Author Archives: Michelle

Your Cousins

Every breath you take comes from a tree (sorry if I just planted an earworm in your head). Think about that.It’s easy to forget, isn’t it?  Every breath you take is oxygen that was released from a tree. We have a symbiotic relationship with trees. Our every exhale is an offering to them. It’s like a constant gift exchange!  It’s easy to forget that ourContinue reading “Your Cousins”

This won’t happen quite like this ever again.

Noticing.Paying attention. Are you noticing . . . the trees changing, their color show just beginning. The birds are migrating and doing funny bird things. I’ve seen squirrels outside my window performing crazy acrobatics to get the farthest berry on the limb. The light’s becoming more golden, the sun lower in the sky, blinding meContinue reading “This won’t happen quite like this ever again.”

Rapid Restoration – Napping 101

You may think napping is just sleeping. But there’s so much more to this afternoon rest! According to Arianna Huffington, in her book, The Sleep Revolution, research shows that napping boosts your learning power and lowers your blood pressure. Huffington also reports that older adults who take a thirty-minute nap and engage in moderate exerciseContinue reading “Rapid Restoration – Napping 101”

Your Home Yoga Practice

Think of your home yoga practice as basic self-care. Self-care is taking care of yourself physically, emotionally and mentally. As well as attending to the body, mind, and emotions, regular yoga practice creates a container for developing interoception – your ability to hear your body’s signals, messages and intuitions. Remember that yoga means the unionContinue reading “Your Home Yoga Practice”

Breath-Centered Meditation

Using Your Breath as the Focus of Your Meditation Breath-centered meditation is one of the most common forms of meditation. In this sequence below, I point out aspects of the breath to pay attention to. Focusing on these subtle sensations will pull your attention inward and help to keep you from wandering off. Notice theContinue reading “Breath-Centered Meditation”

Take a Peek Inside Your Mind

I’ve been so excited about neuroscience lately! I’m learning about things like neuroplasticity which is our ability to change our habits no matter how old we are. I’m learning that we all have negative bias which means we’re hard-wired to dwell on our negative experiences instead of the positive ones (it’s a problem-solving mechanism for us humans). And then there’sContinue reading “Take a Peek Inside Your Mind”

Slow down, you move too fast.

One of my yoga class participants recently said that she’s never still – she’s always busy doing something, gardening, cleaning, community projects, etc.. This is all great, but it left me thinking about our cultural programming around stillness and busyness. We’re taught to value constant productivity. It’s not okay to just be still. What IContinue reading “Slow down, you move too fast.”

Sleep is a Beautiful Thing

Sleep is like the secret sauce. It affects everything – mood, focus, mental clarity and your general sense of well-being. So why are so many of us not sleeping well? For many, the culprit is the dreaded BUSY MIND! How do we fix that? It might help to understand some brain science: when your mindContinue reading “Sleep is a Beautiful Thing”