This is one of a series of posts dedicated to learning a little more about our PWBC members.
Sonia wields flower power with flare and finesse . . . and cost effectiveness
Sonia Garcia is the owner of Flowers by Sonia, a Bay Area floral design and plants company centrally located on the San Francisco peninsula. Sonia has been in the floral design business for 18 years.
Flowers By Sonia focuses on providing floral design services with the highest levels of customer satisfaction and prioritizes understanding and meeting customer expectations. Flowers by Sonia offers a variety of floral arrangements, designs, and services including holiday and seasonal designs. Flowers are a traditional and always welcome way to celebrate a holiday, anniversary, birthday, or simply an spontaneous way to show your appreciation and love.
Sonia decided to go into the floral design business because she realized how beautiful (and expensive) professional flower services were when she needed flowers for her own wedding in the year 2000, she ordered a few delicate pieces from a flower shop and decided to arrange her own flower centerpieces. Shortly after the wedding she enrolled in the Floristry Program at City College of San Francisco where she learned from some of the best instructors in the industry.
One of many examples of Sonia’s artistry.
Sonia also works in the office plant design, sales and services, housekeeping and organizing business and the catering business for a selected number of clients. Busy lady!
Sonia was born and raised in El Salvador, Central America and moved to the Bay Area when she was 17 years old and now lives on the peninsula with her husband Roberto Gonzalez and children, Daniela who is a freshman at Hawaii Pacific University and 9 year old twins, Camila Jireh and Valentina Jireh and their pup Willow.
So gorgeous you can almost smell them right through the internet!
Learn more about Sonia and Flowers by Sonia at at https://www.flowersbysonia.com/services and www.facebook.com/flowersbysonia.
Meet the Member! This blog is one in a series of posts dedicated to learning a little more about one of our PWBC members
Karri Reiser is the owner of Little Owl Design, a Bay Area website design, graphic (logo and branding) design, and SEO management company, and a seasoned marketing professional. Karri started Little Owl Design seven years ago. She has been honored to design the branding and marketing for so many of the amazing businesses and looks forward to designing for many, many more!
The mission of Little Owl Design is to help its clients get more leads and drive more sales. Little Owl Design’s full suite of design services includes website design and eCommerce website design for the WordPress platform, graphic design (both print & digital). Logo, branding, and SEO (search engine optimization) management services are also available. Little Owl Design partners with small businesses to help them reach their ideal client or customer.
Karri chose the owl as her business avatar because owls encompass the vision she has for her company. In literature, owls have been portrayed two unique ways. First, as the wisest animal in all the forest (like “Owl” from Winnie the Pooh, or the owl in the old Toostie Pop commercials). Everyone came to them for advice and to dose of wisdom. Second, owls are depicted as the deliverer of messages (like Hedwig from Harry Potter). Wisdom and communication help Karri deliver her clients’ message to their community.
Karri grew up in the Bay Area and now lives in the lovely town of Discovery Bay with her husband and two children. When she’s not designing she can be found reading mystery or fantasy novels (like Harry Potter, of course!), catching up on her favorite TV shows (House of the Dragon), playing cards or boardgames with her family, and drawing. Of course, she loves Harry Potter (books or movies) and (surprise!) is a proud Ravenclaw. ”Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if you’ve a ready mind, where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind.” – Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Several things guide Karri’s life and business :
“All that I have is thanks to God and all that I do is for his glory.” – Karri was formerly the Youth Minister at Holy Rosary Church and she and her family have a strong relationships with many of the Western Dominican Friars.
“Service is the foundation I choose to build my life and career on.” – Karri is proud to be a member of the Rotary Club of Brentwood, where the core belief is “Service above self.”
“If you want to build your business, you must build your relationships.” – Karri has been a member of the Delta Networking Partners for 7 years, is a member of the Peninsula Women’s Business Connection and currently leads the Brentwood Power Network. There are 3 keys to marketing yourself: People need to know, like and trust you. Building relationships encourages that.
“When the businesses in your community are successful your community is successful.” – Karri serves on the Board of Directors for the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce and recently became the President Elect Nominee for 2024. Her mission will always be to advocate for the businesses in her community.
Little Owl Design’s motto is “Your message is unique, let Little Owl Design help you deliver it.”
Donnalynn Polito, of Vigor & Trim Fitness, an online exercise membership for those aged 50+
We’re going to look at two holistic ways, according to studies, that you can keep low back pain away to stay away. These holistic approaches focus on the relationships between the spine and its surrounding muscles, as in exercises, and the spine and the nervous system, as in chiropractic care.
Millions of people deal with chronic low back pain, the most common of back pains.
At Vigor and Trim, we like to find ways that’ll relieve pain and allow you have an active lifestyle without drugs or surgery. And while there are many alternative therapies, these are two holistic approaches are shown to be great partners for an active, pain-free life.
Chiropractic care as a holistic approach to stimulate the spine and relieve back pain
Research shows that the manual adjustments and techniques used by chiropractors stimulate changes in the central nervous system, influence biomechanical movement and patterns of the spine and improve the proprioceptive processing (controlling movement and position) of the spine.
A chiropractic treatment of controlled and precise manipulations can correctly align the spine, reduce any swelling or nerve blockages, as well as reducing tension and stress. This allows the nervous system to function properly.
It also works with the musculoskeletal system relieving pain, spasms and helps restore and maintain joint mobility.
Chiropractic care has several positive impacts on nervous system and the ability of the nervous system to communicate throughout the body.
The very core of the nervous system is the spinal cord. The spinal cord receives and transmits information throughout the body. A spine that’s out of alignment, or if there’s an imbalance in the body, it can impact the function of the nervous system causing pain, difficulty with mobility and a whole host of other health conditions.
By opening the nervous system’s pathways, chiropractic treatment helps move along information smoothly and unobstructed, keeping the nervous system working as it should.
How often you see a chiropractor depends on your condition and your goals. To get the most benefits, going on a regular basis might be the prescription to follow. Your recommended number of visits would depend on the recommendation of your practitioner and the pace of your improvement.
To maintain a healthy state of wellness, maintenance treatments are recommended to prevent future risks of injury.
Your lifestyle, however, plays an big and important role as to frequency of your visits. Those who sit at desks for a good portion of the day, or those who are lifting heavy loads throughout the day may want to visit their chiropractor more often with a maintenance program.
Exercise as a holistic approach to manage your back pain and strengthen the low back
Many studies show the importance of incorporating exercise in managing back pain and strengthening the low back. In fact, and as you know, regular exercise is a crucial part of any healthy living plan.
Patients who receive chiropractic care and who exercise afterward treatment heal faster than those who don’t exercise. Of course, the type of exercises you do matters with rehab exercises being recommended.
Exercise after a chiropractic treatment with these considerations:
· Your goal is to restore reasonable movement in the back
· Stimulating and conditioning the surrounding muscles with stability and strength is vital to recovery
Some examples of rehab exercises would include mobilization, core strengthening and proprioceptive exercises.
Proprioceptive exercises are about improving your body’s ability to know where it is in space, and they’re done by working balance and movement control.
Aerobic exercises for function, back pain relief and mobility
Donnalynn: Living Her Truth!
Aerobic exercise keeps the spine functional and mobile. Exercises like walking, biking and swimming can decrease the stiffness, lessens stress on the spine. These exercises can improve the blood flow to the spine which in turn, increases the nutrients reaching the spine. Aerobic exercise also burns calories and helps keep your weight in check.
Cardio exercises produce endorphins that act as natural pain killers, while they elevate mood and help to relieve symptoms of depression.
The recommended cardio workout has a duration of 20 to 30 minutes done 3 to 5 times a week. With more severe back pain, reduce the duration to a comfortable level with gradual increases over time.
Strength training to condition and strengthen your back
To better support the back, muscles need to be conditioned and strengthened. Strong muscles can hold up the back and relieve pain. These exercises concentrate more on the core but also include the glutes and hips.
Strength exercises for the back can reduce the stress on spinal discs and joints and help with better alignment of the spine. They also help improve posture. With stronger, more conditioned muscles, you’ll be better able to mover more comfortably and easily.
The recommended amount of workout time for strength is 2 to 3 times a week.
Contact Donnalynn at donnalynn@vigorandtrimfitness.com to learn more about Vigor & Trim Fitness. https://www.vigorandtrimfitness.com/
The doctor is IN. Dr. Nicole Watson – ready to help!
Dr. Nicole Watson has owned Belmont Advanced Chiropractic (1601 El Camino Real in Belmont) since 2008. Chiropractic physicians deal with the nervous system and its relationship to the spinal column and all body systems. Dr. Nicole takes care of patients of all ages with a huge variety of conditions and even those folks that want to maintain their health.
Dr. Nicole recently spoke about the incidence of shoulder dysfunction which has increased a lot during the pandemic and is probably due to the increased prevalence of sedentary work. The shoulder joint is one of the most commonly dislocated and dysfunctional body part. We use our shoulders all the time (to move heavy objects and do repetitive daily tasks like combing our hair, brushing our teeth, tying shoes, picking up objects) and don’t appreciate their importance until an injury occurs. Falls are a common cause of shoulder injury since we often try to catch ourselves with an outstretched arm and the shoulder joint takes the weight of the entire body as it falls. In addition, shoulder injuries can occur due to damage from accrued use over time due to daily repetitive tasks.
Shoulder Injury Hurts!
Common types of shoulder dysfuction:
●Bursitis (inflammation of one or more bursa sac around the shoulder). Many Chiropractors can employ modalities like Cold Laser to decrease inflammation and once the inflammation is under control chiropractic manual adjustments can bring down inflammation even further and start restoring Range Of Motion Bursitis can become chronic if not treated promptly.
●Tendinitis (inflammation of one or more tendons – the tissue connecting muscle to bone). This condition can be very painful, to the extent that the shoulder cannot be moved without pain. Chiropractic care can address the problem, as can use of cold laser therapy, in tandem with exercises to continue the healing process once the shoulder is stable.
●Frozen shoulder, a/k/a adhesive capsulitis (tightening and thickening of the connective tissue in the shoulder joint) is another great candidate for chiropractic resolution. It is important to address this problem before it worsens and moves to other joints.
●Damage to rotator cuff (inflammation of the muscles around the rotator cuff). Rotator cuff injuries do not necessarily require resolution by surgery; it depends on extent of injury. Strains and sprains may be treated very effectively with chiropractic care and massage therapy, and use of the cold laser.
Most shoulder injuries can take a minimum of 2-12 weeks or longer to get resolved but also require long term maintenance and upkeep to retrain the brain and get/keep the inflammation down.
To address your chiropractic needs and get adjusted for life, contact Nicole Watson at Belmont Advanced Chiropractic, 1601 El Camino, Suite 301, Belmont, California 94002: (650) 596-5657; https://www.adjustedforhealth.com/
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