When people think of release this could be the release of stress, the release of worry, the release of feeling like a victim, or release of anything that is weighing you down or keeping you from being fully available to yourself and others. It can be anything that is no longer serving you.
1)     Breathe
· The best advice from my mother has been to remember to breathe. As a kid, you don’t want to take any advice from your parents, but this one always served, because when we are stressed, upset or scared we tend to hold our breath. A great quote from Fredrick Solomon Perls is “Fear is excitement without the breath”. So, remember to breathe.
2)     Move
·I don’t mean a move to a new house or move to a different city or country, even though that could be an element of it. I mean physically move. Move your body by having a walk, going to the gym, yoga, swimming, mime, dancing, Monty Python silly walk – anything that allows movement of your body. Do something different from what you usually do. That movement can shift the energy for you and thereby allow you to release.
3)     Meditation/Mindfulness
· I know these have been buzz words for a while, but they really do work. When you stressed or worried or carrying something we tend to ruminate on that piece constantly. With meditation or mindfulness, you are giving your mind a rest from the hamster wheel of information buzzing around your head. Shifting to giving your brain space to relax and watch the clouds go by can help to shift perspective once you are done. Meditation and mindfulness also focus on the breath so you would be able to get two for the price of one. You can release by allowing your mind to stop, rest and relax.
4)     Do something you love
· How often do you do something that you love? I don’t mean the latest video game on your phone. I mean something that gives you joy and really fills you up. So often for the sake of all the other priorities in our lives, we give up or set aside the things that give us joy. Is there a hobby you used to have but haven’t done for a long time? Is there a place you used to always visit that even if you were there for only an hour it felt like a vacation for your soul? The world tends to give us the message that we must work harder, but when we bring joy back to our lives it really can shift everything else and allow us to have the resilience and capacity to move forward.  This is a prescription to do what you love for the long-term benefits it provides.
5)     Sleep
· One of the first things to go when we are stressed is sleep. This can be a difficult one to control as many who live with insomnia can attest to. It is also one of the most beneficial in providing release. When your mind can rest and rest for longer than your time with meditation or mindfulness, some of those things that are stressors and felt like unscalable mountains can shift to being more manageable. Sleep gives you the ability to process so much more then your conscious mind can focus on. It allows details to float and shift perspective and land in patters we would never have thought of when awake. When you dream you are also able to detach the emotion from the situation and this gives space for new possibilities. Give yourself that space to sleep. 
Which of these ways are you most likely to try first to release something in your life?  
If you would like support in releasing something from your life, please contact me at libby@listeningtreestudio.ca or visit me at www.clairvoyantcoach.ca.

It is now November, the month when many celebrate Thanksgiving. It is a season that reminds us to think about what we are thankful and grateful for. 
But what is gratitude and how can it shift how we live our lives?
I looked up the definition of gratitude and found it includes three important elements:  Being Thankful, ready to show appreciation and willing to return Kindness. I was a bit surprised by this third element. Certainly, being thankful and showing appreciation were in my thoughts about gratitude but, being willing to return kindness expands this concept so much further. 
About a year ago I was strongly encouraged to start a gratitude journal and write down 10 things I was grateful for every day. At first, I felt like it was sort of a punishment, having to write out lines of what I was grateful for. I recalled It was like having to write lines on the board for chewing gum in class when I was a kid. 
Soon, though, I came to recognize that it was more than just making a list. It became a way to remember at least 10 things in every day that I experienced and thought about and was thankful for. It was a way to show appreciation through my pen and then also remember to show appreciation to those who showed me kindness. And it was a reminder for me to be kind to others so that they could have something to add to their gratitude journal. 
Don’t get me wrong!  There are some days where finding one thing, let alone 10 things can be extremely difficult, but consider this. When you have those challenging days and get through them, what have you gained? What have you learned about yourself that you may not have known before? What positive things did you learn about others that you had not noticed before? There can be some amazing insights from challenging days that you may never have noticed before if you were not looking for elements to be grateful for. 
Another piece to gratitude is the shift in perspective. You may have heard of the adage that you get more of what you focus on. Well that is very true when it comes to gratitude. If you are searching through your day for things to be thankful for you will learn how to find them. As you find them you will notice that there are more things in your life to be grateful for. The mind is an amazing thing. It wants to please you and find what it is you are looking for.
Practising regular gratitude in my daily life has made a huge shift in how I see the world and appreciate things around me.

How do you think regular gratitude might shift your life?
If you are looking for help to start shifting your life to one that expresses more gratitude, please Contact Me to get tips and one-to-one support.