Tool #1-The Focused Calm Breath I have talked about and shared this very vital tool numerous times in my eNews. It is the first tool all my clients learn to use consciously, yet it still warrants the first place to begin this journey of resetting, refreshing, and re-connecting. The American Institute of Stress deems focused calm breathing as a Super stress buster. It is well known and documented how it triggers the Relaxation Response, which is a term coined by Herbert Benson, a professor, cardiologist, author, and founder of Harvard’s Mind/Body Medical Institute. When the…
My Personal note to you: September is the “unofficial” beginning of Fall and it’s also similar to the start of a new year, have you noticed, (name)? It’s the end of the summer festivities, the beginning of school years, and all new schedules. This year all these new beginnings have an extra element of concern with them as well, due to the pandemic that still dominates our lives in big and small ways. Yet, we can still press the reset, refresh and re-connect button to support us through this time. Over the next few emails,…
Here’s a story for you about that 4 letter word: Ook and Mook, two cavemen, were out for a walk one day when a saber-toothed cat crossed their path. While Ook immediately turned tail and ran to safety, Mook thought the cat was cute and tried to scratch it under the chin. Needless to say, Ook wound up passing his common sense to his children, while Mook wound up passing through the cat. What does that mean for us? It means that fear is as closely tied to the survival of our species as eating.…
Fear talks to people. And when they listen, this is what can happen: Sheila loved to dance but she wouldn’t go out on the dance floor with her fiancé because she thought she’d look clumsy and ridiculous. Arnie knew he deserved a raise, but he was so nervous about approaching his boss, he never asked for one. Delia’s fear of bears was so great that she wouldn’t go on a camping trip with her friends. And their campsite wasn’t even in bear territory. Fear is that nattering voice inside our heads that says, you can’t,…
As life is opening up more and more now, it seems like a good time to check in. How are you doing? I was recently re-reading an article I wrote in March 2020 right after COVID-19 was declared a world pandemic. It’s about how to use our inner resources in challenging times. Interestingly, I found it still quite relevant, even though “things” are opening up and the infection rates are way down due to the diligence of the shut downs and the vaccination programs in place. So why would this time now be challenging if…
100 Things You Are Grateful For (or would be grateful to receive in future) This exercise is simple; just think and write out 100 things you are grateful for (or would be grateful to have some day). “100 things??”, you say! “Wow that’s a lot!” It may seem to be…and that may be the point. Too often, we are not used to using our minds and hearts to be aware of all we are grateful for in our lives. When you begin this exercise, it may be easy to come up with 20 items on…