Recently, I got my first pair of prescription glasses after a long while of harassment from my husband, telling me that I needed glasses. I knew he was right, but I resisted. Why? If you cannot see, you cannot see, which can happen at any age. But full disclosure: I do not look my age. I do not have gray hair or many wrinkles, and my spirit is young. So, although I always proudly tell people my age, I know I do not look it.
March is Women's History Month, and last Friday(March 8th) was International Women's Day. Incorporating activities is a wonderful way to celebrate and honor yourself as well as the women around you. Here are some ideas for doing just that!
Valentine's Day can sometimes come with societal expectations and romantic pressures. Galentine's Day offers a break from these pressures, allowing friends to enjoy a day focused on friendship without conforming to traditional romantic gestures.
Let's take it a step further.
No one wants to be uncomfortable. We are all human and strive to have the best life possible. Free from as much discomfort as possible. Over the last few years, I have discovered something. Sometimes, there is a blessing in the uncomfortable parts of life. Many of us would be on a mundane perpetual loop of life if we did not have the discomfort that life often brings to move us forward.
The start of a New Year is always exciting because it is acknowledged universally as a RESET – a time when the year begins again, and we all have the opportunity to do something different from what we were doing. Of course, this can happen at any point in our lives. I don't know what it is about the New Year that makes it seem more significant, but for me and millions of others, the excitement about transformation is real.
Recently, I have been able to spend the weekend with 2 of my four core friends, and I was feeling so blessed for those connections of over 30 years. And these are not the typical “we lost touch for 12 years, and now we are back” stories you hear from people.
We have been a consistent part of each other’s lives for 30 years, and I love and value them so much that it sparked me to talk about friendships.
As a young therapist, I thought working for an agency was the only way to succeed. A hospital or non-profit agency that kept my schedule, found my clients, and did all the prep work for me. So, that is what I did. One day, I thought, "Why don't I open a private practice?" Then the fear monster crept in and told me it was too hard, I wouldn't get enough clients, and I would not be able to support myself.
The heart of TRM lies in aligning six key areas of our lives: Mood, Health, Schedule, Relationships, Sleep, and Productivity. Picture a life where everything is in balance, where you feel energized, fulfilled, and in control.
Even more incredible is that TRM isn't just a course – it's a supportive community of people facing similar challenges. We all know that having someone to share our journey with and hold us accountable can make all the difference. Peer support is a cornerstone of TRM, and together, we'll motivate each other to make positive, lasting changes.
It's easy to convince yourself that you can push through the physical symptoms that accompany burnout, whether you're a busy mom or entrepreneur. With people relying on us and endless problems to solve, many of us feel we don't have the time or space to pause and deal with our stress and exhaustion.
We all have varying degrees of self-awareness, which often shift as we experience more life. But for the sake of this process, let's discuss six signs that alert us to the possibility of low self-awareness.
Self-awareness is the ability to identify how our thoughts and feelings influence our behaviors. To be self-aware, we must understand our emotions, behavior, and thinking patterns. What are thinking, behavior, and emotional patterns? I am glad you asked!
I was thinking about Escapism and how prevalent it is to immerse ourselves outside our reality. Is it healthy? Should we be concerned about Escapism?
Watching ten consecutive hours of the same show would seem unusual a few years ago, but now it is just a random Saturday. I have some thoughts about what that amount of content does to the brain, but we will save that for another time. Right now, I want us to consider what we are escaping from and why.
Our lives are so busy pursuing and maintaining that we often forget the importance of being. In my house, we often will have "Wellness Weekend," "Focus Friday," or "Sleepy Saturdays." These days are nothing more than acknowledging and celebrating the everyday aspects of our lives.
I do not know what it is about 2023, but I am experiencing Black History Month a little differently. Usually, I would make sure that I participate in the obligatory events, post something on social media, and that would be that. This year, I am feeling drawn to write something.
I hope the new year has settled peacefully. During this time of year, we hear a lot about making changes and improving our wellness. I believe it is because of how we end the year that we start the year hyper-focused on making positive changes.
If you are like me, you have recently said, "I cannot believe it is December already?" at least once this week. Christmas is upon us, and then New Year will quickly follow. The days are passing faster and faster, and before you know it, we will be celebrating another milestone that should have taken longer than it did to arrive.
AT THE START of every year, I clean out my closet and drawers because of the idea that anything I have on New Year's Eve will follow me into the new year, a ritual I inherited from my parents. Chances are you have your rituals too.
Gratitude is a subjective concept. We can argue a dozen different ways, with everyone having valid points. But practicing gratitude is a personal journey. Filled with varying methods of thinking and showing our gratitude. Creating gratitude goals and committing to the experience of appreciation helps us focus on the things we currently have in our lives instead of reaching for more items or something different.
Finding joy in our lives can be difficult for many of us. Life consists of many made-up moments. Some moments are so unique that one can hardly believe they are happening, while others can make us wonder, "why am I here?" As the years go by and we gain insight and wisdom, we understand that every day is not remarkable. Embrace that knowledge but know that there are things that we can do to improve the joy we experience.
Creating a balance between our work life and our home life is not easy. It is more of a flow than a balance between the two. Many things must happen for us to create a flow and a balance that is healthy.
To understand how much work goes into having a healthy work-life flow, we must first highlight the things we must stop doing.
If you live on earth like me, you have noticed that many negative things happen everywhere we look. Everything from inequity in education to the opioid crisis to COVID to mass shootings… things can seem as though they are all bad.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but my motivation has been at an all-time low during the past year. Maybe it is the never-ending pandemic, ever-changing rules related to it, or nothing to do with it. I just know that something feels different.
There are 168 hours a week and 24 hours a day; this will not change; time is finite. It is essential that we make the most of that time while still having healthy priorities. Here are a few tips to help you recognize what things in our lives need immediate attention, what things are a priority, and what things are not essential to our wellness.
Sleep has always been a critical ingredient to a healthy body. We know that our physical health can be significantly affected by lack of sleep. Our heart health, brain health, weight management, and immune systems are all connected to healthy sleeping habits. Less often discussed is how our mental health and productivity are also greatly influenced by the quality and quantity of our sleep.
Unless you have a medical condition, breathing is done mostly without effort. We do it every day, all day long, so of course, we know how… right? Wrong! I am here to tell you that our breathing techniques are inadequate. Of course, it is enough to keep us alive, but is our technique promoting the relaxing benefits that appropriate breathing can bring? Only you know.
As adults, many of us have given up on creating that fun. We do not know how to play anymore. It’s not surprising that adults have forgotten how to have fun. In general, life is filled with many, not fun things like paying bills, driving in traffic, and going to the post office.
COVID has shown us that many of our elderly neighbors, friends, and family are in extremely vulnerable situations. If certain agencies are closed, who is going to care for the people who rely on those agencies?
A Time-Out is nothing more than some space to be still. Be still and reflect on how you can bring more balance and calm to your life. When we are stressed and tired, it can be difficult to figure out where the imbalance lies and what to do about it.
“I am so busy,” “I just have so much to do,” “I don’t have enough time”; how many times have we all said that? It happens to me more often than I would like. In one week, there are 168 hours, and it often feels as though they pass within the blink of an eye. Where does the time go, and why can’t I seem complete the things I need to do?
You have heard the expression “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence,” right? We generally understand this phrase to mean situations tend to look better for other people when looking from a distance. Although we may say the phrase all of the time, do we really believe it?