We live in a world that constantly tells us we need more of everything. More products to buy, more choices to make, and more information to take in. It never seems to end, and the more we have, the more we seem to need. I am as guilty as everyone else when it comes to this, and especially as it relates to information and healing tools. At what point will I decide that I have enough?

Hello and welcome to another episode of Quantum Waves of Wellness. I’m your host, Dr. Paula Apro—Doctor of Natural Medicine, holistic health mentor, and your guide to unlocking the healing power within. Today, I want to explore a simple but powerful concept: less is always more. And how simplifying your life can dramatically shift your health, your energy, and your peace of mind.

I just happen to be in a good place to make this observation. You see, for the past 4 months I’ve been living in our new, much smaller house. We like to call this “our cabin in the woods.” We relocated from Maine for the winter, hauling a small enclosed motorcycle trailer, filled mostly with new items for the new house and a boatload of my husband’s tools.

I kept the items that I brought to a minimum due to the limited space, not only in the truck and trailer, but also in the much smaller house. This means that I’m living with a small fraction of my wardrobe, a sampling of my kitchen gadgets, and, more importantly, only a couple of healing tools from my vast collection back at home. And I gotta say, this “living with less” experience has been very powerful for me.

The first time this thought struck me, I was standing in front of our shared six-foot closet rather than my very own large walk-in closet that I’m accustomed to at home. I quickly realized that with fewer options, getting dressed became much easier. At first, I missed all of my usual clothing options, but I got over that pretty quickly.

I noticed the same thing in the kitchen. Instead of an overstuffed pantry filled with random ingredients and spices I rarely use, now, I simply buy what I need for the week, and that’s it. Dinner decisions became easier, and there was no staring at the pantry wondering what to make.

These things made me realize something…

We are so accustomed to thinking that more choices are better. But have you ever sat at a restaurant reading through a 15-page menu and the server keeps coming back while you’re still trying to decide what you want?

Many times, fewer options are just so much easier. Too many choices can create mental fatigue and pressure.

I know... with food, choices are usually a good thing. But less is still more when it comes to quantity. Yes, food is necessary. We need it to survive, but more is never better—especially with the quality of food available today. The more we consume, the more we expose ourselves to additives, chemicals, and pesticides.

So even when we think we’re doing something healthy, like eating lots of fruit and veggies, we may actually be increasing the burden on the body. Sometimes, giving the body less to process is one of the most supportive things we can do.

And then there’s our environment. We’re conditioned to believe that bigger is better. Bigger homes, more space, more stuff. I learned this lesson firsthand this winter. Smaller is so much more freeing. It’s less to manage, less to clean, and less to maintain.

And we can’t ignore one of the biggest sources of overload, which is media. The constant stream of fear-mongering news and social media is overwhelming. It’s all designed to trigger fear and stress, and it works like a charm. This has a direct negative impact on your nervous system and your energy.

So therefore, the less you consume, the more stable, calm, and clear you can feel. And who doesn’t want to feel more calm and clear?

But the biggest lesson for me this winter… was regarding my healing tools. At home, I have what I would honestly call an overwhelming number of tools. And one might ask, “If any of them really worked, why would I need so many?” And that is a fair and valid question and point, which leads to my biggest guilt when it comes to “too much.”

I can’t seem to stop taking in information, education, knowledge, etc. I learn about all kinds of ways to heal the body, and I can’t stop myself from diving in and trying them. But this created the same problem of the overstuffed closet. Too darn many choices, so it’s harder to stay focused and consistent.

Here in the cabin, I only brought four tools with me. A very small subset of what I have at home. And something really interesting happened. Because I had fewer options, I used them more consistently. I became more focused and more intentional. It was magical, and I developed a much deeper appreciation for each one.

Space didn’t allow me to bring my big and powerful equipment. I only brought the small handheld devices that could fit into my purse. Maybe back home, when I had my full inventory, I didn’t give these tools the full credit they deserved.

I want to share just a couple of instances where I used these tools over the past month that made me really appreciate just how powerful these little suckers are...

Adjusting to southern cooking has been… an experience. I’ve never been to a BBQ house before, I still don’t know what grits are, and I can’t figure out if southern so-called “side dishes” are really just undercover desserts. My taste buds have certainly been enjoying all of this yumminess, but my stomach, not so much.

Since I don’t typically deal with stomach discomfort, my recent tummy aches gave me the perfect opportunity to work with it. I used two different tools during these situations, the Healy and the miHealth, and both seemed to really ease the pain almost immediately.

Then came something even more significant. After several days of physical labor working on the house, I developed intense muscle tightness that progressed into shooting nerve pain in my hip.

While I was in the first stage of muscle lock-up, I did a quick Healy scan to find out which program I most needed. After doing hundreds of these scans, this was the first time the “Fitness” group came up as first priority. And when I looked to see which of the Fitness programs I needed most, “Muscle Harmony” was the first priority listed. Amazing!

So I ran this program a couple of times, and there is no doubt it took the edge off. I can’t say the muscles completely relaxed and went back to normal, but that might also be because I never stopped working my tail off on the house. Without giving myself the recovery time I needed, I can’t expect the healing tools to work miracles.

But then, due to my stubbornness with the continual physical labor, the muscles continued to lock up until finally I was in a situation of constant nerve pain radiating down through my right hip.

When that nerve pain struck, I suddenly got very motivated to heal. This time, I picked up a biofeedback device called the miHealth and ran some programs specifically focused on nerve pain. I almost still can’t believe the results. Within 15 minutes, the pain went from constant… to completely gone. It’s been over a week, and I’m very happy to report that it has not returned at all.

All of these experiences this winter have made me realize how hard it is to focus and appreciate our belongings when we have an overwhelming amount of distractions. With fewer choices, we can become more focused. And when our energy is focused, our results become more powerful.

Maybe most of our problems are because we have too much.

Too many decisions.Too many distractions.Too many options pulling our energy in different directions.

And all of that… works against the body’s natural ability to heal.

Maybe having less isn’t about deprivation, but instead it’s about creating the space for your body to do what it’s designed to do.

And this is exactly what I’m hoping to do at my new ZenDen, an environment designed to experience different healing tools in a simple, guided, intentional way. I want to save you from the information overload and the collecting of too many unnecessary healing tools. Let me help you find what works for YOU.

Because the truth is, there isn’t one single tool that is best for everyone. The key is finding the one that resonates with you. Pun intended.

And when you do find your tool, and you stay consistent with it…that’s where real transformation begins.

So I’ll leave you with this:

Where in your life can you begin to remove instead of add?

Because sometimes…less truly is more.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Quantum Waves of Wellness, and as always, if you resonate with this information, please consider subscribing or sharing with a friend.

Quantum Waves of Wellness is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit drapro.substack.com/subscribe