Tag Archives: ayurveda bend oregon

Fear of Slowing Down

Let me describe a common scenario…

A woman/mother/man/father (could be you) rises to the sound of an alarm, steps out of bed and into a role that s/he plays well — always working diligently on the projects of the day (work, parenting, meals, cleaning, driving, etc.) — crossing all of the ‘t’s and dotting all of the ‘i’s — rushing around to make sure deadlines are met.

Sometimes meals get skipped; sometimes, fast food has to suffice. Transitions between events/meetings/tasks are tight and sometimes it doesn’t feel like there’s room to breathe, much less observe the subtleties within moments.

Sometimes s/he hears a “thank you” (although it might be rare). S/he’s become so accustomed to this way of life that (most days) there’s no longer even a thought about “self-care”, or doing something for your Self. The evenings require as much routine and squeezing in as the days do, and by the end of the night s/he’s left drained, often indulging in one or more forms of self-medicating — a drink (or two), a few Netflix episodes, the infamous late-night snacking, etc.

It’s not until the weekend that s/he sometimes wonders where the life s/he used to dream about went; s/he sees life flying by without actually living it, and wonders if this is just how it goes. Not quite what s/he imagined for her/his self.


Can you relate to this story?

BAD NEWS: If you’re like most Americans, this is a rough sketch of your daily life.
GOOD NEWS: It doesn’t have to be this way! (keep reading)

When we are living as described above, i.e. modern, over-scheduled lives, we are out of touch with our bodies, our emotions, and our dreams. This translates as living in a constant state of triggering and fear, which means we are going through our lives mostly in Fight/Flight/Freeze (Sympathetic Nervous System) mode, which causes degeneration and disease. When we are in SNS (sympathetic nervous system), blood is diverted away from the organs and into the limbs for quick response. The problem isn’t the SNS, but the fact that we are constantly “on guard” for the next thing that needs doing or email that needs checking.

In order to HEAL, digest, and restore our bodies/minds we need to be in Parasympathetic Nervous System. And as long as we are operating in SNS (i.e. stress response) for the majority of our minutes/hours/days/weeks, then our hormones (and lives) will be out of balance.

Recognizing this is one thing, but making a lifestyle change is quite another.

“Maybe we hear these pleas from our bodies, but we don’t know how to stop running, pushing, overreaching ourselves. We are afraid that if we stop, something terrible will happen.”

~ Dr. Claudia Welch

You might not think you live in “fear”, but I’m here to tell you that if you are choosing a life that is harming your health, inside and out, and limiting your potential, then you ARE. A little tough love here…

As unintentional as it may be, YOU ARE CHOOSING the path of INSANITY! 😱

GOOD NEWS: You CAN Get OUT of this Cycle!!!
BAD NEWS: There is no quick fix — no pill, no diet, no superfood, no surgery, no ONE thing that will “fix it” FOR you. The work is all on you.
MORE GOOD NEWS: This is EXACTLY my specialty and I’d LOVE to help you get UNstuck!

P.S. It’s not going to be EASY, but it’s going to be BEAUTIFUL and so so so FULFILLING!

Schedule a time to talk with me here.

xoxo

Jessica

How to Thrive this Summer with Ayurveda!

Ayurveda is a beautiful and rich system of healing. It not only gives us an incredibly detailed science of the human being’s magnificent multi-layered self, but it also gives us a picture of the entire universe and how we fit into it. As such, being aligned with Nature is critical to our overall health and ability to heal.

Simply put…if we are out of sync (misaligned), we cannot thrive.

In practical terms, being ALIGNED with Nature means paying attention to the world around us and arranging our lifestyle choices around the circadian rhythms of our planet. Our Grandparents and Great Grandparents did this naturally, because several decades back we humans were more connected to the rhythms of the earth in our daily lives. Nowadays, we have the ability to eat any food in any season, to watch anything online at anytime, to completely disregard the internal and external rhythms around us for the sake of desire and convenience.

What is this disregard doing to us? It’s part of the cause of a whole slew of epidemic problems in our modern civilization — like obesity, type 2 diabetes, insomnia, and so so many different autoimmune issues, like fibromyalgia, allergies, eczema, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, thyroid problems like Hashimoto’s, and a ton of different digestive issues like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Crohn’s disease. And in case you weren’t aware, this is a very small list of all of the autoimmune diseases that are plaguing so many in “modern” cultures. What I wish everyone knew is this…

Autoimmune dis-eases and so many other health diagnoses can be cured with the Circadian Medicine of Ayurveda.

Circadian Medicine is living in tune with Nature. It really doesn’t get anymore uncomplicated than that, which is why it might be looked over in our modern day and age.

This simple wisdom can easily be lost in a culture that puts more faith in technology and the initials that come after a name, than intuition, nature and the individual’s power to heal.

So, without further ado, I’ll get straight to how you can start today, by getting in tune with the season we are in…Summer!

Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel!

I also created a nifty tip sheet with easy ways to stay balanced this summer.
Print it out and post it on your fridge! 💜

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Overcoming RESISTANCE

Ever wonder WHY you don’t DO what you know you NEED to DO in order to BE your BEST Self?

There’s a REAL answer here, and it’s NOT just YOU. We ALL do it. It’s called…

RESISTANCE

Resistance is a natural way that the ego kicks in to save itself. It’s not inherently bad — it’s just the way the brain works. Unfortunately, though, if we don’t KNOW this and NAME it, then…

RESISTANCE = SELF SABOTAGE.

There are sooooo many ways that WE GET IN THE WAY OF OUR OWN HAPPINESS!

The good news is that we can beat it. I have a few #lifehacks to share with you in this week’s VLOG, so take a seat + OPEN your MIND…

After you watch, SHARE with me below in the Comments!
What ways do you catch yourself getting in your own way?

Name Your Inner Resistance!

Ready to step out of those old patterns yet? I have 2 suggestions for you!

  1. Schedule a FREE Wellness Discovery Session with Me!
  2. Join my Summer challenge — AWAKEN Your Inner Healer!

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Upcoming Free Events: What is AYURVEDA + Why It Works

Saturday, November 3rd @ 10am…

What is AYURVEDA + Why it Works (1)

Ayurveda (India’s “Science of Life”) is the quintessential wisdom of wholistic health!
In this free talk, you’ll learn some basic teachings of Ayurveda and find out how these ancient tools can help us modern humans live more in rhythm with our bodies + Nature in order to tap into our potential and THRIVE!

Where: The Studio at Blissful Heart, 29 NE Greeley Ave in downtown Bend, Oregon
When: Saturday, 11/03 @ 10:00 am

BRING A FRIEND & GET A SPECIAL TREAT!

Chances are, you know someone who would benefit from this event. Please use the SHARE buttons below to let others know! View this event on Facebook HERE.


Want to be in the KNOW about other free opportunities to learn about Ayurveda in Bend, Oregon?

Check out my Events Page HERE!

Why You NEED to LOVE Your SELF

Sacred Journey.pngHave you ever had the thought that Self-Care is Selfish? You’re not alone. But…if that’s you — if you really believe that self-care is selfish, I’m here to burst your bubble.

For many people, the words “Self”, “Self Love” and “Self Care” have connotations with being “selfish” and are therefore thought of as “bad”, but our culture has it dead wrong. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Through the ancient traditions of Yoga & Ayurveda, we learn a deeper understanding of the self. 

The (small ‘s’) self is our personality, ego, mind, body, etc., but the big ‘S’ Self is the true self, higher self, more akin to one’s Soul.

During your everyday life, do you make time to do things that nourish your Self? 

In the busyness of your schedule, I wouldn’t be surprised if your answer is no. In fact, I would bet most people don’t even acknowledge, or think about, their true self most days. Sadly, it’s not without a price.

We all know what happens when we don’t feed our (small ‘s’) selves. We starve, we are diminished, and eventually, die.

What happens when we don’t feed our Soul? 

It withers. We lose touch with our dreams, our purpose, our confidence, our intuition. We forget our true Self, our one true “home”.

And when that happens, we start running on auto-pilot, we make choices that are out of integrity with our intentions, we have habits that don’t support real Health, we find fault in ourselves and others, frustration in things that shouldn’t really bother us…in short, life loses its LIFE. We aren’t Awake, and we certainly aren’t Radiant. That’s a big price to pay!

Being weighed down with regret isn’t the life anyone knowingly chooses, but it happens. We all want to feel AWESOME, but once you’ve been living a lackluster life for a while, it’s easy to forget that anything better is possible for you. 

Let’s not go down that road! When you see the life it leads to, the benefit of Self Care becomes more evident. So…

The Best Way to Nourish Your Soul is to Cultivate a Loving Relationship with your Self.

There are several wonderful ways to deepen your relationship to Self. One is the take care of your (small ‘s’) self — your body and your mind. Another is to spend time alone with the Self through the practice of Meditation. It doesn’t need to be long or strict – there are many ways to begin a practice EASILY.

Here’s a Meditation Audio to get you started… 

But if you’d REALLY like to FEED Your SOUL by cultivating a deeper relationship with your SELF, join my FREE Challenge NOW!

Click the image below or click HERE.

Sacred Self

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5 Tips to Stay Balanced During Vata Season

It’s Vata Season (otherwise known as Fall)!

Change is in the air! Not just the changing of the season, but Autumn is quite literally a season of change and quickness, which can throw a person off balance quickly.

Knowing your dosha and the dosha of the SEASON you’re in can be VERY useful in navigating through your day/month/season/year/life.

In Ayurveda (the science of life), your constitution is called your dosha. Dosha literally means “fault,” but I’ve also heard it translated as ‘that which tends to go out of balance.’ Ever heard the phrase “the only thing constant in life is change”?

There are 3 doshas — Vata (VAH-ta), Pitta (PIT-ah), and Kapha (KAH-pha). Each dosha is a combination of 2 of the 5 elements (Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Ether) and therefore has dominant qualities about it. We all have all of these elements within us, but our personal dosha combination is determined mostly by your physical structure (body type) and doesn’t change. What DOES change is everything else — your environment, your emotions, the world, your relationships, etc. — ALL the time.

What’s super relevant to us right now is that Fall is VATA (Air + Ether) season.

Vata qualities are cold, light, dry, irregular, rough, moving, quick, and changeable. If we are not careful to balance these qualities during this season there can be a tendency toward overwhelm, anxiety, dry skin, constipation, insomnia, or depression.

What Can You Do to Stay Balanced during Vata Season?

Ayurveda teaches us how to balance the doshas by using opposite qualities. When Vata is out of balance, there are several things you can do to bring harmony back. First of all, I have to note that as a culture we have a chronic (long-term) vata-imbalance due to being over-scheduled and over-stimulated. That being said, regardless of your dosha, you can benefit from a Vata-pacifying lifestyle and diet.

Without further ado, here are my tips for bringing more balance during Autumn…
(If you want more, keep reading! At the end of this email, I’ll give you details on my upcoming FREE Online Workshop: EASE Into Fall with Healthy Habits that HEAL.)

  1. S L O W   D O W N – schedule in extra time for everything and don’t rush
  2. Consume Warm Liquids throughout the day (warm water or herbal teas) to hydrate and stay warm
  3. Eat Soup and soupy foods – smoothies, porridges, stews, you name it!
  4. Don’t skip the fats! High-quality oils (GHEE, sesame, sunflower, grapeseed, and olive) are nourishing and grounding.
  5. Keep a steady daily/weekly routine. Vata is chaotic enough, so don’t add flame to the fire!

Want MORE tips on how AYURVEDA can help you navigate through this time of CHANGE? Sign up for my FREE Online Workshop by clicking the image below.

Ease Into Fall Webinar

(Click the image above to SIGN UP to get the REPLAY from 2018!)