Since humans can control their breath, you can use your breath to intentionally signal to your nervous system that the bad leadership or work stress you’re dealing with is not actually a life-or-death situation (even though it might feel that way). The next time you feel overloaded, stressed, or like you want to run away from (or punch) your bad leader, try these breathing exercises. Ferris Wheel Breath Think of your breath as having a natural shape to it. Listen to the rhy

Yoga Nidra—or yogic sleep—is a guided relaxation practice under the umbrella of guided meditation. This is almost the opposite of shaking in that, physically, you don’t do a dang thing. This practice is typically practiced lying down (sold!), listening to the spoken guidance, and following along (and trying not to fall asleep, unless of course that’s your goal). How Nidra Works: The Kosha Model From a philosophical perspective, Yoga Nidra works by traveling through and clear

The history of witches is fascinating. When I was in Scotland last year, I learned that anyone (of course, usually women) could be accused of witchcraft for any one of a thousand reasons including: Having green eyes Being a midwife Using herbs as medicine Scolding someone Mastrubating Being sarcastic Celebrating nature’s cycles Being nude Literally just cooking dinner Dressing slightly differently than other women Selling beer The punishments for being accused of witchcraft

When I lived in the mountains above Boulder, Colorado, a cute little finch flew in an open door and got stuck in the house. He flew around frantically as we tried to direct him back out the door, finally flying into a skylight and falling to the ground. He sure looked dead. With a background in yoga therapy and a deep understanding of trauma, I knew that his “death” might just be his nervous system resetting. He had just experienced a traumatic event and needed time to rest.

If you’re feeling constantly overwhelmed, numb, irritable, or like you’re just barely holding it together at work, you’re not broken. You may be outside your window of tolerance . Dr. Dan Siegel coined the phrase “ window of tolerance ” to describe the zone in which your nervous system can function well. When you’re within this window, you can handle stress, think clearly, and respond rather than react. You might feel challenged in a stressful situation, but not completely u

Do you know your values? Your personal and professional values help you make decisions and feel aligned with yourself. They are the principles and beliefs that define who you are, what you stand for, and how you interact with the world around you. When we operate with misaligned values - or aren't sure of our values - things can start feeling....gross. In yoga world, we have the Yamas (moral disciplines) and Niyamas (ethical guidelines) that many yogins choose to follow or ad

Sometimes it’s a story about snakes, or salamanders, or something else, but today it’s a story about spiders. I love spiders. Genuinely. I love what they do for the world, I love the beautiful things they create, and I love that they keep undesirable critters out of my home. I know that most of them are just going about their little spider lives doing little spider things, but occasionally, a spider might lunge at me and do some serious harm. Like most women, and a lot of

Growing up in a Midwestern, military-infused culture, being called “sensitive” was a major insult. It translated to a weakness, a character flaw, or an overall disadvantage that might even be contagious and compromise others. Cooties, if you will. As a very sensitive kid, I felt like I had to try to hide my sensitivity so I didn’t get called that horrible name. This led to years of being called “shy,” because some people didn’t feel safe. Years of being called “moody” because

If you’ve ever watched a sitcom episode and thought, “This entire conflict would be resolved by a 30‑second conversation,” you already understand the most common—and costly—problem in modern workplaces: miscommunication. For entrepreneurs and employees alike, miscommunication is rarely about bad intentions. It’s about assumptions, incomplete information, unspoken expectations, and systems that don’t support clarity. Left unchecked, it creates unnecessary drama , resentment,

“I must study politics and war, that our sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. Our sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain.” ― John Adams, Letters of John Adams, addressed to his wife I climbed a corporate ladder and found a strange pattern a