A little meditation goes a long way.

I touched on a quick and simple meditation technique in a previous post.  Breathe in Peace.  Breathe out Anxiety.  Who tried it?  When did you find it most useful?  Before a big meeting?  Before going home to the kids?  Before having a tough conversation with someone?



Meditation is a very easy tool for you to use in many situations.  When I used to talk about meditation to my students, no one thought they had enough time to meditate.  There are different forms of meditation, some of which you can spend more time with, but I also have a very busy lifestyle and I am sensitive to my own as well as other's free time.

With that said, the types of meditation I am going to share with you are quick and easy.  In the last post I combined a couple of versions - A breathing technique along with some guided imagery, both I find very beneficial.  Meditations do not have to be lengthy to be effective.  Here, I will separate the two I combined.

First:

Breathing Meditation - The 4 - 7 - 8  Technique  (Medical News Today)

You breathe in for a count of 4.
Hold for a count of 7.
Exhale for a count of 8.

Yes, it's that easy.  I add in my own twist with the - Breathe in 'insert positive here', breathe out 'insert negative here' version.  ie...  Breathe in comfort and ease for a count of 4.  Hold for a count of 7 - while you are holding, imagine any pain or discomfort you are having within your body, and then, picture the breath wrapping around the pain or discomfort and as you exhale for a count of 8 - breathing out the pain and/or discomfort you had felt, fully and completely.  Repeat until the pain or discomfort subsides - at least three times.  Again, you can use any positive emotion or thing and then any negative emotion or thing.  Simple, yet effective. 

Second:

Visualization Meditation - Guided Imagery  (Psychology Today)

If you have an imagination, you can do this.  If I describe a beautiful large red rose, in full bloom, extremely fragrant, so much so that it truly sends your senses reeling...  and you are able to visualize and almost smell the rose...  you've got this!  ;)

Write down some of your favorite things, add some allot of adjectives to describe these things.  String them all together to tell a story and then be sure you read them back to yourself slowly, pausing after each statement to allow the visualization to sink in.  I want you to be fully present in the very moments you are describing.  Yes, you can read your own meditation and still benefit.  Slowly read them out loud in a quiet space.  You do not need much time, or space.  Happy imagining.

Stay tuned for a full guided imagery for you to try.

Be Well,
Mary-Anne

Breathe in Peace. Breathe out Anxiety.

Just reading that makes you feel better, doesn't it?  Be honest...  you inhaled and then exhaled as you read it, almost with intent.  ;)  See how easy that was?

OK, here's the skinny - this pure intent, positive result thing I've been referring to is something you can use all the time, any time, any place.  Remember how I told you to do something intentional this weekend?  Well...  I hope you will include some quality relaxation for yourself.

I will give you a quick example to maximize relaxation...



It's a beautiful morning, you step outside, it's still early, there is a mist over the field, sun is shining, a slight breeze is blowing softly through your hair...  you decide to take a deep breath, tilt your face towards the sun you feel the warmth of the sun on your face, your shoulders, your arms...  yet the mist lends a cool feel to the air.

You take another deep breath, breathing in peace and calm and breathing out stress and anxiety...  Recognizing the beauty of the morning, truly connecting with it, you continue your breathing, rhythmically, in... and out...  You concentrate on breathing in something positive and breathing out anything negative.  Maybe it is stress and anxiety, maybe it is anger or grief you want to breathe out.  Maybe it is peace and calm maybe it is happiness or focus you want to breathe in.  You choose, but do it intentionally.

A simple exercise of breathing in something you want at your core, and breathing out anything that no longer serves you.  Remember...  In positive, Out negative.  Again...  Again...  Even if just for five minutes this is a great exercise to either begin your day with or change your current mood or perception.  Enjoy!

Let me know how you choose to use your new exercise!!  ;)

Be Well,
Mary-Anne

It's the weekend!

How will you choose to relax?  We work a 9-5 week and then...  it's the weekend!  Ahhhhhh.........

Photo by Kasuma from Pexels

On the weekend, actually, any of the days that mean the weekend for you, we need to be sure we are spending our time wisely.  We work hard.  We work long hours and even longer days.  When it comes to our time off, we need to be sure we are recharging our batteries.  Now, I understand there may be chores to do, and that's fine, that's life.  However, we also need to be sure we have our own time, to do our own thing.  What does that mean for you?

A beautiful autumn weekend, maybe a drive.  Spending time with family?  Friends?  Or maybe you are looking forward to some much needed, quiet time alone.  Maybe to meditate, maybe to read?  Maybe you will go for a long walk?  What about photography?  Painting?

I challenge you to choose something, one thing that recharges you, to do this weekend.  I want you to enjoy being present in the moment with whatever you choose.  Not rushing through it, not being distracted, but being present in the moment, every moment.  If you would care to share...  please do!

Be Well,
Mary-Anne

My Meatless Update.

OK, so...  since my post of going meatless a little under a week ago, I am proud to say, I am still... meatless!!!  #GoMe

I am not going to say it has been easy.  Well, the meatless part, not the problem, but I was also attempting to go no dairy, and no sugar.  Remember the inflammation post... The Game Changer.

In order of how much it hurt?  Sugar was the big 'ole #1, with Dairy (my cheese!!) a close #2.  Meat...  meat was bringing up the rare (uh, I mean rear) lol, at a distant #3.  Going meatless was the easiest.  They have SOOOO many options and besides, I absolutely LOVE veggies!  All shapes, all forms!! 

Going meatless was like going gluten free for me.  With the numerous options out there and all that variety, it is really not a huge challenge.  My biggest difficulty is the whole sugar thing!  Truth be told, I licked a cupcake today.  Yes, you read that right.  Can't have the cupcake, all gluten, but...  that frosting!  ;)

And full disclosure, I did have 3 pieces of brie cheese on dried apricots at a networking event on Tuesday.  Cheese is also hard.  I really do enjoy cheese.

I did however purchase some vegan cheese yesterday, tried it today, and...  not terrible!  :)  I bought gouda, mozzarella and cheddar.  I told you...  I love my cheese!  ;)

What I plan to do, is one full post will be all the options I would recommend, and I will link to them.

Another great article, if you are interested, or at least curious on going vegetarian is on Harvard Health.  More to come...

Be Well,

Mary-Anne

Why Intentional Calm?

Well, funny you should ask...

There are many of you reading this that have known me by other names as well, however...  that was then - and this is now...  In my last post I spoke of staying focused and moving forward and not getting caught in minutia...  well... 

Welcome to Intentional Calm!

I also posted about pure intentions.  In life you sometimes need to decide to break away from all the negative and move forward into the positive version of your life that is waiting for you.  Remember, it is all about choice.

One of my favorite inspirational speaker's is Dr. Wayne Dyer.  He was an amazing man with equally amazing information.  One of my favorite books of course his Power of Intention.  Literally this is what inspired my tag line "Pure Intentions.  Positive Results."  Another favorite of his for me is Change your Thoughts - Change your Life.  Perception is a very very powerful thing!!

Intentional Calm was born from love and light and a desire to share pure and honest information.  I will do my best to post often and but not too often that the posts do not have substance.  I will have guest speakers that I feel will also be able to share good quality wholisitc information that will have a foundation in either physical, mental/emotional, spiritual, nutritional or financial health. 

Ok, so you have the "Intentional" part down, what about the "Calm" part.  Well...  we live in a very different world than just a few years back.  And then if you look a few years back from there...  well, it seems we have come light years from where we were, as far as the amount of time we had for ourselves.  My mom, bless her soul, would always tell me, "Mary-Anne, you work too hard, I am worried about you."  I would respond by telling her that I would love to not work so hard, but how do I do that?  She brought me up to be a strong and successful woman, right?  What does that actually mean...  well, it means balance!  I learned allot from that woman!

We all work too hard, we spend too much time worrying way too much (mostly over things we cannot control).  We have allergies we never had before and we ingest things we cannot pronounce.  Hmmm...  that alone is a mouthful, right?

We live in a very rushed world.  A world where we have neighbors we never see, friends we have never met, and we spend time and money trying to get one thing...  Peace.

What is peace for you?  Peace is sometimes calm, peace is sometimes quiet.  Maybe tranquility...  Or maybe peace is what we feel in the midst of the chaos we call life. 

We strive for peace, but can't figure out how to get it.  We work too many hours and do not have enough time for ourselves, hell, we barely have enough time to eat a 15 minute lunch at our desk!  Who's with me?  OK, so...  the "Calm"...  ahhh yes, we need to figure this out.  We need to figure this out before it kills us.  Literally. 

Sometimes we mistake calm and happiness with - If I only had more money?  I work this hard to get more money.  Makes sense, right?  Well,  maybe, but then we keep getting wrapped up...  If I just had better clothes?  A nicer home?  Maybe a faster car?  Sound familiar?

We get so caught up in the rat race - the minutia...  we lose the basic foundation of need...  The need to be at peace...  The need to be calm.  I am hoping you will find multiple ways for you to achieve your own level of calm in the posts that will follow.  Maybe you will gain calm through meditation, maybe through art, maybe through a simple walk around the block.  There are so many easy solutions to the problem and we look right past them.  We are so caught up in the everyday rush, we miss out on the simple pleasures life has to offer.  Yes, for those of you who remember...  yet another name...  lol  (I'm just full of them!  ;) 

We need to break away from work, the kids, the bills and take a moment to smell those roses!  If we remain calm, we are better focused.  We can lower our blood pressure.  We can accomplish so much more while coming from a place of calmness. 

I do hope you are enjoying the information and will stay tuned for more.  Together we will find our inner calm. 

Be Well,
Mary-Anne

Pure Intentions. Positive Results.

This has always been a tag line for my wellness center...   and this goes way back!  I have always felt, if your intentions are pure, you will always realize positive results.

As a Reiki Master Teacher, one of the first things I learned is to stay pure of intent and always work towards someone's highest and best.  In the same token, you should always remain pure of intent and work towards your own highest and best.  What is your highest and best you ask?  Let me explain.

Your highest and best is your perfect version of yourself.  Your best self.  The self you imagine in your dreams where you are happy ...and at peace.   

You may imagine yourself thinner, more successful, married to someone  who is more attractive...  (and Jay, my love - if you are reading this, this does NOT apply to you! LOL)  These things, your more superficial wants, may not always be for "your highest and best".  Everyone's higher self looks different.  Everyone's higher self also may look different than what...  well, what you may think.

I will give you an example of this.  When I first began my working career, there was a job I really really wanted.  I sent all sorts of good energy to this job, I had multiple interviews, I thought I had it in the bag.  I thought the job was perfect for me and for my highest and best.  It seemed like such a perfect fit.  Then...  I did not get the job.  I was devastated.  What went wrong?  Why did the positive energy not work?  Well...  Take outcome out of the equation.  Send pure intentions for THE perfect job not THIS perfect job, since - it may not be...  allow flow and then another job, better than I could have imagined, fell into my lap!

When you were younger your parents "knew best" - or so we thought.  I will disclose and say "most" parents knew best.  But, overall, and you get where I am going with this, they wanted what was best for you.  As we get older, we take this responsibility on for ourselves.  Sometimes we do very well with it?  Annnd....  Sometimes we do not.  Sometimes we get clouded.  Sometimes it is due to stress or anxiety, or even may be caused by what we eat.  (Yes, truth be told - and there will be posts following on nutritional health as I discover the good, the bad, and the ugly!)  When we get clouded, we lean towards taking the easy way out.  We choose the path of least resistance.  Sometimes this proves to NOT be for our highest and best.

Energy workers that are reading this know that we always work with clients for their highest and best.  We remove ourselves from the equation, remove outcome and let healing happen.  This is what we also need to do for ourselves.  Our higher selves, our perfect versions of ourselves are always trying to emerge.  We need to allow the process.  If we allow, and this means getting quiet enough to listen...  we can physically feel the flow of energy.  The freeing energy we feel when we KNOW we are in the right place.  Subsequently, there are other times when we also know, we have brought ourselves NOT to the right place, and we can recognize how that feels too.  Right?  Not so good, and definitely not in the flow.

Now...  there are also times, when you are kinda sorta clear and you kinda sorta feel in the groove and on the right path, only to find you are really not in a groove at all, but in reality, you have found yourself in a rut - some more worn than others.  They can look similar - they can feel similar, but none the less are very very different.  You know who you are...  we have all been there.  And, contrary to some beliefs...  you can get yourself out!  Yes! You! Can!

This is where the pure intentions, positive results come into play.  It may be hard to align yourself with clear thoughts and pure intentions when things get in the way, however, once you realize that you need to make a shift, do just that; make the shift.  Yes, it is that easy.  Start with one step at a time.  You can do it!

As I am talking about allowing, and getting into the flow, this does not mean you can't have goals, or have something to focus on, this simply means that you cannot get so tied up in all of it that you get lost in the minutia.   When the book, "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff" came out...  it was great, because yes...  it's all small stuff!  Always know that moving forward, even in the smallest of steps, is still moving forward.  Stay pure of heart.  Be true to yourself and follow your dreams.  We tell our kids every day...  You can do anything you want to do.  If you put your mind to it, you can achieve it.  Remain positive.  Stay focused and if you feel you are ever started down the wrong path, it's okay...  turn around, and start again.  It is never too late to change direction.

Stay true to yourself at all times.  Remain focused and move forward in love and light.  Pure intentions.  Positive results.

Be Well,
Mary-Anne

The Law of Attraction

Ok, so in the last post I went off topic for a bit when I was referring to people repackaging things in a different way with the same information.

Let me explain...

A few years back the big craze was "The Secret".  I thought that very interesting since this "law of attraction" they spoke of was nothing new.

Jerry & Esther Hicks wrote books years before on the same topic, some newer versions still on the market today.

The Law Of Attraction: The Basics Of The Teachings Of Abraham

The law of attraction is just that...  the law -  of attraction.  Like attracts like.  If you surround yourself with negative people, you too will become negative.  In the same token, if you surround yourself with happy and positive people, you will feel more happy and positive.  Simple right?  You can go as far as to say that if you surround yourself with very successful people, this will indeed help you become more successful.  And so on and so forth.

When you surround yourself with like minded people, you are able to collaborate on things you both believe in.  When you want to grow - you surround yourself with people who know more than you, so you can surround yourself with a higher level of knowledge on the subject you want to learn.  You want to learn something new - you take a class.  This philosophy applies to life in general as a whole.  It is fascinating really.  A friend of mine just shared a great post on FB:

I absolutely love this post!  It is exactly the manifestation of all that is.  You can indeed create your own reality.  It is a choice.  You. Have.Choice.  I can see however, that depending on how information is packaged, and how information is delivered may differ and will have varying levels of understanding.

Full disclosure, I have never seen the movie nor read the book "The Secret" I guess just based on principle, however, The way "The Secret"packaged the same information was better received by the people therefore became more popular.  I am glad to see that more people now understand the law of attraction since that should result in more people being more positive and loving and caring...  well...  here's hoping!

But...  if you are willing to give it a try, what is the worst that can happen?  You gain some more positive friends in your life?  You become more successful at your job?  You feel happier in love and life?  I say go for it!

Happy manifesting!
Be Well,
Mary-Anne

Inflammation: How does it affect you?

That is the real question.  How does it affect us and where is it coming from?

Inflammation has been negatively affecting me for years!  I never really understood where it came from.  I thought I was eating too much salt and I was retaining water (which I am sure was part of it).  I felt overall lethargic when inflamed.  I could tell when I was inflamed by general swelling on the outside, or subtle discomforts on the inside even if it was not evident as a visual on the outside.

One thing I had found recently that had been negatively effecting me is gluten.  Now, not  to just jump all over this new GF bandwagon, but truly...  Gluten is my arch-nemesis!  It seems to have been part of who I was for a long, long time, yet, I knew that, at least for me, gluten was an inflammatory.  I decided to remove gluten from my diet - pretty much completely and saw amazing results!   1.  Weight loss (not a bad side effect) and 2.  No more Emergency Room visits.  Yes! that's right, even without a Celiac Disease diagnosis from my doctor, gluten consumption landed me on a gurney in the Emergency Department every time! 

Third time was a charm and I decided to "diagnose myself", eliminated gluten and Viola!   No more ER visits and... I felt better!  And magically...  no more heartburn!  I had heartburn from hell eating gluten!!  I was diagnosed with GERD and put on Prilosec.  I could always tell if there may have been a little gluten in something I ate.  Not ER kind of pain, since I still attempted to eat GF, but there may have been a coating on something, or a gluten filled ingredient that a server may not have even realized and I would have awful heartburn all night.  I am proud to say I have stayed GF for over 10 years now.

So, one  down...  Gluten - eliminated.

Still feeling a little achy in the mornings and also feeling still a little swollen or puffy,  I investigated more.  Upon more research, it appeared that for me, two more culprits were making me inflamed from the inside out.  Sugar and Dairy.  I know!  Don't freak out!!!  Mind you I am a full fledged sugar addict!   "Hi, my name is Mary-Anne and I am addicted to sugar".  It is awful!  I have read that sugar addiction is worse than an opioid addiction...  I BELIEVE IT!!  Plus, dairy??  How could I survive without my cheese!!  😞

Giving up sugar will be allot harder for me.  Gluten was hard at first, but now there are so many GF options.  But sugar???  Guess what makes all those GF options taste so good????  Yep!  You guessed it...  Sugar!  This will be a real challenge for me.  I know people say the more you eliminate sugar the less you crave it, well...  they lie!  lol  or at least I have yet to see the full benefits from that!  Maybe I have just not followed through long enough to see those positive results.

I have tried The Whole 30.  I will have to say, I was pretty pumped to start and did follow through for the well, I'll say 28 out of the 30 days, but did realize a 10 pound weight loss and I felt less bloated.

I have tried most all the fad diets over the years...  early on it was "Fit for Life" and "The Atkins Diet" then there came "SouthBeach" and then the new and improved Atkins diet - "Keto".  They repackage allot of the same information and deliver it in such a way that it seems new...  (Another perfect example of this is the book "The Secret" as if that information was new...  Bitc#, please!  I will discuss this in another post).  I digress...  I even bought all the  books for those diets, downloaded any apps plus ordered matching cook books!  I try. I succeed for a while, and then right back where I started...  Ugh...  The struggle, my friends, is real.

Is this another fad, I don't think so, since it seems very factual plus no one in particular is financially benefiting from the information, but... I just watched The Game Changers.  WOW!  I advise checking it out.  It will change how you look at what you eat everyday.  Subsequently I have watched What the Health & Cowspiracy.  Also very interesting and, not going to lie...  A little fareaken gross!!!  Wait until you get to the puss part.  Yes, puss.  And the allowed level of puss.  (It's as if I can see your face!!  I am literally LOL)  Where they just slice the pustule on the animal, let the puss gush out right there on the line and it keeps going onto production for packaging...  ewwwww.....  😝   Sorry had to share!

I know what you are thinking... Holy S#!t....  C'mon...  What's a girl to eat???  No meat, no cheese, no sugar...  Say it isn't so!!!

Welcome to my new challenge.  What do I eat, that will sustain me while still tasting good.  I am Italian, and I LOVE to eat...  I'm a foodie!  Yes, I am one of those ones who posts pics of almost everything they eat!!  LOL  Presentation is key.  I need food to taste good!  All of my socializing is based around food...  well, plus cocktails!   (Yes, I post those too!)  And yes, I do know that alcohol breaks down into sugar.  But let's curb one thing at a time, shall we?  😉

Join me over the next few weeks and months to see how I transform my overall well being with diet.  Lets talk about what's in your pantry to what's in your fridge plus I will be joining a farm share!  We will get to exercise and physical health later...  as well as the other factors...  emotional, mental, spiritual as well as financial health.

Thank you for reading!
Be Well
Mary-Anne

Welcome!

The "intention", no pun intended...  (well, yeh!  maybe it is intended!  ;)  of this site is to give you good healthful information that you will use to help yourself feel better.

There will be information on physical health, financial health, spiritual health, nutritional health, as well as mental and emotional health.

I am hoping to begin this journey with you, so we can work together to a more healthful and peaceful way of living.

                                         Welcome to...           Intentional Calm.