Category: Uncategorized

The Shape of LIVING Self-Care to Come

Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

Though the initial 21 day self-care challenge has wrapped up, LIVING self-care is regrouping to inspire you to carry on. Here’s the blueprint:

  • Each Monday, we’ll review a daily tip and discuss ways for you to apply it through the week, day by day.
  • Each Wednesday, we’ll inspire you with words from a  “Challenge Champion,” acquainting you with some of the resources who offer incredible support and information for real women like you.
  • Each Friday, we’ll strive to make you laugh, reinforcing humor as a cornerstone of wellness.
  • Each weekend, we’ll take time off, while we practice self-care ourselves!
  • In between, we’d love to hear from you, with a goal of sharing your successes and dilemmas.

Bit by bit, fifteen minutes at a time, you can build a lasting habit of self-care. To request a PDF of ALL the tips in this first challenge, email ann{at}realmomexperts.com.

Real woman Allison

Be inspired by these testimonials from real women on some of the Challenge Champion sites:

  • Thanks for this challenge!  I sure did learn alot… and now have better ways to cope with the day-to-day.
  • Done.  Great challenge!  I learned a lot, and I WILL remember to take care of myself, too.  🙂
  • Thank you for this challenge! I am going to try to keep myself near the top of my priority list.
  • If only for a moment at a time self care forced me to think of myself in a positive way. Thank You for caring.
  • Thanks–this was fun!
  • Thanks for the inspiration!

    • Gratitude to You

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    I know that gratitude was yesterday’s tip, but I feel it’s the one I need to practice today.  I am thankful to each of you for pursuing this journey with us, and hopefully continuing on.  Ann and I have gained from your comments and participation, and perhaps without knowing it, you have deepened our commitment to LIVING Self-Care for ourselves and our loved ones.

    It’s been humbling to see that although we KNOW how important it is to practice daily, we stumbled and regained our footing several times.  And honestly, that’s how life is.  “We fall and get up, fall and get up, fall and get up again.”  Thanks to all of you for being there when we fell with your comments and experiences which inspired us to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and carry on.

    Please stay with us as we make LIVING Self-Care a reality in your lives and ours.  Together, we can support and encourage each other, one moment, one day at a time.

    Thanks again.  Warmly, Diane and Ann

    We’re Here to Stay

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    It’s Sunday night and in the blogging universe, the week has begun. Time to get back online and see what’s happening. In case you haven’t heard, LIVING Self-Care is here to stay. We know it’s been challenging to keep up with daily tips for almost three weeks now so we’re going to slow it down. After the 21-Day Challenge officially ends this Tuesday, we’ll still be LIVING Self-Care and hope you will too. We’ll have more later this week about our plans and would love to hear from you about changes you’d like to see to make our blog more helpful and fun.

    In the meantime, we’re trying to get 200 subscribers by Tuesday midnight so make certain to tell all the women you know to sign up. If you aren’t already LIVING Self-Care, we’re offering a free download of the 21-Day Self-Care Challenge when you join. Then each week we’ll give away a copy of our new book, Life Will Never Be the Same: The Real Mom’s Postpartum Survival with our clinically proven self-care program for moms. You can preview it at http://www.realmomexperts.com. While its great for post-birth moms, we’ve had many moms and women tell us that reading our book been good for them too.

    We’re excited about our plans and continuing to support and encourage each other on this journey.   Together we can make self-care a lifetime habit, one moment, one day at a time.

    You Haven’t Missed The Self-Care Challenge

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    Just letting everyone know that although the 21-Day Challenge ends on the 26th, LIVING Self-Care will keep going.  Each week we’ll take a tip from the 21-Day challenge and spend the week blogging about it with tips, comments, articles, links, and videos.  Everything we can think of to help you succeed at making self-care part of your daily routine.

    Several bloggers who’ve just joined are under the impression that the challenge will be over soon, but honestly we’re just beginning.  We’ve discovered these last couple of weeks that many of you made a great start but keeping it up for 21 days was too high a goal.  Don’t be discouraged.  Changing habits involves ups and downs, gains and losses.

    So, we’ll be here for the long haul while we practice right along side you.  We welcome your comments and wisdom as together we build a community of women and moms to help support each other to lead healthier, more balanced lives.  Stick with us and we’ll stick with you.  Remember, making self-care part of your daily routine is a marathon not a sprint.  We can do it!

    Call to Action

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    We’re challenging each of you to get 2 friends to sign up for LIVING Self-Care in the next week, before the 21 day challenge ends.  Share this great resource! There are many more deserving women out there. You, as one of our valuable fans working the challenge, are our best recommendation.  We hope the tips have been helpful and that you feel empowered to make self-care part of your daily routine.  Your comments have inspired us!  They help us keep our emotional pitchers full.  For more about this, preview our new book, Life Will Never Be The Same: The Real Mom’s Postpartum Survival Guide at http://www.realmomexperts.com.

    We’ll be making an exciting announcement in the next few days about our future plans and how you can be involved.   Meanwhile, we want your feedback! Please let us know:

    • Which tip you liked best?
    • Which tip you liked the least?
    • What helped you stick with practicing self-care?
    • Where you ran into obstacles?
    • Anything else you’d like us to know.

    You can offer your feedback here, in the comments section, or email us at realmomexperts{at}gmail.com.

    Together, we can encourage and support each other to make LIVING Self-Care a reality day by day.

    Thanks! We appreciate you!

    Win a book!

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    In all the hubbub of launching the 21 day self-care challenge, we forgot to announce the contest. For each week of the challenge, we will give away a copy of Life Will Never Be The Same: The Real Mom’s Postpartum Survival Guide. The winner will be drawn from those who post comments on the daily tips.

    To enter, all you need to do is share your experience with one of the tips–how you made it work for you. Make sure we have your email address, either when you post or email it to us at ann{at}realmomexperts.com if you’d rather not have your email address public on the blog. Each week, we’ll draw a name and send out a copy of the book. So let us know how it’s going to you, and you could win!

    Calling all REAL WOMEN!

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    Are you joining with us for the upcoming 21 day self-care challenge? Want to show your true colors, a woman in the trenches LIVING self-care?

    We’d love to feature photos of real women who are tackling this exciting endeavor with us. Pictures speak volumes! We will be sharing photos of the women who are participating, one photo per day. Just another way to help you connect to the thousands of other women linking arms to learn this skill and enhance their lives as part of Mental Health Week. You are in on a landmark event–share your smiles!

    If you wish to have your photo considered for inclusion, please email a jpeg directly to ann{at}realmomexperts.com. By submitting your photo, you are giving permission for its use on this blog. Thanks for joining us!

    Welcome to the Challenge

    Posted on by Dr. Diane Sanford in Uncategorized

    Are you perpetually last on your own list, juggling family, home, children,  partner, work, even pets? Meanwhile, every headline, blog, and talk show reminds you to “practice self-care.” Deep inside, you know you’d feel better if you took better care of yourself—but you’re stumbling to start, let alone practice self-care.

    The 21-day self-care challenge is just for you.

    The first full week of October is Mental Health Week—and a great time to join Drs. Ann Dunnewold and Diane Sanford, the “Real Mom” experts and authors of “Life Will Never Be The Same: The Real Mom’s Postpartum Survival Guide,” in LIVING the 21-day women’s self-care challenge.

    Beginning October 6, 2010, and wrapping up October 26, 2010, Drs. Sanford and Dunnewold will bring women daily inspiration and practical self-care tips. It takes 21 days to feel the effects of a new habit in your life. The self-care challenge will offer concrete 10 to 15 minute strategies to begin a lasting habit for more balanced mental health.

    Join the challenge and make an investment in yourself! Please bookmark or subscribe to this blog and visit us each day from Oct. 6-26, 2010.