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Hello ladies! Welcome back or welcome if this is your first time here :)

Today we will be discussing ways to detox, cleanse, or reset.
Many of these detox activities could be practiced daily to create a holistic wellness lifestyle, so they are perfect for the new year, but also perfect for any time you’re looking to practice healthy habits regularly.

I’ve created a video to capture these details (included below), or you can keep reading for bonus ideas!

These ideas are not in any particular order. Using my public health background, I was intentional to include ideas for different dimensions of wellness like your physical, environmental, and emotional wellness.

We all need different things, and Well with Brielle is about taking what you need.

Let me know your favorite ways to reset and what you’re laser-focused on this new year!

Ways to Reset, Cleanse, and Detox

Let’s dive in!

Clean up or Detox Your Space

Clean up and get rid of anything that you don’t need. This can be done to your office space, home spaces, or even your car. Throughout this tip I’ve mentioned Feng Shui and ways to incorporate some of the practices. If you’re interested in learning more about Feng Shui, I’ve linked a blog post on it at the end of this one.

Maximize your efforts with these strategies:

Choose One Space at a Time

This is a great way to avoid getting overwhelmed.

I love easing into things, especially around the new year. During the new year, there is often so much pressure for a new year, new you, which often includes new goals. I definitely think the new year is a great time to press the refresh or reset button on new or existing goals, but I like to take my time.

I would start with one space and complete it before you move on to doing another space. Choose a space that you frequent often and want to revamp/or better tailor it to your needs. You could in contrast choose a space that you don’t frequent and find ways to spruce it up or make it more useful.

It could be your office space, living room, kitchen, bedroom, or even your car!

Use Minimalism (sort of)

You could approach it from a minimalistic perspective in the sense that you are intentional about the vibe you’re creating and therefore being intentional about what actually goes into that room. Remove items that do not align. It’s not about minimizing your amount of items, but this perspective could help you really narrow it down.

Be Intentional About It

This is similar to the mention of minimalism.

Beyond cleaning and decluttering, it’s important to make sure the right items are in the space we are in. This is all a part of environmental wellness.

I’m not an expert on Feng Shui, but I’m certainly a fan of some of the art or science behind it.

One of the tips offered in Feng Shui is to eliminate any objects that do not align with your intentions for that room. For instance, the bedroom should be a place for sleeping, relaxing, having personal fun (wink, wink), but it likely shouldn’t be used as a second kitchen for eating, or an office for work/homework.

You can do whatever feels good, but distractions like this will take away from the relaxation and peaceful experiences that your bedroom should offer. For instance, you don’t want to see workout gear, or work/school work, as you’re trying to detach and go to bed. It will just be on your mind as you go to bed and work out.

Removing such items may also be helpful in reducing feelings of stress and/or anxiety, while also supporting a restful sleep experience. It could be hard to calm a racing mind or fall asleep if there are items in the room reminding you of your stressors.

What if I like using my bedroom for other activities?

If you enjoy using your bedroom or other rooms for purposes beyond the traditional use OR have limited options in terms of space, then I would recommend removing the items at the end of each day or when you’re done that particular activity. You can then store them in a different room or closet where they cannot be seen. This will help create division and allow you to choose when your bedroom is used for other purposes.

NOTE: Do not place items under your bed to hide them. In Feng Shui, this is seen as a representation of clutter in your life and I love that. I want clean energy, clean spaces.

Choose Your Rooms Intention

Another thing I love about Feng Shui is that it talks about setting up your rooms based on the intention you want to call in. Examples include calling in love, money, family, etc. I could do an entire post on Feng Shui (and I did). That blog post is linked at the end of this one.

Switch It Up

Lastly, you can rearrange your furniture so that it calls in the intentions you are trying to create. In Feng Shui, you set up your Bagua or command based on the intention for the room. Each intention correlates with certain items facing north, south, east, etc.

I did some of these Feng Shui exercises for my home a few years ago, and not only was it fun, but it was truly interesting to think about how the room could be set up differently. Sometimes it’s hard to accomplish the perfect setup based on the directions (south, east, etc.), but it definitely can be interesting and worth a try to see if you feel a difference!

Aside from Feng Shui here are some really quick tips you can also use to declutter or cleanse your room:

You can also create fresh vibes by revamping or getting more organized. Here are some ways:

Use Baskets for Hidden Storage

Cute baskets can help keep items tidy and neat. This also looks really chic, especially with a throw blanket folded neatly over the mess or items you’re storing inside of the basket. Clothes, shoes, yoga mats/accessories, toys, etc. can all go in these kinds of baskets and you can get different sized baskets depending on where they will be stored or what they will be used to store.

I don’t have children yet, but this also seems like a great way for them to help clean up and even store their own toys or other items.

Here are some baskets and blankets to get you started:

Organization Bins and Containers

This is similar to the baskets, except I imagine the baskets being visible within the room, and most of these bins/containers being used to organize drawers or closets. It’s up to you and these can look chic! I love using them in the laundry room and bathroom especially. You can get containers and organizational bins to go into your closet, pantry, bathroom, or other spaces. It’s a wonderful way to sort and neatly put away smaller items that you use regularly.

Also, when someone peaks into your closet, everything looks well organized and may even be easier to find.

I use these organization bins in my bedroom closet for clothes that need to be folded, papers or items that should be sorted away (aka hiding junk!), and in my bathroom for neatly storing cleaning products, as well as, towels to bathe with.

Bins We Love:

Rearrange the Furniture in Your Room

I mentioned Feng Shui as a strategy when rearranging furniture. Another option is to move the items based on what will feel good or be most practical for your space. Switching up the positioning of the furniture is a fun and easy way to create a new vibe with the same items and without spending any money.

Sometimes I do this on a whim randomly to just have something new and refreshing to experience. You can always put the furniture back to the way it was before so this may be a fun seasonal change.

Lastly, this is a great opportunity to give back. Consider donating (or selling) what you’re not using, especially if it’s lightly used or practically brand new!

So We Just Talked About Physically De-Cluttering Your Space.

Let’s Talk About How To Declutter, Reset, And Cleanse Digitally Too!

Declutter Your Email Inbox

You can declutter digitally too!

Decluttering my email at the end or beginning of a new year gives me such a fresh start and is a great way to gather anything you may need to file away or keep at the forefront for the new year.

Also, I find that the end of the year feels more relaxed so there’s time to dedicate to tasks like this without the stress of normal work tasks. In fact, so many of us take time off of work at the end of the year (aka holiday season) or we have lots of quiet time at work because many of our colleagues are out during this time. It truly is a great time to get organized and press the reset button.

I’d definitely recommend going through your emails and really getting rid of any emails you do not need.

This could mean deleting emails, organizing, sorting, maybe even responding to some emails. I think of my personal email when I say this but definitely apply it to work too, depending on what you need. I’m much better at keeping up with my work email than my own personal email account.

Here are a few STRATEGIC tips to help you go through your e-mails so it does not take forever:

Break It Up: Choose an Hour or Two, or Even 20 Minutes

Dedicate a set amount of time to review your emails. I like to do this because doing boring or less desirable tasks in smaller chunks of time really helps me to avoid getting frustrated, overwhelmed, and bored. I mention this because when we get bored or overwhelmed it can be easy to make mistakes, and we do not want to permanently delete or incorrectly sort important emails. If you have a lot to get through, consider setting aside time to do this task in segments.

Aim to Revisit It Regularly

It’s great to review your email inbox at the beginning or end of the year. I also recommend dedicating a particular time of day, week, or month to do this regularly so it’s not a gigantic task to tackle later on. Consider making this a healthy habit for your professional life.

Use Filters (LOVE this!!!)

I think this is soooo strategic, and I’m obsessed with using filters for emails. Why?! Because filtering emails is so passive and an efficient way to automate emails. I love automating what I can to create more seamless experiences.

If someone emails you often, you can search for that keyword, email address, subject line, or name so that all of those related emails come up. If I know this email will come often, I love to set up filters for that particular sender. Basically, a filter identifies the email each time one that matches the criteria comes in. Once that email is identified, the email system follows the commands or actions you’ve set for that filter.

You can use filters to bulk delete, read, file away, or sort through mass amounts of email. The best part is that once the filtering rule is set, you don’t have to do anything.

Ways to Use Filters for Emails

Once the criteria are set up for which emails correspond to the filter, you then choose a command or action to determine what will happen to the filtered emails. Here are some options:

Delete
Mark for a folder
File away into a folder
Mark as read
Archive

There are so many options as to what the filter can do with email that meets the criteria you set up. I feel so uncomfortable sorting (MOST) emails into a folder without ever actually reading them or at least skimming their subject line, so for me my filters tags specific emails with specific folders, but the emails remain unread and in my inbox. When I’m ready, I can just mass select these pre-organized emails and choose to file them away without having to take time to sort them because they have already been marked for their correct folders based on the filter. My current self is constantly thanking my past self when I’m able to effortlessly do this!

This is a great time to unsubscribe or catch up on reading some of your favorite newsletters

I love this because I support some fellow bloggers and influencers so this is a great way to hang on to their emails without unsubscribing if I am behind on them.

Speaking of…are you subscribed to the Well with Brielle email list? Haha, shameless plug :)

BONUS: Declutter Photos and Videos on Your Phone/Laptop

I didn’t mention this much in the YouTube video, but you could also take the time to sort, organize, store away or ultimately delete photos and videos that you no longer need on your phone.

Dedicated Storage System

Having a separate form of storage that is solely dedicated to storage has been so important for me especially through this entrepreneurial journey.

You never know when you’ll want to look at an old memory so it’s nice to know where it’s saved, but even nicer to avoid those messages that your phone or other devices are out of storage. I’ve also found that even my laptop runs so much better when it’s not responsible for maintaining all of my storage needs.

I don’t have any amazing tips or strategic ways to approach this. Honestly, I still struggle to try and really find a perfect system. I’ll share what I do now, and please leave a comment if you can relate or have tips to share!

Here’s how I approach storage right now:

The iCloud on my iPhone is upgraded and I pay for it. I don’t have a clear grasp on what is stored in the iCloud versus not, so sometimes having it upgraded is the perfect solution, and other times my phone will still give me those storage full error messages depending on what I’m trying to access, save, or do.

An external harddrive is used to store a lot, but after a year and a half or so it’s also getting full so if I get another one then I would buy a bigger size. I’ve noticed that the cord is finicky in terms of it connecting well to my laptop, and I must physically have it with me to access the contents which aren’t always ideal. Nevertheless it’s been SEEMLESS to transfer everything onto the external harddrive and they really do hold A LOT.

Finally, I sort of use social media as a digital footprint to document my experiences. This isn’t perfect because we don’t own social media and if it were to disappear, so would all my content. I still figure that it’s a great way to share my experiences, connect with others and be able to reflect. Not to mention it is not physical like a photo album or something you’d have to literally pack/keep track of in order to access.

Of course, there are ways to detox, reset and cleanse via physical wellness too!

Eat Healthy

You can also eat healthily or even do a cleanse.

When I say ‘eat healthy’ I mean eating plant-based. And by plant-based, I do not mean eating vegan or eating vegetarian. If you google the definition of plant-based it means eating more plant-based foods than animal products like dairy or meats.

You probably don’t hear people say this often, but I am a huge supporter of this current definition because it allows everyone to eat healthy by consuming fresh plant-based foods that we need to get nutrients, while also allowing flexibility to indulge in meats, seafood, dairy, and other non-plant based foods too.

You can be plant-based and still eat animal products. I support your choices, but I want people to know that you can still be healthy and eat meat.

Cold Pressed Juices

So in terms of eating plant-based, I love juicing using my Breville juicer. I do juicing cleanses ocassionally, but I also juice just because on a daily or weekly basis. Juicing is a great way to boost my energy or even detox/reset with a juicing cleanse. Check out the YouTube video for tips on the type of juicer I’d recommend. I also linked my juicer in this blog post if you’re interested. The type of juicer you use will determine how long your juice will last and retain the maximum amount of nutrients.

I love juice cleanses or to reset by eating healthier for a set period of time. Cold-pressed juices taste wayy better than store-bought juices, and have amplified nutrients that you won’t get from those store-bought juices. You can go to a store to buy cold-pressed juices, including cleanses, but this can get pricy depending on how often you’re juicing. Just make sure it’s cold-pressed if you do decide to juice or buy juices.

Black Girl enjoying cold pressed juices, black girl wearing a purple dress while holding cold pressed juices, black girl wearing a mask during covid pandemic, black girl with braids

Fruit Bowls

I love waking up in the morning and making fruit bowls because I usually don’t have a large appetite but do crave a little something. It’s super flexible because I eat the fruit throughout the day and it’s easy to transport if I’m on the go.

I think that for many people eating fruit or knowing your favorite fruits is more common than eating vegetables, so also prioritize finding healthy veggie meals that you enjoy.

Here are ways to enjoy eating more vegetables:

Salads Full of Veggies

Salads can be a great way to load your meals with plant-based foods like vegetables, although I will say it may be important to take a close look at the dressing for the salad.

If you’re looking to maximize your health benefits while eating, be mindful of the ingredients in the dressing chosen and the amount used on the salad.

Many salad dressings are high in sodium, salt, calories, fat, and may not be high in nutrients. Of course if you don’t mind and find this to be a balanced approach to eating salads, then by all means ENJOY your dressing :)

Oil/Vinegar based dressings tend to be healthier. I also look at the color of the dressing and consistency. Heavier dressings or white dressings are typically mayonnaise based or heavy in calories.

Find Salads That Taste AMAZING

I’m honestly not a huge fan of salads, although I do love a good salad that’s loaded with the right combination of ingredients. It’s AMAZING and I’d easily choose it.

A good way to find salads or vegetable-packed meals that you enjoy is to explore dishes that include plant-based foods you already like to eat and to also find ways to create salads or even food bowls using those combinations.

Enjoy Roasted or Grilled Veggies With Healthy Plant-Based Oil and Herbs

Use a skillet to sautee your well-seasoned vegetables. Serve them as a side or main course like stir fry!
I especially love using the oven to roast vegetables. The prep time is short and the cooking doesn’t require me to actively be there.

Here Are Some More Ideas for Roasted or Grilled Vegetables

Use roasted/grilled veggies in your sandwiches, as sides, or even the main course. They make wonderful leftovers!
Add a handful or two of leafy greens like spinach to all your meals
Include leafy greens in your smoothies or cold pressed juicing recipes

Leafy greens are great on everything, especially on your salads and pizza. In my opinion, they don’t really take away from the taste of the meal and if anything make it taste more fresh.

Move to Detox ( I Loveee Yoga)

Physically you can exercise to stimulate your mental, emotional, and physical health.

I love wellness so much, but I’m honestly not super hardcore about anything. I love balance! Younger Brielle enjoyed the gym and power lifting, but these days the way I’ve found balance is via yoga.

I encourage you to find what feels good for you. When we enjoy something we are more likely to stick with it and be consistent. Consistency is so important for results to happen.

If you choose to do a cleanse or fast that reduces how much you eat, I’d recommend limiting your workouts and physical activity. With reduced caloric intake, we in turn want to burn less calories via our physical activities. This ISN’T medical advice, but simply my thoughts based on my experience doing cleanses, and the science of it all.

Pictured here is one of my favorite yoga mats. It’s beautiful, washer machine friendly and so easy to travel with!

I also love hiking and wellness walks. These are easy to do daily!

Enjoy a Wellness Walk (Aim to Do It Outdoors)

When we exercise we are keeping our mind fit, our body fit, regulating emotions, reducing feelings of stress, and so much more to holistically heal our bodies.

Taking a walk is also a great opportunity to immerse yourself in nature, which also has lots of holistic wellness benefits. If you follow me on Instagram @WellwithBrielle then you know I love going to state parks and natural environmental areas to take hikes/wellness walks.

Try taking a wellness walk outdoors or doing your next physical activity while immersed in nature.

Moving more is a great way to detox, especially if you find yourself sweating.

Speaking of sweating, a sauna or steam room is also a great way to detox and relax.

BONUS: Sauna or Steam Room

Buy Your Own Portable Sauna

I actually have this! It’s super easy to set up and so relaxing. I love to use it to enhance my skin, relax, melt away stress, and even deep condition my natural hair!

Write Letters to Your Closest Friends

I know what you’re thinking, “who writes letters?! who?” When I unexpectantly receive a hand-written card I’m always pleasantly surprised and the good vibes last for a while. The fact that this is an uncommon practice also aids to the surprise and excitement.

With the pandemic still going on many of us haven’t seen our friends or maybe don’t see them very often as we’d like. Here are a few ideas for the letter:

Make it fun tell them how much you love them
Maybe even put a riddle or something fun in there
Decorate the card or choose one that is aesthetically pleasing

Taking the time to design the card yourself or pick out super cute cards is a great way to add a personal touch! I definitely save all of the cards I receive. It’s a memory that can last forever and even be used to create an album later on.

Practice Expressing Gratitude

Did you know that practicing gratitude truly does have health and wellness benefits? There are actually scientific studies that show gratitude can:

Deepen feelings of abundance
Increase feelings of happiness
Enhance understanding
Create a greater capacity for love
Decrease feelings of fear
Reduce feelings of stress
Lower feelings of anxiety
Reduce the risk of feelings of depression

Ways to Practice Expressing Gratitude

Look in a mirror and say aloud what you love about yourself
Write a nice note/letter to a loved one
Use positive affirmations

I was really blown away by the science of expressing gratitude. If you’re curious to assess your own gratitude, I have the scientific tool, the G-9 gratitude assessment. This is not some online quiz, but rather a scientic tool developed and studied by researchers to assess the impact of gratitude.

Revisit Your Goals, Plans, and Dreams

Create new goals or what’s even better is to revisit current goals and how you will laser in on them this year.

With a new year, it always seems heavy on the ‘start fresh/create something new’ vibes. Social media and society talk a lot about consistency, yet I don’t feel like people talk about recommitting or boosting up your current goals.

Everything doesn’t happen in 3 months, 6 months, or even a year. There is nothing wrong with things taking time. In fact it’s normal!

Allow yourself years, months, or whatever you need in order to be consistent. Just keep working hard.

I love this because when we adjust instead of quitting, progress is made. Also, I’ve personally found that my goals and dreams differ very little over the years, so why not keep at em rather than constantly starting over?

Time is a human construct to some extent, so be gentle with yourself.

Sometimes it feels like goals should only take a year or there should be something new every year but really when we laser focus in we can level up and accomplish those harder goals or enhance our current achievements thus far

Don’t give up and try not to feel like it’s taking too much time. Just stay focused and enjoy the journey!

After all, the number one way to fail is to not try at all.

Ways to Revisit or Create Your Goals/Dreams

Create a vision or mood board anytime it feels good. You can have more than one!

This year I really want to create a digital vision board that I use for my cellphone or laptop background/wallpaper. I’m just not a fan of glue, ha!

Make sure the vision board will be somewhere you will see it regularly
Optimize the law of attraction by often revisiting your vision board(s) and goals

Write out your goals using the SMART method. SMART means specific, measurable, realistic, and timely. I have Virgo moon vibes so I love this.

Track your progress and reassess your expectations. Formally set up a way to check-in and track your progress or informally just check in with yourself. Choose what feels good for you and yields the most progress.