I love New Year's Eve. Always have and always will.
There's something incredibly special about a year coming to a close.
While some may see it as another year gone by, I see a fresh start with hope in what's ahead.

But in order for it to be a fresh start, an element of reflection is required.
So for an hour or two each New Year's Eve, I wipe the slate clean, grab a warm beverage, 
pull out my day calendar and start flipping through the pages of this past year, recalling the highs and the lows. I think about what I hope will change, and what I can do to make that happen. I consider the goals I set for 2016 and whether those goals were met. I spend time contemplating the quality of relationships in my life and decide whether they continue to thrive, or have grown stale.

Much has been written on the benefits of self-reflection. Among my favourites is increased personal awareness, an opportunity to take stock of what no longer serves us, becoming better in tune to feelings rather than simply burying them and lastly, an opportunity for positive change. 
Self reflection is key to self care.

By no means is it meant to be an exercise in discipline, or in admonishing ourselves for not meeting expectations. Don't wallow in the mire. It is simply an opportunity to take out our moral compasses, and get back on track.

So now it's time to look ahead.
I don't make a list of new year's resolutions, but I do set intentions. Put that way, it feels less restrictive. Intentions help crystallize hopes not yet realized. They play a significant role in settling you squarely on the path of where you want to be this time next year.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year with the hopes that self care will be high on your list!

Hi and welcome!

Since publishing my book 'Side Effects', (a book about healing from Secondary Traumatic Stress/ STS), I have spent a great deal of time on the topic of resilience. It was not something I knew to focus on during my career, and as a result, I became a prime candidate for developing STS. Without resilience we all become 'sitting ducks' to the havoc that stressors of all kinds can wreak.   

What is resilience, and why focus on it?

Resilience is the ability to bounce back from setbacks. It's the quality that spurs us on to  pick ourselves up after life has knocked us down. A lack of resilience directly affects the way we cope with life's challenges. Whether we crumble in the face of adversity or muster the courage to face it dead on. A lack of resilience leaves us vulnerable to stress, STS and PTSD.

Here's the plan:
At the heart of building resilience is self care. This blog is going to be all about self care, the ways we nurture ourselves, build ourselves up and create a core of courage and strength that will see us through the rough patches. Since self care is so individual, and preferences are so widespread, I welcome comments from anyone out there who might like to share their own ways of developing healthy self care techniques. 
Hope you stay tuned for more!
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