Posts Tagged ‘women health’

One key part of my personal self care as a life & leadership coach for women is an annual retreat vacation with my life partner/husband of more than 25 years!

We find that this nourishes us both and creates a strong foundation for our relationship and lives!

This year, we were fortunate enough to be in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. Being on the water, seeing dolphins and whales contributes to the nourishment and rejuvenation!

Sending you all sunny and warm wishes for your day!

Now, it’s off to yoga, wish it still was yoga on the beach…

Namaste,

Zoey

 

in peace & mindfulness

namaste,

Zoey

 

 

Topaz Lotus Life & Leadership Coaching for Women

wisdom coaching to set your heart on fire and soothe your soul

“Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan the flames.” ~ Rumi

Stressed Again!?

 

Are you feeling stressed?  “Wonderful” your life coach says!

 

Are you surprised at this response?  In our culture we are advised to “get rid of stress”, “make stress go away”, take a stress management program and de-stress.  Many respond to this message but with actions that further the stress or distract them from what is really going on in their lives.  How many of your friends or family members, or perhaps even yourself de-stress with a glass of wine or two or three before dinner, through intense exercise, long hours at work or high adrenaline producing activities?

 

What if we shift perspective to welcoming stress as an opportunity to learn about ourselves, relationships, life patterns and balance in life?

 

When my client’s says that they are feeling stressed, I ask the following questions:

- is stress a daily part of your life or is it transitory?

- what does stress feel like in your body, where does it reside?

- what message is your stress giving you?

- how does stress serve you?

- how does stress not serve you?

- if you weren’t feeling stressed, how would your life be the same and different?

- being stressed allows you to do what….?

- what does your stress keep you from doing?

- how do you want your future to be in regards to stress?

 

Through the ensuing conversation clients often realize that feeling stressed is part of their life pattern and in fact in the past is has helped them accomplish projects and tasks.    Clients often find that they are ‘adrenalin junkies’ and find it tricky to get motivated with out stress and adrenalin.  By mid-life, they usually have found that this pattern isn’t working well for them anymore due to relationship problems or observable health effects of high blood pressure, poor sleep, digestive problems and headaches for example, but don’t know how to “do their life” differently.

 

I suggest that folks “make friends with their stress” and even give it a name. Rather than  try to make the stress go away I encourage my clients to welcome it into their lives and bodies as an opportunity for learning.  In doing this many folks find meaning and messages in their stress as well as find that there is a softening of the area of their body where they generally “hold” their stress.  I also encourage clients to engage in physical activities that are in alignment with ‘getting to know your body’, such as yoga or Tai Chi.  Often this process results in major life changes and in retrospect many say “thank you” to the original stress that was such a powerful  trigger or a catalyst for positive life change.

Enjoy your day!

in peace & mindfulness,

namaste,

Zoey

 

 

Continuing with the story about women and the heart….

Some background;  for the past 20 years or so, I have been delving into what used to be called ‘New Age Spirituality’, and now I simply call it ‘my spirituality’.  My spirituality feels like a personal and unique blend of Christianity and Buddhism, with hints of other major religions thrown in with a lot of meditation and yoga.  I’ve read many self help, personal development, integral theory, and new age spirituality books.  As a working mom and professional woman, I did a mid-life career shift (after a couple of decades working as a Nutritionist ) and took professional training into life & leadership coaching, using a body centered, whole systems orientation.

About three years ago, my husband informed me that two ‘suspicious spots’ had been seen on his lung.  Not long after, I attended a seminar about critical illness insurance for the self-employed business woman and decided I needed to take out this type of insurance as I had a family history of both cancer and heart disease.  We were in a state of hopeful/hopeless anticipation of the results of his lung biopsy.  To add to the health concern, my husband had also developed pulmonary emboli also known as lung clots, in both lungs.

As one may imagine, I was very worried about my husband, about our family, about how I would support three daughters as a professional woman if my husband died.  My mind utilizes ‘worst case scenarioizing’ very well!  At the time I was 51 years old.

I was also going through menopause and was taking a compounded progesterone for the symptoms.

We had just returned from a sailing trip where we had ‘weathered’ a significant storm of over 40 km per hour winds and where our engine had almost failed, resulting in a very scary couple of hours on the water with an accompanying surge of adrenalin.

To re-cap, between us; we had money worries due to reduced income, health worries, significant additional stress, menopause, three daughters to support and help with college, possible lung cancer, a really bad scare, pulmonary emboli and a recently purchased critical illness policy.  I also found out later that I had undiagnosed ‘essential hypertension’ or high blood pressure. I had ‘gained a few pounds’ over the past years although I regularly exercised, was a non smoker and drinker and ate in a healthy way!  I looked pretty healthy for my age.

I engaged in daily meditation and walks and was reading a lot of Buddhist teachings about ‘keeping the heart open’ and  without actually being trained in the practice, using a breathing practice called tonglen , where you breathe in the pain of the world and breathe out clear healing love.

What happened was that I was ‘broken hearted’!  My heart literally broke!

On a Monday morning after a ‘power walk’ and coffee, I experienced shortness of breath and felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest.  This heavy sensation wasn’t in any way painful, but it was uncomfortable.  I had a tiny bit of pain in my neck and right shoulder.  The ‘heavy’ sensation came and went about three times after which I googled ‘symptoms of a heart attack in women’.  I basically had all the symptoms and had my daughter drive me to the hospital half of me thinking that I was having a panic attack and in my mind, calling myself a ‘drama queen’ and the other half, the holistic health half saying ‘listen to your body and take this seriously’!  I’m very fortunate that I did listen to my inner wisdom and trust my body’s messages!

I was not having a panic attack, I had in fact had a ‘spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD)’, where an flap of tissue from inside my heart artery tore off the wall of the heart and blocked the blood flow, resulting in a heart attack or MI.  I found out later that this type of heart attack is diagnosed in 70% of the cases upon autopsy and is not very common.  It happens more often in women and is associated with stress and changes in hormones and blood pressure. It has sometimes been called  ’Japanese Widows Syndrome’, as when a Japanese woman would suffer a heart attack  and die, just after her husband’s death!  In the hospital, my Cardiologist, Dr. Hamburger said that I had a ‘broken heart’, likely in some part caused by stress about my husband. If you google ‘SCAD’, you will find much more information

This may all sound very sad and upsetting and yes, it is and it was.  However, as a result of all of the above, our lives are better and we will live healthier and longer!  I can summarize the good results as:

- my ‘essential hypertension’ and ‘Syndrome X’ was diagnosed and I am now on appropriate medication.

- my husband was found to have a ‘clotting deficiency’ and likely would have died young from a heart attack but is now on the appropriate medication.

- as a result of thinking he had ‘lung cancer’ (he doesn’t) , my husband’s doctor reacted very quickly to my husband’s back pain (caused by the blood clots in his lung), which likely save his life.

- we both made further major healthy lifestyle changes.

- I received a significant critical illness claim which has helped tremendously with our daughters’ post secondary education!

- I have developed a very healthy respect for the power of spiritual practices and am daily reminded of what a beginner I am!

- I appreciate every day that I am alive and my family is well.

- I still chuckle that a former dietitian (moi)  would have a Cardiologist named Dr. Hamburger!

- I tell my story to help inform other women about heart disease, the symptoms of a heart attack in women and SACAD, so that any woman feeling ‘weird sensations’ (heaviness, difficulty catching your breath, tightness in chest, shortness of breath)  in her chest, will go immediately to the closest hospital emergency ward!  Please check with your local health authority for a complete list of heart attack symptoms in women.  In Canada, the Heart and Stroke Foundation is a great resource!

- I practice meditation and yoga and have a wonderful life!  I’m not quite sure what to make about the financial windfall part of this, however, I believe the ‘law of attraction’ was at play!

My life lessons from this experience?

- trust your inner wisdom

- listen to your body messages

- we are more connected than we think

- the mind body connection is powerful!

- trust that even though sad things happen, there is a bigger stronger more powerful loving force at work!

- the law of attraction is powerful!

- women are wise

- sometimes bad things turn out to be good things

- pay attention to life work balance

- have fun, be joyful, love!

Please share this information with other women and be aware that heart disease and stroke are big health issues for women and take good care of your heart and your health!

 

in peace & mindfulness,

namaste,

Zoey

 

Have you heard about a type of ‘heart attack’ or ‘myocardial infarction (MI)’ called a ‘spontaneous coronary artery dissection or SACAD’?

It is literally the type of heart attack where the heart is broken!

I know because I have had one!

The month of February holds Valentines Day and is also Heart & Stroke Month in Canada. Did you know that Canadian women are more likely to die of heart attacks and stroke than anything else? Even though we are better informed about health and are generally healthier, there are still gaps in our understanding of heart disease.

Over the coming week, I want to tell you more about SACADs so that you will be aware of this type of heart attack as well as more well known types of heart disease.

Stay tuned!

In peace & mindfulness

namaste,

Zoey

 

Celebrate World Happy Day with a special screening of the movie “Happy” at the link below!

| World Happy Day.

 

 

namaste,

Zoey

A big shout out of support for breast feeding moms who refuse to be intimidated or shamed by any organization! Breast feeding is normal, healthy & wholesome.

The World Health Organization has very clear guidelines and illustrates the major health benefits of breast feeding for both mom & baby!

From: the Unconditional Love Group on Facebook

To help you design & live your life like this, I would like to gift you with a free download of  the ‘Topaz Lotus Life Crafter 2012‘

 

In peace & mindfulness

namaste,

Zoey

wisdom coaching to set your heart on fire and soothe your soul

 

 

 

I’m starting my work day off with some meditation, what about you?

 

I find that if I spend a few moments at my desk, in quietness and meditation, my day flows forward in a smoother way.

Here are some tips:

- start with some grounding exercises, feeling your feet solidly on the floor.

- take 3 cleansing breaths

- clear your mind

- focus on your breath, in out, in out.

- notice the space between your thoughts, what does it feel like.

- finish with 3 deep breaths

- come back to your day.

 

Envision your day flowing smoothly with joy and ease!

 

namaste,

 

Zoey

 

coaching for your heart and soul

A beautiful thought for the day !

namaste

“Create Your Life with Heart”

I want to share a story with you that is a real life example of the process used to create your life with heart.

I have spent the past 15 or so years learning about metaphysical principles and spirituality and how these principles can be used for personal transformation and I find the whole area fascinating.  It was in the late 1990’s that I decided to deepen my learning, use the principles in my work and becoming a coach seemed to be the perfect fit.  At the time I was still working in health care but made the commitment to do a mid-life career shift and become a professional life & business coach.  I felt “called” to become a coach, it was a “burning desire” within my heart and what I felt I was meant to do.

I desperately wanted to sign up for coach training, yet we were at a place in our family finances where there wasn’t a lot of extra disposable income.  We had three kids with braces and on-going orthodontic work, say no more!  I decided to put the prosperity principles that I had been learning about into practice.

I made the commitment to become a coach, put a small deposit on my first training workshop, tuned myself up into a place of knowing and believing that the rest of the money would show up, brought in feelings of fulfillment and joy imagining myself working as a coach and let go of any attachment to timing and an outcome.  Guess what happened?  Not more than two days later, I received a cheque from Revenue Canada for child tax credits from my tax return from two years previous that I had no idea I was owed and even more astounding, the cheque was within $5 of the amount needed for my first coach training workshop!  That was the proof I needed to trust these principles fully and went on to complete my coach training and certification.

This story is a powerful example of the law of attraction at work!

You are the artist, storyteller and author of your own life and you can write and create whatever script you desire!

In peace & mindfulness,

namaste,

Zoey