August 2022 Newsletter
Joyful Balanced Health August 2022 Newsletter
Welcome friends! Thank you for signing up for my newsletter and for being a part of my growing community. Each month I will share with you more of my personal journey and things I am learning, teaching, reading, and loving. My hope is that you will find something that speaks to your heart and leads you toward healing and happiness in your own life. Please feel free to share this email with any friends or family who you feel may benefit from it as well.
What I am learning:
In one of my coaching calls recently, one of the women asked how to develop more empathy for her husband and son. As we discussed this, I sensed that her lack of empathy for her family was due in large part to her lack of empathy for herself. We had a great discussion where we touched on the goals of empathy: to help ourselves and others feel heard, to create connection, and to increase understanding. We discussed ways to be more empathetic to ourself and to others: practicing mindfulness and forgiveness, being curious, stepping out of our comfort zone, and asking for feedback. My favorite part of the call was when we practiced offering empathy to ourselves. I invited the ladies to think of something they were struggling with and how it was making them feel. Then, I asked them to imagine a dear friend coming to them with the same problem and to think of how they would respond to that friend. How would they react, what would they say, how would they offer love to them? Finally, I invited them to respond to themselves as they would to their friend. To say the words they needed to hear, to offer the love they needed to feel, and to respond to the negative voices inside with love and compassion. It was a powerful moment and I recognized that I need to practice offering myself empathy more often as well. I am grateful for opportunities to continue learning and healing every day. I’m curious, what does empathy mean to you and how do you practice offering yourself empathy?
What I am teaching:
My 10-day online masterclass “Foundations for a Mindful Life” is available online. It is a self-paced course that can be enrolled in at any time. In this course you will learn simple foundational practices that will invite you to begin living in a more mindful way.
My next session of A Mindful Life Method begins on September 8th. This is a more in-depth 6-week online course that will lead you on a journey of reconnection with yourself that teaches you tools to reduce stress and anxiety in your life.
Every Tuesday morning at 6 am (MST), I teach yoga with one of my dear friends from high school. Each month we choose a theme to focus on and I teach the grounding, breathwork, and savasana (relaxation) portion of the class and Lori teaches the asana or posture portion of class.
Every Tuesday evening at 8:30 pm MST, I have an amazing group of ladies that join me for a yoga class with breathwork and guided meditation. We have built a beautiful community of women and I look forward to teaching them each week.
Once a month I host a women’s hiking group for ladies in my local area of Southern Utah. We have had four successful hikes and are looking forward to our next outing on August 13th. We will be hiking Ashdown Gorge-about an 8 mile hike-guided by one of our new hikers, Tina.
This month on August 27th I will be hosting my final mini retreat of this summer. Come join me in person from 6-9 pm for yoga, meditation, breathwork, connection with other amazing women, and a delicious snack around the fire. Our last two mini retreats were incredible and I am still relishing the memories and am grateful for the connections made.
September 30th-Oct 2nd I will be hosting the Connect and Reflect Women’s Retreat along with two other amazing women, Sara Greene and Coral Simpson. This retreat will be incredible and I am looking forward to seeing you all there! Spots are limited so sign up early!
If any of these classes or events are of interest to you, please reach out to me for more information or visit my website at https://www.joyfulbalancedhealth.com
What I am reading:
I have been re-reading “The Gifts of Imperfection” by Brene Brown. This whole book is full of golden nuggets and it is difficult to choose what I want to share from it. I think this quote sums up the essence of the book beautifully. “Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy-the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light”. How have you owned your story and discovered the power of your own light?
What I am loving:
I am loving connecting with so many of you in my weekly classes and in person at my retreats and hikes. Connecting with amazing women brings me so much JOY! I want to thank each one of you for being a part of my community and for the ways that you enrich and bless my life. I love you!
I would love to hear from you and learn more about each one of you. Please reply and tell me what are you most interested in these days?
Sending you all love and light,
Jessica
