Toward Wellness

Recovery from a significant health event using holistic health practices motivated me to redefine me journey toward wellness. 

I was raised in the woods.

Quite literally, my childhood home was located in the middle of 180 acres of pasture and woodland. As a child, I spent endless hours outdoors - running barefoot through the woods, caring for the plants and animals that resided near our home. The closest neighbor was miles away. In lieu, Mother Nature became my full-time playmate, fostering my deep respect for the natural world.

Nursing school was a natural fit.

My first nursing job was in Oncology/Hospice. During this time. I was introduced to Healing Touch. A colleague and I began partnering when patients came in to receive chemotherapy. I was fascinated by her ability to sense the sensations experienced by patients – the heaviness, stinging, burning that occurred during infusion. I returned to the University of Minnesota and completed my Master of Science, with a heavy focus on complementary therapies.

A health event inspired me to return to energy-based healing.

What started as a need to heal my body, has become my passion! Eden Energy Medicine (EEM) combines techniques from multiple modalities, including acupuncture, yoga, kinesiology and qi gong. Using EEM, balance and harmony can be non-invasively restored to the body and mind. And, EEM readily complements both western medicine and other healing modalities.

Balancing Yin & Yang

In every moment, of every day, life is comprised of movement and stillness. 

My father was the 13th child in a farm family, who was taught early on to “earn his keep”. As his daughter, I too was raised with a strong work ethic. And of course, current culture is one in which “laziness” is frowned upon and “productivity” rewarded. 

I’ve always pushed myself hard – first managing work alongside school/college/grad school; then jumping into a demanding career in healthcare leadership. When it came to generating results, I was convinced if I just “worked hard enough” I would achieve the outcomes I desired. Sometimes this strategy worked; other times it didn’t. Regardless, this “strong work ethic” often resulted in me feeling overextended, depleted and emotionally exhausted. 

Ill health became my wake-up call. As I worked to regain my health, I began to realize how out of balance my energies were – I was trapped in perpetual motion! Always on the go, juggling kids, career and home and being far too heavily influenced by the Yang (doing) realm. I had lost sight of the value and balancing effect of Yin (being/still) energies – no longer taking time for self-care, journaling or even daydreaming! 

Regardless of gender, all beings have two defined energies - Yin (often associated with feminine) and Yang (often associated with masculine). In the current “just do it” culture, where results are so highly valued, many men AND women are out of balance, over-extending Yang energy. 

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For optimal wellness – physical, emotional & spiritual – maintaining balance between masculine and feminine energies is essential!

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Balancing Yin and Yang energies applies directly to optimal wellness and also extends to our way of being in this world. I could never have launched The Centre of Wellness without tapping into both energies. First, engaging Yin energy – receptivity and intuition – to realize my true purpose, as well as process-oriented, relational strategies to ensure my business model was optimally aligned. Second, tapping Yang strengths, I was able to act with the take charge, fire in the belly energy needed to execute my work plan and overcome any real or perceived barriers. 

This experience has been potent! As a nurse, colleagues and I often practiced by the motto – learn it, do it, teach it. By integrating energy balancing into both my self-care and business model, I am better able to appreciate the real power of the Yin/Yang Model comes when we learn how – and when – to simultaneously call forth these powerful energies. I’ve learned it — I’ve practiced it — and now it’s time that I teach it!

Yin/Yang Attributes:

Yin: Feminine, being, intuitive, inward facing, receptive, process-oriented, collaborative.. 

Yang: Masculine, doing, outward facing, goal-oriented, determined, commanding, assertive

As we move deeper into Autumn then Winter (both Yin seasons) and simultaneously charge into the busy holiday season, I encourage you to assess your energetic balance. Are you giving to your SELF as much as you are giving to others? Are you finding time to play, experience joy, rest in quietude (Yin actions)? Do you know what stressors/triggers push your energies out of balance? Be curious! And, as always, be compassionate toward your process and self. 

Reconnect with Breath

What if your life experience as a girl was one that provided an absolute sense of safety, respect, value? What if we were born into a culture where autonomy was encouraged; where a girl was taught to trust and honor her blossoming body and the unique stages of womanhood; where a relationship with the Divine Feminine was nurtured and there was balance between the Divine Feminine and the Divine Masculine?

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Imagine the freedom and ease you would feel in all parts of your womanly body, the extraordinary courage you would have to speak your mind and the divine intelligence to follow your soul purpose!

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If this statement has you thinking ‘imaging this scenario is futile in our current social/political climate!’ – think again! From a simple biophysical standpoint, guided imagery has been widely investigated for its impact on emotions and biochemistry. Research supports use of guided imagery to not only increase physical performance, but also to decrease symptoms related to stress and anxiety such as headaches, digestive and breathing difficulties, high blood pressure, etc. In addition, significant evidence supports the effectiveness of guided imagery in relieving mental health challenges including depression, as well as impacting neuroendocrine measures (cortisol and hormone levels) and physiological biomarkers (blood pressure, breathing and oxygen rates, heart rate variability (HRV)).

From a consciousness perspective, the subconscious mind is rich with raw creative energy! This energy can be harnessed, directed toward healing, self-improvement and spiritual growth. Your subconscious mind operates on belief. It is always tuned in to your moods, thoughts, feelings, words and attitudes. AND it will respond accordingly — whatever you feel, think, sense, your subconscious mind will spread this message across your cells and nervous system like a wildfire blazing through the dry grass.

With this new information in hand, step back to the ‘Imagine’ statement. Read it again. This time breathe deeply – fully expanding your lungs, relaxing your stomach. Breath all the way down to the seat of your femininity, to your womb. As you continue to bring breath down into your womb, hold the image of freedom of body, courage of mind, divine intelligence. Place your right hand over your heart (4th) chakra and left hand over your womb (2nd) chakra. This connection is so appropriately named ‘coming home to yourself’. Allow yourself a moment to sense the love pouring out of the strongest energy center of your body – the heart – to nourish your womb, your creative powerhouse. Shift your awareness to shoulders, have they relaxed a bit? Has your abdomen continued to expand with full breath? Are you feeling a bit more grounded and centered?

A simple practice to help you powerfully reconnect with yourself, in a very heart-centric fashion. When working to change habit-fields, consistency is key! If you continue to work with this practice on a regular basis, you can readily tap into the power of guided imagery + energy medicine to release old wounds, reprogram obsolete patterns and more easily access the spark of vitality, power and wisdom that burns in the womb of every woman!

Interested in more deeply awakening the Burning Woman within you? Join me in the upcoming women’s only class to fan the flame, burn away the restrictions and limitations you have created in your life, within your body and set your Burning Woman ablaze! 

The Power of Blessings

It’s a bit ironic…as an adolescent, I struggled terribly with grammar. It wasn’t until college, when I took an elective lit class, that I opened my mind to the power of words. Since then I have grown to love words – both the literal meanings and not so obvious messages woven into prose and poetry. As of late, the writings of John O’Donohue have resonated deeply. Maybe it was my August trip to his homeland - Ireland. Or maybe it’s how O’Donohue readily invites the reader to awaken to the invisible world of consciousness; to release themselves from the false shelter of the familiar, the repetitive; to become agents of transformation and change.

O’Donohue’s book “To Bless the Space Between Us” is a current favorite. This book has pushed me to sink more deeply into the power of intention. In this book, O’Donohue describes visiting a community of nuns after completing his ministry studies. Upon arriving, an elderly nun asked for his first blessing as a new priest. After delivering his blessing, he similarly asked her for a blessing and knelt. Although she obliged, the nun was completely unsettled by his request, as apparently, no one had ever asked for her blessing. A woman who dedicated her entire life to contemplation, and yet lived in a system that made her feel as if she could not offer blessings.

It seems odd to realize we live in a world where only some people feel worthy of offering blessings. Instead of overthinking the question of ‘who has the power to bless?’, O’Donohue simply encourages us to act; to directly address this inequity by rediscovering our individual power to not only bless others, but to also bless ourselves.

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Whether you define a blessing as a prayer or a wish, or envision it as coming from us or through us, you can offer blessings through what you write, say or think.

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In any of these forms, what counts most is the intention behind the blessing. For example, when someone nearby sneezes and you automatically respond with “bless you” – there is commonly little, if any, thought behind this social habit. In contrast, when congratulating a friend who has become a new mom, your words will be intentional, genuine and heartfelt – certainly a blessing!

All spiritual lineages incorporate blessings. As elements of energy medicine, both Vedic and Taoism teachings suggest that intentional words and/or blessings can help you better connect with your spiritual lineage or divine energy. These teachings have become a central component of my energy medicine practice. Prior to working with an individual client or teaching a group class, I ground and center my energies and I set specific, heart-centric intentions (based on the unique needs of the client/group). It’s easy, takes very little time and, in my experience, is highly effective!

If you haven’t yet added blessings into your daily routine, I highly encourage you to give it a try! Before getting out of bed, start your day with the 4-Thumps (cheek bone tap, K27 rub, thymus thump, spleen tap) and hold a kind thought for yourself, such as: “May I feel peaceful and happy today.” The more you offer such blessings to yourself, in a grounded and centered way, the more you will begin to perceive the blessings in the world around you.