PatSamples

What About Sex?

Author of Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz A friend recently shared with me the history of her most significant sexual memories. She wasn’t doing this to brag or titillate. She was doing it to heal what hurt. She wanted someone who cared about her to hear and understand what she’d been through in the course of her life. I was touched that she trusted me with this very personal and painful story. So much about our sexual lives we keep secret. The social taboos against talking about it are huge. Many people never reveal the wounds of sexual abuse that make them feel ashamed, angry, and confused. Others worry that they’re not doing sex the “right” way or often enough, yet rely on the tabloids or TV and movie images rather than honest conversation with others to get a read on their situation. Some people long to be touched and held, but have no one available, and they’re afraid to let anyone know about their desires. And there are still others who have a great sex life that stays a secret outside their intimate relationship. It seems so odd to me that most of us rarely talk directly about the subject except in a humorous way. The older we get, the less is said. Sex is supposed to be for the young, it seems. More…

Having a Sexual Body

Author, Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Bellywww.bodyodyssey.biz  We're sexual beings, regardless of our age. But how is that experience of being a sexual person different after 50? What makes you feel like a man or a woman? How do you express and enjoy your sexuality? More…

C'mon, Let's Play

Author, Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz A surprising number of people have told me they don’t remembering playing much as a child. Even more say they don’t really know how to play now that they’re older. But we all played as children. Perhaps, if you grew up in an abusive, alcoholic, or otherwise restrictive or intimidating home environment, it didn’t always feel safe to play. But children inevitably find some way to imagine, make-believe, and explore their world creatively. Remember shining flashlights on the wall and making shadow figures with your hands? What about shaping mud pies, building snow forts, or playing school? More…

Losing Your Memory? Your Heart Can Help

Author, Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Your heart has some surprising powers.  Scientists who study the electromagnetic energy of the heart are discovering that your heart has its own “brain” that sends certain kinds of information and instructions to the brain in your head. In other words, your heart has its own intelligence. It even has a memory. What a relief to know there may be a backup if your brain memory seems to be on hold! More…

"Thank You" Is Good for Your Health

Author, Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Have you said "Thank You" lately? Feeling and expressing appreciation is not just a nice thing to do. It actually changes your body. It improves your health. Japanese researcher Masaru Emoto illustrates through dramatic photographs that words and thoughts change the molecular makeup of water. When prayers or words of love and appreciation are spoken near water, the water develops a well-defined, spectacularly beautiful crystalline structure. By contrast, negative words spoken near the water dissipate the crystals or generate amorphous, grotesque-looking clusters.  Since our bodies are made up mostly of water, it's easy to conclude that the body’s makeup is also affected by our thoughts and words. Researchers are exploring this likelihood. More…

Make Meaning of Your Losses Through Rituals

Author, Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Birthdays are celebrated with cake, candles, and presents. Weddings and funerals have another set of rituals for acknowledging big life changes. But what about those everyday “moments” that represent significant changes in our lives – especially losses? How can we give meaning to the emotional upheavals that go with major job changes, living in a new place, saying good-bye as good friends move away? More…

Your Body Can Be Perfect Now!

Author of Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Ever watch the 3 a.m. TV shows that promise (Call now! Satisfaction guaranteed!) nonstop for a full 30 minutes that your life will be forever changed by buying their product right now? I took the Saturday night watch with a woman who is dying this weekend, spending 12 hours at her bedside. The TV stayed on the whole time. She wanted it on, even though she slept almost the entire time I was with her. (What strange accompaniment these late-night comics and product pushers would make, I thought, should this woman pass on into the next world as I sat there.) More…

Have Trouble Staying Awake?

Author of Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Last time I wrote, I shared ideas on how to get to sleep. Now I want to talk about how to stay awake. I nodded off in a business meeting this week. Admittedly, there was good reason. I'd had to get up before 4 a.m. to catch a flight that morning and felt sleep-deprived. But it was a good reminder to me how often I "fall asleep" in my day-to-day life. I don't mean that I'm a laggard or that I physically doze off a lot while I'm working. What I'm talking about is not staying fully awake in the sense of being conscious -- aware and fully engaged in my life. I find myself zoning out all too often, especially in groups. I'm not really listening to what people are saying, or I let someone else take the lead or make the decisions rather than fully participate myself. Do you ever have that experience? More…

Have Trouble Falling Asleep?

Author of Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz Oh, those restless nights, when nodding off seems impossible! I’ve had my share of them. I’ll bet you have, too.  Yesterday I heard a wonderful solution from a woman who devised a way to fall asleep when she was a kid. Her solution offers some valuable lessons about how to live in the now. More…

How To Stay Cool in the Heat

Author of Body Odyssey: Lessons from the Bones and Belly www.bodyodyssey.biz  Has the heat been sizzling where you are lately? It was nearly a hundred degrees much of the past week where I live. Everything and everyone outdoors was hot. That is, except for the kids next door. More…