A Journey to Positive Living

Reflexology in Wells

2011-02-21T12:16:00.000-08:00

I am now offering Reflexology in Wells Somerset. So if you would like a session please email me.

How does your body speak out?

2010-10-23T06:33:00.000-07:00

Its been quite a while since I blogged and I have had a very life changing few months. Firstly I got ill, very ill and after hospital intervention realised that it was time that I took stock. Before my illness I had been to a healer and said I really needed some space and LOTS OF time. Basically I was knackered and wanted silence and stillness. The healer picked this up and said that I had some life changing times ahead, that I should trust myself and relax. Of course I agreed but my body did more and 7 days later I was in hospital.

It’s quite hard explaining to a surgeon with a glint in his eye that you just need some rest, a few days off and not his knife but I did and when I got home I rested and rested and found a new awareness of my body that I have never had before. Namely that its there to be cherished and looked after and the person to do that is me.

So some months later I am having my feet done, having weekly shiatsu and getting back into acupuncture. A client said the famous quote to me a few weeks ago " apothecary heal thy self" and that what I am doing. Nice things; walking, laying in bed watching Lewis or Morse box sets and relinquishing guilt and shoulds. I am also on one of the most life changing journeys of my life as I am training to be a counsellor, so along with the weekly therapy, group therapy and hours of soul searching, I realise that I am beginning to get to know me again and my body is with me on that journey. Giving me pointers when I need to be still, cry, dance and sing loudly to Hendrix on the A37.

The wonder drug

2010-04-09T09:43:00.000-07:00

Roughly 70 percent of an adult’s body is made up of water and I am always trying to drink more. Drinking water is a miracle. It is better than any powder, potion or pill that can keep us fitter, younger or slimmer.

Water makes your metabolism burn calories 3% faster. People often mistake being thirsty as hunger. This is because the same part of our brains governs the two feelings. So if you are eating and not getting full you could be thirsty. Water is crucial to our good health, and great for people trying to loss weight as it suppresses your appetite, reduces body fat,increases your energy, maintain muscle tone, eliminates toxins and waste and has zero calories. Infact its almost too good to be true.

Drinking adequate amounts of water water can help mousturise your skin, clear up spots and give your complextion a boost. It can decrease the risk of certain types of cancers, including colon cancer, bladder cancer, and breast cancer. It can increase energy levels and if you drink 8-10 glasses a day can increase your memory and brain activity; the brain is made up of 75% water so there is a reason for a hangover heachache.

The Fertile Void-Busy Doing Nothing

2010-03-26T06:08:00.000-07:00

A few new words entered my language the other weekend. I was undergoing a Gestalt therapy workshop for two days. Gestalt theory explains human behaviour in terms of the Cycle of Experience. When we are in stillness with ourselves, with no wants or direction, we are said to be in the fertile void. It describes a time in our lives when we just wait, we do nothing and we give ourself space for ideas or feelings to enter. I realised that I have been in the fertile void for most off 2008. Not knowing what it is I wanted to do but just needing to give myself space for me.

I really love this term, the fertile void can appear when we are in a major life change not knowing what is coming next and not making any major decisions to take action.

We all fill our lives with busyness all the time, the doing of things, jobs, family, friends and life. In this we manage our fear and self doubt as we are too busy to think about it. If life is not working being busy is the best way to truely avoid asking AM I HAPPY. Sitting in the fertile void enables you to answer that question and it may be that you answer "I'm not sure". Like me I didn't know what I wanted I felt anxious about what should come next because I should be doing something yet didn't know what it was. But eventually those feelings moved, they lifted and changed and things began to appear as I had you given them space to.

Its about giving ourselves the freedom to do nothing, not to make decisons and just wait, not control and see what appears. Having a big long extended holiday in our own experience and mind. Doing nothing, absolutley nothing to reconnect with ourselves and who we are. That's a challange. Instead of trying to work stuff out, being in the void is just that- just being and doing nothing, creating a rich and fertile space for newness to arrive. And YES it can be scary and unnerving but it also gives us the fertile place where anything or absolutely nothing can happen. So this week instead of saying "I have stuff to do, I'm really busy" do nothing and see what it brings. I am off to have a lay down. Michelle x

Everybody Breathe.....

2010-02-19T16:38:00.000-08:00

Friday, 29 January 2010 00:00

We breathe all the time, day and night, everyday, until we stop. When we breathe in, the ribs, the muscles of the chest wall and the diaphrahm help to expand our lungs. Our breathing is extremly prone to interference from emotional and mental activity. Even though the autonomic nervous system keeps us breathing automatically. When we are affected by stress we breath inaffectively, shallow, from the chest area and often hold our breath. The result is that we may feel dizzy, ineffective, unable to concentrate agitated and stressed.

So here is a test that I do with many of my clients at the end of a Reflexology treatment.

Lie on a your back , either on your bed or on the floor. Put one hand on your stomach and one hand on your chest and leave them there. Relax and breathe as you always do and see whether your chest or stomach is rising and falling the most.
If your chest is rising and your stomach is staying completely still when breathing in, then you are breathing incorrectly.
Practice breathing in and out, whilst keeping your hand on your stomach. Take a deep breath, concentrating on your belly getting bigger and count to five. Then exhale and see if your stomach drops and your chest stays still.
Keep doing these exercises so that you can learn to breathe this way all the time. Pushing out your stomach as you breath in. Maybe take some time each day just to concentrate on your breath. This type of breathing will eventually become natural for you, and you will feel less stress and less tension in your every day life.

So when things get hard, you feel anxious or just a little stressed.. apply this technique and you will see a difference. Michelle XX

Does having warm feet make you healthier?

2010-02-19T16:37:00.000-08:00

Friday, 22 January 2010

Its been a month of cold, of hibernation and doing not very much. I really enjoyed the snow and for the first time have slowed down without feeling lots of guilt or shoulds - I've just enjoyed doing nothing.

Whilst keeping warm and walking through the snow, I have been pondering the link between cold feet and colds. Does having warm feet make you healthier?

Reflexology certainly makes them warmer, it gets the blood flowing and improves circulation. So does it ward off colds?

I have been reading a book by Dr. Vogel, homeopath and herbalist called The Nature Doctor. he writes: “The nose walls (conchae) react to cold feet. When the feet are cold the walls contract, become cold and dry and cause the glands to stop functioning, so that dust and bacteria are no longer filtered out. It is easy to see why a cold will almost inevitably result, followed by catarrh or a runny nose. You can now understand why it is important to avoid getting cold feet…”

So if your mucous membranes are functioning properly, you are unlikely to catch colds and flu through the air. But if your feet are cold, this defense is weakened and you are at greater risk. So keeping feet warm seems to work and Reflexology does that along with improving your immune system. So as well as the waterproof shoes and thick socks, get a friend or partner to rub your feet workiing on the toes, big toe and upper part of the foot.

Enjoy.. Michelle xx

Merry New Year

2010-02-19T16:32:00.000-08:00

I hope you all have a Happy Christmas and New Year filled with what you desire; peace, discovery, new relationships or great health. I have met some amazing people this year through reflexology and in my life, so I cannot wait for what 2010 will bring. For Mind, Body, Spirit and Reflexology News please sign up to the Newsletter at www.michelledoubfire.co.uk. Much Love Michelle XX

2010-02-19T16:08:00.000-08:00

Hello All

I will be updating this blog with information, interviews, offers and postive good things so please keep reading. During the past year, I have been looking into the idea of positive thinking and its link to happiness. As its dark, cold and windy outside I thought I would share a couple of ideas with you to perk up the winter days.

* Write a gratitude diary everyday. Just saying thanks for things you are grateful for; your friends, your health, your new shoes or the cat actually increases your happiness over time. Counting blessings instead of concentrating on whats missing or has to be done is a definate winner!

* Do something that gets you into a focussed motivated state. A fun activivity that gets you in the moment, thats effortless, rewarding, makes you loose track of time and uses your entire mind. It could be making bread, writing a book, making music, skiing down the alps, creating a wooden box or skateboarding- anything that gets you in the zone and that you LOVE

If you have any positive tips to increase happiness and reduce stress please email me or contact me through the website www.michelledoubtfire.co.uk

Happy times

Michelle X