Do you know Jeff Foster? He teaches an embodied form of meditation. Very different than the new age-y approach of trying to escape the body.
He’s offering a freebie on January 14, 2pm eastern. I’ve done several of these offerings with Jeff and find them very nourishing.
It’s an opportunity to experience his work without charge. If you like it, you can sign up for his community; he will mention that. But, unlike most free offerings/masterclasses, his webinars have never felt like an infomercial.
(I’m not an affiliate, btw. Just a fan.)
If you’ve found it difficult to meditate in the past yet yearn for the myriad benefits, why not check it out?
“How do you get ‘there’? You don’t. Even if you did, you’d still be here. Be here. That’s how you get ‘there’. In presence, in stillness, let life carry you…”
Do you know Jeff Foster? He teaches an embodied form of meditation. Very different than the…
Here we are, at the beginning of 2025, launching into a new year. I’m seeing lots of posts about kicking it off in style, crushing it, being the best version of yourself.
Which might seem like an impossibility if you’re struggling just to get through the days. This is the season when Nature is urging us to rest and restore, to take some downtime, and get extra sleep. It is not the season for crushing it, unless we’re talking about naps.
So if I could encourage us all to do just one thing right now, it would be to listen to our own bodies. Let them guide us through this new year portal.
Inquire within and listen with compassion and curiosity:
How am I feeling right now? What do I need? What activity or lack of activity would be most supportive?
Rather than jumping on someone else’s, even a so-called expert’s, bandwagon, tune in to yourself. Let your self-care be for YOU.
All journeys begin with the first step. Don’t let the distance between your current location and your destination derail your departure.
Research shows that small habits have a big impact overtime. Pick one thing to do, or not do, this week. Next week or next month, or whenever the time feels right, add one more thing to do or not do.
It could be as simple as taking three conscious breaths while the coffee brews or smiling at yourself in the mirror.
I’ve been having my tea outside at sunrise for six months now. Supposedly the light at dawn is very healing on a cellular level. I can’t say that my cells feel different, but I’ve come to look forward to this quiet moment every morning. Getting bundled up when it’s below freezing has become a challenge that I enjoy. On the long road of healing, it’s just a baby step, but one I’ve made nearly 200 times, thereby shifting my trajectory into one aligned with vibrant mitochondria and cellular health.
What small shift can you make in your trajectory?
Sunrise is at 7:23 tomorrow- you’ve welcome to join me for a cuppa. Don’t forget the layers. Lots and lots of layers. 🤩
If you want a jumpstart, consider booking a Reiki treatment and fill up your life-force tank.
Here we are, at the beginning of 2025, launching into a new year. I’m seeing lots…
I just got back from the most glorious hike. It’s drizzly and cold here in Philly, but it’s my day off and I wanted to go to the woods. While I was trekking through the trees, I chuckled to myself about descriptors people often use for days like today.
Dreary.
Miserable.
Dreadful.
Come on, now! You can write a story in your head about it being a miserable, rainy day, and it will most definitely be true for you.
But is it True, with a capital T?
No!
It’s rainy. It’s wet. The sky is gray. There are mud puddles. The fallen leaves are slippery. These statements are objectively True. That means I need to dress appropriately and be careful where I step on the trail.
So I did. No biggie. And you know what?
Nowhere did I find any misery.
Instead, I found fresh, clean air. Mud puddles! (My inner child was delighted to have a splash.) And magic. That’s the story I told myself, and for me it became True.
I did pass a couple along the path and we all agreed that it was wonderful being out there without much company. The fellow said that the rain keeps the amateurs away and we all had a good laugh.
As adults, we have myriad opportunities to stretch our comfort zone and rewrite our stories. If we don’t, the zone shrinks over time and we begin to lose freedom of choice. It’s up to each of us to recognize how much discomfort we can face in order to grow and build resilience. Or we can wallow in our restrictive demands for comfort and forever remain an amateur.
For me, hiking in a drizzle is not much of a stretch. Perhaps that’s because I have a great affinity for water and a disposition and constitution that enjoys the cold. There are other areas of life that are much more challenging for me, and this new insight has all sorts of ideas brewing about how I can better meet them with grace and willingness if not ease.
And it all begins with the words I use to describe the event/situation/environment I choose to face. Will it be dreadful or simply unknown? Dreary or just wet? Miserable or potentially magical?
You tell me.
(Please do! I’d love to hear what words you use to rewrite an old story that keeps you from experiencing absolute freedom. What’s your rainy day equivalent?)
I just got back from the most glorious hike. It’s drizzly and cold here in Philly,…
I had a great time sitting by the creek yesterday. I call this video: Mixed Doubles Synchronized Swimming. There are three pairs of mallards enjoying a cold sunny day.
Aren’t they adorable?
If you didn’t know that they were feeding themselves, wouldn’t they look ridiculous? Turning themselves butt up, heads submerged in frigid water seems an odd sort of behavior, no?
It got me thinking about how much energy is wasted judging other people’s actions when we don’t know the full story.
Of course, the flip side of this is how much energy is wasted worrying about what other people think. These ducks, I can assure you, did not concern themselves with my opinion of their swimming routine. I doubt they cared what the robins and sparrows thought either.
A few weeks ago, I had FOUR flies in my kitchen. So annoying. I didn’t want to kill them, so I opened the window and used a kitchen towel to try to chase them out. I laughed, thinking that I must look utterly crazy to any neighbors who might have caught a glimpse of my shoo-fly dance.
There is so much energy that we fritter away every day that can be repurposed for healing, creativity, productivity, and vitality. It’s our life-force! Shall we not try to spend it wisely? Frugally, even?
I hope these ducks can help us all remember to carry on about the day without critiquing things we don’t understand and to do our own thing without concern for appearances.
You do you, little ducks. I’ll be over here doing me.
I know it might sound weird, but one of the things I’m most grateful for is the back pain I experienced in my younger years.
Yes, that’s right. I’m expressing gratitude for pain.
Why?
It created a seismic shift in my trajectory.
I seriously doubt I would have learned about yoga, the body-mind connection, food as medicine, bodywork, or Reiki.
I definitely wouldn’t be writing this article, maybe not even writing at all. I wouldn’t have my own business helping others. I wouldn’t even have met most of my dearest friends. 💕
I cannot fathom my life without these treasures. The tools I collected to relieve pain became the backbone of my very world.
I became an empowered, embodied, mindful woman who takes responsibility for creating a healthy lifestyle that supports optimal well-being. I have come to understand that healing is multifaceted, unique, and unfolds over time.
I cannot fathom who I’d be without the journey I’ve taken. Like the Japanese tradition of repairing broken pottery with gold, I myself am improved and strengthened by the trials and tribulations I’ve experienced.
And for having experienced these trials and tribulations, I’ve learned to open to greater joys as well.
Of course, this understanding took time to develop. Hindsight is indeed 20/20. I didn’t feel this way through much of my life.
Which has me wondering, which of the seeming problems in my life/health/world today are actually blessings, only I don’t yet know it?
I know it might sound weird, but one of the things I’m most grateful for is…
I met a client this week who shared after her session that she was surprised that I didn’t painfully dig in to her muscles. (She came to me by way of a gift certificate and hadn’t seen my website where I very clearly state that my style of bodywork is NOT painful.)
It gave me the opportunity to address what I believe is a very common myth that pushing really hard on sore muscles is the way to create relief. In my experience, this is absolutely not true! At least for me and the thousands of people I’ve worked with.
What happens when the body feels pain? It tenses. How does that help? It doesn’t.
And when someone is experiencing chronic pain, their muscles are already tense and their nervous system set to hyper-protection mode. Even the hint of pain activates an instinct to fight or flee. How does that help? It doesn’t!
Instead, I find that a soothing, gentle approach allows the nervous system to calm and the muscles to melt. I meet the painful areas with a curious and compassionate attention: “Hello, I see you there, what can I do for you?” Rather than an attack: “Bad muscle, I’ll pummel you into submission!”
I don’t know where where this “no pain, no gain” mentality comes from in the massage realm, but it saddens me that people think that they need to suffer to experience relief. Or worse yet, that because they are unwilling to suffer, bodywork is not for them.
There are tons of deep tissue therapists out there who want to jab an elbow into your achy spots. If that’s your thing, you’ll have no problem finding someone to hurt you. But it isn’t me.
If you are pain averse and want your session to be enjoyable while leaving you feeling relaxed and gooey, that’s my wheelhouse.
Working with the nervous system, musculoskeletal system, endocrine system, emotional and energetic bodies is a lot more nuanced and effective than pushing hard on a sore spot.
It doesn’t mean a feather-light touch, either, just in case that’s a concern. It means meeting the tissue as it is, sinking in as far as it allows, and responding when it says stop.
It’s a technique that respects the body and its innate wisdom rather than trying to force an arbitrary solution from the outside.
If you’re in the Philly area, I’m here to be of service. If you live elsewhere, don’t be afraid to inquire with the provider before you book a session. Any respectable therapist will be able to answer your questions and confirm if they are able to offer a pain-free experience.
This seems particularly relevant now. Just because you’re sensitive doesn’t mean you have to absorb all…
Wishing all my witchy friends a very happy, hallowed Halloween! We’re supposedly welcoming a new season tonight, but it’s a whopping 80 degrees in Philly. I’m still choosing to act like it’s the beginning of winter; lighting candles, making stew, toasting pumpkin seeds and doing a releasing ceremony. I wish it were sweater weather, but that will return soon enough.
On my hike today, I could see all the way down to the creek from up high now that so many of the leaves have fallen. I strive to release as effortlessly as the trees do!
Luminous Heart Reiki & Massage 