Category: Uncategorized
-
How a Chronic Illness Changed My Life for the Better
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” ~Viktor Frankl I smiled when the doctor told me I had a disease I would carry for the rest of my life. He was calling with my biopsy results, and the word he used was “Crohn’s.” I had no…
-
Why It’s So Hard to Just Rest and Why We Need to Do It
“If you don’t give your mind and body a break, you’ll break. Stop pushing yourself through pain and exhaustion and take care of your needs.” ~Lori Deschene In November of 2021, my autoimmune issues flared up. My doctor and I are still unsure which of my conditions—rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia—was the culprit, or if they…
-
The Day I Realized Love Couldn’t Save Someone
“When it comes down to it, that’s what life is all about: showing up for the people you love, again and again, until you can’t show up anymore.” ~Rebecca Walker The first time my dad admitted he was scared, I felt something shift inside me. Not uncomfortable. Not worried. Scared. He had recently been diagnosed…
-
The Most Helpful Thing Someone Did During My Panic Attack
“Better than a thousand useless words is one useful word, upon hearing which one attains peace.” ~Buddha, Dhammapada Did he just cut the side of my head open? Am I bleeding out everywhere? Is there blood rushing down my face and onto the floor? It was the middle of my standard biweekly haircut when my…
-
How I Learned to Be More Present Without Meditating
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh A few years ago, I moved to a new country with two children under two. The idea had felt exciting at first—a fresh start, a new place, a life by the sea. But excitement fades quickly…
-
Healing Is Happening Even When You Can’t See It
“One never notices what has been done; one can only see what remains to be done.” ~Marie Curie I almost didn’t go to my cousin’s wedding. Not because I didn’t want to celebrate her. I did. But the thought of walking into a room full of people who knew the version of me from two…
-
The Best Thing to Say to Someone Who Won’t Try to Understand You
“True love is born from understanding.” ~Buddha I believe one of our strongest desires in life is to feel understood. We want to know that people see our good intentions and not only get where we’re coming from but get us. We want to know they see us. They recognize the thoughts, feelings, and struggles…
-
Sometimes Love Needs to Move
“It may be that when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work, and when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey.” ~Wendell Berry I was watching television one night when something on the screen made me set everything aside and go…
-
The 7 Types of Overthinking That Drain Your Energy
Many years ago, I clearly remember celebrating a strange victory. I had only spent one day overthinking a problem. I was triggered by the end of another situationship. I could feel them pulling away. Something had changed, but I didn’t have the answers. I was stuck in that painful limbo space. For that day, I…
-
Why I Stopped Expecting People to Love Me Like I Love Them
“Expectation is the root of all heartache.” ~William Shakespeare I turned forty this year. And I am only now figuring out something I wish someone had told me at twenty. Most of my pain—the kind that sat in my chest for days, the kind that made me replay conversations at 2 a.m., the kind that…