From Completion to Beginning: A Personal Note

From Completion to Beginning: A Personal Note

by | Jan 8, 2026 | Personal Growth, Purpose

A reflection on authenticity—and a new chapter I’m excited to share.

Happy 2026! I’m grateful for the opportunity to support your mental, physical, and/or spiritual evolution in 2025. It is a privilege I never take lightly.

In numerology, numbers carry energetic vibrations, and 2025 was a 9 Universal Year—a time of completion, release, and transformation. Many of us were asked to reflect deeply, let go of what no longer serves us, and clear emotional and energetic weight. While meaningful, this process is often messy and uncomfortable.

You may have been called to reassess relationships, career paths, personal patterns, or even where you live. Perhaps there was a pull toward greater emotional honesty or a surrender to what is beyond your control. These themes were central to my own year, and I suspect they may have touched yours as well.

Because of this clearing, we are now prepared for 2026, a 1 Universal Year—the energy of a completely new cycle that will support renewal, reinvention, self-definition, and forward movement. Something within you may already be shifting, even if you don’t yet recognize it.

Last year may have prompted deep questions: What makes my life meaningful? Why do I limit the time I spend enjoying what genuinely lights me up? Those of you who have worked with me know my belief—a pull towards something or someone is not random. It is your soul speaking, asking you to respond.

As we step into the energy of the 1, 2026 supports your evolution. It invites you to ask: What will I build? Who am I, really? How do I want to live? Am I ready to claim responsibility for creating my circumstances? And then—to act on your answers to these questions.

Our time on the planet is finite, and living in alignment asks for courage—and radical authenticity.

Many of us believe we are living authentically, yet authenticity is not static; it requires ongoing self-inquiry. As we evolve, misalignment naturally develops and we are given a choice: ignore the call or make some adjustments to the way we are living. Research increasingly shows that authenticity is the foundation of meaning, purpose, and fulfillment. Yet, we are uniquely skilled at abandoning our inner knowing to fit in. Reclaiming authenticity is not easy, but it is essential.

In the coming months, my book, Building a Life: How to Live with Authenticity in a World That Distracts You, will be published. It is an invitation to choose yourself—to listen more closely to your inner voice, honor what is calling you, and live in alignment with what matters most. I hope you will enjoy it.

I look forward to continuing to co-create a life that reflects who you truly are—and what will truly feed your soul—in this new year.

Tame your monkey?

Tame your monkey?

by | Dec 1, 2025 | Holistic Life Coach, Mindfulness, Well-being

It’s the time of year when many of you are feeling overwhelmed by your obligations, intentional/unintentional review of the past years' lowlights/highlights, and thoughts about what you want to manifest in the new year.

This monkey mind chatter can stir up emotions that can cause you to lose clarity and focus. What if there could be a way to navigate through the chatter so you don’t feel stuck?

There is a very simple way: silence. People go to great lengths to avoid sitting alone in silence. We tend to seek anything that might fill that perceived empty space instead. However, silence is medicine.

I'm not suggesting that you go on a silent retreat, although this is the most powerful solution. But if you’re ready to manage your mind rather than let it manage you, then I suggest you try this easy exercise to begin:

Take yourself to a favorite place, ideally in nature but anywhere you can be alone and undisturbed for 30-minutes. Leave EVERYTHING behind (this means no phone).

Bring something you can use as a timer—or surrender to your own sense of time.

Take a few deep and grounding breaths to release the day’s activities. Begin to watch your thoughts and notice what thoughts stream in and how they fluctuate over the course of your silence.

· What triggers your mind to become activated?
· How long does it take for your mind to become quiet?
· What thoughts, positive and negative, begin to bubble up and dominate?
· If you are working through a particular health or personal challenge, what thoughts arrive related to them?
· Are you judging yourself or others?
· Can you begin to feel emotionally neutral?

At the end of the 30-minutes, try to journal about your experience. What comes up may surprise you.

You take a shower every day. Why not cleanse your mind daily as well? 😉

Have you looked under your nose?

Have you looked under your nose?

by | Oct 8, 2025 | Mindfulness, Personal Growth, Wellness

Do you know how to breathe? By this I mean deep breathing through your nose, the kind that can pull down your diaphragm, anchor your pelvis, replenish your adrenals, and oxygenate your brain.

We are born knowing how to breathe properly. But modern life causes us to lose our grasp on this. As a result, we wind up breathing in a way that disconnects us from our bodies, our center, and thereby the mental clarity we need to move forward in the world in a way that satisfies us.

An unconscious, dysfunctional manner of breathing can affect your vagus nerve and is a hidden cause of anxiety, insomnia, fatigue, stress, and more. It is also the reason that breath-based practices such as meditation and yoga can have such a profound impact on your holistic health.

Most of you live with this imbalance. However, it makes healing, restful sleep, digestion, detoxification, and emotional regulation very difficult.

Those who work with me are often surprised when we wind up beginning with something fundamental. No, it’s not which vitamins to take or where to go for acupuncture. It’s more basic: We begin with breathwork and/or meditation.

I’m as guilty as anyone. Although I teach breathing, a highly demanding eighteen-month family crisis pushed me out of my rhythm. I was aware that my breath had become shallow, but was too busy to address it. UNTIL I began to experience physical symptoms that I never had before. Because I’ve been trained to respect my body when it speaks with warning signs, I knew that I needed to get in front of this.

Back to my meditation pillow I went, sitting for deep breathing and daily meditation (I must confess that I had become lax with my meditation as well). It didn't take long before my symptoms subsided and I began to feel more balanced.

This month, I'm reminding you to view your breath as a doorway because it's critical. With only a few minutes a day, the simple, ancient technique of deep breathing can awaken energy, sharpen focus, and bring your nervous system back into the balance it requires in order to self-heal. When you train your breath to behave as nature intended your body softens, your mind steadies, and your spirit begins to align with them. In this harried world of "do, do, do," we all need to soften.

To refresh your memory on the many benefits of breathing and how to do it, read my previous article https://www.spiritualityhealth.com/benefits-of-nose-breathing

The life enhancing breath right under your nose could be the very thing you've been looking for (and likely missing) while looking at external solutions for your holistic health issues.

Learn to breathe properly. You will be amazed to see how powerful this is. 😉

Are You Living an Empowered Life?

Are You Living an Empowered Life?

by | Aug 8, 2025 | Empowerment, Wellness

It's easy to get sucked into the values of our social circle and not realize it. As we get older, we tend to think more about quality of life — not just how we stack up against others, but how satisfying that life is for us.

For many of us, a high-quality life means living in alignment with our own values and beliefs, not pressured to be part of a tribe or please others with our material possessions, appearance, or achievements. Instead, the focus is on our own well-being and satisfaction as well as making the world a better place in some way. I think of this as empowered living.

What that life will look like for each individual is different. But one thing I’ve seen in my career — first in private banking, now as a holistic life coach — is that most people who step into empowered living tend to have a core foundation of attributes already in place:

Holistic Health – Being free of mental, physical, or emotional dis-ease makes it much easier to show up fully for life. When one aspect of us is out of balance, the others will usually eventually feel it too. Pay attention to your health. Feel out of synch—physically drained, emotionally off, or mentally scattered?

Take action to restore balance, because your health is the foundation that supports your life. Protect it with a vengeance.

Financial Stability – Money isn't everything, but chronic financial stress can destroy your quality of life. When we’re constantly worried about our finances, our nervous system remains in overdrive. Prolonged financial stress is linked to a myriad of chronic diseases including high blood pressure, digestive and thyroid issues, sleep problems, a weakened immune system, and mental health. Sound like you?

Aim to live within your means or adjust your lifestyle in order to enjoy a greater sense of peace.

Meaning – Living a meaningful life through purposeful action is your best chance at fulfillment. Meaning can come through family, work, faith, serving others, pursuing a passion, or contributing to anything larger than yourself. Research reveals that those who help others experience less depression, greater calm, less pain, and better overall health. What inspired you as a child?

Consider engaging in your passions to help you experience the magic that is meant for you in this life.

Self-Forgiveness – We often judge ourselves more harshly than we do others. We get stuck and can’t evolve when we hold on to perceived mistakes, old narratives, regret, guilt, and shame. Forgive yourself as you would any loved one, neighbor, or colleague. Still stuck on something from the past?

Accept where you were at in the past, know that you did your best, fully release it, and step forward into re-creation.

The subtle messaging of our culture may lead us to believe that we need more than these attributes to be eligible to live in an empowered way. But if you find yourself unencumbered by any constraints inherent in the above and have the right mindset, you have the potential to elevate the quality of your life. THIS is a great way to live!

These last weeks of August often have us thinking about actions we would like to take once the more active energy of fall comes in. Should you want to address any of the above areas, I’m here for you. 😉