Follow Your Bliss - Love Your Life

Many people find themselves dreading going to work and they are simply miserable.  Most heart attacks happen on Monday mornings!!

Many people have given up on being able to really follow their bliss and they settle for a "good job" and a "good life" that leaves them feeling empty and unfulfilled.  It doesn't have to be that way and in fact, it's the opposite of how it's supposed to be.  Life is meant to be enjoyed.  We are supposed to LOVE life!!  We are supposed to be happy!

We get so caught up in our limiting beliefs that we actually believe we don't have a choice.  We may think, "There is no way to make a living doing what we love."  That's simply not true.  I firmly believe that we can make a living doing what we love and have seen it over and over again.

If you are not waking up every morning excited to start the day, we can change that and I challenge you to take the first step towards living a life of passion and purpose.  The first step is to be abundantly clear about exactly what you want.  Don't worry about the how, simply write down what your ideal day would be like.  Think about what really makes you happy.  Decide what steps you can take today to move in the direction of your dreams.  Write them down.  Write down as many steps as you can think of and start checking them off one by one.  You can live a life you love!!

As always, let me know what you come up with and what action steps you are going to take today.

Smile

Remember to smile.  Smiling releases chemicals in your brain that actually improve your mood.  In addition to that, smiling at others makes them happy and they tend to smile back which also improves your mood.  The ripple effect of one smile can make a world of difference.

So today, make an effort to smile at everyone you see.  Let me know how you feel and how your day goes!

Laughter

Laughter is the best medicine. Sometimes we forget the importance of laughing and as a society we've become way too serious for our own good and for our health! Laughter brings joy to us and to other people who see us laughing. It's been medically proven to help people who are sick. Norman Cousins healed himself from two "terminal" illnesses by laughter alone. One of the reasons for that is because it allows oxygen to get deep into our lungs and for us to expel the old stale oxygen that's in there .  Oxygen is the most healing thing we have. They actually have oxygen tanks now that they put people in to heal because when cells have the appropriate amount of oxygen they can heal anything that's wrong with them.

Another very important thing about laughing and one of the premises for laughter yoga is that it creates peace. The goal is world peace. There been studies that show that prisoners that do laughter yoga become much more calm and much less violent. That is also been shown that people cannot be mean to other people while they're laughing and in that state of happiness.

I am looking to bring laughter yoga into schools. I know my children are often told not to laugh at school and I think that's kind of sad. It's important to laugh and it's important to find humor in all situations. When we stop being able to do that, we lose a big ability to heal physically, mentally, and spiritually.  Also, in this age of bullying, if we allow students to laugh together and create that bond, connection, and sense of community there will be a lot less meanness and bullying happening because of those friendships formed through laughter.

Laughter provides you with a great aerobic workout as well as an ab workout!  

Laughter is a universal language. 

Laughter is a sign of happiness and joy .

Spend some time laughing today!  You don't need to have a reason and nothing actually needs to be funny to start laughing.  If you pretend laugh, the positive effects are the same on your body and your health!  And most people start to laugh for real after pretend laughing because it's funny just because it's fun!

Forgiveness: The Other F-word

The funny thing about forgiveness is that we often think it's about the other person or situation. Sometimes we also don't want to do it because we know we are right and they are wrong!  The fact is, that's irrelevant to forgiving.  Right and wrong don't come into play with forgiveness. As Louise Hay says, "Forgiveness opens our hearts to self-love."  It in turn opens us up to joy and success.  

Forgiveness doesn't mean the other person was right or justified or that their behavior is acceptable and should be condoned.  Forgiveness is about letting go of the anger and the resentment which live inside you.  It's like the old saying that resentment is like swallowing poison and expecting the other person to die.  It doesn't work that way - you are the one affected and resentment and unforgiveness eat away at you every day whether you realize it or not.  They take away your joy and your life.  

The past is over and it only exists now in our minds.  Yet we let it keep tormenting us on a daily basis.  It's time to let go.  It's time to forgive everyone who has done anything to hurt you.  You can start by just affirming, "I am willing to forgive _________."  It also sometimes helps to remember that no one hurts another person if they aren't hurting inside.  While that doesn't make it right, perhaps we can have understanding and compassion.  

It's also important to forgive ourselves. Sometimes we feel bad because we yelled at someone or we didn't do something we said we were going to do.  It happens, it's part of being human.  We need to let it go.  We need to forgive ourselves and love ourselves unconditionally. When possible, it's great to apologize if we feel bad about something or to make it up to someone if we can.  But either way, you must forgive yourself.  When we feel bad about anything, we are more likely to do things that make us feel bad again.  

Your assignment today is to think of someone who you need to forgive and start the process.  Remember, this is about you, not them.  They don't necessarily even need to know you are forgiving them.  If the situation is such that you want to tell them and that will help you and not cause any issues then by all means you can.  The most important part of the exercise is to forgive.  Feel what you need to feel about person and the situation and then let it go.  It's important that we acknowledge our feelings.  Allow them because they are important but then release them so you can move on and live freely.

As always, I welcome your feedback and would love to hear about your successes and challenges with forgiveness.  It is a wonderful teacher if we are open to its lessons!

Kindness

To continue our February focus on love and heart health, I need to talk about kindness which is way too often underestimated.

A simple smile at or kind word to a stranger may brighten their day.  It may help them to remember they are connected to others.  It could save their life.  I have heard several stories about people who were planning their suicide but a random act of kindness, sometimes from a complete stranger, changed their outlook on life.  That not only affects that person but everyone in their life that their suicide would have impacted.

Every interaction we have has a ripple effect and we need to be aware of that so we can have a positive effect.  When you are going through the line at the grocery or department store (or anywhere), smile and make eye contact with the cashier.  Ask them how their day is going?  Make small talk - ask them about their life and watch the change on their face.  Notice the change in their energy.  You have just made their day with a simple act of kindness.  They will in turn treat the next person in line differently and the ripple begins.

Just a quick note about "bullies".  People who are feeling love do not hurt other people.  If someone is playing the role of bully it is because they are hurting and need to feel loved.  Your smile or kind words may have a bigger effect that you know.  It's easy to get mad (rippling in the wrong direction) but feeling love and compassion for them will make a much bigger difference.

It is really easy to show interest and caring for another person and it doesn't cost any money but you will both benefit more than you can imagine.

I challenge you to do at least one random act of kindness after you read this.  You'll be glad you did.  Report back and let me know what you did and how you feel.

15 Benefits of Almonds - Heart Healthy Nuts

I've been called a "nut" on more than one occasion but that's not what I'm talking about today.  Nuts sometimes get a bad rap.  Most nuts are actually really good for you.  Today I will focus on almonds.  I am also going to suggest having a serving on them today and every day.  Preferably raw almonds.

Benefits of Almonds:

1. Lower Cholesterol
2. Reduce risk of heart disease
3. Reduce risk of cancer
4. Provide Vitamin E, copper, magnesium, and protein
5. Help to boost your energy level
6. High in fiber
7. High in healthy fat
8. Build strong bones and teeth
9. Protect arteries from damage
10. Alkalize the body
11. Lower the rise of blood sugar and insulin after meals
12. Good "brain food" and may reduce risk of Alzheimer's
13. Helps maintain a healthy weight
14. Anti-inflammatory
15. Good during pregnancy because they contain folic acid which decreases birth defects

Try eating these for a snack - they are nice and easy to bring with you.  

February - Focus on Love and the Heart

Okay - so my focus for this month is going to be love and the heart.  I'll share some heart healthy nutrition, focus on self-love, and loving your life and everything in it.

The first and most important type of love I want to focus on is self-love.  Not in the egotistical way people often think of self-love.  In fact, when we are vein and talk about ourselves constantly, it usually means we are actually lacking in self-esteem, self-love, and self-confidence.  Because of that we often "brag" in order to get recognition.  Who doesn't want recognition?  We all do but when we don't give it to ourselves along with love, we focus on getting it from the outside and anyone who will give it to us.

So, for the month of February, I challenge myself and each one of you to make a daily commit of self-love and recognition through a mirror exercise.  I want you to look yourself in the eyes every time you pass a mirror and say, "I love you, ________, I really, really love you.  I appreciate all you do and I accept you exactly as you are right now!" (Insert your name where the blank is.)

If you are in a private location, say it aloud. If you are in a public restroom, you can absolutely say it to yourself since I may get a lot of funny looks.  :)  If you want to still say it out loud you can use that as a conversation starter and teach others the importance of loving themselves.  When we all are completely full of love, there will be no aggression toward ourselves or others.  When we recognize that we are all connected and all more similar than we are different, we will find peace and compassion.  We all have feelings and emotions, we all crave love and recognition, we all have positive and negative experiences that affect us - we are all here living life on this planet and experiencing many of the same types of things although the specifics may be different.

The second part of the challenge is before bed go to the mirror and tell yourself aloud how much you appreciate all the things you did well during that day. It could be anything.  If you are having a particularly bad day, it may simply be that you got yourself out of bed and went to work.  Nothing is too small to acknowledge.  If you made a healthy selection of food or drink, if you acknowledged someone else and made them feel good.  If you got your kids to school on time.  It doesn't matter what it is - only focus on the good.  And finish up by saying, "I love you, ___________, and I really appreciate you.  I forgive you for all the things you feel need forgiving.  I forgive you for not giving yourself enough credit.  I forgive everyone who doesn't recognize what you do.  I love you!!  You are amazing.  I really, really love you!!"

Try this for the month - please tell me how you feel.  Do you notice any differences?  You may even want to journal about this so you see the difference.  Can you look yourself in the eyes when you say these loving words to yourself? Do you want to cry?  Do you notice a shift?  Please do share.  This can be transformational if you commit to it.

This month know that you are loved.  And focus on feeling the love from others put most importantly from yourself.  I love you!!  Namaste!!