Category: Yoga

How do you handle stress? I usually work well under pressure but today I crumbled cause everything hit me all at once and I got flustered. I eventually took care of everything but once I was alone I broke down & cried cause I let the pressure get to me. I’m human, it happens.

Stress is not what happens to you it’s your response to what is happening. So what do we do about that? What if we’re carrying too much weight on our shoulders and half of it isn’t ours to carry? You have to re-examine the stressors in your life. There are some things that are out of our control like a loved one being sick, traffic, rude people, lines at stores… you get the picture. You have no control over other people’s actions or situations.

How about things that are a little more in your control like bills? You see, I’m a believer in lists. I say re-evaluate your spending. If you’re on a tight budget then you should have 2 lists: Needs and Wants period! Relationships? If the bad list outweighs the good then you know what you have to do. I know, easier said than done but no one ever said making the right decision was easy. If it was that easy then no one would have struggles in life. The point I’m trying to get at is that only YOU have control over your own actions.

Sometimes we put more weight on our shoulders than necessary. After a stressful day, it’s important to re-evaluate what it was that caused the stress and CHOOSE an internal calm. It’s all about how you handle a situation. Taking a quiet moment each day to self-reflect is important for yourself. It doesn’t make a stressful situation better but will help you respond differently next time & sometimes that makes all the difference.

Do you think before you speak or do you just let it all come out in the heat of the moment?

I often think before I speak but I wasn’t always like that. With age comes wisdom & in my wise years I’ve learned that you don’t have to put it all out there. Don’t get me wrong, I get angry & there are things I want to say (especially when I hear things I don’t agree with) but I know that’s just emotion that wants to come out so I often bite my tongue & walk away from situations and give myself time to reflect so I can come back later with the right words.

Sometimes you want so badly for the other person to understand your point of view but arguing or insults will only make it worse. So I’ve learned to just listen or respectfully agree to disagree and leave it at that. Sometimes if you have a strong opinion about something & the other person does too maybe a truce would be in order to keep the peace. Why argue and let it escalate into something ugly? All for what? To prove what point? Who said either one of you are completely right? Maybe you both have good points but too stubborn to realize it.

Keep an open mind, hear the other side, agree to disagree and move on to something else. That’s how you keep the peace. Remember, once you cross that line and say something you regret later, it may be forgiven but it can never be unheard.

Self-Reflection is a humbling process. Why do you do the things you do & say the things you say? We know what façade we put forth to the public but only we know what’s really going on inside.  When you do a soul searching what do you find? Do you like what you see? What are you gonna do about it?

You have to start by finding out what makes you tick. What made you who you are? Whether it be good, bad or indifferent, something in life shaped you. Now what is it that you’d like to see different? It’s never too late to change. I think everyone is capable of change. Change is definitely a lot of work but if you’re willing and determined it can happen. Change doesn’t necessarily mean what you’re changing from was bad, change can just mean exactly that…..it’s time for a change.

I know I’ve changed a lot in the last 4 years. I’ve done a lot of self-reflection and I’m definitely not the same person. My life used to be filled with turmoil & anger and I knew something had to change and quick. I wanted to change for myself. I was craving peace & happiness for my soul and I slowly took steps to change things. I let go of a lot of people in my life that served me no purpose except cause me grief. Then I noticed that things that used to make me angry didn’t anymore. I didn’t have as much anxiety & I was more easy going.  I now lead a much more simple life. Some may find it boring but I feel I’m where I need to be in life right at this moment & I’m completely satisfied and happy.

The trick to life, I discovered, is to be able to walk away from anything or anyone that no longer serves you, grows you or makes you happy. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you can’t be happy with yourself first you surely can’t make those around you happy 🙂

There is no such thing as “a perfect moment” or even “perfection” for that matter. That perfect defining moment will be different to each person.

What makes your heart sing? Is it a brief moment of silence? Is it going to the gym for hours? Is it binge watching all your favorite T.V shows or is it eating 1/2 gallon of your favorite ice-cream for breakfast? All of that qualifies as a perfect moment to someone out there in the world. A perfect moment doesn’t have to be something fancy or exotic. Don’t let anyone define what YOUR perfect moment should be, make it your own. Whatever makes your heart smile should define your perfect moment.

My perfect moment is when I know no one is sick at home and I can escape to the mountains I love to hike or to the park to do Yoga & be at peace within myself to enjoy nature because at that very moment everything is okay in my world.

I had a conversation the other day with my husband recalling how growing up I always looked to my father for all the answers. He was my hero. He was the problem solver & always made everything okay again.

When my son was diagnosed with Cancer last April and I broke the news to my father… initially, he took it pretty well, as I expected him to. He wanted to come with me when I drove out of state to see my son & speak with the Doctor. When we found out how dire his situation was my fathers demeanor changed. Once we got back to the hotel and we were alone my father sobbed like I had never seen a man sob before. He was inconsolable, there was nothing I could say to him. He told me to just let him be, so I did.

My mind went into overdrive. I didn’t know what to do first but I hit the ground running. I called my husband & we made a laundry list of things to be done. We had to add him back on our insurance, get him back home to NY and get an appointment at Sloan Kettering ASAP! I didn’t have time to think about anything else. I was constantly on the phone either with my husband, Insurance Company, Sloan Kettering, Doctors or American Cancer Society (for support).

Long Story short, we got my son back to NY three weeks later with an appointment at Sloan Kettering. It’s been a year of bi-weekly doctor appointments, bi-monthly hospital stays & regular visiting nurse service at the house.

One day a few weeks ago, my father was over for dinner and we were talking about this crazy year long Cancer ride. My father looked at me & said “You’re my hero…I couldn’t have done everything you did”  He continued, “I wouldn’t know where to start”              He doesn’t even realize he was my role model.

It was at that moment I realized our roles had been reversed. I had always looked to him to solve all the problems & now he looks to me to take care of this one.