Tag: meditation

BOOK, Harmonious Health 4 Life, Write Pray Recover

Resilience:For Wendy and David – Love, Wendy

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I was thinking on my way home from work yesterday that living in chronic pain is so humbling…I can never take one moment for granted…

I live with Lupus and hadn’t needed regular medication in five years as I managed it holistically…until now.

Living with chronic pain makes the small things feel sacred…the details more palatable…every quiet, manageable moment becomes a gift.

Our awareness of our humility is our deepest strength.

Here are four tiny practices that honor this insight without asking for more than you can give while you’re navigating any challenging situation with your health:

  1. One-breath gratitude once tonight before sleep. Take one long, slow inhale, and on the exhale name one small yet meaningful thing from today that made you feel stronger and at peace (a warm shower, a walk on the beach, a song you liked). That single moment trains the brain to notice tiny graces and successes. It reminds us of our power.

2. A moment of kindness to the body. Put a warm hand over your injured/painful area, soften your jaw, breathe 4 inhale, 1 hold it, 6 exhale…just once, and say aloud or silently to yourself, “I did what I could today. I showed up. I honored myself. I am worthy. I am healing.”

3. A “Humility Journal” (30 seconds). When you have a spare 30 seconds, jot down one word that describes what this day taught you (humility, steadiness, courage, patience). It’s just a quiet record by you, for you, of how you keep showing up.

4. Reflection and Warm Embrace. (From my book, Write Pray Recover:A Journey To Wellness Through Spiritual Solutions and Self Care “Today I am grateful for…”
Offer yourself a hug, a warm cup of your favorite beverage, time listening to your favorite music, or whatever a “self embrace” feels like for you…Love yourself.

You’re allowed to see the grief and feel the frustration, and the lesson at the same time.

I am resilient. I am becoming…

Love and blessings,

Wendy

BOOK, Harmonious Health 4 Life, Soul Notes, Write Pray Recover

Living with Lupus And Thriving in Recovery – Love, Wendy

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Living with lupus requires a great deal of determination and patience and willingness to listen to what your body needs and what it’s asking for…especially when you are an otherwise active person and your body just…S-T-O-P-S…

And if that isn’t enough to embrace…when you are living in recovery from prescription drug addiction, as I am, it is even more of a mindful experience where I must choose only what will promote my wellness, as I do not accept any prescriptions that contain codeine and the like as that was my addiction…

So in the past 13 years of my “Wellness In Recovery…” I have learned many alternative solutions to soothe chronic pain and anxiety which I choose every time…and I am open to an integrative approach, as I write about in my book, Write Pray Recover:A Journey To Wellness Through Spiritual Solutions and Self Care.

For me, as I continue to heal from a serious Lupus flare, I am choosing non-narcotic prescription meds that my rheumatologist has prescribed including steroids, in conjunction with my holistic practices such as gentle stretching, yoga poses, gentle walking, and of late, learning a little bit about Qi-Gong. One of my mantra’s is “Mindset over Movement…Movement over Medication.”

In addition, I do a significant amount of breath work to literally breathe in, or lean into the pain rather than tense up my joints and muscles where my body is able to relax as I use my mantra, “With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

Organic foods, hydration, meditation/prayer, and surrounding myself with loved ones are just as important in promoting my own wellness.

My ongoing recovery from addiction and my desire for thriving in wellness is my most important intention and purpose. It is the foundation of my life.

Lupus is so unpredictable and this flare was triggered by a disc herniation and nerve impingement. Lupus invaded all of my joints and muscles, and halted any movement of my body…and in the moment that I realized that I could no longer move freely…I surrendered. (Read Chapter 13-“Surrender:The Peace of Knowing”) in my book.

I am moving slowly these days with purpose. Lupus is slowly subsiding…I am regaining my strength…And through the stiffness and heaviness, I choose to move. I am able to move. I set an intention to move and to be cognizant of how much my body is able to sustain…and then I rest accordingly.

I use deliberate breath work, and I listen and feel what my body has the ability to do each day…and sometimes it changes throughout the day…and I honor whatever that looks like.

For someone else, the right balance of care may look different, and I encourage you to find what resonates with you under the “umbrella” of healing, and implement it into your daily practices.

My wellness is my most important tool…through self care of healthy practices and a mindset of “With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

From my book, Chapter 4:Self Care…“Think of it as you would your bank account. You must continue to replenish your bank account as your bills come in each month, otherwise your account becomes depleted, or even bankrupt. You must think of your wellness account in the same way! We have so many demands on our time and energy each day. If we do not replenish our wellness account, and we continue to “give out” our energy to all of the demands, we will go into debt, energetically, and become physically, mentally and spiritually bankrupt.”

“We must make the time for ourselves, through healthy practices, to experience wellness.” Wellness is ALWAYS a choice. My choice is to always live each day through healthy practices that support my health and wellness goals year round so that my body remembers exactly how to heal when I experience a flare. The brain remembers the rhythm of resilience, and it signals the body to return to balance, peace, and healing.

“Self care is the actions that we take to achieve wellness, and wellness is where we stand in our power!”

“With each breath and step I take, I am healing.”

Love and blessings,

Wendy

Author Bio

Wendy Blanchard, M.S., INHC is an author, speaker, and Integrative Nutrition Health Coach specializing in holistic wellness and recovery. She is the author of Write Pray Recover: A Journey To Wellness Through Spiritual Solutions and Self Care and is currently writing her second book, Soul Notes. Wendy is passionate about guiding others to sustainable wellness through spiritual solutions, self-care, and integrative practices.

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Reset with your breath – Love, Wendy

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Regulate your nervous system.

Stay in control of your personal agency, naturally. Keep your mind sharply on your breath which is the most challenging part of using deliberate breathing.

Deliberate breathing brings the body and mind into a state of calm and focus.

Reset…

Take in two sharp inhales. Exhale long and slowly.

When you find yourself triggered, or your emotions are causing you physical symptoms of anxiety, use your breath.

It is your most accessible tool to intervene with your physiology in real time.

When you make mindful breathing/deliberate breathing a regular practice which becomes part of your lifestyle, it is easier to implement, and to be successful during times of high stress and anxiety.

Go to a quiet place and keep your mind on your breath. 
Using substances are only a temporary fix. We always have our breath and it is our most accessible tool to intervene with our nervous system in real time.

I have 13 years of sobriety now and breathing is one of my go to’s when I feel panic or anxiety. 

I had to use this on Friday night and even though I’ve practiced mindful breathing for over a decade, it took me almost an hour to re-center and recover. And afterwards, your body can feel exhausted. This is normal as you guide your brain to center.

It takes a lot of mental strength to stay focused on your breath and not the symptoms of the anxiety episode that you are experiencing. This is why it is so vital to make this a daily practice. 

Your brain then recognizes immediately the pattern of focus and calm. It strengthens the neural pathways over time that support relaxation and focus. It creates an automatic response to stress that promotes emotional regulation and resilience!


To work with me one on one in my coaching program, call 845–263–4094.

Love, Wendy

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Caring for your mental and physical health during these unprecedented times – Love, Wendy

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The brain has its limits when it comes to processing information, especially when it’s complex or emotionally charged.

Psychologically, we tend to get overwhelmed when we are bombarded with too much uncertainty, bad news, or major shifts in their environment. This type of overload (allostatic load–a physiological stress response when repeatedly exposed to stress which is affecting our wellness. DAILY self care is needed for balance and wellness) is where stress hormones like cortisol ramp up, and it becomes harder to focus or make decisions.

When we are observing our fundamental rights and our democracy under attack constantly throughout the day and in a very short amount of time, we feel our safety net blowing in the wind and our once solid foundation crack.

We are watching the erosion of our rights and freedoms.

Practicing extra self care, especially during times of external chaos is the one thing we have control over. We must preserve our personal power. It’s like putting on your own oxygen mask first before you can help others. Our family, friends, our adult children, our grandchildren, our students may be looking to us for comfort and guidance.

By preserving our personal power, we are more inclined to stay grounded and resilient when everything feels overwhelming, and in this space we are able to support others.

I literally felt breathless last night as I tried to fall asleep. I had to do mindful breathing for awhile before I was able to feel more at peace. Deliberately implementing a relaxed breathing pattern calms a dysregulated nervous system.

Our breath is our most accessible tool to intervene with our physiology in real time.

I made the following changes and I am suggesting these to you, my dear readers, as a possible source of alleviating the chronic stress and taking back your personal power.

  1. Turn off all news notifications on your cell phone. I only left on the “emergency notification.”
  2. I only watch the weather on the television, never the news broadcast as they tend to bombard us with the same information over and over.
  3. Engage in self care practices that bring you peace and wellness. There is a wonderful mantra that I practice from “A Course In Miracles” that says, “I can choose peace rather than this.” Whenever I begin to feel my body tightening and my heart racing, I remind myself of this simple yet powerful mantra.
  4. I am a writer, so writing is so cathartic for me as I release my thoughts and emotions onto the paper. Perhaps journaling your thoughts and emotions would be helpful. Writing stimulates the RAS Reticular Activation System in the brain and this part of the brain filters and processes information. SO EFFECTIVE.
  5. Getting outdoors to breathe the fresh air and to release the overwhelming negative energy through a walk in nature is so comforting. I always come home feeling calmer, more peaceful and hopeful.
  6. I listen to “Calm Radio” on Pandora.
  7. I practice mediation and mindful breathing and stretching.
  8. Give yourself whatever you need…i.e., your favorite cup of tea, coffee, light candles, essential oils, etc. A healthy practice supports a healthy mind and body.
  9. Talk to a trusted friend or loved one. DON’T get stuck on the negative. Going around and around about the negative creates a downward spiral of our mental health.
  10. IN ANY MOMENT WHERE WE FEEL STRESSED OR TRIGGERED, WE CAN CHOOSE TO USE OUR “RATIONAL AND WISE MIND” VS OUR “EMOTIONAL MIND,” IF WE ARE PRACTICING ONGOING SELF CARE. IN THIS MOMENT, WE CAN STOP AND ASK OURSELVES, “WHAT ACTION/PRACTICE WILL SERVE ME BEST IN THIS MOMENT? WHAT WILL PROMOTE MY WELLNESS?”

Allow your brain space and time to receive information, and use the information as it pertains to your individual situation.

Most of what we are experiencing is out of our control. Focus on yourself and your loved ones.

Do whatever you can to preserve your physical and mental health by practicing daily self care, and do it often throughout the day.

Release any thoughts of worry. Be prepared for unexpected events in whatever way brings you peace. And remind yourself often…

“I can choose peace rather than this…”

Love and blessings,

Wendy