Baby in the Bluegrass is so excited to welcome guest blogger Sharon Tessandori of Barefoot Works Yoga Studio!

The importance of self care…

We all want enough energy to work, love, learn, and enjoy life.  As human beings wanting to fully participate in life, this is a quest for us.  Yet more and more of us are tired, burnt out, and depleted of energy.

We tell ourselves that if we take a day or even an hour to feed our soul the kids will starve, the house will fall apart, the boss will frown, and the partner will see it as selfish.

I can distinctly recall the first real moment I really got the idea of self care.  I can’t even remember how many years ago, but it was Oprah.  Of course, who else?  I can’t recall if it was her show or her magazine.  Mostly I recall her talking about how she “took herself off the list.”  Somewhere between taking care of every one else and fulfilling the role of wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, employee, coach, and so on…..we lose a little of ourselves.

Just like Oprah, many of us take ourselves off the list.  We stop tending to ourselves.  We forget that we have a body, mind, and spirit that we must nourish in order to fully serve those around us.

Wikipedia defines self care as personal health maintenance. It is any activity of an individual, family or community, with the intention of improving or restoring health, or treating or preventing disease.

I have to come clean here and say that I’m not a mother.  I don’t know what it’s like to have an alarm clock replaced by a crying baby, vacuuming up Cheerios or Cheetos, carting the kids to soccer and gymnastics and planning for tonight’s dinner all at the same time.

However I am a daughter and I have family and close friends that do.  And as a female there have been times that I’ve lost a little (or a lot) of myself.  It wasn’t fun.  I felt like I had no idea who the “real” me was.  I felt unmotivated and confused.  I felt like I had little control in creating a life for myself.

Mary Oliver puts it brilliantly when she asks, “Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life.”  I don’t think that any of us want to leave this earth feeling as if we only lived a little.  No, we each deserve so much more than this.

Are you currently in need of some self care time?  Ask yourself the following questions:

1.  Do I have enough energy to sustain me throughout the day?

2.  How does my body feel throughout the day as I work, play, and participate in activities of daily life?

3.  Do I sleep sound at night and wake up feeling well rested?

4.  Do I eat healthy foods throughout the day that nourish me?

5.  Do I feel a sense of passion and purpose for my life?

6.  Are my immediate relationships healthy or toxic?

If you answered the previous questions, or even scanned over them and felt an inner knowing that your current schedule and/or way of living is not conducive to a vibrant and healthy life, you may want to consider some changes.  We live in a society that encourages us to accomplish more in less time, a society where being busy is admirable.

The good news is you don’t have to twist yourself into pretzel like poses or stand on your head for 20 minutes daily to benefit from self care practices.  Here are some quick and easy ideas for self care that you can begin today:

• Create an intention for your day.  Ask yourself, what is the one thing I can do today that will nourish my soul most?  Be open to what arises, listening without judgment.  Take some time to journal, sketch, or paint what comes to mind.  You don’t have to be a poet to journal or an artist to draw.  Quiet your inner critic and invite your inner child out to play!  This time for reflection can help you navigate your day.
• Celebrate yourself.  Dance, indulge in your favorite meal, get a massage, make a list of your dreams then create a vision board, sing out loud.  Revel in your unique ways.  Be unabashedly in love with yourself.
• Commune with nature.  Take a hike, ride your bike, go horseback riding, sit under a tree, take a picnic, lay in the grass and gaze at the clouds, play in your garden, dig your toes into the earth and witness the beauty that surrounds you.
• Connect with your body.  Practice yoga, do a walking meditation, dance to your favorite song, eat mindfully, take a long hot bath, close your eyes and do deep belly breathing.  Find ways to infuse your day with love, appreciation and gratitude for your body.
• Connect with your spirit.  Keep a gratitude list, read inspirational books, pray, meditate, memorize a favorite poem or passage and say it at night before bed, take time throughout your day to consciously connect to those around you.   What are the things you do that help you connect with spirit?  How can you weave those into your day?

Can you for just a moment allow yourself to think that your health and your happiness are just as important as the health of those you love the most?  Can you believe that being alone for a moment, an hour, a day, or a week is just as important as making dinner and/or going to work?

My suggestion is to start small.  Start asking yourself daily how you can find a few minutes to step away from the ordinary and into the extraordinary by communing with your divine self.  For it is here that you will (re)discover your true authentic self.  Give it a try and see if your mind, body, spirit, and family are happier for you doing so.

Sharon is the happy owner of Barefoot Works Yoga Studio and takes great joy in self care.  She leads classes, yoga teacher training and national/international yoga retreats. Visit her online at BarefootWorks.com and BarefootWorks.Blogspot.com

Mother’s Day is MAY 9th! Just a few short weeks away! Do you know a mom-to-be that you’d like to honor this Mother’s Day? Nominate her to win a free 3D Ultrasound courtesy of Lexington Women’s Health!

What better way to celebrate being a new mom than to get a 3D preview!

Please send us your favorite mom-to-be’s name and email address by MAY 8th! Tell us why she is so important to you, and let us help you give her a wonderful Mother’s Day!

Please send your submissions to ads@babyinthebluegrass.com!

Do you like free stuff? How does a $50 Visa gift card sound? Or what about adorable outfits from local boutiques? We will be giving away lots of awesome things from our local sponsors in the months to come! Make sure you stay in the know by signing up for our e-newsletter, The Pregnant Pause. It’s easy and takes about 10 seconds, just head on over to www.babyinthebluegrass.com and sign up!

Stay tuned for our upcoming guest-blogger Sharon Tessandori, owner of Barefootworks Yoga Studio!

Happy Spring!!!

Baby in the Bluegrass Guest Blogger Sue-Minton shares her experiences as a mother of a child with special needs, and discusses resources she found to be valuable.

Alex at birth

As I was in labor with my 2nd child, a daughter, the doctors informed me that the baby had Spina Bifida.  My reaction was “Spina what?”  I had never heard of Spina Bifida, and had no clue that at the time research had shown 1 in every 500 KY births had been affected by some level of Spina Bifida; 1 in every 1000 births nationally!  Wow, why did KY have so many more than the National statistic and why had I never heard of this birth defect?  Now we are at the National average.  Then to learn that taking a certain amount of Folic Acid daily before I became pregnant could have cut the chances of my daughter being affected with this by 70%!  No one ever informed me about the importance of Folic Acid and pregnancy planning.  I am sure you are asking yourself what in the world is Spina Bifida. Well, there are several different types of Spina Bifida, and I will explain the one I know best called Myelomeningocele. In my terms it is where the covering of the spinal chord fails to close causing damage to the baby’s nerves.   This leads to many other complications and the amount of complications can depend on the level on the back where the chord failed to close.

The first time Alex stood at Cardinal Hill Hospital

Lets move on to talk about my daughter.  She is now soon to be 14 going on 20!  I look back over the last 14 years and can’t believe everything she has endured mentally & physically.  We have had 12 surgeries to date and many hospital and doctor visits.  Her level of Spina Bifida is L-4 on her spine (which is lower down the back).  The lower the level – the lower her paralysis is on her body.  Along with her partial paralysis from the knees down, her bowel and bladder will not function properly, she has water on her brain and has a shunt placed to maintain this level, plus she has behavioral, social and learning deficits!  We were told at birth that she would most likely be confined to a wheel chair and lack independence, along with other textbook information.  The one thing I can say I know about Spina Bifida is that each case is not textbook.  It affects everyone differently in one way or another.  We became very proactive starting her in outpatient therapy at Cardinal Hill at 6 months.  She stayed there until age 5 where she learned how to talk, walk, write and even ride a bike!  Wow, what an amazing job her angels at Cardinal Hill Preschool did for her.  During her stint there we had many hospitalizations and surgeries, and most of the time my husband and I worked full-time.  We have been VERY fortunate to work with employers who were very flexible and understanding with us throughout her entire life.

Alex in her first tiny wheelchair.

We have many struggles that can change over night.  They can be physical and they can be mental.  We have had struggles with schools/teachers not allowing us to be an active part of her education, and not understanding that she is not just physically disabled; she also has learning, behavioral and social challenges.  Our family deals with struggles because of the care our daughter requires.  On top of all of it she is a teenager!  That in itself comes with a totally different set of issues.

Alex participating in the win-o-lympics

Things that I have found helpful is finding support with other parents of children with special needs or groups/organizations.  When your child is in school take an advocate (which can be anyone) with you when it is time to discuss your child’s Educational Plan.  If you are going to a doctor that you are not comfortable with, find another one.  There are many specialist in Louisville, Lexington and Cincinnati – all within an easy drive.  Prayer helps ease your mind and keeps hope present in your heart.  Laughter and not taking life too serious is a major plus. We try to find humor in everything.  There have been times when there was no laughter available, however it does return.  Therapy for the parents can be very beneficial.  Healthy children can be a strain on a marriage, and children with special needs can triple that strain.  We are so lucky to have the great resources in Lexington such as Shriners Hospital and Cardinal Hill.

I continue to ask myself how God could trust me to properly take care for such an amazing child with so many needs.   I then tell myself that God’s humorous response to me is “you ain’t seen nothing yet; there is still so much more to come!”  Again, my sense of humor has been my salvation.

Alex today at summer camp.

Special thanks to Sue-Minton and her family for sharing their experiences with us. For more information on Spina Bifida, please visit www.sbaa.org.

We are so excited to announce that the 2010 edition of Baby in the Bluegrass will be delivered this August!

From the beginning, it has been our goal to be the primary resource in Central Kentucky for pregnancy and newborn-related information. You requested less narrative and more resources from our next endeavor and that is exactly what you’re going to get! The 2010 edition will feature an updated, more extensive listing of mom-related resources in Central Kentucky, “Been there, done that” Mom & Dad-stories, as well as other parenting tips and information.

Online, please continue to visit www.babyinthebluegrass.com and connect directly with other local parents-to-be through our community boards. Also, don’t forget to check out our calendar with listings of all local classes, and sign up for our e-newsletter “Pregnant Pause” – which will feature lots of prizes in the coming months!

If you are a business owner, we invite you to participate by advertising with us! Download a copy of our rate card by 2010_rate card_web. Or email ads@babyinthebluegrass.com so someone from our team can contact you and discuss further this exciting and unique opportunity! Our last edition featured Nursery Time, Baby’s Room, St. Joe East, Baby Belly, Lexington Aesthetics, Portrait Shoppe, Pediatric & Adolescent Associates, P.S.C., and Essence Images just to name a few.  Do you want to get your business directly in front of EVERY mom in Central Kentucky who will have a baby this year? Contact us today!

Stay warm and be safe everyone!

The Baby in the Bluegrass Team

I came across some really cool Q & A podcasts. There are 15 episodes total and range from a variety of topics. Dee Snyder, front man for the 1980s heavy metal band Twisted Sister and Nancy O’Dell, co-anchor of NBC’s Access Hollywood and other volunteers share their stories. Click here to download.