In this age of transparency and vulnerability, when questioned as to whether you believe in Santa or not, you might experience some consternation or dissidence. What do you say without lying or compromising the trust little ones place in you?
Recently my youngest granddaughter confessed she was very concerned that “the Bigs” (meaning the older kids) were telling “the Littles” (the younger kids) that Santa wasn’t real.
Me, the Granny, “Oh, tell me what you believe?”
Granddaughter, “Granny, I don’t have it all figured out yet …. I just think if we keep believin’ then Santa will keep showing up!”
My heart melted. She went on to plead, “Let’s let the Littles believe a little longer!”
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
SWIHA,
KC Miller,
Christmas,
Holistic Education,
Holiday Season,
Blessings,
Christmas 2022,
Santa
“If you give thanks every day, every day is then Thanksgiving!”
Many scientific studies have been done documenting the benefits of gratitude and the practice of giving thanks including a study conducted by the Association of Psychological Science. Their findings showed those who had deeper, vulnerable conversations and made the effort to socialize more frequently with others were significantly and statistically happier and healthier.
Let’s look at six easy steps to ensure your health and happiness using the acronym THANKS.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Gratitude,
SWIHA,
Self-care,
Psychology,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Brene Brown,
chakras,
Holistic Education,
Thanksgiving,
Holiday Season,
Honor,
Giving Thanks,
Chakra System
30 years ago this year, with a prayer and a small loan from my husband, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, came into existence. Starting with two classrooms and 6 students, the college has grown to 16 classrooms, in three buildings, serving nearly 600 on-campus students, and nearly as many online students across the country.
As a longtime student of A Course In Miracles, one day long ago I prayed in earnest what is known as the ‘miracle prayer’: “What would you have me do? Where would you have me go? What would you have me say, and to whom?” From that prayer came the vision of creating a place where individuals could come to discover their gifts, where education would not be a “cookie cutter” experience and where individual expression and diversity was encouraged and honored. Starting as a massage college, SWIHA is striving 30 years later by offering 16 Certificates of Excellences, 10 different diplomas, Associates in Healing Arts, and over 300 individual continuing education classes.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
SWIHA,
KC Miller,
Massage School,
Southwest Institute of Natural Aesthetics,
Arizona,
spirit of yoga,
Tempe,
Yoga studio,
Holistic Education,
Arizona Yoga Studio,
Arizona Massage School,
Thirty Years,
ACCET,
Massage Clinic,
Thirty Year Anniversary,
Thirty and Thriving
What was your life like before SWIHA? What led you to SWIHA and to your particular program of study? Why are you passionate about this modality?
Before SWIHA, I was a Chef who worked long hours at a fine dining farm-to-table restaurant & was a hairstylist on the side. I love to cook and especially loved embracing the sustainability aspect of sourcing our ingredients and how everything connected full circle. Although I loved cooking, as many people know kitchens can be quite a challenging and sometimes toxic environment to be submerged in. At that point in my life, I was deeply depressed and longed to do something that felt more fulfilling to my soul. For me, this "cycle of depression" triggered an awakening of sorts. I began venturing my journey of "internal" personal development (outside my physical fitness) and sought out schools that spoke to my soul path. After studying myself and creating a boatload of interests, everything on my list pointed to holistic health and wellness. I discovered SWIHA at the beginning of my journey and finally answered the call to enroll 10 years later!
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Mindfulness,
Intuition,
Spirit,
Holistic wellness,
Arizona,
Tempe,
community,
Holistic Education,
conscious community,
GRIT,
Divine Timing,
Holistic Health and Wellness Coaching,
Holistic Health and Wellness Coach,
Spiritual Wellbeing,
Microbiome
It is easy to feel self-doubt when you are an aspiring entrepreneur. Imposter syndrome starts to creep into your mind and you begin to feel like you aren’t up to the challenge that a once “eager you” was so excited about. You may even feel the need to protect yourself, stay where you are comfortable, and not really put yourself or your business out there. When this happens, you start holding yourself back from your most true and highest potential. What can you do now? There are many ways to push yourself forward even when it feels uncomfortable! Learn how to ditch your self-doubts with the power of mantras.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Meditation,
Arizona,
mantra,
Tempe,
Om,
mantras,
Holistic Education,
Perspective,
mantra meditation,
Leap of Faith
“Don’t downgrade your dream just to fit your reality. Upgrade your conviction to match your destiny.” - Unknown
Sometimes, dreams can seem too big or scary to achieve. That the road and work will be long and hard, and sometimes even unachievable. Well, what if I told you the only thing standing in your way is you? Rebecca Merrill, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts Great Graduate of the Holistic Nutrition Wellness Practitioner Diploma program, didn’t let that stop her. Although the thoughts of not accomplishing her dreams and goals crossed her mind, she didn’t let that get in her way of living her true purpose of serving others in a meaningful way. Rebecca asserts, “Three years ago, I didn't think where I'm at now was possible. I'm proud of how far I've come and can't wait to see where this journey takes me next.”
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
Great Graduate,
SWIHA,
Holistic wellness,
balance,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Nutrition Coach,
Holistic Education,
Holistic Nutrition Wellness Practitioner,
Health and Wellness,
Health and Wellness Coach
“It was all about taking the leap of faith. It said that the fear that stops us from doing what we really want, is often not based on reality. We shape our fears in our heads, yet things are so much easier than we think.” - Effrosyni Moschoudi, The Flow
Life can often give us a bad hand, and we try out best to navigate through it. It can often be compared to a valley, with high highs and low lows. With the right energy and motivation, we can lift ourselves out of these hardships, and into what we were born to do. Great Graduate, Michelle Brown, of the Integrative Healing Arts Practitioner program, has done just that. Michelle describes some of the hardships she had to go through to get her to SWIHA, and how her life has drastically changed since she made the decision to enroll.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Great Graduate,
SWIHA,
entrepreneur,
Hypnotherapy,
Arizona,
Tempe,
integrative healing arts practitioner,
IHAP,
Holistic Education,
Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapy
Happy National Cabbage Day! With this fabulous calendar holiday, let’s celebrate with some delicious Sauerkraut and Kimchi recipes! Before we get started, it’s important to learn a little more about fermented foods. What are fermented foods? Are they even good for you? Can you eat them? Should you eat them? In many ways, fermented foods can seem a little scary, or overwhelming if you are not used to eating them. They tend to have a really intense taste, however, so worth trying!
Food fermentation is a process that takes advantage of bacteria to alter ingredients. As mentioned before, this process often leads to fairly strong tastes, textures, and flavors. The bacteria partially breaks down the food, which is what creates this flavor and provides various health benefits too! The process in which the bacteria breaks down the food allows for the nutrients to be easier to digest, which in turn, gives you access to more nutrients than normal. Discussed further in the Holistic Nutrition: Raw Food Cuisine class offered here at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, research suggests that this is a great approach for health overall and has many potential health benefits for humans.
Now, let’s dive into the recipes!
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
SWIHA,
Whole Foods,
Recipe,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Raw Foods,
Holistic Education,
National Cabbage Day,
Saurkraut Recipe,
Kimchi Recipe,
Food Fermentation,
Gut Microbiome,
Raw Food Cuisine
Breath and life… when we enter this world we take our first breath, and when we leave this world, we take our last. Breathing seems like it is the most natural bodily function, as we don’t have to think about breathing, every second of every day. However, breath controls so much more in our life than we are aware of. Pranayama. In Sanskrit, Prana translates to “vital life force” and Yama translates to “gain control”. In yoga, breath is associated with Prana, and many ancient breath techniques were born which involve learning how to control your breath with different styles and lengths. When we learn more about the art of breathing, we may be able to take more control of our lives, and not just save our peace for the yoga mat.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
SWIHA,
Yoga Teacher Training,
Breathing Techniques,
yoga,
Arizona,
Breath,
YTT,
Tempe,
Yogi,
Yoga studio,
Holistic Education,
Calm,
My Spirit of Yoga,
Bellows Breath,
Alternate Nostril Breathing,
Tranquility
The concept of energy is very prevalent in the wellness space for entrepreneurs. Your energy and vibes as a business owner have more of an effect on your business than you may realize. When we aren’t careful, or intentional, our energy can affect others and our business in a way we may not have intended. Oftentimes, when things go awry, we look to outside forces that may be causing our goals to not come to fruition. In reality, we should be looking within, and evaluating/reflecting our energy and world. If you don’t like what you see, change something about it! There are so many factors that come into play. When looking to shift your energy, reflect on these 5 traits below, as many successful entrepreneurs in the wellness industry attain these values.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Boundaries,
Holistic Education,
Wellness Industry,
Smart Goals,
Health and Wellness,
Purpose,
Energy,
Wellness Entrepreneur,
Perseverance,
Vibes,
Integrity,
Bravery
