Tag: nature

Arise: Embracing Nature’s Rhythms and Finding Strength in Everyday Challenges

pammunkholm

Albert Einstein said, “Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better.”

Where do you find beauty and comfort? I’m beginning to understand that it is everywhere. In everything. Or it can be. I went on a run the other day. It was a windy yet warm and sunshine-y day. The long wild grasses were bending in a zig zag wave through the field. Their colours catching the sun and making me think of my younger days acting out Little House on the Prairie.

I passed a farm and smelled the familiar aroma of diesel. That scent may not tingle the senses for everyone but for me that was the smell of Dad getting home from the field. Even after he washed up for supper. It seemed to my young nose that washing up only seemed to enhance the smell. It was the scent of riding in ‘the farm truck’, you don’t dare take that one to town. But for bumping along through the field to where the tractor needed refueling it was dandy.

That smell of diesel meant riding in and driving the trucks and tractors over years of my life. While that smell may signal different things for different people I choose to focus on that time my dad and I took the Diesel to the family farm from our place in town. I remember feeling pretty important to be invited on this excursion. There was a container of candies that had melted together. I don’t know how long they’d lived in the cab of that truck, but I didn’t care. I was with my dad. It was just a passing whiff of farm diesel but it brought up a lot of good memories.

As I continued along my route I kept noticing things to which I never would have paid any attention before forest therapy. This wasn’t a forest walk but anytime I am in nature I am noticing a difference in me. I saw a bird playing on the wind. An antelope in the field that just stared at me as I passed. I did not stop to ask if this is where the deer and the antelope play.

Next a graveyard. Fun! Again some people would think, what an unfortunate damper on my run. I chose to feel open to any good feelings as I went by this resting place. I didn’t sense danger or sadness. Only light. I thought what a lovely place for those that are laid here. And more so for those that can come to visit their dearly departed.

Next a sign to slooooow doooown. Most days those Max 30 signs drive me bonkers when I’m in a hurry. But a slow sign is often a good reminder to take stock. How am I doing? Are there any improvements I can make? What can I offer the world during this season of my life that will lift and inspire? Only when we slow down from our focused zip zip zip of the day. Do we see the way things really are.

To most this will look like an ugly car surrounded by weeds. That’s because it is. But what it means to me and a special someone of 25 years is a treasure of delightful memories. This is the car my hubby and I drove away from the farm directly after we were married. My uncle drove it all the way from Edmonton so I could have it as our getaway car. It means feeling loved. As we drove away Brent couldn’t believe we had done it. Years of dating and months of planning and now the deed was done. We were hitched. I, on the other hand was busy trying to figure out how to keep my dress clean and my wedding hair under control in a convertible on a gravel road. It was perfectly imperfect and I love that memory. That ugly old car in the weeds means wild reminiscing.

This next part was stinky. To me it smells like manure. But it is actually the remains of the grain elevator that burned down over the winter. It is hard to look at what is left of something that once stood proudly amid the prairie grass. But a promise that good things can rise out of something that initially looks devastating came to mind. Beauty for ashes.

In some ways my life seems to be a pile of stinky remains today. But it is also beautiful and happy and phenomenal. This frame of mind is not something that has come easily to me. It has taken effort to retrain my brain out of its default settings that go to disgust and negativity and frustration. Instead I make a conscious effort to go to curiosity. Curiosity keeps me open to the benefit of the doubt. It gives me an opportunity to find the humour in any situation or to recognize and choose joy.

I have a new granddaughter. She is such a blessing in our lives. She is a ray of sunshine just like her big brother. When I am in their presence my life is brighter.

For those not blessed with grandchildren in their home to brighten their day, you can also find that light in the forest. In the book, The Healing Magic of Forest Bathing, author Julia Plevin says, as we begin to forest bathe we begin to understand how to communicate with trees and plants. We gain the ability to interpret a slight breeze or a bird’s call. We fall deeply in love with the earth. The more we tap into mother nature’s rhythms the more we understand that she wants to help us evolve and live with a higher purpose. All we have to do is learn how to listen.

Does that sounds a little too clairvoyant for some? What if you compared it to being in tune to the needs of a newborn who has no way to communicate other than crying? We learn to communicate in different ways. We interpret through signals. The more we tap into her rhythms the more we understand her higher purpose. All we need do is listen.

We are evolved to find relaxation and restoration in nature. There are so many stimuli and stressors in our day, taking time to enter resting mode has become all but obsolete. When life seems like too much to handle, remember that nature is supporting you. Even when it seems the opposite is true. When it seems that the world is against you and you’re between a rock and a hard place, connect to nature and feel that strength you have inside helping you to arise.

That is my word of the year. Arise. I see the many ways I can apply it and you likely have areas of life that would benefit from your ability to arise. How can you arise in your sphere? I’d love to see in the comments.

Here are some ways I can arise. I can be the bigger person when someone is being harsh and just let it go. I can keep exercising through pain and setbacks. I can offer what I have to others even when it seems so simple and small. I can keep doing my best when it seems the odds are stacked against me.

Look for beauty in the ordinary today. Notice the tone and rhythm of nature and find strength in it. Find what feeds you in your home and in the forest. Connect to nature and when you find what’s available, arise my friends and share it with others.

Discover Earth’s Healing Energy: The Science Behind Grounding for Pain and Well-being

pammunkholm

Come forth into the light of things. Let nature be your teacher. – William Woodsworth

I am sitting in a room where the sunlight hits just right at every time of day. I can smell the fresh air and I hear so many different song birds, I feel like Cinderella waking up to their melody. I can hear the wind blowing in the trees. I see the green out the window and the shadow as evidence of their dance on my wall.

I am a ten minute drive from the lake. This, my friends, is my happy place.

It gets happier as the summer goes on and more people move into this space. The weather heats up and slowly warms up this massive lake. Or at least the top couple feet of it. You get really good at swimming in that top few feet when its bone chilling cold under that line.

The boats go in and the air starts to smell of sunscreen. I love that every lake person has a story. Around “their” lake. This is “my” lake. I grew up here.

img_0441

I remember being in the lake in wind and grey skies taking swimming lessons and shivering/ convulsing as I stood on the dock. My cute little ponytail being whipped around by the wind. But, by golly, we were gonna get those swimming badges.

I remember getting scolded along with all the cousins for bringing all the sand from the beach back to my grandma’s cabin, a short run away from our summer playground. So close that our feet didn’t have time to dry and sand to fall off before we burst into the door. The smell of supper following us in off the bbq.

I remember watching Bedknobs and Broomsticks when it was rainy outside.

I remember my dad and grandpa out in the wind and rain with huge grins on their faces as the sailboat leaned so far over that I could look across the table down below and see only water rushing by through the little windows that should be showing horizon. My mom remembers my sister and I sliding off our seats and under the table when we were small. Meanwhile the men acted as though all was well in hand.

My first handholding was at the lake. My first kiss was at the lake. (I don’t want to talk about it)

My grandpa built that cabin and it still stands today although it’s not in the family anymore. But my parents bought a place by the same lake. I like this family tradition.

I am going through a personal matter that is incredibly difficult. I have been blessed by nature and knowing how to draw out those properties that will calm my heart, my soul and my inflammation.

I heard about a group of ladies in their 80s or so. This generation did NOT go out of the house barefoot. It was the time of rusty nails and no tetanus shots. Not to mention the whole being proper at all cost logic.

I want to be their friend

These ladies recently learned how grounding works. They shed the socks and shoes and braved their own yards in this newfound liberty. Imagine their surprise when their inflammation in places that hurt for decades, receded or completely disappeared. They want to share this with everyone. This is the wonder of our earth.

There are fascinating accounts of such healing. The Tour de France is by far the most difficult sporting event in the world. Comparable to running three marathons a day for 22 consecutive days. When earthing technology started to be used to get the athletes’ skin in contact with the grounding product at night while they slept, amazing results were reported. Physicians said participants woke feeling rested every morning and there was less stress on their body. They experienced less pain, more energy, and faster, stunning recovery from wounds.

If it works for recovery and healing advantages for elite cyclists performing in the Tour de France, I decided to trust the science and the personal experiences shared by so many. Now I can be one of those many voices highly recommending it for everyone who has pain or stress on their body. So everyone.

Even ten minutes a day will create changes in your body and in your life. The idea is to connect your bare skin to the earth. Rocks. Sand. Grass. Dirt. All the natural things. Get your feet or hands right in them. Notice how it feels. The grass tickling your toes or the solid grounding feeling of sitting or standing on a rock will bring you in touch with the earth. Think about it. How often do you make contact with the earth?

I’m going to take a stab at explaining the science behind this practice. Though I am far from an expert on the subject.

Our bodies are conductive. This means that electricity is passing through our body at all times. As it does, some of the charge remains. This is happening as you go about your day. It is not something we are taught how to sense. The charge remaining is positive. This is not a good thing. We don’t want this lingering positive electrical charge. Especially when chronic conditions and pain are involved. Experts are starting to think this is where inflammation or exacerbating inflammation occurs.

When thinking of the many stresses of our day. How much more can your body handle? Enter the majestic camel and his final piece of straw.

Photo by Ivan Siarbolin on Pexels.com

The earth is full of negatively charged electrons. When your skin is in contact with the earth, those electrons attach to our positively charged cells to take them from what can be referred to as ‘free radicals’ and transforms them to happy, healthy, neutralized cells. Too many of these free radicals can cause all kinds of problems. But when the body is able to ground, inflammation has been shown to be reduced in scientific studies. You don’t have to take my senior ladies’ group word for it.

Just follow their lead and shed the socks and shoes. Lay on the ground, on a mat made of natural material. I have a straw mat from the dollar store. Or get in a natural body of water. Get your feet in the dirt of your garden. Whatever you can do.

Now that I know what to watch for, I feel a whoosh of energy when I stand on something that allows me to ground. But when you are starting out the energy shift may be subtle. I encourage you to track your mood before and after a grounding session. Do you notice a difference? How long did it take, of grounding regularly before you noticed it?

I invite you to join me on the grass. Sit. Stand. Lay down. And breathe. Or join me on a forest therapy walk where I can guide you to all the benefits of the forest.

Come forth into the light and let nature be your teacher. Take care my friends.

Nature’s Therapeutic Whispers: Revelations from Diverse Books

pammunkholm

Have you ever heard your books talking to each other? I generally have at least a dozen non-fiction books on the go at any given time. I don’t know if the same rule applies to fiction books.

When I read my books daily I start to hear them talk to each other. They discuss the same points. The examples and illustrations are vastly different but the message is the same. These are not books on the same subject or genre. But my brain starts to put it together in an intricate web.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Here is a glimpse into what my books are saying.

There are those that believe that the highest truth exists in nature. Have you ever struggled to find truth in this world of chaos and contention? If we look around we see that everything is pointing us back to the earth. Our food. Whole food from the earth looks to be our best bet. Our vacations. We fly to exotic destinations to get our feet in the sand. Our need to be still. Which we will not come upon by accident. We will not trip and land in a forest bath. We have to intentionally and incrementally choose nature as a healing tool.

Nature is an intricate web. Did you know that all the trees in a forest are connected by their roots? And that research is showing there is almost an in and out breath that the trees take collectively. When you are in nature you can feel it. But do you know how to bottle it up and take it home with you?

Have you heard of Petrichor? It is the smell of earth after rain. We’ve had a lot of that recently. To put it in perspective I recently learned that as humans we are more sensitive to the scent of rain than a shark is to the scent of blood. Perfumers have been after the scent for years. There’s something primitive about the smell. Plant smell is also more obvious.

Photo by Brent Munkholm

Like forest bathing, petrichor has a relaxing effect and a feeling of good health. Just being around it is helpful. If you don’t feel like going for a walk in the rain, try standing outside barefoot for a few minutes. Ideally it’s still raining and you can take in all nature has to offer from above and below.

Researchers suggest that humans had those scent receptors for back in the day when our ancestors needed to know where would be the best place to plant your crop. That smell would have been of great importance to those that lived solely off the land.

Some days it feels like we are far removed from the days of living of the land. Nowadays it’s about deadlines and fitting it all in. But that takes its toll. When you’re feeling stressed the body releases a hormone called cortisol. But studies show that your body doesn’t release as much cortisol when in the forest. This is good news because too much of it can cause problems. The ones we are seeing so rampant in our society. Anxiety. Depression. Heart disease. Weight gain. Memory and concentration problems.

So many of us are living in a constant state of fight or flight and cannot continue to function on our current trajectory. When your body is overloaded on cortisol and not getting a chance to recover, the body starts to fight back. Your body needs a chance to rest and digest. During this process the heart rate slows while the gut and glands experience increased activity.

Forest bathing helps me get out of my default setting of rush and stress and into a state of rest and digest. I have a desire to disconnect from the things that are draining me and to connect to those things that will feed me. It is part mindfulness. Part play. Thoughts slow down. The things that felt so important a moment ago fade in the scent, sounds and feel of the forest.

Amos Clifford, founder of The Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides says of forest bathing, “It’s a fancy way of saying hanging out in the forest can make you super relaxed.” This is one way to use forest therapy. But there are many ways for many different kinds of days.

Sometimes days are incredibly hard and I can relate to what C.S. Lewis wrote in A Grief Observed, “There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me.” I am going through such a time as this. Thankfully, as always, the forest holds the answer. Join me by reaching out to me on my contact page to book an individual or join a group walk.

img_3941
Photo by Brent Munkholm

Author Edward Abbey wrote, May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. Healing is available here in this place. I am experiencing it. I can show you the way.

These seemingly random yet related thoughts are how my books are speaking to me today. In so many of them I am learning, Nature truly is the best medicine. Take it in my friends.

Menopause Uncovered: Taboos Broken and Symptoms Revealed

pammunkholm

I was going to label this as a women’s post but really guys should know this too. Proceed at your own risk.

What is it with menopause being such a hush- hush topic? We are educated at home and at school about puberty yet when it comes to menopause there is no such help on the topic. Anyone can google or do some research on the subject but do we? And how accurate is the information we are reading?

Despite the fact that I am now postmenopausal, I think? I am clearly far from an expert on the subject. Before my scheduled hysterectomy I figured I knew enough about what would happen from the little bit of girl talk and the way after- school specials made fun of it back in my day. I clearly remember Clair Huxtable on The Cosby Show faking what happens to women by going on in a big ordeal that ended with her head in their fridge freezer to make a point to her family. It seemed to say menopause will make you ridiculous unless you are strong enough to withstand the symptoms everyone goes on about. Or at least that’s what I took from it.

All my husband knew of menopause before my surgery was remembering his grandma pulling the car over and jumping out to tear her sweater off because she suddenly got too warm. It’s a funny family story that still circulates. To be fair I didn’t do much research on the matter either.

Before my complete hysterectomy I looked up the symptoms and side effects and how to try to avoid them. I thought I knew what I was in for. All the symptoms can be laughed off which makes it really dangerous for those that experience them to the extreme.

I had my surgery in May of 2019. Technically I was menopausal for one year following the surgery. But I am five years post surgery and I still have crazy symptoms. So here I am, labelled post when I am still obviously present! I am experiencing hot flashes every half hour. And other symptoms too. Clearly I must have missed a step.

It was one thing to deal with the symptoms I expected. But another to try and explain the ones nobody had heard about.

I talked to my doctor about 6 months after my hysterectomy and told her I still had all the symptoms of a cycle minus the actual period. She assured me it was all in my head. Then she man-splained how when you don’t have ovaries you can’t have a cycle. Now I know I am not the only one who has experienced this symptom. I am not making it up.

Between this brain fog that slows down my processing speed and my age, my eyes needed help with progressive lenses shortly after the surgery. And they are still going downhill quickly. This was not a symptom for which I was prepared. Yet I have read about more than one person who has experienced this decline in prescription during menopause.

Hot flashes. Yes, I’ve heard of those. I’ve heard comedians poke fun. But cold flashes? Nope. That was not in the top ten things to watch for. I mentioned before that I looked forward to warming up since I run cold. But a cold flash for someone that was already cold is terribly uncomfortable. I have to dress up to change rooms in my house if the temperature is at all lower. Followed closely by being too warm in the extra clothes and leaving more mess strewn around the house than my kids did as pre schoolers. And once I get too warm or too cold? Good night Nelly! I can’t get back to normal. Steaming or boiling anything on the stove was out of the question for over a year after the surgery. I still struggle to make a meal because once I start to hot flash I can’t bring it back. I just keep hot flashing until the meal is done and I am a hot mess.

And lastly and the most fun of all…? the emotional roller coaster. I would classify myself as someone who keeps a pretty level head and a cool demeanor in most situations. I had a mean streak as a teenager but I’ve since tamed that beast. I knew that hot flashes would warm me up to put it mildly. But I was not prepared for the rise in frustration and impatience that come with the incredibly warm face and dripping body parts. I relate to this meme, I feel like I’m in a petting zoo and all I wanna do is bite people. Why are there no such words of warning to those who are suffering: Wear breathable clothing! This cannot be stressed enough. Picture being in a rain jacket but you are more soaked on the inside of the jacket than the outside. Brent says when I start to warm up in bed the temperature climbs but even more notably, the humidity rises.

I already mentioned the book I read by Libby Weaver titled, Rushing Women’s Syndrome. I saw another diagnosis with a slightly different definition but the idea is the same. It is called Hurried Sickness. The behavior pattern is caused by a continual rushing and anxiousness and overwhelmingly continued sense of urgency in which a person feels chronically short of time and tends to perform every task faster and gets flustered while encountering any type of delay. That description is spot on for any morning at my house, especially when my kids were younger!

When there is a lack of understanding there is a tendency to feel alone. This non comprehensive list of secret symptoms is only my list. It won’t be the same for everyone. But my list matches with someone’s. And maybe they feel alone too. In evolutionary biology they say a lone monkey is a dead monkey. Instead of feeling alone in whatever you may be facing, share it with others and create a shared nature of suffering. Escape from your own woes by recognizing the suffering of others and reaching out in whatever way fits into your world.

Forest therapy has been the answer for me around my symptoms. When I spend a day outside I rarely notice one hot flash but, I kid you not, a day spent indoors, you will observe me reaching for my fan and taking off my socks and looking for a cold drink (of water) every stinking half hour. For the last five years.

If you want to calm your menopausal or apparently post menopausal symptoms, go to my contact page and book a walk with me to see what forest therapy can do for you.

img_2202

My request for this week may be awkward at first but can we start to foster an attitude that supports more normalcy and education around menopause the way we do around puberty? Google doesn’t hold all the answers. Every time I googled my chronic pain symptoms I ended up with Lupus, like most of the patients on House. As adults we can’t rely on what Google alone has to say. Or even what a single doctor may tell you. But the combined story of actual women who are willing to share actual experiences.

Tell those who can’t handle a discussion around menopause, You SHHHHHH!!!!!

Nurture may not be my Forte; Healing in Nature is

pammunkholm

When my boys were young and rambunctious we attended my cousin’s wedding. This was the stage when they expressed their emotions in karate kicks. I stole that quote from Amy Poehler. It is too accurate in the case of my boys. My three littles were hard to wrangle on a normal day let alone in the midst of calm and collected wedding folk.

Two of said rambunctious boys. One going up a waterslide and one coming down. A planned collision course with these glorious results. Kody’s goose egg was visibly growing in the hotel elevator as we went back up to our room. This picture is not from the trip I discuss in this post but an illustration on the subtle art of surviving young boys and all of their accompanying tomfoolery.

By the start of the first dance I was exhausted. I noticed wedding organizers handing out a small bottle of bubbles for everyone to blow towards the new bride and groom. Aw me. Such a charming tradition. Nothing could possibly go wrong.

That captivating moment with its twinkle lights all aglow and soft, romantic music was disastrously interrupted when my boys all ran to within an inch of the bride’s dress and spit bubble solution all over it. Not bubbles. Bubble solution. The type of spitting where no bubbles actually form and it just drips down in a gooey, sloppy stream. Plus their spit.

The next thrilling development on scene, a bottle was dropped and the sudden need for a bubble solution dam arose. One was promptly improvised by a few family members that took pity on me or more likely didn’t want to see the happy couple turn this scene into a slip ‘n slide type situation. I didn’t stick around to ask due to the fact while all this was happening I was in pursuit of another one of my brilliant spawn while he tried to drink from his bottle of bubble solution. The fact that he was giggling uncontrollably endeared him to the rest of the jostled guests he left in his wake. I on the other hand was less than endeared. I caught him. Tears ensued. Predominantly mine.

In a profusion of apologies I gathered my darling brood with offers similar to that heard during a hostage situation. I spent the next hour using up every drop of my bubble solution. I found the act of blowing bubbles very soothing. Maybe this is a good time to point out that I don’t drink. Of all the times I considered starting this was definitely in the top 3. The bubble blowing slowed my breathing. I could watch the bubbles float away. And bonus, my boys chased the bubbles instead of each other for that time. Much of the pain we suffer in this life though, cannot be gently blown away like those bubbles.

One book I recently read is titled, Forest Therapy, written by author, Sarah Ivens. She says, “Some things are too sad, too difficult or too painful to be blown away on the breeze. But things can be improved. Dull moments can be brightened. Sad moments can become lightened when we value ourselves and surround ourselves with things that we know are good for our mental and physical well being.”

I am learning that I need access to nature for my mental and physical well being. Forest therapy provides that access on a regular basis. It is where things start to improve. My pain level decreases. My mood lightens. My brain spinning slows. Why do you think it is then that I, like many others, view nature as a luxury and not a necessity? We all know children need that break in their day. They need to feel the breeze or sun or rain or cold often in their day to function at their best.

Do you recognize your own need to get outside through your day as much as you see it in your children? Would that perception change if you knew that cutting yourself off from nature is not beneficial to your overall wellness? Studies are showing it is detrimental to our mental and physical well being. But is it the first thing to go when your to-do list gets too long? We need to get outside for our daily dose of vitamin D (and so much more) as much as or more than our kids! So we can handle our kids. Ha! Make your own physical activity outside as much of a priority as you would your kids’! It doesn’t take much to make a big difference. Ten minutes of grounding (shoes off, feet on the grass/sand/gravel) will make a world of difference. Let me know in the comments if you notice a difference in your overall mood or pain level after trying this practice for a week.

I have a tree in my backyard. When it’s too muddy or cold or if I don’t have time to get on the ground, I will place my hands on the tree. I don’t hug it but I don’t fault anyone for wanting to hug a tree. To each her own. I read that Beethoven would literally hug a linden tree in his yard. He said the woods, the trees, and rocks give man the resonance he needs. That’s what I get from putting a hand on my tree. I connect with the earth and all its healing properties. And I very much view my time there as one of my needs. Where the chaos of my life can become sweet harmony.

Those boys of mine are getting all grown up. One of them is married himself now. They still get a little rambunctious at times. Though thankfully their karate kicks are not often directed at each other or to express emotion. I don’t need a bottle of bubbles (or booze) to survive a formal event with them. I just breathe deeply and know that I can go down in the woods “tomorrow”.

I was thrilled to see forest therapy becoming more mainstream in an article I happened upon this morning. Take a read https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/forest-bathing-what-it-is-and-why-some-alberta-doctors-recommend-it-1.6911598

I end with these words from American poet and philosopher, Henry David Thoreau. I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately.

Anyone that wishes to live deliberately, I invite you to join me in the forest. Head over to my contact page to book a forest therapy walk.

I’d love to know what you think of all this sweet friends. Leave me a message in the comments.

The Deep Tones of Silence

pammunkholm

My home runs at a low hum of constant, somewhat- organized chaos. My dad says it is slightly louder and busier than a train station. There is literally someone awake at all times of the day and night. You can find someone doing laundry at 2 am or making a meal at 4 am. This morning it was popcorn at 7 am for some hungry soul. To put this in perspective I’d like to point out that I live with young adults not toddlers.

It is so hard to find quiet these days. And almost impossible to find silence. Even on some of my forest walks there are trains around or traffic driving by. I’m finding out that silence is aided by a quiet environment but not required and not really what silence is about.

When I’m silent on a forest walk it is a body, mind and spirit kind of quiet. There may be noise around. I can initially recognize and be ok with its effect. I tend not to notice it much after that. The silence goes much deeper.

I can offer suggestions here, but to get the most out of silence or forest walks, head over to my contact page to book a walk with me. We take small groups out for any age or ability level.

To quiet your body may be to continue to walk but to focus on slowing your breathing and relaxing your body. It may be stopping to sit on a bench or the ground. It may be leaning on a tree for a bit. Find what works for you.

To quiet your mind is to breathe deeply. Count your breaths. Focus on what you see and not on thinking of the past or the future. When we stay in the moment we can relax. When we think of the past, we ruminate on things we can’t change. When we think of the future we worry about upcoming events. Focusing on what is beautiful and currently happening around you is calming. If you start to notice your thoughts drifting, don’t despair, that’s actually what brains are programmed to do. Just bring your thoughts back. Don’t be frustrated with your train of thoughts that keep derailing, just pick up the pieces and carry on down the track.

To quiet your spirit is a deeper level of peace. It is knowing who you are. It is having a connection to something bigger than yourself and being able to trust in that relationship. It is being your genuine, authentic self, and loving it. It is recognizing that some things are out of my control and that’s ok.

Chronic pain leaves a person feeling so out of control. I expect we each go on similar paths through the stages of grief. Can you can see yourself or your loved ones in these stages?

I was in denial for years. I knew I was in pain. I knew it was constant. I knew it had been ongoing for years. I knew it wasn’t going away anytime soon. But at a physiotherapy appointment, when my therapist looked at me and told me that’s chronic pain, I was shocked. No! Let’s not be silly. I’m not someone who should be labelled as a chronic pain sufferer, At times it wasn’t that bad. Some nights it didn’t even keep me up. For some reason I thought no matter how bad it was getting, someone else was worse off so my experience wasn’t valid.

For so long I felt angry about pain. I felt like it was in the way of trying to raise my boys. In the way of playing the piano. Of working. Of being me. Of using and sharing and developing my skills. It was maddening to think of how young I was and that no matter what I did, I could not strengthen my muscles.

I bargained. If I am so careful the rest of the year, I should be able to knee board a couple of times a year. If I don’t bend my back at all, scar tissue will form and hold me together until my muscles work again. If I don’t care about anybody or anything, I won’t be upset when it also is inevitably taken from me. Do you hear the depression building?

When I finally came to terms with the fact that this may be the best I can ever feel, I hit another rock bottom. Depression. To recognize this was what my body would always be meant letting go of dreams and goals. For the rest of my mortal existence. That is a hard pill to swallow. I was not able to rise up following this crushing realization. I could see that’s what I needed to do but I was stuck. I kept telling myself to get out of the pity party. To carry on even though things were hard. Just like I always had. But. I. Could. Not.

Acceptance is when I realized this may be the best I will ever feel but… here’s my but list (you know what I mean). I may not ever be pain free but- I can still move. I am finding therapies that work for my body. I see my boys learning things they would not have learned had I been pain free all these years. I would never have found forest therapy otherwise. You see what I mean. I may need to let go of some dreams but I can make new ones or adjust the old to fit this me. I can see things I am grateful for in this mess. I now know that my pain does not make other people’s pain invalid. The same way their pain does not play any role in how valid mine is. I can hold space for someone to feel pain. It may not be constant like mine. Or frustrating like mine. But pain is pain. A person in pain needs someone to hold space for them to go through these stages, I suspect it may be the only way to acceptance.

And that’s where we all want to be for any up or down in our life. Acceptance. That’s it my sweet friends. Work towards acceptance in all areas of life. And when you’re stuck, come see me in the forest. I’ll be here.

Regaining Control

pammunkholm

Like most people I like to be in control. Have you ever felt completely out of control of your life? I have that feeling far less these days. Do you want to know what changed? It’s decidedly not because my life got easier. My life is actually a whole mess of mayhem. If you see yourself in this description and want to learn how to uphold control despite the daily dumpster fire, read on.

I was compelled to quit my life a few years ago. It had been overloaded for too long and my body and brain decided to quit their day job. They had had enough of this nonsense. If I wasn’t going to take care of them, they weren’t going to take care of me.

People say they can’t slow down or everything will fall apart. Especially as the mom. You are the hub of the family. Everyone comes to you for everything. To find the things. To remember the things. To carry the things. To get them and their things to the places. To talk things out. To orchestrate the things that need to happen. If you weren’t there, what would happen to all the things? It would be a disaster. Right? Of course right!

I had that feeling of impending doom when it was decided and my mom came to pick me up and take me to her house. I had suffered a serious breakdown. I learned something that felt like it was going to leave a permanent gash in my life, I kept picturing shards of glass ripping through me as I realized all the ways it would require me to adjust my life plans. It seemed as though it was leaving a hole not just in my life but in me. I had felt the pressure getting to be too much and this bit of information was the final straw.

Brent was working out of town so he couldn’t take care of me. My boys were old enough to take care of themselves but not to take care of their mother too. I started bawling as my mom and I were leaving my house. I didn’t want to leave my life. My heart was breaking as we were leaving my boys. So we brought Riley along as tribute. I was so tired. I was so overwhelmed. I was a 40 yr old going to her mom’s house to be taken care of. And my family and life would fall apart while I was away. And I just had to go. I had to let go and let it all fall apart.

Would you trust them? Just kidding, I love them and all of their crazy.

And oh boy, did it ever fall apart. My only son left in high school started failing classes. Handedly. I had teachers reaching out to me that I had to ignore. The thought of answering an email filled me with dread. The thought of trying to figure out or take care of anything was debilitating. Panic inducing. Add to that, not only was I not in my home to care for it, but there were three young adult/teenage boys living there. Molly maids they are not. The animals weren’t getting the care they needed. The yard looked like nobody had lived there in years with overgrown patches of yard the boys weren’t getting to mowing. I’d go home every two weeks when Brent was home. So I’d step back into my life and see how poorly it was doing without me. We would try to catch up and then head back out the door. For half a year we lived that way.

This sounds like a lot of complaining and it was really hard but that’s not why I’m bringing it to this audience. The reason I bring it here is to say that while you stop to take care of yourself, some things will suffer. That may be true and that has to be ok. Because if you keep not taking care of yourself, I am your cautionary tale. Life may come to a catastrophic juncture where stopping to care for yourself will be the only viable option. If you think you can’t stop moving or you will drop everything, you are carrying too much. Let some things go or do them differently to give yourself space to breathe. You need to be able to breathe. And everyone and everything will adjust. It may fall apart but it will come back together better than you can now picture in your weighed down state.

Maybe you don’t need to make a change as drastic as I did. Maybe you are not in crisis mode. In that case, recognize your needs and if there is no room in your life to fill those needs, make a change. Let go of something that might initially feel too important. But consider yourself. And make room for you!

Do you have your own thing? I’d love to see in your comments what your thing is. What brings you calm and helps you feel like you can step back into your life a stronger person when you’ve had time to do this thing? If you don’t have a thing, find one. We each need something that brings the stress level down and returns us back to who we are. I find I need to see friends often. I need to get out of my house and talk to someone else and laugh and complain and eat yummy food and then I can go home and enjoy spending time with my family again. I need my daily and weekly spiritual and physical strengthening practices. I am finding new uses of my time and energy that I wouldn’t even have considered, had I not been forced to make that mid- course correction.

Photo by Carlos Rubio Tristan on Pexels.com

One of those new ways to use my time that I have found to be of greatest benefit, of course, is forest therapy. I need time to ground and be still and immerse myself in nature and what she has to offer. Plus this hits some of my physical and spiritual practices for the day as well. Bonus.

If your new thing could be joining me in forest therapy, head over to my contact page to book a walk with me to learn how to take it all in. It can be your thing and it can move you to healing. In whatever way you need it. We all need some type of healing even if we don’t see it when we begin.

These days I am making an effort to slow down and recognize when a transition is happening in life. I try not fight it. I don’t stand in the way of change. I try to recognize the shifts that are naturally occurring and then decide what I will do moving forward based on the new information. I try not to stay too long in the this-isn’t-fair lane. That lane never moves forward and stays backed up for miles. Best to merge out of that lane asap.

I’m learning that there can be good in every change. Even the changes that hurt the most. That day was so painful for me. But in hindsight it was vital. It reminds me of the time I cut myself in the webbing between my index finger and thumb. I went to get stitches. After a week, the wound wasn’t healing. It was such a hard place to keep clean and dry while I had a mountain of toddlers and laundry. I kept hoping it would get better but I wasn’t doing anything to fix it. I just kept covering it up and ignoring the pain. But that wound just needed to dry out. I had to rip the band aid off and stop 👏 doing👏 the dishes 👏 and let the painful healing process take place. The process of healing in myself and my family after my breakdown required of me a different way forward than I’d expected to take. I needed to step away. I needed to uncover the wound and let it breathe. And in the process my boys learned great things. For one, a true appreciation for all that I do in just being around.

My life looks a lot different than I thought it would this many years later. But it’s pretty awesome. Some things I could not picture any better. Some things I’d still like to see improve. But overall I feel more in control now than I did when I thought I had it all under control and actually it just hadn’t fallen apart yet.

If you see yourself in this post, take care of yourself sweet friend.

Comparison is The Thief of Joy

pammunkholm

Why do we compare? Does any good ever come from it? We either use comparison to lift ourselves above another or to find we don’t measure up. Neither leaves us feeling sunshine in our souls any day.

I believe that we each have something to offer the world. The subject matter and presentation will vary widely. Some of us will have a large audience, others a small one. But all have a voice that should be heard and will be validated by the enjoyment of others, given the chance. What do you have to offer the world?

I went through a phase where I felt like a useless lump of clay. I was so weak physically, my physiotherapist has recently admitted that was the weirdest day for her. I went to see her Christmas Eve and I suddenly had no muscle mass. I was so weak. This takes a toll on the body but also the emotions. I had worked hard to do all the “right” things. And yet my body continued to fall apart. Where is the fairness in that?

I didn’t want to do anything. I went to bed and didn’t want to get up. What could I offer the world when everything I tried to do became too repetitive. Every time I do a repetitive task there is always a muscle group that has been overworked. Even with careful planning and prevention! Over the past decade I kept losing things and gaining nothing. I couldn’t play the piano the way I used to. I used to crochet. I was learning sign language. I’ve already mentioned running. I gave up my business. We moved off the farm because I couldn’t handle the work and the farm house. I felt stripped down to my bare minimum and now I was just a drain on society. What could I possibly do that would make an impact on the world for the better? I went through a few options. Some of them seemed so right and were painful to pass on. But something was calling to me. I finally figured out what it was saying: Forest Therapy. I am now a certified Forest Therapy guide and I am trained to take groups on Forest Therapy walks.

Disclaimer: I am not a trained Therapist or Counsellor. We will not be working through past issues. This is for those seeking healing that only our beautiful earth can offer. Those who have greater needs mentally or emotionally are encouraged to talk to a trained Mental Health Counsellor or Therapist. And then join us when you are ready! In this space the forest is the therapist and I am here to facilitate.

A story is told of a little girl who had her hand in her pocket for far too long while she and her mom were out running errands. Eventually the mother noticed this strange phenomenon and asked the girl why her hand was in her pocket. The little girl calmly replied, “Because it’s full of glitter”. The mother, caught off guard asked what any mother in her situation would ask. “Why do you have a handful of glitter in your pocket?” “Oh” the girl replies “just in case someone needs celebrating”. How much do you love this little girl? Can we be her? Maybe we can use bubbles instead to save on laundry woes.

Can we be ready with a metaphorical hand of glitter to celebrate anyone? What if she achieves a goal? What if she is able to accomplish something we desire but are not able to accomplish in our current season of life? What if she has children and we don’t have all the children we wanted? (ouch) Can we still celebrate her? What if she is thinner? What if she always has the funny or interesting thing to say in a conversation? Starts a business that has aspects we don’t understand (nudge, wink)? Has a talent we crave? Are we still going to throw our hand in the air and say Wahoo?

Or are we going to be stingy with our glitter celebrations?

I have wanted to start this blog and my Forest Therapy business for a while now. But I worried about all the people with their degrees and certifications and even the group to which I used to belong, a self employed business owner running something that makes sense and is a recognizable business. Well stuff and nonsense, I say now! There is a space for everyone. And we need everyone and whatever they have to offer.

Bring on the glitter!

Regardless of how some will judge what I am doing, I still want to be the person who is ready to celebrate all women. I choose to be that person. That is something I can offer the world despite (and maybe due to) how unempathetic some have been towards me in the past. This letting go of comparison and better than or less than is freeing! Sometimes I forget. But I try again the next time.

I seek to see the good in others. I seek to understand them and their circumstances. I think this adds to my joy. At the end of the day, can I honestly say I have lived true to my highest self and deserve my own little Wahoo? That’s the most important question when deciding where to focus my time and energy.

Another healing tip I have found is to be happy with where I am and what I am doing. Even if it’s not exactly what I would choose. There are days I literally want to run and I have to walk and other days where I figuratively want to run and have to walk. On each of those days, I am happier when I celebrate others. When I choose not to feel more than or less than. It is so much less stressful when I can be me and not feel I have to live up to someone else and their expectations.

How does this relate to healing through forest therapy? It is all interactive. Our physical, mental, spiritual, and social selves. If I only focus on my physical need for strength and healing I will miss so many parts of myself that could result in healing momentum. The pull toward all things bright and beautiful in life. Those things that take us into nature. Join me on my next forest therapy walk to find this joy and desire to celebrate others with me. Head over to my contact page to inquire.

Take care, you’ve got this my sweet friends.

What is Forest Therapy

pammunkholm

In the 1980s, through the national health program in Japan, was introduced the art of Shinrin- Yoku or forest bathing as it is known in English, to help workers reduce stress. The negative effects of stress were starting to rear their ugly head. Heart conditions, high blood pressure, a rise in auto immune disease. Doctors pointed sufferers to the forest for help. The forest has many healing qualities and Japan was learning how to harness them and how to offer it to others. These sufferers were willing to try anything. Are you there? Do you feel like you’ve tried everything? With a forest therapy guide to get the most benefits, forest bathing is still proving most effective today. 2/3 of Japan is forest. Some of the most beautiful in the world. Doctors even started prescribing it to those with stress related disease. Doctors in Japan recognized how many people had become disconnected from the earth. While our ancestors slept on the ground and ate food grown from it and walked around on it with nothing to stop the negative electrons flowing into their bodies, those in modern day Japan were far from this description. The effects of this disconnection are not isolated to the eastern hemisphere. Our world is highly toxic and the earth offers a way to heal from the negative effects. In an effort to connect the people around me back to the earth, I prescribe it to you today.

Forest Therapy or Forest Bathing, the literal translation of the Japanese term, Shinrin Yoku is what I want to tell you about. The art of going into the forest for healing. There are various understandings of the term. But in all the research I have done it has nothing to do with bathing as you might be picturing the use of the word. No rubber ducks. No shower caps. And everyone is to be fully clothed!!! At all times!!! The relation to bathing is only in the way that when you have a bath you are fully immersed in the water; forest bathing helps you fully immerse yourself in the forest or absorb the forest atmosphere. That is where healing begins.

Forest bathing can be defined as making contact with and taking in the atmosphere of the forest. With all the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of forest bathing, you also gain access to other tools here that can be used to generate and accelerate healing. These are the tools I have learned and developed into my own routine. I’ve tried so many suggestions, through decades of pain. This is the first non-medicated thing that has consistently helped me.

Studies have shown that there are a myriad of health benefits to being in the forest. Some of these benefits include lowered concentration of cortisol, lower pulse rate, lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar levels, greater parasympathetic nerve activity, and lower sympathetic nerve activity when compared to being surrounded by city environments. Being in the forest is great. Bathing yourself in the forest is even better. I can show you how in future posts!

The forest therapy I offer is a combination of forest bathing, silence, (doesn’t everyone know how to do that? what if someone else is disrupting your silence? what if the silence feels awful?) grounding, and more. I will explain all of these in further detail in later posts but for now I just want to get the overall idea out there.

As with all programs this one has its side effects. Unfortunately, with these tools in place you can reduce the symptoms for anxiety, depression, anger, increase your concentration and memory, boost your immune system, (an increase to NK cells) improved quality of sleep, reducing fatigue and confusion and an overall improvement to your mood. Increased positive and decreased negative feelings. No weight gain or facial paralysis hiding at the end of the list over here.

I want to be clear. I would never tell anyone to stop taking any medication without talking to their doctor. Some are necessary and life saving. And I myself have not reached the point with my condition to stop all medications. We all start from where we are and carefully move forward. When it comes to medical areas, talk to your doctor. If you have a mental crisis, talk to a mental health care professional. If you feel you are in spiritual crisis, talk to a religious leader or friend. What we are talking about here, my target audience, is those who are living their lives and functioning- adjacent and I can help take them to an even better life with the tools I offer. Ideally a life with less pain.

.

Now. What if you live in the city? This is the beauty of forest therapy. You can create an atmosphere of forest bathing within any natural environment. The more natural, the more you can accomplish. Yet every grounded plant, spot of grass or tree can offer benefits to the most diseased among us.

Join me by booking your walk over on my contact page.

That’s it my sweet friends. Allow me to show you the way.

Maiden Forest Therapy Walk

pammunkholm

While I have spent a lot of time in the forest and learning about forest therapy and the healing available there, I had not as of yet experienced my own personal, forest walk. I chose a day and made it happen. I have to tell you, I experienced a peace and tranquility that I do not find in many places in my life these days. There’s really something to this! Walking in nature is great. Join me to experience a forest therapy walk that takes it to the 10x level. Head over to my contact page to book a walk with me.

Walking in a forest has many benefits. I don’t suspect it’s any coincidence that while I am spending more time outdoors and learning of the benefits, my health is finally improving. I’ve been able to tackle this beast of a bump in the road of my life. I have been trying since May of 2011 to find out what was wrong, then to fix it, then to manage it. In reality, I was in pain long before that date. I see nature is starting to do it’s work.

For years I have not been able to build and maintain muscle. It would start to build and then I would have a setback. A fall. A jolt. Getting overconfident and trying to go for a walk in boots instead of shoes (the difference in weight would drag my foot bones out). Minor incidents would set me back months. And every time the frustration around the whole situation would build.

I did not stop to take care of myself. This is my piece of advice for this week. When you are sick or hurting, it is your body telling you to stop or rest. Listen to your body. Regardless of what others are telling you. I cannot stress enough how important it is to take time to reassess what really matters. I suspect if you looked at it, you’d agree your health should be closer to the top of your list of priorities.

This cannot be proven in a court of law but this is my truth for what has happened to me. My body had a condition that made functioning in life extremely painful on a daily and hourly basis. Hyper mobile joints joined by endometriosis. I lived a seemingly normal life while managing the pain. Managing by ignoring until bedtime and then taking a daily prescribed dose of pain medication to knock myself out. I didn’t think I could stop and take care of me. I had kids to raise! Supper to make! Laundry to ignore!

I kept going until there was a period in my life that was very high stress. Constantly. This set off a jack in the box effect of nerve problems. Now I twitch. I spasm. I shake. My body is subpar at best when it comes to keeping a reasonable temperature for more than a few minutes at a time. Absurd and erratic symptoms. And it is not something I have figured out how to stuff back in that so- called box. And I keep seeing this in others. An underlying condition that is difficult to manage while living life. And yet they do. Stressful situation that triggers an emotional reaction. And nerve pain and silly symptoms ensue. Worst jack in the box ever!

So what do we do about it? There are not many answers. Meditation. Medication. Sleep enough. Eat well. There is value in adjusting your life to meet the needs of your condition. These are great for overall health for everyone. But what about when the need is immediate and great? What about when your friend with stage 4 metastasized cancer is in so much pain that nothing is helping, no medication can mend that. Or when your body feels like it’s falling apart but the doctors say you are fine, there’s only so much meditation can do. What about when you feel you have no support and you are running on empty?

Forest therapy. Join me in remembering my first walk.

I took along my trusty sidekick. This is Odin. No the perspective of this picture is not off, he really is that big. He is not impressed that we are stopping in the middle of a perfectly good walk to take pictures.

I found the sun. It’s been hiding. I look forward to sharing the changes of the seasons through pictures and words. On this particular day it was so still. It was just Odin and I on this beautiful trail. I could hear a few birds chirping. There was one spot on the trail where the creaking of a tree that was on its way down and braced by other trees was really loud but I never would have noticed that before. The air had a chill but it was perfect as we warmed up on our walk. I enjoyed breathing in deeply. Drawing in what winter has been keeping safe until its time. The cold air felt good on my lungs. I could hear Odin breathing. He is the heaviest breather of all time. I didn’t mind. It fit the surroundings. Better here than in my kitchen.

I followed this butt all the way around the trail. I looked at the different tracks in the snow and pictured the wildlife that was close by and peering at me from their hiding places. I tried to identify the different types of trees and shrubs.

Behold the beauty of my elephant skin hands. I’ve come to embrace it. They look like my Grandma’s hands. I came upon a bench just off the trail. I sat down for some time to feel and just be. This tree was by the bench. It seemed like a good tree. While I can’t yet put my toes directly on the ground at this time of year, holding a tree can provide the same benefits of grounding.

Such a happy guy. Hard to get a picture with all his messy kisses. He’s a nincompoop but we love him. Petting a dog while they are grounded also gives you the benefits of grounding. Holy moly. Does anyone have a breath mint for this guy? Did something die in there?!?! Cheese and crackers!

This is just a glimpse into what I experienced on my maiden forest walk. Even looking back at the pictures brings the uplifting feeling back. I strongly encourage you, if you are able, to get outside and watch the changes of nature as we progress into spring! And if you have a hard time making it happen on your own or you want some company, head over to my contact page to book a forest therapy walk today.

The price is right for the first two weeks. Free! Spots are limited so book today.

Take care out there, my sweet friends.