The COVID-19 pandemic fueled a wellness revolution that did not disappear as the world finally opened back up this year. 2022 was the year of “self”, wherein everyone took time to focus on themselves. This year was the year of collagen, CBD, and digital healthcare. 2023 is going to be about balance. Now that we’ve somehow gone back to our pre-pandemic lives, the focus will be on maintaining our wellness and self-awareness journeys while living our day-to-day routine. Trends like city wellness, medical tourism, and medicinal mushrooms are going to be the highlight. Here are the 10 wellness trends for 2023 we think will gain more focus this year.
1. City Wellness
What’s the Trend?
The glorification of being overworked and overstressed is long gone. People have become more conscious of their mental and physical wellbeing and are keener on building better habits on a daily basis. Gone are the days when people waited for holidays and trips to be able to focus on themselves. Wellness is no longer just a luxury it is now engrained into our daily lifestyles. The city wellness trend is all about not waiting to go on a trip or holiday in order to recenter ourselves, it is incorporating wellness into the daily hustle and bustle.
Why will it matter in 2023?
In August 2022, luxury wellness brand Aman opened their first-ever city hotel in Manhattan New York. Right in the middle of one of the world’s busiest cities, Aman guests get access to a jazz club, an expansive greenery-filled terrace, an indoor pool, a sauna, and a cryotherapy chamber where they can drown out the heat and chaos of Midtown New York and focus on their wellbeing. In 2023, the famous wellness brand Six Senses is also set to open its first city hotel in Rome. Coincidence or an emerging trend? We expect to see more hotel brands focusing on wellness in the city this year.
See also: 8 City Wellness Havens
2. Microdosing
What’s the Trend?
2022 was the year of CBD – we witnessed countries around the world, including Thailand, legalizing the use of recreational marijuana and beauty brands incorporating CBD in their skincare products. This year, the Netflix show “How to change your mind” showed people the benefits of microdosing – reinstating the fact that plant medicine, when used correctly, can be a powerful tool. For the uninformed, microdosing is consuming very low, sub-hallucinogenic doses of a psychedelic substance, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or psilocybin-containing mushrooms. Benefits of microdosing include lesser mood swings, better focus and clarity, and lower anxiety.
Why will it matter in 2023?
In 2019, Denver became the first city in the United States to decriminalize hallucinogenic mushrooms, and a few other states followed after this. With this trend on the up, retreats around the world are catering to curiosity. Silo Wellness in Jamaica has already catered to the demand of the market. They organize psychedelic retreats that include daily yoga, mindfulness meditations, and psychedelic ceremonies under professional supervision. In 2023, we expect to see more luxury brands cater to this emerging trend.
Please note: This article is for informational purposes only. Destination Deluxe does not endorse microdosing or the use of illegal or controlled substances, such as psychedelics.
See also: Plant Medicine – A Beginner’s Guide
3. Light Therapy
What’s the Trend?
Light Therapy has been around for a while now – we’ve seen dermatologists around the world incorporate swanky light machines to solve various kinds of skin issues. How this works is that light emitted from these machines penetrates deep into the tissue to reach damaged cells and stimulate the boost of production and reduce inflammation. Different wavelengths of light work to enhance and speed up wound healing, minimize the appearance of acne, stimulate hair growth, or relieve pain and stiffness in muscles and joints. A recent study also shows that light therapy may also be effective in treating depression and other seasonal affective disorders (SAD).
Why will it matter in 2023?
As technology improves, light therapy machines are no longer just restricted to the use of trained professionals. A number of machines have already been approved by the FDA for at-home use, and more are expected to be approved in the upcoming year. This means consumers no longer need to spend extra time and money visiting an accredited professional, this year everyone will be able to enjoy the benefits of light therapy in their own privacy.
See also: 9 Light Therapy Machines
4. Green HIIT
What’s the Trend?
Breaking out a sweat during a high-intensity interval training session is a lot of fun. Considering the carbon footprint we leave during our workouts? Not as much fun. As we become more aware of the effects of global warming, we are also becoming more aware of the carbon footprint we leave. Consideration of sustainable and eco-friendly brands has become crucial on a global scale – workouts included. With Green HIIT, we minimize the carbon footprint we leave with every workout session. While no magic or spell can make your workout sessions completely eco-friendly a few swaps could make a difference. Such as: choosing a yoga mat made of eco-friendly materials instead of plastic, using non-motorized machines, or using energy-generating machines.
Why will it matter in 2023?
Being environmentally friendly is more achievable than ever before. With all of the buzz around the real economic benefits of going green, big companies, SMEs, and individual homeowners are beginning to take action. Fitness company Life Fitness has already jump-started this trend (under its Hammer Strength line) by offering energy-saving cardio machines where you solely rely on your personal strength to get the machine started.
See also: Life Fitness Brings Wellness to Hotel Rooms
5. Medical Tourism
What’s the Trend?
With limited time available to us, healthcare costs sky rocketing and some medical specialties in short supply in some countries, patients are traveling abroad to seek the medical advice and treatments they need. People are no longer just limited to the health care facilities of their own country, with travel being so accessible, medical tourism has been a game changer for both the health and tourism sector.
Why will it matter in 2023?
Medical retreats nowadays are so comprehensive that they offer a one-stop destination for all our medical needs, be that from check-ups with blood work, to tune-ups with IV-drips, to holistic treatments rand rehabilitation exercises, you name it. Spending a number of days or weeks to focus on your health has become a favorable way to address prevention and disease. We can see guests traveling to retreats to relax, and get their medical check up’s done all while enjoying a holiday in picturesque resorts. Chenot Palace Weggis in Switzerland, and RAKxa Wellness near Bangkok (which works directly with the prestigious Bumrungrad Hospital) offer highly individualized medical programs. Furthermore, retreats such as the famous Kamalaya on Koh Samui have also started to incorporate more medical features, such as Ozone Therapy, IV Drips and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.
See also: Destination Deluxe Signature Retreat in Bali (3-9 June 2023)
6. Creative Emotional Expression
What’s the Trend?
Over the past two years, when people were stuck in lockdowns and quarantine, they had no choice but to deal with the demons in their heads. We saw how mental health took the front seat in most people’s lives. We understood the importance of dealing with our traumas and reparenting ourselves. In December, people bought more journals than planners for the upcoming year. This reinstates the fact that we will be seeing more people addressing their emotions through journals, talk therapies, or maybe even counseling in 2023.
Why will it matter in 2023?
Moving forward from all the issues we’ve addressed, everyone is now focused on making sure they don’t repeat the same mistakes. This year the emphasis is being given to self-care and how to maintain a balanced state, constantly checking in with yourselves, and being able to express your emotions in a healthy manner. Therefor creative emotional expression will be making all the hype this year.
7. Micro Immunotherapy
What’s the Trend?
We’ve constantly talked about the immune system over the last three years and how to improve it with fitness, nutrition, and supplements. But, many people with auto-immune diseases reached a plateau where conventional “remedies” wouldn’t improve their health. Micro Immunotherapy is an innovative approach to rebalancing our immune system. We are all constantly exposed to different factors that cause inflammation in the body – constant stress, airborne viruses, lack of sleep, unbalanced diets, and much more. Micro Immunotherapy works by using the immune system’s chemical messengers at ultra-low doses to rebalance the immune system. It has been particularly helpful for those suffering from auto-immune diseases and allergies.
Why will it matter in 2023?
With COVID still lurking around us, isolating ourselves is no longer an option. Now, the emphasis is placed on strengthening our immune system as a preventive measure. This year, micro immunotherapy will be seen as a way to live healthier lives, strengthen immune systems and prevent not just viruses but long-term inflammation in the body as well.
8. Frequency-Based Healing
What’s the Trend?
Energy healing has been around for a while. Methods such as Reiki, Theta Healing, Pranic Healing, and many more are all here to stay. Lately, there has been a rise in Frequency Based healing methods. Sound healing with binaural beats, vibrational sound therapies such as Solfeggio Frequencies, morphic fields, and even subliminals have been all around social media. This method of healing is based on the study that human brainwaves can absorb sound frequencies that are sometimes inaudible to our ears. Each sound frequency has the ability to restructure our brains in a way that promotes relaxation and healing.
Why will it matter in 2023?
In 2022, we were so busy adjusting back to the world post-pandemic. Studies showed that people were more social and outgoing. People engaged in what we call post-pandemic revenge spending. Flights, hotels, and restaurants were all filled with guests as they enthusiastically jumped back into a world that they missed so much. In 2023, people will continue being outgoing and our calendars will be more booked than ever. In a time when we are so busy, passive healing methods such as frequency-based healing will take the rise. It is as simple as playing sounds while falling asleep and letting the music do the magic.
See also: Sound Healing – How it Works and its Health Benefits
9. EMDR Therapy
What’s the Trend?
As a generation that is being more aware of our trauma, it has become important to understand that trauma isn’t what happens to us, rather it is about what happens inside of a person in response to an event that feels threatening or overwhelming. When talk therapy isn’t enough, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) will kick in to resolve deeper trauma issues. EMDR works by allowing clients to open memories of a previous traumatic event. Once an issue is picked, bilateral brain stimulation is used to reprocess the traumatic event. The client is asked to hold different aspects of that event or thought in mind and to use their eyes to track the therapist’s hand as it moves back and forth across the client’s field of vision.
Why will it matter in 2023?
EMDR is particularly used by psychiatrists to heal patients with deep trauma. When everything around us is all about innovation, psychiatrists, too, are looking for ways to help their clients take control of their lives in the easiest ways possible. The reprocessing allows people to integrate the traumatic experience in an adaptive way and heal from it.
See also: 7 Lesser-Known Holistic Therapies
10. Mushroom Stacking
What’s the Trend?
We’ve highlighted adaptogens as a Wellness Trend in 2022, and mushrooms will continue to thrive across the wellness sphere in 2023, as we learn more about their uses and benefits. The latest buzz around medicinal mushrooms is that combining them with other adaptogens and antioxidants (stacking) can enhance its benefits. Combining Niacin (Vitamin B3), for example, and the functional mushroom Lion’s Mane can provide, among many other things, an improvement in cognitive functions.
Why will it matter in 2023?
With constant studies coming out regarding the benefits of medicinal mushrooms, it has created a big buzz in the wellness world. The global functional mushroom market is thought to be worth $23 billion, and growth shows no signs of slowing down. Medicinal mushrooms are expected to be the next CBD, with research showing they can be used to manage stress and anxiety, immunity, gut health, energy levels, sports performance, focus, libido, skin health and sleep. The latest stamp of approval came from the Duchess of Sussex after she invested in the US-based company Clevr that sells a range of mushroom-powered coffee powders. Upleveling your regular cup of coffee, mushroom coffee provides a sustainable source of energy that won’t result in the jitters or a caffeine crash. This is just the beginning of the rise of medicinal mushrooms.
See also: 17 Wellness Trends for 2022
