Tag: Amy Shojai

Monday Meditation: No Blog Is An Island

Posted on by Joy Held

A 2011 reflection for me includes a shout out of “thank you!” to the following cyber pals who made last year great for Writer Wellness.

 

Joanna Aislinn for hosting me as a guest blogger and always having interesting things on her blog that I like to read.

 

Miriam Allen for writing a great review of Writer Wellness.

 

Wendy Hines for writing a great review of Writer Wellness.

 

Paty Jager for writing a great review of Writer Wellness.

 

Kristin Lamb for her incredible non-stop blogging energy. I don’t know how she does it but her insight, humor, and support of WW are like treasures.

 

Natalie Markey for being another great reviewer of Writer Wellness and swapping guest posts with me.

 

Cat Masters for hosting me on her blog in 2011 with a very fun interview.

 

Bob Mayer for being a wizard with the vision to create Who Dares Wins Publishing and to believe that Writer Wellness was worth the second chance.

 

Linda Rettstatt for writing a great review of Writer Wellness.

 

Amy Shojai for being the most cheerful animal lover and blogging pal I have.

 

Jen Talty for ALWAYS being there no matter what. She’s amazing.

 

Beth Trissel for hosting Writer Wellness at her blog and getting an amazing number of hits that day!

 

Sandy Tritt for being my bestest buddy in the real world and the cyber village it takes to keep the Writer Wellness world afloat.

HUGS EVERYBODY AND HERE’S TO A GREAT NEW ERA IN WRITING, PUBLISHING, AND BEING.

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

 

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

 

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

 

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

 

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

 

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

 

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

 

http://amyshojai.com/ Amy Shojai

 

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

 

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well

Wednesday Workout: Guest Amy Shojai and the health benefits of cats and dogs

Posted on by Joy Held

Today 71.4 million households in the U.S. own at least one pet — that’s 62 percent of the U.S. population.  This “pet generation” has long known what science now proves — pets are good for our health, especially when it comes to stress reduction.

When stress accumulates, it increases a myriad of health problems. Stress can actually be physiologically measured because your mood is affected by hormones and chemicals released in response to stress. Here’s how it works.

Having a pet is a stress buffer and the closer the bond, the greater the relief. Within 15 to 30 minutes in the presence of a cat, dog or even swimming fish, your body responds. Levels of the hormone cortisol drops and the “feel good” chemical serotonin increases. Some doctors now actually recommend patients get a pet — a furry prescription! Read my AOL Healthy Living article to learn more about how your furry wonders benefit your health.

Num-num-num-num...Watching puppies play and playing with them offers you BOTH great benefits.

But did you know that the stress relief works both ways? Yep, petting your puppy or kitty not only reduces your stress, it makes the pet healthier, too. You don’t even have to touch them for this pet effect to work. For instance, playing with your puppy is a powerful bonding tool that has many benefits. Check out all the puppy-licious details about why puppies play and some favorite puppy games just in time for the long holiday weekend!

I lost weight when Magical-Dawg came to live with us. He MAKES me get off my ass-ets and go for a walk, even when I’d rather vegetate with the laptop or Kindle. He also knows when I’m angst-ing, and insists on becoming a lap dog (all 85+ pounds of him!). Seren-kitty keeps my blood pressure low with her purrs and whisker-kisses. 

I’ve known colleagues who have pets that alerted them to health issues or that act as service or therapy animals. And during research for my natural healing pet book, I heard from many folks who had pets that became sick when they felt bad, and totally recovered when the owner’s emotional health improved.

How about you? How have your fur-kids helped your health–physically and/or emotionally? Please share in the comments!

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions–and to stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter with pet book give-aways!

 

My thanks to Amy Shojai for granting me permission to share this post.

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

 

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing, http://whodareswinspublishing.com.

 

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

 

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

 

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

 

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

 

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

 

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

 

http://amyshojai.com Amy Shojai

 

Check out my new website Joy E. Held

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well

Friday Feast: A Homeboy For Everyone

Posted on by Joy Held

“Eat Right 4 Your Type” is my homeboy. I’m using the term to mean “my closest friend,” and when I don’t pay attention to my food program (I don’t say “diet” because the first three letters spell “die” and I first heard this from exercise slash weight loss guru Richard Simmons,) I pay the price. My homeboy Eat Right explains clearly what my food choices should be. I must avoid a particular list of foods. I can eat from the highly beneficial, beneficial, and neutral lists to my heart’s content. It’s that simple. If I listen to my homeboy food counselor, there are no dietary or health issues to deal with. So why can’t I be faithful to the lists? Because I eat from the avoid list and create cravings and upset the apple cart and my digestive system.

Everywhere I turn there is a homeboy lurking it seems. Country music hunk Eric Church released his song “Homeboy” earlier this year to give fans (ME!) a tantalizing taste of his summer release album “Chief.” While “Homeboy”is a haunting song about finding a lost brother, only Eric Church (and songwriter Casey Beathart) could weave the word through a story/song/poem the way they have. It’s a great tune and the album builds on Church’s revamp style that brings Willie and Waylon to mind while listening to songs such as “Country Music Jesus” which cannot help but make your country gospel forehead drop forward and back over and over to the pounding rhythm. And Church lets out a warble or two or three and sounds exactly like the young, vocally strong Garth Brooks of yester-music. You won’t be disappointed in Church’s style and homage to homeboys and the black hat wearing bandits of country music (including Johnny Cash.)

And just when I think the word “homeboy” is a passing fad, my daughters receive key chains from a good friend engraved with “Arab Thunder is my homeboy.” And I know they are protected and watched over when I can’t be there (which is less and less as they gracefully mature.)

So a “homeboy” is what we need it to be and there when we need him to be. Kinda like an angel only with tattoos. Oh, well. Appearances are less and less the persona these days, and that forces us to look deeper to the true spirit of the homeboy so we can know what’s really inside.

Who’s your homeboy?

There are five primary areas of practice to the Writer Wellness plan. Every other week I will post an idea for relaxation (Monday Meditation,) creative play (Tuesday Tickle,) fitness and exercise (Wednesday Workout,) journaling and misc. (Thursday Thought,) and nutrition (Friday Feast.)

Meanwhile, remember to look for a digital or print copy of Writer Wellness, A Writer’s Path to Health and Creativity at Who Dares Wins Publishing. They have a triple play sale going on now that includes Writer Wellness! Check it out before the deal is done.

And check out these great blogs for ideas to keep your writing and publishing healthy and prosperous.

http://writeitforward.wordpress.com/ Bob Mayer

http://jenniholbrooktalty.wordpress.com/ Jenni Holbrook

http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/ Kristen Lamb

http://inspiration4writers.blogspot.com/ Inspiration for Writers, Inc.

http://pentopublish.blogspot.com/ Natalie Markey

http://amyshojai.com/ Amy Shojai

My new website!

http://www.joyeheld.com

Have you subscribed to this Writer Wellness blog yet? Get email updates when a new post is added. Click “subscribe” and leave your email. That’s it and thanks in advance!

Be well, write well