Cherie Lee grew up in Galveston Island, Texas with four siblings, three brothers and a sister. She was raised a Catholic and attended church every Sunday. She always believed in angels, God, Jesus, and Mother Mary, and loved to learn about Catholic traditions, prayers, and songs of worship. However, she was not sure if she really believed in the devil or a hell with fire. As I grew up, I tried to please my parents and do the right thing, although I had my moments of rebellion. “I was a good kid, growing up in a very dysfunctional family with an alcoholic step-dad who abused my eldest brother and me on a regular basis. My entire family was negative in nature, and I became the peacekeeper of the family. I became a person who always tried to help others, yet was full of my own negativity; I suffered from anxiety and depression at times. However I always had faith in God, and this is what pulled me through every terrible incident growing up.”

The IMDHA, or International Medical & Dental Hypnosis Association, has a local chapter at SWIHA (Southwest Institute of Healing Arts), where they meet monthly and discuss different hypnosis techniques and ways to expand their profession as hypnotherapists. One evening in 2015, the group was viewing a video, “Free the Mind”. It was discussing meditation, mindfulness, and PTSD. As they watched, we got into a great discussion on how hypnosis could be so beneficial for those struggling with PTSD, and they knew they wanted to do something more for the community. The question of the night became, “How do we get the word out?”  Hypnotherapy Program Director, Linda Bennett reflected, “In traditional SWIHA fashion, we asked, ‘Imagine if….???’” And thus, the idea for an event took shape. Members of the chapter worked together to bring about the event last November, and this year they are gearing up to do the same.

SWIHA has one of the most divserse college communities; one classroom may hold veteran soldiers, nurses, policemen, school teachers, scientists, fitness coaches, or freshly grduated teenagers. The wonderful thing about thaving this kind of eclectic student body, is the diversity of stories of how everyone ended up at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.

“Dreams that come to fruition take passion, dedication, and good old fashioned hard work.” -- Laura McKinzie

Even though 2016 is coming to an end, SWIHA’s next Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) program is just beginning! At Spirit of Yoga (SOY), we are about to welcome a brand new class of students who will embark on a transformational and heart-centered journey to self-discovery, through the study of yoga philosophy, movement through the asanas (yoga poses), and the quest for peace in stillness through mastering the science of breath.

SOY is the educational facility of SWIHA -- Southwest Institute of Healing Arts -- where our mission is to teach our students the importance of an authentic expression of yoga which honors a diversity of practices and belief systems, while being a unifying tool for creating wellness, mind-body balance, and spiritual connection.  SOY – Spirit of Yoga -- was voted to be among the Top Ten Yoga Studios in the Valley in 2016. We consider that quite an honor realizing there are well over a hundred yoga studios throughout the Valley of the Sun.

UNITY YOGA has no 'one guru' – rather encourages you to find own individual expression of yoga and the teacher within you!

One of the best things you can do for your mind and body each morning is stretch. During sleep, the body spends hours rejuvenating at a cellular level and by morning lengthening the muscles and filling the lungs with fresh, clean air will do wonders for setting up your day. Here are three yoga poses that will support your organs, open the hips, loosen the neck, release tension from the shoulders, and align all seven chakras (energy centers). Start with taking five slow, deep belly breaths and work your way up ten or more. Click here to learn the Ujaii breathing technique and apply it to the following poses.

One of the most understudied and least understood system of the body is the lymphatic system. Most people recognize the kidneys as the primary organ to filter out toxins for elimination, yet the network of tissues and the lymph fluid itself— which is a white-blood cell, infection-fighting, clear, colorless fluid— is what moves harmful ingredients such as cancer cells or chemicals found in our food, air, and water to the kidneys to excrete. Fascinatingly, the lymph journey runs twice as long as the blood  supply system! The body has between 501-700 lymph nodes, however the spleen is the major organ of the system. 

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the spleen is paired with the stomach, and not just for digestion of food, but information and stimulus as well. The spleen becomes weakened by negative thought patterns, over-analyzing, worry, and a lack of nature and silence in our lives.

We weaken the kidneys by weakening the lymphatic system. Without supporting the body in healthy detoxification— meaning, a lack of exercise, eating the SAD diet without holistic nutrition implementation, eating too quickly, and not drinking enough water— we are creating the perfect storm for disease, pain, and illness. Emotionally, repetitive feelings of self-criticism, disappointment, failure, and shame will contribute to nephrological problems.

Bradley Goss first enrolled at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, in the Associates degree program for Western Herbalism and Holistic Nutrition. He was already a Physical Trainer at a gym and a Detoxification Specialist, but he knew he wanted to continue his education. Before finding SWIHA, he was taking classes at Phoenix College where, to his dismay, he found he did not resonate with what the nutritionist teachers were teaching. “They would tell us that having a couple of cokes a day isn’t bad; there is no good fat; white bread is the same as whole wheat bread; and eating sugar won't make you fat. I didn’t want to be at a school, filling my brain full of things that I knew weren’t correct, just to have to relearn them later.”  So Bradley started looking for another school. New York Integrative and SWIHA were his top two. He wanted a campus school with online options, but he really liked that one of his favorite teachers/authors, Dee McCaffrey (The Science of Skinny) worked here. Since he was already in AZ and NY would require a move, he chose to stay local, as he connected with our mission and philosophy. He reflected on his first few months at SWIHA: “I arrived, ‘not SWIHA material’. I believed in the goodness of foods, but not like I do now. I’d hear teachers say, ‘Be aware’ and ‘this food helps with consciousness’.  I was like, ‘What am I missing? I’m not drunk, what is she talking about??’ I wasn’t aware, even though I thought I was.”  The nutrition and herbalism fit together perfectly, as he still believes that diet and herbs is the curative solution to all dis-ease, however, the education took a lot effort. His feedback to new students or those in the herbalism program was, “Stick with it and don’t get discouraged, especially with the herbal medicine. The payoff is so worth it!”

Can you imagine, one day looking back on your life of over seventy-five years, and realizing you have walked a parallel path with extensive history? It is so important for every human being to realize that with life comes the constant ebb and flow of change, and if you are the type to resist it….maybe find a Life Coach and do some work around your resistance, if you’d like to experience more ease! Said in jest, but this week’s graduate has a compelling story of change, dreams, and blessings that created a lifetime of memories and experiences. This is the epitome of “living life”.

Llewellyn D. Howell grew up on a farm in western New York where hard work was the only mode of life he and his family knew. His father always worked a minimum of two jobs, which required him to work days and nights, so sometimes he wouldn’t even see his father. Although Llew developed many life skills as a farm boy, by the time he was seventeen, he was ready to move to something else.

His first dream was fulfilled when he earned two college scholarships, including one from Bakery Confectionery Workers Union of America, one of the few union scholarships given in the country at that time. This allowed him to escape to the University of Michigan! While he was there, he realized his next two goals. One was to teach abroad and the other was to find the small town of Bavaria. He shared a memory of keeping a photograph in the back of a boring German book, and he would often come to that page and hold the photo and think, “Someday, I’m going to go there.” At the beginning of his junior year, he transferred to the State University of New York at Brockport. He developed another dream: “I wanted to be a teacher. I loved being in the classroom, being with children all day, helping to shape their lives. I finally developed some steam in my academic work.”

Lauren Doyle walks through the door in a bright, royal blue dress, as cool and fresh as she is. I had the opportunity and honor to sit and talk about her experience of finding SWIHA after ten years of being immersed in the corporate world, which she says wasn’t a bad place, but she had the feeling she could do more with her life. I can also verify that Lauren is very funny— we laughed the entire interview— however, humor was another element that was missing from her life in this line of work. Down the road, doctors later diagnosed her with early onset arthritis and told her she wasn’t to do any strenuous exercise. After months of little standing, no cooking, and stuck in a bed, she realized she needed three things to be ‘full’.

“I need to be creative; I need mental nourishment, and physical activity.”

Lauren loved healing and working with tinctures and aromatherapy oils/options and she found herself asking one day,

“I love these earthly things. Why am I not doing that?”

 “I felt like my soul was dying.” [She laughs.] With her infectious smile and bright eyes, she continues, “Yes, I love being dramatic. But it was true: I called it ‘Soul-scouting' for the Soul that’s dying. [We both laugh] I was surrounded by people working the corporate ladder, and I just watched them live in fear and stress. That’s when I knew I could better serve my community. I was inspired to help people in this field, and the thing was, I knew I could help them.”

As Arizonans, most of us don’t have the luxury of a four-season year.  In fact, I am convinced we only have three seasons, Hot-Hotter-Hottest! We’re winding down from the scorching summer and will be transitioning into, what most of us call, the most beautiful time of year. It reminds me of the holiday lyric, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!” How lucky are we, to have the most wonderful time and the most beautiful time, of year, at the same time!

Energetically, some of us are in alignment with the farming season. Maybe you feel like you’ve spent all summer working diligently, making changes, letting go of negative patterns or people you no longer align with. Even if you were able to spend all summer goofing off and you didn’t work on one introspective task, this is absolutely ok! However, on some level you are also in transition, making small shifts to get ready for the winter. At a molecular and soul level, your Being is preparing, even if the brain and ego are in auto-pilot.

There are so many tools out there, especially on the internet, that are uplifting and supportive for every personality out there. Grouped together below my top three favorite bloggers who share priceless insight for people of all ages, professions, gender, and interests! Maybe you are in need of receiving some extra encouragement, a laugh, or maybe you would simply enjoy some fresh information to keep you going through this time of transition and change! Remember, no one can support you as good as you!