Stress Awareness Month with Hana Miller
Collectively, we are navigating a new world, with more responsibilities and emotional labor than we can handle. One of S'eau Prima's principal values is Serenity - the state of ease and calm. We don't deny it can be complex to attain, but we try and implement ways to incorporate self-care and stress management into our daily lives.
The Sanctuary section of our journal aims precisely to foster this mindset. We turned to our second Women of Influence, Hana Miller, to kick off Stress Awareness Month.
Hana is a licensed Acupuncturist and certified holistic health practitioner who is also pursuing her doctorate degree. Through her signature program, The Balanced Woman, she shares her vast knowledge to help women transform their health for a life free of pain.
The goal is an existence full of presence, energy, emotional steadiness, and true balance.
Hana, what is your perspective on stress?
Stress magnifies and amplifies any and all of our imbalances. It’s rare that we can entirely control our external environment or circumstances of the outside world and as such it is essential to master our inner world and cultivate peace. As women we have been blessed with incredible innate gifts which are inextricably linked to our cyclical nature.
Pain and suffering is optional when we learn how to harness our stunning abilities and truly care for ourselves.
You have beautiful skin, which mirrors our overall health right? What is your routine? Is there a product specifically that calms you or your skin?
As an Eastern Medicine and Holistic Health practitioner I firmly subscribe to the belief that beauty comes from a balanced union of both inner and outer practices. I keep it simple - I focus on bringing mindfulness, discipline, and ownership to everything I do, including eating and exercising in accordance to my hormonal cycle, engaging in nourishing relationships and good emotional hygiene, and dedicate myself to feeling passionate about every single thing I have in my life.
In regards to my skincare routine I employ the same mindset - I like clean, natural ingredients, oil cleansing, a little diluted raw apple cider vinegar when I have the occasional blemish, a lot of celery juice, lemon water, spirulina, ginger, and turmeric, and of course S’eau Prima’s Foundational Face Mist!
You have been very focused on medicine and holistic health. What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow in your footsteps?
Serving others is a natural byproduct of true self-discovery and self-care. When we’re in pain and poor health, out of balance, contending with deep emotional blockages and disconnected from the world, it’s difficult to guide others to a place of peace and progression.
First and foremost, mind your own wellbeing and be honest with yourself about what it is in YOU that needs to be healed. Fill your own cup with love, joy, and purpose until that light brims over the top and starts to flow into the lives of others.
Were you ever stressed in this path yourself? If so, how did you course correct it?
Stressed is an understatement (ha ha). I walked this path blindly, driven solely by a deep, intuitive belief that there was more to life than suffering and that I was capable of change and transformation. I did my best to focus on the task at hand and take it one day, one step at a time.
I found that stress came from two primary sources: guilt, shame, and resentment of the past and fear, anxiety, and worry for the future.
Whenever I focused on the present I found that stress naturally dissolved and was instead replaced by determination and focus.
In general, how do you manage stress when you are feeling overwhelmed and overcommitted? What are some tips for others to come back to balance?
I’ve found that stress rarely comes from just one thing - it’s usually a combination of factors and as such I know it requires several modalities to manage. I always advise my clients to have a go-to list of things they can do that will make them happy and bring them back to a more centered state. Here are a few actions from my list!
- Talking to someone who’s walked the same path and can offer guidance and advice.
- Journaling: writing what is stressing me out and specific ACTIONS I can take right now to address it (then actually taking them).
- Setting clear boundaries with others and myself and being okay with saying no thank you on occasion.
- Taking a shower or jumping in the water.
- Going for a walk.
- Cooking.
- Dancing and listening to music.
- Meditating and chanting.
- Cleaning and organizing.
Is there anything in particular you do to start your day right?
I always take three deep breaths before I get out of bed in the morning: one in gratitude for yesterday, one for this moment, and one for the day to come.
What is your mantra - what do you live by to take care of YOU?
I accept that which I cannot change and devote myself to the transformation of that which I can.
Ok a few more questions. What is your dream destination?
Back to Japan! The food, the culture, the landscape - it’s all so dreamy!
Books, podcasts or music for you right now?
I listen to a lot of Aubrey Marcus, I found his podcast a few years ago and whenever I feel disconnected, his philosophy brings me back to center and helps keep me on the path forward.
I’m always reading a few books at the same time, usually something health oriented, a lighter read, and self-improvement. Right now I’m rereading Radical Compassion, Teachings on Love, and Turn Right at Machu Picchu.
What does the world need more of?
Compassion comes from understanding, the more deeply we understand ourselves and others the more empathetic, accepting, and gracious of a world we’ll create.
Follow her on social: @thebalancedhealer
Learn more about her Master Class here.