Joyce DeWitt Talks About Mind, Body, Spirit Connection

DeWitt played Janet Wood on the popular ’70s sitcom Three’s Company, with John Ritter and Suzanne Somers.

She made physical comedy look effortless during Three’s Company’s hit 1977–1984 run. Then she traveled the world on a 12-year spiritual quest. Today, Joyce DeWitt’s connection with what she calls “a lovely little triad”—body, mind, and spirit—preps her for life and work.

“I think it’s essential to have some practices both spiritual and physical that keep you centered, grounded, energized, and available,” says the ever-youthful TV icon, 68, who starred in a fall 2017 stage production of On Golden Pond. “I’m pretty much a regular meditator every morning. That, to me, is the key of knowing who I am and what my task is, and staying focused and present. So I start my day sipping a cup of tea, sitting on my bed, reading something spiritual, and then gently drifting into a quiet meditation.”

She also approaches nutrition mindfully. “Everyone’s body is different, and it becomes more important the longer we live to pay attention to our chemistry and how our body reacts to the things we put into it.” For DeWitt, this means allowing herself to miss a day or two of supplementing each week—and, if dieting, eating what she wants one day a week. Here are a few of her go-to natural products:

Maintaining daily physical—and spiritual—energy

Waking up to a protein-rich breakfast—often including scrambled eggs—supercharges the effervescent actress’s day ahead. “It’s really essential to put some protein in your body in the morning, because it burns so much slower than carbs,” she says. DeWitt keeps her body, mind, and spirit aligned with yoga, walking, and tai chi chih. Protein and carbs—separately, not together—help her avoid afternoon fatigue. “For me, particularly when I’m working, and because I don’t have to make three meals a day for a family, I tend to eat five or six little meals. Lunch for me often is a slice of turkey wrapped around string cheese. I eat two of those and I’m done. Three hours later, I’ll want a half of an apple with almond butter on it. And three hours later I’ll make up some chicken and toss up a salad. And I eat plenty of vegetables—I love broccoli!”

Raw cacao

This superfood boosts dopamine, serotonin, and other neurotransmitters that are shown to alleviate depression and boost energy and clarity. “My personal experience using pure, raw cacao thus far is that this is very accurate—at least for my body’s chemistry.”

Natural sweeteners

To sweeten tea while dining out or on the go, “I have a little dropper bottle of stevia that’s in my purse all the time,” she says. “I also use stevia to sweeten my raw cacao. I put a little vanilla in it as well. You can put pure orange oil in it, or lavender oil in the evening.”

Minerals

“A good multimineral is important for so many things. I take one along with my multivitamin/mineral. Also, I’ll sometimes take a quarter teaspoon of pure maple syrup—which is very high in mineral content—stir it into a 16-oz. glass of water and sip that over several hours.” 

Vitamin E

“I take it in oil form. It helps everything else work well. It supports the body in integrating, absorbing, and using other vitamins. It’s also important for your eyes and is a powerful antioxidant. It’s a goody.”

Immune support

“Vitamin C is not only good for cold and flu season, but has other helpful qualities. Echinacea and goldenseal are my go-tos when I think I have a cold. Zinc is helpful, too, during winter.”