​I'm not talking about health coverage or insurance policies.  I'm talking about how YOU take care, or don't take care, of YOU.
Is your health important to you or do other people, events or "things" take first place and you fit YOU in where you can?  Do you have an old injury that keeps talking and you know what needs to be done, but just can't find the time?
The other day I was wandering down the alleys of my mind and considering all the ways we see people when they come in the door...
Emergency Services:
For a good portion of clients, we perform emergency services - they come in when they are hurting and in pain and looking for immediate relief. Stress might have taken over and their body can't function under the load. The pain killers aren't working and it just won't "go away". I think James Cameron was the one that said, "Hope is not a strategy".  It also doesn't work too well on muscle spasms or nerve pain either.
Crisis Management:
If we aren't performing emergency services, many times we are assisting with crisis management.  Someone has a pain or injury and maybe is even seeing a physical therapist until the pain or problem is gone. Then they stop the exercises and we don't see them until the next crisis.  
Maintenance:
We have a good portion of clients that have felt how much the massage helped and are learning about taking consistent care of their body.  These are usually clients with a chronic issues, trying to keep them at bay and avoid having a crisis.
Prevention:
We have a growing population of clients that come in for preventative bodywork.  These folks see their health and wellness as the foundation of their life and know they can't do their best or be their best if they are in pain.  They usually are the ones smiling when they walk in and floating out the door after their session.  

Maintenance and Prevention can sometimes be the same thing.  Many older clients come in, having learned how helpful massage can be in functioning physically and many younger clients are coming in because they feel how much massage helps them manage their active and/or stressful lives.

During this time of year, many of us are considering our health.  How we approach it can be key to our happiness and wellness down the road.  It is my own belief that the better we take care of ourselves, the better we can care for others and be in the world.  

As an admirer of Martin Luther King, I believe he would agree that to be a good peace keeper and caring for our corner of the world, includes ourselves.  Be kind to YOU, take care of YOU, love YOU and you will have more to give.  Anger and violence will be less a part of your life if you fill it with compassion, peace and love for yourself first and it will flow more easily to others.

No doubt about it we are living in interesting times.  The length of time you’ve been on this earth probably reflects your level of disappointment in the direction humanity seems to be heading.  Being middle-aged, I am not only concerned for my future but my son and granddaughter’s too. 
 
Reading social media posts and talking to people, I get a sense of apathy, frustration, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness that there is any hope of making a difference.  It is easy to believe that we have no power for change, so why bother.  It seems only big changes will help and being just one person…well, how can that do anything?
 
Actually you do have power, lots of it.  You can make a difference in your life, every day and in the lives of those around you.  Morro Bay is a small town, if a few people take this attitude, it can have a benefit to our community.  Even in big cities, this can be powerful.
 
For example, last night I was in the checkout line at the grocery store and the guy in front of me was ready to pay and grabbed a lighter off the “impulse buy” shelf and put it on the conveyor belt.  The clerk rang him up and it turns out he was a dollar short to pay for everything.  I offered to pay the dollar and the guy was more than grateful.  Now was the lighter for cigarettes and I could have lengthened his life by not buying the lighter?  I don’t know.  He was scruffily dressed and could have been without shelter or limited shelter and that lighter might have helped keep him warm.  It was not my place to judge, but to do something nice.  A dollar isn’t much, but who knows how much it was worth to that guy.  I ended up feeling pretty good about that gesture and even though it was so little, it might have been huge for him.
 
You never know how a smile, a kind word, an unexpected gift of food or service might make a difference to someone.  At the Morro Bay Community dinner last month it was amazing to hear how grateful people were for the food and sharing with others.  I was just the “mashed potatoe” girl and Kim was the “veggie” girl, but we sure saw a lot of smiling and happy faces.  Many of them were people that are homeless or shut-ins that don’t go out much.  It was so wonderful to see the room full of anyone and everyone sharing a meal regardless of circumstances.
 
With current circumstances in the world, we need more kindness and where better to make a difference than in your own community and with those you share it with.  Look for the stranger; the young over-whelmed mother, the senior that needs their trash put out, the person walking in the cold, the down and out person that could use a dollar to eat. 

​1 – Expose yourself to something inspirational; walk, music,           books
2 – Sit in a quiet place
3 – Breath
 
Notice I used the word, “improve”.  These are some simple things to improve what might be a terrible day or just make a good one better.
 
1 – It has been proved that connecting to nature in the form of a walk, working in the garden or just sitting and admiring the view can help calm anxiety, lower stress and release the feel good hormone, serotonin. 
 
Music is another source of raising your vibration.  In fact, it is reported that listening to classical music will increase your IQ by 15%.  Is it true?  I don’t know, but when I was a teacher, I used music to quiet down my students in the class after lunch and saw a huge difference in behavior and temperaments. 
 
Reading something inspirational is somthing I do almost every day.  Some of my favorites are “Peace Is Every Step” by Tich Nhat Hanh, “The Game of Life and How to Play It” by Florence Scovel Shinn, “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle.  Some people find reading the bible or other spiritual writings to be soothing.  Find something that raises your spirit and just read a chapter or so in the beginning of your day or when things spiral out of control and you will find it helps reset your attitude.
 
2 – Removing yourself from chaos or negative spaces and/or people has an immediate effect on how you feel.  Finding a quiet place can really help remove distractions that knock us off balance.  Go to a place that you find attractive; a well decorated room, art gallery or a place outside.  Sit or walk and admire the surrounding beauty.  By letting your mind focus on something beautiful instead of where you were, you will find the effect calming and balancing.
 
3 – Breath can be the simplest and most effective calming tool.  No matter where you are or what is going on, you can simply change your focus to the sensation of the air flowing in and out of your nostrils and lungs.  Feel the chest expanding and contracting with each breath.  Really concentrate on the feel and movement of the body as it breaths.  Breath is the basis of most meditation exercises and yoga.  It is a very powerful way to transform your energy and mind.

Don't use the excuse you don't have time because everyone has 1-3 minutes in their day to take time out and your breath anyway so what if you put a little calm intention behind it?

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Did you see the movie, "Cake"?This movie stars Jennifer Aniston as a woman suffering from chronic pain due to a horrific accident.  It is not an easy movie to watch due to the amount of pain she is in emotionally and physically and how she punishes the world around her as a way to cope.

As a massage therapist and someone that has "been there, done that", I thought this movie was right on in depicting the mind/body connection.  In the end she is able to accept her life and how to work with the pain.  If you get a chance, see it.  It didn't get the best reviews because this was such a different role for Aniston, but I think she nailed the role and the script was good too.

Why am I telling you about this movie?  Her thoughts are full of anger, rage, grief and frustration.  Yes, she was severely injured, but the pain her body is in goes deeper than just the physical.  There is emotion buried in there too.  Shame, guilt, fear and internal conflict are emotions that can be conscious or unconscious feelings no one wants to acknowledge.  As a result, our unconscious mind creates distraction in the form of pain to avoid the discomfort of these kinds of feelings.  The body then has a physiological response; lack of blood flow to an area, accumulation of waste product which creates pain and trigger points.

So now let's talk about those thoughts in your head.  Thoughts are energy, positive or negative, they create an outcome in the body.  Whether you create the thoughts yourself or someone directs negative words at you, you will feel a drop in energy and might even feel a twinge of discomfort in some area of your body.  

As a child I witnessed this in an older couple.  The husband was upset with his wife and let her know it in front of several people and he had no problem continuing to embarrass her.  Not long after his tongue lashing, she started to experience chest pain and needed to take some medication and go home to rest.

At some time maybe you have experienced a negative situation and felt your body respond.  Or maybe you experienced something positive when you felt low and it made a change for the better.  Either way, this is reinforcement that thoughts are energy and have an effect.

So many times when someone comes in for bodywork because of discomfort and pain it has an emotional component.  I am not talking about injury.  I am talking about pain that comes and goes or is always there, sometimes worse, sometimes less.

Dr. John Sarno wrote a great book, "The Mindbody Prescription" that talks about unconscious emotions and the effects on the body and how to make changes.  Meditation and mindfulness have made big differences for me and are part of many chronic pain programs.  Not any one thing will solve everyone's issues, so it takes some exploring to find what works for you, but I encourage you to make the effort.

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​What to do when you hurt...This is a problem I hear from clients all the time and a lot of the information is confusing or not good.  Depending on how the pain started will determine what is the best choice, but let's review a few basics:

Ice - stops swelling, inflammation and bruising.  It is the best choice to use if you have acute pain or have been injured; sprained ankle, bumped your shin, twisted your knee or wrist.  Think INJURY when it comes to ice.

Heat - relaxes muscles after inflammation is gone, soothes the body and increases circulation.  This is the best choice if you have done too much weeding and strained your back, have an "achy" place.

Moist Heat - this reduces swelling, pain, and increases range of motion.   This is an excellent choice for arthritis flare ups or after using ice for a couple of days an injury and to help get circulation going into the area.

I could go on and on, but I usually find someone smarter than me and I found this excellent link that is very informative about what to use and when...just click on it to check it out!  Great and easy to read chart.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/2014/08/should-you-use-ice-or-heat-for-pain-infographic/

In the case of muscle spasm, I now have Electrical Muscle Stimulation available prior to your massage.  Yesterday I used it on a client with severe back pain and she left feeling much better and reported improvement today too. ( I love what I do! )

​First a story...
Dear Sir:
I am writing in response to your request for additional information in Block #3 of the accident reporting form. I put "Poor Planning" as the cause of my accident. You asked for a fuller explanation and I trust the following details will be sufficient.
I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a new six-story building. When I completed my work, I found I had some bricks left over which when weighed later were found to weigh 240 lbs. Rather than carry the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley which was attached to the side of the building at the sixth floor.
Securing the rope at ground level, I went up to the roof, swung the barrel out and loaded the bricks into it. Then I went down and untied the rope, holding it tightly to insure a slow descent of the 240 lbs of bricks. You will note on the accident reporting form that my weight is 135 lbs.
Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building.
In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel which was now proceeding downward at an equally impressive speed. This explains the fractured skull, minor abrasions and the broken collarbone, as listed in Section 3, accident reporting form.
Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley which I mentioned in Paragraph 2 of this correspondence. Fortunately by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold the rope, in spite of the excruciating pain I was now beginning to experience.
At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground-and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Now devoid of the weight of the bricks, the barrel weighed approximately 50 lbs.
I refer you again to my weight. As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the building.
In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, broken tooth and severe lacerations of my legs and lower body.
Here my luck began to change slightly. The encounter with the barrel seemed to slow me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell into the pile of bricks and fortunately only three vertebrae were cracked.
I am sorry to report, however, as I lay there on the pile of bricks, in pain, unable to move and watching the empty barrel six stories above me, I again lost my composure and presence of mind and let go of the rope.

As funny as this story is, the lesson is a man that is not attached to the injuries but sees his mistakes and the consequences of his choices.  He will probably heal and move on in life with no attachment to what happened. 

Many times we suffer injury, disease, accidents and traumatic life experiences and are not able to let go of the story.  We play it over and over in our heads and repeat it to anyone that asks and hear the doctors, therapists, family and friends tell others how much we have suffered as a result of ______________.  We feel a sense of betrayal or injustice and keep asking, "Why me?"

As harmless as it sounds, it is actually causing your body to react physically and chemically to the trauma again, again and again.  This means there is emotion, stress hormones, increase in heart rate and mild shock responses that you go through each time your relive the experience.

People that have had cancer do not want to be called victims because that paints a picture or weakness when a fight against this disease takes warrior spirit and being called a survivor is much more empowering.  Reliving trauma causes you and others to start seeing yourself as a victim instead of someone that has over come a challenge.

Begin to see pain, accident, disease, trauma as an opportunity and you will increase your chances of healing.  Sound crazy?  No.  This is an opportunity to give your body what it needs; rest, change in environment, better nutrition, more exercise, etc. Dr. Bernie S. Siegel, M.D., realized this when he was working with cancer patients and wrote an amazing book about his experiences.  "Love, Medicine & Miracles"

From my own experience, I have seen clients that seem to suffer more than most with injuries, health problems and disease.  As I listen to their story, I see and feel their body respond to what they are saying.  Muscles tighten, faces pale, tears well up, pain increases...they can't heal because the problem keeps being relived over and over.  They are stuck in the past and can't move out of their suffering.

The more we think about something, the bigger chance of attracting that into our lives and if you continually thing of yourself as your injury, disease, pain or trauma, you will attract more into your life.  This I see more times than not.  One injury or pain becomes another and another until they believe "this is my nature", or "I am my mother's cancer", or "I deserve this", etc.

So, while the story was funny, life can be tough and full of hurt.  Be a warrior.  Fight.  Look for the opportunity to heal and listen to your body.  No one can do that for you because only you truly know what you need.  Don't buy into the labels that family, friends or the medical community wants to put you into.  You are an amazing and beautiful person that is temporarily having a solvable problem and just need the time and resources to do that.

I love what I do and feel I am doing what I was born to do.  There was a lot of pain and suffering involved in my learning that, but I refuse to be judged by my past and continue to learn how to realign my future with my reason for being.  Without the pain and suffering I wouldn't be who I am or know what I know, so for that I am grateful.  I am here to facilitate your healing and even though I can't do the hard work for you, I here to help.

Want to know how to relieve stress and anxiety?  Only concentrate on one thing right NOW.  

What does that mean?  Do you have a big event coming up? Debts, health concerns, big trip or family gathering and you are feeling overwhelmed by all the things you have to do to get ready and prepare?  STOP!

Break it down into one thing at a time and stop thinking about the whole big mess.  Right now, do one thing that is part of what you need to do.  Need to clean the house but don't have all day to do it?  Clean the bathroom.  It is the smallest and quickest to clean.  Tomorrow clean another room and only worry about that.  Want to lose 30 pounds?  Work on just what you can do today for 10 minutes; go for a walk, eat less at one meal or eliminate one thing from your diet.

We lose momentum and increase our rate of failure because too many times we make the big picture SO BIG and HUGE, that it just seems too much and too hard to accomplish.  By just focusing on the next step, right now, you make it smaller, easier and begin to see that you CAN do it.

Want to begin a stretching program?  Awesome!  Do 5 minutes when you wake up and it is done for the day and you will notice a difference in your day.  Here are stretching videos to help you, just click on the link: 
Stretching Videos

I am reading a great book that talks about this problem and easy solutions, "Excuses Be Gone!" by Dr. Wayne Dyer.  I highly recommend it.
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