How mindful attention on the breath affects emotional regulation - and how much you should practice before you see results Hey everyone! I hope you have been enjoying the breath-based journey we have been on for a couple weeks, and I hope you don't mind staying on this
It never ceases to amaze me how the OG breath practitioners from thousands of years ago in the Buddhist and Yogic traditions knew the power of the breath...and modern science and neuroscience just keeps on confirming it. Mindfulness of the breath and breathing practices aka pranayama are some of
One of my favorite things about mindful presence is that it is the antidote to autopilot mode. Think of an airport- everybody rushing to their gates or baggage claim or whatever. Bumping into each other, bags whacking each other...autopilot mode central. Now picture that scene with people in mindful
First off, if the meme this pic is based on was not printed and posted somewhere in your JOC, watchfloor, office, or even Chaplain's Corner of every deployment you ever went on, I would love to hear about it because it was ubiquitous in my experience 😅 Because the
Happy New Year y'all!! This week I thought I would share another practice that goes really well with Name it to Tame It which I shared last week. One of the things I mentioned in both my short video I shared a couple weeks ago and the longer
I promised on my YouTube channel to share more about the research showing why the Name it to Tame it practice is so amazing and effective for turning down the intensity of emotions. I'll start with an overview of the practice in case you didn't see
Let me share with y'all all the gifts being present brings about (see what I did there, you're all welcome 🤣). It's my version of a holiday newsletter theme with the gift-giving, but for well-being. Your presence is a gift to others Being present is
as opposed to the 12 Days of Christmas! I will be giving you the gift of 12 short practice videos to try out tools and take mindful mini-breaks during the holiday season, which I hope will be more helpful to you than some random birds and such in the song.
Hey everyone! Hope you had a lovely Turkey Day, I sure did ☺️Lots of food and fun with my sis, BIL and nephews...and little Theo earned his off-leash privileges in their backyard back...apparently he has a lot more people FOMO and a lot less desire to escape now,
Breathwork and mindfulness of the breath practices can be excellent for boosting calming activity in the nervous system. Any time you are working with the breath, you are working with your vagus nerve, which is why doing these practices regularly is so helpful for reducing stress in general. However, breath-centric
There are few things in this world that delight me more than a simple framework that helps make sense of- and practically apply- an abstract or seemingly ambiguous process. In training this weekend, I was reminded of Kolb's Experiential Learning Cycle, which is a fantastic tool to apply
Hey everyone!!! Today I am sharing another calming breath work practice- this one has been a real help to me lately. It is called ujjayi pranayam aka "ocean breath" or "victorious breath" in the yogic tradition and let me tell ya it has helped me be
As yoga and meditation teacher, I love helping people not just learn the tools but figuring out how to set up a regular practice. When talking with people about getting a practice going, I always make sure to mention that frequency is more important than duration. These mind-body practices involve
It never ceases to amaze me how powerful breathwork can be in shifting our physiological state. I shared the extended exhale practice last week, and the featured practice in this article is a kind of extended exhale practice with some simple tweaks that can really make big shifts happen. It
While I am a big fan of allowing myself to simply be with myself when I am feeling activated (anxious, frustrated, stressed, angry, despairing, etc etc) there are some times where that's just not the best move. Even if I feel great after several minutes of being uncomfortable
Hey friends! Looks like I needed an unplanned sabbatical but I am back in it. My body and spirit were telling me to keep chilling after I took a knee when I had that bad bout of bronchitis, and go into relax and recuperate mode, which is kind of the
Whoops!! Apparently I did not successfully include the YouTube link so apologies for the double tap y'all. Also, Mercury Retrograde started on the 17th so I should have TRIPLE checked anyways - that's on me 😅 Here's the original: Howdy y'all! First, if
Howdy y'all! First, if you noticed there wasn't a newsletter last week I am delighted you noticed and also wish I had not been smote by a respiratory infection that's had me coughing bad for two weeks 😑 So I rested and recuperated...well still
If you haven't ever tried the simple practice of recovery with your legs up the wall, this post might just convince you to give it a shot. Like, now now just to experience the immediate shift it gives your nervous system. Poking around the internets, it seems that
And by Buick, I mean your body. I mean my 41-year-old body, first thing in the morning 😑 Turns out there is some physiology to why we are so stiff and creaky straight out of bed, and there are some ways to help warm the old Buick up. You'll
Y'all! Thanks for your patience with this week's video. I got back from my lovely family reunion vacay late Saturday afternoon and decided I was wiped and I'd record Sunday morning. Well let me tell ya the technical difficulty gremlins were out in full
Spinal mobility is so important for spinal health. It supports: * Balance- twists and side-to-side movements work the the core and oblique muscles * Range of motion- increases our ability to stretch and reach * Tension reduction- releases stiffness of muscles connected to the spine which is like, a lot of them 🤣 I
Ah, lower back pain. It makes it so uncomfortable to sit, stand, or sometimes even walk. What I have learned through studying, teaching, and practicing yoga regularly for the past seven years is that focusing on just stretching the lower back will seldom help resolve lower back pain. This is
For those of you getting this in your inbox....YAYY!!! And THANK YOU SO MUCH for being my first subscribers, it means the absolute world to me and I am so grateful for y'all's support!! "Let your shoulders melt away from your ears...." I