1/4 Year Review + The Surprise in Letting Go

Mar 12, 2024

First off, the end of the first quarter of the year is upon us. Wowee!

Although that might sound like a financial-fiscally-type thing, I’m more interested in growth, expansion, celebration and conscious intention setting. (There won’t be a spreadsheet in sight!)

That’s why I’m once again hosting the Courageous Self-Care 1/4 Year Review. These reviews are the antidote to overwhelm and an effective way to turn your inner critic into a supportive superfan. 

For more details, see the Christina Recommends section further down.

And now onto the main event for today’s message: The Surprise in Letting Go

Have you heard the expression that attachment is the root of all suffering?

When I first learned about that concept, I thought it referred to an attachment to things or people. 

Although that’s definitely part of it, what I’ve learned since is that it’s our attachment to our thoughts that really causes the suffering… being...

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3 Simple Ways to Stay in Your Own Energy

Mar 05, 2024

It’s been a week.

And the silver lining is that I got to practice staying in my own energy.

For all you parents/caregivers out there, I would hazard to say that you’ve gotten to experience the emotional roller coaster when your beloved child is in pain - either physical or emotional. 

One of the best skills I’ve learned is how to stay in my own energy amidst chaos. 

Benefits of Staying in Your Own Energy

Why would you want to do that, you might ask?

Well, when you stay in your own energy, you’re better able to: 

>make level-headed decisions 

>refrain from adding to the stress/worry/fear 

>be of benefit to everyone around you by being grounded and centred 

I’m going to share with you a small fraction of our tumultuous week and then we’ll go into the 3 simple ways to stay in your energy. Ready?

The Week 

Last week, Paul and I gave some sessions at the Teachers’ Convention in Red Deer, Alberta. Since...

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My new book! It’s ready!

Feb 27, 2024

Gather round, everyone. I have an announcement to make. Ready? Feeling gathered?

After 13 years (or maybe even more - the timeline is a little fuzzy because 13 years ago my kids were very young and I was very tired a lot of the time) my new children’s book is finally ready! 

Why did it take 13 years to publish a children’s book you might ask?

Let me paint the picture for you

In 2011, I was fairly new to the worlds of personal development and spiritual growth. I knew a lot about professional development and had a desire to become a better person but that was about it.

I had recently invested in a year-long program with Peak Potentials and through that, I (surprisingly) ended up with my first life coach. (I didn’t even know that was a thing until - poof - I had one!)

That coach introduced me to things like meditation and setting intentions. I diligently got up at 5am every morning for an hour of going within. Why so early? Because I was trying to get up earlier...

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The Scintillating Conclusion to the 3 Part Series

Feb 20, 2024

…of 3 Surprising Ways Yoga Helped Me on My Ski Weekend

Although my ski weekend of early February now feels like ancient history, we have arrived at the final installment of I wanted to share with you about the wonders of Body Awake Yoga (BAY). 

As previously mentioned in Part 1 and Part 2, on our little ski trip, I was wearing new-to-me equipment, but just to be clear, the gear was anything but new. In fact, I was wearing my mom’s boots and skis that were made approximately 4 decades ago.

The skis are retro orange, white and blue Volkls that are so old they’re back in style. They are ramrod straight (no parabolic features in sight) and they weigh approximately the same as a fully grown St Bernard. 

The boots used to be white (did you know ski boots can fade if they’re old enough?!?) and the velcro straps are devoid of velcro. I had to tie them and tuck them in the boots!

Why didn’t I rent newer equipment from this century you might ask? Good...

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3 Surprising Ways Yoga Helped Me on My Ski Weekend -Part 2

Feb 13, 2024

Perhaps you read about our adventurous ski weekend in last week’s instalment. If not, click here to hear about smoothie disasters, whiteout conditions and how yoga played a part in all of that.

This week, I wanted to share another surprising way that yoga helped me on the mountain with long, heavy fibreglass boards strapped onto my wildly uncomfortable boots. 

Over the course of the last 4 years, yoga has played a significant role in my life. I’ve been on the mat daily for sun salutations and have done 3-4 longer classes each week. 

One of the things I love about yoga is that it helps you develop an intimate and embodied relationship with your growth edge. 

In any given posture/asana, we’re encouraged to go to the edge and melt into it. You never want to push through that edge or override pain. You just want to become familiar with where it is and see what lies just on the other side. 

Because I’ve been there so many times on the mat, I...

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3 Surprising Ways Yoga Helped Me on My Ski Weekend -Part 1

Feb 06, 2024

We just returned from a short and sweet trip to Banff with a day of skiing at Sunshine (with no sunshine to be had.)

Here's a collage for you:

The weekend was both magnificent and filled with growth opportunities - which is the best kind of travel, don’t you think?

As I contemplated the learnings and takeaways from the trip, I noticed that yoga played a big part (even though I only did my daily sun salutations and nothing out of the ordinary). 

The thing I love about the style of yoga I do (Body Awake Yoga® or BAY) is that it promises to improve one’s life both on and off the mat. This promise was very evident on our trip and so, of course, I have to share it with you!

I’ll break it up into 3 posts so that you don’t get overwhelmed. Today’s surprising way that yoga helped me on my ski weekend is this: 

BAY helps you approach life’s occurrences with “Grand Neutrality”

Grand neutrality means that you’re so connected...

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This is the self-care your brain needs

Jan 30, 2024

It’s still January! There have been a lot of Tuesdays thus far... 5 in fact. What abundance!

Toward the end of the month, I always start looking forward to the next one because I love novelty and newness. If you’re the same way, February is just around the corner.

Speaking of novelty, did you know your brain thrives on it? To keep a healthy, functioning noggin, it’s important to purposefully build novelty into your life. When you do the same old, same old, your brain can easily fall into a rut and then your energy plummets as does your motivation. 

To stay energized, fresh and feeling fully alive, turn to novelty. It’s an amazing self-care practice. 

Here’s a little story for you about novelty

Last weekend, Paul, Zoe and I found ourselves with a free evening (which was a novelty in and of itself). We asked each other, “What do you want to do?” 

To avoid the ol’ “I don’t know... what do you want to...

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The hidden benefits of softening on the inside

Jan 23, 2024

Today, I’m writing to you from a parking lot where we pulled over when got a flat tire on the way to the kids’ martial arts class. I popped them in an Uber so they’re all set, my husband is on his way from school in another Uber and I’m loving our heated seats and the warm laptop. (It’s -22 Celsius right now so I’m very grateful for all the layers I put on.)

Roadside assistance is booked (and has a wait time of 2 hours), so what better way to wait it out than to do some writing? 

Fortunately, I have a thermos full of hot water and some walnuts that just happen to be in the car. What an adventure!

Anyway, what I wanted to write about today are the benefits of softening on the inside. 

Several years ago, when I started learning from Dr Sue Morter, one of her promises was that by implementing what she taught, you would soften on the inside. Although that sounded good to me, I really had no frame of reference for what she meant.

Five...

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A Self-Care MUST-HAVE for 2024

Jan 16, 2024

As we’re feeling into this brand-new year, I want to share with you the self-care must-have I could never go without.

If you’re expecting some lovely skin-care product or herbal tea, then think again because we’re going much deeper and broader. 

I love the idea that a single thought can change your life, so it’s more along those lines. 

The idea I’m going to share with you shortly has made my life better every single day for probably about 15 years. It’s helped me understand life more deeply, it’s helped me get to know myself more intimately and it’s even helped to explain the inexplicable. 

Ready for the big reveal?

The self-care must-have I’m talking about is (*play fanfare in your head) >>> determining a theme for the year. 

In case you're not yet wowed, let me explain. 

Themes - The How-To

A theme for the year is an overarching idea that becomes your guiding light. It’s almost like a...

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The Antidote to Overwhelm

Jan 09, 2024

I’m still basking in the freshness of this spectacular new year. Are you? 

We got a fresh coat of snow over here so that’s helping.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking a lot about overwhelm lately because so many of my clients mention it as a major hurdle. 

On my freezing cold but very refreshing walk the other night under the stars, I reflected on how I almost never feel overwhelmed anymore.

Maybe in a given moment here or there if something really chaotic is happening, but I’ve noticed a distinct absence of overwhelm as a perpetual state of being. 

I was curious about what has shifted because that certainly didn’t use to be the case. As a high school teacher, Overwhelm was my middle name. I was overwhelmed for years!

As a young mom, pretty much everything in my world changed - except for the brand new and exciting experience of getting almost no sleep - and thus the overwhelm intensified. 

After a few years of that,...

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