Do you find yourself falling short of your goals?  Always doing that same old thing?  That thing – eating too much, drinking too much alcohol, losing your temper, watching TV instead of exercising—that you have vowed you would no longer do?

So many people who practice yoga expound on its virtues.  I’ve heard many talk about the physical and emotional benefits of yoga.  People say it makes them feel good, calm, peaceful.  Since it’s a practice that’s been around for thousands of years and the people who practice it certainly tend to look healthy and relaxed, I was curious if there was research to back up the benefits I often hear about.

Emotions can be complex and in order to understand them, we develop beliefs about how they come about, why we have them and how we should respond to them.

We tell ourselves these stories, half-truths or fiction about our emotional experience, either because we have learned them from others and believe them to be true or because we hope they will help us make sense of our complicated emotional world.

I once got a bouquet of flowers from my landlord on Valentine’s day.  It wasn’t a romantic gift, but one of appreciation.  I often walked her dog for her and she chose to acknowledge it on Valentine’s day.

I have to admit that that year I was feeling a bit forlorn, surrounded by people who were all a part of a couple.  But the flowers lifted my spirits and since then I’ve taken a different view of Valentine’s day.

Large parts of the country have been hit hard with winter storms this year.  It’s early February and the winter already feels long, cold and confining.  When you crave sunshine and warmth but are facing another winter blizzard it’s easy to get stuck in a negative mood.