Life Transitions

Life unfolds with many pathways and times of transition, each accompanied by relationships, situations, and experiences that bring insights and new awareness about the life journey. During the past few months several transitions have brought me to moments of reflection, as I consider endings and new beginnings that are arising — entering a new life decade, deciding to move, and the birth of a new grandchild. I am grateful to have studied and worked with body-mind self-care practices as a physical therapist. Self-care practices have served me professionally and personally. They have brought rest, renewal, stillness, and time to process my thoughts, words, actions, body sensations and movement, and emotions. In addition, the signals and guidance these provide help me to make conscious and wise life choices during times of transition.

The first transition that occurred for me this year was when I entered a new decade in my life last January. At that time, I noticed that I was repeatedly hearing and reading the statement “we are here for joy.” As a physical therapist, I experience joy during sessions with clients as they learn, grow, and heal…..including individuals who are at end stages of life. I feel joy when I teach about self-care through my book, The Heart of Healing, and classes I present, posted on this blog. As I watch individuals let go, feel renewed, and come alive during sessions and presentations, I am reminded that we each possess our own built-in capacity to heal and feel whole again….all we need do is tap into our hearts, our internal GPS, and the guidance and wisdom present there.

The second transition that occurred for me this year involved a decision to downsize and move. This came about gradually, but once the choice was made the process sped up. Spring cleaning, in preparation for this move, felt like opening a treasure chest as I discovered photos, momentos, and memories of individuals and events where joy was experienced. There was sadness at what no longer existed, but gratitude for what was experienced. Throwing out files, books, photos, and other assorted items was freeing, like emptying a backpack I had carried for years. Letting go included sorrow and joy, but I find that what I focus on most is what lingers in my daily life. I choose to focus on joy.

The third transition involved welcoming the long awaited birth of our daughter’s daughter, adding another generation to our family. This beautiful new soul has taught me much and brought keen insight about the vulnerability all sentient beings face during infancy. I am struck by the total joy she expresses with each smile as I sing to and talk with her. Each day is a new beginning as she explores her ever expanding world, openly and with total trust. When I hold her and snuggle with her as she drifts into sleep, she reminds me that love, compassionate touch, unconditional presence, and heart connection provide essential nourishment for all human growth and development.

In the face of constant stress, change, and transitions faced in today’s world, I believe there are three solutions to remaining healthy and resilient: (1) increase self-awareness; (2) learn and use self-care practices; (3) reconnect with what has heart and meaning. Each of these solutions will provide nourishment and bring much needed joy to our overworked hearts and life force. YOU get to choose what, when, where, and how you nourish yourself, and what brings joy into your life. Ask yourself:

• What nourishes me and brings joy into my life?
• What specific self-care practices will I use today for nourishment and joy?

Namaste,

Gina

“The Heart of Healing” First Anniversary

“Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is enlightenment.”   

                                                                                                                              Lao-tzu

Just as my children and grandchildren have grown rapidly before my eyes, so has the first year since publication last March of The Heart of Healing: Discovering the Secrets of Self-Care. During this past year I’ve met amazing people at classes, library presentations, study groups, and book signings. People came to events because the topic sounded interesting, because their spouse brought them, because they needed insight into how to meet healing challenges, to age more gracefully, and to find greater peace in their lives amidst stress and change.  The Self-care tools and strategies they learned were not new: breathing, journaling, meditation, movement, acupressure, play, laughter, creativity, and joy. They were surprised to discover three simple ways to help themselves remain healthier and more resilient amidst daily stress and change:

• increase Self-awareness
• use Self-care practices
• reconnect with what has heart and meaning

When we feel like we are on Mars without a road map during healing challenges, Self-awareness and Self-care practices help us recognize people, places, and things that will support us as we travel the unfamiliar landscape of healing. They also help us recognize and use untapped internal and external resources. Healing requires courage as we continuously ask: Who am I? What do I need? Where am I going?  Answers to these questions provide stepping stones that lead us home through our internal compass or GPS, which brings heart-and-soul centered guidance and wisdom as we move along  ”the road less traveled” on healing journeys. As Dorothy discovered in The Wizard of Oz, there’s no place like home.

Thank you all for your love, support, and healing presence this past year. May your healing journeys continue to bring you home to your hearts and the beautiful beings you each are.

Namaste,

Gina

Free Teleclass Thursday March 6, 2014 at 7 PM

We experience stress and change throughout our body, mind, emotions, and life force as one season ends and another begins. As winter slowly ends and spring arrives, what seeds do you want to plant in your garden to promote greater health and wellbeing? How can you enrich the “soil” within your vital life force to cultivate the health, growth, and development you seek?

Tune into your Self as Spring approaches during this FREE teleclass and learn three simple solutions to remaining strong and resilient amidst daily stress and change. Host Elsie Kerns, Wellness Educator and CoFounder of Wellness Workers Holistic Health in Cherry Hill, NJ (www.wellnessworkers.org) and I will discuss solutions and Self-care strategies to welcome Spring on Thursday, March 6 from 7-8 PM. You must register to attend. Once registered, you will be able to listen to the teleclass afterward if you miss the live teleclass.

Here’s the link to register:

Spring Classes: Seva Acupressure For Self-Care & Using Seva Acupressure With Others

“Is the spring coming?” he said. “What is it like?”…….It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine.”  

The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett

Spring is just around the corner. Come refresh your whole being and plant seeds of Self-care at a Seva Stress Release Acupressure class in Holmdel, New Jersey. Classes are available on March 15 and again on April 5.

Seva is the Sanskrit word for compassionate, selfless service. Seva Part 1 teaches how to use this simple acupressure program for Self-care. Seva Part 2 teaches how to use this program with others. Seva Part 1 is a pre-requisite to Part 2, and can be taken as a separate class, or on the same day with a Seva Part 2 class.

SEVA ACUPRESSURE FOR SELF-CARE & WITH OTHERS – Holmdel, NJ

Saturday, March 15, 2014: Part 1 Seva Acupressure for Self-Care: 9 AM-12 Noon; Part 2 Using Seva With Others: 1-4 PM (can be taken same day or separately)

Saturday, April 5, 2014:  Part 1 Seva Acupressure for Self-Care: 9 AM-12 Noon; Part 2 Using Seva With Others: 1-4 PM (can be taken same day or separately)

INFORMATION:  http://www.reginarosenthal.com/education-workshops/professional/ 

REGISTRATION REQUIRED: 908-902-0770

Fee: Seva Part 1: $60;  Seva Part 2: $60

Continuing Education: Nurses, Social Workers, Massage Therapists, Asian Bodyworkers (3  hours Seva Part 1; 3 hours Seva Part 2)

Regina Rosenthal, PT, MA: Upcoming Events

UPCOMING EVENTS — MAXIMIZING WELL-BEING THROUGH SELF-CARE

SEVA ACUPRESSURE FOR SELF-CARE & WITH OTHERS – Holmdel, NJ

Saturday, February 15, 2014: Part 1 Seva Acupressure for Self-Care: 9 AM-12 Noon; Part 2 Using Seva With Others: 1-4 PM (can be taken same day or separately)

Saturday, March 15, 2014:     Part 1 Seva Acupressure for Self-Care: 9 AM-12 Noon; Part 2 Using Seva With Others: 1-4 PM (can be taken same day or separately)

INFORMATION:  http://www.reginarosenthal.com/education-workshops/professional/   PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED: 908-902-0770   Fee:  Part 1: $60;  Part 2: $60

Continuing Education: Nurses, Social Workers, Massage Therapists, Asian Bodyworkers (3 Hours Seva Part 1; 3 Hours Seva Part 2)

PROCESS ACUPRESSURE 1:

Philadelphia, PA, March 11 – 14, 2014

Naples, FL, November 6-8, 2014

INFORMATION:  http://www.reginarosenthal.com/education-workshops/professional/     PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED: 908-902-0770

Continuing Education: Nurses, Massage Therapists, Asian Body Workers (24 Hours)

LIBRARY PRESENTATIONS:

Monmouth County Library, Hazlet Branch: January 25, 2014

Monmouth County Library, Colts Neck Branch: February 8, 2014

Old Bridge Public Library: April 10, 2014

DIALOG WITH THE AUTHOR: 

Hunterdon NJ Radio Interview with Sue Ann Seccia: February 27, 2014

Wellness Workers Webcast Interview with Elsie Kerns: March 6, 2014

Brandeis University Women, Monroe Township, NJ: March 27, 2014

Temple Shalom, Aberdeen, NJ: April 6, 2014

Living In Tune With Mother Nature: The importance of Self-Care

Happy new year!

The year 2014 has begun and we’ve been experiencing the winter season in the northeast. Winter is a time of long nights and reduced daylight. It is a time when I’m reminded of the quiet beauty revealed by Mother Nature in the stillness that follows new fallen snow. Yesterday’s snow storm blanketed us with 12″ of snow, which slowed everyone’s pace. “Home” took on special meaning for everyone trying to get home yesterday.

According to Chinese medicine, winter is a time to stay warm, eat warm nourishing foods, rest, and retreat within to restore and renew our life force, or “chi,” stored in our kidneys. Animals know to go within in winter…..they hibernate. We, too, would be wise to make time to slow down and go “home,” within ourselves during winter. This will ensure that we have sufficient energy reserves to meet the new growth and activities that burst forth in Spring.

Self-care practices and bodywork take us within — i.e. meditation, yoga, tai chi, qigong, Seva Acupressure for Self-Care*, Process Acupressure*, and Eden Energy Medicine to mention a few. By slowing our hurried pace, these activities guide us home to our authentic Self. They promote balance throughout our being and reveal the value of aligning our human nature with the seasonal rhythms of Mother Nature. When I am in tune with the deepest parts of my authentic Self after bodywork and Self-care practices, I feel a renewed sense of peace, aliveness, and connection with all of life. I am less fearful and anxious, and I notice a renewed sense of trust in myself and the bigger picture. I have a clearer sense of what matters, and I am excited and curious about the next steps on my soul journey. The best part of all is that I feel more compassion, joy, and love in and around me. Like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, I discover that “there’s no place like home.”

My challenge in winter is to slow down and listen to my heart and authentic Self versus my everyday mind and ego. This helps me recognize and take in the blessings I receive when I live in tune with Mother Nature.

What wisdom / insights does Mother Nature reveal to you in winter? Who and what replenishes your life force in winter? What challenges arise for you during winter? What gifts are you discovering as you use Self-care practices?

Wishing you sweet dreams and warmth this season,

Regina

*See Upcoming Events Blog

Healing Passages That Guide Us Home

After journeying through writing and publishing passages that birthed The Heart of Healing last March, it is a joy to return to private practice and teaching. I feel blessed witnessing individuals awaken and come alive as they learn about and experience Self-care practices that support their life and healing. I also feel grateful to be teaching what I need to learn personally as part of my soul journey on Earth — the importance of Self-care.

Self-care practices are becoming a part of my daily routine. I find that I need them now more than ever. Self-care practices raise my Self-awareness and nourish me. They serve as CPR for my heart and soul. Self-care practices help me monitor my ego’s conditioned ways of being “in charge,” ways that at times no longer serve who I am in my authentic Self. I love and respect the part of me that is passionate about making a difference. However, I’m also aware that the pace and wisdom of my heart and soul, which guides my authentic Self, can vary from the pace of my ego. I’m learning that there is a difference between service and sacrifice.

Self-care practices take me from outer space to inner space, where I connect with the Great Mystery within that I/we are an integral part of. While I believe it is true that we are all made from stardust, we don’t often touch upon our magnificent design. Self-care practices remind me of who and what I am, and why I am here. They help me realign with my path and purpose, and bring clarity, focus, creativity, joy, laughter, and play into the process of being alive each day. When I lose sight of Self-care, I lose the connection to my heart and soul. I become a human doing versus a human being, ungrounded and unplugged from that which sustains me and guides me home to my authentic Self. With each healing passage I arrive at through Self-care, I am guided home to my true nature. With each new arrival I feel blessed to be alive and “at home” within the Great Mystery, which still brings wonder, awe, and “coming home” tears of gratitude.

Wishing you blessings as you encounter healing passages that guide you home,

Regina

Upcoming Events: Workshops, Author Talks, Library Presentations

WORKSHOPS:

SEVA ACUPRESSURE FOR SELF-CARE: Seva Stress Release Part 1 (3 hours)  Saturday, October 12, 2013, 9 AM – 12 Noon, Holmdel, NJ

Fee: $60            Registration Required: 908-902-0770

This workshop will help you to manage stress and promote general relaxation, well-being, and Self-healing. You will learn the Seva program through demonstration and hands-on practice, and take home six valuable Self-care tools: use of an awareness journal, acupressure, meditation, breath practices, mindfulness, and body-mind movement (Chakra Tai Chi). This class is a pre-requisite for Seva Part 2 below. Wear comfortable clothing.

3 CEUs: massage therapists, social workers, nurses

SEVA ACUPRESSURE WITH OTHERS: Part 2 (3 hours) Saturday, October 12, 2013,  1-4 PM, Holmdel NJ

Fee: $60            Registration Required: 908-902-0770 

In this workshop you will learn how to use the Seva program with others through review, demonstration, and practicing the Seva program with class participants, seated in chairs and lying fully clothed on massage tables. You will also deepen Self-awareness through meditation, breath practices, journaling, acupressure, and Chakra Tai Chi. Wear comfortable clothing.

3 CEUs: massage therapists, social workers, nurses

SEVA ACUPRESSURE FOR SELF-CARE, Part 1: Saturday, November 23, 2013, 9 AM – 12 Noon, Holmdel, NJ (See above)

SEVA ACUPRESSURE FOR SELF-CARE, Part 2: Saturday, November 23, 2013, 1-4 PM, Holmdel, NJ (See above)

AUTHOR TALKS:

• Barnes & Noble, Holmdel, NJ: September 21, 2013, 4-8 PM
• Barnes & Noble, Freehold, NJ: September 26, 2013, 7-9 PM
• Barnes & Noble, Cherry Hill, NJ: October 8, 2013, 7-8 PM

LIBRARY PRESENTATIONS:

• Little Silver Public Library, September 16 2013, 7-8 PM
• Tinton Falls Public Library, September 20, 2013, 10:30-11:30 AM
• Red Bank Public Library, September 25, 2013, 7-8:30 PM
• Matawan-Aberdeen Public Library, October 2, 2013, 7-8 PM
• Atlantic Highlands Public Library, October 3 2013, 7-8:30 PM
• Middletown Township Public Library, October 9, 2013, 7-8:30 PM
• Ocean Township Library, October 21, 2013, 6:30-7:30 PM
• Monmouth County Library, Eastern Branch, December 9, 2013, 7-8:30 PM
• Monmouth County Library, Hazlet Township Branch, January 25, 2014, 2-3 PM                                                                                                                                                                                             

Top 10 Self-Care Practices for Health and Well-being

A friend asked me what I thought were the “top 10″ Self-care practices. His question created valuable insights, but only after I spent some time pondering his request from within.

Self-care practices we use can change and evolve throughout the years, change of seasons, time of life, and our stage of awareness, growth, and development. I’m grateful to all the mentors, teachers, and practitioners that have guided me to the Self-care practices that served my highest good, and the highest good of others, on life’s journey. Each of them emphasized that the insights and guidance I sought would be found within, and that these could then be combined with external resources. One teacher even reminded me that the word GURU stood for: g… u… r… u… (gee, you are you)!

What still promotes awe for me is the synchronicity that occurs in connection with who and what shows up as we seek guidance, healing, and insight — when we remember to ASK and be present in each NOW moment. Unfortunately, in our fast-paced society we look for instant answers to our questions and seek them through everyday mind versus our heart and higher ways of knowing. In Chinese medicine the latter is called “HeartMind,” and is described in Roger Jahnke’s book, “The Healing Promise of Qi.”

Self-care practices will be different for each of us, and different throughout the year. Only YOU know which Self-care practice(s) will serve YOU at any point in life. Here’s what bubbled up from within as I sought answers, through my HeartMind, to “What are the top 10 Self-Care practices?”:

1. Pay Attention, Be Here Now: consider meditation and mindfulness practices and spending time in nature with your human nature.
2. Hydrate: our body and mind require water for all cellular activities and functioning; drink at least 64 ounces of water daily.
3. Practice balanced nutrition and moderation, and eat according to the seasons; if possible consume foods and honey grown locally.
4. Get sufficient sleep and rest.
5. Participate in some form of movement and/or exercise daily for flexibility, balance, strengthening, vitality and to support immune and nervous system function — and in the outdoors whenever possible.
6. Receive body-mind hands-on therapies (i.e. energy medicine, craniosacral therapy, acupressure, massage, etc.) and participate in counseling with experienced practitioners to reconnect with the guidance and wisdom within your heart and authentic Self.
7. Establish social connections, giving and receiving in ways that open, nourish, and strengthen your heart and the hearts of others.
8. Give and receive love, laughter, and joy daily, over and over again.
9. Practice gratitude and observe what is good, true, and beautiful in life every day.
10. Creative Self-expression: bring your unique gifts and talents into the world — no act is too small. The world needs your “original medicine.”

And by the way…..I am still learning and practicing as I don’t have this “down pat” yet on my human journey.

What are your top 10 Self-care practices? Please share them so we can all benefit from your insights.

Namaste,

Gina

Summer Blossoms

Summer makes me smile! Mother Nature showers us with her abundance — bouquets of flowers with a kaleidoscope of vibrant hues; hot days and cool nights filled with star-studded skies; morning bird calls to awaken us; mouth-watering summer fruits; abundant fresh vegetables and herbs from the garden; morning dew, summer showers, ocean waves, and sprinklers.  How fortunate we are to be living amidst nature’s bounty.

Time in nature provides opportunities to connect with our human nature and our hearts, so beneficial to health and well-being. This summer you can learn to empower yourself and maximize your well-being in as little as 15-20 minutes a day, using a simple acupressure program for Self-care. You can also learn to use this program with others.

Here’s the details:

Seva Stress Release Workshops

Hope Lutheran Church, 211 Elton-Adelphia Road, Freehold, New Jersey 07728

Part One: Acupressure for Self-Care — Sunday, July 21, 2013: 1 – 4 PM

Part Two: Using Seva With Others — Saturday, August 10, 2013: 2 – 5 PM

Part One: Seva Acupressure for Self-Care: “Seva” is a Sanskrit word that means selfless, compassionate service. The Seva acupressure approach is simple to learn, easy to perform, and supports physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. This 3 hour workshop teaches you how to use the Seva acupressure program for Self-care, addressing needs from general relaxation and well-being to shock and stress. You will experience the healing and transformative power of acupressure; learn use of an Awareness Journal; learn a unique method of touch through demonstration and hands-on practice; and learn Chakra Tai Chi, a movement practice for Self-care. No prior bodywork experience needed. Fee: $60

Part Two: Using Seva With Others: This 3 hour workshop builds upon skills learned in Seva Part One and adds additional elements to expand and deepen your understanding. We will review and practice the Seva protocol, Awareness Journal, and Chakra Tai Chi. You will then learn how to use Seva acupressure with others, and have several opportunities to deepen and enhance your skills during demonstrations and through giving and receiving Seva sessions in class.   Fee: $60

Continuing Education: 3 CEUs available for each class for massage therapists & social workers

For Registration and Information: Regina Rosenthal 908-902-0770       www.reginarosenthal.com                                                                                                                                                        
(Attendance limited. Registration by phone required before workshop.)