spring cleaning | the needs pile
Do you have a pile of needs that needs to be decluttered? When we think about detoxing, we often think about our diets. If you participated in April’s Spring Cleaning…
spring cleaning | what’s getting in?
This week’s Spring Cleaning episode is all about filtering what gets in through our five senses. Especially through our eyes. Some of my favorite emojis are the little see /…
back to basics | small, simple, sustainable
Small, simple steps. There’s a reason my health coaching practice prominently features the word “Simply.” Many of us feel that re/claiming our best health is complicated. That it takes LOTS…
back to basics | a positive mindset
There are numerous studies about the effects of a positive mindset on our physical health. Start with the positive mindset’s effect on heart health or just Google “positive mindset effect…
baby steps | give (and receive) thanks
Thanks. It’s one of those words we automatically drop. So this month—appropriately the month many of us celebrate Thanksgiving and post about gratitude on social media, your baby step to…
presence as a privilege
Presence: the fact or condition of being present. Privilege: a right or immunity granted as a peculiar benefit, advantage, or favor Merriam-Webster I’ve been thinking a lot differently about what it means…
sandbox battles
Choose your battles. If you’re a parent, you’ve probably heard—and given—this advice hundreds (thousands?) of times. I recently read an excellent piece on applying this practice in the workplace—down to…
hopes + expectations
Hopes and expectations are topics I love digging into with clients, especially those looking to make mindset shifts part of their health journey. And they’ve been on my mind a…
got motivation? you may not need it.
“Ugghhh. I have zero motivation to [fill in the blank: eat healthy, exercise, get more sleep….]” This is the answer most of my clients give to the second question I…
the amazing power of language
If you’ve followed me for a while, you know I’m a language geek. Okay, I’m the one judging your grammar and correcting your spelling and punctuation—yes, even in your texts….
optical illusions, vastly different perspectives
optical illusion: tiger or monkey? Earlier this week, a health coaching colleague posted a black and white optical illusion image and asked, “What animal do you see first?” I haven’t…
affordable health coaching for every body
The death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg feels like 2020 adding one more insult to a whole lot of injuries. Injuries that have been inflicted on every body but significantly more…
guest post | Kacee Leigh on 4 tips to keep motivation and movement alive during the pandemic
Who knew that April 30 is Buddha’s birthday? I didn’t! If I’d moved to Hong Kong with my husband, I’d have gotten a holiday yesterday…. And May 1 is International…
5 days of simple mental hygiene practices
CDC hygiene recommendations Turns out Mom was right all along. The top CDC recommendations for preventing the spread of the coronavirus that is causing Covid-19 are: Wash your hands. A…
love in the time of corona
in the (good) news There’s been a lot written in recent days about what we can do to keep our small businesses and community services up (if not running at…
Gratitude … and recognition and appreciation
Every month in The (Sorta) Secret Sisterhood, we feature a Q+A with an expert—usually a woman who serves women 40+ through some type of healing modality, from conventional medicine to…
Word games
I like to say that if you were to look at my CV, you’d think one of two thoughts: This woman is completely unemployable: what has she been doing with…
The F word
If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ve heard me mention that I’m a finalist in the Michigan Women Forward’s Woman Up & Pitch competition that takes place next…
Greatest hits | Breakdown on the 110
This week finds me at home in the Green Mountains of Vermont—I know that I can’t claim to be a Vermonter because I wasn’t born here, and their rules about…
Meet Diane Babalas
Diane Babalas practices something called Biogeometric integration—like acupuncture, another “dark magic” that will make you wonder how it really works … and it does! Check it out, then leave me…
Let’s get this party started!
How is it already May 31?!? That means tomorrow is the start of our month-long anniversary celebration of community! (Catch up on the details of that if you missed them…
Meet Tania Elfersy of The Wiser Woman
From the moment I read one of her blog posts, I just knew that Tania had to be the first person to do a Q+A in the (Sorta) Secret Sisterhood…
I believe…
Have you ever thought, “I need to do [something],” and the moment you go into the other room to do it, you don’t remember what it was you meant to…
Oooh! Aaah! Fabulous prizes!
In scrolling through my calendar recently, I came across a few dates of note: May 2 is the 4th anniversary of when I officially established my practice although it’s been…
What’s in a name?
Have you ever changed your name? My friend Audrey, a business coach for women entrepreneurs, has a podcast called Women Are the Journey, on which she talks to women about…
Health coaching learnings … from Netflix?
Helllp! I seem to have fallen into a Netflix trap, one that features crime dramas from the UK: first there was Shetland, then there was Hinterland, then Broadchurch, and now…
Advance? Retreat?
If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ve probably come across my Kale + Kryptonite exercise, which is a tool I use with my clients to help them assess the…
Spring into health
Spring has sprung, the grass is riz…. My father used to recite the poem every year around this time. In Michigan, it’s still blustery, and the the grass is not…
Sorry, not sorry
The American Socialist Party organized the first Women’s Day in 1909, but it was in Soviet Russia that March 8 became a national holiday after women gained suffrage there in…
Life without roads
I recently had a conversation with some much younger friends who were talking about what they see as one of the problems their generation faces: too many choices. Yes, this…
What was I thinking?
Every month in the (Sorta) Secret Sisterhood online community, I get to record a Q+A with an expert in her field—most often a health practitioner who works with women in…
Food porn fast
‘Fess up: did you binge watch the first season of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix? Because yeah, I did. And I read the book in 2015. I saw…
Thanks to my hive mind!
Thank you to everyone in my hive mind who chimed in on last week’s post about independence and freedom! Here are just a few of your ideas; some came out…
When the POTUS is late for dinner
A quick shout-out to those who filled out my Tell me about yourself survey—I appreciate you taking the time out of your busy day to help me out—and a request…
What’s your value?
This month, I’m taking a look in the rearview mirror at 2018 and a peek ahead at the road ahead in 2019. I invite you to hop in and take…
The struggle is real
This month, I’m taking a look in the rearview mirror at 2018 and a peek ahead at the road ahead in 2019. I invite you to hop in and take…
New + improved?
Full disclosure: if you love Black Friday, this post is likely to piss you off—maybe read it anyway? america, the privileged Last weekend when I was grocery shopping, I discovered…
Come up to the lab…
If your mind immediately filled in that blank with “and see what’s on the slab,” you’re proof that campy movies never die. THAT one has been entertaining college students since…
Yes, I am.
This week, I’d like to revisit last week’s post, Full stop. Why? Because I can and because it sparked a lot of responses, not just a couple in the blog…
Full stop.
On the anniversary of the breaking of the Harvey Weinstein story and the explosion of the #metoo movement, I’ve been reminded time and again of the fact that women still…
Every board of directors has one….
“Dressed in a navy suit, Dr. Blasey Ford maintained her composure throughout the hearing….” Oh yeah, here we go again. Really, New York Times?!? Let’s ignore the fact that Dr….
I’m going on a trip….
After years of staycations, 2018 is becoming the year of traveling for me—and I’ve been thinking about the learning that comes from not just the trips themselves but the packing…
Velcro + Teflon | What’s new + good?
Like many health coaches, I offer a free initial consultation—I call mine a YOURstory session (like HIStory, but we live in a world where “gendering” has become a frowned-upon practice,…
Who are your VEEPs?
Uh oh—am I really going to stray into politics on a health coaching blog? No, not entirely, but with the news focusing so much on the administration’s attempt to rid…
Who are you comparing yourself to?
I recently walked the Dexter Ann Arbor 5K in 40:49 (beating last year’s 52:12 by a long shot despite the pouring rain)—I had meant to run this year, but some…
I’ll have what she’s having…
If you’re about my age and you’ve seen When Harry Met Sally, there’s at least one line that people of our generation all know: I’ll have what she’s having. It…
Whine + cheese | What’s the payoff?
Very often, when I encounter a deeply-entrenched, clearly unhealthy habit in a client, I get curious about the payoff: every habit, according to research in this area, brings with it…
The secret’s out….
Last night at the dinner table, my son asked how long it’s been since the new Administration has been in the White House. More than a year, I said, thinking…
White jeans … and apples and pears
I lurk on a lot of Facebook pages and sites that claim to support us women over 40. I say “lurk” because I stopped posting comments and questions when I…
I can still get 3 hours….
I’m one of those lucky people, blessed with the ability to fall asleep just about anywhere, anytime, even during a bus or train commute (yeah, sleeping on the Red Line…
“Can we tawk?”
I once introduced myself in a networking group by saying that I support women who believe the only way out of their overwhelm involves a plane ticket, a wad of…
Why should I clear my (virtual) plate?
I recently had the honor of interviewing the lovely Dr. Fiona Lovely of the Not Your Mother’s Menopause podcast and Facebook community. We talked a lot about bringing peace to…
Happy Labor Day, Happy Birth-day
Labor Day weekend has come to represent a lot more than just a moment to honor the labor movement in the United States, so much so that we don’t often…
A few of my favorite things | Podcasts
Vacation ends soon—I’m slipping in another quickie post before I run out to enjoy the end of it! If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I’m…
Guest Post | From Ow to Wow, Overwhelm to Wonder
Look, look—another guest post! This one comes from Linda Joy Stone, OMD, L.Ac., with whom I connected on Daocloud, which I describe as social media for practitioners and answer-seekers in…
A half-empty nest
I’ve recently been going through an experience that in an odd way reminds me of what my daughter went through most of last year: encountering the inevitable questions. For her,…
A way forward | Getting past nonstarters
I mentioned a few weeks ago that at my house, we’re going through a Hamilton phase, and I can’t help but view the current debates about health care as just one…
Life and love in La La Land
This week finds me back in Los Angeles, where we lived for four years before moving to Michigan. It’s odd to be back. I can’t say I’ve missed driving here, and…
Life: rewind, fast forward, or play?
Have you ever noticed how when you’re paying attention, you see “coincidences” everywhere? Last week, I had two acquaintances, both of whom have colored their hair for years, start conversations about…
Month of Margin
Are you… Overwhelmed by the clutter in your pantry, closet, or home office? Feeling like you don’t have time to take care of your home the way you want to? Busy taking…
Are you reacting or responding?
What do a rotisserie chicken and a kitchen sink have in common? It’s been an interesting week for me—I don’t know whether it’s been a phase of the moon or some…
[Not so] secret sisterhoods
More than 2 million people reportedly participated in more than 670 marches in DC, across the country, and around the world yesterday. While not all the marchers were women—shout out…
Baby Step #12 | Celebrate (yourself)
This is the final installment of a 12-part series titled “Baby Steps.” On the first of each month, I post 1 tiny step toward better health that you can take every…
Fill Your Plate | Feed Your Life
One of the fundamental principles of Integrative Nutrition® health coaching is that we are not only nourished (or toxified) by the food we put in our mouths—our secondary foods; we are…
Q + A with Su Hansen | Where does your soul want to go?
As a health coach, I love meeting colleagues who not only can serve as a resource for my clients but also challenge and inspire me in my own work. Personal and…
Baby Step #8 | I get to…
This is the eighth of a 12-part series titled “Baby Steps.” On the first of each month, I post 1 tiny step toward better health that you can take every day…
