PHOTOGRAPHY BY: NeTwORk TeN

Motherhood Into the Mix

Michelle Bridges

I SSU E 2OCTOBER 2015

www.blackdoginstitute.org.au

Contents8. editor's letter10. Michelle Bridges – Motherhood into the mix12. Couchspiration14. The perks of pilates16. Natural sleep remedies that actually work!20. Getting your skin make-up ready25. Frightened of letting go?

How traditional chinese medicine makes for emotional flow30. My MS memoir34. we need a new brain for our future38. The future of personalised medicine is here40. That imperceptible invader42. Dance with your emotions46. wear flowers on your face49. Get worthy50. Five life lessons from a hula hoop53. Find your vocal cords54. 9 top tips to enhance your love life56. Talking about stress58. Grief: a personal journey62. Detoxing, why not?64. Reap the benefits of spending time alone!66. Confessions of an emotional eater68. How I learnt to ‘work IN’ not ‘work OUT’70. Is feminism out-dated?72. I am woman.74. It’s your thinking not your drinking that is the problem!76. Should you have flawless skin?78. Conscious awareness

– A healthy way to deal with stress and anxiety80. we all need a tribe!82. why we women have the last laugh84. The natural power of the world’s oldest healthcare86. The business of food & success88. wiser woman – must know gems92. Mind & body accountability in five steps94. Healing the scars of emotional abuse96. Tips to combat postnatal depression98. Top ten bare necessities for ALL women101. Getting your body baby ready102. Getting inside insomnia105. Age proof yourself106. How to create 'me time' moments108. Say goodbye to PMS in five steps!110. Are you food-wrecked?112. You radiate natural beauty114. Change: It starts with you117. Aerial yoga – do you dare?118. The dirt on eating clean120. The essence of being a woman122. Going au naturel124. Let 's get physical126. Delicious nourishment128. Digital detoxing

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DISCLAIMeR: IAw Magazine will assume no responsibility for consequences that may result in the use of, or reliance on, the published information. No responsibility is taken for the content, images or advertisements. No part of IAw Magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. Copies of this publication may not be sold. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the publishing staff. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited without the permission of the publishers. Articles received with no name, address and phone number(s) will not be published. Articles received will only be published by approval of the editorial team. IAw Magazine reserves the right to shorten and or edit received articles and letters. IAw Magazine does not accept responsibility on articles written by various columnists and writers.

SUBMISSIONS IAw accepts submissions from freelance artists, photographers, designers and journalists, however, we cannot reply to every

submission. Please email info@iamwomanmagazine.com.au for submission guidelines.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFCatherine Plano

catherine@iamwomanproject.com.au

DEPUTY EDITORGianna Lucas

gianna@iamwomanproject.com.au

CREATIVE DIRECTORkym Beaton

kym@iamwomanproject.com.au

GENERAL ENQUIRIESinfo@iamwomanmagazine.com.au

ADVERTISING & MARKETINGadvertising@iamwomanmagazine.com.au

OUR FABULOUS CONTRIBUTORS

Alexandria Page-RobertsonAngela Jackson

Brenda ChanCarol Parr

Catherine PlanoConnie Trowbridge

Constantina kottaridisDanni Simpson

Diana Saltoun GoltsmanDianne YoongDonna SparxDr. Janet Hall

Dr. Jenny BrockisDr. Marny Lishman

Dr. Olga Lavalleemily Copeemily Drew

emma SternbergFiona McArthurGeorgia FosterGeraldine PhuaJan HendersonJessica Talbot

Jo Formosakaren Chaston

karen Synnottkathy Ashtonkemi Nekvapil

kiran RamLeann Middlemass

Meg ThompsonMelanie McGriceMichelle BridgesMichelle Powell

Michelle SanchezMukti

Naomi ArnoldNicole Larson

Nikki Fogden-MooreRachael ArcherRenae BressiSally Thibault

Samantha SargentSammi Lucas

Shirley McilvennySita Huber

Sophie LeFevre Tiffany MasonVanessa GrayVirginia Bain

IAW Magazine donates $1 from each magazine sale to charity. Black Dog Institute is the recipient for Issue 2.

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“In striving to maintain a balanced wellbeing, we must focus our attention on all four of these

fundamental components "

9w e L L N e S S F O R w O M e N 2 0 1 5

Editor's LetterCATHeRINe PLANO

Health, fitness and nutrition – there’s information around every corner. It’s absolutely fantastic that we all have the opportunity to become more educated

about what’s good for us, and what’s not.

But for me, the idea of wellbeing goes a little further. I like to think of wellbeing as wholeness. why? Because there are four pillars of wellness that we need to look at from a holistic point of view: Our spiritual, mental, emotional and physical energies. These energies are all connected and have a direct influence on our overall wellbeing. This is the mind and body connection.

In striving to maintain a balanced wellbeing, we must focus our attention on all four of these fundamental components, because one directly impacts or improves the other. The energy in our body directly influences how we feel, think and act.

Spiritual Wellness is made up of personal beliefs, moral values and behaviours that transcend a sense of oneness with the universe. Spiritual wellness entails having a firm belief in a higher power – something larger than our human existence. It also espouses having a strong purpose in life and gives compassion to others who are seeking harmony, all whilst balancing our energies with the rest of the world. People attend to their spiritual wellness in different ways: meditating, praying or practicing mindfulness. whatever you choose, make sure that you make time regularly to pause and just ‘be’. Celebrate you and your energy – your genuine self.

Mental Wellness is the ability to process information and perceive reality in an accurate manner. Mental wellness is all about the strength and fitness of our coping resources as well as our ability to manage and control habitual thought patterns. Most of us are mentally active most of the time. In caring for our mental wellness, it’s appropriate that we learn to slow the mind down enough to be purposeful in our approach, to integrate the mind and body, allowing ourselves the opportunity to create mindfulness as we live our lives. Positive psychology is about measuring your happiness of your wellbeing. Mental wellness is about acknowledging your problems, but breaking down negative thoughts so they’re manageable and realistic. It’s about being creative, experimental and open minded, having a sense of curiosity and giving thoughts a different meaning to create the type of life you want to live.

Emotional Wellness is being aware of your feelings, emotions, attitudes and behaviours, particularly our habitual emotional patterns which quite often are an experience from our past or childhood. when we are aware of our emotions and have the emotional strength to express them in an appropriate way, we can manage them and learn from them. emotions should not be suppressed or ignored; they expose themselves for a reason. when they arise, we need to embrace them and dance with them! I am very passionate about emotions and I’ve written an

article in this issue, which examines why we feel how we feel and why we do the things we do. This is important groundwork for improving our emotional wellbeing.

Physical wellness Is the body our temple? Yes it is. And we should treat it with the utmost respect. From the food we put into our mouths, to the amount of sleep we get every night, to the amount of time we engage in physical activity to help move stagnant energy around.

Physical wellness is about feeling and looking good – connecting with and attuning to our subtle internal energies, which tell us at every moment of every day what the body wants and what it doesn’t.

For example, deciding whether or not to eat high fat and low carb, paleo, vegan, naked, Mediterranean … the list goes on. we are all authentic, individual and original and we need to decide for ourselves. The simple way to do this is to tune into ourselves – our bodies soon tell us what’s right for us and what’s not.

Over the past four decades we have been bombarded with an artillery of different messages around our health – Doctors say one thing, science says something different. More and more people are questioning this kind of ‘advice’ because it’s both conflicting and confusing. And while information results in education, how your body responds to what you’re doing should be the real decider.

I believe that our individual health is as unique as our own DNA, so when it comes to our spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health, inevitably we will all need to do something different to achieve optimal health and performance.

we need to set our own goals and make our own choices. And, because our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing are all connected, by doing work with one, we soon see noticeable results in the others too.

Physical work, like exercise or yoga improves mood. Counselling exercises to help understand emotional responses trigger wellness in spiritual and mental health. Since these facets make up a large part of who we are, improvements in these areas will be translated into improvements in our work life, our home life, our relationships and our overall contentment and success in life.

The aim of this issue is to inform and kick start your thinking and to open up some dialogue with friends and professionals and – perhaps most importantly – yourself, so that you can continue to explore ideas and possibilities for your own journey and start putting them into practice.

Here’s to happy wellbeing! with love, Catherine x [IAW]

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Michelle Bridges

INTeRVIew BY: CATHeRINe PLANO

PHOTOGRAPHY BY: NeTwORk TeN

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Michelle Bridges

11w e L L N e S S F O R w O M e N 2 0 1 5

Michelle Bridges is more than just a bundle of energy. She juggles roles as a fitness entrepreneur, company owner/director (of not one but in fact two businesses!), as well as filming for the current season of TEN’s Biggest Loser! Yet she still finds the time to enjoy a fulfilling personal life. When you thought that was all, she will soon be adding motherhood into the mix! So, we’re calling her a dynamo!

Motherhood Into the MIxIAW: Michelle, how do you manage to keep it all going? What’s your secret?

MB: wow, that's a big question and the reality is that it doesn't boil down to one thing (there's definitely no secret!). Some days you keep going out of necessity. Other times you're able to push yourself just a little harder because people are relying on you. And then there are those days when you need three coffees just to get to the office!! I'm certainly no super woman, but most of the time I am able to keep going because I'm fortunate enough to do something that I truly love, with so much of my inspiration and energy coming from the people I am able to help. I also have a really great team around me and I don't have too many sick days because I maintain my health and fitness, both in the mind and body (people really underestimate the importance of having a healthy mindset and the amount of work it takes to maintain it).

IAW: You have been blessed with an amazing career. As you grew your brand, how did you conquer and grow from unforeseen obstacles? What has been your greatest lesson learned?

MB: You know what? I do feel really blessed, especiallybecause I get to do what I'm passionate about, but pleasedon't think my career happened by accident or overnight.It’s taken over two decades and in the early years, I wasworking 7 days a week with 4am starts! About ten years agowas when my business really started to grow wings and I'mcertainly no expert, but I had to learn quickly about thingslike contracts, distribution chains, manufacturing processesand so much more… and absolutely, none of it was perfectthe first time!

The greatest lesson I have gained out of all of this (and I'mhoping I'm not the only one saying this), but being a smallbusiness owner, I grew through trial and error. So don't beafraid of failure or to really grab an opportunity by the hornsbecause it might only come once – being brave enough tofail and having the smarts to learn from it is how you growthe most. This is how muscle growth works too... they needto tear and repair to get bigger and stronger.

IAW: Who has been your greatest influence and why?

MB: I'm influenced by all sorts of people, it just depends on what hat I'm wearing at the time and I think this is important because it’s healthy to have different types of people in your life with different perspectives. Of course, friends, family and my partner top the list.

IAW: What advice would you give to your younger self?

MB: That it's okay to not be perfect straight up. The best that anyone can do is work on being a little bit better than yesterday. In hindsight, this is really what has driven my own journey and wins in life, the commitment towards making small positive changes everyday. [IAW]

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