Staying Connected |Akhila Health Newsletter | Vol 17 | 10.26

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Re-Connecting with Wholeness: What is Still Here?

By: Eileen Wiediger, Akhila Health Facilitator

When something in our lives changes, goes missing, or stops working the way it used to, it's easy to let that one thing take over our whole field of view.

In this month's blog, Eileen reflects on what it means to stay connected to our wholeness even in hard or uncertain seasons — drawing from a question she posed during a recent Akhila Health workshop: What is still here?

Practicing wholeness is a gentle way to care for your whole self — body, mind, and spirit — by learning to notice calm, strength, and connection even when something difficult is also present. The full post walks through five simple practices for building this habit, from learning to ask your body what it needs to noticing the small, quiet moments of connection we tend to overlook.

Read More About Practicing Wholeness →

Practicing Wholeness: Building Health Habits

🌿 Pro Tips:

ASK “What is still here?”

When your attention becomes fixed on something difficult or missing, identify three things that remain available to you. They don't need to be profound.

PRACTICE “and.”

When you catch yourself reducing your experience to one conclusion, like “Everything is going wrong,” try adding and. What other truth can exist beside this one?

CHECK IN with your body.

Instead of beginning with “What's wrong with me?” occasionally try asking, “What does my body need from me today?”

NOTICE connection.

Pay attention to small moments in which you are met by another person, an animal, nature, music, art, or your community. Connection often appears in quieter forms than we expect.

MAKE or DO SOMETHING, without an expectation of outcome.

Cook. Draw. Sing. Walk. Garden. Write. Dance. Arrange flowers. Play. Let yourself get immersed in an activity whose value comes from experiencing it rather than accomplishing something through it.

Facilitator Spotlight ~ Eileen Wiediger

Eileen Wiediger is a facilitator, coach, and creative practitioner whose work is grounded in curiosity about how we encounter new possibilities in ourselves and the world around us. Creative inquiry is at the heart of her practice, bringing together conversation, reflection, play, and artistic exploration as ways of dwelling with questions and discovering what might emerge. Her current work includes facilitating experiences centered on creativity and wellbeing, alongside her own mixed-media and artistic research practice exploring attention, emergence, and what it means to be fully present in our lives.

What does serving the community mean to you?

For me, service begins with connection. I don't think serving people means showing up as the person with all the answers. It means finding ways to create conditions in which people feel seen, heard, and are able to recognize their own capacities and possibilities.

Much of my work has involved creating spaces for people to learn, reflect, experiment, and discover. Community work reminds me that what matters isn't simply what we can offer one another, but what can become possible when we genuinely connect with one another.

How do you incorporate holistic health practices in your life?

I've become increasingly interested in thinking about health as something we practice through the way we live and pay attention, not just something we pursue when something is wrong. Movement, walking, strength training, creative practice, music, time outdoors, meaningful conversation, and curiosity are all part of that for me. I'm also learning to pay closer attention to what my body and mind are asking for rather than defaulting to asking what I should be accomplishing.

It’s important to highlight that my practices aren’t perfect and, honestly, I don't think perfection belongs in the definition anyway – that’s why they are called practices! Instead, it's an ongoing practice of noticing, responding, and returning to what helps me feel fully engaged with my life.

What do you enjoy about empowering women through Akhila Health?

There is something incredibly special about having the opportunity to witness the moment when someone recognizes something in herself.

Akhila gives women opportunities to experience wellbeing from many different perspectives and then discover what resonates for them. I love being able to contribute experiences that invite women to be curious about themselves, experiment without judgment, and perhaps see themselves – and what is possible for them – a little differently.

Thank You John Muir Community Health Fund

We're thrilled to share that our Phase 2 grant from the John Muir Community Health Fund, $85,000, was awarded this fall, completing two years of their generous funding. Thank you, JMCHF, for your continued belief in our work and for standing behind Akhila Health's Expansion Plan as we carry Akhila into this next chapter of growth.

Welcome New Partners

We are thrilled to announce two new Community Partners! We encourage you to read more about two organizations doing impactful work in our communities.

This month, we also began hosting our wellness workshops in Spanish at Hijas del Campo for the incredible women of this organization. Making our programming more accessible to the communities we serve is one of our top priorities, and we couldn't be more grateful for this step forward.

Hijas del Campo

Hijas del Campo is a Contra Costa County-based nonprofit organization that helps migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families improve their daily lives, working conditions, health, and safety. Their goal is to ensure every farmworker has access to basic necessities.
Learn more about their work on their website.

HomeFirst Tiny Homes Cerone

HomeFirst is a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending homelessness through housing, supportive services, and community partnerships. HomeFirst’s Cerone site is a great example of this work, providing adults experiencing homelessness with a safe and stable environment as they work toward permanent housing. Through educational workshops, wellness programs, employment resources, and partnerships with organizations like Akhila Health, Cerone helps participants build life skills, improve their well-being, and work toward long-term stability.
🔗 Explore their programs on the HomeFirst Official website.

Seasonal Fall Recipe

Curried Red Lentil Sweet Potato Stew*

As the days cool down, this curried lentil and sweet potato stew is a cozy, nourishing way to warm up — and full of the kind of plant-based comfort we love to share this time of year.

An easy weeknight curry made with red lentils, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, and spinach. Vegan, gluten-free, and warming for fall.

*Recipe by: LoveandLemons.com

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon coconut oil
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped
2 carrots, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced
1 large sweet potato, chopped
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/3 teaspoons ground cardamom
3/4 cups dried red lentils
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cups green beans, chopped
1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
2 cups baby spinach
1 lime, juiced, plus wedges for serving
1/2 small lemon, juiced
1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional)

STEPS:

Build the stew base: Heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped with a pinch of salt and pepper; cook about 6 minutes.
until soft. Stir in 2 carrots, diced, 2 garlic cloves, minced, 1/2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced, and 1 large sweet potato, chopped. Add 2 teaspoons curry powder and 1/3 teaspoons ground cardamom with salt and pepper, and cook 1 minute until fragrant.
Simmer: Add 0.8 cups (3/4 cup + 1 tablespoion) dried red lentils and 4 cups vegetable broth. Reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables and lentils are soft.
Blend and add vegetables: Coarsely blend with an immersion blender or potato masher, just enough to thicken the stew. Add 1 cup green beans, chopped, 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed, and 2 cups baby spinach; cook a few more minutes until the greens wilt and beans are tender.
Finish and serve: Stir in 1 lime, juiced, plus wedges for serving, 1/2 small lemon, juiced, and 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional) if using. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with cilantro and serve with lime wedges.

Notes

*Optional yogurt sauce: stir together 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 1/2 tsp olive oil, a squeeze of lemon or lime, and salt/pepper to serve alongside.

Create sustainability for the Women in Need

$10/month ensures access to critical care

$10 per month helps ensure women in need get consistent access to the care they need. Care needed to minimize stress, build resilience, address adversity, and be truly healthy - body, mind, and spirit.

Become a Recurring Donor

Together, we can build a happier and healthier future for all women!

“Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts.”

— Thich Nhat Hanh

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