The Art of Choosing You

May these words guide us this week and forevermore. This man’s life, legacy, and wisdom are the foundation that all Americans need to be choosing to stand upon. Thank you for your incredible legacy and sacrifice Dr. King. May we all continue to embody the change you knew we were (and are!) capable of. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #martinlutherkingjr #ihaveadream #martinlutherking #stopoppression #stophate #livelove #bethechangeyouwanttosee (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CKM1sDZD4JJ/?igshid=13e2eyobdih4y

Times are tough enough. Lean into action - be vulnerable and take risks. You might just be surprised at what you find ❤️ ⠀ ⠀ #connection #leanin #selfcaretips #assertiveness #communication https://www.instagram.com/p/CKDYemWjo_v/?igshid=615mtdhufa3e

Applying opposite action to activating moments creates new neural networks. Acting on anger strengthens the likelihood of more anger in your life. Acting on calm creates a new opportunity for a different nervous system response. Empower your brain to build the neural pathways you want most present in your daily life. Design your brain. Create your life. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #inspirationalquotes #lifequotes #inspirational #recovery #lifeisbeautiful #psychologist #be #love #loveyourself #lifelessons #lifequotes #peaceofmind #hope #inspire #liveyourexcellence #inspireothersbybeingyou #inspireothers #peace #selfcare #selfconfidence #selfcompassion #compassion #lifehack #motivation #talkaboutit #mhsm #mentalhealth #calmyourmind #calmyourmind (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CKAc_2_DWUk/?igshid=z792dc8oinv4

Times are tough enough. Lean into action - be vulnerable and take risks. You might just be surprised at what you find ❤️ #connection #leanin #selfcaretips #assertiveness #communication (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CKAcKyajvMy/?igshid=1lkst29437htf

As don Miguel writes in the Four Agreements- be impeccable with your word. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #fouragreements #thefouragreements #truthquotes #thinkaboutit #speaklife #connection #communicationskills #communications #bekind #betruthful #lifehack #relationshiphacks #growth #loveyourself #inspireothers #bethelight #bethechange #therapeutic #brains #ptsdawareness #liveyourexcellence #pasadena #mentalhealthawareness #chooseyou #talkaboutit (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ9cPYuDA_C/?igshid=1q4kcn69gt1cl

In the hardest moments of my life I always try to take a pause and search for some thing that will make me laugh in the future. Even in the moments of greatest difficulty there are often moments of fantastic ridiculousness. I have to wonder if this is simply a part of this crazy thing called life. We will often find the hardest things and the funniest things walking side-by-side. When things get hard, take a moment and find the ridiculous. Focus on it. Encode it. Remember it. And think about how some day this hard painful moment will become a great story of triumph. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #thisthingcalledlife #findthegood #smile #grit #resilience #recovery #anxietyrecovery #depressionhelp #chronicillness #neuroscience #pasadenatraumatherapy #neuroscience #neuroplasticity #buildyourlife #brainhack #emdr #havening #traumarecovery #traumahealing #traumahealing #bethechange #lifehack #cptsd #ptsd #ptsdawareness #ptsdrecovery #losangelestherapist @themuppets (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ6zwyrDuMl/?igshid=1azhsf4pctmdj

Listen to the whispers that your being-ness are sharing with you. This is information about who you are within the world you’re navigating. This information may be based in the past or connected to a core intuition and your inner wisdom. Regardless of their inception point, the whispers are there to help you. They hold data about how your mind and body are feeling in the moment. If we ignore this information the whispers become screams - beacons of warning striving to stop us from taking a less than preferable path. Right or wrong, fear based or wisdom focused, our intuition hates to be ignored. It is only through leaning in with curiosity about ourselves and listening to those whispers that we are empowered to utilize the lessons of our past and the wisdom of our present to design the opportunities of our future. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ @oprah @oprahmagazine #leanin #listentoyourheart #listenandlearn #listentoyourbody #breatheinbreatheout #bethechangeyouwanttosee #selfcare #selfcarethread #selflovequotes #selflovejourney #cptsdrecovery #cptsd #recoveryispossible #believeinyourself #believeinyou #embraceyourself #embracethejourney #losangelestherapy #pasadenatraumatherapy #talkaboutit #liveyourexcellence #chooseyou (at Pasadena, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ4B6RyDwzY/?igshid=tkizbzp2zydi

Being apart from our loved ones in time of stress and fear directly conflicts with the way humanity is biologically designed. This quick Brain Hack (link in Bio) tricks the brain into experiencing a physiological sense of connection through remote connection. Now you can enjoy your Zoom dinner dates, House Party connections, Virtual Happy Hours, and Whatsap/Facetime calls with the people you love and share the experience of a physically distanced hug! Double bonus? A delightful dose of Serotonin and GABA. Physically Distanced doesn't mean Socially Disconnected. Let's hug each other - virtually! ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #connection #hughack #togetherwecan #haveningtechniques #havening #neuroscience #brainhack #missyou #socialdistancing2020 #cometogether #socialdistancing #hugs #isolation #hugsmakeeverythingbetter #zoomlife #coronavirus #covid19 #connectingpeople #stressrelief #anxietysupport #recoveryjourney #depressionhelp #recovery (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ16OWcDGYY/?igshid=w855wglmekgc

Suffering is a part of life. When embraced, though, suffering actually empowers growth and wisdom at exponential levels. The hardest part for all of us (truly, this is brain science) is to transition out of the suffering and into the growth state. Researcher Dr. Kristin Neff is the world’s foremost expert on compassion and self-compassion. What she discovered is that when we extend compassion to ourselves our brain has a difficult time holding onto the feeling of suffering. The act of self-compassion aligns our linguistic story telling brain, our thinking brain, and our emotional brain into something called neural coherence. What on earth is that you may ask? It’s as though all brain parts are now playing nicely together on the play ground of life. Doesn’t that sound lovely? Save the above mantra as a screen saver on your phone. Repeat this mantra over and over again until it becomes as true (more true!) as the other stories you are telling yourself. Train your brain to be kind to yourself and witness the power of self-compassion in your life. You have way more power to design your life than you think. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #inspirationalquotes #lifequotes #inspirational #recovery #lifeisbeautiful #psychologist #boundaries #daretodream #be #love #loveyourself #lifelessons #lifequotes #relationshipgoals #peaceofmind #hope #inspire #liveyourexcellence #chooseyou #inspireothersbybeingyou #inspireothers #peace #selfcare #selfconfidence #selfcompassion #compassion #lifehack #motivation #talkaboutit #mhsm #mentalhealth (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJzLJKjjuBq/?igshid=daxwv05jscn3

My heart is aching for America today. With 2020 behind us it is clear, especially on this day, that we have a lot of healing ahead and much work to do in 2021. It is time for us all to come together. The power of healing is in all of our hearts and all of our hands. #healing #connection #cometogether #imagine #love #humanity #diversity #healinghands #bethechange #democracy #bethechangeyouwanttosee #believe #strongertogether #america #peaceandlove (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJuG8MujSBV/?igshid=kdfmi9z6fq59

We are chunks of dense matter that need to be cracked open. Our errors and failings are chinks in the heart's armor through which our true colors can shine. ~ Elizabeth Lesser ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #elizabethlesser #brokenopen #growthmindset #dkta #phoenixprocess #lifequotes #inspirationalthoughts #cptsd #cptsdrecovery #ptsdawareness #lifeisbeautiful #peaceofmind #dreamon #hopequotes #liveyourexcellence #chooseyou #inspireothersbybeingyou #liveyourlegend #peace #selfcare #selfconfidence #selfcompassion #liveyourexcellence #chooseyou (at Pasadena, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJpBgf5DCM_/?igshid=zsjb9mv6teo1

There are incredible opportunities in being in relationship with all of the possible emotions we are capable of feeling. So often we numb ourselves out with food, booze, pot... (what’s your numbing easy button?) But when we feel the feels we have a greater capacity to weather the storms of life AND to create our rainbows on the other side. Feeling feelings is a core part of resiliency and personal empowerment. For those of us on a healing journey, in order to move from surviving to recovering and through to thriving, one needs to purposefully confront some hard, scary emotions along the way. It is O.K to experience and explore the hard emotions; it is not helpful to avoid or deny them. Doing so inhibits our innate power to rise above them. This is also true in keeping emotional balance in daily life. It might surprise you that all of the 35 to 50 emotions we experience daily are stressful, whether they are “good” or “bad.” If you have ever laughed yourself to tears you know what I mean. Just as it is not healthy to be constantly sad, hurt, or anxious, being calm, happy, and content all the time is also not optimal. A healthily functioning brain is continually self-regulating and moving us into and out of different states. Check out my recent YouTube video on why we have to feel all the feels and learn an easy exercise to connect more deeply with yourself. Link in bio 🤗 ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #feelinggood #emotionalhealth #resilience #emotionalintelligence #healyourself #selfcare #selflovejourney #selfhealers #selfhealing #feelingsquotes #damasio #chooseyou #liveyourlife #liveyourexcellence #talkaboutit #depressionhelp #anxietyrelief (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJl9VnQjbFq/?igshid=ln3eg6tbs1w5

This is our literal breath by breath truth right now. Imagine a line that divides your habits into two kinds: One set of habits leads to 10x growth, and the other leads to no growth at all. They’re both just as hard to establish. So which do you choose? What are some current habits you’re ready to transform or commit 0% self-discipline to? As Dan Sullivan reminds us: The truth is that all of us are already 100% self-disciplined to our existing set of habits. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #motivation #success #discipline #selflove #personalempowerment #transformation #lifetips #thefemps #LiveYourExcellence #coronavirus #healthychoices #makehealthychoices #cptsd #ptsd #bethechange #selfempowerment #choosewisely #selflove #lifeskills #selflovejourney #changinghabits #liveyourbestlife #liveyourexcellence #chooseyou #dansullivan (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJhgeu2jnNX/?igshid=19nxc6pyae9b9

Endless gratitude for everyone working so hard and diligently to save the lives of those we love and to keep us all safe. ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #essentialworkers #newyearseve #nursesareawesome #nursesofinstagram #physicianassistant #physician #doctorsofinstagram #essentialworker #newyears2020 #gratitude #gratefulheart #corona #coronaviruspandemic #coronavirusmemes😂😂😂 #covid_19 #covid #covidvacccine #thankful #thankyou (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJfO2JDDKyB/?igshid=161qvq30q8ba0

What do you choose to carry forward into 2021? ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #choices #newyearseve #newyears2020 #designyourlife #LiveYourExcellence #healyourself #bethechangeyouwanttosee https://www.instagram.com/p/CJfDbFgDNbX/?igshid=1kyp4krqkh823

I’ve adored the whimsical and brilliant teachings of Brian Andreas since I was a wee girl of 17. Here’s a basic lesson in living your truth and finding your joy. Trust your intuition. You know yourself best! ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ ▫️ #brianandreas #healyourself #trustyourself #trustyourintuition #selfhealing #selfhelp #bethechangeyouwanttosee #findyourself #healthyboundaries #boundariesarehealthy #knowthyself #liveyourlife #chooseyou #liveyourexcellence (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJcjf87DMHL/?igshid=rkgvs0b3zbve

With all the stress and pressures on us in times like these we can be especially hard on ourselves, serving up shame for minor failings and setbacks. “I really blew that presentation,” or “I sounded so stupid on that call.” These times call for us to step back and take some time to practice self-compassion. There are many ways we can put the power of self-compassion to work to build our resilient self. The following are just a few. Look for and find bright spots that happen in your day, like recalling a smile or another human interaction you saw that made you feel warm. Make time for yourself. Create space between your "work area” and your "life area" at home. Look for opportunities to make positive shifts in what is happening in your life. Be curious about what’s going on in your internal world by spending moments intentionally being present with yourself. Thinking of something you are grateful for each day and why is a good way to do that. Acknowledge your accomplishments and offer yourself a bit of grace when you fall short. Prioritize good sleep and a good diet and give your brain and senses a rest from all the screens and noise around you. Self-compassion might be a new concept to you but it is really very simple: Treat yourself as you do the people you love most in your life—with a great deal of loving kindness, care, grace and forgiveness. #selfcompassion #gratitude #grateful #selfawareness #selfcare #kristinneff #brenebrownquotes #brenebrown #lifehack #loveyourself (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CJZ8hnNj8yO/?igshid=8268d2abo0yr