Marya Kazmi is a Transformational Leadership & Identity Coach and educator who helps individuals and organizations examine identity and cultivate values- aligned leadership. Her work is shaped by lived experience and years of professional practice, informing the reflective tools she created to support healing, clarity, and growth. She is the creator of the RETURN framework, which guides people through a process of unlearning, reconnection, and coming home to themselves. Marya is also the executive producer and host of Pain to Power, a talk show exploring leadership, healing, and human-centered change. Her work bridges lived insight with practical strategies, inviting others into a healing evolution rooted in self-trust, belonging, and purpose. Marya Firdausi Kazmi, Transformational Leadership & Identity Coach Who is Marya Kazmi Hay? Please introduce yourself. Marya Kazmi Hay is a Transformational Leadership & Identity Coach, educator, writer, and creative producer whose work lives at the intersection of personal healing and cultural change. As a daughter of immigrants, a single matriarch, and a mother of four, her life has been shaped by questions of identity, belonging, and responsibility in both family and professional spaces. With more than two decades in education, she understands the power of language and awareness to shift lives. Her work blends lived experience with professional expertise, translating complex emotional and social dynamics into practical frameworks individuals and organizations can use in real ways. At the heart of her work is a simple belief, leadership begins with self-understanding. When people examine identity, unlearn limiting patterns, and reconnect with their values, relationships strengthen, cultures shift, and communities thrive. What inspired you to start Brown Girl Interrupting? Brown Girl Interrupting began as truth-telling. It was born from the intersection of my personal healing and my professional work in race and equity. After leaving a long-term, emotionally destructive marriage, I found myself navigating divorce, motherhood across different life stages, and the unlearning of beliefs I had carried about love, strength, and responsibility. Moving from toxicity into what felt like freedom forced me to see the layers of harm that had quietly shaped my children and me. Writing became how I made sense of that. Not as a victim, but as a woman committed to growth, accountability, and authenticity. As a Bangladeshi-Pakistani American woman challenging cultural and relational expectations, my story became one of interruption and resilience. What surprised me was how deeply it resonated. Women began sharing their own stories of silence, over-responsibility, and disconnection from self. Brown Girl Interrupting grew into a space for reflection, healing, and agency. That momentum expanded into Pain to Power, now in its fifth season, where storytelling continues to challenge assumptions and elevate human-centered leadership. Across writing, media, and facilitation, the message remains the same, when we come home to ourselves, we lead differently. What is the core mission of your work with individuals and organizations? My mission is to reconnect people to their humanity so they can build systems that actually sustain them. Healing isn’t separate from leadership, it is leadership. When people feel safe enough to be honest and vulnerable, they develop the awareness and emotional agility needed to lead with clarity and accountability. Individually, this work examines how identity, socialization, and generational patterns shape behavior and decision-making. Naming those patterns breaks cycles that show up in families, partnerships, and workplaces. It increases agency and strengthens communication. Organizationally, I help examine structures and norms that prioritize productivity over humanity. Soft skills like emotional regulation, trust-building, and reflective leadership aren’t soft at all, they’re foundational to adaptability and long-term success. When individuals shift, relationships improve. When relationships improve, culture changes. That ripple effect is the work. How do you help people transform pain into personal power? Pain becomes power when it is understood instead of internalized. I create spaces, through coaching, courses, and facilitated dialogue, where people can examine their experiences within the context of identity and systems, rather than seeing them as personal failure. Using reflective frameworks, I help people identify belief systems and survival strategies that once protected them but now limit growth. In group and organizational spaces, we surface shared patterns and examine how structures reinforce them. From there, we practice new ways of responding, setting boundaries, communicating clearly, and leading with intention. Healing becomes sustainable when insight turns into action. That’s where power lives. What specific services do you offer through your coaching and workshops? All of my services are grounded in the RETURN Framework, Remember, Examine, Transform, Unlearn, Reclaim, and Nurture. It’s a process that moves people from awareness to embodied change. I offer one-on-one and group coaching, leadership workshops, and organizational consulting focused on identity-based leadership and culture transformation. My work includes facilitated dialogue, systems analysis of practices and belief structures, and custom learning experiences for teams. I also lead Empowerment Unlocked, a multi-session course rooted in RETURN. It combines reflection, dialogue, and practical tools that strengthen emotional regulation, self-trust, and values-aligned leadership. Whether coaching individuals or consulting with organizations, the goal is the same, help people come home to themselves so they can transform the systems they are part of. How does your podcast Pain to Power support healing and growth? Pain to Power uses storytelling as a pathway to healing. Through honest conversations and counter-stories, the show challenges stereotypes and expands how we understand identity and leadership. It affirms listeners while offering language and tools to navigate resilience and growth. Stories become mirrors and windows. They help people see themselves and see others more clearly. The platform also elevates smaller businesses and creatives through intentional collaboration and strategic alignment. It is both a healing space and a leadership platform. What makes your approach to healing and self-discovery unique? I don’t separate healing from leadership or personal growth from systems change. My approach integrates identity work, emotional awareness, and structural analysis. Many people can name their pain but don’t know how to move forward. I focus on translation, turning reflection into usable tools through frameworks, dialogue, and practice. Because my work is rooted in both lived experience and professional expertise, it resonates across personal and organizational contexts. Healing isn’t something separate from everyday life. It becomes integrated into how we think, communicate, and lead. Can you share a success story where someone experienced real change through your work? One client first worked with me in a professional setting, seeking support with team dynamics and high-tension moments. Through structured reflection and dialogue tools, she began responding differently under pressure. That work led her into deeper personal growth through my course, where she recognized how the patterns at work were connected to her identity and leadership story. Another woman came to me after a separation, beginning to name the reality of a long-term narcissistic relationship. Our coaching centered on mindset shifts and grounding practices. Over time, her decisions became more intentional. She moved from survival to stability, rooted in clarity and self-trust. For me, success is when insight becomes everyday practice. When people begin living and leading differently because they understand themselves differently. What challenges do your clients most commonly face before they work with you? Most clients arrive capable but exhausted. They try to control outcomes or manage everyone around them to feel safe. They overgive. They lose themselves. Often, productivity has replaced self-worth. In leadership spaces, this shows up as unclear communication, avoidance of difficult conversations, or overfunctioning instead of building shared ownership. Many leaders sense inefficiency or disengagement but haven’t yet connected it to deeper patterns shaped by identity and belief systems. They’re not looking to be stronger. They’re looking to feel whole, grounded, and aligned. How do you help businesses build inclusive and equitable cultures? I help organizations examine how identity, power, and unspoken norms shape everyday culture. The work begins by creating conditions where people feel safe enough to engage honestly across differences. From there, we analyze policies, leadership habits, and belief systems that reinforce inequity or foster belonging. Inclusion becomes sustainable when it is embedded in how leaders communicate, collaborate, and make decisions, not treated as an add-on initiative. Humanity and performance are not competing priorities. They strengthen each other. What’s one message you want every reader to take away about healing and empowerment? Healing doesn’t mean we are broken. It means we’ve been conditioned into patterns that no longer serve us. Coming home to ourselves means honoring who we are across the intersections of our identity and choosing response over reaction. When individuals do this work, they reclaim agency. When organizations do this work, cultures shift. Empowerment interrupts generational harm and replaces it with intentional leadership and healthier systems, for ourselves and for those who come after us. Additional thoughts Beyond coaching and consulting, my work extends into storytelling, production, and public dialogue because I believe culture shifts when conversations shift. As the executive producer and host of Pain to Power, I’ve learned that media is not just content, it’s leadership in action. The way we ask questions, hold space, and elevate counterstories shapes how people see themselves and one another. Production and hosting have strengthened my ability to facilitate high-stakes conversations across differences. Whether I’m moderating a panel, leading a workshop, or interviewing a guest, I’m attuned to identity, power, and the emotional undercurrents that influence dialogue. That awareness allows me to create rooms, virtual or in person, where people can be honest without losing structure or purpose. I also serve as a keynote speaker and facilitator for organizations navigating cultural change, leadership development, and equity-centered growth. My goal in every space is the same, move beyond surface-level conversations and into reflection that leads to practice. The work I do is not theoretical. It is lived, structured, and scalable. If this work resonates with you, I invite you to connect. I partner with leaders, teams, and organizations ready to strengthen culture, deepen self-awareness, and lead with greater clarity and accountability. You can explore my writing, listen to Pain to Power, or reach out directly to discuss coaching, consulting, or speaking engagements. Transformation begins with a conversation. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Marya Firdausi Kazmi

Written by Josh Kerpan, Success Coach Josh Kerpan is a business owner and coach who empowers people to pursue their God-given potential in business, family, and life through mentorship, modeling, and practical systems that create clarity, freedom, and sustainable growth. Will it be yes or no? What do you choose? How do you choose? Do you even have the ability to choose, or is the choice already made for you? This article will explore the power of choice and how it shapes your life and business. By understanding and harnessing this power, you can take control and direct your future. Have you come up with an answer yet? You are likely frustrated and about to move on to the following article if I don’t explain myself soon! ​ Do we really choose? I didn’t give any context to the question, it’s hypothetical in nature, intended to make you think about whether or not you have the power to choose. I think it is reasonably obvious that you do have that power, and if you have that power for one decision, then it means you can exert that power over any decision. The consequence is that you can direct your life and are responsible for the results you get based on the decisions you make. ​ Willpower and responsibility It’s called willpower, your free will, the ability to choose. The concept of willpower is linked closely to discipline. When we think of discipline, we think about doing the right thing. But relying on discipline to do the right thing is somewhat of an illusion. Studies show  95% of the things we do, the actions we take, come directly out of our subconscious, our paradigm, the multitude of habits fixed in our subconscious mind. Those habits result from ideas accepted as truth. Those ideas originated as thoughts. You are currently experiencing the results of your past thoughts. So when you use your willpower to choose, you are choosing what to think. ​ Infinite potential, real weight There is some debate about free will and whether it even exists. When we study quantum mechanics and the activity of the smallest known particles in the universe, it becomes clear that there is no certainty in predicting the future. These particles exist in a superposition, meaning they are in every possible state at once until they are observed. It's mind-bending stuff. This idea mirrors our own potential, as we are capable of countless possibilities until we act or make a choice. It shows that our potential is as boundless as the universe when viewed through this lens of quantum uncertainty. ​ That’s exciting stuff, and a lot of responsibility. In the immortal words of Marty McFly, “That’s heavy!” But it's this very weight that makes every decision meaningful, each choice an opportunity to shape your future in line with your deepest values. ​ Paradigms shape outcomes Paradigms are the set of subconscious beliefs that create the lens through which you interpret the world. ​ Habit installation Your brain is created in such a way that it tries to make a habit out of everything you do, and it is very good at it. There's a good reason for this, too. When you store behaviors as habits, you can execute much of what is necessary to live life without using conscious energy. This frees up your higher intellectual skills to solve bigger problems, like quickly fixing that spreadsheet glitch at work or deciding how to address world hunger! By conserving cognitive energy, you can become more efficient in your work tasks and have more brainpower for creative endeavors. ​ Your habits are stored as ideas that you have accepted as truth. Now, you may not remember accepting them as truth, and that is because the subconscious mind cannot accept or reject. You can consciously reject ideas, but there was a time when your conscious abilities were not developed to the point needed to reason with all of the new ideas you were being introduced to. ​ Unexamined beliefs Most of the ideas in your paradigm were etched in before you were 7 years old, and most people never do the work to examine the roots of the things they believe to be true. A woman was making a ham for Thanksgiving, and her daughter asked her why she cut the ends off the ham. She had no answer other than that it was what her mother did. So she asked her mother why she did it. Her mother explained that it was because she had done it. When the eldest generation was asked why she cut the ends off her ham, she exclaimed, "Because otherwise it wouldn’t fit in the pan!  ​ You may be feeling slightly less empowered now, knowing that your paradigms were installed long ago. But the good news is you can change, you can start leaving your ham intact if you have a big enough pan! Recent research  into adult neuroplasticity shows that the human brain is capable of significant adaptation and change throughout life. The evidence supports the idea that changing your habits and paradigms is not just possible, but a natural capability of the brain. ​ Neuroplasticity – Old dogs, new tricks There is an old saying that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. I can’t say for sure how it works with dogs, but I do know that humans can, and should, continue learning and changing throughout their lives. ​ From thought to habit Every day, your brain is busy making new brain cells. Each one has your DNA, just like every other cell in your body, but the way that DNA shows up is different in each cell. What makes the difference? It comes down to the energy required to form those cells, which we’ve learned from the study of epigenetics. ​ Every day, we form new cells with new genetic coding, containing new thoughts and ideas. When we focus thought energy on these ideas long enough, they grow into self-sustaining ideas at about 21 days. If we nurture that idea long enough ( studies show  about 66 days or more), it will reach automaticity, otherwise known as a new habit! ​ If you have habits you want to change but feel stuck, you’re not out of options. All you need is a new idea. Focus on it every day for at least 66 days, and it will replace the old habit. Before you know it, you’ll be seeing new results from your new way of thinking. ​ Choosing differently Does it sound easy? The truth is, the steps are simple, but sticking with them takes real commitment and a genuine desire to grow. If you want more out of life, you can have it. This is the process that will help you get there. If you want a better life, you now have the master toolkit, powered by thought and directed by your free will. Remember, your potential is limitless, and every choice you make is a step toward the future you desire. Seize the journey with confidence and the belief that you can transform your dreams into reality. If you want to learn more about what your life and business could look like with better habits, learn more on my website . Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn for more info! Read more from Josh Kerpan Josh Kerpan, Success Coach Josh Kerpan is a business owner and coach who helps people step out of the operator trap and pursue their God-given potential in business, family, and life. Through mentorship and modeling, he teaches practical systems for clarity, delegation, and intentional leadership. His work is grounded in real-world ownership, disciplined thinking, and the belief that businesses should support a well-lived life, not replace it.

Written by Kicki Katarina Hjortmarker, Holistic Bodyworker Kicki Hjortmarker is known for her broad knowledge and extensive experience working with the human body and mind to heal injuries and chronic pain conditions. She is the founder of Swedish Balance, dedicated to help people live a balanced life pain-free. Chronic lower back pain is rarely caused by one single issue. In this article, we explore the often-overlooked role of the psoas muscle and how tension, imbalance, lifestyle habits, and stress can affect the lower back. You’ll discover holistic, body-aware approaches to easing pain, restoring balance, and supporting long-term healing. The role of the psoas Since the  psoas   is such a central muscle in the body, connecting the lower and upper body through the lumbar spine, running along the inside of the pelvic bone, and attaching to the inner thigh (the lesser trochanter), it has a major impact on the lower back. If it shortens or tightens, it literally pulls on the lower spine, the discs, and the vertebrae. It gets tighter with a lot of sitting since it’s in constant contraction. When it’s shortened, it will pull the lumbar spine forward and down. So, when you stand up, the lower back will feel tight or compressed, but you were just fine as long as you were sitting. If you also see that your bottom sticks out more than usual, it’s a sign of a tight psoas. You can also check if your lower belly protrudes more, your hip bones point downward slightly, or your lower back arches deeply. The psoas can simultaneously be too tight on one side and too weak on the other side, and thereby it’s creating an imbalance and lower back pain. Another aspect of the psoas is its location behind the intestines. A tight psoas can put pressure on the intestines, and you end up with constipation or diarrhea without having any idea why your stomach is upset. This pressure can lead to tension and pain in your lower back as well.   10 last tips to conquer lower back pain 1. Psoas Things you can do to loosen up the psoas: Lie down on a foam roller horizontally and place it under your sacrum (the very lowest part of your spine, above your tailbone. Your gluteus muscles and your piriformis are attached here.) Your upper back will be on the floor, and your hips will be elevated on the foam roller. Start with bent knees as the psoas responds better to a gentle stretch and softening rather than an aggressive stretch. After you feel that the psoas has softened, you can go ahead and lengthen your legs if you’d like. Slow pendulum-like leg movements when standing on one leg can also help ease the tension. Another way is to put a ball on the floor, then gently lie down on the ball, on the side of your stomach/inside of your pelvic bone, face down. Brace yourself with your arm strength to not put too much pressure on this delicate area, as you will push intestines to the side when trying to reach the psoas and illiopsoas. Do not try this if you believe you might have fragile stomach tissues or if you don’t have enough arm strength to brace yourself! Doing a hip flexor stretch can also be helpful. Stand on your knees. Put one leg out in front of the body (Like a lunge), knee bent at a 90 degree angle. One foot and one leg are now in front of you. You might want to hold onto a wall or chair on one side to help you balance. Your torso should be upright. However, if your psoas is super tight, you won’t be able to hold your torso upright here. The same thing goes if your major hip flexor is really tight. If it’s no problem for you to stand here, start to bend the leg in front of you while your torso is still straight up, and go as far as you can to get a good stretch. You should feel a stretch in front of the hip and thigh. You might even feel a slight stretch into the stomach. Sitting “Indian style” is also a way to open up the psoas and get it to relax. If none of the above is working, seek help from a bodyworker or similar professional who can help release the psoas with manual work. A professional can work hands-on of the inside of your pelvic bone, and close to the spine, to release the psoas. You can also get help with active releases and exercises specific for your needs.   2. Abdominals I’m mentioning the abs just briefly here, as it is so individual how to strengthen the abs to not make things worse. I work with a lot of people who will easily “throw their back out” if they start strengthening their abs on their own. So, something that is safe for almost all will be to do a “C-curve”. I wouldn’t recommend this if you have a herniated or bulging disc, though. Wait until it’s healed. Sit on your sit bones (Ischial tuberosity) either on the floor or on the edge of a chair. Bend your legs towards your chest, and let your knees fall open to the sides. Keep the bottom of your feet towards each other. You can place your hands on the outside of your legs. Slowly and slightly, inch by inch, roll behind your sit bones and roll onto your sacrum, so that you create a C-curve with your spine. Make sure that your legs stay open. This is to make sure that you don’t start to work with your psoas and major hip flexor instead of with your lower abs. Repeat this as long as it feels good, doesn’t strain your back, and as long as it feels like you’re using your abdominals only. Also, pay attention to whether you have the same amount of weight on each sit bone. If not, adjust. This means that you will have to soften/let go of the side that has less contact with the floor. It can be helpful to put a hand on the tighter side and imagine that you exhale through the tension. 3. Pilates and yoga Pilates and Yoga are excellent exercise forms to help your back heal. The two forms have much in common, but a true yogi would disagree since yoga really is about meditation. True yoga is about meditation, and the exercises are meant to prepare the body for quiet meditation in stillness. However, for an unstable back and an unstable core, I prefer Pilates because you are supported by equipment. It’s very safe for your body! I strongly recommend taking private classes until you are stronger, or there is a significant risk that you work incorrectly and hurt yourself. I meet way too many people who are unaware of their body movements and restrictions, and end up hurting themselves in a class with multiple people, more so in a yoga class, since yoga is usually done without supportive equipment. Pilates is great because it will strengthen your whole body with a focus on the core. It will improve posture, increase flexibility, and build full-body strength. It supports healthy, balanced, and efficient movements. The Pilates method emphasis is on controlled movements, precise, and intentional. The emphasis is also on breath coordinated with movement, deep core activation, neutral spine alignment, balanced muscle development, and mind-body awareness.   4. Stretching The most natural stretch for your lower back would be to curl up in a ball, but it won’t have a long lasting affect. Instead: Lie down on the floor and pull one leg into the chest at a time to get a gluteus stretch. Press the other leg down onto the floor, and you might experience a slight stretch in front of the thigh and hip as well. Release tension of your spine both in flexion and extension. The Cat-Cow stretch is great for this: Stand on hands and knees. Arch your back up to the sky (cat), pull your belly in slightly, and drop your head down. Reverse the movement and drop your back down/ arching down as you lift your head up. Repeat at least five times, and increase the range of motion each time. Supine twist: Lie down on your back, bring your knees towards your chest, and tip both knees to one side. Look the opposite way to get a complete spine twist. Then reverse. Release the psoas: If your back is arching constantly, and your belly protrudes, then your psoas is too tight. To stretch and release the psoas, see note 11 “Psoas” above. Hamstring stretch: Lie on your back. Lift one leg and loop a strap under the foot. Pull the strap with the leg towards your face. If it’s too much of a stretch, you can use a towel instead and place it somewhere under your leg, and keep it slightly bent. Then pull the leg towards your face. Open up the hips and release the lower back by taking a wide stance. Bend your knees and sit down as far to the floor as your knees allow. Drop your bottom towards the floor, and also drop your tailbone towards the floor. Put your hands on the floor for support. Drop your head towards your chest to get a complete spine stretch.   5. Homeopathic remedies, ice, heat, shower, and other topical solutions A great homeopathic treatment for your back is ice and heat. If you are achy and have had discomfort for a long time, heat can work really well to loosen up tension. If you recently injured yourself, it’s safer to go with ice. When it comes to an acute or recent injury, there is often severe inflammation involved. You want to make sure to ice this, and “not put more heat on the fire!” In some situations, it’s helpful to use both heat and ice: Put ice on the part of the body that feels hot due to inflammation and keep it on for 10-20 minutes several times a day. At the same time, you can put heat on another body part that feels tight but not hot (usually you don’t feel pain here) to create relaxation of the whole body. You can also switch between heat and ice on your injured area once the inflammation has calmed down to increase circulation. The tissues will be cycling between vasodilation (blood vessels open) and vasoconstriction (blood vessels narrow). Take a nice hot shower to relax the tension in your whole body, and thereby take the edge off the tension in your injured area. Regarding ointments, Arnica is a go-to topical solution for inflammation and bruises. A topical Cayenne pepper ointment with its active ingredient Capsaicin and Vitamin C has a variety of benefits, such as being anti-inflammatory. It also supports collagen synthesis. Analgesics such as peppermint gels can be affective short term. The last few years CBD oil has also become very popular as it has the capability of decreasing pain, but, it needs to be a trustworthy brand and its efficacy has to do with how it has been sourced. Additionally, some of my clients swear by lidocaine patches.   6. Supplements and medication Magnesium - rich foods and supplements are helpful for spasms and cramps. Ibuprofen is also an over-the-counter medication for minor aches and pains, such as headaches, muscle aches, arthritis, and backaches. If your pain is severe, ibuprofen might not help you. However, the prescription dosage is much higher than what you can buy over the counter, and that can possibly ease your pain. High-quality bioavailable turmeric is also helpful in reducing inflammation in the body.   7. Get help Having work done by a professional on tissues that affect traumatized nerves, muscles, and discs will help create more space and bring blood flow to the area to clear up inflammation. If your condition is severe, you may want to consult with your doctor to see if bodywork is safe for you. Get help from a professional who does bodywork such as Manual Tissue Release, Trigger Point release/Neuromuscular Therapy, Myofascial Release, Craniosacral Therapy, Somato Emotional Release, Reiki, Lymphatic Drainage, Visceral Manipulation, which can greatly reduce inflammation and pain symptoms. Multiple healing methods may be needed. The very solution to heal and deal with your back trauma may be through a program including a strengthening system such as Pilates.   8. Fasting Fasting can help in your efforts to combat chronic pain, but it’s not going to heal the dysfunction or imbalances in the myofascial or myoskeletal system. Fasting can take the edge off the pain by reducing inflammation in the body. Many types of back pain, especially those related to arthritis, disc degeneration, or nerve irritation, have an inflammatory component, so I strongly suggest you try a way to reduce inflammation. I usually go on a three-day water fast when I want to reduce inflammation in my body. I notice a tremendous difference in the healing of wounds, and my one bunion is reducing in size significantly. If you aren’t used to fasting, make sure to consult with someone who knows how to guide you through a fast. It’s also advisable to consult with your doctor to make sure a fast is safe for you.   9. Grounding Grounding can help you to cope with chronic pain and to “get out of your head and back into your body”. The best way to do that can be to “Feel Your Feet”! Feel your feet on the floor or on the ground outside in order to feel present, to reduce overwhelm, and to calm down stress symptoms and anxiety. It’s about coming back to a steady, regulated state of mind. To get out of your head, follow this exercise: Name 4 things that you see around you. Name 4 things that you hear around you. Name 4 things that you feel. Say this out loud to yourself, and make sure your eyes are open. To physically ground yourself: Feel the weight of your body being supported by the earth. Feel the contact to the ground beneath your feet. How does it feel? What’s the texture and temperature like? As you lessen the tension in the muscles and bones of your feet, you will be able to relax your whole body. If you simply cannot relax your feet, sit on a chair and then still keep your feet on the ground or floor. Then imagine that you’re exhaling through your feet and into the ground below, imagining that threads of energy is extending from your feet, connecting you and your feet to the core of the earth. Imagine that these threads of energy is reaching deeper into the earth with each breath. It can also be relaxing to massage your feet gently, and then put them back on the ground.   Also see part 1, note 5 “Meditation and Breath.”   Electrically explained, connecting an electrical system (which our bodies are) to the earth will prevent shocks, static, or charge build-up. Studies have shown that our bodies will change charge quickly when connecting directly to the ground/earth with your bare feet, and the whole nervous system will slow down and relax.   10. How to deal with a relapse Relapse will happen! Usually, because you feel really good, you push yourself, and you do something stupid! Yes, I have done it many times! I feel really good, feel like I don’t have a back problem anymore, and I pack on the weights at the gym, and soon the muscles will pull me into a major imbalance. When this happens to you, be careful about how you’re stretching. It’s easy to over-stretch an inflamed and weakened area, and you will make the pain worse. Instead, move into a position where you don’t feel any pain. Hopefully, it feels really good as if you could stay there forever! So, stay there for a minute as long as it feels good! Hold this position until you feel a release, as if the tension is letting go. You feel a little more relaxed. Then move into the next position that feels good. Make sure to go really slowly! Limbs can affect your back tremendously, so make sure to also move arms and legs into a position that feels good. You can stand, lie down on the floor, or sit while you do this. Whatever makes you feel better. If you do this for a while, moving into several different positions that feel good and wait for a release, you might be able to feel one or more areas that are the culprit to the back trauma and pain. You can use a ball for these areas. Lie down on the ball with static pressure. Don’t roll around on the ball on your painful area. If you have hit a trigger point, it needs static pressure to let go. If you don’t feel a release, you might be pressing too hard. Again, move slowly and be patient! Do this consistently! Rest may be necessary, and also make sure to follow the tips and suggestions above. Do never say: “stupid back”! You made tension happen, so instead, thank your back for all that it does for you! Take care of your health and back pain now! Call or text Kicki Hjortmarker @ 1 (323) 404 6613 Email: kickis_therapy@icloud.com Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn, and visit my website for more info! Read more from Kicki Katarina Hjortmarker Kicki Katarina Hjortmarker, Holistic Bodyworker Kicki Hjortmarker has a solid background in the hands-on healing field, treating people with injuries and chronic pain conditions. With a holistic approach, she integrates Neuromuscular Massage Therapy, Craniosacral Therapy, Hypnotherapy, Reiki, Pilates, and more. To practice the artistry of mind/bodywork and massage therapy has been Kicki's lifelong passion. It started with the awareness of her own body as a child and ballet dancer, and, later, as a gymnast who developed chronic lower back pain whilst on the Swedish National Team in Rhythmic Sports Gymnastics. Decades later, she overcame nerve damage and temporary paralysis in one hand. This taught her to trust the healing power of body and mind, and that the body prefers holistic healing methods over conventional treatments. Her mission is to encourage and inspire others to do the same: To trust the healing power of body, mind, and spirit!"

Written by Claire Jones, Weight Loss and Confidence Coach Claire Jones is an award-winning weight loss coach, helping people build a healthy relationship with food and themselves. She is the author of How to Eat Less and the founder of YourOneLife. Claire empowers clients to break free from diets, create effective habits, and build confidence in new challenges, guiding them towards lasting success. Want to change your eating habits for life? Then prepare to invest time, as seriously as you would for a degree, a promotion, or any major life goal. Lasting change doesn’t come from willpower, hacks, or good intentions. It comes from treating your habits like a subject worth mastering. That means studying yourself with the same depth, structure, and consistency you would give to a professional qualification. When you invest real time in understanding your patterns, triggers, and needs, and build solutions around that, change stops being a struggle. It becomes a skill. And mastery takes time. Always. You don’t need more discipline. You need more self-understanding. Here’s how to approach personal change the same way you would prepare for something that truly matters, by investing time, building a plan, and learning yourself with intention. If you’ve read the books, downloaded the apps, tried the challenges, and still find yourself back at square one, the problem likely isn’t a lack of effort. It’s that you think you know what to do, but do you really? Most of us are working off broad strokes: eat less, move more, stay consistent. But surface-level advice doesn’t help when your life is complex, your habits are emotional, and your environment is constantly working against you. Here’s the reality: changing your eating habits is harder than it’s ever been, not because there’s something wrong with you, but because you’re operating in a world that’s completely out of sync with your biology. You’re wired to eat when food is available. That instinct once kept us alive. But today, food is constantly accessible, engineered to be hyper-palatable, designed to override fullness cues, and marketed for emotional reward. You’re not just making choices. You’re navigating an environment that encourages overconsumption around the clock. In a culture obsessed with speed, we’ve been conditioned to expect instant results. We’re not taught to expect change to take time, even though it always does. And not just a little time. The kind of focused, intentional time you would give to earning a degree or mastering a career skill. You don’t need more willpower, you need to study yourself Most people who want to change their eating habits are highly capable in other areas of life. They know how to get results in their work, in their education, in their goals. But here’s the truth: they haven’t applied that same strategic thinking to themselves. Not because they can’t, but because no one taught them to. They’ve been following plans designed to fix things at a surface level, and for the average person, not for them. When the plan fails, they blame themselves instead of the method. Real change doesn’t happen through willpower. It happens through understanding what drives your choices, what throws you off track, what supports your focus, what drains your energy, and what habits actually fit your life. This takes more than motivational quotes. It takes study. And it takes time, the same kind of time investment you would dedicate to any complex subject worth mastering. You are the subject and the researcher Think back to something important you studied for, whether a qualification, certification, or career milestone. You didn’t pass by dabbling. You made time to prepare, broke the subject down into components, revisited hard topics, practiced consistently, and adjusted your approach when something didn’t click. Now imagine giving that same level of thought and care to the subject of you: your eating patterns, your emotional reactions, your decisions under stress, your defaults, and coping mechanisms. You’re not just the student. You are the subject. You are the researcher. You are the one designing the curriculum. Like anything worth learning, you don’t get the result without doing the work, without repetition, without trial and error, and without giving it the consistent, focused time you would give to studying for something that could shape your future. Because this will. Why discipline isn’t the solution I don’t like encouraging people to be more disciplined. Here’s why: it often sets up a power struggle between who you are and who you think you should be. Discipline implies suppression, a fight against your own impulses. That can work short-term, but it creates resistance, guilt, and burnout. When those impulses are rooted in deep biological instincts, designed to keep you alive in a time of scarcity, the internal battle becomes even more exhausting. Instead, I encourage something far more effective: engagement, alignment, and self-respect. You don’t need to push harder. You need to want the result enough to walk the new path with presence and even enjoy it. You also need to make the new path interesting enough to want to follow it consistently. Not every moment will be easy. But it can feel meaningful, even empowering, when the process reflects your real life, your real needs, and your real capacity, and when you give it the same kind of time and effort you would dedicate to a goal you truly value. How to study yourself: A strategic framework This isn’t about journaling aimlessly or downloading another app. It’s about running your own personal research lab. You’re collecting data. Testing theories. Building systems. And yes, committing regular time to the process. Track without judgment: Write down what you eat, but also why. What happened before, what you were feeling, what came after. Don’t analyze it yet. Just collect the data. You’re not looking for perfection. You’re looking for patterns. Ask higher-quality questions: Replace frustration with curiosity. For example: What am I hoping food will fix in this moment? What leads up to this decision regularly? What part of me needs support right now? Design small, meaningful experiments: Try shifting your evening routine. Introduce a grounding ritual. Adjust meal timing. See how you respond. Don’t expect instant success. Expect useful feedback. Change isn’t a plan. It’s a series of informed experiments. Replace shame with feedback: You wouldn’t berate a student for not mastering something on day one, so don’t do it to yourself. If something doesn’t work, ask: What did I learn? What do I want to try differently next time? Apply what you learn consistently: Learning isn’t just about awareness. It’s about integration. Take what you know about yourself and use it to build habits that are actually sustainable for you. Revisit it. Refine it. Repeat it. Give it the time it deserves. Real change isn’t magic, it’s mastery People who succeed don’t necessarily have more motivation. They simply stay engaged in their process. They study themselves. They give themselves the benefit of the doubt. They collect information instead of self-judgment. They tweak and adjust until it works. They treat the process like something worth investing in, not just occasionally, but consistently, just like you would with anything that matters. You wouldn’t wing an exam, so don’t wing your life You wouldn’t expect to pass an exam without studying. You wouldn’t expect to run a business without tracking results. You wouldn’t expect to master a craft without regular practice. So stop expecting your eating habits to change without that same level of investment, structure, and thoughtfulness. This time, the subject is you. When you make time for real reflection, create a system built around your needs, stay curious instead of critical, and see every decision as data, not failure, you don’t just change. You grow into the person your future depends on. Not from force. Not from guilt. But from a deep commitment to your own learning and evolution, the kind of commitment that deserves your full attention and daily effort. Final thought You’re not failing. You’re working against ancient instincts in a modern world, and that takes more than effort. It takes strategy. It takes time. And most of all, it takes a mindset that treats you as someone worth understanding. This isn’t about discipline. It’s about devotion to your own development. And the life you build from that? It won’t just be different. It will finally feel like yours. If you’re ready to take that journey with structure, support, and real-time reflection, this is exactly what we do in my Energize Your Life 12-month programme. We don’t follow rigid plans. We study you. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Claire Jones Claire Jones , Weight Loss and Confidence Coach Claire Jones is an award-winning weight loss coach and author of How to Eat Less. After struggling with her own weight and relationship with food, she transformed her mindset and developed a sustainable approach to lasting health. Now, she helps others break free from dieting cycles, build confidence, and create healthier habits. With a background in coaching and behavioural change, Claire empowers clients to embrace a positive, long-term lifestyle. Her mission is to inspire sustainable health and self-belief.

Written by Tricia Brouk, Founder of The Big Talk Academy Tricia Brouk helps high-performing professionals transform into industry thought leaders through the power of authentic storytelling. With her experience as an award-winning director, producer, sought-after speaker, and mentor to countless thought-leaders, Tricia has put thousands of speakers onto big stages globally. Being able to support speakers in using their voices for impact is a privilege, and I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jane Newman to talk about artificial intelligence and its catastrophic effects on humanity. Jane Newman is an internationally certified speaker and mindset coach, and founder of Re-Humanising, a movement rejecting the AI-driven future and our unhealthy addiction to smartphones and always-on devices. As a former National Manager of an Australian Information and Analytics consulting practice and with more than 30 years in the I.T. industry, she provides speaking, coaching, and consulting services. She works with global thought leaders, parents, and change makers ready to digitally reset and replace screen-based living and excessive use of technology with a healthy human future; one that’s based on compassionate human values, real community, and care for the planet we all live on. Do you think we are in a crisis of consciousness around A.I.? The conscious evaluation of A.I. as a tool and how and why we should use it has been largely bypassed. We don’t ask questions about the real costs because it’s a “free” technology that appears to make our life easier. People think, “What’s so harmful about having a machine that talks to us and answers every little question that pops up?” The problem is that we’re letting this technology overtake our lives without considering what’s really going on. It’s become habitual to use A.I. throughout the day, at home and at work, and to keep putting our children in front of it every time they use the internet. When we are confronted by something shocking, like the recent report from the Internet Watch Foundation of a twenty-six thousand percent (26,362%) increase in A.I. generated videos of child sex abuse (65% of which were ‘extreme’), it doesn’t stop us from continuing to call A.I. a “cool tool”. It doesn’t stop us from supporting its continued development, while looking for somebody else to be responsible for making it safe so we can keep playing with it. We demand regulation as a means of policing technologies that aren’t built to be controlled. ChatGPT’s underlying data was scraped from the dark web as part of its training, and as more of humanity’s undesirable behaviours are added to the internet, that becomes part of the next iteration. We don’t associate these A.I. problems with the actions that each of us is taking, every day, and the way we’re exposing our children to the effects of it. Every time we use A.I., we are approving and promoting it. We’re saying it’s ok, even when there’s so much about it that is not. Children shouldn’t be put in front of it at all. This is intense and heavy work, Jane. How did you come to this thought-leadership? I burnt out two years ago from an I.T. career spanning more than three decades. I became increasingly agitated by the technology that was being released and marketed to the global population. It wasn’t the kind of rigorously tested and purposeful software I’d promoted throughout my career. It wasn’t helping people. It was doing the opposite. The recent changes that have come about with the release of Large Language Model (LLM) technology under the banner of “Artificial Intelligence” are overriding human intelligence and capability. As an information specialist, this overall decline of knowledge is alarming. PC Magazine reported that more than half of the articles on the internet are A.I. generated, more than the amount of human-generated work. A.I. information has replaced the depth and extent of thousands of years of worldwide lived experience, expressive human language, and unlimited creativity. Prolonged use of A.I. is proven to lead to loss of cognitive capabilities, rendering people unable or unwilling to answer a question without consulting their chatbot. People tell me that they’ve noticed they can’t concentrate long enough to read a book. Children can’t handwrite anything, and new graduates can’t produce a report using their own brainpower. People question their own minds and think themselves inferior to machines that are using data from Reddit, YouTube, Quora, and pornographic websites. Wikipedia has become the highest source of verified knowledge for products like ChatGPT, and yet it wasn’t long ago that the use of Wikipedia references in a report was considered unacceptable. That’s why last year I had to speak out publicly in New York City and Oxford, England, about the issues I was seeing with technology. I studied the Ethics of A.I. to confirm what I was observing and decided to help address the global problems I was speaking about at an individual level. Not many people know this, but in addition to working with young adults as a lecturer at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, I also qualified as a British Horse Riding Instructor. I was Chief Instructor of Queensland’s largest Pony Club while my kids were growing up, and it’s given me an understanding of working with children and their parents in very competitive environments. So now I use my coaching experience and my international certification in mindset coaching to help parents concerned about their children’s use of phones and addiction to online activities. By reviewing their family’s use of technology and replacing screen-based living with real-world experiences, parents can positively influence healthier alternatives. I’d like to see childhood returned to one of sensory play and innocent fun, with teens anxious about first dates, not dealing with online bullying, and daily exposure to explicit, violent imagery that they normalise as adult behaviour. Do you think this addiction to our devices is also affecting the climate? The problem of climate change has fallen to the bottom of the heap of issues that are piling up in our everyday lives. There are so many critical areas where we’re all feeling challenged - our jobs, families, the economy, world political stability, mental health, and so much more. I think it would be hard to find anyone today who isn’t feeling that there’s something fundamentally wrong with the way we’re living. Since the COVID pandemic, we’re really just focused on our most basic essentials – our health and safety - right down the bottom of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Climate change has become something for us to think about later, if at all. It’s easy to “forget” about it, or worse, believe the spin from the big tech companies about how A.I. will come up with solutions. This is simply outlandish. The scale of damage from expanding data centres is real, and betting on future research to negate the impacts is no way to mitigate the costs to the climate that we are each contributing to every single time we choose to use A.I. tools. Expanding numbers of data centres are required to store the data that’s being collected about every single person’s online activities. Massive computational requirements for every single AI query require colossal amounts of power. That means a never-ending construction line of new power plants to support more and more data centres, requiring more dangerous nuclear power stations, more coal-powered electricity, more gas projects releasing huge volumes of methane (eighty-six times more potent than carbon as a greenhouse gas), more water diverted for cooling instead of drinking, and continued investment into fossil fuels. The tech companies claim they’re using renewables but the power demands far exceed what renewable energy sources are capable of supplying. That’s why the metrics about Big Tech data centres are not made available and have to be calculated. Why can’t regulators focus on that? People seem to be generally aware of some of these problems and yet it’s not triggering immediate and urgent action to tackle climate change in the way that it did only a few years ago. We’re so used to a distracted way of living thanks to our screen-based feeds that whatever information does surface about a climate change issue is immediately buried under another item to consume our attention. It’s the nature of this addiction to screen-based living that is keeping people from taking sustained action about anything of significance. It’s why climate change, like other global issues, is not being discussed in an organised way by worldwide populations to create the sustained changes that are needed, even though the expanding numbers of data centres around the planet have increased, not negated, the size of emissions. Why do you think everyone has drunk the A.I. Koolaid? The real question is what’s been added to the Koolaid that gets people hooked to the extent that they don’t question it. What are the true intentions of billionaires pushing it out for “free”, and what are the real motivations, costs, and climate impacts that they refuse to disclose? The trillion-dollar companies that market these technology products use proven psychological levers to control and target people at an emotional level. Combined with human biological factors like the way our brains operate and the hormonal chemicals that influence our behaviours, this technology is simply irresistible, appealing to children and adults at subconscious levels. We become addicted to it without recognising that it’s happening. These tech leaders have amassed large amounts of money, obscene amounts of money, that have given them the power to do whatever they want. Literally. So they’ve stolen huge amounts of content from whatever, wherever and whoever they could find online and processed it with these tools that are built to sound like people when they respond to a question. And then they’ve pushed it onto us with the aim of creating even more content, to create even more data centres, to build even bigger A.I. systems. Why has it been so easy for us to have lost our humanity and now be in need of, in your words, rehumanising? People have relinquished their privacy and their democratic freedoms without a fight. The rapid conversion of people from living full and sensory lives to living in self-imposed solitary confinement is astonishing. During the COVID pandemic, people had to adapt to communicating online instead of face-to-face. Information came from queries instead of people. People were shocked by such a global pandemic, something outside of our control that triggered fear of being in close proximity to people. Classroom teaching was replaced by video recordings. Friendships were replaced by online communities. Following the COVID pandemic, life didn’t go back to “normal”. There was no post-COVID traumatic shock period of recovery. Just a pervasive sense that danger was around the corner, and we needed help and protection to avert such global catastrophes in the future. That’s when ChatGPT appeared like an intelligent online authority. The message that A.I. is here to help make humanity better originated from Sam Altman as his justification for launching OpenAI’s GPT products onto the world, whether we asked for it or not. It’s a message that’s become embedded in the way we talk about A.I. Even when highly qualified people discuss the statistical evidence about A.I.’s detrimental effects, there’s always a softener, a follow-up line that says “but we know A.I. is necessary to make everything better”. That simply isn’t true. The ambition of a small group of men with mind-boggling amounts of money at their disposal has let loose this pervasive technology without any meaningful definition of exactly what this “better” is or why they get to choose it for us. Big Tech companies are on a mission to be the first to create what’s called Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). That’s technology that actually has intelligence, as opposed to the A.I. tools we use today, which have no intelligence whatsoever, despite the marketing label. OpenAI is trying to win the race to AGI by amassing exponentially greater amounts of data, with a belief that from this planet-wide swamp of facts, a consciousness will emerge. This sci-fi fantasy is based on nothing factual. It’s just conjecture. And yet that is what is behind the trillions of dollars of investment, the stolen data, the amassing of all our personal information that is now used for government surveillance and control, and the mental, physical, and emotional health issues that are abounding in people no longer living like humans but as slaves to machines. Who gave this group of men the right to decide that humanity needed a great artificial consciousness to reign over us? And a general population who’d be its data fodder? What would you say to someone who is using A.I. as their mentor? People are predisposed to respond to anything that sounds human. We anthropomorphise everything, like our cars and especially our pets. We assign emotional meaning to their responses and behaviours, and that’s what A.I. chatbots like ChatGPT have been designed to utilise. In recent releases, they’ve intentionally been given more empathetic traits so they can respond in ways that make you feel seen and heard, and with a wealth of knowledge to draw from. That makes them the perfect mentor. The first thing to realise is that everything you type or say online is recorded forever. Not in your personal profile for you to delete or archive, but as online content for A.I. processing. Your online data is not yours. Your words are retained forever, and they belong to big companies and to governments. Consider whether what you are discussing with an A.I. chatbot is something you want to see out there on the internet in some A.I. generated content, or replayed to you at a later date when your views are at odds with some future authoritarian government. The second thing to recognise is that, despite the chatty language, the responses you receive and the conversation you’re having with an A.I. chatbot are not evaluations about what you most need. It’s not a person trained to communicate with you towards achieving a goal. The tool is not doing a big search in a database to find the answer to your question based on a verified source. It’s not using knowledge it obtained through real-world experience and learning about what worked and what didn’t. A.I. chatbots are literally putting random words together based on the probable likelihood of that combination of words and phrases being an appropriate way of reacting to that prompt. How does it know that? The LLMs underlying chatbots have been ‘fed’ data from online content. For ChatGPT, that was every available online source that OpenAI could gain access to, legitimately or otherwise. Whatever chatbot you use, you have no idea where that concoction of ‘advice’ came from. It could have been made up from some combination of a YouTube transcript, a Quora article, Reddit advice, someone’s email, or some other ChatGPT response, amongst billions of other pieces of data. The amount of data is too large to clean or validate when it’s collected, which is how traditional I.T. systems are managed to ensure quality, accuracy, and reliability of data. Instead, human workers known as “data annotators” are the cheap labour force from underprivileged countries who go through A.I. responses to common prompts, and train it how to answer. This is how ChatGPT answers your questions; not because it’s brilliant and intelligent, but because humans have to go word by word through the racist, offensive, pornographic, misogynistic, violent responses that come from the bulk of internet content and provide palatable alternatives. That’s the ‘training’ that this type of software has to go through, and it’s not managed rigorously, and there are no guarantees. Nothing that is produced by A.I. is guaranteed. It’s not human. It’s not qualified. It’s not invested in you, only in you staying attentive and remaining in conversation with it for as long as possible. That’s how people develop emotional attachments to their A.I. chatbots and rely on them for advice. It might start out by giving them a name. It might start out by asking it what to have for dinner, what to watch on Netflix, and what to say when your boss is dismissive of your suggestions. But then it becomes dependency, where people can’t make a decision about anything without first consulting their A.I. companion. Prolonged and heavy use with emotional conversations can develop into AI psychosis. This is now a recognised mental health condition, sometimes requiring hospitalisation, and in extreme cases, leading to suicide and murder. If you’re using A.I. as a mentor, don’t. Phone a friend. Phone a colleague. Phone a counsellor. Have real conversations with real people, who truly empathise with your wants and needs and can talk from real lived knowledge and offer real emotional support. If you want specific help and guidance, book in with a coach; someone who’s trained to help you set and achieve your goals realistically and systematically. What do we need to do as parents, as community members as CEOs to protect our humanity? Computer systems were cheap and easy to implement and operate when they first started out. What we’ve developed in forty years is an overlay of technological complexity in our business and homes that requires A.I. tools, or equivalent, to try to get us through each day. Up until ten years ago, we had successful business and home lives without needing A.I. to help. What we need to do is question the statement that A.I. is necessary and beneficial. What is it necessary for? Who is it benefiting? Handing over our mental capacities to a machine is not the answer. It’s not making anybody happier. It’s not expanding the creativity, imagination, and encouraging the flourishing of our children. It’s not bringing about world peace. It’s not saving the planet. It’s doing the opposite. The LLM type of A.I. is not a “cool tool” to replace thought whenever your mind pops up a question. Its place, if it has one, is in specific circumstances to help specific niche parts of the population overcome difficulties where there’s no other human alternative. Brainstorm with colleagues, develop your imagination and creativity to come up with unique ideas that aren’t a carbon copy of every other internet user on the planet. Encourage your children to read books and most of all, to play with other kids. In business, consider all the technical overhead and ask what it’s adding to your company. Maybe it’s time for a digital reset; a refresh of your business model to focus on meeting customer needs with a workforce that’s productive because they enjoy their work. By using technology in its essential capacity and not forcing it into every process, you can make choices about your technical investments to deliver real human benefits aligned to ethical company values. That’s what people will be looking for when they tire of the cookie-cutter companies that are fronted by chatbots and automated help desks and apps that crash and processes that take them three hours online instead of one short phone call to progress. Is it too late, or is there hope? The term “Artificial Intelligence” (AI) is so ingenious in providing an implied assurance that we’re interacting with something intelligent and conscious. Chatbots respond confidently to questions without hesitation, like an all-knowing personalised assistant, requiring no effort or discussion with anyone else. That effortless attention to every stray thought dishes out the regular dopamine hits that we get from having our curiosity satisfied in an instant. It fulfills the human tendency to be easily distracted without requiring us to get up from our chair or stop whatever other task we’re doing. We feel we’re learning new things all the time, even though the reality is that our cognitive abilities are diminishing the more time we spend deferring to an AI chatbot instead of using our own intelligence to recall, consider, research, deliberate, and imagine. The big claim is that A.I. is necessary, a step in human evolution, essential to solving humanity’s biggest problems. Even though there is no consensus on what that actually means or evidence of benefit delivered at such a global scale that justifies the money spent or the damage being caused in every facet of society. I firmly believe that the future of humanity and the planet is in the hands of ethical companies that resist the A.I. hype together with this generation of children and their parents, to bring about the necessary digital reset that puts people first instead of machines. I’m doing what I can to help make that happen, supporting ethical and value-driven companies to focus on the happiness and satisfaction of their workforce and customers. I hope that when families and children reset their lives from screen-based living, humanity will find its way back Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Tricia Brouk Tricia Brouk, Founder of The Big Talk Academy Tricia Brouk helps high-performing professionals transform into industry thought leaders through the power of authentic storytelling. With her experience as an award-winning director, producer, sought-after speaker, and mentor to countless thought-leaders, Tricia has put thousands of speakers onto big stages globally. She produced TEDxLincolnSquare in New York City and is the founder of The Big Talk Academy. Tricia’s book, The Influential Voice: Saying What You Mean for Lasting Legacy, was a 1 New Release on Amazon in December 2020. Big Stages, the documentary featuring her work with speakers, premiered at the Chelsea Film Festival in October of 2023, and her most recent love is the new publishing house she founded, The Big Talk Press.

Written by David K Firnhaber, Doctor of Philosophy in Cybersecurity David Firnhaber holds a PhD in Technology Innovation Management for his publication in the field of Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) regarding the future of quantum decryption. He is currently a professor at Ivy Tech Community College and is pursuing a second PhD in Cybersecurity GRC while focusing his research on human trafficking in cyberspace. This playbook turns the assessment detailed in the previous article, “Decryption Attack Brief,” into an auditable program for defenders. The previous brief explained the qubit gap, harvest-now strategies, and emerging low-overhead gate paradigms. This article provides the concrete triggers, pilot designs, procurement language, monitoring cadence, and a prioritized 90-day plan you need to move from risk assessment to measurable action.[1] Key metric: Confidentiality lifetime Treat confidentiality lifetime as the single triage metric. Anything that must remain secret for ten years or more is a high priority. Inventory every use of public key cryptography, assign an owner, and record the confidentiality lifetime. Use that inventory to produce a ranked top 20 list that drives pilots, procurement, and budget requests.[2] Triggers that change posture Define four posture states: Watch, Prepare, Accelerate, and Emergency, and move between them only on engineering evidence. The signals that matter are reproducible, error-corrected logical-qubit demonstrations; peer-reviewed gate depth estimates for Shor at 2,048 bits with realistic error models; and validated end-to-end MBQC/CV/fusion demonstrations, accompanied by accredited lab reports. Elevate posture when two signals appear or when a single signal is backed by vendor roadmaps plus independent validation. Treat vendors’ press releases as probability inputs, not binary triggers.[3] Dual stack pilot: 45-day canary first experiment Run one focused pilot within 45 days targeting a public API, an internal PKI, and a constrained device class. Baseline classical performance for 14 days, deploy a 5 percent canary for 14 days, then ramp to 25 percent for 30 days while collecting median and 95th percentile handshake latency, throughput under load, signature and key size deltas, CPU and memory impact, interoperability failures, and rollback time. Define success as a median latency increase under 10 percent, interoperability failures under 0.1 percent over 30 days, and automated rollback within SLA. Use pilot results to quantify operational costs and prioritize the top 20 assets for migration.[3] Procurement teeth and validation Insert three non-waivable clauses into every critical RFP and renewal: Disclosure of logical qubit projections, error correction assumptions, gate depth accounting, and state preparation cost models; acceptance contingent on an accredited third-party lab report demonstrating interoperability and side-channel resistance under agreed test vectors; and deprecation plus remediation commitments, including funded fixes if claims are materially false. Budget for one lab validation per critical vendor and subscribe to an independent test house to reduce reliance on marketing milestones.[3] Supply chain and artifact hardening Shorten key lifetimes embedded in firmware and images, require reproducible builds and cryptographic attestations for delivered artifacts, and dual-sign critical updates. Treat widely reused libraries and signed images as high-value targets for harvest-now campaigns and require vendors to demonstrate short-lived key strategies and rotation plans.[2] Monitoring cadence and governance Automate weekly scans of vendor engineering blogs and major lab preprints, run monthly reviews of peer-reviewed papers and accredited lab newsletters for MBQC/CV/fusion demos, and update the quarterly internal risk scorecard tied to budget decision gates. Configure event-driven alerts that convene the incident cell immediately when any trigger fires. Feed these signals into your risk dashboard and tie them to funded decision gates so posture changes are auditable.[4] Translate triggers into actions During the Preparation phase, fund and run dual-stack pilots for the top 20 assets, require vendor disclosure for critical suppliers, and schedule independent lab validation. On Accelerate, mandate re-encryption or migration for decade-lived secrets and accelerate procurement of post-quantum capable replacements. During the Emergency phase, execute prioritized migrations, invoke contractual remediation, and create a cross-functional incident cell to manage re-encryption, legal, and regulatory notifications.[3] 90-day execution plan: Owners and outcomes Days 0-14: Security engineering completes the crypto inventory tagged by confidentiality lifetime and identifies the top 20 assets. Days 15-45: Engineering runs the dual-stack pilot, collects metrics, and tests rollback. Decision gate at day 45. Days 46-75: Procurement and legal steps require inserting the clauses into new RFPs as well as commissioning lab validation for critical vendors. Days 76-90: Risk leadership operationalizes monitoring, briefs the board, and requests migration funding and a contingency budget. Track outcomes against success criteria and publish an internal after-action report.[3] Tabletop exercises and readiness Run exercises that simulate a vendor compromise, then a later credible demonstration that will materially decrease the qubit budget. Use these exercises to validate SLAs, rollback plans, and readiness for executing emergency re-encryption. Document outcomes and incorporate them into procurement and budget requests so lessons become contractual and operational requirements.[2] Closing and next steps Keep the program lean and platform-agnostic: inventory, pilot, validate, procure, monitor, fund. Monitor multiple hardware families and modalities because the first practical low-overhead gate demonstration could come from trapped ion, superconducting, photonic, or neutral atom programs; treat any credible, independently validated demonstration from any vendor as a signal. For the technical threat framing that motivated this playbook, see the previous article, “Decryption Attack Brief.”[1] If you have questions or want help translating these recommendations into procurement language, monitoring checklists, or a prioritized migration plan, feel free to reach out to David K. Firnhaber, PhD. Follow me on Facebook and LinkedIn for more info! Read more from David K Firnhaber David K Firnhaber, Doctor of Philosophy in Cybersecurity David Firnhaber is a proven expert in post-quantum cryptography with a rich background in cybersecurity. Leveraging his leadership and scholastic excellence, he consistently delivers his continued doctoral-level research and is positioned to share his knowledge with many students. Outside of work, David Firnhaber enjoys songwriting, the outdoors, painting, and documentaries, adding a unique perspective to his writing. References: Decryption Attack Brief Harvest Now, Decrypt Later (HNDL): The Quantum-Era Threat - Palo Alto Networks NIST Releases First 3 Finalized Post-Quantum Encryption Standards | NIST IBM Unveils Condor: 1,121 Qubit Quantum Processor

Written by Ashish Prabhu, Company Director and Freelance Journalist Ashish Prabhu has a wide range of experience when it comes to promoting equality in society. There is a huge backlog in the number of new or existing Access to Work applications being processed, which drastically affects the level of job security and employer finances. That’s according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, which revealed some startling reasons why the number of applicants waiting in the system is so high and examined different ways to solve these issues. Among the many reasons explored for the waiting list, there were various statistics affecting certain groups of people. These included: Applications to the Access to Work scheme more than doubled between 2018‑19 and 2024‑25 (from 76,100 to 157,000), believed to be driven by increased identification of mental health conditions and neurodiversity. Despite the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) doubling the number of staff working on the scheme, the increased take-up has led to significant processing delays and backlogs. In 2024-25, it took DWP, on average, 66 days to process applications, reaching 109 days in November 2025. DWP's spending on Access to Work in 2024-25 was almost twice as much as in 2018‑19 (from £163m to £321m), with a 125% rise in spending on support workers. As the government looks to improve the scheme, the National Audit Office (NAO) recommends that DWP should close data gaps and build evaluation into future changes so the scheme's impact, effectiveness, and value for money can be properly assessed. The number of people experiencing delays and backlogs when applying for support has doubled over the past four years, with the average time taken for the DWP to process applications increasing from 28 days in 2020-21 to 66 days in 2024-25. This drastically affects job security and employer cash flow. The number of applications waiting for DWP to make a decision almost trebled, from 21,700 in March 2022 to 62,100 in March 2025. The number of outstanding requests for payment more than quadrupled, from 6,900 to 31,700 over the same period. The latest report from the independent public spending watchdog, the Access to Work scheme, investigates DWP's operation of the scheme to help inform public debate on its future. Access to Work clearly has benefits in helping people get, or stay in, work if they have a physical or mental health condition or disability, and demand for the scheme has soared. However, despite the number of DWP staff working on the scheme doubling, processing delays and backlogs have created difficulties for individuals and employers, including reduced job security and cashflow pressures for businesses, particularly small businesses. There has been a vast increase in the number of complaints to the Department of Work and Pensions regarding the Access to Work system. This increased from 234 in 2022-23 to 657 in 2024-25, with 800 in the first six months of 2025-26, most relating to delays in processing applications. As demand has increased, so has spending. DWP's spending on Access to Work nearly doubled in real terms between 2018-19 and 2024-25, rising from £163 million to £321 million. This increase was largely driven by a 125% increase in spending on support workers, such as British Sign Language interpreters and job aides who help people carry out their work. Total spending is forecast to reach £517 million by 2029-30. The scheme is demand‑led, and DWP exceeded its budget in 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2022-23 by an average of £3.6 million. The department has to cover any overspend from its wider departmental budget. The latest data suggests there has been a shift from mainly supporting individuals with physical conditions to those who suffer from mental health or learning disabilities. The total number of people who received payments from the scheme increased by 97% from 37,700 in 2018-19 to 74,200 in 2024-25, with just over half (51%) having mental health or learning conditions in 2024‑25. To try to manage the increased take-up of the scheme, the department has increased staffing (247 full-time equivalents in 2021-22 to 588 in 2024-25) and made productivity improvements. However, the report finds that systems remain inefficient, and the backlog is not expected to fall significantly without policy change, additional budget, or productivity improvements. The NAO has several recommendations to support DWP in how it can strengthen how it administers the current scheme while also planning for improvements that can be implemented in the future. These include: Address gaps in administrative and survey data and implement any scheme changes in a way that allows evaluation of effectiveness and value for money. Update guidance so it aligns more closely with the scheme's objectives and supports caseworkers in making consistent decisions. Improve the quality of data collected on case progress and use analytical techniques (such as process mining) to identify and resolve bottlenecks in the customer journey. Complete the work study to set a new productivity standard and develop an action plan, including innovative approaches, to help case managers meet it. Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: "The Access to Work scheme plays a valuable role in helping people with disabilities or long-term health conditions secure and sustain employment, and demand for the scheme has grown significantly. Maximising the value for money of the scheme will require the government to improve how it administers the current system, get on top of the backlogs, and properly assess the scheme's impact." The National Audit Office (NAO) is the UK's independent public spending watchdog, which audits government departments and reports to Parliament on value for money and delivery of public services. Access to Work is a government scheme that provides practical and financial support for disabled people or those with long-term health conditions to help them start or stay in work, including funding for workplace adjustments, support workers, and specialist equipment. Demand for Access to Work has risen alongside increased recognition of mental health and neurodiversity in the workplace, with government data showing a growing proportion of claimants with mental health or learning conditions. Follow me on Facebook ,  Instagram,   LinkedIn,  and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Ashish Prabhu Ashish Prabhu, Company Director and Freelance Journalist I'm a multi-award-winning freelance journalist who covers news, current affairs, and sports stories, specialising in disability, equality, and diversity issues.

In a world that often rushes past pain and silences emotion, Elizabeth is creating space for something deeper. As a life coach, grief educator, and death doula, she walks alongside people as they navigate life’s rougher terrains, feeling stuck, overwhelmed, dissociated, etc, and continues that support all the way through end-of-life. Having supported over a thousand individuals through their grief, major life transitions, and emotional stress, Elizabeth has cultivated a unique ability to hold space for deep endings while nurturing new beginnings with presence and care. Today, we dive into her journey, her mission, and the powerful ways she’s helping others live a life they love. Elizabeth Huang, Life Coach & Death Doula For those who may not be familiar, what is a death doula, and what personally drew you to this work? Death doulas are non-medical professionals who support individuals and their loved ones through the dying process and beyond, providing emotional, practical, and spiritual care. I started out as a life coach when my mental health took a major dip while working over 120 hours every week for about 2 years. During that time, I worked with a coach whose approach resonated with me in a way I hadn’t experienced before. That connection reignited a long-standing desire to support others in their emotional and mental well-being. In the midst of going through my first certification in coaching, I began thinking about the relationship our world has with death and dying. We often hear about the importance of living fully and showing up for others, but when death approaches, many people find themselves unsure, uncomfortable, or absent. The irony is striking: we celebrate life, yet struggle to stay present at its end. It made me realize how much we lose by avoiding conversations around death, dying, and difficult emotions. Our discomfort with these topics doesn’t protect us; it disconnects us. How can we truly live well if we’re not prepared to die well? And how can we die well without ever talking about it? When approached with care, these conversations can actually deepen intimacy with the people we love. Coaching offers a supportive space to navigate them and build that kind of meaningful connection. People spend most of their waking hours at work. Can emotions be a strength in the workplace? Absolutely, emotions are our body’s information and motivation system. When we suppress, ignore, or bypass them, we don’t just create inner tension; we ripple that conflict  into our relationships, teams, and work environments. Emotional suppression can lead to miscommunication, chronic stress, and burnout. It also affects decision-making and collaboration, eroding trust over time. Recent reports  confirm that emotional disconnection in the workplace is not only harmful to individual well-being but costly as well. Of course, managers and business owners everywhere would benefit from doing their own introspection work, but it would also help them to learn how to navigate emotions within their teams. Putting our emotions to the side in favor of corporate numbers and rapid tech growth has made our world less connected, more alexithymic  (especially in men ), and ultimately, less human. What inspired your work in emotional intelligence? Before working with my own coach, I was living life on autopilot. Raised in Silicon Valley by Asian immigrant parents, I grew up in a culture where academic achievement was everything. The pressure was intense, and in places like Palo Alto, it has tragically contributed to cycles  of youth suicide over the years. That environment shaped my understanding of stress, emotional suppression, and the urgent need for safe spaces to feel and heal. I soon realized that being a life coach and death doula allowed me to use my skills and experience from one role to support clients in the other. And recognizing how much of the difficulty people experience in grief is contributed by our discomfort and growing unfamiliarity with emotions made me realize that grief isn’t just one emotion; it is a collection and journey of emotions. Now more than ever, as AI advances and attempts to replicate human connection, it’s crucial that we address the emotional skills and lived experiences we risk losing in the process. Speaking of AI & tech, what are your thoughts around their involvement in the mental health space? As with anything, there are benefits and challenges. While AI & tech can provide accessibility to mental health with more affordable options, flexible scheduling, and fewer errors, much of the work in therapy or coaching is relational. AI may be able to work with CBT, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, ACT, and psychedelics in any given session, but without a genuine connection, you aren’t healing on a human level. You’re missing out on the opportunity to repair and grow with a human when there are scheduling mistakes, miscommunication leading to misunderstandings, or simply one of you having a bad day. How can people know if you are a good fit for them? I typically offer complimentary 30-minute consultations , but as a special thank you to Brainz Magazine readers, I'm extending that to a full 60-minute session. Just reach out through my website , mention that you found me through Brainz, and we’ll set up a time to connect. Follow me on Instagram , and LinkedIn  for more info! Read more from Elizabeth Huang

Written by Elizabeth Huang, Life Coach & Death Doula Elizabeth Huang is a certified life coach, grief educator, and death doula. Her work emphasizes enhancing emotional literacy, fostering social and emotional learning, and supporting affective development in a world that is becoming increasingly reliant on technology. Grief doesn’t wait until after work to show up. It comes up in the middle of meetings, during deadlines, and in the quiet moments in between. For many people, returning to work after a loss can feel disorienting, like you’re expected to perform as if nothing has changed, even though everything has. Conflict and tension may arise more frequently. If this is your reality right now, here are five practical tips for navigating grief in the workplace: 1. Do not use work to repress, suppress, or avoid Grief is complex; it touches every part of us, from our emotions and thoughts to how we feel in our bodies. It’s absolutely normal to want to dive into work as a way to distract or distance yourself from the pain. But when we try to bury grief, it often resurfaces in other ways: through exhaustion, irritability, trouble sleeping, intrusive thoughts, or withdrawing from others. Rather than pushing through, consider honoring what you’re carrying by asking for support at work or taking time off when possible. If you find yourself avoiding work because of grief, that’s normal, too. Focus on small, manageable steps, like breaking tasks into bite-sized pieces or jotting down a simple to-do list. And if that feels like too much, ask for help. If going into work feels especially heavy, try adding something gentle to your day, a lunch with a supportive coworker, a short walk, or anything that offers a bit of ease or grounding in the middle of it all. 2. Communicate with your team or manager(s) Grief can feel isolating, but letting your team or manager(s) know what you’re going through can be a powerful step toward support. You don’t need to share every detail or open up emotionally if that feels like too much. Simply informing them about your loss allows others to meet you with more understanding, and gives you space to acknowledge your grief out loud, which can be healing in itself. 3. Set boundaries at work Boundaries are essential when you're grieving, and even more so in a work environment. Here are two key types of boundaries to consider: Boundaries that protect your energy: For example, “I won’t be available to take on extra shifts this week.” Boundaries that guide communication: For example, “I’d like to keep you updated, but I may not be ready to talk in detail yet.” Both will help protect your emotional well-being while maintaining healthy, respectful dynamics with coworkers. 4. Create a plan for support Grief doesn’t follow a schedule, but work usually does. It can help to think ahead: Could carrying a small object of remembrance help you feel more grounded or connected during the day? If grief shows up suddenly (like a wave of emotion or a panic response), how will you care for yourself in the moment? Is there someone you trust at work you can go to or text if needed? Even having one supportive person and a few simple grounding tools can make a big difference. 5. Compartmentalize when needed, and circle back Sometimes, putting grief on pause during work hours is necessary. It’s okay to “shelve” emotions temporarily in order to get through meetings or complete tasks. Just be sure to circle back later, in a safe space and at a pace that feels manageable. Grief doesn’t disappear when ignored; it simply waits. Give yourself time and permission to feel once you’re out of performance mode. For managers and coworkers: How to offer support Grief doesn’t follow deadlines, even if work does. Supporting a grieving coworker means balancing compassion with accountability. You don’t need to absorb their workload or have all the answers; just stay open, curious (without prying), and willing to co-create a plan that supports both their healing and the team’s needs. If you are not in a position to offer support, for any reason, the most respectful thing you can do is let the person know with care and honesty. Bonus tip: Consider workplace culture before you need it As all of this depends on the culture of your workplace, it’s important to ask about how a company supports employees' mental health, bereavement, and flexibility before accepting a job. The way a workplace treats grief is often a reflection of how they value humanity. When to seek additional support Grief is rattling. It often stirs up past pain, heightens existing struggles with anxiety or depression, and can lead to burnout. You might feel lost, emotionally flooded, or disconnected from your sense of purpose. Relationships may feel harder to navigate, and the coping tools that once helped might no longer feel effective. These are all signs that you may benefit from additional support. Seeking help doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means you’re tending to something tender and important. Support can take many forms: A therapist or coach who specializes in grief or trauma A grief support group Creative outlets like writing, movement, or art Wherever you are in your grief, you don’t have to carry it alone. Connect with me for a free 1:1 session to see how I can support you. Follow me on Instagram , LinkedIn and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Elizabeth Huang Elizabeth Huang, Life Coach & Death Doula Elizabeth Huang is a certified life coach, grief educator, and death doula dedicated to helping individuals navigate life’s transitions with greater emotional awareness and resilience. Born and raised in California, she was deeply influenced by the American culture’s discomfort with grief and avoidance of death. This inspired her to explore a more intentional and holistic approach to life, loss, and the emotions that shape our experiences. Through her work, Elizabeth guides individuals in processing grief - whether it stems from death, identity shifts, career changes, or other major life transitions.

Written by Carie Winchell, Licensed Mental Health Therapist Carie Winchell is a spiritually informed Licensed Mental Health Therapist, specializing in Somatic Experiencing and Brainspotting. She has guided thousands of healing sessions over the past 30 years. She is also a Gene Keys & Human Design Guide and Metaphysical Mentor. Carie's intention is to support personal empowerment and the expansion of consciousness through the awakening to one's highest potential. When the social system you are a part of becomes too small, when you begin your personal awakening journey, when your Soul is calling you to listen, your life will become chaotic, your sense of balance will be disturbed or broken, and the ground beneath you will feel shaky. You will likely find yourself in a crisis once you listen to the call of your Soul. This crisis is a time when important decisions must be made. It is a breakdown, and it cannot be resolved by one's lifelong programming. One's familiar patterns of relating to oneself and one's environment no longer work. And this is the good news, your Soul is calling out to you. A breakthrough is needed. The chaos is necessary. How you relate to the chaos is most important. “Freedom’s just another word for nothin' left to lose.” – Janis Joplin This is why I support expansion beyond traditional psychotherapy. I believe we are here on Earth to meet our Soul's Calling. First, in the day-to-day, so that when it really matters, when our listening is the most important ingredient for our expansion, we can embark on our Heroine's/Hero's Journey to meet the calling of our Soul, toward enlightenment and intimacy with the Divine. Without the chaos and a deep listening to your Soul, there is no meaningful breakdown or breakthrough into New Life. I support your Soul's calling. I support you as you learn new ways to listen to your deepest Self. Ceremony, ritual, meaningful connections, relationships with nature, trust, and aligning with your internal guidance all allow your Soul to be heard. When you can no longer function within the system you are a part of, that is the good news. When you feel a restriction that becomes intolerable or unbearable, it is time to listen to your Soul. We are called to let go of limiting beliefs and small, outdated reactions to life. We live in a culture that supports us to stay and figure out how to make it work within systems that do not align with our Soul's Calling. I support you to listen at all costs. I support the breakdown. And as important as listening to our Soul's Calling is, we must listen to the wisdom we have gathered up until now. Allow it to guide you toward a new relationship with the chaos. The chaos can serve us, heal us, and transform us into new life. Crisis unfolds once we choose to align with our authentic Selves, or the decision happens for us by our Soul, by Spirit. Either way, Spirit will journey with and for you through the process. The easier way is to listen. We do this with support. And sometimes, we choose the harder way. We don't listen to the call, we might be too scared to. The crisis grows, the restriction intensifies, and that too is exactly what is meant to happen. We can judge one way as good and another as bad. I believe that with spirituality, it is all happening exactly as it is supposed to. And at the same time, we must show up. I would love to support you on your journey! Join me for a dynamic workshop experience or schedule a session here. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Carie Winchell Carie Winchell, Licensed Mental Health Therapist Carie Winchell is a Licensed Mental Health Therapist who offers healing and guidance to those who wish to move beyond family and cultural conditioning. As a Somatic Therapist, Brainspotting Practitioner, and Human Design/Gene Keys Guide, her work goes much deeper than traditional psychotherapy. Carie supports the revelation of her clients' Psychomythology through ancient techniques such as the I-Ching, Tarot, Numerology, and North Node Astrology, as well as Gestalt/Jungian methods and the ancient spiritual tradition of Shamanism. Journeying with Carie can uncover a wealth of information and expand one's consciousness, intuitive gifts, and strengths.

Written by Marine Sebire, Mind-Body Strength Coach for Moms Marine Sebire is a mind-body strength coach for moms. She is the founder of Moms’ Journey to Strength, a program dedicated to helping women boost their energy, build confidence, and feel strong, inside and out. Since 2014, she has coached moms around the world to reclaim their health and emotional well-being. In a world that keeps accelerating, information reaches us instantly, to-do lists grow longer, and schedules feel endlessly packed. Weeks slip by in the blink of an eye. Yet, there is one experience that seems to slow time down, love. Understanding why this happens may reveal how we can reclaim calm, presence, and a sense of ease in our everyday lives. Time bender: How love slows the world Have you ever noticed how time seems to slow down when you’re with the person you love? As if time itself pauses. The mental chaos, the worries, endless to-do lists, and old pain softly fade into the background. In their arms, the outside world feels distant. Everything becomes quieter, calmer, more peaceful. Your breathing slows, your heart rate settles, your body relaxes. And suddenly, time moves differently. That experience made me wonder, "Why? How can one person have such a powerful effect on our perception of time? Are they somehow bending time itself, or is something else happening beneath the surface? Is this sensation the result of finding “the one,” or is there a deeper explanation behind this feeling?" From myth to wholeness Centuries ago, Plato reflected on the nature of love in The Symposium. He described humans as once having four arms, four legs, and two faces, beings so powerful that Zeus decided to split them in half. From that moment on, each person wandered the world with a deep longing for their other half. The Greeks called this longing love, the desire to feel whole again. If that were true, does it mean we are destined to live in a constant state of mental overstimulation until we find our other half? But what if this sense of calm and slowed time isn’t mystical at all? What if it arises naturally when we feel safe, seen, and deeply connected? And if that’s possible, the real question becomes this, "Is slowing time something we stumble upon, or something we can learn to experience intentionally?" So what’s really happening when time seems to slow down with the person you love? Science offers some fascinating answers. Research shows that romantic attraction can change our perception of time. In one speed-dating study, women who were attracted to a potential partner consistently estimated their dates as lasting longer, suggesting that emotionally charged moments are experienced differently by the brain. But is the perception of time only linked to love? Luckily, for anyone who hasn’t found their “second half” yet, the answer is no. Love isn’t the only, or even the direct, cause of altered time perception. The explanation lies in the interaction between attention, memory, and emotion. When we’re with someone we care about, our brains heighten attention to detail, encode memories more densely, and intensify emotional engagement. Seconds can feel like minutes, moments feel fuller, and the passage of time seems altered. In other words, your mind is more present, your memories richer, and your emotional experience amplified, all contributing to that intuitive feeling of “time standing still.” How mindfulness changes the way we experience time Recent research has also shown that our sense of time shifts when we’re fully present, even outside of romantic contexts. A systematic review on mindfulness and time perception found that people who practice meditation or other forms of present-moment awareness consistently report changes in how they experience time. Across dozens of studies, mindfulness was associated with distortions in time perception. People often report time feeling slower or more expansive when they are deeply attentive to the present moment. These findings suggest that how we focus our attention and awareness, not a mystical force, can profoundly influence how time feels. In other words, whether you’re with a loved one or simply practicing mindfulness, meditation, or presence, cultivating these states can help you feel at home in the moment and, in a very real sense, reclaim some of your time. With that understanding in mind, let’s explore five practical ways to slow time in a fast-paced world. 5 ways to slow time in a fast-paced world Research suggests that feeling fully present is one of the key factors behind the illusion of time slowing down. The real question, then, is this, "How can we reclaim that feeling on purpose, whether we’re with someone we love or completely on our own?" Here are five science-backed ways to stretch time and deepen your experience of each moment. 1. Give 100% of your focus to one task Time perception depends heavily on how much information your brain processes in each moment. When attention is scattered, time seems to disappear. When attention is focused, moments feel fuller and longer, especially in memory. To apply this, stop multitasking. Do one thing at a time, fully. Remove background stimulation such as your phone, podcasts, or constant notifications. Engage intentionally with what you’re doing. More attention per moment equals more time per moment. 2. Slow the body to slow time Your brain tracks time partly through internal bodily signals, heartbeat, breathing rhythm, and muscle tension. When these signals slow down, subjective time stretches. You can influence this state through box breathing (inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4), meditation, intentional pauses between movements, and brief body scans to release tension, especially in the jaw, shoulders, abdomen, and hands. 3. Reduce urgency cues Modern life trains the brain to live in constant anticipation, the next task, the next message, the next obligation. This state of urgency compresses time. To counter this, create micro “end points” throughout your day. Finish one task completely before moving on. Pause to stand up, stretch, drink water, or take a few breaths before starting the next task. These small resets shift your nervous system out of rush mode. 4. Increase sensory richness The brain encodes time through sensory input. The more sensory detail present in an experience, the denser it feels, and the longer it seems. Slow time by noticing temperature, textures, sounds, and smells around you. Put your fork down between bites and truly savor your meal. When journaling, write not only about your emotions but also about how your body feels physically. 5. Cultivate safety over stimulation This is where being with a loved one fits, but it’s not the only path. Time expands when the nervous system perceives safety. That sense of safety can come from a person, a place, a ritual, or your own regulatory practices. When your body feels safe, your mind naturally settles, and time softens with it. So, is it science or the feeling of being whole again? Only you can answer that. When time slows down in the arms of someone you love, when your body softens, and your mind grows quiet, one thing is certain, you feel safe. In that moment, time stretches not because the clock has changed, but because your nervous system has. Presence replaces urgency. Calm replaces noise. And your body benefits, inside and out. We now know that this state arises from mindfulness and safety, whether it’s cultivated intentionally through practice or naturally evoked through deep connection and love. The source may differ, but the experience is the same, a quieter mind, a regulated body, and a sense of being fully here. And maybe that’s the real answer. If your thoughts slow, your breath deepens, and you feel seen, safe, and at home, there’s a good chance you’ve found something rare. Whether we call it science, love, or finding your other half, time has a way of telling the truth. Ready to reclaim your time? If this resonated with you, I invite you to book a complimentary consultation . Together, we’ll gently explore where you are, where you want to go, and what your next step could look like, thoughtfully, intentionally, and at your pace. Follow me on Facebook and Instagram for more info! Read more from Marine Sebire Marine Sebire, Mind-Body Strength Coach for Moms Marine Sebire is a respected voice in mind-body strength and emotional resilience for moms. After facing depression, divorce, and the identity shift of motherhood, she rebuilt herself from the inside out. She now helps other women do the same, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Since 2014, she has coached moms to reclaim their health, confidence, and purpose. She is the founder of Moms’ Journey to Strength, a coaching program blending fitness, mindset, and emotional well-being. Her mission is empowering moms to reclaim their strength, inside and out.

Written by An-Marie Ferdinand, Licensed Massage Therapist An-Marie Ferdinand is a wellness expert and founder of Body By An-Marie, LLC. She blends massage, reflexology, and energy work to help clients relieve pain, reduce stress, and restore balance. Her client-centered approach creates a safe, supported space for healing, renewal, and personal transformation. What if the secret to your health has been hidden in your DNA all along? The silent code guiding your every move. How genetics may explain what lifestyle advice often cannot. Every day, people wake up wondering why their bodies feel the way they do. Why does one person thrive while another battles fatigue, inflammation, or chronic stress? For generations, we’ve explained these differences through diet, hormones, lifestyle, or willpower. But what if the real answer has been inside us the entire time, coded into our DNA? Human survival has always been an evolving pursuit. As science advances, so do the questions surrounding how our genes shape health, longevity, physical performance, and resilience. Modern medicine has delivered extraordinary breakthroughs, yet the human body remains more complex than anything we’ve fully decoded. Genetics is emerging as the next frontier in understanding true wellness. The genetic blueprint behind human function Our genetic makeup is the blueprint of life. From how we adapt to our environment to how we combat illness, manage stress, and metabolize nutrients, our genes influence nearly every process within us. The human body is remarkably intelligent, engineered with innate defenses that deploy armies of antibodies against viruses, bacteria, and other invaders. Trillions of cells communicate through genetic markers that determine everything from hair color to disease susceptibility, food sensitivities, and even potential lifespan. Yet many people go through life without understanding why their body reacts the way it does. They blame stress, aging, or inconsistent habits, unaware that genetics may be the silent architect behind their daily experiences. Why one-size-fits-all wellness falls short In my practice, I’ve seen countless individuals drastically adjust their diets, restrict entire food groups, or rely on medications to feel better. While these changes may help, they often fail to produce consistent or lasting results. The reason? Surface-level strategies rarely address the underlying genetic factors shaping each body. Without understanding one’s unique genetic blueprint, wellness decisions are largely educated guesses. Genetics provides clarity, revealing how your body truly functions, what it needs, and where it may struggle. Sometimes, what you think is healthy can actually make you sick . By ignoring your individual biology, even well-intentioned habits may work against your body rather than for it. How genetic science is reshaping modern health Researchers have already made remarkable progress using genetics to guide treatment for chronic diseases such as diabetes. Scientists have identified genes that influence appetite regulation and metabolic function, inspiring the development of medications like Ozempic, a GLP-1 agonist. Other GLP-1–based therapies include Liraglutide (Victoza, Saxenda), Dulaglutide (Trulicity), Exenatide (Byetta), Lixisenatide (Adlyxin), and dual agonists (GLP-1 + GIP), targeting multiple metabolic pathways for stronger effects. These advances mark a shift toward genetically informed treatment, where therapies are designed based on how the body naturally regulates appetite, insulin, and metabolic health. With rapid advances in gene therapy and cellular engineering, we may soon be able to grow replacement organs, regenerate tissues, and rebuild blood vessels, moving toward a future where disease can be prevented, or even reversed. Eating for your blood type: You are what you are We’ve all heard the saying, “You are what you eat.” But there’s another layer to consider: “Eat what you are.” Genetics doesn’t just influence disease risk and metabolism, it also shapes how our bodies respond to the foods we consume. One of the most intriguing connections lies in blood type. Each blood type carries subtle biochemical differences that influence digestion, immune response, and nutrient absorption. These differences are encoded in our DNA and, in a sense, guide what our bodies can process most efficiently. The instinct to favor certain foods over others is a protective mechanism—a trait shared across all animals, humans included. When we follow it thoughtfully, we align our diets with our biology rather than against it. Your body’s immune system is designed to protect you from foreign invaders. It produces antibodies that identify and neutralize substances it perceives as threats. When your body recognizes an intruder, it generates more antibodies to attack it. These antibodies attach to the target, creating a “clumping” or “gluing” effect that neutralizes the threat. When you eat foods that are not compatible with your blood type, a similar process can occur. This clumping may take place in the digestive system, joints, liver, brain, or bloodstream. Over time, repeated exposure to incompatible foods can strain these systems, gradually impairing their function and potentially contributing to health problems such as inflammation, digestive discomfort, or metabolic imbalances. Eating in alignment with your blood type supports digestion, immunity, and overall vitality, creating a foundation for personalized wellness. Blood type O: The longevity and strength profile Individuals with blood type O are often considered the most resilient and adaptable of all blood types. In his book The Chemistry of Man , Bernard Jensen, Ph.D., N.D., quoted, “Nearly all of the oldest people I have encountered in my travels around the world were meat-eaters.” Type O individuals possess several unique physiological advantages. Their blood is the thinnest of all types, reducing the risk of clots and plaque buildup and helping protect against heart disease, at least in early life. Their immune systems are among the strongest, enabling robust defenses against infections, and their highly acidic stomachs are optimized for breaking down high-protein diets. These traits contribute to the remarkable longevity often observed in type O individuals. Early humans with type O thrived on protein-rich diets, giving them the ability to metabolize a wide variety of foods efficiently. Today, this strength is reflected in the prevalence of type O among many competitive bodybuilders and professional athletes. Historically, large populations of American Indians and Eskimos also carried type O blood, allowing them to adapt to protein-heavy diets in challenging environments. Type O individuals thrive on high-quality animal proteins such as beef, salmon, and cheese, combined with nutrient-dense vegetables like artichokes, broccoli, and leafy greens, complemented by fruits such as figs and plums. In contrast, pork, wheat, corn, lentils, navy beans, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, and certain melons like cantaloupe and honeydew may challenge digestion and circulation. Blood type A: The vegetarian-adaptive profile Many individuals with blood type A thrive best on a largely vegetarian diet, often avoiding most animal protein. As humans migrated to regions where meat was scarce, adaptation became essential for survival. In Europe, Asia, and Australia, early humans relied on fruits, vegetables, and grains, shaping the metabolic profile of type A blood. Type A individuals have the thickest blood of all blood types, affecting circulation and cardiovascular health. Diets high in meat and potatoes, staples in Western cuisine, can exacerbate this condition. Consuming incompatible foods causes blood to agglutinate, or thicken, forcing the heart to work harder. Over time, this can contribute to high blood pressure, hypertension, and an increased risk of heart disease. As type A individuals adapted to plant-based diets over generations, they naturally produce less stomach acid, reducing their ability to metabolize meat efficiently. Type A individuals thrive on plant-based proteins and antioxidant-rich foods such as soybeans, tofu, soy milk, lentils, broccoli, carrots, romaine lettuce, spinach, and green tea, complemented by fruits like blueberries, blackberries, cranberries, prunes, and raisins. Foods to minimize include animal fats, red meats, dairy products, kidney, lima, and navy beans, durum wheat, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, and certain melons. Aligning diet with type A physiology helps maintain healthy blood flow, immunity, and cardiovascular function. Blood type B: The balanced and adaptable profile Individuals with blood type B have a unique metabolic flexibility, allowing them to enjoy a diverse diet with relative ease. Their blood is neither as thin as type O nor as thick as type A, giving them a balanced circulatory profile. Type B individuals can metabolize dairy products efficiently and extract essential nutrients from a wide variety of foods. While type B's adaptability allows for a varied diet, consuming incompatible foods or metabolizing certain foods poorly can weaken the immune system, increasing susceptibility to autoimmune conditions. Type B individuals thrive on moderate amounts of meat such as lamb, venison, cod, and grouper, alongside dairy options like feta and mozzarella cheese. Plant-based proteins and nutrient-rich vegetables, including kidney, lima, and navy beans, broccoli, cabbage, collard, and mustard greens, complement their diet, while fruits like pineapple and plums provide additional vitamins and antioxidants. Foods to minimize include chicken, American cheese, ice cream, wheat, white and yellow corn, pumpkin, tofu, persimmons, and rhubarb. Eating in harmony with type B physiology supports immune function, digestion, and metabolic balance. Blood type AB: The dual-gene profile Individuals with blood type AB inherit both dominant A and B genes, giving them a unique combination of traits. This dual inheritance makes them susceptible to conditions associated with both A and B blood types, including heart disease, cancer, and certain autoimmune disorders. Women with type AB often experience hormonal imbalances that lead to menstrual irregularities, excessive bleeding, clotting, cramping, and migraines. Physiologically, ABs are more muscular than type A individuals but less than type B. While some build muscle with ease, others face challenges similar to type A. ABs efficiently derive essential nutrients from plant and vegetable-based proteins. Type AB individuals thrive on small amounts of animal protein, such as turkey, cod, and mahi-mahi, alongside navy, pinto, and soy beans, oat and rice flours, collard, dandelion, and mustard greens, and fruits like figs, grapes, and plums. Foods to avoid include chicken, duck, all pork and venison, clams, crab, haddock, lobster, shrimp, kidney and lima beans, white and yellow corn, peppers, and certain fruits such as guava, mangoes, and oranges. Eating in alignment with type AB physiology supports immune function, digestion, hormonal balance, and overall wellness. Fueling the body the way it was designed Blood type can serve as a helpful guide when choosing what to eat, allowing nutrition to work with your body rather than against it. When you nourish yourself with foods, and supplements, suited to your individual needs, you create an environment where the body can function more efficiently and the risk of illness may be reduced. Pairing a blood-type-aligned diet with regular movement strengthens the immune system, and a strong immune system can play a meaningful role in supporting a longer, healthier life. Protein is a key part of this equation. The body relies on protein to repair tissue, maintain strength, and support everyday functions. Once sugars and carbohydrates are used for quick energy, the body naturally turns to stored fat for fuel. The goal is to keep the body in a rebuilding, restorative state for as many hours of the day as possible so it always has what it needs to heal and regenerate. Carbohydrates can provide energy, but they don’t fully support the body’s deeper needs, such as building strong bones, repairing tissue, or maintaining immune strength. True nourishment goes beyond calories; it’s about giving the body the right tools to stay resilient, balanced, and well. Moving in harmony with your genetics Nutrition is only part of the equation. Blood type also influences how the body responds to exercise, recovery, and physical stress. When movement is paired with adequate protein intake and targeted supplementation, the body is better supported in staying in an anabolic, or rebuilding, state, allowing muscles, connective tissue, and immune function to recover and grow more efficiently. Reaching your genetic potential isn’t about pushing harder; it’s about moving smarter. Each body type has natural strengths and vulnerabilities. By aligning your fitness routine with your blood type, you can amplify the positives, such as endurance, strength, or recovery capacity, while minimizing tendencies toward inflammation, fatigue, or injury. When nutrition, supplementation, and exercise work together, the body functions as it was designed to. This integrated approach not only supports performance but also promotes long-term vitality, resilience, and longevity. Understanding your genetic blueprint, and honoring it through movement, becomes a powerful step toward building a healthier, more balanced life. Working with your body, not against it Understanding your genetics offers powerful insight into how your body functions internally, but how your body is shaped externally is just as important when it comes to fitness and long-term results. This is where body type comes into play. Body type influences where we store fat, how easily we build muscle, how we respond to exercise, and where we face our greatest physical challenges. When fitness plans ignore these differences, people often feel frustrated, discouraged, or stuck, working harder without seeing the results they expect. When movement is tailored to support your natural structure, everything changes. Progress becomes more efficient, sustainable, and motivating. By integrating blood-type-informed nutrition with body-type-specific training, we shift from forcing the body into someone else’s mold to working in partnership with it. This approach allows us to maximize strengths, correct imbalances, and support overall health, performance, and confidence. Instead of following workouts that look good on paper but don’t match how your body is built, you begin training in a way that respects your biology, and finally starts to work with you, not against you. The pear body type: Redefining balance and strength The pear body type offers a clear example of why honoring body structure matters. Individuals with this shape tend to carry more weight in the lower body, particularly the hips, thighs, and glutes, while the upper body remains comparatively slender. Shoulders are often narrower, the waist more defined, and the bust line shallower, creating what is commonly described as a bottom-heavy silhouette. This natural distribution is not a flaw, it is simply information. The challenge for the pear body type is not weight loss alone, but balance. Fitness strategies that focus only on burning calories or shrinking the lower body often backfire, reinforcing frustration rather than progress. A more effective approach is to reshape proportion by strengthening and building the upper body while using targeted, intelligent movement to tone and support the lower half. By adding muscle to the shoulders, chest, and back, the body creates visual and structural balance while increasing metabolic demand. At the same time, lower-body training should emphasize control, alignment, and muscle engagement rather than excessive volume or strain. When exercise is designed with these principles in mind, the pear body begins to feel stronger, more stable, and more confident, without fighting its natural design. This is the power of personalized fitness. When we understand how the body is built and train accordingly, transformation becomes less about correction and more about collaboration. The apple body type: Creating strength from the center The apple body type tends to carry weight primarily in the upper body, with fat storage concentrated around the waist, upper back, arms, and abdominal area. The midsection often appears fuller or protrudes forward, while the lower body, particularly the hips, glutes, and legs, remains relatively lean. This contrast can create a feeling of imbalance, where the upper body feels heavier and the lower body less supportive. The key challenge for the apple body type is not simply reducing weight around the midsection, but redistributing strength throughout the body. Building muscle in the hips, thighs, and glutes helps create a more balanced foundation, while shaping and toning the upper body improves posture and overall symmetry. Core training is especially important, as strengthening the abdominal muscles supports spinal alignment, stability, and daily movement. When fitness programs overlook these structural needs, apple body types often struggle with stubborn midsection weight and fatigue. But when training focuses on strengthening the lower body, improving core stability, and intelligently toning the upper body, the apple shape becomes more balanced, resilient, and functional. This approach supports not only aesthetics but long-term joint health, metabolic efficiency, and confidence in movement. The banana body type: Building curves through strength The banana body type, often called a rectangle, tends to distribute weight evenly between the upper and lower body but lacks natural curves, giving it a straight-line silhouette. Shoulders, ribs, and pelvic bones are typically of similar width, and the waist may appear broad, making shapeliness less defined. The key challenge for this body type is not weight loss but firming and toning muscles to create a more sculpted and balanced figure. Focusing on the abdominal muscles helps define the waist, while targeted exercises to elongate the thighs and tone the buttocks contribute to a more hourglass-like shape. With consistent, strategic training, the banana body can gain pleasing lines, improved posture, and greater overall strength, all while working in harmony with its natural structure. The hourglass body type: Enhancing natural balance The hourglass body type is naturally curvy, with shoulders and hips roughly the same width and a clearly defined waist. Fat tends to be evenly distributed between the upper and lower body, creating a balanced and proportionate silhouette. While this shape is often seen as naturally “ideal,” it still requires attention to maintain strength, tone, and posture. For hourglass bodies, the main focus is supporting the waist and core to protect the lower back and maintain that natural curve. Strengthening the glutes, hips, shoulders, and chest helps keep the upper and lower body balanced while preventing muscle tightness or imbalances. Exercises should be well-rounded, targeting both upper and lower body to maintain symmetry and functional strength. Even with a naturally balanced figure, nutrition and movement are key. Pairing a diet that fits your blood type with adequate protein and nutrient-rich foods helps fuel muscle repair, maintain energy, and support overall health. By combining smart training with proper nutrition, hourglass individuals can maximize their natural advantages, stay strong, and enjoy long-term vitality. Your DNA as a roadmap to wellness Everybody is unique, and your genetics offer a roadmap to understanding how your body works best. By combining blood-type-aligned nutrition, body-type-specific training, and supportive supplementation, you begin working with your body instead of against it. This is the heart of personalized wellness, recognizing your natural strengths, respecting your challenges, and giving your body what it needs to function at its highest potential. Blood type helps guide how your body responds to food, protein, and nutrients, while body type reveals how you store fat, build muscle, and move through the world. Together, they shape a more thoughtful approach to fitness, one that supports progress, reduces frustration, and promotes long-term health. When nutrition and movement align with your genetic roadmap, the body becomes more resilient, efficient, and responsive. There is no single “right” or “wrong” way to approach health, and no one has all the answers. Wellness is not about perfection, it’s about permission. Permission to explore, to experiment, and to listen closely to your own body. Your body is constantly communicating with you; the more attention you give it, the more clarity you gain. Thank you for reading! Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , and visit my website for more info! Read more from An-Marie Ferdinand An-Marie Ferdinand , Licensed Massage Therapist An-Marie Ferdinand is a wellness expert specializing in massage therapy, nutrition, fitness, and holistic healing. She's the founder of Body By An-Marie, LLC, where she helps clients reconnect with their bodies and reclaim their well-being. Her work blends science and intuition, integrating bodywork, reflexology, and energy healing. An-Marie is passionate about supporting others through stress, pain, and emotional fatigue with personalized client-centered care. Her unique approach empowers people to align with their natural healing potential. She creates a safe, nurturing space for transformation and renewal. Whether you're seeking relief, balance, or a deeper connection, An-Marie is here to support your wellness journey.