Holiday Gift Ideas Part 4
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and well wishes for an auspicious start to the New Year! This holiday season I have invited you to look at a few ways to give yourself the gift of real self care- and how that is good for everyone else in your life too. I know that taking really good care of yourself is hard, because it's hard for me too. It’s hard because life is busy, full of up and downs, and it can seem impossible to prioritize loving yourself when the dishes need to done and the bills need to get paid. It’s hard because It can feel selfish to say no to doing more when you know that what you really need is to get some rest, and scary to speak up when it feels like you may be letting someone else down. It’s hard because balancing all that you do with; a healthy diet, a good night's sleep, and still having time to play can seem like a job for a magician. How about pursuing passions? That might feel like a luxury you just can’t afford.
It’s hard to take really good care of yourself because while you may “know“ that it’s important, has anyone ever really taught you how?
For me it was the transition into motherhood that forced me to take a long hard look at how I took care of ME. The first handful of years after my girls were born I carried around an extra 30 pounds of pregnancy weight, constantly ran on fumes, and regularly felt on the verge of a head cold or a meltdown. I learned that I had a hidden control freak, a sneaky perfectionist side, and a pretty crappy inner critic that was much easier to breeze past in my younger, pre-parenthood days. I knew when I became a mom that if I wanted to take care of my girls wholeheartedly, I had to feel whole. I learned that as much as I wanted to, I couldn’t rely on anyone else to take care of me. Not that I couldn’t ask for help or support, but ultimately my own fulfillment had to come from within.
Even though I “knew” all of this, it wasn’t until I discovered a more sacred way of living, a way that aligned my daily habits with my inner knowing that I started to gain some traction in my own happiness.
The Yogi’s have been keen to this topic for centuries and basically developed a whole philosophy and lifestyle around minimizing suffering, and maximizing health, self acceptance, and peace. Practicing yoga postures not only strengthens and stretches our muscles for healthier movement and function, but also our muscle of self awareness. It’s the strengthening of this muscle that leads to knowing ourselves better, and the ability to tune in to what you really need to be at your best. While Yoga opens the door to self knowing, it’s Yoga’s sister science Ayurveda that teaches the practical, daily actions of really caring for yourself. To come home to you and the true potential of who you were born to be requires not only the Yogic attitudes and perspectives of self love and acceptance, but the Ayurvedic actions and practices of mind, body, and spirit care. By not only loving ourselves more- but behaving like we are worthy of that love we start to experience the happiness and satisfaction we were born to manifest.
I believe it’s the melding of attitude and action with a growing self awareness that is the key to real self care, the formula for thriving, and the secret to a more sacred way of living.
Starting this January a small group of women will join me in discovering how to move their happiness and health to the top of the list. Over 3 months we will work on simple daily habits and routines from Yoga and Ayurveda to know ourselves better, care for ourselves more, and both listen and respond to the wisdom we already have within. We will use the science of habit change to lovingly shift one habit a week from going to bed earlier to creating a nurturing and dynamic morning routine. We will strengthen boundaries around eating and sleeping, prioritizing joy, and move towards our potential as human beings. All in 12 weeks.
While the habits we will be learning are simple, like eating an earlier dinner, putting them into practice (especially all on your own) is hard. The challenge is made easier in a supportive group, and with a guide that can teach you how to read and follow your own inner compass. In my experience the payoff when we make ourselves more of a priority, even when it’s hard, is huge and amazing things start to happen. Things like having more energy and inspiration, getting deeper rest and stronger immunity. Things like living life with less stress and worry and more happiness and peace.
So if you feel ready, really ready, together we can make some authentic shifts around diet, sleep, exercise and meditation. Slowly and creatively we will build solid routines for a lifetime of coming home to yourself. Could this be you? If So, fill out an application for The Daily Sacred, Habits For Everyday Evolution and we will schedule a time to chat and see if this the right fit for us both.
Remember that not only will it be so good for you, but for everyone else in your life too.
* The Daily Sacred 12 week class will be offered remotely for those near and far, or you can take it at locally at Simply Yoga Delray Beach.
Not sure if you are ready to jump into the deep end quite yet? Start by dipping your toe with a 3 hour informative and experiential workshop with me- Intro to Ayurveda : How To Live Like A Yogi.