Rest

Radical Rest

We were designed for work and for rest. Our bodies have valuable insights to tell us – if only we’d tune in and listen! So even if all you feel you can do today is take ten minutes to tune in to your body and ask “what do you need? Where are you at?” I would encourage you to do that. Who knows, it might just be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

So many people tell me that choosing rest feels selfish.

In the face of kids or partners or bosses that need us; in the face of bills or financial goals that keep pestering; in the face of housework or volunteer responsibilities or the constancy of social media, it can feel selfish to say, time-out!

Collateral Beauty

Whenever there is warfare, there is collateral damage. Innocent civilians die. Historic landmarks are obliterated. Food scarcity, people movements and disrupted social orders can all be expected.

I’ve now been sick for a year, and although there has definitely been some collateral damage – loss of income, loss of mobility, loss of opportunities – I’ve realized there’s also been some collateral beauty because of what’s happened.

So here’s some of the good things that I’ve learned in the last year:

Remember to Breathe

The power of breathing is fascinating to me. As a doula, I learned the deep power of breath to calm a woman down, to help her to focus, to help her to loosen her muscles, even to help her lessen her pain. In yoga I learned the deep power of breath to help identify pointsContinue reading “Remember to Breathe”

Rhythm, Ritual, Rest

I spent eight years working as a doula. In that time I attended fifty births, and supported mentee doulas attending dozens of other births. And while every birth was different, there was one constant that helped me get all of my mamas through their big days (or nights), and that was Rhythm, Ritual and Rest.*

But as I moved into more and more coaching work, I realized that this principal holds true in the rest of life as well.

Pacing

I’ve been told by great runners that pacing is the key to a great race. But pacing is also really hard to do! I presume that this is why so many races offer ‘pace-bunnies’ – people who commit to doing the discipline of running at exactly a 6:00 km, for example, so that all that you asContinue reading “Pacing”