Rid Your Life Of Clutter.

A hunt for a favorite t-shirt ends with the discovery that it didn’t make the wash and is lying in a crumpled heap on the floor of your bedroom. 

There are more coffee cups in your bedroom/office/lounge than in the kitchen cupboard.  

In the living room your coffee table has long since disappeared under a pile of magazines, TV listings, and other assorted junk. You have just tripped over the shoes you kicked off as you came in the door last night. 

You have no idea what is at the back of your pantry but a quick inspection confirms that many of the packets and jars hiding there are long past their ‘use by’ date.

You have eaten out or had takeaway 3 times this week because you just couldn't face the kitchen.

If any of this sounds familiar then you are suffering from clutter.  There are many stages of clutter and all stages cause varying degrees of stress.  In some cases excessive clutter is not only  stressful but also embarrassing and creates a sense of not being able to cope.  We often get so overwhelmed at the thought of clearing the clutter, that we just don't do it.  The cycle continues because the more overwhelmed we are the more likely we are to add to the clutter.  Fortunately the cycle can be broken.

Tackle one area at a time

Once you have decided to rid your life of clutter, the task may seem daunting. Relax; it took a long time to create the clutter so you have to be realistic about the time it’s going to take to deal with it. Start with the one area that is annoying you the most, then move on to the next.

Schedule a time to de-clutter

Clutter loves procrastination so set aside a fixed time when you are going to make a start. Mark the time in your diary, that way you will be more likely to stick to it.

Work in short periods

Work for 2- 3 hours at a time rather than attempt to de-clutter all at once. Having a fixed time helps make the task manageable and gives you a goal to keep you motivated.

Use organisers

Baskets can be attractive as well as useful. Use them to collect clutter that can’t be avoided such as one for loose change and keys. Hang shoe-holders and tie-racks from door hooks to save space and keep things tidy.

Sort mail

Sort the mail as you open it, ideally standing close to the bins. Use a notice board to pin the items you need to keep.

Insist on help

Unless you live alone, other people will be contributing to the clutter. Encourage your partner and children to help clear the clutter or, at the very least, avoid creating more.

These are just a few steps that will help you on your way.  If you would like more help and support please contact me via email to discuss your needs - hello@mrsbloom.org

Or take a deep breath and book a 

Declutter Clinic session 

with me NOW  

click here to book

or for a chance to win a free Clutter Clinic Session 
click the rafflecopter link below

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Ginger for health and beauty

Ginger is incredibly versatile. It has long been used in Chinese medicine to treat a whole range of ailments and conditions. In some Eastern cultures, particularly in Japan, slices of ginger are eaten between dinner courses in order to clear the palate. In Western culture, ginger is often used to prevent travel sickness and morning sickness during pregnancy. It is also sometimes used to treat colic, flatulence, and other stomach and intestinal disorders. In cooking, fresh root ginger, dried ginger, or ground ginger can be used to add a spicy tang to sweet or savoury dishes. The oil from ginger is also sometimes distilled so it can be used in perfumes. Here are some health and beauty benefits of ginger:

Ginger may provide relief from migraine headaches, and the accompanying symptoms. Research has been conducted into the affect of ginger on migraines, and so far the results have been very encouraging for sufferers. Ginger is thought to help by stopping prostaglandins from causing the dilation of blood vessels, which is a common cause of many migraines.

Including fresh ginger as a regular part of your diet could help to alleviate the pain of arthritis. Ginger is an anti-inflammatory, and has been successful in helping to relieve the pain and inflammation of arthritis in some people. The effect is cumulative, so you need to eat the spice regularly to feel the full benefits. 

Ginger can boost your immune system, and help to fight off colds and infections. For an immune-boosting drink, infuse some slices of fresh ginger in a cup of boiling water, and add a squeeze of lemon and spoonful of honey for additional benefits. The drink can also help to clear your sinuses and settle your stomach.

Ginger can help to clear spots and treat acne. Extract the juice from a piece of root ginger by grating finely, then pressing through a sieve or piece of cheesecloth. Dab the juice directly onto spots, pimples, and areas that are prone to acne. Leave the juice for thirty minutes before rinsing off with cold water. 

Some of you have asked about the soup I tweeted about last night.  All I did was put chicken carcass in a pan with garlic, onion, carrot, lemon and ginger, covered with equal amounts of wine and water.  Bring to the boil, simmer for several hours, scoop off fat and scum occasionally.  Drain juice from the bones and put in the fridge and heat portions as required ...

Essential cosmetics for car travel

Are heading off for a little break this weekend?  With the warm weather and the inevitable traffic problems, it would be very easy to reach you destination looking less than your best!  I can’t help you with traffic predictions but this list of travel cosmetics will help you to arrive as refreshed and presentable as possible, ready to enjoy your weekend.  Carry a cosmetic bag in the car with you filled with products that will help you to look and feel your best when you reach the final stop on your journey.  Here are some items you should keep in your bag to make your journey more pleasant:

Lip balm

If you’ll be in the car for any length of time, especially with the air conditioning on,  your lips may become uncomfortably dry and even chapped. Include a small container to lip balm to in your travel bag to offset some of the drying effect on your lips. 

Eye drops

Dry heat in the car can make your eyes feel dry and uncomfortable. Include a small container of moisturising eye drops in your travel bag to soothe dry, irritated eyes. These eye drops will also help to remove any redness from your eyes and keep you looking refreshed.

Antibacterial wipes

Take a packet of antibacterial wipes to disinfect and freshen your hands especially is you are using motorway services!

A travel sized tube of hand cream

Your hands can become dry and uncomfortable when you travel for long distances in a car with dry heat. 

A spritzer bottle

A spritzer bottle filled with mineral water can be a quick way to refresh your face and hair on a long car trip. You can even add a few drops of essential oil to add a touch of scent to the water. 

Compressed face powder

You may not want to take the time to reapply your makeup during travel, but you don’t want to arrive with a shiny face. If you have oily skin that tends to become shiny after several hours, carry a small compact with compressed, oil-free powder inside for a quick touch up. Don’t carry loose powder if you want to avoid a potential powder mess in your car. 

Sugar free chewing gum

Sugar free chewing gum is not only useful for freshening your breath during travel, it also keeps the saliva flowing to reduce plaque build up when you can’t brush. 

A travel sized tube of face cream

If you have dry skin, pop a travel sized tube of facial cream or moisturizer into your travel bag to apply as needed for facial dryness. A light coating of moisturiser applied to the areas under the eyes and around the mouth followed by a spritz of mineral water and a quick application of your pressed powder can make you look and feel refreshed at the end of your journey. 

Life Coaching Practice is ready to go ...

I am very excited to announce that I shall be opening my Life Coaching practice next week.  A  sparkly new website at www.mrsbloom.org will go live later this week.


I am very much looking forward to this new chapter in my life and can't wait to get started.  Life Coaching is not counselling, but it does help you to explore all the possibilities in your life and to identify the steps that you need to take in order to set and achieve your goals.  The accountability of having someone else hold your 'to do' list is very effective.  Talking to someone who does not have an emotional connection to you can help sort through the many aspects of your life and produce an achievable plan for moving forward.  We are often so bogged down with 'doing' life that we never have time to plan what's next and simply react to all the things that are thrown at us rather than stepping back and deciding if it is really what we need.  Time with a Life Coach gives you that thinking time.  I don't claim to have all the answers, most of them will already be within you, we just need to find them!  I am also categorically not able to help you get rich quick!  But what I will do is help you to reset your life,  set achievable goals and create some time to smell the roses ...

To celebrate my launch I am offering the following packages ...

6 x 1 hour sessions

£49.99 (usually £150 per course)

We will follow a tried and tested programme designed to explore who you really are, identify your hidden skills, focus on achievable goals and set a plan for the steps needed to allow you to control all aspects of your life more effectively.

1 hour Session

£15 (usually £30)

A one off session is a chance to take some time out of your day and discuss an issue that is either taking up an inordinate amount of your time or blocking your view of the bigger picture.

Declutter Clinic

Is your house getting you down?  Do you spend a daft amount of time looking for stuff?  You need the declutter clinic!

please register your interest in the declutter clinic by emailing 

hello@mrsbloom.org

sessions will be held individually and in groups via Skype 

Home visits for hands on decluttering help will be available soon

If you are not sure what you need, please book an introductory session and we can talk through your options

At the moment I am unable to provide home visits, but I am happy to see clients at my consulting room in Bow, London.

I very much look forward to working with you

PLEASE BOOK YOUR SESSIONS HERE

The I am Woman Anthology

The First Volume of the I Am Woman Anthology is still available on Kindle, please help us to support the charities that do such great work in supporting women in need


www.iamwomancampaign.blogspot.com

Meditation for Creativity

Cognitive Distortions Podcast

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Good Morning!

A Career Change!

As I sit here in the sunshine, I am once again reminded that my decision to start my own business at home was one of the best I have ever made.  It was hard work in the beginning, but in the end I am happier and so are my family.  I recently read an article which told me that I am a portfolio worker, which is in essence  a self employed person who does whatever people will pay them for in order to pay the bills.  That last sentence was a little tongue in cheek but it does sum up the last few years of my professional life.  In order  to survive as a freelancer/sole trader/portfolio worker one needs to be flexible and above all fluid.  There is no point in sticking to a business plan or flogging a service if no one is buying, far better to learn and move on, changing the service or product provided.  A successful business will watch trends change and move with them.  There is also the 'if you don't love it, don't do it' approach to working.  After all, the 2 most popular reasons for anyone starting out on their own or working from home are 'to do it their way' and to readjust their priorities in life.  We often get so caught up in running the business that we forget why we chose to do it in the first place.


Which one is true of my situation?  Well, all of the above really, in recent months I have had to revisit the reasons that I chose to work from home and to ask myself if what I am doing at this moment in time makes me happy.  And on the whole it does, I have some clients who I adore, some that are more transient and on a day to day basis every things ticks along nicely.  BUT and there is very often a but, is it challenging me? is it what I want to be doing for the rest of my working life?  The answer to that question is no!  I believe in signs and opportunity, that the universe continually offers us what we need.  For me it can be as simple as a random comment from a stranger or reading a discarded newspaper on the train that was left open at a particular article.  That one article or comment has the power to change my whole perspective or plant a seed of an idea in my thoughts.  Buddha said - "choose your words wisely as others will hear them and be influenced".  Now, you maybe yelling the word coincidence at the screen and be about to respond to this blog by telling me that if you read enough books and talk to enough people, something will influence you, and that is exactly right.  My point is that information will only resonate with you if it is within you to hear it at that time.  I have felt a change in my life coming for a while now, my energy has changed.  The last time I felt like this was the time I jacked in my job and set up an office on the kitchen table.  On that occasion the universe nudged me so hard it knocked me off my feet!  This time it was a little more gentle, several things happened but to cut a long story short; I had one of those transient clients that I mentioned, started out with the usual business mentoring, which turned in to what can only be termed as life coaching without either of us realising it, I worked with this client over several months, resulting in a more than happy ending for both of us .  It felt very comfortable and made sense of a great number of things that had been milling around my psyche.


Have I found my Niche?  I do hope so.  I sailed through the Life Coaching course, discovering more of myself in the progress.  This blog was part of the process and of course the book on Modern Lifestyle Management that I have been writing.  For the moment I will continue with the PR alongside this new venture, but I have to be honest, when I look in the mirror I see a Life Coach who also writes bestselling novels.


The new website will be ready very soon and I will launch properly as soon as it is live.  My coaching session plans, however, are already written and ready to go, so if you would like to be the first to experience the Mrs Bloom treatment I will be offering large discounts to anyone who signs up in the next 14 days. Sessions will take place via Skype, phone, email or at my consulting room in London.


So, Margot Bloom Lifestyle Management including Life Coaching, Business Coaching, De-cluttering & Organisation - its all very exciting ....

Creating Space

I came across this system for sorting the clutter from a room, you will need some large boxes and a spare couple of hours.








Sort


Sort everything into the boxes, making sure that you group like items together.


Prioritise


One box at a time prioritise the items so that you end up with a pile to keep and a pile that you can rid of.


Area


Decide where you are gong to store the contents of each box - maybe a newly emptied cupboard or shelves.


Container


A small set of drawers for stationery or pretty boxes with lids for paperwork or a bespoke storage system.


Everyday


At the end of the day, just as you tell your children, store everything away in its new home

Tadaaa - SPACE!

That's my daughter ...

Last week I was asked for photos of me as a child for a magazine piece.  My mother is quite rightly the keeper of the family photos and just like her mother before her she will make sure that they are all sorted, dated and neatly stored in their albums before passing them on to me.  When my times comes I guess I will just save them all to an available cloud!


Anyway, my mother arrived on Saturday with a pile of old photos, I took one look and burst into tears, whilst everyone looked on absolutely bemused.  I have to say at this point I am very prone to crying in the safety of my own home and over the strangest things.   It's a whole other story, but several years ago I had to learn how to cry and show emotion , now I do it often.  Yes, I cried when a nice couple won some money on the million pound drop. I cried when my grandson used the potty.  I even cried when the dog learnt to hi five!

The reason for my water works?  After having had 7 sons who looked a little bit like me but not quite.  They have my features and some of my worst traits, but they don't actually look like me.  My daughter on the other hand looks almost exactly like me and seeing it the pictures was a little overwhelming.


Can I just point out that the clothes I am wearing in the pictures, including the duffle coat, were made by my mother!


I hadn't ever thought about having a daughter, but there is something quite magical about the bond that I have with my daughter and that moves me every day. 


Last night I watched a really cheesy film because I got myself stuck on the sofa.  The closing titles were accompanied by a song, the lyrics of that song ensured that I went to bed sobbing again.


"Thats my daughter in the water ... every thing she has I bought her ... everything she knows I taught her ..."

Louden Wainwright the 3rd

Grounding Meditation

I love this, the ladies voice is so soothing ...

Please take some time to watch all the way through and take part in the meditation.  Let me know how you get on

Les Fleurs de Chanel

The Money Frog

The  Money Frog is commonly used in Feng Shui to attract wealth.  The money frog is usually depicted sitting on a bed of coins and often with a coin in his mouth, this symbolises the wealth that the money frog already has. 

Besides the attraction of wealth, the money frog provides protection, helping its owner get rid of any bad luck which might be causing them money problems. 

The best place for the money frog to be placed is in the living room or office, in the corner which is diagonally opposite to the entrance door and facing the door.  This place is ideal as the corners are where chi concentrates and is a strategic spot for the chi flow of the room. The money frog works with the concentration of chi energy.  The money frog can also be placed in a southwest corner of your home facing towards the door.  The Southwest corner of your home is your money area and can be boosted by plants water features and blue/green/brown colour schemes.  As this is a wood area, avoid anything metal or from the fire elements.

You must also show the money frog the proper respect by placing him on a raised surface.

I have 4 of these lovely Money Frog globes (as pictured above) for sale, they come with full instructions and are a great start to your Feng Shui makeover.

 

Feng Shui Your Office Space

Here are 10 ways to increase the flow of energy around your workstation, helping you with creativity and productivity ...


1.  De-clutter


always the first step to allow chi to flow without interruption.


2.  Remove anything that is broken


Anything that is broken or does not function properly block the chi around you work space


3. Get a plant 


A plant will absorb to negative energy produces from electrical items


4  Face your chair towards the door


The door is the symbol of opportunity, do not miss it because you have your back to it!


5.  place the back of your chair against a solid wall


A popular concept in Feng Sui is to always have something solid at your back to support you.


6.  Water


A fish bowl or a water feature will encourage the flow of energy and of wealth.  It is also soothing during periods of stress.


7.  Colour


Use office accessories in blue, purple and red - the colours of calm, creativity and recognition


8.  Pictures


To encourage harmony place pictures of loved ones on the upper right corner of your desk.


9.  Waste basket


Try not to have a waste basket anywhere near your desk as this will drain the chi.  If you must have one place at bottom left corner of desk.


10.  Lighting


Avoid harsh over head lighting, instead use a desk lamp.

Empty that Drawer

Do you have a junk drawer?  Do you call it your useful stuff drawer?  Is it full of useful stuff?


If you have just answered with a yes, let's put that to the test.  If you answered no, I applaud your honestly. 


Try this simple test then answer the question again ...




1.   Tip the contents of the drawer into a box


2.   Every time you use an item put it back into the drawer


3.   After a month what ever is left in the box can be disposed of ....


Simples!

Skin Rescue

Choose your words carefully

For others will hear and be influenced ...

5 minute De-clutter

If a complete de-clutter of your home seems a little daunting here is a quick tip to help you make a start ...






1.  Fetch a black bag


2.  Pick a room


3.  Fill the bag with rubbish, broken toys, old newspapers, anything that you haven't used or touched for 6 months etc etc ...


4.  Dump full bag in wheelie bin


5.  Have a cup of tea

GO GO GO

Tantric Yoga

After my post a few days ago some of you have been asking me about tantric energy.  Once the giggling has stopped and the sexual benefits have been discussed, taking charge of your tantric energy is very good for your general health and well being.  I have found a youtube video that will start you off on your journey of enlightenment ...

A lesson from the Ark

Galecta

A “Galecta” is another name for a Yiddish funny story.

Everything I need to know about life, I learned from Noah’s Ark…

ONE: Don’t miss the boat.

TWO: Remember that we are all in the same boat.

THREE: Plan ahead, it wasn’t raining when Noah built the Ark.

FOUR: Stay fit. When you’re 600 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.

FIVE: Don’t listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.

SIX: Build your future on high ground.

SEVEN: For safety’s sake, travel in pairs.

EIGHT: Speed isn’t alwats an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.

NINE: When you’re stressed, float for a while.

TEN: Remember the Ark was built by amateurs, the Titanic by professionals.

ELEVEN: No matter the storm, when you are with God, there is always a rainbow waiting.

Fighting Fatigue

I couldn't resist this image - Dog Tired?

Feeling tired and fatigued all the time can be caused by a variety of factors, including lack of sleep, poor nutrition, stress, and physical illness. Whatever the cause of your fatigue, there are some simple things you can do to help alleviate the constant tiredness. Here are my tips to fight fatigue.

1. Eat little and often

Eating regular small meals and snacks helps to stabilise your blood sugar and energy levels throughout the day. Aim to eat a healthy meal or snack every three to four hours. Choose healthy options and stick to small portions, especially if you are trying to lose weight or improve an existing health condition. Fruit, salad, nuts, yogurt, wholegrain cereal, oily fish, and lean chicken are all excellent foods for boosting your energy levels and beating fatigue.

2. Exercise

While fatigue may rob you of the desire to do anything strenuous, exercise is one of the best ways to beat tiredness and fatigue in the long run. Start small and gradually build up the amount of exercise you take each day. If your fatigue is particularly bad, you could start by taking a ten minute walk to the shops each day. If you have a health condition that restricts your mobility, try doing some gentle stretching exercises from your armchair. 

3. Watch your weight

Being overweight puts a strain on your heart and other vital organs. The more overweight you are, the harder your heart has to work to carry all the excess weight. This can leave you feeling tired and drained. Being overweight can also put a strain on your joints, making exercise more difficult and tiring than it should be. Try to get your weight within healthy limits and aim to reach your ideal BMI (body mass index). 

4. Curb your drinking 

Excessive alcohol intake depletes your energy stores for the next day. Regularly drinking excessive amounts of alcohol can leave you feeling constantly tired and fatigued. Aim to keep your alcohol intake within the recommended limits and try to avoid binge drinking. Caffeine drinks, such as tea, coffee, and cola, can also drain your body of energy and should be avoided as much as possible. Switch to decaffeinated coffee and herbal tea.

5. Drink more water

Dehydration is a common cause of lethargy and fatigue. Many of us have lost the ability to recognise when we are thirsty, so even if you don’t feel the urge to drink water, you may still be dehydrated. Make sure you are drinking at least two litres of water every day, increasing this amount in hot weather or when doing strenuous exercise. You may also need to increase your intake of water if you are overweight or suffering from ill health. 

6. Learn to relax

Stress takes its toll on the human body and uses up vital nutrients from our bodily reserves. Learning to relax reduces your general stress levels and takes the strain off your body. Try to make time to do something you enjoy every day – take a relaxing bath, chat with friends, have a massage, or read a book. Learn a relaxation technique or join a meditation class to help you learn to deal with stress more effectively.

7. Get your full eight hours sleep

Fatigue may simply be the result of not getting enough sleep. Many people have trouble getting to sleep, or staying asleep, and make matters worse by lying in bed worrying about their problems. If you can’t sleep, get up and do something that will help to shift your focus. Clean the kitchen, make a milky drink, take a bath, or read a book. If you find that worries are playing on your mind and preventing you from sleeping, write down your concerns before going to bed and promise yourself that you’ll deal with them in the morning.

Natural Detoxification: Nutritional Supplements

Taking one or more natural dietary supplements is a useful addition to any natural detoxification plan as an aid to supporting your vital body functions during the detoxification process. Nutritional supplements when used as part of an overall approach to detoxification can help combat stress, alleviate mental problems, assist with controlling addictions, help change your perception in life, improve the quality of your sleep and bring about an overall improvement in your health. 

The correct balance of vitamins is an essential part of a healthy body. Vitamins are often rapidly drained from the body during times of stress; therefore it is important to replenish them to maintain peak efficiency. B vitamins in particular should be given special attention as they are needed to maintain a healthy nervous system which is essential for overall health. B vitamins are crucial in the production of energy, adrenal gland hormones, and serotonin (which helps to block stress). Free radicals are also known to be particularly damaging to our bodies. Vitamin supplements with antioxidant qualities such as vitamin E, vitamin C, beta carotene, and bioflavonoids are useful for fighting free radicals. Minerals are also important for repairing the body, especially calcium, magnesium, and potassium. These minerals have a relaxing effect on the body as they relieving muscle tension and calm emotions. Taking a vitamin supplement or combination of vitamin supplements that includes B vitamins, antioxidants and minerals will aid the body’s detoxification process.

Herbs can also be used as part of a natural detoxification plan. The two most useful herbs for detoxification are liquorice root and parsley, both of which support and strengthen the adrenals; the glands that are most affected by stress. Another useful herb for detoxification is Ginkgo biloba which has antioxidant properties that directly affect brain function. Ginkgo biloba helps to reduce harmful free radicals as well as increase the delivery of oxygen to the brain, which improves mental function. Siberian ginseng is another herb that can help counteract the effects of stress. Ginseng can raise our tolerance to stress by normalizing various organ functions. For example, Ginseng can increase or decrease the secretion of hormones, and raise or lower our blood sugar/blood pressure. Ginseng also stimulates the immune system, increases physical stamina and improves mental alertness.

For depression, the herb that as shows the best results in clinical studies is St. John’s wort. It is possibly the most useful natural antidepressant available. St. John’s wort extract may help to improve psychological symptoms such as depression, anxiety, apathy, sleeping problems, insomnia etc.

Many herbs have a sedative effect and are useful in easing stress and helping achieve a good night’s sleep. Taken in reasonable doses herbs have no adverse side effects and can be used along with other natural detoxification methods. The following herbs are known to be effective in calming nerves, relieving stress and promoting sleep; valerian root, kava kava, skullcap, catnip, hops, chamomile, lemon balm and passion flower. They may be taken as a tea or as a tablet. Combining any of these herbs can enhance the effects of the ingredients.

Herb and vitamin supplements should be taken with caution during detoxification, and used in conjunction with dietary and lifestyle changes to for the maximum effect.

Boots hair Removal - discount code

Boots Online

Sexual Energy in the Heart Center: A Secret of Tantra

Tantra is oftentimes considered to be the “black sheep” of the yogic disciplines. People who know of it only casually often associate its practices with the most basic carnal impulses – and, typically, with “loose moral” connotations. This is a shame, because one of the chief aims of many Tantric practices is to refine the root sexual energy – usually, with the influence and commingling of the heart’s energy – with the goal of making the practitioner more energetically balanced and less at the mercy of the sex drive. That root drive, which is the most basic and primary energy that human beings possess, can be refined in such a way that it brings more warmth and vitality into our partnerships, in and out of lovemaking. 

Various Tantric exercises achieve this goal through the combination of breathing, muscular manipulation, and visualisation. Although Tantra is often referred to as “partnership yoga”, many of these exercises are ones that you can do on your own. Conscious breathing is the primary means through which energy is moved throughout both the physical and the psychic body. Breathing can be used to arouse or calm yourself, depending on your goal. But conscious breathing, in every Tantric exercise and meditation, is always used in conjunction with the two other elements of the practice: muscular manipulation and visualisation.

The muscle that is most often used in these practices is called the PC muscle, for short. It lies between the buttocks and the genitals. If you’re urinating and then quickly squeeze to stop the flow, you’re using the PC muscle. This muscle is so important because it lies in the region of the body that Tantric yogis identify as the location of the root chakra. This is where raw, primal energy lives, and it can be refined as it is moved upwards through higher chakras. Many Tantric techniques involve squeezing the PC muscle with every inhalation and relaxing it with every exhalation, to get that basic, root energy moving.

The chakras are highly important with regards to the third key element of most practices, visualisation. While breathing and manipulating the PC muscle moves the energy, practitioners then visualise it passing through the various chakras. Yogis identify at least seven, and sometimes as many as ten, of these energy centers in the psychic body. Moving energy through the chakras is the essential way to bring it into more refined states. One sought-for result of all the practices that employ this technique is the movement of basic sexual energy into the heart center.

The advantages of achieving this are manifold. Practitioners report feeling enhanced awareness, energy, and vitality. The sexual impulse is no longer experienced as indiscriminate and forceful. It becomes tempered with the caring, empathy, and openness that are the hallmarks of the heart chakra. This is an oft-overlooked goal of many Tantric practices, which enables yogis to feel more heat in their hearts and more tenderness in their loins with their intimate partners – a wonderful commingling of sexuality and heart energy.

The Anthology is here!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00817P8DI

Several months ago when I started the 'I am Woman' Campaign, I had rather thought that it would be me shouting my mouth off, writing some thought provoking posts and asking people to donate to womens charities.  However, it has become far more than that.  I am now blessed to be working with Victoria Watson and Louise Stark and we have enough short stories to be rolling out the anthologies almost as fast as Victoria can edit them.  Submissions are coming in daily from both established and new authors, all supporting women with their written voice.  These stories are not all doom and gloom, but a celebration of what it means to be a woman.

At the moment the anthology is only available on Kindle, a proper book will be published in time for our official launch in September.  In the meantime please download your copy and help us to make a difference in the lives of women who have no voice.

All proceeds from this anthology will be donated to our 3 charities, no admin or similar costs will be deducted.

Manolos and pink socks

Yesterday I did the school run in a pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes.  No I didn't win the lottery or land a highly paid job in the city, I simply sat on my sofa and surfed the Ebay app on my phone.

I love Ebay and those close to me will be familiar with me yelling at my phone when I am outbid by some very inconsiderate new bidder.  My yelling verges on the blue side when that new bidder arrives within seconds of the auction ending.  I do love my labels, but not so much the price tags that come with them.  There was a time when I would pick up an item and not even look at how much the cashier was taking off my credit card, but those days are gone and honestly, I don't miss them.  I hate to think how much money I wasted back in the day, but not now, oh no, now I love nothing more than a game of hunt the bargain!  Its so easy too, I don't even have to leave the house.

Ebay is the strangest place, if you can dream it, you can find it on Ebay.  The trick is as far as I can tell is to browse often, to know what you are searching for and to be very clear on how much you are willing to pay for an item.  I did once bid on a dress, increased my bid every time someone outbid me and ended up paying more for a Primark dress than it would have cost new.  So my advice is to place your bid and walk away, if you don't get it this time another one will be listed very soon.

So anyway back to my Manolos, a bargain at just £60.  Why so cheap?  I don't know, maybe because they are a loafer, maybe because they don't look much in a photo, but I was the only bidder and got them at the starting price.  I don't care that they are a loafer, a Manolo is a Manolo, right?  As soon as I opened the package that contained my coveted shoes, I was blown away, they look worth all of the £500+ that they would have cost new, simply stunning and I just had to wear them - NOW!  So, that brings me on to the title of this post, the only place that I was going yesterday was on the school run and that is not usually the stylish of venues.  In fact I can usually be seen at the school gate in my Primark tracksuit and Ugg boots, hiding behind a pair of oversized sunglasses even in the depths of winter.  Yesterday was different, I had to find an outfit to go with my new shoes (as you do).  Jeans, blazer, obligatory sunglasses and I was good to go.  As I sat on the wall outside the classroom I looked down at my feet and smiled at my Manolos, then horror  struck as I realised that I had slipped my foot in to these stunning shoes still wearing my pink socks.  Although the socks were not visible when standing, they were now and the whole effect was ruined. But, hey thats life and a Manolo is a Manolo with or without pink socks!