Chinook Massage Therapy

The question of "where" may seem like the least interesting to write about in this little series of self-discovery and self-improvement. In the broad sense, there are only a few categories; home, outdoors, gym, professional offices. Once you have already identified your "whats" and your "whos", the where really just falls into place. If you want to swim, you have to go to a pool or outdoor body of water. For karate, you go to a dojo. Not a terribly interesting topic for conversation. So let's look at some less obvious wheres. Where to find supports and resources? This will depend somewhat on your community, how far you are willing to travel, or how comfortable you are with the internet and technology. Alberta Health Services - AHS has a variety of programs available for people, some general and some specific, like for new diabetic patients. Some examples are nutritional counseling, healthy pregnancy and exercise programs. They also have addictions supp...

Who Are You? Well, that seems rather obvious, but is it? It brings to mind the scene with the caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland, blowing smoke rings as he askes "Whooo are you?" So many of the choices we make are because of what we think others want or think of us. It stops us from trying new things, or taking risks. Our fear of failure is stronger than our sense of adventure. Children don't have these inhibitions. They do all sorts of things for the pure joy of it. Society and it's judgmental attitudes can't be blamed for all of it. Some caution is the result of our brains becoming more capable of abstract thought. We start to see the potential consequences of our actions. This increases exponentially with adult responsibility. Shortly after I became a massage therapist, I took my boys tobagganing. As I stood at the top of the hill and surveyed the panorama below me, all I saw was breaks and sprains that would prevent me from being able to work. The last time I ...

There is a time for everything,      and a season for every activity under the heavens:      a time to be born and a time to die,      a time to plant and a time to uproot,      a time to kill and a time to heal,      a time to tear down and a time to build,      a time to weep and a time to laugh,      a time to mourn and a time to dance,      a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,      a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,      a time to search and a time to give up,      a time to keep and a time to throw away,      a time to tear and a time to mend,      a time to be silent and a time to speak,      a time to love and a time to hate,   ...

The Whys Have It There's a book in my husband's collection, called "New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers, Tales of Parasites and People".  (I know it sounds weird, but it's actually really interesting!) Scientists are researching food born parasites, some of which are connected to ancient traditions and ceremonies around the world. I couldn't find the book to quote it exactly, but a group of researchers are discussing a tradition which involves eating raw meat when a baby is born in the village (or wedding, or some such thing). The scientists tried to explain the dangers of food poisoning and parasites, that they were risking serious illness. The locals reply was, "it's tradition"; end of discussion. These Western researchers were slightly dumbfounded and a little smugly superior about how people could be so stubborn and ignorant as to continue to practice something with such a high risk. Then the author of the book looked around the circ...

The first step towards  getting somewhere is to  decide to not stay where you are. Its been 11 months since the first stay at home order. Our lives have been turned upside down and inside out. Work is put on hold, family gatherings have been put on hold, extra curricular activities have been put on hold. Many of us have put our well being on hold.  It's been 6 months since I've sat down to write. There are a few reasons for that. Time management and energy levels were major factors. The biggest reason is that I put a lot of myself into this blog, it's not just about massage and stretches. I've shared my projects, philosophies, and our family adventures. Lately I have not been wanting to share, not wanting to grow, and not wanting to give. Ironically, now that I have sat down to write, this has gotten so big, that I'm going to section it into several posts. For months, people have been asking me "what are you doing to take care of yourself?" My answer was u...