Stress Management

40 Ways to Create Peace of Mind

By Lori Deschene

“Set peace of mind as your highest goal, and organize your life around it.” ~Brian Tracy

There was a time when I thought peace was a destination, in much the same way I imagined I’d eventually arrive at happiness or success.

It seemed like something I needed to chase or find—definitely not something I could experience without dramatically changing my life.

I needed to work less, relax more, and generally revamp my circumstances and relationships in order to be a peaceful person.

Despite seeing peace as an endpoint,

When You Don’t Get What You Want Something Better May Be Coming

By: Becky Swenson

“Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.” ~Dalai Lama

While every adoption story is different, they all start with a loss. Our loss turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to us.

I’ve had two migraines in my life. Both were when I was battling infertility and in a war with my body. My brain had had enough apparently.

The first migraine was on my way to work one day (different story), and the second was before a dinner party.

A Simple but Powerful Way to Kick the Worry Habit

By: Abby Seixas

“Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow.” ~Swedish proverb

I’m a worrier by nature, and I come by it honestly.

My mother was afraid to cross bridges and ride in elevators, boats, and airplanes. Her mother died of cancer at the age of forty, and my mother spent many years—including those of my childhood—thinking every sniffle, fever, or headache might be the start of something fatal.

Although I didn’t realize it at the time, growing up with a steady dose of anxiety, like an invisible intravenous drip,

What Unconditional Self-Love Looks Like

By: Rita Loyd

“Love is the great miracle cure. Loving ourselves works miracles in our lives.” ~Louise L. Hay

When I first began painting twenty years ago, I had no idea what self-love was. A few years prior, I thought I knew, but when I lost my health to chronic illness and could no longer do the things I used to be able to do, I lost my ability to love myself. This and my illness caused a deep depression, so I chose creating art as a way to lift my spirits.

The Story So Far: Your Life Is How You Interpret It

By: Gray Miller

“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.” ~Carl Bard

My life has been a long string of failures.

The earliest I can remember is having my teeth knocked out when my grandpa braked too hard at a stoplight on our way to a church Easter pageant. I was supposed to be singing a solo, the part of the “little gray lamb,” and I did it—performing while clutching a bloodstained washcloth wrapped around ice cubes to hold to my front gums in between verses.

Why I Keep My Heart Open Even Though I’ve Been Deceived

By: Myrite Rotstein

“You may be deceived if you trust too much, but you’ll live in torment if you don’t trust enough.” ~Frank Crane

I’m heading home with a latte in hand, listening to This American Life through my headphones when a woman sitting on a bench outside the café waves me down. She looks like she’s in her sixties with grayish brown bangs and a worn pink winter jacket. I pull my headphones out of my ears.

“Excuse me, can you tell me how far it is from here to 77 Westwood?” she asks.

I Do Believe My Future is Bigger Than My Past

By: Advisor Stephanie

I do believe my future is bigger than my past.

As soon as I heard these words spoken by Steve Gleason in his documentary titled, Gleason, it struck a chord within me.

There are so many times in life when we are so hyper-focused upon the mistakes we have made. We focus upon our failed relationships, our lost opportunities and the should’ves, could’ves, would’ves.

Little do most people know that those moments in life when we feel our failures will completely ruin us,

Go With the Flow

By: Psychic Stephanie 

In any given situation between people, we are both the teacher and the student. You’re in each other’s lives for a purpose and a time. The poem, A Reason, Season or a Lifetime captures this beautifully. We are put on this planet, in this lifetime to learn lessons and grow. Once you learn your lesson with a specific situation, a new opportunity may present itself to you and off you go leaving the old behind to continue fulfilling the lessons your soul needs to learn.

It’s never easy though.  As humans,

How I Prioritize and Take Care of Myself Without Feeling Selfish

By: Sara Fabian

“I am worthy of the best things in life, and I now lovingly allow myself to accept it.” ~Louise Hay

Looking back on my life, I see that for a long time I struggled to take care of my own wants and needsand didn’t make them a priority. I used to find that very uncomfortable, and sometimes even selfish. I was a master of giving, but I faced serious obstacles to receiving.

By nature, I am a nurturer. I find tremendous joy and fulfillment in giving, so the old me used to offer plenty of time and energy to everyone else (my family,

3 Empowering Ways to Reframe Anxiety: Work With It, Not Against It

By: Melissa Renzi

“If I take death into my life, acknowledge it, and face it squarely, I will free myself from the anxiety of death and the pettiness of life—and only then will I be free to become myself.” ~Martin Heidegger

If you are a lifelong anxiety warrior like me, you’ve been on a journey of ups and downs.

Anxiety fills our whole bodies. Tension. Heart pounding. Sometimes I feel like my heart must be visibly pulsating so much so that if there are others around, they can see it.

There are varying levels and types of anxiety,