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Inspiring Living - Gemma Douglas

As a special segment on the Santosa Journal, we’re featuring women from our community that have inspired us on our path of living a more contented life. 

These inspiring women are doing amazing things and have each made us want to grow, learn and become better people ourselves.

This week we highlight Gemma Douglas, a Certified Breathwork and Meditation Practitioner, NLP Practitioner and the talented lady behind @themotherhoodproject and @theconsciousproject. She is also a mother of three with qualifications in teaching, as a Reiki Practitioner, and a music degree from Otago University. Gemma is passionate about empowering Mothers to help them care for themselves and their families. 

Gemma Douglas

1. What simple things in life bring you the most happiness?

Hands down quality family time – doesn’t have to be anything big - a walk, game or dinner. My favourite is when we sit down for a family dinner with no distractions, just general chat, randomness and laughter. Because kids are still little you just never know what they are going to come out with. 

Making a small difference in people’s lives for the better. I believe if I can help one person with a suggestion or a shared vulnerable moment the ripple effect is so much more than we realize. Often we can assume we are only one person, and wonder what difference can we really make – but often we are never really going to know what difference we have made because it happens away from us.

2. Best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

From my mum – she told me to read the book – ‘The Four Agreements.’ I was also gifted the book too by a healer, so was meant to fall in my hands.

The book is about four agreements to live by in life. They are simple yet powerful and I try to remind myself of them every couple of months when life gets challenging. 

  1. ‘Be impeccable with you word’ - speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others

  2. ‘Don’t take anything personally’ - nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream

  3. ‘Don’t make assumptions’ - find the courage the ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama: with just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life

  4. ‘Always do your best’ - your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstances, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgement, self abuse and regret.

Two and three I find the hardest. Open and respectful communication fixes everything.

3. What are some simple things you do each day to help you keep balanced?

  • I do (at least) 15 mins of breathwork (meditation) a day – mixing this up depending on how I slept. I will use a mixture of pranayama, hypoxia training (holding breath), Wim Hof, Soma, Butekyo Method. Breathwork meditation.
  • I move my body everyday, at the moment I do either a 30 min HIIT workout by Ananas workout’s or a Mandy Morrison gentle 15 min yoga stretch – on Youtube.
  • Try to do 10 min focused one on one time with each of my kids.

4. What is your cleaning guilty pleasure?

A clutter free and clean kitchen benchtop. I absolutely adore the Santosa peppermint + eucalyptus surface spray. I have bought it for my two best friends, my mum and my mother in law. I clean the bench multiple times a day (because kids) and that smell and sight just makes me happy!

 



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