I have been thinking about some of the lessons of Pompeii lately. About what can disappear in an instant and what might persist long after we’re gone. About the legacies we leave as individuals, as communities, as cultures. Sometimes these questions feel abstract and sometimes very close to home.

Whether it’s weather or something else that’s triggering your stress response — the fight, flight, freeze, or fawn state — it’s important to know how to turn off the cascade of stress hormones and recover your calm. Even when we’re not actually under threat our bodies can react as though they are, and our health and well-being suffers.

When you’re feeling unmoored, askew, roller-coastery, or spiraling, re-anchoring in your center is an essential first step for recovering a sense of clarity and presence. From there it’s possible to respond to challenges with intention and care instead of reactivity.

If you're feel drained, agitated, resentful, regretful, angry, or sad about something that happened or didn't happen, something you said or didn't say, something you did or didn't do, try compassion + forgiveness + gratitude.

How are you holding up so far this holiday season? There are always reasons to celebrate and much to be grateful for, and yet the winter holidays bring a lot of visible and invisible challenges. Perhaps you have some emotional wounds that tend to get activated this time of year -- expectations and struggles around family, money, relationships, work, food, alcohol, religion, health, social engagements, consumerism, winter weather ... any I missed?

Have you been thinking about your orientation in time and space recently? I have, ever since reading gymnast Simone Biles’s account of getting “the twisties” – a sudden mind/body disconnect and frightening sense of bodily disorientation. While most people don’t have to navigate their bodies flying through the air, I think a lot of us struggle with a version of the twisties; some form of mind/body or time/space disconnect that can get exacerbated by stress.

Right now a lot of people have had it UP TO HERE. They are simply FULL. Filled to the brim with stress, grief, tragedies, even catastrophes. Or with tedium, isolation, loneliness, and frustration. Or all of the above! And of course being full doesn’t mean more challenges won’t be added to the pile at any moment, it just means our inner resources might be maxed out.

From what I am seeing and sensing and going through myself, I think some deep self-soothing practices are in order. If you're feeling clear and balanced and energized, that is fantastic! Feel free to skip the rest of this post. If you're feeling cranky, overwhelmed, frustrated, fearful, furious, or despairing, you are not the only one.