When we have a friendly relationship with ourselves, when we can listen kindly to our own experience and take our own side, we are far more likely to take action and risk the unknown.

This is a time when most of us are called to do more with limited resources. So it is important to look at what zaps our power and let go of destructive habits -- clearly, holding on to guilt is one of them.

Often, our best attempts at increasing our wellness don't come from putting large amounts of time or effort into our self-care. Rather, they come from approaching our efforts with a sense of balance and an acceptance for what's possible and what's not possible within the realities of our busy life.

It's worth considering how we can optimize our self-care efforts. Take some time to reflect on how much time feels like enough time and what mix of activities feels like it best meets the range of your needs.

It took me years to realize the value of replenishing myself and putting myself on the top of my to do list, of taking care of myself so I can take care of others. And at some point I really got that the key to happiness is to going deep inside myself and realizing that I was enough and that is what I call the process of unbinding.

"In sickness and in health." Of all the people to whom we might owe this obligation there is one we often don't notice, one who we cannot abandon -- our self.

It's amazing how quickly we neglect our basic physical, human needs for things that aren't worth it.