Summer of Self-Care: Giving Yourself Permission to Say Yes

Ahhh, Summer. Do you imagine lazy nights in the backyard watching the fireflies and sipping a glass of wine?

Or maybe you're imagining yourself in you chair on a beach, hiking in the mountains or any other activity that relaxes your body, mind and soul!

And then reality hits. 

The kids have a million things they need to be taken to.

Something happens at work that requires added time and energy. 

Your romantic relationship blows up. 

Your mom falls and can’t get up so you end up caring for her or making all the arrangements for her to be cared for. 

Life happens. 

It’s easy to let it rob us of time, money and even the energy to invest in our own self-care. 

What do you do? 

I know we can’t ignore life. 

Yet, when something is a priority, it seems to get done and everything else falls into place, or doesn’t happen and it ends up being okay. 

You know how it is right before you leave on vacation? Things get extra busy those last few days, yet, you get packed and get on the airplane or load the car and leave for the road trip! Because you prioritized it! 

I’m curious? What’s the hardest part of self-care to prioritize when life throws a ton of stuff at you? Is it your sleep? Movement? How you eat/drink? Maybe you cancel your massage, acupuncture and coaching appointments. Hit reply and share it with me!

There’s no need to judge or criticize yourself. Simply notice how you stopped prioritizing your own self-care and make adjustments. Give yourself permission to take care of yourself, no matter what! You aren’t going for perfection. Every moment and every bit of energy you devote to yourself will pay off 10-fold!

Have you ever gotten yourself into a pickle?

I love that southern expression, "I'm in a real pickle!" 

You might be in a pickle if you wreck your car, lose your job, your bank account drops dangerously low, you just broke up with you boyfriend/girlfriend, are getting divorced, or any number of things that suck. 

Here's the deal. 

It's easy to get self-critical and judgmental when we're in a pickle. 

"Why didn't I see that coming?" 

"Why didn't I do something different along the way?" 

"I always mess up my _________ (fill in the blank with your favorite answer; job, relationship, finances, etc.)"

"I must have done something wrong or this wouldn't have happened." (My personal favorite.)

I was coaching a client recently who said one of these to me about her life. As always, it stops me dead in my tracks. 

I mean, do we really think it's possible to do everything right so we never get in a pickle? 

I don't want to burst your bubble, but it's not possible. 

And...you didn't do anything wrong and you don't alway screw-up anything. Sure, we have patterns and lessons to learn. That's fine. Those thoughts aren't as stressful as the ones I'm talking about.

The thoughts I'm talking about are the ones that cut you to your core. That judge you and leave you feeling in lack, or less than, or not good enough. Those thoughts are always a lie. 

You are a gorgeous human being. Human beings are not perfect. Humans beings live in a world that isn't perfect. That means....

Sometimes, you get in a pickle. And that's okay. Don't judge yourself. Learn your lesson, if there is one, and move on. Love yourself enough to know, there will always be another pickle. It's part of the journey. 

Live Lavishly Light Episode #28

Are you tired? Stressed? Tired of putting off what's important to you? 

Today's Live Lavishly Light Episode is for you! Learn how the stress hormone, cortisol, is literally killing us, while the happiness and pleasure hormone, serotonin, will bring you health, productivity and creativity. 

Make pleasure a priority! I've got a new program, Pleasure Power, coming. You can find out more about it here.  

Live Lavishly Light Episode #5

Do you believe in infinite possibilities? 

It sounds good, but is it true? And if it is true, how do we find them? 
 

I don't know about you, but I can have a hard time finding infinite possibilities, especially at a busy time of year like this. It's easy to think in polarities. This or that. Yes or no. 

Do you find yourself saying that you 'have' to do something?  You feel like there aren't options. Let alone the option to say no to something. 

In today's Live Lavishly Light Episode I show you how to find your way to infinite possibilities, including saying no to something. Join me and cultivate some infinite possibility awareness. 

To get the guided meditation I mention in the video, click here.