A mother of two, I am also a yoga teacher and freelance writer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Balancing work and family is a challenge for many women, and along the way we often forget to -- oh, yeah! -- take care of ourselves. I feel very fortunate that the work I've chosen allows me to nurture myself and my own passions while helping other women to also become EmpowHERed.
Perhaps the only known variable in parenthood is the unexpected. No matter how hard we prepare ourselves for what parenting entails, we will always be faced with surprises, some pleasant and some ...
September 13, 2011 - 10:49pm
While technical reading instruction usually doesn’t begin until children enter elementary school, early literacy development — during the first 3 years of life — builds the foundation for children ...
September 9, 2011 - 9:30am
In the early days postpartum, new moms use their wrists and forearms more often than they may recognize: lifting baby from the crib, patting the baby’s back, carrying the heavy car seat and ...
September 5, 2011 - 8:24pm
When I was 12, I remember seeing a cousin giving her toddler a baby bottle filled with Diet Coke. At the time, I thought something seemed out of place, but now as a parent I am appalled on so ...
August 31, 2011 - 10:27pm
It’s the ultimate Catch-22: The first trimester of pregnancy makes you more exhausted than that last ultramarathon you ran, and yet this is the exact time you’re supposed to give up caffeine! How ...
August 31, 2011 - 9:34pm
Let’s face it. In today’s busy world, juggling work, kids and who-knows-what-else, sometimes a caffeine mainline sounds like an appealing support system. But while about 90 percent of adults use ...
August 31, 2011 - 8:53pm
As parents, we often find ourselves faced with difficult decisions regarding our children’s wellbeing. Of course we want to choose what is best for our children, especially when it comes to their ...
August 30, 2011 - 2:05pm
Before becoming pregnant, chances are you never experienced heartburn. During pregnancy, hormones such as relaxin and progesterone relax muscles and ligaments throughout the body. As digestive ...
August 24, 2011 - 10:52pm
Often misdiagnosed at first, HELLP syndrome occurs in one to two out of every 1,000 pregnancies and can lead to serious complications if not treated early. The acronym HELLP stands for Hemolysis, ...
August 10, 2011 - 11:42pm
All women need calcium to protect their bones. In pregnancy, calcium intake is particularly important. A fetus’s growing skeleton requires a lot of calcium, and the baby takes its necessary ...
August 8, 2011 - 11:35pm
While these symptoms are often blamed on PMS, headaches, trouble concentrating, lack of energy and grumpiness might actually signal a different health problem: anemia. If anemia goes untreated, ...
August 3, 2011 - 10:45pm
If our great-great-grandparents had been told that Americans today would regularly eat dim sum, pad thai, souvlaki, tikka masala and arroz con pollo, they might have looked at the messenger with a ...
July 31, 2011 - 11:56pm
After months of preparing for baby arrival, most new moms are ready to shed the maternity clothes and leave pregnancy behind. But one of the unspoken truths of the early postpartum period is that ...
July 27, 2011 - 9:02pm
Singers from Faith Hill to Anna Nalick, from Eddie Vedder to Alexi Murdoch croon about the benefits of just breathing, but while we may be keen on huffing out the words of their latest songs, we ...
July 25, 2011 - 6:04pm
In July 2011, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released a Committee Opinion that all women should be screened for alcohol use at least once a year, and within the first ...
July 22, 2011 - 1:39pm
During pregnancy, a woman’s focus turns to many different things. She pays close attention to what she puts into her body, makes decisions around career and family, and begins to prepare herself ...
July 19, 2011 - 7:26am
Summertime weather entices most everyone to spend more time outside. But along with sunshine can come excessive heat, and if your body becomes overheated, it can also suffer the repercussions of ...
July 18, 2011 - 11:04pm
Pregnancy can drain your energy, especially during the first trimester. Some women experience bouts of nausea that make exercise seem like an impossibility. Even on good days you may rightfully ...
July 13, 2011 - 10:03pm
Many women would agree that being stuck with a bunch of needles is a small price to pay for the possibility of motherhood. While not the answer for every couple, evidence suggests that acupuncture ...
July 6, 2011 - 11:20pm
As the doctor looked at the sonogram screen, his brow furrowed and I knew something was wrong. He continued to move the wand around, as though he was looking for something elusive. Finally, he ...
June 30, 2011 - 4:40pm
Despite compelling arguments to breast-feed babies for a year or longer, most mothers who opt to breast-feed stop doing so completely by the time their babies are six months old. According to the ...
June 28, 2011 - 8:36pm
In the summertime, my kids and I love eating Popsicles as a refreshing escape from the afternoon heat. A few days ago I went to buy some frozen pops at our local grocery store, and I was surprised ...
June 23, 2011 - 10:47am
While many beginners are drawn to yoga for its physical benefits, along the road most of us begin to recognize that there is much more to yoga than merely exercise. The mind-body connection is ...
June 21, 2011 - 12:49pm
Yoga has become more popular in the U.S. over the past decade. Many people try their first class at the urging of a friend, or because a class at their gym is offered at an opportune time. But ...
June 15, 2011 - 11:34pm
Despite images of feasting on pickles and ice cream, a positive pregnancy test is not an invitation to eat twice as much for the next nine months. “Eating for two” should be interpreted carefully. ...
June 13, 2011 - 11:47pm
How would you react if someone told you to eat more fats? If this thought perks you up, you’re in luck…sort of. You still need to steer clear of saturated fats. However, omega-3 fatty acids, ...
June 6, 2011 - 11:34pm
We all know logically that our diet should be “well-balanced,” and that our daily food intake should include a plethora of vitamins and minerals. Sometimes, though, the list of “necessary” ...
June 1, 2011 - 10:54pm
While many good things come from the sun—vitamin D and mood-elevating bright light, for example—the star’s ultraviolet rays can cause a lot of damage to the human body. In the past, people ...
May 25, 2011 - 11:08pm
Parenting trends have shifted quite considerably in the past 40 years. In 1970, the average age of first-time mothers giving birth was 21. According to National Vital Statistics Reports published ...
May 23, 2011 - 11:43pm
Anyone who’s ever heard the expression “talk to the hand” knows that gestures communicate just as powerfully as spoken words. Think about the emotions stirred by loud clapping, a thumbs-up sign, ...
May 18, 2011 - 11:21pm
Women are often told during pregnancy to exercise their pelvic floor. (You’ve heard of Kegel exercises, right?) But what exactly are “Kegels” and why are they important to practice even after the ...
May 16, 2011 - 9:02pm
No one told you that getting pregnant would lead to more than just pickle and ice cream cravings. Alas, despite the wonderful physical effects of pregnancy--thicker hair, radiant skin, and of ...
May 11, 2011 - 10:43pm
You’ve found a new job, earned a bonus at work, raised a family—whatever your achievements, no doubt you worked hard to reach your goals. But sometimes in the midst of working and caregiving, the ...
May 9, 2011 - 9:59pm
The first time I attempted a headstand (sirsasana) during yoga practice, I was alone in a hotel room reading instructions from a book. Not moving as slowly and mindfully as headstand requires, I ...
May 5, 2011 - 12:54am
You’ve decided to breastfeed your newborn, but for some reason your baby doesn’t seem to be on-board with the master plan. She keeps falling asleep, her mouth isn’t opening wide enough to get any ...
May 2, 2011 - 6:15pm
Whatever the time of year, boosting the immune system helps us stave off colds and flu. Scientific evidence suggested that a diet rich in antioxidants strengthens the immune system, helping ...
April 27, 2011 - 11:27pm
Much of the western world in the 21st century thrives on accomplishment, driven to achieve no matter what the cost. It’s no wonder that 45 million Americans experience chronic headaches or that 74 ...
April 25, 2011 - 10:13pm
In his book Light on Yoga, B.K.S. Iyengar, one of the foremost yoga teachers in the world, provided a yoga sequence for headache relief. Interestingly, the first prescribed pose is supported ...
April 20, 2011 - 2:26pm
It’s the ultimate Catch-22: The first trimester of pregnancy makes you more exhausted than that last ultramarathon you ran, and yet this is the exact time you’re supposed to give up caffeine! How ...
Hillary Easom commented on Hillary Easom's post Caffeine and Pregnancy