Maintaining good health during the pandemic is possible. We’re living through extremely odd times. The coronavirus pandemic has taken the whole world by surprise. Very few of us were prepared. We suddenly found ourselves living under lockdown guidelines to prevent the spread of a deadly virus this year. For the past couple of months, the majority of the world has needed to take a break from the routine of living as social beings and stay put away from others. Talk about trying times!

A Big Ask

We’re being encouraged to work from home and not socialize with those we don’t live. We must only leave our home when absolutely necessary – to get food or medication. These restrictions can take a toll on us both physically and mentally. This new way of living has dumped a boatload of feelings on us and it’s hard to know how to deal with them. We’re stressed, overwhelmed, lonely, and tense.

Maintaining your health during the pandemic is critical. You must prioritize your health and follow guidelines to be safe. It’s important not only for our own safety, but for the safety and sake of others and the already overwhelmed healthcare systems.

If this new way of temporary living is starting to cause your nerves to rattle, we’ve got some ideas to help.

Here are a couple of ways to keep you as safe as possible and help you to maintain your health during the pandemic.

Use Telehealth Services

Many people are reluctant to go to the doctors right now, justifiably so. This is understandable. Nobody wants to spend time in a waiting room near people who are unwell. Also, spending time in close proximity to a doctor can raise a few nerve cells. They’re around unwell people all day long, which further adds risk to our own well-being. But, the power of the internet has gifted us with the ability to participate in Telehealth services. These serves allow you to talk to doctors via a video link. This means you can still have a consultation without having to worry about chances of transmission of the virus.

Try Home Workouts

It’s recommended that the average adult gets 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise a week. This advice is more important than ever because it helps us maintain our health during the pandemic in a way we can control.

Many of the traditional ways in which we’re used to exercising has changed, however, making it difficult to maintain our routine. The gym or the public outdoor spaces are closed. Personal trainers have cancelled sessions. Fitness classes have been called off. Sports teams have put training on hold. So what’s a person to do?

Many of us can’t make up from down, left from right when it comes to how to get our recommended exercise. But hey, don’t worry too much! There are different ways to hit your fitness goals.

Easy Tips

One tip is to head to an open local park to walk, jog, run, or cycle. Just make sure to socially distance and keep at least six feet between you and others who may be out exercising in the same area. Another option is to try home workouts. There are so many different free tutorials online that you’re bound to find something that ticks your boxes. Popular options include aerobic tutorials, yoga tutorials, ballet barre workouts, and more! I personally love Pop Sugar Fitness YouTube channel! Another that looks interesting that I’ll be checking out is yoga flow from Ohana Yoga in Denver.

So there you have it! These are just a couple of different things you want to do when it comes to maintaining good health during the pandemic. They’ll help you to deal with any sickness you may be experiencing right now and will also help you to maintain good all around health.

Meditate

I started using a new meditation app called Calm. I love it. It offers me a relaxing and gentle way to wake up to a new day. It helps me set my brain on a good wave pattern to set me up for a positive day. The meditation exercises are typically 10 minutes in length and are guided by a reassuring and pleasant narrator. They remind you how to stay focused while grooming your emotions to settle into a good groove. I always leave each session empowered to tackle whatever the day tosses at me.

Over to you. What’s your go-to method for maintaining your good health during the pandemic?

Stay Awesome,

Suzie Carr

Are rechargeable hearing aids right for you or someone you love?

When my father started to lose his hearing, he grew concerned that he’d miss out on parts of life. He struggled to hear bits and pieces of conversations. When people lose their hearing, they fear missing out on the important parts of life. Additionally, they can become off-balance due to hearing loss. If this is you or someone you love, I’ve compiled some information for you.

Using hearing aids can improve your hearing loss considerably. Opting for rechargeable hearing aids is a great option, and with the hyperlinked guide, you will learn why they may be a good option for you.

Benefits of Rechargeable Hearing Aids

Opting for rechargeable hearing aids will often be easier on you, as you don’t need to think about replacing the batteries. You place the hearing aids on their rechargeable docking station when you’re not using them to keep them charged. Using rechargeable hearing aids also means that you won’t lose them because when they’re not in your ears, they’ll be on the dock! Much better than placing them on the edge of a table.

When you’ve charged them entirely, they should last up to twenty-four hours on a single charge. Most people charge them overnight while they’re asleep.

Enhanced Sounds

When wearing these hearing aids, a significant factor you’ll notice is that the sounds appear clear and crisp even when you’re listening to the audio. So there’s no need to switch between earphones and hearing aids. They’ll also be tuned specifically to you so the sound will be more precise.

If the idea of swapping between settings as you change environments annoys you, most rechargeable hearing aids will automatically adapt to your surroundings seamlessly. This allows you to carry on with your day, taking the burden off your shoulders.

Environmentally Friendly and Cost-Effective

The joys of a these hearing aids are that you have no batteries. This means you’ll no longer need to pick up batteries from a store every few months. Batteries are known as one of the hardest items to recycle. Having a rechargeable hearing aid will mean you can help benefit the environment.

Although rechargeable hearing aids are the most expensive to buy, you’ll find that you’ll save a lot of money by not purchasing extra batteries. You’ll get a much better product that does more for you and for a cheaper cost.

In the long run, you’ll have a stress-free time using rechargeable hearing aids. With the automatic adaption to your surroundings, you’ll save a lot of time and frustration than manually changing them. Changing the environment one step at a time by not using any additional batteries will make a massive difference by saving you a lot of money in the long run.

If you’re in the first stages of getting a hearing aid or you currently have a regular aid, then considering a rechargeable hearing aid may be a better option for you and your lifestyle. If you need more information, contact a professional audiologist to talk about the possibilities for you and to transform your hearing, to improve your life.

Here’s to great health and wellness, friends!

Love,
Suzie

Joining a book club is one of the most effective ways to understand what readers really desire and expect from a novelist. Though, as writers, we often feel guilty for taking time away from our writing. The easiest way to solve this is to make yourself accountable by joining a book club and committing to being an active participant.

I’m a novelist who writes sapphic blended romance novels. I noticed a major improvement in my own writing when I joined my book club.

You’ll gain much as a book club member.

You’ll gain a three dimensional perspective on what is most important in a book. Some of the greatest benefits and writing lessons I’ve learned have come directly from my book club meetings.

Join a Book Club to Read More

To be a better writer, read more. Writers have doled out this advice to aspiring novelists forever. A well-read writer is someone who is better equipped to churn out words that matter to a story. The more writers read, the more they will understand the subtle nuances that get readers turning pages. So, get your reading glasses ready, and hone your skills in other areas.

Join a Book Club to Read Stuff You Never Would’ve Read

You’ll read the good and the bad. Everyone has a different opinion on what creates that urge to flip to the next page when their eyes are tired but their curiosity says full steam ahead. You’ll be exposed to books that will take you on journeys you never imagined traveling. You’ll read outside your comfort zone, reach higher into the nebulous world of fantasy perhaps, the intoxicating rush of a heated romance, and turn onto the fast lane of action. This will widen your perspective and grant you a front-row seat to a whole new world of literature.

Join a Book Club to Gain Insight into the Minds of Readers

We’ve all said at one point, “Gosh I’d love to be a fly on the wall right about now.” Well, as a writer, there is no greater gift of insight than that of gaining access to the inner workings of the reader’s mind as she pours over words crafted by a fellow novelist. To understand what readers think about characters, motives, themes, plots, is to understand what makes a great book a great book. What better clarity can a writer possess?

A book club sits you on center stage in front of your readers. The view is spectacular and eye-opening.

Wishing you all the best,

Suzie Carr, novelist

P.S. Let’s keep the conversation flowing… has joining a book club helped you become a better writer?

Anxiety got you down? You’re not alone!

Rather listen to this blog post?

 Tune in here.

Anxiety exists because on some level as humans we need that anxiety to warn us of impending danger. It’s our survival compass for when times get tough and we can’t see the blue skies and safe path through all the dust created by what-ifs playing in your mind.

• What if I can’t get past this?
• What if the storm never ends?
• What if I can’t find my way back?
• What if I get so lost, I lose everything I care about?

The list is endless and can be damaging if we don’t learn how to stop that question and replace it with something amenable and productive.

Trying Times Require Care

These times are very trying and causing many of us anxiety. I had to remind myself to stop asking that what-if question every time my nerves spiked due to the circumstances. I quickly realized that I would sink and fast if I didn’t pause and come up with a better way to get through these times.

What happens with me, and I’m guessing most of us who suffer from anxiety, is that we start off with an innocent enough question about a problem we’re experiencing, trying to understand the root cause of it so we can solve it. What tends to happen with me is I continue to dig until I’ve dropped far below the actual issue. I land in the dreaded pit of no return where the loop of trying to fit an unworkable solution into the puzzle creates even more anxiety.

The anxiety loop is cause for concern because we can’t solve a problem with an old set of solutions. We also can’t see a new problem as anything but a problem because we’re viewing it through the same tired lens that we’ve used time and again.

Every Problem Has a Solution

What I discovered, or maybe I should say rediscovered, is that every problem has a solution. I say rediscovered because before all of this happened with this terrible pandemic, I knew this. I have experienced many epiphanies over the years when I directed by brain to search for a solution to a problem. I had ultimate trust that a solution existed for every single problem that would come my way. And one always did. The fact that I’m still here and alive, fed, loved, and still smiling serves as proof that I’ve always found a solution to my problems. Never in my history has a problem ever derailed me so much that I wasn’t able to survive it.

Remembering this fact gives me strength today. It has helped me rediscover that part of problem solving that I’ve always loved, solving the problem!

We may not always like what the solution is, though. That’s usually where we go astray. We put into our minds how we think things should go and when they don’t go that way, we get disappointed, frustrated, fearful, and yes completely sidetracked with anxiety. Anxiety in this case, in its simplest of form, is the by product of our fervent desire to have an outcome and life not cooperating. Anxiety is that convoluted space in between desire and outcome.

Control Factor

There are so many facets of life that we have zero control over. And that has never been more apparent to me than while living through a pandemic.

• What if I can never retire now?
• What if I lose my job?
• What if I lost my house?
• What if my parents die?
• What if someone I care about falls gravely ill and I can’t be there for them?

All of these are legitimate concerns. If anything existed to cause us anxiety, these what ifs are them. They’re questions I believe most every human on the planet is asking themselves right now. But we can’t answer them. No matter how many different ways you ask yourself these what if questions, you’re always going to get the same answer, which is we’ll never know until it becomes a reality. That space between desiring for it never to come true and the unknown outcome is what creates the anxiety and sheer terror in our minds.

Is it fair to say, knowing we can’t control the outcome of these concerns at this moment, that perhaps a better use of our time, energy, and heart should instead go into asking ourselves better questions? Questions that will better help us to solve the problem of constant worry over uncontrollable things?

My character, Ivy, in my recent book, Uprooting, often challenged her the listeners of her Uprooting podcast to have a serious chat with themselves by asking themselves really good questions.

So, let’s suppose we try the same thing. What if instead of asking what if, we ask what can I do right now with my current situation? You can answer this question productively in a way that helps you solve the problem of anxiety. You may not be able to solve how you’ll retire if you’re retirement funds are washed away by an economic depression. You don’t have a crystal ball or the ability to travel in time to a future where you’ll be able to know the outcome. So why not instead, focus on problems you can solve immediately?

Direct Your Focus

By focusing on something else, you give your mind and heart a break from the things that drown you in anxiety. So be kind to yourself and turn your attention to something you can control. Elevate your emotions instead of lowering them. And the best way to do this is to agree to place all those questions about the known, the ones that keep you up all night long, someplace other than in your mind.

What do I mean by this?

A Powerful Exercise

Write down your anxious questions. Then, put them away someplace for safe keeping. The act of writing down your thoughts helps to free your mind because you no longer need to focus on it. It won’t loop in your mind anymore. You’ve downloaded it for later. Knowing where you placed it gives you peace of mind. You’re not telling yourself to forget it. You’re simply telling yourself to keep it someplace safe for now so you can you focus on something else that may bring you relief and answers down the road.

With a free mind, take the next five minutes and ask yourself, what is good about my current situation?

Some of you might be rolling your eyes wanting to scream at me that there is nothing good about it. I’m asking you to trust me for five minutes and ask it anyway. Have a pen and pad handy and seriously consider this question. Don’t stop asking yourself this question and searching for answers until you’ve written at least 3 items.

I did this exercise myself last week when I felt overwhelmed and then rediscovered the gift of asking good questions of myself.

I started off writing out my anxiety questions.

• What if my spouse, parents, siblings, or friends die of this and I can’t be with them?
• What if it takes me 18 months to get back to the office?
• What if I don’t get to see my nephew marry his fiancé in the fall?
• What if my computer breaks and I can’t work anymore?

I just kept writing until my list took up two sheets of computer paper. I then folded the paper and placed it in my drawer at the back of my closet.

I breathed, took a fresh notepad, made some tea, and sat in my favorite chair in my living room. I began a new list answering my question what is good about this current situation?

• Oh, well for starters, I’m healthy.
• My spouse is healthy.
• I have the ability to telecommute.
• I have great friends.
• I have Zoom and can meet with my family and friends online whenever I want to see them.
• The flowers are blooming.
• I’m growing my own scallions and they’re multiplying.
• I just learned a new song on the piano and it actually sounded pretty freaking awesome.
• My couch is incredibly comfortable.
• I’m enjoying tea with a fresh lime.
• My hair is growing longer and shaggier, but hell I have hair.

Gosh the list went on for a long time. It was way longer than my anxiety list.

What this did for me was encourage and empower me to feel the light and the warmth of the things that are going right in my life. That felt so much better to focus on than the what ifs that hopefully and likely will never come to pass.

A Powerful Lesson

I realized something very powerful. I realized how amazing it feels to live life in search mode for those things that make me smile and feel connected to something far beyond the anxiety I left behind in my closet drawer.

Friends there is so much more to life when you decide to focus on those things that give you pause and the undeniable feeling that you’re okay and you’re not just getting through life. You’re thriving in it, and that all the unknowns are simply possibilities that can turn in your favor with time and patience. All in good time you will come to see that life, with all it’s twists and turns, is always offering you new hope for this moment right now and well into the future.

Over to You

Will you give this a try? Will you share some insights here in the comments?

Keeping your ego in check is important if you want to be able to positively influence others and remain balanced.

Rather listen to this blog post? Tune in here.

The ego is a complex part of who we are. It’s what drives us to do, say, and act a certain way at any given time. It’s what sets us apart from other species, and from each other. The ego is our conscious mind, the part of our identity that we consider “self.”

The role of the ego has one major task, sort out what is real in the world. Through its constant companionship, it helps us make sense of the world and of our place in it. It is who we think and perceive ourselves to be and makes up our personality. The ego controls our consciousness and therefore is the part of our personality of which we are most aware.

Because we are most aware of the ego, one might think it’s easy to control and keep in check. We all recognize those people who have big egos. They are the ones who act full of themselves, like humanity should part the path for them to walk through. Like everyone should listen carefully to what that person, or in this case, that ego, is saying because according to the person who encapsulates that ego, they are always right.

The Downside of the Ego

Yeah, the ego sounds like a weird, manipulative part of us all and that if not kept in check can lead a person astray toward a life where no one enjoys being around her.

The ego has earned itself a bad reputation because typically the word ego is used in situations to describe the negative. Being called egotistical means you don’t have the competence and experience to back up your confidence. That kind of ego is damaging and needs to be checked.

The Upside of the Ego

But equally as powerful as the negative side of the ego is the positive side of it. It does have value. For instance, imagine someone who is great at their work but downplays their value. That’s incredibly detrimental because if they don’t see the value, they’ll never bring their best forward. They’ll tend to hold back for fear of being too proud, too showy, too talented in a world that sometimes doesn’t favor that out of some weird competitive, jealousy that rules the cultural environment.

A Fine Balance

There’s a fine balance like anything notable and important in our life. Developing enough ego to believe in yourself and trust your dedication is crucial to your success.

The one huge gift of the ego is that we can control it. It can work in our favor if we become aware of its power in our life.

Today we’ll take a look at ways to increase positive ego and decrease its polar opposite, the side that can ruin our lives and relationships.

Bringing out the Best in Us

How can we increase the positive nature of our ego so as to bring out the best in us and those around us?

Well for starters, it’s important to realize that the ego needs to be fostered and embraced in a way that can significantly improve your performance and increase your self-confidence. Confidence is the key to performing at our peak and providing tremendous value in sharing that work with others. Doing great work requires a certain level of confidence and confidence is directly related to the ego. Imagine your favorite musician taking the stage and faltering through her songs because she doesn’t believe in her ability to entertain you? She’d never have a career as a musician. The only way she got that career was through her ego. It created her confidence to take that stage and light it up.

It’s not egotistical to know you are good at something. It’s the complete opposite of egotistical, in fact, because that would mean you don’t have the skill and competency to back up what you’re doing. You’ve got to believe in yourself to succeed and bring value.

Another positive side of the ego is leading a team, family, or friends toward a direction together, and doing so confidently with everyone’s best interests at heart. No one is going to follow your lead if you are meek and unsure of your ways. With your ego in check, you place yourself in a better position to make smart decisions for everyone involved. Sometimes people need someone else to cheer them on and say let’s go this way friends.

How to Zap a Bad Ego

Okay, let’s take a 180-degree angle here and figure out a few ways to kill a bad ego.

Taking on a Student View

Our egos sometimes embed the erroneous belief that we already know something well enough without needing someone else to tell us something new. Drop that belief and adopt a beginner’s mindset. Become a student of the universe, if you will. Go into a situation as you’ve never heard of the subject before. You’ll be amazed at how well you’ll connect with other people and their ideas. You might even walk away learning something new about something you’ve grown too used to be it work or relationship related.

Focus on Effort over Outcome

Another idea to keep the ego in check is to focus on effort over outcome. Sometimes we become so preoccupied with the outcome of our efforts that we fail to embrace the process of actually doing. That’s where the magic is. That’s where we open up to possibility. We shed the need to have something turn out as we would have it and allow ourselves to open up to what could be had we just had the smarts to let go of rigidity and allow for flow.

Forego Recognition

Another thing that kicks bad ego to the side is ignoring the need to be recognized for your efforts. Not everyone’s going to jump up and down in glee for what you’ve put forth, and until you stop expecting that, you’ll be a slave to the ego. The ego is hungry for credit. It thrives on it and will continue to show up at all the wrong times to get it somehow.

Look for the Lesson

Whenever possible in our pursuits, always look for new lessons from those around you. Never believe you have all the answers or learned everything there is to know. Or worse, that everything you know is right. Be okay with listening to others who are already successful and learn and absorb everything you can. Forget credit.

Admit your Faults

The final thing I’ll share that I’ve learned time and again is to admit when you’ve been egotistical. Make a full stop and start anew. The more you keep digging your way out of a hole you’ve created, the deeper you’ll fall into it and the harder it’ll be to climb out. The ego loves to come to our defenses when it feels we’ve been wounded. It will launch a full-scale attack to save our face. It will do anything to keep us out of trouble by forging ahead with arguments and self-inflated beliefs that often are not even true. When you recognize this, stop. Don’t dig any deeper. You’ll only make things worse. Accept that you are where you are because of that pesky thing called ego.

If we can learn to co-exist in a win-win relationship with the ego, then we’re more apt to enjoy a better sense of connectedness to things that matter and to people who matter. And isn’t that the whole point of this thing called life? To connect with such a purpose?

Stay Awesome!

I always get a mixed bag of feelings swarming in the pit of my belly on a book’s release day. As a writer who has put in a year’s work of love to weave a tale I’m proud to share, it’s a big day. So, I plan to spend it taking a long walk, sipping red wine, and giving thanks to all who support me.

Here’s what some readers have to say…

“You read it first for the touching story of pain, healing, and redemption intertwined with romantic discovery. You read it again to bask in the details, the harmony of nature and mind, the small things that bring us joy in a world filled with injustice and misunderstanding. Finally, this book becomes your safe place. Somewhere you go when you need some advice or just a place to exist and reflect.” – Mildred

“It all comes down to trust and decency, and here, Ms. Carr shines. Her characters are SO good, you’ll find yourself almost talking to them, and that, outside of the author’s adroit use of narrative, is Ms. Carr’s greatest talent. You’ll want to see the bad guys get what they deserve, you’ll want to see Harper succeed, and you’ll WANT Harper and Ivy to find happiness.” – J.S. Frankel

“It was a great read, and I must say that I’m still thinking about the raisin scene (wink).” – Brenda

“This story has many threads, but for me the deepest vein is forgiveness. For some of us have had terrible things done to us. Some less so. But for most of us, forgiveness is hard work. For Harper it is a great mountain to climb. I was very drawn into this story. I find it inspiring.” – Charley K

“I loved that the romance was sweet, loving and nurturing without any associated push-pull drama. How refreshing! The story is very relatable and will touch people in a meaningful way. We need more of that. Definitely recommend!” – Guerunche

If you want to help:

If you want to help spread the word, I’d be so grateful. Please come join me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to help share my post of the launch!

Okay onto the details:

Uprooting is available on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and paperback. And if you prefer a signed copy, you can order that here.

Stay awesome!