Take me to bed with you... for real!!!
And do this simple secret before you go to sleep. 

Just kidding. Actually, it's so simple you can watch it and then go to bed after, because the blue light from your screen is bad for your sleep (and likely adds anxiety). 

We Are All Stressed
This simple secret is a fantastic antidote for 21st century stress - the stress you feel, your friends feel, your husband/wife/partner feels, your colleagues feel... and sadly almost all of us feel. 

While it manifests in different ways - anxiety, depression, general stress, even anger - the chronic demands society puts on us, and our inability to create the community we need to counteract those demands, adds up!

Hold Your Heart
In this simple technique (technique is too complicated(, you literally hold your heart. We all need a bit more nurturing in our lives, and this is a way to give it to yourself.  

Add a Twist
You can really amp up the relaxation by adding a simple twist. Turn your knees to the right and hold your heart; turn your knees to the left and hold your fake heart (right side). 

Take Me to Bed
This is why I tell people to take these videos to bed!!! They are soooooo simple and relaxing and really help you detach from some of the day before you head off to sleep. 

I totally sucked at self care until I started doing my self care in bed!!! All the things I love to do that make me feel great: journaling, reading, stretching, body wisdom, meditation (I do it laying down), self massage, and other things all happen in bed. And frankly, I really never could get them into my life until I figured this secret out! 

So while you may not want to actually take your screen to bed (like I said, the light it emits is bad for your sleep), you should take these ideas to bed and give them a try!!! 

And of course, let me know when you do!!! 

​Have a friend who feels anxiety? Be sure to share this video!!!

Thinking about getting botox? 
Yeah, I was, too.
And then I did.

This is what I learned. 

Why do you want botox?
First of all, make sure you consider the reasons you are seeking botox. This should not be something you are doing because you are worried about what other people think. You need to make sure you're coming from a healthy place. 

What are your expectations?
The botox might not give you the results you are hoping for. I got it 4 times and only once did I feel truly satisfied with it. And it wasn't the last time, or I'd probably be getting it again! haha!

How does your body react to things? 
Are you sensitive? I am. I'm honestly not that surprised that I got a headache from the treatment, despite that I didn't realize it for the first three times due to extenuating circumstances around my neck causing headaches in the time frame I got the first three rounds. So, if you are sensitive, you might have side effects that don't make it worth it. 

What's the bottom line?
Honestly, go for it if you want to. We are all vain in certain ways - our clothes, our makeup, our hair, our shoes, our purses... whatever. Maybe botox will help soften up some lines that bug you. Or maybe it won't. In the end, you only know what you'll get if you try it, and if you go into with the right attitude, you'll be able to confidently decide whether or not it's worth it to you. 

What about emotional eating? 
And, as always, what does this have to do with emotional eating???? EVERYTHING!

It's ALL connected, and we are all susceptible to vain thoughts.

If we live in fear of people finding out we are vain, or discovering we got botox, or not getting botox but wishing we had... we are shutting down our emotions and making ourselves susceptible to numbing by any means... whether overeating, over drinking, smoking, gambling, having too much sex, drugs, or whatever unhealthy behavior we use to forget our pain as being out of alignment and under stress.

​By addressing ourselves WHOLLY, even our vanity and other "weaknesses", embracing them, and accepting them for what they are, we can make choices that leave us feeling our best, no matter if we get the botox or not. 

What do you think? Have you thought about botox? Have you tried it? 

Yup. That's right. I'm talking about Aunt Flo.

Your Body & Your Emotional Eating
Welcome to the first in my body wisdom series!!! It's not yoga. It's definitely not exercise. It's just simple ways to get in touch with your body and treat it better. 

What does this have to do with emotional eating? A lot, actually. It's that disconnect between body, heart, and mind that leads to emotional eating. And it's when we try to "fix" our food problems without listening to our bodies that the problems get worse. 

Connecting Body-Heart-Mind
So the next time you get your moon, you are menstruating, or Aunt Flo comes to visit... Take a nap. Tell everyone to leave you alone. Even if it's just ten minutes. Just be. Be still. Relax those tense muscles. It makes such a huge difference!!!! 

Oh, and drink some extra water!!!! I forgot to say that on the  video :) 

And of course, after you make it a point to lay around a little during "that time of the month" let me know how it makes you feel!!! 

​I know I've felt less worn out when I've been able to do little period power naps. 

I want to challenge something right now. 

It might be uncomfortable. I want to challenge the idea that portion control is a healthy way to eat. 

Because I understand, as a total control freak my self, the temptation to try to control what I eat. 

(The funny thing is that I used to consider my self "Type B."  I actually thought I was super laid back, didn't worry too much about things, could go with the flow.

However, having children made me realize that I'm actually extremely controlling! It's just that before kids I was successfully controlling most of my world... and then I had kids and have been basically white-knuckling the edge of the table since they were born, staring in amazement because my mind is blown that I am so unable to control things now.  

Sooooo.... it was more like I could be all relaxed and "Type B" because I was so damn good at being Type A that I didn't even know it!)

Also, I used to try to control what I ate. And, interestingly, for a long time that was also out of my control.  And it was a real challenge in my life. 

The things in my life that felt shitty (in hindsight, basically all the things I could not control), made me want to eat sugar.

I'd try to NOT eat sugar, fail, and then just eat more sugar. 

And in my business now I connect with many women who share that they feel that way about many other types of food as well, sometimes all food. 

Sometimes they find that portion control has helped them maintain a healthy weight.

However, there are two ways to go about portion control. 

The first way, the more common way, is that some external measurement determines the portion. Whether calories, volume/weight, carbs, points, or whatever, this can backfire. It's useful to learn what an average portion might be. But if you are hungry, you may need more than average, and if you are not hungry, you may need less than average. 

The second, more empowering, way is to trust your body as the guide. When your body is telling you what the portion should be, it will be just the right amount. And the beautiful thing is that when your body is able to get exactly what it needs to be satisfied, you are able to ENJOY the portions, not simply control them. 

It is my mission to help women create this holistic whole body connection in a playful, non-judgmental, and supportive environment, so they can enjoy all the foods they love. 

I know a lot of people have been buying my book lately - I have been ranked as a #1 Amazon bestseller!!! 

Unfortunately, I'm sorry to say that I did not do a very good job letting people know about the amazing and FREE videos that go hand in hand with the journal!!! 

So I'm saying it now...
1. Buy the book!
2. Sign up for the videos!

The truth is... I actually created the book and videos originally to be an online course. But when I went to upload them and start promoting the course... I realized the platform I was trying to use would not accept the videos because they were not high enough resolution!!

But instead of giving up (or worse - re-doing them all), I decided I'd just GIVE them away to support the book!! YEEEESSSSS!!!!!

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