On Monday, December 6 at 7 pm ET I’ll be having a conversation with one of my favorite people, Millie Grenough, pictured at left.  Millie is a life coach, therapist and author of Oasis in the Overwhelm: 60 Second Strategies for Balance in a Busy World.

If you’re like many people I know, the holidays can heap on added stress dealing with traveling, visiting family or simply the rush of trying to do too much with not enough time to relax.  Add in too many holiday parties with tempting food that’s calling your name, and you can have a recipe for added weight gain as well.

Millie and I will both be sharing our favorite healthy tips and tricks to minimize stress during the holidays, make powerful intentions about self-care and truly enjoy ourselves.

I hope you’ll join in the fun and get inspired to make the most of the holiday season that’s upon us.

Join us by dialing in to the following number on Monday, 12/6 at 7 pm ET: 

712-429-0690 – enter 600493# as the passcode.

I hope you can join us!

It’s pretty ironic though because growing up I was definitely on the shy side. Not with my family and friends of course, but in school I just hated public speaking. I still have some not so pleasant memories of more than one public speaking melt down.

But that was then, and now speaking to large groups or small, on radio or TV, is like second nature and I love it.

So I was ecstatic to be a guest on Metro Chick Radio during my recent trip to Detroit. I spent an hour with my ultra-cool colleagues midlife coach Karen Batchelor (in the middle) and branding expert and talk show host Jill Jordan.  We were talking about how to overcome the overwhelm we often feel in our lives as women and find more balance.  These days it seems like most of us are racing around at a breakneck pace and just getting the basic things of life done can seem overwhelming. Our conversation was about simple things we can do to calm down, get more centered and take a break from too much anxiety.

And not only did we talk about overwhelm, but how to figure out those midlife years when there’s all kind of changes going on (not the least of which is our body starting to shift in unexpected and often unsettling ways!). Karen is a midlife expert — she’s a pro at coaching women as they navigate the joys and challenges of midlife (menopause, aging parents, career changes, just to name a few) and we had a great time talking about how midlife can be downright extraordinary if we let it.

Bottom line — it was just pure fun, lots of laughs and great ideas. Take a listen to what we had to say and enjoy.

What really put me over the edge was my weekend subscription to the New York Times. There’s nothing I like better than curling up with the Sunday paper and really having time to read articles at length, not just scanning the headlines. However, I was feeling increasingly ovewhelmed by reading the paper given all my other demands and responsibilities. It started to feeling like a burden, and truth be told, most weekends I was lucky if I thumbed through the main section. So not only was I not reading it, but I was wasting paper too! And the more it piled up, the worse I felt – I actually worried about the fact that I wasn’t reading it. So I made a very conscious decision to suspend my subscription.

To me, it just felt like the right thing to do. At first, I felt lost without the Sunday paper, it’s such a part of me that I really missed it. But truth be told, I’m getting used to it and it’s totally freeing.  I love giving myself a break, taking away some of the pressure, and actually feeling healthier as a result.  Instead of it being one more thing to do and something I feel obligated to, I can spend that time doing things that I really want to do that are truly relaxing and health promoting. For example, if it’s between taking my favorite Sunday morning yoga class and reading the paper, yoga is where I want to me, truly slowing down and tuning in.

What about you, do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by the news? Do you pressure yourself to stay on tops of things? And how does it affect your stress levels and health?

So even though I knew I’d have to get up earlier than usual, I already sensed that it would not only be worth by time, but also set the tone for the day. Boy was I right! Kundalini yoga is all about the breath and tuning into your body. I love it because it doesn’t require any athletic prowess or ability to hold long postures. It’s gentle, effortless and completely relaxing. What a fantastic way to start the day.

Just making that simple effort reminded how easy it is to be healthy when we want to do it. Instead of feeling like drudgery, it was pleasurable. Instead of feeling like I should do it, I really wanted to do it. When that’s the case, it’s so much easier to get into action about our health. And the great news is that I’ll reap the benefits of this morning class all day – calmer and more focused, in tune with my body, less stress, taking deeper breaths, slowing down and not rushing through my day. What a gift to receive this at 6:00 in the morning.

I hope you’ll make it a great day and tune into what your body and health most need.

I’ll admit that I’m a life long thinker. By that I mean that I’ve become a pro at spending copious amounts of time “in my head.” Thinking, analyzing, worry, intellectualizing, being wracked with anxiety, over-thinking, you name it and I’ve probably done it. And during that time, it definitely took a toll of my health. For years, I suffered from chronic eczema that was made worse by stress and worry. Through lots of different work over the years, I’ve been able to improve my ability to quiet my mind but this training took it to a new level. It gave me an opportunity to more fully tune into my body and learn strategies to get out of my head when I feel myself getting in a loop. And i really tuned in to being present in the moment, not just physically being present and mentally reviewing my to-do list.

I love the connection we can make when we get out of our heads and into our bodies – it’s so closely linked to knowing when something is wrong and improving our health. When we slow down and tune in, it’s much easier to feel what’s going on. When we stop our breakneck pace, we can hear those words of wisdom that may be telling us it’s time to see the doctor or get some other kind of help. When was the last time that you slowed down, got out of your head and really listened to what your body has to say?

At the same time, it was totally liberating! I often expend a huge amount of energy and mental space trying to stay on top of what’s going on in the world. My mind tends to be cluttered with facts and information and to be honest, it takes me away from putting my energy into what’s most important to me. Plus if my mind is constantly going a mile a minute, it’s hard to slow down and tune into listening to my body, getting creative and just being.

So giving myself a break from too much information and over-stimulation really did help to quiet things. And also to remember that this is all about choice. I can choose to be overwhelmed with too much information or I can choose to slow down, get quiet and strike a better balance. I can choose to lead a hectic, over-committed life, or I can be really selective about what I choose to do, only doing things I want to do, not just what I feel I should do. There’s a whole lot of freedom in slowing down and tuning in. I feel much more relaxed, present and happy. And I definitely choose a slower, more quiet life, even in the midst of chaos.

Take a listen to this week’s audio tip and hear more about why slowing down is so important and how it can help you. Enjoy!

Did you know that there are also important health benefits to eating more slowly? You’ll love what I have to say in this week’s audio tip. So take a listen and let me know what you think. Happy slow and pleasurable eating!

Last night I went out to dinner with my fiance and I have to tell you that the service was terrible and the food wasn’t much better. But you know what I loved? That we took our time and weren’t rushing. That I was totally present to both the food and conversation. That I really did chew my food and taste it, even if it wasn’t that great. I totally appreciated the experience (but needless to say, I won’t be going back to the restaurant).

When was the last time you experienced ecstasy when eating? Taken a listen to my audio tip this week and get inspired.

Have some thoughts about the audio tip and post? Please share them here.

I spent far too many years feeling bad when Valentine’s Day would roll around, wondering if there was something wrong with me. Back then, I didn’t get that I could create something special for myself regardless of whether or not I had a boyfriend. Years later, I now really appreciate myself and make it a habit to practice self-care daily.

Given that so many of us run around and have ultra-busy lives, we hardly take time to breath, let alone think about nurturing ourselves. We’re overcommitted, stressed out, anxious, tired, worried, unhealthy and have far too much on our plates to handle. What would your life look like if you took some time to just be? If you got quiet, de-stressed and did something special for you? I have a hunch you’d thoroughly enjoy yourself, just like I do.