyle Medicine & Embracing Transculturalism

Lisa Hoy-Chiang is a university counsellor and project manager, in charge of embedding mental wellness and wellbeing in university curriculum across various courses. She supervises research students, and authored a book for young people titled "Restful Adventures: A Guide to Deliberate Rest for Children." Lisa is a Certified Nutritionist and also holds Board Certification and Fellowship for Lifestyle Medicine. 

 

Lisa explains to us what Lifestyle Medicine is, what it looks like in community, and how it has been in practice throughout human history, as observed in the Blue Zones. 

 

We delve into the importance of fostering authentic relationships in our communities for our wellbeing. We explored cultural messages and norms around vulnerabilities, stigmas, and discussed the role of food in strengthening social connections. 

 

We talked about cultural love languages and how food and acts of service have been an integral expression of love for many collectivist cultures. We addressed the blending cultures, drawing the valuable traditions of various cultures into our way of being as a transcultural person. 

 

Lisa and I shared our ancestry and how they colour our approaches in life, and our paradigms. We also delved into the functions of virtues such as compassion, intentionality, and humility in order to bridge cultural differences and improve psychological wellbeing. 

 

The second half of the podcast addressed more practical strategies for wellbeing such as exercise, sleep, socialisation, and diet. Lisa shed light upon some surprising research on exercise:

- autonomy on exercise (negatively geared)

- types of exercises that benefit different genders

- traditional group exercises

 

Lisa and I also speak to the importance of sleep, and how it affects our emotional and psychological wellbeing. 

 

We also impart other actionable nuggets of wisdom such as:

- an ancient premeditation practice for anxiety management,

- rituals to shift spatial spaces and maintain psychological clarity,

- disciplining the mind around work and rest, 

- setting boundaries within the home

 

We hope you found this episode enlightening, engaging, and applicable. 

 

You can find Lisa Hoy-Chiang on all social media platforms: 

linktr.ee/wellmind.insight

Her book, Restful Adventures, can be found on Amazon and is available in print and eBook.

https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CW2YJFLR?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_7CZE3A13CKK90A80C8QY