The Gita Brown Show: Recent Episodes
thegitabrownshow
Want a happier and more creative life? Join Gita for conversations about developing a holistic lifestyle that supports your creativity and wellness. With her trademark inspirational vibe each episode focuses on practical tips and takeaway homework you can put right into practice. Gita is an accomplished writer, musician and yoga teacher who has spent thirty years teaching creativity. Get inspired and create a rhythm for your life that supports your creativity and wellness.
Episode #24 – Help! My Brain is Fried
00:12 – Introduction
01:40 – Ever wanted to just sack out because your brain dead but you still have things to do?
02:10 – What would life be like if you had a tool to give you an extra boost to get another project done and prevent brain fry.
04:30 – Gita story about training to become a Yoga teacher at Yogaville. Her walks to her meditation helped to reinvigorate her.
09:30 – Walk for your body.
10:00 – Clear and strong relationship between number of steps taken and overall mood and energy level.
13:10 – Solo saunter walk
Walk with no fixed route
Put away phone, no headphones/earbuds
Pay attention to surroundings
16:10 – Ask a question walk
Pay attention to sounds, wildlife, sites
Reflect on what you caught you
20:00 – Power walk – Brain is fried but physical energy is good.
Sometimes after travel
21:30 – Need to have a difficult conversation with a colleague or coworker. Helps to have these conversations and move forward with the project or conversation.
23:25 – Identify what walk you need.
24:30 – Chant for Peace
Let’s talk about your sleep, my friends!
Check in with yourself real quick:
Do you sleep through the night consistently?
If you wake in the middle of the night do you fall back asleep easily?
Do you sleep well but still feel tired during the day?
Do you rely on coffee or sugar to get through your day?
Imagine for a sec how life could improve for you if you had better sleep; maybe you’d have more energy for the things you love, you’d think more clearly, or your health would improve.
Today’s episode is super personal for me: I share the heartbreak and turmoil I went through that ruptured my sleep cycle. I also share exactly how I rehabbed my relationship to sleep and found the power of deep and restorative rest again. I’ve been there during trauma, insomnia, sleepless nights, anxiety, and fear. I’ve been there and in this episode I share the science behind what happens while you sleep and some surprising facts about the impact of sleep on our kids and auto accidents.
And you’ll learn actions you can take tonight to start changing your relationship to sleep.
You deserve deep and restorative rest. Start now, I’m right there with you!
Hop over to my website for the full video version of this episode, full transcript, and links to all the resources I mention in this episode:
https://bit.ly/sleepgitabrown
Recorded in Fall 2019
Back by popular demand: Sarah Gilbert gives you the inside story on how she transformed her relationship to anxiety. In a huge bonus she also teaches two simple techniques you can use right away to deal with anxiety and stress.
Sarah is a special needs advocate, mom to two teenagers, and dedicated yoga practitioner in Yoga for the Special Child and Yoga Spirit. Her warm and open sharing of her struggles and growth is inspirational and also full of insights you can put directly into action.
“I look back on my life and I think that I've had anxiety for a good part of my life, but I had no idea. Breath gave me the ability to cope with my anxiety. And the best part about the breath is that you can do it anywhere to make yourself feel a little bit more present, a little more in control…all it takes is just a couple of deep breaths.”
Visit the website for the full video version, episode takeaways, shareable graphics, and full transcript:
https://bit.ly/3eeQ3ZN
Do you have enough energy to do all the things you love?
Have you ever reached for caffeine just to make it through the day?
Here’s the good news:
It is 100% possible to build and manage your energy so that you can enjoy life and pursue your dreams. You just need some strategies that will help you feel awesome all day.
Listen in and learn five easy things you can start doing right now to increase your energy. More energy means more joy!
Your best self is waiting, listen now and get ready to take action!
Visit the website for show video, full transcript, and takeaway tips! Get it here: https://bit.ly/2v0Xe7g
Want a little more creativity in your life?
Think how amazing it would feel to have a fresh outlook on projects and relationships! Creativity is where new possibilities for your life start!
Meditation holds a fantastic opportunity for you to grow your creativity naturally and without struggle. You’ll be guided through the whole process so you can just relax and enjoy. Even if you are new to meditation, this process will meet you exactly where you are and will help you to grow your creative power!
Get started on a fresh and creative outlook right now!
Hop over to the website for updates and more wellness training, see you there!
https://bit.ly/2uO7HCn
Do you want to learn how to deal with stress more effectively?
Do you want to be pushed around by your fears and anxiety, or do you want to learn how to make better decisions?
You can totally do this! Decreased stress and anxiety, better sleep, and lower blood pressure are totally doable. All you have to do is follow this short and sweet guided meditation. Easy!
Check out what one of my busy students said:
“Oh my gosh I I cannot believe how much this has helped me. It's helped me think more clearly. I'm way less anxious…I never thought I could be a person who meditated, but here I am!”
Listen now and get started on a happier life!
As always, hop over to the website for the full video, helpful tips, and full transcript! https://bit.ly/30Si2t1
Does the word meditation make you feel like a deer caught in headlights?
Imagine how great it would feel to start your day with a relaxed mind with clarity and focus!
Here's the good news. Everyone can meditate.
All you need is a structure that sets you up for success, and that's exactly what you'll get in this episode!
Hop over to my website for the full Set up for Success structure as well as the meditation routine: https://bit.ly/30p34uv
If you picked this episode, it means you are the kind of person who wants a little something more out of life. You want that little bit of extra clarity, emotional balance, and focus. So grab a notebook and take notes as we break down the very specific steps that you can follow to set up for success and follow to create your meditation routine. Let’s get to it!
16 – Meditation for Beginners
00:12 – Introduction 01:20 – Breaking meditation down to a system that works for you 02:24 – What could you do if decisions were easier, if you had more clarity, felt steadier and weren’t as anxious or be kinder or nicer 03:21 – Meditation can do these things for you – many studies that 05:50 – Mindset for success 06:40 – How to handle all of your negative thoughts when you meditate 07:20 – You’re doing meditate to help you observe your mind 09:10 – Stuff/Thoughts that comes up during meditate – gunk, garbage you can deal with it during meditation 09:45- Expect to be stirred up during meditate 10:10 – It’s not important how you feel during meditation – you’ll feel the benefits throughout your week – just do it! 11:12 – Why are you meditating – be specific! 12:45 – Pick a specific place for your meditation14:10 – Choose how you’re going to sit, stand, etc. 15:00 – Pick a time a day – morning is the most successful 18:11 – Readying for meditation 20:00 – Meditation 26:00 – Practice your meditation!
Wouldn’t it be great to stop an icky drippy cold before it starts?
Or how about keeping it from developing into a sinus infection or bronchitis?
Stay healthy and well by practicing a new mindset and seven specific tips from this episode of The Gita Brown Show!
Get started now on your journey to wellness!
Visit https://www.gitabrown.com/the-gita-brown-show
to watch the video of this episode. See you there!
Do you want more for your life? Think it’s too late to follow your dreams or don’t know where to start?
Get seven tips you can use right away to take action towards your dreams today!
Our guest is Kristen Paulson-Nguyen, a writer and editor. An award-winning poet, Kristen got her start in writing at the Boston Globe as a correspondent where she where she wrote dozens of articles on everything from Joanne Chang’s banana bread to the World Series. At 49 she took the leap towards her dream of writing literary nonfiction and started writing a memoir. Kristen is also the writing life editor at Hippocampus magazine and busy mama to an amazing kid. She’s a testament to the skills and hutzpah it takes to follow your dreams!
Join us for this lively and actionable discussion and take notes so you can join us in pursuing your dreams!
Head over to gitabrown.com to watch the video of this episode or get a free transcript!
Do you have a dream for your life but have been too overwhelmed to start?
Do you make excuses about how you don’t have enough time, money, or support?
If you need a little help in getting started, or want to know how to move towards your dreams and keep you day job, look no further than this interview with Louise Miller.
Louise is a professional pastry chef and talented writer. Her books, The Late Bloomers’ Club and The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living have received rave reviews and are proof of the power of pursuing your dreams, no matter how busy your life is.
Listen in as Louise shares her practical advice for how you can create a life that is full of the things you love doing. The time for you to start following your passion is now!
Be sure to visit Louise here, she’s got some great upcoming classes and lots of wit and wisdom for you: louisemiller.net
Top tips from Louise on how to follow your passion:
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Start small and simple! Take a small action towards your dream; this creates momentum and is sustainable.
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Start scheduling time for your passion. Your calendar reflects your dreams so make sure to schedule in time to make your dreams a reality.
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Find people who support your dreams. Take a class, find a mentor, hire a life coach, or connect with a volunteer group. Having people in your corner will make all the difference to your success and ability to stick with it!
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Share your dreams with your family and friends; let them in on your passion project and enjoy the support.
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Be yourself! So much of our creative blocks occur when we waste time waiting for the perfect day, time, or lifestyle to magically create our lives…instead just focus on being yourself. Keep it simple and know that you are enough!
Episode #13 – Follow You Passion and Keep Your Day Job 00:12 – Introduction
00:50 – Introduction to Louise Miller – Author of “The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living” and “The Late Bloomers’ Club”
03:15 – How Louise started and balances being a pastry chef and an author.
07:00 – Why do we block ourselves so much from writing or other creative endeavors?
08:50 – Feedback is important. Seeking out the right people to give you feedback.
12:00 – Owning that you are a writer.
13:00 – What can older women do to help millennials shorten timespan between having a dream and implementing it.
17:10 – Louise talks about blocking out time for writing. She also writes ideas and notes that come up throughout the day and jotting what comes next in her book so when she’s at the computer she’s not thinking a lot about that.
22:20 – Using social media to connect with other artists and create community.
32:05 – Chant for Peace
Have you ever felt like a failure? Like you just want to crawl into bed and hide?
Or maybe you have a dream you’ve wanted to start but have been too scared to try because you’re afraid of failing?
But imagine what life would be like if you could change the way you react to failure. What would it feel like if failure helped you achieve your dreams? How many cool new things would you experience if you let yourself think differently?
Here’s the deal:
Success is not the absence of failure. Success is the product of failure.
Failure is a key ingredient in success
You can train your brain to think differently and turn failure into a superpower. All you need is a new way to think about things and a few strategies to put into practice. Check out the show now and start and embracing the challenge!
Episode #12 – What to do when you feel like a Failure 00:12 – Introduction
02:20 – You’re not alone in feeling like a failure. Even the most accomplished people feel like a failure.
02:44 – It can be tough to be rejected publicly and privately.
04:20 – What would it be like if you thought of your success and failure’s equally. Instead of thinking of failure as the end, thinking of failure as part of success.
5:00 – Feel of failure is usually the human need for belonging that is feeling threatened.
8:20 – Gita’s story of what she thought was a failure.
11:20 – Think about the story you tell yourself about your failure. What about thinking of it as a success and move onto something else?
13:00 – Think about your failure as a stepping stone and visualize the next success. You’re retraining the way your brain thinks.
15:35 – Winning is just temporary. What’s permanent is your soul or your higher self.
18:20 – Be intentional about how you are going to deal with failure.
19:00 – Bless something before you do it.
20:30 – Give yourself time to grieve. Then give it a timeframe to reenter the social stream.
24:05 – Success is the product of failure.
24:50 – Chant for Peace
Do you want to keep your brain full of energy and creative juice? Have you ever had brain fog or find it hard to keep your focus?
We need your full potential to shine and in this episode you’ll learn a concrete, scientifically proven method keep your brain sharp, young, and healthy!
Meditation doesn’t have to be hard or complicated. You’ll learn two techniques that you can start doing right away. Get benefits like:
Reduce fear response
Reduce stress response
Keep more cognitive ability as you age
Regulate your emotions
Improve ability to learn new stuff
Start simple and start small. Each meditation only takes three minutes to learn and with daily practice you’ll join the millions of people who have experienced the benefits.
Think you don’t have time? Jump to minutes 11 or 21 and give it a try for three minutes! Let’s get started, take action now!
Episode #11 – Keeping Your Brain Young: Three Minute Meditations for Busy People
00:12 – Introduction 01:20 – Check in with yourself – Do you have brain fog, can you concentrate, do you rely on caffeine and sugar to make it through? 01:57 – Are you doing great but need to kick it into another gear to get more done 04:20 – Gita’s story about starting with meditation – helped her feel better, decrease anxiety and helped her during very difficult period in her life 10:00 – Short meditation 14:20 – You can do meditation anywhere and it doesn’t take a lot of time – keeps your brain young 14:55 – A study shows that long term meditation had increased gray matter in several parts of the brain. 50 year old meditators had same amount of gray matter as people half their age (most brains shrink) 19:31 – Left Hippocampus part of the brain got larger. This area is learning, memory, emotional regulation. 20:50 – People that meditate – blood pressure is lower 21:20 – Meditation using a mantra
Have you ever had trouble sharing your gifts with the world? Like when nerves get the best of you and it’s hard to speak or perform when it counts? We need your creativity and your presence!
But it can be hard to get up in front of people and share our gifts. Whether you’re presenting at a meeting, performing onstage, or getting up in front of your peers, it can feel like a struggle to remain connected to your strength when you feel vulnerable and exposed.
All you need is a strategy to follow. And in this episode of The Gita Brown Show you’ll learn a strategy to use that will keep you connected to your purpose, calm your nerves, and help you communicate with confidence!
Episode #10 – How to Communicate with Confidence
00:12 – Introduction 02:07 – Are you intentional when it comes to addressing your performance anxiety 03:21 – Gita’s story about performance anxiety 07:10 – Gita noticed that after breathing and meditation helped with performance anxiety 08:20 – Olympians know if they train their mind and right psychology, they come out on top 09:17 – Shifting the anxiety to increase your performance 11:15 - Don’t loose sight of the “why” you are performing 14:18 – Talking about vulnerabilities – about things that get in the way from performance 15:40 – Breathing and moving before performing 18:10 – If you have a negative thought, have a positive thought. If you have a negative body reaction, take deep breaths to counter 19:30 – Breath slowly and deeply before a presentation or a big meeting 19:50 – Be It: catch phrase to bring the why and the breath together 21:51 – Summary: Frame it, breath it, be it 23:07 – Pick one of the strategies and practice – frame it, breath it, be it 24:00 – Chant for Peace
We all hold onto stuff. Emotions. Relationships. Dead end jobs.
We know these things are wrong for us. But without any concrete way to learn how to let go, we remain stuck.
I’ve been there, too. A decade ago I felt stuck in my marriage. I watched, helpless, as my husband abused alcohol and drugs. We met when we were just twelve; his joy and sweetness was such a natural part of my life that I called him "My Buddha."
As his behavior changed and became more dangerous I knew I had to leave the marriage; but I was terrified that he would become homeless or die without my care. And in that dark moment I was stuck. I was afraid to stay and afraid to leave. But. I realized that in order to hold onto the love I felt for him, I needed to let go of our marriage.
It’s not easy, this letting go thing. And I share my story with you so you know that you’re not alone. And so that you know that it is possible to train yourself to let go.
Learn three simple techniques that you can use, right now, to start practicing how to let go. You can be emotionally free and balanced; I believe in you! Let’s move forward!
Episode #9 – How To Let Go
00:12 – Introduction 01:14 – Dr. Kallie Snyder quote – “I get frustrated when people tell me to ‘let it go’.” 07:22 – Gita’s story about her past relationship 11:00 – She realized the more she tried to hold onto her relationship and what she thought the relationship should be, the more the love drained through 13:00 – Trying to hold on to things – emotions, relationships – trying to grasp the ungraspable 14:13 – The only thing you can hold onto is the recognition of your soul 15:59 - When we struggle to let go, we’re stuck in our emotion, stuck in our heads 16:28 – A simple way to help get unstuck is to breath in and when you breath out exhale and relax and release 19:13 – When you think of a dark thought, substitute for a better thought 20:25 – Bring person or situation into your mind and create a mantra (ex: may she be happy, healthy productive, may she be connected to her soul, may I be free from my attachment) 21:38 – Letting go comes down to managing your thoughts about the situation 24:20 – Chant for Peace
Do you feel like you’re running around all day long, but at the end of the day find yourself wondering what you actually accomplished?
Wouldn’t it feel great to live in a state where there is no hurry yet everything gets done? Imagine how awesome you would feel if you felt relaxed and like your day could just flow easily!
At the heart of productivity is a flow state where you use just the right balance of effort and ease. It is totally possible to train yourself to live this way; by practicing this simple relaxation technique you learn to let go and allow your mind to settle. When your mind is clear your productivity will naturally follow.
Listen to examples of three people who use this technique and then practice along as I guide you! It’s easy and super chill, I promise!
You are going to feel more clear and relaxed and I know that your productivity will grow. Let’s get started!
Episode #8
00:12 – Introduction 01:35 – Gita discovered ways to be more productive – made her rethink entire life 03:00 – Productivity is there for us all 03:15 – There are many systems for getting more productive 04:00 – At the heart of productivity – being in a flow state or fully present 05:20 – Relax and Let go to get more productive 06:50 – Story about Ghandi and relaxation 08:24 – Gita’s story about finding a new type of yoga which let her to the path of relaxation 12:00 – Bringing student through relaxation before lesson – student played with beautiful and relaxed tone after relaxation 18:00 – Technique for relaxation 25:00 – Chant for Peace
Are you a creative person? Do you write, draw, plant gardens, or make music?
Have you ever wanted to level up your creative output but weren’t sure how to do it without sacrificing your wellness or free time?
Your creativity is a reflection of your wellness and soul; start a simple system today to help you find your creative flow.
Listen in as we talk about how you can develop a mindset to help you feel inspired to create. You’ll also get tips for the best mindset to use during your creative burst. You will also get a short and sweet sample of a quick routine you can do to prep your body and mind to feel joyful and to harness your max creative power.
Since I’m a “Clarinerd” we use music as a specific example in this episode; I also use all this stuff to help my writing, too! We are all creative and express this in different ways, take these ideas and run with them!
Let’s get creating!
Episode #7 – How To Amp Up Your Musical Performance
00:12 – Introduction 01:35 – Have you ever been burned out/had performance anxiety? 02:20 – There’s always a way to get a little higher 02:45 – Remember why you got into music 04:00 – Remember your music is important – Everything that is being created now is a reflection of the times 06:27 - #1 limiting factor in not reaching full potential is the mental and physical preparation before making music 09:30 – You need a systematic set of practices to help you get into flow 11:00 – Remember why you are practicing – the greater way 12:45 – Be aware of your body 14:20 – Body warm-ups: Take 5 minutes to step back and warm up body before practicing 19:40 – Do a mental scan of your body to see what is tense 24:34 – Chant for Peace
Burned out?
Every now and then we all hit the wall. Whether it’s stress from your career, care taking for a family member, or any other massive life event, we can all relate to being exhausted and feeling like we’ve lost the joy.
The good news is that there is a whole team of people waiting to help you recover. It’s time for you to discover your personal wellness team.
I’ve totally been there. Twenty years ago I was living on Diet Coke, takeout food, five hours of sleep every night, and a work schedule that was truly insane. On the outside I seemed to have it all; husband, nice home, thriving career, and I looked healthy. But I was exhausted, constantly sick, and had lost my joy. Thank goodness I had yoga and a wellness team that kept my head above water, and when my marriage ended I had my wellness team on speed dial! Fast forward twenty years and lots of healthy habits later and today I’m sharing my tips with you. You get to learn my top tips for finding a wellness team that will help you recover from burnout.
My friend, your ability to be productive and joyful is directly correlated to your health and energy. Watch now and take that first step to creating your personal wellness team and bring back your joy!
Make sure to hop over to gitabrown.com for full transcript and my top tips!
00:12 – Introduction 01:45 – If you don’t manage your health, no one will 02:39 - Do a reality check – Do you feel burned out or do you feel burnout coming 04:50 – Gita’s story to burnout 08:25 - #1 person you need to see is your primary care physician 10:00 – Get a massage therapist to work out kinks in body, improve blood circulation 13:22 – An acupuncturist, acupressurist or a tradition Chinese medicine practitioner – preventing yourself from getting sick 15:50 – Get a personal trainer before you run a 5K, going to the gym for the first time, or other activity 19:00 – Go outside; it's free and proven to improve your health21:50 Tell your family and friends about your wellness team and recruit them to help! 24:35 – Chant for Peace
Check in with yourself for a moment. Are you experiencing happiness every single day?
Life can be hard; and in tough moments it can be really hard to remember that you deserve happiness. A lot of our lack of happiness comes from being disconnected from our selves, our souls, and each other.
By connecting with ourselves and one another, we take a powerful step towards being more happy.
Our guest, Dr. Kallie Snyder, has a transformative story to share about how she used anxiety and isolation as a catalyst to improve her wellbeing. You’ll hear about her struggles with generalized anxiety disorder and get her best tips for creating a lifestyle that supports wellness. She’s a flutist, clinician, adjudicator, and music educator in Lexington, Kentucky. She has a doctorate in flute performance and specialized studies in world music from Florida State University.
If that wasn't enough, she's also the founder of The Sound Musician, an online community for musicians to feel whole in mind, body, and spirit. Kallie says, “by sharing my struggles and challenges of being a classical musician and learning how to feel whole in the process, that my fellow musicians and non musicians, might feel a little less alone in their challenges. And that together we can form a community where we can feel seen, heard, and supported.”
Here’s Kallie’s top takeaways for boosting happiness, especially if you are facing stress or mental health challenges:
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Make an appointment with a counselor or a therapist. It can be scary at first, but it makes a huge difference. Just talking to someone that doesn't know you, that has that kind of impartial perspective, they can see at things more objectively.
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Make an appointment with your primary care doctor. Many issues can effect mood, including thyroid issues, sleeping disorders, blood pressure fluctuations. Take a holistic approach and help your body be in tip-top shape!
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Create a morning routine. This helps you tune in and be more centered throughout your day. Experiment with different routines and see what might be of service to help you create space for yourself in the morning. It can be simple things that nourish you like: journaling, meditation, prayer, a walk outside, a quiet cup of tea.
Kallie recommends the work of these guys:
Rachell Hollis-and her "Start Today Journal"
Hal Elrod's book "The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8AM)" is a good read and is a great starting place.
- Create Community: Talk to people that you trust and you love about what's going on with you. Share it with people that are safe to share it with. It's that connection that will help you to transform whatever you're going through. We all need each other, let’s remember that we’re in this together!
Let’s increase our happiness and create community! Reach out to someone today and share your heart, the world needs you!
Om Shanthi, Peace to you,
Gita
Episode #5 – Increase Your Happiness with One Simple Step
00:12 – Introduction 01:28 – Taking a step to feeling even happier 03:52 – Introduction to guest Dr. Kallie Snyder 04:55 – Kallie shares her stories and struggles as a musician to support and help fellow musicians and non-musicians 06:00 – Kallie’s story about performance anxiety and when she knew she had to deal with it 09:17 – Kallie talks about feeling trapped and unwell before teaching and an orchestra performance 12:25 – Pressure as a professional musician to not show weakness 18:40 – Felt trapped which was part of leading to anxiety 19:55 – Disconnected from ourselves and each other and we think vulnerability makes us weak (it’s the flip) 26:14 – Kallie started to seek counseling and was consistently reaching out to people and always making the next step 29:30 – Hardest thing about anxiety was finding what works for you 31:30 – Create a morning routine 35:10 – Much of the root of anxiety is being disconnected from yourself 37:25 – Vulnerability is what connected us to our audience 40:20 – Find your community to share your story and be vulnerable – that helps other people share their stories 41:45 – Chant for peace
Do you or someone you love have anxiety? You are not alone. Did you know that 40 million adults in the United States are living with anxiety disorders? Let’s break our silence about how anxiety affects our lives. And as we come together you’ll learn how to use a simple technique to shift your anxiety and improve your life.
You can be free from anxiety; peace is as close as your next breath.
Our guest, Sarah Gilbert, has bravely shared her personal story with anxiety. You’ll follow along through her early days as a frightened and overwhelmed mom to a newborn with special needs, to her social isolation and health problems, and to how she decided to break her silence and share her story. She’s a special needs advocate, Yoga for the Special Child and Yoga Spirit practitioner, mom to two caring and creative children, and friend to everyone she meets. Listen in on her journey and get inspired as she shares how a simple technique, a deep breath, is her back pocket tool for beating anxiety.
Here’s your simple tip to begin to shift your anxiety using a deep breath:
Sit comfortably with your feet flat on the floor. Make sure your body is aligned and well balanced. Find a position where you feel like your skeleton can do the work of holding you up so that your muscles can relax just a little bit. Inhale deeply and allow your torso to expand with the breath. Think that you are filling up from the inside out, like a balloon. Breath through your nose. If you are congested, no worries, breath through your mouth. This is your breath; make it comfortable for you. Exhale fully. Feel your torso relax and ‘deflate’ like a balloon. Repeat. On the inhale, imagine you are filling your body with peace, health, joy, or any other word that speaks to your heart. On the exhale, imagine stress, tension leaving your body. Continue, with each inhale fill the body with positive messages. Repeat at least three times.
Remember that you can use this tool anywhere, anytime you need it. The more you practice, the better you’ll feel. Your neurological response to anxiety will change, one deep breath at a time.
Om shanthi, peace to you, Gita
Episode #4 – Secret Weapon to Beat Anxiety
00:12 – Introduction
01:00 – 40 million adults afflicted with an anxiety disorder
01:30 – Breaking the silence about anxiety
03:19 – Introduction to Sarah Gilbert
06:00 – What was it like when anxiety turned to something you couldn’t ignore?
07:05 – Needed to figure out how to take care of herself
07:55 – What it feels like to be in a body that is experiencing anxiety
10:50 – How were things socially dealing with anxiety?
14:15 – Sarah was open to many ways of dealing with anxiety
16:01 – What Sarah discovered practicing Yoga
17:20 – Change from Inside out
20:04 – Guided breathing exercise
23:23 – Chant for Peace
Episode #3 – Constantly Tired and Exhausted? Go Ahead And Be Lazy.
Take a moment to check in with yourself. Do you have all the energy you need to enjoy life? Do you crash on your days off from work? Or do you worry that if you try to level-up your life that you won’t have the energy you need to sustain your growth?
If this resonates with you it may be a sign that you are ready to master a critical skill: intentional rest.
Most of us think of resting as the time we spend sleeping or chilling on the couch binge-watching Netflix. But what if you had a way to rest that filled up your energy more quickly? How much more could you enjoy life if you built a short practice that helped you feel refreshed? This is where intentional rest can be your new fav thing!
In this episode you’ll learn two ways to practice the art of intentional rest:
- Take an energy gathering walk. Spending time in nature is a great way to bring balance to our bodies and also nourish our spirt. This walk is the opposite of a power walk. Your goal is to walk slowly, activate your senses, connect with the sights and sounds, and take time to notice your surroundings. It’s like filling up your battery with a charge from nature!
It’s pretty easy: go outside. Walk slowly. Gather sunlight, fresh air, and beauty. Allow this to nourish every cell of your being!
- Practice deep relaxation or yoga nidra. This is a simple practice you can do daily to help train yourself into relaxation. Sometimes you may feel like you want a little bit of guidance to relax. It can be really freeing to find a comfy spot to lay down and listen to a recording and let it guide you to a deeper state of relaxation. You’ll also be training yourself in the art of active rest, so that you have this skill for yourself to use while falling asleep or taking a quick nap.
Here’s a few links to get you started:
This is a full thirty minute recording-my students love this one!
A shorter ten-minute version for when you need a bit o’ rest!
A super-awesome resource is Yoga Nidra Network. They are doing great work and have lots of free tracks! Check them out at yoganidranetwork.org
There are other deep relaxations on YouTube and also on the iTunes store. It’s all about finding a voice and style that works for you!
Let’s start a revolution and get rested!
Om shanthi, peace to you,
Gita
00:12 – Introduction
01:32 – Checking in with yourself – do you have all the energy you need? Are you overwhelmed?
02:20 – Intentional Rest
04:17 – Quality of your time producing the output is the important thing
07:10 – We are tired because we are disconnected from the natural world
14:26 – Power down, don’t numb out
16:30 – What more could you accomplish if you learned to power down
18:22 – Power Down – Take an energy gathering walk
21:00 – Power Down – Deep relaxation, Yoga Nidra, listening to music for meditation
23:25 – Schedule some time to be lazy
25:00 – Chant for Peace
Episode #2 – Too Busy for Wellness? Time Management for Real life.
Do you ever feel too busy to make time for your health and wellness? You may have a planner, schedule, and a million appointments. You’ve organized your life around boxes of time, delegating tasks, and trying to “do it all.” But what would happen if you took a step back and looked at time management from a different perspective? How much better would you feel if you made simple shifts in your thinking and planning that prioritize wellness?
Think you’re too busy, or that wellness is something for other people to enjoy? This awesome lady, Jessica, proves that wellness is accessible for everyone.
Check out what she’s got going on; she is a single mom to five kids; is in nursing school; she teaches yoga to adults and to children with special needs; she also runs Heartbeat for Downs, an organization that delivers care packages to families of children with Down syndrome who are in the hospital. Her eldest daughter, beautiful brown-haired Jaylin, has Down syndrome. Jessica manages all of this with joy, grace, and lots of heart-laughter. Here’s what she says about the small steps she recommends for a “too busy” person to make real-life choices for wellness.
Simple tips to upgrade your wellness without busting a hole in your time management:
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Keep it simple! Start with one deep breath. Step outside for a moment, take one deep breath, then return to your life. Boom, done.
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Keep it short. Start with a simple daily practice like laying down on a yoga mat or making yourself comfy in a chair. Put on a piece of relaxing music and for five minutes give yourself permission to just listen and enjoy the music. If your mind wanders, just bring it back to listening to the relaxing music. You’ll come back into your day refreshed and better able to handle stress and challenges. Mat + Music=ahhhhh
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Practice positive thoughts. Remember that you are already enough! Give yourself practices to do that help you remember this; oh, like, maybe #1 and #2 from above! Or take a deep breath in and on the exhale think or say, “I am enough.” Repeat this just five times and let the positive message absorb. Reset your neural pathways with positive messages of health and wellness. The underlying messages that sit in your subconscious mind are the messages that dictate how you will respond to stress. Make your mind your best friend!
You’re never going to eliminate stress, but you absolutely can control your baseline level of relaxation and your response to stressful situations. You now have three easy things you can do right away, get practicing!
00:12 – Introduction 01:37 – Introduction to guest Jessica Melville – Licensed Practictioner in Yoga for the Special Child 06:14 – How Jessica Started with Yoga 07:46 – Yoga helping to undo the conditioning of “why we can’t…” 09:11 – Things that Jessica noticed after making small shifts 13:30 – Small ways to start off with Yoga 17:25 – Letting go of expectations when starting a more formal yoga practice 22:24 – What would you say to someone who thinks they can’t do yoga or it’s not for them? 25:33 – Chant for Peace
Most of us want to feel happy. But we hold onto limiting beliefs that tell us happiness is for other people . Or we think we need more money, more friends, a better love life, or other external things in order to be happy. There is always the “next thing” to crave!
What would happen if we broke this pattern and found a new way to live where we experienced more happiness? I’m not talking about the kind of airy-fairy happiness that denies the dark times we all go through, nor am I asking you to pretend your troubles don’t exist. To truly practice happiness means to practice equanimity; to acknowledge both the dark and light and to live skillfully and happily regardless of the ups and downs of everyday life.
But how do we feel happy when life is hard? How can we make happiness a practice? What if you practiced going within and connecting to your soul? Think how differently you would feel if you had daily and simple practices to do that connected you to your soul and innate good nature.
A couple of ways you can practice exercising your happiness muscle:
- Many of the great traditions say the same thing about the recipe for experiencing more happiness. It’s simple. Go within and practice gratitude. Daily gratitude practice reorients your mindset. Instead of chasing happiness outside of yourself, you learn to slow down and notice how many things you have working in your favor.
- The great traditions also point to serving other people. Think how good it feels when you help a friend out with a ride or a sympathetic ear. When you serve other people you create a little energy loop where they get helped out, and you get a buzz from seeing a smiling and grateful face. It doesn’t have to be fancy: let someone in during a traffic jam, hold a door open, or drop a friend a “You are Awesome” text. By serving others we connect with the best parts of ourselves and pull ourselves out of negative and limited thinking.
03:20 – Being happy is fundamental to being human 06:00 – Don’t run after temporary happiness 12:12 – Remember who you really are 18:24 – Practice gratitude 20:30 – Serve other people