Finding Grace.... My Story

Finding Grace has had a profound impact on how I now choose to tell and to share my story. Finding Grace, in its very essence, has held a mirror up and asked me to look within and to find the Grace within myself. 

My life is about balance. This has manifested in many different ways throughout my life and I have tipped the scales of emotion in my life to the very extremes of sheer desperation and to the highs of ecstasy. I have tried to find balance for others as well as myself, at times to the detriment of my own health and peace. 

I have been a warrior in life, fighting hard for what I believe in and I have retreated into a shell not allowing the world to touch me in any way. Much of my life has been filled with drama and confusion and pain but this is illusory..... it is just a story. I am not that story.

Finding Grace, for me, is about recognising the truth of who we are in a world that is perfectly balanced. And if what we are is a reflection of this world, then we have it within our power to be truly balanced.

We are all connected in a world of duality. Light and Dark. Ying and Yang. Fire and Water. Earth and Sky. Finding Grace, finding balance is about allowing my life to flow, to truly connect to the energies of this amazing planet we live on. If I can do this for just one minute of every day, then my heart will continue to open and to be nourished and natural balance will find me. I will no longer find myself being buffeted around by the life that I have created but will find myself making choices from a place of heart-centred openness.

Finding Grace is about relinquishing control and flowing. 

I may not know what the butterfly will look like or even when she will emerge but what I do know is that when she does she will be beautiful and full of Grace.

My heartfelt thanks to Lynda and The Finding Grace Project.

Love and Blessings,

Nikola xxx

Finding Grace....

Finding Grace is a beautiful project - the inspiration of a Very Beautiful Soul who also happens to be a good friend of mine.

Lynda Kelly has a dream.

Lynda is a very talented photographer, who is taking her passion for photography, and with it, choosing to change the lives of others. This year Lynda hopes to take 1,000 portrait photographs of women, who are prepared to share their story and the money raised will go straight to The Rainbow Trust. A charity who provide emotional and practical support to families whose children have life threatening or terminal illnesses.

Lynda is also an extremely intuitive coach and in the telling of your story through the medium of photographs, you will discover even more about your self and your story and you will have a beautiful portrait photograph of yourself to treasure.

Take a look at the attached link and if you would like to be a part of this amazing project then please contact me.... www.findinggraceportraits.co.uk

I am in the process of writing my own story of Finding Grace in my life as I had my photographs taken just a couple of days ago... I will share both the photographs and my story in my next blog post.

The project is magical so why not get involved, making one very special lady's dream come true and helping to support and enrich the lives of the children and families of The Rainbow Trust.

With love and blessings,

Nikola x

Serotonin - your natural happiness drug!

Time and time again you will hear me say that I believe that our bodies, hearts and minds have an innate ability to work healthily and effectively for us. Unfortunately, we constantly put pressure on all aspects of ourselves, or allow external pressures to affect us and our natural rythmn's and balance become out of synch. The consequences; feelings of stress, anxiety, depression - to name but a few afflictions.

Serotnonin is our bodies own natural chemical process that affects how we feel. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, involved in the transmission of nerve impulses. It is this process that triggers feelings of happiness and is, therefore, believed to help regulate our moods, aiding sleep, calming anxiety and relieving depression. Your body makes serotonin out of the amino acid tryptophan and low levels are recognised widely as being associated with depression, anxiety, apathy, fear, feelings of worthlessness, insomnia and fatigue. Most prescription medication targets serotonin. 

We, therefore, need to recognise and understand for ourselves what it is that we need to do to change the levels of serotonin in our bodies to promote a natural and healthy response to depleting levels. 

Our diet, thoughts, emotions, behaviour and our connection to nature all affect our bodies natural chemistry. Relaxation, exercise, breathing and good nutrition all have a positive impact on our bodies' chemical processes. It is also no coincidence that time spent in nature has an effect on our serotonin levels. Energy from the sun and the earth helps  regulate our own natural balance. It is not just a mental process that makes us think we feel better, our chemical balance actually changes when we are in a more natural space.

It is possible to use all of the above techniques to manage your body's serotonin levels. Start to pay attention to the little things that make you feel good and systematically start to include them in your daily routine, to encourage your body to manage and to balance your serotonin levels. If you find yourself saying that you do not have the time or even the inclination - then ask yourself the question, which is more important. Your health and happiness or continuing to feel anxious, stressed or even depressed?!

What can you do that will help you to raise your body's serotonin levels?! Take time to express gratitude in the morning for all that you have. This immediately puts you into a constructive and positive frame of mind in the morning. Take a warm shower in the morning and visualise washing away any thoughts that don't serve you, any feelings of stress or anxiety. This in itself is enough to raise your serotonin at the beginning of the day. Take time to listen to your favourite music. Music that engages, relaxes and makes you feel happy. Eat nutritious food. We all know the feelings of guilt or indeed the actual physical reactions that our bodies have to food that does not make us feel good. So, don't go there in the first place. (Don't give yourself a hard time if you do) but simply make the choice to eat food that makes you smile and you choose to take the time to savour and to enjoy. Choose to spend time with loved ones and make it quality time. Take regular exercise and make sure that you recognise how the exercise makes you feel better and healthier. It is not about making yourself look better on a superficial level... it is about making yourself feel better from the inside out.

Start by making small changes on a daily basis and the effects will be felt on a much bigger scale... this I promise you.....

Let me know, as always, how you get on and share your experiences with me.

With love and blessings,

Nikola xx

Personal Coaching by Email

I am very excited that today sees the launch of my new:

"Personal Coaching by Email"

Whilst I feel very strongly that it is always important to continue to do the things you love and to always give time to yourself and to your needs and desires, it is not always as easy to put this into practice; especially when all the messages in the Media are telling us how expensive life is.... When we hear messages like that, many of us choose to forgo what are seen as lifestyle "nice to have's"  such as massage, coaching, yoga, meditation classes etc. Therefore, I wanted to offer you the opportunity to continue to give to yourself and your own development in a much more affordable way. Not only that, but I also wanted to incorporate my own strengths and passion into the work that I do.

Therefore, I have chosen to create an email Coaching facility to my business. As many of you will have heard me say before, my passion is words and I recognise my ability to coach through the medium of words. I am able to intuit far more from what people write than what they say. 

Coaching by Email - How will it work?

You will be able to email me at any time of day or night with your questions or coaching issues and I promise to get back to you within 12 hours... The difference being that you no longer have to wait until your next appointment to ask that all important question. You will be able to start implementing the changes that we write about as soon as you have read my response.

There are a number of incredibly inspirational sites on the internet now offering advice and support and blog sites that cover any number of subjects. What I am offering, is the chance for you to get a response and to make that advice and support personal to you.

I love reading columns in magazines that provide insight and inspiration, however, sometimes I feel the need for it to be more personal for me to truly implement it in my own life.

Coaching by Email - How much will it cost?

1 month = £10

3 months = £27

6 months = £54

There is no limit to the emails and questions that you can raise in that time. All I would ask is that your intent in using this service and posing your coaching issues is that they are real and of significance and importance to you.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at beinyourpower@live.com if you have any questions on how this might work for you.

I look forward to working with you over the coming weeks.....
Love and blessings, always
Nikola x