Conversations with Safe Harbour Therapy

Christmas tree put your back out? Lifting too many presents?  Injuries happen! Listen to Alexa’s podcast to learn how to capitalize on the stages of healing to help your body feel better again. Click here to read her full blog entry dated, September 19 2019 https://safeharbourtherapy.com/stages-of-healing/

Christmas tree put your back out? Lifting too many presents?  Injuries happen! Listen to Alexa’s podcast to learn how to capitalize on the stages of healing to help your body feel better again.

Click here to read her full blog entry dated, September 19 2019 https://safeharbourtherapy.com/stages-of-healing/

The impact of dieting on physical and mental health is not neutral, it harms both. Yet diet culture sells only promises of health and happiness. The reality is a life of constant hunger, white- knuckling cravings and obsessing about food 24/7 and then ultimately disappointment and self- blame. So why do we set an intention […]

The impact of dieting on physical and mental health is not neutral, it harms both. Yet diet culture sells only promises of health and happiness. The reality is a life of constant hunger, white- knuckling cravings and obsessing about food 24/7 and then ultimately disappointment and self- blame. So why do we set an intention to repeat this cycle at the start of every new year?

Diet culture thrives and generates billions of dollars (for someone else) by instilling a fear-based belief that the only way to be healthy and happy is to achieve a certain weight or body size. This is not true and research proves it. So while we know this in our heads why is it so hard to hear it in our hearts?

Why are you having trouble letting go of dieting when you don’t need research to tell you it doesn’t make you feel good physically or mentally? One powerful reason is that you are making a conscious choice to let go of a dream that over time became a purpose. A dream that weight loss will make so many things better. That at “that weight” you will be able to find happiness, fun, romance and success among a multitude of other desirable things. The reality is that you can do all of these things right now in this body. It’s easy to say of course but I know it takes lots of courage and faith to start experimenting with this until you really experience it as the truth.

If you are currently dieting and are terrified to loosen your grip it’s okay. Just notice that. It’s the fault of diet culture plain and simple. I spent many painful and exhausting years dieting, most of us have. My shift took time, experimenting and support. What you can do is ask yourself: What is your real dream showing up as need to lose weight and change your body?

Often sounds something like one or more of these- I CAN be active with my family, walk the stairs to my office, accept invitations without anxiety, feel good or at least neutral about my body, start dating, take that trip, stop comparing my body to other bodies, stop worrying about what others are thinking when I’m eating fries, feel like I am making positive choices for my health, feel like I am setting myself up for healthy aging with vitality. This is the heart of the matter and the real desire under the dream and diet.

I have shared tissues with clients as they’ve realized that the dream they’ve held for so long is not ever going to be realized through dieting. Dieting has never worked, at least not for long and based on their own experience will never work. It can be a distressing moment, and then it’s not. Relief sets in as they realize they can focus on something else, something that will add joy to their lives. What they are truly seeking. And then the exciting process of exploring what this is.

Of course the “food stuff” doesn’t just go away from having this insight. The process of restricting and being chronically hungry leads to binging which in turn creates a sense of not being able to trust your body or believe you can be in charge of your food decisions. This is another reason it’s so hard to imagine a life without dieting that doesn’t look like one long binge.

Eating without restriction or a detailed meal plan to end binge eating can sound like a pretty scary proposal. This takes courage, a bit of faith and support while you move in one toe at a time. The process quickly turns from scary to life-giving and exciting as life opens up.

Part of that support is discovering a nourishing way and pattern of eating that works for you as an individual. Eating in a way that supports the things you really want to do, is low stress and enjoyable. Feeling confident in your food choices because you know what feels good and right for you and your body makes eating fries in front of anyone a non-issue.

Ultimately it’s about self-care. A foundational part of self-care is knowing what you need and how to respond to that need in healthy ways that leave you feeling better, not worse. There’s not

One of the most common questions that I hear people ask, is why does Block Therapy use Cedar as its therapeutic wooden tool? Cedar has been used in the Indigenous Cultures for many different purposes for thousands of years. Anywhere from creating furniture and clothing (specifically hats woven from the roots), medicinal techniques in the […]

One of the most common questions that I hear people ask, is why does Block Therapy use Cedar as its therapeutic wooden tool?

Cedar has been used in the Indigenous Cultures for many different purposes for thousands of years. Anywhere from creating furniture and clothing (specifically hats woven from the roots), medicinal techniques in the healing of wounds, and used for it’s anti-inflammatory properties, as well as for spiritual beliefs. It is considered a powerful symbol of strength and revitalization. This frequency of the cedar’s energy and all of it’s qualities is really quite amazing, It also has a similar density to bone, and it is this frequency, that allows us to release the powerful magnetic grips of the fascia, from the bone, which may help with relieving stress in certain areas, in the body, that develop overtime.

We are covered from head to toe, by fascia, which is a band or sheet of connective tissue, and wraps itself around every artery, nerve, vein, bone, muscle…well… every structure within our bodies. It has also been said that our fascia has a mind of its own. It can sense when our bodies become asymmetrical and it does what it needs to do, to try to create balance.

Overtime, we all experience injury or emotional situations that causes the body to tense up, and the fascia reactively responds and goes into a form of protective mode by contracting independently and responds to stress without our minds being aware of it. Chronic stress or pain causes the fascia to thicken in an attempt to protect the underlying structures of the body. This thickness creates adhesions within the body and eventually inhibits range of motion and freedom of movement, inadvertently creating a state of disharmony rather than helping. Our posture becomes compromised, then aches and pains set in as we are held tight in an alignment that will continue to pull the fascia into thickened patterns, and create lack of movement in the body, increasing the thickness of the fascia. In order to free up our movement, we need to work with, and release these adhesions that are created.

Now because of the amazing qualities that Cedar provides, when we combine our therapeutic tool, with proper diaphragmatic breathing, and then place the Block in certain positions on the body, we can help relieve stressed, and adhered areas of fascia that may be causing pain and discomfort, and emotional turmoil as well. The Cedar allows us to go as deep into the body as we need to, and will allow ourselves, in order to find that relief. Cedar has been a very effective tool for Block Therapy, and needless to say, gives off an amazing, comforting, aroma.

To learn more about Block Therapy, and the Fascia System visit my page at https://safeharbourtherapy.com/team/heather-mcleod-whitla-block-therapist-winnipeg/

You can contact me directly from our website

References:

https://deeprecovery.com/understanding-fascia/ https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20784481/understanding-your-fascia/https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/cedar/

While many people get super excited with the first snow fall as it means the holidays are coming, for others, it is the beginning of a very overwhelming time of year. When we think about the holidays, we think of yummy food and drinks, catching up with family and friends, exchanging gifts, playing in the […]

While many people get super excited with the first snow fall as it means the holidays are coming, for others, it is the beginning of a very overwhelming time of year. When we think about the holidays, we think of yummy food and drinks, catching up with family and friends, exchanging gifts, playing in the snow and many other amazing traditions.

However, for individuals with SPD, these rituals and customs can be daunting and sometimes even disastrous. These events occur infrequently(this is the only time of year that they occur), usually involve a large number of people and specific expectations for behaviour and are emotionally intense for all. Parents with children with SPD problems come to dread these occasions.

Let’s break it down by exploring what a holiday day is like for “Jenny”:

First, Jenny wakes up and immediately notice the different smells of the food cooking, while pleasing to some, it can be overwhelming for sensitive noses. While her parents are busy prepping for these events, her normal routine gets tossed out the window and she need her daily routine to function at her best. She is now left to her own devices. While it may be great for some to sit and watch tv or play on an iPad in pj’s for long time periods, it isn’t’ great for Jenny. It also implies that the daily sensory input she normally receives (which then organizes her for the day) is being discounted.As time moves along, her parents start rushing and needing everyone to look nice. When clothing is an issue, being told she is not allowed to wear her favourite sweats as “today is a day to be dressed nice”, is like torture for Jenny, whose day already go off to a rough start. The feel of the stiff clothing and scratchy crinoline drives the now already disorganized and dysregulated Jenny up the wall.The family now travels to a home of a relative (that they don’t know well) and are greeted at the door with expectations of hugs and kisses. Jenny notices immediately the overwhelming scent of perfume wafting off her aunt. When Jenny states she doesn’t want to give a hug or receive a kiss, she is viewed as being rude. So instead her uncle reaches down and ruffles her hair – ‘cause that’s better! ?Cousins are arriving and the noise level increases, the kids all start running around and exploring the house, looking for toys and “kid food.” A game of tag has started, and due to Jenny’s levels of dysregulation, she pushes too hard and knocks her little cousin over. He starts crying saying she hit him, when she in fact just tagged him. Jenny’s parents come into the room and get upset with her, stating “You should know better” and “Don’t be so rough with others and keep your hands to yourself.”Jenny is upset for getting into trouble when she didn’t do anything wrong, so she starts jumping on the couch. She knows that jumping feels good for her body and has been told to use her “tools” to help keep her regulated (her OT told her that). She’s jumping and starting to feel her body start to calm down when her aunt walks into the room and LOSES it on her for jumping on the furniture. Jenny tries to explain what she’s doing but gets told “not to talk back.”Jenny hears her aunt out in the hall asking her parents…”What is wrong with her?” By the end of the evening, Jenny has had to manage all the noise, tolerate foods she doesn’t like to eat, being pushed around by cousins and then being told she can’t do the things that she knows will calm her down. At this point, she can’t focus, and feels out of control. She’s feeling very irritated and uncooperative.On the car ride home, Jenny asks her parents (who are upset with her) “What’s wrong with me? Why doesn’t aunt Patty like me?” At this point, she starts to cry because she’s feeling so yucky.Her dad carries her into her bed and she immediately falls asleep- she’s so tired from the day.

Not only has this day been hard for the child, but also her parents. Judgement from family members who do not understand

When it comes to wellness, we often talk about physical health, mental health or relationship difficulties and we attend to each as being very distinct from each other. We find ourselves treating the body without realizing what it might be doing to the brain. Or treating the brain without realizing that the body is keeping the score, and losing. Or forgetting that both the body and brain need those heart-filled connections with others who nurture vitality and resilience in us.

Join me at McNally Robinson’s community classroom series in January 2020, where I’ll be helping participants reflect on the complexity of underlying body, brain and heart issues that make wellness a challenge. See Moving toward Whole Body-Brain Wellness using this direct link for the online class listing and registration: https://bookeo.com/mcnallyrobinsonclassroom?type=3152TT7MMF16D6FAA712D

To give you as sense of how these three interconnect,  I invite you to read my article “Helping your brain do better than it can” or tune into this episode in our podcast series.

As a society, I think we are obsessed with knowing. As human beings, we want answers to all our questions. And, we demand that we find answers quickly, to save us from having to sit in the unknown which may feel uncomfortable. We’re taught from an early age that not knowing the answers is “bad” […]