Category Archives: A Balanced Life

Hypnotherapy, Coaching and Reiki

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Hypnotherapy, Coaching, and Reiki are three different forms of holistic therapies are all offered at Balance4Life Programs. Each therapy can benefit you in various ways. Here’s a brief explanation of each therapy and the benefits:

  • Hypnotherapy: Hypnotherapy is an evidence based therapy that uses guided relaxation, intense concentration, and focused attention to achieve a heightened state of awareness that is sometimes called a trance. This differs from the sleep state. During the trance state, you are more open to suggestion and can be guided to make positive changes in thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. Hypnotherapy can help with a wide range of issues, including anxiety, depression, phobias, addiction, and even physical ailments like chronic pain or irritable bowel syndrome.
  • Coaching: Coaching focuses on helping you to achieve specific goals in your personal or professional life. As a coach, I work with you to identify your strengths and areas for improvement and then provide guidance, support, and accountability to help you achieve your goals. Amongst other things, coaching can help with career advancement, personal development, and improving relationships.
  • Reiki: Reiki is a form of energy healing that involves the use of hands-on or distance healing to balance the energy in the body. As a Reiki practitioner, I use my hands to transfer energy to you, which can help reduce stress and importantly promote relaxation. Reiki can also help with pain management, insomnia, and other physical or emotional issues.

Overall, each of these therapies can benefit you by helping you to improve your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Being able to access all these therapies in one place allows me to offer you a safe and supportive environment for personal growth and healing and can be a valuable complement to traditional medical treatments

Integrity and Emotional Intelligence

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Integrity refers to the quality of being honest, upright, and having strong moral principles. It involves being truthful, ethical, and consistent in one’s actions, words, and beliefs, regardless of the situation. In essence, integrity is about doing the right thing, even when nobody is watching.

On the other hand, emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to perceive, understand, manage, and express emotions effectively – in the moment. Emotional Intelligence involves being aware of those emotions and being able to manage them effectively, as well as using those emotions to positively guide your thoughts and behaviours.

StrengthIntegrity and emotional intelligence are closely related in that they both involve an awareness of your values and principles. A person with high levels of emotional intelligence is likely to have a strong sense of integrity because they are more aware of their emotions and how their actions impact others. They are also better equipped to handle ethical dilemmas because they can understand the emotions involved and make decisions based on their values rather than their emotions.

In summary, integrity and emotional intelligence are important qualities that are essential for personal and professional success. Developing these qualities can help individuals build trust, foster healthy relationships, as well as being able to make sound decisions in alignment with their values and principles.

Emotional Intelligence

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Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage one’s own emotions, as well as to perceive and respond to the emotions of others in the moment.

It involves being aware of one’s own feelings, being able to regulate those emotions, and using that understanding to interact effectively with others. This  is especially important when working with teams – either in the workplace or in a volunteer capacity.
Emotional Intelligence has been shown to be an important factor in personal and professional success, as it can help individuals communicate effectively, build and maintain relationships, and navigate complex social situations.

It is also associated with better mental health outcomes and can help individuals cope with stress and adversity.
There are several components of Emotional Intelligence, including self-awareness, stress management, teamwork and collaboration, empathy, and other social skills.

These can be developed and improved through practice and training, and as a Certified Social and Emotional Intelligence  coach I offer regular workshops and presentations to help individuals and organizations build their emotional intelligence skills.

 

Art Therapy and Stress Management

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Art therapy is a form of therapy that involves using art to express oneself and explore emotions. It can be a helpful tool for managing stress, as it allows you to process your feelings in a non-verbal way and can provide a sense of relaxation and mindfulness.

One way art therapy can help manage stress is by providing a creative outlet for you to express yourself. Creating art can be a way to release pent-up emotions and reduce feelings of anxiety or tension. The act of making art can also be calming and meditative, allowing you to focus your attention on the present moment and let go of worries about the past or future.

Art therapy can also help you to gain insight into your feelings and thought patterns. Creating art can be a way to access and explore the subconscious mind, which can lead to new insights and a greater understanding of oneself. Therefore the process of creating and reflecting on art you can learn to identify and manage sources of stress.

Finally, art therapy can be a way to connect with others and build a sense of community. Participating in group art therapy sessions can provide a supportive environment where you can share experiences and feel validated and understood. This sense of connection and belonging can help reduce feelings of stress and isolation.

Overall, art therapy can be a valuable tool for managing stress and promoting overall well-being. If you’re interested in exploring art therapy, consider reaching out to me and I can guide you through the process, helping you to develop a personalized plan for managing your stress through art.

Colour

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Colour is important in art therapy as it allows the client to express emotions and feelings. The colours may be chosen consciously or unconsciously.

Each colour can convey specific feelings or meanings in the creation of an image. 

By also understanding that there is a positive and negative polarity for the qualities of each colour, it is possible to better interpret one’s emotional state. There may be an instinctual or unconscious response to the use of a particular colour. 

Colour can influence our emotions in a number of ways.

The warm colours (red, orange, yellow) often evoke strong emotions – both positive in energy and negative in that these colours can overwhelm a sensitive person.

Green, blue and purple are classed as cool colours and can evoke calmness although blue in particular, is often associated with sadness or depression. Reaction to a colour can be based on personal experiences with a subconscious association to an event (either happy or sad).

It is also important to take into account cultural and personal interpretations to each colour. 

Some colours have a deep cultural significance, such as the meanings attached to black and white. Black is used for mourning in European countries and white for mourning in some Asian countries

Leadership Coaching

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Coaching at balance4lifeWhat a great start to 2023! Feedback from last year’s Leadership Coaching for Women has been great and I’m looking forward to replicating the success with a small group for a company that operates nationally.

It may be my bias, but I prefer coaching to counseling as the focus is on the future and what you do want as opposed to what you don’t want. Combined with Emotional Intelligence strategies, this can make the workplace a much better place to be. Of course results will vary for each person – depending on whether they step up and embrace new ideas. My own experience of group coaching is that often a problem brought to the table by another attendee and the subsequent coaching by the facilitator is exactly what I needed to hear for my  own issues!

Collecting seeds

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After a slow and slightly wet start to summer, it’s great to enjoy the summery weather. However this means taking some extra care of my seedlings that I’m growing for an autumn planting session at the retreat.

The challenge has been in collecting seeds and growing them up into small trees that can then be planted out. Some of the previously planted trees have succumbed to last summer’s high temperatures, the resident hare and the kangaroos.

The chestnut trees were one casualty and as my friend’s chestnuts were eaten by cockies, I bought some from the supermarket, popped them in the vegetable crisper for a couple of months and was happily surprised when they sprouted. They were potted up and a couple have already gone in the ground at the retreat.

 

A Jacaranda tree grown from a seed of the next door neighbour’s tree has also gone in and is doing really well. I’m still deciding whether the Magnolia trees (also grown from seed) will make an appearance up at the retreat or to leave them in here in the city.

Another mini forest in the making are some peppercorn trees from seeds of a tree in the local town. I’m thinking of arranging these in a well spaced circle (20metres apart) from the oak tree in the centre of the paddock. Much like a Medicine Wheel or a living labyrinth.

Speaking of labyrinths – both labyrinths are in great need of refurbishment. Heavy rains (one day a neighbour recorded 70mm) have washed away the little labyrinth. I’m toying with the idea of creating a raised straw bale spiral garden instead to grow herbs and other useful shrubs. The larger labyrinth is very overgrown with native grasses and the jonquils in one of the central rings did get to flower this year. The pomegranates and olives around the perimeter continue to survive and the application of some organic fertilizer has helped the remaining oak trees to finally grow some height.  The previous attempt to refurbish the outline of the rings with rocks gathered from the paddock was a good idea in theory, but has affected the water flow and now looks untidy with the grass growing up and through them.

Seasons Greetings

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Seasons Greetings to all. If you are one of the many who find this time of year difficult, keep in mind the following wisdom from Arthur Ashe:

Start where you are.

Use what you have.

Do what you can.

Stay in the moment. If you find yourself a little anxious at a gathering, focus on 3 things you can see or hear or touch. Do it quickly and as often as needed.

It’s OK to say “No”.  No to extra helpings if you are full, no to demands on your time and energy. By saying no, there is the opportunity for you to say yes to something else – like your peace of mind.

For some there will be an empty chair at the table this year. Focus on the happy memories – it’s  OK to laugh and be sad at the same time. Acknowledge your emotions, rather than stuffing them back down. Rescue Remedy is a  wonderful thing to have on hand at this time.

Remember to breathe….. deep breathing will help you to still the stress response.

Vulnerability - strength or weakness

Storytelling

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The concept that humans are storytelling creatures comes about through the oral traditions that have been passed down through millennia in every culture. These stories sought to preserve the history and share knowledge acquired. The stories may reflect knowledge about the animal kingdom or natural events that needed to be made sense of. exam anxiety

For instance, many cultures share the same stories of a great flood – this is the story of the Ark in early Biblical history as well as the story of the Seven Sisters (Pleiades) and the kidnap of the youngest by Orion as people across the planet observed the night skies. This story is found in both Northern American indigenous tales as well as our own first nations people.

We tell stories to children – often as metaphor and the Steiner education system allows children to explore these stories, appropriate to their stage of cognitive development. The stories start with the Grimms fairy tales, Norse myths and progress to Greek myths in Year 5 and stories of the Romans in Year 6. 

As adults we often tell of our life experiences and some choose to be defined by their stories that may be coloured through their own lens of perception.

Trinkets purchased on trips overseas help us to remember the travels that we can no longer take and we can reminisce and retell the story of our experiences as we visited different lands and cultures.

We like to sit and listen (particularly around a camp fire) of stories big and small of travels, (often embellished) emotions experienced along the way and we can learn and draw our own conclusions from these stories.

Stories of family history were (and still are) passed down from generation to generation, along with favourite recipes and gardening tips. The stories can be listened to, without the need to be able to read or write and therefore even young children of pre school age are avid listeners as their social and cultural mores begin to be imprinted into their subconscious.

Art Therapy Workshops

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The past few months I have had the opportunity to be presenting lots of workshops, including Art Therapy workshops to a variety of organizations and audiences. The Art Therapy workshops have been face to face, whilst the Emotional Intelligence workshops have either been online or hybrid.

For participants in a group Art Therapy Workshop it can be challenging to know just how much to “share”. At each session I set the boundaries – what is said in the room, stays in the room  and only share if comfortable. Some of the activities are designed to encourage mindfulness.

One activity that springs to mind is “Going Dotty”.  This is a nod to the artistic works of Georges Seurat who created amazing masterpieces using pointillism. My own example of a sunflower shows how solid colour is not necessary to create an image. Taking the time to create it  kept me “in the moment” or mindful.

After it was finished I took some time on reflecting why I chose to create that image. It reminded me of the time I flew across the country  to have a last visit with my mother in hospital. During a break I went to the local shops and there were buckets of sunflowers. I bought a bunch, took it back to the hospital and used them as a focus for a meditation and Reiki session. Something shifted, as my mother recovered and we were able to have a conversation and another visit a year or so later.