Author Archives: Margaret Graham

Setting an Intention for Self-care 2022 by Alex Bannard, Wellbeing and Wellness Editor

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Did you know almost ½ of us will set new year’s resolutions but less than 10% of us will actually achieve them? Indeed, research by Strava using over 800 million user-logged activities in 2019 confirmed that most people have given up on their New Year’s Resolutions by Jan 19th – Strava call it Quitter’s Day.

Perhaps this is because resolutions are often quite lofty aspirations that are all about a huge lifestyle change, which ultimately set us up for failure.  We’ve all done it: I’m going to the gym everyday, go vegan, get more sleep, change the world, drop a dress size, run a marathon etc etc.  So if you are noticing your New Year’s Resolutions are already sliding why not start again & set an intention instead of a resolution?

Setting an intention is a powerful step in embodying how you want to be. As Wayne Dyer said: “Our intention becomes our reality”  Intentions send a powerful message into the quantum, they are our sign-post or compass, guiding us in our way of being. Intentions are a conscious guide to how we are living each day.

So how do you set an intention?

First think about what brings you joy, what lights you up. Maybe even journal on this. Base your intention around what makes you feel good.  Then think about how you can you can express that positively in a mantra or affirmation, a simple phrase that encapsulates this intention. This is a simple reminder to keep you on track when you need it.  And then finally let it go – we can’t force an outcome & if we try to it will just strangle it.

Imagine your intention is like a seed, you plant that seed & step out of the way allowing the Universe to fill in the blanks, allowing your intention to blossom & bloom when the time is right.  As you know I am a huge advocate of self-care. I believe that it’s not selfish or a luxury but a daily necessity. It has helped me navigate several international moves, a toxic divorce & more recently the menopause.  By embracing little rituals daily that make you feel better, you will begin to live your best life. By doing things that make you feel happier & healthier you will start to become more productive, creative & efficient.

So if you have decided to set the intention to develop your own self-care rituals how do you do it?

The most important thing I believe is to start small. The benefit of this is that you will easily achieve it, you’ll start to feel better & feel inspired to do more.   Keep it simple. Self-care can be powerful & life changing but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Indeed, if it is you’re more likely to find excuses not to do it.  Self-care is all about doing something that is easy, fun & makes you feel good, empowered even, something you look forward to doing.  Maybe your new self-care ritual is as simple as getting some fresh air & being out in nature everyday? It’s simple, easy to do & makes you feel so much better.  If you struggle to find time for yourself, why not schedule it in? Ear-mark time in your diary for the rest of January so that you commit to your self-care. Be unapologetic about it.

I commit every weekday to getting up before the kids to do my self-care. It’s my time in which I devote an hour or so to my own self-care rituals. I cherish & absolutely relish this time (& it MUST be good because I’m NOT a morning person!)

So there you have it: how to set an intention & 3 simple ways to creating your own self-care practice:

Start small, keep it simple & schedule it.  Sending all my love & intentions to you all for a wonderful 2022.  May it be filled with happiness & good health.  May you flow through the year with grace & ease.  May you commit to a daily self-care routine & enjoy the multiple benefits of making yourself a priority in your own life because you deserve it.

If you would like to find out more about creating your own self-care rituals love check out Alex’s FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindfulnessyoga4selfcare

Or on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexbannard/

Incorporate short yoga sequences & meditations as part of your self-care toolkit with guided practices on Alex’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQlKZJ7MeyYc6lqkv6seISw

For more info check out www.alexbannard.com

Alex is based on the edge of the stunning Cotswolds & has been sharing her love for all things yoga & mindfulness for almost a decade, not just in the UK but also around the world. Her mission is to help everyone discover a more mindful way of living & to encourage them to embrace regular self-care practices for a happier & healthier way of living & being.

Margaret and Dick make a New Year’s Resolution… Surely it won’t be another calamity?

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Margaret and Dick made a resolution on this New Year’s Eve morning to stay awake to see in the new year. Margaret and Dick tend to make this resolution. They always break it as cocoa beckons at 9.30.
‘I do wish we were party animals’ said Margaret.
‘No you don’t,’ said Dick. ‘Think of the uncomfortable shoes you’d have to wear.’
Rosie the Cockerpoo  looked at Polly  the Cavachon. ‘Dada’s right,’ she said. Margaret thought he was probably right too. Margaret doesn’t often think that, so she wrote ‘Dick was right today.’ in her diary. Margaret noticed at the same time she was to meet a friend for coffee at 10.00, when she had thought 10.30.
‘Besides’ said Dick,’We do our partying at lunchtime.’
But Margaret had moved on. She was rushing. It had to be the going out bra. She hated it. It was uncomfortable, but needs must, as her mother would have said. And on the subject of shoes… perhaps not her walking boots as it was New Year’s Eve so she put on her going out shoes. She saw then that she had a hole, a large hole in the heel of her tights which would show. Margaret said some words. Her mother would have called ‘Language’ and sent her to her room.
She put on her new tights. They were fleecy for extreme cold.  It was mild outside. But never mind.
On went the perfume. Polly raised an eyebrow at Rosie. ‘The lady is going to leave us, forever. again.’ They went to their beds, their backs to Margaret.
Margaret was ready. She called goodbye, reached the gate. Stopped, went back, because she had forgotten her phone. Dick was at the door. He handed her the phone. He handed her parcel she was taking, and which would fit in the bag. Margaret hadn’t realised she had left the parcel too.
Margaret put them in her new Christmas bag from her friend, Pat. ‘I wonder if one day,’ Dick pondered, ‘ you will get out in one go?’
Margaret doesn’t like smart alec remarks, and flounced off, calling, ‘I wonder if you’ll get the shelves up as you have said each day, so very there?’
Because they are new to the road, Margaret and Dick feel they must blend in, and be grown up. It’s very hard behaviour to keep up and Margaret hoped no-one had heard. It was a walk of a mile and a half. to town. She had gone a 100 yards when she felt something was slighty awry. A bit of sagging in the tights area.
She walked on, the slip sliding of the tights did not improve. In fact, there was definitely a feeling of uncertainty, of things amiss, of, in fact, things descending, of things not being kept up, a bit like their not quite grown up behaviour.
Half a mile further on clippetty clop Margaret realised she had Norah Batty wrinkles at her ankles, and very warm legs. Why had she worn her new fleecy tights, which felt very much as though they were slip sliding further down with every step? In fact, why had she worn her lined mac?
Margaret surreptitiously yanked up her new smarter, hotter tights, and on she went, because she didn’t want to go back home, and find Dick waiting for her with a different pair of tights, as he seemed able to read her mind.
On, and on, she walked along the road, now quite busy as people were driving into Thirsk to do their New Year’s Eve shopping. If it had been a quiet lane she could have stopped, taken the tights in hand, and given them a really good pull, even captured them by rolling the tights’ waistband over that of her skirt – but it was not an option.
By the time Margaret reached Thirsk she was glad of the mask she wore as she walked around groups of people, because no-one would recognise her and her funny walk. But ‘Hello Margare’ was called by  rather a lot of people, though kindly they made no mention of Margaret’s affliction as she was now walking from the knees down. Straight into the Fleece, she flew – well all right – strutted using very short strides She strutted past the reception desk into the little girls’ room. The pleasure of a really good yank and the capture of errant tights is not to be underestimated.
Much recovered Margaret and her friend had their coffee. Margaret thought a brandy in hers might help her recovery but it was only 10.00 so she had the maltersers that come with coffee in the Fleece instead.
Then there was the walk home, a little fraught, as her tights, though tucked over her waistband seemed to want to tug not just themselves but her skirt down.
On she clippetty clopped. Home at last. Dick was carrying a shelf into the house.
‘You are walking a little strangely,’ he said. ‘Sort of carefully.’
Margaret said, ‘I have a little local difficulty with my tights, they want to fall down. I think I must have lost a fair bit of weight.’
Margaret swept into the house ahead of Dick, but clear as day she heard him say. ‘Oh no, not from this particular perspective you haven’t.’
Rosie and Polly had rushed to meet Momma who had left them forever but had found her way home at last, after years and years. Yes, they had rushed, but they heard Dada’s words and went to their beds, wondering why Dada never learned the art of keeping his thoughts to himself.
Margaret thought the same, very much so. And as she threw her new tights into the bin ten minutes later, she was heard to say, ‘It might be New Year’s Eve, but one more word from you, Dick Graham, and you will be in the bin too.’
They were on no-speakers for quite some time, but after a nice meal, and a sit down they talked about the year that had gone, and the one that was to come, until at last it was midnight, and then one minute past and Margaret asked, ‘Cocoa?’
‘Oh yes,’ said Dick.
But a resolution kept at last.

The Rose Queen by Katie Flynn is out now – grab this springtime romance and enjoy

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It’ is 1938. Cadi is chosen as Rose Queen in the annual Rose Fete. She knows that though she will be treated like royalty for a day, Cadi is no longer happy  living in the Welsh mining community in which she grew up. After all, there is a world out there.

With the declaration of war, Cadi and her best friend Poppy grab a chance to escape to Liverpool.. Cadi leaves behind her parents and local boy Aled, who she is meant to marry. But what will Liverpool bring?

Unable to join the forces, the girls are left looking for work in poverty stricken Vauxhall Ward. It is the local pub which gives them a job, but not only that, Cadi has a blossoming romance with a dock worker, made more intense when he rescues her from a terrifying encounter.

So what will happen when Aled, handsome in his RAF uniform appears?

Katie Flynn, beloved by so many loyal readers, passed away in January 2019 but all is not lost. Her daughter Holly who worked as her assistant for many years, co-authoring several Katie Flynn novels, ensures that the  Katie Flynn legacy lives on ,  by writing new Katie Flynn novels, using in the main, ideas she discussed with her mother.

Give yourself a treat as we head into a new year and read about Cabi and her journey to ..? Happiness?

The Rose Queen by Katie Flynn. hb pub Century. £20.00. Also available in ebook and audio

Natalie Jayne Peeke, West Country Correspondent, has told Frost Magazine of her most memorable books of 2021

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Starting this year in yet another lockdown, most of my time was spent homeschooling my two young children, makig bannana bread or looking for my marbles which are yet to be found. However on the rare occassion i had time to myself i would pick up a book and escape for short while.

I have read lots of different books this year, some were in a different time or a different world, others made me laugh, cry or sent shivers down my spine. I have discovered lots of new authors this year as well such as Sharon Maas, Jina Bacarr. Diane Saxon, Anna Todd, Lucy Adlington ,Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti.

Any bookworm will relate to my issue, i have been asked to write abut my favourite book of 2021. I simply cannot pick just one, i can’t do it. That’s not me being defeatest I really cannot pick just one. So instead i am going to pick my top three.

In no particular order, The first book is Zodiac Academy The Awakening by Susanne Valenti and Caroline Peckham. This book is the first in a series of 8 books and it is utterly amazing. It is Harry Potter meets the TV show Fate: Winx Saga. I am obsessed with these books, I am currently reading book 6 and i have no idea what is going to happen next. Here is some of the blurb :

I’m a Gemini. Impulsive. Curious. Headstrong. A twin. Heir to a throne iIknow nothing about. And it turns out, i’m Fae.

But of course there’s a catch – all hI ave to do to claim my birth right is prove that I’m the most powerful supernatural in the whole of Solaria.

Secondly is Farringdon’s Fate by Linda Finlay. Any of my friends, family and followers would have noticed by now that one of my all time favourite authors is Linda Finlay. She captures the beautiful westcountry in beautiful fictional stories of the past. They feel so real, I know the characters, their little quirks and their life. Farringdon’s Fate is the fifth book of Finlay’s that iIhave read and each book is unique, the only similarity they have is how the are portrayed. I have also read The Bonbon Girl, The Seashell Girl, The Girl With The Amber Comb and The Girl With The Silver Bangle. However I will warn you, do not pick up a Linda Finlay book if you have something to do, you will get lost in the world she has created and will completly forget about your day. Here is the blurb for Farringdons Fate:

Nettlecombe Manor, nestled in the rolling hills of Devon, is home to the Lord Farringdon and his second wife , Lady Charlotte. As if running the vast estate wasn’t enough, Lord Farringdon has five daughters to keep him busy. Lady Charlotte is determined that the betrothal of the eldest, Louisa, should be celebrated with a ball which is the envy of Devon society and summons a corsetiere from Exeter to measure them up for new corsets.

Apprentice Jane Haydon arrives at Nettlecombe to do the fittings. Having never set foot in such a grand home, Jane is disturbed to hear tell of a gypsy’s curse which has haunted the family for generations, and a local wise woman’s vision that there will never be a wedding at Nettlecombe.

Last but by no means least is Fighting For Your Life , A Paramedic’s Story by Lysa Walder. This book was one of the first that I read this year and 11 months on it is still fresh in my mind. Lysa shares her stories of being a paramedic directly from the frontline of the NHS. It is an utterly fascinating read, some stories inspired hope and others broke my heart. I cherish our NHS and admire everyone who works for them, emergency workers are often taken for granted and this book truly has opened my eyes. Here is the blurb:

A teenage boy lies on the pavement, bleeding from a stab wound; a distraught mum watches, in mute shock, as her daughter suffers a terrfying fatal asthma attack, a young girl is gang raped and her stricken boyfriend has taken an overdose, a disturbed man flings himself in front of a speeding train on the stroke of midnigt on New Year’s Eve.

Few people can imagine living in a world where such situations are part of everyday life. Yet for veteran paramedic Lysa Walder, these and thousands of other emergency call outs are part of a day’s work; scenes of tragedy, heroism, loss and horror- but also stories of triumph and humour.

So there you have it folks, my top three reads of this year, I am looking forward to going on more bookish adventures next year. Thank you for reading and I would like to wish you a very Happy New Year.

NEW YEAR, NEW YOU: Exercise for SUCCESS so says Lianne and she will lead you into the ways of fitness with the FWL(Fit With Lianne) app

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‘Are you an avid procrastinator?’ asks Lianne. ‘Do you sometimes think things through more than doing them? ‘

Well quite, was the reaction of the Frost team,. Of course Alex Bannard, Wellness and Wellbeing Editor, nodded wisely and asked  Lianne to  share her thoughts with Frost Magazine’s readers,  so here we go:

I always say to clients and my members when they are in a bit of a procrastination slump (which we all get by the way), ‘Think now, you going to gain more time later or reduce more time later by making this move?’

Because, when you exercise you are not only burning up some calories and getting some movement in, which we all know is amazing for our health. But you are also building great mental habits and you’re going to feel fantastic for it.

 Did you know also, getting fit make you more successful in Life?   Exercise  is known to improve mental health by reducing anxiety, depression, and negative mood and by improving self-esteem.

 

My top 4 reasons to exercise:

1. You Become More Confident.

The BUZZ of endorphins is incredible. Exercise makes us feel great which in turn increases our confidence.

2. You Become More Goal-Oriented

Setting small targets in fitness can ultimately help us in our life outside of fitness. It gets us into the goal-orientated lifestyle which is bound to ensure success elsewhere!

3. You Learn How to Manage Time

Making fitness your new routine requires a little shuffling of priorites. Great time management will make it all happen so you achieve the goals you have set out. If you are struggling with time, I have just the solution with my app where you can access fitness anytime, anywhere!

4. You Learn How to Balance Your Life

When you realise that you can be goal orientated, enjoy fitness and enjoy the pleasures in life, you know that life is all about balance (including work)

Calories, endorphins, mental health, being fantastic professionally… win win win win win.

The Frost team are nodding, and listening hard as Lianne invites everyone to come and join the Fit with Lianne App (FWL) community for a small monthly fee and access live zoom classes, on demand classes, plans, challenges and check ins. Be amongst hundreds of other women striving to be the best version of themselves.


Whatsapp- 07898352356

Facebook- ‘Fitness with Lianne’
Instagram- @fit_with_lianne

Reflecting with acceptance & appreciation by Alex Bannard Wellness and Wellbeing Editor

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Gratitude is one of my favourite self-care practices.

Gratitude is about recognising that something is valuable to you regardless of its monetary value & expressing this appreciation.

Gratitude has been linked to improvements in mental health. It also improves our self-awareness, our relationships & gives us a sense of fulfilment.

According to neuroscientist Alex Korb, we can’t truly focus on positive & negative feelings at the same time, so when we are expressing gratitude we are focusing on the positive which makes it impossible to focus on the negative.

There are so many health benefits associated with gratitude that it has been said if it were a drug it would be the number one best selling product in maintaining health for every major organ system.

The beautiful thing about gratitude is that the more you express it the more you find to be grateful about.

Gratitude is also said to be the highest state of receivership. If you think about it, we express gratitude when something wonderful has happened. So expressing gratitude in advance you are sending a powerful message into the Universe that your intention has already happened.

There are SO many different ways to practice gratitude.

3 grateful things – we play this game regularly. Everyone has to say 3 things that they are grateful for that have happened that day. My son’s 3 grateful things are: breakfast, lunch & tea or football, rugby & football again!

Gratitude journal – do you know that the emotion you go to bed feeling is the emotion you wake up feeling? Writing down every night all the things you are grateful puts you to bed in a high vibration emotion, which you then wake up in.

Gratitude jar – write down lovely things that happen when they happen & put it in a jar. When the jar’s fully open it up & relive all those little moments, which as Jon Kabbat Zinn says aren’t so little after all!

Taking some time at the end of the year to reflect with gratitude & appreciation is important for helping us to re-frame whatever has happened, after all every experience is an opportunity for learning & growth. Focusing on the lessons we learn even in challenging times can be incredibly empowering.

Instead of focusing what may not have gone to plan this year, focus instead on what IS working. This is a powerful way to shift the energy surrounding these situations. And if possible express gratitude for all that is working & you will attract more of the same.

To receive your own copy of the reflections meditation just email Alex at alex@alexbannard.com

If you would like to find out more self-care tips check out Alex’s FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindfulnessyoga4selfcare

Or on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexbannard/

For short yoga practices & meditations check out Alex’s YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQlKZJ7MeyYc6lqkv6seISw

Alex is based on the edge of the stunning Cotswolds & has been sharing her love for all things yoga & mindfulness for almost a decade, not just in the UK but also around the world. Her mission is to help everyone discover a more mindful way of living & to encourage them to embrace regular self-care practices for a happier & healthier way of being.

The Fit With Lianne app – Lianne tells Alex Bannard Wellness and Wellbeing Editor, how the germ of the idea grew – like Topsy – into the success it is today

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A year ago, the  hugely successful Fit With Lianne (FWL)  app was launched.  It caught the attention of Alex Bannard who wanted  to learn more about this fitness app, and its creator, Lianne.

Lianne explained that  from her early days as a fitness instructor taking classes in gyms she had felt it important to reach out to more and more people, for the good of their health and wellbeing, but how? The next step in her fifteen year journey  was to go it alone, with her own training  classes, which grew and grew, like Topsy.  This enabled her to build up  an extraordinarily healthy (in all ways) client base. Alex, however,  wanted to know how  this young woman, fizzing with energy, arrived at where she is today – the doyen of the Fit With Lianne app, especially as Lianne is a military wife, and we all know how  dislocating that life can be.

Indeed, it transpired that Lianne had moved every few years but nothing daunted, she had simply  worked harder to maintain and grow her client base. As she explained, ‘I had to find a way to maintain a hold of the clients I already  had, but it wasn’t until until 2017 that a catalyst ocurred – a posting to Brunei – which really kick started the fitness online community. How else was I to remain in touch with my clients?’ 

As if the fitness mentoring wasn’t enough for a military wife, it transpired that Lianne had also trained to be a secondary school PE teacher and managed to hold part time teaching roles wherever they were posted.  But, as Lianne insisted:  ‘My ultimate passion has always been my Fitness Business.’ 

Ever resourceful, our intrepid Fitness guru wasn’t in the slightest bit fazed when she and her husband moved  back to the UK in 2020 in the midst of a pandemic. In fact she saw this as an opportunity; the perfect time to realise her ultimate dream of creating an app to centralise all she had to offer. And, it yet again ,like Topsy grew and grew. Indeed, within a short period of time, the core membership had grown to over 100.

So what happened when the gyms reopened? Alex wanted to know.

‘When the gyms opened I lost a few clients. However, with the new technological world, a hybrid fitness lifestyle or even a pure online fitness lifestyle, seems to be a new way of life for many people. 

‘The app has developed enormously in just one year. From simply offering live and on demand content I  now offer a weekly check in, plans, challenges and more.’

And talking of plans and challenges, Alex discovered that Lianne had made yet another move,  this time to Yorkshire, to buy their own home, settle the children and remain in one place for at least a few years.

So… Alex wanted to know. hadn’t Lianne had been tempted to let the FWL go?

Clearly this is the last thing on Lianne’s agenda. ‘I have decided going forward that the app and the online fitness community is my focus. The teaching is being put to the side and I am going ALL IN with this fitness business and I welcome anyone along for the ride.’

What does Fit with Lianne  app offer:

  • Online 1-1 PT
  • Group PT
  • Regular ZOOM live online fitness classes (Pilates, HIIT, Weighted workouts (kettlebells, dumbbells, barbells), Step and more)
  • On demand classes
  • Monthly challenges
  • Weekly check in for all PT and App members

How it works:

Download the FWL App, subscribe (monthly or annually), you then instantly access the live classes, plans, on demand content, challenges and weekly check in.

Group and 1-1 PT can be arranged separately to the app, but app members unlock a discount for these.

The cost.  £12.99/month or £89.99 annual membership. No ties, no tricks, no additional costs.

1-1 and group PT from £30/month.

Alex will be passing on some of words of encouragement from Lianne in a couple of days, so you will be ready  to make that New Year’s fitness resolution work for you.

Whatsapp- 07898352356

Facebook- ‘Fitness with Lianne Instagram- @fit_with_lianne

 

Surrender to the season to be jolly by Alex Bannard, Wellness and Wellbeing Editor

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Over the past couple of weeks, I have shared a few of my favourite self-care tips to help you navigate the festivities with grace & ease. Tips that I hope will help you thrive instead of merely surviving the celebrations, time with family & all the stresses & strains that accompany the holidays.

Despite the best laid plans, life has a habit of getting in the way & things can inevitably go, well, pear shaped.

Today I’d like to share one of my favourite yoga poses: child’s pose & the concept of surrendering to whatever may be. This little trick has been with me through thick & thin, good times & bad ever since I moved back to the UK.

I used it through a toxic divorce, (often several times a day!) & when my menopause symptoms were at their worst I turned to it again, taking myself off & dropping into child’s pose & repeating the mantra over & over until I felt ready to move on with my day.

I still do it almost daily because when we practice something, even when we don’t need it, this forges the neuron pathways in our brain to make it more likely we will return to this practice when we do need it.

Child’s pose:

Sitting with your bum on your heels.

Can’t get your bum on your heels?

Why not roll up a blanket & stick it between your heels & bum so you can relax into the pose?

Extend your arms onto the mat, resting your forehead on the floor (without squishing your nose).

Can’t reach the floor with your forehead, pop a DVD box set or a decent sides book under your forehead – improvise with whatever you have to hand!

Breathe smoothly & repeat this mantra:

I surrender to all that is as it is now & so it is.

Keep repeating this phrase until you feel a shift, then you’re ready to go!

Surrender is a powerful energy.

It’s not giving up or a giving in.

It’s giving over.

Letting go.

Releasing.

Surrendering to what is is a powerful little tool to help us navigate the festivities, after all this time of year isn’t easy & fun for everyone all the time.

If you would like to find out more self-care tips to thrive in the festivities check out Alex’s FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindfulnessyoga4selfcare

Or on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexbannard/

Short yoga sequences including yoga for stress are available on her YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQlKZJ7MeyYc6lqkv6seISw

Alex is based on the edge of the stunning Cotswolds & has been sharing her love for all things yoga & mindfulness for almost a decade, not just in the UK but also around the world. Her mission is to help everyone discover a more mindful way of living & to encourage them to embrace regular self-care practices for a happier & healthier way of being.