In this difficult age it’s no wonder why self help rituals like daily gratitude and self love affirmations are becoming a crucial part of our daily routines. Happiness has become a skill that we must perfect since our external world is spinning out of control. But while resisting and trying to control things beyond ourselves isn’t beneficial, How do we know when it’s time to wake up from a sparkly fog of denial and take the proper steps to improve our situation?

1.Is not dealing with it affecting your health in negative ways? An example of this fine line is with our body image. Perfection in the eyes of a cruel unloving audience isn’t important but if there’s clear, measurable health issues with your current body condition avoiding to lose or gain weight isn’t self love.

2.Are you causing yourself or your loved ones pain? Speak your mind and don’t ever try to fit into a box that isn’t you, but sometimes the lifestyle we’re living can inhibit the growth of the people in our lives. Do other people have to consistently sacrifice their needs for you to have yours? Similarly at what point does not taking action put you in danger?

3.Are your stress factors increasing? Dissociation is a common reaction to stress or trauma. Often time in the immediate the pile of dishes or stack of bills loses power but only continues to be a threat to your inner peace.

Accepting yourself exactly as you are is the only way to live but not at the cost of becoming your best, most loving self.

They say forgiveness is divine and I for one can attest to this. But At what point are we entertaining a false promise and sacrificing too much of ourselves? We all know someone that gives over and over again to an ungrateful entity like a significant other, a job, or a family member under the false pretense of unconditional love. Where do we draw the line and take back what’s ours?

How does it make you feel to give? We’re all designed to give a certain way and to receive a certain way. We can only really make a difference when we find someone who wants our particular gift. If you feel unappreciated, angry or tired from giving to a particular endeavor it’s better not to continue to shove your square peg into round holes. No need to stop feeling fond of this person, place or thing. Just learn to love from a far.

Your intentions may be pure but are you upsetting people with your loving gestures? Often times on a deeper level when we receive something we don’t deserve it feels wrong. In the short term it’s always easy to tell a white lie and thank the giver while we get what we want from the situation, but we’re only wired to be dishonest for so long. Anyone taking advantage of your giving will start to become resentful because of their inner guilt and lack of ability to graciously receive it. It will show itself physically in a matter of time as well. Keep your eyes open for tense body language, avoiding eye contact and other non verbal cues.

My intention is not to discourage you from being vulnerable, nurturing and sweet to all you encounter. I simply encourage you to direct these helpful super powers to a cause that needs your specific brand.

A week of intense energy ahead! Many of us are pushing through traumatic events and working on getting back to our normal routine. The road isn’t quite clear just yet. Go easy on yourself and make time for self care. Eat healthy, stay active, meditate and spend time with positive people to help you reshape the toxic energy around you. With the warmer weather ahead spending time outdoors is a fantastic way to stay grounded within a harsh environment. A crucial time to surround yourself with all the brings you peace.

When people think of yoga, they generally think of a form of exercise. Yoga is way more than that! Yoga is really about the way you live your life, it is in our everyday experiences and interactions. Yes, within yoga there are exercises, or postures you can do to build strength and stamina, amongst other […]

via 5 Ways to Practice Yoga WHILE Hiking -Without Doing Any “Yoga” — Minnesota Yogini

Some food for thought. If you’re interested in quantum theories this is a great discussion.

 

1. Whatever you’re doing this very second, give it all your love, attention and awareness.
2. Failure exists to line you up with the best opportunities
3. Every interaction you ever have is a chance to change someone’s life.
4. To find the right people, places and circumstances you have to follow the feeling of peace.

A little less than 3 years ago I was lucky enough to find my soul mate. Not without Prior struggle, loneliness and heart break as many are all too familiar with. This particular holiday tends to enhance whatever emotional state you’re in regarding love and relationships and prevent us from understanding what we’re really seeking. I felt it was necessary to highlight some wrong moves I’ve made in my search for true love to help the world find the truth. When we love we improve the world, and we have to know what we’re looking for.

1. True love is not your heart pounding, sweaty palms, waiting in fearful anticipation for a text message response. True love is a peaceful knowing that your wandering is complete.
2. True love is not devoid of labels. While it’s divine to understand that true love and monogamy can survive without the “boyfriend-girlfriend title” or a “piece of paper”. True love doesn’t avoid these man made categories to prove a point to the world. True love is whatever helps you and your partner grow together.
3. True love doesn’t have a facebook, instagram or any other social media platform to seek validation of its worth. My fiance’ and I experience the strongest love when we leave our phones in the car and go for a hike. It doesn’t matter if others think we’re in love, we just are.
4. True love isn’t always getting along. True love is removing the mask of how we feel we’re supposed to act to be liked. True love is crying over spilled milk, true love is laying it all on the table because you know you and your partner are in this to win it and you’ve both got to fight to stay in the game.
5. True love is not jealous. Desperately trying to make sure your partner stays faithful is based on an assumption that you’re not worth the loyalty. True love is knowing without a doubt that you are loved and cherished no matter how short that other girl’s skirt is.
6. True love does not harm. You will get angry and say things you don’t mean in the heat of the moment. You will never lay a hand on someone, or speak to them in a way that insults who they are as a human being. These are fear based actions that come out when we feel like we’re under attack. On the other side, allowing these fear based actions is also not true love.

True love comes from a point of inner peace. True love is laughing, crying, celebrating and mourning real life situations. True love is the feeling of being home after a long journey. Look for the person that makes you feel calm, not nervous. Look for the person that makes you want to go deeper into your pursuit of your dreams. Look for the person that makes you happy just by being happy. Fear is questioning, Love is knowing.

When I began my spiritual journey, my goal was peace. I wanted to feel the perceived joy of enlightenment, knowing myself, connecting with my surroundings effortlessly and with unconditional love. I hoped that by becoming more loving of myself that I would naturally be more loved by others. Little did I know that my new found confidence would be the source of conflict between the people I’d known and loved my whole life.

My self love made me appear inconsiderate, preachy and self absorbed. I found myself arguing senselessly with my friends and family begging them speak about what was going well instead of listening to them complain about things that I didn’t really feel were problems. I eventually created such a rift between my loved ones that I decided to stop all my spiritual routines. Unfortunately at this point the people that I’d pushed away were gone and I couldn’t bring them back into my life.

I chose to change my approach. I stopped talking about what I was learning and doing and started to put it into action steps.

1. I kept a note book: Not all of our ideas are meant for the world to know about the minute they pop into our heads. Having a writers notebook has allowed me to more fully develop my thoughts and feelings before I share them.
2. I took a social media break: Comparing my Journey to others doesn’t do me any good. Likewise posting all my triumphs doesn’t make them any grander just because they get the validation of likes and comments.
3. I learned to enjoy my own company: Furthering my meditation practice was easy without friends or family members to distract me. The love for myself became more pure without the need to let others know it existed.

It’s been a lonely journey where I’ve been forced to eliminate long term relationships. But in the process I’ve connected deeper to myself and formed effortless bonds with the right people, places, and circumstances. Never dim your light because others can’t handle the brightness.

The week ahead will be full of tests, tricks and challenges. Many of us have given ourselves a new assignment to better our lives. As usual with any new habit we’ll be tempted to fall back into our old ways. However with a little will power we cannot be lead astray. Stay focused on your passions and priorities and you can’t go wrong!

Artist Credit Gaia Orion.

This is a pivotal weekend for using the creative energy of the moon to better our lives. While extremely beneficial the energies affect us sensitive types in ways that are painful and cause us to expose the dark side of ourselves to others. With practice and awareness we can tone down the intensity and have a more controlled release. Below are the practices I’ve found most helpful when my were wolf side comes out to play.

1. Moon Salutations: A very grounding, flowing Yoga Practice. This Video gives great instructions.
2. Journaling: Your deeply repressed negative emotions are revealing themselves to you via your daily experiences. Notice it, commit to changing it, write down how. Writing is one of the best ways to clear out distractions and focus on the task at hand.
3. Salt water baths: Recharge yourself with the negative ions that you’d find by the ocean.
4. Spend time outdoors: If the weather doesn’t permit there’s nothing quite like a moonlit drive somewhere beautiful.
5. Crystal Healing: Root Chakra Stones like hematite, obsidian, tourmaline, smokey quartz and others help with the jittery anxiety. Crown chakra stones like moonstone, amethyst, clear quartz and selenite will help you better connect and embrace the amplified feminine energy.
6. Smudge: Clear your space by burning sage. Let the smoke travel clockwise by your doorways, windows, and in all the corners of your home.

There’s a number of rituals out there that can help you embrace the sensitive energy around you and use it to your benefit. Happy Howling my friends!