Blog post by Stephanie Bersh, Simply Bee resident yoga teacher

I had the pleasure of co-hosting a wellness workshop with our therapist Jacqueline Ritz, LCPC. We created this workshop in response to the overwhelm and stress so many of us are feeling as our lives return back to a busier state post-pandemic.  As a provider for mental health, we understand how much of a toll stress can place on our emotional state and physical bodies. Our goal was to share tools that would help us manage that stress and find more peace to quiet the constant chatter and to-do list in our heads.

As we joined together on the mat, we spoke about the shift back to busy schedules and overly demanding days. We shared our struggles to quiet our minds and the exhaustion felt from overactive thoughts rooted in stress and anxiety. 

Jacqueline started with a breathing technique called Wim Hof that had us move through multiple cycles of deep breathing and a long hold at the end of the breath cycle. ...

Things Are Changing

In the last twelve months I have found people accepting that mental health is real in all of us.

Therapy is trending, anxiety is a buzz word, and mental health is a common discussion in the media...and for that I say  HALLELUJAH.

But...

what what if therapy is not available?  

What if you are not ready for therapy?

What if therapy is too expensive?

What if you are curious about mental health and you don't know where to start?

What if you need a break from therapy?

Where do you go when you need a inspiration and new ideas to keep your mental health, healthy?

Despite all of this you are are struggling with accountability, consistency and inspiration.

You. Are. Not. Alone.

Man·tra /ˈmantrə/
noun: mantra; plural noun: mantras
A word or sound repeated to aid concentration in meditation; a Vedic hymn.

I use a mantra to guide and inspire me. I like to think of it as a daily message guiding my path, a place to return to and encourage me to move forward. Typically when we want to create change in our life, we use goals or resolutions to keep us on track. However, goals and resolutions require structure and planning. They require lists and when I fail to check off the boxes on the lists, I am constantly faced with disappointment. When I work with a personal mantra, I have more freedom. My mantra gently guides me to what I want to manifest. Sometimes it is a word or phrase that I need in a pivotal moment in my life or sometimes my mantra will change based on circumstance. At the beginning of every year, I always begin with a new mantra to open the door to all the possibilities I can manifest.

As educators, creating a mantra at the start of the school year...

The COVID-19 pandemic crashed down on me like a fierce mid-afternoon thunderstorm.  It was unexpected, jarring and left me soaking wet in disbelief. It seemed that no matter where I turned, the rain surrounded me. At first I accepted the rain, then I refused it, then I briefly tricked myself into using playfulness to temporarily deny the reality of what was happening. But then I was forced (quite literally) into shelter and forced to fall on my knees and surrender to the storm that has still yet to pass.

Every day this week, I wake up in hope that it will stop raining—but I look and only see flooding all around me. I pray for relief—but I am only met with uncertainty. The despair creeps in and I can no longer fight the rain. But even in dark hours when the rain is beating down on me, I force myself to find my inner voice of hope. Sometimes, I hear a little whisper that tells me that I will survive. I hear the whisper in the dark hours and it reminds me...

The universe is calling to reorganize your life.  Your life has a funny way of revealing what next steps of growth are required of you. It is hard to change the path you have been on because to change your course of direction is a call to walk into the unknown. The unknown place is like dropping you off into the woods with no compass to guide you. When you arrive at this unknown place you look outside of yourself, for a trail carved into the earth by somebody else. This unconscious urge to find a forged path will always be your initial response to crisis but this is not the task at hand, the task is to discover your own course that includes physical, mental and emotional skills that will serve you now and far beyond.

It’s time to stop looking around to see if someone else has figured it out. It’s time to turn inward and discover that it is your job to figure out your own strength and aptitude to move forward.

“You might be tempted to avoid the messiness of...

A letter to my fear...

Your mind is telling you to stay calm but your gut is telling you that something terrible is happening. It’s hard to find a compromise between these two places.

As homosapiens we struggle to hold the balance between good and bad. We want to decide, is this going to be okay or is this going to be bad? It’s important to notice that inclination to “choose” a side.

But be careful if you do because attaching to either one disqualifies the other and therefore disqualifies the gut feelings and the minds reactions. Instead allow yourself to have vastly different feelings and thoughts at any time.

Accept your negative feelings and thoughts and also your positive ones. Let yourself feel the spectrum of the human emotions.

No one said this would be easy.

No one said you will have all of the right answers.

You are allowed to worry, be afraid and also find reassurance through hope and love.

It’s okay to see this time as an opportunity...

Really, there is no difference between growing a baby and growing a business. Like motherhood, I had no control over timing, pace or creation. What I was growing had a mind of it’s own. I had no idea what was happening inside of me and each month as it grew, I was thrilled. In that time, I was growing ideas and dreaming of possibilities. I was full of excitement and worry, fear, promise and doubt.

Today I celebrate the conception of Simply Bee, an idea that grew within me one year ago today. Little did I know then, how quickly it would be born and the wonderful people it would bring together.

One year ago at the Himalayan Institute, I found clarity and direction at a yoga retreat that allowed me to have a silent mind and listen to a heart that needed to speak.

I discovered how simple it was to “just bee me” with no fear, shame, judgement or static noise from the outside world.

Here is where I began to nurture baby bee.

Like motherhood, I had no control over timing,...

Throughout the gentle yoga practice, I stopped and journaled. Usually I jotted down a question and continue to move and process. It’s a form of meditation that I’ve learned to use to help with my busy ‘hamster wheel mind.’ My question was, “what is needed?” As I moved and engaged with the women and girls in the room, I had my answer! All I had to do was put my two conscious words together “NEED” and “AWAKE”.

I’ve been lucky in my life. I’ve been surrounded by strong women in my life who always showed up real, unscripted and fallible.

Yesterday at the Mother + Daughter Workshop was no different. I was again surrounded by a group of strong women and girls who showed up for each other in a way that is vulnerable and real. Often times, we moms will shy away from a difficult conversation, like body image and self-care, because the discomfort is too much. Sometimes it’s our own discomfort but quite often,...