How a simple acronym transformed my approach to health—and why I’m still learning.
As a therapist, I spend my days helping others navigate their challenges, yet my journey toward optimal health has been anything but linear. It’s been filled with experiments, failures, and small victories that have taught me more about my nature than any textbook ever could.
Today, I want to share my SHEEN method. Below each section, I have also included some resources that inform my current protocol. This is not a revolutionary system, but simply how I’ve learned to organize my approach to wellness in 2025. By this time next year, several things will be different. That’s not a flaw; it’s a feature of being human.
SHEEN stands for Sleep, Hydrate, Exercise, Express, and Nourish.
Sleep: The Foundation We Often Ignore
Here’s a privilege I don’t take for granted: as a therapist in private practice, I can wake up without an alarm. My body has settled into its natural rhythm, free from the jarring shock of being startled awake. This single change transformed my relationship with mornings and with sleep itself.
Once the sun sets, my evening routine becomes intentionally analog. I slip on blue light blocking glasses with red lenses (yes, I look ridiculous, and yes, it’s worth it). I take magnesium and fat-soluble vitamins, turn down the air conditioning, and switch my phone to red mode.
These habits are acts of self-respect. Matthew Walker’s Why We Sleep changed how I think about rest. Sleep is not time lost, but the foundation upon which everything else is built. What I’ve noticed in my practice is that sleep issues often reflect deeper patterns. The mind that can’t quiet at night is often the same mind that struggles to be present during the day.
Resources: Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker,
Matthew Walker’s series on Huberman Lab
Hydrate: Beyond the Water Bottle
For years, I fell into the “more is better” trap with hydration, drinking a gallon or more of water daily. Instead of optimizing my health, I was likely flushing out essential minerals and leaving myself more dehydrated than when I started.
Now, I begin each morning with an electrolyte supplement and listen to my body throughout the day. The goal is not to hit an arbitrary number but to pay attention to what my body is telling me and respond accordingly.
This shift from rigid rules to intuitive awareness has been a theme throughout my wellness journey. Sometimes, the most sophisticated approach is simply learning to listen.
Resources: Andrew Huberman on Hydration,
Andy Galpin 3 Steps to Optimizing Hydration
Exercise: From Ego to Longevity
My relationship with exercise has been a masterclass in letting go of who I thought I should be. For years, I pursued bodybuilding-style workouts that fed my ego but ultimately left me injured and immobile with severe sciatica. The irony was not lost on me: in trying to build the strongest version of myself, I’d created the weakest.
The injury forced me to ask: What am I really trying to prove? I was so focused on what my muscles could lift that I’d forgotten what they were supposed to help me do – move through life with energy and ease.
Today, my fitness philosophy centers on one question: Does this give me energy or drain it? I’ve moved toward functional patterns: kettlebells, calisthenics, rucking, rowing, and occasional jogging. I prioritize mobility over maximal loads, movement quality over quantity lifted.
The goal is not to look a certain way but to increase my healthspan and longevity. Sometimes that means doing less, not more.
Resources: Move U, Ben Patrick, Brendan Backstrom, Pavel Tsatsouline, Built to Move by Kelly and Juliet Starrett, Outlive by Peter Attia, Andy Galpin’s series on Huberman Lab, Peter Attia on Exercising for Longevity, The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter
Express: The Art of Making Something
Of all the elements in SHEEN, expression might be the hardest to quantify and the most essential to protect. Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art introduced me to “resistance” in the creative process, that invisible force that keeps us from creating, sharing, and becoming who we’re meant to be.
My borrowed mantra has become: “Make it first, you can make it good later.” This year, I’m developing an app for habit and behavior reinforcement. Is it perfect? Far from it. But it exists, and that matters more than I initially realized.
Perfectionism is not always about high standards. It’s often sophisticated procrastination. The fear of creating something imperfect keeps us from creating anything at all. In my practice, I see this constantly: people paralyzed not by lack of ability, but by the terror of being seen as fallible.
Expression goes beyond traditional creativity. As Nietzsche observed, we humans are both the model and the clay. We’re constantly creating ourselves through our choices and responses. Learning, personal therapy, and honest self-reflection have become forms of artistic expression for me.
Resources: The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, On Writing by Stephen King
Nourish: The Most Complicated Simplicity
Nutrition might be the area where I’ve made the most mistakes and learned the most lessons. I’ve tried countless diets, protocols, fasting regimens, supplements, and peptides. I’ve tracked everything with devices and apps, treating my body like a machine that could be optimized through the right inputs.
What I’ve settled on is radically simple and frustratingly complex: paying attention to how foods make me feel. The app Cronometer has been invaluable for identifying specific vitamin and mineral deficiencies, allowing me to supplement strategically.
My approach now is empirical and personal: try foods and supplements, register how they affect you, and adjust accordingly. Your body is the final authority, not the latest guru or study.
This mirrors what I see in therapy. Lasting change rarely comes from following someone else’s blueprint perfectly. It comes from developing awareness of what works for you and the courage to trust that knowledge.
Resources: The Carnivore Code, How to Heal Your Metabolism, Deep Nutrition, Huberman Lab with Rhonda Patrick, Genius Foods, Cronometer App
The Wisdom of Incomplete Systems
The SHEEN method is not a destination but a framework for paying attention, adjusting course, and staying curious about what works. As I share this with my Vervewell clients, I emphasize that this is my current approach, not a universal prescription.
The most profound changes often come not from grand gestures but from small, consistent adjustments made with intention and attention. The real work is not in finding the perfect system but in developing the capacity to notice what’s actually happening in your life and the flexibility to respond rather than react.
After all, the goal is not to optimize ourselves into machines but to become more fully, vibrantly human. And humans, by definition, are works in progress.
I’m always happy to discuss any aspect of the SHEEN method with Vervewell clients and answer questions about this ongoing experiment in living well. I am welcoming new clients at this time.
Blake Overstreet, LPC, is a licensed professional therapist at Vervewell Counseling in Fort Worth, TX, specializing in therapy for teenagers (13+), young adults, adults, and couples. Blake empowers clients to deepen emotional resilience, cultivate meaningful relationships, foster personal growth, uncover purpose and meaning, and overcome self-imposed barriers.While operating primarily from a psychodynamic perspective, Blake also offers EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) for individuals dealing with post-traumatic stress. He sees clients in person and via telehealth across Texas.
