Grounding for Millennials (and Everyone Else)

Millennials are busy. Brilliant. Enthusiastic. And exhausted. Unlike many Boomers when the latter were young, this bright crop of late teens and 20-somethings tends to burn the candle at both ends less by design than by necessity: if they want an education, they may have to work for it, literally. A full-time job and even part-time school means little time left over for homework, friends (thank G-d for texting!) and dare I mention, sleep?

What play- and sleep deprivation can do to an already hyper-speed brain — and body — is destructive, though the damage might not show up for years. Yes, you can handle a lot. But when that camel's load adds one more stick, however slight, the camel can collapse.

One simple solution to lighten the load? Grounding. READ MORE

Are You A Junkie?

"Livin' on Reds, vitamin C and cocaine…" sang the Grateful Dead, and they might have been describing today's adrenaline junkies, hooked not on drugs but on a super-sized life, juggling it all without dropping a ball: power career, marriage, motherhood, perfect parties, posh home, toned body…

Just thinking about it can be exhausting. As I wrote last month in Why You Should Drop Out, books like Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In exhort women to give their all to work so that they'll want to return to the corner office after having kids. And while women certainly deserve to rise to the top like the (organic) cream in their half-caff, burning the proverbial candle to a nub day in and day out can create serious health issues. Such as adrenal burnout.

While all of us are familiar with the term "adrenaline," not many people stop to associate it with the adrenals, two tiny glands that sit atop the kidneys and are responsible for regulating our stress hormones. When your blood pressure rises or your heart starts beating in double-time, that's the adrenal glands pumping the hormones cortisol and adrenaline into your body in response to stress. Which works superbly if you're running from a tiger (or perhaps confronting an angry partner), but not so much as a steady diet. Living like the Energizer Bunny doesn't cut it long-term. You can simply replace Bunny's batteries when they run down; our bodies require continual, comprehensive care.

Some of the areas to examine:

• Sleep: are you chronically exhausted? Believe it or not, going to bed earlier will not only help you get rested — it can help you lose weight!
• Diet/nutrition: grabbing junk food or even "food bars" in place of healthy meals? Even the best food bars are cut-rate fuel.
• Exercise: are you too busy — or too tired? Just a 20-minute walk 3-4 times a week is restorative. Then you can think about adding cardio and weight training.
• Supplements: what do you need to restore balance?
• Work: do you need to delegate more? Hire an assistant or VA (virtual assistant)?

You'll have more to give in all areas of your life when you feel vibrantly healthy. So put yourself first on your to-do list. After all, there's a reason those airline emergency drills always tell you, "Put your own oxygen mask on first!"

Fomenting Fear: Boston As Red Herring

Here we go again. Humanity's on a roll, awakening at the speed of love, co-creating ingenious solutions for local, regional and international challenges in ever more magnanimous ways. We might even be moving towards global unity.

The faster and stronger our rise in Light, the greater the resistance from forces that fear losing control. Whether we perceive these dark energies as originating from beyond the country or beyond the planet, one certainty is this: the best way to prevent questioning, growth, and union is by generating fear. Keep the people cowed and obedient, quaking within at the potential threat everywhere, and separation is assured.

After all, who can you trust when something as apple-pie American as the Boston Marathon, an institution more than a century old that attracts runners from all over the world, is tainted forever by a bombing at the finish line? How safe can we be in our backyards if something like this could happen in the midst of half a million people and all that security?

This is precisely what the instigators want. Do not trip the trap. Grieve for those injured or killed, yes. Make every effort to bring the terrorists to "justice", if such an action is possible. But don't crawl meekly back into the old skin. It's shed. It is time to arise as One and light the way to the higher truth of our intrinsic unity.

Rumi says it best:

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.

Don't go back to sleep.

You must ask for what you really want.

Don't go back to sleep.

People are going back and forth across the doorsill

where the two worlds touch.

The door is round and open.

Don't go back to sleep.

** If you'd like to read the message I sent out after 9-1-1, please email me.

I Can't Get No … Satisfaction — Or Can I?

Gretchen Rubin wanted to discover the secret to happiness, so she spent a year "test-driving the wisdom of the ages, the current scientific studies, and the lessons from popular culture about how to be happy — from Aristotle to Martin Seligman to Thoreau to Oprah."

She began blogging about her experiences and discoveries, convinced no one but herself would ever read it. Famous last words. Four years on, several hundred thousand people look forward to her daily musings, and her book, The Happiness Project, is a #1 New York Times bestseller. One reviewer calls it, "A cross between the Dalai Lama’s The Art of Happiness and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love."

I first wrote about Gretchen's work in March 2008 in my inspirational enewsletter, What Shines. (This article, A Big Tank of Pink Liquid is now part of my eBook, What Shines: Practical Wisdom for Unleashing Your Inner Brilliance/Volume 3). Today I listened to her share some of her wisdom in a telecast:

How can you increase your happiness every day?

#1: Get enough sleep!
#2: Novelty and challenge bring happiness, but not right away. First you'll feel insecure, incompetent, and frustrated — push through to mastery.
#3 Strong relationships. Increase your contacts with others, including social media — but don't overdo it!

Gretchen blogs six days a week, and encourages people who are having trouble blogging regularly to actually increase the amount they blog. It's counterintuitive, yet, she says, when you know you have to do something daily, it becomes part of your routine.

She also recommends adding structure to your blog. She has specific categories: video, tips, quizzes, quotes, interviews — which makes it easier to frame what she wants to share. People learn differently, so offering various formats allows more people to resonate with what you have to offer.

Finally, she says, don't be concerned if some visitors don't agree with what you post. A strong brand will repel as well as attract. While it's painful to have someone attack you in their comments, it also provides an opportunity for you to learn from them, expand your growth by not reacting in kind, and engage more readers through the discussion.

Bedroom Health

I've been speaking and teaching about how to make healthier product and lifestyle choices for more than a decade, and it's rewarding to see the shift towards greater enviro-consciousness finally becoming mainstream. In this article, Begin With the Bedroom, the author covers the basics to make your sleep sanctuary a true health haven.

I offer a free class handout, From Harmful to Harmony: 13 Simple Steps You Can Take Today To Improve Your Health for anyone who makes a donation to LiveYourLight.com.

Sweet dreams!