RISE UP 2021: A MESSAGE FROM OUR FOUNDER
As a business owner, wife, and mother, 2020 was an experience on all levels.
My heart extends greatly to those who have suffered. I think it's fair to say we have all been impacted to some degree...and the time has come to rise, anew.
As I learned while in NYC during 9/11, crisis beckons opportunity - opportunity for resilience, for lesson, and to see what shows up in you. I asked myself throughout 2020: How have I risen in business? How I have showed up for my community? How have I partnered in marriage? How have I taken care of myself? These have been moments of self-reflection as much as they have been about challenge and triumph.
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What I most profoundly understood last year is the unparalleled need for grounding.
When all else externally is in chaos and beyond our control, there is only one place we can reliably connect to and empower – and that is within. I have been deeply grateful for the tools my infrared sauna and float practice have taught me: to pause in presence, listen to my intuition, and to rise in commitment. When we are able to calm and quiet our minds, we open the possibility to connect within. When we are able to connect within, we can access grounding. Grounding provides fortitude, empowering us to move forward with ease, clarity and confidence.
To say that anxiety and stress levels have reached an all-time high is an understatement.
Several years ago, the CDC reported that by 2020, stress would be the second most debilitating disease, second to heart disease. It’s uncanny that even before Covid, the medical research predicted we were culminating to a cultural tipping point where our non-stop and celebrated, high stressed lives would inevitably overcome our immune system.
What the holistic professionals have known for years finally made its way to the traditional medical community.
When we are in chronic stress, the sympathetic nervous system releases a rush of adrenaline and cortisol, shifting all of its resources towards survival and suppressing the digestive system, the reproductive system and growth processes. We are literally depriving our essential immune functions in order to accommodate our insurmountable levels of stress. It’s no coincidence you catch a cold when very stressed. Stress management, likewise, should be a key consideration when battling a pandemic.
Yet through the crises, we rise.
While mainstream media focused on fear and isolation, the health and fitness communities rallied about what we can do to empower our health. The actions we take now are our building blocks in health to be resilient when it matters most. We are evolving in our understanding that health is not a singular path. It is a holistic approach serving Mind, Body, and Spirit. These 3 interconnected pillars are essential for optimal health. We need fitness to be strong, as well as to generate and release energy. We need nutrition for our body to perform. We require recovery and rest for stamina and perseverance; and we need grounding and connection in order to thrive. While mastering all 3 at the same time may be an enduring quest, we are at least mindful that each is of equal importance to the whole.
And through the crises, we discovered our need to rise.
Covid slowed us down and forced us to take an honest look at our health, stress levels, and work-life balance. Throughout our Studios, we listened as clients shared wanting to get back to the basics of human health: Exercise. Sweat. Balance. Nutrition. We heard them share with epiphany it was finally their time to prioritize their well-being. What a gift! We felt how important it was to offer a space for community and connection; and we also observed how stress fatigue culminated to an emotional breaking point, prompting a commitment to mental health and a desire for change. Control, fear, drive, and acceptance – we charged through our human emotions in cycles, myself included. But what always brought me back to center was my sauna and float practice. That was my grounding; and it carried me through.
I believe there is purpose in all of our life experiences,
and I try my best to practice gratitude for them. Giving gratitude for challenges shifts the dynamic from a victim mindset to one of empowerment, knowing there is a lesson and purpose in the experience.
To be of service to our community in health and wellness is one of my greatest spiritual joys.
To play a part in someone’s healing; to provide a space for grounding and connection within – they illuminate me; and at the same time, I don’t doubt I have been blessed with a business because I am also beckoned to create a deeper grounding and healing for myself. Funny how the universe works.
I am so proud of this beautiful community of health and connection we have created together. That is our commitment to ourselves. We all play a part. 2021 will be our opportunity to manifest our lessons of the previous year; and to see what shows up and flourishes in us all.
Together, we rise.