November 1st as the New Year

The nights are getting longer. This is good news. All seeds begin in darkness. Often our darkest moments create the seed of innovation. Everything in nature points to this. Through darkness comes miracles and transformation. The caterpillar becomes a cocoon and then the butterfly. Human beings take 9 months of incubation before birth. My husband and I were driving home last night and noticed all the deer.  I reminded him that this was mating season and that mammals mate and incubate and hibernate during the winter months.

Dr Eben Alexander, MD and Harvard Professor, discusses his coma and Near Death Experience as feeling like he was in a "murky muddy underground."  He then saw a bright light and a being that said, "You have eternal love and nothing to fear."  He goes further to say that the world is about to go through a global conscious awakening and will experience peace like we have never known. 

How beautiful is this? How different is this to the news we are receiving today? Dr Alexander survived a coma for 7 days which is unheard of in conventional medicine. He is an example of the power of the human being. 

Our modern culture does not honor this incubation period. We judge ourselves on how much we can accomplish each day. We can easily dismiss the importance of sleep, rest and just being. We forget that we are human beings, not human doings. 

The earth based traditions believed that November 1st was the New Year.  That now is the time to save and cultivate seeds. Now is the time to plant your seeds for what you want to begin to germinate in the Spring.

Will you take the extra hour and perhaps meditate on what it is you would like to sprout in the next 6 months? Will you prioritize sleep so you can align your body with natural rhythm for optimal health? 

Food for thought. Carpe Diem

Lisa

2017 Lessons Learned & New Year's Resolutions

This has been a year of intense grief and sorrow, and as my beautiful daughter so elegantly expressed, coexisting with periods of joy.

 https://www.facebook.com/existdetroit/videos/2083596808535202/ We started with the one year celebration of our grandson followed two weeks later by the passing of our son in law. I’ve struggled on how to support both my daughter and clients during times of loss. One client who lost her husband after 50 years together and another client in Houston during Hurricane Harvey. What do you do when you are at a loss for words? I read Sheryl Sandberg’s book, Option B but that didn’t resonate with me like Maria Sirois, PsyD book, A Short Course in Happiness After Loss (and other Dark, Difficult Times).  Here I am struggling on what to do to help my daughter, and she went and did it herself. Which by the way, is the only way for transformation, growth or change to occur. She took her grief and started the Forced Joy Project to find some joy, meaning and purpose amongst her immense sorrow. As a health coach I’ve learned this very valuable lesson. No one fixes you. You are not broken. You are a perfectly-imperfect, human being, with your own journey on this planet. We can share our experiences, we can be guides through difficult times, but the body, mind, spirit and soul are self-healing and self-repairing. You have the ability to heal from within. The practice of yoga can help release tension, pent up feelings and emotions, as well as help cultivate awareness and focus leading to physical, mental and emotional growth and peace. Dana again, beautifully shows us how. 

https://youtu.be/Tu9Opp6JfTU

I’ve written about the pancha maya model of yoga and how the body follows the mind and the mind follows the breath. I’ve had clients overcome anxiety and fear through dedicated breath work practice. The only thing we know for sure is that all of us will die. Some like Bradford Frost,

my son in law, far too soon. Others like Simba (who woke me up one morning bouncing up the stairs, took his normal one mile walk, in seemingly perfect shape) without any warning.

 As adults, what we do have control over is how we choose to live our lives. One dear client of mine shared this analogy. We are like flower pots. We can decide what soil we put in the pot, what we want to plant, how we feed and nourish ourselves. What can we do to live awesome full lives NOW? What little changes can we make in 2018 to feel our best? According to one of the largest health studies, the Framingham nurses study, the number one factor for overall health and cancer prevention, is diversity in the diet. Yet most of us eat the same 4 foods day in and day out consisting of wheat, corn, soy and dairy. Foods that have been subsidized and adulterated. This monoculture that has led us to the current epidemic in chronic disease. With so much abundance of food, our choices are often lacking in essential phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals. To fight fatigue, we resort to caffeine and succumb to sugar cravings that keep us on a mental, physical, and emotional roller coaster. My pledge this year is:

1.  To expand my Kick-Start recipes to add more diversity. The best way to add diversity is to eat seasonally. Here’s what I had for breakfast at the Detroit Parks & Rec Diner:

 

Fisherman’s Board of citrus smoked salmon, dill crème fraiche, local radish, soft boiled duck egg, picked vegetables that included garlic scape and cranberries. Delicious!

2. Follow my daughter’s lead and find more joy. I’m going to start teaching Carpe Diem Dance (my joyful movement to music incorporating breathwork, meditation and yoga) Wednesday mornings at Rise Wellbeing Center in Reston, Virginia Wednesday mornings in January. 
3. Continue to grow my business being mindful to include boundaries and schedule in time to celebrate a new Granddaughter, family vacation, and to prioritize self-care. 

To keep me on track and at my best, I've started My Life Plan and just renewed my contract with my own coach and mentors.

What are your plans for the New Year? How will you choose to live your best life? I would love to hear from you!

Lisa

About Lisa Jackson, RN, CHC, RYT-500, FDN-P, AFMC

Lisa is an author, inspirational speaker and coach, with a mission to inspire others to feel and look their best at any age. 

 

Lisa's book, Savvy Secrets: Eat, Think and Thrive outlines her seven step process towards optimal health that is fun and transformational. 

Lisa is part of the New Self Health Movement and the Wellness Inspired Network. When she is not coaching, speaking or writing, you can find her practicing yoga and joyfully sharing Carpe Diem Dance.

Simple Strategies for a Successful 2017

First, Believe that you can attain your goals. As a coach, my #1 goal is to inspire you and educate you so that you too, can believe that you have the innate ability to heal from within. To insure successful completion of goals, make them measure-able and realistic. Small, simple goals, well executed, spells success.

Here's my new magnet for my refrigerator:

Understand your why. For most, this comes down to how do you want to feel. As a colleague of mine in the New Self Health Movement Mari Hill, says, "It's not your job to know the how. In other words, take some time to dream big and then open yourself up to new thinking and new possibilities. It's our negative thinking that keeps us stuck in old behaviors and old patterns.
Simply put,

"If you do what you did, you get what you got."

So this year, take the first step in my seven-step program. Take an honest personal assessment. Ask yourself the following:

"What is your biggest challenge or goal? What have your tried in the past that worked? What didn't work? What are you willing to do to overcome this challenge? How will you feel when you've accomplished this goal?"

Take some time to think about how you want to feel this year. Do you want to feel more energized, peaceful or joyful? Do you want more ease, more fun? What small steps do you need to take to get there? 

Take time to reflect on what you accomplished in 2016. Even if it's merely surviving, pat yourself on the back for that. What worked well for you and what is keeping you stuck?

Now for the fun and creative part. Work with someone to co-create a plan so that you cannot fail. Get a coach or an accountability partner. Consider functional diagnostic testing, my online Kick-Start program, individual coaching or a yoga or yoga dance class. Email me if you would like to schedule a brief call to see if we are a good fit for each other.

Next blogpost, I'll share with you one of my 2017 goals.

Happy New Year!

Lisa

About Lisa Jackson, RN, CHC, RYT-500, FDN

Lisa is an author, inspirational speaker and coach with a mission to inspire others to feel and look their best at any age. 

She is also the Executive Director of the Integrative Wellness Program for the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders. Lisa's book, Savvy Secrets: Eat, Think and Thrive outlines her seven step process towards optimal health that is fun and transformational. 

Lisa is part of the New Self Health Movement and the Wellness Inspired Network. When she is not coaching, speaking or writing, you can find her practicing yoga and joyfully sharing Carpe Diem Dance.