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Mothers face many challenges in todays world. They carry the responsibility of many roles. Through these roles we become different things to different people. Sometimes we get divided over having a career and having a families or find conflict between the different jobs that we try to do. Making the question Who am I? even harder to answer.

It grows harder because mothers see this little person that looks up at them with innocent trusting eyes, mommy is everything to that little one. She makes the hurt from boo-boos go away with a kiss, chases the monsters from under the bed away, and rocks them after a bad dream. Every mother takes that responsibility and carries it with her no matter where she goes. It is an awesome responsibility of caring for this wonderful little person and being mom is always on the mind. As much as it is wonderful to revel in mommyhood, we still need to remember that being a mother is just one part of us, the more we allow ourselves to see who we are the better examples we can set for our children to leading a balanced life.

As a mother, I have struggled to find my own identity. I am a mother, a wife, a daughter, a business owner, a sister, a friend..but who am I? It is easy to define yourself by what you do and what you mean to other people. As we take on these different roles our own identity gets blurred. It is harder to make the distinction. Who am I if I am not Logans mom or Bens wife?

Who are you? A wife, a mother, an employee, they are all a part of who we are, but they do not define you. We are the only ones that are able to define who we are. When are we just women? Women that have our own values, ideas, and philosophies, women that are able to embrace their different roles in life, but still are able to maintain there sense of self.

The importance of women defining who they are is giving them a chance to grow as women. To recognize that they need to take off all the different hats that they wear during the day and take time to honor who they are.

The problem is that because they are in so many different roles that they stop seeing themselves separate from them. They stop taking time for themselves, because they are giving so much to everyone else. Does this sound familiar? Have you lost your identity among the different jobs that you do everyday? How do you see yourself?

Here are a few questions that can help you determine if you are defining yourself by what you do instead of who you are:

Do you spend at least an hour a day doing the things that you want to do? (Reading, participating in hobbies, watching your favorite TV program, etc)

When asked to describe yourself do you start with I enjoy or I am a woman that believe/feel.? Or do you say, I am a mother or I am a nurse

Are you able to say no to things that interfere with the things that you want to do? Or that you do not have time for?

Do you feel that your life is in balance? Which means that you get enough time to pursue your own interest instead of just the interest of your children or significant other?

Do you feel that you spend time equally on yourself as you do on others?

If you answered no to any of the questions it is time to get back in touch with yourself. You need to not only stop defining yourself by what you do but you need to spend sometime getting to know who you are.

Here are some tips for you to get in touch with the forgotten woman inside.

Make sure that you spend time perusing your own interests. The problem with defining yourself by what you do is that you dont give yourself time to do what you want to do; your time is spent doing for others. Do something that you have always wanted to do; take a class, start a book club, anything that gives you some time to just do your own thing. Above all make the time to do it! Its ok to do something for yourself.

Say NO frequently! Just because you take on different roles does not mean that you have to do everything for everybody. Recognize when there is something that others could really do for themselves. Do not let yourself be taken advantage of! REMEMBER it is just as much of a benefit for others to learn how to do for themselves as it is to you.

Make sure that you have off DUTY time! Just like a conventional job, make sure there is a time of day when you are done. Dont work right up until you go to bed. Give yourself time to unwind, distress, and relax. Wait until the kids are in bed and take a long hot bubble bath. Curl up in your favorite chair with a good book. Meditate or do yoga. Do whatever relaxes you. You need this time to maintain some balance. Because of you multiple roles you are on the clock the majority of the time. You have to have time to distress! without it you are going to burn out. Visualize your bank account if you keep making withdraws without making a deposit, eventually you are going to just run out of resources. Make sure to take time to revitalize yourself.

I have found that by maintaining my own identity that I am a better mother, wife, daughter, business owner, sister, and friend. It maintains balance in my life because I know that even though I am different things to different people; I know what it means to just be me.

about THE AUTHOR: Tonya Ramsey is a life coach and owner of Life By Design. She specializing in assisting working mothers find life balance to maintain a healthy and peaceful life. For more information on Tonyas services or to receive a free life coaching session to help you design the life that you want, visit Life By Design web site or send an e-mail. Why juggle your life when you can balance it.

[ copyright 2006 Tonya Ramsey. All Rights Reserved. This article may be freely reproduced as long as the about THE AUTHOR at the bottom of this article is included unedited. links must be Active/Linkable]

professional golfers know how important golf stretching exercises are to improving their game. A fitness routine gaining popularity within the professional sport of golf; Pilate's now can help the average golfer improve their handicap simply by doing some gentle lower back stretches.

Pilate's emphasizes building strength, flexibility, posture, balance, and coordination. These are all strengths that any golfer requires in order to increase his level of golfing success, plus Pilate's golf stretching exercises add energy and stamina. Stretching exercises are the key.

Injuries are part of the game and a professional golfer needs to be physically fit to keep up with the competition. Most golfers at one time or another experience lower back pain and stiffness due to the amount of force they need to make a full swing with their club. Golf stretching exercises are the key to avoiding lower back pain injuries especially if you are a weekend golfer and may be a little de-conditioned.

Next time you tee up to play golf, Pilate's simple golf stretching exercises may be the answer. Take 10 minutes before that practice swing. These stretches work the hamstrings, spine rotation, waist, ribcage and legs and are all good lower back stretches as well.

Try these Free Golf Stretching Exercises

Wall Roll Down: Stand with your lower back firmly against a wall, your feet a foot away from the wall, knees slightly bent. Inhale to prepare, exhale to drop your chin towards your chest and roll your spine off the wall one vertebrae at a time until your arms and head are hanging down over your hips and you have reached a point of resistance.

Inhale to stay, exhale to roll back up the wall making sure each part of your spine makes contact with the wall. Use your abdominals! Repeat three times. Good for stretching hamstrings and spine.

The Saw: Find a bench. Sit with your legs extended in front of you, just wider than hips width apart. Arms are lifted shoulder height to the side. Inhale and twist your body to the right keeping your bottom squarely on the bench.

Exhale and round forward reaching the back of your left hand past the pinky toe of your right foot. Inhale rollback up, exhale and return center. Repeat to the left and then repeat three more sets. Warms up hamstrings and spinal rotation.

Mermaid Stretch: Find a bench and sit on the front edge with your feet firmly on the ground and hips width apart. Inhale raise your right arm straight up to the sky, exhale and bend to the left, reaching out of the fingertips. Inhale to stay, exhale return to center. Make sure to keep your bottom squarely on the chair and your spine upright. Repeat both sides three times through. Stretches the sides of your waist and ribcage.

Golf swing Stretch: Stand with your feet in a wide stance. Lean forward and with straight arms place your hands together in a prayer position, fingertips facing the ground. Inhale to swing the arms up and to the right as if you were going to hit the ball, exhale and swing them all the way up and to the left. Keep your gaze down at the imaginary golf ball and keep your feet planted. Repeat three times starting with the inhale to the right, and three times starting with the inhale to the left. Warms up spinal rotation and legs.

Club Rotation: Stand with your golf club resting over across the back of your shoulders and your hands holding either end. Repeat the Golf swing Stretch listed above.

So next weekend when you're out on the course playing you're 18 holes of golf, Pilate's golf stretching exercises just might be the perfect match play.

Susannah Marchese is a certified Pilate's fitness instructor and a senior contributing writer to http://www.everything-about-pilates.com/golf-stretching-exercises.html

Susannah Marchese - http://www.everything-about-pilates.com

Actually, the term "visualization" is a misnomer. With this technique, you will be using more than just your visual golf faculties. When you do Power Golf Visualization, besides seeing what you desire, you will also hear it, smell it, taste it, and feel it.

Whatever you think about most often, expands in your golf game.

So if you are constantly worried about not having a consistent swing, you will get more life experiences of not having a consistent golf swing. Focusing your golf mind on opportunities to improve your swing will get you a thousand times further than worrying about not hitting the ball consistently.

But Power Visualization is more than just positive thinking. It's about putting your mind and body in the ideal place first, and then flooding your subconscious with a colorful experience of your golf game as you want it.

The more relaxed you are, the more open your subconscious is to receive the messages you want to send it. And the more senses that you involve in your Power Visualization, the more of an impact it will have.

Let's say that you wanted to have a pro golf swing. The meaning of a "pro golf swing" is too vague a term. What kind of pro swing do you want? You need to be absolutely specific. You want the same swing with the driver as tiger for example.

And once you have that decided, you're going to Power Visualize it. You are going to see yourself walking up to it. Your are going to feel how smooth and perfect the outer body feels. You can yourself seeing in the same set-up position like tiger, seeing yourself in the same position at the top of the backswing etc. You get the point.

Here's another important characteristic of the subconscious mind: it can't tell the difference between your outer world and your imagination. Meaning that if you visualize an event in great detail and with a lot of emotion, your subconscious mind will believe that it's really happening.

And the more times you practice Power Visualization properly, the more "real" it will seem to your subconscious. This is key because once it believes your visualization to be a fact, it will feel tension when your current outer reality doesn't match up. It will then go your assistance by sending you ideas, opportunities and motivation to transform your outer world.

Action plan for Power Visualization:

Step 1: Decide what part of your golf game you want to visualize.

Step 2: Lay or sit down in a comfortable position. Listen to relaxing nature sounds with subliminal affirmation.

Step 3: Take a deep breath, hold it for a count of three, and as you exhale, say the number 10 to yourself. Take another breath, hold it for a count of three, and as you exhale, say the number 9 to yourself. Repeat this until you get to the number zero.

Step 4: Now visualize your goal. Don't view it from the third person. Put yourself there. Use all of your senses. Experience in vivid detail how this goal looks, feels, tastes and sounds like. Smell the grass on the golf course. The more specifics you can add, the stronger the effect. You will know that you are doing it correctly when you start to feel excited. This is caused because your subconscious mind honestly thinks that this event is happening. It causes you to feel joy.

Step 4: Once you have visualized as many details about the goal as you have the time for, and the amazing golf mind video is over you can start to come back to full awareness. Take a deep breath, hold it for a count of three, and as you exhale, say the number zero to yourself. Continue this process until you get back to ten. Hold your breath once more, and this time as you exhale, say the following phrase out loud: "I am now fully awake, energized and refreshed." Done correctly, you will feel energized and refreshed.

Andy discovered a secret mental golf technique that is successfully used by the top tour pros. tiger is said to use subliminal mental golf training since he was 13.

You can watch a free video and get a free subliminal mental golf audio to improve your short game instantly here: http://www.amazinggolfmind.com