Meet Q

This is my little man Q.  He’s 4 and a half years old. He’s a fun loving little guy with a copious amount of energy.  

On any given day you can find him dressed up as any one of the following; Spiderman, Captain America, Optimus Prime, and/or Bumblebee.  He is what one would call “all boy”.  

Like his daddy, he likes to wear pink… or at least he used to.  You see, Q is in Jr. Kindergarten, and to make a long story short a few of his classmates have decided that pink is no longer socially acceptable for boys.  If you touch pink… you’re a girl, if I make you touch pink… you’re a girl, if I throw pink blocks at you… you are a girl.   This message has been so ingrained into these little guys that many have started refusing to use pink at home.  Q will no longer drink out of a pink cup, colour with a pink crayon, or pass his sister her pink hair brush.  In fact, not only will he not touch it, but he acts as if these items have been cursed with a strange mutating spell (“ew,ew,ew!”).

We’ve spent the last 10 days in Myrtle Beach, and over those 10 days, I slowly started to see Q shift back towards pink.  He started wearing his pink shirts, he wanted to try on his sister’s pink goggles.  Without the pressure of his classmates, he was able to like what HE likes.  It was nice to see.

This morning Q was getting dressed for school and he picked out his pink golf shirt (pictured above).  And I hesitated.  I knew that if he wore that shirt that he risked getting teased for the whole entire day, but I also knew that if I convinced him to change his shirt, that those 3 four year olds would not only succeed in bullying and manipulating my son and his choices, but me and my choices as well.  He wore the shirt.

He was happy and content walking to school, I on the other hand was not, I was nervous as hell.  Not only is Q a fun loving little man, but he’s a very sensitive being.  And this Mama Bear wanted nothing more than to protect her baby boy’s spirit from being crushed by a couple of 5 year olds.

I walked him up to his classroom door and he lost it, sobbing “I want to go home, I want to go home.”  It was out of the blue, and completely unexpected given his excitement earlier that morning.  Perhaps it was the sight of the other kids, or perhaps (and more likely) it was my own nervous energy he was picking up on.  Either way, it sucked.

And there I left him with a big hug, and a big kiss… heart broken, in a pink shirt.

*Disclaimer* I have to add, that Q’s teacher is AMAZING!  I have no complaints with how she has been dealing with this issue, but with a ratio of 1:24, it’s not only difficult, it’s downright impossible to catch ever little comment these kids will slur at the other boys

Yoga for Hope, HopeSpring, and Me.

Hi Everyone,

I hope this blog finds you well.  I just wanted to take a few minutes to pass on some information in hopes that some of you may be interested in helping out.

As many of you know, I volunteer as a Reflexologist and Reiki Practitioner at HopeSpring Cancer Support Centre.  What many of you may not know is how my journey at HopeSpring began…

My Aunt was diagnosed with cancer 15 years ago, but it wasn’t until the last few years that I became acutely aware of what my role in her journey was.  My Aunt was one of my very first reflexology clients, and almost every time I went “home” for the weekend we found time for a session.  In reflexology, she found comfort, she found relief, she found peace…  If only for an hour, she found these things in reflexology.  After our very first session, I must admit, I went promptly to my car and wept.  It wasn’t fair.  Cancer wasn’t fair.  Her supportive husband and four beautiful children…  Screw you cancer!   …but after all my tears were dry, the reality was… THIS is reality.

I joined the HopeSpring team in hopes to create that same comfort, relief and peace for the clients as I did for my aunt.  What I didn’t anticipate was the insurmountable amount of comfort, relief and peace I would gain from HopeSpring as a result.  As much as HopeSpring needs the community for funding, the community needs HopeSpring for so many more reasons.

This February 25^th marks the 8^th annual Yoga for Hope, and I am so very proud to be participating this year!!   “ALL proceeds go directly to HopeSpring.  HopeSpring receives no funding from the government or The Canadian Cancer Society.  It relies solely on the donations from the community.”

I am seeking pledges for as little as $5.00,  AND as a thank you, those who make a donation of $5.00 or more by February 8^th will be entered into a random draw for a 1 hour Reflexology/Reiki/Distance Reiki Gift Certificate ($60 value) at Blue Bamboo Holistics.  Keep it for yourself, or gift it to someone else.

If interested, please email for more details.  Payments can be made in cash, cheque, email transfer, paypal, and the good old honour system to be collected at a later date.

I started volunteering at HopeSpring in honour of my Aunt…. And now I volunteer in memory of her.

Thank you for considering,

Sheena

For more information, please visit  http://www.yogaforhope.ca/

My beautiful treatmend room at HopeSpring.

The Mindful Kids Movement

Back by Popular Demand!!! Round 2 of the 6 session Flex Pass!!

Learning... er, Relearning to Breathe

Life starts and ends with taking a breath; the first breath, the last breath, and all the ones in between…   

Are you doing it right?

Deep breathing has many health benefits which include relieving stress (yes, please!), strengthening the immune system (HELLO!), accelerating the healing process (that’s an Rx I can handle!), burning calories (a little off the thighs please), rejuvenating and oxygenating organs (natures natural facelift), and promoting peace of mind while filling the whole body system with the ever amazing life-energy-oxygen-Chi (om mani padme hum).  And that’s just my short list!

Simply put, deep breathing makes you look and feel great, both inside and out!

So why are 83% of you doing it wrong!?!

83% of the general population are only using a tenth of their lung capacity.  A TENTH!!  Why?  Because they just don’t know any better.  That’s why I’m here.  Let’s learn how to deep breathe.

Rule #1 - Breathe from your belly, not from your chest.

Rule #2 - *see rule #1.

Rule #3 – The same as rule #2.

Okay, you get the point.  Unfortunately, most of us are accustom to shallow breathing which only fills the upper area of the lungs with air.  And although shallow breathing is easier, deep breathing is the proper way of breathing if you want to achieve all the awesome things I’ve listed above.

So, now that you have the rules down, let’s exercise!  No, no, no… not the ‘make you work and sweat’ exercise, this is a ‘get comfortable and relax’ exercise… my favourite kind!

Belly Breathing

Belly breathing is easy to do and very relaxing.  I use this with almost all of my clients, young and old alike.  Try this basic exercise anytime you need to relax or relieve stress.

·         Sit in a comfortable position.

·         Put one hand on your belly just below your ribs and the other hand on your chest.

·         Take a deep breath in through your nose, and let your belly push your hand out.  Your chest should not move.

·         Breathe out and feel the hand on your belly go in. 

·         Do this breathing 3 to 10 times.  Take your time with each breath. 

·         *For children, place a favourite stuffed animal on their belly.  They can watch for the rise and fall of their special little friend.*

Studies show that just observing your breathing is known to alleviate stress.  Start each day with 3-5 deep cleansing breaths before you even get out of bed for better health and well-being.

Breath Counting

·         Sit in a comfortable position. 

·         Gently close your eyes and take a few deep belly breaths.

·         To begin the exercise, count “one” to yourself as you exhale.

·         The next time you exhale, count “two”, and so on up to “five”.

·         Once you hit “five”, begin a new cycle, counting “one” on the next exhalation.

·         Try to do 10 minutes of this mindfulness breathing at least once or twice a day.

Never count higher than “five”, and count only on the exhale.  You will know your attention has wandered when you find yourself up to “eight”, “twelve”, or even “nineteen”.

Just 10 minutes, twice a day will greatly decrease stress and tension, while increasing vitality and strength.

Chi Breathing

Chi, Ki or Qi is frequently translated as life energy, lifeforce, or energy flow.  Simply put, it’s what makes us tick.  As a Reiki Practitioner, I work with Chi on a daily basis.

·         Sit in a comfortable position and gently close your eyes.

·         Put one hand on your belly just below your ribs, your Solar Plexus Chakra; and the other hand on your chest, your Heart Chakra.

·         Inhale through the very top of your head, your Crown Chakra; think of taking in the life-energy-oxygen-Chi down into your body.

·         Circulating, moving, and breathing Chi in you, through you, and then back out into the world.

·         Exhale through your Solar Plexus and visualize this vital Chi energy surrounding the outside of your body like a giant bubble.  Growing bigger, thicker, and stronger with each exhalation.  Feel your Chi Bubble grow.

·         Try to grow your Chi Bubble for at least 5 minutes.   Inhaling Chi down through your Crown, and exhaling Chi out through your Solar Plexus. 

Not only will this Chi Bubble enhance your energy flow within yourself, but as people come in contact with you (at work, at home, etc.) your high vibrational Chi will raise the life energy vibrations of others around you.   It’s contagious!!  In a good way!!

Breathe.

Yesterday

Yesterday, I witnessed…

The strength of a woman,

The devotion of a husband,

The elegance of a mother,

The bond between siblings,

And the innateness of a homebirth. 

Yesterday, I experienced the intensity of new life and all the wonders it brings.

And because of yesterday, today I am different.

Extraordinary Everyday

I had an amazing day.
Not because I was given flowers; I wasn’t, and not because of a hallmark card; there is none. But because today was just an ordinary day like every other and it’s in the normalcy of today that I realized how extraordinary every day actually is. Today we had fun, we laughed, we loved, we appreciated, and not because it was Mother’s Day, but because it was today...my everyday.