Integrative Wellness Solutions LLC

07/06/2026

💦 Aquatic Therapy is under way here at I.W.S.

🧘 Water has so much more therapeutic value than just strengthening. It is a catalyst to improving mental health and functional performance.

⛑️ Safety first: Floating is the primary source of safe swimming. If you have been here, you know we practice SAFE risk taking.

🦆 This guy learned to float the other day primarily as a water safety strategy BUT the benefits are so much more than that.

Floating in a calm body of water soothes the nervous system by activating the parasympathetic nervous system and quieting the sympathetic nervous system.

🧠 Want to know the science?

* Vagus Nerve Stimulation: The cool or warm water temperature combined with deep, buoyant breathing acts as a non-invasive stimulator for the vagus nerve. This lowers your heart rate and stabilizes blood pressure.
* Reduced Central Workload: Buoyancy reduces the effects of gravity on your body. Up to 90% of your central nervous system's normal activity is dedicated to calculating gravity, balance, and environmental movement. Floating frees up this neural processing capacity.
* Brainwave Alteration: Lying weightless in water triggers a shift in brainwave activity from alert Beta waves to deeply relaxed Alpha and Theta waves. These waves are typically achieved during deep meditation or the "twilight" state of sleep.
* Amygdala Downregulation: The calming tactile sensation of water pressure reduces overactivity in the amygdala. This is the brain's primary alarm system responsible for processing fear and stress.

Why is that good for you?

* Hormonal Balancing: According to research analyzed by the Cleveland Clinic, deep physical relaxation decreases circulating stress hormones like cortisol. It also prompts the brain to release mood-boosting endorphins and dopamine.
* Pain Signal Silencing: By removing physical pressure points from hard surfaces, the body experiences neutral spinal traction. This breaks chronic feedback loops where the nervous system constantly fires off pain data to the brain.
* Improved Sleep Architecture: Regular water-based relaxation resets your circadian rhythm.

🙌 Brain science for mental health wins again!! Now go float 🦢

💙💛💙

06/29/2026

🌲Mondays are made for climbing.

Risk taking, trusting your body, going slow, safety analysis, mindfulness, accomplishment, confidence.

This is how we build strong, centered, intune humans.

06/24/2026

Grief. Loss. Sadness

I’ve spent so much time in the depths of grief. I no longer tell myself it is okay. I no longer say it’s no big deal. Because, well, it is a BIG deal and it’s NOT okay.

Don’t short change yourself, or shut off your feelings in the name of grief, loss or sadness. Feel it, live it and let it pass through you like lava. It’s the only way to truly accept, grow and heal.

Your nervous system is counting on it.

Today our pony left for camp. It was a big loss for my little girl. And I didn’t say “it will be okay”. Instead I said, “be sad, it is one of life’s greatest lessons”.

If we can all find the courage to feel, we all have the power to heal. 💔

06/22/2026

This is our why.
Bittersweet but so proud of this family and grateful we had something to offer 💛💙💛

06/16/2026

06/15/2026

Monday, Monday, Monday 🤩

06/11/2026

We beat the heat working on whittling 🗡️ projects from sticks 🥢 we collected earlier this spring at the beaver 🦫 dam.

🌟 Long-term follow through is a life skill. It is learned through practice and modeling, not naturally acquired as we grow 🌱.

05/09/2026

🏆Mastering the new nets 🥅!! What a great addition to our therapy space.
🌳🪾🌲
Did you know that:

“Surrounding yourself with nature can improve your mood and reduce the symptoms of anxiety and depression. It can alter the brain activity in your prefrontal cortex — the part regulating emotions.

Green space can also have a protective effect on depression risk. Researchers say that people who spend five or more hours outside on weekends tend to have a lower risk of mild depression than people who spend less than 30 minutes outdoors”. -UCLA health