I bought a ticket to this weekend’s Be Healthy Boston conference on a whim, after seeing several tweets from founder Brett Blumenthal.  I didn’t know quite what to expect, but I thought the workshops seemed interesting and the marketplace looked like a lot of fun.  Despite living between 1 and 4 minutes (depending on a given taxi driver’s respect, or lack thereof, for traffic signals) from the Westin Waterfront, I still managed to arrive late, missing morning yoga, opening remarks, and the morning keynote.  Whoops.  That extra thirty minutes of sleep, though?  Glorious.

I arrived just in time to grab a seat for the first workshop, Live Boldly! Becoming Who You Were Born to Be with Lauren Mackler, a coach, psychotherapist and best-selling author.  I worried it would all be too touchy-feely-mumbo-jumbo-ish, but I found myself taking pages and pages of notes.  Ms. Mackler talked about getting back to our whole person, which gets buried by our conditioned self as we grow older.  Apparently our first seven years are the most formative, as this is when the framework for our strongest core beliefs is established.  This is when we are most affected by factors such as our family environment, gender, race, culture, religion, and social experiences.  This is when we begin to believe that people are good and trustworthy, or that life is unpredictable and unsafe, for example.

As someone who works with children, I couldn’t help but think about the importance of good role modeling.  While we should obviously be making good choices for ourselves, our choices and behaviors also make an impact on those we care for.  What do I teach people by being afraid of failure, or doubtful of my own abilities?  Quite a bit of food for thought.

After the first workshop, I browsed the Be Healthy Boston Marketplace and chatted with Doreen Hing, founder and designer of Plank yoga mats and accessories.  Besides being adorable, the mats were designed to help yogis correct and perfect their form.  I was psyched to hear that Plank products are available at South Boston Yoga (and online, for those of you who are not my immediate neighbors).

I got lured over to Boston Behavioral Medicine‘s booth and before I knew it, I was wearing headphones and my finger was being attached to a heart rate monitor.  Many of the organizations exhibiting in the marketplace were offering various services, from quick fitness classes to massages.  Boston Behavior Medicine was offering biofeedback and stress management therapy.  After completing short exercise involving diaphragmatic breathing, it would seem I am extremely gifted when it comes to relaxing, having regulated my heart rate in record speed.  Hey, we all have our talents.  I walked away ready for a nap, with a free meditation cd in hand.

There was quite a bit of down time allotted for perusing the marketplace, but after such a wild week, I was sort of anxious for the rest of the programming to start up.  Let’s get the show on the road, I found myself thinking.  I tend to like things to go back-to-back-to-back, and considered ducking out early.  As I type that last sentence, I wonder if perhaps the relaxation machine was broken.  After sitting down to lunch with a really lovely group of ladies, I am quite glad I decided to stick around.  Fellow BC grad Candy O’Terry, the award-winning radio host of Magic 106.7 and founder of their Exceptional Women programming, delivered an incredibly moving talk, sharing lessons she’s learned while overcoming adversity with grace and courage.

After lunch I grabbed some tea and chatted with Elizabeth, whom I met at lunch.  As someone who tends to keep to myself when flying solo at conferences and events, I truly appreciate when I am lucky enough to encounter friendly, outgoing people who also happen to be non-terrifying.  Elizabeth (it seems like everyone I know shares my name) and I met up for the last session of the day, but first I attended Reading Between the Lines: Separating Health from Hype. The panel was moderated by Terri Trespico and featured Dr. Julie A. Burke of Newton Chiropractic Centre; Franceen Friefeld, RD., LD., P.H.Ec.; prolific writer Kate Hanley and Cathy Wong, ND, CNS.

The panel emphasized the importance of understanding and identifying the sources and research behind health fads, claims, and packaging. It was quite interesting to hear four women from such diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise share their perspectives and dispel various myths and misinformation.  A few bits of advice that all four experts seemed to agree on:

• Filtered tap water is your best bet when it comes to hydration.  Not only is it more rigorously tested than bottled water, tap water doesn’t contribute to landfill waste.  And if you fill up your bottle at someone else’s house, it’s free.
• People should not fear good fats.  Same goes for carbs.
• The “all or nothing” mentality is not a sound approach to wellness.
• As Kate Hanley noted, “Wellbeing is like inertia.”  Making even small steps in a positive direction will lead to overall improvements.  ”Focus on progress, not the destination,” she said.
• Vitamins and supplements should work as a team, and most people will benefit from a daily multivitamin and fish oil supplement.  Before loading up on vitamin D and iron supplements, people should know their current levels and needs.
• Detoxing, when approached as an opportunity to be mindful of what you’re eating and how it makes you feel, can be beneficial.  Fad dieting, yo-yo dieting, and habits that we can’t imagine sustaining for 5 or 10 years, however… not beneficial.  Obvi.

I wrapped up the day on a really uplifting note (get it, like… a music note…) in Living in Harmony: Managing Stress through Music with Dr. Suzanne Hanser, founding chair of the Music Therapy Department at Berklee College of Music, and Brian Jantz, Assistant Professor at Berklee College and a music therapy facilitator and researcher at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital in Boston.  When the session began with Mr. Jantz and Dr. Hanser singing a song about friends, peace, and love being all around us, I knew I was in the right room.  This coming from the same person who feared her first session was too touchy-feely.  I am truly fickle multifaceted.  We received Biodots to track our skin temperature and correlating stress levels (perhaps I should consider this afternoon’s panel’s advice and look for some research on this one).   I am still wearing mine.  And I am amazed it’s not giving my sensitive skin some sort of contact rash.

I didn’t need much convincing that music has transformative power, but when Dr. Hanser broke out the Navajo flute, I looked down at my Biodot to see I had gone rather instantly from “very tense” to “relaxing.”  She was totally playing my jam.  We talked about different ways we can use music to center and relax ourselves in daily life: singing in the shower and listening to music that is meaningful to us (or has a positive association) while sitting in traffic, for example.

[Image source]

We learned about how Mr. Jantz uses music with patients facing much more challenging stressors, in his work in hospitals and clinics.  Clearly, he and Dr. Hanser have an incredible gift.  They shared this video with us, which left me in complete awe.  Before wrapping up the session, we had the chance to make our own music, using hand chimes.  My Biodot, once again, shot right back to “relaxing.”  I think that was the theme of the day.  And that, in itself, was well worth the price of admission.

Also On Tap for Today:

• Watching the NHL All Stars skills competition
• Reading through all of your Sparkly Soul giveaway entries – goodness gracious!
• Learning more about the Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies at the Dana-Farber Canter Institute 

What is your best tip for managing stress?