Art of Body and Soul

12/01/2023

While we cannot control what happens to us, we can control our reactions to the events of our lives -- and this gives us immense strength and freedom.

11/30/2023

Life's happiness, Aurelius said, "depends upon the quality of your thoughts.”

11/29/2023

A belief is just a thought that you've had over and over again, and it CAN be changed. (Negative beliefs about yourself, others or your circumstances can be eliminated from your life when you make a decision, with firm intention & emotion to do so.)

11/28/2023

09/07/2023

Most days will not go as planned. You can let it totally p**s you off and derail you. Or you can go with the flow and teach your children how to do the same.

Improvise, adapt, and overcome.

That is one of the most valuable lessons you will ever teach your children.

01/04/2022

12/07/2021

Benefits for neurotransmitters, inflammation, and more.

09/29/2021

Positive social support is exceptionally important for good physical and mental health. It can enhance resilience to stress, increase longevity and quality of life, reduce levels of inflammation, enhance immunity, promote healthy weight management, improve mood, enhance self-esteem, improve feelings of well-being, enhances vitality, encourage kindness, enhance sense of belonging, increase empathy for others, lead to greater levels of trust and openness, and promote positive behavior changes. In the case of the latter, positive social support is a linchpin for making healthy changes in every domain of life. And finally, positive social support allows us to create wonderful shared memories.

So, who makes up your inner circle? Is it time to make some tough decisions? Is it time to make some new acquaintances?

09/28/2021

Motivational speaker Jim Rohn is famous for saying, “You’re the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.” Take some time to think about that. Seriously.

Are those 5 people you associate with most positive-minded, encouraging, and supportive? Do they energize you and inspire you to be your best? Do they share similar values and goals? Do they listen to you and empathize with you? Are they there for you through thick and thin? Do they give you a genuine pat on the back for your accomplishments? Do they provide you healthy accountability and help raise awareness to self-sabotaging tendencies?

Or, is your inner circle more likely to be negative, pessimistic, and defeatist? Are those 5 people energy vampires holding you back? Do their priorities conflict with your own? Do they expect you to listen to them but never return the favor? Are they fair-weathered? Do they talk behind others’ backs (maybe even your own)? Are they jealous of yours (and others’) successes? Are they judgmental? Do they secretly (or openly) hope for the worst for others and purposely attempt to bring them down?

I think you get the point. If you want to live a healthy, happy, successful, and fulfilling life, you need to surround yourself with positive, like-minded people -- which is often referred to as positive social support.

09/18/2021

Forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting what happened. It also doesn’t mean that your hurt doesn’t matter. Or that the relationship will continue forward where it left off.

Rather, forgiveness is about letting go. You have the power to choose to let go of hurt, anger, resentment, and any other negative emotion that you no longer want part of your life. In a way, forgiveness is medicine for your mind.

08/31/2021

Despite life and its constant changes, if you manage to find time to enjoy, play and relish in your passion, it shows strength and resilience.

08/30/2021

Not a lot of people can put off a box of chocolate, or skip their favorite show. Ability to call the shots demonstrates incredible strength.

08/27/2021

With the pursuit for a better life comes the grit and persistence needed to keep getting better. Strong people work on their skills and ability. They practice, try, fail, and repeat till they succeed, then they keep improving – seeking grander goals and missions.

08/26/2021

The truth is that not everyone likes or supports all that you do. This means that relying on the approval of others would put you in a perpetual place of confusion and unhappiness – two potent poisons that take away your inner power.

Though it is true that we all need some degree of external validation to function in society. But people who limit that need to only their important people (like family and partners), generally find themselves in a more stable and empowering position than those who rely on complete strangers (think social media likes).