Life has a funny way of catching up to you. Just when you think all is well ….BAM, it hits you. Some people call it an awakening, others a mid-life crisis. For me, it was the day I almost died. I was 12 weeks pregnant with my fourth baby and hadn’t been feeling well for about a week. Each day my symptoms were progressively getting worse, but I ignored them. Why? Because I was so busy being ‘busy’ that I didn’t have time to take care of myself.
Turns out I had a pulmonary embolism (blood clot in my lung) and if it had lodged millimeters to the left I would have died. In some odd way though I did die that day; at least a part of me did. And it has taken me almost 3 years to recover.
The last 10 years of my professional life have been spent finding ways to improve the care and recovery of heart disease and stroke patients. In a flash, I become the patient, and I quickly discovered that I didn’t know how to take care of myself. This was the most vulnerable I’ve ever felt and I’ve spent every day since, recovering physically, emotionally and spiritually.
As women, we often place unrealistic expectations on ourselves that make it very hard to intentionally promote wellness. We easily take charge of the health of our families without thinking twice of the consequences or the stress that may come with it. This is a large burden to carry, and often results in us losing sight of our own health in the process. As a nurse, mother and wife, I am a role model for my family, children, patients, clients and communities. Since my personal health scare almost 3 years ago, I have taken a hard look at my everyday activities to see how I can become healthier and happier, while still doing what I love. Promoting intentional wellness has not only become a professional challenge, but a personal goal. I have been called to transform my own health and in that process have discovered my calling, which is to promote health and wellness in others. This is why I’ve created Deep Roots Healing.
Intentional wellness doesn’t imply that you live free of disease, hardship or negative emotions. Intentional wellness means that you intentionally promote positivity in your life, truly take care of yourself and seek to discover what makes you happy. Wellness is a process. It isn’t an end goal. It changes over time and how you achieve wellness can change too. You must discover what works for you and recognize that your needs may change over time. This week, reflect on this list and identify what areas of your life need attention. Choose one thing and begin to work on it. I promise, in a few days, you will begin to feel better and more prepared to take on your everyday challenges.
1. Give yourself time each day for relaxation, meditation, prayer, music, art etc. Clear your mind, your thoughts and your breathing. Begin to feel the presence of what’s around you and listen to the unspoken. All you need here is 10 minutes to feel a difference….and if you do it, you will feel a difference!!
2. Take a walk outside. Nature is truly the best medicine. Get out of your house, office, whatever and just be outside. Humans were made to walk, so get walking! If you can’t walk, then start stretching, practicing yoga, something low impact. Just move. Start with 10 minutes a day.
3. Practice gratitude. Get a journal and write down something you are grateful for, even for the negative events that pop up. There is always a silver lining….teach yourself how to see it.
4. Replace negative thoughts with positive ones. This one takes a lot of practice, because we frequently have “gut’ or learned reactions to things we do not like. Negative thoughts CAN be unlearned. Start by recognizing when you feel bad and then tell yourself “I am not going to feel this way” or “I deserve to feel better than this”. Replace the feelings of anger and frustration with love and peace. This will take time.
5. Call an old friend. Re-kindling lost positive relationships is a great mood booster! It takes 5 minutes to call someone to say you’ve been thinking about them, and chances are if it was a good relationship, they’ve been thinking about you too.
6. Simplify. Go through your stuff and if it is something you do not need, get rid of it. Clutter can cause you to feel anxious and unorganized. By controlling your outside environment, you can improve your inner environment.
7. Start a conversation about wellness at work. We spend so much of our life at work, so we must take action to improve the well-being of our work environment. Start a conversation over lunch or coffee with a friend. Become a wellness champion and motivate others to improve their well-being.
8. Learn something new. The brain is most aware of its surroundings when it is learning something new. So discover something you may be interested in and look for a book or video or webchat about the topic and immerse yourself in it for an hour or so. You never know, it may come in handy some day!
9. Make a budget and stick with it. SO much of our well-being depends on our financial stability. You need to transform your relationship with money. Money should not be controlling you. When it does, you make very bad decisions. Be realistic about what you can and cannot afford. Just because you have money, doesn’t mean you should spend it. And just because you don’t make much money, doesn’t mean you can’t feel financially secure. You have to be deliberate in your spending, and most of us truly don’t understand how to do this. Seek help.
Stop by www.deeprootshealing.org for your free Integrative Health and Wellness Assessment ™
