Delightful

As we go into the holiday season, I thought I'd share three aspects for me that make up true happiness right now. I hope this inspires you to connect to what true happiness means for you and you allow yourself to experience it.

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Life is hard enough, stressful enough, overwhelming enough. As we get more stressed and overwhelmed, we tend to take things more personally. Here is a call to give ourselves and others some space and grace! And to remember that we never really know the inner world of another human being.

And, I can tell you from my seat as a psychotherapist and coach, every single one of us is a tender, sensitive human being who has been through so much and just wants to belong, be loved, be regarded, and love.

I walk you through a guided meditation to soften, accept our imperfections, and to give others some space and grace. This opens us to so many possibilities for healing, forgiveness, and true connection.

And in a world with an epidemic of loneliness where we go around with stressed out nervous systems, this is healing balm.

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Over 10 years ago, my mom (kindly) suggested to be mindful of something that has changed how I regard and interact with people, especially my dear ones. If you are listening to this at the start of the holidays, this is a great practice to play with as you are with your dear ones.

Poems: Tenderness and "unnamed."

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Whether you have struggled with body image or want to deepen your connection with your body, this guided experience provides a safe and nurturing space to practice appreciation for your body. I'll gently guide you through a meditation that supports you in letting go of self-criticism and instead noticing and experiencing the strength, resilience, and beauty of your body. Tune in and deepen your self-love and regard for the incredible vessel that your body is.

Poem: Born to Love

Throughout November, you'll have the chance to practice different kinds of appreciation and gratitude with me to soften, soothe, and support you in going into the holidays with an expansive and strengthened heart and body.

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In this episode, I share a touching story. I was standing on the deck of my parents' house taking a reprieve from helping out with my dad's surgery. And I had this moment of deep appreciation that helped me get real with the brevity of life and pause to "take in the good." I hope it inspires you. Then, be guided through a really lovely meditative practice for cultivating appreciation.

The practice of appreciation doesn't ignore or avoid what is difficult or challenging in our lives. It buffers us and "widens the container' in which we hold and view our lives.

Throughout November, you'll have the chance to practice different kinds of appreciation and gratitude with me that, I hope, will soften, soothe, and support you in going into the holidays with an expansive and strengthened heart.

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At the end of the day, we need time to unwind and settle our minds and bodies. We aren't devices and can't just "power off" so easily. In my work as an Integrative Psychotherapist and Coach, I hear people share with me that when they finally lay down at the end of the day, their minds are still racing. They might even harp on or notice the negative about themselves that day.

This episode is all about how we can end our day with intention.

Bonus - you might want to have a journal handy because at the end, I lead you through a really lovely guided evening meditation to help you notice your "wins" for the day (some you may not even have thought of as wins!). It starts at about 18:30

Poem shared: The Way Home, found in both of my books: Gems of Delight and Your Light is Rising

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This is the second part of a two-part series on starting our day with intention. For part 1 (and another beautiful guided morning meditation!), check out episode 58. How You Start Your Day Matters - Guided Meditation "Good Morning, I Love You."

Here's a simple restorative practices that you can weave into your day to help you to slow down and take nourishing care of yourself.

Poem shared: The Way Home - found in Gems of Delight, Your Light is Rising

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Today I want to introduce you to a clever way of managing your energy throughout the day so you don't get to the end of the day and feel tapped out. This episode helps you to live with more balance, even with the unexpected stuff that happens in a day.

Poems shared: Leisure Time, Learning What is Good Enough for Today

Feeling overwhelmed lately? You aren't alone. We live in a culture of hustle, bigger, and more. It prizes productivity over relationships and hurry over well-being. This leaves us feeling overstimulated and overwhelmed.

In this episode, you'll hear about the first step to healing that overwhelmed way of being that often gets overlooked, yet is necessary to true healing. Then hear three more ways that go deep for you to not just have a "life-HACK" but a "life-BACK." Enjoy a few personal stories of mine that I hope let you know that you are not alone and we are in this together.

Poem shared: Galaxies, Not Goals. By Lisa McCrohan

I'm back! Today, we are slowing things down. Come breathe with me and connect to your inner sanctuary.

Poem shared: Inner Sanctuary

Check out related episodes:

#3 Bringing Devotion and Reverence into This Moment

#26 Creating Space for Your Soul to Breathe

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Join me for a soul-nourishing and tranquil guided meditation journey as we explore the art of embracing delight and setting yourself up for a truly delightful summer experience. In this episode, I'll guide you through various calming visualizations, mindful and soulful reflective questions, and somatic practices to help you tap into the beauty and joy of summer.

Lay down or find a comfy place to sit. Close your eyes and be guided through each step of visualizing what summer means for you - from the vibrant colors of flowers blooming to the soothing sound of ocean waves. Discover the power of being fully present in this very moment in your life as I gently encourage you to soak yourself in the simple delights of summer.

You'll emerge from the meditation with a vision and intention for what really matters to you this summer that will equip you to be ready to embrace the season with joy.

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What can you do when you are triggered? Here is a FREE mastermind experience that supports you with both in-the-moment "mental health first aid" and getting to the root of what triggers you. I take you through five steps that are based on neuroscience and Somatic Experiencing that I teach to leadership teams, faculty and staff, and my 1:1 clients. This is an experiential and educational class.

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I sensed that we all needed a nourishing pause. This embodiment practice helps to ground you in your body, your essence, and your power. Enjoy this beautiful guided embodiment meditation.

Music: Spirit Fire, Jesse Gallegher

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We tell ourselves stories all day long. Most of these stories are on repeat. Some old stories that we tell ourselves are no longer useful (maybe they never were!). This episode is all about how to let go of the stories that no longer serve you and how to "live into" a new, more nourishing story.

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Does fear hold you back from loving deeply and living freely? This episode is for you. As I approach 50, I have been working with fear and letting Grace introduce me to the Possibility and Hope already abundantly flowing - I just have to tap into it. In this episode, I share one of my biggest fears that has held me back for decades and then how I am showing up for my life in new ways. To make this more concrete and not some pie in the sky, I am sharing five really soulful ways that I am connecting with Grace and allowing Possibility and Hope to blossom so you, too, can stop letting fear hold you back from living a life you deeply love - without regret and WITH a whole bunch of delight and love.

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I'm back! I still have a touch of laryngitis but I so wanted to share this with you! Recently I took my kiddos to Colorado to ski during spring break. I started to feel sick when I got home. In this episode, I share a story of being in CO and feeling so alive and how that made me realize that aliveness was missing in my life. Maybe that aliveness is missing in your own life. I share simple ways to get back to living by choosing what makes you feel alive.

Poem: Another Route, By Lisa McCrohan. (c) 2023

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Where do you feel a sense of belonging? With whom? Receive this guided experience of embodying your inherent belonging so you feel grounded, refreshed, and connected - to your body, your heart, one another, and Mother Earth.

Poem Shared: Belonging

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Dear One, today I have guide you through this soulful and embodied meditation experience to connect with Mother Earth and to your own heart and body so you feel grounded, nourished, and inspired.

In honor of Earth Day, this month, I am sharing poetry and reflections that helps us connect to Mother Earth and our own bodies and hearts.

Poem Shared: Spring

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Are you feeling overwhelmed or weary? Do you feel a call to make a shift in your life? I sat down with NYTimes Best Selling author, Rachel Macy Stafford, and we talked about making a Soul Shift in our lives. Soul Shift is Rachel's newest book. In this episode, we talk about several practice she and I both use in our daily lives to help us reclaim our joy. I'll also lead you through several short embodiment reflections as we go along so you can reflect on what delights your heart and who the young dreamer in you was and how to reclaim that part of you.

Today I am sharing one of my self-love go-to practices for soothing your mind, body, and soul when you are anxious, overwhelmed, or about to go down the route of treating yourself harshly.  

This practice works with both the "big S" sufferings in life as well as the "small s" everyday kinds of sufferings we all encounter in this human experience. 

I'll share the poem, Each Part, from my book, Your Light is Rising. Then I share about how mindfulness and compassion are the "two wings" of awareness. And then I share with you this go-to embodiment practice that validates, soothes, and nourishes us in times of suffering.

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This is my very first episode with a guest on Delightful! Somatic Healer and Coach, Nicole Robinson, and I team up for this real-time, present-moment experience for your nervous system to feel so settled, soothed, and nourished. 

Nicole and I are both Somatic Experiencing (SE) Practitioners and poets! One day in a coffee shop, we met up, and it was like I was talking to a soul friend. 

We decided to bring SE and poetry together in this episode where we share our original poems as we organically flow and reflect on the present-moment experience of reading, sharing, and listening -- that results in this healing and settling experience for our nervous systems and yours as you join us. 

This is such a novel and unique experience: combining the body-centered, trauma-healing approach of Somatic Experiencing that Nicole and I engage in everyday with our clients AND POETRY!  I absolutely loved this episode.  I hope you do, too, as you listen in and experience the healing power of SE and poetry.

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All of us have "givens" in life. We also have dreams. The question becomes: how do we relate to the "givens" in life and find our agency within those givens to honor our dreams? In this episode, I offer a soulful and healing way to acknowledge the givens AND still begin following what delights your heart.

Poem: Start Now, Lisa McCrohan, Your Light is Rising, (c)2021

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What is it time to for you to begin? Don’t know? Feeling overwhelmed or stuck? I got you! In this episode, I share five soulful and embodied practices to support you in reclaiming your voice. 

Poem: It’s Time to Begin, by Lisa McCrohan, Your Light is Rising © 2021 

Related episodes to check out: 

2. Pausing for Pleasure 

5. One Glorious First Step 

15. What You CAN Do When You Can’t Control Everything 

38. Just Because it Delights You 

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Today's episode is all about practicing self-compassion. I read a poem and then share with you some of my self-compassion journey, along with practices you can bring into your everyday life to up your own practice and expression of self-compassion.

Poem: Fall in Love with Yourself, Lisa McCrohan, (c) 2022

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Today there are so many pulls on our attention that knowing how to rest is the new superpower. Millions of people struggle with insomnia, anxiety, and depression. From the perspective of nervous system well-being, we are always "on" in our society of "go, go, go and then numbing out." Our nervous systems don't get breaks to "rest and digest" and to feel a sense of softening and being soothed.

In this episode, I talk about our digital lives and the impact of technology on our (in)ability to rest. It's here to stay and so we have to learn how to mindfully care for ourselves. I talk straight about the impact this is having on our teenagers. Trigger warning: I do bring up some self-harm behaviors that clients have shared with me about their teenagers. 

Then I offer five approaches to bringing awareness and boundaries around your online time as well as how to incorporate more rest into your day -- giving your nervous system the much needed breaks it needs -- so that you can sleep at night.

In the end, I share a guided meditation to help you rest. You can use this to help you get grounded in the middle of your day, or to help you go to sleep at night.

** If you'd like the extended version of my Deep Sleep Meditation, join my community of Delightful Divas. (link is below).

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Right about now in winter, we could use a bit of lightness and delight.  Here's a question that I started to ask myself that has changed up how I care for myself, how I orient my attention, and how I find a bit of joy in my everyday life.  Start asking yourself this question on a daily basis for your own embodied experience of being soothed and nourished. 

Recently, someone asked me, "Lisa, what do YOU do for YOUR mental health?" I loved the question. They were wondering the little things I do for myself on a daily basis or a very regular basis that nourish me - mind, body, and soul. I was touched by this question! Some of these are so weaved into my way of being and my day that it took me a moment to name them! Other habits that I share are ones that I am currently working on. 

In this episode, I share 10 tiny habits that help me in this messy experience of being human. I hope some of these resonate with you!

I'm back! And I have so much to share with you! I missed you all! In this episode:

- I share with you about the break I had (and I encourage you to consider scheduling your breaks where you actually don't do work!), 

- I share some thoughts about how following what delights your heart and living a life you love are not about avoiding "the hard and messy," but rather INCLUDE the hard and messy.

- I share a new poem (!): Galaxies, Not Goals 

- I lead you through a nourishing meditation/reflection experience for you to discover your Word for the Year

- I ask you two important questions related to your Word for the Year so that you really embody your word.

- I lead you through a journaling exercise that I call Soul Mapping (vs mind mapping - because this is so much deeper than just utilizing your mind!)

All for you to start this year off feeling focused and nourished!

*** Those who support my podcast - my Delightful Divas - will receive FREE access to my 8-day course, Your Word for the Year, valued at $50. I would really love to help you live and embody your word for the year. Come join us!

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How do we respond when life is hard and we are triggered? How do we respond when life is good and pleasant? This episode is all about changing up the patterns we often find ourselves in as humans. Life is messy - here's how to navigate it for peace and feeling lighter.

Poem shared: Yes to the Mess, Lisa McCrohan, Gems of Delight (c) 2017

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As we get into this holiday season, I wanted to share this story with you.  I was writing a poem about growing older, and this nudge from the Universe/Divine  urged me to put down writing the poem and be in the moment. That moment changed how I see myself as a poet - to not only write poetry but to BE poetry and EXPERIENCE life as poetry. 

Here's my story (and poem!). I hope it inspires you to answer a deeper call within you and remember what matters - right now in this season and any day of the year. I also share some soulful reflection questions for you to consider as we enter into this season that can help you stay aligned with what matters most to you.

Poem: Pales in Comparison, Lisa McCrohan

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Don't we all have enough STUFF? As the holidays get underway, what would it be like to choose to give adventures or experiences instead of more stuff?

I share an awesome gift idea that I gave to my parents a few years ago (for people who have everything they need and don't need anything more). You might want to snag this for yourself! To get the Story Time: 90 Questions to Ask Your Parents Now, make a one-time donation or become a monthly supporter of this podcast (see below).

I also share a bunch of ideas to get your creative juices flowing on holiday gift ideas that are about adventures and experiences. 

This year, give the gift of connection - adventures and experiences!

Poem shared: Adventures Over Stuff, Lisa McCrohan

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In this episode, we weave the science of gratitude with story, poetry, and body-centered gratitude meditation.  

Neuroscience + polyvagal for your brain and poetry + a guided experience for your nervous system = delightful. This is an episode you don't want to miss. 

Listen all the way through for a longer guided experience that will help you go into the holidays with greater capacity to stay rooted in your ventral vagal complex ("safe and connected") while letting go of what doesn't matter. This will fortify you for all those gatherings that are sometimes triggering! 

Poems shared: Gratitude, Everyday Blessings, and Each Moment -- from my books: Your Light is Rising and Gems of Delight.

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Need a boundary reset as you gear up for the holidays? Or really - any time is a good time to reset your boundaries. Today I'm sharing five practices to help you practice self-love and self-regard so you are taking care of YOU! And of course, I share a poem and a short guided experience.

Poem: One Day She Realized, Lisa McCrohan (found in my book, Gems of Delight)

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Today's episode we dive deep into a spiritual take on abundance and manifesting. 

Poems:

Abundance, When Only You Remain, and What If, by Lisa McCrohan

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What do you do when your old difficult thoughts, feelings, and stories come to pay you a visit? Instead of getting overwhelmed by them or fighting against them, here's a pathway through those rough waters.

Poems: 

The Guest House, Rumi

Ocean, Lisa McCrohan

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What sparks can fly when your inherent nobility meets divine possibility?! Tune in for this nourishing poetic meditative experience to kindle that spark within you.

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What a concept - falling in love with yourself! To fall in love with yourself is not selfish or self-absorbed - it's the basis of your love for others. Tune in today for this exploration of what it means to fall in love with yourself. 

I share a poem, Fall in Love With Yourself -- hot off the press! 

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This is a poetic meditation for you to sit back (or lay down!) and enjoy being guided through a nourishing experience - perfect for cozying up by wrapping yourself in your favorite warm blanket and putting on your cozy slippers.  Enjoy!

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What a willow tree can teach us about roots. What will you root yourself in right now?  What roots you to who you are and how you want to live this life? Tune in for a poetic and meditative exploration of deepening your roots.

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This is the season for warm socks, comfy sweaters, picking apples, pumpkin patches -- and also harvesting our abundance and letting go. This episode is all about kindling your inner radiance through three soulful practices to honor autumn. And of course I have some poetry for you! Thanks for tuning in!

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Have you started something new? This episode is for you! We can feel overwhelmed, anxious, and afraid when we are starting a new job, career, course of study, or phase in our life. Here are three powerful tools to help you stay grounded, reset your nervous system, and love yourself through it all. 

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There's a lot of talk lately about making our workplaces, schools, and communities more inclusive. Today I want to share with you a radical approach to creating whatever we want “out there."  It must start “in here” within our own selves. 

Today we are all about lingering as a love language - a self-love language and a much-needed language of love for others in our life. Enjoy this reflection and story that always makes me tear up when I read it. It's from my book, Gems of Delight. Go and linger this week!  Even just little moments are so nourishing!

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Welcome to Delightful! This episode is all about helping you to reclaim your time --- with self-love as the foundation. Tune in for some inspiration with my poem, Reclaim Your time, and a mindful practice for identifying your self-love non-negotiables. 

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Enjoy this poetic call to love yourself - even just 2% more!

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Enjoy this guided meditative experience where you don't have to DO anything! You can just receive. You might want to put this one on repeat to help support your nervous system relearning how it is to move out of "fight or flight" and into "trusting and receiving."  So so comforting and nourishing for your nervous system - and every system!

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This episode is all about encouraging you to PLAY! You aren't too old or too busy to play.  Our nervous systems need it!

I start the episode by sharing a personal update (what happened in July!).  Then I share the poem, Permission to Play.  Pay attention to the images that inspires you to play.  And I offer a way to take a soul risk to move out of a constrictive way of being.

Delight is here - even in the mess! It's here to bring balance to our nervous system and remind you that you are worthy of goodness!

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