If I could wave a magic wand and grant every newly diagnosed person one essential skill, it would be this: the power to intentionally shift out of stress. To do that, you need to understand your body’s control center: the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS). 💡 Here’s the essential takeaway: Stress is Sympathetic. Peace is Parasympathetic.Continue reading “Peace is Parasympathetic: Learn the Essential Skill for Your Cancer Journey”
Category Archives: Awareness
Navigating Scanxiety: 5 Tools to Find Peace Before Your Test
Almost every cancer patient I’ve ever worked with talks about scanxiety—that intense anxiety that arises when they have an upcoming medical test, be it a CT scan, MRI, or ultrasound. It’s completely normal to feel this fear. After everything you’ve been through, it makes sense that you’d feel triggered and reluctant to face another potentialContinue reading “Navigating Scanxiety: 5 Tools to Find Peace Before Your Test”
Spring
Hello dear one, I hope this finds you well and happy. It’s a lovely spring day here in Philadelphia. I find myself in a sweetly contented place and am sending these pleasant vibes your way. Wherever you are, I hope you’re delighting in the pop of spring flowers, the budding and blooming of the trees.Continue reading “Spring”
Do you have glue?
Did my last email inspire you to open a door for somebody? I hope so. I’m still on the kindness train . . . Kindness, compassion and empathy all together, are a kind of glue that hold our communities together and help them grow strong. These qualities lead to better cooperation and, it turns out,Continue reading “Do you have glue?”
Come to Your Senses
Have you ever had one of those surprisingly delightful moments that stops you in your tracks? I had one recently . . . I was on a nature walk through a meadow this past weekend – it was a glorious autumn day here in eastern Pennsylvania. I paused to watch a tiny finch pick atContinue reading “Come to Your Senses”
The Magic Carpet
Do you get on your yoga mat daily? Lately, I’ve been thinking about the yoga mat as a magic carpet. I know that sounds funny but stick with me. Not a magic carpet that literally flies away, but a magic carpet that helps you create a ritual that can become magical. In this ritual, you roll out yourContinue reading “The Magic Carpet”
This too shall pass.
Things have been heavy for me lately, not gonna lie. My mom passed in December. Grief is thick for me right now, but there’s more going on . . . There’s a kind of spiritual maturation that happens as a result of living through a crisis. We sometimes call these life chapters the dark nights of theContinue reading “This too shall pass.”
You can choose.
I went on a meditation retreat a couple of weekends ago and it was great! On a silent meditation retreat, we can step out of our normal routines and slow way, waaaaay down. We’re invited to sit in stillness and to settle the mind into a quiet state of awareness. This can be quite a process, this stilling.Continue reading “You can choose.”
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.”
Michelle Stortz 