Our focus this week in our classes and practice was to notice 'self talk' and how to give ourselves credit. Could we focus on appreciating ourselves purposefully?

The last few weeks we have been diving into the distinction between listening to thoughts, or listening to body, or listening to breath; or even just silent witnessing.

Taking it all in without naming or conceptualizing.

If you pay attention, you can see it is easy to notice when we make a mistake or mess up. If you forget something you feel frustrated. You reproach yourself when you lose your cool and talk harshly to a loved one. You feel regret at choosing the junk food, or making excuses why you couldn’t get outside for a walk. It comes naturally to criticize ourselves.

But how many times a day do we acknowledge when we are doing well and say: You’re awesome!

We don’t!

So my challenge to my community this week was:

Can you catch the moments you are doing something amazing and pause and say...

This week the theme in my classes was about differentiating our experience of mind, body and spirit.

I was asking my students if they could get clear about when they are experiencing MIND; thoughts. Just to acknowledge this is the part of me that thinks.

To be able to clearly see: this is thought; thinking.

Then, can we pay attention to the BODY. Can we take our awareness and feel the foot for example. And what does the foot say? I suggest the body does not speak in English. The body speaks in sensations. If it were to say anything at all, I think it might be “oh, hey, thanks for noticing me.”

Our practice gives us the chance to pause and go inward and pay attention to the different aspects of Self. There is thinking and there is the body. If we choose, we can pay attention to the experience of either; both.

To have the capacity to notice what we are paying attention to is liberating. It gives us the ability to create some distance from the monkey mind or the pain in the...

I am relentless about chasing my dreams.

These words chasing, or getting back on track, don’t quite express the sentiment I feel.
I deeply trust life is unfolding perfectly.

This dance between taking action, pursuing our goals, but also allowing Source to guide us and provide us with what we need.
I believe in both.

I notice on my own journey I will will have an impulse. I feel guided towards a new dream, project or idea. I will set intentions and goals. Then, I will get side-tracked.

I dance between letting go and honing in.

The subtly of this dance has us, now and again, off balance.

It is inevitable. We cannot hold a perfect centre.

What seems to play a role in keeping myself living in flow is catching when I am going off the rails.

Without judgment. Just acknowledgement and course correction.

The connection I have to my body gives me cues; clues. Through the body I can feel when I am off centre. Once I am aware, I can bring myself back into alignment.

Alignment to what?

...

The truth is we don’t really want to look at our own dark, icky stuff.

It stinks.

It can be revolting.

However, this puss and goo that we have inside ourselves can also make us sick.
So... we kinda have to face it.

If we don’t, it starts to seep out of us and affects those around us. Often our loved ones.

We do not need to hold this stuff in. There is a way to release it.
BUT...it requires us to look at it. Feel it. Be with it.

And who wants to do that?

We want to run, and deny, and flee from this stuff.

Be with it?
Like, yikes! And ouch.

No thanks.

Right?

We can all relate.

Who hasn’t turned away from their pain?
Medicated it.

It can be a lot for sure. I get it. Every single one of us has shit do deal with. It isn't pleasant.

I don’t mind to look at shit. And it doesn't bother me see it in others.

It might be my superpower.

I have a special gift to be with pain. It has allowed me to heal on many different levels. And now I love teaching others how to do this...

This week I got a powerful request for help. I am always inspired by the people who decide it is time to make a change.

Naturally, it seems, we as humans, find it easier to just go along as we are. To change our trajectory is not easy. Maybe it has something to do with Newton's first law: an object in motion tends to stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force.

When people reach out to me because they have reached a point where they feel they can no longer keep living the way they are living I am always impressed. It is a BIG step.

Both because it is not easy to make that decision and for most of us, it is not easy to ask for help.
I am not sure that we can make the change alone.

There are many obstacles in our way when it comes to making change.

I feel so proud of people when they come to me with the decision to take action. When people reach out and acknowledge where they are stuck and ask for help, I know they have already overcome the biggest hurdles.

It is brave to...

My gosh! Our hearts can feel so tender. To share that with another human. Gulp.

Who here has felt that deep welling up of emotion? And then what do we do with it?

Shed a tear? Freeze up? Shove it down? Lash out?

To be human is so much. All our feelings. Memories. Worries.

We are thinking all the time.

Onto the next thing.
When we stop to acknowledge what we feel inside it’s so raw.
The doubt. The shame. We question our own value. Will this person like me?

We all want to fit in. Be understood. We all have these minds whirling. A million questions. Always searching for an answer.

When we stop, pause, notice what is going on inside we see the truth.
We can feel fragile. Exposed. Like no one understands this pain we feel.

We are all going through it. Some people learn to let it be in the background. But everyone feels vulnerable at times.
When we are courageous enough to share that part of ourselves with others, it is so powerful for everyone. We start to see, YES! We are human. We...

EEEEEK! Scary right? To take that leap? To trust?

Our nervous system is designed to look for the threat. When we don’t know what is going to happen, the possibility of the unknown, it feels like we might die.

So we stop ourselves.

Just when we are going to take the risk, we hesitate.

I am grateful I took a few risks when I was young.

Like in this photo where I am falling backwards in full faith that this rope tied around my ankles would save me from plummeting to my death.

I think in our younger years we are more willing to take risks.

We are oblivious to the dangers until we get burnt and then we become more cautious.

But often these fears get in the way of us growing and learning. The way we stop ourselves from moving forward creates stagnation; blocks.

I get to see people play with this feeling all the time when they think about doing this inner work. When people know they have to go inside they panic.

What will I find?

Can I handle it?

All these questions arise.

Doubt.
...

Often our body sends us messages. Our toe hurts. Or our back aches. Or our guts are in knots.

Nobody wants to feel pain, but these are important messages from our body. They tell us something is awry. 

Oftentimes when these messages start they are more like whispers, but if we refuse to pay attention they turn into shouts.

I often find myself reminding my clients to listen to their body; to pay attention to these nudges before they become serious, or chronic.

I strongly believe if we pay attention to these messages we can alleviate the dis-ease. Usually these problems arise because we have been causing some kind of block in this area. Through our posture, or our movement, or even our emotional patterns, or thought patterns we cause mis-alignment.

The body wants unity, harmony and wholeness. It functions best when we are allowing connection and relationship.

If your body is starting to speak to you in a certain area it is time to take a look. What is happening for you around...

Developing a daily practice is a game changer if you want to experience whole health.

Developing the discipline can be tough. It isn’t easy to get out of bed and get to your mat, until you make it a habit.

That is what my deep dive program is all about. Teaching people how to prioritize their practice. It is about helping people carve out that time. It is a chance to work through limiting beliefs and self-sabotaging patterns.

Doing it alone can feel impossible. With a group and a framework it becomes easier.  

I love providing people with support and encouragement as they work through the obstacles. Everyone runs into challenges as they choose to take care of their health. Over a lifetime we have developed excuses and habits that get in our way.

I have no judgement. I have been through it myself.

I have helped hundreds of people break through what is holding them back. It is exciting to watch people get clear and committed.

I get to see all kinds of reasons people create...

I feel very strongly about this.

We have the capacity to heal ourselves. I see it time and time again in the work I do. Oftentimes people come to me for help with their health issues after having tried many different treatments, medications and even surgery. They are at their wits end.

Doctors have not been able to help them. Specialists have not been able to get them results. No one has been able to solve their problem.

They decide to try Yoga and with consistent practice they get better. It is amazing to watch.

I understand people have doubts. Many people are skeptical about alternative ways to health and wellness. That's fair. We have been conditioned to think the answers are found in experts; in people who wear a white coat.

We are raised in ways that disconnect us from our body and from our intuition.

We have lost knowledge about which plants have healing properties. We have lost touch with foods that heal. If we get sick we book an appointment with our family doctor, or we end...