Showing posts with label energy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label energy. Show all posts

The Morning Routine

Good Morning!


The other day someone posted this to facebook:


That's right, folks you will be UTTERLY EXHAUSTED!

How about treating YOURSELF with all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster?

That's how I start my day every day, beginning with giving myself a Reiki treatment. So if you have taken a Reiki course with me, you know at the end I always say, give yourself a Reiki treatment everyday (at which point you may have looked at me like I was nuts). The whole point is, whatever you do, start with yourself.

So in the spirit of starting with myself I'm going to share...

The Morning Routine 


1. Wake up. 
Yawn, stretch, breathe, blink and look around. I always marvel how well I can see first thing in the morning. Then I check the time, like all of us. I sleep with the wifi off, so I'm not tempted to check email just yet.
(1 Minute) 
2. Clear my mind. 
Waking is one of the times I'm flooded with all sorts of brilliant and useless ideas. I just write them down. They can be messages or feelings that came up in a dream, inspirational words, or a burning action item for my "to do" list. Whatever it is, I get it down on paper and off my mind.
(1 Minute) 
Yours may be fancy. Mine's just a phone.

3. Give myself a Reiki treatment. 
This is by far the BEST investment of time first thing before getting out of bed. Especially a cold winter morning. I'd used to wake up with my hands buzzing and immediately place them on my eyes. The first Reiki position is doubles as the most useful eye exercise, called Palming.

If you don't have an hour, do 40 minutes. If you don't have that, do a quickie in 15. Key placements: Front of face and back of head, throat and heart, solar plexus and pelvis, feet (repeat at bedtime).
(15-60 Minutes) 

If you're strapped for time, do a quickie


If you don't have any time, take two minutes and remember:




I give thanks for my many blessings.
Just for today, do not worry. 
Just for today, do not anger. 
Honor your parents, teachers and elders. 
Earn your living honestly. 
Show gratitude to every living thing. 





4. Meditate. 
This is alone time. It doesn't matter whether you practice with the breath, a mantra or practice mindfulness. The point is do what you like to do. A beautiful practice to set the tone for the day is a "metta" or loving kindness meditation (listen to a guided session here). When I feel too restless I walk, or mindfully...
(10 Minutes) 


5. Light and Water.
Open the windows / blinds, water your house plants and drink a glass of warm or cold water. You can add lemon or apple cider vinegar to boost your stomach acid and cleanse your system. Let's face it we all need light and water. Let it stream in.
(5 Minutes) 


6. Stretch, dance, sing, move! 
Get out of breath! This is the time for yoga, exercise or whatever physical activities you need in your morning. Go outside barefoot, do chi-gong,cycle or run around. Do what you gotta do to break a sweat. 
(10-20 Minutes) 

I should mention that by this point in my day, there is a very small, chatty and boisterous human being climbing all over me who needs lots of attention and moves around a whole lot. If you have one of these delightful people (or beloved animals) in your life, be grateful. And let them join in the fun. This can be social time.



7. Shower.
Ahhhh. Nothing like dissolving into water. Another one of those times when I'm flooded with brilliant insights or useless ideas... Another great time to practice mindfulness.
(5 Minutes) 

8. Breakfast. 
Normally this entails fruit in either a salad or oatmeal with nuts and cinnamon or shredded coconut, or an anything or everything smoothie, or Montreal style bagel with avocado and tomato, or omelette with pesto, olives, sun-dried tomato and basil, or French toast with fruit! Clearly I love breakfast. Wholesome and simple. If you have a little one around, get them to help. If you don't, this is more time for mindfulness!
(20 Minutes) 
70s TV: Just Like Mom: stay in charge of recipes at all times.

The Only Rule is Actually an Exception

This whole process is 1-2 hours long. Before you protest, there is one rule: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. You don't have to do it all. There are days I skip the plants (let's face it sometimes they are not thirsty) or the yoga (I might promise to take myself swimming later) or the breakfast (I can always grab something in town after my shower if I'm in a rush). 


And trust me, there are plenty of days when I admit I succumb to email or text messaging before the yoga or shower. I can't do TV, news, talk-radio and increasingly, music. But these might be your exceptions.

The point is I don't kill myself over the exceptions. Remember that thing about caring, being kind to and understanding yourself? That's right. It's the spirit in which all things happen, not the happenings themselves. 

So beginning today, care, be kind to and understand yourself. Your day -- and everyone else's around you --- will be much better for it.

Further Learning

If you enjoy the workshop you may also want to explore:


About Salima

A leading Reiki Master Teacher, Intuitive Guide, Healer & Vice-Chair of the Mindfulness Society of Canada, Salima offers private healing & readings, & teaches Reiki, intuition & mindfulness to students in person and around the world.

Blocking EMF Rays... Tips to Prevent Frying

Being energy sensitive can come with a few surprising "bonuses". Sometimes without realising it, we may
A bit scary but we made them, we can manage them
pick up on the energy of another person, or become sensitive to certain foods. Other times we notice our fingertips frying against laptop keys or smartphone touch screens. There are times when I feel pressure in my chest when in front of the laptop or typing on my phone.

I've been doing a little reading and found that I'm not alone. There is a tonne of emerging research into the effects of our modern devices on our health and well-being. In fact, the lists of symptoms contributed to exposure to electromagnetic field (EMF), which is the stuff that's emitted from modern devices like laptops, tablets, iphones, androids, blackberries and even cordless phones, include some pretty serious complaints. Here is a list of what I found (please try not to get scared):
  • Abdominal pain;
  • Anxiety
  • Behavioral disorders (e.g. attention deficit disorder, ADD)
  • Brain-degenerative diseases (e.g. Alzheimer–s)
  • Cancerous afflictions: leukemia, brain tumors
  • Cardiac: palpitations, arrhythmia, pain or pressure in the chest, low or high blood pressure, slow or fast heart rate, shortness of breath
  • Chronic exhaustion
  • Concentration problems
  • Depression
  • Dermatological: skin rash, itching, burning, facial flushing
  • Deteriorating fillings
  • Deteriorating vision
  • Digestive problems
  • Dizziness
  • Dryness of lips, tongue, mouth, eyes; great thirst; dehydration
  • Enlarged thyroid
  • Epilepsy
  • Extreme fluctuations in blood pressure, ever harder to influence with medications
  • Fatigue
  • Flu-like symptoms, fever. More severe reactions can include seizures, paralysis, psychosis and stroke
  • Hair loss
  • Heart rhythm disorders
  • Immune abnormalities
  • Impaired sense of smell
  • Increased blood sugar level
  • Irritability
  • Itching
  • Memory loss
  • Nausea
  • pain or burning in the eyes, pressure in/behind the eyes, deteriorating vision, floaters, cataracts.
  • Pain in the teeth;
  • Respiratory: sinusitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, asthma.
  • Ringing in the ears.
  • Seeing flashes
  • Sleeplessness, daytime sleepiness
  • Strokes among an increasingly younger population
  • Susceptibility to infection
  • Sweating, cold sweating, tremors
  • Testicular/ovarian pain
  • Tingling
  • Tremors
  • Weakness
Satellites never sleep

Before Tossing the Laptop and Phone... Read On

The idea isn't to move off the grid (although it sounds very tempting) but to change a few simple things to limit our health risks and risks to those close to us. And they really are simple. 

Here are a few tips to block or limit the radiation that comes from your electronic devices:

1. Airplane or Flight Mode 

I can't stress how useful this is. When you sleep your cell phone is receiving pings by the minute from radio towers, just to ensure the signal is working. This can cause all sorts of sleep disturbances and wreak havoc on your body at the cellular level. And why put yourself at risk when you're sleeping? Keep all devices away from you when you sleep. Even better, put your cell phone on airplane or flight mode or unplug your router and cordless phones overnight.

2. Batch Computer Time 

If you don't need to be at the computer all day long, then batch your tasks during the day so that you are not spending all extra time in front of screens. One thing I'm experimenting with is keeping a paper to-do list so that I'm not going to the phone every 30 minutes to check what I must be doing. I even used to park my car in 1-hour spots to make sure I'd get up and outside to break up my computer time. While I can't measure how much less EMF I'm ingesting, let's just say it's made a huge difference in the quality of my days.

3. Limit Talk Time & SMS 
Some signals can be deadly

Let's face it. If you want to have a long talk with someone, it's better done in person. If they are far away, use Skype or speakerphone and keep the phone a couple of feet away from your head. Also, let's admit it, 50% of SMS messages are useless anyway. I've also resurrected the ancient art of snail mail. I could very well be keeping Canada Post alive.

4. Get the Laptop off your Lap

Let's face it there are some sensitive parts down there and we'd like to preserve them. This goes for carrying cell phones in your pants pockets. Ladies, easy - put the cell in the purse or bag. For guys, it's a good idea to move the cell phone to different pockets so it's not constantly in contact with one part of the body. Or invest in a man-purse.

5. Hands off Kids!

Let's face it, children's bodies are growing and they will have a longer lifetime with electronics around. Keep them away from gadgets that we haven't yet had enough long term research on. They may just thank you and take care of you when the time comes! 

and lastly...

6. Use those Crystals

Certain crystals are great for shielding, others for emanating and still others for sucking energy. You can wear earthy crystals like Jasper and Green Aventurine to absorb rays. Any reflective crystal like Pyrite or Flourite will create a barrier to the EMF rays so you can put them on your desk. Remember to cleanse these and power them up regularly and they will help block those unwanted rays from your devices.

... and there you have it. Time to turn off the computer and get some fresh air. That means me and you.

Further Learning

If you enjoy the workshop you may also want to explore:


About Salima

A leading Reiki Master Teacher, Intuitive Guide, Healer & Vice-Chair of the Mindfulness Society of Canada, Salima offers private healing & readings, & teaches Reiki, intuition & mindfulness to students in person and around the world.

making your full moon wish

make a wish and send it out...
image: double dandelions by dennis vebert
as far back as i can remember i'd duck and hide on the full moon. something odd would always seem to happen...

one time my car window was smashed in, parked right in front of my apartment window. for apparently no reason, nothing was stolen...

another time, someone dropped their phone on the sidewalk and when i went to pick it up my vintage dress suddenly ripped open all down the back...

even as a teenager, i nearly sliced my finger off in class once and while the instructor was talking to me i fainted standing up...

people would always say "full moon"... let's just say it got my attention. i'd cringe at it looming on the calendar. but recently i took some time to study the cycles of the moon and here's what i found.

opposition

for centuries, many calendars, festivals and events were set by the lunar cycle. farmers would plant and harvest based on the movements of the moon. the full moon is the brightest and most luminous part of the cycle because at that point the sun and moon are in opposition. this positioning across from each other on either side of planet earth elicits special behaviours...

animals become more active. ocean waves and tides get more violent. humans act up. paramedics know it. prison officers know it. emergency room staff know it. remember the riots in vancouver after they lost to boston? toronto's transformation from a clean, decent city to mass chaos during a the G20 summit? full moons. i wished governments knew it.  

if we are all energy, then we are all connected energetically. and if energy intensifies at the full moon, no wonder we experience intense emotions, express ourselves more intensely and encounter intense situations. we feel each other's energy more intensely. but this is not always a bad thing.

making the most of full moonery

if we think in terms of the intensity of a full moon, we can consciously choose to be at our intensely best at the full moon. we could be our most intensely inspirational. our most intensely influential. our most intensely genuine, our most intensely vital, intensely creative.

so instead of ducking for cover during the full moon, here's what i suggest.

  • take a moment. take a deep breath. step into your true integrity, your true self. 
  • create a vision of something simple you want. in other words, make a wish. a great one, for you and for everyone around you. 
  • breathe and meditate on it, filling it in with details. allow your vision to intensify and get energized. 
  • imagine the vision taking place now, in reality. allow yourself to feel it in every cell of your body.
  • release the vision after a few minutes allowing it to float out through the breath. release your ownership of it. 

now, instead of looking at the calendar and getting anxious, i feel more optimistic. i've even built a whole manifestation meditation program around the lunar cycle, with each position of the moon a reminder of the next step in the process, which culminates around the full moon.

so take a moment and create that vision for what you want in your life. may your full moon wishes come true.

Further Learning

If you enjoy the workshop you may also want to explore:


About Salima

A leading Reiki Master Teacher, Intuitive Guide, Healer & Vice-Chair of the Mindfulness Society of Canada, Salima offers private healing & readings, & teaches Reiki, intuition & mindfulness to students in person and around the world.

three things i loved about learning reiki

And you get to work with your hands
teaching reiki is tiring work... but i love it. one of the best parts is watching the shift people experience as they go through an intensive weekend with you. some see bright colours, others feel sensations that are new and exotic to them. others still beam like sunshine after they are done. there are three huge reasons why i love teaching reiki to people:

#1: i love the feeling of "beginner's mind" 

it was shunryu suzuki who said: "in the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. in the expert's mind there are few".

i remember my first Reiki course. it was supernatural. i was in awe at my teacher. i mean, he saw things. i couldn't discuss it with anyone. and yet, as soon as i had the chance i pounced on my homework: 10 treatments on other people.

it was my icebreaker at parties. 

i'd sidle up to someone. "hey, are you free tuesday night?" knowing the answer would be a yes,  i'd follow up with, "great, can you lie down for an hour so i can put my hands on you and give you a reiki treatment?" nobody ever said no. i learned a lot this way. 

in two months, i had given close to 40 treatments to different people.

#2: i love intuitive experimenting. 

if practised correctly, you get to hone your intuition. feeling the different energies, the difference in sensation in each treatment, trying out new things and feeling creative again. noticing when i'd need to make movements, sounds or speak and deliver an important message. simply letting go of any control and letting reiki radiate, pulse or flow out, drenching the person in pure vital energy.

i found the more i let go, the more effective the treatment was. i'd pick up images, and know immediately that something they thought was the problem was just a physical manifestation of something hidden. and then hearing what people felt and sensed and knowing i felt and sensed the same things was amazing confirmation that reiki was working in subtle and powerful ways.

#3: you start with yourself 

reiki is one of the few things you can actually do for yourself first. it's part of the course. you give yourself a treatment before you give anyone else a treatment. and as you do, you notice how effortless it is, how amazing you feel after and how beneficial it is to practice on yourself as much as possible. (i still do).

selfish, you say? sure. but who am i to tell you about you, before i start with me? and so i did. the transformation was slow but profound. i had radical shifts in perception. i had amazing shifts in my ability sense energy, target pain and illness and discover its roots. and i transformed from a pretty cynical hospital worker into a reiki healer and teacher. who woulda thought?

so even though teaching is hard work, it's a privilege to pass this ability on. and to anyone who feels the pull to learn reiki... get pulled! besides being easy and transformational, it's super natural.

want to learn?

Salima teaches weekend Reiki courses in Toronto each month. Find out more about learning Reiki or get a Reiki treatment and feel the difference it makes for yourself!

Further Learning

If you enjoy the workshop you may also want to explore:


About Salima

A leading Reiki Master Teacher, Intuitive Guide, Healer & Vice-Chair of the Mindfulness Society of Canada, Salima offers private healing & readings, & teaches Reiki, intuition & mindfulness to students in person and around the world.