Within Arms’ Reach; Well-Being for the Whole Being

08/08/2026

Apparently, I have a gift.

I can p**s off the left and the right with the exact same sentence.

Honestly, I’m a little proud of that.

A sarcastic Facebook comment recently managed to earn me bipartisan disapproval—and, as entertaining as that was, it also made me realize something about my somewhat colorful track record with other human beings:

I challenge everyone.

Not just people I disagree with.

Everyone.

And apparently, people don’t always enjoy this.

Who knew? 🙃

What started as an observation about one ridiculous Facebook exchange turned into a much bigger reflection on disagreement, attachment, sarcasm, intellectual honesty, boundaries—and why nobody has argued with me more than I have.

Read: People Are Fickle →

Apparently, I have a gift: I can p**s off the left and the right with the exact same sentence. 🙃 What started as a sarcastic Facebook comment became a reflection on disagreement, attachment, self-examination, and my colorful track record with other human beings.

07/22/2026

There are a few 1-hour spots open throughout the next few weeks. 🙌

Friday, 7/24 @ 1:00
Friday, 7/31 @ 1:00
Monday, 8/3 @ 11:00
Wednesday, 8/12 @ 11:30

Schedule online: https://withinarmsreach.as.me

07/19/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1Hd6ttDCD2/?mibextid=wwXIfr

07/04/2026

People don’t usually have one “tight shoulder.” 😊

The body doesn’t work in isolated pieces. It’s an incredibly intelligent system that adapts, compensates, and redistributes tension over time.

Take the latissimus dorsi, for example. It’s one of the largest muscles in the body. It connects into the arm, the ribs, the thoracolumbar fascia, the spine, and even influences the pelvis. When it becomes restricted, it’s rarely affecting just one area. Everything connected to it begins adapting.

That’s why someone may come in saying, “My neck hurts.”

But often, the neck is simply the messenger—not the source of the problem.

One area loses mobility, another picks up the slack. A shoulder changes position, the neck starts helping, the upper traps work overtime, the rib cage loses movement, the low back compensates… and before long, the body has created an entirely new pattern just to keep you functioning.

Pain isn’t always a reliable GPS. The place that hurts is often the area that’s been compensating for something else all along.

One of my favorite moments is when someone stands up after we’ve addressed the underlying restrictions instead of just chasing the painful spot.

“I can breathe deeper.”

“My shoulders feel lighter.”

“My posture feels effortless.”

Nothing magical happened. We simply gave the body an opportunity to stop fighting itself.

That’s what continues to fascinate me about this work. Every body develops its own unique compensation patterns. My job isn’t just to find what hurts—it’s to understand why it’s hurting in the first place.

Every body tells a different story. And I never get tired of learning how to read it.

06/20/2026

A little sneak peek at some of the herbs that are going to be in the new Botanical Library. 👀

06/18/2026

This guy tugs at my heartstrings. 🥺 Sharing so that it may reach his match. It’s how I ended up rescuing my most recent fur-baby duo. 💝

👋 Oh hey guys! It’s me, Maxwell! 💙
Remember me from a few months back??? You all worked so hard to help me find my forever family, and wow... did you show up for me! 🥹🐾

Thanks to all of you sharing my story, there were some pretty amazing people interested in becoming my forever humans. It was so cool! 🎉❤️

But... after lots of late-night phone calls 📱, messages 💬, and getting to know each other, we decided we should just be friends. And honestly? That's just how it goes sometimes.

The good news is you can never have too many friends! 🥰 I'm so grateful to everyone who took the time to learn about me, cheer me on, and consider giving me a home. You all mean the world to this big guy. 🌎🐶

So... that still leaves me searching for my forever family. 🏡❤️

I'm really hoping 2026 is my year, ya know? ✨ My foster home has been absolutely amazing, but it's probably time for me to give up my spot on their couch 🛋️ so another pup in need can have their chance.

So I guess what I'm saying is... I'm just a dog 🐾, standing here in front of 19,000 of my biggest fans, asking you to help spread the word that I'm still looking. 🥹💙

Being sight and hearing impaired doesn't stop me from living life, loving my people, or being an all-around awesome Dane. 🌟 I just need the right family willing to see how special I am.
You can learn more about me at the link in the comments. ⬇️

Thank you, friends. I'm forever grateful for every share, every comment, every kind word, and every person rooting for me. ❤️
Love,�Maxwell 🐾

06/17/2026

Hand-cutting way too many labels. ✂️😅

06/17/2026

Laser engraving wood category cards for the future new botanical library. ☺️🌱
3 down.
Lots more to go. 🥵

06/09/2026

When my daughter was in her early teens, I would cut out inspirational messages and pin them to the bulletin board in her bedroom.

One I remember most clearly said:

“Life is amazing. And then it’s awful. And then it’s amazing again. And in between the amazing and awful it’s ordinary and mundane and routine….”

At the time, I hoped it would help her navigate the ups and downs of adolescence.

I’m not so sure it got through. At least not then.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about that quote again because we’ve started using the word trauma to describe almost every difficult experience.

Now, before anyone gets upset, let me be clear: real trauma exists.

But not every hardship is trauma.

Not every disappointment is abuse.

Not every consequence is oppression.

Not every uncomfortable feeling is evidence that something has gone terribly wrong.

Sometimes life is simply hard.

Sometimes people hurt our feelings.

Sometimes we fail.

Sometimes we’re held accountable.

Sometimes relationships end.

Sometimes things don’t go our way.

None of that feels good. But pain and trauma are not the same thing.

When we label every struggle as trauma, we risk overlooking one of the most important parts of being human: resilience.

The truth is that much of life happens in the space between amazing and awful.

It’s the ordinary days.

The routines.

The responsibilities.

The disappointments.

The lessons.

The growth.

The healing.

Life isn’t meant to be comfortable all the time. It’s meant to be lived.

Amazing.

Awful.

Ordinary.

Beautiful.

And sometimes the experiences we think we’re recovering from are actually the very things we’re meant to grow through.

Not every struggle is a wound. Sometimes it’s an invitation to become stronger. 💜

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

06/04/2026

I mean… you can. And for a long time, I did.

I went to school, ran a business, raised children, managed a household, showed up for everyone else, carried responsibilities that weren’t mine, and convinced myself that exhaustion was just part of being strong.

The problem wasn’t that I couldn’t do it. The problem was the cost.

My nervous system was fried. My needs were buried. And when I finally started saying no, asking for help, holding others accountable, and making space for myself, it felt like the entire world pushed back.

That’s the thing about over-functioning: people get comfortable with it.

You can do it all. The question is whether the cost is worth it.

It took me years to realize that being capable and being responsible for everything are not the same thing.

Strength isn’t carrying it all.

Sometimes strength is finally setting it down.

At Within Arms Reach, you have a place to rest, reset, and remember that your needs matter too. 💜