Happy New Year and welcome 2017!  I am always grateful to ring in another year.

The New Year is often accompanied with feelings of hope, renewal, and refreshed energy to make changes or follow through with new (or old) resolves.

One of my resolves for this year is self-care.  This can mean so many things.  In the broad sense it includes getting enough sleep, eating a nourishing and healthy diet, exercise, striving for work/life balance, etc.  All of these things are good and necessary, but what I am alluding to are the smaller day to day instances of self-care that require tuning into yourself and your needs on each given day.

Over the holidays, my son triggered a feeling of deep sadness in me.  My knee jerk reaction was to pour myself a glass of wine, which I did, and then wallow in my sadness.  After I poured my glass, I became still for a moment and listened.  I tuned into myself and what I really needed was to move this feeling through me.  I had the luxury of going for a swim, one of the upsides of being re-located to a downtown condo while the extensive water damage to our house was being repaired.  I only swam for 12 minutes, but as I swam, the repetitive movement brought me to a meditative state.  As I moved, thoughts came to be about this particular situation and how I might be able to change my behaviour and responses. Possibilities opened up, and after, I felt a little lighter and not stuck in that dark place.

I did return to my glass of wine, but not to numb things or stuff my emotions down.  It is easy to have that glass of wine, or eat, or tune into something on Netflicks.  But then you are tuning out what is going on and at some level it stays stuck in the body.  If you are able to become still and notice your body and how you feel, often you will get the answers of what you need.  This can take practice and learning to trust what comes.  It is not always easy to follow through – sometimes the glass of wine prevails.  However, small steps to taking action can be empowering and you can draw on these empowering experiences for the future.

Additionally, it is important to commit to your overall health by taking classes or workshops, going for walks, swimming, skiing…whatever.  Anything where you have a regular commitment is great for whole body health.  When you feel stronger physically, you feel better mentally and emotionally.  There is no magic bullet out there, but there are many tools to get you along the road to health, peace, and happiness. I have a plethora of what I call magical tools I use personally and at the studio with clients.  These range from using different balls (Miracle Balls, MELT Method balls, rolling of Franklin Balls), Reiki treatments, mindful breathing or meditation, and making pilates, yoga, or ELDOA’s a regular practice.  It does require commitment, consistency, and many times self-motivation.  Joining a group class or doing a semi private with a friend is always a good way to help motivate each other, because sometimes you just want to stay curled up in your pajamas and read a good book, which is what I did January 1^st.  It is what I needed to feel recharged and refreshed, and I loved every minute of it.  Now, I am ready to tackle the many things for this year with self-care on the top of the list!

Wishing all a wonderful year ahead.

Yours in Whole Body Health,

Namaste,

Nicole