I nearly jumped as she gently pressed into the arch of my foot. “Ouch, that’s so tender!” I exclaimed. This was my experience during a Jin Shin Jitsu bodywork session that I received from a friend this evening. My friend looked at me kindly and said, “That point on your foot that is about balance.” Jin Shin Jitsu is a Japanese form of acupressure. Different points on the body correspond to various physical and emotional aspects of ourselves.* I knew from past sessions that when a point is tender, it is an indication that more attention is needed to the area in one’s life that the particular point represents. I was aware that I had been doing a lot recently and not taking enough self-care time. Based on the extreme tenderness of that point on my foot, my body confirmed this!

I often ask my clients about how much self-care they are practicing in their lives. Often I am met with an eye-roll or blank look. I then explain that self-care is not selfish, it is essential. If you are a person who tends to give, and give and give to others, and you run around fulfilling a lot of responsibilities during your day, sometimes self-care can be put on the “back burner” or neglected all together. The analogy I use is one of a well. If you are a “well” and people around you are taking, taking, taking, all the time, and you do not replenish yourself and thus give yourself time and fill back up, eventually you will run dry. This is sometimes referred to as “care-giver burnout.”

The holidays can be an especially difficult time to remember to take time for self-care. It is easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle and forget to take time to replenish oneself. When this happens the holidays are stressful and the fun and joy disappears. Why not make this holiday season different? Take some time to schedule in some self-care time. This might be taking time to get a bodywork session, or going for a peaceful walk, taking a bath, curling up with a good book, or going to lunch with a friend. A little bit of self-care can do wonders. It will refresh you and in doing so refill your “well.” Self-care is a gift that you can give to yourself this holiday season and it can help the holidays be more joyful instead of stressful.

*For more information about Jin Shin Jitsu, I recommend Pat Gallager’s blog. It is very informative: http://blog.patagallagher.com/

Deborah Barnett, Ph.D.

www.ManifestingWellBeing.com

Manifesting Well Being for Health and Success

I was inspired by comments from both senators McCain and Obama on election night last week. Mr. McCain urged all Americans to join him in an effort to find ways to come together and to bridge our differences. In his speech, President-Elect Obama presented the resounding message of “Yes we can.” He stated, “We have never been a collection of red states or blue states, we are and always will be the United States of America. . . . If our children should live to see the next century . . . what change will they see? What progress will we have made?”

Regardless of political differences, the underlying theme in both speeches was of unification. When we come together we can make a difference and bring about change. Moving from the national level to the individual level, this is where change can begin. One way to make changes within ourselves is to take Obama’s message and personalize it by saying, “Yes I can.”

If we look within ourselves, this is the place where we have the power to directly make a change. We can all do something to grow and develop ourselves, even in a small way. This might be making a committing to get out of bed and exercise in the morning. We can also make a difference by reaching out to touch another’s life. This may be choosing to smile at a stranger in the grocery store line, or bringing in the mail for a neighbor who is ill. Empowering oneself and then sending out good wishes or lending a helping hand to another person feels wonderful, and it does make a difference. So the next time the thought goes through, “I can’t” or “I don’t feel like it,” try turning it around and saying, “Yes I can.”

Ed Diener, Ph.D. is one of the most well respected researchers in the field of positive psychology. As a member of the International Positive Psychology Association, this summer I had the good fortune of hearing Dr. Diener speak during a teleclass about his new book,  Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth  which he co-wrote with his son, Robert Biswas-Diener. During his call Dr. Diener’s shared information from his new book. This included an overview of the benefits of being happy. Some of these include:

Social Benefits – happy people are likely to be more social, self-confident and warm

Work Success – happy people tend to be rated more highly by their supervisors, perform better on the job and make more money.

Health and Longevity- happy people have a stronger immune system and in a study of nuns, the happier nuns lived longer than the less happy nuns

Societal Benefits -happy people tend to volunteer more, be more peaceful and more cooperative.

For a delightful interview of Ed Diener and his son Robert Biswas-Diener by writer Gretchen Rubin, see Gretchen’s blog post of her Happiness interview with Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener

Gretchen is writing a book called The Happiness Project which will be published in late 2009.

Emotional Freedom Technique Description and Benefits

What is EFT?
Deborah Barnett, Ph.D.

. Energy Psychology is an emerging field of psychology that is based on the premise that everything, in its essential state, is energy. From this perspective our thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations are a manifestation of energy. Therefore, using specific techniques, we can bring ourselves back into balance by rebalancing our energy.  Thus, distressing thoughts, emotions and physical sensations are soothed and feelings of well-being, joy and physical balance are restored and enhanced.    

  The Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is a popular Energy Psychology technique that is gaining wide-spread recognition and respect for its rapid effectiveness.    

Benefits of using EFT may include:
 Emotionally

            Ease depression
            Soothe anxiety
            Decrease stress
            Calm anger
            Soften the impact of past traumas
            Enhance well-being
            Promote joy 
            Gain self-confidence
            Improve relationships 

 Physically

            Relieve pain
            Support weight loss
            Enhance ease in exercising

  Addictions/Habits/Phobias

            Smoking cessation
            Support in relieving alcohol/drug craving
            Greater control over eating choices
            Free yourself from phobias 

Research

Preliminary research is being conducted on the effectiveness of EFT and the results are very positive http://www.emofree.com/Research/andradepaper.htm

Deborah Barnett, Ph.D. www.DeborahBarnett.com   www.manifestingwellbeing.com