COVID-19: 6 Ways to Strengthen Your Immune System!

April 15, 2020

Amidst the COVID-19 outbreak, many people are afraid and frustrated with what’s happening. People’s lives are being turned upside down, and it’s difficult to decipher what’s really going on across the country and across the globe.

Personally, I’ve dealt with more frustration over the past 4 weeks than I usually experience in an entire year. And do you know why I’ve been so frustrated at times (and why I think a lot of others have been as well)? My frustration stems from a lack of control.

Amidst the panic and confusion, it’s been difficult for me to make well-informed decisions, both in my personal and business life.

And when I don’t feel like I know exactly what to do, I start to feel like I’m losing control. And I like control. Not everyone does, but for the most part, I do. I’m not what you would consider a “control freak”… I’m actually pretty mellow and easy going.

However, I like to be in control of the more important aspects of my life, such as my health, my family’s well-being and my income, all of which have been jeopardized by COVID-19.

Now, why am I telling you all of this? Certainly, my blogs/videos aren’t a platform to share my woes with you…

No, these blogs are intended to help you by sharing valuable information.

But before I share my 6 ideas with you today, I want you to consider one important idea: if you’re feeling like me, like you’ve lost some control and certainty in your life, then I want you understand that you can take control of your health. In our current situation, most of us have lost control of certain aspects of our lives, or at least we feel like we have.

But again, you can CHOOSE to take more control of your health if you so decide. And with that in mind, let me share 6 ideas with you to help you take control of your health, strengthen your immune system, and potentially lower the likelihood that you’ll have any serious complications related to COVID-19.

6 Ways to Strengthen Your Immune System!

->> 1). Get Outside! While many of us are feeling cooped up, and people are talking about binge-watching Netflix, an excellent option is to get outside as much as possible. The fresh air and sunshine (if you can find the sun!) will do wonders for your health and sense of well-being. So get out there!

->> 2). Stay Positive (minimize TV and Facebook) – building off that last point, part of strengthening your immune system involves your sense of well-being and your ability to keep yourself calm. That’s a bit oversimplified… in the natural medicine world, we’re talking about turning down your “sympathetic” nervous system in favor of your “parasympathetic” nervous system. And minimizing your time in front of your TV and/or scrolling though Facebook will definitely help you in this area.

->> 3). Exercise! This one’s a no-brainer, right? I hope so! I’ll confess that I haven’t been exercising nearly enough lately, but I hope you have been, because regular exercise is essential for an optimally functioning immune system.

->> 4). Eat Better – again, a simple tip and one that you’ve probably heard at least a hundred times. However, have you ever really tried to improve your diet, or do you just talk about it? If the latter is true, now’s a great time to give it a go!

->> 5). Drink Better – if you’re still drinking sugary drinks or drinks with artificial sweeteners, or if you’re drinking alcohol on a regular basis, this is one area to consider immediately. My advice here is to make some small changes and not try to change too dramatically overnight, as sugar, artificial sweeteners and alcohol are all extremely habit-forming, and dramatic changes can be stressful for your system (which is not the point!).

->> 6). Get more sleep! This is possibly the most important thing you can do for your immune system, and I’ve saved it for last for one important reason: if you can make some positive changes with those first 5 things, there’s a very good chance that you can improve your sleep as well. And if you can improve your sleep (in terms of quality and/or quantity), beautiful things happen to your immune system!

Well there you go: those are my 6 best ideas for how we can all improve our immune systems and take a bit more control of our lives. With any luck, if there’s a silver lining to this whole ordeal, some of us will emerge with some improved habits, and we’ll be healthier when the next virus runs its course across the land (which happens at least once/year).

If you’d like a more detailed look at these 6 ideas, check out the video below.

And if you have any other questions I can help you with, just shoot me an email at Luke@GordonPhysicalTherapy.com

Stay calm, healthy and optimistic! – Luke Gordon, DPT