There is a little bridge that connects the state of New Jersey with a long, skinny 18-mile island where I spent my childhood summers.

A few weeks ago, as my car approached that bridge, I closed my eyes and exhaled audibly, feeling myself sink into a deep state of calm (I wasn’t the one driving!)

Has that ever happened to you?

You arrive at a place and it brings you a feeling of serenity? And even the memory of that place floods you with a sense of calm?

Over the years, I learned to do this with just the thought of my happy places…since sometimes you can’t always be where you wanna be, right?

I mean, I loved that waterfall in Ecuador, but I can’t imagine I’m getting back there anytime soon…so I just close my eyes and remember the feelings it gave me when I was there.

So I invite you to try it.

Sit quietly, and breathe slowly and deeply for just a few minutes.

Let the breath go all the way into the back of your body, and allow your thoughts to come and go.

Then follow those thoughts to find your own happy place.

What are you thinking about when you take a deep exhale?

Which thought triggers a sense of release?

It could be pulling into a driveway of your home, or simply the memory of a special place.

One client told me his happy place is the sound of leaves in the woods behind his dad’s house. He goes there when he feels stressed.

Another client told me it was seeing the top of a mountain after a long and hard hike. She pulls that up whenever she needs a confidence boost or a sliver of joy.

So what’s your happy place?

What images can you conjure up to find your calm?

That place is always inside of you.

Try it, and share it with me! I can’t wait to hear.

With fierce love,
Alison