Ready for a September Reset?
3 Practical Ways to Refresh, Renew and Reset I recently saw an article in The New York Times about September being a natural time for a refresh or reset. I smiled when I read it because I’ve thought of September that way for many years. Perhaps it goes back to those childhood days of returning to school—with new notebooks, freshly sharpened pencils, and the feeling of beginning again. Even now, long after our school years, September can still carry that sense of possibility. Summer begins winding down. Schedules change. The air starts to feel different.…
Does stress always look like stress?
You might be surprised! When you think about stress or anxiety, what comes to mind? Feeling overwhelmed? Worrying? A racing mind? Certainly. But stress doesn’t always announce itself quite so clearly. Sometimes it shows up as trouble sleeping, irritability, muscle tension, difficulty making decisions, reaching for food for comfort, or simply realizing you haven’t felt quite like yourself for a while. We can become so accustomed to living with stress that we don’t always recognize how much it’s affecting the way we feel, think and live. That’s one of the reasons I recently took a…
Maybe the Right Time Is Now
For many years, I’ve used the phrase “Summertime Mode.” Just saying it seems to stir up images of longer days, vacations, warm evenings, time spent outside and perhaps a little more ease and enjoyment in our lives. Of course, summer isn’t always carefree. Schedules change. Routines get disrupted. There may be travel, visitors, family commitments and plenty of other demands on our time and energy. Still, there’s something about summer that seems to invite us to loosen our grip a little. To breathe. To enjoy. To slow down when we can. And maybe…to stop putting…
When Later Keeps Getting in the Way
Life may not slow down, but you can still begin. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been meaning to sit down and write to you. I thought about it several times. I knew what I wanted to say. I knew staying connected with this community matters to me. And yet, I kept putting it off. I was away for a short time visiting family, and when I got back, the weeds outside were growing too tall to ignore and desperately needed my attention. Other priorities were competing for my attention, too. Life got busy on…
Why Trying Harder Often Doesn’t Work
What happens when you stop fighting yourself? “Don’t let your mind bully your body into believing it must carry the burden of its worries.” — Astrid Alauda Have you ever found yourself really trying to change something in your life…only to feel frustrated that it still isn’t shifting the way you hoped? So often, when we want to change something in our lives, it can feel like we need to force those changes to happen. But that seldom works for long. Lasting change most often happens through support, awareness, and feeling safe enough internally to…
What Japan Taught Me About Stress, Change & Well-Being
Sometimes growth begins beyond the familiar! Spring is such a natural time for renewal, reset, and reconnecting. How’s Spring going for you so far? I hope where you live is offering you opportunities to get outside a bit more and enjoy the changes Mother Nature is making. I can certainly attest to the beauty of Spring here in the Pacific Northwest, where the trees are showing off their young green colors, shrubs are blooming prolifically, and the air is finally warming. And speaking of nature and renewal… I’d love to share a few reflections from…