I think we can all agree a good yoga teacher will see the assists your body needs, a great yoga teacher will see the assists your energy needs. Walking out of a yoga class feeling totally and completely seen is high up on our list of top 10 best ‘warm and fuzzy’ feelings. Sometimes it’s hard to put your finger on exactly what’s given you that feeling, but often it’s thanks to the intuition and energy literacy of the teacher. Being able to feel someone’s energy, or ‘vibe’, is something we can all learn to do. Most of us have that ability with those closest to us, sensing small changes in communication or posturing and knowing exactly what is going on. So how can we channel and hone this ability for yoga? Read my interview with Kirileigh Lynch (@_sacredandprofane_) to get some insights!

Please tell us about yourself 

I’m a yoga teacher, an energy worker, a traveler and a punk. In my 20’s I worked at...

THE HERB THAT BALANCES THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

Ashwagandha is an ayurvedic herb that works on re-balancing the nervous system. The root of the ashwagandha plant mirrors the nervous system in appearance with its incredible strands that grow out in a messy & organic way similar to how the peripheral nerves spiral out from the central nervous system. It is an adaptogen which means that it helps you to move from a state of polarity into a place of balance.

BENEFITS

• Reduces adrenal fatigue & nervous energy.
• Increases your capacity for good sleep & helps rebuild your sleep reserves, which is a really important part of recalibrating the nervous system. 
• Creates vitality if you’re feeling burnt out. 
• Helpful for thyroid function & has a positive impact on your immune system.
• Is a tonic, which helps rebuild.
• Provides a strong bitter flavour, one of the 6 ayurvedic tastes that is hard to find in a westernised diet but very important for overall health,...

'The World of Your Business Playbook'
by Hiro Boga

This book is so good that after I bought it I immediately purchased a second copy to use next year!  It’s a ‘workbook’ style book which gets you deep into the essence and intentions behind your offerings if you are self-employed.  Hiro Boga is an exquisite writer - a poet really - and her words support me to know that the work that I do in the world (my business) is a deeply creative act. If you are self-employed in any capacity and you’re not sure where to go with your business or your inspiration is a bit flat I can’t recommend this book enough, it was a total game-changer for me. 

If you’re looking for more business inspiration I’ve got a special page for you on my website (including a free webinar) just click here.

And if you wish to purchase your own copy of 'The World of Your Business Playbook' by Hiro Boga, you can buy it here.

Looking to dive deeper into...

There's no denying that stress and anxiety are increasingly prevalent in our society. Not enough sleep, over use of mobile phones and screens, multi-tasking, lack of focus, attention being pulled in multiple directions, low quality, poor grade food, spending too much time with people who leave us feeling depleted, emotional suppression and low level, chronic anxiety (hello outstanding tax return, a difficult conversation, a job you don't like or a constantly cluttered messy environment!) are too frequently common stressors that a lot of us face. And as if that wasn't enough to deal with, let's throw a global pandemic into the mix! 

The problem is the stress we face today is sustained, it's chronic! We find ourselves living in that "fight or flight" response (our sympathetic nervous system) almost all the time and it's not only exhausting, it's detrimental to our health. So, what to do about it? We can't necessarily change the environment...

Just for fun I’m going to start a new first of the month tradition with you and share some of what I’ve been up to and what’s been in my world over the previous four weeks.  I hope you enjoy my musings … 

Things I’m loving this month (from Katie Rose) ... 

Contemplating what it means to live life in a 5km radius (and then during isolation within the radius of my own four walls).  There are some things I miss deeply … friends, the ocean, the bush and a good chai in a favourite cafe would be the main ones.  But there are so many silver linings.  Getting to know my kids in a different less ‘busy’ way.  Spending a tonne of time with my partner and loving him more and more each day (which is great news because we’re having a baby together in the not so distant future!) and homemaking which I’ve always enjoyed. 

Watching Marie Kondo and the Minimalist...

I'm deep in the throws of lockdown / isolation with my kids and it's an interesting time to say the least.  I'm also just past my first trimester of my fifth pregnancy so enjoying a surge of vitality and some serious nesting energy is kicking in.  I'm decluttering and spring cleaning the house - clearing out cupboards and dusting all the hidden corners.  I'm also diffusing lots of essential oils around my home to freshen the air and blow away the cobwebs.  Here's my simple guide to how I'm using essential oils in my home right now: 

In the kitchen: 

To clean dirty pots and pans the natural way, add 10 drops of Sweet Orange essential oil to your pots and pans and then sprinkle with a thin layer of warm water soaking for half an hour before washing as normal.

Because the kitchen is such a popular hub in the home, it can often be the gathering place for germs and bacteria. The doTERRA On Guard Blend is the perfect essential oil for promoting a...

I had an interesting conversation via Instagram messages with a woman who has been following my work for a while and wrote to me because she was upset that I had posted a quote from a well-known women’s wellness doctor who is also a covid-denier.

As I was putting the quote in question up on social media I did have a hesitation, knowing that I don’t agree with the authors recent rants against vaccination and denying covid.  But I also remembered how much of her previous writing and teaching I do love and how positive and impactful it has been for me.  I felt conflicted but decided to post anyway.  Afterall we all contain multitudes and I can like one thing someone said without having to like all the things someone said.

But later I reflected a bit more …

I’ve since deleted the quote from my feed.  For me this conversation echoes the dialogue that has been huge in the yoga community in the last few years around all the...

My partner woke up this morning and asked if we could go and sit in the church where he grew up and say some prayers together.  He was raised Catholic and the church he is talking about is one he has attended since he was a baby. I'm up for prayer of any kind so I responded with a keen 'yes' but it got me thinking about what prayer is and what it means to each of us. In this reflection I realise I have a very broad and open-minided perspective on what it means to pray (I talk more about this in my book 'Mindful Living') and I'm inspired by any practice which brings us closer to the Divine.  This is the true essence of Bhakti - a life lived with meaning in sincere relationship to our highest ideals and the version of God resonant for us. 

I loved this extract from the brilliant (if slightly harrowing!) book 'Bright Burning Things' by Lisa Harding.  I love her idea of prayer as 'a line of communication with a Higher Power'. 

Here is what my teacher Sharon...

Namaste beauty!

I hope you are enjoying a restful and decadent long weekend, however you celebrate Easter.  I mean ‘decadent’ in the simplest form of the word.  For me these days decadence is all about time and attention. When I slow down and listen to my child carefully, or sip my chai mindfully, or jump in the ocean and feel my whole being recalibrated into vibrant cell-tingling zing that’s decadent living. May each and every moment of our lives be filled with the decadence of embodied living! 

At its root this time of year is about renewal.  I’ve been thinking about this a bit recently and what it means to start new.  There is a lot in my life that I’ve been letting go of and shedding. And while she might not be an obvious Easter symbol I’m going to be calling on plenty of Kali energy in the next few weeks.  Kali (image above) is all power and one of my favourite goddess...

I've been reflecting on what it means to culturally appropriate, appreciate and reinvent, in response to the beautiful headdresses recently showcased at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (pictured here).  

I am no expert on this subject but I do come to it from a place of deep embodied contemplation (not academia, although I am quite an academic person and I have read substantially on the subject in this context).  I also come from a place of wanting to grow and heal and very much take responsibility for my own privilege and prejudice as well as that of my ancestors.  

These amazing headdresses were created by Polish artists who were inspired by a vision for recreating traditional Polish Slavic Wreaths.  I’m especially interested in the celebration of old ways and skills in a modern world where it intersects with our own heritage and I see this as part of our collective healing.  It's part of the Ayurveda Goddess course I run - an...