This time of year marks the Lenten season. Traditionally, this is a time of fasting for Catholics. Having grown up Catholic I recall fasting from junk food for forty days and abstaining from meat on Fridays. At some point I began questioning my motives for fasting and what Lent meant for me. Eventually, after contemplation, I began to change my Lenten ritual. My current tradition is to release something that no longer serves my spiritual growth. Self criticism is a vice I

Anxiety...tight chest, shallow breathing, irregular heartbeat, headaches, tight neck and shoulders - any of these symptoms sound familiar to you? I have been all too familiar with these symptoms and more. I spent most of my adolescence physically ill from the side effects of anxiety, tension headaches, nausea, the list goes on. By the time I was nineteen years old I made the proclamation to finding a better way of living and so I sought an anxiety free life through holist

There is a silly notion I have carried around my whole life that I can be a pro before I’m a rookie. The impatient side of me would like to skip steps 1, 2 and 3 and jump right into 4. Like getting out of the shower and having perfectly blown out hair. Needless to say I have been unsuccessful and this silly notion has caused me much anxiety over the years. The advice given to me time and time again has been, take baby steps, take it one project at a time, it doesn’t need t

“Aaaaaahhhhhhh! This article sounds like shit! DELETE…..I still hate it….I suck at writing! DELETE! Why am I even trying to write a blog, I’m not a writer! AUGH!” Hi, my name is Sabrina and I suffer from perfectionism: “Sabrina you know better, what’s wrong with you!”, “The cookies could have been better if I just…”, “How does Pinterest make it look so easy?!”. Can anyone out there relate? Sign of mania: I feel everything important, to me, needs to be perfect! My family ha

This past year has challenged me to take a close look at unhealthy habits and leading me to implement new ways of living and thinking. Implementing change isn’t anything new I find that I challenge myself constantly. However this year with a number of lessons learned and still being learned there is one I hope to always remember, that is, transformation doesn’t have to be painful. I’ll admit, some changes were easy to make, others came with a lot of resistance. However, w

Where does your mind go when you are uncomfortable? Paying attention to our thoughts when fear and discomfort set in is a great way to understand how we cope with fear. Who do you think about? Where does your mind go? Do you fantasize? Pay attention to what comes up for you and maybe keep a journal or notepad handy. When moments of discomfort come up jot down how you react. Write it down before you have a chance to forget. If you notice that you are pushing the discomfort a

When you calmly float on your back in the water, have you ever noticed how your body naturally stays at the surface? Yet, the second you decide to resist, and begin flailing or churning to keep yourself afloat, you inevitably sink? Lying on your back, belly up and vulnerable and giving way to the water is technically a form of surrender. Alternatively, you may opt to kick, scream, and fight the water, but all you will accomplish is exhausting yourself, and will eventually su

Day 7 of the From Snow to Glow Movement closed our first week with this note. I was reminded of a wonderful analogy the other day that can be applied to this week’s Spring Clean Theme. Detoxifying our lives can feel great but it also comes with the inevitable purging of gook or garbage that no longer serves us. As we mature emotionally it is common to grieve. A part of which we once associated ourselves with dies as we make change. That is why it can be so difficult to break