The ones held in our posture. The ones whispered through tension, breath, and sensation. The ones that shape how we see ourselves, how we interpret life, and how we move forward.

As we enter a new season, many of us feel the pull to reflect, reset, and realign. Yet true change rarely comes from force or fixing. It arises from awareness — from learning how to listen beneath the surface and giving ourselves permission to soften long‑held patterns.

This February 25th at 4 pm Atlantic, we are offering a new 90‑minute experiential workshop designed to do exactly that.

Where Body Awareness Meets Conscious Reflection

The Stories We Tell Ourselves is a live, online experiential workshop that gently explores the relationship between posture, inner narrative, energy, and conscious journaling. It is an invitation to slow down, listen inwardly, and reconnect with the wisdom already present within the body.

The stories we tell ourselves are not only mental constructs. They are shaped by lived experiences, emotional responses, and the ways our nervous system has learned to protect us. Over time, these stories become embodied — expressed through posture, movement habits, breath patterns, and energetic holding.

By bringing awareness to the body and offering intentional journaling prompts, we create a bridge between sensation and insight, between what we feel and how we interpret it.

Why Journaling With the Right Focus Matters

Journaling can be a powerful tool for mental health, clarity, and integration — but only when it is approached with the right intention.

This workshop does not use journaling as analysis or problem‑solving. Instead, it offers guided, compassionate prompts that:

• Support emotional regulation and nervous system ease
• Encourage curiosity rather than judgment
• Create space for insight without forcing outcomes
• Help participants notice and gently re‑author inner narratives

When journaling is paired with body awareness and gentle movement, it becomes a form of listening rather than doing. This combination allows new perspectives to emerge naturally — often revealing what we are ready to release, rewrite, or carry forward with greater harmony.

An Experiential Journey of Awareness and Choice

During this 90‑minute experience, participants are guided through a carefully held flow that supports both grounding and expansion:

• Arriving and grounding practices to create energetic safety and presence
• An Inner Smile meditation to harmonize organ systems and open internal space
• Posture awareness and gentle movement to notice how stress and belief patterns live in the body
• Two guided journaling experiences that invite listening first, then conscious re‑authoring
• Group reflection and integration, offering connection without pressure or spotlighting

A Soul‑Aligned Word is also introduced as a subtle companion throughout the workshop — not something to analyze, but something to notice as awareness deepens.

This approach supports participants in reclaiming authorship over their inner experience — not by changing who they are, but by softening the lens through which they see themselves.

Supporting Mental Health Through Embodied Awareness

Mental health is not just about what we think — it is deeply connected to how safe, supported, and present we feel in our bodies.

By integrating breath, posture awareness, movement, and reflective writing, this workshop helps participants:

• Feel more grounded and regulated
• Increase self‑compassion and emotional awareness
• Recognize unconscious stories that influence perception
• Develop practical tools for ongoing self‑care

The result is not a dramatic overhaul, but a gentle recalibration — one that supports clarity, resilience, and a renewed sense of choice.

What You’ll Receive

All participants receive:

• A live 90‑minute experiential workshop
• A posture handout and movement video list
• Conscious Insight Journal – Volume 1 (ebook)
• A 1‑page Reflection & Integration PDF to support continued journaling

Optional early‑bird add‑ons include a mini or full tea package and a printed journal, allowing tea to become a ritual anchor for reflection and integration in the weeks that follow, and a journal to hold and inspire you for more writing opportunities and insights.

A Space to Listen, Not Fix

This workshop is not about forcing change or fixing what feels uncomfortable.

It is about:

• Listening beneath habitual stories
• Softening held tension
• Bringing harmony to body, mind, and energy
• Choosing what you are ready to carry forward

If you are feeling called to reconnect with your inner voice, support your mental health through embodied awareness, or explore journaling as a compassionate and empowering practice, this experience offers a gentle place to begin.

Awareness is the doorway.
The body holds the wisdom.
The story can change.

Workshop Leaders

Dr. Michelle Greenwell Dr. Michelle Greenwell is a movement-based wellness educator, researcher, and creator of the BioEnergetic Wellness Formula, a holistic framework that supports self-empowered healing through intention, goal, awareness, activation, community, and intuition. With over four decades of experience spanning dance, Tai Chi, bioenergetic wellness with biofeedback, and integrative health education, Michelle guides participants in exploring how posture, movement, and energy reflect and shape inner narratives. She integrates gentle movement, reflective inquiry, and tea ritual to support embodied awareness and conscious choice.

Theresa (TJ) Stone Theresa Stone is an empathic psychic medium, intuitive soul coach, and energy facilitator devoted to guiding others to reconnect with their inner compass. Creator of the Conscious Insight Journal Series, she blends intentional journaling, energetic guidance, and sacred prompts to support deep transformation and soulful reflection. Theresa’s work helps participants awaken self-love, remember their wholeness, and align with the wisdom of their inner voice.

The Stories We Tell Ourselves is co‑led by Dr. Michelle Greenwell and Theresa (TJ) Stone, weaving movement‑based insight, intuitive journaling, and energetic presence into a supportive and nourishing experience.

To order the perfect tea for this workshop, please email Michelle – info@greenwellcenter.com. Together you can choose the right tea blend for you, and the size that will support your journey. Orders placed by Feb 10 should receive their tea in the mail, in time for the online event.

Early Bird Add-On: +$12 mini tea package or +$20 full tea package (before Feb 10)

The post The Stories We Tell Ourselves: How Journaling, Body Awareness, and Gentle Presence Support Mental Health and Forward Movement first appeared on Greenwell Center for Holistic Health.

Spine and neck pain are among the most common discomforts people live with today. Yet for all the stretching, heating pads, pillows, and posture corrections we try, the pain often returns. Why? Because spine and neck pain rarely originates from the area where we feel it. In Touch for Health (TFH) and other bioenergetic modalities, we’ve learned again and again that the body expresses imbalance in fascinating, indirect ways. The neck may hurt, but the root cause could be emotional overload, hydration issues, digestive imbalance, blocked neurolymphatics, stress patterns, or an overworked meridian system trying to get your attention.

In Episode 3 of our Understanding Body Pain series with Denise Cambiotti, Dr. Kate Montgomery, and myself, we explore how the spine and neck act as a communication system for the entire body — physically, emotionally, and energetically.

Pain Isn’t Always Where the Problem Is

One of the most profound concepts in Touch for Health is that the point of pain is often not the point of origin.

For example:

• Neck pain may be connected to an imbalance in the Stomach, Spleen, or Small Intestine meridian.
• Shoulder tension may arise from hydration stress or emotional worry that weakens the Kidney meridian.
• Lower back pain may relate to the Psoas, governed by the Kidney meridian, or emotional fear patterns.

Denise explains this beautifully in the episode: the body compensates constantly. When one muscle shuts down or becomes inhibited, other muscles tighten, harden, or twist to support us. Over time, these compensations turn into pain, stiffness, or reduced mobility. Pain is not the “problem”—it’s the messenger.

This is why techniques like muscle monitoring and muscle biofeedback are so valuable. They help us discover the priority stress the body is trying to resolve. Instead of chasing symptoms, we listen to the body’s intelligence.

The Spine as an Emotional Highway

Your spine is one of the most energetically expressive structures in the body.

Kate shared her experiences working with elite athletes who often show spinal tension before major competitions. Their upper back and neck tighten when they feel:

• pressure
• fear of failure
• imposter syndrome
• uncertainty during transitions, such as retirement
• emotional vulnerability

She noticed that when athletes learned how to balance the Central and Governing meridians, release neurolymphatic stress points, and hydrate properly, their posture changed — and their confidence returned.

This is not accidental. The spine reflects how well we are navigating life. When emotions are calm, the spine flows. When emotions overwhelm the system, the spine stiffens like armor.

Alignment Beyond Posture

One of the most empowering discoveries in TFH is the role of energetic alignment. Alignment is not simply bone positioning — it is the harmony between:

• muscles
• meridians
• emotions
• hydration
• belief patterns
• stress levels
• energetic flow

Denise explained in the episode how certain spinal muscles act as “guardians” for the nervous system. When fear, pressure, or mental overload hits, these muscles may shut down, leaving us vulnerable to misalignment or injury. By calming emotions first — through ESR (Emotional Stress Release), meridian tracing, or even simple breathing and grounding — muscle tension melts and the tissue becomes workable again.

This is why bodywork is always more effective when the emotions are balanced first.

Muscle Monitoring: The Fastest Way to Clarity

Muscle monitoring isn’t about strength — it’s about communication.
With a light touch to test a specific muscle, the body reveals if a muscle is “facilitating” (working properly) or “inhibited” (stressed, overloaded, or under-reactive).

Once the body shows us where the imbalance lies, we can correct it using tools such as:

• neurolymphatic (Chapman) points
• neurovascular points on the head
• meridian tracing
• emotional stress release
• hydration
• specific muscle techniques
• gait and posture balancing
• central & governing meridian work

Clients often feel immediate relief, not just from physical pain but from emotional heaviness they didn’t even realize they were carrying.

A New Way Forward

Spine and neck pain don’t need to be lifelong struggles. They are invitations — signals from the body requesting alignment, awareness, and emotional clarity. Our experiences with Touch for Health have transformed how we view pain. For many of us, including Denise, Kate, and myself, TFH became the missing piece that connected movement, energy, emotion, and healing.

And this is exactly why I’m so passionate about teaching TFH to others.

Want to Learn These Tools Yourself?

A new Touch for Health Level 1 class begins this January.

If you’ve ever wished you could:
understand your pain
help your family feel better
support emotional balance
learn muscle monitoring
feel confident navigating stress
or simply reconnect to the wisdom of your own body…

…this class is the perfect place to begin.

Fridays 2-5 pm Atlantic (10 – 1 pm Pacific, 6 – 9 pm UK): Jan 9, 16, 23, 30, Feb 6, 13,

If you’re ready to transform how you understand your body — and support others in doing the same — I’d love to have you join us.

Your spine is not just holding you up. It is guiding you home.

To learn more about Muscle Tuners International and Denise Cambiotti’s work, please visit the on demand programs found at www.muscletuners.ca.

To find Kate Montgomery, please message her at katemontgomery@me.com

This podcast reached its 160th episode with this recording. If you have not subscribed to the YouTube channel, please do so here. You can also follow us on Buzzsprout.

Lastly, Tai Chi!!! The spine is completely supported and rewired during the simple and powerful Tai Chi movements. Are you interested in making your movement activities really count for wellness? Consider the Tai Chi Cape Breton class found in the calendar. Join a class in West Kelowna, or Peachland, BC with the Wine Country Tai Chi Society. Or join our online class starting again in January – Symphony of Radiance, formerly known as Movement and Music. The class is on sale until Dec 15 for early bird registrations. Together we will discover the messages of the body, the meaning of pain, and the power of wellness habits to change the way you feel.

The post Understanding Spine & Neck Pain: What Your Body Is Really Telling You first appeared on Greenwell Center for Holistic Health.

When we think of healing, we often look to what hurts—our joints, our energy levels, or perhaps a condition that has been slowly wearing us down. But what if we began from the inside out, activating the natural systems already designed to help us regenerate?

In this solo episode of the Be Well Podcast, I invite you into the world of Tai Chi—not just as a movement practice, but as a dynamic healing art that connects breath, intention, and movement to awaken the body’s deepest wisdom.

The Spiral Effect: Moving From the Bones Outward

Tai Chi is rooted in spiral energy. Every turn of the wrist, rotation of the spine, or shift of the hip reflects nature’s most efficient movement pattern—the spiral. These spiral actions stimulate the body at a cellular level, improving the strength and density of our bones, while also encouraging the natural washing and regeneration of bone marrow.

Bone marrow washing refers to the activation of the body’s internal systems—such as enzyme activity and immune function—by encouraging deeper circulation and the movement of vital life force (Qi). This subtle inner process has been known in Traditional Chinese Medicine for centuries, and now modern science is catching up to the wisdom encoded in these ancient movements.

Weight Shifting and the Pump of Life

One of the most powerful aspects of Tai Chi is the way it shifts weight from foot to foot. This isn’t just for balance or grace—it’s part of a sophisticated physiological response.

When we press into the foot, we activate a pumping action that moves blood and lymph from the lower body back toward the heart and vital organs. This gentle but consistent pumping supports detoxification, boosts immune health, and relieves pressure in the joints.

We also activate the grounding, centering, gravity, balance, and stability reflexes through the feet. Our vestibular system is motivated from the ground up.

These activations are especially important for those who are seated for much of the day, recovering from illness or injury, or exploring Tai Chi in a seated form. Even small shifts in posture or spiral rotations of the limbs can generate profound internal benefits.

Breath, Belonging, and Letting Go

We begin each practice by coming home to our breath—creating space in the lungs, slowing the nervous system, and reminding the body it is safe to heal. With intention, we enter each movement not trying to fix or force, but to allow flow.

Lucky Dragon tea was my companion for this episode, offering the affirmation:
“Create a clear vision for outcome and then let go of your expectations. The journey is the reward.”

This simple message mirrors the essence of Tai Chi. We do not need to know the root of our imbalance or illness; we only need to move with openness, curiosity, and trust. In doing so, the body reveals its own intelligence. We let go of expectation—and healing begins.

My Passion for Tai Chi: Movement as Medicine

For over 30 years, I’ve explored Tai Chi in its many forms—standing, seated, sabre, and Lok Hup. My background in dance first led me to study the power of movement, but it was Tai Chi that showed me how every gentle shift, breath, and spiral could create wholeness in the body.

I’ve “geeked out” for decades about how movement affects the fascia, lymphatic system, circulation, the biofield, and more. And today, I share that journey with you—because healing isn’t something we chase, it’s something we awaken.

Take the Next Step

I invite you to pour a cup of tea, find a quiet space, and listen to the episode. Feel your feet on the ground, your breath moving through your body, and let Tai Chi guide you to balance—bone-deep and heart-centered.

Listen to the Episode Here

Want to explore more about seated forms, sabre, or Lucky Dragon tea? Visit greenwellcenter.com or check out my YouTube channel for free resources and tutorials.

Sign up for our August ‘Nature’s Resonance’ online Tai Chi class with intuitive musician Colin MacLeod. The class is ON SALE for a reduced price until July 31st!

For in-person classes you can check out the calendar for Tai Chi Cape Breton and visit Wine Country Tai Chi Society for the West Kelowna, British Columbia classes.

Are you looking for the perfect tea blend? Be sure to check out our great selection in the shop. Lucky Dragon is a popular blend for us, as well as Nova Scotia Harvest, plus many more green teas, black, herbal, and honeybush. If you have been thinking about discovering the power of tea for a wellness plan, we have you covered!

#TaiChiHealing #BoneMarrowWashing #LuckyDragonTea #TaiChiForLife #CirculationSupport #MovementAsMedicine #SpiralHealing #GreenwellCenter #EnergeticWellness #SeatedTaiChi #LokHup #HolisticHealth

As a gift for reading right to the bottom, check out this Magnifying Peace Project Video I shared with Tai Chi as the background.

You can watch the full 108 Tai Chi set in the woods, here, and enjoy the meditation that happens even when you are watching. Be sure to sign up for an in-person or online class today, and get started on a magnified wellness journey with the power of intentional movement for wellbeing.

The post Tai Chi, Spirals, and Bone-Deep Healing: A Journey from the Inside Out first appeared on Greenwell Center for Holistic Health.

Hi Michelle, I just wanted to thank you for the Sleep I am enjoying…we do the belly rub/ ear rub and the Tai Chi movement you showed me at Sleep Class…hands up and hands down as you bend your knees…I am so grateful…this is a Big Deal for me as I have been sleep-deprived for years. The Tai chi movement started it all and the ears and belly just boosted it. Thank You Again Michelle!! Sometimes I sleep all night and others mostly might wake up to use the bathroom. Woo Hoo!! Have a wonderful day love. You are the Best!! Thank You for Being You, K and E, Port Hawkesbury CORAH program.

A private session with Michelle can often get to the root of the problem, and it is frequently habits that we have taken on and keep holding us hostage with disharmony through the systems. You can also start learning more about the tools that Michelle often recommends. You can see the introductory workshop she offered to CORAH in the spring of 2024.

Strength Building on the Stairs

I have to tell you Michelle that since you took the time to show us how to properly go up and down the stairs with the power of the feet, I have been making extra trips for my wife because I can do it so easily now. K.D. Mabou

I am so excited about using the stairs. I used to avoid them and would walk around to the other side of the building to avoid using them, or I wouldn’t shop at stores with stairs. Then you showed us how to properly use our power through our feet, and my life changed. I now find that I am taking my walks and looking for more stairs to use on my walk. R.B. Whycocomagh

I used to turn sideways and weight bare on my one foot and pull myself up the stairs or step heavily down the stairs. Since you taught us how to properly use the stairs I have been gaining strength in my legs and I find it a triumph to use the stairs. C.B. Inverness

Are you ready to change the way you approach strength and flexibility for daily activities? The Double Award-Winning Qi YINtegration program is a self-care program that you can do on your own. Just take one activity in the book and follow the video and instructions to change your daily habits.

Winner of the Living Now Book Awards Bronze Medal in 2018, it is also the recent recipient of the CanBeWell Legacy Leader Awards for 2024. This program is magic for posture, sitting tall, reducing brain fog, getting better sleep, strength on the stairs, and support for foot pain.

You can purchase your copy of the book in the shop, and get the video downloads to help you start your discoveries of simple posture techniques to transform your day with energy and vitality.

Purchase your hardcopy version here.

Purchase your e-book version here.

For those of you who are interested in learning more about Tai Chi and the foundations to help you continue to thrive and build resiliency, in-person classes are offered through the Tai Chi Cape Breton program found in the calendar on this website, and at www.winecountrytaichi.ca for those people in the West Kelowna area. Online class is Mondays from 9 – 10:30 am Atlantic.

The post Sleep and Stairs are Rescued! first appeared on Greenwell Center for Holistic Health.

Meet Lauren Wittig

Have you read Lauren Wittig’s romance novels set in Historical Scotland? Perhaps you have been following her podcast? Lauren is a bestselling author and an award winning author for her medieval Scottish romances, including Charming the Shrew, and her books have been translated into 3 different languages.

The Curiously Wise Podcast takes us on our own adventure, as Lauren helps us to explore the intersection of our human experience and our spiritual experience, focusing on the ways each supports and enhances the other. Creating fun and revealing conversations that enhance our life’s experience, Lauren asks us to ’s get curious!

Michelle and Lauren’s conversation

Dr. Michelle Greenwell sat down with Lauren to talk about the ways in which we can embrace change or be paralyzed by it. Also, how we look at and celebrate new beginnings. Michelle’s approach to looking at your intended outcome for an activity or action can change or enhance the experience and the growth that continues to result long past the activity.

If you have felt the changes you have experienced since the pandemic, and have been struggling with negative consequences, consider how Lauren and Michelle might be able to help you reframe your experience and find the hidden gems within.

Michelle’s knowledge of the BioEnergetic Wellness Formula and its impact on positively accepting change and creating new beginnings is very powerful. All of her programs and conversations weave the formula throughout so that healing is a part of conversations and outcomes with Michelle’s involvement.

Make your Cup of Tea

Be sure to put on a cup of tea for the chat so you can relax and release into the herbs in your tea. Set your intention for listening to the podcast and breathe deeply as they explore many facets of experience and intended outcomes. Tea can relax us into creating changes.

Here is the link to the podcast.

Be sure to have a pad of paper and a pen ready to write new insights and ideas down, as well as any phrases or activities you want to learn more about. You want to optimize on embracing change in your life and creating new beginnings.

Creating your Change

At the Greenwell Center for Holistic Health we have many programs to help support your wellness journey. You can be involved in one-on-one sessions to get your started, and you can join in the group activities both online and in-person. Michelle hosts retreats, workshops, and special events throughout the year as well. How will you get started? Click on the “book an appointment” button in the top right corner, and let Michelle know you are ready to do something different to get something different in your life. She will be happy to help you prepare that road map and lead you down the pathway.

If you want to explore, make sure you have downloaded the Top 8 Stress Releaser poster from the main page. Return to the main page to check out the different tabs and their corresponding information.

Learn more about Michelle’s podcast here and stay tuned for the upcoming release of her interview on the Be Well with Dr. Michelle Greenwell podcast featuring Lauren Wittig.

#curiousity #change #changemakers #persistence #determination #pandemic #wise #experience #teatime #capebretonteacompany #curiouslywisepodcast #posture #intention #mindset #experience #lifeexperience

The post Embracing Change, Creating New Beginnings first appeared on Greenwell Center for Holistic Health.