Little Dipper Yoga + Therapeutic Bodywork

05/19/2024

Friends, they're about to start with that "SUMMER BODY" bu****it again.

Reminder: You already have a body and, presumably, will still have it when summer officially arrives on June 20 this year.

Not to get all Rage Against the Machine on you, but they want you joyless, exhausted, and motivated to consume goods + services. Be a rebel and relentlessly pursue ease, contentment, awe, elation, presence, connection, and delight — not some summer body nonsense that only serves corporations and the status quo. ✊🏼😘💥

12/29/2021

LITTLE DIPPER 2021 YEAR-IN-REVIEW...

Let's normalize transparency, accountability, and expecting businesses to share the ACTIONS they've taken to support their company values and mission statements.

Little Dipper's 2021, by the numbers...
0 group yoga classes taught (thanks a lot, COVID-19)
1 self-care workshop for Treetops Collective (cost of time and materials were donated, participants were not charged)
14 pro bono sessions
36 sliding scale sessions***
60 hours of continuing education

*** I don't currently have nearly as many sliding scale clients as I'd like. If financial challenge makes it difficult for you to receive therapeutic bodywork or access the private yoga instruction that you know would be helpful and healing for you, PLEASE reach out via email (kate@thisislittledipper.com). I'll bet you qualify for a reduced rate and I would love to work with you. Truly.

04/06/2021

I feel this even more acutely each spring as browns give way to greens, yellows, and purples here in West Michigan. May you be viscerally aware of the magic all around you this season.

03/05/2021

Temporarily closing my practice (AGAIN) from mid-November through late January wasn't fun. But it was the right thing to do. And this photo perfectly captures just how psyched I am to be BACK IN THE OFFICE and seeing clients and students again! *cue confetti cannons*

And, for those of you who might not be aware, I'm also in a new space! I moved into the Women's Health Collective back in August and I'm loving being part of this amazing group of supportive, inclusive, body positive practitioners. It's what I've been searching for for years -- a place where conventional, western medicine and more "alternative" and complimentary modalities are BOTH honored, valued, and utilized in intelligent and compassionate ways. A truly holistic and collaborative approach. 🥰🥰🥰

If therapeutic bodywork or a personalized yoga and movement practice is calling your name, reach out! I'm in the office Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays (and the occasional Saturday) and would LOVE to help you feel good in your body and reconnect to yourself in this challenging season.

11/15/2020

Friends, my heart is heavy.

This was an incredibly difficult and painful decision to make. Given the skyrocketing numbers of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in West Michigan, Little Dipper will be temporarily closed for the foreseeable future. I'm so sad, frustrated, and disappointed to have to make this choice, but I need to do what I know is right. Even when it feels crummy.

ESPECIALLY when it feels crummy.

If there's bigger lesson here, for me, it's this: Times of crisis and challenge will show you who you really are and if you actually value and believe in the things that you tell yourself you value and believe in. Simply put, it does not feel safe, ethical, or loving for me to stay open at this stage in the pandemic. The brave thing, the kind thing, is for me to close up shop (even though I desperately don't want to). And I want to be the person that I say that I am, so that makes my choice much clearer.

Please know that I want to help you take care of yourself even while I'm not seeing clients in person -- if you need some self-treatment tips, exercise suggestions, a personalized yoga flow, or self-care accountability, I'm here. The best way to contact me is via email (kate@thisislittledipper.com).

If you'd like to be alerted when Little Dipper is once again offering in person sessions, please subscribe to my email list (when there's not a public health emergency happening, my typical group email frequency is about once every 10-16 weeks) -- I'll include a link in the comments below.

Be well, stay safe, make good choices, and take care of yourself and your loved ones.

With hope and faith,

Kate

10/11/2020

🌟❤️🌈🎉🥰✍🏻🦋
#3: Buy a nice mattress.
#14: Stop waiting for permission. No one else can really give it to you anyway.
#20: Lots of people are mean. Lots of people are kind. When people show you who they are, believe them.
#29: Unless it's a wedding or a funeral, just wear what you want.
🌟❤️🌈🎉🥰✍🏻🦋

It's been pretty quiet over here for a while, but since I'm working on a NEW journal entry, I figured I'd better actually share the last one that I wrote: "36 Things I've Learned in 36 Years."

I had planned to have this journal entry prepped and ready to post for my 36th birthday way back in late winter 2020. But then COVID-19 happened and I didn't write it at all. Eventually, 3+ months later, the idea of writing something felt good and maybe important, so I did. And I'm finally sharing it with you today.

Give it a read if you'd like. But, whether you read it or not, I'm curious -- what have you learned in your 64, 27, 45, 31 years on this mysterious, broken, beautiful planet?

“Buy a nice mattress,” “learn to give fewer f*cks about what other people think about you and your choices,” and 34 more things that I’ve learned in my 36 years on this planet. May something I’ve written here entertain, delight, inspire, or resonate with you in some way.

08/27/2020

ATTENTION NON-INDIGENOUS FOLKS IN THE WELLNESS + YOGA COMMUNITY: Please educate yourself on the problematic aspects of using white sage in "smudging" and purification rituals.

I've been a little squicked out by non-indigenous folks smudging (i.e. burning dried + bundled white sage leaves and wafting the smoke around a room, person, or space for the purposes of energetic cleansing or "reset") for a while now. But I've refrained from saying anything about this issue because I didn't want to offend anyone or "speak out of turn." This VICE article changed my mind. Give it a read -- it's extremely well-written and researched.

There are two primary ethical issues I see with white sage use for smudging...

(1) The over-harvesting of white sage (which often involves "poaching" by people looking to make a substantial profit via the wholesale of white sage) is causing a significant impact on the species (and, therefore, on the ecosystems it belongs to) and if the rate at which wild white sage plants are currently being harvested by non-indigenous individuals continues to hold steady or increases, white sage may become endangered.

(2) There's a fine line between APPRECIATION and APPROPRIATION. I have a lot of experience witnessing non-indigenous individuals using white sage for smudging in yoga studios, office spaces, and women's circles. If you're a non-indigenous person who smudges with white sage, get curious about your use of this spiritual ritual -- a sacred Native American tradition. How much do you really know about smudging? Who taught you -- was it someone of indigenous descent? How are you acknowledging white sage as medicine and giving reverence to the plant itself and the indigenous people who are in relationship with it? Are you aware that many indigenous people believe white sage should not be taken (or bought and sold), only GIVEN?

Personally, I've decided that I won't purchase white sage and will only engage in smudging if I am honored with the opportunity to learn the ritual from someone of Native American descent.

What thoughts and feelings are rising up for you as you consider white sage and smudging rituals? How might this information, and your reactions to it, inform your choices in the future?

As “smudging” has been appropriated from Native American use, the selling of sage offers a cautionary tale for the wellness economy—one where the intentions of users can be subverted by suppliers, and many sellers have no idea of their impacts.

08/10/2020

It's been a while! And, holy cannoli, do I have some updates for you! But those will have to wait for another post. ;)

Let's talk SLIDING SCALE SESSIONS.

Folks who are subscribed to the Little Dipper email list know that I've DOUBLED the number of sliding scale sessions I'm offering each week -- it's really important to me that finances aren't a barrier to reconnecting to your own body and heart and FEELING BETTER.

I currently have space for one additional sliding scale session during the week of 8/23. If you (or someone you love) might benefit from this session, please reach out via email to kate@thisislittledipper.com so that we can get you all the details, determine if you qualify, and set something up.

💗💗💗💗

05/13/2020

This one's for all my slow folks...

Did you notice how the digital space was FLOODED with information, programs, webinars, Zoom classes, and virtualized offerings right after s**t got REAL with COVID-19 in the US?

Yeah, me too.

And I caught myself allllllmost falling into the trap of believing that, in order to "keep up" or "be of service" or "stay relevant," I need to join the fray ASAP and add something to the tsunami of content that was being unleashed in late March and early April.

OR thinking that I needed to jump on the self-improvement, "take advantage of all this extra time" bandwagon and start participating in a bunch of classes, challenges, online events, or free programs myself.

But then I stopped, took a breath, and acknowledged two things:
(1) I was in the midst of a collective and personal TRAUMA.
(2) Some of the stuff I was seeing suddenly popping up on the ol' interwebs was great, helpful, and important. A lot of it, for me at least, just seemed like noise.

Giving myself some space to be with my own experience of the pandemic (health impacts, familial concerns, economic uncertainty, loss of purpose, feelings of powerlessness and lack of control, uncomfortable emotions) needed to be priority #1. And, at the risk of sounding a little bossy and absolutist, this should be your #1 priority too -- TAKE YOUR TIME. There's no rush. Allow yourself to feel into what you're really experiencing day to day and moment to moment.

One morning, you might feel completely at peace -- appreciating the quieter rhythm of your days, the extra time with family, the gut check COVID-19 may have provided that forced you to really reflect on if you actually LIKE the life you're living. The next afternoon, you might be full of rage at folks' carelessness, grieving because you miss your dear ones, or ready to lock your kids out of the house just so you can buy yourself a few minutes free of bickering and whining.

All of this is real. All of this is valid. All of this is normal and okay. BE WITH IT.

You guys -- it took me almost two months to consistently feel mentally, physically, and emotionally safe enough to do anything other than minister to my own tender heart in this tumultuous season.

I am so, so, so glad that I waited to say much of anything on the socials or to construct any new virtual offerings -- because I realized that it's damn near impossible to create heart-opening, transformative, thoughtful offerings and content when you're losing your s**t.

And it's pretty unlikely that you're going to feel edified, educated, and replenished if you're participating in all those Zoom classes, online trainings, and month-long programs while you're barely keeping your head above water on a personal level.

Stop and breathe.

Be with yourself and what you're experiencing.

Take your time. The world will still be here when you're ready.

04/29/2020

A little LMT humor for you on this Saturnesday. Because we could all probably use a laugh right about now. ;)