I have been quieter than normal online.
The reason is I’ve had to step back from my usual ways of doing business to focus on my well-being.
Over the last year I’ve started experiencing a variety of scary and at times crippling symptoms including anxiety and panic attacks, extreme fatigue, irritability, incredible moodiness and even a loss of desire to focus on my work or on life itself.
For someone who has always been incredibly healthy and high achieving, living in a body that’s doing its “own thing” can be a pretty scary predicament.
The thing about anxiety and panic attacks – besides the horrifying heart palpitations, shortness of breath, tingling in your body and many more symptoms – is the sensation that you are going to die in that moment.
And when you get that feeling consistently over months you start to get really freaked out.
There is no denying that this year has been tough for all of us in many different ways.
I read in a book recently that there are the 3 D’s: Death, Divorce, Disease and I’ve experienced all of them this year.
In fact confronting loss in many forms has been humbling and illuminating. From the loss of my boyfriend Alex’s mother (Edie ) in June, to the sudden and unexpected death of my colleague Michele in a kayaking accident in July in Hawaii to some scary break-up conversations in my own relationship earlier this year, I feel like death, loss and survival have been front and center in my life this year. Alex also ended up in the emergency room mid-summer after a very stressful time at his job.
The election cycle has probably felt like a death of sorts for you too depending on your points of view. I am sure it’s affected all of us in ways we are still trying to figure out.
Plus I had an awareness that this was a year for all of us to shaken up so we could let you and release old ways of thinking, habits, points of view, people and paradigms so we can step into our purpose and our greatness in a bigger way.
So amidst a year of incredible stresses (including many more I am omitting here), my body started to tell me that it needed my undivided attention.
And over the last couple of months I’ve done just that. And while I am still in the early stages of recovery and unraveling the many imbalances happening, I have found incredible gifts that I hope you be a contribution to you.
1. Gratitude and living in the now: When you can’t find enough air to breathe and you literally feel like you are about to die (again), you have a much deeper appreciation for life and for the present moment. I have a new-found appreciation for living day-to-day and for feeling good since anything can shift at any moment in the blink of an eye. I don’t say this to sound morbid but rather to rejoice in the ability that we all have to be fully present in the now. I choose to be happy and to focus on today since it’s my only true source of happiness, creation and possibility.
I don’t think I ever really gotten the concept of gratitude in my bones until now. It’s opened up new pathways for kindness and compassion in my relationships as well – especially with my partner.
Lesson #1: Live in the present moment and be grateful for all that life has to offer in the now.
2. Breathe: When life gets hard breathe.
Anxiety attacks and extreme fatigue brought me to the yoga mat. I was fortunate to find an intimate studio close to my home that’s perfect for newbies and for people who really need to get back to themselves and to relax. Yoga has taught me the power of breath and reinforced lesson #1 about living in the present moment and releasing all of the stresses and struggles that were in the way. Yoga has also allowed me to reconnect to my body and to partner with it again – deepening my sense of trust and also releasing stress that accumulates over time.
Lesson #2: Return to the breath and breathe deeply – inhaling gratitude and joy and releasing any emotions no longer serving you. If your body desires it, sign up for a class that will contribute to your body and your well-being. Try something new or perhaps return to an old practice that might have fallen off by the way-side.
3. Ask questions + mind your focus: When an anxiety attack or a tough life circumstance hits, it can be really easy to go into a tail spin because you want to focus on what’s going wrong. I’ve found that asking my body what it needs me to know and to focus on breathing instead of a “worst case scenario” can be moment altering.
It’s fascinating in fact that observing what’s happening instead of being caught up in the whirlwind can make such a big difference. I’ve also become more present to where I am focusing my energy and my thoughts moment to moment and when I start to feel poorly, I am often living in a conclusion or a judgment instead of asking questions that create new possibilities.
Asking questions continues to fascinate me and open me up to where I can embrace even more ease in my life and business starting with simplicity and joy.
Lesson #3: Be mindful of where you focus your mind and ask empowering questions for clarity and possibility.
4. Honour where you are: Sometimes the plan you have in your head and what’s going to work for you in the moment can be night and day. It was clear that my body needed space, simplicity and rest and that meant clearing my calendar and getting super focused on what was a hell yes and what needed to wait. It wasn’t easy and yet the word SURRENDER kept coming up in my mind. Surrender to where I am in this moment; to my body; to my well-being and to a deeper and new level of trust in the Divine, in myself and in my business.
When we slow down, we get to receive the gifts in a situation and from living in the moment if we allow for it. I’ve had to say no to many things so that I can rest and take care of myself and it has deepened my trust in myself and has opened up a space for new aha’s that I might not have gotten had I filled my schedule with a lot of activities.
In the midst of this, I’ve still said yes to new opportunities such as my first speaking opportunity, a recent photo shoot here in San Diego and other new projects like writing my first book. Above all,l honouring where you are can be great practice in learning to say NO which I’ve actually found incredibly empowering and liberating.
Lessons #4: Surrender to and appreciate where you are in the moment and the gifts it offers.
5. Give your body what it needs: The body is an infinitely wise being and when it calls for your attention, please listen.
If you aren’t feeling well, what if you choose to ask your body what it needs instead of pushing through instead? I know we all have bills to pay and obligations and our health is #1.
Time is irrelevant when you have no energy to move or to get out of bed. Changing the world has to wait if you cannot think straight or if you are stuck under the covers too weak or tired to move. Nothing can change unless we are in sync with our bodies and in good health.
So if you haven’t been feeling well, and before your symptoms get worse, take a time out to focus on you. Chances are it’s an opportunity to give yourself the self-care you desperately need and that you’ve been neglecting for a while. Get rest. Eat consistently and foods that will fuel your mind and your body and do what you need to get back on track. If nothing else, schedule a vacation and give yourself a break. Ask your body what it needs and be willing to listen and to follow through.
Lesson #5: Honour your body and nourish it so it can support you in changing the world.
When you honour yourself, you honour others as well via @sweetpathgirl.
While the last few months have been challenging, I continue to be in awe of all of the gifts it has afforded me.
From deeper and more intimate conversations with my partner, to a newfound sense of focus in my business, a spaciousness in my calendar to focus on myself and to rest and for time to reflect on what’s next.
Now that I have a protocol in place to get better, I am taking the steps towards renewed health and embracing patience and new habits in the process.
Even for a former health coach like me, we are never immune from the stresses of life and from pushing beyond our limits at times.While life may throw all sorts of stressors at us, we still get to choose how we take care of ourselves and how we show up in the world.
Above all, our health, our relationships and our work can be enormous teachers. Are you willing to receive the lessons and the gifts they offer?
What else is possible now I wonder?
I’d love to hear over on the blog about any insights that you received from today’s post.
