FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions about LIFEFIRE
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What is life coaching?
A life coach is a partner and guide who works in collaboration with you
to achieve your best possible life. As your coach, I can help you see
more clearly your personal strengths and challenges and design
practices to help you move to your most powerful and zestful self.
Where most therapy focuses on the past, in life coaching we concentrate
more on your present and future.
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Coaching is about enhancing your life, not about healing deep psychological wounds or “fixing” problems. It is a collaborative effort on the part of the client and the coach. It requires commitment and courage in order for the process to be effective.
Lifefire coaching involves an ongoing (typically 3 months to a year) relationship that focuses on you, the client taking action towards a way of being that allows you to manifest your vision, goals, and dreams. I will support your ability to form authentic connections, express creativity, experience zest and a sense of balance by providing you with structure, feedback and practices that foster change in your daily life.
What is Laughter Yoga?
Why laughter? The ability to laugh easily and often is one of the most attractive traits in humans. Laughter lifts our spirits with a happy high that makes us feel good and improves our behavior towards others. Just a few generations ago happy healthy humans spent 20 minutes a day or more in laughter. In our society, young children still laugh hundreds of times a day, while adult daily laugh time is down to 5 minutes or less.
Laughter is nature’s stress buster—it is an incredibly efficient way to express and release tension in a positive manner. When we laugh our bodies release a cocktail of hormones & chemicals that have positive effects on our system. 20 minutes of laughter a day is an easy and fun form of aerobic exercise. It fills your lungs and body with oxygen, deep-clears your breathing passages and exercises your lungs. Stress levels are lowered, blood pressure drops, your immune system is boosted, mood is improved and pain is reduced .
Why laughter yoga? Laughter Yoga is about creating good health, a lighter approach to life, building community and peace through laughter. Laughter Yoga uses a blend of playful, empowering and "tension-releasing" laughter and breathing exercises. These exercises are simple, structured, and based on the philosophy of "acting happiness". They are accessible and beneficial to almost anyone.
In a laughter yoga session, we remember and reactivate the ability to "Laugh for no Reason,” without the need for jokes or humor. See the video below showing Annie laughing just for the love of it. Laughter yoga actually helps you cultivate a sense of humor and increases your ability to see the lighter side of life!
We start with some easy warm ups for the entire body then move on to some fun and stimulating laughter exercises. We end with a grounding relaxation practice.
I often incorporate laughter into Lifefire Coaching to help my clients
• Manage stress and/or anger issues
• Increase their joy and zest for life
• Foster a sense of inner peace
• Lighten up sadness and depression
• Break social isolation and create new friendships
• Develop self-confidence
• Alleviate the discomfort of specific physical challenges or chronic pain
• Play and have fun in a safe environment
What Are Laughter Clubs?
Laughter Yoga and Laughter Clubs were created by Dr. Kataria, MD and Madhuri Kataria in India. Laughter Clubs are fully independent, not-for-profit, non-political, non-religious and non competitive community-based associations of diverse people where all are welcome regardless of gender, age, physical abilities, social or economic backgrounds. They practice the Laughter Yoga method of Laughing for no reason as a form of exercise. There are currently over 6000 Laughter Clubs in 60 countries around the world.
See the power of laughter in action!
Check out this cool video that students from Expression College created about Laughter Yoga and the Oakland Lifefire Laughter Club. And if you'd like the natural highs of laughter you see, try laughter yoga and coaching with Annie.
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What is storytelling?
Storytelling is a broad and varied art form as well as a means of personal expression. Story can be a powerful tool for looking inside ourselves. Creating an original story and creating our lives are a similar process—they both involve trying new things, getting support, being listened to, improvising and practicing. I work with people using personal stories or folktales as a way to uncover and illuminate life themes, strengths and challenges.
The only constant in life is change, especially in this modern fast-paced society. Through improvisation practices, I work with clients to respond with a fresh approach that cultivates choice and flexibility to act in moment. The effect of developing this skill allows clients to break out of patterns that don’t work and come into their true power.
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