You know that part of life when things are really going and it's all falling into place AND you notice? All is well and even magical how it all works out and the ebb and flow is just so and the pancakes turned out just right. Often before that little jaunt of all is well is that sticky, icky, crunchy part that could be called WTH:-D Not very clinical but as I type it I just laugh and it makes it a little less daunting which is key because that part before the ahhh or ahhh hah, the ick, the crunchy, the "nothing is working", is just as important as the yum, and can be a real bump in the road of life that can side-track the best of us.

What if instead of thinking your body is broken you notice the ick, the observer in your mind that comments on how "nothing's working", and in that moment you reframe? Instead of "my body is broken" you reframe it to..."my body is healing". 

If you have a body then you know about the ebb and flow AND the...

This is the glow of a mom whose kid is home for a week. At twenty-five years old she is hardly a kid and yet the sense of ease, play, banter is all there as if time doesn't matter and just sharing space fills me up. We are keeping it low-key and just hanging out, puzzling, watching old movies, and sometimes just sitting around without even talking and it is so comfortable and so easy. 

When I describe to someone what I do, helping people at my myofascial release clinic get out of pain and get back to doing what they love, coaching women online and helping them to reclaim their body after breast cancer, teaching my Myofascial Stretch Method classes for weekly self-care, what I am really doing is helping people get more comfortable and feel at ease in their body.

Whether you have tight, painful scar tissue, a frozen shoulder, reconstructive surgery that is still painful to the touch a year later, you can work towards that same comfort and ease you feel when...

I love the word AND. I can be grateful that I'm ok AND figure out how to recover fully from long haulers. My client yesterday can be grateful that she can still work and get around AND figure out her shoulder thing so she is not in pain every day, all day long. I can love my job AND look forward to my vacation. What if one doesn't cancel out the other?

When it comes to self-care, you can wait for a time when you are not as busy or have more cash flow, or just ...later. You might have the banter in your head that your hip pain isn't that bad. I'll add the yet...cuz yet is sneaky and doesn't have an expiration date.

Pain is the body asking for attention and if ignored, that chatty hip will just get chattier. aka Pain and tightness become the norm. Taking time for yourself, adding that self-care routine can be tricky on the front end AND your body will be grateful aka quiet as it moves you through your world with ease and grace. You might be busy, sooo busy, and a 90-minute class...

How do we show up for ourselves? I have a confession...I sometimes and sometimes meaning more often than not stay up to 11 pm. My intention is to go to bed more like 10 PM but between 10 and 11 pm I forget that part. I used to set my alarm or keep my phone out of the room but mostly throw some shame at myself and vow to do better tomorrow...set rules and all. But I found a better way... 

  What if "that day" was today and later was a "how bout now" and that thing you keep wanting to do wasn't a should've but became a part of you and your self-care?

How do you do the thing you want to do but don't seem to do it? (AKA...Are you on the fence about signing up for Myofascial Stretching?)

1. Add some flexibility...I like flexibility in my day but also seem to do better with routine soooo...I do a combo. Write the newsletter on Wednesday but if that doesn't happen I can do Thursday or even Friday. Less pressure, more fun and no shame. Get ready for...

What would the world be like if we all felt powerful... as in empowered, full of self, confident in our choices and in our bodies' ability to heal and move and do all the things? When I used to think about strength I thought of me pushing that crossbar with weight high in the sky at the gym. That feeling where you moved all your plants inside for the winter, the dresser to the other wall, and didn't ask for or need any help. I think of strength and power differently now.

What if power was resilience and our ability to get back up after being knocked down? That to ask for help and to honor our body by not pushing to the limits all the ding dong day was where that light that feeds our heart and soul was built from... that empowered space of knowing oneself. 

You don't need a lifetime or a big setback or even age to show you that. Nope...just a few moments of your time. Moments...small moments of undivided attention where you quiet the chatter and sit in...

Sometimes it's the tiniest thing that can inspire and transform the simplest moment. Like when a memory comes through...my most recent wave was when my daughter, Emma, and I drove down Highway 1 to Santa Cruz. The rental car lady and I bonded and she ended up giving me a souped-up Dodge Charger. I can feel the freedom and love from that ride. It lifts me up and fills my heart, my body, my everything. Just like the sun when it peeks through your windows on its way down. The air sparkles and you can ride the wave.

Trauma is often a "big event" while healing happens under the radar and then shows up in those little, tiny moments that stop time as you are reminded of your beauty, your light, and your joy. 

In my Myofascial Stretch Method classes, I talk about bringing your attention down into your body. You can use your ball or noodle or your favorite prop and as you lay there for your 2-5 minutes you do the time, yes, AND you also feel consciously and with curiosity,...

 When people start to work with me, they want to know how long it's gonna take...for the pain to go away. I gave a talk to my Beloved Bust group about intimacy after breast cancer and we spoke about scar release, fight or flight, and specific ways to reconnect with yourself and heal after trauma and someone asks..."Isn't there a pill for libido?" There are...and pills for pain and all the things which are great...but the long-term relief that you are looking for is not gonna be found in that pill. My practice, both online and at the clinic is full of people that want more than a pill or another surgery. As the saying goes...

"Healing is not an event but a journey" and sometimes that journey is longer than we think and the wins can be overshadowed with doubts, self-sabotage, and all the things...but know that you are on your way! It can be so subtle as that chatter of pain softens and makes room for more dreaming and more heart in your everyday. So ponder...

I don't know if you knew this, but I grew up with horses. My dad not only worked at the factory for Chrysler but my dad trained horses. Western mind you... all cowboy or cowgirl if you will. I loved hanging out in that old barn and helping my dad feed the horses. Now I don't remember stretching or thinking about fascia or how the body works back then, but I do remember jumping out the hayloft, falling off the fence(practicing cartwheels:-), and crashing into trees while swinging on vines in the back pasture. 

When you're young like that you still bounce. I would stand up and brush it off and then get back to what I was doing. 

Now picture me in high school, running track. I was a really fast, middle distance runner but I wasn't consistent. Sometimes when I ran it felt like I had a different shoe on each foot. I lost my ZIP! Now when I look back...MY HIPS WERE OUT! Tight on one side and not on the other. Sometimes fast and sometimes not so much. Guess who landed on her hip...

I'm feeling a little "off" today. I did get my second vaccine on Sunday and I have been busy with work and all the things and the world is still wacky with covid and all of the limited activities...ie not much change of scenery if ya feel me. 

So, understandable if I take into account all the things though I do have a preference. You see, I prefer my bubbly, energetic self and so when she's not around I feel a little lost or meh... I do like to spend time alone and meditate and write and binge some TV, like Hotel By the Sea. (I don't know what it is about Danish TV, but I love it!) ME TIME is great but it's the Myofascial Stretching that pulls me into my body and out of my head.

So if I'm wondering why I feel meh, my brain can make up that something is wrong or needs to be fixed. Get on the mat and I'm breathing and my attention is on my body. Next comes the "full of wonder" phase as I feel all of the interconnections and the magical world of fascia....

You may not know this about me but, when I was twenty-one, I broke my back in a car accident. I had a can-do attitude and when they told me I would have trouble walking my go-to was "Watch Me!" and I pushed through it and got back to walking! I had a great doc that left out the hardware and decided I was young and we would just see how my body and back would heal on their own.

The world is so often focused on strengthening. Be strong! Work it! We've even made our push past it mentality into fun and glamour...WORK IT! Way to Push Through!! High fiving each other on our way out of the gym. (Remember the gym...hmmm)

Anyway, when your shoulder is tight or your back hurts the most common treatment before surgery and the like, is to strengthen it. Yes, oh so important, but you can't strengthen,(for you data peeps...ie: push against resistance from a lengthened position and contract), if it's tight, dense, and bracing. You can't tighten something that won't even open in the...