Beth's blog

I recently walked in on my 8-year-old daughter, Kendra, practicing some yoga poses before her bed time. This is not her normal nightly routine. I was excited to see her doing this, but not completely surprised. She was introduced to the idea of practicing stress reduction at a very young age. It is not a daily lesson from me, but stress reduction is definitely talked about and practiced between the two of us from time to time. Like most children, Kendra has an abundance of energy.  Energy is a beautiful thing, but it is also awesome to watch her stop and breathe with me and focus on a calm moment every once and awhile. It gives me hope that I can teach her to do this on her own in the future when it may be needed... kind of like she did the other night. Even if it's a rare happening, it still gives me hope :)

Kendra's action to relax with yoga before bedtime inspired this blog. It made me think about what brought her to this point and how important it is to start practicing stress reduction at a young age. The longer children are exposed to small lessons like this, the more likely they will apply relaxation techniques on their own. I am happy to share some of my ideas and our experiences so far and maybe you can bring this into your home as well. While every child is different and some things may not work so well for your child, it doesn't hurt to try. I can say for sure that I have benefited from these ideas too.

1. Start talking to your child about stress reduction as young as possible. It may seem silly and it may seem she doesn't quite understand, but the more you do it and the more you talk about it, the sooner she will learn. Do not choose to introduce relaxation moments during stressful times. It is less productive to start out this way. Introduce them when your child is more quiet or during a time when you are playing with her one on one. The end of the day at bedtime is a good time to start. Talk to your child about why it is important to practice relaxation techniques. Once she gets used to it, then the techniques can be used later at more stressful times.
2. Use music for relaxation. Kendra has been listening to relaxation CDs for a very, very long time. She loves them. It makes her room so cozy at night; Keep a variety handy. I usually pick one for her; When she wants a change, she mentions it. My husband and I listen to a thunderstorm CD every night. I fell in love with the rain when I was young and stayed overnight at my aunt Dona's tin roof camper. I remember clearly the first time I discovered how peaceful rain hitting the rooftop sounded.
3. Go to bed with some quiet reading. First, either my husband or I take some time to read with Kendra. Then she is given the time to use low lighting or a flashlight to read on her own. Reading to Kendra has always been a tradition. Kendra reading to herself started around the age of 4 or 5; She was little and read tiny books. She looked at pictures and even "read" to herself when she couldn't yet technically read. Given this privilege, she felt independent. She was given the chance to pick two books and when finished, was to turn off her flashlight and fall asleep. Now she practices this naturally. This is a great form of relaxation for her.
4. Buy your child a book about relaxation. Don't just hand it to your child and expect her to be motivated on her own; Read and do activities with her first, and then see where it goes. Kendra recently pulled a cute book from her shelf called "The Girls' Yoga Book: Stretch Your Body, Open Your Mind, and Have Fun!" by Michaela Caldwell. Do some research to find fitting books for you and your child.
5. Practice what you preach. This makes sense, right? Your child sees you do it and she wants to do it even more (we hope :))
6. Try guided visualization. This is a fun activity at bedtime. Tell your child to close her eyes and imagine the story you tell. Try to make all of the senses come alive! Recently, I had Kendra imagine the feel of soft white sand between her toes while she listened to crashing waves at the ocean. In our story, we walked slowly in the sand. We imagined picking up seashells and feeling the smooth curves of the twisting shapes in our fingers - the colors that they had. We tossed them in the waves along with any worries we had that day. It was a great experience. After we were finished, Kendra opened her eyes and asked, "What worry did you think about, mom?" and we were able to talk about it. This type of conversation can be very therapeutic. It aids in releasing stubborn worries from your mind for a good night's rest.
7. Breathe colors :) Sometimes I ask Kendra to tell me a color that makes her feel calm. I also ask her to tell me a color that does just the opposite of that. Her calm color is blue, her opposite is grey. My color to breathe in is soft pink; I breathe out red. When we take the deep breath in, our colors fill every inch of our bodies. Our exhales are liberating and fun! We both agree that we especially love the exhales. This activity is really helpful in hectic moments and at the end of your day. It teaches you to slow down.
8. Massage at home. The simple stuff feels so good and works like a charm. Use a little oil or lotion and start with the face and scalp. Have your child close her eyes and trace her facial features; tiny finger twists and pulls feel so good to them as well. Massage up the arms and do light compressions on the legs over the blanket. Sounds wonderful, doesn't it?
9. Take your child on a quiet walk. Stop and listen to the sounds. Bring a journal. Listen to the birds singing. Maybe even bring a bird book and use it to identify them. If you show passion towards something, it is likely your child will too. Walking in the middle of the woods is ideal, but Kendra and I even carry bird books on our walks in the city neighborhoods.
10. Participate in a group meditation or a kid's yoga class. Seeing other people take part in relaxation together is extremely inspiring.
11. Finally, bring your little one to our center :) We have an amazing "Mommy and Me" session that wraps this blog's idea up perfectly. It starts with you and your child relaxing and chatting quietly with an aromatic and soothing foot soak and neck wrap. After soaking the feet, you will both receive a foot scrub to help soften the skin. Then the two of you will lay on separate massage tables and receive a half hour of massage on the face, scalp, arms, hands and feet with delicious smelling lotions. It is reassuring to your son or daughter to see you take care of yourself; To make him or her a part of the experience is even better!
    

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I recently took part in two levels of workshops from the Daybreak Geriatric Massage Institute. I am so excited to be working with this new population of clients and will be starting in the next month or so.  Geriatric massage is a modality that focuses on seniors ages 65 and older. Sessions are an average of 30 minutes but can be longer for more "robust" seniors. A more robust senior is treated like any other middle-aged individual with careful attention paid to his or her medical history form prior to the session in case of any contraindications.
 
Geriatric massage has the expectation of improving an individuals quality of life. It addresses the changes that take place due to aging, e.g. skin changes, muscle and bone differences and certain body differences due to medication use. It increases circulation and stimulates the nervous system. It can relax the mind, ease agitation, and alleviate fear in an aging man or woman.  The session is also geared toward softening any hardened muscle and connective tissue.

Massage for this population is important because it can really take away that sense of aloneness that may come along with aging.  Many people are very touch deprived at this point in their lives and massage can fill that void. I would love to be the person in someone's life filling this void and giving a person the affection and positive skin-to-skin contact that is so very important, yet lacking. I cannot wait to get started!
 
This season, will you or a friend or a family member benefit from a geriatric massage?  Think about how wonderful this gift of touch could be for someone in your life.  It is a gift that encourages feelings of worthiness and well-being, love and support. Think about how a weekly or monthly massage can change this person's life.  It is difficult to find a gift much better than that?

Photo by Patrick Dugan

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Recently, my friend told me about her secret to losing some weight: She has been drinking hot lemon water every morning. I have yet to try this myself, but it intrigues me and I am definitely considering this morning ritual now that I have researched even further into the subject

Of course, she did not just shed a few pounds by drinking lemon water alone (for instance, she also has a healthy diet and exercises as regularly as her schedule allows,) but she highly recommends this and I thought it was something good to share because there are some interesting facts about drinking lemon water.

The recipe and directions are simple: Combine 4 ounces of warm to hot water and the juice of half of a fresh-squeezed lemon and drink up!

Here are 10 reasons why hot lemon water is beneficial to our health:

1. Boosts your immune system: Lemons are high in vitamin C, which is great for fighting colds. They’re also high in potassium, which stimulates brain and nerve function. Potassium also helps control blood pressure.
2. Balances pH: Drinking lemon water daily helps reduce your body’s overall acidity. Lemon is one of the most alkaline foods around. Lemon does have citric acid but it does not create acidity in the body once metabolized.
3. Helps with weight loss: Lemons are high in pectin fiber, which helps fight hunger cravings. It also has been shown that people who maintain a more alkaline diet (see #2) lose weight faster.
4. Aids digestion: Lemon juice helps flush out unwanted materials. It encourages the liver to produce bile, an acid required for digestion. Efficient digestion reduces heartburn and constipation.
5. Is a diuretic: Lemons increase the rate of urination in the body, which helps purify it. Because of this toxins are released at a faster rate which helps keep your urinary tract healthy.
6. Clears skin: The vitamin C component helps decrease wrinkles and blemishes. Lemon water purges toxins from the blood which helps keep skin clear as well. It can actually be applied directly to scars to help reduce their appearance.
7. Freshens breath: Always nice!
8. Relieves respiratory problems: Warm lemon water helps get rid of chest infections and can ease an annoying cough. It’s thought to be helpful to people with asthma and allergies too.
9. Keeps you zen: Vitamin C is one of the first things depleted when you subject your mind and body to stress. As mentioned above... lemons are high in vitamin C.
10. Helps kick the coffee habit: If someone tries this...let me know if it actually works  I don't have much of a coffee habit, but I know it is a tough one to kick.

Let us know if you try it and tell us if you see any differences. I am curious!

Image: Trevor Leyenhorst

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I am on the go a lot.  But something I do give myself credit for is being slow sometimes.  The thing that allows me to be slower is that I give myself time. You may call me a putzer. On the days where I can be the putzer that I remember being as a child, life is so much less stressful. Everything goes a lot more smoothly. I think to some people this may sound unrealistic.  But it is not really unrealistic at all.  And it keeps you calmer...which in the end gets things done the right way and in return you feel at ease and less anger arises when something does not go right. Because if you are rushing and have less time, when something doesn't go the way as planned, it is so much more stressful finding a solution than if you had actually given yourself time in the first place.  Think about it... isn't it strange how every time you are driving and you are running late every driver around you seems to be moving too slow? It makes you angry and anxious. It seems every driver around you is a jerk and doesn't know how to drive correctly. If you really took the time to reflect, that mostly occurs when you made the choice to leave the house at the last minute. Every driver out there can't possibly be getting in your way on purpose. Right? Isn't it funny how when you wake up at the last minute you rush around so much that you spill things which take time for cleaning....the coffee seems to take longer when it is brewing and the toaster just isn't toasting your bagel fast enough? That is not a way to start your day. Why not make the habit of setting your alarm a little earlier?  If you are a big time snoozer then set it even earlier. To me, it is worth it.  Getting up a little earlier is nice.  Waking up my daughter is less hectic and sometimes I can even hop into bed and lay with her for a couple of minutes and slowly wake her up.  The battle goes away and there is a calm beginning of the day that you can already feel affecting your mood immediately. It sounds like torture to some people when I tell them what time my daughter and I get up in the morning to get ready for school. But I believe we do not feel as much stress as others getting ready in the morning. She takes time getting out of bed, we take time getting dressed, we can relax and watch cartoons, we eat a full breakfast sitting down, and we putz. The funny thing is, with all of this time, I still sometimes find us rushing right at the very end:)  But I think you get the idea here. Every second after opening my eyes is not a hectic rush..., which I know, can be the case for a lot of people. So for this blog I will simply suggest for your health...give yourself more time in the morning. And then continue this time allowance throughout your day.  Some more examples of what I do for myself so I can be the putzer I was meant to be is I leave for work with an ample amount of time to not feel stressed while driving. Along with a nice drive, I can even find the time to do nice things for other drivers such as letting cars in front of me and other little favors like that. I also give myself more than enough time to be at work before the day gets busy. It is a grounding thing for me. There I can slowly set up the massage room I will be working in that day, chat a little with my co workers and maybe even help them set up and complete anything else that needs done with ease. We work to teach stress relief and to give stress relief and this is one way that I can suggest the reduction of stress that I actually try to do in my life. Of course this is not always the case for me...but it is something that I know from experience, works and feels good and definitely brings me some peace in my life....extra time gives me time to putz without feeling stressed. I love it!  It works really well while hanging out with my family:)  My husband, who is a chill man originally from the south and my seven year old girl are slow movers and it is a good feeling to be on their wavelength:) Good luck with putzing....and remember to be a successful putzer, you must give yourself the time!

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No matter what, at the Pittsburgh Center for Complemenary Health and Healing, we have warmth awaiting you in session. Always, we have the "grandma bags" filled with heated water on our tables.  But there are some specific sessions and some other beneficial add-ons to a session that you might be missing out on that could be very fitting for your needs. 

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