I promised to tell you a bit about my personal journey.

In September of 2021, I recognized a bit of a listless quality to life. Not depression, per say. I was simply going through the motions and slowly losing my spark. Languishing. Sliding. Wanting to feel strong and yet continually feeling a little “less” day by day.

Ever been there?

You’re still achieving things and accomplishing what needs to be accomplished. You laugh and have quirky and joyfully emotional moments and yet…you feel yourself slowly sliding. You make sure self-care is part of your efforts to improve and yet you find you’re ever so slightly less energetic than the day before. Maybe, one day you realize the technicolor today is drastically different than it was several months ago and you’re surprised at the difference. You may ask how and when it happened. Maybe you blame it on the current state of things… the constant low pressure cooker we’re all in.

In an effort to own my shit, I asked my guides to help me out. What did I need? How could I help myself pull out of the slow descent I was in? They answered: I needed a break. I took a hard look at what responsibility I could remove from my shoulders. Business, work, spouse, family, planning, daily tasks and needs, the basics of life. How could I carve out more ME time? What did I need to change? 

I felt like I was grasping at straws. I heard myself repeating the excuses we all verbalize (or mentally think and avoid verbalizing because we know someone will contradict us). I justified how each area needed me. How I couldn’t pull back here or there because then I wasn’t achieving this or that. I began prioritizing everyone and everything else saying I just couldn’t step away or pull back. There was this all or nothing feel to it and I had stubbornly set my mind to the impossibility of my challenge.

Sound familiar? Yeah…even I do it. I get tired. I get discouraged. I need that extra boost and nudge just like the next person.

That’s why I encourage us all to keep working at it. I’m encouraging and reminding myself as much as I’m reminding you. One action doesn’t fix the problem. It takes repeated conscious and intentional choices. Taking a short break may help you feel fabulous and boosted. And then again a short break may not even touch the issues or affect the downslide happening. In September I realized the short break and continued self-care was not enough. I needed a longer reset and I was the only one who could prioritize me. Everyone else was trying to support and encourage and yet I had to be the one to give myself permission to stop. Breathe. Step back and re-evaluate.

So we had a group meeting. If I was going to continue on the path of helping others I needed to help me first and we needed to discuss how to make that happen. Musings poured out of me and I set the intention of a super scaled-back-in-responsibilities October through December.

Time to enjoy some pottery, a bit of travel, and family. Seize the opportunity when inspiration strikes to play, nap, throw a party, and enjoy this amazing world around me.

This story will continue over the next couple of weeks and while there are ups and downs, I promise I took (and am still taking) care of myself and practice exactly what I preach 🙂