Clarity Wellness

Some of you might know about my struggles with running this year...an achy hip on one side, and a super-tight calf on the other. I really haven't run much since April, and then only in short spurts. I've had to resign myself to being a walker for many months, and was trying to embrace the mental break that it gave me, even though I really missed my runs, my running group, and, let's be totally honest, the ability to eat just a little bit more without my weight creeping up on me. A few weeks ago I decided that I'd had enough and was ready to be a runner again. After all, the same hip that was giving me angst was the same hip that ached through 22 marathons and countless physical therapy sessions. I know what I have to do--I just don't do enough of it. Life has been busy, but I'd managed to go out and run a few times a week, and I'd felt pretty good. Best of all, I felt like I was getting my mojo back, and that's pretty priceless to me right now! It w...

There have been many times in the last week that I have had to say to myself, "Keep it simple." My kids are finishing up the first semester at school and everyone's just the tiniest bit grumpy. Complicated is not an option right now. It's officially the holiday season, which means you're planning for big dinners, parties, gift-giving, housecleaning, decorating, and essentially creating a whole lotta magic in your house, especially for the little ones. Some of you even have elves creating mayhem in your house on a nightly basis!  I love to see your pictures of them on Facebook, but I'm a tiny bit glad I never had one show up in my house. ;) With all this background noise in your head, it's hard to concentrate on the here and now, and sometimes you just need to take a break and remember that you don't have to do it all.  Nor should you.  I love to cook and try new recipes.  However, I've found lately that it's very frustrating when I spend an hou...

  I have been experimenting with chia puddings lately.   I find that having a few in the fridge when life gets hectic is a great way to ensure that I won’t fall off the wagon and find myself grabbing the first sugary bar or bag of chips that might have snuck into my kitchen cupboards.    Sometimes I will grab one of these for breakfast, but more often, I have one as an afternoon pick-me-up, when I might be craving a little something sweet. I’m on my annual pumpkin kick right now.   I have an entire Pinterest board dedicated to all things pumpkin , and a special section in my recipe binder just for pumpkin desserts.   It’s funny, because although I love to think about pumpkin, smell pumpkin, and look at pumpkin pictures, I’m very picky about what I’ll actually eat.   And if you get right down to it, it’s really the pumpkin spice that does it for me. I like a lot of spice, so if it's too much for you, please adjust to taste. I will often add pumpkin s...

Well, it happened.   Just like that we returned to our pre-pandemic behavior and let life get really crazy again.  When people ask me how I am, I find myself answering, “Just crazy busy.”  I wasn’t going to let that happen. Then marching band season happened, and since I have a senior and a freshman this year, we let things get away from us.  Early morning practice and nighttime events, along with tough course loads and the homework that goes with them have transformed my girls into walking zombies.  My husband and I find ourselves volunteering for more than we had planned and going to every night rehearsal, concert, fundraiser, etc. that we can.  We’re all stressed and tired, but I honestly wouldn’t change it for the world.  We get one year where they are both in the same school,  playing on the same marimba, no less,  and I’m not going to miss a minute of it. Every time I watch them play, I get goose bumps.   Every. Time....

I just got back from vacation.   The trip of a lifetime, actually.  The trip with our girls we had planned for Fall Break 2020 that didn't happen.   It was fabulous,  We took our girls to New York City and did all the New York things: the World Trade Center, Times Square, the Statue of Liberty, and the Empire State Building. We saw artwork at the Met and MOMA that made our eyes dance with happiness in our heads.  (Yes, I said that out loud in front of Van Gogh's Starry Night . Any opportunity to embarrass my teens!)  We also saw Wicked on Broadway, and waved at Joda Kotb and Al Roker outside the Today Show window (they even waved back!) Vacations like this are amazing because they take you to places you haven't seen before, they give you a chance to show your kids life outside their little bubble , and they teach you so much about history, art, and architecture in the process.  Not to mention the mental break they provide from work and the ...

There's a lot of anxiety going on in my house these days.   I have two very driven, overachieving high school daughters born of two driven, perfectionist parents, and we're all pretty hard on ourselves sometimes.  Add to that a pandemic, followed by a variant, a divisive political climate, underfunded schools and overworked teachers, global warming, AP tests, honors classes, and 4:30 am wake up calls for marching band...Yep, there's a lot going on. I was reminded last week of a technique that I had heard of in the past but hadn't done a very good job of implementing.  It's called the 5-4-3-2-1 technique for dealing with anxiety , and it goes something like this: 5: focus on 5 different things that you can see in your immediate surroundings. 4: look for 4 things you can touch around you. 3: notice 3 things you can hear right now. 2: find 2 things you can smell. 1: acknowledge 1 taste, usually whatever you ate or drank last. The problem with this technique, like many ...

  Do you wake up tired, puffy, and foggy-brained? Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep? Do you have asthma, allergies, sore joints, skin issues, or other autoimmune conditions? Are you moody, anxious, or depressed? Do you deal with PMS or other hormonal conditions on a regular basis? Do you have chronic gut issues? If you’ve been following my posts, you know that I would recommend a sugar free/grain free diet to reduce the inflammation that leads to these conditions.   I believe in a holistic approach, however, and another big factor that may contribute to these conditions is the environmental toxins we surround ourselves with every day. Toxic chemicals are found in our food, furniture, carpets, cooking utensils, mattresses, cleaning products, body care products, and cosmetics. And that’s just a start… Entire books have been written about all the things to watch out for, but I’m going to try and narrow it down for you so you at least have a star...