MSI Press Blog

  Excerpt from the pre-publication manuscript: Chapter 13 HOW DO WE USE OUR FREEDOM? “The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.” --Aung San Suu Kyi   ·        When the lockdowns began in March 2020 to stop the spread of the Coronavirus, “to flatten the curve,” we were shocked at this drastic measure. It underlined the seriousness and deadliness of the pandemic. We imagined the shutdown opening after a brief time. My friends and I exchanged humor and cartoons to help us cope with the shock and avoid panic. (The joking has slowed, almost to a standstill.) One cartoon was prescient of a coming attitude and agenda shift. It was a cartoon of a smiling Jim Carrey saying, “Hope they allow us off lockdown by July 4 th …so we can celebrate our freedom.” ·        His humor carries a stinging truth. Disillusionment has set in on a national scale. The lockdown was eased, but COVID-19 cases rose and States are closing down businesses and gatherings again. We are

FINDING OPPORTUNITY DURING THE PANDEMIC Making the Possible Possible We are older. We are vulnerable. We are taking our place as spectators of those younger and on the front lines of taking care of the ill and providing essential services. We are less able to see those who are working from home unless they appear in one of those boxes on the grid of people commenting on today’s news. We are missing being with some of our favorite people and doing some of our favorite things, but, for the moment, we’ve right sized our life during a pandemic to meet the needs of our unique selves and those for whom we care. No doubt we’ve had moments of what’s being called “quarantine fatigue.” A friendly grocery clerk likened it to the movie, Ground Hog Day , in which the same story repeats daily. Sometimes, we feel great progress is being made, and sometimes, we think it will never change. Depending upon the extent we’ve been directly exposed to the tragedy of COVID-19, we may be wonde

Nanette is a psychotherapist, career therapist, writer, and artist. She is available for lectures and workshops and has designed and facilitated workshops on “Karma, Destiny and Your Career,”and “Living From Your Heart,” which she has presented in the United States and in Canada. Nanette has a BA from Cooper Union and is trained in Psychosynthesis. She is a co-founder of The Center for Peace Through Culture, and is the founder and President of Higher Self Yoga. She has published several books on yoga, karma, and better self-understanding. She co-authored the popular MSI book, The Rose and the Sword: How to Balance Your Feminine and Masculine Energies , with the late Dr. Judith Bach.  Her latest MSI Press release is   How to Live from Your Heart: Deepen Relationships, Develop Creativity, and Discover Inner Wisdom ,  This book has won many awards, including  Book of the Year finalist American Book Fest Best Book Award Book Excellence Awar d Pinnacle Book Achieve me

Yesterday, with the release of Julie Gentile's book, How to Stay Calm in Chaos , we reached release #10 of the books in our pandemic series--experts among our authors who have turned their expertise into providing advice, help, and encouragement with dealing with the fallout of various sorts of trying to cope with and manage life successfully during a pandemic. These books encompass a wide range of topics, all of them very pertinent to what is happening all around us. Which ones could help you? The  Pandemic and Hope , written by former priest and long-term, respected psychologist, Dr. Dennis Ortman. Read more HERE . Tips, Tools, and Anecdoates to Help during a Pandemic , written by San Diego social worker, Joanna Charnas. Read more HERE . God Speaks into Darkness , written by church leader, J Bennett Easterling. Read more HERE . Diary of an RVer during Quarantine, written by RV expert (judge of the RV Oopsies awards), Karry MacDonald. Read more HERE . Old and On Hold , written by

  Difficult Relationships That Take More of a Toll As We Age Long-standing relationships that are chronically stressful begin to take a greater toll as we age. We know that chronic stress and mental anguish have a greater impact on our physical bodies as we age. Making a final attempt to mend difficult relationships or to let go and to stop obsessing about them becomes an essential task when you are on the cusp of old age. Mental distress robs us of valuable time and energy we need or want for other pursuits so it becomes essential to pick our stresses. Difficult relationships are not those friendships that seem to have a natural ebb and flow and enter and leave a life. Most of us have countless relationships that we can pick up after years. Difficult relationships, on the other hand, become tiresome, unbalanced, and demanding. If resolving a difficult relationship were easy, we would have done it long ago. However, we somehow have gotten entangled in old feelings, responses, hurts, an

  March is Women's History Month. We celebrate by recommending the following books for women. Order from our webstore and get a 25% discount with coupon code FF25.             108 Yoga and Self-Care Practices for Busy Mamas (Julie Gentile) Are you too busy for self-care? From a one-minute meditation to building a routine you love to wake up to, this quick read and everyday self-care resource gives you the energy to live a mindful, more nourished life by taking good care of yourself. With Julie M. Gentile, award-winning author, yoga teacher and Millennial mom, as your guide, you'll give birth to your highest self through self-care.  Book Excellence Awards Finalist IPPY Living Now Bronze Medal Read more posts about this book HERE . A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing (Joanna Romer) A Woman's Guide to Self-Nurturing offers a new perspective on how to comfort yourself while bolstering self-esteem. Using Bible stories as well as creative techniques for self-nurturing, the b