What’s Your Relationship to Support?

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Recently, I found myself feeling incredibly overwhelmed, you know that feeling when you don’t want to get up? It was weird, because I truly am so excited of all the great things in my life, I feel grateful, encouraged, and surrounded by lots of support. I was also processing grief over losing my dad and trying to manage all the plates spinning that I had put on hold for a season to take care of him. It wasn’t even pressure that I was feeling, it was more a feeling of being a bit lost and surrounded by the life that I’ve built, yet not knowing what the next step should be.

Have you ever felt this way? Confused that you are feeling lost in all the things?

It really made me feel like I was going through the motions and not actually experiencing my life.

It wasn’t long before I started to pile on self judgements…
I should be able to handle this…
What do I tell my clients when they are overwhelmed…?
I can find the answer, I can look up new tools…
Read the book…

But wait, is it just my interpretation that I have the facts and the tools that I need to feel better, be better, and do better?

Well, after getting into some reflection and prayer, and just sitting in the sun on my back porch and allowing myself to settle, I realized that while I have supportive people and tools all around me, I was only relying on myself to come up with the plan. Exactly what I hope to be for others, I needed too.

After beginning to have an open heart and mind to share my need for support the doors all began opening.

In a window of a couple of days I met an accountability partner that helped me to get back on track with my eating habits. Those are always the first to go for me when stress shows up.

Then, I joined a running group that supported my exercise and joy of being in nature learning new techniques. I also know that running keeps me more mindful of my eating since I know how I’ll feel the next day on the trail!

I reached out to my family to share the new roles that we need to take on for mom now and let them share in that privilege. We were never meant to take on the world alone, and the vulnerability of accepting help can be a forever bond with another who is able to support.

Through this challenge, I have uncovered that my relationship to support is often to try and muscle my own way through a hard time, instead of reaching out and up for support. Sometimes it’s easy to mistake information and opinions on social media and the internet for actual support that comes from another human being!

So, here’s my invitation to you… what is an area of overwhelm for you that you might get curious about support?

ALMOST EVERYTHING WILL WORK AGAIN IF YOU UNPLUG IT FOR A FEW MINUTES…

INCLUDING YOU!

 

5 Nutrition Brain Health Tips for Parents

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Your brain is a garden, the greatest garden you could ever grow. It needs fertilizer, irrigation, pest control, and the weeds (toxic thoughts) need to be replaced with positive ones. The brain is most affected by what you eat. It is the sickest organ in the body, more than the heart.

The fat in the brain gets wear and tear and oxidizes, but the good news is that fruits and veggies protect it with antioxidants!

We need to eat 10 fistfuls per day!

Tips for healthy brains

  1. Help the brain make its own medicine – Eat more fruits, veggies, and seafood. Shakes are a great way to increase the number of plants and you can even pulverize and disguise some too. This is wonderful fertilizer for your garden.
  2. Go outside and play – Movement keeps blood vessels open so that neurotransmitters and personal medicines can be made. This helps the irrigation system of your brain garden.
  3. Smart Supplements – Look for a nutrition label, not supplement facts one. I recommend Juice Plus+ because it is supported by so much science, even SiRi says it’s the most researched nutritional supplement in the world! Kids eat free with an adult through the
    Healthy Starts for Families program.
  4. Cook together – A fun creative outlet that supports a lifetime of healthy habits. Mindfulness is fostered too because you must be patient with cooking, and you enjoy what you create together. This is a great way to grow new tastebuds and kids are more likely to eat what they have a hand in making.
  5. Attitude of gratitude – Enjoy taking turns at the dinner table, or on the way to school, to share something that you are each grateful for. This has been shown to grow the happy center of the brain and helps to clean out the weeds in our garden so that the healthy tissue can grow.

Best of Health!