Resilience

At some point in our lives, almost all of us will experience a challenging event. One friend had a tree fall on his house. I see clients who have been in car accidents or undergone major surgeries. In the face of hardship, some people cope well and some just can’t manage to pull it together afterwards. What can make the difference? Resilience.

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Barbara Jean Conti
A lifecycle of sour cherries

Our little cherry tree produced a bumper crop this year. Many are in the freezer, to be made into pies, crisps and crumbles at a later time. Some are in the process of making Vișinată, which is sour cherry liqueur. We learned about it from friends who visited Romania and it has become an annual treat every since.

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Barbara Jean Conti
The lost habit of the evening constitutional

I think it used to be common that people would go for a stroll in the evening after dinner. A friend who visited Italy in her younger days still talks about how people in town went for a promenade in the evening. I saw similar activity when a friend and I were in Provence in 2007 (aside: my, how time flies!). Back home, it seems like only the dog owners are out walking around dinner time.

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Barbara Jean Conti
Upper back pain and the ring and pinky fingers

My last post discussed the connection between low back pain and a muscle on the front of the torso (the transversus abdominus). This time, let’s look at another common trouble spot: the upper back – specifically, the upper trapezius muscle. This is the muscle that is along the top of your back and the back of your neck.

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Barbara Jean Conti
Happiness and health

If you follow the news, there have been disasters, sad and scary events lately. Not to mention the day-to-day stresses many of us encounter. It can be a challenge to remain upbeat. However, being more positive and happy can provide significant health benefits. While about half of our disposition is innate, that leaves a lot of room for us to take steps to improve our outlook. If you need motivation to work on being happier, here are reasons to make the effort.

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Barbara Jean Conti
The conventional wisdom

A question came up recently about an appointment schedule that does not match the conventional wisdom for structural integration. I learned – and other practitioners seem to agree – that a person should not receive sessions too close together. The body, I was told, needs several days to integrate the work received before getting new input. That seems to make sense. In addition, when I received the series during my training, I felt like I had too much work in too short a time by the end of my classes.

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Barbara Jean Conti