A Year Filled with Fear and Challenge 2020 has been unlike any other year in our lifetimes. Almost all aspects of society have been upended in ways unimaginable just a year before. While some people’s lives haven’t changed much, others have had to work longer and harder under incredibly demanding circumstances. Tens of millions are… Read more about How Will You Say Goodbye to 2020?
As we enter month 10 of the COVID pandemic as well as the holidays, it seemed like the perfect time to repost this article I wrote a few years ago. Hit the Pause Button for Just 1 Minute I want to share with you an easy yet powerful practice I picked up while attending a… Read more about Ground, Sound, Breathe Your Way to Less Stress and More Ease
A Culture of More is Better “Less is more” is a saying most of us don’t really believe. Why would we when American culture is all about more—having more, doing more, being more! In the U.S., hard work garners great respect and struggle is praised. We’ve been conditioned by parents, teachers, coaches and the media… Read more about Is Less Really More?
Your Jaw Has Wide-Ranging Influence on Your Comfort Several years ago I developed a terrible earache. I’d gone swimming a few days before, so I assumed I had gotten an ear infection. So I was taken aback when the doctor told me there was no infection; my ear pain was coming from my jaw. How… Read more about A Jaw-Dropping Experiment to Free your Jaw
Introduction As we enter month five of “the new normal” of COVID-19, so many people are experiencing practical and emotional hardships, or simply feel frustrated and stuck. At the same time, there are folks who are—or at least appear to be—doing well from the posts on Instagram and Facebook showing off examples of their productivity,… Read more about Why Pulling Yourself Up by Your Bootstraps Doesn’t Work
Shoulders Down! Almost everyone’s had a parent or teacher tell you to “sit/stand up straight” or “pull your shoulders down/back”. Rounded shoulders and slouching are typically viewed as a postural transgression. If you’re like most people, this may have led you to feel self-conscious about the normal position of your shoulders or feel badly if… Read more about 5 Myths Busted to Let Your Shoulders Hang Naturally
Awareness Has Many Benefits… Awareness is a word you hear a lot these days. Also commonly called mindfulness, it’s a quality of paying attention to yourself (your sensations, thoughts, reactions, etc.) and your surroundings in the present moment. This kind of awareness has numerous scientifically proven benefits, including lowering stress, reducing pain, lowering blood pressure,… Read more about The Downside of Awareness Nobody Tells You About
In these strange and often stressful times, I’d like to share a simple exercise that can significantly boost your well being. “Take in the Good” is a practice created by Dr. Rick Hanson, a psychologist and Buddhist teacher, as a way to counteractive the negativity bias of our brain. Our Brain’s “Negativity Bias” Biologically, survival… Read more about Soak in the Good to Better Your Brain and Body
The Flexibility Wisdom of Dogs and Cats Have you ever seen a dog or cat (or any other animal) stretch a particular muscle like we humans do? Occasionally they might stretch one limb, but generally they do full-body stretches. What can we learn from this? We’ve been told stretching is the way to increase flexibility,… Read more about How to Increase Your Flexibility Without Stretching
“Parts” Thinking is Entrenched in Our Culture People frequently ask me questions like, “When is your next ‘neck’ class?” or “Do you ever teach a class for knee pain?” We’re accustomed to thinking of ourselves like a car, made up of various parts. We commonly say things like, “My ‘back’ went out” or “My ‘knee’… Read more about Are You Greater than the Sum of Your Parts?