Friday Musings—Rest and smiles

What's going on

I had a very enjoyable birthday. I went for a horse ride, followed by a massage and dinner with a friend who came to the mountains especially to spend the weekend and celebrate with me. So nature, gentle movement, the holistic benefits of a massage and long chats with an old friend. What more can one ask for?

I was a bit worried given I'm still not completely over my recent ulcerative colitis flare-up, but all went well and it was so nice to have the company and be out and about doing different things (my friend is a force of nature). I will admit though I was really glad to go to bed early on Sunday!

From my channel

Happiness and wealth: you don’t need to wait

We often think happiness and wealth are things we’ll enjoy later, after buying the house we want, taking that big trip, landing the dream job, or living in the “perfect” circumstances. But what if some of what we’re waiting for is already possible, right where we are?

61-point body scan

As I keep looking into what I can do to support my overall health in general and minimize the risk of my autoimmune flare-ups, I realized the one lever I haven't been paying proper attention to is sleep. I don't sleep enough and my sleep is often poor quality (with nightmares and many interruptions).

While sleep isn't something completely under our control, there are many things we can do to improve the odds. Having an evening ritual has done a lot to improve my insomnia; now I want to work on sleep quality (for instance trying out image rehearsal therapy for nightmares) and on getting more rest during the day, especially if I haven't slept enough hours.

This brings me to the 61-point exercise. I stumbled upon this amazing body scan on Insight Timer (a free meditation app) and I swear it's one of the best practices I've tried. I've been doing it after lunch and I always fall asleep for 10-20 minutes afterwards. The track I've linked is nine minutes long (very efficient!), but you can find longer ones both on the meditation app and on YouTube.

Cool stories

When I feel old and decrepit (which is quite often!), it's good to be reminded of all the cool things people way older than me are achieving: This 91-Year-Old Is Hiking 2,190 Miles. Again.

"If you want to keep going and live a good life, just keep setting yourself a new goal".

Habits your dentist wishes you'd stop

People often harm their smiles with well-intentioned habits. Here's a list of common misguided dental habits, a couple of which I was guilty of.

Quote of the week 

"Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me".  (Thich Nhat Hanh)

Hit reply or leave a comment to let me know how your summer is going, and to offer any feedback or suggestion. And pass this on to anyone who might enjoy it.

Until next time,

ML