1. Lifestyle:

2. Physical Health:

3. Mental Health

Of all the things we do mindlessly, eating is often the one we do the most often. We sit and eat without paying full attention to the food we are eating. We may be eating healthy, and we may be eating the correct portion sizes but too often we do other things at the same time as eating that draw our attention away from eating. Mindful eating is something we can all do to help us to really appreciate the amazing variety and quality of foods that are available to us. Mindful eating does not need to be practiced each and every time we eat but we should aim to do this at least 3-4 times per week. Mindful eating does not need to be limited to meals. It can be very helpful when snacking and especially if there is that one food that you find you just can’t control yourself around. For me, that food is potato chips and so I will use those as my example. You might like to try this with chocolate, or sultanas.

You should be doing nothing other than eating now. No reading Facebook, no talking on the phone. Just focusing on your food. Get yourself a small serving of whatever food you have chosen. No more than a few mouthfuls. This is not about satisfying physical hunger, this is about satisfying emotional hunger.

Start by just looking at the food. Notice it’s shape, it’s colour. I like plain thin cut potato chips and these are usually oval and a pale yellow colour. The shapes and sizes vary across the serving. Some chips are bigger than others. Some have what look like burn marks on them. If your food is hot notice the steam rising off it and the shapes that stream makes as it rises.

Now take note of the smell. I can smell the salt. Notice how your body reacts. My mouth is starting to fill with additional saliva. I can almost taste the saltiness already. Notice if the smell brings back any memories of other times you have eaten this food. Are those memories happy ones?

The next step is my favourite. Eating your food. Pick up your first piece. Again, notice the shape, size, colour and smell of this particular piece taking note of how your body reacts. Take a bite, and let that bite just sit in your mouth for a moment. Notice the feel of the food on your tongue. Chips are rough but they slowly dissolve. I can taste the salt from the chip as it sits there. Now you can chew if you need to. Again take note of the texture and the taste of the food. When you are ready you can swallow.

Notice how the food feels as you swallow. Does it go down smoothly or is there a roughness to it. Feel if you can sense it entering your stomach, and the sensations of the stomach as the food begins to be digested. Now notice all the sensations from having eaten this bite. Sit for a moment before having the next bite.

Try and do this for the entire serving you have placed out for yourself. Take your time. There is no rush. Just enjoy each and every bite. When you are done sit for a moment and notice how you feel about what you have just eaten. What tastes are left in your mouth? Do you now require a drink of water? How enjoyable what just that small portion.

Mindful eating can be very useful when there is one food that you tend to overeat on. When we overeat on a particular food we tend to lose focus on the food itself and instead focus on how it makes us feel. When we can take the time to fully focus on the food we can gain a greater appreciation for that food. Practicing mindful eating with foods we tend to overeat on can also help us to not overeat on those foods. It can help us to slow down and focus on each and every bite, and to help us see when we are eating to satisfy an emotion rather than a hunger.

Guided Meditation and Mindfulness can help to teach you about what triggers your desires to eat different foods, and teach you different, and healthier ways of coping with day to day stress in your life. If this is something you would like to learn more about book a session with me today.

Let’s talk about talking. Specifically, the words we use when we speak to others and how we communicate our thoughts and feelings. I know I am just as guilty as others with not using the most compassionate language. Too often we tend to speak without really thinking about the impact our words may have on other people. We listen to others, not to hear them but to respond to them. In doing that we not only miss the more subtle things being said, but we also don’t take the time to acknowledge the power that words can have.

I personally think that one of the biggest reasons we do this is due to the increased use of the written word. Tone cannot be conveyed when we type. Those other subtle things we do when we use our voice such as volume and speed can also not be conveyed when we type. As such our communications are becoming more and more about just the words that we use and less about what we are actually saying.

In order to better our communication skills we need to do a few things. Some are easy and many of us already do them in some ways. First of all we need to focus on the person we are talking to. We love to talk about ourselves, but we need to allow for space for others to share about themselves as well. This is the key to getting to know another person on a deeper level. Secondly, when we listen we should do so attentively. This includes making eye contact and not being distracted by other things. As a parent this one can be hard. Over the last almost 14 years I have had to learn how to have a conversation with a person while keeping an eye or an ear on my children. We can however limit distractions as much as possible. The biggest culprit is usually looking at your phone while talking to someone. Whatever it is you’re looking at, it can wait. Right now the person you are talking to should be the most important thing.

Thirdly, we should not rush to respond. It is ok to ask for clarification of what has just been said. This allows us to gain a deeper understand of what is being said to us. It is also ok to take a pause before responding. If you feel you need more time to formulate a response, then it is best to say so. This may also allow for space for greater understand and further clarification of what has been said. Conversations won’t always go the way you would like, and it’s important to not take this personally. We all have our own needs and desires and they will not always match up to the person with who you are speaking. In conjunction with this, try best to avoid assumptions. We all have a lot going on in our lives, much of which we do not share with others. This can influence how we might behave in a conversation. People generally have their reasons for responding or reacting in a certain way, and it may not always have to do with you personally. There may be more going on in their lives than you are aware of.

Above all else we should seek to be ourselves when we communicate. Be true to your own values and beliefs while still maintaining respect for those you are communicating with. If you are not sincere in what you say, don’t say it. This probably pertains mostly to making promises we have no intention of keeping. If you have no intention on following through, then don’t promise it. It is far better, and more compassionate, to tell someone you can’t do something than to tell them you can when you have zero intention of doing it. We often say we’ll do something for fear of hurting the other person’s feelings, but in the end it is less hurtful to be truthful. For the most part, people are very understanding when we say we can’t do something.

When we really listen to others, we can really enhance our communication. When we take the time to really think about our response and response in a helpful and compassionate way we can help to shape better and deeper communications with others. Mindfulness is a great tool that can help us to listen better and to speak with more compassion. As a meditation and mindfulness teacher as well as a counsellor, I have developed tools to assist you in listening and communicating with others including ways to better navigate challenging conversations. You can book a session with me to discuss this by clicking the book now button below.

It’s time to get very personal and talk about the small human in my life. These small humans are everything to me. They are often the cause of stress, both big and little, but they are also the cause of most of the joy in my life too. They give me balance. There is three little humans. I won’t mention them by names and will instead use code names (and baby photos because they were all so adorable!).

Stress happens. It’s unavoidable in life. Like death, or taxes. However, we can reduce the stress we face every day. For this to happen one of the first things we need to do is identify the cause of our stress. For busy mum’s such as myself, stress is often surrounding getting the family organised. Who has to be where, when and with what belongings? Then on top of that there is daily chores such as washing (we all need clean underwear) and meal preparation (we all must eat). We can’t just stop doing all those things, the world just doesn’t work like that. So what can we do to reduce the amount of stress we feel from these things?

Let some of it go. Not all of it, just some. It is however, far easier said than done, but with some simple tools together with some time and some patience it can be done. My biggest tool for stress reduction is a family planner than is on my kitchen wall. Every member has their own column and all activities are recorded onto it. It is up to the individual to check their column daily to see what they need to do. This is especially helpful when it comes to kids activities. It is up to them to make sure they are ready on time, and with the necessary equipment that they need to take with them. If they forget it, well, that’s on them. When we first started doing this there were a few hiccups, like the 9 year old forgetting to take her rod to a Calisthenics Comp, but we dealt with those as needed.

Also included on this calendar is a column for meal planning. This way meals can be planned in advance, and I can see what activities are going on and plan meals around them accordingly. This isn’t fool proof and occasionally whatever meal is planned doesn’t happen and something easier (or takeaway) happens. The calendar can also be used to create a cleaning schedule. Once again it can be planned around whatever else is going on. One of the biggest benefits my family has found from meal planning is that it saves money. Gone are the days where hours in the late afternoon are spent wondering what to have and then it becomes too late to cook so take-out it is. The meals are also far more nutritionally sound. I try and make sure not to be hungry whilst doing the meal plan as I find if I do it whilst hungry, I make poorer choices about what meals to have. Each family member also gets a say in what we have for dinner. That way there is less room for complaints.

I’ve got to say though, right now my calendar is still on June. I will not be moving it to July and possibly not even to August. I did this earlier in the year during our March/April/May lock down and now that we once again find ourselves staying at home, complete with more remote learning, the calendar has become something I don’t wish to even think about, let alone look at. So meal planning right now is on a little scrap of paper on my fridge. Both my girls have pointed out that besides meals there is nothing to go on the calendar anyways. The truth the exists in that makes me rather sad.

Organisation is what I believe to be the key to reducing stressors. It can take a while to get it running smoothly but once it does the impact it has is enormous. You do need to be flexible with your planning though and understand that sometimes things change with a moments notice. By implementing some organisation though, you can also carve out some time for you to be able to focus on  yourself or your family a little more.