Change and Resistance
CHANGE—are YOU good with it??
Do YOU resist change?
I’m seeing myself having some issues with it.
I thought I was good with change. After all—I love the excitement of adventure, which usually means that there’s a big event being planned that is bringing a smile to my face. Like a zipline or a swim with the dolphins!
But I also know that along the way, it’s not unusual I will find myself in a place of trepidation because of the “not knowing if it’s all going to be okay.”
Am I okay with change?
Then for the change of the seasons. A new love-hate relationship.
I’ve always said that I love that change. Glorious spring brings garden preparation, the phenomenal bright colors of the flowers in bloom, and the vibrant greens. Nothing much to dislike about that change, especially when I know that the garden will consistently show the benefits.
Autumn, with its time of plentiful harvest, beautiful fall colors, and cooler air, usually brings a smile to my face.
But this year I’ve been on pins and needles—the heat, dryness, and wind of the last few months have increased the uncertainties and worries over the fire season.
And we have all been wishing for rain—saying, “Just bring us some moisture!”
Well, Mother Nature listened! And we got the rain—close to ten inches of it over the last few days.
And now we’re asking for the rain to please slow down. Well, that makes sense. Sometimes we can get too much of a good thing and we feel inclined to ask for a change. Understandably so.
Change is “hard” because something new is happening
Are we ever totally okay with that thing called change?
I think it depends on what is bringing up the desire and request for the change.
Mostly—we as humans resist change, even when it means getting something we want in life. Why is that??
Resistance often comes from being in fear of something new.
Our bodies are wired to be afraid of something new, like when I was excited about fulfilling the dream of swimming with the dolphins. THAT dream was doing its best to override my old, deep fear of deep water. How on earth could that dream and that fear even live together?
The new and the fear of experiencing something unknown
Fear is an emotion that we have held dear to our hearts since childhood when we learned what we needed to do to have a sense of safety and security. That said, our brains interpret we need to hold onto the old, learned ways, and that anything new could be something that could be unsafe. (Even though the new could be an unknown safety measure we haven’t yet learned).
As humans, we run away from things that are new, even if they’re something we want or need. Here’s the clincher. If we don’t know this, we’re bound to repeat saying we want something, yet actively avoiding it repeatedly.
This is the reason we often hear (and feel) that change is hard
And that’s why it’s so darn easy to get knocked off track.
To attract what we want in our lives, we need to give up old habits and begin new ones. Sometimes we even need to change our environment to move into a whole new way of being.
Now THAT can be super hard to do! So—to open yourself up to limitless possibilities, prepare as if you are going to do something big—like swimming with the dolphins, taking a trip to a dream destination, stepping into a new relationship, creating a program for an internationally recognized humanitarian organization. Maybe you’re contemplating relocating your home. Whatever you’re thinking of, how on earth do you prepare “as if”?
Balance your body’s energy, change the environment, and allow change
Help the environment of your body change and you will more easily allow change to happen. Why? Because you will more easily attract what you want and who you want to be!
Your body is your house – it IS an environment that you live within. Balance it, bring on the harmony, and you will create more focus, clarity, and vitality that draws to you all you desire.
The following are a few energy tips to make sure your body is welcoming and allowing change:
- Do the Daily Clean Your House Flow
- Hug yourself—it shows your body that you’re all about taking care of it
- With one hand, hold your fingers at the base of your skull
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- With the other hand, hold your fingers on the outside of the wrist (little finger side)
- This shows your body how to feel calm, no matter your thoughts or emotions
- Hold the outside of your knees—connect with energy balance points that are all about re-patterning, reprogramming, and allowing YOU to bring on the changes you want.
So, what IS next for you?
Are you seeing change happening in your life?
Why change is happening, whether you’re planning for it, or whether you’re feeling ready for it—you can help yourself and your body feel and be more prepared.
Let’s help you and your body discover how to process ALL of it—the preparation, the execution, and the integration.
And many of your old patterns and beliefs will let go and you will step into a whole new way of being! See your habits change! And see you and your body let go of “stuckedness” and into a state of balance and ease.
How to Reduce Stress and Have Your Joy
Did you know that stress can steal your joy? Let’s change that picture!!
Joy is such a glorious experience. It’s a feeling that can bring you to a place of gratitude for what you have and allow you to experience a sense of wonder and delight in the possibilities.
I’m all about joy, especially during the holidays. The spirit of the season and the colors, lights, and sparkle make me smile. I love holiday magic!
Stress takes away the magic
Then here comes stress, that thing that lives on the other side of the proverbial coin. And, right now, the stress level is exceptionally high because of the holidays, the pandemic, travel plans affected, civil unrest, decision fatigue, interrupted sleep patterns, loss of vitality, too much computer time, the list goes on and on.
Stress can take away your juice, affect the quality of your life, and cause you to lose your appreciation of life. In that realm, how on earth can we have great expectations and be positive?? So, it’s no wonder that stress can affect your ability to communicate your feelings and thus influence your relationships. If it’s tough to be positive, it will show up in how you are with anyone, whether in person or virtual, on Zoom, or on the phone.
So, maybe that’s why it can be so tricky during the holidays to be with your loved ones, especially if you’re amid a stressful period. Sad to say, most of us are experiencing high levels of stress. Much of that is because we’re in a “not knowing state of being.” Humans want to know and need to know what’s around the corner. Most of us don’t want to admit that we don’t know! And yet we need to express ourselves.
You can choose to live a reactive or a proactive life
Are you in a place of wanting and maybe even needing to express some of your hidden emotions?? You are not alone!! Did you know that when you communicate your feelings, you will more easily let go of any stress you’re carrying? And that you can even help prevent burnout??
The trick is to recognize you’re feeling something and then acknowledge that you reacted to whatever was going on, whether it was a physical, mental, or emotional reaction. THAT is an awareness that allows you to be on a path of changing how you’re feeling. And then the stress can deconstruct and transform and help you strip away what doesn’t matter.
Changing the patterns of stress
- Look at what is “wrong,” what is stressful, and what you want to change. You’re capable of making it through these times. Look at what you’ve already been through in all parts of your life, what you changed to make it to where you are, and then KNOW that you can do it again.
- Change up negative self-talk. Once you’ve noticed that you’re doing it, you’ll recognize that you’re uncomfortable with it. THAT is the moment you can address the talk and change it up.
- When you’re in that better place of positive self-talk, those around you will notice it too. You will see evidence that you can more easily express your feelings and not hold things in. So, speak and be true to yourself! Be positive, and it will be easier to have gratitude live within you. And you’ll smile more often!
- Recognize that change is just that. And if you’re questioning your ability to change old ways, acknowledge that “you just don’t know how to do the “new thing” yet. You just don’t know yet how to do it differently from how you’ve done it before!! In that moment of realization, you are on the road to change.
- Get support. We rarely recognize how important it is to bring another voice into the picture. Ask for “a listening ear.” Maybe it’s a friend or a colleague who will be your sounding board as you unload. That process lets go of the mind chatter so you can get on the other side of “the voices inside.”
- Get some movement happening. Exercise, walk, garden, whatever you do will trigger a positive feeling, feel emotionally stronger, and lower stress.
- Create a daily practice that is super simple to accomplish. When it becomes a routine that you and your body discover is supportive and healing, you will FEEL stronger, healthier, more vital, and more prepared for whatever comes along.
Discover that rituals help your day begin with optimism and continue with joy
Have hope and faith that the changes you want in your body and life can happen! Embrace the possibility and relax with the process.
Balance emotions and habits, and you will discover how easy it is to be positive, be joyful, be proactive, and take control of your own well-being.
YOU are worth it!
Are you ready for a daily practice that is easy to accomplish??
- Do the Daily Clean Your House Flow, a nine-step self-help acupressure flow that is super easy to do and takes less than ten minutes to complete. As a nine-year-old so succinctly told me, “It is the Daily Flow, so of course I do it every day! And I do it more than that!”
- Keep your breath open. Feel the expansiveness of the inhale and the letting go during the exhale. Go to my website, click on the purple button “Learn the Daily Flow,” and you’ll get some energy tips that will expand your breath. Plan on doing them off and on throughout the day. There is no such thing as too much self-help!!
- Give yourself lots of love! The first step of the Daily Flow is giving yourself a hug. It opens up breath, shows your body you are taking care of it, and it connects with heart health.
- Throughout the day, manage your feelings so stress doesn’t have room to hang out.
A super simple energy movement that allows you to express yourself.
Right hand—cup sternum directly below the collarbone
Left hand—hold your fingers on your tummy
By the way, I’m taking singing lessons, and I cup my sternum and hold my tummy a lot! It opens up my breath, softens my throat and vocal cords, drops my jaw, opens up my face muscles, and projects my voice. If I may say so myself—it’s astonishing how far I have come with my singing! Mostly when I had lost my singing voice after surgery.
Read more about letting go of negativity and stress:
https://www.verywellmind.com/how-to-let-go-of-negativity-and-stress-3145006
And see what Psychology Today says about stress and joy:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/anxiety-zen/201804/springing-more-joy-and-less-stress-30-day-guide
Hope, Faith & Energy
Hope, Faith & Energy
Are you feeling at odds, unhappy, maybe lonely? Are you feeling overwhelmed and unsure of what you should do next to clear the to-do list? Perhaps you’re also taking care of others, and you have their feelings and needs to look after, too.
If you have all of that going on and even more “stuff,” you might experience a sense of hopelessness, feeling that it’s never going to change. And, with all of that, you’re most likely experiencing some fatigue. Dealing with it is just too much!
Look at everything that is going on in this crazy world. COVID-19, social distancing, massive civil unrest, fires or hurricanes or flooding depending on where you live, evacuations, destruction, the election. Okay. The list is already too long, especially since each one of those can create stress and anxiety and the feeling that “it’s just too much.” No wonder we hear the phrase “pandemic fatigue.”
Kids are Feeling Stressed Out
What’s sad is that children are experiencing the same stress, overwhelm, not knowing what’s coming next, frustration, and sadness. They feel exhausted by social distancing, not being with their friends, and feeling hemmed in.
How do we cope and get on the other side of it? It’s super important to help our bodies get to that place. Otherwise, our bodies will think they are in constant trauma.
Trauma Adds Stress
Trauma and the effects of trauma bring us to a place of being on edge, wary, confused, even holding our breath. Energetically, trauma causes the energy pathways to get blocked and stuck. Energy needs to move, and it needs to change. Otherwise, our bodies will manifest “projects” that can cause unhealthiness and chronic fatigue. (Instead of problems, let’s use the word projects. They’re more fun to work with, and they have a beginning and an end).
Tips for Reducing the Effects of Stress
I have some easy-to-do ideas on how to get on the other side of it all.
Number One
We can help our bodies get out of confusion and create calm. You can do easy self-help acupressure to let go of fatigue and develop physical, mental, and emotional balance. It will help you sleep easily, feel healthy, be happy and joyful, have clarity and focus, increase self-esteem, and feel optimistic about tomorrow and beyond. That’s where hope and faith come into the picture! (There’s a link at the end of the article to get you to easy self-help energy tips).
Number Two
I think we need to take Oprah’s advice that I read in her recent Inspiration Newsletter. We need to embrace hygge, the Danish art of coziness. Danes rank as the happiest people in the world, even today. How do they get to that place?
Photo by Daria Rem from Pexels
What the Danes Do to Feel Happier
The Danish make sure that several essential elements are part of their daily lives, including relaxed thoughtfulness, meditation, and time spent with others. And, yes, we can spend time with others without actual physical contact. Now more than ever, we need to create time with others that create an atmosphere that is warm, relaxed, friendly, down-to-earth, close, comfortable, snug, and welcoming. It is like a friendly hug—but without the physical contact. In this situation, you can be yourself and relax completely. Therefore, the art of hygge is also the art of expanding your comfort zone to include other people.
So, I guess we have to do it with social distancing and maybe even over Zoom. No matter what, create the time for cozy togetherness! Our bodies, hearts, and souls hunger for it!
Another significant element the Danes bring into their lives is “living lights.” They make use of candles to bring light and create sunny smiles.
Maybe this year, we need to make sure we put up those holiday lights for the color and the sparkling lights that bring those big smiles. As many of you know, I love Christmas. What I also know is that I need those lights as the days get shorter and shorter. And, even though very few people will see my Christmas extravaganza, it just might be the year it all gets displayed.
Read more about Embracing Hygge:
http://www.oprah.com/health_wellness/how-to-embrace-hygge#ixzz6cNxufzLL
Hope and Change
Another piece we need to be aware of—change wants to happen, and it needs to happen. The body you walk around in is in constant flux because it’s energy. A body in energetic balance will quickly experience the change, and it will be a positive shift. The trick is to be creative in appreciating ourselves and find enjoyment within the shift. Maybe the difference is merely relishing an accomplishment.
Consider using this simple worksheet to help you see the changes that you can implement. It uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which uses your mind to notice the good stuff. It focuses on behavioral changes in your daily life, for instance, tracking your emotions according to your activities. So, it’s learning how to notice when your body is giving you a message.
If you would like to learn more about behavioral-based therapy, visit the Therapist Aid website.
Your Key to Hope, Faith & Energy
To help your body thoroughly experience change and get messages, go to my website and click on the purple button, “Learn the Daily Flow.” You will receive self-help acupressure suggestions that will help your body experience balance and harmony. Included is the Daily Clean Your House Flow® and energy tips to expand the breath, let go of frustration, achieve focus, boost motivation, and increase productivity. Now, those are some changes your body will appreciate! And you are fully experiencing hope, faith, and energy. Enjoy the movement and the difference!
Stay Fit and Healthy
Stay fit and healthy while you are at home. Searching for an outstanding fitness class? Here are my recommendations:
BikerBarre Fit
BikerBarre Fit is located in Santa Rosa and offers virtual classes accessible anywhere you live. It is your one-stop-shop for strength, flexibility, and fun fitness. Someday soon, I’ll be back there in-person. Until that happens, I love their live stream classes. Check it out! And my daughter Nicole is an instructor.
Blue Door Yoga
Blue Door Yoga in Penngrove is an impressive yoga studio. The studio focuses on health, flexibility, and spirit and specializes in creating safe classes for all levels of yogis. They are offering a variety of online yoga classes. Be sure to check them out no matter where you live! My daughter, Nicole, is likewise an instructor at Blue Door!
Enjoying Mother Nature
Being in the outdoors can feed your soul. Whether you wander, hike, bike, ride horseback, garden, stroll in the sand at the beach, climb a mountain, or sit and listen to the birds singing, allow yourself time to soak up the environment. It’s one of the best ways to discover breath, be in joy, and relax. Mother Nature will assist you to have a perfect meditation.
Energy Tips for Getting & Staying Calm
Breath is the key! When we have full expansive inhales, our breath feeds us. And those inhales allow us to have full purging exhales.
So much of what has been going on the last four-plus months can affect our breathing. Stress causes us to hold our breath, to wait with bated breath, expecting the next shoe to drop. When our bodies are dealing with stress, anxiety, frustration, sadness, or fear your nervous systems can be on edge and fired up. Heightened arousal = burnout, irritability, fatigue.
Super easy energy tips for ease and calm:
- Hold fingertips on opposite upper arms and feel your breath (first step in the Daily Flow)
- Hold right fingers on right base of skull and left fingers on outside of right wrist
- Hold left fingers on left base of skull and right fingers on outside of left wrist
- Cup right hand at sternum below collarbone and hold left fingers on tummy.
- Hold right fingers on outside of right knee and left fingers on outside of left knee
Check out my Deborah Myers Wellness Facebook Page for videos of some energy tips while I give you a tour of my garden.
See the animated video of the Daily Clean Your House Flow, an Easy Self-Help Acupressure Flow that both kids and adults love and practice to create a foundation for health and wellbeing. Go to DeborahMyersWellness.com/covid19. It’s available to watch and use at no charge.
Creation from your garden’s bounty or from the farmer’s market
Grilled Summer Vegetables
You’ll need a good-sized grill pan coated with a bit of olive oil.
Coat chunks of onions, zucchini, green beans, garlic, peppers, and whatever else you have with oil. (I enjoy using large slices so everything stays firm).
Season with salt, pepper, and any seasoning that complements the other dishes you’re serving. Then place them into the hot grill pan.
In a separate pan, have a single layer of mushrooms and dry grill (they’ll stay firm and are easy to mix with other veggies).
When veggies have finished cooking and still firm, dump into a large bowl, incorporate sizable chunks of fresh tomatoes and basil. I also add basil salt that I made from last year’s crop.
Stay fit and healthy
It is easy to do. Mind, body, spirit in harmony.
Finding Joy and Ease Amid Our Topsy-Turvy World
Topsy Turvy
It is not unusual to discover new crisis announcements every day during these troubled times. Dire proclamations provoke deep unease and may put you in a state of hyper-vigilance. And repeated disturbing news may create a sense of anxiety that takes your breath away. What happens if you burden yourself with anxiousness and dread? The trick is to acknowledge the sentiments that come up for you and help your body let go of harmful reactions.
I want to give you some of my favorite self-help acupressure tips to do that!
These easy-to-do acupressure movements will:
- expand breath
- let go of anxiety
- reduce stress reactions
- help you sleep even with so much on your mind
- and boost your immune system.
Energetic Balance
Your body prefers to be in energetic balance. You need to help your body experience balance and harmony. You are training your body what it feels like to be in balance. When you do, your physical, mental, and emotional bodies will take better care of you.
Help Your Body
A daily practice of easy self-care acupressure helps your body. A balanced immune system can fend off anxiety and stress despite what is happening in the world.
Hold your fingertips on the following acupressure points with a light and gentle touch for several good breaths:
- Open up your breath. Give yourself a hug by holding your fingertips anywhere on your elbows or upper arms. You’re holding energy points that connect with lung and diaphragm breath. This will expand your breath. You will experience a full inhale followed by a purging exhale.
- Bring on better sleep! Hold your fingertips on the base of your skull and you will connect with a “sleep center.” Follow with jumper cables—cup and hold each thumb and finger with a light touch.
- Boost your immune system and it will better be able to take care of you!
- Right hand—cup right shoulder with fingertips where neck and shoulder come together.
- Left hand—hold fingers at left chest immediately below the collarbone.
- Switch hands.
Prepare your body for difficult times
Make the Daily Clean Your Houseflow your go-to daily practice for balancing your energy. A daily practice makes your system more receptive to nurturing. Many of my clients start and end every day doing the Daily Clean Your House Flow—a 9-step self-help acupressure flow that provides your body with a firm foundation. The flow supports all the organs and systems of the body. You are preparing your systems for performing at optimum levels—bringing stability, strength and vitality to your entire body.
You can find the Daily Clean Your House Flow on my website, deborahmyerswellness.com. Click on the purple button “Learn the Daily Flow” and you’ll get a PDF of the 9 steps, and more energy tips.
I encourage you to view the animated video of the Daily Clean Your House Flow. I created it for kids, and adults love it as much as any kid. Watch it in its entirety on my website at deborahmyerswellness.com/covid19at no charge. I want anyone who is searching for a way to let go of stress and anxiety to enjoy free access during this distressing, unnerving time. Do your body a favor and check out the video. You’ll see why kids, parents, and teachers love this 6-½ minute video for helping to create a more carefree and happier body.
Spending time every day taking care of YOU assists your body to get to that place of balance and harmony. Your body will know you are taking care of it. A daily practice might include self-help acupressure, meditation, exercise, walking, enjoying Mother Nature, gardening, singing, dancing, resting when you need to, reading, writing. The list of what could be part of your daily practice is up to you. Choose the activities that help your body feel better and more vital, including what brings a smile to your face.
My desire for you is to experience joy and ease!
The Lights and Color of the Holidays
The holidays are here in all of their glory!
How are YOU doing with this time of the year? Do you enjoy the season with all that is going on? Do you need an extra boost to make it through the day? Read on! I have some energy tips for you! AND this will work for ALL ages, young and old!
Mrs. Claus
I love Christmas — the energy and joy of the season bring a smile to my face. Walk into my house, and you see a tree laden with hundreds of lights and ornaments. Stockings on the mantle. Hundreds of Santas and happy elves populate my house. There’s a reason that a four-year-old was walking into my home with his mother for his session, and he looked at the tree and then at me and said, “Are you Mrs. Santa Claus, too?”
Deck the Halls with Lights and Love
I love the color and the lights just as much as I do the Christmas theme. There’s something about those lights that are so important this time of the year when the days are short, and there is more darkness than light in our twenty-four-hour days.
Our Bodies Crave Light during this winter-time holiday season
Our bodies are so hungry for more exposure to light and vitality. Here are several super easy ways to give you and your body that extra boost. And when you share this with the kids in your life, they will remind YOU what to do!
5 Steps to Give Yourself an Energy Boost
- To bring extra breath — hug yourself, gently touching the upper arms
- Create alignment, posture correction, and vitality — sit on your hands (hold your sit bones)
- Enjoy breath, ease, and calm —
Right hand — cup your sternum directly below your collarbone
Left hand — hold your fingers on your tummy below your navel. - To manage feelings — Jumper Cable — gently cup each thumb and finger and balance ALL of your emotions. Get rid of worry, fear, anger, sadness, and trying too hard.
- To let go of confusion and bring in clarity
Right hand — cup base of skull
Left hand — cup forehead
Best Wishes
So, with that, I give you my joy of Christmas and lights and color! And I wish for you and yours a magnificent holiday season and a super new year of fulfilled dreams and lots of magical moments that surprise you daily!
All my best to you,
Deborah
Announcing the Deborah Myers Wellness Website
Announcing the Deborah Myers Wellness Website
It happened! My new website is live! I’m not saying it’s done, because I discovered along the way that I had to let go of that expectation. Anything we create is always in a state of change. Even when we think we finished a project, we discover something needs changing. And, my goodness, I know that about my garden! I can’t even count the number of times over the last 18 years that I’ve moved plants to different locations because they needed more sun, less sun, more elbow room, a different set of companion plants. Sometimes I discovered I needed to let a plant go because it didn’t work. So, if I knew that, I wonder why I thought a website update would go to a completed state without changes and side trips! Here is my ah-ah for this experience! Just like my garden, projects like a website, a training program or a new product are never in a completed state because they are always being added to and changed up, which allows them to evolve into many bigger possibilities.
It Takes a Team
Thank goodness for my amazing team who worked with me to bring my ideas for the website and the possibilities to fruition. Catch the garden connection? I couldn’t have done it without Heidi, who was my website guru at Planeteria, my longtime website company. I sure couldn’t manage all the intricacies of the content without Ruth Schwartz who has an eagle eye and can comb through minutia with a fine-toothed comb. She’s the reason there will be the parts and pieces that still get found and changed up. Judy Baker was there to make sure we had the right product images and banners. And Victoria Lasin was often my final eye for editing the content.
Along the way, there were critical deadlines, as you can well imagine. I’ve always known that I don’t do well with deadlines when I’m the one who sets them. But when someone else gives me one, I can really get into a state of angst. Well, getting things done isn’t an easy process when we get into that place. I so wish I could remember that each time I set a deadline!
Stay in Flow
I’ve decided that instead of expecting myself to remember how I can be with deadlines, I am choosing to find the flow. Here’s what I’ve realized. And, I hope you can get help from my realization when you decide to create a big project.
Order from Chaos Tip Sheet
- Create a master list of all your projects and split big projects into smaller manageable ones
- Develop a storyboard to remind you of what you want to see at the end of the journey
- Have hope of the completion date and allow yourself room for change
- Put timelines to the items listed in the smaller lists (keep lists and projects manageable with 10 or fewer items)
- Be realistic that everything on the list (both the actual to-do steps and the expected completion dates) will change when the prior items get shifted
- Change the storyboard often. It’s okay!
- Don’t sweat the small stuff
- Don’t sweat the timing
- Celebrate the completions along the way
- Give yourself permission to take a break from the project; both you and the project may benefit from some respite
- Don’t sweat the small stuff and the timing
- And maybe the most important item of all is to be kind to yourself. We are more often than not the hardest on ourselves
Notice how many times I said, “don’t sweat the small stuff and the timing?”
Visit the new website
Please tell your friends to visit my new website. It combines the Health at Your Fingertips and the Daily Clean Your House Flow sites.
To see what we created: go to deborahmyerswellness.com
I am a proud Mama
The new website process felt as if I was giving birth, and it took a full nine months. Thank goodness for my team who helped me with the gestation and the actual birthing.
Stay on the Right Path
Clarity and focus kept me on the path. There is one key energy hold I kept reminding myself to do.
- Right hand: cup forehead with fingers on the left side
Left hand: cup base of skull with fingers on the right side of occiput - Switch hands
To release any tension that has built up and to prevent tension and stress, follow these steps:
- Right hand: cup sternum below the clavicle
Left hand: hold fingers in a vertical pattern on the tummy below the navel - Right hand: cup left shoulder with fingers near neck
Left hand: hold left sit bone - Switch hands to release right side
I wish you an easy journey with your project, whatever it might be!
Changing Patterns
I love being around young children. One reason is that I’ve never grown up, and I love to play! Could also be because they can so quickly go from one project to another and just have fun! They can change patterns with ease.
Another reason is that I love how they so easily step into whatever they notice is making a positive difference in their lives and make sure they keep on doing it. I see that in every family and every classroom that starts using the Daily Clean Your House Flow™.
Ask young folks what they’re noticing different in their lives and you’ll get answers!
When I was in Minnesota visiting family, I showed my two great nieces the Daily Clean Your House Flow animated video. The 7-year-old was thrilled! Presley loved the video itself and with a great big smile said, “Aunt Deb, I’m feeling this buzzy happening.” Morgan, the 9-year-old was introduced to self-help acupressure through her mom, and grandma saw that it was a fun way to do her energy work. And she loved the book I’ve written.
The next day, Morgan shared what she had learned with her teacher, and he invited her to teach her classmates. They sat around in a circle, and she walked them through the Daily Flow. The next day the same scenario took place. That happened to be the day of standardized testing. The teacher noticed something different in the room. His students were calm, focused and not in angst over the test. And they did better than ever before.
Show and Tell
Mr. Weiss asked Morgan whether Aunt Deb would be able to come to the classroom, show the video and teach them about self-care. Well, of course, I’m going to show up for that and luckily there was one more day before I had to leave.
Mr. Weiss and I had a great conversation before the students filed into the classroom. He said that it was noticeable how centered the kids were for the test the day before. And how the Daily Flow had helped with calming and breathing.
Meet the Author
The 4th graders were thrilled that a “real author” was in their classroom, and they had lots of questions about writing a book. They, of course, were all over the animated video. I had to tell them I wasn’t the illustrator! But we spent time talking about how the video came about. And they loved how much fun it was to do the Daily Flow to the video.
And then came the questions about acupressure and what they can do for themselves. Keep in mind that this group of kids were never previously introduced to acupressure or energy balancing. They did not know about acupuncture so I couldn’t make a comparison. So I had lots of fun teaching and sharing. I loved that the kids realized that THEY can make changes happen. Changing patterns is easy when you know how. Questions revolved around aches and pain, studying and tests, doing better in sports and activities.
In the end, I said, “So you’ve now done the Daily Clean Your House Flow three days in a row. I’m getting that many of you plan to continue doing the Daily Flow. Right??? So what change have you seen that makes you WANT to do the Daily Clean Your House Flow?”
What Kids Say
Their responses brought smiles to my face:
- One girl said, “I slept last night. That is different.”
- Another said, “My brother and I are getting along. Now that’s crazy.”
- And a young man said, “I don’t like tests, and I never do good. Yesterday I did good on the test.”
Now, really? Nine-year-olds not sleeping? Nine-year-olds stressed over studying and tests? Kids recognizing that a relationship had changed in three days? That had to be a significant shift for it to be aware of it.
Changing Patterns
I’m excited that kids are seeing changes happening when they do their Daily Clean Your House Flow! Check out the website to read more comments from the children, their teachers, and their parents. Go to www.dailycleanyourhouseflow.com to see the first 90 seconds of the animated video and see how easy it is for both kids and adults to learn and then want to do their daily energy work!
Practicing to be Santa!
Practicing to be Santa!
The act of giving is a big one for children to discover. It truly can become an art — but to get to that point we have to do a lot of practicing. It’s like practicing to be Santa!
Artful Giving
When you were a child do you remember ever having that moment when you were supposed to give someone else a gift that you really wanted to keep for yourself? That was a big one — to go through that experience and then to realize that once we got over the trauma and drama, we really could feel good about it. It was the memory of the “feeling good” that created the space for more of the same to occur. And from there, the pattern of artful giving was shaped.
Experiencing Joy in our Bodies
The journey to feeling good and experiencing joy is one that is super important. All parts of our bodies (physical, mental, and emotional) want to be happy and be in a place of energetic balance and harmony. A body that is in balance doesn’t have to work so hard to not have unhappiness or stress or anxiety. It just more easily moves to that place — without effort!
Once the pattern for “feeling good” is part of our make-up, the body will find ways to be there — including that place of “giving just because it feels good.” And, let’s face it — this is the time of year to feel really good about giving because it’s such a big part of the holiday season.
To help your children more easily discover that “I want to give” mode and be like Santa, try these energy tips:
- Gently cup middle fingers to help let go of frustration. (Helps let go of frustration, including any that is about giving when “I don’t want to”).
- Hold upper arms by folding arms across the chest. (Helps bring in breath which will let go of any anxiety. Anxiety can come from being uncomfortable with what is happening which will cause breath holding).
- Hold right fingers at area of heart and hold left fingers at base of ribcage. (Helps connect feelings of happiness and love with breath).
- Hold right fingers on left cheek and hold left fingers below left collarbone. (Helps with ability to fully express feelings, thoughts, words).
Doing the Daily Clean Your House Flow on a daily basis can go a long way to helping your children be happy and healthy. That will create a firm foundation. The extra energy tips create even more “letting go and finding balance.”
Enjoy the season! And have fun giving and being Santa!
Getting Centered and Feeling Better
Have you ever noticed that when you feel “out-of-sorts” you might just need to take a break from what you’re doing? Sometimes if you switch up where you are, you can quickly change your perspective too. For me, I often just need to walk outside and literally smell the roses. Yes, I’m “smelling the different air” and in reality I’m putting myself in a different environment that allows my brain and my senses to make different connections and create a new way of being in that instant. And when I’m really in a stuck place, getting dirty in the garden is more often than not the perfect solution for me!
Kids have the very same need as we do to make a quick shift from blah to better. Emotions and feelings and that sensation of “I don’t know why I feel this way, but I do” can often be so all-encompassing that they can literally take over and cause a “no rational thought can even happen in this space.” When that happens to a child, you can make a big difference by helping them create new habits and patterns.
When you notice that your child and/or student is really having a rough time, create a diversion which can help them get unstuck and experience a different way of being. Be supportive of what your child is experiencing and validate what is being felt. You just might help create the moment when they realize they can be in control of their own energy and the way they feel — a true moment of empowerment.
Hit the Reset Button
Some possible diversions that can trigger a reset are:
- Come up with a favorite outside activity, like “want to go ride your bike?”
- Or “Let’s go for walk. I could really use a break.”
- “Will you help me_______?” (choose something you know your child loves to do)
- And one of my absolute favorite suggestions is to do the Daily Clean Your House Flow or at the very least the Jumper Cables, which is the last step of the Daily Flow.
When we bring a daily practice of energy balancing into our lives, the body “knows what it feels like.” It will more easily go to that place of being in balance and being centered as soon as you start doing some of the energy poses.
Case in point – I was having a rough day last weekend. Old feelings of loss came up when I was spending time with an old friend who knew my husband and me when we were in college. I could tell that I had “lost my center” so I went down to the garden and spent some quiet time doing some energy work. Within a few minutes, I could feel my breath expand and I could feel myself becoming okay with where I am now. I got back in touch with “being in the moment.”
It doesn’t matter how old we are or what we’ve experienced, sometimes we just need to change up the pattern and give ourselves a reset.
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