At the end of our recent 30-Day Gratitude Challenge Event, I sat down with Carol Adamski of Gratitude Habitat and Tracy Baker of Healthy You to discuss some key components of gratitude. We had an amazing conversation on the attitude of gratitude. We talked about:

• Why people fear gratitude (15:08)
• Is gratitude too simple to work (13:22)
• Challenges people face when starting to be grateful (7:18)
• Releasing emotions with gratitude (23:19)
• The meaning of gratitude (5:14)
• How gratitude can shift you into new relationships and (19:44)
• More

Meditation is key to quieting your mind. Many people are under the misconception that you have to have a quiet mind in order to meditate, however, a regular practice of meditation will naturally quiet your mind.

If you have tried to meditate or are in the beginning of your meditation practice, you may feel it is challenging to "shut the faucet off". Well, first realize that with continued practice it gets easier to quiet the mind. This is due to the fact that you are building brain

Throughout your spiritual journey with meditation, there will be many times when waves of emotions as well as physical sensations come to the surface. It is during these times that it is especially important to continue your regimen with meditation. The expression "When a wave comes go deep” is a great reminder of this.

As we have discussed in the past, sometimes that wave can feel like a tsunami. This is known as a healing crisis. When this occurs it is first nice to know that this

 I recently had the honor of interviewing Dr. Craig Williams on his new meditation supplement aimed at increasing your focus, relieving stress & anxiety and deepening relaxation. Increased focused and deepened relaxation is something that can be very useful for someone who is new to meditation or is finding it challenging to focus or relax. 

Can you tell me about your product and how it can help a person focus during meditation?

Dr. Williams: Well, we did our best to include in Meditonin

Can gratitude help improve your relationship? Can gratitude help improve your mood? Can gratitude help improve your health? Let's find out! Let's start the journey by challenging ourselves to focus on gratitude for 30-days. During the first Google Hangout Broadcast, I will give you instructions on how to begin. In shortly over a month, we will have another Google Hangout Broadcast where we will discuss the benefits of gratitude, challenges you may have faced as well as how to continue in this journey. 

#gratitude4me

How to Start!

“Tell

Yes, but let’s first address the issue that your thoughts cause physical symptoms.Your body doesn't know the difference between what it is seeing/thinking and what it is experiencing. If you are lying in bed or just wake up in the morning thinking about a stressful situation, your body is undergoing physiological changes. Your heart rate is increasing, your blood pressure is rising and other sympathetic events are occurring. I am sure we have all experienced this situation.

This same physiological reaction also occurs if you were actually

A hard day of work results in both a physical and mental/emotional contraction of your being. This is a result of the stressful thoughts that are persisting in your mind even after you leave the job. These thoughts are causing a stress response and are affecting you. These thoughts run anywhere from worrying about what is going to happen in the future to what has happened in the past. Generally these thoughts are not about what is happening in the present moment.

Can meditation be harmful is an interesting and somewhat complex question. First, it depends on your perspective. What do you deem as harmful? Let’s explore this question in depth and I will let you decide whether meditation is harmful.

Meditation is an inward journey that starts the process of you coming into alignment with your true self. It is a journey of cultivation of a better life and lifestyle. While meditation in itself is benign, there are facets of meditation that one should take into consideration. When you

Hello, my name is Shawngela Pierce and I work as a meditation and holistic lifestyle coach. I love what I do and have been teaching for over 15-years.

If you are new to meditation or have been meditating for awhile and have questions you need answered, I can help. I can help guide you to get you going and to help inspire you to keep going. Whether you need a full protocol to help you with anxiety or stress or whether your questions are related to

Yes, it is true! Meditation can help you heal emotionally from the past through a process of "emotional detoxing”. Emotions from past relationships, fearful events, etc. that you have stored away can be released with a daily meditation practice. 

In order to understand how you can emotionally detox with meditation, let’s first look at the body and emotions from an energetic perspective.  Everything in the universe is energy. Remember the formula E=mc²? Well this applies to the physical body as well as to the emotional and

I would say, the difference between a formal meditation practice and an informal meditation practice is one is done at a set time and one is done throughout the day. When you are doing a formal meditation practice you intentionally set aside a particular block of time that you are going to practice your meditation. When you do this, it allows you to train your mind more deeply. You can “get into” the meditation more with a formal meditation practice.

An informal meditation practice is something you

Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 9 of Daniel Parmeggiani's Virtual Blog Tour, whose new book, The Magnificent Truths of Our Existence, is currently celebrating its official launch.

Daniel Parmeggiani is a modern-day spiritual teacher whose approach is unaligned with any particular religion or tradition. Driven by intense psychological turmoil when he was younger, Daniel discovered within himself a deeper reality that he says not only saved his life, but also showed him the way to permanent happiness and inner peace.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Rick Batyr, an intuitive sound healer and producer. His music is inspirational and is excellent for meditation and energy healing. Read below to find out more information and to purchase his album, Path of Light - Music for Energy Healing Volume 1. 

How does your music help a person during meditation?

RICK: The music I create can help a soul on many levels. The essence of what I do is using sound with the intention to heal the

When you become anxious or stressed you weaken your connection to your true inner essence. Some call this your spirit, higher source, inner guide, etc. You become so entrenched in your outer reality that you forget or don't notice the innate inner quiet that is within you. This inner quiet is truly there but you have to cultivate it. One way to do this is with meditation. With a regular practice of meditation, you begin to strengthen that connection. As a result, you become less anxious and

Meditating with a bench is a great way to hold a meditation pose longer when you are doing the kneeling position. The kneeling position is great for those who find it challenging to do a normal seated meditation pose such as the half-lotus or crossed-legged position.

Do know that it may not be the best pose for you, if you are experiencing problems with your knees. You may want to consider meditating in a chair or doing a moving meditation is this is the case for you.

The cumulative affects that you feel from a daily meditation practice is greater than that which you feel from a periodic practice. Even a daily meditation practice of only 5 minutes is a good start. Think consistency over longevity.

A daily meditation practice trains your mind and body in many aspects. It trains your mind and body to relax, to focus, to let go, to be present, to ground, etc. These are just some of the benefits of meditation. 

An accomplished musician or a star athlete,

Do you believe these words? Whatever we see everyday in our outer reality is actually nothing more than a projection of our own inner reality.

Do you believe your outer reality is a reflection of your inner reality? Do you believe that stress in your outer reality is a reflection of the internal stress of the inner mind? Have you noticed or do you see a correlation between your thoughts and your life/lifestyle? Take a moment to reflect on this, then tell me your thoughts. Really reflect

Be mindful while exercising

Walking is an excellent way to relieve stress and anxiety. Combine walking with the power of meditation and you magnify the benefits. Walk and train yourself to be in the present moment. Train yourself to observe what you are doing now and release thoughts and/or worries of the past or future. When you do this, you relieve stress and anxiety. Make this your exercise routine for a month and let me know how this has helped in your goal of stress and

Alternate nostril breathing is an excellent way to relieve stress and anxiety. In addition to helping to relieve anxiety and stress, alternate nostril breathing has other benefits:

• Relaxes you
• Harmonizes left & right brain
• Calms & centers mind
• Gives you a boost of energy

How to do Alternate Nostril Breathing

1. Sit in a comfortable position with your back erect and relaxed.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Raise your right hand & close the right nostril with your right thumb.
4. Inhale through the left nostril - 4

Connect to nature on a regular basis to relieve anxiety and stress. Practice the vibration of taking time for yourself to just let go and be “free” in nature. Nature has a way of reconnecting us to our true essence. When we truly immerse ourselves in the beauty and calmness of nature, we awaken to a better understanding of ourselves in relation to everything.

When you spend time in nature, leave everything behind. Be there and be present. You can do this by practicing spending time