Your body's inner critic is heavily influenced by society’s idea of beauty. It can make for a never-ending head game for many of us. Especially, when you start thinking you are a problem that needs to be solved. This simply opens the door for your body's inner critic to walk in and take up residence in your mind.

Do you have aches, pains, and digestive or mental health difficulties? Do you feel lethargic? Are you noticing a rise in skin breakouts or increased bad breath? Here's an idea for you to feel and look better: cleanse the body with H2O on the rocks. Here's how to do it.

Self-care must be number one on your to-do list. Remember that your body is your temple. It is the only place 'your Self' has to live. Life’s responsibilities are countless for many of us. And in trying to juggle those responsibilities we neglect to take care of ourselves--our temple. We might think about our physical health but that is often where it begins and ends.

Look, it’s not uncommon for you to feel melancholy, energy drained and gloomy during the winter season. The winter blues can become seasonal affective disorder (SAD), so if your winter blues includes SAD symptoms, see your doctor. But, if SAD isn't involved, you can lose the winter blues with a few self-help tips. Here are my favorite ways to lose the winter blues.

Pay attention so you can hear. Some would say it is an art as much as it is a science. Merriam-Webster defines listen as such: To pay attention to someone or something in order to hear what is being said, sung, played, etc. If you took time to listen to your body, your mind would trigger you to make better choices. Body listens to mind; mind listens to body. Awareness is the link. Make no mistake: Every cell knows when you are unhappy, anxious or stressed. A cell's awareness is expressed in chemical reactions instead of words. No matter. The message comes through loud and clear~ Deepak Chopra, M.D.

Nothing is more important than reconnecting with your bliss. Nothing is as rich. Nothing is more real. ~Deepak Chopra What is Emotional Intelligence (EQ)? How well do you observe your own feelings and emotions as well as those of others around you? Can you separate those feelings and emotions and use what you know to boost your way of being, thinking and doing? Are your feelings and emotions awaking or subduing your bliss? If you answered “so-so”, many of us struggle with monitoring our feelings and emotions and those of others. But, I bet you know someone that is attentive and an active listener. Someone, who can in the midst of a life-storm stay calm, composed, emotionally-steady and make good decisions. My lovely Grandmother was that way. She was very self-aware and aware of the feelings and emotions of others. No matter what the situation she stayed positive, trusted her instincts and did not get stressed or angry. Doing this well is the art of Emotional Intelligence, also affectionately known as “EQ”. It is your ability to be self-aware, manage your feelings and emotions and those of others and use it to better inform your way of being, thinking and doing.

We live in a hectic world which opens the door for unhealthy eating and lifestyle habits, lack of exercise, financial stresses, escalated work demands and information overload. This blocks the pathway to bliss and creates an internal stream of fear, stress, hurries, worries, and life land mines and negatively affect the mind. Given this, sometimes we catch ourselves mindlessly functioning on autopilot.

Visualize this thing that you want, see it, feel it, believe in it. Make your mental blue print, and begin to build. ~ Robert Collier Awaken Your Imagination Other than your eyelids, what do you see when you close your eyes? Have you ever wanted to hear, taste, smell or feel something differently? You can. Just imagine it! Awaken your imagination to create ideas, images, and the environment you desire to see. When you visualize, you are tapping into your "mind's eye.” This means you have the power to see things with your mind. It is an amazing inherent human gift to be able to shape what happens in your daily life by changing your thoughts and expectations. To do this you must first change the way you view things in life and then your conditioned response to those things will change. Visualizing has been used by many successful people, for example, Oprah, Tony Robbins, Jim Carrey, Bill Gates, Michael Jordon, and even Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. High performing athletes have long benefited from visualization. It is practiced a lot in applied sports psychology. In their book Visual Athletics: Visualization for Peak Sports Performance (William C. Brown Publishers, 1990), Dr. Kay Porter and Judy Foster suggest that when you see yourself doing what you want in the way in which you desire, it produces a blueprint in the brain that manifests in the mind as if you have gone there in the body. Now-like any gift whether it is the gift of singing, dancing, or painting, you must practice - the mental rehearsal of visualizing.

You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength. ~ Marcus Aurelius Mind Defined How would you define the word “mind”? When you hear or see the word “mind”, what typically comes to mind for you? No pun intended. The mind, according to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is the “Element or complex of elements in an individual that feels, perceives, thinks, wills, and especially reasons.” Simply put, the mind is an energetic force that grows and changes based on your thinking, doing and lived experiences. Saying the word “mind” typically conjures up the word “thought,” in particular private thoughts that no one else knows about unless shared. Have you ever had someone ask you, “what’s on your mind?” The mind is so powerful it allows us to strike up a conversation with ourselves to plan and decide to do something. Have you ever talked to yourself before? I have. The mind is amazing and in one form or another we use it in our daily life to think, memorize, and visualize or even daydream. The mind is your powerhouse.

Life is a pilgrimage. The wise man does not rest by the roadside inns. He marches direct to the illimitable domain of eternal bliss, his ultimate destination.~ Swami Sivananda Think About a Time You Experienced Bliss Think about a time when you felt a heightened emotional state of joy, fulfillment and happiness. Now, reflect on it and describe it aloud. Just imagine living each day in such an amazing state. There is no textbook answer for creating bliss. Our lived experiences are different. Therefore, each of us has to discover it for ourselves.