Coaching

What Does Your Stress Look Like?

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Next week sees the arrival of the UK’s annual Stress Awareness Day, that happens on the first Wednesday of November every year. This year’s theme and focus is on stress being a balancing act. And acupuncture is ALL about BALANCE.

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The balancing and harmonising affect of acupuncture, that uses ultra fine needles as thin as a human hair, makes it well placed to deal with stress. In scientific terms, acupuncture has been shown to stimulate release of endorphins (the happy hormones) and oxytocin (the calm and contented hormone often associated with nursing mothers) – leading to reduction of stress levels.

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As a member of the British Acupuncture Council, and a traditional acupuncturist, I use acupuncture to address the root cause reason as to why a physical or emotional issue is present or persisting. The Five Element style believes that most often the root cause reason is in our default Element.

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what is my element ebook on ipad thumbnail mergedIn Chinese Medicine, there are Five Elements – Fire, Earth, Metal, Water and Wood. We do have all of the Five Elements within us, but one Element is the dominant one, like our default setting, the one that shows itself the most in everything we do.

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I might have five people all coming for acupuncture because they are stressed out, but each of them might experience stress very differently, depending upon which Element is dominant for them. One might be overworked, overwhelmed, anxious and tearful, another might have tight shoulders and feel irritable or frustrated. Understanding the kinds of habits, behaviours, blocks and emotions that you experience in daily life, is the first step to managing your stress levels.

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The free ebook is intended to be a gentle introduction into the Five Elements, to give you an idea of what each Element is like, and to see if you can identify yourself in one of them. Download it by filling out the form below, I’d love to know what you think!

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2014

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What Does Going Off Coffee Have to Do With the Heart?

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A patient recently emailed me, surprised that she had gone off her beloved coffee. Having previously drunk a lot of the black stuff on a regular basis, she found she just didn’t feel like she wanted it any more. She was intrigued and wanted answers.

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From my integrated Five Element Acupuncturist perspective, it wasn’t a surprise. Each of the Five Elements – Fire, Earth, Metal, Water and Wood – have an associated taste, as well as many other resonances, read more in my new ebook. Coffee is bitter, and bitter is linked to the Fire Element. The main Fire organ is the Heart, and in Chinese Medicine and Chinese Food Energetics, the bitter taste is said to go straight to the Heart and affect the energetics, feelings and functionings of the organ.

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Coffee Heart Five Elements Chinese Medicine

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This is why I avoid coffee, I LOVE the smell, but its affects on me and my heart are super strong. I get shaky, light headed and feel sick, like my blood pressure has dropped. I feel my heart beating like mad, skipping around with palpitations.

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For others, and maybe for you, it is different and the Heart is given some support from coffee – some boosting, a little kick in the morning of familiar warmth, of feel-good happy contented energy. But for some, a craving or too much dependence on coffee can indicate (or even create in the long term!) an imbalance in the Fire Element and it’s energy.

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The more we return to balance in the Fire Element and the heart, the less we NEED coffee. And this is what had happened to my gorgeous patient. Through work on herself, with the support of coaching and acupuncture, she had become more in touch with her Heart. She connected with her Heart, acknowledged it and really FELT into it. She was fully enjoying this Heart space she hadn’t realised she had been missing.

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So what does that have to do with coffee? The support from acupuncture and coaching had created a mindful, ACTIVE connection to the Heart space. This connected to the energy of the Heart, the nurture of the Qi (or life force) there, focusing attention there, shifting the energy there, creating a boost, a stimulation, a kick start of the Heart and the Fire Element. It therefore no longer needs to rely on the coffee and it’s bitter taste for that Heart boost or stimulation. As a result, the craving goes down, the body, mind and spirit no longer require it; it’s a sign that something internally has changed.

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Have you noticed something has changed for you recently? Have you gone off a certain food, or found yourself suddenly reaching for something that isn’t normally on your menu? It could be an indication of an internal shift, one of your Five Elements is in a changing state of balance – towards imbalance, or toward a better state of balance. Share your thoughts in the comments below and my acupuncturists brain may be able to shed some light on it for you!

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2014

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Note: original coffee cup photo from Tumblr

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Free Five Element Ebook CF

What I Learnt From My Professional Photo Shoot

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This post was written back in February, for the (very) soft launch of this new site in March. The crazy amazingness of Acupuncture Awareness Week 2014 then took over and the blog took a back seat… Read on to see what I learnt about perspective in the process of my re-branding and relaunch…

Welcome to this new space of mine, I’m so glad you’re here!

R x

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Rhiannon Griffiths Acupuncture paul wilkinson shoot proofs montage

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My intention for this new website was to show the world more of me, more of my true self. Whilst the old site was great, it was functional, clean and promoted me as a respectable white-coated acupuncturist, it had little of my true essence.

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It didn’t give you an idea of the kind of energy you would feel in my treatment room, nor the kind of deep, transformative support I foster in my patient-practitioner relationships, or actually who I am, and what choosing me as your acupuncturist or coach will bring in to your life.

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Then, after many months of procrastinating, putting it off, coming up with excuses as to why “now was not the right time” because of how I looked, or how I felt, or it wasn’t the right season for the photos I wanted, I actually booked a session with local photographer extraordinaire, Paul Wilkinson to portray me, my magic, my energy, my intention, on film.

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It was quite an experience. For someone who is not entirely comfortable in the spotlight, someone who can be hideously self-critical and doesn’t relish being centre of attention, having a solo photo shoot where all eyes are on you and you have literally no where to hide, is, well, very illuminating – on many levels.

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Paul is some kind of wizard with an incredible skill of calming nerves and allowing you to relax into the unfamiliar process. This means he captures the genuine spirit of his clients, minus all the BS, the insecurities, filters, preconceptions, and crappy stories we tell ourselves about ourselves – his shots are absolutely pure and true and magical.

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On getting the proofs back, I literally could not believe the photos were actually of me… and yet, I could also clearly see my true authentic self staring back at me. And it was THIS energy that I had wanted for my new site, for the world to see, to be able to connect with the real me.

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I learnt a lot about perspective. Your perspective of anything can change in an instant if you look at something through a different focus, a different lens. And in this instance, it was incredibly LITERAL – I had the lens of a camera focused on me for hours and it FORCED me to view myself from a different perspective.

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Having someone as skilled as Paul looking at you through a photographic lens SHIFTS the energy immediately. The detail he sees, the way in which he constructs the photos, the beauty he recognises, articulates and encapsulates, it cannot help but change your perspective, whatever you are looking at.

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camera lens perspective

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It is akin to the way your man looks at you, holding you in his gaze as though you are entirely magical, and wholly beautiful. Looking at yourself through his eyes is enlightening, helpful and reassuring. It opens up a new level of truth, coming from a place of love, goodness, compassion and connection. It utterly negates the self-doubt, the overly critical voice, and the fear of truly being seen. Seeing yourself through his eyes allows you to be out in the world as your deepest authentic self, and allows you to connect to this space in the purest way. His gorgeous eyes are a different lens, an alternative perspective, a different pair of glasses to look through.

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Similarly, seeing myself through the eyes of the camera opened up a whole other way of looking at me. It was an empowering, positive and transformative experience. Something inside me shifted, put me into a different space, and I am truly thankful for the universe guiding me towards working with Paul.

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Perspective is a powerful tool by which we can shift stuck energy in relation to ANY circumstance, not just how we feel about ourselves or view ourselves. I use it in my coaching sessions (and sometimes even in my acupuncture clinic) so that my clients can come to a better place of BALANCE.

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Often the “glasses” we have been wearing for many years are cloudy, scratched and do not reveal the sparkling, crystal clear truth of matters. We can become stuck in one way of viewing the world and believe it to be the only way. We re-tell the same stories about ourselves, repeat the same patterns, inevitably getting the same results.

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Sometimes the other perspective is something we could NEVER have imagined, or seen on our own, we need something or someone else entirely to help us to “see” differently. For me, it was a photographer, for you it might be a coach – tell me in the comments below how you have changed your perspective, I would LOVE to hear.

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2014

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Free Five Element Ebook CF

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2013

Visit the website

Now on Instagram

Like on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Visit the YouTube Channel

Check out my Pinterest

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– See more at: http://www.rhiannongriffiths.com/blog/#sthash.xZAxaN7W.dpuf

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2013

Visit the website

Now on Instagram

Like on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Visit the YouTube Channel

Check out my Pinterest

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– See more at: http://www.rhiannongriffiths.com/blog/#sthash.xZAxaN7W.dpuf

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2013

Visit the website

Now on Instagram

Like on Facebook

Follow on Twitter

Visit the YouTube Channel

Check out my Pinterest

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– See more at: http://www.rhiannongriffiths.com/blog/#sthash.xZAxaN7W.dpuf

Beauty In Transformation

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Today I was visited by this little fellow – the third tortoiseshell butterfly to grace this space in the last month. I originally wrote this post when the first little chap unexpectedly arrived, the second one arrived to nudge me in to writing it up, and now the third is REALLY shouting their message of transformation at me! He even settled on to my laptop!

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The first one was a gorgeous surprise, not only because it was fully autumn, and now pretty much Winter, here in the UK, but also because he appeared indoors, in my bedroom. It was as though he appeared by magic, in all his grace, ease & beauty.

Yet I was struck that it was very likely that the part I didn’t see, the part before the unveiling of the amazing, intricate wings, was anything but easy, graceful or beautiful. The caterpillar creating the chrysalis, the feeling of something ending, letting go, trusting the process, the dying off of the old, to allow the transformation into the new.

Timing is everything & not only did my first graceful visitor come during a time when I was working behind the scenes on my new website & it felt like pulling teeth, whilst I was pulling my hair out, but he also came to remind me that Autumn is the season of the Metal Element, which has letting go, dying off to make way for the new, connecting with beauty & grace in transformation, at its very heart.

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Any big change, any big growing, any step along the road to transformation can be challenging, it can feel uncomfortable, it can feel hard. It’s when we are nearest to the biggest & best changes, those which are going to have the biggest impacts on our lives, the bit beforehand feels like the hardest part. Sometimes, like  the hardest part we have ever endured.

From the perspective of the butterfly I gained space, room to breathe. He awakened in me a knowledge that even the hardest struggle is worth it. It is worth it for the breathtaking transformation & beauty that comes after it. Transformation isn’t always easy, but my goodness it is magnificent.

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So, for me, I need to let go & trust that the launch of my new website & everything after it will bring beauty, ease & grace, even though I’m struggling to trust it right now & things feel overwhelming. The autumn needs to come & the leaves need to fall off the trees in order for the new buds & blossom to appear in the Spring.

What do you need to think like the butterfly about? Are you going through a website or branding transformation? Are you considering retraining or looking for a new job? Is there something in your life that has a lack of ease at the moment? Are you growing & need some support in your chrysalis time? Could you benefit from acupuncture or coaching as you go through your transformation? Let me know in the comments below!

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2013

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Feeling Into The Space

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This time last month I returned from a week in sunny, hot Malta, having celebrated one of my closest friend’s fabulously continental wedding. It was wonderful & such a joy to be a part of!

On my first day back in my Thame clinic after the break, I opened the treatment room door to a space of white gorgeousness. The ladies who now collectively own The White House in Thame, had completely transformed the clinic whilst I was away! It was breathtaking. I loved it immediately.

But as soon as I started to set up, with my trolley & my acupuncture needles, I realised that everything FELT different. It felt as though it was my first day at a brand new clinic, not the same therapy room I’d been working in for the last four years!

It struck me that the space had changed, so the energy had changed. The FLOW of energy had changed. How I moved in the room had changed.

Physically, the treatment couch had moved, the chair for patient chat had moved, the back of the room was blocked off & contained the desk that had once been in the main part of the therapy space. Everything felt clearer & lighter, calmer & whiter, but I also felt clumsy, uncomfortable, unfamiliar. The processes that had become second nature over time were now redundant, they no longer worked.

So I just STOPPED. I took time to FEEL into the space. I adjusted how I moved in the space. I moved my trolley to the other side of the room. Immediately the “dance” of my treatments felt better. The FLOW from my trolley to the treatment couch felt more familiar again. The ENERGY was smoother, easier. I also acknowledged it would take time to really get used to the new space.

A month on, I can barely remember what the room looked like before, or how I set things up. I am used to the new flow of things, & the room certainly now has the wow factor as a therapy clinic.

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Things I learnt:

+ you can’t THINK yourself into a new space.

+ Strategising & over thinking doesn’t work, you have to FEEL into it.

+ Change feels uncomfortable for me, but “change” soon becomes the “norm” again.

+ Things aren’t set in stone, flexibility to adapt cab bring something even better.

+ Things don’t always have to be the “way I want it”, to work or to have benefits for me.

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So what do you need to FEEL into this week?

+ A relationship with another person? Has it changed? Is it new? Is it evolving?

+ A change in you? A new part of you that you’re just discovering? An old part of you that you haven’t connected with in a long time? Perhaps you just don’t feel like yourself?

+ An emotion, body issue or pain? What might it be trying to tell you? What is the dominant emotion? If the pain was an emotion what emotion would it be? Is the flow of energy stuck?

+ A work situation? An office move? A new member in your team? Is the ENERGY now different? Are you having to FEEL your way into the new situation?

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See how it feels in your BODY, & where you feel it. Trust your gut & your intuition. Make changes or adjustments as you FEEL into it, don’t think it or jump to action, FEEL it.

Embrace flexibility & balance – allow the energy to flow, allow it to find the new space, the new situation. And if you need support or guidance with energy flow, ask me about acupuncture or coaching.  Perhaps you’re already on the path to transformation & you notice you feel different? You might want someone to walk alongside you. Do you need to now FEEL into the TRUEST version of you?

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© Rhiannon Griffiths 2013

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Now on Instagram

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