Renewal of the mind body and soul with meditation can cultivate wellbeing and resilience. Spring inspires new growth, both externally and internally. In North America, many of us are emerging from an exceptionally long and cold winter and are gladly welcoming our spring season. In our culture, the season comes with an intention to do spring […]
Making decisions that support wellbeing is a practice that we can cultivate through creating clear intentions. Every week I sit with clients who are making difficult decisions, and every week lately I seem to be making them myself. We each make choices every day, ranging from when we will go to sleep and get up […]
Silence as a Peaceful Refuge
Silence is a source of great strength. –Lao Tzu Just for today, try to enjoy a moment of silence. Try not filling it with worrying, planning, deciding or regretting. Open your heart and mind to a sense of spacious awareness and find the breath. Be still and embrace the freedom that is available in the […]
Accepting reality is a practice and a habit that can help us to feel a greater sense of peace and wellbeing. Frequently, mindfulness students say to me that they have a difficult time meditating because they feel restless, agitated, bored or experience physical pain or discomfort. Mindfulness is an opportunity for us to observe with […]
Living in the Present with Kindness
Living in the present with an attitude of kindness and curiosity toward our own experience is at the foundation of mindfulness and mediation practice. We spend so much time ruminating about the past or worrying about the future. Living in the moment can bring a sense of increased peace, happiness and freedom. When you notice […]
Opening up and letting go in meditation can help us to feel a greater sense of freedom and ease in our lives. Our habitual pattern is to resist what is. We don’t like change, and we want things to go our way. When we resist what is, we create a state of inner conflict and […]
Responding vs Reacting
Responding vs reacting is a mindfulness approach to stress reduction and resilience. We spend much of our time simply reacting to the various stimuli that we encounter every day. It is possible to change this habitual pattern by bringing awareness to that space between stimulus and our reactivity and expanding it with mindfulness so that […]
Holding hope means that we embrace a feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. Someone asked me recently if acceptance and holding hope are mutually exclusive. I think that both are possible simultaneously. Peace comes when we accept what is happening in this moment and, […]
Each of us has within us a reservoir of inner strength, resilience and power. By turning inward, we can access this inner strength and power and utilize it to support our own well-being. We can develop strength and resilience by recalling and focusing our attention on moments in which we have felt strong. In recalling […]
How to Develop a Clear Sense of Self
Our sense of self affects our self-esteem, emotions, mood, mental health, and physical health. It’s important that we have a kind relationship with ourself to support overall health, wellbeing, and resilience. How well do you know and understand yourself? We can begin to develop a clear sense of self by assessing our personal values, work […]