your merry mission should you choose to accept

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Read time: 2 minutes

merry morning to all & merry christmas to all who celebrate!

today we’re all getting presents

even if we don’t celebrate christmas.

bc i’m giving you my favorite present at the moment & in the moment.

the gift of being present.

in the here

in the now

in your body

embodying authenticity.

your body counts

in case you don’t know, i’m obsessed with the holistic psychologist, dr. nicole lepera, & devoured her most recent book, how to be the love you seek.

my biggest takeaways is how much our bodies impact how we love AND how we live.

you must feel safe in your body to feel safe with others & in the world.

easy example of this is the last time you were sick. that feeling of only really caring about one thing: your health. your body takes center stage as your immune system is under attack. you don’t feel safe in your body so it’s hard to focus on anything or anyone else.

the same is true when we’re healthy too, but many of us don’t even realize our bodies are off because we never learned how to feel safe in our bodies.

to do this you must be fully connected to your body.

by connecting to your body you connect to your presence in the present.

what you really need

just how we have needs for survival a la maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we have needs for authenticity. as shown in this adapted version of our needs pyramid from dr. nicole:

we can’t go up the pyramid without a covering our foundational needs first.

so today we’re getting physical with:

• rest

• water

• oxygen

• nutrients

• movement

naughty numbers

these topics may seem basic & boring to some.

but they’re vital.

and i have stats prove that most of us treat these basics like they’re voluntary

we need 7 hrs of sleep per night

• 35% of americans get less than 7 hrs of sleep

we need 8.5 cups of water per day

• 75% of americans are chronically dehydrated, drinking only 2.5 cups a day on average

we need 12-20 breaths per second, thats 20,000 cycles every day.

• 3rd leading cause of deaths worldwide is the lung disease COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)

we need optimal amounts of vitamins & minerals for thousands of cellular functions in our body

• 92% of americans have a vitamin or mineral deficiency (most commonly potassium, iron, calcium, b, d, & e)

we need 22 minutes of movement per day

• 72% of americans exercise less than 22 mins per day

10 practices for presence

today as the world slows down, i ask you slow down too.

give yourself & your body one of more of these gifts:

1. 😁 smiling

2. 📿 meditating

3. 🐾 petting a pet

4. 👟 going for a walk

5. 🤸 moving your body

6. 🛌 sleeping seven hrs

7. 🌬️ taking deep belly breaths

8. 🤗 giving hugs, even to yourself

9. 🥗 mindfully eating nutritious foods

10. 🙌 practicing positive body language (tall upright, soft eyes, relaxed face, proud shoulders, loose arms)

giving presence 

may you be as present to yourself as you would be for these puppies.

merry everything,

p.s. trivia question to really make you think about your presence.

p.p.s. if you’re considering starting or want to grow your newsletter next year, beehiiv is the best & i’m happy to chat more about why. and if you’re looking for a job, beehiiv is hiring a vp of finance (my dream job a few years back!).