Fostering Compassion in Children

We’re all in this together! Just like you, I’m trying my best to make the world a better place for our children. I believe one of the first places to start is by prioritizing compassion and making kindness a part of their everyday routine.

By emphasizing compassion in young people, we can help to prevent emotional, physical, and verbal behaviours from manifesting. There have been all types of anti-bullying campaigns out there - I believe that what we focus on expands, and sometimes these campaigns can have an adverse effect. I personally favor an approach that would teach pro-kindness and pro-compassion. Compassion is the foundation for everything; teaching compassion in schools would help unite us all.

There are different ways parents and teachers can help develop compassion in our young people. The first way is by showing compassion and kindness to the people in our lives; including our children. We have to be a role model because children learn from observing. Begin by letting them experience compassion first-hand. Being aware when a child is down or not feeling well, and demonstrating tenderness, attention, love, and care exemplifies how they can be compassionate to others.

Having children become aware of others is another way to teach compassion. There are a variety of different organizations that are in need of volunteers. Now, more than ever, there is a need for support and necessities - it is the perfect opportunity to help out others if you’re able to.

 Some ideas:

-          Have them volunteer their time by reading to a senior

-          Have them help with food drives

-          Work as a family to donate meals to people in need

-          Donate used clothes to children in need

-          Provide food to the food bank

Lastly, we can have children help take care of younger children or pets. They could take the dog for a walk, feed them, just general care behavior. Another idea, is reading to a younger child, helping them with their homework, or spending special time in general. Caring for a pet or younger child teaches children things beyond just compassion; it teaches responsibility, love, empathy, and patience just to name a few!

All these ideas will lead them to becoming more compassionate beings. Opportunities to show compassion are all around us. Be on the lookout for ways to demonstrate kindness and compassion.

Until next time….engage in acts of service for others!

Wendy Who?

Happy New Year!

As I sit down to write this blog, I realize that I’ve never really talked about me or who I am. Obviously you all know by now that I meditate regularly and try to live my life in the present moment, but you may be wondering how I got here. To start off, I am extremely passionate about mental and emotional well-being; specifically, for children. My passion and my life’s work are dedicated to empowering our children. My favorite thing to do is provide them with strategies and tools to help decrease stress and anxiety, while increasing self-esteem and self-awareness.

After I graduated from University, and even before, I was working with children. That was almost 30 years ago. I worked both within the education system and out. I teach classes, workshops, and seminars to both adults and children for self-development, stress management, and mental and emotional well-being.

My journey began with my own health problems in which stress and anxiety played a large role. I struggled with major health issues and realized that if I didn’t change something in my life, I may not be around long enough to watch my children grow. For more detailed information on that, you can read “My Story” on my website.

I began meditating, reading, and taking classes to get my stress and anxiety under control. The book that catapulted me into my spiritual journey was, “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron. From there, the learning continued. Some of my mentors include: Wayne Dyer, Gabrielle Bernstein, Glennon Doyle and Brene Brown. As I continued to feel healthier both physically and mentally, I knew that I had to share what I’ve learnt with the world. Thus, my training began!

I started with becoming certified as a Child Meditation Facilitator. After that, I continued to train in many different modalities. My certifications include: Primordial Sound Meditation, angel card reader, past life regression, and mediumship. I also have many other courses that are all related to mental and emotional well-being.

Now my focus is on teaching children how to manage their worries and fear. I give them strategies to help with anxiety while teaching them how to understand their feelings and emotions, and communicate them in a healthy way. I also teach sport and mental preparation to athletes and teams.

I have written a book that will be out in February for parents, teachers, caregivers, coaches or anyone who is involved with children. The book will give tools and strategies that you can teach to our children to help enhance their mental health.

So, that’s a little bit about me! I still struggle with my ups and downs; I have days when I don’t want to get out of bed and feel down in the dumps. What I’ve come to realize is thus is life. It’s messy, unpredictable, and filled with highs and lows. The only thing we can do is hang on for the ride, and find joy in the ordinary moments. If I’m having one of those days, I just ride the wave and feel those emotions that need to be felt. The one constant in life is that it’s always changing, both the good and the bad - that we can be sure of.  To help me through it all, I know that I have a backpack full of strategies I can reach for at anytime.

Thank you for letting me share a part of me.  Until next time….ride the wave!

Meditation during Hibernation

That’s a wrap - another Christmas officially in the books! I think its fair to conclude that this holiday season was unfamiliar, odd, and definitely lonely for many.

Personally, I really missed my family. In light of their absence, I became extremely grateful for technology. If you know me at all, you know that these words have never crossed my lips. In fact, to me technology is SCARY! I have a hard enough time turning on my laptop, let alone navigating Zoom calls, group Facetime etc.

If anything, the pandemic has pushed me out of my comfort zone. I’ve accepted and adapted to our “new normal” and in turn, learnt new ways of doing things. Yes, I’m a creature of habit that typically prefers to stay in my comfort zone, but I’m beginning to become a little more accepting of technology because it allows me to stay connected with my family and friends at this time.

One thing that keeps me connected to my thoughts and emotions during these times is meditation (I know, I know, I sound like a broken record) Meditation helps me to remain present and aware - I believe that living in the present moment is where we experience the least amount of stress.

Stress evolves from dwelling on past events and worrying about the future “what ifs”. Often times, these “what ifs” never happen. Therefore, the only thing that happens when we worry about the past and the future is the destruction of our peace in the present moment. Meditating helps me to become aware of my thoughts. Understanding your thoughts through awareness helps you identify whether you’re in a fear-based thought or a good- feeling thought. After that identification, the choice is always yours!

Meditation is an activity you can do as a family. I suggest starting with guided meditations. Even as an experienced meditator, I still practice guided meditations. There are a variety of these available all over the internet – find one that resonates with you. Along with practicing, I also write meditations. If you click on the “meditation” tab on my website, there’s a free children’s meditation you can do as a family. I plan to post some free audio ones catered for adults in the next month.

Begin with finding a position (sitting or laying) that’s comfortable. Close your eyes and play your chosen meditation. I suggest beginning with one that’s around five minutes. As the family becomes more familiar with the process, you may want to start playing ones that are a little longer.

Once the meditation finishes, take the time to discuss what each person saw, felt, or heard during their meditation. This also opens doors for discussion about how everyone is feeling. Meditation really does bring up a lot of unexpected emotions. If children have a hard time verbalizing their emotions, you could have them draw a picture of their experience or ask them to write about it. Guided meditations will definitely help everyone stay connected and are a great activity for the family to do while at home.

Hopefully, this is another strategy to help us all adapt to our new reality.

Until next time...try meditation!

All my love and support.

An Attitude of Gratitude

You did it! You survived another week in these crazy times. With the Christmas rush upon us, I want to encourage you to be easy on yourself. Practice gratitude, self-love, self-compassion and remember that no one is perfect. In fact, the beauty of each of us is our imperfections. We’re all trying to do the best we can in these times. It’s unfamiliar territory, however you and your family are navigating these times is enough. It really doesn’t matter if the house gets cleaned this week, or if you didn’t wash your hair - what does matter is staying healthy and connected.

I think a great activity to practice with your family is gratitude and appreciation for what you do have. It will help take your minds off of the pandemic and the losses being suffered. Let’s focus on the good things that are still apart of our lives. No matter how difficult things are, there are still so many things to be grateful for! When I practice gratitude, I experience more joy. This doesn’t mean I’m happy all the time. Joy and happiness are separate experiences. Joyfulness is tied to gratitude and it isn’t a constant feeling. It comes and goes, which means we must find joy in the ordinary moments. This time especially serves as a reminder for how special ordinary, everyday moments are.

There are many different ways to practice gratitude. The most important thing is making gratitude apart of your daily lives. Consistency is key in order to feel the benefits that gratitude provides. Gratitude is a feeling, an emotion. It’s that warm feeling you get inside when you are kind to another person. You may wish to go around the dinner table and say one thing you are grateful for that day. If it’s been one of those days and you weren’t able to have dinner together, make it part of your bedtime routine.

Another option is to start a gratitude journal. Each morning, write in your journal three things that you are grateful for. It takes minimal time and is a wonderful way to start your day! Because as Louise Hay always said, “how you start your day is how you live your day and how you live your day is how you live your life!”

A gratitude jar can also be beneficial for the family. Have each individual write something that they are grateful for that day. Put it in a jar and then read them every couple of weeks together.

Gratitude is an excellent way to help balance worry and stress. When practiced consistently it can bring so much joy into our lives. You simply can’t be grateful and worried at the same time - it’s impossible! Staying connected and providing each of us with avenues to express gratitude is one of the best ways to make it through these times.

Until next time… practice gratitude!

All my love and support are with you!

Staying Connected

It’s understandable that both children and adults are having a difficult time adjusting to the pandemic. Like all of us, our children are dealing with unfamiliar circumstances and losses. Distance learning, homeschooling, masks at school, loss of extra-curricular, and lack of social activities are just a few of the adjustments being forced upon our children.

In a sense, they are grieving. With grief comes many stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. During this time, we need to provide them with avenues to safely express their feelings. An activity that I encourage for families is circle time.

Choose a time once a week, when the family comes together to discuss what’s going on in their lives. Try your best to keep it consistent using the same time and place each week. Have each family member sit in a circle and begin with 2-3 minutes of breathing. Put on some relaxing music, close your eyes, and simply breathe in and out gently. This is a great tool to bring everyone to the present moment.

Once you have completed your breathing, give each individual the opportunity to talk about their week. This is a safe zone – it’s not a time to complain about what’s not getting done, behaviours etc. We must listen to the speaker without judgement or interruptions. You may want to find an object that the speaker holds. The family member holding the object is the only one allowed to speak. The rest of the group will practice being conscious listeners.

Sometimes we’re so busy, and children feel that there isn’t a “right” time to talk about what’s on their minds. I feel that circle time is an easy, simple way to start. Next time, I will expand on different activities you may want to incorporate in the future.

Until then… all my love and support!